Raft polymerization of N,N‐dimethylacrylamide from magnetic poly(2‐hydroxyethyl methacrylate) microspheres to suppress nonspecific protein adsorption

Nonspecific interaction is a key parameter affecting the efficiency of proteins, nucleic acids or cell separation. Currently, many approaches to introduce antifouling properties to materials have been developed. Among these, surface modification with polymer brushes plays a prominent role. The aim of this study was to synthesize new magnetic microspheres grafted with poly(N,N‐dimethylacrylamide) (PDMA) that resist nonspecific protein adsorption. Monodisperse macroporous poly(2‐hydroxyethyl methacrylate) (PHEMA) microspheres, 4 μm in size, were synthesized by a multiple swelling polymerization method. To render the microspheres magnetic, iron oxide was precipitated inside the microsphere pores. Functional carboxyl groups, introduced by the hydrolysis of the 2‐(methacryloyl)oxyethyl acetate (HEMA‐Ac) comonomer, were used to react with propargylamine, followed by coupling of a chain transfer agent via an azide‐alkyne click reaction. PDMA was grafted from the PHEMA microspheres using reversible addition‐fragmentation chain transfer polymerization (RAFT), resulting in surfaces with more than 81 wt % PDMA attached. The successful modification of the microspheres was confirmed by XPS. The magnetic microspheres grafted with PDMA showed excellent antifouling properties as tested in bovine serum protein solutions. © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Polym. Sci., Part A: Polym. Chem. 2016 , 54, 1036–1043     

Magnetic poly(2‐hydroxyethyl methacrylate‐co‐ethylene dimethacrylate) microspheres by dispersion polymerization

Crosslinked poly(2‐hydroxyethyl methacrylate)‐based magnetic microspheres were prepared in a simple one‐step procedure by dispersion polymerization in the presence of several kinds of iron oxides. Cellulose acetate butyrate and dibenzoyl peroxide were used as steric stabilizer and polymerization initiator, respectively, and ethylene dimethacrylate was a crosslinking agent. The resulting product was characterized in terms of particle size, particle size distribution, iron(III) content, and magnetic properties. In the presence of needle‐like maghemite in the polymerization mixture and under suitable conditions, magnetic microspheres with relatively narrow size distribution were formed. An increase in the particle size and, at the same time, a decrease in molecular weight of uncrosslinked polymers resulted, as the continuous phase became richer in 2‐methylpropan‐1‐ol. Coercive force of needle‐like maghemite‐containing particles was higher than that of cubic magnetite‐loaded microspheres. Coercive force increased with the decreasing iron content in the particles. © 2000 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. J Polym Sci A: Polym Chem 38: 1161–1171, 2000     

Synthesis of polymeric microspheres from a Merrifield resin by surface‐initiated nitroxide‐mediated radical polymerization

Polymeric microspheres were prepared from a Merrifield resin via nitroxide‐mediated radical polymerization. Polystyrene, poly(acetoxystyrene), and poly[styrene‐b‐(methyl methacrylate‐co‐styrene)], poly(acetoxystyrene‐b‐styrene), and poly(styrene‐co‐2‐hydroxyethyl methacrylate) copolymers were demonstrated to graft onto 2,2,6,6‐tetramethyl‐1‐piperidinyloxy nitroxide bound Merrifield resins. The polymerization control was enhanced both on the surface and in solution by the addition of sacrificial nitroxide. The significant increase in the particle diameter (more than a fivefold volume increase for polystyrene brushes) showed that polymer growth was not only on the surface but also within the particles, and this diameter increase could be adjusted through changes in the molecular weight of the polymers. The microspheres were characterized by elemental analysis, IR spectroscopy, particle size analysis, and optical microscopy. © 2005 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem 43: 2145–2154, 2005     

Surface molecularly imprinted magnetic microspheres for the recognition of albumin

A new approach, combining metal coordination with the molecular imprinting technique, was developed to prepare affinity materials. Magnetic poly(glycidyl methacrylate) microspheres in monosize form were used for specific recognition toward the target protein. The magnetic poly(glycidyl methacrylate) microspheres were prepared by dispersion polymerization in the presence of magnetite nanopowder. Surface imprinted magnetic poly(glycidyl methacrylate) microspheres based on metal coordination were prepared and used for the selective recognition of human serum albumin. Iminodiacetic acid was used as the metal coordinating agent and human serum albumin was anchored by Cu²⁺ ions on the surface of magnetic poly(glycidyl methacrylate) microspheres by metal coordination. The magnetic poly(glycidyl methacrylate) microspheres were coated with a polymer formed by condensation of tetraethyl orthosilicate and 3‐aminopropyltrimethoxysilane. The human serum albumin imprinted magnetic poly(glycidyl methacrylate) microspheres were characterized by scanning electron microscopy, attenuated total reflectance Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy and particle size analysis. The maximum adsorption capacity of human serum albumin imprinted magnetic poly(glycidyl methacrylate) microspheres was 37.7 mg/g polymer at pH 6.0. The selectivity experiments of human serum albumin imprinted magnetic poly(glycidyl methacrylate) microspheres prepared with different concentrations in the presence of lysozyme, bovine serum albumin and cytochrome C were performed in order to determine the relative selectivity coefficients.     

Further insight into the mechanism of poly(styrene‐co‐methyl methacrylate) microsphere formation

Polymeric microspheres have been used in a broad range of applications from chromatographic separation techniques to analysis of air flow over aerodynamic surfaces. The preparation of microspheres from many polymer families has consequently been extensively studied using a variety of synthetic approaches. Although there are a myriad of polymeric microsphere synthesis methods, free‐radical initiated emulsion polymerization is one of the most common techniques. In this work, poly(styrene‐co‐methyl methacrylate) microspheres were synthesized via surfactant‐free emulsion polymerization. The effects of co‐monomer composition and addition time on particle size distribution, particle formation, and particle morphology were investigated. Particles were characterized using dynamic light scattering and scanning electron microscopy to gain further insight into particle size and size distributions. Reaction kinetics were analyzed through consideration of characterization results. A particle formation mechanism for poly(styrene‐co‐methyl methacrylate) microspheres was proposed based on characterization results and known reaction kinetics. © 2017 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Polym. Sci., Part A: Polym. Chem. 2017 , 55, 2249–2259     

Fabrication of glucose‐derived carbon‐decorated magnetic microspheres for extraction of bisphenols from water and tea drinks

Glucose‐derived carbon‐decorated magnetic microspheres were synthesized by an easy hydrothermal carbonization method and used as a high‐efficiency adsorbent to extract bisphenols in water and tea drinks. The as‐prepared carbon‐decorated magnetic microspheres had a well‐defined core–shell structure with a shell thickness of about 5 nm. The microspheres possessed high saturation magnetization at 60.8 emu/g and excellent chemical stability in aqueous solution. The experimental parameters affecting the extraction efficiency, including extraction time, pH, adsorbent dosage, desorption solvents, desorption time, and solution volume were evaluated. Electrostatic and π–π interactions were the major driving forces during extraction. Overall, a new magnetic solid‐phase extraction method of determining bisphenols was developed on the basis of as‐prepared magnetic microspheres. The method had a wide linear range, low limits of detection (0.03–0.10 µg/L), and high recoveries (85.4–104.6%).     

Temperature‐sensitive hydrogel microspheres formed by liquid–liquid phase transitions of aqueous solutions of poly(N,N‐dimethylacrylamide‐co‐allyl methacrylate)

Poly(N,N‐dimethylacrylamide‐co‐allyl methacrylate) (DMA‐co‐AMA) copolymers were prepared by the copolymerization of N,N‐dimethylacrylamide with allyl methacrylate (AMA). The methacryloyl group of AMA reacted preferentially, and this resulted in pendant allyl groups along the copolymer chains. Aqueous solutions of these DMA‐co‐AMA copolymers were thermoresponsive and showed liquid–liquid phase transitions at temperatures that depended on the AMA content. Hydrogel microspheres were prepared from these thermally phase‐separated liquid microdroplets by the free‐radical crosslinking of the pendant allyl groups. The morphologies of the resulting thermoresponsive microspheres as a function of the reaction temperature and the amount of the initiator were examined. © 2005 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem 43: 1641–1648, 2005     

One‐pot synthesis of composite microspheres with core‐shell structure

One‐pot synthesis of thermoresponsive magnetic composite microspheres with a poly(N‐isopropylacrylamide) (PNIPAM) shell and a Fe₃O₄ core is demonstrated. Temperature sensitivity of PNIPAM was adopted to design the novel synthesis pathway. The as‐prepared composite microspheres have an obvious core‐shell structure with a mean size of approximately 250 nm. The Fe₃O₄ core is approximately 5 nm and the thickness of the PNIPAM shell is approximately 10 nm. The content of Fe₃O₄ in the composite microspheres can be controlled by this method. The composite microspheres experience a swelling and shrinking process in water by adjusting the temperature below and above the lower critical solution temperature (LCST) around 32 °C. These microspheres also show fine response to an external magnetic field. This work presents a platform to synthesize organic/inorganic composite microspheres in a facile and efficient approach. © 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Polym. Sci., Part A: Polym. Chem. 2013, 51, 2702–2708     

Synthesis of microspheres with microphase‐separated shells

Novel structural microspheres of the Janus type, with microphase‐separated polystyrene (PS) and poly(tert‐butyl methacrylate) (PBMA) shells and crosslinked poly(2‐vinyl pyridine) (PVP) cores, were synthesized with the crosslinking of PVP spherical domains in poly(styrene‐block‐2‐vinyl pyridine‐block‐tert‐butyl methacrylate) ABC triblock terpolymer film with PS/PBMA lamellae–PVP spherical structures. For the formation of lamellae‐sphere structures, toluene, which was a selective solvent for the ABC triblock terpolymer, was used. With the crosslinking of PVP spheres in the microphase‐separated film with 1,4‐diiodobutane gas, the microphase structure of the terpolymer was fixed, and microspheres composed of microphase‐separated PS and PBMA shells and P2VP cores were obtained. The size distribution of the purified microspheres was narrow. The characteristics of the microspheres and their aggregation behaviors in selective solvents were investigated by transmission electron microscopy and light scattering methods. © 2000 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. J Polym Sci A: Polym Chem 38: 2091–2097, 2000     

Magnetic Silica‐Coated Sub‐Microspheres with Immobilized Metal Ions for the Selective Removal of Bovine Hemoglobin from Bovine Blood

Magnetic silica‐coated magnetite (Fe₃O₄) sub‐microspheres with immobilized metal‐affinity ligands are prepared for protein adsorption. First, magnetite sub‐microspheres were synthesized by a hydrothermal method. Then silica was coated on the surface of Fe₃O₄ particles using a sol–gel method to obtain magnetic silica sub‐microspheres with core‐shell morphology. Next, the trichloro(4‐chloromethylphenyl) silane was immobilized on them, reacted with iminodiacetic acid (IDA), and charged with Cu²⁺. The obtained magnetic silica sub‐microspheres with immobilized Cu²⁺ were applied for the absorption of bovine hemoglobin (BHb) and the removal of BHb from bovine blood. The size, morphology, and magnetic properties of the resulting magnetic micro(nano) spheres were investigated by using scanning microscopy (SEM), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), X‐ray diffraction (XRD), and a vibrating sample magnetometer (VSM). The measurements showed that the magnetic sub‐microspheres are spherical in shape, very uniform in size with a core‐shell, and are almost superparamagnetic. The saturation magnetization of silica‐coated magnetite (Fe₃O₄) sub‐microspheres reached about 33 emu g^?1. Protein adsorption results showed that the sub‐microspheres had a high adsorption capacity for BHb (418.6 mg g^?1), low nonspecific adsorption, and good removal of BHb from bovine blood. This opens a novel route for future applications in removing abundant proteins in proteomic analysis.     

Hydrophilic dual‐responsive magnetite/PMAA core/shell microspheres with high magnetic susceptibility and ph sensitivity via distillation‐precipitation polymerization

A facile and effective approach to preparation of dual‐responsive magnetic core/shell composite microspheres is reported. The magnetite(Fe₃O₄)/poly(methacrylic acid) (PMAA) composite microspheres were synthesized through encapsulating γ‐methacryloxypropyltrimethoxysilane (MPS)‐modified magnetite colloid nanocrystal clusters (MCNCs) with crosslinked PMAA shell. First, the 200‐nm‐sized MCNCs were fabricated through solvothermal reaction, and then the MCNCs were modified with MPS to form active vinyl groups on the surface of MCNCs, and finally, a pH‐responsive shell of PMAA was coated onto the surface of MCNCs by distillation‐precipitation polymerization. The transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and vibrating sample magnetometer characterization showed that the obtained composite microspheres had well‐defined core/shell structure and high saturation magnetization value (35 emu/g). The experimental results indicated that the thickness and degree of crosslinking of PMAA shell could be well‐controlled. The pH‐induced change in size exhibited by the core/shell microspheres reflected the PMAA shell contained large amount of carboxyl groups. The carboxyl groups and high saturation magnetization make these microspheres have a great potential in biomolecule separation and drug carriers. Moreover, we also demonstrated that other magnetic polymeric microspheres, such as Fe₃O₄/PAA, Fe₃O₄/PAM, and Fe₃O₄/PNIPAM, could be synthesized by this approach. © 2011 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem, 2011.     

Synthesis and characterization of spherical and hemispherical polyepoxide micrometer‐sized particles of narrow size distribution by a single‐step swelling of uniform polystyrene template microspheres with glycidyl methacrylate

Polystyrene template microspheres of narrow size distribution were prepared by dispersion polymerization of styrene in a mixture of ethanol and 2‐methoxy ethanol. Spherical and hemispherical polystyrene/poly(glycidyl methacrylate) microspheres of narrow size distribution were prepared by a single‐step swelling of the polystyrene template microspheres with the swelling solvent monomer glycidyl methacylate, followed by polymerization of the monomer within the swollen template microspheres at 73 °C. Uniform polystyrene/poly(glycidyl methacylate‐ethylene glycol dimethacrylate) polyepoxide composite microspheres were synthesized similarly, substituting glycidyl methacylate for glycidyl methacylate and ethylene glycol dimethacrylate. Uniform crosslinked poly(glycidyl methacylate‐ethylene glycol dimethacrylate) polyepoxide microspheres have been prepared by dissolution of the PS template polymer of the former composite microspheres. Particles with different properties, for example size, size distribution, shape, surface morphology, surface area, and so forth, were prepared by changing various parameters belonging to the swelling and/or polymerization steps, for example, volume of the swelling monomer/s and/or the swelling solvent dibutyl phthalate. © 2007 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem 45: 4612–4622, 2007     

Monodisperse superparamagnetic pH‐sensitive single‐layer chitosan hollow microspheres with controllable structure

Facile strategy was developed for the fabrication of the monodisperse superparamagnetic pH‐sensitive single‐layer chitosan (CS) hollow microspheres with controllable structure. The carboxyl group‐functionalized polystyrene microspheres prepared by soap‐free emulsion polymerization were used as the templates. After the Fe₃O₄ nanoparticles were in situ formed onto the surface of the templates, the single‐layer CS was self‐assembled and cross‐linked with glutaraldehyde subsequently. Then, the magnetic single‐layer CS hollow microspheres were obtained after the templates were removed. It was found that the feeding ratio of the monomer acrylic acid in the soap‐free emulsion polymerization had played an important role on the particle size and surface carboxyl group content of the templates, which determined the particle size and shell thickness of the magnetic single‐layer CS hollow microspheres in the proposed strategy. © 2010 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem, 2010     

Magnetic poly(N‐propargylacrylamide) microspheres: Preparation by precipitation polymerization and use in model click reactions

Magnetic poly(N‐propargylacrylamide) (PPRAAm) microspheres were prepared by the precipitation polymerization of N‐propargylacrylamide (PRAAm) in a toluene/propan‐2‐ol medium in the presence of magnetic nanoparticles (oleic acid‐coated Fe₃O₄). The effects of several polymerization parameters, including the polarity of the medium, polymerization temperature, the concentration of monomer, and the amount of magnetite (Fe₃O₄) in the polymerization feed, were examined. The microspheres were characterized in terms of their morphology, size, particle‐size distribution, and iron content using transmission and scanning electron microscopies (TEM and SEM) and atomic absorption spectroscopy (AAS). A medium polarity was identified in which magnetic particles with a narrow size distribution were formed. As expected, oleic acid‐coated Fe₃O₄ nanoparticles contributed to the stabilization of the polymerized magnetic microspheres. Alkyne groups in magnetic PPRAAm microspheres were detected by infrared spectroscopy. Magnetic PPRAAm microspheres were successfully used as the anchor to enable a “click” reaction with an azido‐end‐functionalized model peptide (radiolabeled azidopentanoyl‐GGGRGDSGGGY(¹²⁵I)‐NH₂) and 4‐azidophenylalanine using a Cu(I)‐catalyzed 1,3‐dipolar azide‐alkyne cycloaddition reaction in water. © 2011 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem, 2011.     

Preparation of phenyl‐functionalized magnetic mesoporous silica microspheres for the fast separation and selective enrichment of phenyl‐containing peptides

Peptide enrichment before mass spectrometry analysis is essential for large‐scale peptidomic studies, but challenges still remain. Herein, magnetic mesoporous silica microspheres with phenyl group modified interior pore walls were prepared by a facile sol–gel coating strategy, and were successfully applied for selective enrichment of phenyl‐containing peptides in complex biological samples. The newly prepared nanomaterials possessed abundant silanol groups in the exterior surface and numerous phenyl groups in the interior pore walls, as well as a large surface area (592.6 m²/g), large pore volume (0.33 cm³/g), uniform mesopores (3.8 nm), strong magnetic response (29.3 emu/g), and good dispersibility in aqueous solution. As a result of the unique structural properties and size‐exclusion effect, the core–shell phenyl‐functionalized magnetic mesoporous silica microspheres exhibited excellent performance in fast separation and selective enrichment of phenyl‐containing peptides, and the adsorption capacity for bradykinin reached 22.55 mg/g. In addition, selective enrichment of phenyl‐containing peptides from complex samples that are consist of peptides, large proteins, and human serum were achieved by using the as‐prepared microspheres, followed by high‐performance liquid chromatography with ultraviolet detection and electrospray ionization quadrupole time‐of‐flight mass spectrometry analysis. These results demonstrated the as‐prepared microspheres would be a potential candidate for endogenous phenyl‐containing peptides enrichment and biomarkers discovery in peptidome analysis.     

A facile,one‐step method for the determination of accessible surface primary amino groups on solid carriers

Amino‐functionalized microspheres are emerging as promising candidates for biomedical applications. Quantification of surface amino groups is of great significance to achieve a rational surface design and to facilitate subsequent bioconjugation. In this paper, we describe a facile method [named as subtractive 2‐iminothiolane (ITL)/bicinchnoninic acid (BCA) method] to determine the accessible surface primary amino groups using BCA and ITL on the basis of the rapid color reaction between ITL and BCA at ambient temperature. ITL was used to quantitatively label the surface amino groups, and the ITL consumed by the amino groups was determined by BCA in a solution reaction. The amino density of amino‐functionalized silica microspheres, polystyrene microspheres and magnetic microspheres were determined. The present method we proposed exhibits great simplicity (one‐step labeling and immediate detection without washing procedure) with high precision (standard error <5% for each concentration point of standards) and specificity. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Preparation of porous polylactide microspheres by emulsion‐solvent evaporation based on solution induced phase separation

Porous polylactide (PLA) microspheres were fabricated by an emulsion‐solvent evaporation method based on solution induced phase separation. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) observations confirmed the porous structure of the microspheres with good connectivity. The pore size was in the range of decade micrometers. Besides large cavities as similarly existed on non‐porous microspheres, small pores were found on surfaces of the porous microspheres. The apparent density of the porous microspheres was much smaller than that of non‐porous microspheres. Fabrication conditions such as stirring rate, good solvent/non‐solvent ratio, PLA concentration and dispersant (polyvinyl alcohol, PVA) concentration had an important influence on both the particle size and size distribution and the pore size within the microspheres. A larger pore size was achieved at a slower stirring rate, lower good solvent/non‐solvent ratio or lower PLA concentration due to longer coalescence time. Copyright © 2005 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Preparation of Thermosensitive Hollow Imprinted Microspheres via Combining Distillation Precipitation Polymerization and Thiol‐ene Click Chemistry

Hollow molecular imprinted polymer microspheres were prepared by distillation precipitation polymerization with (S)‐(+)‐ibuprofen (S‐IBF) as template molecule and acrylamide (AM) as functional monomer. Using the silicon dioxide (SiO₂, 180 nm) modified by 3‐(trimethoxysilyl)propyl methacrylate (MPS) as the template microspheres, the molecular imprinted shells were coated on successfully (SiO₂@MIPs). The thermosensitive SiO₂@MIPs‐PNIPAM core‐shell microspheres were subsequently prepared by grafting the PNIPAM chains (M_n=1.21×10⁴ g/mol, polydispersity index=1.30), which were prepared by reversible addition‐fragmentation chain transfer (RAFT) polymerization, on the surface of SiO₂@MIPs microspheres via the thiol‐ene click chemistry. The grafting density of PNIPAM brushes on the SiO₂@MIPs microspheres was about 0.18 chains/nm². After HF etching, the hollow imprinted microspheres were finally obtained. For thermosensitivity analysis, the phase transition temperatures of multifunctional nanoparticles were measured by DSL at 25°C and 45°C respectively, and the sizes of the microspheres changed by about 35 nm. The modified microspheres presented excellent controlled release property to S‐IBF, moreover about half amount of the adsorptions passed into acetonitrile‐water solution through the specific holes of imprinted shell at 25°C under vibration.     

Use of a new methacrylic monomer, 4,4′‐di(2‐hydroxy‐3‐methacryloyloxypropoxy)benzophenone,in the synthesis of porous microspheres

A new aromatic, tetrafunctional methacrylate monomer, 4,4′‐di(2‐hydroxy‐3‐methacryloyloxypropoxy)benzophenone, and its application to the synthesis of porous microspheres are presented. This new monomer was copolymerized with divinylbenzene in the presence of pore‐forming diluents. The properties of the obtained highly crosslinked microspheres were investigated as column packing for high‐performance liquid chromatography. Their porous structures in both dry and wet states were studied and compared with those of poly(divinylbenzene) and the less crosslinked copolymer of 2,3‐epoxypropyl methacrylate and divinylbenzene. © 2006 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem 44: 7014–7026, 2006