Spontaneous condensation in DNA-polystyrene- b-poly(l-lysine) polyelectrolyte block copolymer mixtures |
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| Authors: | V Castelletto I W Hamley S L H Kerstens S Deacon C D Thomas A Lübbert H -A Klok |
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| Institution: | (1) School of Chemistry, The University of Reading, P.O. Box 224, RG6 6AD Whiteknights, Reading, UK;(2) Procter Department of Food Science, University of Leeds, LS2 9JT Leeds, UK;(3) Research Institute of Molecular & Cell Biology, Faculty of Biological Sciences, University of Leeds, LS2 9JT Leeds, UK;(4) Max Planck Institute for Polymer Research, Ackermannweg 10, D-55128 Mainz, Germany;(5) Institut des Matériaux, Laboratoire des Polymères, école Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), Batiment MX-D, CH-1015 Lausanne, Switzerland |
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| Abstract: | We investigated the condensation of calf thymus DNA by amphiphilic polystyrenem-b-poly(l-lysine)n block copolymers ( PSm-b- PLysn, m, n = degree of polymerization), using small-angle X-ray scattering, polarized optical microscopy and laser scanning confocal
microscopy. Microscopy studies showed that the DNA condenses in the form of fibrillar precipitates, with an irregular structure,
due to electrostatic interactions between PLys and DNA. This is not modified by the presence of hydrophobic PS block. Scattering
experiments show that the structure of the polyplexes corresponds to a local order of DNA rods which becomes more compact
upon increasing n. It can be concluded that for DNA/ PSm-b- PLysn polyplexes, the balance between the PLys block length and the excess charge in the system plays an essential role in the
formation of a liquid crystalline phase. |
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| Keywords: | 61 10 Eq X-ray scattering (including small-angle scattering) 61 41 +e Polymers elastomers and plastics |
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