Photodynamic therapy (PDT) uses the combination of non-toxic dyes and harmless visible light to produce reactive oxygen species that can kill cancer cells and infectious microorganisms. Due to the tendency of most photosensitizers (PS) to be poorly soluble and to form nonphotoactive aggregates, drug-delivery vehicles have become of high importance. The nanotechnology revolution has provided man...

We examined the synthesis and characterization of polymer micelle using polymerizable cationic gemini surfactant (surfmer). Here, cationic gemini surfmer (GS) was newly synthesized and characterized. Also, a “monomer”-type surfmer (MS) was synthesized and characterized for comparison. The equilibrium properties in water and in the presence of 0.1 M NaBr were investigated by means of surface ten...

been characterized quite well using a variety of techniques individually and in combination over the last decade. Interest in these surfactant systems stems from a broad application base. These surfactant systems, or “detergents” have found application in oil recovery due to enhanced solubility, higher cloud points, and lower Krafft points than the corresponding pure surfactant in solution. The...

BACKGROUND Oxidized low-density lipoprotein plays a key role in the initiation, progression, and destabilization of atherosclerotic plaques and is present in macrophages and the lipid pool. The aim of this study was to assess the feasibility of magnetic resonance imaging of atherosclerotic lesions in mice using micelles containing gadolinium and murine (MDA2 and E06) or human (IK17) antibodies ...

The structures of micelles of the surfactant polysorbate 80 (Tween 80) in 0-50% aqueous dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO) solutions (pH 7.2, ionic strength 2.44 mM) were investigated by means of small-angle X-ray scattering. At DMSO concentrations of 0-20%, core-shell cylinder micelles formed, and at 30-50% DMSO, core-shell discus micelles formed, that is, changing the hydrophobicity of the DMSO solven...

G protein-coupled receptors (GPCRs) are the largest class of pharmaceutical protein targets, yet drug development is encumbered by a lack of information about their molecular structure and conformational dynamics. Most mechanistic and structural studies as well as in vitro drug screening with purified receptors require detergent solubilization of the GPCR, but typically, these proteins exhibit ...