In this manuscript we report the crosslinking of pre-existing macromolecules in solution through the use of photoactive benzophenone chromophores. We show that a bifunctional crosslinker composed of two benzophenone chromophores as well as a single benzophenone chromophore crosslink poly (butadiene) and poly (ethylene oxide) in solution to form insoluble gels when irradiated with UV light. The ...

Peptide amphiphiles (PAs) self-assemble into supramolecular nanofiber gels that provide a suitable environment for encapsulation of both hydrophobic and hydrophilic molecules. The PA gels have significant advantages for controlled delivery applications due to their high capacity to retain water, biocompatibility, and biodegradability. In this study, we demonstrate injectable supramolecular PA n...

Solutions and gels of the filamentous protein F-actin have not only been the subject of numerous recent biophysical studies, but have also proven to be quite fruitful model systems for fundamental polymer science. They are particularly good models of ‘semiflexible’ polymers, because they have an enormous ratio of persistence length to molecular diameter with characteristic mesh sizes of the ord...

Protein isolate was recovered from whole gutted fish using isoelectric solubilisation/precipitation (ISP). The objective was to determine chemical properties of heat-set gels made of the ISP protein isolate fortified with ω-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs)-rich oils (flaxseed, fish, algae, krill, and blend). The extent of the PUFAs increase, ω-6/ω-3 FAs and unsaturated/saturated FAs ratios...