Zwitterionic Interfaces: Concepts and Emerging Applications Special Issue.

Abstract

We are pleased to present this special issue of Langmuir titled “Zwitterionic Interfaces: Concepts and Emerging Applications”. The engineering of materials with zwitterionic interfaces has emerged as a highly effective and increasingly adopted strategy, particularly in the production of biocompatible and environmentally benign materials with nonfouling properties at the interfaces between materials and biological environments. This approach is motivated by biology, in particular, by the presence of zwitterionic or alternating-charged groups on cell membranes and protein surfaces. Recent advances have significant implications in fields including biomaterials, biosensors, medical devices, tissue scaffolds, drug carriers, membranes, and marine coatings. Langmuir authors have made important and timely contributions to this field in the past, and we would like to highlight that through this special issue featuring impactful new articles. We took inspiration for this issue, in part, from the Third International Conference on Bioinspired and Zwitterionic Materials (ICBZM 2017) held in Tokyo, Japan, October 18–20, 2017 and organized by Professors Kazuhiko Ishihara and Yasuhiko Iwasaki, two of the guest co-editors for this special issue. This conference brings together people with common research interests in order to share updates on the latest research, exchange ideas, and establish collaborations. The conference highlighted some of the most important advances in the field of zwitterionic materials and interfaces, from fundamental research to practical applications. As such, we wanted to bring this concept to Langmuir and feature a broad cross section of research in the field. Therefore, we extended an invitation to submit manuscripts to this special issue as an open call for papers. This special issue consists of both feature articles and primary research articles. These articles summarize past achievements and highlight the latest developments, present areas of future promise, and potential challenges. We thank all who contributed their articles for this issue as well as the Langmuir editorial office and ACS Publications for their assistance with and support in the preparation and publication of this special issue. We hope that this special issue inspires new ideas and new directions in this field. The authors declare no competing financial interest.