Synthesis Of Biomimetic Materials Research Articles

The Materials Science of Bone: Lessons from Nature for Biomimetic Materials Synthesis

AbstractThere has been considerable recent interest in natural bone as a material, due in part to its interesting combination of mechanical properties: bone is stiff and tough but lightweight. This unusual combination of properties results from a nanocomposite structure of approximately equal volumes of mineral and hydrated organic matter. Much recent effort has been focused on the structure, properties, and performance at different length scales relative to the hierarchical organization of bone. Historically, such bone research has emphasized clinical and medical aspects, including engineering materials for bone augmentation or replacement, bone–biomaterial interactions and interfaces, and more recently, scaffolds for bone tissue engineering. However, within the fast-growing biomimetics field, the bone extracellular matrix is taken as a model for materials development. Efforts have been made both to mimic the bony material itself as well as to mimic the process by which bone forms.

Stability of Chemically Crosslinked Microtubules

AbstractMicrotubules (MT) are dynamic protein-based polymers with numerous applications in materials science including the active transport of nanomaterials and as templates for biomimetic materials synthesis. Some of these applications require that the dynamic nature of the MT be suppressed, and in this report we will discuss the preparation and stability of chemically crosslinked microtubules (CLMTs). MT reaction with gluteraldehyde results in the formation of protein dimers and higher molecular weight oligimers as observed by gel electrophoresis, confirming the formation of covalent inter-protein linkages. While extensive crosslinking was found to destabilize MTs and inactivate them with regards to kinesin binding, moderate amounts of crosslinking lead to CLMTs that had functional lifetimes of at least twice that of uncrosslinked MTs. Further studies demonstrated that CLMTs exhibited a wider thermal stability window and were far more resistant to metal-ion induced depolymerization than uncrosslinked MTs.

Effect of Self‐Assembly of Sodium Acrylate on the Crystallization of Calcium Carbonate

AbstractBased on the primary principles of biomineralization, CaCO3 similar to that in biominerals was synthesized through biomimetic synthesis under the self‐assembly of sodium acrylate. In our experiment, the formation of the calcium carbonate and the polymerization of sodium acrylate took place simultaneously through the appropriate method. The result shows that the self‐assembly process of the sodium acrylate has an important effect on the crystallization and growth of the calcium carbonate. The result is significant for the mimetics of the biomineralization conditions and the research of biomimetic materials synthesis. SEM of crystal product A.magnified imageSEM of crystal product A.

Synthesis of CaCO3 Thin Films via a Bioinspired Strategy: Cooperative Template-Inhibition

Abstract Exquisite control over the morphology of inorganic materials is well demonstrated in biological mineralization. An elegant example is the mulluscan nacre, in which aragonite (a polymorph of calcium carbonate) forms as thin films of about 0.5|im thick between organic matrices as a result of an interplay between templating and inhibition (Figure 1). Not surprising, biomineralization has inspired many recent research efforts in biomimetic materials synthesis, especially the synthesis of inorganic thin films. The majority of these efforts have exclusively focused on exploring the promoting effect on mineral formation by templates. A major drawback of this approach is the lack of control over the mineral growth in the direction normal to the template, which often leads to the formation of discrete patches instead of a true film. In this report, we describe a strategy which takes advantage of the interplay between templating and inhibiting, as utilized by organisms, to synthesize macroscopic and continuous CaCO3 thin films.