• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.28 no.12
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• pp.2141-2144
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• 2018

Based on previous studies reporting the anti-prion activity of poly-${\text\tiny{L}}$-lysine and poly-${\text\tiny{L}}$-arginine, we investigated cationic poly-${\text\tiny{L}}$-ornithine (PLO), poly-${\text\tiny{L}}$-histidine (PLH), anionic poly-${\text\tiny{L}}$-glutamic acid (PLE) and uncharged poly-${\text\tiny{L}}$-threonine (PLT) in cultured cells chronically infected by prions to determine their anti-prion efficacy. While PLE and PLT did not alter the level of $PrP^{Sc}$, PLO and PLH exhibited potent $PrP^{Sc}$ inhibition in ScN2a cells. These results suggest that the anti-prion activity of poly-basic amino acids is correlated with the cationicity of their functional groups. Comparison of anti-prion activity of PLO and PLH proposes that the anti-prion activity of poly-basic amino acids is associated with their acidic cellular compartments.

• Polymer(Korea)
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• v.37 no.1
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• pp.94-99
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• 2013

Polydiacetylene (PDA) is made by photopolymerization of self-assembled diacetylene monomers. If diacetylene monomers are arranged systematically and close enough with distance of atoms, 1,4-addition polymerization will occur by the irradiation of 254 nm ultraviolet rays and then PDA will have alternated ene-yne polymer chains at the main structure. Aqueous solutions of diffused PDA is tinged with blue which shows ${\lambda}_{max}$ 640 nm. Visible color changes from blue to red occurs in response to a variety of environmental perturbations, such as temperature, pH, and ligand-receptor interactions. In this study, we synthesized cationic peptides - PCDA(10,12-pentacosadyinoic acid) liposome using a solid phase peptide synthesis (SPPS) method and prepared liposome solutions at various molar ratios using MPEG-PCDA. When mammalian cells were treated with the liposomes, high transfection efficiency and low toxicity were observed.

• Membrane Journal
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• v.13 no.2
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• pp.125-129
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• 2003

A remarkable separation performance of olefin/paraffin mixtures has been observed through facilitated olefin transport membranes consisting of silver ions dissolved in polymer matrices. In this research, valine, an amino acid, was introduced in poly (2-ethyl-2-oxazoline) (POZ)/$AgBF_4$ membranes to increase the separation performance. FT-IR spectra show that the cationic sites ($-NH_3^+$) of valine interact with the counter anion of the silver salt, resulting in the enhanced activity of the silver ions and consequently improved separation perfornance. Therefore, the $POZ/AgBF_4$ membranes containing valines exhibit the higher permeance as well as the higher selectivity of propylene/propane than those without valine.

• Bulletin of the Korean Chemical Society
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• v.32 no.2
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• pp.651-655
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• 2011

We synthesized a novel cationic dendrimer consisting of a poly(amidoamine) dendrimer (PAMAM, generation 4) backbone with both L-arginine (Arg) at the termini and 6-aminohexanoic acid (Ahx) between the original core polymer and the peripheral Arg units. The sequential chemical modification of PAMAM G4 with Ahx and Arg resulted in higher transfection efficiency with much less cytotoxicity. PAMAM G4-Ahx-Arg formed stable polyplexes at weight ratios of 8:1 or higher (polymer: plasmid DNA), and the mean polyplex diameter was $180{\pm}20nm$. PAMAM G4-Ahx-Arg showed much higher transfection ability than PAMAM G4 or PAMAM G4-Ahx. Furthermore, PAMAM G4-Ahx-Arg was much less cytotoxic than PEI25KD and PAMAM G4-Arg. In addition to Arg grafting of the PAMAM dendrimer, which endows a higher transfection capability, the addition of Ahx spacer increased dendrimer hydrophobicity, introduced flexibility into the conjugated amino acids, and reduced cytotoxicity. Overall, it appears that the concomitant modification of PAMAM with Ahx and Arg could lead to new PAMAM conjugates with better performances.