• Korean Membrane Journal
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• v.6 no.1
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• pp.37-43
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• 2004

Comb-type graft hydrogels composed of alginate and poly(N-isopropylacrylamide) (PNIPAAm) were prepared to manifest rapid temperature and pH sensitivity. To appear the electro-sensitivity, the polyaniline, conducting polymer, was added into the matrix. The swelling kinetics and ratios were compared under the various compositions of polyaniline. The swelling behaviors revealed that conducting polymer/hydrogel composites could control the swelling ratio and kinetics. The addition of polyaniline in the matrix improved the thermal stability in comparison with that of the hydrogel without polyaniline. In temperature sensitivity, the adding the polyaniline into the matrix decreased the degree of change in the swelling ratio. The swelling ratios continuously increased with increasing pH values. The drug release rate from the hydrogel increased with the adding the polyaniline and the applying the direct voltage to the hydrogels.

• Polymer(Korea)
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• v.31 no.4
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• pp.349-355
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• 2007

Poly(N-isopropylacrylamide-co-acrylonitrile) [P(NIPAAm-co-AN)] copolymers with AN content of up to 10 mol% and their hydrogels were synthesized using water as a reaction medium, and the effects of AN unit incorporation on the critical gel transition temperature(CGTT) and swelling behaviors of the hydrogels were investigated. The CGTT of the copolymer hydrogel was $30{\sim}32\;^{\circ}C$, decreasing with increasing AN content. Below CGTT, swelling rate and equilibrium swelling ratio of the copolymer hydrogel decreased with increasing AN content. On the other hand, it exhibited faster deswelling and lower equilibrium deswelling ratio with increasing AN content above CGTT.

• ETRI Journal
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• v.29 no.5
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• pp.667-669
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• 2007

This letter presents a smart integrated microfluidic device which can be applied to actively immobilize proteins on demand. The active component in the device is a temperature-controllable microelectrode array with a smart polymer film, poly(N-isopropylacrylamide) (PNIPAAm) which can be thermally switched between hydrophilic and hydrophobic states. It is integrated into a micro hot diaphragm having an integrated micro heater and temperature sensors on a 2-micrometer-thick silicon oxide/silicon nitride/silicon oxide (O/N/O) template. Only 36 mW is required to heat the large template area of 2 mm${\times}$16 mm to $40^{\circ}C$ within 1 second. To relay the stimulus-response activity to the microelectrode surface, the interface is modified with a smart polymer. For a model biomolecular affinity test, an anti-6-(2, 4-dinitrophenyl) aminohexanoic acid (DNP) antibody protein immobilization on the microelectrodes is demonstrated by fluorescence patterns.

• Macromolecular Research
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• v.11 no.1
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• pp.2-8
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• 2003

The self-assembly of polymers can lead to supramolecular systems and is related to the their functions of material and life sciences. In this article, self-assembly of Langmuir-Blodgett (LB) films, polymer micelles, and polymeric nanoparticles, and their biomedical applications are described. LB surfaces with a well-ordered and layered structure adhered more cells including platelet, hepatocyte, and fibroblast than the cast surfaces with microphase-separated domains. Extensive morphologic changes were observed in LB surface-adhered cells compared to the cast films. Amphiphilic block copolymers, consisting of poly(${\gamma}$-benzyl L-glutamate) (PBLG) as the hydrophobic part and poly(ethylene oxide) (PEO) [or poly(N-isopropylacrylamide) (PNIPAAm)] as the hydrophilic one, can self-assemble in water to form nanoparticles presumed to be composed of the hydrophilic shell and hydrophobic core. The release characteristics of hydrophobic drugs from these polymeric nanoparticles were dependent on the drug loading contents and chain length of the hydrophobic part of the copolymers. Achiral hydrophobic merocyanine dyes (MDs) were self-assembled in copolymeric nanoparticles, which provided a chiral microenvironment as red-shifted aggregates, and the circular dichroism (CD) of MD was induced in the self-assembled copolymeric nanoparticles.

• Polymer(Korea)
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• v.25 no.2
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• pp.186-198
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• 2001

pH/Thermal sensitive copolymers with the various acidic comonomer compositions composed of N-isopropylacrylamide (NIPAAm) with acrylic acid (AAc), 2-acrylamido glycolic acid (AAmGAc), and 2-acrylamido-2-methyl-1-propanesulfonic acid (AMPS) were synthesized by free radial polymerization. In this study, to characterize the effect of different acidic comonomer composition and pH on the lower critical solution temperature (LCST) behaviors of their copolymers. phase transition experiments were performed with a thermo-optical analyzer (TOA). The phase transition temperature (T$^{p}$ ) of aqueous poly(NIPAAm-co-AAc) solution was lowered with increasing the ionization of the acid group in AAc, that is, the ionized state induced the electrostatic repulsion of ionized groups. In contrast, when AAmGAc was introduced into PNIPAAm, T$^{p}$ was little changed at pH 1-3, whereas climbed up significantly from pH 1 to pH 3. In the range of pH 6-10, Tp was lower than that of pH 3-5. This result was considered to be \"Ionic Screen Effect\" and this effect had been also observed in the case of poly(NIPAAm-co-AMPS).-co-AMPS).