Polyrotaxanes for applications in life science and biotechnology

Due to their low cytotoxicity, controllable size, and unique architecture, cyclodextrin (CD)-based polyrotaxanes and polypseudorotaxanes have inspired interesting exploitation as novel biomaterials. This review will update the recent progress in the studies on the structures of polyrotaxanes and polypseudorotaxanes based on different CDs and polymers, followed by summarizing their potential applications in life science and biotechnology, such as drug delivery, gene delivery, and tissue engineering. CD-based biodegradable polypseudorotaxane hydrogels could be used as promising injectable drug delivery systems for sustained and controlled drug release. Polyrotaxanes with drug or ligand-conjugated CDs threaded on polymer chain with biodegradable end group could be useful for controlled and multivalent targeting delivery. Cationic polyrotaxanes consisting of multiple oligoethylenimine-grafted CDs threaded on a block copolymer chain were attractive non-viral gene carries due to the strong DNA-binding ability, low cytotoxicity, and high gene transfection efficiency. Cytocleavable end caps were also introduced in the polyrotaxane systems in order to ensure efficient endosomal escape for intracellular trafficking of DNA. Finally, hydrolyzable polyrotaxane hydrogels with cross-linked α-CDs could be a desirable scaffold for cartilage and bone tissue engineering.     

Cross-linked polyethylenimine as potential DNA vector for gene delivery with high efficiency and low cytotoxicity

Polyethylenimine (PEI) has been known as an efficient gene carrier with the highest cationiccharge potential.High transfection efficiency of PEI,along with its cytotoxicity,strongly depends on itsmolecular weight.To enhance its gene delivery efficiency and minimize cytotoxicity,we have synthesizedsmall cross-linked PEI with biodegradable linkages and evaluated their transfection efficiencies in vitro.Inthis study,branched PEI with a molecular weight of 800 Da was cross-linked by small diacrylate[1,4-butanediol diacrylate or ethyleneglycol dimethacrylate (EGDMA)] for 2-6 h.The efficiencies of thecross-linked PEI in in vitro transfection of plasmid DNA containing enhanced green fluorescent protein(EGFP) reporter gene were assessed in melanoma B 16F10 cell line and other cell lines.Flow cytometrywas used to quantify the cellular entry efficiency of plasmid and the transgene expression level.Thecytotoxicities of the cross-linked PEI in these cells were evaluated by MTT assay.EGDMA-PEI 800-4h,atypical cross-linked PEI reported here,mediated a more efficient expression of reporter gene than thecommercially available 25-kDa branched PEI control,and resulted in a 9-fold increase in gene deliveryin B16F10 cells and a 16-fold increase in 293T cells,while no cytotoxicity was found at the optimizedcondition for gene delivery.Furthermore,the transfection activity of polyplexes was preserved in thepresence of serum proteins.     

Multi‐armed poly(L‐glutamic acid)‐graft‐oligoethylenimine copolymers as efficient nonviral gene delivery vectors

Background

The application of polyethylenimine (PEI) in gene delivery has been severely limited by significant cytotoxicity that results from a nondegradable methylene backbone and high cationic charge density. It is therefore necessary to develop novel biodegradable PEI derivates for low‐toxic, highly efficient gene delivery.

Methods

A series of novel cationic copolymers with various charge density were designed and synthesized by grafting different kinds of oligoethylenimine (OEI) onto a determinate multi‐armed poly(L ‐glutamic acid) backbone. The molecular structures of multi‐armed poly(L ‐glutamic acid)‐graft‐OEI (MP‐g‐OEI) copolymers were characterized using nuclear magnetic resonance, viscosimetry and gel permeation chromatography. Moreover, the MP‐g‐OEI/DNA complexes were measured by a gel retardation assay, dynamic light scattering and atomic force microscopy to determine DNA binding ability, particle size, zeta potential, complex formation and shape, respectively. MP‐g‐OEI copolymers were also evaluated in Chinese hamster ovary and human embryonic kidney‐293 cells for their cytotoxicity and transfection efficiency.

Results

The particle sizes of MP‐g‐OEI/DNA complexes were in a range of 109.6–182.6 nm and the zeta potentials were in a range of 29.2–44.5 mV above the N/P ratio of 5. All the MP‐g‐OEI copolymers exhibited lower cytotoxicity and higher gene transfection efficiency than PEI25k in the absence and presence of serum with different cell lines. Importantly, the 3‐(4,5‐dimethylthiazol‐2‐yl)‐2,5‐diphenyltetrazolium bromide assay revealed that the cytotoxicity of MP‐g‐OEI copolymers varied with their molecular weight and charge density, and two of MP‐g‐OEI copolymers (OEI600‐MP and OEI1800‐MP) could achieve optimal transfection efficiency at a similar low N/P ratio as that for PEI25k.

Conclusions

MP‐g‐OEI copolymers demonstrated considerable potential as nonviral vectors for gene therapy. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Supramolecular gene delivery vectors showing enhanced transgene expression and good biocompatibility

Soluble supramolecular inclusion complexes were formed by threading alpha-cyclodextrin (alpha-CD) molecules over poly(ethylene glycol) (PEG) and poly(epsilon-caprolactone) (PCL) chains of ternary block copolymers of PEG, PCL and polyethylenimine (PEI). Characteristic shifts of PCL absorptions in FTIR, (1)H NMR and UV spectra strongly suggest that alpha-CD is threaded over PEG and PCL blocks. Due to the reduced hydrophobic interaction between PCL blocks, the resulting supramolecular complexes displayed a dramatically increased solubility, in comparison with the ternary block copolymers. Their ability to complex DNA was almost as efficient as that of branched PEI 25 kDa, as shown in the ethidium bromide fluorescence quenching experiments. Resulting DNA polyplexes displayed a size of around 200 nm and a neutral surface charge. Microscopy studies in 3T3 fibroblasts revealed an efficient cellular uptake. Transfection efficiencies of inclusion complexes were in the same order of magnitude as PEI. In contrast to PEI a 100x lower toxicity was observed by MTT-assay, allowing the administration of nitrogen-to-phosphate ratios of up to 20. These new gene delivery systems merit further characterization under in vivo conditions.     

Acetylation of polyethylenimine enhances gene delivery via weakened polymer/DNA interactions

We previously reported that gene delivery efficiency of 25-kDa, branched polyethylenimine (PEI) increased upon acetylation of up to 43% of the primary amines with acetic anhydride. In the present work, we investigated the effects of further increasing the degree of acetylation and elucidated the source of the higher gene delivery efficiency. Despite reduced buffering capacity, gene delivery activity continued to increase (up to 58-fold in HEK293) with acetylation of up to 57% of primary amines but decreased at higher degrees of acetylation. Characterization of polymer-DNA interactions showed that acetylated polymers bind less strongly to DNA. Further, a fluorescence resonance energy transfer assay showed that increasing acetylation causes polyplexes to unpackage inside cells to a higher degree than polyplexes formed with unmodified PEI. Overall, the data suggest that the increased gene delivery activity may be attributable to an appropriate balance between polymer buffering capacity and strength of polymer/DNA interactions.     

Synthesis, characterization, and pH-triggered dethreading of alpha-cyclodextrin-poly(ethylene glycol) polyrotaxanes bearing cleavable endcaps

The synthesis, characterization, and degradation kinetics of three alpha-cyclodextrin (alpha-CD)-poly(ethylene glycol) (PEG) polyrotaxanes with endcaps that were installed using Cu(I)-catalyzed Huisgen cyclization is reported. PEG1500, azidated with azidoacetic acid, was threaded with alpha-CD to form a pseudopolyrotaxane that was then capped in up to 82% yield with three different substituents to provide polyrotaxanes that were either acid-, base-, or fluoride-sensitive. NMR, GPC, XRD, and AFM methods were used to characterize the polyrotaxanes. Dethreading rates upon exposure to mild deprotection conditions were monitored by turbidity analysis. The vinyl ether-endcapped polyrotaxane is stable at pH 7 for 16 h but is solubilized at approximately 0.0211 min(-1) at pH 4. The ester-endcapped polyrotaxane is solubilized at 0.0122 min(-1) at pH 12.1. Our results show that pH-triggerable polyrotaxanes can be readily and efficiently prepared from pseudopolyrotaxanes in high yield by Huisgen cyclization of azido- and alkynyl-modified precursors in the presence of Cu(I).     

Fabrication and Optimization of Linear PEI-Modified Crystal Nanocellulose as an Efficient Non-Viral Vector for In-Vitro Gene Delivery

Background:One of the major challenges in gene therapy is producing gene carriers that possess high transfection efficiency and low cytotoxicity (1). To achieve this purpose, crystal nanocellulose (CNC) -based nanoparticles grafted with polyethylenimine (PEI) have been developed as an alternative to traditional viral vectors to eliminate potential toxicity and immunogenicity.Methods:In this study, CNC-PEI10kDa (CNCP) nanoparticles were synthetized and their transfection efficiency was evaluated and compared with linear cationic PEI10kDa (PEI) polymer in HEK293T (HEK) cells. Synthetized nanoparticles were characterized with AFM, FTIR, DLS, and gel retardation assays. In-vitro gene delivery efficiency by nano-complexes and their effects on cell viability were determined with fluorescent microscopy and flow cytometry.Results:Prepared CNC was oxidized with sodium periodate and its surface cationized with linear PEI. The new CNCP nano-complex showed different transfection efficiencies at different nanoparticle/plasmid ratios, which were greater than those of PEI polymer. CNPC and Lipofectamine were similar in their transfection efficiencies and effect on cell viability after transfection.Conclusion:CNCP nanoparticles are appropriate candidates for gene delivery. This result highlights CNC as an attractive biomaterial and demonstrates how its different cationized forms may be applied in designing gene delivery systems.Key Words: Crystal Nanocellulose, Gene transfection, Nanoparticle, Nano-complex     

Polymer recycling in aqueous two-phase extractions using thermoseparating ethylene oxide–propylene oxide copolymers

This is a study on the recovery and recycling of copolymer in aqueous two-phase systems containing random copolymers of ethylene oxide (EO) and propylene oxide (PO). The random copolymers separate from water solution when heated above the lower critical solution temperature (LCST). The primary phase systems were composed of EOPO copolymer and hydroxypropyl or hydroxyethyl starch. After phase separation the upper EOPO phase was removed and subjected to temperature induced phase separation. Copolymers with different EO/PO compositions have been investigated, EO50PO50 [50% EO and 50% PO (w/w)], EO30PO70 and EO20PO80. The temperature required for thermoseparation decreases when the PO content of the copolymer is increased. The effect on the recovery of copolymer after addition of salts, a second polymer or protein was investigated. The added components increased the recovery of copolymer after thermoseparation, e.g., increased the amount copolymer separated from the water phase after thermoseparation. Recycling of copolymer and measurements of polymer concentrations in the primary top and bottom phases after repeated recycling steps was performed. The fluctuation in polymer concentration of the phases was very small after recycling up to four times. Partitioning of the proteins BSA and lysozyme was studied in primary phase systems after recycling of copolymer. The partition coefficients of total protein and lysozyme was not significantly changed during recycling of copolymer. More than 90% of the copolymer could be recovered in the thermoseparation step by optimising the temperature and time for thermoseparation. In repeated phase partitionings in EOPO–starch systems the EO50PO50 copolymer could be recovered to 77% including losses in primary system and thermoseparation, which is equivalent to a total copolymer reuse of 4.3 times.     

Transfection of bovine fetal fibroblast with polyethylenimine (PEI) nanoparticles: effect of particle size and presence of fetal bovine serum on transgene delivery and cytotoxicity

The development of efficient transfection protocols for livestock cells is crucial for implementation of cell-based transgenic methods to produce genetically modified animals. We synthetized fully deacylated linear 22, 87 and 217 kDa polyethylenimine (PEI) nanoparticles and compared their transfection efficiency and cytotoxicity to commercial branched 25 kDa PEI and linear 58 kDa poly(allylamine) hydrochloride. We studied the effect of PEI size and presence of serum on transfection efficiency on primary cultures of bovine fetal fibroblasts and established cells lines (HEK 293 and Hep G2). We found that transfection efficiency was affected mainly by polymer/pDNA ratio and DNA concentration and in less extent by PEI MW. In bovine fibroblast, preincubation of PEI nanoparticles with fetal bovine serum (FBS) greatly increased percentage of cells expressing the transgene (up to 82%) while significantly decreased the polymer cytotoxic effect. 87 and 217 kDa PEI rendered the highest transfection rates in HEK 293 and Hep G2 cell lines (>50% transfected cells) with minimal cell toxicity. In conclusion, our results indicate that fully deacylated PEI of 87 and 217 kDa are useful DNA vehicles for non-viral transfection of primary cultures of bovine fetal fibroblast and HEK 293 and Hep G2 cell lines.     

Synthesis and characterization of folate-PEG-grafted-hyperbranched-PEI for tumor-targeted gene delivery

A great challenge for gene therapy is to develop a high efficient gene delivery system with low toxicity. Nonviral vectors are still attractive although the current agents displayed some disadvantages (i.e., low transfection efficiency, high toxicity). To overcome the high toxicity of poly(ethylene imine) (PEI) and low transfection efficiency of PEGylated PEI (PEG-PEI), we linked a cell specific target molecule folate (FA) on poly(ethylene glycol) (PEG) and then grafted the FA-PEG onto hyperbranched PEI 25 kDa. The FA-PEG- grafted-hyperbranched-PEI (FA-PEG-PEI) effectively condensed plasmid DNA (pDNA) into nanoparticles with positive surface charge under a suitable N/P ratio. Tested in deferent cell lines (i.e., HEK 293T, glioma C6 and hepatoma HepG2 cells), no significant cytotoxicity of FA-PEG-PEI was added to PEG-PEI. More importantly, significant transfection efficiency was exhibited in FA-targeted cells. Reporter assay showed that FA-PEG-PEI/pDNA complexes had significantly higher transgene activity than that of PEI/pDNA in folate-receptor (FR) positive (HEK 293T and C6) cells but not FR-negative (HepG2) cells. These results indicated that FA-PEG-PEI might be a promising candidate for gene delivery with the characteristics of good biocompatibility, potential biodegradability, and relatively high gene transfection efficiency.     

PAMAM-PEG-PAMAM: novel triblock copolymer as a biocompatible and efficient gene delivery carrier

A novel triblock copolymer, PAMAM-block-PEG-block-PAMAM was synthesized and applied as a gene carrier. PAMAM dendrimer is proven to be an efficient gene carrier itself, but it is associated with certain problems such as low water solubility and considerable cytotoxicity. Therefore, we introduced PEG to engineer a nontoxic and highly transfection efficient polymeric gene carrier because PEG is known to convey water-solubility and biocompatibility to the conjugated copolymer. This copolymer could achieve self-assembly with plasmid DNA, forming compact nanosized particles with a narrow size distribution. Fulfilling our expectations, the copolymer was found to form highly water-soluble polyplexes with plasmid DNA, showed little cytotoxicity despite its poor degradability, and finally achieved high transfection efficiency comparable to PEI in 293 cells. Consequently, these data show that an approach involving the introduction of PEG to create a tree-like cationic copolymer possesses a great potential for use in gene delivery systems.     

Biodegradable cross-linked poly(amino alcohol esters) based on LMW PEI for gene delivery

Polyethylenimine (PEI, especially with M(w) of 25,000) has been known as an efficient gene carrier and a gold standard of gene transfection due to its high transfection efficiency (TE). However, high concomitant cytotoxicity limited the application of PEI. In this report, several cationic polymers derived from low molecular weight (LMW) PEI (M(w) 600) linked with diglycidyl adipate (DA-PEI) or its analogs (diglycidyl succinate, DS-PEI and diglycidyl oxalate, DO-PEI; D-PEIs for all 3 polymers) were prepared and characterized. GPC gave M(w)s of DA-PEI, DS-PEI and DO-PEI as 6861, 16,015 and 35,281, respectively. Moreover, degradation of the ester-containing DS-PEI was also confirmed by GPC. In addition, hydroxyls in these polymers could improve their water solubility. These polymers exhibited good ability to condense plasmid DNA into nanoparticles with the size of 120-250 nm. ζ-potentials of the polyplexes were found to be around +10-20 mV under weight ratios (polymer/DNA) from 0.5 to 32. Agarose gel retardation showed that DNA could be released from the polyplexes after being pre-incubated for 30 h. In vitro experiments were carried out and it was found that DS-PEI showed about 5 times of TE compared to that of the PEI/DNA polyplex under a weight ratio of 1 in A549 cells. Meanwhile, the cytotoxicity of D-PEIs assayed by MTT is lower than that of 25 kDa PEI in HEK293 cells. These results suggested that this series of PEI derivatives would be promising non-viral biodegradable vectors for gene delivery.     

聚乙烯亚胺转基因影响因素的测定及其优化

聚乙烯亚胺 (PEI)为阳离子多聚物 ,可浓缩DNA形成纳米级颗粒 ,作为基因释放载体转染真核细胞 .选用Mr2 5 0 0 0 ,分枝状的聚乙烯亚胺转染质粒 ,比较多种转基因效率的影响因素 .通过MTT法测定PEI对COS 7细胞的细胞毒性 .利用电泳阻滞实验测定PEI与DNA形成复合物时所需的比例 .通过PEI转染增强型绿色荧光蛋白的pEGFP质粒、编码β 半乳糖苷酶的pSVβ质粒 ,探索氯喹、白蛋白、血清、盐离子浓度、质粒剂量、细胞数量等对聚乙烯亚胺转基因效率的影响 .实验发现 ,PEI对细胞的毒性作用与剂量相关 .PEI DNA的N P比在 3 0以上方可完全结合DNA .溶酶体抑制剂氯喹可增加转染效率 .培养液中的白蛋白、血清会降低转染效率 .生理盐溶液作为配制PEI DNA复合物的溶媒 ,转染效率高于 5 %葡萄糖作为溶媒 .随着转染质粒剂量的增加 ,转染效率呈剂量依赖正效应 .聚乙烯亚胺是有效的体外真核细胞转染剂 ,可用于合成更复杂的基因释放载体 .     

Transient gene expression in mammalian cells grown in serum-free suspension culture

In order to establish a simple and scaleable transfection system we have used the cationic polymer polyethylenimine (PEI) to study transient transfection in HEK293 and 293(EBNA) cells grown in serum-free suspension culture. The transfection complexes were made directly within the cell culture by consecutively adding plasmid and PEI (direct method). Alternatively, the DNA-PEI transfection complexes were prepared in fresh medium (1/10 culture volume) and then added to the cells (indirect method). The results of this study clearly show that the ratio of PEI nitrogen to DNA phosphate is very important for high expression levels. The precise ratio is dependent on the DNA concentration. For example, using 1 μg/ml DNA by the indirect method, the ratio of optimal PEI:DNA was about 10–13:1. However, the ratio increases to 33:1 for 0.1–0.2 μg/ml DNA. By testing several different molecular weights of the polycationic polymer we could show that the highest transfection efficiency was obtained with the PEI 25 kDa. Using PEI 25 kDa the indirect method is superior to the direct addition because significantly lower DNA concentrations are needed. The expression levels of the soluble human TNF receptor p55 are even higher at low DNA compared to 1 μg/ml plasmid. The EBV-based pREP vectors gave better transient gene expression when used in 293(EBNA) cells compared to HEK293 cells in suspension culture. No differences in expression levels in the two cell lines were observed when the pC1 (CMV)-TNFR was used. In conclusion, PEI is a low-toxic transfection agent which provides high levels of transient gene expression in 293(EBNA) cells grown in serum-free suspension culture. This system allows highly reproducible, cost-effective production of milligram amounts of recombinant proteins in 2–5 l spinner culture scale within 3–5 days. Fermentor scale experiments, however, are less efficient because the PEI-mediated transient tranfection is inhibited by conditioned medium. This revised version was published online in July 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

The role of PEI structure and size in the PEI/liposome-mediated synergism of gene transfection

Polyethylenimines (PEIs) and cationic liposomes are widely used for nonviral gene delivery. When PEIs have been used alone, the transfection efficiency has been higher for larger or linear than smaller or branched PEIs. We have reported previously that a combination of small PEIs and liposomes results in a potentiation of transfection efficiency in vitro. Here, the role of PEI size and structure in this synergism has been clarified further. Therefore, two structurally different high MW PEIs, i.e. the linear PEI22K and branched PEI25K, were studied in the SMC cells. We found that both linear PEI22K and branched PEI25K resulted in a similar synergism and comparable transfection efficiencies. However, the potentiation for larger PEIs found in the present study was weaker than that for smaller PEIs obtained in our previous studies. In conclusion, our present and previous results demonstrate that the increment of PEI/liposome-mediated gene transfection by different types of PEIs in vitro is a common attribute that is rather associated with their size than the structure. Interestingly, the effect of PEI size seems to be opposite when combined with liposome or given alone, i.e. the small PEIs are more effective when combined and less effective when alone than the larger ones.     

A novel transfection method for eukaryotic cells using polyethylenimine coated albumin microbubbles

Albumin microbubbles have been intensively studied for their application in gene delivery. However, with negative surface potential, albumin microbubbles hardly bind plasmid DNA, which might contribute to their low transgene efficiency. In this study, we developed polyethylenimine (PEI) coated albumin microbubbles (PAMB) which were prepared by sonicating the mixture of human albumin, PEI, polyethylene glycol and glucose. CHO cells, COS cells and 293T cells were transfected with PEI, PEI + albumin, PAMB and Lipofectamine 2000, respectively. Our results showed that the surface potential was elevated and PAMB could bind plasmid DNA. The transgene efficiency of PAMB was higher than PEI and PEI + albumin (P < 0.05), and PAMB performed the same transgene effect as Lipofectamine 2000 did but with lower cytotoxicity than Lipofectamine 2000. Albumin microbubbles modified by PEI has high transgene efficiency and low cytotoxicity even without ultrasound medication, making it a useful non-virus gene delivery method in vitro.     

1,4-Butanediol diglycidyl ether (BDE)-crosslinked PEI-g-imidazole nanoparticles as nucleic acid-carriers in vitro and in vivo

Previously reported 1,4-butanediol diglycidyl ether (BDE) crosslinked PEI (branched polyethylenimine, 25 k) nanoparticles (A. Swami, R. Kurupati, A. Pathak, Y. Singh, P. Kumar and K. C. Gupta, A unique and highly efficient non-viral DNA/siRNA delivery system based on PEI-bisepoxide nanoparticles, Biochem. Biophys. Res. Commun., 2007, 362, 835-841) (PN NPs) were reacted with varying proportions of a novel linker, 2-(N-1-tritylimidazol-4-yl)-N-(6-glycidyloxyhexyl)-acetamide (IGA linker, 3), to yield PN-g-imidazolyl nanoparticles (PNIm) with improved transfection efficiency. Here, the IGA linker (3) reacted through an epoxy ring to partially convert the residual 1° and 2° amines present in PN NPs to 2° and 3°, respectively, without altering the total number of amines and additionally incorporating the delocalized positive charge of the imidazolyl moiety. The resulting particles were characterized for their size, zeta potential and DNA complexing ability. PNIm/DNA nanoplexes, in the size range of 120-400 nm, were evaluated for transfection efficiency in HeLa, HEK293 and CHO cell lines, which was found to be ～11, ～2-3 and ～2-17 folds higher than PEI, PN-2 (the best working sample of the PN series) (A. Swami, R. Kurupati, A. Pathak, Y. Singh, P. Kumar and K. C. Gupta, A unique and highly efficient non-viral DNA/siRNA delivery system based on PEI-bisepoxide nanoparticles, Biochem. Biophys. Res. Commun., 2007, 362, 835-841) and commercial transfection reagents tested in this study, respectively. Also, flow cytometric analysis showed ～78% (ca.～43% in PN-2) cells transfected with the PNIm 10(6)/DNA complex (the best working sample of the PNIm series) in HEK293 cells. Transfection of GFP specific siRNA in HEK293 cells suppressed the gene expression by ～90% (ca.～70% in PN-2). All the cell lines treated with PNIm/DNA nanoplexes showed >90% viability. In vivo gene expression of luciferase enzyme in Balb/c mice showed highest expression in spleen after seven days.     

Ethylene oxide and propylene oxide random copolymer/sodium chloride aqueous two-phase systems: wetting and adsorption on dodecyl-agarose and polystyrene

Liquid/liquid partition chromatography is a mild yet powerful separation method for a variety of biological materials. This work demonstrates that it should be feasible to immobilize an ethylene oxide-propylene oxide (EO/PO) random copolymer solution and to use a solution of NaCl equilibrated against the polymer solution as the mobile-phase (poly (EO-PO) [P(EO-PO)] and NaCl form two aqueous phases known as aqueous two-phase systems). Three random copolymers with different molecular weights and EO/PO ratios were used. Dodecyl-agarose and polystyrene were tested as possible supports. The wetting energies of the aqueous two-phase systems on these two kinds of surfaces were calculated as well as contact angles for each phase on the same surfaces. Finally, the thickness of P(EO-PO) adsorption layers on polystyrene lattices were measured by dynamic light scattering. Contact angle measurements indicate that indeed some EO/PO copolymers preferentially wet hydrophobic substrates, forming thin films.     

Genotoxic effects of ethylene oxide and propylene oxide: a comparative study

The two alkylating agents ethylene oxide (EO) and propylene oxide (PO) were compared for genotoxic effectiveness in various test systems. The study was undertaken partly to shed light on the difference between the compounds found after chronic exposure of monkeys (Lynch et al., 1984) where EO but not PO was able to induce SCE and chromosomal aberrations. In the present study EO was found to be 5–10 times more effective than PO with respect to gene conversion and reverse mutation in Saccharomyces cerevisiae D7 and sister-chromatid conversion in S. cerevisiae RS112. In contrast, the abilities of the two compounds to induce point mutation in S. typhimurium strains and SCE in human lymphocytes were approximately equal. One possible cause of EO being more effective than PO in certain respects, discussed on the basis of inference from earlier studies, is an expected difference in ability to cause strand breaks via alkylation of DNA-phosphate groups.