6 research outputs found
Segregation of Dispersed Silica Nanoparticles in Microfluidic WaterâinâOil Droplets: A Kinetic Study
Dispersed negatively charged silica nanoparticles segregate inside microfluidic water-in-oil (W/O) droplets that are coated with a positively charged lipid shell. We report a methodology for the quantitative analysis of this self-assembly process. By using real-time fluorescence microscopy and automated analysis of the recorded images, kinetic data are obtained that characterize the electrostatically-driven self-assembly. We demonstrate that the segregation rates can be controlled by the installment of functional moieties on the nanoparticleâs surface, such as nucleic acid and protein molecules. We anticipate that our method enables the quantitative and systematic investigation of the segregation of (bio)functionalized nanoparticles in microfluidic droplets. This could lead to complex supramolecular architectures on the inner surface of micrometer-sized hollow spheres, which might be used, for example, as cell containers for applications in the life sciences
BottomâUp Assembly of DNAâSilica Nanocomposites into MicrometerâSized Hollow Spheres
Although DNA nanotechnology has developed into a highly innovative and lively field of research at the interface between chemistry, materials science, and biotechnology, there is still a great need for methodological approaches for bridging the size regime of DNA nanostructures with that of micrometerâ and millimeterâsized units for practical applications. We report on novel hierarchically structured composite materials from silica nanoparticles and DNA polymers that can be obtained by selfâassembly through the clamped hybridization chain reaction. The nanocomposite materials can be assembled into thin layers within microfluidically generated waterâinâoil droplets to produce mechanically stabilized hollow spheres with uniform size distributions at high throughput rates. The fact that cells can be encapsulated in these microcontainers suggests that our concept not only contributes to the further development of supramolecular bottomâup manufacturing, but can also be exploited for applications in the life sciences