_tcm18-15285.gif )
A new journal providing a forum for the communication of generic science underpinning the properties and applications of soft matter.
Latest News
Plastic coats wrap up gene delivery
25 April 2008
UK chemists have used smart polymers to deliver DNA into cells.
Instant insight: Swellable gels fix bad backs
16 April 2008
Brian Saunders and Tony Freemont discuss a new approach for treating back pain using injectable microgel implants
Instant insight: Crossing the cell membrane
16 April 2008
Shana Kelley reveals how cell-penetrating peptides deliver the goods when it comes to biology and medicine.
Contents list for Soft Matter, issue 5, 2008
Front cover
Soft Matter, 2008, 4, 905
DOI: 10.1039/b805490h
Inside front cover
Soft Matter, 2008, 4, 906
DOI: 10.1039/b805491f
Contents
Soft Matter, 2008, 4, 907
DOI: 10.1039/b805492b
Highlights
pH-Responsive microgel dispersions for repairing damaged load-bearing soft tissue
Tony J. Freemont and Brian R. Saunders,
Soft Matter, 2008, 4, 919
DOI: 10.1039/b718441g
Enhanced HTML article available
In this article recent work involving the use of pH-responsive microgel particles to provide structural support for damaged load-bearing soft tissue is highlighted, and challenges in developing injectable dispersions for tissue regeneration considered.
Squeezing a single polypeptide through a nanopore
Liviu Movileanu,
Soft Matter, 2008, 4, 925
DOI: 10.1039/b719850g
The transport of a single polypeptide through a protein pore is a fundamental process in biology and it is likely to inspire the design of new single-molecule analytical tools for the detection, exploration, and characterization of proteins.
Review Articles
Interfacial structure and stability of food emulsions as affected by protein–polysaccharide interactions
Eric Dickinson,
Soft Matter, 2008, 4, 932
DOI: 10.1039/b718319d
The structure of the biopolymer adsorption layer depends on the method whereby the mixed protein and polysaccharide components are brought together at the emulsion droplet surface.
Microscopy, microstructure and displacement of proteins from interfaces: implications for food quality and digestion
Victor John Morris and Allan Patrick Gunning,
Soft Matter, 2008, 4, 943
DOI: 10.1039/b718904d
This review describes the practical aspects of the orogenic model of protein displacement at interfaces for enhancing food quality, and discusses the potential implications for understanding the influence of interfacial structures in food emulsions on fat metabolism.
Supramolecular routes towards liquid crystalline side-chain polymers
Matthew R. Hammond and Raffaele Mezzenga,
Soft Matter, 2008, 4, 952
DOI: 10.1039/b719672e
We review the mesomorphous structures formed in supramolecular complexes composed of side chains grafted to a macromolecular template via non-covalent forces, with an eye towards the profound effects that the chosen non-covalent bonding type, side chain properties, and template architecture have on the resulting materials.
Communications
Light-induced self-assembly of nanofibers inside liposomes
Hyung-Kun Lee, Stephen Soukasene, Hongzhou Jiang, Shuming Zhang, Wenchun Feng and Samuel I. Stupp,
Soft Matter, 2008, 4, 962
DOI: 10.1039/b719486b
Spatially confined self-assembly of peptide amphiphile nanofibers inside liposomes is triggered by UV irradiation of a photoacid generator.
Nanopatterning by protein unfolding
Tiziana Svaldo-Lanero, Amanda Penco, Mirko Prato, Maurizio Canepa, Ranieri Rolandi and Ornella Cavalleri,
Soft Matter, 2008, 4, 965
DOI: 10.1039/b800621k
Proteins, irrespective of their primary and secondary structure, form, upon adsorption on HOPG from very diluted solutions, equal nicely ordered domains patterned on the nanoscale, extending over micrometre distances.
Direct measurement of the nanobubble-induced weak depletion attraction between a spherical particle and a flat surface in an aqueous solution
Fan Jin, XiangJun Gong, Jing Ye and To Ngai,
Soft Matter, 2008, 4, 968
DOI: 10.1039/b802326c
The bulk-free nanobubble-induced attraction between a free-moving spherical latex particle and a flat hydrophilic surface was quantitatively measured for the first time using total internal reflection microscopy (TIRM).
Papers
Electrocatalytically functional multilayer assembly of sulfite oxidase and cytochrome c
Roberto Spricigo, Roman Dronov, K. V. Rajagopalan, Fred Lisdat, Silke Leimkühler, Frieder W. Scheller and Ulla Wollenberger,
Soft Matter, 2008, 4, 972
DOI: 10.1039/b717694e Enhanced HTML article available
A multilayer of cytochrome c–sulfite oxidase and polyaniline sulfonate was formed as a fully electro-active assembly onto gold electrodes where the proteins are communicating via a direct heterogeneous electron transfer and the sensor shows catalytic activity for the oxidation of sulfite.
Replica molding of high-aspect-ratio (sub-)micron hydrogel pillar arrays and their stability in air and solvents
Dinesh Chandra, J. Ashley Taylor and Shu Yang,
Soft Matter, 2008, 4, 979
DOI: 10.1039/b717711a
By replica molding partially polymerized hydrogel precursors, we have fabricated high-aspect-ratio (up to 12) hydrogel pillars (feature size of 350 nm to 1 µm), and studied their mechanical stability in air and solvent, which depends on their wettability, swellability, elastic modulus, solvent capillary force, and pillar array geometry.
pH-Responsive branched polymer nanoparticles
Jonathan V. M. Weaver, Richard T. Williams, Brodyck J. L. Royles, Paul H. Findlay, Andrew I. Cooper and Steven P. Rannard,
Soft Matter, 2008, 4, 985
DOI: 10.1039/b718118c
We disclose a facile and generic route to core–shell branched copolymer particles that respond to changes in solution pH depending on their degree of branching and chain-end functionality.
The influence of protic non-solvents present in the environment on structure formation of poly(
-benzyl-L-glutamate) in organic solvents
Ioan Botiz, Nikolay Grozev, Helmut Schlaad and Günter Reiter,
Soft Matter, 2008, 4, 993
DOI: 10.1039/b719946e
The nucleation density of poly(-benzyl-L-glutamate) in organic solvents not only increases with concentration but also sensitively depends on the presence of protic non-solvents in the surrounding gas phase.
Tuning the properties of PS–PIAT block copolymers and their assembly into polymersomes
Hans-Peter M. de Hoog, Dennis M. Vriezema, Madhavan Nallani, Suzanne Kuiper, Jeroen J. L. M. Cornelissen, Alan E. Rowan and Roeland J. M. Nolte,
Soft Matter, 2008, 4, 1003
DOI: 10.1039/b716044e
The aggregate morphology and stability of polystyrene–polyisocyanide block copolymers in aqueous dispersion is influenced by the block copolymer composition, which is dictated by the optical purity of the isocyanide monomer.
Strain induced clustering in polyelectrolyte hydrogels
Guillaume Miquelard-Garnier, Costantino Creton and Dominique Hourdet,
Soft Matter, 2008, 4, 1011
DOI: 10.1039/b717460h
We demonstrate the existence of pronounced strain hardening and hysteresis during compression in charged polyelectrolyte networks. This effect is attributed to same-charge attractive interaction causing the formation of a stiffer network of clusters with a lifetime depending on strain level.
Switching of friction by binary polymer brushes
Mukesh Kumar Vyas, Konrad Schneider, Bhanu Nandan and Manfred Stamm,
Soft Matter, 2008, 4, 1024
DOI: 10.1039/b801110a
Our studies, using sharp AFM tips as well as colloidal probes, show that adhesion and friction of polymer surfaces can be controlled and switched by the use of binary polymer brushes.
Effect of substrate adhesion and hydrophobicity on hydrogel friction
Taiki Tominaga, Naoyuki Takedomi, Hynek Biederman, Hidemitsu Furukawa, Yoshihito Osada and Jian Ping Gong,
Soft Matter, 2008, 4, 1033
DOI: 10.1039/b716465c
The frictional behavior of hydrogels sliding on smooth substrates strongly depends on the adhesion strength and hydrophobicity of the substrates.
Atomic force microscopy and theoretical investigation of the lifted-up conformation of polydiacetylene on a graphite substrate
Yuji Okawa, Daisuke Takajo, Shigeru Tsukamoto, Tsuyoshi Hasegawa and Masakazu Aono,
Soft Matter, 2008, 4, 1041
DOI: 10.1039/b718402f
The lifted-up conformation of a single, linear conjugated polydiacetylene compound on a graphite substrate was confirmed by atomic force microscopy and explained by theoretical calculations.
Electric-field-induced displacement of charged spherical colloids in compressible hydrogels
Mu Wang and Reghan J. Hill,
Soft Matter, 2008, 4, 1048
DOI: 10.1039/b719319j
Theoretical study reveals an electric-field-induced particle displacement that is a sensitive and, in general, complicated function of Poisson
s ratio and hydrodynamic permeability of the polymer skeleton, the size and charge of the inclusion, and the concentration of the electrolyte.
Controlling cell morphology on amino acid-modified cellulose
Deepak M. Kalaskar, Julie E. Gough, Rein V. Ulijn, William W. Sampson, David J. Scurr, Frank J. Rutten, Morgan R. Alexander, Catherine L. R. Merry and Stephen J. Eichhorn,
Soft Matter, 2008, 4, 1059
DOI: 10.1039/b719706n
Using a range of amino acid-modified cellulose fibrous networks we show that it is possible to control the morphology of fibroblast cells.
Alternating polymer vesicles
Dan Wu, Ludmila Abezgauz, Dganit Danino, Chia-Chi Ho and Carlos C. Co,
Soft Matter, 2008, 4, 1066
DOI: 10.1039/b715608a
Alternating polymers of hydrophobic dialkyl maleates and hydrophilic vinylgluconamide form ultra-small unilamellar vesicles.
The preferential deposition of silica micro-particles at the boundary of inkjet printed droplets
Jolke Perelaer, Patrick J. Smith, Chris E. Hendriks, Antje M. J. van den Berg and Ulrich S. Schubert,
Soft Matter, 2008, 4, 1072
DOI: 10.1039/b715076h
The preferential deposition of particles in inkjet printed droplets of monomodal aqueous suspensions of silica microspheres was investigated during drying. Depending on their size, particles sediment as close as possible to the periphery, rather than at the contact line.
Direct observation of adhesion and spreading of emulsion droplets at solid surfaces
Diane M. Dresselhuis, George A. van Aken, Els H. A. de Hoog and Martien A. Cohen Stuart,
Soft Matter, 2008, 4, 1079
DOI: 10.1039/b718891a
A new approach in studying adhesion and spreading of protein-stabilised emulsion droplets on solid surfaces, brought in connection with colloidal forces between droplets and surfaces, lubrication, and sensory perception
Self-assembled organogels obtained by adding minute concentrations of a bile salt to AOT reverse micelles
Shih-Huang Tung, Yi-En Huang and Srinivasa R. Raghavan,
Soft Matter, 2008, 4, 1086
DOI: 10.1039/b718145k Enhanced HTML article available
A dilute reverse micellar solution of AOT is transformed into an organogel when trace amounts of a bile salt, SDC, are added. The structure and properties of this gel (notably, 
strain-stiffening
) are reminiscent of aqueous biopolymer gels such as actin.
Structure-directed self-assembly of alkyl-aryl-ethylene oxide amphiphiles
Gao Liu and Gregory L. Baker,
Soft Matter, 2008, 4, 1094
DOI: 10.1039/b716041k
Crystallization of alkyl-aryl-ethylene oxide amphiphiles from the melt aligns aromatic rings, suggesting a general approach for aligning polar molecules in layered nanometre-scale materials.
Collective headgroup conformational transition in twisted micellar superstructures
Francesca Baldelli Bombelli, Debora Berti, Silvia Milani, Marco Lagi, Pierluigi Barbaro, Göran Karlsson, Astrid Brandt and Piero Baglioni,
Soft Matter, 2008, 4, 1102
DOI: 10.1039/b800210j Enhanced HTML article available
Temperature-induced collective headgroup conformational transition in nucleolipid micellar superstructures causes morphological changes on the mesoscale.
Back matter
Soft Matter, 2008, 4, 1114
DOI: 10.1039/b805493m
Back cover
Soft Matter, 2008, 4, 1115
DOI: 10.1039/b805494k
RSS feed