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Enzyme responsive properties of amphiphilic urea supramolecular hydrogels

Polymer Journal volume 52, pages 931–938 (2020)Cite this article

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Abstract

Amphiphilic ureas with hydrophilic lactose groups form transparent supramolecular hydrogels. Their gelation abilities are sensitive to the length of the alkyl chain. Amphiphilic ureas bearing hexyl, heptyl, octyl, and nonyl groups form supramolecular hydrogels, but amphiphilic ureas bearing decyl groups or longer alkyl groups do not show gelation ability. The gradual gel-to-sol phase transition of the supramolecular hydrogel is triggered by adding β-galactosidase (β-Gal) as a result of enzymatic hydrolysis of the lactose moiety. Supramolecular hydrogels could stably entrap cationic organic dyes, such as rhodamine 6G (Rh6G), even in water. The entrapped Rh6G could be gradually released in the presence of β-Gal, along with the gel-to-sol phase transition.

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Acknowledgements

This work was supported by Grant-in-aid for the Scientific Research (Nos. 15H03826 and 17H06374) the Japan Society for the Promotion of Science (JSPS) or the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology (MEXT).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Chemistry, Faculty of Science, Shizuoka University, 836 Ohya, Suruga-ku, Shizuoka, 422-8529, Japan

    Takumi Maki, Ryohei Yoshisaki, Shuto Akama & Masamichi Yamanaka

  2. Research Institute of Green Science and Technology, Shizuoka University, 836 Ohya, Suruga-ku, Shizuoka, 422-8529, Japan

    Masamichi Yamanaka

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  1. Takumi Maki
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  2. Ryohei Yoshisaki
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Correspondence to Masamichi Yamanaka.

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Maki, T., Yoshisaki, R., Akama, S. et al. Enzyme responsive properties of amphiphilic urea supramolecular hydrogels. Polym J 52, 931–938 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41428-020-0333-x

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