Excellence in Research: Optical Studies of Nanoparticles and Biomacromolecules in Complex Biopolymeric Systems

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Advances in the synthesis of diverse engineered nanoparticles continue to open new applications in various fields, including fabrication of novel functional nanocomposites for energetic materials, drug delivery, and biomedicine. Entry of nanoparticles into the environment has raised concerns about adverse effects on ecosystems. This project will investigate the interactions and transport properties of nanoparticles and biomacromolecules within complex biopolymeric matrices. The results of this project will provide insight into the requirements for designing practical solutions to eliminate the adverse effects of nanoparticles on the ecosystem. Students trained in this project will learn and address challenging questions concerning the impact of nano-biotechnology on the environment and health. These students will be well equipped to integrate with the next generation of scientists in nanoscience and diversify the workforce.This project will combine diverse optical-based techniques, analytical tools, and machine learning approaches to determine and enhance the detection limit, to assess the accuracy of characterization, and to elucidate the complex behaviors of the nanoscopic structures under various conditions, including the nanoparticles, the biomacromolecules, and the host biopolymeric matrices. Using alginate as a model system, complementary laser-based spectra from diverse spectroscopy techniques (e.g. fluorescence, laser-induced absorption spectroscopy, UV-to-Mid-infrared absorption spectroscopy, and Raman spectroscopy) and high-resolution 4-D images (e.g. confocal microscopy) will be generated and analyzed with a combination of fitting routines and a convolutional neural networks approach. This will not only characterize changes in the structural and diffusional properties of the nanoscopic structures but also delineate the various competitive interactions of these structures, especially due to macromolecular crowding, nanoparticle binding, and osmolarity of the matrix. In these endeavors and consistent with the missions of both institutions, students will be trained in diverse areas of biological physics and in advanced techniques in spectroscopy, imaging, and computational simulations. More significantly, they will learn and address challenging questions of the impact of nano-biotechnology on our ecosystem and health by, for example, elucidating the mechanistic processes of interactions of nanoparticles and biomacromolecules at the nanoscale. These students will be well equipped to integrate with the next generation of scientists in nanoscience and diversify the workforce.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.