REU Site: Glyco-Tree - Glycomaterial Training, Research and Education Experiences

REU 网站：Glyco-Tree - 糖材料培训、研究和教育经验

• 批准号: 2244483
• 负责人: Alan Esker
• 金额: $ 43.73万
• 依托单位: Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 项目类别: Standard Grant
• 财政年份: 2023
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 2023-04-01 至 2026-03-31
• 项目状态: 未结题
• 来源: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=2244483&HistoricalAwards=false
• 关键词: REU; Site; Glyco; Tree; Glycomaterial

Non-technical SummaryGlycomaterials is a term that broadly encompasses sugars and larger molecules derived from sugars. Applications of glycomaterials include structural products such as lumber, textiles, biofuels (derived from corn and wood), food additives, and nutrition. Glycomaterials also play important roles in biology including immune response, cell-to-cell communication and as a fundamental component of DNA. Nonetheless, understanding these materials has historically been challenging because their chemical structures are complex and resistant to standard methods of characterization. In 2020, the National Science Foundation funded GlycoMIP, a Materials Innovation Platform (MIP) at Virginia Tech and partner institutions, to concentrate expertise in characterization, modeling, and synthesis of glycomaterials with state-of-the-art facilities and instrumentation. Virginia Tech will host a Research Experiences for Undergraduates (REU) site that leverages GlycoMIP to afford undergraduate students with team-based research projects, participation in GlycoMIP Summer School, a week-long dive into glycomaterial characterization, modeling and synthesis, and leadership opportunities through Youth Experiencing Science (YES), a K-12 summer outreach program at Virginia Tech. This REU program will fill a critical need of growing the next generation of glycoscience leaders who will deliver future innovations on technologies ubiquitous in our daily lives.Technical SummaryThis proposal has four structured team-based research areas for undergraduate students: (1) Glycan-based polymer blend compatibilizers – Taking advantage of the reducing end of a polysaccharide chain, block copolymers of glycans will be synthesized to compatibilize blends of carbohydrate-based and non-carbohydrate-based thermoplastic and thermosetting polymers with subsequent characterization of the dispersion by small angle light scattering and determination of mechanical properties by dynamic mechanical analysis and Instron testing; (2) Mesoscale modeling of glycopolymers – Solutions and gels of glycopolymers will be characterized by dilute solution viscometry and rotatory and oscillatory rheometry to test mesoscale models being developed to explain and predict shear viscosity and regions of linear viscoelastic behavior; (3) Glycomaterials that interact with biomolecules – Glycomaterials comprised of synthetic polymer backbones and defined glycan side chains will be synthesized with modern polymerization techniques to control molar mass and chain topology through post-polymerization modification and direct polymerization of macromonomers. Interactions of the polymers with enzymes and glycan binding proteins will be probed by surface plasmon resonance and quartz crystal microbalance studies; (4) Advancing chiroptical methods of glycoanalytics – Vibrational circular dichroism and Raman optical activity spectroscopy will be used to characterize chiral glycans in solution. Spectra will be compared to predictions from theoretical tools being developed that combine results of molecular dynamic simulations and quantum chemical calculations.This site is supported by the Department of Defense in partnership with the NSF REU program.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.

非技术概述糖材料是一个广泛涵盖糖和源自糖的较大分子的术语。糖材料的应用包括结构产品，如木材，纺织品，生物燃料（来自玉米和木材），食品添加剂和营养。 糖物质在生物学中也发挥着重要作用，包括免疫反应，细胞间通讯以及作为DNA的基本组成部分。尽管如此，理解这些材料在历史上一直是具有挑战性的，因为它们的化学结构很复杂，并且难以用标准的表征方法进行表征。2020年，美国国家科学基金会资助了GlycoMIP，这是弗吉尼亚理工大学和合作机构的材料创新平台（MIP），旨在利用最先进的设施和仪器集中糖材料表征，建模和合成方面的专业知识。弗吉尼亚理工大学将举办一个本科生研究经验（REU）网站，利用GlycoMIP为本科生提供基于团队的研究项目，参与GlycoMIP暑期学校，为期一周的糖质表征，建模和合成，以及通过青年体验科学（YES）领导机会，弗吉尼亚理工大学的K-12暑期推广计划。 该REU计划将满足培养下一代糖科学领导者的迫切需求，这些领导者将为我们日常生活中无处不在的技术提供未来的创新。技术摘要该计划为本科生提供四个结构化的基于团队的研究领域：（1）基于聚糖的聚合物共混物增容剂-利用多糖链的还原端，将合成聚糖的嵌段共聚物，以使基于碳水化合物和非基于碳水化合物的热塑性和热固性聚合物的共混物相容，随后通过小角度光散射表征分散体，并通过动态力学分析和Instron测试确定机械性能;（2）糖共聚物的中尺度建模----将通过稀溶液粘度测定法和旋转及振荡流变测定法来表征糖共聚物的溶液和凝胶，以测试正在开发的中尺度模型，以解释和预测剪切粘度和线性粘弹性行为的区域;（3）与生物分子相互作用的糖物质-由合成聚合物主链和限定的聚糖侧链组成的糖材料将用现代聚合技术合成，以通过后聚合来控制摩尔质量和链拓扑结构。聚合改性和大分子单体的直接聚合。 聚合物与酶和聚糖结合蛋白的相互作用将通过表面等离子体共振和石英晶体微天平研究来探测;（4）先进的手性糖分析方法-振动圆二色谱和拉曼旋光光谱将用于表征溶液中的手性聚糖。 光谱将与正在开发的结合分子动力学模拟和量子化学计算结果的联合收割机的理论工具的预测进行比较。该网站由国防部与NSF REU计划合作支持。该奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的知识价值和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。