A PHOTO RHEOMETER FOR BIOMATERIAL CHARACTERIZATION

该设备资助将允许申请人购买用于蛋白质基生物材料表征的光流变仪。我们的研究项目专注于开发合理的方法来设计具有定制纳米力学性能的弹性蛋白质，并将这些蛋白质作为自底向上构建新型蛋白质生物材料的基石，用于材料科学和生物医学工程。为了实现这一目标，我们通过新的光化学交联策略，率先研究了具有定制宏观力学性能的工程弹性蛋白生物材料。长期目标是弥合单一蛋白质力学和材料生物力学之间的差距，并了解单个弹性蛋白质的力学特性如何转化为宏观材料的特性。所提出的光流变仪将为我们提供必要的工具，使我们能够在宏观水平上充分表征这些工程蛋白基生物材料的机械性能，并研究光化学交联条件如何影响合成的弹性蛋白基生物材料的整体机械性能。这些关键的知识将有助于理解宏观特性是如何与单个蛋白质构建块的纳米力学特性相关联和定义的，并指导未来弹性蛋白质生物材料的设计。

This equipment grant will allow the applicant to purchase a photo rheometer for characterization of protein-based biomaterials. Our research program is focused on developing rational methodologies to engineer elastomeric proteins with tailored nanomechanical properties, and use such proteins as building blocks for the bottom-up construction of novel protein-based biomaterials for applications in material sciences and biomedical engineering. Towards this goal, we have spearheaded research efforts in engineering elastomeric protein-based biomaterials with tailored macroscopic mechanical properties via novel photochemical crosslinking strategies. The long term goal is to bridge the gap between single protein mechanics and material biomechanics, and understand how the mechanical properties of individual elastomeric proteins are translated into the properties of macroscopic materials. The proposed photo rheometer will provide us with the essential tool enable us to fully characterize the mechanical properties of these engineered protein-based biomaterials at the macroscopic level, and investigate how photochemical crosslinking condition affects the overall mechanical properties of the resultant elastomeric protein-based biomaterials. This critical knowledge will help understand how macroscopic properties are correlated with and defined by the nanomechanical properties of individual protein building blocks, guide future design of elastomeric protein-based biomaterials.