Synthetic and characterisation facilities for polymeric nanostructured systems

所要求的研究设施是为了支持发现拨款提案中所述的研究计划，该提案题为“用于生物医学和化学应用的新型纳米结构系统”。该计划寻求开发用于药物/基因输送应用的聚合物纳米结构，以及用于蛋白质和水净化过程的功能纳米颗粒。这一提议的新奇之处在于我们试图创造分子，然后研究它们并将其应用于真实系统。这项研究一旦成功实施，将提高对输送系统/有效载荷相互作用的理解，这些相互作用将对更好的输送系统的开发产生影响。开发用于治疗癌症、糖尿病和遗传疾病等疾病的此类系统不仅对公众健康有实质性的好处，而且还可以进行经济开发。所要求的基础设施包括由于预算限制而没有在申请人的CFI中要求的设备，但所附的设备清单对于完全实施拟议的研究是必不可少的。聚合物合成和样品制备分别需要旋转蒸发器和净水系统。表面张力计提供了嵌段共聚物临界胶束浓度的关键信息，这是描述其自组装行为的重要参数。需要使用自动U形管粘度计来确定聚合物-溶剂相互作用以及聚合物纳米结构的分子尺寸(如特性粘度、Huggins相互作用参数等)。这些，再加上从CFI/ORF基金购买的其他设备(如量热仪、激光光散射)获得的其他物理性质，将增强我们对嵌段共聚物的自组装行为和聚合物纳米结构的分子性质的理解。从这些关键仪器收集的实验数据将使我们能够对聚合物纳米结构材料的自组装和微结构得出重要的基本见解。这些知识将促进创新药物输送系统或新型分离介质的发展，使所有加拿大人受益。

The research facilities requested are to support the research program described in the Discovery Grant proposal entitled "Novel Nanostructured Systems for Biomedical and Chemical Applications". The program seeks to develop polymeric nanostructures for drug/gene delivery applications, and functional nanoparticles for protein and water purification processes. The novelty of this proposal lies in our attempt to create molecules, then study and apply them to real systems. The research, when successfully executed will result in improved understanding of delivery systems/payload interactions that will have an impact on the development of better delivery systems.The development of such systems for the treatment of diseases such as cancer, diabetes, and genetic disorders is not only of substantial benefit to public health, but can also be economically exploited.The requested infrastructure is comprised of equipment that were not requested in the applicant's CFI due to budget constraints, yet the enclosed list of equipment is essential for complete implementation of the proposed research. The rotary evaporator and water purification system are needed for polymer synthesis and sample preparation respectively. The surface tensiometer provides key information on the critical micelle concentration of block copolymers, which is an important parameter describing their self-assembly behavior. The automatic U-tube viscometer is needed to determine the polymer-solvent interactions, and molecular dimension of polymeric nanostructures (e.g. intrinsic viscosity, Huggins interaction parameters etc). These, together with other physical properties obtained from other equipment (such as calorimeters, laser light scattering) to be purchased from the CFI/ORF funding will enhance our understanding on the self-assembly behavior of block copolymers and molecular properties of polymeric nanostructures. Experimental data gathered from these critical instruments will enable us to derive important fundamental insights on the self-assembly and microstructure of polymeric nanostructured materials. Such knowledge will enhance the development of innovative drug delivery systems or novel separation media that will benefit all Canadians.