title: Design of water-soluble, thiol-reactive polymers of controlled molecular weight: a novel multivalent scaffold.
abstract: Multivalent molecules, i.e. scaffolds presenting multiple copies of a suitable ligand, constitute an emerging class of nanoscale therapeutics. We present a novel approach for the design of multivalent ligands, which allows the biofunctionalization of polymers with proteins or peptides in a controlled orientation. It consists of the synthesis of water-soluble, activated polymer scaffolds of controlled molecular weight, which can be biofunctionalized with various thiolated ligands in aqueous media under mild conditions. These polymers were synthesized by ring-opening metathesis polymerization (ROMP) and further modified to make them water-soluble. The incorporation of chloride groups activated the polymers to react with thiol-containing peptides or proteins, and the formation of multivalent ligands in aqueous media was demonstrated. This strategy represents a convenient route for synthesizing multivalent ligands of controlled dimensions and valency.
authors: The Howard P Isermann Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, Troy, NY 12180, USA.
authors: Alvaro
authors: A
authors: Carrillo
authors: Kunal V
authors: KV
authors: Gujraty
authors: Prakash R
authors: PR
authors: Rai
authors: Ravi S
authors: RS
authors: Kane