title: Effect of supramolecular structures on thermoplastic zein-lignin bionanocomposites.
abstract: The effect of alkaline lignin (AL) and sodium lignosulfonate (LSS) on the structure of thermoplastic zein (TPZ) was studied. Protein structural changes and the nature of the physical interaction between lignin and zein were investigated by means of X-ray diffraction and Fourier transform infrared (FT-IR) spectroscopy and correlated with physical properties. Most relevant protein structural changes were observed at low AL concentration, where strong H-bondings between the functional groups of AL and the amino acids in zein induced a destructuring of inter- and intramolecular interactions in α-helix, β-sheet, and β-turn secondary structures. This destructuring allowed for an extensive protein conformational modification which, in turn, resulted in a strong improvement of the physical properties of the bionanocomposite.
authors.affiliation: Institute for Composite and Biomedical Materials (IMCB), CNR, P.le Tecchio 80, 80125 Naples, Italy.
authors.forename: Maria
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Oliviero
authors.forename: Letizia
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Verdolotti
authors.forename: Ernesto
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Di Maio
authors.forename: Marco
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Aurilia
authors.forename: Salvatore
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Iannace
mesh_terms: D006860:Hydrogen Bonding; D008031:Lignin / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000494:pharmacology; D053761:Nanocomposites / Q000737:chemistry*; D017433:Protein Structure, Secondary; D017550:Spectroscopy, Fourier Transform Infrared; D014961:X-Ray Diffraction; D015028:Zein / Q000737:chemistry*
chemical_list: D008031:Lignin; D015028:Zein