Lock and key micelles
AssigneeUniversity of South Florida
InventorsGeorge R. Newkome, Charles N. Moorefield, Gregory Baker
Life of this patent
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Abstract
A lock unimolecular micelle includes at least one engineered acceptor specifically binding a ligand (or specifically a "key" unimolecular micelle) thereto. A key unimolecular micelle comprises a core molecule and a plurality of branches extending therefrom, at least one of the branches including a shank portion extending therefrom having a terminal moiety at an end thereof for binding to a complimentary acceptor of a lock unimolecular micelle. Together, the lock and key micelles form a unit, either irreversibly or reversibly bound wherein the lock micelles is a soluble receptor engineered to specifically bind to the specifically engineered key micelle.
Claims8
A key micelle molecule comprising a core molecule and a plurality of branches extending therefrom, at least one of said branches including a shank portion extending therefrom having a terminal moiety at an end thereof providing a secondary and tertiary structure allowing entrance into a void region of a lock micelle for binding to a complementary acceptor within the void region of the lock unimolecular micelle.
A method of making a physicochemically operative monomer building block for synthesis of a cascade polymer which method includes the steps of acylating a physicochemically operative moiety including an amino group and a multibranched core building block including an amino group with an (acid chloride) to form a physicochemically operative bis amide monomer including a physicochemically active portion and a branched portion.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.