Polysaccharide-reinforced amyloid fibril hydrogels and aerogels.

Mattia Usuelli, Till Germerdonk, Yiping Cao, Mohammad Peydayesh, Massimo Bagnani, Stephan Handschin, Gustav Nyström, Raffaele Mezzenga

Nanoscale 2021 Aug 07

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β-Lactoglobulin amyloid fibrils are bio-colloids of high interest in many fields (e.g. water purification, cell growth, drug delivery and sensing). While the mechanical properties of pure amyloid fibril gels meet the needs of some applications, mechanical fragility often hinders a wider usage basin. In this work, we present a simple and sustainable approach for reinforcing amyloid fibril hydrogels and aerogels, upon the diffusion of polysaccharides (low-acetylated Gellan Gum and κ-carrageenan) inside their mesh. The formed hybrid materials show enhanced resistance upon compression, without any loss of the exquisite surface reactivity of the amyloid fibrils. The proposed approach can pave the way for designing composite materials that are both highly functional and environmentally friendly.

Citation

Mattia Usuelli, Till Germerdonk, Yiping Cao, Mohammad Peydayesh, Massimo Bagnani, Stephan Handschin, Gustav Nyström, Raffaele Mezzenga. Polysaccharide-reinforced amyloid fibril hydrogels and aerogels. Nanoscale. 2021 Aug 07;13(29):12534-12545