Date of Award
1-1-2021
Document Type
Dissertation
Degree Name
Ph.D. in Chemistry
Department
Chemistry and Biochemistry
First Advisor
Davita L. Watkins
Second Advisor
Jared Delcamp
Third Advisor
Saumen Chakraborty
Relational Format
dissertation/thesis
Abstract
Polyamidoamine (PAMAM) is a dendrimer structure with a polypeptide backbone architecture. It has been utilized in a wide variety of applications but has found significant utility in biomedical applications. PAMAM has been studied extensively due to its globular structure that is similar to proteins found in the body. The branched architecture and overall size provide a favorable environment for host-guest interactions and allows for the loading of small molecules for therapeutic delivery. Although PAMAM has many benefits for use in the area of therapeutic delivery, a primary area of concern for this molecular architecture is the terminal amines that serve as the end-groups for the branches. At physiological conditions, these terminal amines are protonated resulting in a positive surface charge density on the dendritic structure. These protonated amines are a primary source of toxicity associated with PAMAM dendrimers. Literature shows that too high of a positive surface charge density can lead to various forms of toxicity, such as cell lysis. Specific to PAMAM dendrimers, the size and generation of the dendrimer dramatically affects the ability for this macromolecule to interact with negatively charged biological components leading to myotoxicity or the disruption the secondary structure of proteins.
Recommended Citation
Simms, Briana L., "Elucidating the interfacial interactions between biomacromolecules and functionalized PAMAM-based materials for biomedical applications" (2021). Electronic Theses and Dissertations. 2059.
https://egrove.olemiss.edu/etd/2059