Biomimetic polymers in drug delivery and sensing applications: Effect of network molecular structure on recognition properties

The binding and release kinetics of the biomimetic polymer networks, which are used in biosensing and controlled drug delivery, were investigated. The effect of the network molecular structure on the diffusion coefficient of D-glucose fluorescent analogue, 2-NBDG, was also investigated. The polymer networks specific for a target biomolecule were micropatterned onto silicon substrates, and characterized by single and competitive fluorescent and confocal microscopy, SEM , and profilometry. It was found that with decreasing crosslinking percentage of the network, the macromolecular recognition of the network chains decreases.