A potential alternative to fungicides using actives-free (meth)acrylate polymers for protection of wheat crops from fungal attachment and infection (2023)
Journal Article
Crawford, L. A., Cuzzucoli Crucitti, V., Stimpson, A., Morgan, C., Blake, J., Wildman, R. D., …Avery, S. V. (2023). A potential alternative to fungicides using actives-free (meth)acrylate polymers for protection of wheat crops from fungal attachment and infection. Green Chemistry, https://doi.org/10.1039/d3gc01911j

Fungicidal compounds are actives widely used for crop protection from fungal infection, but they can also kill beneficial organisms, enter the food chain and promote resistant pathogen strains from overuse. Here we report the first field crop trial o... Read More about A potential alternative to fungicides using actives-free (meth)acrylate polymers for protection of wheat crops from fungal attachment and infection.

Identification of Pseudomonas aeruginosa exopolysaccharide Psl in biofilms using 3D OrbiSIMS (2023)
Journal Article
Khateb, H., Hook, A. L., Kern, S., Watts, J. A., Singh, S., Jackson, D., …Alexander, M. R. (2023). Identification of Pseudomonas aeruginosa exopolysaccharide Psl in biofilms using 3D OrbiSIMS. Biointerphases, 18(3), Article 031007. https://doi.org/10.1116/6.0002604

Secondary ion mass spectrometry (SIMS) offers advantages over both liquid extraction mass spectrometry and matrix assisted laser desorption mass spectrometry in that it provides the direct in situ analysis of molecules and has the potential to preser... Read More about Identification of Pseudomonas aeruginosa exopolysaccharide Psl in biofilms using 3D OrbiSIMS.

Linear Binary Classifier to Predict Bacterial Biofilm Formation on Polyacrylates (2023)
Journal Article
Contreas, L., Hook, A. L., Winkler, D. A., Figueredo, G., Williams, P., Laughton, C. A., …Williams, P. M. (2023). Linear Binary Classifier to Predict Bacterial Biofilm Formation on Polyacrylates. ACS Applied Materials and Interfaces, 15(11), 14155-14163. https://doi.org/10.1021/acsami.2c23182

Bacterial infections are increasingly problematic due to the rise of antimicrobial resistance. Consequently, the rational design of materials naturally resistant to biofilm formation is an important strategy for preventing medical device-associated i... Read More about Linear Binary Classifier to Predict Bacterial Biofilm Formation on Polyacrylates.

Exploring the Relationship between Polymer Surface Chemistry and Bacterial Attachment Using ToF-SIMS and Self-Organizing maps (2023)
Journal Article
Wong, S. Y., Hook, A. L., Gardner, W., Chang, C., Mei, Y., Davies, M. C., …Pigram, P. J. (2023). Exploring the Relationship between Polymer Surface Chemistry and Bacterial Attachment Using ToF-SIMS and Self-Organizing maps. Advanced Materials Interfaces, 10(9), Article 2202334. https://doi.org/10.1002/admi.202202334

Biofilm formation is a major cause of hospital-acquired infections. Research into biofilm-resistant materials is therefore critical to reduce the frequency of these events. Polymer microarrays offer a high-throughput approach to enable the efficient... Read More about Exploring the Relationship between Polymer Surface Chemistry and Bacterial Attachment Using ToF-SIMS and Self-Organizing maps.

Discovery of a polymer resistant to bacterial biofilm, swarming, and encrustation (2023)
Journal Article
Dubern, J. F., Hook, A. L., Carabelli, A. M., Chang, C. Y., Lewis-Lloyd, C. A., Luckett, J. C., …Williams, P. (2023). Discovery of a polymer resistant to bacterial biofilm, swarming, and encrustation. Science Advances, 9(4), Article eadd7474. https://doi.org/10.1126/sciadv.add7474

Innovative approaches to prevent catheter-associated urinary tract infections (CAUTIs) are urgently required. Here, we describe the discovery of an acrylate copolymer capable of resisting single- and multispecies bacterial biofilm formation, swarming... Read More about Discovery of a polymer resistant to bacterial biofilm, swarming, and encrustation.

Innate immune cell instruction using micron-scale 3D objects of varied architecture and polymer chemistry: The ChemoArchiChip (2023)
Journal Article
Vassey, M., Ma, L., Kämmerling, L., Mbadugha, C., Trindade, G. F., Figueredo, G. P., …Alexander, M. R. (2023). Innate immune cell instruction using micron-scale 3D objects of varied architecture and polymer chemistry: The ChemoArchiChip. Matter, 6(3), 887-906. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.matt.2023.01.002

To design effective immunomodulatory implants, innate immune cell interactions at the surface of biomaterials need to be controlled and understood. The architectural design freedom of two-photon polymerization is used to produce arrays of surface-mou... Read More about Innate immune cell instruction using micron-scale 3D objects of varied architecture and polymer chemistry: The ChemoArchiChip.

Identifying new biomarkers of aggressive Group 3 and SHH medulloblastoma using 3D hydrogel models, single cell RNA sequencing and 3D OrbiSIMS imaging (2023)
Journal Article
Linke, F., Johnson, J. E. C., Kern, S., Bennett, C. D., Lourdusamy, A., Lea, D., …Coyle, B. (2023). Identifying new biomarkers of aggressive Group 3 and SHH medulloblastoma using 3D hydrogel models, single cell RNA sequencing and 3D OrbiSIMS imaging. Acta Neuropathologica Communications, 11(1), Article 6. https://doi.org/10.1186/s40478-022-01496-4

The most common malignant brain tumour in children, medulloblastoma (MB), is subdivided into four clinically relevant molecular subgroups, although targeted therapy options informed by understanding of different cellular features are lacking. Here, b... Read More about Identifying new biomarkers of aggressive Group 3 and SHH medulloblastoma using 3D hydrogel models, single cell RNA sequencing and 3D OrbiSIMS imaging.

Predictive Molecular Design and Structure–Property Validation of Novel Terpene-Based, Sustainably Sourced Bacterial Biofilm-Resistant Materials (2023)
Journal Article
Cuzzucoli Crucitti, V., Ilchev, A., Moore, J. C., Fowler, H. R., Dubern, J., Sanni, O., …Irvine, D. J. (2023). Predictive Molecular Design and Structure–Property Validation of Novel Terpene-Based, Sustainably Sourced Bacterial Biofilm-Resistant Materials. Biomacromolecules, https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.biomac.2c00721

Presented in this work is the use of a molecular descriptor, termed the α parameter, to aid in the design of a series of novel, terpene-based, and sustainable polymers that were resistant to biofilm formation by the model bacterial pathogen Pseudomon... Read More about Predictive Molecular Design and Structure–Property Validation of Novel Terpene-Based, Sustainably Sourced Bacterial Biofilm-Resistant Materials.

Microparticles Decorated with Cell‐Instructive Surface Chemistries Actively Promote Wound Healing (2022)
Journal Article
Latif, A., Fisher, L. E., Dundas, A. A., Crucitti, V. C., Imir, Z., Lawler, K., …Ghaemmaghami, A. M. (2022). Microparticles Decorated with Cell‐Instructive Surface Chemistries Actively Promote Wound Healing. Advanced Materials, Article 2208364. https://doi.org/10.1002/adma.202208364

Wound healing is a complex biological process involving close crosstalk between various cell types. Dysregulation in any of these processes, such as in diabetic wounds, results in chronic nonhealing wounds. Fibroblasts are a critical cell type involv... Read More about Microparticles Decorated with Cell‐Instructive Surface Chemistries Actively Promote Wound Healing.

Evaluation of the relative potential for contact and doffing transmission of SARS-CoV-2 by a range of personal protective equipment materials (2022)
Journal Article
Xue, X., Coleman, C. M., Duncan, J. D., Hook, A. L., Ball, J. K., Alexander, C., & Alexander, M. R. (2022). Evaluation of the relative potential for contact and doffing transmission of SARS-CoV-2 by a range of personal protective equipment materials. Scientific Reports, 12(1), Article 16654. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-022-20952-8

Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2)—the causative agent of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19)—has caused a global public health emergency. Personal protective equipment (PPE) is the primary defence against viral exposure in... Read More about Evaluation of the relative potential for contact and doffing transmission of SARS-CoV-2 by a range of personal protective equipment materials.