Shaodong Zhang

Modular synthesis of amphiphilic Janus glycodendrimers and their self-assembly into glycodendrimersomes and other complex architectures with bioactivity to biomedically relevant lectins

The modular synthesis of 7 libraries containing 51 self-assembling amphiphilic Janus dendrimers with the monosaccharides D-mannose and D-galactose and the disaccharide D-lactose in their hydrophilic part is reported. These unprecedented sugar-containing dendrimers are named amphiphilic Janus glycodendrimers. Their self-assembly by simple injection of THF or ethanol solution into water or buffer and by hydration was analyzed by a combination of methods including dynamic light scattering, confocal microscopy, cryogenic transmission electron microscopy, Fourier transform analysis, and micropipet-aspiration experiments to assess mechanical properties. These libraries revealed a diversity of hard and soft assemblies, including unilamellar spherical, polygonal, and tubular vesicles denoted glycodendrimersomes, aggregates of Janus glycodendrimers and rodlike micelles named glycodendrimer aggregates and glycodendrimermicelles, cubosomes denoted glycodendrimercubosomes, and solid lamellae. These assemblies are stable over time in water and in buffer, exhibit narrow molecular-weight distribution, and display dimensions that are programmable by the concentration of the solution from which they are injected. This study elaborated the molecular principles leading to single-type soft glycodendrimersomes assembled from amphiphilic Janus glycodendrimers. The multivalency of glycodendrimersomes with different sizes and their ligand bioactivity were demonstrated by selective agglutination with a diversity of sugar-binding protein receptors such as the plant lectins concanavalin A and the highly toxic mistletoe Viscum album L. agglutinin, the bacterial lectin PA-IL from Pseudomonas aeruginosa, and, of special biomedical relevance, human adhesion/growth-regulatory galectin-3 and galectin-4. These results demonstrated the candidacy of glycodendrimersomes as new mimics of biological membranes with programmable glycan ligand presentations, as supramolecular lectin blockers, vaccines, and targeted delivery devices.

Self-assembly of amphiphilic Janus dendrimers into uniform onion-like dendrimersomes with predictable size and number of bilayers

Significance Simple injection of a solution of amphiphilic Janus dendrimer with specific primary structure into water or buffer has been shown to yield uniform submicrometer-size onion-like vesicles denoted dendrimersomes. The size and number of alternating internally confined bilayers is predicted by the final concentration of the Janus dendrimer. Onion-like dendrimersomes provide mimics of various biological membranes and can be elaborated to provide time-dependent delivery of drugs. Their ease of preparation contrasts with conventional methods used to make onion-like vesicles that are both complicated and time-consuming. A constitutional isomeric library synthesized by a modular approach has been used to discover six amphiphilic Janus dendrimer primary structures, which self-assemble into uniform onion-like vesicles with predictable dimensions and number of internal bilayers. These vesicles, denoted onion-like dendrimersomes, are assembled by simple injection of a solution of Janus dendrimer in a water-miscible solvent into water or buffer. These dendrimersomes provide mimics of double-bilayer and multibilayer biological membranes with dimensions and number of bilayers predicted by the Janus compound concentration in water. The simple injection method of preparation is accessible without any special equipment, generating uniform vesicles, and thus provides a promising tool for fundamental studies as well as technological applications in nanomedicine and other fields.

Dissecting Molecular Aspects of Cell Interactions Using Glycodendrimersomes with Programmable Glycan Presentation and Engineered Human Lectins

Glycodendrimersomes with programmable surface display of glycan, together with artificially engineered galectins, were used to understand the physiological significance of human lectins with homodimeric and tandem-repeat-type displays. The mode of topological surface presentation and the density of glycan affected vesicle aggregation mediated by multivalent carbohydrate-protein interactions. The cross-linking capacity of homodimeric lectins was enhanced by covalent connection of the two carbohydrate-binding sites. These findings highlight the value of glycodendrimersomes as versatile cell membrane mimetics, and assays provide diagnostic tools for protein functionality. This work also provides guidelines for the design of cell separators, bioactive matrices, bioeffectors, and other biomedical applications.

Unraveling functional significance of natural variations of a human galectin by glycodendrimersomes with programmable glycan surface

Significance Lectins are endogenous sugar receptors involved in diverse physiological and disease-associated processes. The functional consequences of naturally occurring single-nucleotide polymorphism and alternative splicing in lectins has been explored using glycodendrimersomes, a versatile test system with programmable glycan (complex carbohydrates) display. Importantly, glycodendrimersomes facilitate quantitative determination of lectin-mediated cross-linking, a hallmark of their activity. Threshold and kinetic effects measured for a human galectin associated with autoimmune disease document the sensitivity of the test system and highlight its potential as a new and highly versatile supramolecular sensor for biomedical applications. Surface-presented glycans (complex carbohydrates) are docking sites for adhesion/growth-regulatory galectins within cell–cell/matrix interactions. Alteration of the linker length in human galectin-8 and single-site mutation (F19Y) are used herein to illustrate the potential of glycodendrimersomes with programmable glycan displays as a model system to reveal the functional impact of natural sequence variations in trans recognition. Extension of the linker length slightly reduces lectin capacity as agglutinin and slows down aggregate formation at low ligand surface density. The mutant protein is considerably less active as agglutinin and less sensitive to low-level ligand presentation. The present results suggest that mimicking glycan complexity and microdomain occurrence on the glycodendrimersome surface can provide key insights into mechanisms to accomplish natural selectivity and specificity of lectins in structural and topological terms.

Glycodendrimersomes from Sequence-Defined Janus Glycodendrimers Reveal High Activity and Sensor Capacity for the Agglutination by Natural Variants of Human Lectins

A library of eight amphiphilic Janus glycodendrimers (Janus-GDs) presenting D-lactose (Lac) and a combination of Lac with up to eight methoxytriethoxy (3EO) units in a sequence-defined arrangement was synthesized via an iterative modular methodology. The length of the linker between Lac and the hydrophobic part of the Janus-GDs was also varied. Self-assembly by injection from THF solution into phosphate-buffered saline led to unilamellar, monodisperse glycodendrimersomes (GDSs) with dimensions predicted by Janus-GD concentration. These GDSs provided a toolbox to measure bioactivity profiles in agglutination assays with sugar-binding proteins (lectins). Three naturally occurring forms of the human adhesion/growth-regulatory lectin galectin-8, Gal-8S and Gal-8L, which differ by the length of linker connecting their two active domains, and a single amino acid mutant (F19Y), were used as probes to study activity and sensor capacity. Unpredictably, the sequence of Lac on the Janus-GDs was demonstrated to determine bioactivity, with the highest level revealed for a Janus-GD with six 3EO groups and one Lac. A further increase in Lac density was invariably accompanied by a substantial decrease in agglutination, whereas a decrease in Lac density resulted in similar or lower bioactivity and sensor capacity. Both changes in topology of Lac presentation of the GDSs and seemingly subtle alterations in protein structure resulted in different levels of bioactivity, demonstrating the presence of regulation on both GDS surface and lectin. These results illustrate the applicability of Janus-GDs to dissect structure-activity relationships between programmable cell surface models and human lectins in a highly sensitive and physiologically relevant manner.

Onion-like glycodendrimersomes from sequence-defined Janus glycodendrimers and influence of architecture on reactivity to a lectin

Significance The known role of the sugar d-mannose (Man) as a postal code in intracellular cargo routing has herein inspired the design of Man-presenting synthetic glycolipid-like mimics termed Janus glycodendrimers (GDs). Simple injection of a solution of Janus GDs prepared into a water-miscible solvent into buffer produces, via self-assembly, monodisperse multilamellar onion-like glycodendrimersomes (GDSs). Janus GD structural design impacts the resulting GDS architecture including surface display of Man. The latter is shown to tune reactivity to a lectin. Thus GDSs provide a model system to enable systematic studies of physiologically relevant glycan/lectin pairing. A library of eight amphiphilic Janus glycodendrimers (GDs) with d-mannose (Man) headgroups, a known routing signal for lectin-mediated transport processes, was constructed via an iterative modular methodology. Sequence-defined variations of the Janus GD modulate the surface density and sequence of Man after self-assembly into multilamellar glycodendrimersomes (GDSs). The spatial mode of Man presentation is decisive for formation of either unilamellar or onion-like GDS vesicles. Man presentation and Janus GD concentration determine GDS size and number of bilayers. Beyond vesicle architecture, Man topological display affects kinetics and plateau level of GDS aggregation by a tetravalent model lectin: the leguminous agglutinin Con A, which is structurally related to endogenous cargo transporters. The agglutination process was rapid, efficient, and readily reversible for onion-like GDSs, demonstrating their value as versatile tools to explore the nature of physiologically relevant glycan/lectin pairing.

Influence of Brønsted acid ionic liquid structure on hydroxyacid polyesterification

Bronsted acid ionic liquids (BAILs) based on the 4-(3′-butyl-1′-imidazolio)-1-butanesulfonic acid cation were found to be very efficient polyesterification solvents and catalysts. Only 5–30 min at 90–110 °C was required to obtain high molar mass poly(12-hydroxydodecanoic acid) (Mw up to 40000 g mol−1). The polyesterification was faster in BAILs with the bis(trifluoromethylsulfonyl)imidide anion (Tf2N), but small amounts of ethers and double bonds arising from side reactions were detected in the final polymer. On the other hand, no side reactions took place in the BAIL with the hydrogen sulfate anion, except for the formation of a sulfonate ester intermediate that can further react with carboxylic acid groups to yield the expected ester. This intermediate, not observed in Tf2N-based BAILs, might be involved in the protection of hydroxy end groups from etherification side reactions in HSO4−-based BAILs. To explain the different behaviors of these BAILs, and since the acidity of H2SO4 is much higher than that of Tf2NH, it is suggested that the structure of these BAILs could be different: alkylsulfonic acid-substituted imidazolium for the former, while the latter could be just a mixture of imidazolium–sulfonate zwitterion and Tf2NH. The influence of reaction temperature, water elimination method and BAIL concentration on polyesterification are also discussed.

Bioactive cell-like hybrids coassembled from (glyco)dendrimersomes with bacterial membranes

Significance Cell surface determinants such as glycans, receptors, and adhesion molecules govern cell sociology in a complex manner. By forming cell-like hybrids of chemically programmable (glyco)dendrimersomes with bacterial membrane vesicles, evidence is obtained for the feasibility of combining chemical and biological surface design in one entity. Such tunable cell-like hybrids with custom-made combinations of surface epitopes and active receptors will likely find utility in dissecting the functionality of individual entities in complex networks and ultimately enable novel biomedical applications. A library of amphiphilic Janus dendrimers including two that are fluorescent and one glycodendrimer presenting lactose were used to construct giant dendrimersomes and glycodendrimersomes. Coassembly with the components of bacterial membrane vesicles by a dehydration–rehydration process generated giant cell-like hybrid vesicles, whereas the injection of their ethanol solution into PBS produced monodisperse nanometer size assemblies. These hybrid vesicles contain transmembrane proteins including a small membrane protein, MgrB, tagged with a red fluorescent protein, lipopolysaccharides, and glycoproteins from the bacterium Escherichia coli. Incorporation of two colored fluorescent probes in each of the components allowed fluorescence microscopy to visualize and demonstrate coassembly and the incorporation of functional membrane channels. Importantly, the hybrid vesicles bind a human galectin, consistent with the display of sugar moieties from lipopolysaccharides or possibly glycosylated membrane proteins. The present coassembly method is likely to create cell-like hybrids from any biological membrane including human cells and thus may enable practical application in nanomedicine.

Why Do Membranes of Some Unhealthy Cells Adopt a Cubic Architecture

Nonlamellar lipid arrangements, including cubosomes, appear in unhealthy cells, e.g., when they are subject to stress, starvation, or viral infection. The bioactivity of cubosomes—nanoscale particles exhibiting bicontinuous cubic structures—versus more common vesicles is an unexplored area due to lack of suitable model systems. Here, glycodendrimercubosomes (GDCs)—sugar-presenting cubosomes assembled from Janus glycodendrimers by simple injection into buffer—are proposed as mimics of biological cubic membranes. The bicontinuous cubic GDC architecture has been demonstrated by electron tomography. The stability of these GDCs in buffer enabled studies on lectin-dependent agglutination, revealing significant differences compared with the vesicular glycodendrimersome (GDS) counterpart. In particular, GDCs showed an increased activity toward concanavalin A, as well as an increased sensitivity and selectivity toward two variants of banana lectins, a wild-type and a genetically modified variant, which is not exhibited by GDSs. These results suggest that cells may adapt under unhealthy conditions by undergoing a transformation from lamellar to cubic membranes as a method of defense.

Synthesis of linear and hyperbranched polyesters in Brønsted acid ionic liquids

Imidazolium based Bronsted acid ionic liquids (BAILs) were proved to be very efficient solvents and catalysts for linear and hyperbranched polyester synthesis. Linear polyesters of diols and diacids with mass-average molar mass (Mw) up to 36 000 g mol−1 were obtained by the post-polycondensation of low molar-mass oligoesters at 110 °C in 15–30 min. Hyperbranched polyesters of 2,2-bis(hydroxymethyl)propanoic acid with a Mw of ca. 10 000 g mol−1 were yielded in 3-butyl-1-(butyl-4′-sulfonic acid)imidazolium hydrogen sulfate ([BBSIm]HSO4) in no more than 2 h, which is considerably shorter than the conventional polyesterification in the bulk. The degree of branching of the resulting hyperbranched polyesters increased with time. [BBSIm]HSO4 was found to be more suitable for polyesterification, as only the expected polyester was produced, while when polycondensations were carried out in the BAIL with Tf2N− anion ([BBSIm]Tf2N), side reactions were observed: ether formation and polymer scissions in linear polyester synthesis, and gelation in hyperbranched polyesterification.