TY - JOUR A1 - Risse, Kerstin A1 - Nikiforidis, Constantinos V. A1 - Morris, Imogen A1 - Thünemann, Andreas A1 - Drusch, Stephan T1 - Regulating the heat stability of protein-phospholipid stabilised oil-water emulsions by changing the phospholipid headgroup or fatty acyl chain N2 - Stabilising oil–water emulsions remains a central challenge across food, pharmaceutical and cosmetic applications. β-lactoglobulin (β-LG) and phospholipids (PLs) can act synergistically at oil-water interfaces: PLs adsorb rapidly, while β-LG forms a viscoelastic protein network that enhances long-term stability. However, competitive adsorption between proteins and PLs can disrupt interfacial structure. In addition, for commercial production, emulsions are often exposed to heat treatment during or after manufacture, for instance due to food safety requirements. Yet, the combined effects of PL structure and heat treatment on interfacial organisation and emulsion stability remain poorly understood. Here we show that PL saturation and processing temperature jointly determine interfacial organisation, protein-PL interactions and emulsion stability. Using β-LG-PL emulsions, we combined ζ-potential measurements, small-angle X-ray scattering (SAXS), micro-differential scanning calorimetry (μDSC), X-ray diffraction and confocal laser scanning microscopy (CLSM) to link interfacial composition with functional stability. Below the β-LG denaturation temperature (≤75 °C), saturated PLs promoted partial unfolding of β-LG at the interface without displacement, producing mixed protein-PL networks with enhanced viscoelasticity and stability. Unsaturated PLs displaced β-LG, yielding less elastic interfaces and promoting protein aggregation in the bulk. At ≥75 °C, increased hydrophobicity intensified protein-protein interactions irrespective of PL type. Our findings reveal that saturated PLs shift the β-LG denaturation temperature upward by restricting molecular mobility, without preventing quaternary-level protein-protein interactions. Thermal denaturation, regardless of PL type, promoted interfacial multilayer formation at 90 °C. These results provide a mechanistic framework for tailoring emulsion stability via lipid saturation and processing temperature. KW - Small-angle X-ray scattering KW - SAXS KW - Nanostructure KW - Reference Method KW - Colloid KW - Nanoparticle PY - 2026 UR - https://nbn-resolving.org/urn:nbn:de:kobv:b43-648956 DO - https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jcis.2025.139530 SN - 0021-9797 VL - 705 SP - 1 EP - 25 PB - Elsevier Inc. AN - OPUS4-64895 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Mikhlin, Yuri A1 - Muzikansky, Anya A1 - Zysler, Melina A1 - Thünemann, Andreas A1 - Zitoun, David T1 - Emerging electrochemistry of high-concentration colloids: Redox-activity, wide potential window and electrophoretic transport of iron oxide nanoparticles N2 - High-concentration, steric stabilizer free colloids and particularly their electrochemical behavior remains almost unexplored. Herein, we report on the electrochemistry (cyclic voltammetry, impedance spectroscopy, etc.) of highly concentrated aqueous colloidal dispersion up to 800 g/L of citrate-capped ∼11 nm Fe3-xO4 nanoparticles (NPs) without background electrolyte on glassy carbon electrodes. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy was applied to analyze the reaction products. Solid-state Fe(II)/Fe(III) conversion was concluded to determine the cathodic and anodic faradaic reactions of the particles, with the currents depending on approximately square root of the concentration. The electrochemical reactions are coupled with the electrophoretic transfer of the negatively charged NPs on toward the anode, with the ohmic-type behavior in the bulk demonstrated by the nearly linear voltametric cathodic curves and frequency-independent impedance above ∼10–100 Hz. Accumulation and clogging of the NPs retards diffusion near anode. Hydrogen and especially oxygen evolution are arrested, and very large oxidation overpotentials result in extraordinary wide, up to 12 V, electrochemical window of water stability. The findings shed light onto basic features of the electrochemistry of high-concentration colloids without added electrolyte and their potential applications in redox flow batteries, electrophoretic deposition and beyond. KW - Nanoplastics KW - SAXS KW - Small-angle X-ray scattering PY - 2026 UR - https://nbn-resolving.org/urn:nbn:de:kobv:b43-644340 DO - https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jcis.2025.139247 SN - 0021-9797 VL - 703 SP - 1 EP - 18 PB - Elsevier Inc. AN - OPUS4-64434 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Guitton-Spassky, Tiffany A1 - Schade, Boris A1 - Zoister, Christian A1 - Veronese, Eleonora A1 - Rosati, Marta A1 - Baldelli Bombelli, Francesca A1 - Cavallo, Gabriella A1 - Thünemann, Andreas A1 - Ghermezcheshme, Hassan A1 - Makki, Hesam A1 - Netz, Roland R. A1 - Ludwig, Kai A1 - Metrangolo, Pierangelo A1 - Singh, Abhishek Kumar A1 - Haag, Rainer T1 - Fluorinated Hexosome Carriers for Enhanced Solubility of Drugs N2 - Designing nanomaterials for drug encapsulation is a crucial, yet challenging, aspect for pharmaceutical development. An important step is synthesizing amphiphiles that form stable supramolecular systems for efficient drug loading. In the case of fluorinated drugs, these have superior properties and also a tendency toward reduced water solubility. For the first time, we report here fluorinated hexosome carriers made from nonionic dendritic amphiphiles, capable of encapsulating the fluorinated drug Leflunomide with high efficiency (62 ± 3%) and increasing its solubility by 12-fold. We synthesized amphiphiles with varying tail groups (fluorinated/alkylated), and their supramolecular self-assembly was investigated using cryogenic transmission electron microscopy and small-angle X-ray scattering. Furthermore, Leflunomide and its equivalent nonfluorinated counterpart were encapsulated within fluorinated and nonfluorinated assemblies. Self-assembly and encapsulation mechanisms were well supported by coarse-grained molecular simulations, yielding a fundamental understanding of the new systems. KW - PEFAS KW - Small-angle X-ray scattering KW - SAXS KW - Reference method PY - 2025 UR - https://nbn-resolving.org/urn:nbn:de:kobv:b43-632002 DO - https://doi.org/10.1021/jacsau.5c00198 SN - 2691-3704 VL - 5 IS - 5 SP - 2223 EP - 2236 PB - American Chemical Society (ACS) CY - Washington, DC AN - OPUS4-63200 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Lange, Alyna A1 - Holtzheimer, Lea A1 - Clarke, Coby A1 - Thünemann, Andreas A1 - Taubert, Andreas T1 - Complex Self-Organization in n-Alkylammonium Sulfobetaine Zwitterions with High Thermal Stabilities and High Expansion Coefficients N2 - Sulfobetaine zwitterions made from n-alkyl dimethylamines and butanesultone yield a series of n-alkylammonium sulfobetaine zwitterions with complex self-organization behavior. The compounds are thermally quite stable and the length of the alkyl chain directly affects all phase transition temperatures of the compounds: the longer the alkyl chain, the higher the transition temperature. All compounds exhibit lamellar order and the different phases are characterized by a lower temperature orthorhombic and a higher temperature hexagonal in-plane order. The phase transition from the orthorhombic to the hexagonal phase is always associated with an increase of the long period. The phase transition is also associated with a rather high thermal expansion coefficient. KW - SAXS KW - Small-angle X-ray scattering KW - Nanostructure PY - 2025 UR - https://nbn-resolving.org/urn:nbn:de:kobv:b43-626276 DO - https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.langmuir.4c02892 SN - 1520-5827 VL - 41 SP - 4422 EP - 4434 PB - American Chemical Society (ACS) AN - OPUS4-62627 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Iannuzzi, Maurizio A1 - Chowdhary, Suvrat A1 - Fiedler, Holly A1 - Haoues, Kilian A1 - Schade, Boris A1 - Thünemann, Andreas A1 - Quaas, Elisa A1 - Koksch, Beate T1 - Rational design of polyfluorinated peptide-based materials: Self-assembly of an amphiphilic motif N2 - Generation of a pH sensitive amphiphilic block oligopeptide containing the bioactive function RGD and a library of derivatives varying the length of the hydrophobic core and the degree of side chain fluorination. Peptide rational design enables us to obtain desired features (pH sensitivity etc.). The introduction of fluorine alters a wide range of peptide properties such as secondary structure propensity, folding, thermal and metabolic stability and proteolytic resistance. The RGD function is highly effective at promoting the attachment of numerous cell types to a plethora of materials. This small sequence is the principal integrin-binding domain present within ECM proteins such as fiobronectin, vibronectin and fibrinogen. For this reason, RGD containing peptides offer several advantages for biomaterials applications. The use of RGD compared with native ECM proteins, minimized the risk of immune reactivity or pathogen transfer. Herein in this work, we present the peptide motif X6RGD and its fluoro-derivates for prospective receptor-specific drug delivery in cancer theraphy. Overall, our results demonstrate that high degree of fluorination achieved triggers a selective modification of peptide self-assembly dramatically improving the structural properties, the carrier suitability, enzimatic degradation profiles and cytotoxic features of the fluoropeptide conjugate(s). T2 - 37th European Peptide Symposium CY - Florence, Italy DA - 25.08.2024 KW - Nanostructure KW - SAXS KW - Small-angle X-ray scattering PY - 2024 SN - 1099-1387 VL - 30 IS - S2 SP - 247 EP - 248 PB - Wiley CY - New York, NY AN - OPUS4-62191 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Zhang, Qiang A1 - Heuchel, Matthias A1 - Thünemann, Andreas A1 - Machatscheck, Rainhard T1 - The role of diffusion in the hydrolytic degradation of poly(lactic-co-glycolic acid): A molecular perspective N2 - This research emphasizes the importance of internal surface erosion as a key factor in the hydrolytic degradation of PLGA (poly(D,L-lactic-co-glycolic acid)) providing an alternative view of the established surface and bulk erosion degradation modes. Using molecular dynamics (MD) simulations, this study reveals the role of water and oligomer diffusion during the degradation of PLGA and highlights the importance of water channels formed as the overall water content increases. We found that these continuous water channels play a crucial role in accelerating the transport of water and the release of degradation products from the polymer matrix, as the diffusion coefficients of water and small oligomers exhibit significant differences spanning 2 to 3 orders of magnitude between the water and polymer phases. Water follows a different diffusion mechanism than polymer fragments. The diffusion rate of the fragments up to a size of octamers was found to be size-dependent and reasonably well approximated by a 1/N behavior, in line with the Rouse model. KW - Small-angle X-ray scattering KW - SAXS KW - Nanostructure KW - PLGA PY - 2025 UR - https://nbn-resolving.org/urn:nbn:de:kobv:b43-621250 DO - https://doi.org/10.1016/j.polymdegradstab.2024.111119 VL - 232 SP - 1 EP - 12 PB - Elsevier Ltd. AN - OPUS4-62125 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - CONF A1 - Thünemann, Andreas T1 - Structure Analysis of Functional Hydrogels with Small-Angle X-ray Scattering (SAXS) N2 - Hydrogel properties are largely determined by their network structure. Here, we report on the capabilities of SAXS methods for characterizing polymer-network gels. SAXS provides rich insight into different types and levels of nanostructural inhomogeneities in these soft matter materials. The structure analysis of alginate hydrogels, typically utilized in tissue engineering applications, will be discussed in detail. T2 - Polydays 2024 CY - Berlin, Germany DA - 30.09.2024 KW - SAXS KW - Small-angle X-ray scattering KW - Polymer KW - Gel PY - 2024 AN - OPUS4-61184 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Sieg, Holger A1 - Schaar, Caroline A1 - Fouquet, Nicole A1 - Böhmert, Linda A1 - Thünemann, Andreas A1 - Braeuning, Albert T1 - Particulate iron oxide food colorants (E 172) during artificial digestion and their uptake and impact on intestinal cells N2 - Iron oxide of various structures is frequently used as food colorant (E 172). The spectrum of colors ranges from yellow over orange, red, and brown to black, depending on the chemical structure of the material. E 172 is mostly sold as solid powder. Recent studies have demonstrated the presence of nanoscaled particles in E 172 samples, often to a very high extent. This makes it necessary to investigate the fate of these particles after oral uptake. In this study, 7 differently structured commercially available E 172 food colorants (2 x Yellow FeO(OH), 2 x Red Fe2O3, 1 x Orange Fe2O3 + FeO(OH) and 2 x Black Fe3O4) were investigated for particle dissolution, ion release, cellular uptake, crossing of the intestinal barrier and toxicological impact on intestinal cells. Dissolution was analyzed in water, cell culture medium and artificial digestion fluids. Small-angle X-ray scattering (SAXS) was employed for determination of the specific surface area of the colorants in the digestion fluids. Cellular uptake, transport and toxicological effects were studied using human differentiated Caco-2 cells as an in vitro model of the intestinal barrier. For all materials, a strong interaction with the intestinal cells was observed, albeit there was only a limited dissolution, and no toxic in vitro effects on human cells were recorded. KW - Toxicology KW - Nanoparticles KW - Small-angle X-ray scattering KW - SAXS PY - 2024 UR - https://nbn-resolving.org/urn:nbn:de:kobv:b43-593935 DO - https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tiv.2024.105772 VL - 96 SP - 1 EP - 12 PB - Elsevier BV AN - OPUS4-59393 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Hildebrandt, Jana A1 - Taubert, Andreas A1 - Thünemann, Andreas T1 - Synthesis and Characterization of Ultra‐Small Gold Nanoparticles in the Ionic Liquid 1‐Ethyl‐3‐methylimidazolium Dicyanamide, [Emim][DCA] N2 - AbstractWe report on gold clusters with around 62 gold atoms and a diameter of 1.15±0.10 nm. Dispersions of the clusters are long‐term stable for two years at ambient conditions. The synthesis was performed by mixing tetrachloroauric acid (HAuCl4 ⋅ 3 H2O) with the ionic liquid 1‐ethyl‐3‐methylimidazolium dicyanamide ([Emim][DCA]) at temperatures of 20 to 80 °C. Characterization was performed with small‐angle X‐ray scattering (SAXS), UV‐Vis spectroscopy, and MALDI‐TOF mass spectrometry. A three‐stage model is proposed for the formation of the clusters, in which cluster growth from gold nuclei takes place according to the Lifshitz‐Slyozov‐Wagner (LSW) model followed by oriented attachment to form colloidal stable clusters. KW - Reference materials KW - SAXS KW - Gold KW - Nanoparticle KW - Small-angle X-ray scattering KW - Ionic liquid PY - 2023 UR - https://nbn-resolving.org/urn:nbn:de:kobv:b43-588203 DO - https://doi.org/10.1002/open.202300106 SN - 2191-1363 VL - 44 SP - 1 EP - 19 PB - Wiley AN - OPUS4-58820 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Navarro, L. A1 - Thünemann, Andreas A1 - Yokosawa, T. A1 - Spiecker, E. A1 - Klinger, D. T1 - Regioselective Seeded Polymerization in Block Copolymer Nanoparticles: Post-Assembly Control of Colloidal Features N2 - Post-assembly modifications are efficient tools to adjust colloidal features of block copolymer (BCP) particles. However, existing methods often address particle shape, morphology, and chemical functionality individually. For simultaneous control, we transferred the concept of seeded polymerization to phase separated BCP particles. Key to our approach is the regioselective polymerization of (functional) monomers inside specific BCP domains. This was demonstrated in striped PS-b-P2VP ellipsoids. Here, polymerization of styrene preferably occurs in PS domains and increases PS lamellar thickness up to 5-fold. The resulting asymmetric lamellar morphology also changes the particle shape, i.e., increases the aspect ratio. Using 4-vinylbenzyl azide as co-monomer, azides as chemical functionalities can be added selectively to the PS domains. Overall, our simple and versatile method gives access to various multifunctional BCP colloids from a single batch of pre-formed particles. KW - Small-angle X-ray scattering KW - SAXS KW - Nanostructure KW - Polymer KW - Nanoparticle PY - 2022 UR - https://nbn-resolving.org/urn:nbn:de:kobv:b43-557246 DO - https://doi.org/10.1002/anie.202208084 SN - 1433-7851 VL - 61 IS - 35 SP - 1 EP - 11 PB - Wiley CY - Weinheim AN - OPUS4-55724 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER -