Modulating Protein Corona and Materials-Cell Interactions with Temperature-Responsive Materials

Temperature-responsive polymers display changes of conformation upon a certain threshold temperature, which involves changes of hydrophobicity. Therefore, this property can be exploited to construct materials showing temperature-dependent interactions with proteins and cells. Indeed, the amounts and types of proteins in the protein corona after incubating temperature-responsive materials in protein mixtures are regulated by the surface hydrophobicity of materials. This ability is beneficial for designing systems for protein separation or for protecting proteins from thermal stress. Temperature-responsive materials are also employed for controlling cell adhesion and detachment. The cells are incubated at physiological temperature of mammalians (37 degrees C) followed by desorption of cell sheets at lower temperature when the substrate is hydrophilic. The authors envision that temperature-responsive materials will be employed for controlling protein corona of nanocarriers for drug delivery applications.