Biomedical subjects

J L Keddie

Publications and source records attributed to J L Keddie.

3 recordsLinked to original sources

PubMed1999

The reduced adsorption of lysozyme at the phosphorylcholine incorporated polymer/aqueous solution interface studied by spectroscopic ellipsometry.

Coating hydrogel polymers onto solid substrates can reduce the adsorption of proteins onto these surfaces, but the extent of the reduction in protein adsorption is strongly dependent on how the surface layer is coated. We have examined the effect of coating conditions on the structure of thin polymer films formed from a number of poly(methacrylate)-based hydrogel polymers via the dip-coating method. We show in this work how the polarity of the solvent, the speed of lifting, and the annealing temperature affect the thickness and uniformity of ultrathin phosphorylcholine (PC)-incorporated polymer films coated on the surface of native oxide on silicon and the subsequent interaction of these coated surfaces with lysozyme molecules. Our results show that the uniformity of the polymer film, and thus the smoothness of the outer film surface, influence the extent of reduction in protein adsorption. We suggest that the reduction in lysozyme adsorption is the result of a layer of PC groups on the surface of the polymer film. The improvement of the smoothness of the film results in the formation of a close-packed PC layer on the outer surface of the polymer film, leaving few defects or cavities on which protein molecules can bind.

Adsorption↗

PubMed1999

Bayesian inference analysis of ellipsometry data.

Variable angle spectroscopic ellipsometry is a nondestructive technique for accurately determining the thicknesses and refractive indices of thin films. Experimentally, the ellipsometry parameters psi and Delta are measured, and the sample structure is then determined by one of a variety of approaches, depending on the number of unknown variables. The ellipsometry parameters have been inverted analytically for only a small number of sample types. More general cases require either a model-based numerical technique or a series of approximations combined with a sound knowledge of the test sample structure. In this paper, the combinatorial optimization technique of simulated annealing is used to perform least-squares fits of ellipsometry data (both simulated and experimental) from both a single layer and a bilayer on a semi-infinite substrate using what is effectively a model-free system, in which the thickness and refractive indices of each layer are unknown. The ambiguity inherent in the best-fit solutions is then assessed using Bayesian inference. This is the only way to consistently treat experimental uncertainties along with prior knowledge. The Markov chain Monte Carlo algorithm is used. Mean values of unknown parameters and standard deviations are determined for each and every solution. Rutherford backscattering spectrometry is used to assess the accuracy of the solutions determined by these techniques. With our computer analysis of ellipsometry data, we find all possible models that adequately describe that data. We show that a bilayer consisting of a thin film of poly(styrene) on a thin film of silicon dioxide on a silicon substrate results in data that are ambiguous; there is more than one acceptable description of the sample that will result in the same experimental data.

Journal Article↗

PubMedDate not supplied

Magnetic resonance profiling studies of the drying of film-forming aqueous dispersions and glue layers.

We report magnetic resonance profiling experiments to monitor (i) the drying of alkyd emulsion layers, (ii) the cure of wood glue layers and (iii) water transport through glue lines. The alkyd drying is a two stage process. We report new results which support previous evidence that the alkyd drops do not coalesce until the water fraction is below circa 0.02. The profiles recorded from glue layers suggest that MR is a sensitive probe of the curing process and barrier properties of the glue. The measurements were made using GARField (stray field, STRAFI like) magnetic resonance profiling and an improved GARField magnet design characterized by two values of the gradient-to-field strength ratio at two locations offering the same field strength is also reported.

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