Membrane Anchored Polymers Modulate Amyloid Fibrillation

Sen, N. et. al., Macromolecular Rapid Communication, 2021, 2100120, https://doi.org/10.1002/marc.202100120

We here report on the influence of conjugates fabricated from lipid anchors (cholesterol, diacylglycerol) and hydrophilic polymers on Aβ1-40 fibrillation, aiming to understand the impact of polymers cloud point temperature (Tcp) and its hydrophobic tails on the amyloid fibrillation. Novel lipid-polymer conjugates, consisting of poly(oligo(ethylene glycol)macrylates) and hydrophobic groups (diacylglyceryl-, cholesteryl-, octyl-, decyl-, hexadecyl-) as anchors are synthesized  via RAFT polymerization, allowing to tune the hydrophilic-hydrophobic profile of the conjugates. Hydrophobic lipid-anchors are significantly delaying fibrillation (both lag, tlag and half times, t1/2), observing similar fibrillar structures via TEM when compared to native Aβ1-40. © 2021 The Authors. Macromolecular Rapid Communications published by Wiley‐VCH GmbH