Physics Colloquium: Self-Assembly of Polymers in Alzheimer's Disease and Material Science

Thursday, March 1, 2018

3:30 PM-4:30 PM

Luca Larini, PhD, Rutgers University

Polymeric materials are ubiquitous in nature. They range from proteins and nucleic acids that perform fundamental biological processes to polysaccharides such as cellulose and lignin that provide structural stability to plants. These molecules share a common tendency to self-assemble. While in some cases this is the expected outcome, other times this is associated with disease. In the latter group belongs the microtubule-associated protein tau. The formation of tau aggregates is a hallmark of Alzheimer's disease, chronic traumatic encephalopathy, as well as many other forms of dementia. On the other hand, self-assembly of biomolecules such as silk and cellulose, are known to form some of the most resistant materials known to man. In this case, the tridimensional arrangement of the molecules provides unique properties of the material under examination. In this talk, we will discuss how environmental factors may prevent or drive self-assembly. As an example of pathological aggregation, we will focus on the posttranslational modifications and aggregation of tau during the early stages of Alzheimer's disease. Then, we will discuss how blends of polymers can be used to recycle waste products (such as cellulose in wood) and convert them into novel materials.

Contact Information

Professor Brigita Urbanc
brigita@physics.drexel.edu