Anisotropic Microgels by Controlled Assembly of Virus Particles in Microfluidic Droplets

• Applicant: Professor Dr. Andrij Pich
• Subject Area: Polymer Materials ; Physical Chemistry of Molecules, Liquids and Interfaces, Biophysical Chemistry
• Term: since 2025
• Project identifier: Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) - Project number 568896544

The main scientific goal of the research project ViroGel is to achieve a fundamental understanding of the self-assembly of fd filamentous viruses in microfluidic droplets and to apply this knowledge to the development of new routes for the synthesis of anisotropic compartmentalized stimuli-responsive microgels. The fundamental questions we will address in this research project are: “How does the selective surface modification influence virus assembly in aqueous solutions?”, “How can the assembly and phase separation of virus particles in microfluidic droplets be controlled?”, “Is it possible to program the size, shape, and internal morphology of microgels through controlled assembly of viruses and polymerization of functional monomers in microfluidic droplets?”, and "Can virus-modified anisotropic microgels perform efficient enzymatic cascade reactions?". In this French-German collaborative project, we will achieve specific modifications of the virus surface with reactive and ionizable groups, and investigate their influence on virus assembly in diluted and concentrated (including liquid crystalline phases) aqueous solutions. We will use the light-triggered polymerization and crosslinking processes in aqueous droplets containing virus particles to synthesize compartmentalized microgels with tunable internal structures, guided by the assembly of virus particles in the microfluidic droplets at different temperatures, pH values and salt concentrations. Finally, we will investigate the properties and assembly of virus-containing microgels in aqueous solutions and conduct post-modifications of the ViroGels with enzymes to explore their catalytic activity. The exploration of the anisotropic compartmentalized microgel synthesis guided by virus particle assembly will establish a new synthesis approach, for generating libraries of colloidal structures. This approach will allow using different monomers, prepolymers, crosslinkers and viruses to tailor flexibly the chemical composition, internal structure and surface charge. We envision that this methodology could in the future be applied to synthesize colloidal structures with unique properties and functions for applications, such as catalyst carriers, sensors, actuators or drug delivery platforms.

• DFG Programme: Research Grants
• International Connection: France
• Cooperation Partner: Professor Dr. Eric Grelet