Themed collection Complex Coacervation

Guest editors Paul Dubin and Russell J. Stewart introduce this Soft Matter themed collection on complex coacervation.

Recombinant mussel adhesive protein-based complex coacervates are an effective underwater adhesive and have significant potential in practical applications that require underwater adhesion.

Schematic model of the intermolecular binding protocol in a binding pectin–zein interacting solution in the presence of calcium ions.

Scattering investigations of the structure and chain conformations, and the rheological properties of polyelectrolyte complexes (PECs) comprising model polyelectrolytes are presented.

“Self-suppression”, the instability of complex coacervates at high concentration, is well-known for polycation–polyanion systems, but the transient nature of those complexes impedes development of a convincing model.

The impact of macromolecular crowding on both the phase behavior and functional properties of complex coacervate droplets is explored.

Here we develop ATP-based coacervate droplets as artificial membraneless organelles that can be fully controlled by two cooperating enzymes.

A phospho-methacrylate analog of sandcastle worm adhesive phosphoproteins forms temperature and pH dependent complex coacervates with Mg(II) ions through outer shell H-bonds and inner shell coordinate bonds in natural environmental conditions of the sandcastle worm.

Betaine, a naturally occurring amino acid, is conjugated onto a polyester backbone, in which the quaternary ammonium group imparts additional functionality to the resulting polycation (B-PED). B-PED demonstrates excellent in vitro and in vivo biocompatibility and is also assessed for its effect on angiogenesis, anti-bacterial activity, and complex coacervation.

The work describes the self-coacervation properties of histidine-rich squid beak proteins, the main biomolecular components of the squid beak.

We use linear viscoelasticity measurements to characterize the salt-driven liquid-to-solid transition of ‘saloplastic’ polyelectrolyte complexes.

A new theoretical approach to modeling polymeric complex coacervation captures how molecular features affect charge-driven phase separation.