Project Abstract:

Our research focuses on sustainability and aims at contributing solutions for creating new chemicals and materials using renewable sources.

Cellulose is a perfect example of a renewable raw material: versatile, abundant, bioabsorbable and biocompatible. Unlike molecules derived from oil, which possess few chemical functional groups, biomass features a diverse selection of functionalities that can be used for the preparation of innovative chemical products. This proposal refers to a new strategy for preparing an efficient biointerface for immobilization of biomolecules on selectively-modified polysaccharide, i.e. oxidized cellulose.

To achieve this goal, the initial engineering of the cellulose surface, by introduction of hydrophilic carboxylic groups is designed as an alternative to the less efficient existing protocols. This would provide the means for affordable and stable cellulose-based biointerface for immunoassays.