THE PROPOSAL OBJECTIVE IS DEVELOPMENT OF NEW FUNCTIONALIZED POLYMER LATICES FOR SECTION AND IDENTIFICATION OF CLINICALLY SIGNIFICANT PROTEINS.

THE PROPOSAL OBJECTIVE IS DEVELOPMENT OF NEW FUNCTIONALIZED POLYMER LATICES FOR SECTION AND IDENTIFICATION OF CLINICALLY SIGNIFICANT PROTEINS. WE EXPECT THEY WILL IMPROVE THE EFFICIENCY AND SPECIFICITY OF BINDING OF PROTEINS (ANTIGENS, ANTIBODIES) THUS ALLOWING IMPROVED RESEARCH AND IMMUNOLOGICAL TEST PROCEDURES AND USE OF RARE MONO-CLONAL ANTIBODIES NOT NOW POSSIBLE WITH PASSIVE, NON-SPECIFIC POLYSTYRENE LATICES WHICH ARE NOW STANDARD. SPECIFICALLY, A SERIES OF MONODISPERSE, EMULSION COPOLYMERS OF METHYL METHACRYLATE WITH EITHER GLYCIDYL METHACRYLATE, ACROLEIN, OR AZIRIDINYLETHYL METHACRYLATE ARE TO BE PREPARED. PROBLEMS OF CONTROL OF PARTICLE DIAMETER, REACTIVITY TO PROTEINS, BIOLOGICAL EFFICIENCY OF THE BOUND PROTEIN AND COMPARISON WITH STANDARD POLYSTYRENE LATEX PARTICLE WILL BE STUDIED. THE BIOLOGICAL EFFICIENCY WILL BE EVALUATED IN CONJUNCTION WITH PROFESSOR CHIU OF TEMPLE UNIVERSITY MEDICAL SCHOOL BY TESTING BINDING OF FACTOR V ANTIBODY AND ALKALINE PHOSPHATASE. THE ADDITION OF FLUORS AND OTHER DYES INTO THE PARTICLES FOR IMPROVED VISUALIZATION UNDER THE MICROSCOPE, OTHERS FUNCTIONAL GROUPS, SCALE-UP PROCEDURES AND EXTENSION OF THESE METHODS TO OTHER IMPORTANT PROTEINS WOULD BE PART OF PHASE II DEVELOPMENT. THE PRESENT MARKET FOR MONODISPERSED LATICES FOR USE IN DIAGNOSTIC KITS IS MEASURED IN MANY MILLIONS OF DOLLARS. BY TAILOR-MAKING POLYMERS TO MEET THE DEMANDS FOR GREATER SPECIFICITY AND EFFICIENCY, WE EXPECT TO ULTIMATELY CAPTURE AN IMPORTANT MARKET SHARE. OTHER TECHNIQUES SUCH AS AFFINITY CHROMATOGRAPHY AND FLOW CYTOMETRY ARE EXAMPLES OF YET FURTHER LARGE SCALE MARKET POTENTIAL FOR THESE MATERIALS.