Massachusetts Institute of Technology

L'oreal

Niels Holten-Andersen

Scott Charles Grindy

Jeremiah Allen Johnson

Ken Kawamoto

Aleksandr V Zhukhovitskiy

Gareth H McKinley

Sivaramakrishnan Muthukrishnan

Brady Zarket

Samiul Amin

Pangkuan Chen

Bavand Keshavarz

Disclosed are methods, compositions, reagents, systems, and kits to prepare materials with viscoelastic properties that respond to irradiation with light. Various embodiments show that bio-inspired histidine:transition metal ion complexes allow precise and tunable control over the viscoelastic properties of polymer networks containing these types of crosslinks pre and post-irradiation. These materials have the potential to aid biomedical materials scientists in the development of materials with specific stress-relaxing or energy-dissipating properties.

Materials with programmable properties controlled by light

Cosmetic compositions, systems and methods for conferring responsive durable shaping of keratinous fibers employ at least one shape memory polymer that includes a four-armed branched polyethylene glycol (PEG) based polymer that is functionalized with one or more metal-coordination active groups. The shape memory polymer forms a crosslinked network coating on a substrate, for example a substrate selected from keratinous substrates, for example, hair. Hair coated with the shape memory polymer and treated with an oxidizing agent can be shaped, locked into shape, and reprogrammed by modulation of pH. The coated hair retains durable shaping properties through at least one shampoo treatment. The cosmetic compositions, systems and methods provide durable and reprogrammable durable shaping of the keratinous substrate, for example for styling hair.

Responsive coatings for hair fibers

Combined lanthanide metal (Ln(III))&#x2014;coordination complex fluorescence can provide a versatile molecular platform for design of white-light-emitting materials with advanced multistimuli-responsive properties. Red, green and blue light emitting Ln(III) complexes can be combined in solution or in a polymer complex to achieve white luminescent materials responsive to various external stimuli (e.g. solvent polarity, temperature, pH, anion competition and mechanical stimuli).

Multistimuli-responsive white luminescent materials including metal elements

The disclosure provides nanostructures (e.g., nanospheres and nano-paddlewheels) formed through transition metal-ligand (e.g., Pd(II)-, Ni(II)-, or Fe(II)-ligand of Formula (A)) coordination and junction self-assembly. The disclosure also provides supramolecular complexes that include the nanostructures connected by divalent linkers Y. The provided supramolecular complexes are able to form gels (e.g., hydrogels). The gels are suprametallogels and exhibited excellent mechanical properties without sacrificing self-healing and showed high robustness and storage modulus. The present disclosure further provides compositions (e.g., gels) that include the nanostructures or supramolecular complexes and optionally an agent (e.g., small molecule), where the nanostructures and the nanostructure moieties of the supramolecular complexes may encapsulate and slowly release the agent. The nanostructures, supramolecular complex, and compositions may be useful in delivering an agent to a subject, tissue, or cell, as super-absorbent materials, and in treating a disease (e.g., a genetic diseases, proliferative disease (e.g., cancer or benign neoplasm), hematological disease, neurological disease, gastrointestinal disease (e.g., liver disease), spleen disease, respiratory disease (e.g., lung disease), painful condition, genitourinary disease, musculoskeletal condition, infectious disease, inflammatory disease, autoimmune disease, psychiatric disorder, or metabolic disorder). 

Suprametallogels and uses thereof

Growing community of inventors

Quincy, MA, United States of America

Niels Holten-Andersen