Self-Assembly of Lubricin (PRG-4) Brushes on Graphene Oxide Affords Stable 2D-Nanosheets in Concentrated Electrolytes and Complex Fluids

Abstract

Graphene oxide (GO) and other 2D-nanosheet materials exhibit a range of useful physical, chemical, electrical, and optical properties that may usher in the next generation of biomedical, bioimaging, or sensing technologies. One limitation of GO is its poor stability in concentrated electrolytes and other complex fluids that requires steric stabilizers, including surface grafted polymers, to overcome attractive van der Waals interactions. Here, we describe a simple, rapid, and highly effective method of modifying GO and other 2D-nanosheets with thick, grafted (bio)polymer brushes via the solution self-assembly of lubricin (LUB; a.k.a. PRG4), an antiadhesive glycoprotein. Atomic force microsco..