Date Approved

9-26-2023

Embargo Period

9-27-2023

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Master of Science in Pharmaceutical Sciences

Department

Chemistry and Biochemistry

College

College of Science & Mathematics

Advisor

Timothy D. Vaden, Ph.D.

Committee Member 1

Gregory A. Caputo, Ph.D.

Committee Member 2

Chun Wu, Ph.D.

Keywords

Biomolecules, Biophysical Chemistry, G-quadruplex DNA, Ionic Liquids, Proteins, thermal stability

Subject(s)

Biochemistry--Research

Disciplines

Biochemistry, Biophysics, and Structural Biology | Chemistry

Abstract

Ionic Liquids (ILs) are substances with a unique physical attribute compared to that of solid ionic salts. At room temperature, ILs are molten salts that have a variety of physical effects that can play a role in their impact on other molecules, as solvents or solutes. They can play the role of the solvent in a variety of applications, from biofuels to organic catalysis or as excipients in pharmaceutical formulations. These ILs have a desirable use as solvents due to their ability to be tunable substances. Changing the cation or anion of the IL causes a change in its physical effects on other molecules that interact with it. The understanding that intermolecular forces play a large role in the IL’s physical properties is well understood. But there are a plethora of cation and anion combinations to form molten ILs and these interactions are rarely one size fits all regarding their impact on biological substances. The focus of this thesis is on the physicochemical effect of biologically compatible, or environmentally friendly, ILs’ impact on a set of model biological macromolecules. The understandings gleamed from the results lead to a subset of ILs and their impact on a subset of model biological structures to be applied to future study and therapeutic applications.

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