Polyacrylic acid brushes grafted from P(St-AA)/Fe3O4 composite microspheres via ARGET-ATRP in aqueous solution for protein immobilization

Recently, the atom transfer radical polymerization (ATRP) of acrylic monomers in many reaction systems has been successfully accomplished. However, its application in aqueous solution is still a challenging task. In this work, polyacrylic acid (PAA) brushes with tunable length were directly grafted from P(St-AA)/Fe3O4 composite microspheres in aqueous solution via an improved method, activators regenerated by electron transfer atom transfer radical polymerization (ARGET-ATRP). This reaction was carried out in environment-friendly solvent. As well, this method overcame the sensitivity of the catalyst. Due to the strong coordination interaction of carboxyl groups, PAA brushes were employed for immobilizing gold nanoparticles, which were prepared via the in situ reduction of chloroauric acid. The PAA brushes modified magnetic composite microspheres decorating with gold nanoparticles were efficient for specific immobilization and separation of bovine serum albumin (BSA) from aqueous solution under the external magnetic field.