Complex Systems: Colloids, Polymers and Interfaces
PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR: Francisco Ortega Gómez
GROUP MEMBERS
- Doctors
- Francisco Ortega Gómez
- Ramón González Rubio
- Antonio Rey Gayo
- Ana María Rubio Caparrós
- Eduardo Guzmán Solís
- Fernando Martínez Pedrero
- Non-Doctors
- Irene Abelenda Núñez
- Carlo Carbone
- Andreas Santamaría
- José Martín Roca
GENERAL RESEARCH OBJECTIVE OF THE GROUP
The Complex Systems Group: Colloids, Interfaces and Polymers develops several research lines, with interest for both basic and applied science areas:
1.- Colloidal formulations for controlled release of drugs and insecticides. The aim is to maintain adequate concentrations in the body or in insects increase their efficacy. In our group we use compounds of vegetable origin to make them biocompatible and biodegradable to minimize environmental impact.
2.-Cosmetic products for hair and skin: shampoos and creams. Up to the date the polymers and surfactants used in hair cosmetics are based on synthetic products that must be replaced by natural and biodegradable products. In our group we work with L'Oréal (Aulnay sous Bois, France) to achieve this purpose. In skin cosmetics, the objective is to prevent dehydration by using different colloidal structures: emulsions, liposomes, colloidal phases...
3.-Colloidal interfaces. Biological systems and many products of various industries: paints, foams, emulsions, oil extraction products, nanomaterials,... are characterized by a high surface/volume ratio. Their stability usually depends on the properties of these surfaces and in particular on their viscosity and elasticity. Our group is a world leader in the development of experimental and theoretical techniques to analyze and predict these properties. In this line we use both surfactants and polymers.
4.-On the way to artificial cells: We study the motion of particles and proteins in highly crowded environments (many obstacles) that mimic the cellular inner region.
5.- Transport of drug-decorated particles on structures formed by magnetic microparticles. This is a simplified model of the motion of cellular motors on fibers of the cellular inner region.
6.-Computer simulation of the native and denatured structure of proteins. Denaturation and the inverse process to go from naturalized to native structure is a very difficult problem to explain, even by simulation, and is a key to understand the behavior in biological processes.
LINES OF THE RESEARCH GROUP AND RESPONSIBLE RESEARCHER
- Structure and dynamics of micro and nanoparticles in suspension and interfaces (Francisco Ortega Gómez & Fernando Martínez Pedrero)
- Development of nano and microcapsules in drug delivery (Ramón González Rubio & Eduardo Guzmán Solís)
- Development and characterization of colloidal systems with applications in cosmetics, biomedicine and environment (
Eduardo Guzmán Solís & Ramón González Rubio)
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Coarse-grained models for molecular modeling (
Antonio Rey Gayo)
LINK TO THE GROUP'S WEBSITE