Welcome to the Stöver Research Group

Research in the Stöver group focuses on design, synthesis and characterization of polymers for a diverse range of applications, ranging from reactive and multi-responsive polyelectrolytes, to swellable microgels, and polymers for cell microencapsulation.

1. Water-soluble polyelectrolytes with the right balance of anionic and cationic charges and hydrophobic groups show fascinating types of phase separation from aqueous solution upon changes in pH, temperature, salinity and composition. These phenomena mimic phase separations seen in natural materials including mussel adhesive proteins, or inherently disordered proteins in mammalian cytosol. We prepare acrylic copolymers containing anionic, cationic, betaine, and neutral comonomers, and explore their fundamental and biomaterials applications, in areas including cell encapsulation, gene transfection and cell cryoprotection.

2. Swellable microspheres prepared by precipitation copolymerization of monomers with low amounts of crosslinkers in marginal solvents represent a new type of colloidal microgels with both fundamental and applied potential. We currently study microspheres formed by free radical copolymerization of maleic anhydride with divinylbenzene or acrylic crosslinkers in heptane/methylethylketone, their functionalization and hydrolysis to highly charged, swellable microgels and their properties in response to media composition and dynamic deformation. These microgels resemble cells and may have applications as cell mimetics in cell/polymer composites.

3. Cell encapsulation is one missing link in developing functional allogenic cell therapies for chronic endocrine disorders such as diabetes, hemophilia, and Lysosomal Storage Disorders. Our group is working towards preventing immune rejection of transplanted cells by developing immune-evasive polymers to reinforce alginate microcapsules containing model mammalian cells.  

Overall, our aim is to develop novel materials together with a deeper understanding of their fundamental, molecular properties.