STABILIZING PROPERTIES OF COPOLYMERS ADSORBED ON HETEROGENEOUS SURFACES - A MODEL FOR THE INTERACTIONS BETWEEN A POLYMER-COATED INFLUENZA-VIRUS AND A CELL

We use scaling theory and two-dimensional self-consistent field calcul ations to investigate the adsorption of copolymers onto heterogeneous surfaces, which represent the surface of the influenza virus. The copo lymers contain ''stickers'' that are highly attracted to receptors on the viral surface. We vary the sticker concentration and determine the conformation of the adsorbed chains on the heterogeneous substrate. W e then calculate the interaction energy as a function of distance betw een this polymer-coated surface and a bare interface, which represents the surface of a red blood cell. The results show that there is an op timal range of the sticker concentrations that sterically inhibit cont act between the two surfaces. The findings help rationalize recent exp eriments, which show that the extent of inhibition depends on the frac tion of stickers in adsorbing copolymer.