Description
General Description
Stearic Acid-PEG-Maleimide (SA-PEG-Mal) is a heterobifunctional lipid-PEG derivative composed of stearic acid (C18:0), a polyethylene glycol (PEG) spacer, and a terminal maleimide group. The stearic acid moiety efficiently inserts into lipid bilayers, liposomes, micelles, and lipid nanoparticles, while the PEG chain improves aqueous solubility, colloidal stability, prolonged circulation, and biocompatibility.
The terminal maleimide group reacts selectively with sulfhydryl (thiol) groups on cysteine-containing peptides, proteins, antibodies, enzymes, and other thiolated biomolecules under mild physiological conditions (typically pH 6.5–7.5). The resulting thioether linkage is highly stable, making SA-PEG-Maleimide an excellent reagent for site-specific bioconjugation.
SA-PEG-Maleimide is extensively used for targeted liposomes, functionalized lipid nanoparticles (LNPs), antibody-drug delivery systems, peptide-functionalized nanocarriers, biosensors, molecular imaging, and advanced nanomedicine applications.
Applications
- Liposome surface functionalization
- Lipid nanoparticle (LNP) modification
- Thiol-selective bioconjugation
- Antibody conjugation
- Peptide conjugation
- Protein conjugation
- Targeted drug delivery
- Nanoparticle surface engineering
- Molecular imaging
- Biomaterials research
Features and Benefits
- Hydrophobic stearic acid anchor
- Hydrophilic PEG spacer
- Terminal maleimide functionality
- Highly selective toward thiol groups
- Stable thioether bond formation
- Excellent aqueous dispersibility
- Outstanding biocompatibility
- Research-grade quality
