Vijay T. John

Research Interests

Self-Assembly and Nanostructured Materials, Polymer/nanoparticle composites, biomolecular materials, microemulsion systems, clathrate hydrate thermodynamics

I work in the highly interdisciplinary areas of lipid self-assembly, drug and vaccine delivery, and the development of nanostructured materials. The self-organization of amphiphilic molecules (such as biological lipids and synthetic surfactants) is essential in technologies as mundane as consumer detergent products, and techologies of the future as in the development of structured, responsive nanomaterials. Biological membranes are ubiquitous examples of lipid-self assembly that impacts the entire function of a cell. A major project that I am now working on, is in the exploitation of lipid self-assembly to induce transcutaneous vaccine delivery. Vaccine development and needle free vaccine delivery is a grand challenge problem being addressed by researchers at the Medical School and at the Uptown Campus at Tulane, and I am privileged to be part of this group.  

Other exciting projects incollaboration with the Medical School involve the development of drug containing ultrathin polymer films as coatings for glaucoma drainage devices and for surgical implants, the development of novel tubular liposomes for drug delivery in osteosarcoma treatment, and for DNA vaccine delivery.

In 2014 we started a major program in the development of dispersants to be used in oil spills. Of course, the impetus for the research comes from the tragedy in 2010 with the Deepwater Horizon incident in the Gulf of Mexico. I was part of a wonderful consortium (Consortium for the Molecular Engineering of Dispersants)  of 43 investigators from 22 institutions. We were funded by the Gulf of Mexico Research Initiative (GoMRI - www.gulfresearchinitiative.org). GoMRI ceased operations 10 years after the DWH incident but our research in oil spills mitigation continues.

Among the most rewarding outreach activities I have participated in is the establishment of a collaboration with Nunez Community College on setting up new facilities for process technology operator training. The facilities have benefitted not only the process technology students at Nunez, but also Chemical Engineering students who are able to get a first hand training opportunity on mini plant scale systems.

At Tulane, we have developed a wonderful cryo-electron microscopy facility with both cryo-SEM and cryo-TEM. All my students are trained in cryo-microscopy. Many of my students also get to learn neutron scattering at the National Center for Neutron Research (NIST, Md). Tulane operates in a highly collaborative, highly interdisciplinary setting, allowing my students to gain tremendousy from the resources of the entire university and the multiple collaborations that I seek to establish.

Recent Journal Articles, Patents and Reviewed Book Chapters (5 years)

Hossain, I.; Mays, B.; Hanhart, S.; Hubble, J.; Azizihariri, P.; Mclean, T.; Pierce, R.; Lovko, V.; John, V. "An Effective Algicide for the Targeted Destruction of Karenia brevis", Harmful Algae, in press 2024.

Solomon, S.; Hall, R.; He, J.; John, V.; Pesika, N. "Enhancing the Tribological Properties of Low-Density Polyethylene using Hard Carbon Microfillers", Materials, 2024, 17(7), 1536.

Shi, K.; Leriche, G.; Liu, C.; He, J.; John, V.; Fang, J.; Barker, J.; Nagao, N.; Yang, L.; Yang, J.; Nieh, M. "Antivesiculation and Complete Unbinding of Tail-Tethered Lipids", Langmuir, 2024, 40(3), 1688.

Ajumobi, O.; Wang, B.; Farinmade, A.; He, J.; Valla, J.; John, V. "Design of Nanostraws in Amine Functionalized MCM-41 for improved Adsorption Capacity in Carbon Capture", Energy & Fuels, 2023, 37(16), 12079.

Solomon, S.; Doubleday, P.; Landry, J.; John, V.; Pesika, N. "Lubrication Mechnisms of Dispersed Carbon Microspheres in Boundary through Hydrodynamic Lubrication Regimes", J. Colloid Interface Sci. 2023, 650, 1801.

Barrett, B.; Tung, C.; Huang, G.; Hossain, I.; Do, C.; John, V.; Chen, W.; Zhang, D. "Modulating Water Distribution and the Intramicellar Assembly of Sequence-Defined Ionic Peptoid Block Copolymers by the Ionic Monomer Position", Macromolecules, 2023, 56(14), 5306.

Yu, T.; Omarova, M.; Zheng, M.; Hossain, I.; Chen, J.; Darvish, O.; John, V.; Zhang, D. "Uncovering the Optimal Molecular Characteristics of Hydrophobe-Containing Polypeptoids to Induce Liposome or Cell Membrane Fragmentation", Biomacromolecules, 2023, 24(3), 1511.

Farinmade, A.; Ajumobi, A.; Yu, L.; Su, Y.; Zhang, Y.; Lou, Y.; Valla, J.; John, V. “Tubular Clay Nano-straws in Ordered Mesoporous Materials Create Hierarchical Porosities leading to Improved CO2 Uptake”, Industrial & Engineering Chemistry Research, 2022, 61(4), 1694.

Mkam Tsengam, I.; Omarova, M.; Kelley, E.; McCormick, A.; Bothun, G.; Raghavan, S.; John, V. “Transformation of Lipid Vesicles into Micelles by adding Nonionic Surfactants: Elucidating the Structural Pathway and the Intermediate Structures”, J. Phys. Chem. B., 2022, 126(11), 2208.

Nguyen, D.; John, V. "Loaded Sealed Nanotubes for Oil Recovery", US Patent 11312895. Issued April 2022.

John, V.;  Tsengam, I. "Methods and Compositions for treating Algae using Metal Phenolic Networks", US Patent 11439150B2. Issued September 2022.

Owoseni, O.; Su, Y.; Raghavan, S.; Bose, A.; John, V. "Hydrophobically Modified Chitosan Biopolymer Conects Halloysite Nanotubes at the Oil-Water Interface as Complementary Pair for stabilizing Oil Droplets", Journal of Colloid and Interface Sci. 2022, 620, 135.

Ajumobi, O.; Su, Y.; Farinmade, A.; Yu, L.; He, J.; Valla, J.; John, V. “Integrating Halloysite Nanostraws in Porous Catalyst Supports to Enhance Molecular Transport”,  ACS Applied Nano Materials, 2021, 4(8), 8455.

Omarova, M.; Zhang, Y.; Tsengam, M.; He, J.; Yu, T.; Zhang, D.; John, V. "Hydrophobe containing Polypeptoids Complex with Lipids and Induce Fusogenesis of Lipid Vesicles", J. Phys. Chem. B. 2021, 125(12), 3145.

Yu, L.; Farinmade, A.; Ajumobi, O.; John, V.; Valla, J. “One-step Hydropyrolysis and Hydrotreating Tandem Reactions of Miscanthus x Giganteus using Ni Impregnated ZSM-5/MCM-41 Composites”, Energy & Fuels, 2021, 35(24), 20117.

John, V.; McPherson, G. “Hollow Nanoparticles with Hybrid Double Layers”, US Patent 11045427. Issued June, 2021.

Zhang, D. H.; John, V.; Zhang, Y.; Xuan, S. “Hydrophobically Modified Polypeptoids and Uses Thereof”, US Patent 11123433, Issued September 2021.

Agrawal, N.; Omarova, M.; Burni, F.; John, V.; Raghavan, S. “Spontaneous Formation of Stable Vesicles and Vesicle-Gels in Polar Organic Solvents”, Langmuir, 2021, 37(26), 7955. 

Corcoran, L.; Saldana, B.; Amen, K.; Bothun, G.; Raghavan, S.; John, V.; McCormick, A.; Penn, R. “Using Microemulsion Phase Behavior as a Predictive Model for Lecithin-Tween 80 Marine Oil Dispersant Effectiveness”, Langmuir,  2021, 37(27), 8115.

Quigg, A.; Farrington, J.; Gilbert, S.; Murawski, S.; John, V. “A Decade of GoMRI Dispersant Science – Lessons Learned and Recommendations for the Future”, Oceanography, 2021, 34(1), 98.

Farinmade, A.; Ajumobi, O.; Yu, L.; Su, Y.; He, J.; Valla, J.; John, V. " A One-Step Facile Encapsulation of Zeolite Microcrystallites in Ordered Mesoporous Microspheres", Industrial & Engineering Chemistry Research, 2020, 59(31), 13923.

Ojo, O.; Farinmade, A.; Nguyen, D.; John, V. " A Nanocomposite of Halloysite/Surfactant/Wax to inhibit Surfactant Adsorption onto Reservoir Rock Surfaces for Improved Oil Recovery", Energy & Fuels, 2020, 34(7), 8074.

Yu, L.; Farinmade, A.; Ajumobi, O.; Su, Y.; John, V.; Valla, J. "MCM-41/ZSM-5 Composite Particles for the Catalytic Fast Pyrolysis of Biomass", Applied Catalysis A. 2020, 602, 117727.

Farinmade, A.; Ojo, O.; Trout, J.; He, J.; John, V.; Blake, D.; Lvov, Y.; Zhang, D.; Nguyen, D.; Bose, A. "Targeted and Stimulus-Responsive Delivery of Surfactant to the Oil-Water Interface for Applications in Oil Spill Remediation", ACS Applied Materials & Interfaces, 2020, 12(1), 1840.

Panchal, A.; Rahman, N.,; Konnova, S.; Fakhrullin, R.; Zhang, D.; Blake, D.; Ivanov, E.; Lvov, Y. "Clay Nanotube Marbles Enhanced with Inner Biofilm Formation for the Encapsulation and Storage of Bacteria at Room Temperature" ACS Applied Nano Materials, 2020, 3(2), 1263.

Rad, A.; Bao, Y.; Jang, H-S.; Xia, Y.; Sharma, H.; Dormdontova, E.; Zhao, J.; Arora, J.; John, V.; Tang, B.; Dainese, T.; Hariri, A. Jokerst, J.; Maran, F.; Nieh, M-P. "Aggregation-Enhanced Photoluminescence and Photoaccoustics of Atomically Precise Gold Nanoclusters in Lipid Nanodiscs (NANO2), Advanced Functional Materials, in press. 

Blake, D.; John, V.; Ayyala, R.; Ponnusamy, T. "Drug Delivery Devices  and Methods of Making and Using Same". US Patent 10,653,822. 2020.

Kaplan, D.; Wang, X.; John, V.; Pesika, N.; Zheng, R. "Silk Microspheres and Methods for Surface Lubrication", US Patent 10,653,786. 2020.

Zhang, Y.; Heidari, Z.; Yang, S.; Yu, T.; Xuan, S.; Omarova, M.; Ayden, Y.; Dash, S.; Zhang, D.; John, V. "Amphiphilic Polypeptoids Rupture Vesicle Bilayers to form Peptoid-Lipid Fragments Effective in Enhancing Hydrophobic Drug Delivery", Langmuir, 2019, 35(47), 15335.

Mkam Tsengam, I.; Omarova, M.; Shepherd, L.; Sandoval, N.; He, J.; Kelley, E.; John, V. "Clusters of Nanoscale Liposomes Modulate the Release of Encapsulated Species and Mimic the Compartmentalization Intrinsic in Cell Structures", ACS Applied Nano Materials, 2019, 2(11), 7134.

Omarova, M.; Swientoniewski, L.; Tsengam, I.; Blake, D.; John, V.; McCormick, A.; Bothun, G.; Raghavan, S.; Bose, A. "Biofilm Formation by Hydrocarbon-Degrading Marine Bacteria and its Effects on Oil Dispersion", ACS Sustainable Chemistry & Engineering, 2019, 7, 14490.

Ojo, O.; Farinmade, A.; Trout, J.; Omarova, M.; He, J.; John, V.; Blake, D.; Lvov, Y.; Zhang, D. "Stoppers and Skins on Clay Nanotubes help Stabilize Oil-in-Water Emulsions and Modulate the Release of Encapsulated Surfactants" ACS Applied Nano Materials, 2019, 2(6), 2490.

Fernandes, J.; Agrawal, N.; Al-Jirafi, F.; Bothun, G.; McCormick, A.; John, V.; Raghavan, S. "Does the Solvent in a Dispersant Impact the Efficiency of Crude-Oil Dispersion?", Langmuir, 2019, 35, 16630.

Yu, T.; Swientoniewski, L.; Omarova, M.; Li, M-C.; Negulescu, I.; Jiang, N.; Darvish, O.; Panchal, A.; Blake, D.; Wu, Q.; Lvov, Y.; John, V.; Zhang, D. "Investigation of Amphiphilic Polypeptoid-Functionalized Halloysite Nanotubes as Emulsion Stabilizers for Oil Spill Remediation" ACS Appl. Mater. Interfaces, 2019, 11(31), 27944.

Jiang, N.; Yu, T.; Darvish, O.; Qian, S.; Mkam Tsengam, I.; John, V.; Zhang, D. "Crystallization-Driven Self-Assembly of Coil-Comb Shaped Polypeptoid Block Copolymers: Solution Morphology and Self-Assembly Pathways", Macromolecules, 2019, 52(22), 8867.

Oak, S.; Pashazanusi, L.; Sengel, S.; Omarova, M.; Hemstock, J.; He, W.; He, J.; John, V.; Sahiner, N.; Pesika, N. "Tunable Friction through Stimuli Responsive Hybrid Carbon Microspheres", Langmuir, 2019, 2019, 35(48), 16839.

Swann, F.; Singh, S.; Blake, D.; John, V.; Le, L.; Fullerton, M.; Margo, C.; Zhang, Z.; Muddasani, N.; Wall, J.; Satija, C.; Greenberg, E.; Mancera, N.; Zurakowski, D.; Ayyala, R. "Effect of 2 Novel Sustained-Release Drug Release Systems on Bleb Fibrosis: An in vivo Trabulectomy Study in a Rabbit Model", J. Glaucoma, 2019, 28(6), 512.

Haney, N.; Talwar, S.; Akula, P.; Reddy, A.; Pema, G.; Ninh, T.; Rezk, B.; Heidari, Z.; Bouljihad, M.; Sikka, S.; John, V.; Abdel-Mageed, A.; Hellstrom, W. "Insulin-like Growth Factor-1 (IGF-1)-loaded Polymeric PLGA Microspheres Improved Erectile Function in a Rat Model of Bilateral Cavernous Nerve Injury", J. Sexual Medicine, 2019, 16(3), 383.

Su, Y.; Ojo, O.; Tsengam, I.; He, J.; McPherson, G.; John, V.; Valla, J. "Thermo-resonsive Coatings on Hollow Particles with Mesoporous Shells serve as Stimuli-Responsive Gates to Species Encapsulation and Release", Langmuir, 2018, 34(48), 14608.

Omarova, M.; Swientoniewski, L.; Tsengam, I.; Panchal, A.; Yu, T.; Blake, D.; Lvov, Y.; Zhang, D.; John, V. "Engineered Clays as Sustainable Oil Dispersants in the presence of Model Hydrocarbon Degrading Bacteria: The Role of Bacterial Sequestration and Biofilm Formation", ACS Sustainable Chemistry & Engineering, 2018,6(11), 14143.

Su, Y.; Wang, Y.; Owoseni, O.; Zhang, Y.; McPherson, G.; Gamliel, D.; Valla, J.; John, V. "A Bottle-Around-a-Ship Method to Generate Hollow Thin-Shelled Particles containing Encapsulated Iron Species with Application to the Environmental Decontamination of Chlorinated Compounds", ACS Applied Materials & Interfaces, 2018, 10(16), 13542.

Owoseni, O.; Zhang, Y.; Omarova, M.; Li, X.; Lal, J.; McPherson, G.; Raghavan, S.; Bose, A.; John, V. "Microstructural Characteristics of Surfactant Assembly into a Gel-like Mesophase for Application as an Oil Spill Dispersant", J. Colloid Interface Sci., 2018, 524, 279.

Sternhagen, G.; Gupta, S.; Zhang, Y.; John, V.; Schneider, G.; Zhang, D. "Solution Self-Assemblies of Sequence-Defined Ionic Peptoid Block Copolymers", J. Amer. Chem. Soc., 2018, 140(11), 4100.

Panchal, A.; Swientoniewski, L.; Omarova, M.; Yu, T.; Zhang, D.; Blake, D.; John, V.; Lvov, Y. "Bacterial Proliferation of Clay Nanotube Pickering Emulsions for Oil Spill Bioremediation", Colloids and Surfaces B: Biointerfaces, 2018. 164. 27.