Hexamethylcyclotrisiloxane

Methanol (99.9% Chromasolv) was obtained from Fluka (Sigma-Aldrich Denmark, Copenhagen, Denmark), acetonitrile (LC-MS Chromasolv) was from Riedel-de-Haën (Sigma-Aldrich Denmark, Copenhagen, Denmark) and water was Milli-Q-filtered water (Elga, Krüger Aquacare, Glostrup, Denmark). Ammonium acetate (99.999 trace metal basis), 2,5-dihydroxybenzoic acid (>99 %, matrix substance for MALDI-MS), dextran (MW ~ 6000), and polyethylene glycol 1500 were obtained from Sigma-Aldrich (Saint Louis, MO, USA).The following authentic standards were used: tetramethoxysilane, trimethoxymethylsilane, trimethoxyoctylsilane, hexamethylcyclotrisiloxane, octamethylcyclotetra- siloxane, 2-pyrrolidone, tetradecanoic acid methyl ester, pentadecanoic acid methyl ester, hexadecanoic acid methyl ester, octadecanoic acid methyl ester, tetradecanoic acid, hexadecanoic acid, and octadecanoic acid (all >99% purity; Sigma-Aldrich, Saint Louis, MO, USA). Alkyltrimethylammonium chloride with C₁₆ (>98%) and C₁₈ (>95%) alkyl chains, dimethyldialkylammonium chlorides or bromides with C₁₄ (>97%), C₁₆ (97%) and C₁₈ (>97%) alkyl chains, and benzalkonium chloride with a C₁₂ alkyl chain were also obtained from Sigma Aldrich.

Conjugated (9-cis, 11-trans) 18:2 linoleic acid, purity ≥ 96% (HPLC) and conjugated (9-trans, 11-trans) 18:2 linoleic acid, purity ≥ 98% (HPLC), were purchased from Fluka Chemie GmbH (Buchs, Switzerland). Caproleic acid, purity ≥ 96%, and hexamethylcyclotrisiloxane, as chemical shift reference, were purchased from Sigma-Aldrich Chemie GmbH (Taufkirchen, Germany). Chloroform and methanol (analytical grade) were obtained from Fisher Scientific UK (Loughborough, UK) and CDCl₃ (99.8%) from Deutero (Kastellaun, Germany).

Gelatin (type B, isolated from bovine skin, isoelectric point: 5, Bloom strength: 257), was purchased from China National Medicines Corporation Ltd. and used without further purification or treatment. Methacrylic anhydride (MAA) was obtained from Aladdin Inc. Dialysis membranes (molecular weight cutoff of 10,000 Da) were procured from the US. 1-[4-(2-Hydroxyethoxy)-phenyl]-2-hydroxy-2-methyl-1-propane-1-one (Irgacure^® 2959), sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS), ally glycidyl ether (AGE) and H₂Pt₆Cl₆ catalysis were supplied from Alfa Aesar. Hexamethylcyclotrisiloxane (D3, >95%), n-butyllithium (C₄H₉Li, 99+%), chlorodimethylsilane (C₂H₇ClSi, 99+%) were purchased from Sigma-Aldrich. D3 was put in a flask, diluted with an equal volume of purified benzene, and stirred over CaH₂. The solvent was distilled and the monomer was sublimed into a flask [38 (link)]. Benzene (GR), tetrahydrofuran (THF, GR), ethanol (AR), and acetone (AR) were purchased from Sigma-Aldrich and were dehydrated strictly before used.