Brownian dynamics simulation of the diffusion of rods and wormlike chains in a gel modeled as a cubic lattice: application to DNA

The translational diffusion constant of a particle, D, in a congested medium or a gel can be written as the product of two terms that account for long-range hydrodynamic interaction between the gel or congested medium and the particle, DEM, and a short-range "steric" term, S. For particles of arbitrary shape, DEM has been examined previously within the framework of the effective medium, EM, model (S. Allison et al., J. Phys. Chem. B 2008, 112, 5858-5866). In the present work, we examine S for rod- and wormlike chain models of duplex DNA in the size range of 100 to over 2000 base pairs. The gel is modeled explicitly as a cubic lattice, and Brownian dynamics simulation is used to examine S for a wide range of rod/wormlike chain and gel parameters. For wormlike chains with P = 50 nm, an empirical formula is derived for S that should be valid over a wide range of wormlike chain/gel parameters. For duplex DNA in the size of several hundred to several thousand base pairs in an agarose gel of 2% or less, fair agreement between modeling and experiment is obtained. However, modeling overestimates the length dependence of D observed experimentally. Finally, the reduction of D of DNA (100 to over 1000 base pairs in length) in cytoplasm relative to water can be accounted for quite well using the effective medium plus steric correction approach.     

Crystal structural characterization of three chlorosalicylato titanocene compounds

Abstract  Three chlorosalicylato titanocene compounds, namely [(MeCp)₂Ti(O,O′)(OCC₆H₃-5-Cl)]₂ (1), [(MeCp)₂Ti(O,O′)(OCC₆H₂-3,5-Cl₂)] (2) and [(MeCp)₂Ti(O,O′)(OCC₆H-3,5,6-Cl₃)] (3) have been synthesized via the reaction of (MeCp)₂TiCl₂ [MeCp = η⁵-(CH₃)C₅H₄] with the corresponding substituted chlorosalicylic acids in aqueous-organic systems in high yields and characterized by elemental analysis, IR and ¹H NMR spectra. Single-crystal X-ray diffraction analysis shows that geometries at titanium (IV) atoms are distorted tetrahedrons and the exhibited frameworks are constructed through weak interactions, which are H-bonding, π–π stacking and C–H···π interactions. Additional weak interactions, such as Cl···Cl interactions in compound 1, are also present, which help to form and stabilize crystalline materials. It is noticeable that the discriminating framework structures of three compounds due to their weak interactions existing conspicuous changes which result from the number of chlorine atoms on substituted chlorosalicylates. Graphical Abstract  Three to four coordinated chlorosalicylato titanocene compounds, [(MeCp)₂Ti(O,O′)(OCC₆H₃-5-Cl)]₂ (1), [(MeCp)₂Ti(O,O′)(OCC₆H₂-3,5-Cl₂)] (2) and [(MeCp)₂Ti(O,O′)(OCC₆H-3,5,6-Cl₃)] (3) have been synthesized in aqueous-organic system in high yields. Single-crystal X-ray diffraction analysis shows that geometries at titanium (IV) atoms are distorted tetrahedrons and the exhibited frameworks are constructed through weak interactions. The number of chlorine atoms on substituted chlorosalicylates has an effect on their framework structures.      

Normal modes of redox-active tyrosine: conformation dependence and comparison to experiment

Redox-active tyrosine residues play important roles in long-distance electron reactions in enzymes such as prostaglandin H synthase, ribonucleotide reductase, and photosystem II (PSII). Spectroscopic characterization of tyrosyl radicals in these systems provides a powerful experimental probe into the role of the enzyme in mediation of long-range electron transfer processes. Interpretation of such data, however, relies critically on first establishing a spectroscopic fingerprint of isotopically labeled tyrosinate and tyrosyl radicals in nonenzymatic environments. In this report, FT-IR results obtained from tyrosinate, tyrosyl radical (produced by ultraviolet photolysis of polycrystalline tyrosinate), and their isotopologues at 77 K are presented. Assignment of peaks and isotope shifts is aided by density-functional B3LYP/6-311++G(3df,2p)//B3LYP/6-31++G(d,p) calculations of tyrosine and tyrosyl radical in several different charge and protonation states. In addition, characterization of the potential energy surfaces of tyrosinate and tyrosyl radical as a function of the backbone and ring torsion angles provides detailed insight into the sensitivity of the vibrational frequencies to conformational changes. These results provide a detailed spectroscopic interpretation, which will elucidate the structures of redox-active tyrosine residues in complex protein environments. Specific application of these data is made to enzymatic systems.     

Unidirectional manipulation of surface plasmon polariton by dual-nanocavity in a T-shaped waveguide

A structure of two dimensional T-shaped metal-insulator-metal waveguide with dual-nanocavity is proposed. The two nanocavities located at each side of the slit on the lower metallic surface, act as band rejection filters and are capable of stopping the surface plasmon polaritons (SPPs) at the resonant wavelengths. The Fabry-Perot interferometry theory and the Finite-Difference-Time-Domain method are utilized to investigate the proposed waveguide. The numerical results demonstrate the realization of miniaturized photonic devices for effectively switching the SPPs propagation between the left and right waveguides in one direction.     

Multicore-shell PNIPAm-co-PEGMa microcapsules for cell encapsulation

The overall goal of this study was to fabricate multifunctional core-shell microcapsules with biological cells encapsulated within the polymer shell. Biocompatible temperature responsive microcapsules comprised of silicone oil droplets (multicores) and yeast cells embedded in a polymer matrix (shell) were prepared using a novel microarray approach. The cross-linked polymer shell and silicone multicores were formed in situ via photopolymerization of either poly(N-isopropylacryamide)(PNIPAm) or PNIPAm, copolymerized with poly(ethylene glycol monomethyl ether monomethacrylate) (PEGMa) within the droplets of an oil-in-water-in-oil double emulsion. An optimized recipe yielded a multicore-shell morphology, which was characterized by optical and laser scanning confocal microscopy (LSCM) and theoretically confirmed by spreading coefficient calculations. Spreading coefficients were calculated from interfacial tension and contact angle measurements as well as from the determination of the Hamaker constants and the pair potential energies. The effects of the presence of PEGMa, its molecular weight (M(n) 300 and 1100 g/mol), and concentration (10, 20, and 30 wt %) were also investigated, and they were found not to significantly alter the morphology of the microcapsules. They were found, however, to significantly improve the viability of the yeast cells, which were encapsulated within PNIPAm-based microcapsules by direct incorporation into the monomer solutions, prior to polymerization. Under LSCM, the fluorescence staining for live and dead cells showed a 30% viability of yeast cells entrapped within the PNIPAm matrix after 45 min of photopolymerization, but an improvement to 60% viability in the presence of PEGMa. The thermoresponsive behavior of the microcapsules allows the silicone oil cores to be irreversibly ejected, and so the role of the silicone oil is 2-fold. It facilitates multifunctionality in the microcapsule by first being used as a template to obtain the desired core-shell morphology, and second it can act as an encapsulant for oil-soluble drugs. It was shown that the encapsulated oil droplets were expelled above the volume phase transition temperature of the polymer, while the collapsed microcapsule remained intact. When these microcapsules were reswollen with an aqueous solution, it was observed that the hollow compartments refilled. In principle, these hollow-core microcapsules could then be filled with water-soluble drugs that could be delivered in vivo in response to temperature.     

Recent Advances in Analytical Applications of Nanomaterials in Liquid-Phase Chemiluminescence

Abstract

In recent years, many nanomaterials-assisted chemiluminescence (CL) systems have been developed to improve the sensitivity and to expand the scope of their analytical applications. In these new systems, nanomaterials participate in CL reactions as catalysts, labels, reductants, luminophors, or energy acceptors. This review mainly focuses on the recent analytical applications of metal nanoparticles, magnetic nanoparticles, quantum dots (QDs), and carbon-based nanomaterials (carbon nanotubes and graphene) in liquid-phase CL systems. Recent advances in electrochemiluminescence based on nanotechnology and its analytical applications, especially in immunoassay, DNA analysis, and other biological analyses, are also summarized. Finally, we discuss some critical challenges in this field and speculate about their solutions. A total of 177 references mainly in the last 5 years are included in this review.     

Transformation of organic and inorganic sulphur in a lignite during pyrolysis: Influence of inherent and added inorganic matter

The transformation of organic and inorganic sulphur during pyrolysis of a Western Australian lignite has been studied using several complimentary techniques. The lignite contains high moisture, oxygen, volatile matter, organic sulphur and inherent inorganic matter. FTIR and solid state ¹³C TOSS NMR spectroscopic studies revealed that the high oxygen content is attributed to the oxygenated functional groups, which is saturated with organically bonded inherent inorganic matter. Sodium and chlorine are the dominant inorganic matter and present in the form of sodium chloride. TGA-MS studies of the raw lignite showed that SO₂ is the dominant sulphur-bearing gases evolved during the pyrolysis of the raw lignite. The effect of inherent and added inorganics was studied by comparing the amounts of various forms of sulphur retained in the chars of the raw lignite, the acid washed lignite and the acid washed lignite doped with sodium and kaolinite following pyrolysis in a fixed-bed reactor in nitrogen. Inherent inorganic matter was shown to reduce the decomposition of organic sulphur but has little effect on the decomposition of inorganic sulphur. Sodium helps the retention of sulphur in the chars between 400 and 500 °C while kaolinite has a better ability to retain sulphur above 600 °C.     

义工旅行动机的量表开发与验证

随着义工旅行在年轻人中的普及,不少义工组织、旅行社和旅游目的地纷纷推出义工旅行项目。然而目前的项目安排大多仿照国外,对国内年轻人的需求认识尚不明晰,学术界对这一主题的研究也相对匮乏。鉴于此,以Voluntour和EASIN义工旅行组织的参与者为研究对象,严格遵循量表开发的流程,采用探索性因子分析、3次验证性因子分析和结构方程模型检验的方法,从多个角度验证了量表的信度和效度,得到了基于中国情境的义工旅行动机量表。研究结果表明：(1）由4个维度17个测量项目组成的量表,整体结构良好,具有较好的稳定性和适用性,可成为义工旅行研究的有效测量工具;(2）义工旅行的动机维度可划分为休闲逃避、深度体验、自我服务/发展与利他四类,动机中的利他维度是区分义工旅行与背包旅行、打工度假旅行的关键属性,是年轻人选择深度休闲方式的一种体现;(3）与国外研究相比,基于中国情境的量表无保护功能与宗教参与的动机维度,且社交动机表现不突出。最后,探讨了义工旅行项目在产品开发和市场营销方面的策略。     

Modeling the active site of cytochrome oxidase: synthesis and characterization of a cross-linked histidine-phenol

A cross-linked histidine-phenol compound was synthesized as a chemical analogue of the active site of cytochrome c oxidase. The structure of the cross-linked compound (compound 1) was verified by IR, (1)H and (13)C NMR, mass spectrometry, and single-crystal X-ray analysis. Spectrophotometric titrations indicated that the pK(a) of the phenolic proton on compound 1 (8.34) was lower than the pK(a) of tyrosine (10.1) or of p-cresol (10.2). This decrease in pK(a) is consistent with the hypothesis that a cross-linked histidine-tyrosine may facilitate proton delivery to the binuclear site in cytochrome c oxidase. Time-resolved optical absorption spectra of compound 1 at room temperature, generated by excitation at 266 nm in the presence and absence of dioxygen, indicated a species with absorption maxima at approximately 330 and approximately 500 nm, which we assign to the phenoxyl radical of compound 1. The electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR) spectra of compound 1, obtained after UV photolysis, confirmed the generation of a paramagnetic species at low temperature. Because the cross-linked compound lacks beta-methylene protons, the EPR line shape was dramatically altered when compared to that of the tyrosyl radical. However, simulation of the EPR line shape and measurement of the isotropic g value was consistent with a small coupling to the imidazole nitrogen and with little spin density perturbation in the phenoxyl ring. The ground-state Fourier transform infrared (FT-IR) spectrum of compound 1 showed that addition of the imidazole ring perturbs the frequency of the tyrosine ring stretching vibrations. The difference FT-IR spectrum, associated with the oxidation of the cross-linked compound, detected significant perturbations of the phenoxyl radical vibrational bands. We postulate that phenol oxidation produces a small delocalization of spin density onto the imidazole nitrogen of compound 1, which may explain its unique optical spectral properties.     

The solvation of Cu2+ with gas-phase clusters of water and ammonia

A detailed study has been undertaken of the gas-phase chemistry of [Cu(H2O)N]2+ and [Cu(NH3)N]2+ complexes. Ion intensity distributions and fragmentation pathways (unimolecular and collision-induced) have been recorded for both complexes out as far as N=20. Unimolecular fragmentation is dominated by Coulomb explosion (separation into two single charged units) on the part of the smaller ions, but switches to neutral molecule loss for N>7. In contrast, collisional activation promotes extensive electron capture from the collision gas, with the appearance of particular singly charged fragment ions being sensitive to the size and composition of the precursor. The results show clear evidence of the unit [Cu(X)8]2+ being of special significance, and it is proposed that the hydrogen-bonded structure associated with this ion is responsible for stabilizing the dipositive charge on Cu2+ in aqueous solution.