Spacer effect on triazole-linked sugar-based surfactants

A series of alkyl triazole glycoside surfactants, ATGs, differing in the length of the alkyl linker between the sugar and the triazole, was synthesized and investigated on their surfactant properties and phase behavior in water. The results indicate no significant impact of the linker on surface and interphase properties, whereas the phase behavior is affected. Higher affinity for the bicontinuous cubic phase potentially favors methylene-linked ATGs over higher homologs for drug-delivery applications. A comparison of glucose and xylose reveals a tendency for high Krafft points for propargyl xyloside based ATGs. This disfavors these surfactants with respect to both glucose analogs and higher homologs.     

Validation of a HPLC/MS method for simultaneous quantification of clonidine,morphine and its metabolites in human plasma

A high‐performance liquid chromatography–tandem mass spectrometry method was developed and validated for the simultaneous quantification of morphine, morphine's major metabolites morphine‐3‐glucuronide and morphine‐6‐glucuronide, and clonidine, to support the pharmacokinetic analysis of an ongoing double‐blinded randomized clinical trial that compares the use of morphine and clonidine in infants diagnosed with neonatal abstinence syndrome. Plasma samples were processed by solid‐phase extraction and separated on an Inertsil ODS‐3 (4 μm) column using an 0.1% formic acid in water–0.1% formic acid in methanol gradient. Detection of the analytes was conducted in the positive multiple reaction monitoring mode. The range of quantitation was 1–1000 ng/mL for morphine, morphine‐3‐glucuronide and morphine‐6‐glucuronide, and 0.25–100 ng/mL for clonidine. Intra‐day and inter‐day accuracy and precision were ≤15% for all analytes across the quantitation range. Extraction recovery rates were ≥94% for morphine, ≥90% for M3G, ≥87% for M6G and ≥ 79% for clonidine. Matrix effect ranged from 85–94% for clonidine to 101–106% for M3G. The method fulfilled all predetermined acceptance criteria and required only 100 μL of starting plasma volume. Furthermore, it was successfully applied to 30 clinical trial plasma samples.     

Binder-less and free-standing Co–Fe metal nanoparticles-decorated PVdF-HFP nanofiber membrane as an electrochemical probe for enzyme-less glucose sensors

Co–Fe bimetallic nanoparticles-affixed polyvinylidene fluoride-co-hexafluoropropylene (PVdF-HFP) nanofiber membrane is fabricated using the electrospinning and chemical reduction techniques. The semicrystalline polymeric backbone decorated with the highly crystalline Co–Fe bimetallic nanoparticles enunciates the mechanical integrity, while the incessant and swift electron mobility is articulated with the consistent dissemination of bimetallic nanoparticles on the intersected and multi-layered polymeric nanofibers. The diffusion and adsorption of glucose are expedited in the extended cavities and porosities of as-formulated polymeric nanofibers, maximizing the glucose utilization efficacy, while the uniformly implanted Co⁴⁺/Fe³⁺ active centers on PVdF-HFP nanofibers maximize the electrocatalytic activity toward glucose oxidation under alkaline regimes. Thus, the combinative sorts including nanofiber and nanocomposite strategies of PVdF-HFP/Co–Fe membrane assimilate the enzyme-less electrochemical glucose detection concerts of high sensitivity (375.01 μA mM^?1 cm^?2), low limit of detection (0.65 μm), and wide linear range (0.001 to 8 mM), outfitting the erstwhile enzyme-less glucose detection reports. Additionally, the endowments of high selectivity and real sample glucose-sensing analyses of PVdF-HFP/Co–Fe along with the binder-less and free-standing characteristics construct the state-of-the-art paradigm for the evolution of affordable enzyme-less electrochemical glucose sensors.

     

Synthesis and structure–property relationship of carbazole‐alt‐benzothiadiazole copolymers

A series of four π‐conjugated carbazole‐alt‐benzothiadiazole copolymers (PCBT) were prepared by Suzuki cross‐coupling reaction between synthesized dibromocarbazoles as electron‐rich subunits and 4,7‐bis(4,4,5,5‐tetramethyl‐1,3,2‐dioxaborolan‐2‐yl)?2,1,3‐benzothiadiazole as electron‐deficient subunits. The subunits were directly linked through 2,7‐ or 3,6‐ positions of the carbazole. In addition, the carbazole monomers have been N‐substituted by a branched or a linear side‐chain. The chemical structure of the copolymers and their precursors was confirmed by NMR and IR spectroscopies, and their molar masses were estimated by SEC. Thermal analysis under N₂ atmosphere showed no weight loss below 329°C, and no glass transition was observed in between 0 and 250°C. The band gaps of all PCBTs evaluated by optical spectroscopies and by cyclic voltammetry analysis were consistent with expectations and ranged between 2.2 and 2.3 eV. Finally, 2,7 and 3,6 linkages were shown to influence optical properties of PCBTs. © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Polym. Sci., Part A: Polym. Chem. 2015 , 53, 2059–2068     

A stochastic expectation-maximization algorithm for the analysis of system lifetime data with known signature

Statistical estimation of the model parameters of component lifetime distribution based on system lifetime data with known system structure is discussed here. We propose the use of stochastic expectation-maximization (SEM) algorithm for obtaining the maximum likelihood estimates of model parameters based on complete and censored system lifetimes. Different ways of implementing the SEM algorithm are also studied. We have shown that the proposed methods are feasible and are easy to implement for various families of component lifetime distributions. The proposed methodologies are then illustrated with two popular lifetime models—the Weibull and Birnbaum-Saunders distributions. Monte Carlo simulation is then used to compare the performance of the proposed methods with the corresponding estimation by direct maximization. Finally, two illustrative examples are presented along with some concluding remarks.