Towards Fabrication of Atomic Dopant Wires via Monolayer Doping Patterned by Resist-Free Lithography

Fabrication of atomic dopant wires at large scale is challenging.We explored the feasibility to fabricate atomic dopant wires by nano-patterning self-assembled dopant carrying molecular monolayers via a resist-free lithographic approach.The resist-free lithography is to use electron beam exposure to decompose hydrocarbon contaminants in vacuum chamber into amorphous carbon that serves as an etching mask for nanopatterning the phosphorus-bearing monolayers.Dopant wires were fabricated in silicon by patterning diethyl vinylphosphonate monolayers into lines with a width ranging from 1 μm down to 8 nm.The dopants were subsequently driven into silicon to form dopant wires by rapid thermal annealing.Electrical measurements show a linear correlation between wire width and conductance,indicating the success of the monolayer patterning process at nanoscale.The dopant wires can be potentially scaled down to atomic scale if the dopant thermal diffusion can be mitigated.     

A review of recent advances in catalytic combustion of VOCs on perovskite-type catalysts

Along with the rapid development of industry, VOCs gradually move into the spotlight, and now become a kind of harmful environmental pollutants that cannot be overlooked. This paper introduces the hazards of VOCs and the common catalytic combustion catalysts, noble metal catalysts and non-noble metal catalysts, for the elimination of VOCs. Perovskite catalysts, as one of the non-noble catalysts, play an important role in the field of catalytic combustion in recent years. According to the classification of elements doping in perovskites, the research achievements in the past five years were analyzed and reviewed. In addition, this paper also analyzes and elaborates the reaction kinetics and QSAR/QSPR models for the introduction of structural properties and reaction mechanisms.     

The antidepressant effect of 4-hydroxybenzyl alcohol 2-naphthoate through monoaminergic,GABAergic system and BDNF signaling pathway

Abstract

Gastrodigenin, also known as 4-hydroxybenzyl alcohol (HBA), is one of the main components of Gastrodia elata, which is a perfect lead compound of natural products. In order to get new active compounds, we modified the structure of HBA through esterification with carboxylic acid, and got a series of derivatives in which 4-hydroxybenzyl alcohol 2-naphthoate (NHBA) showed stronger antidepressant activity than HBA. In this paper, we firstly evaluated the antidepressant activity of NHBA by tail suspension test (TST) and forced swimming test (FST). Then, we carried out the biochemical assay and western blot to determine its mechanism. The results displayed that NHBA could increase the content of serotonin, dopamine, norepinephrine, γ-aminobutyric acid, brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) and tropomyosin receptor kinase B (TrkB) in mice brain. It suggested that NHBA exhibited an antidepressant-like effect through monoaminergic system, GABAergic system and BDNF/TrkB signaling pathways.     

In Vitro Light-Up Visualization of a Subunit-Specific Enzyme by an AIE Probe via Restriction of Single Molecular Motion

Enzymes contain several subunits to maintain different biological functions. However, it remains a great challenge for specific discrimination of one subunit over another. Toward this end, the fluorescent probe TPEMA is now presented for highly specific detection of the B subunit of cytosolic creatine (CK) kinase isoenzyme (CK-B). Owing to its aggregation-induced emission property, TPEMA shows highly boosted emission toward CK-B with a fast response time and very low interference from other analytes, including the M subunit of CK (CK-M). With the aid of a Job plot assay, ITC assay and molecular dynamics simulation, it was directly confirmed that the remarkably enhanced fluorescence of TPEMA in the presence of CK-B results from the restriction of single molecular motion in the cavity. Selective wash-free fluorescence imaging of CK-B in macrophages under different treatments was successfully demonstrated.     

Development of a Rapid and Low Cost Method for Measuring Plasma Protein Binding

In drug discovery and development, it is very important to investigate the plasma protein binding (PPB) of a drug to better understand its in vivo fate. In this study, a rapid and low-cost solid-phase extraction (SPE) method was developed for determining the PPB. With this method, the total protein recovery of a blank human plasma sample was 83.7 %. The unbound drug was easily adsorbed by an ODS C₁₈ SPE column, and the recovery of three known drugs was more than 90 %. Their PPBs obtained by the SPE were identical to the value reported by conventional techniques. In addition, more than 90 % of 4-amino-2-trifluoromethyl-phenyl retinate (ATPR), which is a novel all-trans retinoic acid derivative (ATRA), was bound to human plasma protein as determined by SPE, and this value was comparable with that obtained by our previously described gel filtration-based method. Considering its versatility, speed of separation, and low cost, SPE is a rapid and economical method for measuring PPB.

     

Supramolecular Assembly of TPE-Based Glycoclusters with Dicyanomethylene-4H-pyran (DM) Fluorescent Probes Improve Their Properties for Peroxynitrite Sensing and Cell Imaging

Two red-emitting dicyanomethylene-4H-pyran (DM) based fluorescent probes were designed and used for peroxynitrite (ONOO⁻) detection. Nevertheless, the aggregation-caused quenching effect diminished the fluorescence and restricted their further applications. To overcome this problem, tetraphenylethylene (TPE) based glycoclusters were used to self-assemble with these DM probes to obtain supramolecular water-soluble glyco-dots. This self-assembly strategy enhanced the fluorescence intensity, leading to an enhanced selectivity and activity of the resulting glyco-dot comparing to DM probes alone in PBS buffer. The glyco-dots also exhibited better results during fluorescence sensing of intracellular ONOO⁻ than the probes alone, thereby offering scope for the development of other similar supramolecular glyco-systems for chemical biological studies.     

Single-crystalline layered double hydroxides with rich defects and hierarchical structure by mild reduction for enhancing the oxygen evolution reaction

The oxygen evolution reaction(OER) with sluggish reaction kinetics and large overpotential is the critical reaction in water splitting that is promising for energy storage and conversion. Layered double hydroxides(LDHs), due to their unique lamellar structure and flexibility of chemical component, are very competing material candidates for OER. Herein, the morphology structure and the electronic structure of LDHs were simultaneously tuned to improve the OER catalytic activity by mild solvothermal reduction using ethylene glycol. The increased surface area, the introduction of oxygen vacancies and the construction of hierarchical structure greatly enhanced the electro-catalytic activity of LDHs for OER. The as-prepared LDHs showed a lower over-potential as low as 276 mV at a current density of 10 mA cm~(-2), and a small Tafel slope of 40.3 mV dec~(-1) accompanied with good stability. This work provides an efficient way to the design and optimization of advanced catalysts in the future.     

Enhanced monopole transition strength from the cluster decay of ~(13)C

The inelastic excitations and cluster decay of ~(13)C have been measured using the reaction,9Be(~(13)C, ~(13)C* →~9Be + α)~9Be. We observe strong excitation to the 14.3-MeV(1/2-) resonant state from the cluster-decay channel, leading to an enhanced monopole matrix element of(6.3 ± 0.6) fm~2. This large cluster-related monopole strength is a clear indication of the cluster-structure domination of this state and is consistent with the recent prediction of the orthogonality condition model(OCM). It would be interesting to further explore the three-center molecular rotational band that is initiated from the observed band-head.