Patterning Porous Networks through Self-Assembly of Programmed Biomacromolecules

Two-dimensional (2D) porous networks are of great interest for the fabrication of complex organized functional materials for potential applications in nanotechnologies and nanoelectronics. This review aims at providing an overview of bottom-up approaches towards the engineering of 2D porous networks by using biomacromolecules, with a particular focus on nucleic acids and proteins. The first part illustrates how the advancements in DNA nanotechnology allowed for the attainment of complex ordered porous two-dimensional DNA nanostructures, thanks to a biomimetic approach based on DNA molecules self-assembly through specific hydrogen-bond base pairing. The second part focuses the attention on how polypeptides and proteins structural properties could be used to engineer organized networks templating the formation of multifunctional materials. The structural organization of all examples is discussed as revealed by scanning probe microscopy or transmission electron microscopy imaging techniques.     

Dielectric behavior of polyaniline synthesized by different techniques

Polyaniline doped with dodecylbenzenesulfonic acid (Pani.DBSA) was synthesized by different procedures: by a dedoping-redoping process, by one step inverted emulsion polymerization and by one step aqueous dispersion polymerization. The effect of these different techniques on the electric properties (dielectric constant, dielectric losses, and complex electric modulus) of the corresponding emeraldine base has been studied by thermal dielectric analyzer (DETA) in the temperature range −130 °C to 200 °C and in frequency range 0.03-10⁵ Hz. It was found that the preparation technique has significant influence on the dielectric properties of Pani. The different synthetic routes give rise to polyaniline with different distribution of electric relaxation process, indicating different chain structure. Emeraldine base from Pani.DBSA prepared by one step aqueous dispersion polymerization exhibits one single relaxation peak with narrow distribution whereas that prepared by inverted emulsion polymerization exhibits two relaxation peaks, indicating two-phase structure as indicated by a bimodal distribution of relaxation process. Emeraldine base from Pani.DBSA prepared by dedoping-redoping process presents an intermediary behavior. Percentage crystallinity of Pani.DBSA samples has also been investigated using wide-angle X-ray diffraction analysis. Pani.DBSA prepared by aqueous dispersion exhibited higher crystallinity degree, which agrees with the higher conductivity.     

The Construction of New Proteins. Part III. Artificial folding units by assembly of amphiphilic secondary structures on a template

A new general strategy for the construction of artificial proteins with predetermined tertiary structure is presented. Amphiphilic α-helix and β-sheet-forming oligopeptides are assembled on a multifunctional ttemplate molecule which directs the peptide blocks to adopt characteristic folding topologies. The design, synthesis, and conformational properties of these template-assembled synthetic proteins (TASP) are exemplified for βαβ-, α-helix-bundle- and β-barrel-like tertiary structures using specially designed oligopeptides as template molecules. In contrast to linear polypeptide chains of comparable molecular weights, these conceptually novel marcromolecules are readily accessible to chemical synthesis and exhibit excellent solubility in a number of solvents. Experimental evidence is provided for a template-induced intramolecular folding to secondary and tertiary structures in aqueous solutions. This approach opens new prospects for the chemical construction of biomacromolecules with tailormade structural and functional properties.     

离子液体与生物大分子相互作用研究进展

离子液体作为一类新型绿色溶剂,因其独特的理化性质,被广泛应用于催化、有机合成、分离富集和电化学等领域。其中,离子液体在生物大分子的分离纯化、催化和降解方面显示出良好的应用前景,成为研究的热点领域之一。本文从离子液体与生物大分子的本质关系出发,对离子液体在DNA和蛋白质的分离纯化、酶的活性稳定性和天然纤维素溶解等过程中与生物大分子之间的相互作用进行了综述。     

Electroanalysis of RNA at a Silver Electrode

The behavior of nucleic acids at charged biological interfaces (e.g. membranes) is of great importance in many biological processes. Meanwhile, the electrochemical system serves as a versatile and illuminating model of biological system, which might provide important information on properties and conformation of biomacromolecules. Electrochemical studies on DNA have attracted great interest and contributed a lot to the knowledge of structure-function relationship of DNA. However, up to now, electrochemical researches on RNA were much less explored.     

富勒烯功能高分子材料的制备与性能研究

对富勒烯功能高分子材料的制备、表征及其性能研究已成为光前国际上的前沿领域之一。从合成角度考虑,以不同的方法对Ｃ６０进行高分子修饰可得到结构、性质各异的富勒烯高分子衍生物,对于研究如何更好地控制Ｃ６０高分子衍生物的结构,探讨了有Ｃ６０参与的聚合反应的机理以及Ｃ６０在高分子衍生物中的作用无疑是很有帮助的。从应用角度考虑,Ｃ６０引入高分子中必将导致新型聚合物的产生。这些新型聚合物表现出许多独特而极具应用     

INTERACTION OF ACRIDINE DRUGS WITH DNA AND NUCLEOTIDES

Abstract— At high phosphate-to-drug ratios acridine drugs intercalate between hydrogen bonded DNA base pairs causing significant changes in the physico-chemical properties of DNA. The determination of the nature of the strong (or primary) interaction between acridine drugs and DNA is of great importance for elucidating the mode of the biological action of the drugs. Nanosecond measurements have revealed a fast depolarization of the fluorescence of proflavine, one of the most extensively studied acridines, bound to DNA. The electronic structure of the complex, however, is not substantially altered during the lifetime of the excited singlet electronic state of the drug. Guanine has been shown to be responsible for the quenching of the proflavine fluorescence upon binding to DNA. A temperature-jump relaxation study has demonstrated a rather external complexation of this drug with the G-C base pairs; this complex, whose formation occurs in the strong binding region, is distinct from the weak electrostatic complex. The findings that the binding ability of a series of acridines correlates with their basicity and that the drug–binding behavior of methylated DNA is significantly different from that of DNA suggested that specific forces may be also involved in the drug–DNA binding in addition to hydrophobic forces. Recent experiments employing molecular complexes of acridines with nucleotides as model systems have provided strong support for the specificity of the drug-DNA interaction. Hydrogen bonding between the drug and reactive groups of the DNA bases that do not contribute directly to the stability of the helix may be involved in that interaction. The stoichiometry of the proflavine-guanosine 5′-phosphate complex is 1:1. Its association constant increases from 310 M^-1 when proflavine is in its ground electronic state, to 1550 M^-1, when proflavine is in its first excited singlet state. Thus, light absorbed by the drug alters its reactivity which, in turn, results in an appreciable increase in its ability to bind to the nucleotide. In view of the proposed importance of the drug–base interaction in explaining the mutagenic properties of acridine drugs and, in particular, of the proposed involvement of the G-C base pairs, this finding emphasizes the possible importance of drug photoexcitation in acridine mutagenesis; it also contributes to the elucidation of photodynamic action. X-ray diffraction studies have recently provided very interesting demonstrations of strong binding of 9-aminoacridine and of the phenanthridine drug ethidium bromide to adenine-uracil base pairs in the crystalline phase. The ability of photoexcited acridine drugs to inactivate viruses has been recently used for therapeutic purposes. The carcinogenic risk involved, however, is still under investigation.     

Application of silver-promoted reactions in the synthesis of five-membered O-heterocycles

The investigation of facial protocols for chemical synthesis is a growing area of interest due to increasing environmental issues. The use of catalysts in organic reactions has gained extensive interest. Metal and nonmetal catalysts provided a new improved alternative to traditional methods in modern synthetic chemistry. The aim of the present review is to focus on the applications of silver-promoted reactions for the synthesis of oxygen containing five-membered heterocycles which have significance in organic synthesis, pharmaceuticals, agrochemicals, and among others.     

ELECTRORHEOLOGICAL PROPERTIES OF POLYANILINE/PUMICE COMPOSITE SUSPENSIONS

Electrorheological （ER） properties of polyaniline （PAni）, pumice and polyaniline/pumice composites （PAPC） were investigated. Polyaniline and PAni/pumice composite were prepared by oxidative polymerization. PAni/pumice particlesbased ER suspensions were prepared in silicone oil （SO）, and their ER behavior was investigated as a function of shear rate, electric field strength, concentration and temperature. Sedimentation stabilities of suspensions were determined. It has been found that ER activity of all the suspensions increases with increasing electric field strength, concentration and decreasing shear rate. It has shown that the suspensions have a typical shear thinning non-Newtonian viscoelastic behavior. Yield stress of composite suspensions increased linearly with increasing applied electric field strength and with concentrations of the particles. The effect of high temperature on ER activity of purrfice/silicone oil systems was also investigated.     

Electrospray ionization mass spectrometry of synthetic oligonucleotides using 2-propanol and spermidine

Oligonucleotides have become widely used tools in molecular biology and molecular diagnostics. Their parallel synthesis in large numbers and the increasing interest in microarray technology has raised the requirement for fast and informative analytical tools for their quality control. A direct injection electrospray ionization mass spectrometry (ESI-MS) technique based on the use of aqueous 2-propanol as running eluent, and spermidine (or triethylamine) as DNA modifiers, has been applied to analyze a large set of samples (about 200 synthetic oligonucleotides) ranging from 5 to 15 kDa (17-51mers) with good results in terms of sensitivity, suppression of sodium adduct formation, and speed of analysis. Copyright 2000 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Nickel-catalyzed synthesis of five-membered heterocycles

In recent decades, a large number of reports related to the synthesis of N-, O- and S-containing heterocycles have appeared owing to a wide variety of their biological activity. The investigation of methods for the chemical synthesis is a growing area of interest due to increasing environmental issues. The use of catalysts in organic reactions has gained extensive interest. Metal and nonmetal catalysts provided a new improved alternative to traditional methods in modern synthetic chemistry. The aim of present review is to focus on the applications of nickel for the synthesis of five-membered heterocylces.     

Seven-membered N-heterocycles: metal and nonmetal assisted synthesis

The investigation of facial synthetic methods for chemical synthesis is a growing area of interest due to increasing environmental issues. The use of catalysts in organic reactions has gained extensive interest. Metal and nonmetal catalysts provided a new improved alternative to traditional methods in modern synthetic chemistry. The aim of the present review is to focus on the applications of metals and nonmetals for the synthesis of seven-membered N-heterocycles.     

A strategy for dramatically enhancing the selectivity of molecules showing aggregation-induced emission towards biomacromolecules with the aid of graphene oxide

By intelligently utilizing the different interacting strengths between different moieties according to the displacement method, general biosensors with aggregation-induced emission (AIE) characteristics for biomacromolecules without selectivity were converted to excellent, highly selective probes for one specific biomacromolecule with the aid of graphene oxide (GO) in an aqueous medium. Importantly, thanks to the different interactions between the AIE molecule and biomacromolecules, just by simply changing the AIE molecule the sensing system could detect different types of biomacromolecules, thereby providing a new approach to the development of AIE-based sensors with high selectivity and sensitivity. More specifically, the complex of A(2)HPS?HCl-a derivative of hexaphenylsilone (HPS) functionalized by two amino (A(2)) groups (N(CH(2)CH(3))(3))-and GO only gives an "off-on" response to DNA, with a detection limit of 2.3 μg mL(-1) toward DNA-CT (calf thymus); interestingly, the complex of TPE-N(2)C(4) (1,2-bis{4-[4-(N,N,N-triethylammonium)butoxy]phenyl}-1,2-diphenylethene dibromide) and GO could only detect the presence of bovine serum albumin (BSA), whereas other biomacromolecules, including DNA, RNA, and even other proteins have very little influence.     

Ionic liquid: An efficient and recyclable medium for the synthesis of fused six-membered oxygen heterocycles

The investigation for replacement of organic solvents in chemical synthesis is a growing area of interest due to increasing environmental issues. The use of ionic liquid salts as solvents and catalysts in organic reactions has gained extensive interest. Ionic liquids provided a new environmentally benign and improved alternative to traditional methods in modern synthetic chemistry. The aim of present review is to focus on the applications of ionic liquids for the synthesis of fused six-membered oxygen heterocycles.     

GRAFT COPOLYMERIZATION OF CELLULOSE,CELLULOSE DERIVATIVES,AND LIGNOCELLULOSE

Abstract

The growth of polymer science has led to the development of new materials in direct competition with natural materials, many of which have been in use since earliest times. This has caused researchers to look more critically at both natural and synthetic macromolecules in order to learn more about their underlying structures and their relation to the properties exhibited by the macromolecules. In this regard, chemical modifications have been devised to impart certain desirable properties of both natural and synthetic macromolecules, and their applications have become an integral part of such chemical modifications. Various chemical modifications (e.g., change of functionality, oxidative degradation, inter- and intramolecular gelation, graft copolymerization), have been practiced to add improved properties to the base polymers. However, among all these methods, modification of polymers via graft copolymerization has been the subject of much interest and has made paramount contribution toward improved industrial and biomedical applications.     

Consideration of interface polarization in the modeling of dielectric property for ethylene vinyl acetate (EVA)/polyaniline conductive composites prepared through in-situ polymerization of aniline in EVA matrix

In this study conductive composite of ethylene vinyl acetate (EVA)/polyaniline (Pani) were prepared by in-situ polymerization technique. Dielectric properties (Permittivity) of the composites have been investigated with respect to concentration of Pani and frequency of electric field. For predicting permittivity of the composites, different mixing rules proposed by Lichtenecker, Bruggeman, Jaysundere–Smith, Maxwell–Wagner, and Yamada have been verified at 10, 10³, and 10⁶ Hz frequencies. It has been found that the theoretical permittivities predicted by different models differ largely from experimental permittivity when measured at 10 and 10³ Hz frequencies. The limitations of the models as well as the cause of deviations between the theoretically predicted and experimentally observed results have been discussed. A new model for permittivity has been proposed by considering the generation of interface polarization between the EVA matrix and Pani particles. This model fits well with the experimentally observed results.     

Green synthesis of three- to five-membered O-heterocycles using ionic liquids

The investigation for replacement of organic solvents in organic synthesis is a growing area of interest due to increasing environmental issues. The use of ionic liquid salts as solvents and catalysts in organic reactions has gained extensive interest. Ionic liquids provided a new environmentally benign and improved alternative to traditional methods in modern synthetic chemistry. The aim of present review is to focus on the applications of ionic liquids for the synthesis of O-heterocycles.     

Guanine-specific DNA damage photosensitized by the dihydroxo(tetraphenylporphyrinato)antimony(V) complex

The dihydroxo(tetraphenylporphyrinato)antimony(V) complex (SbTPP) demonstrates bactericidal activity under visible-light irradiation. This phototoxic effect could be caused by photodamage to biomolecules, but the mechanism has not been well understood. In this study, to clarify the mechanism of phototoxicity by SbTPP, DNA damage photosensitized by SbTPP was examined using [(32)P]-5'-end-labeled DNA fragments. SbTPP induced markedly severe photodamage to single-stranded rather than to double-stranded DNA. Photo-irradiated SbTPP frequently caused DNA cleavage at the guanine residue of single-stranded DNA after Escherichia coli formamidopyrimidine-DNA glycosylase or piperidine treatment. HPLC measurement confirmed the formation of 8-oxo-7,8-dihydro-2'-deoxyguanosine (8-oxodG), an oxidation product of 2'-deoxyguanosine, and showed that the content of 8-oxodG in single-stranded DNA is larger than that in double-stranded DNA. The effects of scavengers of reactive oxygen species on DNA damage suggested the involvement of singlet oxygen. These results have shown that the mechanism via singlet oxygen formation mainly contributes to the phototoxicity of SbTPP. On the other hand, SbTPP induced DNA damage specifically at the underlined G of 5'-GG, 5'-GGG, and 5'-GGGG in double-stranded DNA. The sequence-specificity of DNA damage is quite similar to that induced by the type I photosensitizers, suggesting that photo-induced electron transfer slightly participates in the phototoxicity of SbTPP. In conclusion, SbTPP induces DNA photodamage via singlet oxygen formation and photo-induced electron transfer. A similar mechanism can damage other biomacromolecules, such as protein and the phospholipid membrane. The damage to biomacromolecules via these mechanisms may participate in the phototoxicity of SbTPP.     

Gold and silver assisted synthesis of five-membered oxygen and nitrogen containing heterocycles

The investigation of methods for the chemical synthesis is a growing area of interest due to increasing environmental issues. The use of catalysts in organic reactions has gained extensive interest. Metal and nonmetal catalysts provided a new improved alternative to traditional methods in modern synthetic chemistry. The aim of the present review is to focus on the applications of gold- and silver-catalytic systems for the synthesis of five-membered oxygen- and nitrogen-heterocycles.     

Mechanistic Aspects of Carbon Nanotube Nucleation and Growth

The discovery, synthesis, characterization, and applicability of carbon nanotubes have produced tremendous excitement and interest among scientists and engineers. In particular, the use of these unique tubular nanostructures for new strong lightweight materials, nanoelectronics, fuel storage and cells, electron emitters and bio, scanning probe microscopy, and chemical sensing devices has created an intense effort to advance the synthesis so as to mass produce carbon nanotubes with control over diameter and helicity. The massive and controlled synthesis of this heralded nanostructure has been a great challenge. Although significant progress has advanced the preparation, more synthetic development is required. The syntheses have so far involved three main approaches: arc discharge vaporization, laser vaporization, and catalytic chemical vapor deposition. The synthetic trend has progressed to a point where further advancement with these techniques will require a better understanding of the mechanism of nucleation and growth. The mechanics of carbon nanotube nucleation and growth involve very complex and diverse phenomena occurring under extreme conditions and on the mesoscopic scale. As yet the detail mechanism is unknown. Difficulties with experimental probing and computational simulation have increased the mystery of this mechanism. This review presents an account of research on the synthesis of carbon nanotubes and the mechanism of formation. This overview includes all three mentioned synthetic approaches and hybrids thereof. On the basis of this broad account a comprehensive mechanism for carbon nanotube nucleation and growth naturally arises. This mechanism is qualitative and it hopes to inspire more quantitative exploration and synthetic advancement.