Nanosensors having dipicolinic acid imprinted nanoshell for Bacillus cereus spores detection

Molecular imprinted polymers (MIPs) as a recognition element for sensors are increasingly of interest and MIP nanoclusters have started to appear in the literature. In this study, we have proposed a novel thiol ligand-capping method with polymerizable methacryloylamido-cysteine (MAC) attached to gold–silver nanoclusters, reminiscent of a self-assembled monolayer and have reconstructed surface shell by synthetic host polymers based on molecular imprinting method for recognition. In this method, methacryloylamidoantipyrine–terbium ((MAAP)₂–Tb(III)) has been used as a new metal-chelating monomer via metal coordination–chelation interactions and dipicolinic acid (DPA) which is main participant of Bacillus cereus spores used as a model. Nanoshell sensors with templates give a cavity that is selective for DPA. The DPA can simultaneously chelate to Tb(III) metal ion and fit into the shape-selective cavity. Thus, the interaction between Tb(III) ion and free coordination spheres has an effect on the binding ability of the gold–silver nanoclusters nanosensor. The binding affinity of the DPA imprinted nanoclusters has been investigated by using the Langmuir and Scatchard methods, and the respective affinity constants (K _affinity) determined were found to be 1.43 × 10⁴ and 9.1 × 10⁶ mol L^?1.     

Magnetostatic properties of K2Co x Fe1−x F4, a system with competing anisotropies

The magnetostatic properties of K₂Co _x Fe_1–x F₄ have been investigated by susceptibility and Mössbauer measurements at different concentrations and temperatures. Three magnetically ordered phases are found: a planar phase, an OAF phase, and an uniaxial phase. The experimental results are compared to a molecular-field calculation. At certain concentrations and temperatures it is not possible to obtain a good least squares fit of the Mössbauer spectra, which is tentatively assigned to relaxation effects due to fast spin fluctuations at the OAF phase transition.     

Gold nanoparticles having dipicolinic acid imprinted nanoshell for Bacillus cereus spores recognition

Taking into account the recognition element for sensors linked to molecular imprinted polymers (MIPs), a proliferation of interest has been witnessed by those who are interested in this subject. Indeed, MIP nanoparticles are theme which recently has come to light in the literature. In this study, we have proposed a novel thiol ligand-capping method with polymerizable methacryloylamidocysteine (MAC) attached to gold nanoparticles, reminiscent of a self-assembled monolayer. Furthermore, a surface shell by synthetic host polymers based on molecular imprinting method for recognition has been reconstructed. In this method, methacryloyl iminodiacetic acid-chrome (MAIDA–Cr(III)) has been used as a new metal-chelating monomer via metal coordination–chelation interactions and dipicolinic acid (DPA) which is the main participant of Bacillus cereus spores has been used as a template. Nanoshell sensors with templates produce a cavity that is selective for DPA. The DPA can simultaneously chelate to Cr(III) metal ion and fit into the shape-selective cavity. Thus, the interaction between Cr(III) ion and free coordination spheres has an effect on the binding ability of the gold nanoparticles nanosensor. The interactions between DPA and MIP particles were studied observing fluorescence measurements. DPA addition caused significant decreases in fluorescence intensity because they induced photoluminescence emission from Au nanoparticles through the specific binding to the recognition sites of the crosslinked nanoshell polymer matrix. The binding affinity of the DPA imprinted nanoparticles has been explored by using the Langmuir and Scatchard methods and the analysis of the quenching results has been performed in terms of the Stern–Volmer equation.     

Fluorescence-based methods for the detection of pressure-induced spore germination and inactivation

The application of high pressure (HP) provides an opportunity for the non-thermal preservation of high-quality foods, whereas highly resistant bacterial endospores play an important role. It is known that the germination of spores can be initiated by the application of HP. Moreover, the resistance properties of spores are highly dependent on their physiological states, which are passed through during the germination. To distinguish between different physiological states and to detect the amount of germinated spores after HP treatments, two fluorescence-based methods were applied. A flow cytometric method using a double staining with SYTO 16 as an indicator for germination and propidium iodide as an indicator for membrane damage was used to detect different physiological states of the spores. During the first step of germination, the spore-specific dipicolinic acid (DPA) is released [P. Setlow, Spore germination, Curr. Opin. Microbiol. 6 (2003), pp. 550–556]. DPA reacts with added terbium to form a distinctive fluorescent complex. After measuring the fluorescence intensity at 270 nm excitation wavelength in a fluorescence spectrophotometer, the amount of germinated spores can be determined. Spores of Bacillus subtilis were treated at pressures from 150 to 600 MPa and temperatures from 37 °C to 60 °C in 0.05 M ACES buffer solution (pH 7) for dwell times of up to 2 h. During the HP treatments, inactivation up to 2log ₁₀ cycles and thermal sensitive populations up to 4log ₁₀ cycles could be detected by plate counts. With an increasing number of thermal sensitive spores, an increased proportion of spores in germinated states was detected by flow cytometry. Also the released amount of DPA increased during the dwell times. Moreover, a clear pressure-temperature-time-dependency was shown by screening different conditions. The fluorescence-based measurement of the released DPA can provide the opportunity of an online monitoring of the germination of spores under HP inside the HP vessel. Implementation can be done using diamond anvil cells, units with inspection glasses or by inserting an optical fiber into the HP vessel. The analytical methods used can help to understand the complex mechanism of germination and inactivation of bacterial spores. Due to its universal, process-independent character, the application of these methods is feasible for established and emerging technologies.     

The quest for a better system for evaluating pi‐electron substituent constant: a comparison of benzoic,acrylic and tria‐, penta‐, heptafulvene‐based carboxylic acids. A computational study

Carboxylic acids based on exo‐substituted tria‐, penta‐, heptafulvenes and ethylene (acrylic acids) were examined in order to determine if they are more sensitive to the substituent effect than benzoic acid – the system originally employed by Hammett. In order to accomplish this task, all possible structural isomers of benzoic acid, tria‐, penta‐ and heptafulvene‐based carboxylic acids, acrylic and methacrylic acids substituted by 13 substiuents (BH₂, CHO, CN, COCN, NO₂, CF₃, Me, Cl, F, OH, OMe, NH₂ and NMe₂) were optimized at the B3LYP/6‐311++G(d,p) level of theory, and Gibbs free energies of carboxylic group dissociation (ΔG_dis) were calculated. These energies were subsequently intercorrelated, and from the slopes of linear regressions, it was estimated which system is associated with greatest changes of ΔG_dis due to substitution and thus is most sensitive to the substituent effect. It was found that all fulvene‐based carboxylic acids have greater range of ΔG_dis change than benzoic acid, but the largest range of change was observed in the case of acrylic and methacrylic acids. The acrylic acid as the most sensitive system to substitution could replace benzoic acid for an improved version of substituent constant used to measure pi‐electron substituent effect. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

静电力显微镜研究二相材料及其界面介电特性

利用静电力显微镜(EFM)研究了二相材料不同区域的介电特性. 制备了高定向石墨/聚乙烯、云母/聚乙烯等层叠状二相材料复合物, 在EFM相位检测模式下观测二相材料过渡界面处, 可以发现二相材料中介电常数较大的材料会引起较大的相位滞后角Δθ该相位滞后角正切值tan(Δθ) 与探针电压V_EFM存在二次函数关系, 且函数二次项系数与样品的介电常数存在增函数关系, 进而可在微纳米尺度下区分不同微区域内材料的介电常数差异. 研究表明EFM 可用于对材料介电特性的微纳米尺度测量, 这对分析复合材料二相界面区域特性有积极意义.     

压力下应变异质结中施主杂质态的Stark效应

对应变GaN/Al_xGa_1-xN异质结系统,考虑理想界面突变势垒,引入简化相干势近似,采用变分法讨论了流体静压力下外界电场对束缚于界面附近的浅杂质态结合能的影响.对GaN为衬底的闪锌矿应变异质结,分别计算了(001)和(111)取向时杂质态的结合能随压力、杂质位置、电场强度以及组分的变化关系.结果表明,杂质态结合能随流体静压力呈近线性变化.电场对杂质态的Stark效应则随杂质位置不同而呈现谱线蓝、红移动.此外,还讨论了在不同压力情况下,Al组分对杂质结合能的影响.当杂质处于GaN材料中且距界面较远时,Al组分的增加使电子的二维特性增强,从而使结合能增大,且压力加剧增幅的增加;当杂质处于Al_xGa_1-xN材料中,Al组分的增加削弱了杂质与电子间的库仑相互作用,故而结合能降低. 关键词： xGa_1-xN异质结')" href="#">GaN/Al_xGa_1-xN异质结 杂质态 压力 Stark效应     

Direct observation of the potential distribution within organic light emitting diodes under operation

We show the first direct measurement of the potential distribution within organic light emitting diodes (OLEDs) under operation and hereby confirm existing hypotheses about charge transport and accumulation in the layer stack. Using a focused ion beam to mill holes in the diodes we gain access to the cross section of the devices and explore the spatially resolved potential distribution in situ by scanning Kelvin probe microscopy under different bias conditions. In bilayer OLEDs consisting of tris(hydroxyquinolinato) aluminum (Alq₃)/N, N ′‐bis(naphthalene‐1‐yl)‐N,N ′‐bis(phenyl) benzidine (NPB) the potential exclusively drops across the Alq₃ layer for applied bias between onset voltage and a given transition voltage. These findings are consistent with previously performed capacitance–voltage measurements. The behavior can be attributed to charge accumulation at the interface between the different organic materials. Furthermore, we show the potential distribution of devices with different cathode structures and degraded devices to identify the cathode interface as main culprit for decreased performance. (© 2015 WILEY‐VCH Verlag GmbH &Co. KGaA, Weinheim)     

Spectroscopic analysis of the interaction between chromium (III) and apoovotransferrin

Ovotransferrin (OTf) is a main member of the transferrin family that functions both as an iron transporter and an antibacterial agent. In this study, the thermodynamic property of the interaction between chromium (III) and ovotransferrin was investigated. The conditional binding constants for Cr³⁺ binding to the protein were determined by difference UV spectroscopy and were found to be log K_C=13.08±0.24 and log K_N=5.65±0.12. It was found that Cr³⁺ preferentially binds to the C-terminal site over the N-terminal site under these experimental conditions. The conformational changes in apoovotransferrin (apoOTf) during Cr³⁺ binding were studied by fluorescence spectroscopy using 2-p-toluidinylnaphthalene-6-sulfonate (TNS) as the fluorescence probe and by circular dichroism (CD) spectroscopy. The results show that a large conformational change in apoOTf can be attributed to binding of Cr³⁺ to the N-terminal site, instead of the C-terminal site. In addition, the binding of Cr³⁺ to apoOTf stabilizes the structure of OTf as determined by guanidine hydrochloride denaturation studies. These findings help advance our understanding of the biological effects of Cr³⁺.     

Acoustic spectroscopy and electrical characterization of SiO2/Si structures with ultrathin SiO2 layers formed by nitric acid oxidation

Ultrathin silicon dioxide (SiO₂) layers formed on Si substrate with nitric acid have been investigated using both acoustic deep-level transient spectroscopy (A-DLTS) and electrical methods to characterize the interface states. The set of SiO₂/Si structures formed in different conditions (reaction time, concentrations of nitric acid (HNO₃), and SiO₂ thickness [3–9 nm]) was prepared. The leakage current density was decreased by post-oxidation annealing (POA) treatment at 250°C in pure nitrogen for 1 h and/or post-metallization annealing (PMA) treatment at 250°C in a hydrogen atmosphere for 1 h. All structures of the set, except electrical investigation, current-voltage (I - V), and capacitance — voltage (C - V) measurements, were investigated using A-DLTS to find both the interface states distribution and the role of POA and/or PMA treatment on the interface-state occurrence and distribution. The evident decreases of interface states and shift of their activation energies in the structures with PMA treatment in comparison with POA treatment were observed in most of the investigated structures. The results are analyzed and discussed.      

The Influence of Collisions in the Space Charge Sheath on the Ion current Collected by a Langmuir Probe

The current/voltage characteristics of a cylindrical Langmuir probe have been studied in Ar⁺/electron afterglow plasmas in helium carrier gas under truly thermal conditions at 300 K using our flowing afterglow/Langmuir probe (FALP) apparatus. The orbital motion limited (oml) ion and electron current regions of the probe characteristics have been explored over a wide range of the reduced probe voltage (up to ～ 100) and over a wide range of electron (n_e) and ion (n₊) number densities (1.6 × 10⁷ to 1.5 × 10¹⁰ cm^?3) at a constant pressure of the He carrier gas of 1.2 Torr. The observed increase of the probe ion currents above those predicted by collisionless oml theory, resulting in an apparent increase of the measured ion number density above n_e in the plasma, is explained by the enhancement in the ion current collection efficiency due to collisions of ions with neutral gas atoms in the space charge sheath surrounding the probe. The continuous change in the exponent, χ, of the power-law dependence,i₊ ∞ V of the ion current, i₊, on the probe voltage, V_p from 0.5 at the highest n₊ (smallest sheath) towards 1.0 at the lowest n₊ (large sheath) indicates that the ion current collection from the plasma changes from the oml current regime at the high n₊ to the continuum regime at the low n₊ when the ions undergo multiple collisions with the helium atoms in the space charge sheath and thus “drift” towards the probe.     

Mössbauer spectroscopical investigation of the exchange biased Fe/MnF2 interface

Two different Fe/MnF₂ samples have been prepared by e-beam evaporation on MgO(001) substrates. The Fe layer in the samples includes a 10 Å thick ⁵⁷Fe probe layer either at the Fe/MnF₂ interface (interface sample) or 35 Å away from the interface (center sample). The samples are characterized by X-ray diffraction, conversion electron Mössbauer spectroscopy (CEMS) and SQUID magnetometry. ⁵⁷Fe CEMS has been employed to study the depth dependent hyperfine interactions in Fe/MnF₂ as a function of temperature between 18 K to 300 K. The hyperfine field B _hf has been obtained for the interfacial and off-interfacial ⁵⁷Fe layers. At the interface, besides B _hf of bcc-Fe, the presence of a component with a distribution P(B _hf ) is observed. The latter is assigned to interfacial ⁵⁷Fe atoms, indicating some (～15%, equivalent to ～1 Fe atomic layer) intermixing at the Fe/MnF₂ interface and a decrease of the average hf > by 21%. The influence of the interface disappears as the ⁵⁷Fe probe layer is placed away from the interface. The temperature dependence of the average hf > of the interface has been measured. The Fe spins, at remanence, are found to lie in the film plane.     

Equilibrium point defects in TiAl studied by PAC

Site fractions of dilute¹¹¹In/¹¹¹Cd probe atoms in different lattice locations in quenched, equi-atomic TiAl are measured using perturbed angular correlations of gamma rays (PAC). The vacancy-free substitutional site fraction, observed via its nuclear quadrupole interaction, is observed to decrease with increasing quenching temperature, reflecting an increase in the thermal defect concentration. Assuming that the thermal defect is the Schottky defect, the law of mass action, and a binding energy of 0.2 eV between vacancies and the In probe, the experimental temperature dependence is analysed to yield a formation enthalpy of 4.7(4) eV and entropy of 25(4)k _B for the Schottky defect. The vacancy concentration on one sublattice is given in terms of these parameters by the expression [v]=exp(S _F/2k _B) exp(–E _F/2k _B T), and is found, for example, to have the value 1.4% at 1350°C, a large value.     

Combined XPS,electrochemical and Kelvin probe measurements of NaY zeolite

In the present study X-ray Photoelectron Spectroscopy (XPS) combined with in situ electrochemical and Kelvin probe measurements was used in order to get a deeper insight on the mechanism of the cation transport through NaY zeolite and the charge transfer through the Au electrode/zeolite interface. It is shown that by imposing a potential gradient across the NaY powder which is sandwiched between two electrodes, Na⁺ ions can be electrically transferred to or from the Au working electrode area, following the direction of the applied potential between the two electrodes. Two peaks corresponding to sodium species were detected by means of in situ XPS investigation during potential application. The first peak of Na1s photoelectrons with binding energy at 1072.2 ± 0.2 eV is attributed to Na adsorbed on the grounded Au electrode with its coverage remaining unchanged upon potential imposition. The second peak is directly associated with Na present in the zeolite and upon potential application its binding energy varies proportionally with the variation of the surface potential measured by Kelvin probe. Upon varying the potential from − 4 to + 4 V between the working and counter electrode, the Na⁺ concentration decreases by ca30% at the Au/zeolite interface. However the invariant amount of Na on the Au electrode under vacuum shows that the variation in Na⁺ concentration is not due to ionic transfer onto the Au surface but instead Na⁺ accumulation can be assumed at the Au/zeolite interface. On the other hand, current or potential application under O₂ atmosphere promotes the electrocatalytic reaction of Na⁺ towards the formation of Na₂O on the Au electrode surface.     

Study of Protein–Probe Interaction and Protective Action of Surfactant Sodium Dodecyl Sulphate in Urea-Denatured HSA using Charge Transfer Fluorescence Probe Methyl Ester of N,N-Dimethylamino Naphthyl Acrylic Acid

We have demonstrated that the intramolecular charge transfer (ICT) probe Methyl ester of N,N-dimethylamino naphthyl acrylic acid (MDMANA) serves as an efficient reporter of the proteinous microenvironment of Human Serum Albumin (HSA). This work reports the binding phenomenon of MDMANA with HSA and spectral modulation thereupon. The extent of binding and free energy change for complexation reaction along with efficient fluorescence resonance energy transfer from Trp-214 of HSA to MDMANA indicates strong binding between probe and protein. Fluorescence anisotropy, red edge excitation shift, acrylamide quenching and time resolved measurements corroborate the binding nature of the probe with protein and predicts that the probe molecule is located at the hydrophobic site of the protein HSA. Due to the strong binding ability of MDMANA with HSA, it is successfully utilized for the study of stabilizing action of anionic surfactant Sodium Dodecyl Sulphate to the unfolding and folding of protein with denaturant urea in concentration range 1M to 9M.     

Analysis of Gibbsian Segregation at Heterophase Cu-MnO Interfaces

An alternative methodology to analyze Gibbsian segregation at heterophase interfaces with transmission electron microscopy (TEM) is presented and discussed. In this approach the actual concentration of the segregating element in a monolayer at the interface is obtained. This is in contrast to line scans or maps where the concentrations determined are a convolution of the concentration profiles with the electron probe and where for general interfaces the deconvolution problem can not be solved accurately. This is possible because the present approach uses explicitly the information offered by hetero-interfaces. The method is tested on the possible segregation of indium and gallium dissolved in a Cu matrix to interfaces between MnO precipitates and the Cu matrix. The occurrence of indium segregation is clearly demonstrated and the In concentration in the terminating Cu monolayer at the parallel {111} Cu/MnO interface is determined to be 15 ± 3 at.%, whereas the average In concentration in the Cu matrix is 3.8 ± 0.4 at.%. Further it was found that indium effectively blocks gallium segregation towards the oxide side of the interface. On the other hand, the presence of gallium does not influence the segregation of indium. Explanation for the gallium segregation at the oxide side relies on a thin spinel type Ga _x Mn _y O₄, which reduces the misfit at the metal-oxide interface.     

Intermixing during epitaxial growth and Mössbauer spectroscopy with probe layers

Mössbauer spectroscopy with ⁵⁷Fe (¹¹⁹Sn) probe layers is a useful method to study the local magnetic structures at buried interfaces. However interface alloying, which always exists in the real samples, have to be taken into account for accurate interpretation of experimental data. We developed an algorithm, which describes the interface intermixing in the multilayers. Substituting deposited atoms by atoms of substrate and floating of deposited atoms in the upper layers during epitaxial growth leads to the formation of asymmetric chemical and magnetic interfaces. This asymmetry in the M₁/M₂ superlattices can explain the difference between magnetic responses from M₁ on M₂ and M₂ on M₁ interfaces which were observed in experiments. Applying this intermixing model to the systems with probe layers located at different distances from the interfaces gives the natural explanation of hyperfine fields distributions on probe atoms and helps us clarify some discrepancies reported in the literature.     

Analysis of A-DLTS spectra of MOS structures with thin NAOS SiO2 layers

A set of MOS structures with thin SiO₂ layers prepared by nitric acid oxidation (NAOS) method was investigated using acoustic deep level transient spectroscopy (A-DLTS) to explain the role of annealing treatment (post-oxidation annealing (POA) and post-metallization annealing (PMA)) at different conditions on the distribution of interface states. The activation energies of interface states and the corresponding capture cross-section were calculated both from Arrhenius plots constructed for individual peaks of the A-DLTS spectra and applying the method of modeling of measured acoustic spectra. The energy distribution of the interface states was determined also from the dependence of acoustoelectric response signal (ARS) on the external bias voltage (U _ac - V _G curves). By comparing the A-DLTS spectra, U _ac - V _G characteristics and some electrical measurements (G-V, I-V curves) of investigated MOS structures with no treatment with those treated with POA and/or PMA, the role of individual treatments was observed. The definite decrease of the interface states in the structures with the PMA treatment in comparison with the POA treatment was confirmed too.     

Incorporation of Siderophore Binding Sites in a Dipodal Fluorescent Sensor for Fe(III)

A new fluorescent probe 3, has been developed for the detection of Fe(III) in water based samples. The design of 3 involved the incorporation of Fe(III) binding sites observed in naturally occurring Siderophores into a synthetic sensing assembly. The probe, containing two Schiff base receptors connected to a mesitylene platform, was prepared in two steps. The dipodal sensor displayed good selectivity for Fe(III) when tested against other physiological and environmentally important metal ions, in HEPES buffered solution at pH 7.0, through a quenching of the fluorescent intensity. Stern-Volmer analysis of this quenching interaction indicated a 1:1 (host : guest) binding stoichiometry between the probe and Fe(III). The association constant, K _a calculated using the Benesi-Hildebrand equation was found to be 3.8 × 10⁴ M⁻¹. Crucially, the sensor was capable of measuring Fe(III) competitively in solutions containing both Fe(III) and Cu(II). Thus, the adoption of Fe(III) binding sites found in nature, into synthetic luminescent assemblies has proven an effective design strategy for the development of new Fe(III) probes. Electronic supplementary material  The online version of this article (doi:) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.     

The influence of the structural characteristics of the substrate and the medium on the stability of triflusal and acetylsalicylic acid in micellar systems

A spectrophotometric study of the alkaline hydrolysis of two salicylic acid (SA) derived drugs, performed on acetylsalicylic acid (ASA) and triflusal, both in the absence and presence of cationic micelles. In the absence of micelles, a catalytic effect is produced by the favoured OH⁻ ion in the molecule of triflusal, due to the presence of the trifluoromethyl group. The surfactants used were: hexadecyltrimethylammonium hydroxide (HDTAOH), hexadecyltrimethylammonium chloride (HDTACl), hexadecyltrimethylammonium bromide (HDTABr), hexadecylethyldimethylammonium bromide (HDEDABr) and tetradecyltrimethylammonium bromide (TDTABr). In micelles with reactive counterions, the pseudo-first-order rate constant (k_obs) increases with the increase in surfactant concentration, while in micelles with non-reactive counterions, the rate constant increased with surfactant concentration at low concentration, reaching a maximum, and decreased at high surfactant concentration, even to below the value found in the absence of micelle. The micellar binding constant of both drugs (K_S), the micellar rate constant (k_M) and the ion-exchange constant (K_X^OH) were determined according to variation in k_obs in relation to surfactant concentration, through the application of the pseudophase ion-exchange model (PPIE) proposed. The empirical parameters obtained were found to depend on the substrate and the surfactant structure, these parameters were: the counterion of the micelle, the size of the headgroup and the chain length of the hydrophobic tail of the surfactant.