Towards single cell heat shock response by accurate control on thermal confinement with an on-chip microwire electrode

Metal electrodes with micron scale width enable the heating of less than a dozen cells in a confluent layer at predictable temperatures up to 85 °C with an accuracy of ±2 °C. Those performances were obtained by a preliminary robust temperature calibration based on biotin-rhodamine fluorescence and by controlling the temperature map on the substrate through thermal modeling. The temperature accuracy was proved by inducing the expression of heat shock proteins (HSP) in a few NIH-3T3 cells through a confined and precise temperature rise. Our device is therefore effective to locally induce a heat shock response with almost single-cell resolution. Furthermore, we show that cells heated at a higher temperature than the one of heat shock remain alive without producing HSP. Electrode deposition being one of the most common engineering processes, the fabrication of electrode arrays with a simple control circuit is clearly within reach for parallel testing. This should enable the study of several key mechanisms such as cell heat shock, death or signaling. In nanomedicine, controlled drug release by external stimuli such as for example temperature has attracted much attention. Our device could allow fast and efficient testing of thermoactivable drug delivery systems.     

Kinetic Stability Modelling of Keratinolytic Protease P45: Influence of Temperature and Metal Ions

The activity and kinetic stability of a keratinolytic subtilisin-like protease from Bacillus sp. P45 was investigated in 100 mM Tris-HCl buffer (pH 8.0; control) and in buffer with addition of Ca(2+) or Mg(2+) (1-10 mM), at different temperatures. Addition of 3 mM Ca(2+) or 4 mM Mg(2+) resulted in a 26% increment on enzyme activity towards azocasein when compared to the control (100%; without added Ca(2+) or Mg(2+)) at 55 °C. Optimal temperature for activity in the control (55 °C) was similar with Mg(2+); however, temperature optimum was increased to 60 °C with 3 mM Ca(2+), displaying an enhancement of 42% in comparison to the control at 55 °C. Stability of protease P45 in control buffer and with Mg(2+) addition was assayed at 40-50 °C, and at 55-62 °C with Ca(2+) addition. Data were fitted to six kinetic inactivation models, and a first-order equation was accepted as the best model to describe the inactivation of protease P45 with and without metal ions. The kinetic and thermodynamic parameters obtained showed the crucial role of calcium ions for enzyme stability. As biocatalyst stability is fundamental for commercial/industrial purposes, the stabilising effect of calcium could be exploited aiming the application of protease P45 in protein hydrolysis.     

In situ Raman spectroscopy of H2 interaction with WO3 films

It is well known that WO(3) interacts efficiently with H(2) gas in the presence of noble metals (such as Pd, Pt and Au) at elevated temperatures, changing its optical behaviors; and that its crystallinity plays an important role in these interactions. For the first time, we investigated the in situ Raman spectra changes of WO(3) films of different crystal phases, while incorporating Pd catalysts, at elevated temperatures in the presence of H(2). The Pd/WO(3) films were prepared using RF sputtering and subsequently annealed at 300, 400 and 500 °C in air in order to alter the dominant crystal phase. The films were then characterized using SEM, XRD, XPS, and both UV-VIS and Raman spectroscopy. In order to fundamentally study the process, the measurements were conducted when films were interacting with 1% H(2) in synthetic air at elevated sample temperatures (20, 60, 100 and 140 °C). We suggest that the changes of Raman spectra under such conditions to be mainly a function of the crystal phase, transforming from monoclinic to a mix phase of monoclinic and orthorhombic achieved via increasing the annealing temperature. The as-deposited sample consistently shows similar Raman spectra responses at different operating conditions upon H(2) exposure. However, increasing the annealing temperature to 500 °C tunes the optimum H(2) response operating temperature to 60 °C.     

Sealed and temperature-controlled sample cell for inverted and confocal microscopes and fluorescence correlation spectroscopy

Precise temperature control of sample environments plays a key role while exploring biological systems or temperature-sensitive materials. We have developed a sample cell for inverted microscopes, which allows a temperature accuracy of ±0.05 K in a temperature range of 5 to 65 °C, with an absolute precession of ±0.1 K. Our sample cell is developed for requirements of single-molecule experiments, which comprises easy-to-clean and well-sealed devices to prevent solvent evaporation. The applied control algorithm permits a tunable independent setting of heat and cooling behavior and allows the application on microscopes without any objective heating. For measuring precise and absolute diffusion coefficients with two-focus fluorescence correlation spectroscopy, the exact control of the sample temperature is essential. We performed diffusion measurements of TetraSpeck 100-nm fluorescent latex particles and of temperature-sensitive microgels in aqueous solutions to demonstrate the excellent temperature stability and reproducibility of the device.     

The role of growth temperature in the adhesion and mechanics of pathogenic L. monocytogenes: an AFM study

The adhesion strengths of pathogenic L. monocytogenes EGDe to a model surface of silicon nitride were quantified using atomic force microscopy (AFM) in water for cells grown under five different temperatures (10, 20, 30, 37, and 40 °C). The temperature range investigated was chosen to bracket the thermal conditions in which L. monocytogenes survive in the environment. Our results indicated that adhesion force and energy quantified were at their maximum when the bacteria were grown at 30 °C. The higher adhesion observed at 30 °C compared to the adhesion quantified for bacterial cells grown at 37, 40, 20, and 10 °C was associated with longer and denser bacterial surface biopolymer brushes as predicted from fitting a model of steric repulsion to the approach distance-force data as well from the results of protein colorimetric assays. Theoretically predicted adhesion energies based on soft-particle DLVO theory agreed well with the adhesion energies computed from AFM force-distance retraction data (r(2) = 0.94); showing a minimum energy barrier to adhesion at 30 °C.     

Wide temperature-range,multi-component,optically isotropic antiferroelectric bent-core liquid crystal mixtures for display applications

We present studies on 21 multi-component mixtures consisting of bent-core liquid crystals to obtain room temperature switching between optically isotropic and birefringent states. Four of the mixtures show a significant enhancement over our previous results that were obtained either only at elevated temperatures, or did not show switching at room temperatures with appreciable contrast or speed. Although the switching of the new mixtures still requires high fields and shows only speeds at ~100 ms, the results appear already useful for specific applications, such as transparent displays, that do not require video-rate switching and fast refresh rates of the content.     

Generation and reactions of oxiranyllithiums by use of a flow microreactor system

A flow microreactor system consisting of micromixers and microtubes provides an effective reactor for the generation and reactions of aryloxiranyllithiums without decomposition by virtue of short residence time and efficient temperature control. The deprotonation of styrene oxides with sBuLi can be conducted by using the flow microreactor system at -78 or -68 °C (whereas much lower temperatures (< -100 °C) are needed for the same reactions conducted under macrobatch conditions). The resulting α-aryloxiranyllithiums were allowed to react with electrophiles in the flow microreactor system at the same temperature. The sequential introduction of various electrophiles onto 2,3-diphenyloxiranes was also achieved by using an integrated flow microreactor, which serves as a powerful system for the stereoselective synthesis of tetrasubstituted epoxides.     

High efficiency, high temperature separations on silica based monolithic columns

The effect of temperature on separation using reversed-phase monolithic columns has been investigated using a nano-LC pumping system for gradient separation of tryptic peptides with MS detection. A goal of this study was to find optimal conditions for high-speed separations. The chromatographic performance of the columns was evaluated by peak capacity and peak capacity per time unit. Column lengths ranging from 20 to 100 cm and intermediate gradient times from 10 to 30 min were investigated to assess the potential of these columns in a final step separation, e.g. after fractionation or specific sample preparation. Flow rates from 250 to 2000 nL/min and temperatures from 20 to 120°C were investigated. Temperature had a significant effect on fast separations, and a flow rate of 2000 nL/min and a temperature of 80°C gave the highest peak capacity per time unit. These settings produced 70% more protein identifications in a biological sample compared to a conventional packed column. Alternatively, an equal amount of protein identifications was obtained with a 40% reduction in run time compared to the conventional packed column.     

A novel proton conductor of imidazole-aluminium phosphate hybrids in the solid state

Anhydrous proton transport at temperatures above 100 °C has attracted considerable attention in the development of fuel cells that operate at intermediate temperatures. Liquid-state imidazole (ImH) is known to be a fast anhydrous proton conductor above 100 °C; however, evaporation and severe conductivity drops above and below its melting point (～90 °C), respectively, are major drawbacks to ImH. In this paper, we report a novel solid-state anhydrous ImH-Al(H(2)PO(4))(3) (AlP) hybrid material prepared via a simple synthesis using mechanical milling. This solid-state hybrid exhibits relatively a high ionic conductivity of ～0.1 mS cm(-1) at 100 °C and remarkably a small activation energy of 0.23 eV. In addition, the ImH-AlP hybrid material provides a means of overcoming both temperature-dependent drawbacks to pure ImH: (1) the ImH-AlP hybrid is thermally stable up to 130 °C, and (2) the hybrid material maintains high ionic conductivity below the melting point of ImH.     

A self-heating cartridge for molecular diagnostics

A disposable, water-activated, self-heating, easy-to-use, polymeric cartridge for isothermal nucleic acid amplification and visual fluorescent detection of the amplification products is described. The device is self-contained and does not require any special instruments to operate. The cartridge integrates chemical, water-triggered, exothermic heating with temperature regulation facilitated with a phase-change material (PCM) and isothermal nucleic acid amplification. The water flows into the exothermic reactor by wicking through a porous paper. The porous paper's characteristics control the rate of water supply, which in turn controls the rate of exothermic reaction. The PCM material enables the cartridge to maintain a desired temperature independent of ambient temperatures in the range between 20 °C and 40 °C. The utility of the cartridge is demonstrated by amplifying and detecting Escherichia coli DNA with loop mediated isothermal amplification (LAMP). The device can detect consistently as few as 10 target molecules in the sample. With proper modifications, the cartridge also can work with other isothermal nucleic acid amplification technologies for detecting nucleic acids associated with various pathogens borne in blood, saliva, urine, and other body fluids as well as in water and food. The device is suitable for use at home, in the field, and in poor-resource settings, where access to sophisticated laboratories is impractical, unaffordable, or nonexistent.     

Ab initio dynamics of cellulose pyrolysis: nascent decomposition pathways at 327 and 600 °c

We modeled nascent decomposition processes in cellulose pyrolysis at 327 and 600 °C using Car-Parrinello molecular dynamics (CPMD) simulations with rare events accelerated with the metadynamics method. We used a simulation cell comprised of two unit cells of cellulose Iβ periodically repeated in three dimensions to mimic the solid cellulose. To obtain initial conditions at reasonable densities, we extracted coordinates from larger classical NPT simulations at the target temperatures. CPMD-metadynamics implemented with various sets of collective variables, such as coordination numbers of the glycosidic oxygen, yielded a variety of chemical reactions such as depolymerization, fragmentation, ring opening, and ring contraction. These reactions yielded precursors to levoglucosan (LGA)-the major product of pyrolysis-and also to minor products such as 5-hydroxy-methylfurfural (HMF) and formic acid. At 327 °C, we found that depolymerization via ring contraction of the glucopyranose ring to the glucofuranose ring occurs with the lowest free-energy barrier (20 kcal/mol). We suggest that this process is key for formation of liquid intermediate cellulose, observed experimentally above 260 °C. At 600 °C, we found that a precursor to LGA (pre-LGA) forms with a free-energy barrier of 36 kcal/mol via an intermediate/transition state stabilized by anchimeric assistance and hydrogen bonding. Conformational freedom provided by expansion of the cellulose matrix at 600 °C was found to be crucial for formation of pre-LGA. We performed several comparison calculations to gauge the accuracy of CPMD-metadynamics barriers with respect to basis set and level of theory. We found that free-energy barriers at 600 °C are in the order pre-LGA < pre-HMF < formic acid, explaining why LGA is the kinetically favored product of fast cellulose pyrolysis.     

Experimental investigation of beam heating in a soft X-ray scanning transmission X-ray microscope

A variable temperature sample holder with an operational range of 15 to 200 °C and an accuracy of ±1 °C has been fabricated for scanning transmission X-ray microscopes (STXM). Here we describe the device, and use it to image the polycrystalline morphology of solid stearic acid and palmitic acid at temperatures near their respective melting points as a means of checking for possible sample heating caused by the focused X-ray beam. The melting points observed in STXM were identical to those observed by conventional methods within measurement uncertainty, even under the most extreme, high dose rate imaging conditions investigated. The beam-induced temperature rise in the sample is inferred to be below 1 °C for dose rates of up to 2.7 GGy/s.     

Kinetics of thermo-induced micelle-to-vesicle transitions in a catanionic surfactant system investigated by stopped-flow temperature jump

The kinetics of thermo-induced micelle-to-vesicle transitions in a catanionic surfactant system consisting of sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS) and dodecyltriethylammonium bromide (DEAB) were investigated by the stopped-flow temperature jump technique, which can achieve T-jumps within ～2-3 ms. SDS/DEAB aqueous mixtures ([SDS]/[DEAB] = 2/1, 10 mM) undergo microstructural transitions from cylindrical micelles to vesicles when heated above 33 °C. Upon T-jumps from 20 °C to final temperatures in the range of 25-31 °C, relaxation processes associated with negative amplitudes can be ascribed to the dilution-induced structural rearrangement of cylindrical micelles and to the dissolution of non-equilibrium mixed aggregates. In the final temperature range of 33-43 °C the obtained dynamic traces can be fitted by single exponential functions, revealing one relaxation time (τ) in the range of 82-440 s, which decreases with increasing temperature. This may be ascribed to the transformation of floppy bilayer structures into precursor vesicles followed by further growth into final equilibrium vesicles via the exchange and insertion/expulsion of surfactant monomers. In the final temperature range of 45-55 °C, vesicles are predominant. Here T-jump relaxations revealed a distinctly different kinetic behavior. All dynamic traces can only be fitted with double exponential functions, yielding two relaxation times (τ(1) and τ(2)), exhibiting a considerable decrease with increasing final temperatures. The fast process (τ(1)～ 5.2-28.5 s) should be assigned to the formation of non-equilibrium precursor vesicles, and the slow process (τ(2)～ 188-694 s) should be ascribed to their further growth into final equilibrium vesicles via the fusion/fission of precursor vesicles. In contrast, the reverse vesicle-to-micelle transition process induced by a negative T-jump from elevated temperatures to 20 °C occurs quite fast and almost completes within the stopped-flow dead time (～2-3 ms).     

Temperature effects on nano-LC column packing technology

We investigated the effect of temperature on the packing procedure of nano-LC columns (up to 50 cm) and on their performance. Several slurries of stationary phase were prepared using different solvent mixtures. Their stability was evaluated at several temperatures: 70°C, 50°C, and room temperature. At the higher temperature (70°C) the suspensions resulted to be stable for a longer time. For each slurry, we compared nano-LC columns packed with ultrasounds at 70°C and at room temperature. All the columns were tested with a standard mixture at 70°C, to reduce the solvent viscosity and the backpressure. Main chromatographic parameters such as the asymmetry factor, As, the reduced plate high, h, pattern in a Van Deemter plot, the total porosity, ε(t), and the permeability, k, were calculated and discussed. One of the nano-LC columns was used to separate a mixture of pesticides in a LC-MS system with an electron ionization LC-MS interface (Direct-EI). From our knowledge, this is the first study on the role of temperature in the efficiency of slurry-packing procedure.     

Influence of temperature on the colloidal stability of the F-DPPC and DPPC liposomes induced by lanthanum ions

The influence of La(3+) on the colloidal stability of liposomes made up by two zwitterionic phospholipids, 1,2-dipalmitoyl-sn-glycero-3-phosphocholine (DPPC) and 1-palmitoyl-2-[16-fluoropalmitoyl-phosphatidylcholine (F-DPPC), in aqueous media has been investigated by dynamic light scattering and electrophoretic mobility. The critical aggregation concentration (c.a.c.) of La(3+) for F-DPPC and DPPC liposomes were experimentally obtained, and the results were compared with theoretical predictions using the Derjaguin-Landau-Verwey-Overbeek theory. In order to evaluate the influence of the state of the bilayer on the stability of liposomes, all experiments were performed at temperatures below and above the chain-melting phase-transition temperature of lipids (transition temperature of lipids). Changes in the size of both types of liposomes and high values of polydispersity in the presence of La(3+) showed that these ions induce aggregation of liposomes at 25 °C and at 60 °C. At 25 °C, when the bilayer of F-DPPC liposomes is interdigited, DPPC liposomes are more resistant to aggregation than the liposomes formed with F-DPPC. However, this difference disappears at 60 °C, when both bilayers have the same conformation. The experimental results also indicate that the c.a.c. is higher at 60 °C than at 25 °C for both types of liposomes. In fact, it has been observed by dynamic light scattering measurements that aggregation of liposomes at 25 °C can be prevented by increasing the solution temperature for La(3+) concentrations near to the c.a.c. Moreover, the behavior of these liposomes in the presence of the ion was studied at temperatures above and below the transition temperature of the phospholipids.     

Multitemperature single-strand conformation polymorphism.

Changes of gel temperature during single-strand conformation polymorphism (SSCP) electrophoresis increase the sensitivity of mutation detection in polymerase chain reaction (PCR) products and significantly reduce the overall time and costs of analysis. Based on these findings, a new method for single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) and point mutation detection--multitemperature single-strand conformation polymorphism (MSSCP) was devised. In order to control the gel temperature with 0.1 degrees C accuracy during electrophoresis, new equipment was developed. We demonstrated that increasing the gel temperature by 8 degrees C or decreasing it by 10 degrees C from 23 degrees C led to the disappearance of all electrophoretic differences between five alleles of exon 8 of the human p53 gene during the SSCP analysis. The interesting result was the detection of two additional SNPs (out of seven analyzed) in exon 7 of the human PAH gene during a one hour MSSCP electrophoresis. This result is better than that obtained by three classical SSCP analyses of the same samples at different but constant gel temperatures. We advocate the MSSCP technology as a fast, reliable, and cost-effective tool for the screening and preselection stage of genomics surveys, especially when a high variability of the analyzed DNA fragment is expected.     

Improved accuracy for Raman spectroscopic determination of polyethylene property by optimization of measurement temperature and elucidation of its origin by multiple perturbation two-dimensional correlation spectroscopy

A novel strategy is demonstrated to improve the accuracy for determination of polyethylene (PE) density using Raman spectroscopy by optimizing the temperature of sample measurement. Spectral features associated with the conformation change of the polymer induced by temperature may provide valuable information to quantify important polymer properties such as density. To evaluate possible existence of an optimal temperature providing improved quantitative accuracy, Raman spectra of PE pellets with different densities were collected at eight different temperatures from 30 to 100 °C at 10 °C intervals. Using the spectral datasets collected at each temperature, partial least squares (PLS) models were developed using the reference PE density values determined by a standard density gradient method at 23 °C. Interestingly, the most accurate determination of density was realized at 70 °C. Multiple perturbation two-dimensional (MP2D) correlation analysis and differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) were used to examine the origin of improved accuracy at 70 °C. From these analyses, the pre-melt behavior of the PE samples was identified below their melting temperatures. Structural variations induced at the pre-melt stages enhance Raman spectral selectivity among the samples, thereby providing more accurate determination of PE density. The MP2D correlation analysis revealed the unforeseen thermal behavior of PE samples and successfully explained the improved accuracy at 70 °C.     

Study on the wettability of polyethylene film fabricated at lower temperature

Polyethylene films were prepared with phase separation at lower temperatures. The wettability of such films varied from hydrophobicity to superhydrophobicity as the processing temperature decreased owing to the increase of surface roughness. Storing the as-prepared films at subzero temperature (-15 °C), it was found that the water contact angle of the film decreased obviously, and the decrease depended on the corresponding roughness. Further keeping the as-prepared films at room temperature for 30 min, the water contact angle would return to the normal value, which indicated that the reversible switching of surface wettability can be controlled by the environmental temperature.     

Assembly of three-dimensional polymeric constructs containing cells/biomolecules using carbon dioxide

Using low-pressure carbon dioxide (CO2), we demonstrated a novel and versatile approach to assembling polymeric constructs in the presence of cells and/or biomolecules in an aqueous environment. By regulating the CO2 pressure, the assembly was completed at biologically permissive temperatures with excellent preservation of the original structures. We further demonstrated that mammalian cells can survive the CO2-assisted bioassembly process (37 degrees C, 1.38 MPa, approximately 1 h). Human mesenchymal stem cells from bone marrow (hMSCs) exhibited the same cell morphology and proliferation potential as the untreated control. Mouse embryonic stem cells (mESCs) maintained ES-specific Oct-4 gene expression and differentiation potential after CO2 treatment as well. This method highlights the ability to construct multiple biodegradable polymeric scaffolds with well-defined architecture, on which various types of cells were grown, into a predesigned three-dimensional complex. In addition, protein and DNA bioactivity can be preserved in the context of a CO2-assisted assembly. This CO2-assisted bioassembly method provides for a manufacturing platform that, thus far, has been lacking in the fields of tissue engineering, cell-based biochips, cell therapy, and drug delivery.     

Annealing of silica to reduce the concentration of isolated silanols and peak tailing in reverse phase liquid chromatography

Non-porous, colloidal silica particles were annealed at three different temperatures, 800, 900 and 1050 °C. The adsorption of lysozyme, a probe of surface roughness, was consistent with progressively reduced surface roughness as temperature increased. The heat treated silica particles were rehydroxylated and then used to pack UHPLC columns. The cationic protein lysozyme was used to probe silanol activity, which exhibited progressively less tailing as the annealing temperature increased. FTIR spectroscopy confirmed that the abundance of isolated silanols on the surface was reduced by annealing at 900 °C or 1050 °C. FTIR also revealed that there was markedly increased hydrogen bonding of the isolated silanols to neighbors after rehydroxylation. These results combine to support the hypothesis that (a) isolated silanols on silica cause tailing in RP-LC and (b) nonplanar topography gives rise to isolated silanols.