Specifics of the formation of J-aggregates of cyanine dyes in solutions of AOT/water/hexane reverse micelles

The behavior of a cyanine dye (3,3′-di-(gamma-sulfopropyl)-4,5,4′,5′-dibenzo-9-ethylthiacarbocyanine betaine pyridinium salt) was studied in AOT/water/hexane reverse micelles over a wide range of W at various concentrations of the dye, AOT, and reverse micelles. The processes occurring during the formation of the AOT/water/hexane micellar solution were studied in detail. It has been shown that, before the formation of the stable microemulsion, the dye aggregation processes occur by virtue of the interaction of the dye with the AOT anion. The amount of J-aggregates is proportional to the logarithm of the ratio of the amount of AOT molecules to the amount of dye molecules. The time behavior of J-aggregates after the formation of a micellar structure depends on the concentration of reverse micelles, thereby indicating an important role of intermicellar exchange.     

Computer Simulations of the Formation of Bile Salt Micelles and Bile Salt/DPPC Mixed Micelles in Aqueous Solutions

Brownian dynamics simulations for a coarse-grained model have been performed to study the formation of micelles from bile salts and mixed micelles with dipalmitoyl-phosphatidylcholine (DPPC) in aqueous solutions. The particular association behavior of bile salts as facial surfactants was shown to be caused by their special molecular architecture with a hydrophilic and a hydrophobic side. The experimentally observed smooth transition into the micellar region with increasing concentration is reproduced. Micelle size distributions have been evaluated at different bile salt concentrations. Typical structures of pure bile salt micelles could be identified. The composition and the structure of mixed micelles have been studied in their dependence on the bile salt/lipid concentration ratio in the aqueous solution. We have found that the bile salt fraction in the mixed micelles increases considerably with increasing bile salt/lipid concentration ratio and decreasing micelle size. The structural and thermodynamic features of micelle formation in the aqueous bile salt solutions with DPPC, which we have studied with the coarse-grained model, are in good qualitative agreement with experimental findings.     

H＋对水溶液中脱氧胆酸钠聚集体的影响

运用pH滴定、傅立叶变换红外光谱、紫外可见光谱、激光光散射谱、ICP和元素分析等方法研究了H＋的加入对水溶液中脱氧胆酸钠（NaDC）聚集体的影响.结果表明,浓度大于cmc的NaDC水溶液具有一定的缓冲能力,NaDC浓度越高,缓冲能力越大;随溶液中H＋浓度的增加,首先形成质子化胶团,质子化胶团通过酸盐结构的氢键作用使NaDC初级胶团长大,形成较大的高级胶团,甚至形成凝胶体,最终形成HnNam(DC)n＋m沉淀.     

Fluorescence resonance energy transfer-a spectroscopic probe for organized surfactant media

Dyes commonly used as biological labels have been used to probe resonance energy transfer in organized media. In neat water, energy transfer between the dye pairs fluorescein (donor):Nile red (acceptor) and acridine orange (donor):Nile red (acceptor) has a very low probability of occurrence. This study shows that the rate constant of energy transfer increases by more than an order of magnitude in organized surfactant media, viz., micelles and reverse micelles of the surfactant Triton X-100. The reverse micelles provide a better medium for energy transfer than the micelles. The energy transfer studies also provide an idea about the location and proximity of donor and acceptor dyes within the various organized media. Assuming Poissonian statistics for dye distribution, the donor-acceptor distances within micelles and reverse micelles are determined from energy transfer parameters. Acridine orange has been found to function better as a donor than fluorescein. This may be due to steric and electrostatic factors.     

A new reverse wormlike micellar system: mixtures of bile salt and lecithin in organic liquids

We report a new route for forming reverse wormlike micelles (i.e., long, flexible micellar chains) in nonpolar organic liquids such as cyclohexane and n-decane. This route involves the addition of a bile salt (e.g., sodium deoxycholate) in trace amounts to solutions of the phospholipid lecithin. Previous recipes for reverse wormlike micelles have usually required the addition of water to induce reverse micellar growth; here, we show that bile salts, due to their unique "facially amphiphilic" structure, can play a role analogous to that of water and promote the longitudinal aggregation of lecithin molecules into reverse micellar chains. The formation of transient entangled networks of these reverse micelles transforms low-viscosity lecithin organosols into strongly viscoelastic fluids. The zero-shear viscosity increases by more than 5 orders of magnitude, and it is the molar ratio of bile salt to lecithin that controls the viscosity enhancement. The growth of reverse wormlike micelles is also confirmed by small-angle neutron scattering (SANS) experiments on these fluids.     

Spectroscopic investigations on the binding of ammonium salt of 8-anilino-1-naphthalene sulfonic acid with non-ionic surfactant micelles in aqueous media

The anionic dye 8-anilino-1-napthalensulfonic acid ammonium salt, or ANS, was used as a fluorescent probe to investigate the behaviour of dye-surfactant interactions in aqueous solutions of Triton X-100 and the Brij and polyoxyethylene tridecyl ether (POE TDE) series of polyoxyethylene non-ionic surfactants. The fluorescence behaviour of the dye with the non-ionic surfactants was examined in micellar media. The concentration of surfactant was kept well above the cmc to investigate the interaction of the dye with surfactant micelles. In this investigation, the relative fluorescence enhancements, binding constants of the dye to the surfactant micelles and aggregation numbers of the micelles were determined, from the analysis of spectroscopic data.     

Molecular aggregates in aqueous solutions of bile acid salts. Molecular dynamics simulation study

The aggregation behavior of two bile acid salts (i.e., sodium cholate and sodium deoxycholate) has been studied in their aqueous solutions of three different concentrations (i.e., 30, 90,and 300 mM) by means of molecular dynamics computer simulations. To let the systems reach thermodynamic equilibrium, rather long simulations have been performed: the equilibration period, lasting for 20-50 ns, has been followed by a 20 ns long production phase, during which the average size of the bile aggregates (regarded to be the slowest varying observable) has already fluctuated around a constant value. The production phase of the runs has been about an order of magnitude longer than the average lifetime of both the monomeric bile ions and the bonds that link two neighboring bile ions together to be part of the same aggregate. This has allowed the bile ions belonging to various aggregates to be in a dynamic equilibrium with the isolated monomers. The observed aggregation behavior of the studied bile ions has been found to be in good qualitative agreement with experimental findings. The analysis of the results has revealed that, due to their molecular structure, which is markedly different from that of the ordinary aliphatic surfactants, the bile ions form rather different aggregates than the usual spherical micelles. In the lowest concentration solution studied, the bile ions only form small oligomers. In the case of deoxycholate, these oligomers, such as the ordinary micelles, are kept together by hydrophobic interactions, whereas in the sodium cholate system, small hydrogen-bonded aggregates (mostly dimers) are also present. In the highest concentration systems, the bile ions form large secondary micelles, which are kept together both by hydrophobic interactions and by hydrogen bonds. Namely, in these secondary micelles, small hydrophobic primary micelles are linked together via the formation of hydrogen bonds between their hydrophilic outer surfaces.     

Environmental effects on the aggregation of some xanthene dyes used in lasers

The effect of solvents, halo substituents and surfactants on the aggregation of xanthene dyes (fluorescein and eosin Y) has been investigated. It has been found that polar protic solvents promote the aggregation of both the dyes while polar aprotic solvents hinder the aggregation process. Apolar solvents can disintegrate the aggregates previously formed in aqueous medium. The nature of the driving forces for aggregation in the two dyes is different. Surfactants bearing charge opposite to the dye molecules facilitate aggregation. These observations bear direct relevance to the possible use of fluorescein and eosin Y as quantum yield standards, photosensitizers, laser dyes and biological labels.     

Photoproduct selectivity in reactions involving singlet and triplet excited states within bile salt micelles

Generally, photochemical reactions tend to give more than one product. For such reactions to be useful one should be able to control them to yield a single product. Of the many approaches used in this context, the use of reaction media with features different from those of isotropic solutions has been very effective. We provide results of our studies on four reactions within bile salt micelles (cholic acid and deoxycholic acid). These four reactions involve homolytic cleavage of a C-C or C-O bond to yield either a singlet or triplet radical pair. The bile salt micelles control the rotational and translational mobilities of the radical pair, resulting in photoproduct selectivity. The dynamic nature of the bile salt micelles results in differential effects on the singlet and triplet radical pairs.     

Behaviors of sodium glycochenodeoxycholate and sodium glycoursodeoxycholate in binary mixed micelles of bile salt and nonionic surfactant

The behavior of sodium glycochenodeoxycholate (NaGCDC) and sodium glycoursodeoxycholate (NaGUDC) in binary mixed micelles consisting of bile salt and octaoxyethylene glycol mono n-decyl ether (C₁₀E₈) has been studied on the basis of micellar compositions, polarities of the interior of intramicelles, mean aggregation numbers and ¹H NMR measurements. Micellar compositions for both NaGCDC---C₁₀E₈ and NaGUDC---C₁₀E₈ systems showed a tendency to change from C₁₀E₈-rich micelles to bile-salt-rich micelles with an increase on the mole fraction of bile salts from the results of both theoretical calculations using the critical micelle concentration and the micellar polarity. The microenvironment of intramicelles for the NaGCDC---C₁₀E₈ system was found to be more hydrophobic than that for the NaGUDC---C₁₀E₈ system. Mean aggregation numbers of mixed micelles for both systems decreased abruptly with an increase in the mole fraction of bile salts in the range of low mole fraction, but those for NaGCDC were larger than those for NaGUDC. Furthermore, from the results of ¹H NMR measurements, the motions of the methyl group protons in the 18 position of the molecular structure of NaGCDC were slightly restricted with an increase in the mole fraction of NaGCDC. In contrast, the methyl group protons in the 18 and 19 positions of the molecular structure of NaGUDC became freer with an increase in the mole fraction of NaGUDC.     

Micellar properties of quillaja saponin. 2. Effect of solubilized cholesterol on solution properties

The interaction between cholesterol and the surfactant quillaja saponin has been investigated by measuring the effect of cholesterol on surface and micellar properties of quillaja saponin solutions. The aggregation properties of cholesterol in water were studied using fluorescent probe methods, with results indicating that cholesterol alone does not form micelles in aqueous solution. However, surface tension, dye solubilization, and light scattering measurements show that cholesterol and saponin mixtures do form micelles at well-defined critical micelle concentrations (cmc). The cmc for saponin solutions saturated with cholesterol was generally higher than that for saponin alone, with the extent of the increase dependent on the source — and most likely the composition — of the saponin. The addition of salt decreases the cmc values, while temperature dependence of these values is more complex. Surface adsorption studies show that cholesterol preferentially adsorbs at the air/water interface, forming a closely-packed monolayer, but that saponin can partially displace the cholesterol at high saponin concentrations. Finally, the size, intrinsic viscosity and the aggregation number of the cholesterol/saponin micelles are larger than those of saponin micelles alone, with the radius of the micelles between 20 and 40% larger at 298 K. These results indicate that cholesterol most likely solubilizes within quillaja saponin micelles, and in the process has a substantial impact on the micelle structure and the energetics of micelle formation.     

青霉素钾对CTAB胶束性质的影响

研究了青霉素钾对十六烷基三甲基溴化铵（CTAB）的cmc、CTAB胶束聚集数和扩散系数的影响.研究结果表明，青霉素钾(Pen K)的加入使得CTAB胶束的第一cmc、第二cmc上升；CTAB球形胶束的聚集数下降,扩散系数增加；CTAB棒状胶束的聚集数增加,扩散系数降低.     

Controlled release from a nanocarrier entrapped within a microcarrier

This study illustrates the entrapment of the dye molecule fluorescein sodium salt (FSS) by hydrogel nanoparticles, which are in turn confined inside a water-in-oil-in-water double-emulsion globule, and its subsequent release by the action of the competing agent hydrochloric acid (HCl). Thus, a "double carrier" concept is being introduced in which a nanoscale delivery vehicle is being transported by a microscale delivery vehicle in order to simultaneously take advantage of both systems. This may facilitate storage and handling while protecting the active substance and improving its action upon application.     

Determination of the aggregation constants of bile salts by capillary electrophoresis

Summary Capillary electrophoresis has been investigated as a novel experimental method for determination of the aggregation constants of surfactants. The tendency of sodium cholate and sodium taurodeoxycholate to associate was studied in phosphate buffers of pH 8.0 and pH 7.0, respectively. Stepwise aggregation equilibria of bile salt monomers has been described in terms of massbalance equations. The Offord equation was used to model the electrophoretic mobility of the bile salt associates, and the experimental mobility values could be fitted to the model. Interestingly, only even-membered aggregates-dimers and tetramers-besides the monomers were proposed from the results of the curve-fitting for both bile salts. The aggregation constants calculated were (in molar units): cholate logK _A2=1.37, logK _A4=4.98 taurodeoxycholate logK _A2=1.68, logK _A4=6.46. From these values, more pronounced aggregation of taurodeoxycholate starting at lower concentrations has been deduced, supporting the back-to-back association model of bile salts.     

Surfactant-induced aggregation patterns of thiazole orange: a photophysical study

The aggregation behavior of the DNA marker dye thiazole orange (TO), has been investigated in two types of surfactant assemblies, namely, premicelles/micelles of sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS) and pre reverse micelles/reverse micelles of sodium bis(2-ethylhexyl) sulfosuccinate (AOT). In the case of an SDS/water system, absorption spectral changes of TO signify the formation of H-aggregates and H-dimers of the dye at premicellar concentrations, which subsequently convert to the monomeric form beyond the critical micellar concentration (cmc). Interestingly, the observed changes in the absorption and emission characteristics due to the surfactant-induced formation of H-aggregates/dimers of TO are found to be useful to estimate the surfactant concentration parameters for premicellar aggregation of SDS. In the case of an AOT/n-heptane system, similarly, H-aggregates/dimers are observed at low AOT concentrations, below the cmc. However, in this case, the H-dimers persist even beyond the cmc. This is attributed to the strong tendency of TO for self-aggregation and its favorable electrostatic interactions with the AOT head groups. With increasing water content in the AOT reverse micelles, the hydration of the dye leads to the conversion of H-dimers to the monomeric form. The steady-state fluorescence results are nicely corroborated with those from time-resolved fluorescence studies and demonstrate the interesting behavior of the surfactant-induced aggregation of TO dye.     

Diffusion of dextran within poly(methacrylic acid) hydrogels

We describe an investigation of fluorescence correlation spectroscopy into the diffusion of fluorescein‐tagged dextran (FDEX) in a poly(methacrylic acid) (PMAA) hydrogel. The temperature dependence of FDEX diffusion is shown to follow Zimm behavior in pure water, and the decrease in the diffusion coefficient when in the PMAA hydrogel has been modeled. The addition of acid and alkali (HCl and NaOH, respectively) not only control the swelling and collapse of the hydrogel but also reveal a strong pH dependence of the dextran diffusion coefficient, which shows a (nonmonatonic) increase with pH. The addition of NaCl and CaCl₂ salts similarly showed evidence of network swelling, most notably at low salt concentration, but also that the diffusion coefficient within the gel at these low concentrations is larger than that in the equivalent solution without the hydrogel, indicating that the combination of hydrogel and salt works to increase the diffusion coefficient above that in pure water. © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part B: Polym Phys, 2012     

Determination of critical micellar concentrations of two monoketo derivatives of cholic acid

Critical micellear concentrations (CMC) were determined for two novel promoters of membrane permeability—7-monoketocholic acid (7-MKC) and 12-monoketocholic acid (12-MKC), using two non-invasive (¹H NMR relaxation experiment and conductometry) and two invasive (spectral shift and partition coefficient of the probe molecule) methods. Studies by the former methods suggest the different aggregation abilities of the investigated bile acid derivatives. In an aqueous solution, 7-MKC has a somewhat lower CMC value (43 mM) than 12-MKC (50 mM). Further, it was found that, in addition to primary micelles, 7-MKC forms also secondary micelles. In the experiments with probe (hydrophobic) molecules, the aggregation properties of investigated bile acids did not differ in water, whereas the presence of urea altered the aggregation of 7-MKC.Based on the CMC value, 7-MKC is more hydrophobic than 12-MKC. The apparent hydrophobicity of 7-MKC is a consequence of the formation of secondary micelles, shifting the monomer equilibrium to the direction of primary micelles, which is manifested as a decrease in the CMC value.     

Mesoscopic simulation of self-assembly in surfactant oligomers by dissipative particle dynamics

Self-assembling properties of surfactant oligomers in an aqueous medium is simulated by dissipative particle dynamics (DPD). The critical micellar concentration (CMC) of dimeric (oligomerization = 2) and trimeric (oligomerization = 3) surfactant is much lower than their single-chain counterpart. All surfactants form spherical micelles at the concentration not far above their CMC. The transition from spherical to cylindrical micelles exhibits with increasing surfactant concentration. Lamellar micelles will appear with further increasing the surfactant concentration. For dimeric and trimeric surfactants, cylindrical micelles transform into extremely long “wormlike” or “threadlike” micelles before the transition to lamellar micelles. These results are in qualitative agreement with laboratory experiment. Average aggregation numbers (AN) of micelles increase with a power law of AN  c when the surfactant concentration c CMC. The self-diffusion coefficients will drop with a power law of D  c⁻ when wormlike micelles are formed.     

A Fluorescence Probe Study on the Chiral Microenvironment of Bile Salt Organized Media

Bile salt aggregation in aqueous solution has been an active area of research, with primary emphasis on the physiological role of bile salts in lipid solubilization. More recently, bile salt media has attracted attention as an alternative to conventional micellar reagents for separations and luminescence analysis, especially for applications in chiral separations. In this study, pyrene and chiral molecular l,1'-bi-2-naphthol as fluorescence probe were used to study chiral microenvironment of bile salt organized media.     

Measurement of bilirubin partition coefficients in bile salt micelle/aqueous buffer solutions by micellar electrokinetic chromatography

The partition coefficients for the distribution of bilirubin between aqueous phosphateborate buffer and cholic, taurocholic, taurodeoxycholic, and taurochenodeoxycholic micelles have been measured by micellar electrokinetic chromatography at pH 8.5. Determination of the partition coefficients required that the critical micelle concentration and partial specific volumes be determined for each bile salt. Critical micelle concentrations were slightly higher for the trihydroxy bile salts. Partial specific volumes of the bile salt micelles differed very little from each other, and for each bile salt they were constant over the concentration range studied, which was typically from slightly above the critical micelle concentration to 35 mM. Capacity factors were corrected for the effects of applied voltage by extrapolation of the capacity factor to zero applied volts. The free solution mobility of bilirubin, determined in the absence of bile salt, was also corrected for the effects of applied voltage. Plots of extrapolated capacity factor versus phase ratio yield the partition coefficient as the slope of a linear fit to the data. Partition coefficients for bilirubin were significantly higher for dihydroxy bile salts than for trihydroxy bile salts.