Cytotoxicity and Gene Expression Studies of Curcumin and Piperine Loaded Nanoparticles on Breast Cancer Cells

Russian Journal of Applied Chemistry - The aim of this study was to investigate the anticancer effects of curcumin and piperine loaded nanoparticles compared to docetaxel on the breast cancer cell...     

Magneto-optical specifications of Rosen-Morse quantum dot with screw dislocation

This is the first study to consider a quantum dot with screw dislocation that has Rosen-Morse (RM) confinement potential, generated by a GaAs/GaAlAs heterostructure. An external magnetic field and Aharonov-Bohm (AB) flux field were also applied on RM quantum dot (RMQD) in order to stave the effects of a screw dislocation defect. The combined effect of the screw dislocation defect, the external magnetic field, and AB flux field on the total refractive index changes (TRICs) and the total absorption coefficients (TACs) of RMQD are thus investigated. Cylindrical coordinates are used due to the direction of application of the torsion and the external fields, as well as due to the structure's symmetry. The effective mass approximation and tridiagonal matrix methods are used in order to obtain the subband energy spectra and electronic wave functions of RMQD. The nonlinear optical specifications of RMQD are checked using compact-density-matrix formalism within the framework of the iterative method. Reviews without screw dislocation are also carried out in order to be able to clarify the effects of a screw dislocation defect on the optical properties, and then, both cases are deliberated. This study is the first attempt to analyze the AB flux field for RMQD without screw dislocation. In the present study, the influences of a screw dislocation defect on RMQD's TRICs and TACs are probed by considering different values of the external magnetic field and AB flux field, and the ranges of corresponding parameters on the optimum of the structure are specified. Moreover, the study also elucidates how to rule out the effects of screw dislocation on optical specifications by means of the external fields. Despite a certain screw dislocation, the frequency range is determined where the structure behaves as if it is perfect (namely, without screw dislocation) for its optimum, which in turn is crucial for experimental applications.     

Design of a Gd‐DOTA‐Phthalocyanine Conjugate Combining MRI Contrast Imaging and Photosensitization Properties as a Potential Molecular Theranostic

The design and synthesis of a phthalocyanine – Gd‐DOTA conjugate is presented to open the way to novel molecular theranostics, combining the properties of MRI contrast imaging with photodynamic therapy. The rational design of the conjugate integrates isomeric purity of the phthalocyanine core substitution, suitable biocompatibility with the use of polyoxo water‐solubilizing substituents, and a convergent synthetic strategy ended by the use of click chemistry to graft the Gd‐DOTA moiety to the phthalocyanine. Photophysical and photochemical properties, contrast imaging experiments and preliminary in vitro investigations proved that such a combination is relevant and lead to a new type of potential theranostic agent.     

Development of Reasonably Stable Chitosan Based Proton Exchange Membranes for a Glucose Oxidase Based Enzymatic Biofuel Cell

Chitosan based reasonably stable membranes were prepared as polymeric electrolyte and separator for enzymatic fuel cell applications. Glucose oxidase (GOx) bioanode centered biofuel cell with the developed chitosan membranes performed much better in stability with high current densities than that of the biofuel cell utilizing a 125 μ‐thick perfluorosulfonic acid‐type membrane (i. e. Nafion® 115). Proposed chitosan membrane structural stability was enhanced by employing cellulosic support materials and chemical crosslinking. The effects of pH, buffer type, buffer concentration, temperature on the manufactured chitosan membranes along with the biofuel cell system were investigated. The biofuel cell operation parameters were optimized for the current density and stability aspects and more than 3 mA cm^?2 current density was acquired from the cell at optimum conditions. Operational half‐life of the chitosan membrane was found as higher than the half‐life of the GOx immobilized bioanode. Therefore, this result indicates that chitosan membrane structural stability was not a limiting issue for the biofuel cell lifespan.     

Cytotoxic effects,microbiological analysis and inhibitory properties on carbonic anhydrase isozyme activities of 2-hydroxy-5-methoxyacetophenone thiosemicarbazone and its Cu(II), Co(II), Zn(II) and Mn(II) complexes

Research on Chemical Intermediates - Metal complexes of thiosemicarbazones have been receiving considerable attention in biological applications such as antimicrobial and anticancer therapies. In...     

Comparative study of nucleation and growth mechanism of cobalt electrodeposited on ITO substrate in nitrate and chloride electrolytes

Journal of Solid State Electrochemistry - A comparative study of the electrochemical deposition of cobalt on tin-doped indium oxide (ITO) substrate was carried out using electrochemical techniques...     

Encoded dendrimers with defined chiral composition via'click' reaction of enantiopure building blocks

Dendrimers with end-groups of defined chiral composition have been prepared from alkyne functional enantio-pure building blocks obtained by selective enzymatic (ADH) ketone reductions using click chemistry. Optical rotation and enantioselective enzymatic modification is in agreement with the chiral composition of the dendrimers and permits unique molecular-level encoding of stereoisomeric dendritic libraries.     

Compact bidding languages and supplier selection for markets with economies of scale and scope

Combinatorial auctions have been used in procurement markets with economies of scope. Preference elicitation is already a problem in single-unit combinatorial auctions, but it becomes prohibitive even for small instances of multi-unit combinatorial auctions, as suppliers cannot be expected to enumerate a sufficient number of bids that would allow an auctioneer to find the efficient allocation. Auction design for markets with economies of scale and scope are much less well understood. They require more compact and yet expressive bidding languages, and the supplier selection typically is a hard computational problem. In this paper, we propose a compact bidding language to express the characteristics of a supplier’s cost function in markets with economies of scale and scope. Bidders in these auctions can specify various discounts and markups on overall spend on all items or selected item sets, and specify complex conditions for these pricing rules. We propose an optimization formulation to solve the resulting supplier selection problem and provide an extensive experimental evaluation. We also discuss the impact of different language features on the computational effort, on total spend, and the knowledge representation of the bids. Interestingly, while in most settings volume discount bids can lead to significant cost savings, some types of volume discount bids can be worse than split-award auctions in simple settings.     

Introduction to Focus Issue: nonlinear and stochastic physics in biology

Frank Moss was a leading figure in the study of nonlinear and stochastic processes in biological systems. His work, particularly in the area of stochastic resonance, has been highly influential to the interdisciplinary scientific community. This Focus Issue pays tribute to Moss with articles that describe the most recent advances in the field he helped to create. In this Introduction, we review Moss's seminal scientific contributions and introduce the articles that make up this Focus Issue.