Lyophilised Platelet-Rich Fibrin: Physical and Biological Characterisation

Background: Platelet-rich fibrin (PRF) has gained popularity in craniofacial surgery, as it provides an excellent reservoir of autologous growth factors (GFs) that are essential for bone regeneration. However, the low elastic modulus, short-term clinical application, poor storage potential and limitations in emergency therapy use restrict its more widespread clinical application. This study fabricates lyophilised PRF (Ly-PRF), evaluates its physical and biological properties, and explores its application for craniofacial tissue engineering purposes. Material and methods: A lyophilisation method was applied, and the outcome was evaluated and compared with traditionally prepared PRF. We investigated how lyophilisation affected PRF’s physical characteristics and biological properties by determining: (1) the physical and morphological architecture of Ly-PRF using SEM, and (2) the kinetic release of PDGF-AB using ELISA. Results: Ly-PRF exhibited a dense and homogeneous interconnected 3D fibrin network. Moreover, clusters of morphologically consistent cells of platelets and leukocytes were apparent within Ly-PRF, along with evidence of PDGF-AB release in accordance with previously reports. Conclusions: The protocol established in this study for Ly-PRF preparation demonstrated versatility, and provides a biomaterial with growth factor release for potential use as a craniofacial bioscaffold.     

Determination of radiostrontium in soil samples using a crown ether

A simple and rapid method has been developed for the separation and determination of total radiostrontium in soil. The method consists of three basic steps: oxalate precipitation to remove bulk potassium, chromatographic separation of strontium from most inactive and radioactive interferences utilizing a crown ether (Sr. Spec, EIChroM Industries, Il. USA) and oxalate precipitation of strontium to evaluate the chemical yield. Radiostrontium is then determined by liquid scintillation counting of the dissolved precipitate. When 10 g samples of soil are used, the sensitivity of the method is about 10 Bq/kg. The chemical yield is about 80%. The separation and determination of radiostrontium can be carried out in about 8 hours.     

Supramolecular organization of alpha,alpha'-disubstituted sexithiophenes

The self-assembly of alpha,alpha'-linked sexithiophenes with chiral and achiral penta(ethylene glycol) chains attached at the alpha-positions of the terminal rings, that is, 2,2':5',2':5',2':5',2':5',2'-sexithiophene-5,5'-dicarboxylic acid-2S)-2-methyl-3,6,9,12,15-pentaoxahexadecyl ester (1) and 2,2':5',2':5',2':5',2':5',2'-sexithiophene-5,5'-dicarboxylic acid-3,6,9,12,15-pentaoxahexadecyl ester (2), respectively is described. Analysis of the UV/vis, fluorescence, circular dichroism, and circular polarization of luminescence spectroscopic data shows that these compounds form chiral aggregates in polar solvents and in the solid state. In n-butanol aggregation occurs at temperatures below 30 degrees C, while above this threshold temperature the aggregates break up without an intermediate disordered state of aggregation, and the compounds are molecularly dissolved. The "melting temperature" of the aggregates depends on the concentration of sexithiophene, indicating that the optical changes observed are a result of intermolecular processes. Mass spectrometric measurements reveal that 1 and 2 can form mixed aggregates. Analysis of the optical spectra reveals that in these mixed aggregates, chiral 1 molecules act as "sergeants" to direct the packing of the "soldiers" 2, illustrating cooperativity within the columns. In water, the same type of chiral aggregates are formed as in n-butanol below 30 degrees C; however, these aggregates are still present, but the chirality is lost above 30 degrees C. In spin-coated films of 1 chiral aggregates are present. AFM studies show that 1 self-organizes into chiral fiberlike structures in the solid state. Furthermore both 1 and 2 display thermotropic liquid crystalline behavior between 180 and 200 degrees C.     

Electrospray ionization Fourier transform ion cyclotron resonance mass spectrometric analysis of metal-ion selected dynamic protein libraries

The application of electrospray ionization (ESI) Fourier transform ion cyclotron resonance (FT-ICR) mass spectrometry to the investigation of the relative stabilities (and thus packing efficiencies) of Fe-bound trihelix peptide bundles is demonstrated. Small dynamic protein libraries are created by metal-ion assisted assembly of peptide subunits. Control of the trimeric aggregation state is coupled to stability selection by exploiting the coordination requirements of Fe(2+) in the presence of bidentate 2,2'-bipyridyl ligands covalently appended to the peptide monomers. At limiting metal-ion concentration, the most thermodynamically stable, optimally packed peptide trimers dominate the mass spectrum. The identities of optimally stable candidate trimers observed in the ESI FT-ICR mass spectra are confirmed by resynthesis of exchange-inert analogues and measurement of their folding free energies. The peptide composition of the trimers may be determined by infrared multiphoton dissociation (IRMPD) MS(3) experiments. Additional sequence information for the peptide subunits is obtained from electron capture dissociation (ECD) of peptides and metal-bound trimers. The experiments also suggest the presence of secondary structure in the gas phase, possibly due to partial retention of the solution-phase coiled coil structure.     

The role of acidic residues and of sodium ion adduction on the gas-phase H/D exchange of peptides and peptide dimers

Gas-phase H/D exchange is widely used for characterizing the structure of ions. However, many structural parameters that affect the rate of H/D exchange are poorly understood, which complicates the interpretation of experimental data. Here, the effects of sodium ion adduction on the rate of H/D exchange with D₂O for a series of peptides and peptide dimers with varying numbers of acidic residues are described. The maximum number of sodium ion adducts that can be accommodated by the peptides and peptide dimers in this study is N + 1, where N is the number of free carboxylic acid groups. The formation of methyl-esters at all carboxylic acid groups, or the replacement of all the acidic hydrogens with sodium ions, effectively shuts down H/D exchange with D₂O. In contrast, both the rate and the extent of H/D exchange with D₂O are increased for most of the peptides and peptide dimers by the adduction of an intermediate number of sodium ions. These results are consistent with the H/D exchange occurring via a salt-bridge mechanism and show that the presence of two carboxylic acid groups is much better than one. The results with peptide dimers also indicate that surface accessibility may not be a dominant factor in the extent of H/D exchange for these ions.     

Synthesis and anticonvulsant activity of 3H-imidazo[4,5-c]-pyridazine, 1H-imidazo[4,5-d]pyridazine and 1H-benzimidazole analogues of 9-(2-fluorobenzyl)-6-methylamino-9H-purine

The 3H-imidazo[4,5-c]pyridazine, 1H-imidazo[4,5-d]pyridazine, and 1H-benzimidazole analogues of the potent anticonvulsant purine 9-(2-fluorobenzyl)-6-methylamino-9H-purine (1, 78U79) were synthesized and tested for anticonvulsant activity. The 3H-imidazo[4,5-c]pyridazines 8 and 9 were prepared in five stages from 3,4,5-trichloropyridazine (2) . The 1H-imidazolo[4,5-d]pyridazine 15 was synthesized in four stages from 5-[(benzyloxy)methyl]-1,5-dihydro-4H-imidazo[4,5-d] pyridazin-4-one (10a) . The benz-imidazole analogues 18 and 20 were prepared from 2,6-dinitroaniline in three stages. These compounds were one-tenth or less as active as 1 in protecting rats against maximal electroshock-induced seizures.     

Evaluating the influence of deposition conditions on solvation of reactive conducting polymers with neutron reflectivity

We describe in situ neutron reflectivity (NR) and RAIRS studies of the chemical modification of films of a polypyrrole-based conducting polymer derived from the pentafluorophenyl ester of poly(pyrrole-N-propanoic acid) (PFP) electrodeposited on electrode surfaces. We explore the role of the solvent in controlling the rate of reaction with solution-based nucleophiles (amines, which react with the ester to form amides). By varying the identity of the solvent (water vs acetonitrile) and the neutron contrast (deuteration), we find that both the identity of the solvent and its population within the film are paramount in determining chemical reactivity and electroactivity. IR signatures allow monitoring of the reaction of solution-based amine-tagged species such as amino-terminated poly(propylene glycol), ferrocene ethylamine, and lysine with film-based ester functionalities: the carbonyl bands show ester/amide interconversion and some hydrolysis to acid. Time-dependent spectral analysis shows marked variations in reaction rate with (i) (co-)polymer composition (replacement of some fluorinated ester-functionalized pyrrole with unfunctionalized pyrrole), (ii) the solvent to which the polymer film is exposed, and (iii) the rate of polymer deposition. NR data provide solvent profiles as a function of distance perpendicular to the interface, the variations of which provide an explanation for film reactivity patterns. Homopolymer films are relatively hydrophobic, thus hindering reaction with species present in water solutions. Incorporating pyrrole groups raises the solvent population-dramatically for water-thereby facilitating entry and reaction of aqueous-based lysine. Changing film deposition rate yields films with different absolute levels of solvent and reactivity patterns that are dependent on the size of the reactant molecules: more rapid deposition of polymer gives films with a more open structure leading to a higher solvent content and thence increased reactivity. These results, supported by XPS and AFM data, allow assembly of composition-structure-reactivity correlations, in which the controlling feature is film solvation.     

Minimalist protein design: a beta-hairpin peptide that binds ssDNA

A 28-residue beta-hairpin dimer (WKWK)2 with two Trp and two Lys residues on one face of each beta-sheet was shown to form a complex with single-stranded oligonucleotides at low micromolar concentrations. Each beta-hairpin of the dimer contains a cross-strand Trp-Trp pair in a diagonal orientation which has previously been shown to create a cleft for the intercalation of aromatic guests such as adenine (J. Am. Chem. Soc. 2003, 125, 9580). The beta-hairpin dimer binds 5-residue ssDNA sequences 5'-AAAAA-3', 5'-TTTTT-3', and 5'-CCCCC-3' in water with dissociation constants in the range of 12-30 muM. A weak energetic preference for binding to sequence 5'-AAAAA-3' was observed, which is believed to result from stronger stacking interactions between Trp and the adenine base. The interaction of 5'-AAAAA-3' with the Lys and Trp residues of the peptide was evident by NMR, and a 1:1 association was demonstrated. The recognition of an 11-residue ssDNA sequence occurred with a dissociation constant of 3 muM under near-physiological ionic strength and pH, demonstrating that the beta-hairpin dimer binds ssDNA as strongly as many naturally occurring proteins. The salt dependence of the interaction of the 11-residue oligonucleotide with the peptide dimer indicates that Trp-nucleobase stacking interactions contribute about -4 kcal/mol to recognition, which is much greater than the contribution of nonionic interactions in unstructured peptides containing Trp. Moreover, recognition of the ssDNA demonstrated reduced salt dependence relative to the corresponding duplex, resulting in selectivity for ssDNA under high salt conditions. Peptide (WKWK)2 is a relevant mimic of OB-fold (oligonucleotide/oligosaccharide-binding) proteins which bind ssDNA on the surface of a beta-sheet.