Light‐Driven Reversible Intermolecular Proton Transfer at Single‐Molecule Junctions

Photoresponsive molecular systems are essential for molecular optoelectronic devices, but most molecular building blocks are non‐photoresponsive. Employed here is a photoinduced proton transfer (PIPT) strategy to control charge transport through single‐molecule azulene junctions with visible light under ambient conditions, which leads to a reversible and controllable photoresponsive molecular device based on non‐photoresponsive molecules and a photoacid. Also demonstrated is the application of PIPT in two single‐molecule AND gate and OR gate devices with electrical signal as outputs.     

Selective detection of cytochrome C by microchip electrophoresis based on an aptamer strategy

The release of cytochrome C (Cyt C) plays an important role in apoptosis. In this study, selective and sensitive detection of Cyt C based on an aptamer strategy coupled with MCE was developed. Following the binding of a specific aptamer to Cyt C, the aptamer exhibited an irregular state, reducing the binding affinity of a fluorescent probe, and thus preventing the aptamer‐Cyt C complexes from detection within the MCE. The height of the detection peak of the residual aptamer linearly decreased, and therefore, the difference in peak height of residual aptamer compared to that of the initial aptamer was used to quantify the captured protein concentration. Experimental conditions such as incubation time, pH, temperature, and ionic strength were optimized. A measurement of Cyt C concentration by MCE was achieved within 135 s, with a limit of detection as low as 0.4 nM. The proposed method has high selectivity and good stability for the detection of Cyt C. The experimental results demonstrate that this method is quick, consumes only a small quantity of sample, is highly selectivity and exhibits high sensitivity.     

聚氨酯分子印章的制备和表征

“软平板印刷”微结构制备技术为微米和亚微米器件的制备提供了一条新的途径 [1] ,已被电子学家和材料学家所应用 ,近年来进入了生物学领域[2 ] .本实验室将这一方法与生物分子电子学相结合 ,提出了用于 DNA芯片在片合成的分子印章法 [3,4 ] .分子印章法的实质是接触压印与组合化学相结合的固相界面反应 .聚二甲氧基硅氧烷 ( PDMS)是一种软印刷的优良材料 [5] ,但是由于其疏水性和较差的机械性能 ,必须对其进行改性才能用来制备 DNA分子印章 [6 ] .　　聚氨酯作为一种功能材料 ,由于分子中交替的软、硬链段及其不同的热动力学性能而形成…     

Fine structures of zeolite-Linde-L (LTL): surface structures, growth unit and defects

High-resolution electron microscopy (HREM) has been used to image the surface structure of nano- and micrometer-sized synthetic crystals of zeolite-Linde-L (LTL). Columnar holes and rotational, nano-sized, wheel-like defects were observed within the crystals, where the hole has a minimum size equal to that of the rotational defect. Predictions of surface structure from atomistic computer simulation concur with the observations from HREM and provide insight into the crystal growth mechanism of perfect and defective LTL. Analysis of the energetics of the formation of rotational defect structures reveals that the driving force for defect creation is thermodynamic and furthermore, the rotational defects could be created in high concentrations. Formation of a columnar hole is found to be slightly energetically unfavourable and therefore we speculate that the incidence of both rotational and nano-sized vacancy defects is strongly dependent on kinetic factors and reaction conditions. The morphology of nano- and microcrystalline LTL is contradistinct and we use insights from simulation to propose an explanation of the disparity in crystal shape.     

Elucidation of matrix effects and performance of solid-phase extraction for LC-MS/MS analysis of β-N-methylamino-L-alanine (BMAA) and 2,4-diaminobutyric acid (DAB) neurotoxins in cyanobacteria

A liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) method using hydrophilic interaction liquid chromatography (HILIC) was developed for the analysis of neurotoxins β-N-methylamino-L-alanine (BMAA) and 2,4-diaminobutyric acid (DAB), using multiple reaction monitoring (MRM) scan mode. Oasis-MCX and Strata-X-C polymeric cation-exchange cartridges were used to clean extracts of cyanobacterial cultures, including two strains of Microcystis aeruginosa and one strain of Nostoc sp. The performance of the solid-phase extraction (SPE) cartridges for BMAA and DAB were evaluated using mixed standards and spiked cyanobacterial extracts, which demonstrated recoveries of BMAA and DAB ranging from 66% to 91%. Matrix effects in LC-MS/MS were evaluated, and while there was no effect on BMAA quantitation, suppression of DAB was found. Full scan (Q1) and enhanced product ion (EPI) monitoring showed that the DAB suppression may be due to closely eluting compounds, including lysine, histidine, arginine and three other compounds with [M + H](+) m/z of 88, 164 and 191. The procedures developed allow the sensitive and effective analysis of trace BMAA and DAB levels in cyanobacteria. While DAB was confirmed to be present, no BMAA was found in the cyanobacterial samples tested in the present study.     

反离子对离子液体氯化1-(2-羟乙基)-3-十二烷基咪唑在水溶液中自组装的影响

用表面张力法和荧光探针技术分别测定了阳离子型离子液体表面活性剂氯化1-(2-羟乙基)-3-十二烷基咪唑([C2OHC12im]Cl)在无机盐(NaX,X=Cl-,Br-,I-和Na2SO4)水溶液中的自组装参数。 结果表明,反离子通过结合[C2OHC12im]+并中和其表面电荷,使[C2OHC12im]+的临界胶束浓度(CMC)和胶束平均聚集数(Nm)等自组装参数明显改变;改变幅度按照Cl-＜Br-＜I-＜SO2-4次序递增;但是反离子(Cl-、Br-和SO2-4)种类对临界胶束平均聚集数(Nm,c)和胶束微极性([I1/I3]m)的影响不甚明显;随着Br-浓度增加,lg CMC线性减小,而Nm则以幂函数形式递增。     

Film-forming characteristics and thermal stability of low viscosity benzoxazines derived from melamine

A novel class of low-viscosity benzoxazines has been synthesized from melamine and formaldehyde with phenol or bisphenol A. The striking feature of the class of benzoxazines is the subtle combination of their inherently low viscosity at room temperature, good film-forming characteristics and high chemical and thermal stability mainly due to the introduction of melamine into the network of the polymers. The structure of the benzoxazines has been confirmed by proton nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy and fourier transform infrared spectroscopy. Thermal properties of polybenzoxazine have been studied by differential scanning calorimetry, dynamic mechanical analysis and thermogravimetric analysis. Transparent polybenzoxazine films were easily obtained under solvent-free conditions, exhibiting significantly improved toughness compared to the conventional polybenzoxazines. Our research may open a new path for overcoming the present drawbacks of polybenzoxazines such as high brittleness, the difficulties in preparing films and poor processibility via tailoring the structures and properties of amine in the benzoxazines.     

In situ Synthesis of Oligonucleotides on Plasma Treated Polypropylene Microporous Membrane

Polypropylene microporous membranes were treated with plasma in a mixture of N2 and H2 (1:2 in volume). Attenuated total reflectance Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (ATR-FTIR), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) and ultra-violet (UV) spectra demonstrated the success of grafting amino groups. The density of the polar amino groups on the membrane surface is about 0.59 μmol/cm^2. The as-treated membranes were successively applied to the in situ synthesis of oligonucleotides and an average coupling yield was more than 98%. The surface feature of the treated membrane is suggested to be responsible for its advantage over a glass slide.     

Facile Self‐Assembly Synthesis of PdPt Bimetallic Nanotubes with Good Performance for Ethanol Oxidation in an Alkaline Medium

PdPt bimetallic nanotubes were prepared by the self‐assembly of Pt and Pd on Te nanowires at room temperature. The morphologies of the as‐prepared PdPt nanotubes were investigated by scanning electron microscopy and transmission electron microscopy, and the results display a large amount of PdPt bimetallic nanotubes with a diameter of 10–20 nm and a length of several micrometers. The composition and structure of the nanotubes were characterized by X‐ray diffraction, high‐resolution transmission electron microscopy, scanning transmission electron microscopy, and energy spectrum analysis, and the results display uniform compositional distributions of both elements (Pd and Pt). The mechanism of the formation of the nanotube structure was supposed. The electrocatalytic performance of PdPt nanotubes were studied by cyclic voltammetry and chronoamperometry. Electrochemical results show that the as‐prepared PdPt nanotube catalysts have not only high activity but also good stability for ethanol oxidation in alkaline medium.     

Studies on the electro-optical and the light-scattering properties of PDLC films with the size gradient of the LC droplets

Polymer dispersed liquid crystal (PDLC) films with the size gradient of the LC droplets were prepared based on the epoxy/acrylate hybrid polymer matrix. The ultraviolet (UV) intensity gradient was induced by the UV-absorbing dye over the thickness of the samples. Taking advantage of the difference between the epoxy monomers and acrylate monomers in polymerisation rates and the UV intensity gradient, the gradient distribution of the LC droplet size was formed in PDLC films. The effect of the size gradient of the LC droplets on the electro-optical and the light-scattering properties of PDLC films was investigated. The results showed that due to the size gradient distribution of the LC droplets, PDLC films could exhibit the strong light scattering in the UV-visible-near infrared (VIS-NIR) region. Consequently, it provides a potential approach for modulating NIR light transmittance.