Determination of proteins with Alizarin Red S by Rayleigh light scattering technique

A new protein determination method by enhanced Rayleigh light scattering (RLS) technique has been developed. In acid condition (pH=3.60), RLS of 1,2-dihydroxyanthraquinone-3-sulfonate (Alizarin Red S) can be greatly enhanced by addition of proteins, resulting in two characteristic peaks, 360 and 505 nm, respectively. The new protein assay is based on the RLS enhancement and spectrum change. The optimum condition for the reaction was investigated. The linear range is 0.20-24.9 μg ml⁻¹ for BSA and 0.20-15.5 μg ml⁻¹ for HSA. The detection limits (S/N=3) are 9.59 ng ml⁻¹ for BSA and 9.51 ng ml⁻¹ for HSA. The results of determination for human serum samples were comparable to those obtained by Bradford method. The binding stoichiometry was determined.     

bPAK-interacting exchange factor may regulate actin cytoskeleton through interaction with actin

p21-activated kinase (PAK)-interacting exchange factor (PIX) is known to be involved in regulation of Cdc42/Rac GTPases and PAK activity. PIX binds to the proline-rich region of PAK, and regulates biological events through activation of Cdc42/Rac GTPase. To further investigate the role of PIX we produced monoclonal antibodies (Mab) against bPIX. Three clones; N-C6 against N-terminal half and C-A3 and C-B7 against C- terminal half of bPIX were generated and characterized. N-C6 Mab detected bPIX as a major band in most cell lines. C-A3 Mab recognizes GIT-binding domain (GBD), but it does not interfere with GIT binding to bPIX. Using C-A3 Mab possible bPIX interaction with actin in PC12 cells was examined. bPIX Mab (C-A3) specifically precipitated actin of the PC12 cell lysates whereas actin Mab failed to immunoprecipitate bPIX. Co-sedimentation of PC12 cell lysates with the polymerized F-actin resulted in the recovery of most of bPIX in the cell lysates. These results suggest that bPIX may not interact with soluble actin but with polymerized F-actin and revealed that bPIX constitutes a functional complex with actin. These data indicate real usefulness of the bPIX Mab in the study of bPIX role(s) in regulation of actin cyoskeleton.     

Catechol‐Functionalized Polyolefins

The incorporation of comonomers during ethylene polymerization can efficiently modulate important material properties of the polyolefins. Utilizing bioresourced comonomers for the generation of high‐performance polyolefin materials is attractive from a sustainability point of view. In this contribution, bioresourced eugenol and related comonomers were incorporated into polyolefins through palladium‐catalyzed copolymerization and terpolymerization reactions. Importantly, high‐molecular‐weight catechol‐functionalized polyolefins can be generated. The introduction of different metal ions induces efficient interactions with the incorporated catechol groups, leading to enhanced mechanical properties and self‐healing properties. Moreover, the catechol functionality can greatly improve other properties such as surface properties, adhesion properties, and compatibilizing properties. The catechol‐functionalized polyolefin was demonstrated as a versatile platform polymer for accessing various materials with dramatically different properties.     

An Activatable AIEgen Probe for High‐Fidelity Monitoring of Overexpressed Tumor Enzyme Activity and Its Application to Surgical Tumor Excision

Monitoring fluctuations in enzyme overexpression facilitates early tumor detection and excision. An AIEgen probe (DQM‐ALP) for the imaging of alkaline phosphatase (ALP) activity was synthesized. The probe consists of a quinoline‐malononitrile (QM) core decorated with hydrophilic phosphate groups as ALP‐recognition units. The rapid liberation of DQM‐OH aggregates in the presence of ALP resulted in aggregation‐induced fluorescence. The up‐regulation of ALP expression in tumor cells was imaged using DQM‐ALP. The probe permeated into 3D cervical and liver tumor spheroids for imaging spatially heterogeneous ALP activity with high spatial resolution on a two‐photon microscopy platform, providing the fluorescence‐guided recognition of sub‐millimeter tumorigenesis. DQM‐ALP enabled differentiation between tumor and normal tissue ex vivo and in vivo, suggesting that the probe may serve as a powerful tool to assist surgeons during tumor resection.     

Large‐Scale Synthesis of MOF‐Derived Superporous Carbon Aerogels with Extraordinary Adsorption Capacity for Organic Solvents

Carbon aerogels (CAs) with 3D interconnected networks hold promise for application in areas such as pollutant treatment, energy storage, and electrocatalysis. In spite of this, it remains challenging to synthesize high‐performance CAs on a large scale in a simple and sustainable manner. We report an eco‐friendly method for the scalable synthesis of ultralight and superporous CAs by using cheap and widely available agarose (AG) biomass as the carbon precursor. Zeolitic imidazolate framework‐8 (ZIF‐8) with high porosity is introduced into the AG aerogels to increase the specific surface area and enable heteroatom doping. After pyrolysis under inert atmosphere, the ZIF‐8/AG‐derived nitrogen‐doped CAs show a highly interconnected porous mazelike structure with a low density of 24 mg cm^?3, a high specific surface area of 516 m² g^?1, and a large pore volume of 0.58 cm^?3 g^?1. The resulting CAs exhibit significant potential for application in the adsorption of organic pollutants.     

Lysophosphatidylcholine suppresses apoptosis and induces neurite outgrowth in PC12 cells through activation of phospholipase D2

Lysophosphatidylcholine (LPC) is a bioactive lipid generated by phospholipase A2-mediated hydrolysis of phosphatidylcholine. In the present study, we demonstrate that LPC stimulates phospholipase D2 (PLD2) activity in rat pheochromocytoma PC12 cells. Serum deprivation induced cell death of PC12 cells, as demonstrated by decreased viability, DNA fragmentation, and increased sub-G1 fraction of cell cycle. LPC treatment protected PC12 cells partially from the cell death and induced neurite outgrowth of the cells. Overexpression of PLD2 drastically enhanced the LPC-induced inhibition of apoptosis and neuritogenesis. Pretreatment of the cells with 1-butanol, a PLD inhibitor, completely abrogated the LPC-induced inhibition of apoptosis and neurite outgrowth in PC12 cells overexpressing PLD2. These results indicate that LPC possesses the neurotrophic effects, such as anti-apoptosis and neurite outgrowth, through activation of PLD2.     

Effect of interacting nanoparticles on the ordered morphology of block copolymer/nanoparticle mixtures

We investigated the effect of hard additives, that is, magnetic nanoparticles (NPs) and metal NPs, on the ordered morphology of block copolymers by varying the NP concentration. To characterize the structural changes of a block copolymer associated with different NP loadings, small-angle X-ray scattering and transmission electron microscopy were performed. Monodisperse maghemite (γ-Fe₂O₃) NPs (7 nm in diameter) and silver (Ag) NPs (6 nm in diameter) with surfaces modified with oleic acids were synthesized, and a cylinder-forming poly(styrene-block-isoprene) diblock copolymer was used as a structure-directing matrix for the NPs. As the NP concentration increased, domains of NP aggregates were observed for both magnetic and metal NPs. In the case of mixtures of cylinder-forming poly(styrene-block-isoprene) and Ag NPs with weak particle–particle interactions, random aggregates of Ag NPs were observed, and the ordered morphology of the block copolymer lost its long-range order with an increase in the NP concentration. However, regular, latticelike aggregates obtained with γ-Fe₂O₃ NPs, because of the strong interparticle interactions, induced an intriguing morphological transformation from hexagonal cylinders to body-centered-cubic spheres via undulated cylinders, whereas the neat block copolymer did not show such a morphological transition over a wide range of temperatures. The interplay between magnetic NPs and the block copolymer was also tested with magnetic NPs of different sizes. © 2006 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part B: Polym Phys 44: 3571–3579, 2006     

Salt‐Induced Depression of Lower Critical Solution Temperature in a Surface‐Grafted Neutral Thermoresponsive Polymer

Summary: Quartz crystal microbalance with dissipation monitoring (QCM‐D) is employed to determine the effect of salt on the volume phase transition of thermoresponsive polymer brushes. Changes in mass and viscoelasticity of poly(N‐isopropylacrylamide) (PNIPAM) layers grafted from a QCM‐D crystal are measured as a function of temperature, upon contact with aqueous solutions of varying salt concentrations. The phase‐transition temperature of PNIPAM brushes, T_C,graft, quantified from the QCM‐D measurements is found to decrease as the concentration of salt is increased. This phenomenon is explained by the tendency of salt ions to affect the structure of water molecules (Hofmeister effect). However, in contrast to the linear decrease in phase‐transition temperature upon increasing salt concentration observed for free PNIPAM, the trend in T_C,graft for PNIPAM brushes is distinctively non‐linear.

Schematic representation of the effect of salt concentration on the phase transition behavior of thermoresponsive polymer brushes.