Development of a Water-Dispersible Supramolecular Complex of Polyphenol with Polypeptides for Attenuation of the Allergic Response using a Mechanochemical Strategy

The prevalence of allergic disorders has increased worldwide in recent decades. Polyphenols, including resveratrol and curcumin, are posited to have potential as therapeutic agents for allergy; however, their use has been limited by poor water solubility. Accordingly, a highly concentrated, water dispersible, supramolecular complexes of polyphenols with polypeptides (poly-L-lysine, poly-γ-glutamic acid) and gelatin using high-speed vibration milling are developed. The complex exhibits resistance to photobleaching and thermal radiation. Treatment of a rat basophilic leukemia cell line (RBL-2H3) with polypeptide complexes containing resveratrol is suppressed allergic responses in vitro. Moreover, aerosolized administration of polypeptide complexes demonstrates excellent bioavailability and inhibition of immediate hypersensitivity reactions in ear tissue in vivo. Furthermore, the method avoids the use of organic solvent and therefore reduces undesirable biological responses.     

New Oxyhalide Solid Electrolytes with High Lithium Ionic Conductivity >10 mS cm−1 for All-Solid-State Batteries

All-solid-state batteries (ASSBs) with inorganic solid electrolytes (SEs) have attracted significant interest as next-generation energy storage. Halides such as Li₃YCl₆ are promising candidates for SE because they combine high oxidation stability and deformability. However, the ionic conductivities of halide SEs are not as high as those of other SEs, especially sulfides. Here, we discover new lithium-metal-oxy-halide materials, LiMOCl₄ (M=Nb, Ta). They exhibit extremely high ionic conductivities of 10.4 mS cm⁻¹ for M=Nb and 12.4 mS cm⁻¹ for M=Ta, respectively, even in cold-pressed powder forms at room temperature, which are comparable to or surpass those of organic liquid electrolytes used in lithium-ion batteries. Bulk-type ASSB cells using the oxyhalides as the cathode SE demonstrate an outstanding rate capability with a capacity retention of 80 % at 5 C/0.1 C. We believe that the proposed oxyhalides are promising SE candidates for the practical applications of ASSBs.     

Atom probe tomography of size‐controlled phosphorus doped silicon nanocrystals

Doping of silicon nanocrystals is essential to control their electronic and optical properties. The incorporation of an impurity into a silicon nanovolume is a nontrivial task due to the self‐purification effect. Here, a systematic atom probe tomography study of the phosphorus distribution and incorporation in size‐controlled silicon nanocrystals embedded in silicon dioxide is presented. Qualitatively, it turns out that the phosphorus distribution in the system follows a universal, nanocrystal‐size independent trend: phosphorus‐enrichment at the interface with a substantial phosphorus‐incorporation in the silicon nanocrystal as small as 2 nm in diameter. This clearly contradicts strict self‐purification. These observations are explained by the bulk‐solubility and ‐segregation behaviour, kinetic effects related to the diffusion lengths, and nanoscale interface strain. The quantitative determination of the amount of phosphorus atoms per quantum dot enables a systematic understanding of phosphorus‐induced effects on optical and electronic properties of silicon nanovolumes.     

Carbon isotopic signature reveals the geographical trend in methane consumption and production pathways in alpine ecosystems over the Qinghai–Tibetan Plateau

On the Qinghai–Tibetan Plateau, isotopic signatures in soil–atmosphere CH₄ fluxes were investigated in nine grasslands and three wetlands. In the grasslands, the fractionation factor for soil CH₄ uptake, α_soil, was much smaller than the usually reported value of 0.9975–1.0095. Stepwise multiple variation analysis indicates that α_soil is higher for higher soil water contents but is lower for higher C/N ratios of soil surface biomass. In the three wetlands, the soil-emitted δ¹³C–CH₄ was similar (?55.3?±?5.5?‰ and ?53.0?±?5.5?‰) in two bogs separated by >1000?km but was lower (?63.4?±?6.3?‰) in a marsh. Environmental factors related to intrasite variations in soil-emitted δ¹³C–CH₄ include the soil C/N ratio, oxidation–reduction potential, soil C concentration and soil water contents. Geographical isotopic surveys revealed environmental constraints on the CH₄ consumption pathways in grasslands and the biome type-specific consistency in CH₄ production pathways in wetlands.     

2‐Acetyl‐4H‐benzo­thia­zin‐3(2H)‐one

The title compound, C₁₀H₉NO₂S, has a boat‐shaped heterocyclic six‐membered ring such that the S and N atoms lie essentially in the plane of the benzene ring while the remaining two C atoms are above this plane.     

Zero-Birefringence Optical Polymer by Birefringent Crystal and Analysis of the Compensation Mechanism

Summary: We reported a method for compensating the birefringence of optical polymers by doping them with inorganic birefringent crystals. In this method, an inorganic birefringent material is chosen that has the opposite birefringence to the polymer and needle-like shape crystals which are oriented when the polymer chains are oriented. The birefringence of the polymer is thus compensated by the opposing birefringence of the crystal. Orientation behavior of the needle-like crystals and polymers was investigated. The orientation function of the needle-like crystal was increased with an increase in the aspect ratio of the needle-like crystal.     

Heat transfer enhancement for laminar natural convection along a vertical plate due to sub-millimeter-bubble injection

Sub-millimeter-bubble injection is one of the most promising techniques for enhancing heat transfer for the laminar natural convection of liquids. However, flow and heat transfer characteristics for laminar natural convection of water with sub-millimeter bubbles have not yet been fully understood. The purpose of this study is to experimentally clarify the effects of sub-millimeter-bubble injection on the laminar natural convection of water along a heated vertical plate. The use of thermocouples and a particle tracking velocimetry (PTV) technique are applied to temperature and velocity measurements, respectively. The temperature measurement shows that the ratio of the heat transfer coefficient with sub-millimeter-bubble injection to that without injection increases with an increase in the bubble flow rate or a decrease in the wall heat flux and that the ratio ranges from 1.35 to 1.85. Moreover, it is concluded from simultaneous measurement of temperature and velocity that the heat transfer enhancement is directly affected by flow modification due to bubbles rising near the heated vertical plate.     

Remarkable Stabilization of the α‐Helix Structure by an Intramolecular Host‐Guest Bridge in a Cyclodextrin‐Peptide Hybrid

A cyclodextrin‐peptide hybrid (CD‐peptide) bearing three units of γ‐cyclodextrin, cholic acid, and a dansyl fluorophore in the side chain has been prepared. In this novel CD‐peptide, the cholic acid unit acts as an internal guest and forms an intramolecular inclusion complex with γ‐cyclodextrin in the CD‐peptide. This intramolecular complex works as a host‐guest bridge in the CD‐peptide and remarkably stabilizes the α‐helix structure of the CD‐peptide.     

Supramolecular Immobilization of Adamantyl and Carboxylate Modified N-Heterocyclic Carbene Ligand on Cucurbituril Substrates

Herein, the design, synthesis, supramolecular interactions and structural analysis of a novel bidentate carboxylate chelating N-heterocylic carbene (NHC) ligand is presented. The NHC structure was modified to strategically incorporate adamantyl moiety for the formation of a supramolecular complex with host molecules such as cucurbiturils. The adamantyl modified NHC ligand could potentially be used in recoverable homogeneous catalysts when Immobilized on a solid support via host–guest chemistry. As a versatile precursor, NHC ligand (8) was synthesized and characterized by ¹H-NMR, ¹³C-NMR, FTIR, single crystal x-ray crystallography and elemental analysis. A proof-of-principle non-covalent immobilization of the NHC ligand (8) with a Cucurbit[7]uril (CB7) host was demonstrated using ¹H-NMR titration.