Stable Sugar‐Chain‐Immobilized Fluorescent Nanoparticles for Probing Lectin and Cells

Sugar chains are important molecules in cellular recognition and signaling, and quantum dots (QDs) are a very powerful tool for in vitro and in vivo imaging. Herein, we report the preparation of stable sugar‐chain‐immobilized fluorescent nanoparticles (SFNPs) and their application to the analysis of sugar‐chain–protein interactions and cellular imaging. SFNPs were easily prepared by mixing CdTe/CdS core/shell QDs with our previously developed sugar‐chain–ligand conjugates. The obtained SFNPs were very stable and could be stored for several months. In the binding analysis, β‐galactose‐ and α‐glucose‐immobilized SFNPs were specifically interacted with Ricinus communis agglutinin I and concanavalin A, respectively, and made into aggregates. The binding interaction was detected visually, fluorescently, or both. In the experiment for cellular imaging, it was found that SFNPs were predominantly taken up by human hepatocyto carcinoma cells (HepG2), suggesting the possible usage of our designed SFNPs for various biochemical analyses of sugar chains.     

Mn(III)(tetra-biphenyl-porphyrin)-TCNE single-chain magnet via suppression of the interchain interactions

A single-chain magnet (SCM) of [Mn(TBPP)(TCNE)]·4m-PhCl(2) (1), where TBPP(2-) = meso-tetra(4-biphenyl)porphyrinate; TCNE(?-) = tetracyanoethenide radical anion; m-PhCl(2) = meta-dichlorobenzene, was prepared via suppression of interchain interactions. 1 has a one-dimensional alternating Mn(III)(porphrin)-TCNE(?-)chain structure similar to those of a family of complexes reported by Miller and co-workers. From a comparison of the static magnetic properties of 1 with other Mn(III)(porphyrin)-TCNE(?-) chains, a magneto-structural correlation between the intrachain magnetic exchange and both the dihedral angle between the mean plane on [Mn(TBPP)(TCNE)] and Mn-N≡C was observed. The ac magnetic susceptibility data of 1 could be fit with the Arrhenius law, indicating that slow magnetic relaxation and ruling out three-dimensional long-range ordering and spin-glass-like behavior. The Cole-Cole plot for 1 was semicircular, verifying that it is an SCM. Therefore, 1 is an ideal single-chain magnet with significantly strong intrachain magnetic exchange interactions beyond the Ising limit.     

Tandem arrays of TEMPO and nitronyl nitroxide radicals with designed arrangements on DNA

Herein we describe one-dimensional electron-spin arrays consisting of two different organic radicals with the designed arrangement based on the DNA sequence. Two mismatch-binding ligands carrying 2,2,6,6-tetramethylpiperidine N-oxide (TEMPO) and nitronyl nitroxide selectively bind to the predetermined sites on double stranded DNA. By using the two mismatch-binding ligands carrying the organic radicals as the glue for DNA, electron-spin assembly could be successfully synchronized with the hybridization. Periodically and tandemly arranged, two kinds of organic radical molecules at designed positions might be useful for an approach to build up scalable qubits of electron-spin-based quantum computing. The approach using DNA nanostructures as a scaffold to assembly functional small molecules can afford one of the promising ways for the future application of DNA nanostructures and nanotechnology.     

Improvement of stability of a Fe/Mg/Al2O3 catalyst for the decomposition of methane in the presence of O2/CO2

The stability of an Fe/Al₂O₃ catalyst in the methane decomposition in the presence of O₂/CO₂ was found to be improved by the addition of Mg into the catalyst (Mg/Fe=1/1 wt ratio), probably due to suppression of carbon deposition even under CH₄/ O₂/CO₂ (80/10/5 vol. ratio) conditions. This revised version was published online in June 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

Microfluidic device embedding electrodes for dielectrophoretic manipulation of cells‐A review

Microfluidic device embedding electrodes realizes cell manipulation with the help of dielectrophoresis. Cell manipulation is an important technology for cell sorting and cell population purification. Till now, the theory of dielectrophoresis has been greatly developed. Microfluidic devices with various arrangements of electrodes have been reported from the beginning of the single non‐uniform electric field to the later multiple physical fields. This paper reviews the research status of microfluidic device embedding electrodes for cell manipulation based on dielectrophoresis. Firstly, the working principle of dielectrophoresis is explained. Next, cell manipulation approaches based on dielectrophoresis are introduced. Then, different types of electrode arrangements in the microfluidic device for cell manipulation are discussed, including planar, multilayered and microarray dot electrodes. Finally, the future development trend of the dielectrophoresis with the help of microfluidic devices is prospected. With the rapid development of microfluidic technology, in the near future, high precision, high throughput, high efficiency, multifunctional, portable, economical and practical microfluidic dielectrophoresis will be widely used in the fields of biology, medicine, agriculture and so on.     

Aqueous dip-coating route to dense and porous silica thin films using silica nanocolloids with an aid of polyvinylpyrrolidone

An aqueous dip-coating route without using volatile alcohols for preparing dense and porous silica thin films is presented. The films were prepared by dip-coating on Si(100) and silica glass substrates using aqueous suspension of 8–11 nm colloidal silica where no alcohols were added. The addition of polyvinylpyrrolidone (PVP) in the suspension greatly improved the wettability, allowing homogeneous films to be formed on the substrates while the substrates showed poor wettability without PVP. When the as-deposited films were fired at 500–1,000 °C, optically transparent porous films with smooth surface were obtained. The porous films had homogeneous distribution and packing of silica nanoparticles, refractive indices of 1.24–1.33, and pencil hardness lower than 6B. The porous films underwent significant densification by viscous sintering when fired at temperatures over 1,000 °C. The viscous sintering was accompanied by the progress of condensation reaction and by the structural relaxation of siloxane network, which was revealed in the infrared absorption spectra. The resulting dense films had optical transparency, smooth surface, pencil hardness over 9H and refractive indices close to that of silica glass.     

Synthesis of Pr<Superscript>3+</Superscript> doped or Tb<Superscript>3+</Superscript>–Mg codoped CaSnO<Subscript>3</Subscript> perovskite phosphor by the polymerized complex method

Pr³⁺ doped or Tb³⁺–Mg codoped CaSnO₃ phosphor powder with perovskite structure was synthesized by the polymerized complex method. Powder samples crystallized into the perovskite phase at approximately 600 °C, which is 400 °C lower than the crystallization temperature for the solid-state reaction method. Uniform-sized powders with average particle sizes of 1–2 μm were obtained after heat treatment at 1,400 °C. Although the samples heat-treated at 600 °C did not exhibit photoluminescence, white photoluminescence of Pr³⁺ doped CaSnO₃ or green photoluminescence of Tb³⁺–Mg codoped CaSnO₃ was observed from the sample heat-treated above 800 °C. The intensity of the photoluminescence increased with increase of the heat-treatment temperature and reached a maximum for heat treatment at 1,400 °C. The maximum photoluminescence intensity for the samples prepared by the polymerized complex method was larger than those prepared by solid-state reaction method, which is probably due to the homogeneous mixing of the doped rare earth ions.     

Electron transfer reaction of electrochemically polymerized tris-(amino-phenanthroline)-iron(II/III) complex films

New films of iron complex with 4,7-bis(2-aminophenyl)-methylaminosulfonylphenyl)-1,10-phenanthroline (APP) and 5-amino-1,10-phenanthroline (AP) are prepared on the electrode surface of In–Sn oxide conducting glass (ITO) by electrochemical oxidation. The thickness (Φ) of the films prepared on the ITO can be controlled by the number of cycles of the potential scan. The resulting film-coated electrodes show well-defined reversible vol-tammograms corresponding to the redox reaction of the Fe(II/III) complexes in 0.1 M NaClO₄ acetonitrile (AN), a mixture of butylene carbonate (BC) and propylene carbonate (PC) and poly2-hydroxyethylmethacrylate gel containing BC and PC. The electron transfer processes within the films can be treated apparently as diffusional processes characterized by the rate constants of the apparent diffusion coefficient (D_app). The value of D_app increase from 1.0 × 10^?9 to 1.6 × 10^?8 cm² sec^?1 as the Fe complex concentration (C_Fe) increases from 0.06 to 1.04 M for the [Fe(AP)₃] complex film (Φ=0.80 μm) in 0.2 M NaClO₄/AN solution. The D_app value for the [Fe(APP)₃) complex film (C_Fe = 0.19 M , Φ= 0.78 μm) is 3.5 × 10^?9 cm² sec^?1 in 0.2 M NaClO₄/AN solution. The D_app values of the [Fe(AP)₃] complex film in the PC + BC mixture and gel containing 1.0 M NaClO₄ were smaller than those obtained in AN solution by an order of magnitude. The dependence of the apparent formal potential of the Fe(II/III) redox reaction for the [Fe(AP)₃] complex film on the activity of NaClO₄ supporting electrolyte in AN shows that Na⁺ moves preferentially across the polymer/solution interfaces during the redox reaction. The Fe(II/III) redox reaction of the Fe complex films shows reversible electrochromic response between red and colorless.     

Formation of Anatase Nanocrystals in Sol-Gel Derived TiO2-SiO2 Thin Films with Hot Water Treatment

We have successfully prepared transparent and porous anatase nanocrystals-dispersed films by treating the sol-gel derived TiO₂-SiO₂ films containing poly(ethylene glycol), PEG, with hot water. This process was done at temperatures lower than 100°C under atmospheric pressure, and thus anatase nanocrystals-dispersed films can be formed on various kinds of substrates including organic polymers with poor heat resistance. The changes in structure and composition of the TiO₂-SiO₂ gel films with hot water treatment were related to the formation process of anatase nanocrystals in the TiO₂-SiO₂ gel films with hot water treatment. The formation of anatase nanocrystals was found to proceed to hydrolysis of Si–O–Ti bonds and dissolution of SiO₂ component. In addition, porous film structure formed by leaching of PEG with hot water treatment led to homogenous dispersion of anatase nonocrystals in the films.     

The effect of the polarization electric field on helix-unwinding in a planar chiral smectic C liquid-crystal cell

The effect of the polarization electric field on helix-unwinding in a thin planar chiral smectic C liquid-crystal cell is studied by using the nematic-like expression for the elastic deformation free-energy density. It is found that the elongation of the helical pitch when the cell thickness decreases is greater when the spontaneous polarization is larger. This is due to the Coulomb repulsion between polarization charges concentrated at ± 2π disclinations.