Topographic control on silicone surface using chemical oxidization method

The paper describes a wet process for modifying the surface of polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) using H₂SO₄/HNO₃ solutions. The oxidation on the surface of PDMS was confirmed by the examinations of Fourier transform infrared spectrometry (FTIR), contact angle of water drop and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). The hydrophobic surface of pristine PDMS was not only changed to hydrophilic, but also formed wrinkles on it after chemical modification. Bilayer systems, stiff oxidized PDMS layers were capped on soft PDMS foundations, would generate easily compressive stresses due to the large difference in volumetric contraction rates and led to form wrinkles on the surface. Experimental results demonstrated the periodicity of wrinkles was controllable by controlling the duration of oxidation. Therefore, wrinkles could be arranged orderly by the guidance of external forces before oxidization. The potential technology for generating and ordering wrinkles on the PDMS surface is valuable in the applications of pressure sensors, biology, micro-optics and nano-/micro-fabrication in the future.     

On the stability of the A 15 structure

The pair potential model is applied to problems of thermodynamic stability involving the A 15 structure. Many such problems have been clarified and answered by this procedure. Among the problems considered are the stability of A 15V₃Al and Nb₃Si; the stability of Nb₃(M₁, M₂) and V₃(M₁, M₂) A 15 pseudobinary stability of stoichiometric A15 phases; long range order of A 15 phases; the effect of pressure on the stability of the A 15 structure; the type of phase diagram that is stable in the vicinity of the A 15 phase.     

Determination of Benzidine and its Congeners by Liquid Chromatography with Electrochemical Detection

High performance liquid chromatography coupled with electrochemical detection (HPLC-EC) method has been developed for the determination of benzidine and its related congeners in wastewater at the low ng/mL level. With a µ-Bondapak C₁₈ column, 53% acetonitrile (pH 4.7), and electrochemical detection at +1.0 V applied potential, the detection limits range from 3 ng/mL for benzidine to 10 ng/mL for 3,3′-dichlorobenzidine, assuming a 100 µL injection. The detection limits can be further lowered to the sub-ng/mL level by incorporating a short precolumn into the HPLC system for on-line sample enrichment. Recoveries are generally greater than 80% — except for benzidine and 3,3′-diaminobenzidine which give 50–70% recoveries. Industrial wastewater samples from a coke-plant and a plant producing 3,3′-dichlorobenzidine based dyes were successfully studied via this method.     

"On the fly" continuous generation of alginate fibers using a microfluidic device

In this paper, we introduce a new continuous production technique of calcium alginate fibers with a microfluidic platform similar to a spider in nature. We have used a poly(dimethylsiloxane) (PDMS) microfluidic device embedded capillary glass pipet as the apparatus for fiber generation. As a sample flow, we introduced a sodium alginate solution, and, as a sheath flow, a CaCl2 solution was introduced. The coaxial flows were generated at the intersection of both flows, and the sodium alginate was solidified to calcium alginate by diffusion of the Ca2+ ions during traveling through the outlet pipet. The diameter changes in the sample and sheath flow variations were examined, and the size of alginate fibers was well regulated by changing both flow rates. In addition, we have measured the elasticity of dried fibers. We evaluated the potential use of alginate fibers as a cell carrier by loading human fibroblasts during the "on the fly" fabrication process. From the LIVE/DEAD assay, cells survived well during the fiber fabrication process. In addition, we evaluate the capability of loading the therapeutic materials onto the alginate fibers by immobilized bovine serum albumin-fluorescein isothiocyanate in the fibers.     

Constitutive stabilization of hypoxia-inducible factor alpha selectively promotes the self-renewal of mesenchymal progenitors and maintains mesenchymal stromal cells in an undifferentiated state

With the increasing use of culture-expanded mesenchymal stromal cells (MSCs) for cell therapies, factors that regulate the cellular characteristics of MSCs have been of major interest. Oxygen concentration has been shown to influence the functions of MSCs, as well as other normal and malignant stem cells. However, the underlying mechanisms of hypoxic responses and the precise role of hypoxia-inducible factor-1α (Hif-1α), the master regulatory protein of hypoxia, in MSCs remain unclear, due to the limited span of Hif-1α stabilization and the complex network of hypoxic responses. In this study, to further define the significance of Hif-1α in MSC function during their self-renewal and terminal differentiation, we established adult bone marrow (BM)-derived MSCs that are able to sustain high level expression of ubiquitin-resistant Hif-1α during such long-term biological processes. Using this model, we show that the stabilization of Hif-1α proteins exerts a selective influence on colony-forming mesenchymal progenitors promoting their self-renewal and proliferation, without affecting the proliferation of the MSC mass population. Moreover, Hif-1α stabilization in MSCs led to the induction of pluripotent genes (oct-4 and klf-4) and the inhibition of their terminal differentiation into osteogenic and adipogenic lineages. These results provide insights into the previously unrecognized roles of Hif-1α proteins in maintaining the primitive state of primary MSCs and on the cellular heterogeneities in hypoxic responses among MSC populations.     

Physics‐based modeling and microwave characterization of graphene co‐planar waveguides

In this study, large area mono‐, bi‐, and multi‐layer graphenes (MLG) were synthesized using low pressure chemical vapor deposition (LPCVD) process and co‐planar waveguides (CPW) with graphenes being fabricated using conventional photolithography. The intrinsic room temperature radio frequency (RF) characteristics were measured via direct contact to the graphene surface with a probe–tip in the range of 0.1 GHz to 40 GHz without using metal electrodes. The device characteristics were also evaluated by physics‐based RLC equivalent circuit simulation. The proposed equivalent circuit model reproduced all of the measured characteristics within 3% of RMSE and we numerically extracted the set of component values which minimize the error between the measured data and the simulation results over the measured regime. Our findings demonstrate that MLG is an effective candidate in RF interconnect device applications. (© 2014 WILEY‐VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)     

Capillary electrophoretic separation of tricyclic antidepressants using a polymer-coated capillary and beta-cyclodextrin as an electrolyte additive

A new method for the CE separation of nine tricyclic antidepressants (TCAs), viz. amitriptyline, clomipramine, desipramine, doxepin, fluphenazine, imipramine, nortriptyline, promazine, and thioridazine, is described. The capillary was statically coated with a layer of poly(N,N-dimethylacrylamide) (PDMA) to suppress the EOF, and beta-CD was used as an additive in the BGE solution. The optimal resolution of nine TCAs was obtained by using a 1% v/v PDMA-coated capillary and a BGE solution of 50 mM sodium phosphate buffer (pH 3.0) containing 0.5 mM beta-CD. Efficiencies were typically >10(5 )plates/m. Complete separation of nine TCAs could be achieved in about 28 min; the two diastereomers of doxepin and the two enantiomers of thioridazine could also be separated. The RSD values of migration time and peak area of the TCAs were in the ranges 0.5-0.8 and 3.3-4.9% (n = 10), respectively. In combination with a suitable sample clean-up technique, such as hollow fiber-based liquid phase microextraction (HF-LPME), the polymer-coated capillary can be employed for the CE-UV analysis of TCAs in human plasma.