Rheological Characterization of Self-Hardening Hydrogel for Tissue Engineering Applications: Gel Point Determination and Viscoelastic Properties

Summary: Silated hydroxypropylmethylcellulose (Si-HPMC) is a modified biopolymer used in biomaterial's domain. A hydroxypropylmethylcellulose (HPMC) was functionalised with silane groups. The macromolecular solution of Si-HPMC (pH 12.9) generates an elastic state at physiological pH (∼7.4). In this work we present the gel formation of Si-HPMC resulting from the condensation of silanol groups. The crosslinked hydrogel was characterized using rheological techniques. With the scalar percolation model the gelation time was determined as a function of Si-HPMC concentration at 37 °C.     

EFFECTS OF in vitro EXPOSURE TO ULTRAVIOLET RADIATION ON THE FUNCTIONAL ACTIVITY OF LYMPHOCYTES, WITH EMPHASIS ON SUSCEPTIBILITY OF DIFFERENT SPECIES

Abstract In this study lymphocytes from blood and/or spleen of different species (rat, mouse, human) were exposed to different doses of ultraviolet radiation (UVR). The functional activity of these lymphocytes was determined using assays for mitogen proliferation and the mixed lymphocyte response (MLR). These experiments demonstrated that in vitro exposure to UVR causes a dose-dependent decrease of the MLR activity of the irradiated lymphocytes. Viability of lymphocytes and mitogen proliferation responses were also decreased by UVR exposure but less severe in comparison to the MLR. Lymphocytes of rats seem to be more sensitive to UVR as compared to lymphocytes of mice and humans.     

An inclusion complex between acetonitrile andp-tert-butylcalix[6]arene

p-tert-Butylcalix[6]arene forms a complex with 1.5 acetonitrile molecules, that are included in the macrocycle cavity. This complex crystallizes in the monoclinic system: space groupP2₁/m,a=14.043(4),b=16.916(11),c=14.199(11) Å,=98.27(6)°,V=3338(4) ų,Z=2 (formula units). Refinement led to a final conventionalR value of 0.113 for 1654 reflections. Thepinched cone conformation of the calixarene is the same as that of the neutral and freeR-calix[6]arene already described. The two acetonitrile molecules interact with some phenyl ring -clouds, a methylene bridge and sometert-butyl groups of the calixarene. Supplementary Data relating to this article (atomic coordinates for hydrogen atoms, anisotropic displacement parameters, selected geometrical parameters and observed and calculated structure factors) are deposited with the British Library as Supplementary Publication No. SUP 82188 (16 pages).     

Li15Al3Si6 (Li14.6Al3.4Si6), a compound displaying a heterographite‐like anionic framework

The title compound, lithium aluminium silicide (15/3/6), crystallizes in the hexagonal centrosymmetric space group P6₃/m. The three‐dimensional structure of this ternary compound may be depicted as two interpenetrating lattices, namely a graphite‐like Li₃Al₃Si₆ layer and a distorted diamond‐like lithium lattice. As is commonly found for LiAl alloys, the Li and Al atoms are found to share some crystallographic sites. The diamond‐like lattice is built up of Li cations, and the graphite‐like anionic layer is composed of Si, Al and Li atoms in which Si and Al are covalently bonded [Si—Al = 2.4672 (4) Å].     

Western blot detection of brain material in heated meat products using myelin basic protein and neuron-specific enolase as biomarkers

An assay based on Western blotting and detection of central nervous system (CNS)-specific antigens was developed to detect brain tissue in processed (heated) meat products. Bands of antigen-bound primary antibodies were visualised through secondary anti-antibodies labelled with peroxidase, which generated chemiluminescence documented by a photographic film. Ponceau-S staining before antibody incubation and molecular mass information on detected antigens after immunoreactions added information supporting correct identification of brain tissue in the meat products. In this approach B50/growth-associated protein (B50), glial fibrillary acidic protein (GFAP), myelin basic protein (MBP), neurofilament (NF), neuron-specific enolase (NSE) and synaptophysin (Syn) proteins were detected in raw luncheon meat and a liver product enriched with brain tissue at a level of 5% (m/m). Only MBP and NSE were considered suitable biomarkers for detection of 1% (m/m) brain tissue in meat products pasteurised at 70 °C or sterilised at 115 °C. The use of an anti-monkey MBP instead of anti-human MBP enabled speciation of the CNS material whether from bovine and ovine brains or from porcine brain tissue. This immunoblot assay potentiates the analysis of approximately 70 samples within 8 h, including sample preparation and the simultaneous probing of NSE and MBP target antigens.     

Temperature dependence of electron spin resonance in CaCu3Ti4O12 substituted with transition metal elements

The temperature dependence of the electron spin resonance (ESR) spectrum of copper in CaCu₃Ti₄O₁₂ (CCTO) polycrystalline samples doped with transition metal elements Mn, Fe, Ni is reported. The frequency dependence of the dielectric constant of the sample is also reported at room temperature. While the dielectric constant of undoped CCTO samples reaches ～10,000, it is found one hundred times lower in samples doped with only 0.5 or 1% of Mn or Fe. Copper is confirmed to give a g = 2.14 signal at room temperature for substituted and unsubstituted samples. Below the antiferromagnetic transition that occurs near 25 K, the signal is found shifted down to low fields for all samples. However the downshift is 10–20 times more important in Mn and Fe-doped samples compared to undoped or Ni-doped CCTO. ESR results in an undoped CCTO thin film grown by pulse laser deposition are also reported. While in the low-temperature antiferromagnetic phase the spectrum is multi-line and magnetic-field-orientation-dependent, it reduces to a narrow single line, independent of the orientation of the magnetic field, in the upper paramagnetic phase, similar to the undoped polycrystalline sample. All doped samples display much broader response in the upper phase. The results are discussed within the framework of the relationship between the high effective dielectric constant and the electrical conductivity of CCTO bulk.     

Mechanical Reversibility of Strain‐Promoted Azide–Alkyne Cycloaddition Reactions

Mechanophores, that is, molecules that show a defined response to force, are crucial building blocks of mechanoresponsive materials. The possibility of mechanically induced cycloreversion for a series of triazoles formed via strain‐promoted azide–alkyne cycloaddition reactions was investigated by density functional theory calculations, and these triazoles were compared to the 1,4‐ and 1,5‐regioisomers formed in the reaction of an azide with a terminal alkyne. We show that cycloreversion is in principal possible and that the pulling geometry is the most important parameter that determines the probability of cycloreversion. We further compared triazole stability to the mechanical stability of polymers that are frequently used as force transducers in mechanochemical experiments and identified DIBAC (azadibenzylcyclooctyne) as a promising mechanophore for future applications.     

Monitoring of Generation and Stability of Droplets in Miniemulsion Polymerizarion Using the Near‐Infrared Spectroscopy

Strategies have been successfully developed for the monitoring of the homo and copolymerization of styrene and butyl acrylate in a miniemulsion system using near‐infrared (NIR) spectroscopy. Different concentrations of costabilizer, stearyl methacrylate, are tested to obtain the best stabilization condition. The spectral data are associated with the properties of the reaction medium, such as particle average diameter, conversion, number, and surface area of particles, through linear regression based on partial least squares. It is observed that the NIR spectrophotometer is sensitive to the dynamics of miniemulsion polymerization reactions, thus confirming the promising aspect of NIR technology for monitoring the latex properties.

     

Thermodynamic properties of naphthalene and uric acid in ethylene glycol-water mixtures

The solubility of naphthalene and uric acid was measured as function of temperature (5–45°C) in water(W)-ethylene glycol(EG) mixtures over the entire composition range. The molar solubility data were used to calculate transfer Gibbs energies G _tr ⁰ (WW-EG) (from water to water-ethylene glycol mixtures) and the temperature dependence of G⁰ was used to compute the corresponding transfer enthalpies and heat capacities. The thermodynamic quantities are interpreted in terms of two contributions; a cavity term which is estimated using the scaled particle theory (SPT) and a solute-solvent interaction term. The latter is inferred from comparisons involving the SPT results and the naphthalene data, or the data for naphthalene and uric acid. The solvation effects in W-EG mixtures are discussed with reference to thermodynamic properties of the solvent mixtures available from previous work.