Fabrication of microgel-in-liposome particles with improved water retention

Corneocytes represents the main water reservoir of stratum corneum, and that ability intimately arises from their architecture and total composition. Here we describe a novel method for fabricating a microgel-in-liposome (M-i-L) structure consisting of a sodium hyaluronate microgel and a lipid membrane envelop in order to mimic corneocyte cell structures. The essence of our approach is to use a lecithin-based microemulsion with a very low interfacial tension between the water droplet and oil continuous phase. Using this emulsion enables us to stabilize a dispersion of microgel particles without phase separation or aggregation. The addition of excess water produced single-core or multicore microgel particles enveloped in a lipid layer. To demonstrate the applicability of this unique vesicle system, we encapsulated a high concentration of natural moisturizing factor (NMF) in the microgel core and investigated how the M-i-L structure affected the water retention in comparison with other control systems. We have observed that our M-i-L particles with the NMF in the core, which mimicked the corneocyte cell structure, showed an excellent ability to retain water in the system. This experimental result inspired us to investigate how corneocyte cells, which feature a lipid-enveloped hydrogel structure, provide such long-lasting hydration to the skin.     

Emulsion polymerization of styrene using irreversible addition–fragmentation chain transfer agents: effect on the course of the polymerization and molecular weight

The emulsion polymerization of styrene with three different chain transfer agents (CTAs) based on irreversible addition–fragmentation chain transfer (AFCT) mechanism was first reported in this work. The influences of these irreversible AFCT agents on the rate of polymerization, particle size, and molecular weight were investigated. It was found that the intrinsic activity and desorption behaviors of the CTAs determined the efficiency for molecular weight control, rate of polymerization, and particle size in the emulsion polymerization. It has been demonstrated that the rate of polymerization and particle size decreased dramatically in the presence of the irreversible AFCT agents with high chain transfer constant (ethyl α-p-toluenesulfonyl-methacrylate), meanwhile, the molecular weight of the polystyrene could not be controlled well, whereas the irreversible AFCT agents with low chain transfer constant (butyl(2-phenylallyl)sulfane and 2,3-dichloropropene) had a slight effect on the polymerization rate, particle size, and were fairly well for molecular weight control over the whole conversion range in the emulsion polymerization of styrene. The average number of radicals per particle and the number-average molecular weight were calculated by classical radical emulsion polymerization theory, and the experimental results were in good agreement with the results of model calculations, when the irreversible AFCT agents were used as CTAs. The effect of chain transfer agents on the kinetics and nucleation in the emulsion polymerization of styrene can be attributed to desorption of chain-transferred radicals from the polymer particles. The results of this work show that butyl(2-phenylallyl)sulfane as CTA in emulsion polymerization of styrene provides the best balance between the rate of polymerization and the efficiency for molecular weight control conflicting tendencies.     

用光刺激放电法研究纳米粉末掺杂低密度聚乙烯中陷阱能级

通过光刺激放电(PSD)技术研究了纳米粉末掺杂低密度聚乙烯(LDPE)中的陷阱能级.利用连续扫描法得到了不同掺杂比例的Al₂O₃,MgO纳米粉末掺杂试样以及相同掺杂比例的多种纳米粉末掺杂试样的PSD电流谱,定性地得出了试样陷阱能级的深浅变化.分步扫描法定量地描述了LDPE试样在Al₂O₃纳米掺杂前后陷阱能量分布的变化.结果表明,掺杂比例大于0.2%的Al₂O₃纳米粉末掺杂、大于0.5%的MgO纳米粉末掺杂能够显著地使得LDPE陷阱能级变深.结合纳米掺杂对LDPE空间电荷注入影响的相关报道,可推测纳米掺杂对空间电荷注入的抑制与试样中陷阱能级变深存在密切的关联.     

Characteristic ion clusters as determinants for the identification of pyrrolizidine alkaloid N-oxides in pyrrolizidine alkaloid-containing natural products using HPLC-MS analysis

Pyrrolizidine alkaloid (PA)-containing plants are widely distributed in the world. PAs are hepatotoxic, affecting livestock and humans. PA N-oxides are often present together with PAs in plants and also exhibit hepatotoxicity but with less potency. HPLC-MS is generally used to analyze PA-containing herbs, although PA references are unavailable in most cases. However, to date, without reference standards, HPLC-MS methodology cannot distinguish PA N-oxides from PAs because they both produce the same characteristic ions in mass spectra. In the present study, the mass spectra of 10 PA N-oxides and the corresponding PAs were systemically investigated using HPLC-MS to define the characteristic mass fragment ions specific to PAs and PA N-oxides. Mass spectra of toxic retronecine-type PA N-oxides exhibited two characteristic ion clusters at m/z 118-120 and 136-138. These ion clusters were produced by three unique fragmentation pathways of PA N-oxides and were not found in their corresponding PAs. Similarly, the nontoxic platynecine-type PA N-oxides also fragmented via three similar pathways to form two characteristic ion clusters at m/z 120-122 and 138-140. Further application of using these characteristic ion clusters allowed successful and rapid identification of PAs and PA N-oxides in two PA-containing herbal plants. Our results demonstrated, for the first time, that these characteristic ion clusters are unique determinants to discriminate PA N-oxides from PAs even without the availability of reference samples. Our findings provide a novel and specific method to differentiate PA N-oxides from PAs in PA-containing natural products, which is crucial for the assessment of their intoxication.     

Quasi-elastic scattering of the proton drip line nucleus 17F on 12C at 60 MeV

The quasi-elastic scattering angular distribution of the proton drip line nucleus ¹⁷F on a ¹²C target was measured at 60 MeV. The experimental data have been compared with the theoretical analysis based onto optical model and continuum discretized coupled channels (CDCC). The couplings between breakup and elastic scattering channels, and between inelastic and elastic scattering channels resulted very weak. In order to explore the breakup effects the total reaction cross-section was deduced from the angular distribution of the quasi-elastic scattering data, and then compared with the existing data for the other weakly and tightly bound nuclei on ¹²C target using a universal function. From this comparison, we concluded that the breakup effect is not important for weakly bound projectiles on the light target as obtained also with the CDCC analysis.     

Exchange bias behavior of monodisperse Fe3O4/γ-Fe2O3 core/shell nanoparticles

We have carried out systematic studies on well-characterized monodisperse Fe₃O₄/γ-Fe₂O₃ core/shell nanoparticles of 2-30 nm having a very narrow size distribution and possessing a uniquely mono-layer of surface γ-Fe₂O₃. This unique core-shell structure, probably having a disordered magnetic surface state, leads us to three key observations of unusual magnetic properties: i) a very large magnetic exchange anisotropy reaching over 7 × 10⁶ erg/cm³ for the smaller particles, ii) exchange bias behavior in the magnetization data of the core/shell Fe₃O₄/γ-Fe₂O₃ nanoparticles, and iii) the temperature dependence of the coercive field following an unusual exponential behavior.     

Novel optical add-drop multiplexer based on dual racetrack resonators

In this paper, we designed and fabricated a four-channel optical add-drop multiplexer (OADM) based on dual racetrack resonators. The size of the fabricated device is only 2400 μm × 500 μm. The fabricated device can effectively and perfectly realize the signals upload and download. The free spectral range (FSR) of OADM is about 15.2 nm. We take the spectral responses near 1555 nm as an example. When the device acts as an optical drop multiplexer, the minimum insertion loss is 4.481 dB and the maximum extinction ratio is 31.931 dB. The maximum adjacent channels crosstalk is -9.845 dB. When the device acts as an optical add multiplexer, the minimum insertion loss is 0.944 dB and all of the extinction ratios are bigger than 25 dB. The maximum crosstalk is -16.531 dB which indicates the crosstalk can be neglected.     

Drynariae rhizoma increases immune response in mice

Drynariae Rhizoma (DR), a traditional Korean herbal medicine, has long been used for vital energy and to strengthen health in Korea. However, it is still unclear how DR has the effects in experimental models. We examined the immune-enhancing effect of DR in mice using the forced swimming test (FST) and in vitro tests with peritoneal macrophages. After daily oral administration of DR, blood biochemical parameters related to fatigue were measured after the FST. The immobility time in the FST was significantly decreased in the DR-treated group (100 mg/kg) on the 3th days. DR (10 and 100 mg/kg) treatment significantly decreased creatine kinase and lactic dehydrogenase levels, which are accurate indicators of muscle damage. Further, we examined how DR regulates nitric oxide (NO) production and tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF-alpha) production and in mouse peritoneal macrophages. When DR was used in combination with recombinant interferon-gamma (rIFN-gamma), there were noticeable cooperative productions of NO and TNF-alpha. These results suggest that DR improves immune function through the changes in indicators related to fatigue and the regulatory effects on immunological parameters, such as NO and TNF-alpha productions.     

Fast quality assessment of German chamomile (Matricaria chamomilla L.) by headspace solid-phase microextraction: influence of flower development stage

For an adequate quality evaluation of aromatic plants grown under different conditions, a rapid, simple and sensitive method for the analysis of volatile constituents is indispensable. The main objective of the present study was to compare fast screening of German chamomile (Matricaria chamomilla L.) by means of headspace solid-phase microextraction (HS-SPME) with conventional isolation of the essential oil (steam distillation-solvent extraction (SDSE)) for the differentiation of chamomile essential oil constituents. Flowers were harvested at two distinct development stages: stage I, when ligulate flowers start to develop and tubular flowers are still closed, and stage II, when tubular flowers are partially to completely opened. Dried chamomile flowers at two development stages were extracted by means of both SDSE and HS-SPME, followed by GC-MS analysis. Among 30 compounds detected, (E)-beta-farnesene (49%), artemisia ketone (10%) and germacrene D (9%) were the predominant volatile components in the HS-SPME-extract, while alpha-bisabolol oxide A (42%), chamazulene (21%) and (Z)-spiroether (8%) were the main essential oil constituents among the 13 compounds obtained by SDSE. After statistical analysis of the data, both techniques enabled the same conclusion: (E)-beta-farnesene was the only compound which showed significant differences between the two flower development stages. These results suggest that HS-SPME-GC-MS can be used as a sensitive technique for the rapid screening and quality assessment of M. chamomilla.