Effect of polymer and ion concentration on mechanical and drug release behavior of gellan hydrogels using factorial design

Developing optimized hydrogel products requires an in-depth understanding of the mechanisms that drive hydrogel tunability. Here, we performed a full 4 × 4 factorial design study investigating the impact of gellan, a naturally derived polysaccharide (1%, 2%, 3%, or 4% w/v) and CaCl₂ concentration (1, 3, 7, or 10 mM) on the viscoelastic, swelling, and drug release behavior of gellan hydrogels containing a model drug, vancomycin. These concentrations were chosen to specifically provide insight into gellan hydrogel behavior for formulations utilizing polymer and salt concentrations expanding beyond those commonly reported by previous studies exploring gellan. With increasing gellan and CaCl₂ concentration, the hydrogel storage moduli (0.1–100 kPa) followed a power-law relationship and on average these hydrogels had higher liquid absorption capability and greater total drug release over 6 days. We suggest that the effects of gellan and CaCl₂ concentration and their interactions on hydrogel properties can be explained by various phenomena that lead to increased swelling and increased resistance to network expansion.     

Studies on the changes in the composition of solvent during photochemical generation of uranous ions in uranium loaded 30 % TBP-n-dodecane-HNO3 system

Present investigation describes our study on photochemical generation of uranous ions and consequent degradation of solvent in the uranium loaded 30 % Tributyl phosphate-n-dodecane-nitric acid system. Samples of 30 % TBP-n-dodecane loaded with uranium were subjected to UV photolysis at 254, 300 and 350 nm respectively. Wavelength dependent formation of U(IV) has been determined spectrophotometrically by measuring absorbance at 656 nm. Additionally, photochemical yield of U(IV) has also been estimated semi quantitatively as a function of time of photolysis. The changes in the solvent composition under different photochemical conditions have been studied by examination of comparative gas chromatographic profiles of the solvent before and after photolysis. Among the wavelength of photo irradiation studied, the yield of U(IV) was found to be optimum at 300 nm with least degradation of PUREX solvent.     

Fractional distribution of graphene oxide and its potential as an efficient and reusable solid catalyst for esterification reactions

Graphene oxide (GrO) prepared by the Hummers method was separated into three different fractions (GrO₅₀₀₀, GrO₂₀₀₀, and GrO_res) on the basis of their dispersion stability in the water. Infrared, nuclear magnetic resonance, X‐ray photoelectron spectroscopy, and elemental analyses revealed that GrO₅₀₀₀ possesses a high degree of oxygen functionalities including phenolic, carboxylic, and ?OSO₂H groups, compared with the other fractions. The GrO₅₀₀₀ was found to be a highly efficient and reusable solid catalyst for the esterification of various carboxylic acids with a variety of alcohols to furnish corresponding esters in high to excellent yields. The catalytic activity of the GrO₅₀₀₀ was attributed to the ability of highly polar GrO₅₀₀₀ scaffold to adsorb/attract reactants, where the acid functionalities of GrO₅₀₀₀ facilitated the esterification process efficiently. The chemical and structural features of GrO₅₀₀₀ were discussed to understand the improved catalytic activity compared with GrO₂₀₀₀ and conventional solid acid catalysts. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Synthesis of New Benzosubstituted Dioxaphosphonines Containing Quinoxaline Subunit

A simple and efficient synthesis of previously unknown benzosubstituted dioxaphosphonines containing a quinoxaline subunit is described. Reasonably good yields of the products, mild reaction conditions, and convenient work-up are the advantages of this method. The procedure does not require any catalyst or activator and can be efficiently achieved via dianion cyclization. All the synthesized compounds have been characterized by satisfactory elemental analyses and spectral (IR, ¹H, ¹³C, ³¹P NMR, and mass) studies.

Supplemental materials are available for this article. Go to the publisher's online edition of Phosphorus, Sulfur, and Silicon and the Related Elements to view the free supplemental file.     

Synthesis of nanoplate bismuth oxychloride—a visible light active material

We have synthesized bismuth oxychloride (BiOCl) by wet chemical route. Characterization of the synthesized samples has been carried out using XRD, SEM with EDAX, HRTEM, FT-IR, Raman Spectroscopy, PL and UV. XRD and SEM analysis confirms crystallite size varying from 20–40 nm. FTIR spectrum indicates that the prepared material is highly pure and there is no water molecule present. Raman and photoluminescence spectrum of the bismuth oxychloridenanoplate demonstrated strong blue light emission which brings them in a special class of materials which work under visible light exposure. UV-Vis spectroscopy shows very less charge carriers transit time under visible light thus confirming excellent photocatalytic properties of material.     

Synthesis and Characterization of Dichlorotin(IV)trithiophosphates and Their Adducts with Nitrogen Donor Bases

Abstract

Dichlorotin(IV)trithiophosphates [(RO)P(S)S ₂ ]SnCl ₂ were prepared by the reaction of methanolic solution of SnCl ₄ and dipotassium salt of trithiophosphates in a 1:1 molar ratio and their adducts [(RO)P(S)S ₂ ]SnCl _2.N ₂ C ₁₂ H ₈ and [(RO)P(S)S ₂ ]SnCl _2.N ₂ C ₁₀ H ₈ were prepared by the reaction of methanolic solution of [(RO)P(S)S ₂ ]SnCl ₂ and N-donor bases in a 1:1 molar ratio. These newly synthesised derivatives have been characterized by elemental analysis; molecular weight measurements; and IR, ¹³ C, ³¹ p and ¹¹⁹ Sn NMR spectral studies. Coordination number of four and six was suggested for dichlorotin (IV)trithiophosphates and their adducts with N-donor bases respectively.     

SYNTHESIS AND CHARACTERIzATION OF TRIPHENYLANTIMONY (V) (O-ALKYL,O-CYCLOALKYL AND O-ARYLTRITHIOPHOSPHATES)

Triphenylantimony (V) (O-alkyl,O-cycloalkyl and O-aryltrithiophosphates) of the type Ph ₃ Sb[S ₂ (S)P(OR)] (R = Me, Et, Pr ⁿ , Pr ⁱ , Bu ⁿ , Bu ^s , Bu ⁱ , Am ⁱ , Ph and C.h. = cyclohexyl) have been synthesized for the first time by the reaction of triphenylantimony (V) dibromide with potassium trithiophosphates in 1:1 molar ratio in methanol. These new compounds have been characterized by elemental analysis, molecular weight determinations, and spectroscopic (IR,¹³C and ³¹P NMR) studies. On the basis of these data trigonal bipyramidal geometry has been proposed for these compounds.     

Identification of potential HIV-1 integrase strand transfer inhibitors: In silico virtual screening and QM/MM docking studies

HIV-1 integrase (IN) is a retroviral enzyme that catalyses integration of the reverse-transcribed viral DNA into the host genome, which is necessary for efficient viral replication. In this study, we have performed an in silico virtual screening for the identification of potential HIV-1 IN strand transfer (ST) inhibitors. Pharmacophore modelling and atom-based 3D-QSAR studies were carried out for a series of compounds belonging to 3-Hydroxypyrimidine-2,4-diones. Based on the ligand-based pharmacophore model, we obtained a five-point pharmacophore with two hydrogen bond acceptors (A), one hydrogen bond donor (D), one hydrophobic group (H) and one aromatic ring (R) as pharmacophoric features. The pharmacophore hypothesis AADHR was used as a 3D query in a sequential virtual screening study to filter small molecule databases Maybridge, ChemBridge and Asinex. Hits matching with pharmacophore hypothesis AADHR were retrieved and passed progressively through Lipinski’s rule of five filtering, molecular docking and hierarchical clustering. The five compounds with best hits with novel and diverse chemotypes were subjected to QM/MM docking, which showed improved docking accuracy. We further performed molecular dynamics simulation and found three compounds that form stable interactions with key residues. These compounds could be used as a leads for further drug development and rational design of HIV-1 IN inhibitors.     

Fabrication and characterization of electrochemical double layer capacitors using ionic liquid-based gel polymer electrolyte with chemically treated activated charcoal electrodes

The present investigation deals with electrochemical double layer capacitors (EDLCs) made up of ionic liquid (IL)-based gel polymer electrolytes with chemically treated activated charcoal electrodes. The gel polymer electrolyte comprising of poly(vinylidine fluoride-co-hexafluropropylene) (PVdF-HFP)–1-ethyl-2,3-dimethyl-imidazolium-tetrafluroborate [EDiMIM][BF₄]–propylene carbonate (PC)–magnesium perchlorate (Mg(ClO₄)₂) exhibits the highest ionic conductivity of ~8.4?×?10^?3?S?cm^?1 at room temperature (~20 °C), showing good mechanical and dimensional stability, suitable for their application in EDLCs. Activation of charcoal was done by impregnation method using potassium hydroxide (KOH) as activating agent. Brunauer–Emmett–Teller (BET) studies reveal that the effective surface area of treated activated charcoal powder (1,515 m²?g^?1) increases by more than double-fold compared to the untreated one (721 m²?g^?1). Performance of EDLCs has been tested using cyclic voltammetry, impedance spectroscopy, and charge–discharge techniques. Analysis shows that chemically treated activated charcoal electrodes have almost triple times more capacitance values as compared to the untreated one.