Thermally-actuated, phase change flow control for microfluidic systems

An easy to implement, thermally-actuated, noninvasive method for flow control in microfluidic devices is described. This technique takes advantage of the phase change of the working liquid itself-the freezing and melting of a portion of a liquid slug-to noninvasively close and open flow passages (referred to as a phase change valve). The valve was designed for use in a miniature diagnostic system for detecting pathogens in oral fluids at the point of care. The paper describes the modeling, construction, and characteristics of the valve. The experimental results favorably agree with theoretical predictions. In addition, the paper demonstrates the use of the phase change valves for flow control, sample metering and distribution into multiple analysis paths, sealing of a polymerase chain reaction (PCR) chamber, and sample introduction into and withdrawal from a closed loop. The phase change valve is electronically addressable, does not require any moving parts, introduces only minimal dead volume, is leakage and contamination free, and is biocompatible.     

Designing new isomorphic fluorescent nucleobase analogues: the thieno[3,2-d]pyrimidine core

A convergent approach for a family of fluorescent nucleosides is described. It relies on thieno[3,2-d]pyrimidine-2,4(1H,3H)-dione that serves as a core heterocycle. This condensed pyrimidine is converted into an emissive pyrimidine nucleoside analogue by N-glycosylation and into an emissive purine nucleoside analogue by C-glycosidation at the thiophene's beta position. The design principles of this archetypical system are outlined together with the syntheses and photophysical properties of the resulting nucleosides.     

Behavior of Piezoelectric Beams under Axially Non-uniform Distributed Loading

The paper presents a generic solution methodology for a quasi-static homogeneous monoclinic piezoelectric beam under axially distributed electric and mechanical surface loads and body forces expressed as polynomials of degree K≥ 0 of the axis variable. (In the absence of any electrical loading, this problem is known as the Almansi–Michell problem). The stress and the electrical displacement components are presented as a set of polynomials of degree ≤K+2 of the axis variable (“solution hypothesis”) containing 4K unknown tip loading constants and 3K stress functions of two variables. The cases K=0,1 stand for uniform or linear distributed loads in the axis direction. The analysis is initiated by the Kth level and continues down to lower levels. The main result of this work generalizes the “elastic” solution given recently by O. Rand and the first author (2005). Examples of solutions for axially uniform distributed loads (K=0), and equilibrium in which the stress and the electrical displacement do not depend on the axis variable, are presented. The applications to constant body loads and a hydrostatic pressure are considered.      

Mono-detection spatially super resolved microwave imaging for RADAR applications

In this paper we present a novel RF photonic approach to radar scanning and imaging. The operating principle is based upon a system in which several (in our case two) radiating microwave sources generate and project at far field, a moving grating pattern over an object, e.g. by linearly modifying the relative phase between the microwave sources. Capturing a set of such integrated reflections (we work only with a mono detector) coming from the object at different radio frequencies (due to a simultaneously performed spectral scanning) can spatially reconstruct high resolution image of the object despite the fact that the sensing was performed with a small mono receiving antenna.     

QM/MM study of the active species of the human cytochrome P450 3A4, and the influence thereof of the multiple substrate binding

Cytochrome P450 3A4 is involved in the metabolism of 50% of all swallowed drugs. The enzyme functions by means of a high-valent iron-oxo species, called compound I (Cpd I), which is formed after entrance of the substrate to the active site. We explored the features of Cpd I using hybrid quantum mechanical/molecular mechanical calculations on various models that are either substrate-free or containing one and two molecules of diazepam as a substrate. M?ssbauer parameters of Cpd I were computed. Our major finding shows that without the substrate, Cpd I tends to elongate its Fe-S bond, localize the radical on the sulfur, and form hydrogen bonds with A305 and T309, which may hypothetically lead to Cpd I consumption by H-abstraction. However, the positioning of diazepam close to Cpd I, as enforced by the effector molecule, was found to strengthen the NH...S interactions of the conserved I443 and G444 residues with the proximal cysteinate ligand. These interactions are known to stabilize the Fe-S bond, and as such, the presence of the substrate leads to a shorter Fe-S bond and it prevents the localization of the radical on the sulfur. This diazepam-Cpd I stabilization was manifested in the 1W0E conformer. The effector substrate did not influence Cpd I directly but rather by positioning the active substrate close to Cpd I, thus displacing the hydrogen bonds with A305 and T309, and thereby giving preference to substrate oxidation. It is hypothesized that these effects on Cpd I, promoted by the restrained substrate, may be behind the special metabolic behavior observed in cases of multiple substrate binding (also called cooperative binding). This restraint constitutes a mechanism whereby substrates stabilize Cpd I sufficiently long to affect monooxygenation by P450s at the expense of Cpd I destruction by the protein residues.     

Mechanism of Crystalline Self‐Assembly in Aqueous Medium: A Combined Cryo‐TEM/Kinetic Study

Understanding the crystallization of organic molecules is a long‐standing challenge. Herein, a mechanistic study on the self‐assembly of crystalline arrays in aqueous solution is presented. The crystalline arrays are assembled from perylene diimide (PDI) amphiphiles bearing a chiral N‐acetyltyrosine side group connected to the PDI aromatic core. A kinetic study of the crystallization process was performed using circular dichroism spectroscopy combined with time‐resolved cryogenic transmission electron microscopy (cryo‐TEM) imaging of key points along the reaction coordinate, and molecular dynamics simulation of the initial stages of the assembly. The study reveals a complex self‐assembly process starting from the formation of amorphous aggregates that are transformed into crystalline material through a nucleation–growth process. Activation parameters indicate the key role of desolvation along the assembly pathway. The insights from the kinetic study correlate well with the structural data from cryo‐TEM imaging. Overall, the study reveals four stages of crystalline self‐assembly: 1) collapse into amorphous aggregates; 2) nucleation as partial ordering; 3) crystal growth; and 4) fusion of smaller crystalline aggregates into large crystals. These studies indicate that the assembly process proceeds according to a two‐step crystallization model, whereby initially formed amorphous material is reorganized into an ordered system. This process follows Ostwald’s rule of stages, evolving through a series of intermediate phases prior to forming the final structure, thus providing an insight into the crystalline self‐assembly process in aqueous medium.     

Assignment of aluminum corroles absorption bands to electronic transitions by femtosecond polarization resolved VIS-pump IR-probe spectroscopy

We combine femtosecond polarization resolved VIS-pump IR-probe spectroscopy with DFT and TD-DFT calculations to identify and assign absorption bands to electronic transitions for corroles. These macrocycles and their corresponding metal complexes are receiving great attention because of their utility in many fields, while many of their spectroscopic features have not yet been fully described. Analysis of the perturbed free induction decay provides information about the bleaching signal at time zero and allows for determination of overlapping excited state and bleaching signal amplitudes. The S(0) → S(1) and S(0) → S(2) transitions in the Q-band of the hexacoordinated Al(tpfc)(py)(2) and Br(8)Al(tpfc)(py)(2) absorption spectra are explicitly assigned. Angles between these electronic transition dipole moments (tdms) with a single vibrational transition dipole moment of (53 ± 2)° and (34 ± 2)° when excited at 580 and 620 nm for hexacoordinated Al(tpfc)(py)(2) and (51 ± 2)° and (43 ± 2)° when excited at 590 and 640 nm for hexacoordinated Br(8)Al(tpfc)(py)(2) were determined. The relative angles between the two lowest electronic tdms are (90 ± 8)° and (94 ± 3)° for Al(tpfc)(py)(2) and Br(8)Al(tpfc)(py)(2), respectively. Angles are determined before time zero by polarization resolved perturbed free induction decay and after time zero by polarization resolved transients. Comparison of corrole's wave functions with those of porphine show that the reduced symmetry in the corrole molecules results in lifting of Q-band degeneracy and major reorientation of the electronic transition dipole moments within the molecular scaffold. This information is necessary in designing optimal corrole-based electron and energy transfer complexes.     

Evolved stereoselective hydrolases for broad-spectrum G-type nerve agent detoxification

A preferred strategy for preventing nerve agents intoxication is catalytic scavenging by enzymes that hydrolyze them before they reach their targets. Using directed evolution, we simultaneously enhanced the activity of a previously described serum paraoxonase 1 (PON1) variant for hydrolysis of the toxic S(P) isomers of the most threatening G-type nerve agents. The evolved variants show ≤340-fold increased rates and catalytic efficiencies of 0.2-5?× 10(7)?M(-1) min(-1). Our selection for prevention of acetylcholinesterase inhibition also resulted in the complete reversion of PON1's stereospecificity, from an enantiomeric ratio (E)?< 6.3?× 10(-4) in favor of the R(P) isomer of a cyclosarin analog in wild-type PON1, to E > 2,500 for the S(P) isomer in an evolved variant. Given their ability to hydrolyze G-agents, these evolved variants may serve as broad-range G-agent prophylactics.     

THE PHOTOEXCITED TRIPLET STATE OF TETRAPHENYL CHLORIN, MAGNESIUM TETRAPHENYL PORPHYRIN AND WHOLE CELLS OF CHLAMYDOMONAS REINHARDI. A LIGHT MODULATION-EPR STUDY

Abstract— The photoexcited triplet states of frozen solutions of tetraphenyl chlorin (TPC), magnesium tetraphenyl porphyrin (MgTPP) and whole cells of Chlamydomonas reinhardi have been studied by light modulation-EPR spectroscopy. The porphyrins were chosen to be studied as model compounds for chlorophyll molecules, From EPR spectra the zero field splitting parameters (ZFS) were calculated. For TPC, |D| = 0.0364 ± 0.0002 cm^-1, |E| = 0.0063 ± 0.0002 cm^-1. For MgTPP, |D| = 0.0310 ± 0.0002 cm^-1. For chloroplasts, |D| = 0.0280 ± 0.0004 cm^-1, |E| = 0.0032 ± 0.0004 cm^-1. In all compounds studied, except MgTPP, electron spin polarization (ESP) was observed. From the analysis of the kinetic curves at each canonical orientation we evaluated the spin lattice relaxation rate W, the depopulation rate constants k_p, and the ratio between the population rate constants, A_p, at zero magnetic field. For TPC in ethanol-toluene (5:1) k_x= (0.70 ± 0.10) × 10³ s^-1, k_y= (0.40 ± 0.07) × 10³ s^-1, k_x= (0.24 ± 0.05) × 10³ s^-1; A_x:A_y:A_z? 1.0:0.6:0.4; W= (2.60 ± 0.40) × 10³ s^-1. For MgTPP, only the total decay rate constant, k_T, was calculated: (1.5 ± 0.2) × 10 s^-1 in n-octane and (4.8 ± 0.8) × 10 s^-1 in ethanol. The results for TPC and MgTPP are compared to those reported previously for chlorophyll. It is concluded that the dynamics of the photoexcited triplet state in chlorophylls are mainly governed by the chlorin macrocycle. From the EPR spectrum and ZFS parameters of chloroplasts, we propose that both chlorophyll a and chlorophyll b are the main constituents of the EPR spectrum. From the analysis of the kinetic curves we obtain separately the kinetic parameters for chlorophylls a and b, k^a_x= (1.30 ± 0.20) × 10³ s^-1, k^a_y;= (0.85 ± 0.15) × 10³ s^-1k^a_x= (0.32 ± 0.05) × 10³ s^-1; A^a_x:A^a_y:A^a_z? 1.0:0.7:0.2; W^a= (1.20 ± 0.20) × 10³ s^-1; k^b_x= (0.56 ± 0.09) × 10³ s^-1, k^b_y= (0.30 ± 0.04) × 10³ s^-1, k^b_z= (0.06 ± 0.01) × 10³ s^-1; A^b_x:A^b_y:A^b_x? 1.0:0.6:0.1; W^b= (5.00 ± 0.80) × 10³ s^-1. These results are very close to those found separately for chlorophyll a and chlorophyll b oligomers in vitro.