Atomic force microscopy investigation of phage infection of bacteria

Atomic force microscopy (AFM) was used to study the process of infection of bacterial cells by bacteriophages, for which purpose experimental protocols were elaborated. Three types of bacteriophages were characterized with AFM and transmission electron microscopy (TEM). Bacteriophage interaction with cells was studied for three bacterial hosts: Gram-negative Escherichia coli 057 and Salmonella enteritidis 89 and Gram-positive Bacillus thuringiensis 393. Depending on the phase of lytic cycle, different cell surface changes are observed in AFM images of infected cells in comparison with intact cells: from phage adsorption on the cells and flagella to complete lysis of the cells, accompanied by the release of a large number of newly formed phages. Control experiments (cells without phages and cells with nonspecific phages) did not reveal any surface changes. Penetration of phages inside obligate aerobe Bacillus thuringiensis was shown to be oxygen-dependent and required aeration in laboratory conditions. Our results show great potential of using AFM for numerous fundamental and applied tasks connected with pathogen-host interaction.     

Heterometallic cuboidal clusters M(3)M'Q(4) (M = Mo, W; M'= Sn, Pb, As, Sb; Q = S, Se): from coordination compounds to supramolecular adducts

Reactions of the incomplete cuboidal clusters [M3Q4(acac)3(py)3]+ (M = Mo, W; Q = S, Se) with group 14 and 15 metal complexes with the s2p0 electronic configuration (AsPh3, SbPh3, SbCl3, SbI3, PbI3-, SnCl3-) led to heterometal incorporation with the formation of cuboidal clusters of the type [M3(EX3)Q4(acac)3(py)3]n+ (n = 0 for Sn, Pb; n = 1 for As, Sb), whose structures were determined by X-ray diffraction. The cuboidal clusters can be described as complexes of the cluster tridentate ligand [M3Q4(acac)3(py)3]+ (mu2-chalcogen atoms as donors) with the EX3, where the E atom attains a distorted octahedral coordination. Analysis based on the bond distances E-Q gives the following sequence of affinity: As < Sb; Pb < Sn approximately Sb; SbPh3 < SbI3 approximately SbCl3; W3S4 < W3Se4. Interaction energies at the gas phase between [W3Q4(acac)3(py)3]+ (Q = S, Se) and SbX3 (X = I, Ph) were computed at the DFT level (BP86/TZP). The magnitude of the interaction depends strongly on the substituents at Sb, and the replacement of iodine by the phenyl group decreases the interaction energy from -9.21 to -2.70 kcal/mol and from -12.73 to -3.85 kcal/mol for the W3SbS4 and W3SbSe4 cores, respectively.     

A Molecular Pillar Approach To Grow Vertical Covalent Organic Framework Nanosheets on Graphene: Hybrid Materials for Energy Storage

Hybrid 2D–2D materials composed of perpendicularly oriented covalent organic frameworks (COFs) and graphene were prepared and tested for energy storage applications. Diboronic acid molecules covalently attached to graphene oxide (GO) were used as nucleation sites for directing vertical growth of COF‐1 nanosheets (v‐COF‐GO). The hybrid material has a forest of COF‐1 nanosheets with a thickness of 3 to 15 nm in edge‐on orientation relative to GO. The reaction performed without molecular pillars resulted in uncontrollable growth of thick COF‐1 platelets parallel to the surface of GO. The v‐COF‐GO was converted into a conductive carbon material preserving the nanostructure of precursor with ultrathin porous carbon nanosheets grafted to graphene in edge‐on orientation. It was demonstrated as a high‐performance electrode material for supercapacitors. The molecular pillar approach can be used for preparation of many other 2D‐2D materials with control of their relative orientation.     

Stable O,N-heterocyclic plumbylenes bearing sterically hindered o-amidophenolate ligands

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A molecular approach to self-assembly of trimethylsilylacetylene derivatives on gold

We recently discovered that a linear multifunctional trimethylsilylacetylene (TMSA) compound forms long-range and highly stable self-assembled monolayers (SAMs) on reconstructed Au(111). To better understand the interactions governing self-assembly in this new system, we synthesized a series of homologue organosilanes and performed scanning tunneling microscopy (STM) measurements at the Au(111)/n-tetradecane interface. The four TMSA-terminated linear silanes that we synthesized self-assemble in similar ways on gold, with the molecules standing upright on the surface. In contrast, compounds with a slightly modified terminal group but the same polyunsaturated linear chain above the TMSA head do not self-assemble. In particular, substituting a methyl group of TMSA with a more bulky one prevents self-assembly. Removing the C triple bond C triple bond of TMSA or substituting the Si atom by a C atom also hinders self-assembly. Finally, substituting one methyl group of TMSA by a hydrogen atom induces self-assembly but in a different geometry, with the molecules lying flat on the gold surface in a quasi-epitaxy mode. Our molecular approach demonstrates the key role played by the TMSA head in self-assembly, its origin being twofold: 1) the TMSA layers are commensurate to the Au(111) adlattice along the <112> direction, and 2) the C triple bond C triple bond of TMSA activates the Si atom and induces the creation of a surface Si-Au chemical bond. The highly stable TMSA-based SAMs appear then as promising materials for applications in surface modification.     

Synthesis of 3-cyano-2-fluoropyridines

The synthesis of 3-cyano-2-fluoropyridines from readily available precursors was achieved via nucleophilic substitution of a leaving group in the 2-postion with KF or Bu₄NF in polar aprotic solvents such as DMF and DMSO. Ionic tetrahydrothiophenium fragment is the most effective leaving group, the methanesulfonyl moiety is a somewhat less effective, and Br- and Cl- are the least effective. Relatively mild conditions of the reaction between (2-pyridyl)-tetrahydrothiophenium salts and KF, as well as the convenience of one-step synthesis of these salts from 2(1H)-pyridinethiones, make these salts the compounds of choice for the preparation of ring-fluorinated pyridines.     

Scaling separability criterion: application to Gaussian states

We introduce examples of three- and four-mode entangled Gaussian mixed states that are not detected by the scaling and Peres–Horodecki separability criteria. The presented modification of the scaling criterion resolves this problem. Also it is shown that the new criterion reproduces the main features of the scaling pictures for different cases of entangled states, while the previous versions lead to completely different outcomes. This property of the presented scheme is evidence of its higher generality.     

Choosability conjectures and multicircuits

This paper starts with a discussion of several old and new conjectures about choosability in graphs. In particular, the list-colouring conjecture, that ch′=χ′ for every multigraph, is shown to imply that if a line graph is (a : b)-choosable, then it is (ta : tb)-choosable for every positive integer t. It is proved that ch(H²)=χ(H²) for many “small” graphs H, including inflations of all circuits (connected 2-regular graphs) with length at most 11 except possibly length 9; and that ch″(C)=χ″(C) (the total chromatic number) for various multicircuits C, mainly of even order, where a multicircuit is a multigraph whose underlying simple graph is a circuit. In consequence, it is shown that if any of the corresponding graphs H² or T(C) is (a : b)-choosable, then it is (ta : tb)-choosable for every positive integer t.