Surface grafting of a thermoplastic polyurethane with methacrylic acid by previous plasma surface activation and by ultraviolet irradiation to reduce cell adhesion

The material performance, in a biological environment, is mainly mediated by its surface properties and by the combination of chemical, physical, biological, and mechanical properties required, for a specific application.In this study, the surface of a thermoplastic polyurethane (TPU) material (Elastollan^®1180A50) was activated either by plasma or by ultra-violet (UV) irradiation. After surface activation, methacrylic acid (MAA) was linked to the surface of TPU in order to improve its reactivity and to reduce cell adhesion. Grafted surfaces were evaluated by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), by atomic force microscopy (AFM) and by contact angle measurements. Blood compatibility studies and cell adhesion tests with human bone marrow cells (HBMC) were also performed.If was found that UV grafting method led to better results than the plasma activation method, since cell adhesion was reduced when methacrylic acid was grafted to the TPU surface by UV.     

Quality assurance in forensic science

 Forensic examination results play an increasingly important role in bringing many criminal investigations to a successful conclusion. The quality of the results of examinations performed in forensic science laboratories has always been the concern of the individual forensic scientist. The interpretations and results are presented in court to non-experts. Therefore, it is essential to ensure and maintain the highest standards of achievements and accuracy in forensic science. Many factors are important contributors to quality assurance in forensic science. Some unique subjects affect not only the mode of inquiry but also the way in which information is presented to the court, i.e. exhibits collection and sample handling, investigation, examination techniques, report writing and court testimony.     

Cholesterol-containing liquid crystal dimers with ether linkages between the spacer and mesogenic units

Three series of chiral liquid crystalline dimers were investigated, having a cholesteryl and a cyanobiphenylyl, butoxybiphenylyl or hexyloxybiphenylyl group connected to a variable alkyl spacer through ether linkages. Their properties were compared with those of the corresponding ester derivatives. The phase behaviour of compounds with ether and ester linkages is comparable, showing N* and SmA phases. The melting points of the compounds with ether linkages are in the same range as those of the ester compounds, but the liquid crystal transition temperatures are lower. The smectic layer spacings and smectic ordering properties are also similar. The cyanobiphenylyl compounds have an interdigitated SmA layer structure, which shows a small odd-even effect with spacer parity. The alkoxybiphenylyl compounds have a monolayer SmA phase for short spacers and an intercalated SmA phase for longer spacers. The selective reflection wavelengths of the chiral nematic phase of the ether compounds are lower than those of the corresponding ester compounds. The transition from N* to interdigitated or monolayer SmA is accompanied by a strong increase in the selective reflection wavelength, indicative of an intermediate TGB phase. This is absent for the transition from N* to intercalated SmA.     

Diastereoselective synthesis of α,α′-disubstituted β-ketophosphonates derivatives as building blocks for automated syntheses

A convenient and efficient synthesis of α,α′-disubstituted β-ketophosphonic derivatives in good to excellent de’s and yields has been achieved by α-acylation followed by diastereoselective α-alkylation of chiral 5-membered cyclic phosphonamidates.     

Porosity dependence of electron percolation in nanoporous TiO2 layers

The electron diffusion coefficient at varying porosity has been determined in a series of nanostructured TiO(2) films of different initial thicknesses. The porosity was changed by applying different pressures prior to sintering, thereby modifying the internal morphology of the films though not their chemical and surface conditions. A systematic increase of the effective diffusion coefficient was observed as the porosity was decreased, indicating the improvement of the internal connectivity of the network of nanoparticles. The experimental results have been rationalized using percolation theory. First of all, applying a power law dependence, the diffusion coefficient as a function of porosity from different films collapsed in a single master curve. In addition, application of the models of effective medium approximation (EMA) allows us to compare the experimental results with previous data from Monte Carlo simulation. The different data show a similar dependence in agreement with the EMA predictions, indicating that the geometrical effect of electron transport due to variation of porous morphology in TiO(2) nanoparticulate networks is well described by the percolation concept.     

Locating two obnoxious facilities using the weighted maximin criterion

Given are a finite set of points P and a compact polygonal set S in R². The problem is to locate two new facilities in S, maximizing the minimum of all weighted distances between the points in P and the two new facilities, and the distance between the pair of new facilities. We present subquadratic algorithms.     

Construction and characterization of a frequency-domain fluorescence lifetime imaging microscopy system

The construction of a homodyne frequency domain fluorescence lifetime imaging microscope is described. The system consists of (i) an intensity-modulated laser excitation source, (ii) an epifluorescence microscope, (iii) a gain-modulated microchannel plate (MCP) image intensifier, and (iv) a slow-scan CCD camera. The phase and modulation homogeneity of the MCP image intensifier were determined at frequencies of 40, 100, 160, and 240 MHz. The detected modulation depths were 65, 52, 32, and 23%, respectively, and were highly homogeneously distributed. The phasedistribution image revealed iris effects at frequencies of 160 and 240 MHz but was homogeneous at lower frequencies. Lifetime imaging of a solution of the fluorescent flavoprotein lipoamide dehydrogenase demonstrated (i) the accuracy of the determined lifetimes (< 60 ps), (ii) the time resolution of the instrument (< 50 ps), and (iii) the average precision for single pixel fluorescence lifetimes (50 ps is feasible). The imaging of tiny fluorescent microspheres revealed that even in a volume of 0.3 x 10^-15 L, the standard error in the lifetimes can be as low as 79 ps. The spatial resolution of the instrument is estimated to be < 400 nm in the object plane at a 100 x magnification.