Alkylated chitosans of low molecular weight as non-viral transfection vectors for gene therapy

Low molecular weight chitosans (5 kDa) hydrophobically modified with 3, 10, and 18 mol % of tetradecenoyl (TDC) groups have been synthesized. Their good solubility at neutral pH, their surface activity and micelle-forming properties as well as their ability to interact with negatively charged phospholipid vesicles mimicking the internal layer of cell plasma membranes, allow us to consider them as potential non-viral transfection vectors for gene therapy.     

Limits on gravitational-wave emission from selected pulsars using LIGO data

We place direct upper limits on the amplitude of gravitational waves from 28 isolated radio pulsars by a coherent multidetector analysis of the data collected during the second science run of the LIGO interferometric detectors. These are the first direct upper limits for 26 of the 28 pulsars. We use coordinated radio observations for the first time to build radio-guided phase templates for the expected gravitational-wave signals. The unprecedented sensitivity of the detectors allows us to set strain upper limits as low as a few times 10(-24). These strain limits translate into limits on the equatorial ellipticities of the pulsars, which are smaller than 10(-5) for the four closest pulsars.     

Selective oxidation of sulfides to sulfoxides using 30% hydrogen peroxide catalyzed with a recoverable silica-based tungstate interphase catalyst

Various types of aromatic and aliphatic sulfides are selectively oxidized to sulfoxides and sulfones in good to excellent yields using 30% H2O2 in the presence of catalytic amounts of a novel recoverable silica-based tungstate interphase catalyst at room temperature. The catalyst can be recovered and reused for at least eight reaction cycles under the described reaction conditions without considerable loss of reactivity. [reaction: see text]     

Hydrophobically Associating Alginate Derivatives: Surface Tension Properties of Their Mixed Aqueous Solutions with Oppositely Charged Surfactants

The comparative study of the interfacial properties of an anionic polysaccharide, sodium alginate (Alg), and its hydrophobically modified derivative (Alg-C(12)), covalently substituted by dodecyl chains (12% mol/mol saccharide unit), was carried out in the absence or in the presence of an oppositely charged surfactant, dodecyltrimethylammonium bromide (DTAB). The drastically different behaviors which were observed are interpreted in terms of the arrangement and mobility of the hydrophobic long alkyl chains, depending on the nature of their fixation, covalent or ionic, on the polysaccharide backbone. Copyright 2000 Academic Press.     

Development of PVC/Silica Hybrids Using PVC Plastisols

A novel method for producing a plasticised PVC with increased porosity has been developed, by the use of an organic-inorganic hybrid. Silica was produced in situ from tetraethoxysilane via a hydrolytic sol-gel processing route. Tetrahydrofuran was used as co-solvent, and γ-glycidyloxypropyl-trimethoxysilane as coupling agent. The films produced were transparent, with moderate mechanical properties. A film containing 20% silica showed a 45% increase in water vapour permeability.     

Laser‐micromachined cellulose acetate adhesive tape as a low‐cost smart material

An off‐the‐shelf, moisture‐responsive, acetate‐backed adhesive tape is investigated as a commercially available smart material for fabricating low‐cost, multifunctional, humidity‐responsive millimeter‐scale structures. Laser ablation is used for cutting and thinning‐down the tape to enhance its response. Water‐submerged cantilevers show a radius of curvature of 3 mm or lower (for laser‐thinned cantilevers). Additionally, their humidity response is a function of the angle between the longitudinal axis of the cantilever and polymer orientation. A cut angled at 80° with respect to this orientation results in a tip rotation of up to 25°, enabling the formation of bending cantilevers with twisting behavior. The tape cantilevers are further functionalized with magnetic nanoparticles and used to create four‐finger grippers that close underwater within minutes and can sample 100 µL of liquid. A cyclic humidity monitor is also fabricated using a tape strip that walks unidirectionally on a ratchet‐shaped surface upon exposure to humidity variations. © 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Polym. Sci., Part B: Polym. Phys. 2013 , 51, 1263–1267     

A novel and simple method for the preparation of (R)- and (S)-pyrrolidine-2-phosphonic acids: phosphonic acid analogues of proline

A simple and convenient method has been developed for the preparation of (R)- and (S)-pyrrolidine-2-phosphonic acids. The thermal reaction of proline with diethyl phosphite in the presence of benzaldehyde gave an N-benzyl derivative of diethyl pyrrolidine-2-phosphonate, which was transformed into two diastereomeric amides by sequential debenzylation and acylation with (+)-dibenzoyl-l-tartaric anhydride. The two diastereomeric amides were separated by column chromatography and the structure of one of them was determined by X-ray crystallographic analysis. Hydrolysis of the amides in the usual manner afforded (R)- and (S)-pyrrolidine-2-phosphonic acids. The advantages of the present method are that it is easy, rapid, and prepares both enantiomers of pyrrolidine-2-phosphonic acids.     

Extended finite element modeling of deformable porous media with arbitrary interfaces

In this paper, an enriched finite element method is presented for numerical simulation of saturated porous media. The arbitrary discontinuities, such as material interfaces, are encountered via the extended finite element method (X-FEM) by enhancing the standard FEM displacements. The X-FEM technique is applied to the governing equations of porous media for the spatial discretization, followed by a generalized Newmark scheme used for the time domain discretization. In X-FEM, the material interfaces are represented independently of element boundaries and the process is accomplished by partitioning the domain with some triangular sub-elements whose Gauss points are used for integration of the domain of elements. Finally, several numerical examples are analyzed, including the dynamic analysis of the failure of lower San Fernando dam, to demonstrate the efficiency of the X-FEM technique in saturated porous soils.