Sorption of selenite onto chlorite considering mineral dissolution

In this study we investigated the sorption of selenite (SeO₃ ^2?) onto chlorite as a function of Se(IV) concentration, pH, and ionic strength. The sorption isotherm of Se(IV) onto chlorite was successfully presented by both the Langmuir isotherm and Tempkin equation although the Langmuir isotherm is somewhat better than the Tempkin equation. The sorption of Se(IV) onto chlorite was maintained to be constant at an acidic pH region, while the sorption decreased with an increasing pH at neutral and alkaline pH regions. However, the Se(IV) sorption onto chlorite was independent of the ionic strength of NaClO₄ solution. The amount of Se(IV) sorbed onto chlorite was significantly low compared to those of iron oxides such as apatite, goethite, hematite, and magnetite because of the lower content of Fe. We also investigated the effect of Fe(II) ions dissolved from chlorite on the Se(IV) sorption as a function of contact time. The chemical oxidation states of selenium sorbed onto chlorite surface were identified using X-ray absorption near edge structure (XANES) at the Pohang synchrotron light source. The amount of Fe(II) dissolved was increased by the contact time of 28 days but decreased after 28–56 days although the amount of dissolved Fe(II) ions was significantly small. This decrease of the dissolved Fe(II) may be due to the formation of Fe-oxyhydroxides such as ferrihydrite. The results of XANES measurements also showed that the Se(IV) sorbed onto chlorite was not reduced into Se(0) or Se(-II) even in the presence of Fe(II) ions in the solution because of the low Fe content of the chlorite although the mechanism was not clearly understood.     

Tilt angle change of nematic liquid crystal as a function of the number of graphite layers

The tilt angle of a nematic liquid crystal on a graphite flake was observed to change with increasing numbers of graphite layers. A portion of the substrate that induced homeotropic alignment was covered with graphite flakes, which induced a planar alignment. Nematic liquid crystals placed on the graphite deviated from vertical orientation to the polar angle. The angle of deviation appeared to be proportional to the number of layers and reached a limit, with almost planar alignment, at about 7–8 graphite layers. Although the main contributing factor to the tilt angle change was considered to be the result of van der Waals forces, it was seen that other long-range interaction forces needed to be considered to explain the experimental results obtained.     

Finely Formed,Kinetically Modulated Wrinkle Structures in UV‐Crosslinkable Liquid Prepolymers

Special characteristics of wrinkles such as a scattering source and a high surface area are finding use in high‐tech applications. UV‐crosslinkable prepolymers are occasionally used for fabricating wrinkled films. Wavelength of the wrinkles formed from the prepolymers is several tens and hundreds of micrometers. Here, a UV‐crosslinkable liquid prepolymer is synthesized to spontaneously form wrinkle structures in the order of several micrometers. Double layers with a very thin hard skin and a soft and contractible foundation are formed at the same time, by ensuring that all the absorbance wavelengths of the photoinitiator are shorter than the minimum wavelength at which the prepolymer is transparent. The rate of photo‐crosslinking reaction, R_p, is also found to affect the thickness of the skin and foundation layers at the early UV‐curing stage. The first‐order apparent rate constant, k_app, is between ≈0.20 and ≈0.69 s⁻¹ for the wrinkle formation. This wrinkle structures can be simply modulated by changing R_p.

     

Finite element analysis of quasistatic crack propagation in brittle media with voids or inclusions

A three-level finite element scheme is proposed for simulation of crack propagation in heterogeneous media including randomly distributed voids or inclusions. To reduce total degrees of freedom in the view of mesh gradation, the entire domain is categorized into three regions of different-level meshes: a region of coarse-level mesh, a region of intermediate-level mesh, and a region of fine-level mesh. The region of coarse-level mesh is chosen to be far from the crack to treat the material inhomogeneities in the sense of coarse-graining through homogenization, while the region near the crack is composed of the intermediate-level mesh to model the presence of inhomogeneities in detail. Furthermore, the region very near the crack tip is refined into the fine-level mesh to capture a steep gradient of elastic field due to the crack tip singularity. Variable-node finite elements are employed to satisfy the nodal connectivity and compatibility between the neighboring different-level meshes. Local remeshing is needed for readjustment of mesh near the crack tip in accordance with crack growth, and this is automatically made according to preset values of parameters determining the propagation step size of crack, and so the entire process is fully automatic. The effectiveness of the proposed scheme is demonstrated through several numerical examples. Meanwhile, the effect of voids and inclusions on the crack propagation is discussed in terms of T-stresses, with the aid of three-level adaptive scheme.     

Electrical switching between vesicles and micelles via redox-responsive self-assembly of amphiphilic rod-coils

An aqueous vesicular system that is switchable by electric potential without addition of any chemical redox agents into the solution is demonstrated using redox-responsive self-assembly of an amphiphilic rod-coil molecule consisting of a tetraaniline and a poly(ethylene glycol) block. The vesicle membrane is split by an oxidizing voltage into smaller pucklike micelles that can reassemble to form vesicles upon exposure to a reducing voltage. The switching mechanism is explained by the packing behavior of the tetraaniline units constituting the membrane core, which depends on their oxidation states.     

Comparative Study of the Effects of Light Controlled Germination Conditions on Saponarin Content in Barley Sprouts and Lipid Accumulation Suppression in HepG2 Hepatocyte and 3T3-L1 Adipocyte Cells Using Barley Sprout Extracts

Barley sprouts (BS) contain physiologically active substances and promote various positive physiological functions in the human body. The levels of the physiologically active substances in plants depend on their growth conditions. In this study, BS were germinated using differently colored LED lights and different nutrient supplements. Overall, there were 238 varied BS samples analyzed for their total polyphenol and flavonoid contents. Principal component analysis (PCA) was performed to determine the relationship between the germinated samples and their total polyphenol and flavonoid contents, and those with high levels were further analyzed for their saponarin content. Based on the PCA plot, the optimal conditions for metabolite production were blue light with 0.1% boric acid supplementation. In vitro experiments using the ethanol extract from the BS cultured in blue light showed that the extract significantly inhibited the total lipid accumulation in 3T3-L1 adipocytes and the lipid droplets in HepG2 hepatocytes. These findings suggest that specific and controlled light source and nutrient conditions for BS growth could increase the production of secondary metabolites associated with inhibited fat accumulation in adipocytes and hepatocytes.     

Ribosomal protein mutations in Korean patients with Diamond-Blackfan anemia

Diamond-Blackfan anemia (DBA) is a congenital bone marrow failure syndrome characterized by hypoproliferative anemia, associated physical malformations and a predisposition to cancer. DBA has been associated with mutations and deletions in the large and small ribosomal protein genes, and genetic aberrations have been detected in ∼50–60% of patients. In this study, nine Korean DBA patients were screened for mutations in eight known DBA genes (RPS19, RPS24, RPS17, RPS10, RPS26, RPL35A, RPL5 and RPL11) using the direct sequencing method. Mutations in RPS19, RPS26 and RPS17 were detected in four, two and one patient, respectively. Among the mutations detected in RPS19, two mutations were novel (c.26T>A, c.357-2A>G). For the mutation-negative cases, array-CGH analysis was performed to identify copy-number variations, and no deletions involving the known DBA gene regions were identified. The relative mRNA expression of RPS19 estimated using real-time quantitative PCR analysis revealed two- to fourfold reductions in RPS19 mRNA expression in three patients with RPS19 mutations, and p53 protein expression analysis by immunohistochemistry showed variable but significant nuclear staining in the DBA patients. In conclusion, heterozygous mutations in the known DBA genes RPS19, RPS26 and RPS17 were detected in seven out of nine Korean DBA patients. Among these patients, RPS19 was the most frequently mutated gene. In addition, decreased RPS19 mRNA expression and p53 overexpression were observed in the Korean DBA patients, which supports the hypothesis that haploinsufficiency and p53 hyperactivation represent a central pathway underlying the pathogenesis of DBA.