Characterization and degradation of the poly(methylphenylsiloxane)–poly(methyl methacrylate) graft copolymer

Poly(methylphenylsiloxane)–poly(methyl methacrylate) graft copolymers (PSXE-g-PMMA) were prepared by condensation reaction of poly(methylphenylsiloxane)-containing epoxy resin (PSXE) with carboxyl-terminated poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA), and they were characterized by gel permeation chromatography (GPC), infrared (IR), and ²⁹Si and ¹³C nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR). The microstructure of the PSXE-g-PMMA graft copolymer was investigated by proton spin–spin relaxation T₂ measurements. The thermal stability and apparent activation energy for thermal degradation of these copolymers were studied by thermogravimetry and compared with unmodified PMMA. The incorporation of poly(methylphenylsiloxane) segments in graft copolymers improved thermal stability of PMMA and enhanced the activation energy for thermal degradation of PMMA. © 1998 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. J. Polym. Sci. A Polym. Chem. 36: 2521–2530, 1998     

On Bonding,Structure, and Stability of Ternary Hydrides A2MH2 (A = Li,Na; M = Pd,Pt)

Bonding, structure, and stability of solid A₂MH₂ with A = Li, Na; M = Pd, Pt were investigated with a relativistically corrected density-functional approach, which reliably describes the trends among these four compounds. In order to examine the influence of the ligands (A) and of the crystalline environment, calculations were also made for free A₂MH₂ molecules and MH₂^2– ions. The free MH₂^2– complex is held together by strong bonds between formally closed shell atomic units because of strong M-d,s hybridization. The M–H bonds are further stabilized by the alkali metal ion ligands and by the crystal surrounding. The crystal field expands the H–A distance and enhances the H–A polarity. Relativistic effects contribute to M–H bonding in the solid state. The experimentally determined bond lengths and their trends are in accordance with theory. Due to relativistic and lanthanide effects, the Pt–H bond length becomes nearly as short as the Pd–H one. The small Li ion causes a distortion of the Li₂PtH₂ crystal resulting in an even shorter Pt–H bond length. In the gas-phase, A₂PtH₂ is more stable against dissociation than A₂PdH₂. The stability of the solid compounds is strongly influenced by the cohesive energy of the metal M, and also by the nature of the alkali metal. The evaluated enthalpies of formation favor increasing stability of solid A₂MH₂ against disproportionation into M and AH from Pt to Pd and from Li to Na. This is in agreement with experimental findings. The assignment of the experimental vibrational excitations should be reconsidered.     

In situ small-angle X-ray scattering studies during the formation of polymer/silica nanocomposite particles in aqueous solution

This study is focused on the formation of polymer/silica nanocomposite particles prepared by the surfactant-free aqueous emulsion polymerization of 2,2,2-trifluoroethyl methacrylate (TFEMA) in the presence of 19 nm glycerol-functionalized aqueous silica nanoparticles using a cationic azo initiator at 60 °C. The TFEMA polymerization kinetics are monitored using ¹H NMR spectroscopy, while postmortem TEM analysis confirms that the final nanocomposite particles possess a well-defined core–shell morphology. Time-resolved small-angle X-ray scattering (SAXS) is used in conjunction with a stirrable reaction cell to monitor the evolution of the nanocomposite particle diameter, mean silica shell thickness, mean number of silica nanoparticles within the shell, silica aggregation efficiency and packing density during the TFEMA polymerization. Nucleation occurs after 10–15 min and the nascent particles quickly become swollen with TFEMA monomer, which leads to a relatively fast rate of polymerization. Additional surface area is created as these initial particles grow and anionic silica nanoparticles adsorb at the particle surface to maintain a relatively high surface coverage and hence ensure colloidal stability. At high TFEMA conversion, a contiguous silica shell is formed and essentially no further adsorption of silica nanoparticles occurs. A population balance model is introduced into the SAXS model to account for the gradual incorporation of the silica nanoparticles within the nanocomposite particles. The final PTFEMA/silica nanocomposite particles are obtained at 96% TFEMA conversion after 140 min, have a volume-average diameter of 216 ± 9 nm and contain approximately 274 silica nanoparticles within their outer shells; a silica aggregation efficiency of 75% can be achieved for such formulations.

SAXS is used to study the formation of polymer/silica nanocomposite particles prepared by surfactant-free aqueous emulsion polymerization of 2,2,2-trifluoroethyl methacrylate in the presence of silica nanoparticles using a azo initiator at 60 °C.     

Systematic investigation of the aza-Cope reaction for fluorescence imaging of formaldehyde in vitro and in vivo

Increasing evidence has highlighted the endogenous production of formaldehyde (FA) in a variety of fundamental biological processes and its involvement in many disease conditions ranging from cancer to neurodegeneration. To examine the physiological and pathological relevance and functions of FA, fluorescent probes for FA imaging in live biological samples are of great significance. Herein we report a systematic investigation of 2-aza-Cope reactions between homoallylamines and FA for identification of a highly efficient 2-aza-Cope reaction moiety and development of fluorescent probes for imaging FA in living systems. By screening a set of N-substituted homoallylamines and comparing them to previously reported homoallylamine structures for reaction with FA, we found that N-p-methoxybenzyl homoallylamine exhibited an optimal 2-aza-Cope reactivity to FA. Theoretical calculations were then performed to demonstrate that the N-substituent on homoallylamine greatly affects the condensation with FA, which is more likely the rate-determining step. Moreover, the newly identified optimal N-p-methoxybenzyl homoallylamine moiety with a self-immolative β-elimination linker was generally utilized to construct a series of fluorescent probes with varying excitation/emission wavelengths for sensitive and selective detection of FA in aqueous solutions and live cells. Among these probes, the near-infrared probe FFP706 has been well demonstrated to enable direct fluorescence visualization of steady-state endogenous FA in live mouse brain tissues and elevated FA levels in a mouse model of breast cancer. This study provides the optimal aza-Cope reaction moiety for FA probe development and new chemical tools for fluorescence imaging and biological investigation of FA in living systems.

Systematic investigation of various homoallylamines reveals N-p-methoxybenzyl homoallylamine as the optimal 2-aza-Cope reaction moiety for development of highly efficient formaldehyde fluorescent probes for in vitro and in vivo imaging.     

高温下HBT晶体热分解过程的理论模拟

基于自洽电荷密度泛函紧束缚(SCC-DFTB)方法研究了富氮含能材料5, 5’-双四唑肼(C₂H₄N₁₀, HBT)晶体在高温下的热分解反应过程.结果表明,结构优化参数与实验误差在5%以内.在2000 K, 2500 K,和3000 K不同温度下,HBT晶体热分解路径和产物表现出相似性.通过过渡态理论和分子动力学两种方法,研究了分解反应C₂H₄N₁₀→C₂H₃N₇+HN₃,发现HBT晶体分解产物中存在叠氮酸(HN₃)分子,化学反应势垒高度为222.85 kJ·mol^-1.研究结果为进一步理解高温下HBT晶体热分解特征提供理论参考.     

Tetrandrine Suppresses Human Brain Glioblastoma GBM 8401/luc2 Cell-Xenografted Subcutaneous Tumors in Nude Mice In Vivo

Tetrandrine (TET), a bisbenzylisoquinoline (BBI) alkaloid, is isolated from the plant Stephania tetrandra S. Moore and has a wide range of biological activity, including anticancer properties in vitro and in vivo. At first, we established a luciferase-expressing stable clone that was named GBM 8401/luc2 cells. Herein, the primary results indicated that TET reduced the total cell viability and induced cell apoptosis in GBM 8401/luc2 human glioblastoma cells. However, there is no available information showing that TET suppresses glioblastoma cells in vivo. Thus, we investigated the effects and mechanisms of TET on a GBM 8401/luc2 cell-generated tumor in vivo. After the tumor volume reached 100–120 mm³ in subcutaneously xenografted nude mice, all of the mice were randomly divided into three groups: Group I was treated with phosphate-buffered solution (PBS) containing 0.1% dimethyl sulfoxide, Group II with 25 mg/kg of TET, and Group III with 50 mg/kg of TET. All mice were given the oral treatment of PBS or TET by gavage for 21 days, and the body weight and tumor volumes were recorded every 5 days. After treatment, individual tumors, kidneys, livers, and spleens were isolated from each group. The results showed that TET did not affect the body weights, but it significantly decreased the tumor volumes. The TET treatment at 50 mg/kg had a two-fold decrease in tumor volumes than that at 25 mg/kg when compared to the control. TET decreased the total photon flux, and treatment with TET at 50 mg/kg had a lower total photon flux than that at 25 mg/kg, as measured by a Xenogen IVIS imaging system. Moreover, the higher TET treatment had lower tumor volumes and weights than those of the lower dose. The apoptosis-associated protein expression in the tumor section was examined by immunohistochemical analysis, and the results showed that TET treatment reduced the levels of c-FLIP, MCL-1, and XIAP but increased the signals of cleaved-caspase-3, -8, and -9. Furthermore, the hematoxylin and eosin (H & E) staining of kidney, liver, and spleen tissues showed no significant difference between the TET-treated and control groups. Overall, these observations demonstrated that TET suppressed subcutaneous tumor growth in a nude-mice model via the induction of cell apoptosis.     

平面团簇稳定结构的蒙特卡罗树搜索

以平面团簇为例提出了一种结合结构识别和蒙特卡罗树技术搜索稳定结构的新方法.体系原子之间的相互作用由两类模型势能函数来描述:Lennard-Jones二体势函数与基于Lennard-Jones势的三体势函数.考虑可能的三角晶格碎片作为候选结构,引入编号策略对结构进行快速识别,并运用蒙特卡罗树搜索研究稳定结构随着原子数增大的演化过程;对于能量较低的候选结构,进一步采取局域优化来获得对应体系的稳定结构.计算表明,Lennard-Jones二体势函数对应的三角晶格团簇更稳定;在特定的参数下,三体势函数对应的六角晶格团簇更稳定.结合结构识别和蒙特卡罗树搜索可以对候选结构空间进行高效扫描,在较短时间内更容易搜索到稳定的团簇结构,并可以与第一原理计算结合实现材料的结构预测.     

离子交换树脂负载Ni—B无定形合金催化剂的制备与性能

制备了一种新型离子交换树脂负载的Ｎｉ－Ｂ无定形合金催化剂．用３种树脂作为催化剂载体，即弱酸型阳离子树脂Ｄ１５２，强酸型阳离子树脂Ｄ７２及强碱型阴离子树脂Ｄ２６１．用ＸＰＳ、ＴＥＭ和ＩＣＰ等技术对催化剂进行了表征．结果表明，催化剂上镍与带有功能基的载体树脂之间有着很强的相互作用，但其强度与所带的功能基有关．３种催化剂Ｎｉ２ｐ３／２的ＸＰＳ谱图上，ＮｉＢ／Ｄ１５２催化剂的氧化态峰最小，而ＮｉＢ／Ｄ２６１的氧化态峰最大．异丙醇脱氢反应活性实验证实了这一结果．     

基于小波变换及布朗分形模型的纹理分割

在研究小波变换及布朗分形模型的基础上，定义了水平分维数，垂直分维数，对角分维数，并将它们作为纹理特征量来实现纹理的分割．实验结果表明，这些特征量能够很好地反映纹理特征，从而分割时不需有关图象中纹理类别的先验信息，较以往方法在准确度和计算复杂程度上都有很大提高．     

在有机介质中固定化脂肪酶反应特性及其动力学研究

采用酶工程固定化技术,研究了固定化脂肪酶在生物反应器的有机介质中的反应特性及其催化动力学,探讨了脂肪酶水解植物油脂制备脂肪酸反应中的最适固定化载体、底物和反应条件.结果表明最适酶为酵母脂肪酶;最适固定化脂肪酶载体为硅藻土Celite545;最适底物为樟核油和棕榈油;最适反应条件是500 r/min,pH6.5,35℃,底物浓度60%.动力学研究结果表明Km2.35×10-2mol/L,Vm=0.75mol/L.min.