Protegrin‐1 orientation and physicochemical properties in membrane bilayers studied by potential of mean force calculations

Protegrin‐1 (PG‐1) belongs to the family of antimicrobial peptides. It interacts specifically with the membrane of a pathogen and kills the pathogen by releasing its cellular contents. To fully understand the energetics governing the orientation of PG‐1 in different membrane environments and its effects on the physicochemical properties of the peptide and membrane bilayers, we have performed the potential of mean force (PMF) calculations as a function of its tilt angle at four distinct rotation angles in explicit membranes composed of either DLPC (1,2‐dilauroylphosphatidylcholine) or POPC (1‐palmitoyl‐2‐oleoylphosphatidylcholine) lipid molecules. The resulting PMFs in explicit lipid bilayers were then used to search for the optimal hydrophobic thickness of the EEF1/IMM1 implicit membrane model in which a two‐dimensional PMF in the tilt and rotation space was calculated. The PMFs in explicit membrane systems clearly reveal that the energetically favorable tilt angle is affected by both the membrane hydrophobic thickness and the PG‐1 rotation angle. Local thinning of the membrane around PG‐1 is observed upon PG‐1 tilting. The thinning is caused by both hydrophobic mismatch and arginine‐lipid head group interactions. The two‐dimensional PMF in the implicit membrane is in good accordance with those from the explicit membrane simulations. The ensemble‐averaged Val16 ¹⁵N and ¹³CO chemical shifts weighted by the two‐dimensional PMF agree fairly well with the experimental values, suggesting the importance of peptide dynamics in calculating such ensemble properties for direct comparison with experimental observables. © 2010 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Comput Chem, 2010     

Synthesis of MWCNTs‐core/thiophene polymer‐sheath composite nanocables by a cationic surfactant‐assisted chemical oxidative polymerization and their structural properties

Multi‐walled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs)‐core/thiophene polymer‐sheath composite nanocables were synthesized by chemical oxidative polymerization of 3,4‐ethylenedioxythiophene (EDOT) with oxidant (FeCl₃) in the presence of cationic surfactant, deceyltrimethyl ammonium bromide (DTAB). In the polymerization process, DTAB surfactant molecules were adsorbed on the surface of MWCNTs and forms MWCNTs‐DTAB soft template. Upon the addition of EDOT and oxidant, the polymerization take place on the surface of MWCNTs and PEDOT is gradually deposited on the surface of MWCNTs. The resulting MWCNTs‐PEDOT nanocomposites have the nanocable structure. Nanocomposites were characterized by HRTEM, FE‐SEM, XRD, XPS, TGA, FTIR and PL, respectively. The π‐π interactions between PEDOT and MWCNTs enhancing the thermal and electrical properties of the nanocomposites with loading of MWCNTs. The temperature dependence conductivity measurements show that the conductivity of the nanocomposite decrease with a decrease of temperature, and conductivity‐temperature relationship is well fit by the quasi‐one dimensional variable range hopping mode. The mechanism for the formation of composite nanocables was explained on the basis of self‐ assembly of micelles. The reported self‐assembly strategy for the synthesis of PEDOT‐coated MWCNTs in micellar medium is a rapid, versatile, potentially scalable, stable, and making it useful for further exploitation in a varies types of applications. © 2010 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem 48: 1477–1484, 2010     

A facial approach to fabricate superhydrophobic aluminum surface

A facial chemical etching method was developed for fabricating superhydrophobic aluminum surfaces. The resultant surfaces were characterized by scanning electron microscopy, water contact angle (WCA) measurement, and optical methods. The surfaces of the modified aluminum substrates exhibit superhydrophobicity, with a WCA of 154.8° ± 1.6° and a water sliding angle of about 5°. The etched surfaces have binary structure consisting of the irregular microscale plateaus and caves in which there are the nanoscale block‐like convexes and hollows. The superhydrophobicity of aluminum substrates occurs only in some structures in which the plateaus and caves are appropriately ordered. The resulted surfaces have good self‐cleaning properties. The results demonstrate that it is possible to construct superhydrophobic surface on hydrophilic substrates by tailoring the surface structure to providing more spaces to trap air. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Solvent Effects on the NMR Chemical Shifts of Imidazolium-Based Ionic Liquids and Cellulose Therein

The interactions of ionic liquids (IL) with solvents usually used in liquid-state nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy are studied. The ¹H- and ¹³C-NMR chemical shift values of 1-n-butyl-3-methyl (BM)- and 1-ethyl-3-methyl (EM)-substituted imidazolium (IM) -chlorides (Cl) and -acetates (Ac) are determined before and after diluting with deuterated solvents (DMSO-d₆, D₂O, CD₃OD, and CDCl₃). The dilution offers structural modifications of the IL due to the solvents capacity to ionization. For further investigation of highly viscous cellulose dopes made of imidazolium-based IL, solid-state NMR spectroscopy enables the reproducibility of liquid-state NMR data of pure IL. The correlation of liquid- and solid-state NMR is shown on EMIM-Ac and cellulose/EMIM-Ac dope (10 wt %).     

含Bi(V)半导体化合物及其在多相光催化中的应用

含Bi(V)光催化剂由于其独特的电子/能带结构和光催化活性而引起人们的广泛关注。本文主要对以NaBiO₃为代表的典型含Bi(V)等半导体化合物的制备方法,物化性质,光催化活性及光化学稳定性进行了综述。尽管其中的部分光催化剂在光催化过程中表现出极其优异的活性,然而其光化学条件下的不稳定性日益被人们所发现并被深入研究。最后,对含Bi(V)光催化剂今后的研究方向进行了展望。     

电镀锌钛/锆基无铬化学转化膜的制备与耐蚀性能

借助优化钛/锆基化学转化工艺,在碱性无氰镀锌层基体上获得了环保型的无铬转化膜,并与铬酸盐彩色钝化膜作对比.中性盐雾试验、动电位极化和电化学阻抗谱测试结果表明:钛/锆基化学转化膜出现白锈时间为96 h,达到铬酸盐彩色钝化膜标准,且呈现出较低的腐蚀电流和较高的极化电阻,但钝化特性不如铬酸盐彩色钝化膜明显.     

低温微波技术在化学研究中的应用

低温微波技术可用于降低微波反应时体系的温度,减少或消除微波辐射时速热效应带来的副反应,具有快速高效、反应均匀、安全环保等优势,在化学研究中得到了广泛关注和应用。本文介绍了低温微波技术的实现方法,综述了近年来该技术在蛋白质研究、合成反应、天然产物研究和微波化学机理研究等领域中的应用,并展望了低温微波技术的发展方向。     

CO吸附原位红外光谱结合分子模拟计算研究FCC汽油加氢脱硫催化剂的选择性

以脱硫选择性不同的2组催化裂化汽油加氢脱硫催化剂为研究对象, 采用CO吸附原位红外光谱表征了2组催化剂的活性相特征, 并通过分子模拟计算方法比较了助剂Co加入前后噻吩和1-己烯在催化剂表面的电荷分布、吸附能及其加氢反应的活化能等, 探讨了助剂Co的加入对选择性加氢脱硫催化剂脱硫选择性的作用机理. 结果表明, 加氢脱硫催化剂CoMoS活性相的增加有利于提高催化剂的加氢脱硫/加氢降烯烃(HDS/HYD)选择性. 与1-己烯加氢位相比, Co的加入显著提高了噻吩分子加氢位的缺电子性, 噻吩在催化剂表面的吸附度增强, 显著降低噻吩加氢反应的能垒, 从而使噻吩加氢反应更易进行. 这也表明CoMoS为高HDS活性、高HDS/HYD选择性的活性相.     

Chemical network algorithms for the risk assessment and management of chemical threats

A network of chemical threats: Current regulatory protocols are insufficient to monitor and block many short-route syntheses of chemical weapons, including those that start from household products. Network searches combined with game-theory algorithms provide an effective means of identifying and eliminating chemical threats. (Picture: an algorithm-detected pathway that yields sarin (bright red node) in three steps from unregulated substances.).