Thermocontrolling ion permeation through binary component membrane composed of crown ether liquid crystal/PVC

In view of the nature of orderness in structure and the mesomorphism in property of liquid crystal, the function of which is further exploited by integrating it with the feature of crown ether. The monoarmed crown ether liquid crystals are successfully applied to the imitation of biomembrane transport. Binary component membrane composed of crown ether liquid crystal and PVC was first developed. Such a novel model of biomimetic membrane is capable of imitating ingeniously the thermocontrolling transport of biomembrane, thus the essential function of liquid crystal in membane transport is more fully exploited. It was suggested, consequently, that the molecules of the crown ether liquid crystal could assemble themselves to form ionic channels, as they exist in mesophase.Of still more significance is that the thermocontrolling transport of ions through the membrane is found to be operative selectively and the permeation of ion is under the direct influence of the thermal turmoil of the crown ether liquid cr     

Expression and Purification of ZNF191（243-368） in Three Expression Systems

ZNF191 （243-368）, a new human zinc finger protein, probably relates to some hereditary diseases and cancers, To obtain adequate amount of ZNF191（243-368） for the study of its property, structure and function, three different expression systems of inclusion-body, glutathione S-transferase （GST）, and hexahistidine （6 × His） were used and compared. Among these systems, the expression level of ZNFI91（243-368） was increased in inclusion body system under a higher isopropylthio-β-D-galactoside （IPTG） concentration, but the non-target proteins were also increased more, which made its purification more difficult and the yield lower. The expression of His-tag fusion protein was almost not affected by IPTG concentration, temperature and inducing time. At a high IPTG concentration the highest expression yield for GST fusion protein was obtained. And the fusion proteins can be partially purified by a single affinity chromatography step. The fusion protein systems show advantages for expression of these proteins.     

Affinity enrichment of plasma membrane for proteomics analysis

Proteomics analysis of plasma membranes from cells exposed to different extracellular environments is potentially a powerful approach for the identification of membrane-associated proteins responding to these environments. Preparation of high concentration plasma membrane fractions with low contamination from cellular organelles is essential for such studies. Here, we describe an affinity enrichment method, which combines cell surface biotinylation with affinity enrichment by immobilized streptavidin beads, for the isolation of plasma membranes. This method results in a 400-fold enrichment of plasma membrane relative to endoplasmic reticulum, a major contaminant in standard plasma membrane preparations, and dramatically reduces contamination from other cellular organelles. The biotinylation reaction did not interfere with ligand-dependent activation of receptor tyrosine kinases or G-protein coupled receptors, suggesting cell-surface signal transduction machinery remains functional. Membrane fractions prepared by this method should provide excellent starting materials for membrane proteomics analysis such as studies of dynamic trafficking and regulation of signaling molecules or identification of disease-specific membrane markers.     

High-level expression of soluble human β-defensin-2 fused with green fluorescent protein in Escherichia coli cell-free system

Human β-defensin-2 (hBD2), a small cationic peptide, exhibits a broad range of antimicrobial activity and does not acquire any microbial resistance. To produce this uneasily detectable, degradable, and toxic polypeptide efficiently, an alternative approach based on the Escherichia coli cell-free biosynthesis system was proposed. The approach implies that a polypeptide of interest is synthesized as a fusion protein linked to a green fluorescent protein (GFP) through a cleavable spacer. With batch-mode operation, a significant amount of hBD2 fused with GFP (0.25 mg/mL) can be expressed in this cell-free system. The productivity of the fusion protein can be improved up to 1.2 mg/mL by employing a continuous-exchange cell-free system. Furthermore, the GFP moiety provides directly visible and quantitative monitoring of the polypeptide synthesis, and the product is soluble and stable. This work will be helpful in allowing the rapid and visible expression of other similar defensins using an in vitro cell-free system.     

Immobilization of glucose oxidase with the blend of regenerated silk fibroin and poly(vinyl alcohol) and its application to a 1,1′- dimethylferrocene-mediating glucose sensor

The structure and properties of the blend of regenerated silk fibroin (RSF) and poly(vinyl alcohol) (PVA) were investigated. The two polymers in the blend are in the state of phase segregation. Infrared (IR) spectra indicate that the RSF in the blend maintains its intrinsic properties, thus, ethanol treatment can transfer silk I structure of RSF to silk II structure. The water absorption property and mechanical property of the blend are improved in comparison with those of RSF. The blend maintains the major merit of RSF, that is, it can immobilize glucose oxidase on the basis of the conformational transition from silk I structure to silk II structure. The properties of the immobilized enzyme are examined. Moreover, the second generation of glucose sensor based on the immobilized enzyme is fabricated and it has a variety of advantages including easy maintenance of enzyme, simplicity of construction, fast response time and high stability.     

Preparation and characterization of silica—polyimide composite membranes coated on porous tubes for CO2 separation

Silica-polyimide microcomposite membranes were prepared on γ-alumina-coated α-alumina support tubes, and their gas permeation properties were evaluated with He, N₂ and CO₂. Smoothing of the substrate surface and hybridization of silica and polyamic acid were both effective to form defect-free thin composite membranes. The CO₂ permeance of a membrane with a silica content of 68 wt% was one order of magnitude higher than that of a polyimide membrane having the same thickness. The permselectivity of CO₂ to N₂ was 30 at 30°C and 13 at 100°C. Contributions of the silica and polyimide phases to permeance of the composite membrane were analyzed with a two-phase permeation model. The effective thickness of the rate-controlling polyimide phase was less than one-tenth of the total thickness of the silica-polyimide membrane.     

W／O／W乳液的渗透溶胀与夹带溶胀

研究了W/O/W乳液的溶胀,实验结果表明,渗透溶胀随内外相溶液间的渗透压差、表面活性剂及载体浓度的增大而增加,但随膜粘度的增加而降低,渗透压差较高时,水渗透的影响大于夹带的影响;膜相中含氧化合物对溶胀的影响大于含氮化合物,采用Span 80作乳化剂时,比采用E 644渗透溶胀约高6倍,夹带溶胀也较高;重复聚结再分散使夹带溶胀急剧增加,因而多级混合澄清槽对液膜操作似不适用。     

无机胶体法制备Pt/C催化剂及其性能表征

采用无机胶体法制备用于质子交换膜燃料电池(PEMFC)的Pt/C催化剂。研究了影响PtO₂胶体生成和稳定性的因素(溶液的pH值、浓度和温度条件等)以及不同还原剂浓度对Pt/C催化剂性能的影响。透射电子显微镜测试结果表明，采用经优化的工艺条件所制备的Pt/C催化剂平均粒径为3 nm，且分散性好、粒度均匀。X-射线衍射分析表明，催化剂中Pt(111)晶面的相对含量较高，有利于加速氧还原反应。单体PEMFC的电压/电流密度曲线测试表明，所制备的Pt/C催化剂具有良好的电化学性能。     

High performance polyethersulfone UF membrane for manufacturing spiral wound module: preparation,morphology, performance,and chemical cleaning

Large sheet asymmetric polyethersulfone (PES) ultrafiltration membranes were prepared via phase inversion process in a continuous conveyor system with addition of PVP to the casting solution. Dimethylacetamide (DMAc) and mixture of water and isopropyl alcohol (70/30 v%) were used as solvent and non‐solvent respectively. The prepared membrane was 0.96 m wide and 3 m long. The pieces of the membrane were selected randomly for characterization in terms of performance using cross flow filtration for milk concentration, image analysis, scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and cleaning procedures. It was found that the prepared membrane has high porosity and high water flux during milk filtration. In addition, cleaning experiments indicated that NaOH/HCl/NaOH sequence is an effective procedure for cleaning the fouled membrane during milk concentration. Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.