46 research outputs found
Modulation of the aggregation behaviour and physicochemical properties of 1-dodecyl-3-methylimidazolium bromide in aqueous solutions by β-CD
<p>The modulation of aggregation behaviour of ionic liquids (ILs) in aqueous media is one of the important research topics. In the present work, aggregation behaviour of 1-dodecyl-3-methylimidazolium bromide ([C<sub>12</sub>mim]Br) modulated by beta-cyclodextrin (β-CD) has been investigated by using conductivity, volume, fluorescence, dynamic light scattering and transmission electron microscopy techniques. The results suggested that the addition of β-CD significantly affects the aggregation of [C<sub>12</sub>mim]Br in aqueous solutions. For example, the apparent critical micelle concentration increases with the increase of β-CD concentration; the average micellar size reduced with the increasing concentration of β-CD, and the process for micelle formation of [C<sub>12</sub>mim]Br in aqueous β-CD solution is driven by entropy at lower temperature, while driven by enthalpy at higher temperature. It is expected that findings in this study would shed light on the potential applications of IL in supramolecular chemistry.</p
PPAR-α Agonist Fenofibrate Reduces Insulin Resistance in Impaired Glucose Tolerance Patients with Hypertriglyceridemia: A Cross-Sectional Study
<p><strong>Article full
text</strong></p>
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The full text of this article can be found <a href="https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s13300-017-0257-4"><b>here</b>.</a><br>
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Two-Step Freezing in Alkane Monolayers on Colloidal Silica Nanoparticles: From a Stretched-Liquid to an Interface-Frozen State
The
crystallization behavior of an archetypical soft/hard hybrid
nanocomposite, that is, an <i>n-</i>octadecane C<sub>18</sub>/SiO<sub>2</sub>-nanoparticle composite, was investigated by a combination
of differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) and variable-temperature
solid-state <sup>13</sup>C nuclear magnetic resonance (VT solid-state <sup>13</sup>C NMR) as a function of silica nanoparticles loading. Two
latent heat peaks prior to bulk freezing, observed for composites
with high silica loading, indicate that a sizable fraction of C<sub>18</sub> molecules involve two phase transitions unknown from the
bulk C<sub>18</sub>. Combined with the NMR measurements as well as
experiments on alkanes and alkanols at planar amorphous silica surfaces
reported in the literature, this phase behavior can be attributed
to a transition toward a 2D liquid-like monolayer and subsequently
a disorder-to-order transition upon cooling. The second transition
results in the formation of a interface-frozen monolayer of alkane
molecules with their molecular long axis parallel to the nanoparticles’
surface normal. Upon heating, the inverse phase sequence was observed,
however, with a sizable thermal hysteresis in accord with the characteristics
of the first-order phase transition. A thermodynamic model considering
a balance of interfacial bonding, chain stretching elasticity, and
entropic effects quantitatively accounts for the observed behavior.
Complementary synchrotron-based wide-angle X-ray diffraction (WAXD)
experiments allow us to document the strong influence of this peculiar
interfacial freezing behavior on the surrounding alkane melts and
in particular the nucleation of a rotator phase absent in the bulk
C<sub>18</sub>
Photodecomposition of Ferrocenedicarboxylic Acid in Methanol to Form an Electroactive Infinite Coordination Polymer and Its Application in Bioelectrochemistry
Accurately
characterizing the product of photodecomposition of ferrocene derivatives
remains a longstanding challenge due to its structural complexity
and strong dependence on the solvent and the substituent. Herein,
photodecomposition of ferrocenedicarboxylic acid (FcDC) in methanol
is found for the first time to form an electroactive infinite coordinate
polymer (ICP) with uniform size, good water stability and photostability,
and excellent electrochemical activity. The possible mechanism for
the ICP formation is proposed based on the fission of the Fe-ring
bond and deprotonation of FcDC under light irradiation. The dissociated
Fe<sup>2+</sup> is first oxidized to Fe<sup>3+</sup> that consequently
coordinates with the deprotonated ferrocene dicarboxylate to produce
ICP nanoparticles. This work not only provides a new insight into
the product formation of the photodecomposition of ferrocene derivatives
but also offers a mild and simple route to the synthesis of electroactive
ICPs
Confined Crystallization of <i>n</i>‑Hexadecane Located inside Microcapsules or outside Submicrometer Silica Nanospheres: A Comparison Study
Crystallization and phase transition
behaviors of <i>n</i>-hexadecane (<i>n</i>-C<sub>16</sub>H<sub>34</sub>, abbreviated
as C<sub>16</sub>) confined in microcapsules and <i>n</i>-alkane/SiO<sub>2</sub> nanosphere composites have been investigated
by the combination of differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) and
temperature-dependent X-ray diffraction (XRD). As evident from the
DSC measurement, the surface freezing phenomenon of C<sub>16</sub> is enhanced in both the microcapsules and SiO<sub>2</sub> nanosphere
composites because the surface-to-volume ratio is dramatically enlarged
in both kinds of confinement. It is revealed from the XRD results
that the novel solid–solid phase transition is observed only
in the microencapsulated C<sub>16</sub>, which crystallizes into a
stable triclinic phase via a mestastable rotator phase (RI). For the
C<sub>16</sub>/SiO<sub>2</sub> composite, however, no novel rotator
phase emerges during the cooling process, and C<sub>16</sub> crystallizes
into a stable triclinic phase directly from the liquid state. Heterogeneous
nucleation induced by the surface freezing phase is dominant in the
microencapsulated sample and contributes to the emergence of the novel
rotator phase, whereas heterogeneous nucleation induced by foreign
crystallization nuclei dominates the C<sub>16</sub>/SiO<sub>2</sub> composite, leading to phase transition behaviors similar to those
of bulk C<sub>16</sub>
Dual-Responsive Self-Assembled Monolayer for Specific Capture and On-Demand Release of Live Cells
We report a dual-responsive
self-assembled monolayer (SAM) on a
well-defined rough gold substrate for dynamic capture and release
of live cells. By incorporating 5′-triphosphate (ATP) aptamer
into a SAM, we can accurately isolate specific cell types and subsequently
release captured cells at either population or desired-group (or even
single-cell) levels. On one hand, the whole SAMs can be disassembled
through addition of ATP solution, leading to the entire release of
the captured cells from the supported substrate. On the other hand,
desired cells can be selectively released using near-infrared light
irradiation, with relatively high spatial and temporal precision.
The proposed dual-responsive cell capture-and-release system is biologically
friendly and is reusable with another round of modification, showing
great usefulness in cancer diagnosis and molecular analysis
Atorvastatin Decreased Circulating RANTES Levels in Impaired Glucose Tolerance Patients with Hypercholesterolemia: An Interventional Study
<p><strong>Article full
text</strong></p>
<p><br>
The full text of this article can be found <a href="https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s13300-017-0227-x"><b>here</b>.</a><br>
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The journal offers a range of additional features designed to increase
visibility and readership. All features will be thoroughly peer reviewed to ensure the content is of the
highest scientific standard and all features are marked as ‘peer reviewed’ to
ensure readers are aware that the content has been reviewed to the same level
as the articles they are being presented alongside. Moreover, all sponsorship
and disclosure information is included to provide complete transparency and
adherence to good publication practices. This ensures that however the content
is reached the reader has a full understanding of its origin. No fees are
charged for hosting additional open access content.<br>
<br>
Other enhanced features include, but are
not limited to:<br>
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• Audio slides<u></u></p>
<p> </p>
<p> </p>
<p> </p>
<p> </p
Double Crystalline Multiblock Copolymers with Controlling Microstructure for High Shape Memory Fixity and Recovery
The
shape memory performance of double crystalline polyÂ(butylene succinate)-<i>co</i>-polyÂ(ε-caprolactone) (PBS-<i>co</i>-PCL)
multiblock copolymers with controlling microstructure was studied,
and the corresponding microstructure origin was further quantitatively
analyzed by wide and small-angle X-ray scattering (WAXS and SAXS)
experiments. It was found that the multiblock copolymer with higher
PCL content, proper deformation strain, and inhibited crystallization
of PBS (lower crystallinity and smaller crystal size, which could
be realized by quenching from the melt) would exhibit better shape
memory fixity and recovery performance. WAXS and SAXS results revealed
that the shape fixity ratio (<i>R</i><sub>f</sub>) was closely
related with the relative crystallinity of the PCL component, while
the shape recovery ratio (<i>R</i><sub>r</sub>) strongly
relied on the deformation and recovery behavior of the PBS and PCL
components that changed along with compositions and deformation strains.
For the copolymer with higher PCL content (BS<sub>30</sub>CL<sub>70</sub>), at the lower deformation strain (0% ∼ 90%), both the PBS
and PCL components after recovery had no orientation (labeled as stage
I), resulting in almost complete recovery; with the deformation strain
increasing (90% ∼ 200%), it was the irreversible deformation
of the PCL component that largely took responsibility for the decreased <i>R</i><sub>r</sub> (stage II). On the contrary, when the PCL
content decreased to 50 <i>wt</i> % (BS<sub>50</sub>CL<sub>50</sub>), stage I (0% ∼ 50%) and stage II (50% ∼ 100%)
appeared in much lower strains; with the deformation strain increasing
(100% ∼ 200%), the irreversible deformation of both PBS and
PCL components was mainly responsible for the further reduction of <i>R</i><sub>r</sub> (stage III). It could exhibit excellent shape
memory performance for biodegradable double crystalline multiblock
copolymers by controlling the composition, deformation strain, and
crystallization, which might have wide application prospects in biomedical
areas
Trace MicroRNA Quantification by Means of Plasmon-Enhanced Hybridization Chain Reaction
Quantifying
trace microRNAs (miRNAs) is extremely important in
a number of biomedical applications but remains a great challenge.
Here we present an enzyme-free amplification strategy called plasmon-enhanced
hybridization chain reaction (PE-HCR) for quantifying trace miRNAs
with an outstanding linear range from 1 fM to 1 pM (<i>r</i><sup>2</sup> = 0.991), along with a detection limit of 0.043 fM (1300
molecules in 50 μL of sample). The merits of the PE-HCR assay,
including high sensitivity and specificity, quantitative detection,
no enzyme involvement, low false positives, and easy-to-operate procedures,
have been demonstrated for high-confidence quantification of the contents
of miRNAs in even single cancer cells. The PE-HCR assay may open up
new avenues for highly sensitive quantification of biomarkers and
thus should hold great potentials in clinical diagnosis and prognosis
The parameters of glucose metabolism after acarbose or metformin treatment in normal weight, overweight and obese patients with newly diagnosed type 2 diabetes.
<p>Data are shown as difference (95% CI) vs baseline. FBG: fasting blood glucose; PBG: 2 h post-challenge blood glucose; FINS: fasting insulin; HbA1C: hemoglobin A1c; HOMA-IR: homeostasis model assessment of insulin resistance; HOMA-β: homeostasis model assessment of β cell function.</p><p>*significantly different at <i>P</i> <0.05 vs baseline;</p><p>**significantly different at <i>P</i> <0.01 vs baseline.</p