Dissociation of Colloidal Silver into Ionic Form through Membrane under Electric Field

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Room temperature gas sensing with a hybrid poly-Si/ZnO TFT cell

In this work, we study the capability of a novel poly-Si/Zno hybrid TFT cell in sensing NO2 gas. Fabrication and structural features of this cell are identical to that reported in one of our previous works [1] except that the IGZO TFT is replaced by a ZnO one. The equivalent circuit of the hybrid cell is shown in Fig. 1, in which the poly-Si TFT and ZnO TFT are employed as the amplifier and sensor, respectively. In the configuration, the top gate of the poly-Si TFT is electrically connected to the drain of the bottom-gated ZnO TFT, while the top surface of the ZnO channel is exposed to the environment for sensing purposes. For the electrical measurements conducted at room temperature, the current source (IIN) was set at 100 pA with a compliance VG of 2 V. Concentration of the NO2 gas in the ambient was varied from 0 ~100 ppm. Transfer characteristics of the cell are expressed by showing the drain current of the poly-Si TFT as a function of the back-gate bias (VBG) of the ZnO TFT. In the figure, we can see the I-V curves show a parallel and positive shift as the concentration of the NO2 gas is increased. Meanwhile, the transitions in the figure are steep with a slope of around -60 mV/dec whose absolute value is much smaller than the subthreshold slopes of the individual ZnO TFT (\u3e300 mV/dec). The finding provides good evidence showing the potential of this scheme in promoting measurement sensitivity compared with conventional oxide-semiconductor TFTs. The experimental results also show that UV irradiation can recover the characteristics. Please click Download on the upper right corner to see the full abstract

Analgesic and Anti-Inflammatory Activities of Methanol Extract of Ficus pumila L. in Mice

This study investigated possible analgesic and anti-inflammatory mechanisms of the methanol extract of Ficus pumila (FPMeOH). Analgesic effects were evaluated in two models including acetic acid-induced writhing response and formalin-induced paw licking. The results showed FPMeOH decreased writhing response in the acetic acid assay and licking time in the formalin test. The anti-inflammatory effect was evaluated by λ-carrageenan-induced mouse paw edema and histopathological analyses. FPMeOH significantly decreased the volume of paw edema induced by λ-carrageenan. Histopathologically, FPMeOH abated the level of tissue destruction and swelling of the edema paws. This study indicated anti-inflammatory mechanism of FPMeOH may be due to declined levels of NO and MDA in the edema paw through increasing the activities of SOD, GPx, and GRd in the liver. Additionally, FPMeOH also decreased the level of inflammatory mediators such as IL-1β, TNF-α, and COX-2. HPLC fingerprint was established and the contents of three active ingredients, rutin, luteolin, and apigenin, were quantitatively determined. This study provided evidence for the classical treatment of Ficus pumila in inflammatory diseases

Role of the Diphosphine Chelate in Emissive, Charge-Neutral Iridium(III) Complexes

A class of neutral tris-bidentate Ir(III) metal complexes incorporating a diphosphine as a chelate is prepared and characterized here for the first time. Treatment of [Ir(dppb)(tht)Cl3] (1) with fppzH afforded the dichloride complexes, trans-(Cl,Cl)[Ir(dppb)(fppz)Cl2] (2) and cis-(Cl,Cl)[Ir(dppb)(fppz)Cl2] (3). The reaction of 3 with the dianionic chelate precursor bipzH2 or mepzH2, in DMF gave the complex [Ir(dppb)(fppz)(bipz)] (4) or [Ir(dppb)(fppz)(mepz)] (5), respectively. In contrast, a hydride complex [Ir(dppb)(fppz)(bipzH)H] (6) was isolated instead of 4 in protic solvent, namely: DGME. All complexes 2 - 6 are luminescent in powder forms and thin films where the dichlorides (2, 3) emit with maxima at 590-627 nm (orange) and quantum yields (Q.Y.s) up to 90% whereas the tris-bidentate (4, 5) and hydride (6) complexes emit at 455-458 nm (blue) with Q.Y.s up to 70%. Hybrid TD-DFT calculations showed considerable MLCT contribution to the orange-emitting 2 and 3 but substantial ligand-centered 3ππ* transition character in the blue-emitting 4 - 6. The dppb does not participate to these radiative transitions in 4 - 6, but it provides the rigidity and steric bulk needed to promote the luminescence by suppressing the self-quenching in the solid state. Fabrication of an OLED with dopant 5 gave a deep blue CIE chromaticity of (0.16, 0.15). Superior blue emitters, which are vital in OLED applications, may be found in other neutral Ir(III) complexes containing phosphine chelates

Investigation of a Potential Scintigraphic Tracer for Imaging Apoptosis: Radioiodinated Annexin V-Kunitz Protease Inhibitor Fusion Protein

Radiolabeled annexin V (ANV) has been widely used for imaging cell apoptosis. Recently, a novel ANV-Kunitz-type protease inhibitor fusion protein, ANV-6L15, was found to be a promising probe for improved apoptosis detection based on its higher affinity to phosphatidylserine (PS) compared to native ANV. The present paper investigates the feasibility of apoptosis detection using radioiodinated ANV-6L15. Native ANV and ANV-6L15 were labeled with iodine-123 and iodine-125 using Iodogen method. The binding between the radioiodinated proteins and erythrocyte ghosts or chemical-induced apoptotic cells was examined. ANV-6L15 can be radioiodinated with high yield (40%−60%) and excellent radiochemical purity (>95%). 123I-ANV-6L15 exhibited a higher binding ratio to erythrocyte ghosts and apoptotic cells compared to 123I-ANV. The biodistribution of 123I-ANV-6L15 in mice was also characterized. 123I-ANV-6L15 was rapidly cleared from the blood. High uptake in the liver and the kidneys may limit the evaluation of apoptosis in abdominal regions. Our data suggest that radiolabled ANV-6L15 may be a better scintigraphic tracer than native ANV for apoptosis detection