Fabrication and functionalisation of nanocarbon-based field-effect transistor biosensors

Nanocarbon-based field-effect transistor (NC-FET) biosensors are at the forefront of future diagnostic technology. By integrating biological molecules with electrically conducting carbon-based platforms, high sensitivity real-time multiplexed sensing is possible. Combined with their small footprint, portability, ease of use, and label-free sensing mechanisms, NC-FETs are prime candidates for the rapidly expanding areas of point-of-care testing, environmental monitoring and biosensing as a whole. In this review we provide an overview of the basic operational mechanisms behind NC-FETs, synthesis and fabrication of FET devices, and developments in functionalisation strategies for biosensing applications

Regulation of cardiomyocyte adhesion and mechanosignalling through distinct nanoscale behaviour of integrin ligands mimicking healthy or fibrotic ECM

No abstract available

Optical Properties and In Vitro Biological Studies of Oligonucleotide-Modified Quantum Dots

Water-soluble semiconducting nanocrystals or quantum dots (QDs) have attracted much interest in recent years due to their tuneable emission and potential applications in photonics and biological imaging. Fluorescence resonance energy transfer (FRET) processes are very important for elucidating biochemical mechanisms in vitro, and QDs constitute an excellent substrate for this purpose. In this work, new oligonucleotide-functionalised CdTe-based QDs were prepared, characterised and biologically tested. These QDs demonstrated interesting optical properties as well as remarkable in vitro behaviour and potential for a range of biological applications

Interplay between Side Chain Density and Polymer Alignment: Two Competing Strategies for Enhancing the Thermoelectric Performance of P3HT Analogues

International audienc

Interplay between Side Chain Density and Polymer Alignment: Two Competing Strategies for Enhancing the Thermoelectric Performance of P3HT Analogues

Publication status: PublishedA series of polythiophenes with varying side chain density was synthesized, and their electrical and thermoelectric properties were investigated. Aligned and non-aligned thin films of the polymers were characterized in the neutral and chemically doped states. Optical and diffraction measurements revealed an overall lower order in the thin films with lower side chain density, also confirmed using polarized optical experiments on aligned thin films. However, upon doping the non-aligned films, a sixfold increase in electrical conductivity was observed for the polythiophene with the lowest side chain density compared to poly­(3-hexylthiophene) (P3HT). We found that the improvement in conductivity was not due to a larger charge carrier density but an increase in charge carrier mobility after doping with 2,3,5,6-tetrafluoro-7,7,8,8-tetracyanoquinodimethane (F4TCNQ). On the other hand, doped aligned films did not show the same trend; lower side chain density instead led to a lower conductivity and Seebeck coefficient compared to those for P3HT. This was attributed to the poorer alignment of the polymer thin films with lower side chain density. The study demonstrates that optimizing side chain density is a synthetically simple and effective way to improve electrical conductivity in polythiophene films relevant to thermoelectric applications

Functional implications of assigned, assumed and assembled PKC structures

The empirical derivation of PKC (protein kinase C) domain structures and those modelled by homology or imputed from protein behaviour have been extraordinarily valuable both in the elucidation of PKC pathway mechanisms and in the general lessons that extrapolate to other signalling pathways. For PKC family members, there are many domain/subdomain structures and models, covering all of the known domains, variably present in this family of protein serine/threonine kinases (C1, C2, PB1, HR1, kinase domains). In addition to these structures, there are a limited number of complexes defined, including the structure of the PKC epsilon V3-14-3-3 complex. In the context of structure-driven insights into PKC pathways, there are several broadly applicable principles and mechanisms relevant to the operation of and intervention in signalling pathways. These principles have an impact in unexpected ways, from the regulation of membrane targeting, through strategies for pharmacological intervention, to biomarkers.</p

An active kinase domain is required for retention of PKCθ at the T cell immunological synapse

In response to antigen stimulation, PKCθ translocates to the T cell plasma membrane, becoming highly focused at the immunological synapse (IS). cis-Acting sequences that regulate IS retention are not known. It is shown that a catalytically competent PKCθ kinase domain is essential for IS retention but not for membrane translocation