72 research outputs found
Theory of asymmetric non-additive binary hard-sphere mixtures
We show that the formal procedure of integrating out the degrees of freedom
of the small spheres in a binary hard-sphere mixture works equally well for
non-additive as it does for additive mixtures. For highly asymmetric mixtures
(small size ratios) the resulting effective Hamiltonian of the one-component
fluid of big spheres, which consists of an infinite number of many-body
interactions, should be accurately approximated by truncating after the term
describing the effective pair interaction. Using a density functional treatment
developed originally for additive hard-sphere mixtures we determine the zero,
one, and two-body contribution to the effective Hamiltonian. We demonstrate
that even small degrees of positive or negative non-additivity have significant
effect on the shape of the depletion potential. The second virial coefficient
, corresponding to the effective pair interaction between two big spheres,
is found to be a sensitive measure of the effects of non-additivity. The
variation of with the density of the small spheres shows significantly
different behavior for additive, slightly positive and slightly negative
non-additive mixtures. We discuss the possible repercussions of these results
for the phase behavior of binary hard-sphere mixtures and suggest that
measurements of might provide a means of determining the degree of
non-additivity in real colloidal mixtures
Effective forces in colloidal mixtures: from depletion attraction to accumulation repulsion
Computer simulations and theory are used to systematically investigate how
the effective force between two big colloidal spheres in a sea of small spheres
depends on the basic (big-small and small-small) interactions. The latter are
modeled as hard-core pair potentials with a Yukawa tail which can be both
repulsive or attractive. For a repulsive small-small interaction, the effective
force follows the trends as predicted by a mapping onto an effective
non-additive hard-core mixture: both a depletion attraction and an accumulation
repulsion caused by small spheres adsorbing onto the big ones can be obtained
depending on the sign of the big-small interaction. For repulsive big-small
interactions, the effect of adding a small-small attraction also follows the
trends predicted by the mapping. But a more subtle ``repulsion through
attraction'' effect arises when both big-small and small-small attractions
occur: upon increasing the strength of the small-small interaction, the
effective potential becomes more repulsive. We have further tested several
theoretical methods against our computer simulations: The superposition
approximation works best for an added big-small repulsion, and breaks down for
a strong big-small attraction, while density functional theory is very accurate
for any big-small interaction when the small particles are pure hard-spheres.
The theoretical methods perform most poorly for small-small attractions.Comment: submitted to PRE; New version includes an important quantitative
correction to several of the simulations. The main conclusions remain
unchanged thoug
Sialylation of campylobacter jejuni lipo-oligosaccharides: impact on phagocytosis and cytokine production in mice
<p>Background:
Guillain-Barré syndrome (GBS) is a post-infectious polyradiculoneuropathy, frequently associated with antecedent Campylobacter jejuni (C. jejuni) infection. The presence of sialic acid on C. jejuni lipo-oligosaccharide (LOS) is considered a risk factor for development of GBS as it crucially determines the structural homology between LOS and gangliosides, explaining the induction of cross-reactive neurotoxic antibodies. Sialylated C. jejuni are recognised by TLR4 and sialoadhesin; however, the functional implications of these interactions in vivo are unknown.</p>
<p>Methodology/Principal Findings:
In this study we investigated the effects of bacterial sialylation on phagocytosis and cytokine secretion by mouse myeloid cells in vitro and in vivo. Using fluorescently labelled GM1a/GD1a ganglioside-mimicking C. jejuni strains and corresponding (Cst-II-mutant) control strains lacking sialic acid, we show that sialylated C. jejuni was more efficiently phagocytosed in vitro by BM-MΦ, but not by BM-DC. In addition, LOS sialylation increased the production of IL-10, IL-6 and IFN-β by both BM-MΦ and BM-DC. Subsequent in vivo experiments revealed that sialylation augmented the deposition of fluorescent bacteria in splenic DC, but not macrophages. In addition, sialylation significantly amplified the production of type I interferons, which was independent of pDC.</p>
<p>Conclusions/Significance:
These results identify novel immune stimulatory effects of C. jejuni sialylation, which may be important in inducing cross-reactive humoral responses that cause GBS</p>
Depletion potential in hard-sphere mixtures: theory and applications
We present a versatile density functional approach (DFT) for calculating the
depletion potential in general fluid mixtures. In contrast to brute force DFT,
our approach requires only the equilibrium density profile of the small
particles {\em before} the big (test) particle is inserted. For a big particle
near a planar wall or a cylinder or another fixed big particle the relevant
density profiles are functions of a single variable, which avoids the numerical
complications inherent in brute force DFT. We implement our approach for
additive hard-sphere mixtures. By investigating the depletion potential for
high size asymmetries we assess the regime of validity of the well-known
Derjaguin approximation for hard-sphere mixtures and argue that this fails. We
provide an accurate parametrization of the depletion potential in hard-sphere
fluids which should be useful for effective Hamiltonian studies of phase
behavior and colloid structure
Findings, theories and methods in the study of children's national identifications and national attitudes
Ionization Behavior of Amino Lipids for siRNA Delivery: Determination of Ionization Constants, SAR, and the Impact of Lipid p K
Isolation of progenitor cells from the blubber of northern elephant seals (mirounga angustirostris) in order to obtain an in vitro adipocyte model-preliminary results
Marine top predators are highly informative in understanding the quality and health of ocean habitats. Through bioamplification, they face a very large risk of exposure to toxic, persistent, and fat-soluble molecules such as polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs), dichlorodimethyltrichloroethane (DDT), and methylmercury, which are preferentially stored in the adipose tissue. The life history of pinnipeds often includes extended periods of fasting on land. This is particularly true for phocid seals such as northern elephant seal (NES) (Mirounga angustirostris). This species indeed exhibits one of the most extreme terrestrial fasting durations (up to 3 mo) corresponding to breeding, lactation, and molting for females, postweaning development for pups, and maintaining a territory or competing for dominance rank on the breeding rookery for males (Le Boeuf et al. 1972). During such periods, individuals mobilize primarily lipids from their large adipose tissue stores (Costa et al. 1986, Noren et al. 2003). This mobilization of blubber lipids presents a risk through the release of environmental pollutants into the circulation. Previous studies in fasting NES pups and females elucidated the mobilization dynamic
Effective potentials for polymers and colloids: beyond the van der Waals picture of fluids?
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