Experimental Tools to Study Molecular Recognition within the Nanoparticle Corona

Advancements in optical nanosensor development have enabled the design of sensors using synthetic molecular recognition elements through a recently developed method called Corona Phase Molecular Recognition (CoPhMoRe). The synthetic sensors resulting from these design principles are highly selective for specific analytes, and demonstrate remarkable stability for use under a variety of conditions. An essential element of nanosensor development hinges on the ability to understand the interface between nanoparticles and the associated corona phase surrounding the nanosensor, an environment outside of the range of traditional characterization tools, such as NMR. This review discusses the need for new strategies and instrumentation to study the nanoparticle corona, operating in both in vitro and in vivo environments. Approaches to instrumentation must have the capacity to concurrently monitor nanosensor operation and the molecular changes in the corona phase. A detailed overview of new tools for the understanding of CoPhMoRe mechanisms is provided for future applications

Experimental Tools to Study Molecular Recognition within the Nanoparticle Corona

Advancements in optical nanosensor development have enabled the design of sensors using synthetic molecular recognition elements through a recently developed method called Corona Phase Molecular Recognition (CoPhMoRe). The synthetic sensors resulting from these design principles are highly selective for specific analytes, and demonstrate remarkable stability for use under a variety of conditions. An essential element of nanosensor development hinges on the ability to understand the interface between nanoparticles and the associated corona phase surrounding the nanosensor, an environment outside of the range of traditional characterization tools, such as NMR. This review discusses the need for new strategies and instrumentation to study the nanoparticle corona, operating in both in vitro and in vivo environments. Approaches to instrumentation must have the capacity to concurrently monitor nanosensor operation and the molecular changes in the corona phase. A detailed overview of new tools for the understanding of CoPhMoRe mechanisms is provided for future applications.Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation InternationalMcGovern Institute for Brain Research at MIT. Neurotechnology (MINT) ProgramNational Science Foundation (U.S.) (Postdoctoral Research Fellowship Award DBI-1306229)Burroughs Wellcome Fund (Grant Award 1013994)German Science Foundatio

Protein-targeted corona phase molecular recognition

Corona phase molecular recognition (CoPhMoRe) uses a heteropolymer adsorbed onto and templated by a nanoparticle surface to recognize a specific target analyte. This method has not yet been extended to macromolecular analytes, including proteins. Herein we develop a variant of a CoPhMoRe screening procedure of single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWCNT) and use it against a panel of human blood proteins, revealing a specific corona phase that recognizes fibrinogen with high selectivity. In response to fibrinogen binding, SWCNT fluorescence decreases by \u3e80% at saturation. Sequential binding of the three fibrinogen nodules is suggested by selective fluorescence quenching by isolated sub-domains and validated by the quenching kinetics. The fibrinogen recognition also occurs in serum environment, at the clinically relevant fibrinogen concentrations in the human blood. These results open new avenues for synthetic, non-biological antibody analogues that recognize biological macromolecules, and hold great promise for medical and clinical applications

Protein-targeted corona phase molecular recognition

Corona phase molecular recognition (CoPhMoRe) uses a heteropolymer adsorbed onto and templated by a nanoparticle surface to recognize a specific target analyte. This method has not yet been extended to macromolecular analytes, including proteins. Herein we develop a variant of a CoPhMoRe screening procedure of single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWCNT) and use it against a panel of human blood proteins, revealing a specific corona phase that recognizes fibrinogen with high selectivity. In response to fibrinogen binding, SWCNT fluorescence decreases by \u3e80% at saturation. Sequential binding of the three fibrinogen nodules is suggested by selective fluorescence quenching by isolated sub-domains and validated by the quenching kinetics. The fibrinogen recognition also occurs in serum environment, at the clinically relevant fibrinogen concentrations in the human blood. These results open new avenues for synthetic, non-biological antibody analogues that recognize biological macromolecules, and hold great promise for medical and clinical applications

Protein-targeted corona phase molecular recognition

Corona phase molecular recognition (CoPhMoRe) uses a heteropolymer adsorbed onto and templated by a nanoparticle surface to recognize a specific target analyte. This method has not yet been extended to macromolecular analytes, including proteins. Herein we develop a variant of a CoPhMoRe screening procedure of single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWCNT) and use it against a panel of human blood proteins, revealing a specific corona phase that recognizes fibrinogen with high selectivity. In response to fibrinogen binding, SWCNT fluorescence decreases by >80% at saturation. Sequential binding of the three fibrinogen nodules is suggested by selective fluorescence quenching by isolated sub-domains and validated by the quenching kinetics. The fibrinogen recognition also occurs in serum environment, at the clinically relevant fibrinogen concentrations in the human blood. These results open new avenues for synthetic, non-biological antibody analogues that recognize biological macromolecules, and hold great promise for medical and clinical applications.Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation InternationalMIT-Technion Fellowshi

Microphytobenthos of Arctic Kongsfjorden (Svalbard, Norway): biomass and potential primary production along the shore line

During summer 2007, Arctic microphytobenthic potential primary production was measured at several stations around the coastline of Kongsfjorden (Svalbard, Norway) at ?5 m water depth and at two stations at five different water depths (5, 10, 15, 20, 30 m). Oxygen planar optode sensor spots were used ex situ to determine oxygen exchange in the overlying water of intact sediment cores under controlled light (ca. 100 ?mol photons m?2 s?1) and temperature (2–4°C) conditions. Patches of microalgae (mainly diatoms) covering sandy sediments at water depths down to 30 m showed high biomass of up to 317 mg chl a m?2. In spite of increasing water depth, no significant trend in “photoautotrophic active biomass” (chl a, ratio living/dead cells, cell sizes) and, thus, in primary production was measured at both stations. All sites from ?5 to 30 m water depth exhibited variable rates of net production from ?19 to +40 mg O2 m?2 h?1 (?168 to +360 mg C m?2 day?1) and gross production of about 2–62 mg O2 m?2 h?1 (17–554 mg C m?2 day?1), which is comparable to other polar as well as temperate regions. No relation between photoautotrophic biomass and gross/net production values was found. Microphytobenthos demonstrated significant rates of primary production that is comparable to pelagic production of Kongsfjorden and, hence, emphasised the importance as C source for the zoobenthos

High resolution multibeam and hydrodynamic datasets of tidal channels and inlets of the Venice Lagoon

Tidal channels are crucial for the functioning of wetlands, though their morphological properties, which are relevant for seafloor habitats and flow, have been understudied so far. Here, we release a dataset composed of Digital Terrain Models (DTMs) extracted from a total of 2,500 linear kilometres of high-resolution multibeam echosounder (MBES) data collected in 2013 covering the entire network of tidal channels and inlets of the Venice Lagoon, Italy. The dataset comprises also the backscatter (BS) data, which reflect the acoustic properties of the seafloor, and the tidal current fields simulated by means of a high-resolution three-dimensional unstructured hydrodynamic model. The DTMs and the current fields help define how morphological and benthic properties of tidal channels are affected by the action of currents. These data are of potential broad interest not only to geomorphologists, oceanographers and ecologists studying the morphology, hydrodynamics, sediment transport and benthic habitats of tidal environments, but also to coastal engineers and stakeholders for cost-effective monitoring and sustainable management of this peculiar shallow coastal system

Graphene Quantum Dot Oxidation Governs Noncovalent Biopolymer Adsorption

Graphene quantum dots (GQDs) are an allotrope of carbon with a planar surface amenable to functionalization and nanoscale dimensions that confer photoluminescence. Collectively, these properties render GQDs an advantageous platform for nanobiotechnology applications, including optical biosensing and delivery. Towards this end, noncovalent functionalization offers a route to reversibly modify and preserve the pristine GQD substrate, however, a clear paradigm has yet to be realized. Herein, we demonstrate the feasibility of noncovalent polymer adsorption to GQD surfaces, with a specific focus on single-stranded DNA (ssDNA). We study how GQD oxidation level affects the propensity for polymer adsorption by synthesizing and characterizing four types of GQD substrates ranging ~60-fold in oxidation level, then investigating noncovalent polymer association to these substrates. Adsorption of ssDNA quenches intrinsic GQD fluorescence by 31.5% for low-oxidation GQDs and enables aqueous dispersion of otherwise insoluble no-oxidation GQDs. ssDNA-GQD complexation is confirmed by atomic force microscopy, by inducing ssDNA desorption, and with molecular dynamics simulations. ssDNA is determined to adsorb strongly to no-oxidation GQDs, weakly to low-oxidation GQDs, and not at all for heavily oxidized GQDs. Finally, we reveal the generality of the adsorption platform and assess how the GQD system is tunable by modifying polymer sequence and type.https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-020-63769-

Innovation Practices in Emerging Economies: Do University Partnerships Matter?

Enterprises’ resources and capabilities determine their ability to achieve competitive advantage. In this regard, the key innovation challenges that enterprises face are liabilities associated with their age and size, and the entry barriers imposed on them. In this line, a growing number of enterprises are starting to implement innovation practices in which they employ both internal/external flows of knowledge in order to explore/exploit innovation in collaboration with commercial or scientific agents. Within this context, universities play a significant role providing fertile knowledge-intensive environments to support the exploration and exploitation of innovative and entrepreneurial ideas, especially in emerging economies, where governments have created subsidies to promote enterprise innovation through compulsory university partnerships. Based on these ideas, the purpose of this exploratory research is to provide a better understanding about the role of universities on enterprises’ innovation practices in emerging economies. More concretely, in the context of Mexico, we explored the enterprises’ motivations to collaborate with universities in terms of innovation purposes (exploration and exploitation) or alternatives to access to public funds (compulsory requirement of being involved in a university partnership). Using a sample of 10,167 Mexican enterprises in the 2012 Research and Technological Development Survey collected by the Mexican National Institute of Statistics and Geography, we tested a multinomial regression model. Our results provide insights about the relevant role of universities inside enterprises’ exploratory innovation practices, as well as, in the access of R&D research subsidies