‘Can I be a kinky ace?’: How asexual people negotiate their experiences of kinks and fetishes

Prior research has found that asexual people may fantasise or participate in activities typically conceptualised as ‘sexual’. These behaviours may be considered paradoxical when an asexual person is conceptualised as someone who does not experience sexual attraction or desire. This research aimed to explore how kinks and fetishes are conceptualised, experienced, and negotiated by asexual individuals. Forty-eight participants were recruited to take part in an online qualitative survey. Thematic analysis resulted in three themes. In “Am I asexual?”: (How) can you be a kinky ace?, we discuss the sense of dissonance which some participants reported in negotiating what was seemingly the paradox between their self-identity as asexual and their exploration of kinks and fetishes. In the second theme, Between me and me’ and make believe: Kinks and fetishes as solo and imaginary, we report on how kinks, fetishes, and fantasies were often understood in a solitary context and as either undesirable – or impossible – to live out. In the final theme, Kink as a sensual enhancement in relationships, we highlight how participants positioned kinks and fetishes as an agent for intimacy. These findings expand our knowledge of how asexual people negotiate kinks and fetishes and capture the complexities of asexual identities

Self-Assembled Gold Nanoparticle Molecular Probes for Detecting Proteolytic Activity

Target-activatable fluorogenic probes based on gold nanoparticles (AuNPs) functionalized with self-assembled heterogeneous monolayers of dye-labeled peptides and poly(ethylene glycol) have been developed to visualize proteolytic activity in vivo. A one-step synthesis strategy that allows simple generation of surface-defined AuNP probe libraries is presented as a means of tailoring and evaluating probe characteristics for maximal fluorescence enhancement after protease activation. Optimal AuNP probes targeted to trypsin and urokinase-type plasminogen activator required the incorporation of a dark quencher to achieve 5- to 8-fold signal amplification. These probes exhibited extended circulation time in vivo and high image contrast in a mouse tumor model.National Institutes of Health (U.S.) (NIH grant CA119402)National Institutes of Health (U.S.) (grant DE013023)National Institutes of Health (U.S.) (grant DE016516)National Science Foundation (U.S.). Materials Research Science and Engineering Centers (Program) (award number DMR-08-19762