Structure and swelling of polymer-clay composites

Composition gels on the basis of bentonite clay of Manrak deposit (East-Kazakhstan region) and nonionogenic polymers - poly-2-hydroxyethyl-acrylate and polyacrylamide were synthesized by radical intercalative polymerization in situ with various content o f cross-linking agent N,N-methylene-bisacrylamide and with time of intercalation about 8 hours. The morphological structure, the nature of interaction of components and the swelling ability of composition gels were studied by scanner electron microscopy, equilibrium swelling and IR- spectroscopy methods. By studying of morphological structure it was determined, that the polymer-clay composition gels, synthesized by intercalative polymerization, are most homogenous and interconsistency in case of "acrylamide-clay" composition in contrast with "2-hydroxyethylacrylate-clay" composition. For "acrylamide-clay" gels the swelling degree of gels was stated to decrease with the increase in the content of cross-linking agent and ionic strength, but "2-hydroxyethylacrylate -clay" compositions have the extremely character of swelling, where maximum degree of swelling account for gel with content of cross-linking agent 1*10-2 M. Interaction of composition components was realized on account of hydrogen bonds with formation of chemically cross-linked complex polymer-clay. Decrease of swelling degree of compositions in physiological solution points to acquisition of polyelectrolyte nature of composition gels on account of combination of nonionogenic macromolecules of polymers with negatively charged particles of bentonite clay. For intercalated samples of polymer-clay compositions, the degree of swelling at all degrees of cross-linking is between those for pure polymers and pure clay, that in turn, agrees with the conclusion on the great composition homogeneity of samples with preliminary intercalation. As of results of holding investigation fit is safe to say, that obtained polymer-clay composition gels are potential sorbents and prolongated carriers of medicin

Superconducting Sr2RuO4 Thin Films without Out-of-Phase Boundaries by Higher-Order Ruddlesden-Popper Intergrowth

Ruddlesden-Popper (RP) phases (An+1B n O3n+1, n = 1, 2,···) have attracted intensive research with diverse functionalities for device applications. However, the realization of a high-quality RP-phase film is hindered by the formation of out-of-phase boundaries (OPBs) that occur at terrace edges, originating from lattice mismatch in the c-axis direction with the A'B'O3 (n = ∞) substrate. Here, using strontium ruthenate RP-phase Sr2RuO4 (n = 1) as a model system, an experimental approach for suppressing OPBs was developed. By tuning the growth parameters, the Sr3Ru2O7 (n = 2) phase was formed in a controlled manner near the film-substrate interface. This higher-order RP-phase then blocked the subsequent formation of OPBs, resulting in nearly defect-free Sr2RuO4 layer at the upper region of the film. Consequently, the Sr2RuO4 thin films exhibited superconductivity up to 1.15 K, which is the highest among Sr2RuO4 films grown by pulsed laser deposition. This work paves the way for synthesizing pristine RP-phase heterostructures and exploring their unique physical properties

Hysteresis Effects During the Phase Transition in Solutions of Temperature Sensitive Polymers

It is demonstrated, for the first time,that well-known phase transitions induced by changes in temperature in solutions of polymers containing both hydrophilic and hydrophobic functional groups could be followed by noticeable hysteresis effects. A well-known phase transitions accompanied by a sharp change in fluid properties, in particular its optical density can be induced by many external influences, including temperature changes occurring in the solutions of polymers containing both hydrophilic and hydrophobic functional groups. Since intensification subsequent hydrophobic interactions, leading to loss of solubility of the polymer molecules, resulting, in particular, a significant increase in the turbidity of the medium and are accompanied by a pronounced hysteresis phenomena. Hysteresis phenomena in the processes of molecular-scale play an important theoretical and practical interest in linkage with the development of advanced nano-level technology. In particular, the issue of the development of molecular "trigger" switches, and other analog electronic systems, implemented on submolecular level was actively discussed. In fact, under the same physical conditions of the environment of macromolecules system can be in two different states, which resolves the issue of programming such molecules. State of these polymers depends on their way of formation and thermodynamic variables. Observed effect could be utilized directly for information recording into the structure on the basis of stimulus-sensitive macromolecular chains. In fact, it is a first step towards creating memory of quasi-biological elements

Creation of Polymer Hydrogel Dressings with Herbal Medicinal Substance "Alkhydin" and their Properties

New hydrogel dressings containing the herbal medicinal substance "Alkhydin", obtained from the Kirghiz (Alhagi kirghisorum Schrenk), grown in Kazakhstan, were obtained by radiation irradiation of the initial reaction mixture (IRM). Poly-N-vinylpyrrolidone (PVP) with a molecular weight (MM) of 1 ppm was used to prepare hydrogel dressings as the main gelling polymer for IRM, agar-agar and lowmolecular polyethylene glycol MM = 600 were used as auxiliary substances. The main regularities of the formation of the three-dimensional structure of PVP under conditions of irradiation of IRM are investigated. It is shown that with increasing PVP in IRM, as well as irradiation dose, the yield of gel fraction increases and the degree of swelling decreases. Obviously, these effects are due to an increase in the degree of cross-linking of the polymer network formed. For the obtained hydrogel dressings containing the herbal medicinal substance Alkhydin, cytotoxic effects on the culture of mouse embryonic fibroblasts obtained by primary trypsinization were studied. The results obtained in this case testify to the absence of a cytotoxic effect on the cell culture. In conditions "in vivo" in rats using the model of thermal skin burn, the wound healing effect of hydrogel dressings with "Alkhydin" was studied. It is shown that such bandages show a pronounced wound-healing effect. This is evidenced by a higher rate of reduction in the area of the burn wound treated with a hydrogel dressing compared to the control

The Kinase Inhibitor SFV785 Dislocates Dengue Virus Envelope Protein from the Replication Complex and Blocks Virus Assembly

Dengue virus (DENV) is the etiologic agent for dengue fever, for which there is no approved vaccine or specific anti-viral drug. As a remedy for this, we explored the use of compounds that interfere with the action of required host factors and describe here the characterization of a kinase inhibitor (SFV785), which has selective effects on NTRK1 and MAPKAPK5 kinase activity, and anti-viral activity on Hepatitis C, DENV and yellow fever viruses. SFV785 inhibited DENV propagation without inhibiting DENV RNA synthesis or translation. The compound did not cause any changes in the cellular distribution of non-structural 3, a protein critical for DENV RNA synthesis, but altered the distribution of the structural envelope protein from a reticulate network to enlarged discrete vesicles, which altered the co-localization with the DENV replication complex. Ultrastructural electron microscopy analyses of DENV-infected SFV785-treated cells showed the presence of viral particles that were distinctly different from viable enveloped virions within enlarged ER cisternae. These viral particles were devoid of the dense nucleocapsid. The secretion of the viral particles was not inhibited by SFV785, however a reduction in the amount of secreted infectious virions, DENV RNA and capsid were observed. Collectively, these observations suggest that SFV785 inhibited the recruitment and assembly of the nucleocapsid in specific ER compartments during the DENV assembly process and hence the production of infectious DENV. SFV785 and derivative compounds could be useful biochemical probes to explore the DENV lifecycle and could also represent a new class of anti-virals

Genome-Wide Identification and Mapping of NBS-Encoding Resistance Genes in Solanum tuberosum Group Phureja

The majority of disease resistance (R) genes identified to date in plants encode a nucleotide-binding site (NBS) and leucine-rich repeat (LRR) domain containing protein. Additional domains such as coiled-coil (CC) and TOLL/interleukin-1 receptor (TIR) domains can also be present. In the recently sequenced Solanum tuberosum group phureja genome we used HMM models and manual curation to annotate 435 NBS-encoding R gene homologs and 142 NBS-derived genes that lack the NBS domain. Highly similar homologs for most previously documented Solanaceae R genes were identified. A surprising ∼41% (179) of the 435 NBS-encoding genes are pseudogenes primarily caused by premature stop codons or frameshift mutations. Alignment of 81.80% of the 577 homologs to S. tuberosum group phureja pseudomolecules revealed non-random distribution of the R-genes; 362 of 470 genes were found in high density clusters on 11 chromosomes

Specific Inhibition of Phosphodiesterase-4B Results in Anxiolysis and Facilitates Memory Acquisition

Cognitive dysfunction is a core feature of dementia and a prominent feature in psychiatric disease. As non-redundant regulators of intracellular cAMP gradients, phosphodiesterases (PDE) mediate fundamental aspects of brain function relevant to learning, memory, and higher cognitive functions. Phosphodiesterase-4B (PDE4B) is an important phosphodiesterase in the hippocampal formation, is a major Disrupted in Schizophrenia 1 (DISC1) binding partner and is itself a risk gene for psychiatric illness. To define the effects of specific inhibition of the PDE4B subtype, we generated mice with a catalytic domain mutant form of PDE4B (Y358C) that has decreased ability to hydrolyze cAMP. Structural modelling predictions of decreased function and impaired binding with DISC1 were confirmed in cell assays. Phenotypic characterization of the PDE4BY358C mice revealed facilitated phosphorylation of CREB, decreased binding to DISC1, and upregulation of DISC1 and β-Arrestin in hippocampus and amygdala. In behavioural assays, PDE4BY358C mice displayed decreased anxiety and increased exploration, as well as cognitive enhancement across several tests of learning and memory, consistent with synaptic changes including enhanced long-term potentiation and impaired depotentiation ex vivo. PDE4BY358C mice also demonstrated enhanced neurogenesis. Contextual fear memory, though intact at 24 hours, was decreased at 7 days in PDE4BY358C mice, an effect replicated pharmacologically with a non-selective PDE4 inhibitor, implicating cAMP signalling by PDE4B in a very late phase of consolidation. No effect of the PDE4BY358C mutation was observed in the pre-pulse inhibition and forced swim tests. Our data establish specific inhibition of PDE4B as a promising therapeutic approach for disorders of cognition and anxiety, and a putative target for pathological fear memory