8 research outputs found
Direct Visualization of Dye and Oligonucleotide Diffusion in Silica Filaments with Collinear Mesopores
The diffusion dynamics of terrylene diimide (TDI) dye
molecules
and dye-labeled double-strand DNA were studied in micrometer long
silica filaments containing collinear, oriented mesopores using single
molecule fluorescence microscopy. TDI was used as a stable and hydrophobic
probe molecule for single molecule structural analysis. We used template-free
mesoporous silica filaments with 4 nm pore diameter and chemical functionalization
with one or two types of trialkoxysilane groups to enhance the affinity
between the host system and the guest molecules. Insights about the
mesoporous structure as well as the translational and orientational
diffusion dynamics of the guest molecules observed along micrometer
long trajectories could be obtained. Additionally, the stability of
DNA oligomers (15 base pairs, bp, about 5.3 nm long) within the mesopores
was examined, showing no degradation of the oligonucleotide upon incorporation
into the mesopores. Diffusion of both guest molecules could be controlled
by exposure to vapors of water or chloroform; the latter both induced
a reversible on–off control of the translational movement of
the molecules
Direct Visualization of Dye and Oligonucleotide Diffusion in Silica Filaments with Collinear Mesopores
The diffusion dynamics of terrylene diimide (TDI) dye
molecules
and dye-labeled double-strand DNA were studied in micrometer long
silica filaments containing collinear, oriented mesopores using single
molecule fluorescence microscopy. TDI was used as a stable and hydrophobic
probe molecule for single molecule structural analysis. We used template-free
mesoporous silica filaments with 4 nm pore diameter and chemical functionalization
with one or two types of trialkoxysilane groups to enhance the affinity
between the host system and the guest molecules. Insights about the
mesoporous structure as well as the translational and orientational
diffusion dynamics of the guest molecules observed along micrometer
long trajectories could be obtained. Additionally, the stability of
DNA oligomers (15 base pairs, bp, about 5.3 nm long) within the mesopores
was examined, showing no degradation of the oligonucleotide upon incorporation
into the mesopores. Diffusion of both guest molecules could be controlled
by exposure to vapors of water or chloroform; the latter both induced
a reversible on–off control of the translational movement of
the molecules
Direct Visualization of Dye and Oligonucleotide Diffusion in Silica Filaments with Collinear Mesopores
The diffusion dynamics of terrylene diimide (TDI) dye
molecules
and dye-labeled double-strand DNA were studied in micrometer long
silica filaments containing collinear, oriented mesopores using single
molecule fluorescence microscopy. TDI was used as a stable and hydrophobic
probe molecule for single molecule structural analysis. We used template-free
mesoporous silica filaments with 4 nm pore diameter and chemical functionalization
with one or two types of trialkoxysilane groups to enhance the affinity
between the host system and the guest molecules. Insights about the
mesoporous structure as well as the translational and orientational
diffusion dynamics of the guest molecules observed along micrometer
long trajectories could be obtained. Additionally, the stability of
DNA oligomers (15 base pairs, bp, about 5.3 nm long) within the mesopores
was examined, showing no degradation of the oligonucleotide upon incorporation
into the mesopores. Diffusion of both guest molecules could be controlled
by exposure to vapors of water or chloroform; the latter both induced
a reversible on–off control of the translational movement of
the molecules
Direct Visualization of Dye and Oligonucleotide Diffusion in Silica Filaments with Collinear Mesopores
The diffusion dynamics of terrylene diimide (TDI) dye
molecules
and dye-labeled double-strand DNA were studied in micrometer long
silica filaments containing collinear, oriented mesopores using single
molecule fluorescence microscopy. TDI was used as a stable and hydrophobic
probe molecule for single molecule structural analysis. We used template-free
mesoporous silica filaments with 4 nm pore diameter and chemical functionalization
with one or two types of trialkoxysilane groups to enhance the affinity
between the host system and the guest molecules. Insights about the
mesoporous structure as well as the translational and orientational
diffusion dynamics of the guest molecules observed along micrometer
long trajectories could be obtained. Additionally, the stability of
DNA oligomers (15 base pairs, bp, about 5.3 nm long) within the mesopores
was examined, showing no degradation of the oligonucleotide upon incorporation
into the mesopores. Diffusion of both guest molecules could be controlled
by exposure to vapors of water or chloroform; the latter both induced
a reversible on–off control of the translational movement of
the molecules
Direct Visualization of Dye and Oligonucleotide Diffusion in Silica Filaments with Collinear Mesopores
The diffusion dynamics of terrylene diimide (TDI) dye
molecules
and dye-labeled double-strand DNA were studied in micrometer long
silica filaments containing collinear, oriented mesopores using single
molecule fluorescence microscopy. TDI was used as a stable and hydrophobic
probe molecule for single molecule structural analysis. We used template-free
mesoporous silica filaments with 4 nm pore diameter and chemical functionalization
with one or two types of trialkoxysilane groups to enhance the affinity
between the host system and the guest molecules. Insights about the
mesoporous structure as well as the translational and orientational
diffusion dynamics of the guest molecules observed along micrometer
long trajectories could be obtained. Additionally, the stability of
DNA oligomers (15 base pairs, bp, about 5.3 nm long) within the mesopores
was examined, showing no degradation of the oligonucleotide upon incorporation
into the mesopores. Diffusion of both guest molecules could be controlled
by exposure to vapors of water or chloroform; the latter both induced
a reversible on–off control of the translational movement of
the molecules
Additional file 1 of Development of doped ZnO-based biomimicking and tumor-targeted nanotheranostics to improve pancreatic cancer treatment
Additional file 1. Doped and undoped NCs characterizations; Extracellular vesicles characterizations; Liposomes coating; Lipo-Lipo-pep-NCs nanoconstruct characterizations; Additional TEM images of the optimized EV-Lipo-pep-NCs nanoconstruct; Drug delivery expressed in percentage; Cellular uptake of biomimetic nanoconstruct in Pancreatic Cancer Cells: control experiments; Preliminary tests on cytotoxicity of the Lipo-Lipo-pep-NCs-Gem
A Chemometric Approach for the Sensitization Procedure of ZnO Flowerlike Microstructures for Dye-Sensitized Solar Cells
In
this paper, a methodology for the streamlining of the sensitization
procedure of flowerlike ZnO nanostructures for dye-sensitized solar
cells (DSCs) is reported. The sensitization of ZnO surface with ruthenium-based
complexes is a particularly critical process, since one has to minimize
the dissolution of surface Zn atoms by the protons released from the
dye molecules, leading to the formation of Zn<sup>2+</sup>/dye complexes.
The fine-tuning of the experimental parameters, such as the dye loading
time, the dye concentration, and the pH of the sensitizing solution,
performed through a multivariate optimization by means of a chemometric
approach, is here reported. The dye loading procedure was optimized
using ZnO microparticles with nanostructured protrusions, synthesized
by a simple and low-cost hydrothermal process. Mild reaction conditions
were used, and wurtzite-like crystalline structure with a relatively
high surface area was obtained once the reaction process was completed.
After dispersion of ZnO flowerlike particles in an acetic acid-based
solution, a 14 μm-thick ZnO layer acting as DSC photoanode was
fabricated. The optimized sensitization procedure allowed minimizing
the instability of ZnO surface in contact with acidic dyes, avoiding
the formation of molecular agglomerates unable to inject electrons
in the ZnO conduction band, achieving good results in the photoconversion
efficiency. Moreover, the photoharvesting properties were further
enhanced by adding <i>N</i>-methylbenzimidazole into the
iodine-based liquid electrolyte. Such an additive was proposed here
for the first time in combination with a ZnO photoelectrode, helping
to reduce an undesired recombination between the photoinjected electrons
and the oxidized redox mediator
Optimization of 1D ZnO@TiO<sub>2</sub> Core–Shell Nanostructures for Enhanced Photoelectrochemical Water Splitting under Solar Light Illumination
A fast
and low-cost sol–gel synthesis used to deposit a shell of TiO<sub>2</sub> anatase onto an array of vertically aligned ZnO nanowires
(NWs) is reported in this paper. The influence of the annealing atmosphere
(air or N<sub>2</sub>) and of the NWs preannealing process, before
TiO<sub>2</sub> deposition, on both the physicochemical characteristics
and photoelectrochemical (PEC) performance of the resulting heterostructure,
was studied. The efficient application of the ZnO@TiO<sub>2</sub> core–shells
for the PEC water-splitting reaction, under simulated solar light
illumination (AM 1.5G) solar light illumination
in basic media, is here reported for the first time. This application
has had a dual function: to enhance the photoactivity of pristine
ZnO NWs and to increase the photodegradation stability, because of
the protective role of the TiO<sub>2</sub> shell. It was found that
an air treatment induces a better charge separation and a lower carrier
recombination, which in turn are responsible for an improvement in
the PEC performance with respect to N<sub>2</sub>-treated core–shell
materials. Finally, a photocurrent of 0.40 mA/cm<sup>2</sup> at 1.23
V versus RHE (2.2 times with respect to the pristine ZnO NWs) was
obtained. This achievement can be regarded as a valuable result, considering
similar nanostructured electrodes reported in the literature for this
application