Mercury ions have been considered highly toxic to human health. What would be great is to develop the ionic probes without any toxicities themselves. Here, we report a friendly, highly sensitive mercury(II) ionic prob...Mercury ions have been considered highly toxic to human health. What would be great is to develop the ionic probes without any toxicities themselves. Here, we report a friendly, highly sensitive mercury(II) ionic probe, watersoluble photoluminescence carbon dots which were synthesized by simply hydrothermal treatment of fresh cherry tomatoes without adding any other reagents. The ultra-small(\1 nm) carbon dots show robust excitation-depended photoluminescence under a wide p H range(4–10) or a strong ionic strength of up to 1 M, and the detection limit of mercury(II) has been determined as low as 18 n M. We envision such water-soluble, biocompatible carbon dots that could be applied to biolabeling, bio-imaging, and biosensing fields.展开更多
Nanostructures/patterns formed by biomolecules can produce different physicochemical properties in terms of hydrophobicity, zeta-potential, color, etc., which play paramount roles in life. Peptides, as the main bio-bu...Nanostructures/patterns formed by biomolecules can produce different physicochemical properties in terms of hydrophobicity, zeta-potential, color, etc., which play paramount roles in life. Peptides, as the main bio-building blocks, can form nanostructures with different functions,either in solutions or on interfaces. Previously, we synthesized a short peptide with the inspiration of an Alzheimer’s disease-related peptide: amyloid β peptide(A-p),namely GAV-9, which can epitaxially self-assemble into regular nanofilaments on liquid-solid interfaces, and it was found that both the hydrophobicity and charge state of the interfaces can significantly influence its assembling behavior. It was also reported that another A-β-containing dipeptide, FF,can self-assemble into nanostructures in solutions. Owing to the close relationship between these two short peptides, it is interesting to conjugate them into a de novo peptide with two separated structural domains and study its self-assembling behavior. To this end, herein we have synthesized the GAV-FF peptide with a sequence of NH2-VGGAVVAGVFF-CONH2 and verified its selfassembling property using the in situ liquid-phase atomic force microscopy. The results show that the GAV-FF peptide can self-assemble into nanofilaments both in solutions and on aqueous-solid interfaces, but with different morphologies. The FF domain accelerates the template-assisted self-assembling(TASA) process of the GAV domain, which in return enhances the solubility of FF in aqueous solutions and further participates in the fibrillization of FF. The current results could help deepen the understanding of the aggregation mechanism of diseaserelated peptides and could also shed light on the strategies to create artificial bio-functional nanostructures/patterns,which hold a significant potential for biomedical applications.展开更多
Externally applied magnetic fields have been used in this study to fabricate bamboo-like iron nanowires with or without a layer of Poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA). The hybrid PMMA/Fe nanowires were synthesized via ha...Externally applied magnetic fields have been used in this study to fabricate bamboo-like iron nanowires with or without a layer of Poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA). The hybrid PMMA/Fe nanowires were synthesized via hard X-ray synchrotron radiation polymerization with various treatment parameters. The results of XRD show that an oxide layer formed on the surface of the iron nanowires. The Fe2O3 and Fe3O4 phases coexist in the iron nanowires without X-ray irradiation. After X-ray irradiation, the Fe2O3 phase transformed into Fe3O4, which stabilized the iron nanowires. The results of XAS proved this phase transformation. TGA analysis confirmed the thermal properties and solid contents in these specimens. Their ferromagnetic behaviors were examined by magnetic hysteresis measurement, which indicated that the magnetic and structural properties of the nanowires can be manipulated by irradiation treatment. This may lead to a novel synthesis for iron nanowires that can be used in high thermal efficiency hyperthermia therapy.展开更多
Strategies for labeling proteins with fluorophores are always important for biotechnology. Here we take a model protein(bovine serum albumin) and a typical fluorophore(rhodamine B) to demonstrate a direct labeling met...Strategies for labeling proteins with fluorophores are always important for biotechnology. Here we take a model protein(bovine serum albumin) and a typical fluorophore(rhodamine B) to demonstrate a direct labeling method just by physical adsorption. In combination with size exclusion chromatography and the Scartchard equation, we have developed a facile analysis method for calculating the binding constant and binding sites.The molecular docking method has been used to study the binding site in amino acid level.展开更多
It is significant to quantify the intermolecular physisorption extent in biomedical field.By taking the advantage of a significant difference from either sizes or weights,we introduced a combination of Scatchard equat...It is significant to quantify the intermolecular physisorption extent in biomedical field.By taking the advantage of a significant difference from either sizes or weights,we introduced a combination of Scatchard equation and either ultracentrifugation or size exclusion chromatography to obtain both the binding constant and the number of binding sites by using bovine serum albumin and eosin B as models.Compared to the photoluminescence quenching-based methods like Stern-Volmer and Hill equations,the introduced method is not only more precise but also simpler and more straightforward for the operation.Moreover,the protein conformational changes and the corresponding theoretical binding mode with an atomic resolution were also studied by using three-dimensional fluorescence spectroscopy and molecular docking method,respectively.These comparative results could help scientists select right methods to study any interactions between two molecules with significant differences from either sizes or weights.展开更多
We studied the kinetic characterizations of the Trifolium pratense seedlings copper-containing amine oxidase(TPAO) by using various amine-containing substrates.The catalyzing rate for all of amine-containing substrate...We studied the kinetic characterizations of the Trifolium pratense seedlings copper-containing amine oxidase(TPAO) by using various amine-containing substrates.The catalyzing rate for all of amine-containing substrates can be ordered as diamines > polyamines > aromatic monoamines,and it shows an apparent trend in each category of substrates such as the longer the carbon chain,the lower the V_(max) is,so does the V_(max)/K_m values but is opposite for the K_m value of TPAO.The distinct differences between the kinetic parameters for different amine-containing substrates indicated that the rate-determining step of the catalytic reaction strongly depends on the substrate's chemical structure.It is concluded that both pH and ionic strength can affect the catalytic activity of TPAO via influencing the coulomb interaction-mediated enzyme-substrate docking processes,which can be attributed to the potential of charged groups from both substrates and the activity sites of TPAO by the regulation of ionic strength.展开更多
We systematically explore near equilibrium, flow-driven, and flow-activity coupled dynamics of polar active liquid crystals using a continuum model. Firstly, we re-derive the hydrodynamic model to ensure the thermodyn...We systematically explore near equilibrium, flow-driven, and flow-activity coupled dynamics of polar active liquid crystals using a continuum model. Firstly, we re-derive the hydrodynamic model to ensure the thermodynamic laws are obeyed and elastic stresses and forces are consistently accounted. We then carry out a linear stability analysis about constant steady states to study near equilibrium dynamics around the steady states, revealing long-wave instability inherent in this model system and how active parameters in the model affect the instability. We then study model predictions for one- dimensional （1D） spatial-temporal structures of active liquid crystals in a channel subject to physical boundary conditions. We discuss the model prediction in two selected regimes, one is the viscous stress dominated regime, also known as the flow-driven regime, while the other is the full regime, in which all active mechanisms are included. In the viscous stress dominated regime, the polarity vector is driven by the prescribed flow field. Dynamics depend sensitively on the physical boundary condition and the type of the driven flow field. Bulk-dominated temporal periodic states and spatially homogeneous states are possible under weak anchoring conditions while spatially inhomogeneous states exist under strong anchoring conditions. In the full model, flow-orientation interaction generates a host of planar as well as out-of-plane spatial-temporal structures related to the spontaneous flows due to the molecular self-propelled motion. These results provide contact with the recent literature on active nematic suspensions. In addition, symmetry breaking pattems emerge as the additional active viscous stress due to the polarity vector is included in the force balance. The inertia effect is found to limit the long-time survival of spatial structures to those with small wave numbers, i.e., an asymptotic coarsening to long wave structures. A rich set of mechanisms for generating and limiting the flow structures as well as the spatial-temporal structures predicted by the model are displayed.展开更多
There is a considerable amount of work that shows the biomagnetism of organic components without ferromagnetic components at the molecular level,but it is of great challenge to cover the giant gap of biomagnetism betw...There is a considerable amount of work that shows the biomagnetism of organic components without ferromagnetic components at the molecular level,but it is of great challenge to cover the giant gap of biomagnetism between their experimental and theoretical results.Here we show that the diamagnetism of aromatic peptides is greatly enhanced for about 11 times by self-assembling,reaching two orders of magnitude higher than the mass susceptibility of pure water.The self-assembly of aromatic rings in the peptide molecules plays the key role in such a strong diamagnetism.展开更多
Ensuring reliable and safe operation of high-power electronic devices necessitates the development of high-quality dielectric nano-capacitors with high recoverable energy density(URec)and efficiency(η)at low applied ...Ensuring reliable and safe operation of high-power electronic devices necessitates the development of high-quality dielectric nano-capacitors with high recoverable energy density(URec)and efficiency(η)at low applied electric fields(E)/voltages.In this work,we demonstrate ultra-high URec andηat low E<500 kV/cm in as-grown epitaxial relaxor ferroelectric(RFE)PMN-33PT films,rivaling those typically achieved in state-of-the-art RFE and antiferroelectric(AFE)materials.The high energy storage properties were achieved using a synergistic strategy involving large polarization,a giant built-in potential/imprint(five times higher than the coercive field),and AFE like behavior.The structural,chemical,and electrical investigations revealed that these achievements mainly arise from the effects of strain,dipole defects,and chemical composition.For instance,at low E,the capacitors exhibit under 160 kV/cm(i.e.,8 V)and 400 kV/cm(i.e.,20 V),respectively,an ultra-highΔP(45μC/cm^(2)and 60μC/cm^(2)),UE=URec/E(21 J·MV/cm^(2)and 17 J·MV/cm^(2)),and UF=URec/(1-η)(20 J/cm^(3)and 47 J/cm^(3))with a robust charge-discharge fatigue endurance and outstanding frequency and thermal stability.Additionally,the designed films exhibit outstanding energy storage performance at higher E up to 2 MV/cm(ΔP≈78μC/cm^(2),UE≈17.3 J·MV/cm^(2)and UF≈288 J/cm^(3))due to their low leakage current density.展开更多
Supramolecular proteins are generated using a limited set of twenty amino acids,but have distinctive functionalities which arise from the sequential arrangement of amino acids configured to exquisite three-dimensional...Supramolecular proteins are generated using a limited set of twenty amino acids,but have distinctive functionalities which arise from the sequential arrangement of amino acids configured to exquisite three-dimensional structures.Viruses,virus-like particles,ferritins,enzyme complexes,cellular micro-compartments,and other supramolecular protein assemblies exemplify these systems,with their precise arrangements of tens to hundreds of molecules into highly organized scaffolds for nucleic acid packaging,metal storage,catalysis or sequestering reactions at the nanometer scale.These versatile protein systems,dubbed as bionanoparticles(BNPs),have attracted materials scientists to seek new opportunities with these pre-fabricated templates in a wide range of nanotechnology-related applications.Here,we focus on some of the key modification strategies that have been utilized,ranging from basic protein conjugation techniques to more novel strategies,to expand the functionalities of these multimeric protein assemblies.Ultimately,in combination with molecular cloning and sophisticated chemistries,these BNPs are being incorporated into many applications ranging from functional materials to novel biomedical drug designs.展开更多
Poly（caprolactone-b-2-vinylpyridine） （PCL-P2VP） coated with folate-conjugated M13 （FA-M13） provides a nanosized delivery system which is capable of encapsulating hydrophobic antitumor drugs such as doxorubicin ...Poly（caprolactone-b-2-vinylpyridine） （PCL-P2VP） coated with folate-conjugated M13 （FA-M13） provides a nanosized delivery system which is capable of encapsulating hydrophobic antitumor drugs such as doxorubicin （DOX）. The DOXqoaded FA-M13-PCL-P2VP assemblies had an average diameter of approximately 200 nm and their structure was characterized using transmission electron microscopy, scanning electron microscopy, and dynamic light scattering. The particles were stable at physiological pH but could be degraded at a lower pH. The release of DOX from the nanoassemblies under acidic conditions was shown to be significantly faster than that observed at physiological pH. In addition, the DOX-loaded FA-M13-PCL-P2VP particles showed a distinctly greater cellular uptake and cytotoxicity against folate-receptor-positive cancer cells than folate-receptor-negative cells, indicating that the receptor facilitates folate uptake via receptor-mediated endocytosis. Furthermore, the DOX-loaded particles also had a significantly higher tumor uptake and selectivity compared to free DOX. This study therefore offers a new way to fabricate nanosized drug delivery vehicles.展开更多
Shrinking conventional optical systems to chip-scale dimensions will benefit custom applications in imaging,displaying,sensing,spectroscopy,and metrology.Towards this goal,metasurfaces-planar arrays of subwavelength e...Shrinking conventional optical systems to chip-scale dimensions will benefit custom applications in imaging,displaying,sensing,spectroscopy,and metrology.Towards this goal,metasurfaces-planar arrays of subwavelength electromagnetic structures that collectively mimic the functionality of thicker conventional optical elements-have been exploited at frequencies ranging from the microwave range up to the visible range.Here,we demonstrate highperformance metasurface optical components that operate at ultraviolet wavelengths,including wavelengths down to the record-short deep ultraviolet range,and perform representative wavefront shaping functions,namely,highnumerical-aperture lensing,accelerating beam generation,and hologram projection.The constituent nanostructured elements of the metasurfaces are formed of hafnium oxide-a loss-less,high-refractive-index dielectric material deposited using low-temperature atomic layer deposition and patterned using high-aspect-ratio Damascene lithography.This study opens the way towards low-form factor,multifunctional ultraviolet nanophotonic platforms based on flat optical components,enabling diverse applications including lithography,imaging,spectroscopy,and quantum information processing.展开更多
Using biological templates to build one-dimensional functional materials holds great promise in developing nanosized electrical devices,sensors,catalysts,and energy storage units.In this communication,we report a vers...Using biological templates to build one-dimensional functional materials holds great promise in developing nanosized electrical devices,sensors,catalysts,and energy storage units.In this communication,we report a versatile assembly process for the preparation of water-soluble conductive polyaniline(PANi)/M13 composite nanowires by employing the bacteriophage M13 as a template.The surface lysine residues of M13 can be derivatized with carboxylic groups to improve its binding ability to the aniline;the resulting modifi ed M13 is denoted as m-M13.Highly negatively-charged poly(sulfonated styrene)was used both as a dopant acid and a stabilizing agent to enhance the stability of the composite fi bers in aqueous solution.A transparent solution of the conductive PANi/m-M13 composite fi bers can be readily obtained without any further purifi cation step.The fi bers can be easily fabricated into thin conductive fi lms due to their high aspect ratio and good solubility in aqueous solution.This synthesis discloses a unique and versatile way of using bionanorods to produce composite fi brillar materials with narrow dispersity,high aspect ratio,and high processibility,which may have many potential applications in electronics,optics,sensing,and biomedical engineering.展开更多
Monochromatic light can be characterized by its three fun dame ntal properties:amplitude,phase,and polarization.In this work,we propose a versatile,transmission-mode all-dielectric metasurface platform that can indepe...Monochromatic light can be characterized by its three fun dame ntal properties:amplitude,phase,and polarization.In this work,we propose a versatile,transmission-mode all-dielectric metasurface platform that can independently manipulate the phase and amplitude for two orthogonal states of polarization in the visible frequency range.For proof-o仁concept experimental demonstration,various single-layer metasurfaces composed of subwavelength-spaced titanium-dioxide nanopillars are designed,fabricated,and characterized to exhibit the ability of polarization-switchable multidimensional light-field manipulation,including polarization-switchable grayscale nanoprinting,nonuniform cylindrical lensing,and complex-amplitude holography.We envision the metasurface platform dem on strated here to open new possibilities toward creating compact multifunctional optical devices for applications in polarization optics,information encoding,optical data storage,and security.展开更多
Integration of photonic chips with millimeter-scale atomic,micromechanical,chemical,and biological systems can advance science and enable new miniaturized hybrid devices and technology.Optical interaction via small ev...Integration of photonic chips with millimeter-scale atomic,micromechanical,chemical,and biological systems can advance science and enable new miniaturized hybrid devices and technology.Optical interaction via small evanescent volumes restricts performance in applications such as gas spectroscopy,and a general ability to photonically access optical fields in large free-space volumes is desired.However,conventional inverse tapers and grating couplers do not directly scale to create wide,high-quality collimated beams for low-loss diffraction-free propagation over many millimeters in free space,necessitating additional bulky collimating optics and expensive alignment.Here,we develop an extreme mode converter,which is a compact planar photonic structure that efficiently couples a 300 nm×250 nm silicon nitride high-index single-mode waveguide to a well-collimated near surface-normal Gaussian beam with an≈160μm waist,which corresponds to an increase in the modal area by a factor of>105.The beam quality is thoroughly characterized,and propagation over 4mm in free space and coupling back into a single-mode photonic waveguide with low loss via a separate identical mode converter is demonstrated.To achieve low phase error over a beam area that is>100×larger than that of a typical grating coupler,our approach separates the two-dimensional mode expansion into two sequential separately optimized stages,which create a fully expanded and well-collimated Gaussian slab mode before out-coupling it into free space.Developed at 780 nm for integration with chip-scale atomic vapor cell cavities,our design can be adapted for visible,telecommunication,or other wavelengths.The technique can be expanded to more arbitrary phase and intensity control of both large-diameter,free-space optical beams and wide photonic slab modes.展开更多
Whispering-gallery microcavities have been used to realize a variety of efficient parametric nonlinear optical processes through the enhanced light–matter interaction brought about by supporting multiple high quality...Whispering-gallery microcavities have been used to realize a variety of efficient parametric nonlinear optical processes through the enhanced light–matter interaction brought about by supporting multiple high quality factor and small modal volume resonances.Critical to such studies is the ability to control the relative frequencies of the cavity modes,so that frequency matching is achieved to satisfy energy conservation.Typically this is done by tailoring the resonator cross section.Doing so modifies the frequencies of all of the cavity modes,that is,the global dispersion profile,which may be undesired,for example,in introducing competing nonlinear processes.Here,we demonstrate a frequency engineering tool,termed multiple selective mode splitting(MSMS),that is independent of the global dispersion and instead allows targeted and independent control of the frequencies of multiple cavity modes.In particular,we show controllable frequency shifts up to 0.8 nm,independent control of the splitting of up to five cavity modes with optical quality factors≳10^5,and strongly suppressed frequency shifts for untargeted modes.The MSMS technique can be broadly applied to a wide variety of nonlinear optical processes across different material platforms and can be used to both selectively enhance processes of interest and suppress competing unwanted processes.展开更多
Cu (I) catalyzed alkyne-azide cycloaddition (CuAAC) reaction,a typical "click" reaction,is one of the modular synthetic approaches which has been broadly used in various organic syntheses,medicinal chemistry...Cu (I) catalyzed alkyne-azide cycloaddition (CuAAC) reaction,a typical "click" reaction,is one of the modular synthetic approaches which has been broadly used in various organic syntheses,medicinal chemistry,materials development and bioconjugation applications.We have for the first time synthesized two dialkyne derivatized fluorescent crosslinkers which could be applied to crosslink two biomolecules using CuAAC reaction.Turnip yellow mosaic virus,a plant virus with unique structural and chemical properties,was used as a prototypical scaffold to form a 2D single layer at the interface of two immiscible liquids and crosslinked with these two linkers by the CuAAC reaction.Upon crosslinking,the fluorescence of both linkers diminished,likely due to the distortion of the polymethylene backbone,which therefore could be used to indicate the completion of the reaction.展开更多
Bionanoparticles(BNPs),consisting of virus and virus-like assemblies,have attracted much attention in the biomedical field for their applications such as imaging and targeted drug delivery,owing to their well-defined ...Bionanoparticles(BNPs),consisting of virus and virus-like assemblies,have attracted much attention in the biomedical field for their applications such as imaging and targeted drug delivery,owing to their well-defined structures and well-controlled chemistries.BNPs-based core-shell structures provide a unique system for the investigation of biological interactions such as protein-protein and protein-carbohydrate interactions.However,it is still a challenge to prepare the BNPs-based core-shell structures.Herein,we describe(i) co-assembly method and(ii) template synthesis method in the development of polymer-BNPs core-shell structures.These two methods can be divided into three different systems.In system A,different polymers including poly(2-vinylpyridine)(P2VP),poly(4-vinylpyridine)(P4VP) and poly(ε-caprolactone)-block-poly(2-vinylpyridine)(PCL-b-P2VP) can form a raspberry-like structure with BNPs.In system B,polystyrene(PS) spheres end capped with free amine and BNPs can form a core-shell structure.In System C,layer-by-layer(LBL) method is used to prepare positive charged PS particles,which can be used as a template to form the core-shell structures with BNPs.These two methods may open a new way for preparing novel protein-based functional materials for potential applications in the biomedical field.展开更多
The novel dental ceramics can be fabricated at lower temperatures when sol-gel derived lithium disilicate glass ceramics(LDGC)was used as an additive for yttria stabilized tetragonal zirconia polycrystalline(Y-TZP)cer...The novel dental ceramics can be fabricated at lower temperatures when sol-gel derived lithium disilicate glass ceramics(LDGC)was used as an additive for yttria stabilized tetragonal zirconia polycrystalline(Y-TZP)ceramics.The effect of LDGC on the sintering,mechanical,and translucent properties of Y-TZP ceramics was investigated in the present study.The results showed that the LDGC additive effectively improved the densification of Y-TZP at 1100℃,which was much lower than the sintering temperature for pure Y-TZP.When sintered at 1100℃,the Y-TZP with 1 wt%LDGC reached a relative density of 95.45%,and prossessed a flexural strength of 482.4 MPa and a fracture toughness of 5.94 MPa-m12.Moreover,its translucency was also improved.While,the addition of LDGC could result in an escape of yttrium atoms from the grain lattice of zirconia,which induced the tetragonal-monoclinic transformation of zirconia and abnormal growth of monoclinic grains.The escaped yttrium atoms diffused into the intergranular glass phase.The results indicated that the novel Y-TZP-LDGC ceramics has a great potential to be used for all-ceramic restorations.展开更多
Biologically,there exist two kinds of syntheses:photosynthesis and ATP-driven biosynthesis.The light harvesting of photosynthesis is known to achieve an efficiency of〜95%by the quantum energy transfer of photons.Howev...Biologically,there exist two kinds of syntheses:photosynthesis and ATP-driven biosynthesis.The light harvesting of photosynthesis is known to achieve an efficiency of〜95%by the quantum energy transfer of photons.However,how the ATP-driven biosynthesis reaches its high efficiency still remains unknown.Deoxynucleotide triphosphates(dNTPs)in polymerase chain reaction(PCR)adopt the identical way of ATP to release their energy,and thus can be employed to explore the ATP energy process.Here,using a gold nanoparticle(AuNP)enhanced PCR(AuNP-PCR),we demonstrate that the energy released by phosphoanhydride-bond(PB)hydrolysis of dNTPs is in form of photons(PB-photons)to drive DNA replication,by modulating their resonance with the average inter-AuNP distance(D).The experimental results show that both the efficiency and yield of PCR periodically oscillate with D increasing,indicating a quantized process,but not simply a thermal one.The PB-photon wavelength is further determined to 8.4 pm.All these results support that the release,transfer and utilization of bioenergy are in the form of photons.Our findings of ATP-energy quantum conversion will open a new avenue to the studies of high-efficiency bioenergy utilization,biochemistry,biological quantum physics,and even brain sciences.展开更多
基金supported by Grants from the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Nos. 21171086 and 81160213)Inner Mongolia Grassland Talent (No. 108-108038)+2 种基金Natural Science Foundation of Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region of China (Nos. 2013MS1121 and 2015MS0806)Inner Mongolia Department of Science and Technology (No. 211-202077)the Inner Mongolia Agricultural University (Nos. 109-108040, 211-109003, and 211-206038)
文摘Mercury ions have been considered highly toxic to human health. What would be great is to develop the ionic probes without any toxicities themselves. Here, we report a friendly, highly sensitive mercury(II) ionic probe, watersoluble photoluminescence carbon dots which were synthesized by simply hydrothermal treatment of fresh cherry tomatoes without adding any other reagents. The ultra-small(\1 nm) carbon dots show robust excitation-depended photoluminescence under a wide p H range(4–10) or a strong ionic strength of up to 1 M, and the detection limit of mercury(II) has been determined as low as 18 n M. We envision such water-soluble, biocompatible carbon dots that could be applied to biolabeling, bio-imaging, and biosensing fields.
基金the Program Funded by the University for Fostering Distinguished Young Scholarsthe National Natural Science Foundation of China(No.51763019,U1832125)+3 种基金the China Postdoctoral Science Foundation(No.2018M630937)the Grassland Talents Program of Inner Mongolia Autonomous Regionthe Distinguished Young Scholars Foundation of Inner Mongolia Autonomous Regionthe Young Leading Talents of Science and Technology Program of Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region
文摘Nanostructures/patterns formed by biomolecules can produce different physicochemical properties in terms of hydrophobicity, zeta-potential, color, etc., which play paramount roles in life. Peptides, as the main bio-building blocks, can form nanostructures with different functions,either in solutions or on interfaces. Previously, we synthesized a short peptide with the inspiration of an Alzheimer’s disease-related peptide: amyloid β peptide(A-p),namely GAV-9, which can epitaxially self-assemble into regular nanofilaments on liquid-solid interfaces, and it was found that both the hydrophobicity and charge state of the interfaces can significantly influence its assembling behavior. It was also reported that another A-β-containing dipeptide, FF,can self-assemble into nanostructures in solutions. Owing to the close relationship between these two short peptides, it is interesting to conjugate them into a de novo peptide with two separated structural domains and study its self-assembling behavior. To this end, herein we have synthesized the GAV-FF peptide with a sequence of NH2-VGGAVVAGVFF-CONH2 and verified its selfassembling property using the in situ liquid-phase atomic force microscopy. The results show that the GAV-FF peptide can self-assemble into nanofilaments both in solutions and on aqueous-solid interfaces, but with different morphologies. The FF domain accelerates the template-assisted self-assembling(TASA) process of the GAV domain, which in return enhances the solubility of FF in aqueous solutions and further participates in the fibrillization of FF. The current results could help deepen the understanding of the aggregation mechanism of diseaserelated peptides and could also shed light on the strategies to create artificial bio-functional nanostructures/patterns,which hold a significant potential for biomedical applications.
文摘Externally applied magnetic fields have been used in this study to fabricate bamboo-like iron nanowires with or without a layer of Poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA). The hybrid PMMA/Fe nanowires were synthesized via hard X-ray synchrotron radiation polymerization with various treatment parameters. The results of XRD show that an oxide layer formed on the surface of the iron nanowires. The Fe2O3 and Fe3O4 phases coexist in the iron nanowires without X-ray irradiation. After X-ray irradiation, the Fe2O3 phase transformed into Fe3O4, which stabilized the iron nanowires. The results of XAS proved this phase transformation. TGA analysis confirmed the thermal properties and solid contents in these specimens. Their ferromagnetic behaviors were examined by magnetic hysteresis measurement, which indicated that the magnetic and structural properties of the nanowires can be manipulated by irradiation treatment. This may lead to a novel synthesis for iron nanowires that can be used in high thermal efficiency hyperthermia therapy.
基金Supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China(Nos.21171086 and 81160213)Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region science and Technology Department(No.211-202077)+2 种基金Inner Mongolia Grassland Talent(No.108-108038)Natural Science Foundation of Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region of China(No.2013MS1121)Inner Mongolia Agricultural University(Nos.109-108040,211-109003 and 211-206038)
文摘Strategies for labeling proteins with fluorophores are always important for biotechnology. Here we take a model protein(bovine serum albumin) and a typical fluorophore(rhodamine B) to demonstrate a direct labeling method just by physical adsorption. In combination with size exclusion chromatography and the Scartchard equation, we have developed a facile analysis method for calculating the binding constant and binding sites.The molecular docking method has been used to study the binding site in amino acid level.
基金supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China(Nos.21171086 and 81160213)the Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region science and Technology Department(No.211-202077)+2 种基金the Inner Mongolia Grassland Talent(No.108-108038)the Natural Science Foundation of Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region of China(Nos.2013MS1121,2015ms0806 and 2016MS0211)the Inner Mongolia Agricultural University(Nos.109-108040,211-109003 and 211-206038)
文摘It is significant to quantify the intermolecular physisorption extent in biomedical field.By taking the advantage of a significant difference from either sizes or weights,we introduced a combination of Scatchard equation and either ultracentrifugation or size exclusion chromatography to obtain both the binding constant and the number of binding sites by using bovine serum albumin and eosin B as models.Compared to the photoluminescence quenching-based methods like Stern-Volmer and Hill equations,the introduced method is not only more precise but also simpler and more straightforward for the operation.Moreover,the protein conformational changes and the corresponding theoretical binding mode with an atomic resolution were also studied by using three-dimensional fluorescence spectroscopy and molecular docking method,respectively.These comparative results could help scientists select right methods to study any interactions between two molecules with significant differences from either sizes or weights.
基金supported by the Department of Education of Inner Mongolia and Inner Mongolia Natural Science Foundation of China for Basic Research(No.NJZY13054)the National Natural Science Foundation of China(Nos.31360214,21171086 and 81160213)+3 种基金the Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region Science and Technology Department(No.211-202077)the Inner Mongolia Grassland Talent(No.108-108038)the Natural Science Foundation of Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region of China(Nos.2013MS1121 and 2015MS0806)the Inner Mongolia Agricultural University(Nos.109-108040,211-109003 and 211-206038)
文摘We studied the kinetic characterizations of the Trifolium pratense seedlings copper-containing amine oxidase(TPAO) by using various amine-containing substrates.The catalyzing rate for all of amine-containing substrates can be ordered as diamines > polyamines > aromatic monoamines,and it shows an apparent trend in each category of substrates such as the longer the carbon chain,the lower the V_(max) is,so does the V_(max)/K_m values but is opposite for the K_m value of TPAO.The distinct differences between the kinetic parameters for different amine-containing substrates indicated that the rate-determining step of the catalytic reaction strongly depends on the substrate's chemical structure.It is concluded that both pH and ionic strength can affect the catalytic activity of TPAO via influencing the coulomb interaction-mediated enzyme-substrate docking processes,which can be attributed to the potential of charged groups from both substrates and the activity sites of TPAO by the regulation of ionic strength.
基金supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China(Grant Nos.DMS-1200487,DMR-1122483,and NIH 2R01GM078994-05A1)the Air Force Office of Scientific Research(AFOSR)(Grant No.FA9550-12-1-0178)the Army Research Office(Grant Nos.ARO-12-60317-MS and SC EPSCoR GEAR(CI and CRP))
文摘We systematically explore near equilibrium, flow-driven, and flow-activity coupled dynamics of polar active liquid crystals using a continuum model. Firstly, we re-derive the hydrodynamic model to ensure the thermodynamic laws are obeyed and elastic stresses and forces are consistently accounted. We then carry out a linear stability analysis about constant steady states to study near equilibrium dynamics around the steady states, revealing long-wave instability inherent in this model system and how active parameters in the model affect the instability. We then study model predictions for one- dimensional （1D） spatial-temporal structures of active liquid crystals in a channel subject to physical boundary conditions. We discuss the model prediction in two selected regimes, one is the viscous stress dominated regime, also known as the flow-driven regime, while the other is the full regime, in which all active mechanisms are included. In the viscous stress dominated regime, the polarity vector is driven by the prescribed flow field. Dynamics depend sensitively on the physical boundary condition and the type of the driven flow field. Bulk-dominated temporal periodic states and spatially homogeneous states are possible under weak anchoring conditions while spatially inhomogeneous states exist under strong anchoring conditions. In the full model, flow-orientation interaction generates a host of planar as well as out-of-plane spatial-temporal structures related to the spontaneous flows due to the molecular self-propelled motion. These results provide contact with the recent literature on active nematic suspensions. In addition, symmetry breaking pattems emerge as the additional active viscous stress due to the polarity vector is included in the force balance. The inertia effect is found to limit the long-time survival of spatial structures to those with small wave numbers, i.e., an asymptotic coarsening to long wave structures. A rich set of mechanisms for generating and limiting the flow structures as well as the spatial-temporal structures predicted by the model are displayed.
基金Supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China(Grant Nos.U1632135,11974366,U1932123,51763019 and U1832125)the Key Research Program of Chinese Academy of Sciences(Grant No.QYZDJ-SSW-SLH053)the Fundamental Research Funds for the Central Universities.
文摘There is a considerable amount of work that shows the biomagnetism of organic components without ferromagnetic components at the molecular level,but it is of great challenge to cover the giant gap of biomagnetism between their experimental and theoretical results.Here we show that the diamagnetism of aromatic peptides is greatly enhanced for about 11 times by self-assembling,reaching two orders of magnitude higher than the mass susceptibility of pure water.The self-assembly of aromatic rings in the peptide molecules plays the key role in such a strong diamagnetism.
基金supported by the Slovenian Research Agency(Nos.P2-0091,J2-2510,N2-0187,N2-0149,and P1-0125)the Swiss National Science Foundation(Lead Agency Grant No.192047)the Region Hauts-de-France(Projects TERRA(AAP STARS-N°21002758)and TRANSITION(CPER MANIFEST-N°22006563)).
文摘Ensuring reliable and safe operation of high-power electronic devices necessitates the development of high-quality dielectric nano-capacitors with high recoverable energy density(URec)and efficiency(η)at low applied electric fields(E)/voltages.In this work,we demonstrate ultra-high URec andηat low E<500 kV/cm in as-grown epitaxial relaxor ferroelectric(RFE)PMN-33PT films,rivaling those typically achieved in state-of-the-art RFE and antiferroelectric(AFE)materials.The high energy storage properties were achieved using a synergistic strategy involving large polarization,a giant built-in potential/imprint(five times higher than the coercive field),and AFE like behavior.The structural,chemical,and electrical investigations revealed that these achievements mainly arise from the effects of strain,dipole defects,and chemical composition.For instance,at low E,the capacitors exhibit under 160 kV/cm(i.e.,8 V)and 400 kV/cm(i.e.,20 V),respectively,an ultra-highΔP(45μC/cm^(2)and 60μC/cm^(2)),UE=URec/E(21 J·MV/cm^(2)and 17 J·MV/cm^(2)),and UF=URec/(1-η)(20 J/cm^(3)and 47 J/cm^(3))with a robust charge-discharge fatigue endurance and outstanding frequency and thermal stability.Additionally,the designed films exhibit outstanding energy storage performance at higher E up to 2 MV/cm(ΔP≈78μC/cm^(2),UE≈17.3 J·MV/cm^(2)and UF≈288 J/cm^(3))due to their low leakage current density.
文摘Supramolecular proteins are generated using a limited set of twenty amino acids,but have distinctive functionalities which arise from the sequential arrangement of amino acids configured to exquisite three-dimensional structures.Viruses,virus-like particles,ferritins,enzyme complexes,cellular micro-compartments,and other supramolecular protein assemblies exemplify these systems,with their precise arrangements of tens to hundreds of molecules into highly organized scaffolds for nucleic acid packaging,metal storage,catalysis or sequestering reactions at the nanometer scale.These versatile protein systems,dubbed as bionanoparticles(BNPs),have attracted materials scientists to seek new opportunities with these pre-fabricated templates in a wide range of nanotechnology-related applications.Here,we focus on some of the key modification strategies that have been utilized,ranging from basic protein conjugation techniques to more novel strategies,to expand the functionalities of these multimeric protein assemblies.Ultimately,in combination with molecular cloning and sophisticated chemistries,these BNPs are being incorporated into many applications ranging from functional materials to novel biomedical drug designs.
基金We are grateful for financial support from the US National Science Foundation （NSF） （CAREER program and No. DMR-0706431）, US Department of Defense （DoD） （No. W911NF-09-1-0236）, the Alfred P. Sloan Scholarship, the Camille Dreyfus Teacher-Scholar Award, DoD-Army Research Office （ARO）, and the W. M. Keck Foundation. We are also indebted to Dr. Udai Singh for assistance with flow cytometry and Laying Wu for TEM and SEM analyses.
文摘Poly（caprolactone-b-2-vinylpyridine） （PCL-P2VP） coated with folate-conjugated M13 （FA-M13） provides a nanosized delivery system which is capable of encapsulating hydrophobic antitumor drugs such as doxorubicin （DOX）. The DOXqoaded FA-M13-PCL-P2VP assemblies had an average diameter of approximately 200 nm and their structure was characterized using transmission electron microscopy, scanning electron microscopy, and dynamic light scattering. The particles were stable at physiological pH but could be degraded at a lower pH. The release of DOX from the nanoassemblies under acidic conditions was shown to be significantly faster than that observed at physiological pH. In addition, the DOX-loaded FA-M13-PCL-P2VP particles showed a distinctly greater cellular uptake and cytotoxicity against folate-receptor-positive cancer cells than folate-receptor-negative cells, indicating that the receptor facilitates folate uptake via receptor-mediated endocytosis. Furthermore, the DOX-loaded particles also had a significantly higher tumor uptake and selectivity compared to free DOX. This study therefore offers a new way to fabricate nanosized drug delivery vehicles.
基金support from The National Key R&D Program of China(Grant Nos.2017YFA0303700 and 2016YFA0202100)the National Science Foundation of China(Grant No.11774163)+1 种基金support under the Cooperative Research Agreement between the University of Maryland and the National Institute of Standards and Technology(NIST)Physical Measurement Laboratory,Award No.70NANB14H209funding from Huazhong University of Science and Technology.
文摘Shrinking conventional optical systems to chip-scale dimensions will benefit custom applications in imaging,displaying,sensing,spectroscopy,and metrology.Towards this goal,metasurfaces-planar arrays of subwavelength electromagnetic structures that collectively mimic the functionality of thicker conventional optical elements-have been exploited at frequencies ranging from the microwave range up to the visible range.Here,we demonstrate highperformance metasurface optical components that operate at ultraviolet wavelengths,including wavelengths down to the record-short deep ultraviolet range,and perform representative wavefront shaping functions,namely,highnumerical-aperture lensing,accelerating beam generation,and hologram projection.The constituent nanostructured elements of the metasurfaces are formed of hafnium oxide-a loss-less,high-refractive-index dielectric material deposited using low-temperature atomic layer deposition and patterned using high-aspect-ratio Damascene lithography.This study opens the way towards low-form factor,multifunctional ultraviolet nanophotonic platforms based on flat optical components,enabling diverse applications including lithography,imaging,spectroscopy,and quantum information processing.
基金We are grateful for financial support from NSF-DMR-0706431,NSF career award,US DoD,and the W.M.Keck Foundation.This manuscript has been approved by the U.S.Army Natick Soldier Research,Development and Engineering Center for unlimited distribution(PAO#08-107).
文摘Using biological templates to build one-dimensional functional materials holds great promise in developing nanosized electrical devices,sensors,catalysts,and energy storage units.In this communication,we report a versatile assembly process for the preparation of water-soluble conductive polyaniline(PANi)/M13 composite nanowires by employing the bacteriophage M13 as a template.The surface lysine residues of M13 can be derivatized with carboxylic groups to improve its binding ability to the aniline;the resulting modifi ed M13 is denoted as m-M13.Highly negatively-charged poly(sulfonated styrene)was used both as a dopant acid and a stabilizing agent to enhance the stability of the composite fi bers in aqueous solution.A transparent solution of the conductive PANi/m-M13 composite fi bers can be readily obtained without any further purifi cation step.The fi bers can be easily fabricated into thin conductive fi lms due to their high aspect ratio and good solubility in aqueous solution.This synthesis discloses a unique and versatile way of using bionanorods to produce composite fi brillar materials with narrow dispersity,high aspect ratio,and high processibility,which may have many potential applications in electronics,optics,sensing,and biomedical engineering.
基金the Key Research and Development Program from Ministry of Science and Technology of China(2017YFA0303700 and 2016YFA0202100)National Natural Science Foundation of China(11774163)+1 种基金Fundamental Research Funds for the Central Universities(0213-14380194).M.L.and T.Xu ack no wledge tech nical support from micro-fabricati on and in teg rati on technology center from Nanji ng Un iversity.W.Z.L.C.and A.A.acknowledge support under the Cooperative Research Agreement between the University of Maryland and the National Institute of Standards and Technology,Award#70-NANB14H209,through the University of Maryland.M.L.,W.Z.and P.H.contributed equally to this work.
文摘Monochromatic light can be characterized by its three fun dame ntal properties:amplitude,phase,and polarization.In this work,we propose a versatile,transmission-mode all-dielectric metasurface platform that can independently manipulate the phase and amplitude for two orthogonal states of polarization in the visible frequency range.For proof-o仁concept experimental demonstration,various single-layer metasurfaces composed of subwavelength-spaced titanium-dioxide nanopillars are designed,fabricated,and characterized to exhibit the ability of polarization-switchable multidimensional light-field manipulation,including polarization-switchable grayscale nanoprinting,nonuniform cylindrical lensing,and complex-amplitude holography.We envision the metasurface platform dem on strated here to open new possibilities toward creating compact multifunctional optical devices for applications in polarization optics,information encoding,optical data storage,and security.
基金support under the Cooperative Research Agreement between the University of Maryland and the National Institute of Standards and Technology Center for Nanoscale Science and Technology,Award 70NANB10H193,through the University of Maryland.
文摘Integration of photonic chips with millimeter-scale atomic,micromechanical,chemical,and biological systems can advance science and enable new miniaturized hybrid devices and technology.Optical interaction via small evanescent volumes restricts performance in applications such as gas spectroscopy,and a general ability to photonically access optical fields in large free-space volumes is desired.However,conventional inverse tapers and grating couplers do not directly scale to create wide,high-quality collimated beams for low-loss diffraction-free propagation over many millimeters in free space,necessitating additional bulky collimating optics and expensive alignment.Here,we develop an extreme mode converter,which is a compact planar photonic structure that efficiently couples a 300 nm×250 nm silicon nitride high-index single-mode waveguide to a well-collimated near surface-normal Gaussian beam with an≈160μm waist,which corresponds to an increase in the modal area by a factor of>105.The beam quality is thoroughly characterized,and propagation over 4mm in free space and coupling back into a single-mode photonic waveguide with low loss via a separate identical mode converter is demonstrated.To achieve low phase error over a beam area that is>100×larger than that of a typical grating coupler,our approach separates the two-dimensional mode expansion into two sequential separately optimized stages,which create a fully expanded and well-collimated Gaussian slab mode before out-coupling it into free space.Developed at 780 nm for integration with chip-scale atomic vapor cell cavities,our design can be adapted for visible,telecommunication,or other wavelengths.The technique can be expanded to more arbitrary phase and intensity control of both large-diameter,free-space optical beams and wide photonic slab modes.
基金Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency(DODOS)National Institute of Standards and Technology(Nist-on-a-chip).
文摘Whispering-gallery microcavities have been used to realize a variety of efficient parametric nonlinear optical processes through the enhanced light–matter interaction brought about by supporting multiple high quality factor and small modal volume resonances.Critical to such studies is the ability to control the relative frequencies of the cavity modes,so that frequency matching is achieved to satisfy energy conservation.Typically this is done by tailoring the resonator cross section.Doing so modifies the frequencies of all of the cavity modes,that is,the global dispersion profile,which may be undesired,for example,in introducing competing nonlinear processes.Here,we demonstrate a frequency engineering tool,termed multiple selective mode splitting(MSMS),that is independent of the global dispersion and instead allows targeted and independent control of the frequencies of multiple cavity modes.In particular,we show controllable frequency shifts up to 0.8 nm,independent control of the splitting of up to five cavity modes with optical quality factors≳10^5,and strongly suppressed frequency shifts for untargeted modes.The MSMS technique can be broadly applied to a wide variety of nonlinear optical processes across different material platforms and can be used to both selectively enhance processes of interest and suppress competing unwanted processes.
基金We are grateful for the support from the US NSF CAREER Award (CHE-0748690)US DoD–ARO (W911NF-09-1-0236), US DoE+4 种基金the W. M. Keck Foundationthe Camille Dreyfus Teacher-Scholarshipthe Alfred P. Sloan Foundationthe National Natural Science Foundation of China (50673025)the National Basic Research 973 Program (2006CB806200)
文摘Cu (I) catalyzed alkyne-azide cycloaddition (CuAAC) reaction,a typical "click" reaction,is one of the modular synthetic approaches which has been broadly used in various organic syntheses,medicinal chemistry,materials development and bioconjugation applications.We have for the first time synthesized two dialkyne derivatized fluorescent crosslinkers which could be applied to crosslink two biomolecules using CuAAC reaction.Turnip yellow mosaic virus,a plant virus with unique structural and chemical properties,was used as a prototypical scaffold to form a 2D single layer at the interface of two immiscible liquids and crosslinked with these two linkers by the CuAAC reaction.Upon crosslinking,the fluorescence of both linkers diminished,likely due to the distortion of the polymethylene backbone,which therefore could be used to indicate the completion of the reaction.
基金support from the US NSF CAREER program,US DoD (W911NF-09-1-0236),the Alfred P. Sloan Scholarship, the Camille Dreyfus Teacher Scholar Award, DoD-BCRP,and the W.M.Keck Foundation
文摘Bionanoparticles(BNPs),consisting of virus and virus-like assemblies,have attracted much attention in the biomedical field for their applications such as imaging and targeted drug delivery,owing to their well-defined structures and well-controlled chemistries.BNPs-based core-shell structures provide a unique system for the investigation of biological interactions such as protein-protein and protein-carbohydrate interactions.However,it is still a challenge to prepare the BNPs-based core-shell structures.Herein,we describe(i) co-assembly method and(ii) template synthesis method in the development of polymer-BNPs core-shell structures.These two methods can be divided into three different systems.In system A,different polymers including poly(2-vinylpyridine)(P2VP),poly(4-vinylpyridine)(P4VP) and poly(ε-caprolactone)-block-poly(2-vinylpyridine)(PCL-b-P2VP) can form a raspberry-like structure with BNPs.In system B,polystyrene(PS) spheres end capped with free amine and BNPs can form a core-shell structure.In System C,layer-by-layer(LBL) method is used to prepare positive charged PS particles,which can be used as a template to form the core-shell structures with BNPs.These two methods may open a new way for preparing novel protein-based functional materials for potential applications in the biomedical field.
基金supported by the Shanghai Committee of Science and Technology,China(No.17441904100).
文摘The novel dental ceramics can be fabricated at lower temperatures when sol-gel derived lithium disilicate glass ceramics(LDGC)was used as an additive for yttria stabilized tetragonal zirconia polycrystalline(Y-TZP)ceramics.The effect of LDGC on the sintering,mechanical,and translucent properties of Y-TZP ceramics was investigated in the present study.The results showed that the LDGC additive effectively improved the densification of Y-TZP at 1100℃,which was much lower than the sintering temperature for pure Y-TZP.When sintered at 1100℃,the Y-TZP with 1 wt%LDGC reached a relative density of 95.45%,and prossessed a flexural strength of 482.4 MPa and a fracture toughness of 5.94 MPa-m12.Moreover,its translucency was also improved.While,the addition of LDGC could result in an escape of yttrium atoms from the grain lattice of zirconia,which induced the tetragonal-monoclinic transformation of zirconia and abnormal growth of monoclinic grains.The escaped yttrium atoms diffused into the intergranular glass phase.The results indicated that the novel Y-TZP-LDGC ceramics has a great potential to be used for all-ceramic restorations.
基金the National Key Research and Development Program of China(No.2018YFE0205501)the National Natural Science Foundation of China Projects(Nos.51763019,U1832125,31630029)the National Supercomputer Center in Tianjin.
文摘Biologically,there exist two kinds of syntheses:photosynthesis and ATP-driven biosynthesis.The light harvesting of photosynthesis is known to achieve an efficiency of〜95%by the quantum energy transfer of photons.However,how the ATP-driven biosynthesis reaches its high efficiency still remains unknown.Deoxynucleotide triphosphates(dNTPs)in polymerase chain reaction(PCR)adopt the identical way of ATP to release their energy,and thus can be employed to explore the ATP energy process.Here,using a gold nanoparticle(AuNP)enhanced PCR(AuNP-PCR),we demonstrate that the energy released by phosphoanhydride-bond(PB)hydrolysis of dNTPs is in form of photons(PB-photons)to drive DNA replication,by modulating their resonance with the average inter-AuNP distance(D).The experimental results show that both the efficiency and yield of PCR periodically oscillate with D increasing,indicating a quantized process,but not simply a thermal one.The PB-photon wavelength is further determined to 8.4 pm.All these results support that the release,transfer and utilization of bioenergy are in the form of photons.Our findings of ATP-energy quantum conversion will open a new avenue to the studies of high-efficiency bioenergy utilization,biochemistry,biological quantum physics,and even brain sciences.
