ABSTRACT
Porous membranes with under-liquid dual superlyophobic properties, which are difficult to achieve because of a thermodynamic contradiction, have attracted considerable interest in the field of switchable oil/water separation. Herein, a bioinspired mesh membrane with alternating hydrophilic and hydrophobic chemical patterns on its surface that endows it with superamphiphilic and under-liquid dual superlyophobic properties is fabricated by a simple liquidus modification process. The as-prepared membrane possesses a combination of under-oil superhydrophobic and under-water superoleophobic characteristics in the absence of external stimuli. Moreover, it can effectively perform the on-demand separation of various oil/water systems, including immiscible oil/water mixtures and oil/water emulsions owing to its under-liquid dual superlyophobic properties.
Subject(s)
Oils , Oils/chemistry , Hydrophobic and Hydrophilic Interactions , Emulsions/chemistryABSTRACT
Lanthanide-doped chitosan nanospheres (LDCNs) and lanthanide-Fe(3)O(4)-doped chitosan nanospheres (Fe(3)O(4)-LDCNs) are fabricated and show fluorescence, MRI effectiveness and desirable biocompatibility. Superior to most nanoparticles that were found retained in cytoplasmic organelles rather than the nucleus, the prepared chitosan nanospheres preferentially enter and illuminate the cell nuclei. Complexation of plasmid DNA (pDNA) to the nanospheres was accomplished via electrostatic forces between positively charged chitosan and negatively charged pDNA. Satisfactory results of the complexation indicate that the prepared chitosan nanospheres can serve as a potential fluorescent nonviral vector for pDNA delivery that can fulfill gene delivery and transfer efficiency assessment simultaneously, without an additional step of tagging fluorophores to the vectors carried out in fabrications of currently available pDNA delivery vectors.
Subject(s)
Cell Nucleus/metabolism , Chitosan/chemistry , DNA/administration & dosage , Drug Carriers/chemistry , Fluorescent Dyes/chemistry , Gene Transfer Techniques , Lanthanum/chemistry , Nanospheres/chemistry , Cell Survival/drug effects , DNA/genetics , Drug Carriers/chemical synthesis , Ferrosoferric Oxide/chemistry , Fluorescent Dyes/chemical synthesis , HeLa Cells , Humans , Materials Testing , Microscopy, Electron, Transmission , Microscopy, Fluorescence , Plasmids , Spectroscopy, Fourier Transform Infrared , Surface Properties , X-Ray DiffractionABSTRACT
Novel iron phosphates microflowers which show SOD-like and peroxidase-like mimic activities were prepared, suggesting potential applications as a biocatalyst and a biosensor for H(2)O(2).
Subject(s)
Biomimetic Materials/metabolism , Ferric Compounds/chemistry , Biocatalysis , Biomimetic Materials/chemistry , Biosensing Techniques , Hydrogen Peroxide/analysis , Kinetics , Peroxidase/metabolism , Spectrophotometry, Ultraviolet , Superoxide Dismutase/metabolismABSTRACT
Solvothermally synthesized CePO(4):Tb,Gd hollow nanospheres were fabricated as a peroxidase mimic and bimodal magnetic-fluorescent imaging agent, which show potential applications in biocatalysis and bioimaging.