It is shown theoretically that the mechanism of the rapid coagulation of metal nanospheres into a nanowire in a quantum vortex proposed by E. B. Gordon et al. (Low Temp. Phys., 2010, 36, 590) could not be realized, due to the enormous heat release expelling the nanospheres from the vortex. Also, Gordon's hypothesis on nanowire formation in quantum vortices contradicts the observations that nanowires form above the λ-point (where no quantum vortices exist) and on superfluid helium's surface (parallel to it), which is always perpendicular to the quantum vortices. The nanowire formation process in bulk and dropwise liquid helium is described as a special case of aggregation controlled by diffusion in an external electric field. The nanosphere charging occurs due to the thermoelectric emission from their overheating and also laser ablation. The charged nanospheres attract neutral ones to minimize the electrostatic energy and are also attracted to elevations (field concentrators) on the conductive surfaces surrounding the experimental volume. Both processes lead to nanowire formation and drift prevails over diffusion in both cases. The described mechanism leads to the formation of self-similar anisometric structures in agreement with experimental data.
Solutions of chiral and achiral trifluoroacetyl amino alcohols (TFAAA) contain anisometric structures with a diameter <1 nm and length ~7 nm. In homochiral solutions and xerogels, chiral TFAAA form strings with a diameter of ~30-100 nm and length more than ~1 µ, and achiral TFAAA condensate into isometric granule with diameter of ~1 µ. We conclude that molecular chirality determines helicity of strings within tens of nanometers or more. Stabilization of supramolecular structure of strings is presumably achieved via their supercoiling.
Amino Alcohols/chemistry , Fluoroacetates/chemistry , Cyclohexanes/chemistry , Gels , Heptanes/chemistry , Molecular Conformation , Scattering, Small Angle , Solutions , Stereoisomerism , X-Ray Diffraction
Having investigated chiroptical characteristics of homochiral solutions of biomimetics the rule of changing a chirality sign in spontaneous formation of supramolecular helical structures was experimentally substantiated. This self-organization presents evidence of a fundamental synergetic law of changing the chirality sign during the transition to a higher hierarchical level, being of common for modular prebiotic homochiral systems and basic molecular biological systems.
Amino Alcohols/chemistry , Hydrocarbons, Fluorinated/chemistry , Models, Chemical , Biomimetic Materials
The dynamics of string growth was studied in model homochiral solutions of biomimetics, trifluoroacetylated amino alcohols (TFAAA) in heptane, water, and inverted heptane-water emulsion. In heptane and water, a thick (~1 µ in diameter) string had a crown of thin strings on its growing terminal and these thin strings effectively adsorbed dissolved TFAAA. In emulsion, the strings grew inside the water droplets, in which this TFAAA cannot be solved, presumably due to transport of TFAAA molecules from heptane into water in the surface layer surrounding the string. Applications of these phenomena to in vivo cell commutation were discussed.
Amino Alcohols/chemistry , Biomimetic Materials/chemistry , Heptanes/chemistry , Water/chemistry , Animals , Cell Communication/physiology , Chlorocebus aethiops , Emulsions , Models, Chemical , Surface Properties , Trifluoroacetic Acid/chemistry , Vero Cells
Strings, anisometric structures with length-diameter ratio of 10(1)-10(5) are formed in some homochiral solutions at a concentration of 10(-3)-10(-2) M. We studied macroscopic properties of strings (strength, charge at the ends, etc.) and showed that these strings can provide a power commutation of cells. The strength and electrostatic driving force of the strings are sufficient to transport cells with a velocity of app. 1 cm/sec. The formation of strings is a mechanism of directional and error-resistant information exchange and for intercellular distances it is faster and more efficient by substance utilization than the diffusion mechanism. This suggests that strings or similar objects, including cytonemes, play an important role in various aspects of cell-cell commutation.
Biomimetic Materials/chemistry , Gels/chemistry , Solutions/chemistry , Cell Communication , Diffusion , Isomerism , Microscopy , Models, Biological , Static Electricity
Molecules of dissolved substance in many homochiral solutions are arranged in linear associations forming chiral strings (with length to diameter proportion of 10(1)-10(5)), which leads to solidification of the solution into anisometric gel. This paper describes the formation of the string system in aqueous solution of amino acid phenylalanine, formation of individual strings, weaving of thin strings into thick ones, successive alteration of the solution chirality sign with transition to new levels of the association organization. It seems that biological media are anisometric fluids containing chiral molecular associations and strings, or anisometric gels.
Biomimetic Materials/chemistry , Phenylalanine/chemistry , Solutions/chemistry , Body Fluids , Gels , Hydrogen Bonding , Microscopy , Models, Molecular , Spectrophotometry, Infrared , Stereoisomerism
A phenomenon of superspiralization was revealed in homochiral solutions of biomimetics with strings lengths from 10(2) nm to 10(2) µ and longer: strings of greater size spontaneously formed in solution are twined of the smaller strings, which also have a helical structure. The chiral pitch depends on the conditions of formation of a particular string and can vary by several times in different strings of the same specimen.
Acetates/chemistry , Amino Alcohols/chemistry , DNA/chemistry , Microscopy, Atomic Force , Molecular Structure , Solutions , Stereoisomerism
