TY - JOUR A1 - Zimmermann, Marc A1 - Stomps, Benjamin René Harald A1 - Schulte-Osseili, Christine A1 - Grigoriev, Dmitry A1 - Ewen, Dirk A1 - Morgan, Andrew A1 - Böker, Alexander T1 - Organic dye anchor peptide conjugates as an advanced coloring agent for polypropylene yarn JF - Textile Research Journal N2 - Polypropylene as one of the world's top commodity polymers is also widely used in the textile industry. However, its non-polar nature and partially crystalline structure significantly complicate the process of industrial coloring of polypropylene. Currently, textiles made of polypropylene or with a significant proportion of polypropylene are dyed under quite harsh conditions, including the use of high pressures and temperatures, which makes this process energy intensive. This research presents a three-step synthesis of coloring agents, capable of adhering onto synthetic polypropylene yarns without harsh energy-consuming conditions. This is possible by encapsulation of organic pigments using trimethoxyphenylsilane, introduction of surface double bonds via modification of the silica shell with trimethoxysilylpropylmethacrylate and final attachment of highly adhesive anchor peptides using thiol-ene chemistry. We demonstrate the applicability of this approach by dyeing polypropylene yarns in a simple process under ambient conditions after giving a step-by-step guide for the synthesis of these new dyeing agents. Finally, the successful dyeing of the yarns is visualized, and its practicability is discussed. KW - anchor peptides KW - organic dye pigments KW - coloring agents KW - polypropylene KW - yarns Y1 - 2020 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1177/0040517520932231 SN - 0040-5175 SN - 1746-7748 VL - 91 IS - 1-2 SP - 28 EP - 39 PB - Sage Publ. CY - London ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Deng, Zijun A1 - Wang, Weiwei A1 - Xua, Xun A1 - Gould, Oliver E. C. A1 - Kratz, Karl A1 - Ma, Nan A1 - Lendlein, Andreas T1 - Polymeric sheet actuators with programmable bioinstructivity JF - PNAS N2 - Stem cells are capable of sensing and processing environmental inputs, converting this information to output a specific cell lineage through signaling cascades. Despite the combinatorial nature of mechanical, thermal, and biochemical signals, these stimuli have typically been decoupled and applied independently, requiring continuous regulation by controlling units. We employ a programmable polymer actuator sheet to autonomously synchronize thermal and mechanical signals applied to mesenchymal stem cells (MSC5). Using a grid on its underside, the shape change of polymer sheet, as well as cell morphology, calcium (Ca2+) influx, and focal adhesion assembly, could be visualized and quantified. This paper gives compelling evidence that the temperature sensing and mechanosensing of MSC5 are interconnected via intracellular Ca2+. Up-regulated Ca2+ levels lead to a remarkable alteration of histone H3K9 acetylation and activation of osteogenic related genes. The interplay of physical, thermal, and biochemical signaling was utilized to accelerate the cell differentiation toward osteogenic lineage. The approach of programmable bioinstructivity provides a fundamental principle for functional biomaterials exhibiting multifaceted stimuli on differentiation programs. Technological impact is expected in the tissue engineering of periosteum for treating bone defects. KW - reversible shape-memory actuator KW - mesenchymal stem cells KW - calcium influx KW - HDAC1 KW - RUNX2 Y1 - 2020 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.1910668117 SN - 1091-6490 VL - 117 IS - 4 SP - 1895 EP - 1901 PB - National Academy of Sciences CY - Washington, DC ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Hartlieb, Matthias A1 - Mansfield, Edward D. H. A1 - Perrier, Sebastien T1 - A guide to supramolecular polymerizations JF - Polymer Chemistry N2 - Supramolecular polymers or fibers are non-covalent assemblies of unimeric building blocks connected by secondary interactions such as hydrogen bonds or pi-pi interactions. Such structures hold enormous potential in the development of future materials, as their non-covalent nature makes them highly modular and adaptive. Within this review we aim to provide a broad overview over the area of linear supramolecular polymers including the different mechanisms of their polymerization as well as methods essential for their characterization. The different non-covalent interactions able to form supramolecular polymers are discussed, and key examples for each species are shown. Particular emphasis is laid on the development of living supramolecular polymerization able to produce fibers with a controlled length and low length dispersity, and even enable the production of supramolecular block copolymers. Another important and very recent field is the development of out-of-equilibrium supramolecular polymers, where the polymerization process can be temporally controlled enabling access to highly adaptive materials. Y1 - 2020 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1039/c9py01342c SN - 1759-9954 SN - 1759-9962 VL - 11 IS - 6 SP - 1083 EP - 1110 PB - Royal Society of Chemistry CY - Cambridge ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Franz, Alexandra A1 - Többens, Daniel M. A1 - Lehmann, Frederike A1 - Kärgell, Martin A1 - Schorr, Susan T1 - The influence of deuteration on the crystal structure of hybrid halide perovskites: a temperature-dependent neutron diffraction study of FAPbBr(3) JF - Acta crystallographica; Section B, Structural science, crystal engineering and materials N2 - This paper discusses the full structural solution of the hybrid perovskite formamidinium lead tribromide (FAPbBr(3)) and its temperature-dependent phase transitions in the range from 3 K to 300 K using neutron powder diffraction and synchrotron X-ray diffraction. Special emphasis is put on the influence of deuteration on formamidinium, its position in the unit cell and disordering in comparison to fully hydrogenated FAPbBr(3). The temperature-dependent measurements show that deuteration critically influences the crystal structures, i.e. results in partially-ordered temperature-dependent structural modifications in which two symmetry-independent molecule positions with additional dislocation of the molecular centre atom and molecular angle inclinations are present. KW - hybrid perovskite KW - FAPbBr(3) KW - deuteration KW - neutron powder diffraction KW - crystal structure Y1 - 2020 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1107/S2052520620002620 SN - 2052-5206 VL - 76 IS - 2 SP - 267 EP - 274 PB - Wiley-Blackwell CY - Oxford [u.a.] ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Wojcik, Michal A1 - Brinkmann, Pia A1 - Zdunek, Rafał A1 - Riebe, Daniel A1 - Beitz, Toralf A1 - Merk, Sven A1 - Cieslik, Katarzyna A1 - Mory, David A1 - Antonczak, Arkadiusz T1 - Classification of copper minerals by handheld laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy and nonnegative tensor factorisation JF - Sensors N2 - Laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy (LIBS) analysers are becoming increasingly common for material classification purposes. However, to achieve good classification accuracy, mostly noncompact units are used based on their stability and reproducibility. In addition, computational algorithms that require significant hardware resources are commonly applied. For performing measurement campaigns in hard-to-access environments, such as mining sites, there is a need for compact, portable, or even handheld devices capable of reaching high measurement accuracy. The optics and hardware of small (i.e., handheld) devices are limited by space and power consumption and require a compromise of the achievable spectral quality. As long as the size of such a device is a major constraint, the software is the primary field for improvement. In this study, we propose a novel combination of handheld LIBS with non-negative tensor factorisation to investigate its classification capabilities of copper minerals. The proposed approach is based on the extraction of source spectra for each mineral (with the use of tensor methods) and their labelling based on the percentage contribution within the dataset. These latent spectra are then used in a regression model for validation purposes. The application of such an approach leads to an increase in the classification score by approximately 5% compared to that obtained using commonly used classifiers such as support vector machines, linear discriminant analysis, and the k-nearest neighbours algorithm. KW - LIBS KW - NTF KW - HALS KW - classification KW - copper minerals Y1 - 2020 U6 - https://doi.org/10.3390/s20185152 SN - 1424-8220 VL - 20 IS - 18 PB - MDPI CY - Basel ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Kaya, Kerem A1 - Debsharma, Tapas A1 - Schlaad, Helmut A1 - Yagci, Yusuf T1 - Cellulose-based polyacetals by direct and sensitized photocationic ring-opening polymerization of levoglucosenyl methyl ether JF - Polymer Chemistry N2 - This study aims to explore the photoinitiated cationic ring-opening polymerization of levoglucosenyl methyl ether (LGME), a chemical obtained from the most abundant biomass - cellulose. Direct and sensitized photopolymerizations of LGME using photoinitiators acting at the near UV or visible range in conjunction with diphenyliodonium hexafluoroantimonate (DPI) yielded unsaturated polyacetals with varying molar masses and distributions. Y1 - 2020 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1039/d0py01307b SN - 1759-9954 SN - 1759-9962 VL - 11 IS - 43 SP - 6884 EP - 6889 PB - Royal Society of Chemistry CY - Cambridge ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Yan, Runyu A1 - Oschatz, Martin A1 - Wu, Feixiang T1 - Towards stable lithium-sulfur battery cathodes by combining physical and chemical confinement of polysulfides in core-shell structured nitrogen-doped carbons JF - Carbon N2 - Despite intensive research on porous carbon materials as hosts for sulfur in lithium-sulfur battery cathodes, it remains a problem to restrain the soluble lithium polysulfide intermediates for a long-term cycling stability without the use of metallic or metal-containing species. Here, we report the synthesis of nitrogen-doped carbon materials with hierarchical pore architecture and a core-shell-type particle design including an ordered mesoporous carbon core and a polar microporous carbon shell. The initial discharge capacity with a sulfur loading up to 72 wt% reaches over 900 mA h g(sulf)(ur)(-1) at a rate of C/2. Cycling performance measured at C/2 indicates similar to 90% capacity retention over 250 cycles. In comparison to other carbon hosts, this architecture not only provides sufficient space for a high sulfur loading induced by the high-pore-volume particle core, but also enables a dual effect of physical and chemical confinement of the polysulfides to stabilize the cycle life by adsorbing the soluble intermediates in the polar microporous shell. This work elucidates a design principle for carbonaceous hosts that is capable to provide simultaneous physical-chemical confinement. This is necessary to overcome the shuttle effect towards stable lithium-sulfur battery cathodes, in the absence of additional membranes or inactive metal-based anchoring materials. KW - lithium-sulfur battery KW - sulfur KW - porous carbon KW - cathode KW - polysulfides Y1 - 2020 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1016/j.carbon.2020.01.046 SN - 0008-6223 SN - 1873-3891 VL - 161 SP - 162 EP - 168 PB - Elsevier Science CY - Amsterdam [u.a.] ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Zhang, Pengfei A1 - Behl, Marc A1 - Balk, Maria A1 - Peng, Xingzhou A1 - Lendlein, Andreas T1 - Shape-programmable architectured hydrogels sensitive to ultrasound JF - Macromolecular rapid communications N2 - On-demand motion of highly swollen polymer systems can be triggered by changes in pH, ion concentrations, or by heat. Here, shape-programmable, architectured hydrogels are introduced, which respond to ultrasonic-cavitation-based mechanical forces (CMF) by directed macroscopic movements. The concept is the implementation and sequential coupling of multiple functions (swellability in water, sensitivity to ultrasound, shape programmability, and shape-memory) in a semi-interpenetrating polymer network (s-IPN). The semi-IPN-based hydrogels are designed to function through rhodium coordination (Rh-s-IPNH). These coordination bonds act as temporary crosslinks. The porous hydrogels with coordination bonds (degree of swelling from 300 +/- 10 to 680 +/- 60) exhibit tensile strength sigma(max) up to 250 +/- 60 kPa. Shape fixity ratios up to 90% and shape recovery ratios up to 94% are reached. Potential applications are switches or mechanosensors. KW - cavitation-based mechanical force KW - rhodium-phosphine coordination bonds KW - semi-IPN hydrogels KW - shape-memory effect Y1 - 2020 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1002/marc.201900658 SN - 1022-1336 SN - 1521-3927 VL - 41 IS - 7 PB - Wiley-VCH CY - Weinheim ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Koc, Julian A1 - Schardt, Lisa A1 - Nolte, Kim A1 - Beyer, Cindy A1 - Eckhard, Till A1 - Schwiderowski, Philipp A1 - Clarke, Jessica L. A1 - Finlay, John A. A1 - Clare, Anthony S. A1 - Muhler, Martin A1 - Laschewsky, André A1 - Rosenhahn, Axel T1 - Effect of dipole orientation in mixed, charge-equilibrated self-assembled monolayers on protein adsorption and marine biofouling JF - ACS applied materials & interfaces N2 - While zwitterionic interfaces are known for their excellent low-fouling properties, the underlying molecular principles are still under debate. In particular, the role of the zwitterion orientation at the interface has been discussed recently. For elucidation of the effect of this parameter, self-assembled monolayers (SAMs) on gold were prepared from stoichiometric mixtures of oppositely charged alkyl thiols bearing either a quaternary ammonium or a carboxylate moiety. The alkyl chain length of the cationic component (11-mercaptoundecyl)-N,N,N-trimethylammonium, which controls the distance of the positively charged end group from the substrate's surface, was kept constant. In contrast, the anionic component and, correspondingly, the distance of the negatively charged carboxylate groups from the surface was varied by changing the alkyl chain length in the thiol molecules from 7 (8-mercaptooctanoic acid) to 11 (12-mercaptododecanoic acid) to 15 (16-mercaptohexadecanoic acid). In this way, the charge neutrality of the coating was maintained, but the charged groups exposed at the interface to water were varied, and thus, the orientation of the dipoles in the SAMs was altered. In model biofouling studies, protein adsorption, diatom accumulation, and the settlement of zoospores were all affected by the altered charge distribution. This demonstrates the importance of the dipole orientation in mixed-charged SAMs for their inertness to nonspecific protein adsorption and the accumulation of marine organisms. Overall, biofouling was lowest when both the anionic and the cationic groups were placed at the same distance from the substrate's surface. KW - SAM KW - antifouling coatings KW - zwitterionic KW - XPS KW - Navicula perminuta KW - Ulva linza KW - SPR Y1 - 2020 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1021/acsami.0c11580 SN - 1944-8244 SN - 1944-8252 VL - 12 IS - 45 SP - 50953 EP - 50961 PB - American Chemical Society CY - Washington ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Löwenberg, Candy A1 - Tripodo, Giuseppe A1 - Julich-Gruner, Konstanze K. A1 - Neffe, Axel T. A1 - Lendlein, Andreas T1 - Supramolecular gelatin networks based on inclusion complexes JF - Macromolecular bioscience N2 - Hydrogel forming physical networks based on gelatin are an attractive approach toward multifunctional biomaterials with the option of reshaping, self-healing, and stimuli-sensitivity. However, it is challenging to design such gelatin-based hydrogels to be stable at body temperature. Here, gelatin functionalized with desaminotyrosine (DAT) or desaminotyrosyl tyrosine (DATT) side chains is crosslinked with cyclodextrin (CD) dimers under formation of inclusions complexes. The supramolecular networks displayed at room temperature decreased water uptake (200-600 wt% for DAT-based systems, 200 wt% for DATT based systems), and increased storage moduli up to 25.6 kPa determined by rheology compared to DAT(T) gelatin. The gel-sol transition temperature increased from 33 up to 42 degrees C. The presented system that is completely based on natural building blocks may form the basis for materials that may potentially respond by dissolution or changes of properties to changes in environmental conditions or to the presence of CD guest molecules. KW - cyclodextrin KW - gelatin KW - inclusion complex KW - supramolecular polymer network Y1 - 2020 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1002/mabi.202000221 SN - 1616-5187 SN - 1616-5195 VL - 20 IS - 10 PB - Wiley-VCH CY - Weinheim ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Piekarczyk, Andreas A1 - Heitmann, Ulrike A1 - Weiß, Karl-Anders A1 - Köhl, Michael A1 - Bald, Ilko T1 - Development of a simple setup for temperature dependent mass spectrometric measurements for the investigation of outgassing effects in polymeric materials for solar application JF - Polymer testing N2 - A simple experimental setup for temperature dependent mass spectrometric measurements has been constructed. It consists of a heated sample chamber and a mass spectrometer and allows for measurements under inert gas and ambient air. Based on initial measurements on two extruded polystyrene (XPS) samples a methodology for the data analysis has been developed. With this methodology the outgassing temperature of volatile compounds, which were used as blowing agents, has been identified. Furthermore, the composition of the blowing agents has been analyzed by temperature dependent mass spectra. The results indicate the use of ambient air in one material and a mixture of the banned blowing agents R142b and R22, both hydrochlorofluorocarbons (HCFC), in the other material. The here described methodology provides an easy to use approach to identify such compounds, for example as part of environmental or quality control. Y1 - 2019 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1016/j.polymertesting.2019.106164 SN - 0142-9418 SN - 1873-2348 VL - 81 PB - Elsevier CY - Oxford ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Seuffert, Marcel T. A1 - Wintzheimer, Susanne A1 - Oppmann, Maximilian A1 - Granath, Tim A1 - Prieschl, Johannes A1 - Alrefai, Anas A1 - Holdt, Hans-Jürgen A1 - Müller-Buschbaum, Klaus A1 - Mandel, Karl T1 - An all white magnet by combination of electronic properties of a white light emitting MOF with strong magnetic particle systems JF - Journal of materials chemistry : C, Materials for optical and electronic devices N2 - A multi-component particle system was developed that combines the properties of white color, white light emission and strong magnetism on the macroscopic and microscopic scale. The system is constituted by combination of an inorganic white core with either hard or soft magnetic properties and a white light emitting MOF. The key towards this achievement is the supraparticulate character constituted by a magnetic core, of either magnetite or alpha-Fe, surrounded by titania and silica nanoparticles of a certain size in a loose structural shell-arrangement as white components and finally the white light emitting metal-organic framework (MOF) EuTb@IFP-1 as building blocks of a core-shell structure. The supraparticles are created by forced assembly of the inorganic compounds and by combining spray-drying and postsynthetic modification by solvothermal chemistry. Thereby, the gap is bridged that homogenous compounds are either strongly magnetic, white in appearance or white light emitting. The composites presented herein inherit these properties intrinsically as electronic properties. The white characteristics are based on all optical properties that enable white: light reflection, refraction, and light emission. This work shifts the paradigm that strong magnetic materials are always expected to be intrinsically dark. Y1 - 2020 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1039/d0tc03473h SN - 2050-7526 SN - 2050-7534 VL - 8 IS - 45 SP - 16010 EP - 16017 PB - Royal Society of Chemistry CY - Cambridge ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Liebig, Ferenc A1 - Sarhan, Radwan Mohamed A1 - Schmitt, Clemens Nikolaus Zeno A1 - Thünemann, Andreas F. A1 - Prietzel, Claudia Christina A1 - Bargheer, Matias A1 - Koetz, Joachim T1 - Gold nanotriangles with crumble topping and their influence on catalysis and surface-enhanced raman spectroscopy JF - ChemPlusChem N2 - By adding hyaluronic acid (HA) to dioctyl sodium sulfosuccinate (AOT)-stabilized gold nanotriangles (AuNTs) with an average thickness of 7.5 +/- 1 nm and an edge length of about 175 +/- 17 nm, the AOT bilayer is replaced by a polymeric HA-layer leading to biocompatible nanoplatelets. The subsequent reduction process of tetrachloroauric acid in the HA-shell surrounding the AuNTs leads to the formation of spherical gold nanoparticles on the platelet surface. With increasing tetrachloroauric acid concentration, the decoration with gold nanoparticles can be tuned. SAXS measurements reveal an increase of the platelet thickness up to around 14.5 nm, twice the initial value of bare AuNTs. HRTEM micrographs show welding phenomena between densely packed particles on the platelet surface, leading to a crumble formation while preserving the original crystal structure. Crumbles crystallized on top of the platelets enhance the Raman signal by a factor of around 20, and intensify the plasmon-driven dimerization of 4-nitrothiophenol (4-NTP) to 4,4 '-dimercaptoazobenzene in a yield of up to 50 %. The resulting crumbled nanotriangles, with a biopolymer shell and the absorption maximum in the second window for in vivo imaging, are promising candidates for biomedical sensing. KW - gold nanostructures KW - HRTEM KW - hyaluronic acid KW - monolayer formation KW - SERS Y1 - 2020 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1002/cplu.201900745 SN - 2192-6506 VL - 85 IS - 3 SP - 519 EP - 526 PB - Wiley-VCH CY - Weinheim ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Bald, Ilko A1 - Solov'yov, Ilia A. A1 - Mason, Nigel J. A1 - Solov'yov, Andrey V. T1 - Special issue BT - dynamics of systems on the nanoscale (2018). Editorial JF - The European physical journal. D, Atomic, molecular, optical and plasma physics N2 - The structure, formation and dynamics of both animate and inanimate matter on the nanoscale are a highly interdisciplinary field of rapidly emerging research engaging a broad community encompassing experimentalists, theorists, and technologists. It is relevant for a large variety of molecular and nanosystems of different origin and composition and concerns numerous phenomena originating from physics, chemistry, biology, or materials science. This Topical Issue presents a collection of original research papers devoted to different aspects of structure and dynamics on the nanoscale. Some of the contributions discuss specific applications of the research results in several modern technologies and in next generation medicine. Most of the works of this topical issue were reported at the Fifth International Conference on Dynamics of Systems on the Nanoscale (DySoN) - the premier forum for the presentation of cutting-edge research in this field that was held in Potsdam, Germany in October of 2018. Y1 - 2020 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1140/epjd/e2020-10134-4 SN - 1434-6060 SN - 1434-6079 VL - 74 IS - 4 SP - 75 EP - 82 PB - Springer CY - Berlin ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Strauss, Volker A1 - Wang, Huize A1 - Delacroix, Simon A1 - Ledendecker, Marc A1 - Wessig, Pablo T1 - Carbon nanodots revised BT - the thermal citric acid/urea reaction JF - Chemical science N2 - Luminescent compounds obtained from the thermal reaction of citric acid and urea have been studied and utilized in different applications in the past few years. The identified reaction products range from carbon nitrides over graphitic carbon to distinct molecular fluorophores. On the other hand, the solid, non-fluorescent reaction product produced at higher temperatures has been found to be a valuable precursor for the CO2-laser-assisted carbonization reaction in carbon laser-patterning. This work addresses the question of structural identification of both, the fluorescent and non-fluorescent reaction products obtained in the thermal reaction of citric acid and urea. The reaction products produced during autoclave-microwave reactions in the melt were thoroughly investigated as a function of the reaction temperature and the reaction products were subsequently separated by a series of solvent extractions and column chromatography. The evolution of a green molecular fluorophore, namely HPPT, was confirmed and a full characterization study on its structure and photophysical properties was conducted. The additional blue fluorescence is attributed to oligomeric ureas, which was confirmed by complementary optical and structural characterization. These two components form strong hydrogen-bond networks which eventually react to form solid, semi-crystalline particles with a size of similar to 7 nm and an elemental composition of 46% C, 22% N, and 29% O. The structural features and properties of all three main components were investigated in a comprehensive characterization study. Y1 - 2020 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1039/d0sc01605e SN - 2041-6520 SN - 2041-6539 VL - 11 IS - 31 SP - 8256 EP - 8266 PB - Royal Society of Chemistry CY - Cambridge ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Perovic, Milena A1 - Aloni, Sapir Shekef A1 - Mastai, Yitzhak A1 - Oschatz, Martin T1 - Mesoporous carbon materials with enantioselective surface obtained by nanocasting for selective adsorption of chiral molecules from solution and the gas phase JF - Carbon N2 - Separation of enantiomers is an everlasting challenge in chemistry, catalysis, and synthesis of pharmaceuticals. The design and fabrication of chiral adsorbent materials is a promising way to increase the surface area of chiral information, as well as to maximize the available surface for the adsorption of one enantiomer. Porous materials such as silica or metal-organic-frameworks are established compounds in this field, due to their well-defined surface structure and ease of functionalization with chiral groups. As another class of porous materials, carbons provide the advantages of high thermal and chemical stability, resistance against moisture, electrical conductivity, and widely tunable pore size. Although they are well established in many adsorption-related applications, carbons received far less attention in enantioselective adsorption processes because the controlled functionalization of their surface is rather difficult due to the chemically heterogeneous atoms in the network. A suitable approach to overcome this limitation is the synthesis of chiral carbons directly from chiral precursors. So far, chiral carbons synthesized from chiral precursors used salt-templating as a way of introducing porosity, which resulted in mainly microporous materials or materials with broad pore size distribution. In the present study, the possibility of combining nanocasting as an alternative templating approach with chiral ionic liquids as a carbon precursor is demonstrated. Chiral recognition is measured in the gas phase, by adsorption of chiral gas, as well as in the solution, by using isothermal titration calorimetry. (C) 2020 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved. KW - mesoporous carbon KW - chiral carbon KW - porous materials KW - enantiomers KW - separation KW - chiral recognition KW - adsorption Y1 - 2020 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1016/j.carbon.2020.08.010 SN - 0008-6223 SN - 1873-3891 VL - 170 SP - 550 EP - 557 PB - Elsevier CY - Oxford ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Lützow, Karola A1 - Weigel, Thomas A1 - Lendlein, Andreas T1 - Solvent-based fabrication method for magnetic, shape-memory nanocomposite foams JF - MRS advances N2 - This paper presents shape-memory foams that can be temporarily fixed in their compressed state and be expanded on demand. Highly porous, nanocomposite foams were prepared from a solution of polyetherurethane with suspended nanoparticles (mean aggregate size 90 nm) which have an iron(III) oxide core with a silica shell. The polymer solution with suspended nanoparticles was cooled down to -20 degrees C in a two-stage process, which was followed by freeze-drying. The average pore size increases with decreasing concentration of nanoparticles from 158 mu m to 230 mu m while the foam porosity remained constant. After fixation of a temporary form of the nanocomposite foams, shape recovery can be triggered either by heat or by exposure to an alternating magnetic field. Compressed foams showed a recovery rate of up to 76 +/- 4% in a thermochamber at 80 degrees C, and a slightly lower recovery rate of up to 65 +/- 4% in a magnetic field. KW - composite KW - foam KW - polymer KW - magnetic KW - shape memory Y1 - 2020 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1557/adv.2019.422 SN - 2059-8521 VL - 5 IS - 14-15 SP - 785 EP - 795 PB - Cambridge Univ. Press CY - Cambridge ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Hoffmann, Falk A1 - Machatschek, Rainhard Gabriel A1 - Lendlein, Andreas T1 - Understanding the impact of crystal lamellae organization on small molecule diffusion using a Monte Carlo approach JF - MRS advances : a journal of the Materials Research Society (MRS) N2 - Many physicochemical processes depend on the diffusion of small molecules through solid materials. While crystallinity in polymers is advantageous with respect to structure performance, diffusion in such materials is difficult to predict. Here, we investigate the impact of crystal morphology and organization on the diffusion of small molecules using a lattice Monte Carlo approach. Interestingly, diffusion determined with this model does not depend on the internal morphology of the semi-crystalline regions. The obtained insight is highly valuable for developing predictive models for all processes in semi-crystalline polymers involving mass transport, like polymer degradation or drug release, and provide design criteria for the time-dependent functional behavior of multifunctional polymer systems. Y1 - 2020 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1557/adv.2020.386 SN - 2059-8521 VL - 5 IS - 52-53 SP - 2737 EP - 2749 PB - Cambridge University Press CY - Cambridge ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Gäbert, Chris A1 - Rosenstingl, Tobias A1 - Linsler, Dominic A1 - Dienwiebel, Martin A1 - Reinicke, Stefan T1 - Programming viscosity in silicone oils BT - reversible tuning of rheological properties in 9-anthracene ester-terminated polydimethylsiloxanes JF - ACS applied polymer materials N2 - Programmable oils feature tunable viscosity and therefore possess potential for technical improvements and innovative solutions in many lubricated applications. Herein, we describe the first assessment of the variability of rheological properties of light-programmable 9-anthracene ester-terminated polydimethylsiloxanes (PDMS-As), including implications that arise with UV-light as an external trigger. We applied a modified rheometer setup that enables the monitoring of dynamic moduli during exposure to UV-light. The reversible dimerization of anthracene esters is used to either link PDMS chains by UV-A radiation (365 nm) or cleave chains by UV-C radiation (254 nm) or at elevated temperatures (>130 degrees C). Thermal cleavage fully restores the initial material properties, while the photochemical cleavage of dimers occurs only to a limited extent. Prolonged UV radiation causes material damage and in turn reduces the range of programmable rheological properties. The incomplete cleavage contributes to a gradual buildup of viscosity over a course of several switching cycles, which we suggest to result from chain length-dependent reaction kinetics. Material property gradients induced during radiation due to attenuation of the light beam upon its passing through the oil layer have to be considered, emphasizing the need for proper mixing protocols during the programming step. The material in focus shows integrated photorheology and is suggested to improve the performance of silicone oils in friction systems. KW - polysiloxane KW - lubricant KW - light-programmable viscosity KW - anthracene KW - dimerization KW - reversible chain extension Y1 - 2020 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1021/acsapm.0c00794 SN - 2637-6105 VL - 2 IS - 12 SP - 5460 EP - 5468 PB - ACS Publications CY - Washington, DC ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Izraylit, Victor A1 - Gould, Oliver E. C. A1 - Kratz, Karl A1 - Lendlein, Andreas T1 - Investigating the phase-morphology of PLLA-PCL multiblock copolymer/PDLA blends cross-linked using stereocomplexation JF - MRS advances N2 - The macroscale function of multicomponent polymeric materials is dependent on their phase-morphology. Here, we investigate the morphological structure of a multiblock copolymer consisting of poly(L-lactide) and poly(epsilon-caprolactone) segments (PLLA-PCL), physically cross-linked by stereocomplexation with a low molecular weight poly(D-lactide) oligomer (PDLA). The effects of blend composition and PLLA-PCL molecular structure on the morphology are elucidated by AFM, TEM and SAXS. We identify the formation of a lattice pattern, composed of PLA domains within a PCL matrix, with an average domain spacing d0 = 12 - 19 nm. The size of the PLA domains were found to be proportional to the block length of the PCL segment of the copolymer and inversely proportional to the PDLA content of the blend. Changing the PLLA-PCL / PDLA ratio caused a shift in the melt transition Tm attributed to the PLA stereocomplex crystallites, indicating partial amorphous phase dilution of the PLA and PCL components within the semicrystalline material. By elucidating the phase structure and thermal character of multifunctional PLLA-PCL / PDLA blends, we illustrate how composition affects the internal structure and thermal properties of multicomponent polymeric materials. This study should facilitate the more effective incorporation of a variety of polymeric structural units capable of stimuli responsive phase transitions, where an understanding the phase-morphology of each component will enable the production of multifunctional soft-actuators with enhanced performance. KW - polymer KW - blend KW - nanostructure KW - morphology Y1 - 2020 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1557/adv.2019.465 SN - 2059-8521 VL - 5 IS - 14-15 SP - 699 EP - 707 PB - Cambridge Univ. Press CY - New York ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Tarazona, Natalia A. A1 - Machatschek, Rainhard Gabriel A1 - Lendlein, Andreas T1 - Influence of depolymerases and lipases on the degradation of polyhydroxyalkanoates determined in Langmuir degradation studies JF - Advanced materials interfaces N2 - Microbially produced polyhydroxyalkanoates (PHAs) are polyesters that are degradable by naturally occurring enzymes. Albeit PHAs degrade slowly when implanted in animal models, their disintegration is faster compared to abiotic hydrolysis under simulated physiological environments. Ultrathin Langmuir-Blodgett (LB) films are used as models for fast in vitro degradation testing, to predict enzymatically catalyzed hydrolysis of PHAs in vivo. The activity of mammalian enzymes secreted by pancreas and liver, potentially involved in biomaterials degradation, along with microbial hydrolases is tested toward LB-films of two model PHAs, poly(3-R-hydroxybutyrate) (PHB) and poly[(3-R-hydroxyoctanoate)-co-(3-R-hydroxyhexanoate)] (PHOHHx). A specific PHA depolymerase fromStreptomyces exfoliatus, used as a positive control, is shown to hydrolyze LB-films of both polymers regardless of their side-chain-length and phase morphology. From amorphous PHB and PHOHHx, approximate to 80% is eroded in few hours, while mass loss for semicrystalline PHB is 25%. Surface potential and interfacial rheology measurements show that material dissolution is consistent with a random-chain-scission mechanism. Degradation-induced crystallization of semicrystalline PHB LB-films is also observed. Meanwhile, the surface and the mechanical properties of both LB-films remain intact throughout the experiments with lipases and other microbial hydrolases, suggesting that non-enzymatic hydrolysis could be the predominant factor for acceleration of PHAs degradation in vivo. KW - enzymatic-degradation KW - Langmuir thin-films KW - lipases KW - PHA-depolymerases KW - polyhydroxyalkanoates (PHA) Y1 - 2020 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1002/admi.202000872 SN - 2196-7350 VL - 7 IS - 17 PB - Wiley CY - Hoboken ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Müller, Anke Katharina A1 - Helms, Ute A1 - Rohrer, Carsten A1 - Möhler, Monika A1 - Hellwig, Frank A1 - Glei, Michael A1 - Schwerdtle, Tanja A1 - Lorkowski, Stefan A1 - Dawczynski, Christine T1 - Nutrient composition of different hazelnut cultivars grown in Germany JF - Foods N2 - Hazelnuts are rarely cultivated in Germany, although they are a valuable source for macro- and micronutrients and can thus contribute to a healthy diet. Near the present, 15 varieties were cultivated in Thuringia, Germany, as a pilot study for further research. The aim of our study was to evaluate the micro- and macronutrient composition of representative, randomly mixed samples of the 15 different hazelnut cultivars. Protein, fat, and fiber contents were determined using established methods. Fatty acids, tocopherols, minerals, trace elements, and ultra-trace elements were analyzed using gas chromatography, high-performance liquid chromatography, and inductively coupled plasma triple quadrupole mass-spectrometry, respectively. We found that the different hazelnut varieties contained valuable amounts of fat, protein, dietary fiber, minerals, trace elements, and alpha-tocopherol, however, in different quantities. The variations in nutrient composition were independent of growth conditions, which were identical for all hazelnut varieties. Therefore, each hazelnut cultivar has its specific nutrient profile. KW - Corylus avellana L. KW - nutrient composition KW - hazelnut cultivars KW - minerals KW - tocopherols Y1 - 2020 U6 - https://doi.org/10.3390/foods9111596 SN - 2304-8158 VL - 9 IS - 11 PB - MDPI CY - Basel ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Carl, Nico A1 - Müller, Wenke A1 - Schweins, Ralf A1 - Huber, Klaus T1 - Controlling self-assembly with light and temperature JF - Langmuir N2 - Complexes between the anionic polyelectrolyte sodium polyacrylate (PA) and an oppositely charged divalent azobenzene dye are prepared in aqueous solution. Depending on the ratio between dye and polyelectrolyte stable aggregates with a well-defined spherical shape are observed. Upon exposure of these complexes to UV light, the trans -> cis transition of the azobenzene is excited resulting in a better solubility of the dye and a dissolution of the complexes. The PA chains reassemble into well-defined aggregates when the dye is allowed to relax back into the trans isomer. Varying the temperature during this reformation step has a direct influence on the final size of the aggregates rendering temperature in an efficient way to easily change the size of the self-assemblies. Application of time-resolved small-angle neutron scattering (SANS) to study the structure formation reveals that the cis -> trans isomerization is the rate-limiting step followed by a nucleation and growth process. Y1 - 2020 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.langmuir.9b03040 SN - 0743-7463 VL - 36 IS - 1 SP - 223 EP - 231 PB - American Chemical Society CY - Washington ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Mei, Shilin A1 - Xu, Xiaohui A1 - Priestley, Rodney D. A1 - Lu, Yan T1 - Polydopamine-based nanoreactors: synthesis and applications in bioscience and energy materials JF - Chemical science N2 - Polydopamine (PDA)-based nanoreactors have shown exceptional promise as multifunctional materials due to their nanoscale dimensions and sub-microliter volumes for reactions of different systems. Biocompatibility, abundance of active sites, and excellent photothermal conversion have facilitated their extensive use in bioscience and energy storage/conversion. This minireview summarizes recent advances in PDA-based nanoreactors, as applied to the abovementioned fields. We first highlight the design and synthesis of functional PDA-based nanoreactors with structural and compositional diversity. Special emphasis in bioscience has been given to drug/protein delivery, photothermal therapy, and antibacterial properties, while for energy-related applications, the focus is on electrochemical energy storage, catalysis, and solar energy harvesting. In addition, perspectives on pressing challenges and future research opportunities regarding PDA-based nanoreactors are discussed. Y1 - 2020 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1039/d0sc04486e SN - 2041-6520 SN - 2041-6539 VL - 11 IS - 45 SP - 12269 EP - 12281 PB - Royal Society of Chemistry CY - Cambridge ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Deng, Zijun A1 - Wang, Weiwei A1 - Xu, Xun A1 - Ma, Nan A1 - Lendlein, Andreas T1 - Modulation of mesenchymal stem cell migration using programmable polymer sheet actuators JF - MRS advances N2 - Recruitment of mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) to damaged tissue is a crucial step to modulate tissue regeneration. Here, the migration of human adipose-derived stem cells (hADSCs) responding to thermal and mechanical stimuli was investigated using programmable shape-memory polymer actuator (SMPA) sheets. Changing the temperature repetitively between 10 and 37 degrees C, the SMPA sheets are capable of reversibly changing between two different pre-defined shapes like an artificial muscle. Compared to non-actuating sheets, the cells cultured on the programmed actuating sheets presented a higher migration velocity (0.32 +/- 0.1 vs. 0.57 +/- 0.2 mu m/min). These results could motivate the next scientific steps, for example, to investigate the MSCs pre-loaded in organoids towards their migration potential. Y1 - 2020 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1557/adv.2020.235 SN - 2059-8521 VL - 5 IS - 46-47 SP - 2381 EP - 2390 PB - Cambridge Univ. Press CY - New York ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Schmidt, Carsten A1 - Schierack, Peter A1 - Gerber, Ulrike A1 - Schroeder, Christian A1 - Choi, Youngeun A1 - Bald, Ilko A1 - Lehmann, Werner A1 - Rödiger, Stefan T1 - Streptavidin homologues for applications on solid surfaces at high temperatures JF - Langmuir N2 - One of the most commonly used bonds between two biomolecules is the bond between biotin and streptavidin (SA) or streptavidin homologues (SAHs). A high dissociation constant and the consequent high-temperature stability even allows for its use in nucleic acid detection under polymerase chain reaction (PCR) conditions. There are a number of SAHs available, and for assay design, it is of great interest to determine as to which SAH will perform the best under assay conditions. Although there are numerous single studies on the characterization of SAHs in solution or selected solid phases, there is no systematic study comparing different SAHs for biomolecule-binding, hybridization, and PCR assays on solid phases. We compared streptavidin, core streptavidin, traptavidin, core traptavidin, neutravidin, and monomeric streptavidin on the surface of microbeads (10-15 mu m in diameter) and designed multiplex microbead-based experiments and analyzed simultaneously the binding of biotinylated oligonucleotides and the hybridization of oligonucleotides to complementary capture probes. We also bound comparably large DNA origamis to capture probes on the microbead surface. We used a real-time fluorescence microscopy imaging platform, with which it is possible to subject samples to a programmable time and temperature profile and to record binding processes on the microbead surface depending on the time and temperature. With the exception of core traptavidin and monomeric streptavidin, all other SA/SAHs were suitable for our investigations. We found hybridization efficiencies close to 100% for streptavidin, core streptavidin, traptavidin, and neutravidin. These could all be considered equally suitable for hybridization, PCR applications, and melting point analysis. The SA/SAH-biotin bond was temperature sensitive when the oligonucleotide was mono-biotinylated, with traptavidin being the most stable followed by streptavidin and neutravidin. Mono-biotinylated oligonucleotides can be used in experiments with temperatures up to 70 degrees C. When oligonucleotides were bis-biotinylated, all SA/SAH-biotin bonds had similar temperature stability under PCR conditions, even if they comprised a streptavidin variant with slower biotin dissociation and increased mechanostability. Y1 - 2020 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.langmuir.9b02339 SN - 0743-7463 VL - 36 IS - 2 SP - 628 EP - 636 PB - American Chemical Society CY - Washington ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Behl, Marc A1 - Zhao, Qian A1 - Lendlein, Andreas T1 - Glucose-responsive shape-memory cryogels JF - Journal of materials research : JMR N2 - Boronic ester bonds can be reversibly formed between phenylboronic acid (PBA) and triol moieties. Here, we aim at a glucose-induced shape-memory effect by implementing such bonds as temporary netpoints, which are cleavable by glucose and by minimizing the volume change upon stimulation by a porous cryogel structure. The polymer system consisted of a semi-interpenetrating network (semi-IPN) architecture, in which the triol moieties were part of the permanent network and the PBA moieties were located in the linear polymer diffused into the semi-IPN. In an alkaline medium (pH = 10), the swelling ratio was approximately 35, independent of C-glu varied between 0 and 300 mg/dL. In bending experiments, shape fixity R-f approximate to 80% and shape recovery R-r approximate to 100% from five programming/recovery cycles could be determined. R-r was a function of C-glu in the range from 0 to 300 mg/dL, which accords with the fluctuation range of C-glu in human blood. In this way, the shape-memory hydrogels could play a role in future diabetes treatment options. KW - shape memory KW - polymer KW - porosity Y1 - 2020 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1557/jmr.2020.204 SN - 0884-2914 SN - 2044-5326 VL - 35 IS - 18 SP - 2396 EP - 2404 PB - Springer CY - Berlin ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Ehlert, Christopher A1 - Klamroth, Tillmann T1 - PSIXAS: A Psi4 plugin for efficient simulations of X-ray absorption spectra based on the transition-potential and Delta-Kohn-Sham method JF - Journal of computational chemistry : organic, inorganic, physical, biological N2 - Near edge X-ray absorption fine structure (NEXAFS) spectra and their pump-probe extension (PP-NEXAFS) offer insights into valence- and core-excited states. We present PSIXAS, a recent implementation for simulating NEXAFS and PP-NEXAFS spectra by means of the transition-potential and the Delta-Kohn-Sham method. The approach is implemented in form of a software plugin for the Psi4 code, which provides access to a wide selection of basis sets as well as density functionals. We briefly outline the theoretical foundation and the key aspects of the plugin. Then, we use the plugin to simulate PP-NEXAFS spectra of thymine, a system already investigated by others and us. It is found that larger, extended basis sets are needed to obtain more accurate absolute resonance positions. We further demonstrate that, in contrast to ordinary NEXAFS simulations, where the choice of the density functional plays a minor role for the shape of the spectrum, for PP-NEXAFS simulations the choice of the density functional is important. Especially hybrid functionals (which could not be used straightforwardly before to simulate PP-NEXAFS spectra) and their amount of "Hartree-Fock like" exact exchange affects relative resonance positions in the spectrum. KW - transition-potential method KW - X-ray absorption KW - spectroscopy KW - Delta-Kohn-Sham Y1 - 2020 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1002/jcc.26219 SN - 0192-8651 SN - 1096-987X VL - 41 IS - 19 SP - 1781 EP - 1789 PB - Wiley CY - Hoboken ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Gonzalez-Chavarria, Ivan A1 - Duprat, Felix A1 - Roa, Francisco J. A1 - Jara, Nery A1 - Toledo, Jorge R. A1 - Miranda, Felipe A1 - Becerra, Jose A1 - Inostroza, Alejandro A1 - Kelling, Alexandra A1 - Schilde, Uwe A1 - Heydenreich, Matthias A1 - Paz, Cristian T1 - Maytenus disticha extract and an isolated β-Dihydroagarofuran induce mitochondrial depolarization and apoptosis in human cancer cells by increasing mitochondrial reactive oxygen species JF - Biomolecules N2 - Maytenus disticha (Hook F.), belonging to the Celastraceae family, is an evergreen shrub, native of the central southern mountains of Chile. Previous studies demonstrated that the total extract of M. disticha (MD) has an acetylcholinesterase inhibitory activity along with growth regulatory and insecticidal activities. beta-Dihydroagarofurans sesquiterpenes are the most active components in the plant. However, its activity in cancer has not been analyzed yet. Here, we demonstrate that MD has a cytotoxic activity on breast (MCF-7), lung (PC9), and prostate (C4-2B) human cancer cells with an IC50 (mu g/mL) of 40, 4.7, and 5 mu g/mL, respectively, an increasing Bax/Bcl2 ratio, and inducing a mitochondrial membrane depolarization. The beta-dihydroagarofuran-type sesquiterpene (MD-6), dihydromyricetin (MD-9), and dihydromyricetin-3-O-beta-glucoside (MD-10) were isolated as the major compounds from MD extracts. From these compounds, only MD-6 showed cytotoxic activity on MCF-7, PC9, and C4-2B with an IC50 of 31.02, 17.58, and 42.19 mu M, respectively. Furthermore, the MD-6 increases cell ROS generation, and MD and MD-6 induce a mitochondrial superoxide generation and apoptosis on MCF-7, PC9, and C4-2B, which suggests that the cytotoxic effect of MD is mediated in part by the beta-dihydroagarofuran-type that induces apoptosis by a mitochondrial dysfunction. KW - Maytenus disticha KW - beta-dihydroagarofuran-type sesquiterpene KW - dihydromyricetin KW - dihydromyricetin-3-O-beta-glucoside KW - cytotoxic KW - activity KW - Mitochondrial ROS Y1 - 2020 U6 - https://doi.org/10.3390/biom10030377 SN - 2218-273X VL - 10 IS - 3 PB - MDPI CY - Basel ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Chen, Lu A1 - Yan, Runyu A1 - Oschatz, Martin A1 - Jiang, Lei A1 - Antonietti, Markus A1 - Xiao, Kai T1 - Ultrathin 2D graphitic carbon nitride on metal films BT - underpotential sodium deposition in adlayers for sodium-ion batteries JF - Angewandte Chemie : a journal of the Gesellschaft Deutscher Chemiker ; International edition N2 - Efficient and low-cost anode materials for the sodium-ion battery are highly desired to enable more economic energy storage. Effects on an ultrathin carbon nitride film deposited on a copper metal electrode are presented. The combination of effects show an unusually high capacity to store sodium metal. The g-C3N4 film is as thin as 10 nm and can be fabricated by an efficient, facile, and general chemical-vapor deposition method. A high reversible capacity of formally up to 51 Ah g(-1) indicates that the Na is not only stored in the carbon nitride as such, but that carbon nitride activates also the metal for reversible Na-deposition, while forming at the same time an solid electrolyte interface layer avoiding direct contact of the metallic phase with the liquid electrolyte. KW - 2D films KW - carbon nitride KW - chemical vapor deposition KW - sodium-ion KW - batteries KW - underpotential deposition Y1 - 2020 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1002/anie.202000314 SN - 1433-7851 SN - 1521-3773 VL - 59 IS - 23 SP - 9067 EP - 9073 PB - Wiley-VCH CY - Weinheim ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Hechenbichler, Michelle A1 - Laschewsky, Andre A1 - Gradzielski, Michael T1 - Poly(N,N-bis(2-methoxyethyl)acrylamide), a thermoresponsive non-ionic polymer combining the amide and the ethyleneglycolether motifs JF - Colloid and polymer science N2 - Poly(N,N-bis(2-methoxyethyl)acrylamide) (PbMOEAm) featuring two classical chemical motifs from non-ionic water-soluble polymers, namely, the amide and ethyleneglycolether moieties, was synthesized by reversible addition fragmentation transfer (RAFT) polymerization. This tertiary polyacrylamide is thermoresponsive exhibiting a lower critical solution temperature (LCST)-type phase transition. A series of homo- and block copolymers with varying molar masses but low dispersities and different end groups were prepared. Their thermoresponsive behavior in aqueous solution was analyzed via turbidimetry and dynamic light scattering (DLS). The cloud points (CP) increased with increasing molar masses, converging to 46 degrees C for 1 wt% solutions. This rise is attributed to the polymers' hydrophobic end groups incorporated via the RAFT agents. When a surfactant-like strongly hydrophobic end group was attached using a functional RAFT agent, CP was lowered to 42 degrees C, i.e., closer to human body temperature. Also, the effect of added salts, in particular, the role of the Hofmeister series, on the phase transition of PbMOEAm was investigated, exemplified for the kosmotropic fluoride, intermediate chloride, and chaotropic thiocyanate anions. A pronounced shift of the cloud point of about 10 degrees C to lower or higher temperatures was observed for 0.2 M fluoride and thiocyanate, respectively. When PbMOEAm was attached to a long hydrophilic block of poly(N,N-dimethylacrylamide) (PDMAm), the cloud points of these block copolymers were strongly shifted towards higher temperatures. While no phase transition was observed for PDMAm-b-pbMOEAm with short thermoresponsive blocks, block copolymers with about equally sized PbMOEAm and PDMAm blocks underwent the coil-to-globule transition around 60 degrees C. KW - polyacrylamide KW - water-soluble polymers KW - responsive systems KW - lower KW - critical solution temperature KW - polymer amphiphile Y1 - 2020 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1007/s00396-020-04701-9 SN - 0303-402X SN - 1435-1536 VL - 299 IS - 2 SP - 205 EP - 219 PB - Springer CY - Berlin; Heidelberg ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Mehr, Fatemeh Naderi A1 - Grigoriev, Dmitry A1 - Heaton, Rebecca A1 - Baptiste, Joshua A1 - Stace, Anthony J. A1 - Puretskiy, Nikolay A1 - Besley, Elena A1 - Böker, Alexander T1 - Self-assembly behavior of oppositely charged inverse bipatchy microcolloids JF - Small : nano micro N2 - A directed attractive interaction between predefined "patchy" sites on the surfaces of anisotropic microcolloids can provide them with the ability to self-assemble in a controlled manner to build target structures of increased complexity. An important step toward the controlled formation of a desired superstructure is to identify reversible electrostatic interactions between patches which allow them to align with one another. The formation of bipatchy particles with two oppositely charged patches fabricated using sandwich microcontact printing is reported. These particles spontaneously self-aggregate in solution, where a diversity of short and long chains of bipatchy particles with different shapes, such as branched, bent, and linear, are formed. Calculations show that chain formation is driven by a combination of attractive electrostatic interactions between oppositely charged patches and the charge-induced polarization of interacting particles. KW - electrostatic interactions KW - patchy particles KW - polyelectrolyte inks KW - sandwich microcontact printing KW - self-assembly Y1 - 2020 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1002/smll.202000442 SN - 1613-6810 SN - 1613-6829 VL - 16 IS - 14 PB - Wiley-VCH CY - Weinheim ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Balk, Maria A1 - Behl, Marc A1 - Lendlein, Andreas T1 - Actuators based on oligo[(epsilon-caprolactone)-co-glycolide] with accelerated hydrolytic degradation JF - MRS advances : a journal of the Materials Research Society (MRS) N2 - Polyester-based shape-memory polymer actuators are multifunctional materials providing reversible macroscopic shape shifts as well as hydrolytic degradability. Here, the function-function interdependencies (between shape shifts and degradation behaviour) will determine actuation performance and its life time. In this work, glycolide units were incorporated in poly(epsilon-caprolactone) based actuator materials in order to achieve an accelerated hydrolytic degradation and to explore the function-function relationship. Three different oligo[(epsilon-caprolactone)-co-glycolide] copolymers (OCGs) with similar molecular weights (10.5 +/- 0.5 kg center dot mol(-1)) including a glycolide content of 8, 16, and 26 mol% (ratio 1:1:1 wt%) terminated with methacrylated moieties were crosslinked. The obtained actuators provided a broad melting transition in the range from 27 to 44 degrees C. The hydrolytic degradation of programmed OCG actuators (200% of elongation) resulted in a reduction of sample mass to 51 wt% within 21 days at pH = 7.4 and 40 degrees C. Degradation results in a decrease of T-m associated to the actuating units and increasing T-m associated to the skeleton forming units. The actuation capability decreased almost linear as function of time. After 11 days of hydrolytic degradation the shape-memory functionality was lost. Accordingly, a fast degradation behaviour as required, e.g., for actuator materials intended as implant material can be realized. KW - actuation KW - shape memory KW - polymer KW - crystalline Y1 - 2020 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1557/adv.2019.447 SN - 2059-8521 VL - 5 IS - 12-13 SP - 655 EP - 666 PB - Cambridge University Press CY - New York, NY ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Izraylit, Victor A1 - Hommes-Schattmann, Paul J. A1 - Neffe, Axel T. A1 - Gould, Oliver E. C. A1 - Lendlein, Andreas T1 - Polyester urethane functionalizable through maleimide side-chains and cross-linkable by polylactide stereocomplexes JF - European polymer journal N2 - Sustainable multifunctional alternatives to fossil-derived materials, which can be functionalized and are degradable, can be envisioned by combining naturally derived starting materials with an established polymer design concept. Modularity and chemical flexibility of polyester urethanes (PEU) enable the combination of segments bearing functionalizable moieties and the tailoring of the mechanical and thermal properties. In this work, a PEU multiblock structure was synthesized from naturally derived L-lysine diisocyanate ethyl ester (LDI), poly(L-lactide) diol (PLLA) and N-(2,3-dihydroxypropyl)-maleimide (MID) in a one-step reaction. A maleimide side-chain (MID) provided a reactive site for the catalyst-free coupling of thiols shown for L-cysteine with a yield of 94%. Physical cross-links were generated by blending the PEU with poly(D-lactide) (PDLA), upon which the PLLA segments of the PEU and the PDLA formed stereocomplexes. Stereocomplexation occurred spontaneously during solution casting and was investigated with WAXS and DSC. Stereocomplex crystallites were observed in the blends, while isotactic PLA crystallization was not observed. The presented material platform with tailorable mechanical properties by blending is of specific interest for engineering biointerfaces of implants or carrier systems for bioactive molecules. KW - Functionalization KW - Polylactide stereocomplex KW - Biomolecules coupling Y1 - 2020 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1016/j.eurpolymj.2020.109916 SN - 0014-3057 SN - 1873-1945 VL - 137 PB - Elsevier CY - Oxford ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Izraylit, Victor A1 - Hommes-Schattmann, Paul Jacob A1 - Neffe, Axel T. A1 - Gould, Oliver E. C. A1 - Lendlein, Andreas T1 - Alkynyl-functionalized chain-extended PCL for coupling to biological molecules JF - European polymer journal N2 - Chemical functionalization of poly(epsilon-caprolactone) (PCL) enables a molecular integration of additional function. Here, we report an approach to incorporate reactive alkynyl side-groups by synthesizing a chain-extended PCL, where the reactive site is introduced through the covalently functionalizable chain extender 3 (prop-2-yn-1-yloxy)propane-1,2-diol (YPD). Chain-extended PCL with M-w of 101 to 385 kg.mol(-1) were successfully synthesized in a one-pot reaction from PCL-diols with various molar masses, L-lysine ethyl ester diisocyanate (LDI) or trimethyl(hexamethylene)diisocyanate (TMDI), and YPD, in which the density of functionalizable groups and spacing between them can be controlled by the composition of the polymer. The employed diisocyanate compounds and YPD possess an asymmetric structure and form a non-crystallizable segment leaving the PCL crystallites to dominate the material's mechanical properties. The mixed glass transition temperature T-g = - 60 to - 46 degrees C of the PCL/polyurethane amorphous phase maintains the synthesized materials in a highly elastic state at ambient and physiological conditions. Reaction conditions for covalent attachment in copper(I)-catalyzed azide-alkyne-cycloaddition reactions (CuAAC) in solution were optimized in a series of model reactions between the alkyne moieties of the chain-extended PCL and benzyl azide, reaching conversions over 95% of the alkyne moieties and with yields of up to 94% for the purified functionalized PCL. This methodology was applied for reaction with the azide-functionalized cell adhesion peptide GRGDS. The required modification of the peptide provides selectivity in the coupling reactions. The obtained results suggest that YPD could potentially be employed as versatile molecular unit for the creation of a variety of functionalizable polyesters as well as polyurethanes and polycarbonates offering efficient and selective click-reactions. KW - copper-catalyzed alkyne-azide cycloaddition KW - chain-extended KW - polycaprolactone KW - RGD-peptide KW - side-chains functionalization Y1 - 2020 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1016/j.eurpolymj.2020.109908 SN - 0014-3057 SN - 1873-1945 VL - 136 PB - Elsevier CY - Oxford ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Laroque, Sophie A1 - Reifarth, Martin A1 - Sperling, Marcel A1 - Kersting, Sebastian A1 - Kloepzig, Stefanie A1 - Budach, Patrick A1 - Hartlieb, Matthias A1 - Storsberg, Joachim T1 - Impact of multivalence and self-assembly in the design of polymeric antimicrobial peptide mimics JF - ACS applied materials & interfaces N2 - Antimicrobial resistance is an increasingly serious challenge for public health and could result in dramatic negative consequences for the health care sector during the next decades. To solve this problem, antibacterial materials that are unsusceptible toward the development of bacterial resistance are a promising branch of research. In this work, a new type of polymeric antimicrobial peptide mimic featuring a bottlebrush architecture is developed, using a combination of reversible addition-fragmentation chain transfer (RAFT) polymerization and ring-opening metathesis polymerization (ROMP). This approach enables multivalent presentation of antimicrobial subunits resulting in improved bioactivity and an increased hemocompatibility, boosting the selectivity of these materials for bacterial cells. Direct probing of membrane integrity of treated bacteria revealed highly potent membrane disruption caused by bottlebrush copolymers. Multivalent bottlebrush copolymers clearly outperformed their linear equivalents regarding bioactivity and selectivity. The effect of segmentation of cationic and hydrophobic subunits within bottle brushes was probed using heterograft copolymers. These materials were found to self-assemble under physiological conditions, which reduced their antibacterial activity, highlighting the importance of precise structural control for such applications. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first example to demonstrate the positive impact of multivalence, generated by a bottlebrush topology in polymeric antimicrobial peptide mimics, making these polymers a highly promising material platform for the design of new bactericidal systems. KW - RAFT polymerization KW - ROMP KW - antimicrobial polymers KW - antimicrobial peptide KW - mimics KW - bottlebrush copolymers Y1 - 2020 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1021/acsami.0c05944 SN - 1944-8244 SN - 1944-8252 VL - 12 IS - 27 SP - 30052 EP - 30065 PB - American Chemical Society CY - Washington ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Bouakline, Foudhil A1 - Tremblay, Jean Christophe T1 - Is it really possible to control aromaticity of benzene with light? JF - Physical chemistry, chemical physics : PCCP N2 - Recent theoretical investigations claim that tailored laser pulses may selectively steer benzene's aromatic ground state to localized non-aromatic excited states. For instance, it has been shown that electronic wavepackets, involving the two lowest electronic eigenstates, exhibit subfemtosecond charge oscillation between equivalent Kekule resonance structures. In this contribution, we show that such dynamical electron-localization in the molecule-fixed frame contravenes the principle of the indistinguishability of identical particles. This breach stems from a total omission of the nuclear degrees of freedom, giving rise to nonsymmetric electronic wavepackets under nuclear permutations. Enforcement of the latter leads to entanglement between the electronic and nuclear states. To obey quantum statistics, the entangled molecular states should involve compensating nuclear-permutation symmetries. This in turn engenders complete quenching of dynamical electron-localization in the molecule-fixed frame. Indeed, for the (six-fold) equilibrium geometry of benzene, group-theoretic analysis reveals that any electronic wavepacket exhibits a (D-6h) totally symmetric electronic density, at all times. Thus, our results clearly show that the six carbon atoms, and the six C-C bonds, always have equal Mulliken charges, and equal bond orders, respectively. However, electronic wavepackets may display dynamical localization of the electronic density in the space-fixed frame, whenever they involve both even and odd space-inversion (parity) or permutation-inversion symmetry. Dynamical spatial-localization can be probed experimentally in the laboratory frame, but it should not be deemed equivalent to charge oscillation between benzene's identical electronic substructures, such as Kekule resonance structures. Y1 - 2020 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1039/c9cp06794a SN - 1463-9076 SN - 1463-9084 VL - 22 IS - 27 SP - 15401 EP - 15412 PB - Royal Society of Chemistry CY - Cambridge ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Behl, Marc A1 - Razzaq, Muhammad Yasar A1 - Mazurek-Budzynska, Magdalena A1 - Lendlein, Andreas T1 - Polyetheresterurethane based porous scaffolds with tailorable architectures by supercritical CO2 foaming JF - MRS advances N2 - Porous three-dimensional (3D) scaffolds are promising treatment options in regenerative medicine. Supercritical and dense-phase fluid technologies provide an attractive alternative to solvent-based scaffold fabrication methods. In this work, we report on the fabrication of poly-etheresterurethane (PPDO-PCL) based porous scaffolds with tailorable pore size, porosity, and pore interconnectivity by using supercritical CO2(scCO(2)) fluid-foaming. The influence of the processing parameters such as soaking time, soaking temperature and depressurization on porosity, pore size, and interconnectivity of the foams were investigated. The average pore diameter could be varied between 100-800 mu m along with a porosity in the range from (19 +/- 3 to 61 +/- 6)% and interconnectivity of up to 82%. To demonstrate their applicability as scaffold materials, selected foams were sterilized via ethylene oxide sterilization. They showed negligible cytotoxicity in tests according to DIN EN ISO 10993-5 and 10993-12 using L929 cells. The study demonstrated that the pore size, porosity and the interconnectivity of this multi-phase semicrystalline polymer could be tailored by careful control of the processing parameters during the scCO(2)foaming process. In this way, PPDO-PCL scaffolds with high porosity and interconnectivity are potential candidate materials for regenerative treatment options. Y1 - 2020 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1557/adv.2020.345 SN - 2059-8521 VL - 5 IS - 45 SP - 2317 EP - 2330 PB - Cambridge University Press CY - New York, NY ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Liu, Yue A1 - Gould, Oliver E. C. A1 - Kratz, Karl A1 - Lendlein, Andreas T1 - Shape-memory actuation of individual micro-/nanofibers JF - MRS Advances N2 - Advances in the fabrication and characterization of polymeric nanomaterials has greatly advanced the miniaturization of soft actuators, creating materials capable of replicating the functional physical behavior previously limited to the macroscale. Here, we demonstrate how a reversible shape-memory polymer actuation can be generated in a single micro/nano object, where the shape change during actuation of an individual fiber can be dictated by programming using an AFM-based method. Electrospinning was used to prepare poly(epsilon-caprolactone) micro-/nanofibers, which were fixed and crosslinked on a structured silicon wafer. The programming as well as the observation of recovery and reversible displacement of the fiber were performed by vertical three point bending, using an AFM testing platform introduced here. A plateau tip was utilized to improve the stability of the fiber contact and working distance, enabling larger deformations and greater rbSMPA performance. Values for the reversible elongation of epsilon(rev)= 3.4 +/- 0.1% and 10.5 +/- 0.1% were obtained for a single micro (d = 1.0 +/- 0.2 mu m) and nanofiber (d = 300 +/- 100 nm) in cyclic testing between the temperatures 10 and 60 degrees C. The reversible actuation of the nanofiber was successfully characterized for 10 cycles. The demonstration and characterization of individual shape-memory nano and microfiber actuators represents an important step in the creation of miniaturized robotic devices capable of performing complex physical functions at the length scale of cells and structural component of the extracellular matrix. Y1 - 2020 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1557/adv.2020.276 SN - 2059-8521 VL - 5 IS - 46-47 SP - 2391 EP - 2399 PB - Cambridge Univ. Press CY - New York ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Henning, Ricky A1 - Liebig, Ferenc A1 - Prietzel, Claudia Christina A1 - Klemke, Bastian A1 - Koetz, Joachim T1 - Gold nanotriangles with magnetite satellites JF - Colloids and surfaces : an international journal devoted to the principles and applications of colloid and interface science ; A, Physicochemical and engineering aspects N2 - This work describes the synthesis of hybrid particles of gold nanotriangles (AuNTs) with magnetite nanoparticles (MNPs) by using 1-mercaptopropyl-3-trimethoxysilan (MPTMS) and L-cysteine as linker molecules. Due to the combination of superparamagnetic properties of MNPs with optical properties of the AuNTs, nanoplatelet-satellite hybrid nanostructures with combined features become available. By using MPTMS with silan groups as linker molecule a magnetic "cloud" with embedded AuNTs can be separated. In presence of L-cysteine as linker molecule at pH > pH(iso) a more unordered aggregate structure of MNPs is obtained due to the dimerization of the L-cysteine. At pH < pH(iso) water soluble positively charged AuNTs with satellite MNPs can be synthesized. The time-dependent loading with MNP satellites under release of the extinction and magnetization offer a hybrid material, which is of special relevance for biomedical applications and plasmonic catalysis. KW - nanotriangles KW - Superparamagnetic magnetite KW - Satellite hybrid KW - nanostructures KW - L-Cysteine KW - UV-Vis-NIR KW - HRTEM Y1 - 2020 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1016/j.colsurfa.2020.124913 SN - 0927-7757 SN - 1873-4359 VL - 600 PB - Elsevier CY - Amsterdam ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Bastian, Philipp U. A1 - Nacak, Selma A1 - Roddatis, Vladimir A1 - Kumke, Michael Uwe T1 - Tracking the motion of lanthanide ions within core-shell-shell NaYF4 nanocrystals via resonance energy transfer JF - The journal of physical chemistry : C N2 - Lanthanide resonance energy transfer (LRET) was used to investigate the motion of dopant ions during the synthesis of core-shell-shell-nanocrystals (NCs) that are frequently used as frequency upconversion materials. Reaction conditions (temperature, solvent) as well as lattice composition and precursors were adapted from a typical hydrothermal synthesis approach used to obtain upconversion nanoparticles (UCNPs). Instead of adding the lanthanide ions Yb3+/Er3+ as the sensitizer/activator couple, Eu3+/Nd3+ as the donor/acceptor were added as the LRET pair to the outer shell (Eu-3) and the core (Nd-3). By tailoring the thickness of the insulation shell ("middle shell"), the expected distance between the donor and the acceptor was increased beyond 2 R-0, a distance for which no LRET is expected. The successful synthesis of core- shell-shell NCs with different thicknesses of the insulation layer was demonstrated by high-resolution transmission electron microscopy measurement. The incorporation of the Eu3+ ions into the NaYF4 lattice was investigated by high-resolution time-resolved luminescence measurements. Two major Eu3+ species (bulk and surface) were found. This was supported by steady-state as well as time-resolved luminescence data. Based on the luminescence decay kinetics, the intermixing of lanthanides during synthesis of core- shell UCNPs was evaluated. The energy transfer between Eu3+ (donor) and Nd3+ (acceptor) ions was exploited to quantify the motion of the dopant ions. This investigation reveals the migration of Ln(3+) ions between different compatiments in core-shell NCs and affects the concept of using core-shell architectures to increase the efficiency of UCNPs. In order to obtain well-separated core and shell structures with different dopants, alternative concepts are needed. Y1 - 2020 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.jpcc.0c02588 SN - 1932-7447 SN - 1932-7455 VL - 124 IS - 20 SP - 11229 EP - 11238 PB - American Chemical Society CY - Washington, DC ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Das, Abhijna A1 - Noack, Sebastian A1 - Schlaad, Helmut A1 - Reiter, Günter A1 - Reiter, Renate T1 - Exploring pathways to equilibrate Langmuir polymer films JF - Langmuir N2 - Focusing on the phase-coexistence region in Langmuir films of poly(L-lactide), we investigated changes in nonequilibrated morphologies and the corresponding features of the isotherms induced by different experimental pathways of lateral compression and expansion. In this coexistence region, the surface pressure II was larger than the expected equilibrium value and was found to increase upon compression, i.e., exhibited a nonhorizontal plateau. As shown earlier by using microscopic techniques [Langmuir 2019, 35, 6129-6136], in this plateau region, well-ordered mesoscopic clusters coexisted with a surrounding matrix phase. We succeeded in reducing Pi either by slowing down the rate of compression or through increasing the waiting time after stopping the movement of the barriers, which allowed for relaxations in the coexistence region. Intriguingly, the most significant pressure reduction was observed when recompressing a film that had already been compressed and expanded, if the recompression was started from an area value smaller than the one anticipated for the onset of the coexistence region. This observation suggests a "self-seeding" behavior, i.e., pre-existing nuclei allowed to circumvent the nucleation step. The decrease in Pi was accompanied by a transformation of the initially formed metastable mesoscopic clusters into a thermodynamically favored filamentary morphology. Our results demonstrate that it is practically impossible to obtain fully equilibrated coexisting phases in a Langmuir polymer film, neither under conditions of extremely slow continuous compression nor for long waiting times at a constant area in the coexistence region which allow for reorganization. Y1 - 2020 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.langmuir.0c01268 SN - 0743-7463 VL - 36 IS - 28 SP - 8184 EP - 8192 PB - American Chemical Society CY - Washington ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Belasri, Khadija A1 - Topal, Leila A1 - Heydenreich, Matthias A1 - Koch, Andreas A1 - Kleinpeter, Erich A1 - Fulop, Ferenc A1 - Szatmari, Istvan T1 - Synthesis and conformational analysis of naphthoxazine-fused phenanthrene derivatives JF - Molecules N2 - The synthesis of new phenanthr[9,10-e][1,3]oxazines was achieved by the direct coupling of 9-phenanthrol with cyclic imines in the modified aza-Friedel-Crafts reaction followed by the ring closure of the resulting bifunctional aminophenanthrols with formaldehyde. Aminophenanthrol-type Mannich bases were synthesised and transformed to phenanthr[9,10-e][1,3]oxazines via [4 + 2] cycloaddition. Detailed NMR structural analyses of the new polyheterocycles as well as conformational studies including Density Functional Theory (DFT) modelling were performed. The relative stability of ortho-quinone methides (o-QMs) was calculated, the geometries obtained were compared with the experimentally determined NMR structures, and thereby, the regioselectivity of the reactions has been assigned. KW - modified Mannich reaction KW - cyclic imines KW - [4+2] cycloaddition KW - NMR KW - spectroscopy KW - conformational analysis KW - DFT calculations Y1 - 2020 U6 - https://doi.org/10.3390/molecules25112524 SN - 1420-3049 VL - 25 IS - 11 PB - MDPI CY - Basel ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Liu, Yue A1 - Gould, Oliver E. C. A1 - Rudolph, Tobias A1 - Fang, Liang A1 - Kratz, Karl A1 - Lendlein, Andreas T1 - Polymeric microcuboids programmable for temperature-memory JF - Macromolecular materials and engineering N2 - Microobjects with programmable mechanical functionality are highly desirable for the creation of flexible electronics, sensors, and microfluidic systems, where fabrication/programming and quantification methods are required to fully control and implement dynamic physical behavior. Here, programmable microcuboids with defined geometries are prepared by a template-based method from crosslinked poly[ethylene-co-(vinyl acetate)] elastomers. These microobjects could be programmed to exhibit a temperature-memory effect or a shape-memory polymer actuation capability. Switching temperaturesT(sw)during shape recovery of 55 +/- 2, 68 +/- 2, 80 +/- 2, and 86 +/- 2 degrees C are achieved by tuning programming temperatures to 55, 70, 85, and 100 degrees C, respectively. Actuation is achieved with a reversible strain of 2.9 +/- 0.2% to 6.7 +/- 0.1%, whereby greater compression ratios and higher separation temperatures induce a more pronounced actuation. Micro-geometry change is quantified using optical microscopy and atomic force microscopy. The realization and quantification of microparticles, capable of a tunable temperature responsive shape-change or reversible actuation, represent a key development in the creation of soft microscale devices for drug delivery or microrobotics. KW - actuation KW - atomic force microscopy KW - biomaterials KW - microparticles KW - shape-memory polymers Y1 - 2020 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1002/mame.202000333 SN - 1438-7492 SN - 1439-2054 VL - 305 IS - 10 PB - Wiley-VCH CY - Weinheim ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Pacholski, Claudia A1 - Rosencrantz, Sophia A1 - Rosencrantz, Ruben R. A1 - Balderas-Valadez, Ruth Fabiola T1 - Plasmonic biosensors fabricated by galvanic displacement reactions for monitoring biomolecular interactions in real time JF - Analytical and bioanalytical chemistry : a merger of Fresenius' journal of analytical chemistry, Analusis and Quimica analitica N2 - Optical sensors are prepared by reduction of gold ions using freshly etched hydride-terminated porous silicon, and their ability to specifically detect binding between protein A/rabbit IgG and asialofetuin/Erythrina cristagalli lectin is studied. The fabrication process is simple, fast, and reproducible, and does not require complicated lab equipment. The resulting nanostructured gold layer on silicon shows an optical response in the visible range based on the excitation of localized surface plasmon resonance. Variations in the refractive index of the surrounding medium result in a color change of the sensor which can be observed by the naked eye. By monitoring the spectral position of the localized surface plasmon resonance using reflectance spectroscopy, a bulk sensitivity of 296 nm +/- 3 nm/RIU is determined. Furthermore, selectivity to target analytes is conferred to the sensor through functionalization of its surface with appropriate capture probes. For this purpose, biomolecules are deposited either by physical adsorption or by covalent coupling. Both strategies are successfully tested, i.e., the optical response of the sensor is dependent on the concentration of respective target analyte in the solution facilitating the determination of equilibrium dissociation constants for protein A/rabbit IgG as well as asialofetuin/Erythrina cristagalli lectin which are in accordance with reported values in literature. These results demonstrate the potential of the developed optical sensor for cost-efficient biosensor applications. KW - Optical sensor KW - Gold nanostructure KW - Localized surface plasmon resonance KW - Surface functionalization KW - Biomolecular interactions KW - Lectin Y1 - 2020 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1007/s00216-020-02414-0 SN - 1618-2642 SN - 1618-2650 VL - 412 IS - 14 SP - 3433 EP - 3445 PB - Springer CY - Heidelberg ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Chemura, Sitshengisiwe A1 - Haubitz, Toni A1 - Primus, Philipp A. A1 - Underberg, Martin A1 - Hülser, Tim A1 - Kumke, Michael Uwe T1 - Europium-doped Ceria-Gadolinium mixed oxides BT - PARAFAC analysis and high-resolution emission spectroscopy under cryogenic conditions for structural analysis JF - The journal of physical chemistry : A, Molecules, spectroscopy, kinetics, environment & general theory N2 - Gadolinium-doped ceria or gadolinium-stabilized ceria (GDC) is an important technical material due to its ability to conduct O2- ions, e.g., used in solid oxide fuel cells operated at intermediate temperature as an electrolyte, diffusion barrier, and electrode component. We have synthesized Ce1-xGdxO2-y:Eu3+ (0 <= x <= 0.4) nanoparticles (11-15 nm) using a scalable spray pyrolysis method, which allows the continuous large-scale technical production of such materials. Introducing Eu3+ ions in small amounts into ceria and GDC as spectroscopic probes can provide detailed information about the atomic structure and local environments and allows us to monitor small structural changes. This study presents a novel approach to structurally elucidate europium-doped Ce1-xGdxO2-y:Eu3+ nanoparticles by way of Eu3+ spectroscopy, processing the spectroscopic data with the multiway decomposition method parallel factor (PARAFAC) analysis. In order to perform the deconvolution of spectra, data sets of excitation wavelength, emission wavelength, and time are required. Room temperature, time-resolved emission spectra recorded at lambda(ex) = 464 nm show that Gd3+ doping results in significantly altered emission spectra compared to pure ceria. The PARAFAC analysis for the pure ceria samples reveals a high-symmetry species (which can also be probed directly via the CeO2 charge transfer band) and a low-symmetry species. The GDC samples yield two low-symmetry spectra in the same experiment. High-resolution emission spectra recorded under cryogenic conditions after probing the D-5(0)-F-7(0) transition at lambda(ex) = 575-583 nm revealed additional variation in the low-symmetry Eu3+ sites in pure ceria and GDC. The total luminescence spectra of CeO2-y:Eu3+ showed Eu3+ ions located in at least three slightly different coordination environments with the same fundamental symmetry, whereas the overall hypsochromic shift and increased broadening of the D-5(0)-F-7(0) excitation in the GDC samples, as well as the broadened spectra after deconvolution point to less homogeneous environments. The data of the Gd3+-containing samples indicates that the average charge density around the Eu3+ ions in the lattice is decreased with increasing Gd3+ and oxygen vacancy concentration. For reference, the Judd-Ofelt parameters of all spectra were calculated. PARAFAC proves to be a powerful tool to analyze lanthanide spectra in crystalline solid materials, which are characterized by numerous Stark transitions and where measurements usually yield a superposition of different contributions to any given spectrum. Y1 - 2020 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.jpca.0c03188 SN - 1089-5639 SN - 1520-5215 VL - 124 IS - 24 SP - 4972 EP - 4983 PB - American Chemical Society CY - Washington ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Rietze, Clemens A1 - Titov, Evgenii A1 - Granucci, Giovanni A1 - Saalfrank, Peter T1 - Surface hopping dynamics for azobenzene photoisomerization BT - effects of packing density on surfaces, fluorination, and excitation wavelength JF - The journal of physical chemistry : C, Nanomaterials and interfaces N2 - Azobenzenes easily photoswitch in solution, while their photoisomerization at surfaces is often hindered. In recent work, it was demonstrated by nonadiabatic molecular dynamics with trajectory surface hopping [Titov et al., J. Phys. Chem. Lett. 2016, 7, 3591-3596] that the experimentally observed suppression of trans -> cis isomerization yields in azobenzenes in a densely packed SAM (self-assembled monolayer) [Gahl et al., J. Am. Chem. Soc. 2010, 132, 1831-1838] is dominated by steric hindrance. In the present work, we systematically study by ground-state Langevin and nonadiabatic surface hopping dynamics, the effects of decreasing packing density on (i) UV/vis absorption spectra, (ii) trans -> cis isomerization yields, and (iii) excited-state lifetimes of photoexcited azobenzene. Within the quantum mechanics/ molecular mechanics models adopted here, we find that above a packing density of similar to 3 molecules/nm(2), switching yields are strongly reduced, while at smaller packing densities, the "monomer limit" is quickly approached. The UV/vis absorption spectra, on the other hand, depend on packing density over a larger range (down to at least similar to 1 molecule/nm(2)). Trends for excited-state lifetimes are less obvious, but it is found that lifetimes of pi pi* excited states decay monotonically with decreasing coverage. Effects of fluorination of the switches are also discussed for single, free molecules. Fluorination leads to comparatively large trans -> cis yields, in combination with long pi pi* lifetimes. Furthermore, for selected systems, also the effects of n pi* excitation at longer excitation wavelengths have been studied, which is found to enhance trans -> cis yields for free molecules but can lead to an opposite behavior in densely packed SAMs. KW - Computational chemistry KW - Energy KW - Molecules KW - Monomers KW - Oligomers Y1 - 2020 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.jpcc.0c08052 SN - 1932-7447 SN - 1932-7455 VL - 124 IS - 48 SP - 26287 EP - 26295 PB - American Chemical Society CY - Washington ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Hess, Andreas A1 - Schmidt, Bernhard Volkmar Konrad Jakob A1 - Schlaad, Helmut T1 - Aminolysis induced functionalization of (RAFT) polymer-dithioester with thiols and disulfides JF - Polymer Chemistry N2 - A series of polystyrene- and poly(methyl methacrylate)-dithioesters was subjected to aminolysis under ambient atmospheric conditions, i.e., in the presence of oxygen. Polymer disulfide coupling by oxidation occurred within tens of minutes and the yield of disulfide-coupled polymer increased with decreasing polymer molar mass. Oxidation of thiolates is usually an unwanted side reaction, here it is employed to obtain exclusively polymeric mixed disulfides through in situ aminolysis/functionalization in the presence of a thiol. The in situ aminolysis/functionalization in the presence of a disulfide, Ellman's reagent or polymer disulfide, resulted in the exclusive formation of polymer-dithionitrobenzoic acid, which can be further reacted with a thiol to exchange the terminal functionality, or block copolymer with dynamic disulfide linker, respectively. Y1 - 2020 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1039/d0py01365j SN - 1759-9954 SN - 1759-9962 VL - 11 IS - 48 SP - 7677 EP - 7684 PB - Royal Society of Chemistry CY - Cambridge ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Kwesiga, George A1 - Kelling, Alexandra A1 - Kersting, Sebastian A1 - Sperlich, Eric A1 - von Nickisch-Rosenegk, Markus A1 - Schmidt, Bernd T1 - Total syntheses of prenylated isoflavones from Erythrina sacleuxii and their antibacterial activity BT - 5-deoxy-3′-prenylbiochanin A and erysubin F JF - Journal of natural products N2 - The prenylated isoflavones 5-deoxyprenylbiochanin A (7-hydroxy-4'-methoxy-3'-prenylisoflavone) and erysubin F (7,4'-dihydroxy-8,3'-diprenylisoflavone) were synthesized for the first time, starting from mono-or di-O-allylated chalcones, and the structure of 5-deoxy-3'-prenylbiochanin A was corroborated by single-crystal X-ray diffraction analysis. Flavanones are key intermediates in the synthesis. Their reaction with hypervalent iodine reagents affords isoflavones via a 2,3-oxidative rearrangement and the corresponding flavone isomers via 2,3-dehydrogenation. This enabled a synthesis of 7,4'-dihydroxy-8,3'-diprenylflavone, a non-natural regioisomer of erysubin F. Erysubin F (8), 7,4'-dihydroxy-8,3'-diprenylflavone (27), and 5-deoxy-3'prenylbiochanin A (7) were tested against three bacterial strains and one fungal pathogen. All three compounds are inactive against Salmonella enterica subsp. enterica (NCTC 13349), Escherichia coli (ATCC 25922), and Candida albicans (ATCC 90028), with MIC values greater than 80.0 mu M. The diprenylated natural product erysubin F (8) and its flavone isomer 7,4'-dihydroxy-8,3'diprenylflavone (27) show in vitro activity against methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA, ATCC 43300) at MIC values of 15.4 and 20.5 mu M, respectively. In contrast, the monoprenylated 5-deoxy-3'-prenylbiochanin A (7) is inactive against this MRSA strain. Y1 - 2020 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.jnatprod.0c00932 SN - 0163-3864 SN - 1520-6025 VL - 83 IS - 11 SP - 3445 EP - 3453 PB - American Chemical Society CY - Washington ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Rottke, Falko O. A1 - Heyne, Marie-Victoria A1 - Reinicke, Stefan T1 - Switching enzyme activity by a temperature responsive inhibitor modified polymer JF - Chemical communications N2 - A thermoresponsive NIPAAm-based polymer is combined with the selective acetylcholinesterase inhibitor tacrine in order to create a strict in sense on/off switch for enzymatic activity. This polymer-inhibitor conjugate inhibits AChE at room temperature and enables reactivation of AChE by heating above the cloud point of the conjugate. Y1 - 2020 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1039/c9cc09385k SN - 1359-7345 SN - 1364-548X VL - 56 IS - 16 SP - 2459 EP - 2462 PB - Royal Society of Chemistry CY - Cambridge ER -