DNA-protein conjugates are important in bioanalytical chemistry, molecular diagnostics and bionanotechnology, as the DNA provides a unique handle to identify, functionalize or otherwise manipulate ...proteins. To maintain protein activity, conjugation of a single DNA handle to a specific location on the protein is often needed. However, preparing such high-quality site-specific conjugates often requires genetically engineered proteins, which is a laborious and technically challenging approach. Here we demonstrate a simpler method to create site-selective DNA-protein conjugates. Using a guiding DNA strand modified with a metal-binding functionality, we directed a second DNA strand to the vicinity of a metal-binding site of His6-tagged or wild-type metal-binding proteins, such as serotransferrin, where it subsequently reacted with lysine residues at that site. This method, DNA-templated protein conjugation, facilitates the production of site-selective protein conjugates, and also conjugation to IgG1 antibodies via a histidine cluster in the constant domain.
During the past decade, gadolinium zirconate (Gd2Zr2O7, GZO) has attracted interest as an alternative material to partially yttria‐stabilized zirconia (YSZ) for thermal barrier coatings (TBCs). ...Despite the well‐known benefits of GZO, such as lower thermal conductivity and superior temperature capability compared to YSZ, processing of GZO via atmospheric plasma spraying (APS) still remains a challenge. Here, we report on APS experiments which were performed to investigate the influence of processing on GZO microstructure and lifetime of GZO/YSZ double‐layer TBCs. Different microstructures of GZO were produced and characterized in terms of porosity, stoichiometry, Young′s modulus, and their effects on the lifetime of YSZ/GZO double‐layer TBCs were discussed. Particle diagnostics were utilized for the optimization of the process parameters with respect to different microstructures of GZO and stoichiometry. It was found that both cumulative porosity of GZO and pore size distribution, which alter the Young′s modulus significantly, govern the lifetime of double layers. In addition, it was shown that the deviation in GZO stoichiometry due to gadolinia evaporation in the investigated range does not display any critical effect on lifetime.
Highlights • Breathomics is an upcoming bioanalytical area transforming point-of-care diagnostics. • Volatile organic compounds (VOCs) are an important source of potential diagnostic information. • ...Current technologies bridge the gap from large analytical systems to portable sensor platforms.
As gas-phase methods for the synthesis of tailored nanomaterials become increasingly sophisticated, the need for in situ diagnostics of reaction conditions and particle properties grows ...correspondingly. Laser-based methods provide a wide range of capabilities which are reviewed in this article.
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•Laser-based diagnostics provide unique insight in gas-phase nanoparticle synthesis.•Spatially-resolved in situ information provides input for modeling reaction conditions.•We give an overview over a rapidly expanding research field.
•A prognosis scheme for predicting the performance of gas turbine components is presented.•The proposed prognosis scheme takes into consideration flexible and dynamic operating conditions of gas ...turbines.•The performance of the scheme is tested under transient conditions of gas turbines.•The proposed scheme is utilized to detect and forecast compressor fouling and turbine erosion.
The increase in energy demand has led to expansion of renewable energy sources and their integration into a more diverse energy mix. Consequently the operation of thermal power plants, which are spearheaded by the gas turbine technology, has been affected. Gas turbines are now required to operate more flexible in grid supporting modes that include part-load and transient operations. Therefore, condition based maintenance should encapsulate this recent shift in the gas turbine’s role by taking into account dynamic operating conditions for diagnostic and prognostic purposes. In this paper, a novel scheme for performance-based prognostics of industrial gas turbines operating under dynamic conditions is proposed and developed. The concept of performance adaptation is introduced and implemented through a dynamic engine model that is developed in Matlab/Simulink environment for diagnosing and prognosing the health of gas turbine components. Our proposed scheme is tested under variable ambient conditions corresponding to dynamic operational modes of the gas turbine for estimating and predicting multiple component degradations. The diagnosis task developed is based on an adaptive method and is performed in a sliding window-based manner. A regression-based method is then implemented to locally represent the diagnostic information for subsequently forecasting the performance behavior of the engine. The accuracy of the proposed prognosis scheme is evaluated through the Probability Density Function (PDF) and the Remaining Useful Life (RUL) metrics. The results demonstrate a promising prospect of our proposed methodology for detecting and predicting accurately and efficiently the performance of gas turbine components as they degrade over time.
In the past decade, responsive polymers exhibiting reversible or irreversible changes in physical properties and/or chemical structures in response to external stimuli have been extensively ...investigated. Among them, tertiary amine methacrylate-based block copolymers represent a unique category considering their responsiveness to multiple external stimuli (e.g., pH, temperature and salts), which are essentially relevant to the biological milieu. These intriguing properties allow for their applications in a variety of fields ranging from drug or gene delivery, imaging, diagnostics, antibacterial coatings, catalysis, and bio-separations. This review article highlights tertiary amine methacrylate-based block copolymers, focusing on recent advances in the synthesis of tertiary amine methacrylate-based block copolymers with varying chemical structures and chain topologies, their supramolecular self-assembly in aqueous media as well as in the bulk state, and the emerging functional applications.
Nanomedicine is an emerging field that applies concepts in nanotechnology to develop novel diagnostics and therapies. Physical and chemical properties of particles, including size, shape, modulus, ...surface charge and surface chemistry, play an important role in determining particle–cell interactions, cellular trafficking mechanisms, biodistribution, and pharmacokinetics. This discussion focuses on both nanoparticles and microparticles since microparticles can also provide many insights for the development of drug carriers and possess advantages over nanoparticles in certain applications. This review covers recent major advancement in the nanomedicine field and also highlights studies using the PRINT technology.
Nanomedicine is an emerging field that applies concepts in nanotechnology to the development of novel diagnostics and therapeutics. Physical and chemical properties of particles, including size, shape, modulus, surface charge, and surface chemistry, play important roles in the efficacy of nanomedicines. This review focuses on the effect of particle physical and chemical properties on their interactions with cells in vitro and their pharmacokinetics and biodistribution in vivo.
Hollow spheres have shown fascinating application in bionanotechnology recently, including bioanalysis, diagnostics, drug delivery and therapeutics. However the exploration of hollow spheres via ...template- and surfactant-free synthesis and using them as sensing material is still at an early stage. In this regard, we described a novel solution-based chemical process to fabricate Ni(OH)2 hollow spheres (Ni(OH)2-HS) assembled from nanosheet building blocks. Ni(OH)2-HS can be obtained with this template-free approach under one-step hydrothermal method. Various techniques, including X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), X-ray diffraction (XRD), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), field emission scanning electron microscopy (FE-SEM), were used to characterize the morphology and the structure of the as-prepared samples. It was confirmed that the products possess a hollow microsphere structure constructed by interconnecting nanosheet framework. The as-obtained hierarchical structured Ni(OH)2-HS showed excellent catalytic activity toward the oxidation of glucose in alkaline solutions, which enables the Ni(OH)2-HS to be used in enzyme-free amperometric sensors for glucose determination. Furthermore, Ni(OH)2-HS modified glassy carbon electrode (Ni(OH)2-HS/GCE) exhibited a good ability to suppress the background current from large excess ascorbic acid (AA), uric acid (UA) and L-cysteine. Under the optimal conditions, selective detection of glucose in a linear concentration range of 0.8749μM-7.781mM was obtained with the limit of 0.1μM (S/N=3). Meanwhile, the sensors were also applied to the detection of glucose content in real serum sample with satisfactory results.
3D printing has emerged as a rapid and cost-efficient manufacturing technique to enable the fabrication of bespoke, complex prototypes. If the technology is to have a significant impact in biomedical ...applications, such as drug discovery and molecular diagnostics, the devices produced must be biologically compatible to enable their use with established reference assays and protocols. In this work we demonstrate that we can adapt the Fish Embryo Test (FET) as a new method to quantify the toxicity of 3D printed microfluidic devices. We assessed the biocompatibility of four commercially available 3D printing polymers (VisiJetCrystal EX200, Watershed 11122XC, Fototec SLA 7150 Clear and ABSplus P-430), through the observation of key developmental markers in the developing zebrafish embryos. Results show all of the photopolymers to be highly toxic to the embryos, resulting in fatality, although we do demonstrate that post-printing treatment of Fototec 7150 makes it suitable for zebrafish culture within the FET.
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