Rational Design and Evaluation of Photoactive Molecularly Imprinted Nanoparticles for Tetracycline Degradation Under Visible Light.

This work presents the use of photoactive molecularly imprinted nanoparticles (MINs) to promote antibiotic degradation under visible light irradiation. Prototype MINs for the model antibiotic tetracycline (TC) were developed using molecular dynamics simulations to predict the TC-binding capacity of seven pre-polymerization mixtures. The studied formulations contained varying proportions of functional monomers with diverse physicochemical profiles, namely -isopropylacrylamide (NIPAM), --butylacrylamide (TBAM), acrylic acid (AA), and (-(3-aminopropyl)methacrylamide hydrochloride) (APMA) and a constant ratio of the cross-linker ,'-methylene-bis-acrylamide (BIS).

Interactions of variants of human apolipoprotein A-I with biopolymeric model matrices. Effect of collagen and heparin.

Background: The extracellular matrix (ECM) is a complex tridimensional scaffold that actively participates in physiological and pathological events. The objective of this study was to test whether structural proteins of the ECM and glycosaminoglycans (GAGs) may favor the retention of human apolipoprotein A-I (apoA-I) variants associated with amyloidosis and atherosclerosis.

Methods: Biopolymeric matrices containing collagen type I (Col, a main macromolecular component of the ECM) with or without heparin (Hep, a model of GAGs) were constructed and characterized, and used to compare the binding of apoA-I having the native sequence (Wt) or Arg173Pro, a natural variant inducing cardiac amyloidosis.

Cells immersed in collagen matrices show a decrease in plasma membrane fluidity as the matrix stiffness increases.

Cells are constantly adapting to maintain their identity in response to the surrounding media's temporal and spatial heterogeneity. The plasma membrane, which participates in the transduction of external signals, plays a crucial role in this adaptation. Studies suggest that nano and micrometer areas with different fluidities at the plasma membrane change their distribution in response to external mechanical signals.

Correlated flickering of erythrocytes membrane observed with dual time resolved membrane fluctuation spectroscopy under different D-glucose concentrations.

A correlated human red blood cell membrane fluctuation dependent on D-glucose concentration was found with dual time resolved membrane fluctuation spectroscopy (D-TRMFS). This new technique is a modified version of the dual optical tweezers method that has been adapted to measure the mechanical properties of red blood cells (RBCs) at distant membrane points simultaneously, enabling correlation analysis. Mechanical parameters under different D-glucose concentrations were obtained from direct membrane flickering measurements, complemented with membrane fluidity measurements using Laurdan Generalized Polarization (GP) Microscopy.

Scanning fluorescence correlation spectroscopy comes full circle.

In this article, we review the application of fluorescence correlation spectroscopy (FCS) methods to studies on live cells. We begin with a brief overview of the theory underlying FCS, highlighting the type of information obtainable. We then focus on circular scanning FCS.