Hydrolytic degradation and biodegradation of polylactic acid electrospun fibers.

Increased use of bioplastics, such as polylactic acid (PLA), helps in reducing greenhouse gas emissions, decreases energy consumption and lowers pollution, but its degradation efficiency has much room for improvement. The degradation rate of electrospun PLA fibers of varying diameters ranging from 0.15 to 1.

Advances in Cellulose-Based Composites for Energy Applications.

The various forms of cellulose-based materials possess high mechanical and thermal stabilities, as well as three-dimensional open network structures with high aspect ratios capable of incorporating other materials to produce composites for a wide range of applications. Being the most prevalent natural biopolymer on the Earth, cellulose has been used as a renewable replacement for many plastic and metal substrates, in order to diminish pollutant residues in the environment. As a result, the design and development of green technological applications of cellulose and its derivatives has become a key principle of ecological sustainability.

A rapid and highly sensitive strain-effect graphene-based bio-sensor for the detection of stroke and cancer bio-markers.

Here, we propose a highly sensitive and rapid bio-sensor for the detection of bio-markers for stroke and cancer-related diseases, based on the utilization of the adsorption properties of ruthenium carbonyl (Ru-CO) clusters on monolayer graphene (MG). A fast rate of decarbonylation of Ru-CO to form ruthenium oxide nanoparticles (RuO NPs) on MG was observed. The quantitative detection of matrix metalloproteinase-2 (MMP-2) (bio-marker for stroke and vascular diseases) was demonstrated by tracking the spectral shift of the characteristic G band of graphene caused by the adsorption of RuO NPs.

Flexible Modulation of CO-Release Using Various Nuclearity of Metal Carbonyl Clusters on Graphene Oxide for Stroke Remediation.

Utilizing the size-dependent adsorption properties of ruthenium carbonyl clusters (Ru-carbon monoxide (CO)) onto graphene oxide (GO), a facile CO-release platform for in situ vasodilation as a treatment for stroke-related vascular diseases is developed. The rate and amount of formation of the CO-release-active Ru (CO) species can be modulated by a simple mixing procedure at room temperature. The subsequent thermally induced oxidation of Ru (CO) to RuO on the GO surface results in the release of CO.