Water-Soluble Lead Sulfide Nanoparticles: Direct Synthesis and Ligand Exchange Routes.

Colloidal semiconductor nanoparticles (NPs) represent an emergent state of matter with unique properties, bridging bulk materials and molecular structures. Their distinct physical attributes, such as bandgap and photoluminescence, are intricately tied to their size and morphology. Ligand passivation plays a crucial role in shaping NPs and determining their physical properties.

NC Meets CN: Porous Photoanodes with Polymeric Carbon Nitride/ZnSe Nanocrystal Heterojunctions for Photoelectrochemical Applications.

The utilization of photoelectrochemical cells (PEC) for converting solar energy into fuels (e.g., hydrogen) is a promising method for sustainable energy generation.

Perturbed N-glycosylation of Halobacterium salinarum archaellum filaments leads to filament bundling and compromised cell motility.

The swimming device of archaea-the archaellum-presents asparagine (N)-linked glycans. While N-glycosylation serves numerous roles in archaea, including enabling their survival in extreme environments, how this post-translational modification contributes to cell motility remains under-explored. Here, we report the cryo-EM structure of archaellum filaments from the haloarchaeon Halobacterium salinarum, where archaellins, the building blocks of the archaellum, are N-glycosylated, and the N-glycosylation pathway is well-resolved.

Redox-mediated Biomolecular information transfer in single electrogenetic biological cells.

Electronic communication in natural systems makes use, inter alia, of molecular transmission, where electron transfer occurs within networks of redox reactions, which play a vital role in many physiological systems. In view of the limited understanding of redox signaling, we developed an approach and an electrochemical-optical lab-on-a-chip to observe cellular responses in localized redox environments. The developed fluidic micro-system uses electrogenetic bacteria in which a cellular response is activated to electrically and chemically induced stimulations.

Current state of stimulated Brillouin scattering microscopy for the life sciences.

Stimulated Brillouin scattering (SBS) microscopy is a nonlinear all-optical imaging method that provides mechanical contrast based on the interaction of laser radiation and acoustical vibrational modes. Featuring high mechanical specificity and sensitivity, three-dimensional sectioning, and practical imaging times, SBS microscopy with (quasi) continuous wave excitation is rapidly advancing as a promising imaging tool for label-free visualization of viscoelastic information of materials and living biological systems. In this article, we introduce the theory of SBS microscopy and review the current state-of-the-art as well as recent innovations, including different approaches to system designs and data analysis.

Primary Nucleation of Polymorphic α-Synuclein Dimers Depends on Copper Concentrations and Definite Copper-Binding Site.

The primary nucleation process of α-synuclein (AS) that forms toxic oligomeric species is the early stage of the pathological cause of Parkinson's disease. It is well-known that copper influences this primary nucleation process. While significant efforts have been made to solve the structures of polymorphic AS fibrils, the structures of AS oligomers and the copper-bound AS oligomers at the molecular level and the effect of copper concentrations on the primary nucleation are elusive.

Decoupling Charge and Side Chain Effects in Hierarchical Organization of Cationic PFX Peptide and Alginate.

We have successfully created self-assembled membranes by combining positively charged (Pro-X-(Phe-X)-Pro) PFX peptides with negatively charged alginate. These PFX/alginate membranes were formed by three different peptides that contain either X = Arginine (R), Histidine (H), or Ornithine (O) as their charged amino acid. The assemblies were compared to membranes that were previously reported by us composed of X = lysine (K).

APR-246 as a radiosensitization strategy for mutant p53 cancers treated with alpha-particles-based radiotherapy.

Radiation therapy (RT) remains a common treatment for cancer patients worldwide, despite the development of targeted biological compounds and immunotherapeutic drugs. The challenge in RT lies in delivering a lethal dose to the cancerous site while sparing the surrounding healthy tissues. Low linear energy transfer (low-LET) and high linear energy transfer (high-LET) radiations have distinct effects on cells.

A self-healing multispectral transparent adhesive peptide glass.

Despite its disordered liquid-like structure, glass exhibits solid-like mechanical properties. The formation of glassy material occurs by vitrification, preventing crystallization and promoting an amorphous structure. Glass is fundamental in diverse fields of materials science, owing to its unique optical, chemical and mechanical properties as well as durability, versatility and environmental sustainability.

Versatile Patterning of Liquid Metal via Multiphase 3D Printing.

This paper presents a scalable and straightforward technique for the immediate patterning of liquid metal/polymer composites via multiphase 3D printing. Capitalizing on the polymer's capacity to confine liquid metal (LM) into diverse patterns. The interplay between distinctive fluidic properties of liquid metal and its self-passivating oxide layer within an oxidative environment ensures a resilient interface with the polymer matrix.

Catalytic physiological amyloids.

Amyloid fibrils have been identified in many protein systems, mostly linked to progression and cytotoxicity in neurodegenerative diseases and other pathologies, but have also been observed in normal physiological systems. A growing body of work has shown that amyloid fibrils can catalyze chemical reactions. Most studies have focused on catalysis by de-novo synthetic amyloid-like peptides; however, recent studies reveal that physiological, native amyloids are catalytic as well.

Pseudo-bottle-brush decorated thin-film composite desalination membranes with ultrahigh mineral scale resistance.

High water recovery is crucial to inland desalination but is impeded by mineral scaling of the membrane. This work presents a two-step modification approach for grafting high-density zwitterionic pseudo-bottle-brushes to polyamide reverse osmosis membranes to prevent scaling during high-recovery desalination of brackish water. Increasing brush density, induced by increasing reaction time, correlated with reduced scaling.

Enhancing the Activity of a Carbon Nitride Photocatalyst by Constructing a Triazine-Heptazine Homojunction.

Establishing homojunctions at the molecular level between different but physicochemically similar phases belonging to the same family of materials is an effective approach to promoting the photocatalytic activity of polymeric carbon nitride (CN) materials. Here, we prepared a CN material with a uniform distribution of homojunctions by combining two synthetic strategies: supramolecular assemblies as the precursor and molten salt as the medium. We designed porous CN rods with triazine-heptazine homojunctions (THCNs) using a melem supramolecular aggregate (Me) and melamine as the precursors and a KCl/LiBr salt mixture as the liquid reaction medium.

Ligand Isomerization Driven Electrocatalytic Switching.

The prevailing view about molecular catalysts is that the central metal ion is responsible for the reaction mechanism and selectivity, whereas the ligands mainly affect the reaction kinetics. Here, we question this paradigm and show that ligands have a dramatic influence on the selectivity of the product. We show how even a seemingly small change in ligand isomerization sharply alters the selectivity of the well-researched oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) Co phthalocyanine catalyst from an indirect 2e to a direct 4e pathway.

Membrane Fluctuation Model for Understanding the Effect of Receptor Nanoclustering on the Activation of Natural Killer Cells through Biomechanical Feedback.

We investigated the role of ligand clustering and density in the activation of natural killer (NK) cells. To that end, we designed reductionist arrays of nanopatterned ligands arranged with different cluster geometries and densities and probed their effects on NK cell activation. We used these arrays as an artificial microenvironment for the stimulation of NK cells and studied the effect of the array geometry on the NK cell immune response.

Studying the Effects of Dissolved Noble Gases and High Hydrostatic Pressure on the Spherical DOPC Bilayer Using Molecular Dynamic Simulations.

Fine-grained molecular dynamics simulations have been conducted to depict lipid objects enclosed in water and interacting with a series of noble gases dissolved in the medium. The simple point-charge (SPC) water system, featuring a boundary composed of 1,2-Dioleoyl-sn-glycero-3-phosphocholine (DOPC) molecules, maintained stability throughout the simulation under standard conditions. This allowed for the accurate modeling of the effects of hydrostatic pressure at an ambient pressure of 25 bar.

Structural packing of the non-amyloid component core domain in α-synuclein plays a role in the stability of the fibrils.

Parkinson's disease (PD) is one of many neurodegenerative diseases. The protein associated with PD is α-synuclein (AS). Aggregation of AS protein into oligomers, protofilaments, and finally to fibrils yields to the development of PD.

Regulation of Catalyst Immediate Environment Enables Acidic Electrochemical Benzyl Alcohol Oxidation to Benzaldehyde.

Electrocatalytic alcohol oxidation in acid offers a promising alternative to the kinetically sluggish water oxidation reaction toward low-energy H generation. However, electrocatalysts driving active and selective acidic alcohol electrochemical transformation are still scarce. In this work, we demonstrate efficient alcohol-to-aldehyde conversion achieved by reticular chemistry-based modification of the catalyst's immediate environment.

Local CO reservoir layer promotes rapid and selective electrochemical CO reduction.

Electrochemical CO reduction reaction in aqueous electrolytes is a promising route to produce added-value chemicals and decrease carbon emissions. However, even in Gas-Diffusion Electrode devices, low aqueous CO solubility limits catalysis rate and selectivity. Here, we demonstrate that when assembled over a heterogeneous electrocatalyst, a film of nitrile-modified Metal-Organic Framework (MOF) acts as a remarkable CO-solvation layer that increases its local concentration by ~27-fold compared to bulk electrolyte, reaching 0.

Interaction of SMAC with a survivin-derived peptide alters essential cancer hallmarks: Tumor growth, inflammation, and immunosuppression.

Second mitochondrial-derived activator of caspase (SMAC), also known as direct inhibitor of apoptosis-binding proteins with low pI (Diablo), is known as a pro-apoptotic mitochondrial protein released into the cytosol in response to apoptotic signals. We recently reported SMAC overexpression in cancers as essential for cell proliferation and tumor growth due to non-apoptotic functions, including phospholipid synthesis regulation. These functions may be associated with its interactions with partner proteins.

A Novel Approach for Colloidal Lithography: From Dry Particle Assembly to High-Throughput Nanofabrication.

We introduce a novel approach for colloidal lithography based on the dry particle assembly into a dense monolayer on an elastomer, followed by mechanical transfer to a substrate of any material and curvature. This method can be implemented either manually or automatically and it produces large area patterns with the quality obtained by the state-of-the-art colloidal lithography at a very high throughput. We first demonstrated the fabrication of nanopatterns with a periodicity ranging between 200 nm and 2 μm.

Bone Endosteal Mimics Regulates Breast Cancer Development and Phenotype.

Bone is a frequent site for metastatic development in various cancer types, including breast cancer, with a grim prognosis due to the distinct bone environment. Despite considerable advances, our understanding of the underlying processes leading to bone metastasis progression remains elusive. Here, we applied a bioactive three-dimensional (3D) model capable of mimicking the endosteal bone microenvironment.