Hierarchical assemblies of polymer particles through tailored interfaces and controllable interfacial interactions. - In: Advanced functional materials, ISSN 1616-3028, Bd. 31 (2021), 9, 2007407, insges. 22 S.
Hierarchical assembly architectures of functional polymer particles are promising because of their physicochemical and surface properties for multi-labeling and sensing to catalysis and biomedical applications. While polymer nanoparticles' interior is mainly made up of the cross-linked network, their surface can be tailored with soft, flexible, and responsive molecules and macromolecules as potential support for the controlled particulate assemblies. Molecular surfactants and polyelectrolytes as interfacial agents improve the stability of the nanoparticles whereas swellable and soft shell-like cross-linked polymeric layer at the interface can significantly enhance the uptake of guest nano-constituents during assemblies. Besides, layer-by-layer surface-functionalization holds the ability to provide a high variability in assembly architectures of different interfacial properties. Considering these aspects, various assembly architectures of polymer nanoparticles of tunable size, shapes, morphology, and tailored interfaces together with controllable interfacial interactions are constructed here. The microfluidic-mediated platform has been used for the synthesis of constituents polymer nanoparticles of various structural and interfacial properties, and their assemblies are conducted in batch or flow conditions. The assemblies presented in this progress report is divided into three main categories: cross-linked polymeric network's fusion-based self-assembly, electrostatic-driven assemblies, and assembly formed by encapsulating smaller nanoparticles into larger microparticles.
https://doi.org/10.1002/adfm.202007407
In situ assembly of gold nanoparticles in the presence of poly-DADMAC resulting in hierarchical and highly fractal nanostructures. - In: Applied Sciences, ISSN 2076-3417, Bd. 11 (2021), 3, 1191, S. 1-13
The presence of the polycationic macromolecule poly(diallyldimethylammonium chloride) (poly-DADMAC) has a strong effect on the shape and size of colloidal gold nanoparticles formed by the reduction of tetrachloroauric acid with ascorbic acid in aqueous solution. It slows down nanoparticle growth and supports the formation of nonspherical, partially highly fractal and hierarchical nanoparticle shapes. Four structural levels have been recognized from the near-spherical gold nanoparticles in the lower nanometer range over compact aggregates in the midnanometer range and flower and star-like particles in the submicron range up to larger filamentous aggregates. High-contrast scanning electron microscope (SEM) images show that single gold nanoparticles and clusters of them are connected by bundles of macromolecules in large aggregates. The investigation showed that a large spectrum of different nanoparticle shapes and sizes can be accessed by tuning the poly-DADMAC concentrations and their ratio to other reactants. The nanoassemblies with a very high specific surface area might be of interest for SERS and heterogeneous catalysis.
https://doi.org/10.3390/app11031191
Sensor micro and nanoparticles for microfluidic application. - In: Applied Sciences, ISSN 2076-3417, Bd. 10 (2020), 23, 8353, S. 1-37
Micro and nanoparticles are not only understood as components of materials but as small functional units too. Particles can be designed for the primary transduction of physical and chemical signals and, therefore, become a valuable component in sensing systems. Due to their small size, they are particularly interesting for sensing in microfluidic systems, in microarray arrangements and in miniaturized biotechnological systems and microreactors, in general. Here, an overview of the recent development in the preparation of micro and nanoparticles for sensing purposes in microfluidics and application of particles in various microfluidic devices is presented. The concept of sensor particles is particularly useful for combining a direct contact between cells, biomolecules and media with a contactless optical readout. In addition to the construction and synthesis of micro and nanoparticles with transducer functions, examples of chemical and biological applications are reported.
https://doi.org/10.3390/app10238353
Emerging structural and interfacial features of particulate polymers at the nanoscale. - In: Langmuir, ISSN 1520-5827, Bd. 36 (2020), 44, S. 13125-13143
Particulate polymers at the nanoscale are exceedingly promising for diversified functional applications ranging from biomedical and energy to sensing, labeling, and catalysis. Tailored structural features (i.e., size, shape, morphology, internal softness, interior cross-linking, etc.) determine polymer nanoparticles' impact on the cargo loading capacity and controlled/sustained release, possibility of endocytosis, degradability, and photostability. The designed interfacial features, however (i.e., stimuli-responsive surfaces, wrinkling, surface porosity, shell-layer swellability, layer-by-layer surface functionalization, surface charge, etc.), regulate nanoparticles interfacial interactions, controlled assembly, movement and collision, and compatibility with the surroundings (e.g., solvent and biological environments). These features define nanoparticles' overall properties/functions on the basis of homogeneity, stability, interfacial tension, and minimization of the surface energy barrier. Lowering of the resultant outcomes is directly influenced by inhomogeneity in the structural and interfacial design through the structure-function relationship. Therefore, a key requirement is to produce well-defined polymer nanoparticles with controlled characteristics. Polymers are amorphous, flexible, and soft, and hence controlling their structural/interfacial features through the single-step process is a challenge. The microfluidics reaction strategy is very promising because of its wide range of advantages such as efficient reactant mixing and fast phase transfer. Overall, this feature article highlights the state-of-the-art synthetic features of polymer nanoparticles with perspectives on their advanced applications.
https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.langmuir.0c02566
Microbial community types and signature-like soil bacterial patterns from fortified prehistoric hills of Thuringia (Germany). - In: Community ecology, ISSN 1588-2756, Bd. 21 (2020), 2, S. 107-120
16S rRNA profiling has been applied for the investigation of bacterial communities of surface soil samples from forest-covered areas of ten prehistorical ramparts from different parts of Thuringia. Besides the majority bacterial types that are present in all samples, there could be identified bacteria that are highly abundant in some places and absent or low abundant in others. These differences are mainly related to the acidity of substrate and distinguish the communities of lime stone hills from soils of sand/quartzite and basalt hills. Minority components of bacterial communities show partially large differences that cannot be explained by the pH of the soil or incidental effects, only. They reflect certain relations between the communities of different places and could be regarded as a kind of signature-like patterns. Such relations had also been found in a comparison of the data from ramparts with formerly studied 16S rRNA profiling from an iron-age burial field. The observations are supporting the idea that a part of the components of bacterial communities from soil samples reflect their ecological history and can be understood as the "ecological memory" of a place. Probably such memory effects can date back to prehistoric times and might assist in future interpretations of archaeological findings on the prehistoric use of a place, on the one hand. On the other hand, the genetic profiling of soils of prehistoric places contributes to the evaluation of anthropogenic effects on the development of local soil bacterial diversity.
https://doi.org/10.1007/s42974-020-00017-4
Novel SERS-based process analysis for label-free segmented flow screenings. - In: Lab on a chip, ISSN 1473-0189, Bd. 20 (2020), 13, S. 2364-2371
https://doi.org/10.1039/D0LC00367K
Infection-immunity competition: a simple model for illustrating the background of individual response on herd immunity. - In: Applied Sciences, ISSN 2076-3417, Bd. 10 (2020), 9, 3078, S. 1-12
https://doi.org/10.3390/app10093078
Droplet-based screening for the investigation of microbial nonlinear dose-response characteristics system, background, and examples. - In: Micromachines, ISSN 2072-666X, Bd. 11 (2020), 6, 577, insges. 19 S.
https://doi.org/10.3390/mi11060577
Microfluidic chamber design for controlled droplet expansion and coalescence. - In: Micromachines, ISSN 2072-666X, Bd. 11 (2020), 4, 394, insges. 16 S.
https://doi.org/10.3390/mi11040394
Effect of polyalcohols on the anticorrosive behaviour of alkyd coatings prepared with drying oils. - In: Progress in organic coatings, Bd. 145 (2020), 105671
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.porgcoat.2020.105671