The synergistic cooperation between MCM-41 and azithromycin: a pH responsive system for drug adsorption and release

The capability of MCM-41 silica for accepting and delivering poorly soluble azithromycin (AZT) in water is reported as robust drug delivery system. This property has been evidenced by using two MCM-41 samples with different pore sizes as hosts of AZT. The choice of this macrolide antibiotic is due not only to its low bioavailability but also to its molecular size which lies in the range of pore diameter of MCM-41s. The drug was loaded inside the pore voids of the mesoporous when MCM-41 was stirred at AZT solution, based on XRD, Nitrogen adsorption–desorption isotherms, TGA analysis data and FT-IR spectroscopy. The amount of AZT stored inside the pores of MCM-41 s was between 22 and 25 wt%. The loaded drug was released in different rates from the particles by changing the pH (1.7 and 7.4) to give a smart pH-responsive carrier system. The drug release kinetics was fitted to Korsmeyer–Peppas and Higuchi models which indicated that the rate of drug release was controlled by the diffusion of the drug. The result of the present study confirms that the controlled adsorption and liberation of AZT may improve the oral bioavailability of poor water soluble AZT. This study demonstrates the feasibility of designing reliable drug delivery systems by appropriate choice of the matrix and the organic molecule. In general, MCM-41 is a promising matrix for AZT adsorption with different application from drug delivery to wastewater filtration.     

Facile synthesis of extremely biocompatible double‐network hydrogels based on chitosan and poly(vinyl alcohol) with enhanced mechanical properties

An easy and ecofriendly method for designing double‐network (DN) hydrogels based on chitosan and poly(vinyl alcohol) (PVA) with high mechanical performance is described. When covalent bonds in the networks are used as crosslinking agents in the achievement of a higher mechanical strength, the irreversible deformation of these hydrogels after a large force is applied is still one of the most important obstacles. To overcome this problem, we used physical crosslinking for both networks. The mechanical strength, surface morphology, and cytotoxicity of the films were studied by tensile testing, scanning electron microscopy analysis, and an MTT assay. The synthesized chitosan–PVA DN hydrogels showed a large improvement in the tensile strength to 11.52 MPa with an elongation of 265.6%. The surface morphologies of the films demonstrated the effective interactions between the two networks and a suitable porosity. Also, because of the use of a natural polymer and honey as a plasticizer, the cell culture indicated that the synthesized DN hydrogels had good biocompatibility (with 327.49 ± 11.22% viability) and could be used as capable biomaterials. © 2017 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Appl. Polym. Sci. 2018 , 135, 45752.     

Comparative study of mechanical-electrical-thermal responses of pouch,cylindrical, and prismatic lithium-ion cells under mechanical abuse

In the study, mechanical abuse tests mainly in the form of indentation were performed on the cylindrical cell, pouch cell, and prismatic cell. The mechanical force-displacement response, open circuit voltage (OCV), and temperature distribution were recorded and compared. In spherical head indentation tests of the pouch and prismatic cell and lateral indentation of the cylindrical cell, the peak force is strongly correlated with OCV drop and local temperature increase. However, in flat-end cylinder indentation tests, the internal mechanical damage is progressively developed, and the OCV drop and the temperature increase occur before the peak force. The fracture surfaces of the post-mortem samples were examined to investigate the correlation between fracture patterns and internal short circuit (ISC) behaviors (OCV and temperature distribution). Two distinct fracture patterns were observed that the in-plane fracture induced by biaxial stretching and inter-layers’ fracture induced by shearing. A strong correlation is observed between the number of shear fractures and OCV drop. An increase in the number of inter-layers’ fractures increases the rate of OCV drop. Additionally, the fracture patterns influence the ISC area and location, thereby affecting the heat generation and conduction as well as the temperature distribution.     

Reversible adsorption and desorption of water in nanoporous copper(II) metal–organic nanocapsules

Nanocapsule of [Cu₂(bda)₂(bpy)₂]·4H₂O (1) with nanoparticle morphology (bda^2? = 2,2?-biphenyl dicarboxylate and bpy?=?2,2?-bipyridine), was synthesized by sonochemical process. Guest water molecules can be removed from the nanopores of 1 by thermal treatment at 200?°C. The color of this compound changed from blue to deep green during this process. This process is reversible and compound [Cu₂(bda)₂(bpy)₂] (2) with the pore size of 4.3?×?5.5 Å can absorb water again. Thus nanoparticles of compound 2 with 1.53% weight absorption of water/compound 2 at room temperature could be used as water adsorption material like silica gel. Adsorption and desorption of water in these copper(II) metal–organic nanocapsules were studied by IR spectroscopy, thermo gravimetric analyses (TGA), X-ray powder diffraction (XRD) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM).     

Mussel‐Inspired Conductive Cryogel as Cardiac Tissue Patch to Repair Myocardial Infarction by Migration of Conductive Nanoparticles

The engineered cardiac patch (ECP) is a promising strategy to repair infarct myocardium and restore the cardiac function. An ideal ECP should be able to mimic the primary attributes of native myocardium, which includes a high resilience, good cardiomyocyte adhesion, and synchronous contraction. Here, a mussel‐inspired dopamine crosslinker is used to integrate polypyrrole (Ppy) nanoparticles, gelatin‐methyacrylate, and poly(ethylene glycol) diacrylate into a cryogel form. The dopamine crosslinker and Ppy nanoparticles are coordinated to obtain optimal mechanical and superelastic properties for the ECP. The dopamine facilitates the uniform distribution of the Ppy nanoparticles, which migrate and fuse from the scaffold to the surface of the cardiomyocytes, revealing a potential mechanism for restoring infarct myocardium. The incorporated Ppy nanoparticles thus significantly enhance the functionalization of the cardiomyocytes, resulting in excellent synchronous contraction by increasing the expression of α‐actinin and CX‐43. Cardiomyocytes‐loaded ECP can improve the cardiac function in myocardial‐infarction (MI) affected rat models. The results show that the fractional shortening and ejection fraction are elevated by about 50% and that the infarct size is reduced by 42.6%. Collectively, this study highlights an effective cardiac patch based on mussel‐inspired conductive particle adhesion and a superelastic cryogel promising for the restoration of infarcted myocardium.     

A review on the micro- and nanoporous polymeric foams: Preparation and properties

A great number of studies on new synthetic materials have been focused on the preparation of different porous polymers. This review explains the principles and techniques of polymeric foam formation and their features followed by an overview of papers on polymeric porous materials. Physical blowing agent, phase separation, leaching, etching, and thermal decomposition are the main techniques for foam formation that are briefly described. This discussion covers different polymeric foams with various morphologies, pore sizes, and properties. These polymeric foams can be applied for various purposes, including tissue engineering, membranes in separation process, electrical and thermal insulators, packaging, and scaffolds.     

Hydrophobic polyethersulfone porous membranes for membrane distillation

Membrane distillation (MD) is a thermal, vapor-driven transportation process through micro porous hydrophobic membranes that is increasingly being applied to seawater and brine desalination processes. Two types of hydrophobic microporous polyethersulfone flat sheet membranes, namely, annealed polyethersulfone and a polyethersulfone/tetraethoxysilane (PES/TEOS) blend were prepared by a phase inversion process. The membranes were characterized and their performances were investigated using the vacuum membrane distillation of an aqueous NaCl solution. The performances of the prepared membranes were also compared with two commercially available hydrophobic membranes, polytetrafluorethylene and polyvinylidene fluoride. The influence of operational parameters such as feed temperature (25–65 °C), permeate vacuum pressure (200–800 mbar), feed flow rate (8–22 mL/s) and feed salt concentration (3000 to 35000 mg/L) on the MD permeation flux were investigated for the four membranes. The hydrophobic PES/TEOS membrane had the highest salt rejection (99.7%) and permeate flux (86 kg/m²·h) at 65 °C, with a feed of 7000 ppm and a pressure of 200 mbar.     

A nonlinear model for context-dependent modulation of the binocular VOR

Studies on the behavior of the vestibulo-ocular reflex (VOR) reveal that the monocular reflex gain is adjusted according to target position relative to each eye. In this paper, we present a nonlinear approach in modeling the viewing-context dependency of the slow-phase angular VOR. We show that including appropriate nonlinearities in the responses of premotor neurons in the brainstem is sufficient to account for the online modulation of the VOR with target position. This approach allows very complex behaviors in response to sensory patterns without resorting to currently assumed cortical computations. A local premotor topology with nonlinear properties has repercussions in the study of all ocular reflexes, since it implies context dependent dynamics in all behavioral responses (pursuit, optokinetic, VOR, saccades, etc.) that share this network. Local nonlinearities in spinal circuits could similarly influence the context dependence of other motor systems (such as stretch reflex modulation during rhythmic walking).     

Performance characteristics of a miniaturised chemical looping steam reformer for hydrogen enrichment of fuels

A miniaturised chemical looping steam reformer (μ-CLSR) is being developed at the University of Newcastle (Australia) for onboard hydrogen enrichment of fuels in internal combustion engines. Experimental results from the first prototype highlighted an imbalance between the rates of redox reactions. A new configuration has been developed to resolve this shortcoming. The objective of this study is to examine the effectiveness of the new configuration in handling the imbalance between redox rates. Experiments were conducted on magnetite and wuestite metal oxides under methane and steam environments in the new configuration. Results indicate that if micro-reactors within the reformer are operated in parallel during the oxidation half cycle and in sequence during the reduction half cycle, the imbalance can be effectively managed. This combined with manifold switching of reacting gases at 48 s intervals enables metal oxides to achieve a 30% fractional conversion at 900 °C; resulting in a product gas stream with 96% H₂ purity.