Direct Access to Polysaccharide-Based Vesicles with a Tunable Membrane Thickness in a Large Concentration Window via Polymerization-Induced Self-Assembly

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Djallal Ikkene ◽  
Ana Andreea Arteni ◽  
Malika Ouldali ◽  
Gregory Francius ◽  
Annie Brûlet ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Self Assembly ◽  
Direct Access ◽  
Large Concentration ◽  
Membrane Thickness

scholarly journals Large and Giant Unilamellar Vesicle(s) Obtained by Self-Assembly of Poly(dimethylsiloxane)-b-poly(ethylene oxide) Diblock Copolymers, Membrane Properties and Preliminary Investigation of Their Ability to Form Hybrid Polymer/Lipid Vesicles

Polymers ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 11 (12) ◽  
pp. 2013 ◽  
Author(s):  
Martin Fauquignon ◽  
Emmanuel Ibarboure ◽  
Stéphane Carlotti ◽  
Annie Brûlet ◽  
Marc Schmutz ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Light Scattering ◽  
Ethylene Oxide ◽  
Self Assembly ◽  
Diblock Copolymers ◽  
Lipid Vesicles ◽  
Membrane Properties ◽  
Membrane Thickness ◽  
Hybrid Polymer ◽  
Poly Ethylene Oxide ◽  
Poly Ethylene

In the emerging field of hybrid polymer/lipid vesicles, relatively few copolymers have been evaluated regarding their ability to form these structures and the resulting membrane properties have been scarcely studied. Here, we present the synthesis and self-assembly in solution of poly(dimethylsiloxane)-block-poly(ethylene oxide) diblock copolymers (PDMS-b-PEO). A library of different PDMS-b-PEO diblock copolymers was synthesized using ring-opening polymerization of hexamethylcyclotrisiloxane (D3) and further coupling with PEO chains via click chemistry. Self-assembly of the copolymers in water was studied using Dynamic Light Scattering (DLS), Static Light Scattering (SLS), Small Angle Neutron Scattering (SANS), and Cryo-Transmission Electron Microscopy (Cryo-TEM). Giant polymersomes obtained by electroformation present high toughness compared to those obtained from triblock copolymer in previous studies, for similar membrane thickness. Interestingly, these copolymers can be associated to phospholipids to form Giant Hybrid Unilamellar Vesicles (GHUV); preliminary investigations of their mechanical properties show that tough hybrid vesicles can be obtained.

scholarly journals Evolving Self-Assembly in Autonomous Homogeneous Robots: Experiments with Two Physical Robots

2009 ◽  
Vol 15 (4) ◽  
pp. 465-484 ◽  
Author(s):  
Christos Ampatzis ◽  
Elio Tuci ◽  
Vito Trianni ◽  
Anders Lyhne Christensen ◽  
Marco Dorigo
Keyword(s):  
Self Assembly ◽  
Motor Coordination ◽  
Fitness Function ◽  
A Priori ◽  
Research Work ◽  
Evolutionary Robotics ◽  
Direct Access ◽  
Necessary Condition ◽  
Perceptual Cues ◽  
Dynamic Neural Networks

This research work illustrates an approach to the design of controllers for self-assembling robots in which the self-assembly is initiated and regulated by perceptual cues that are brought forth by the physical robots through their dynamical interactions. More specifically, we present a homogeneous control system that can achieve assembly between two modules (two fully autonomous robots) of a mobile self-reconfigurable system without a priori introduced behavioral or morphological heterogeneities. The controllers are dynamic neural networks evolved in simulation that directly control all the actuators of the two robots. The neurocontrollers cause the dynamic specialization of the robots by allocating roles between them based solely on their interaction. We show that the best evolved controller proves to be successful when tested on a real hardware platform, the swarm-bot. The performance achieved is similar to the one achieved by existing modular or behavior-based approaches, also due to the effect of an emergent recovery mechanism that was neither explicitly rewarded by the fitness function, nor observed during the evolutionary simulation. Our results suggest that direct access to the orientations or intentions of the other agents is not a necessary condition for robot coordination: Our robots coordinate without direct or explicit communication, contrary to what is assumed by most research works in collective robotics. This work also contributes to strengthening the evidence that evolutionary robotics is a design methodology that can tackle real-world tasks demanding fine sensory-motor coordination.

Direct access to aggregation-free and small intermetallic nanoparticles in ordered, large-pore mesoporous carbon for an electrocatalyst

RSC Advances ◽  
2016 ◽  
Vol 6 (91) ◽  
pp. 88255-88264 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yeongdong Mun ◽  
Jongmin Shim ◽  
Kyeounghak Kim ◽  
Jeong Woo Han ◽  
Soo-Kil Kim ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Block Copolymer ◽  
Self Assembly ◽  
Mesoporous Carbon ◽  
Direct Access ◽  
Large Pore ◽  
Evaporation Induced Self Assembly ◽  
Intermetallic Nanoparticles

Small-sized intermetallic catalysts are synthesized by block copolymer-assisted evaporation-induced self-assembly, incorporating an agent that interacts strongly with metal.

scholarly journals Kinetics of self-assembly of inclusions due to lipid membrane thickness interactions

Soft Matter ◽  
2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Xinyu Liao ◽  
Prashant K. Purohit
Keyword(s):  
Self Assembly ◽  
Lipid Membranes ◽  
Cell Biology ◽  
Lipid Membrane ◽  
Membrane Thickness ◽  
Kinetics Of

Self-assembly of proteins on lipid membranes underlies many important processes in cell biology, such as, exo- and endo-cytosis, assembly of viruses, etc.

Analyzing a fractal gel of charged oblate nanoparticles in a suspension using time-resolved rheometry and DLVO theory

2016 ◽  
Vol 186 ◽  
pp. 199-213 ◽  
Author(s):  
Shweta Jatav ◽  
Yogesh M. Joshi
Keyword(s):  
Free Energy ◽  
Fractal Dimension ◽  
Equilibrium State ◽  
Loss Tangent ◽  
Self Assembly ◽  
Dlvo Theory ◽  
Large Concentration ◽  
Time Resolved ◽  
Identical Point ◽  
Time Required

The disk-like nanoparticles of LAPONITE® are known to self-assemble to form a fractal gel within hours after a sufficiently large concentration of LAPONITE® is dispersed in water containing salt. The concentration of sodium counterions associated with LAPONITE® particles, however, continues to increase over a period of days, suggesting that delamination of LAPONITE® disks from stacks is sluggish and/or dissociation of counterions is slow. In either case, spontaneous self-assembly of LAPONITE® particles occurs even though delamination and/or counterion dissociation has not reached its equilibrium state. In order to determine the nature of the fractal gel as the extent of delamination and/or dissociation progresses towards equilibrium, we subject the LAPONITE® suspension to a freezing–defrosting cycle, which interestingly reinitiates the gelation process in suspension afresh. Application of time-resolved rheometry to a defrosted suspension shows that iso-frequency loss tangent curves intersect at an identical point, validating the Winter–Chambon criterion for a critical fractal gel state. Interestingly, while the time required to form a critical gel is observed to decrease with increased time elapsed since preparation, at which freezing–defrosting is carried out, the fractal dimension of the critical gel is observed to remain unaffected. We also solve DLVO theory for free energy interactions between the negatively charged LAPONITE® particle faces and analyze the observed phenomena.

scholarly journals Kinetics of self-assembly of inclusions due to lipid membrane thickness interactions

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Xinyu Liao ◽  
Prashant K. Purohit
Keyword(s):  
Self Assembly ◽  
Time Scale ◽  
Lipid Membranes ◽  
Lipid Membrane ◽  
First Passage Time ◽  
Langevin Dynamics ◽  
Passage Time ◽  
Membrane Thickness ◽  
Kinetics Of ◽  
Two Inclusions

AbstractSelf-assembly of proteins on lipid membranes underlies many important processes in cell biology, such as, exo- and endo-cytosis, assembly of viruses, etc. An attractive force that can cause self-assembly is mediated by membrane thickness interactions between proteins. The free energy profile associated with this attractive force is a result of the overlap of thickness deformation fields around the proteins. The thickness deformation field around proteins of various shapes can be calculated from the solution of a boundary value problem and is relatively well understood. Yet, the time scales over which self-assembly occurs has not been explored. In this paper we compute this time scale as a function of the initial distance between two inclusions by viewing their coalescence as a first passage time problem. The first passage time is computed using both Langevin dynamics and a partial differential equation, and both methods are found to be in excellent agreement. Inclusions of three different shapes are studied and it is found that for two inclusions separated by about hundred nanometers the time to coalescence is hundreds of milliseconds irrespective of shape. Our Langevin dynamics simulation of self-assembly required an efficient computation of the interaction energy of inclusions which was accomplished using a finite difference technique. The interaction energy profiles obtained using this numerical technique were in excellent agreement with those from a previously proposed semi-analytical method based on Fourier-Bessel series. The computational strategies described in this paper could potentially lead to efficient methods to explore the kinetics of self-assembly of proteins on lipid membranes.Author summarySelf-assembly of proteins on lipid membranes occurs during exo- and endo-cytosis and also when viruses exit an infected cell. The forces mediating self-assembly of inclusions on membranes have therefore been of long standing interest. However, the kinetics of self-assembly has received much less attention. As a first step in discerning the kinetics, we examine the time to coalescence of two inclusions on a membrane as a function of the distance separating them. We use both Langevin dynamics simulations and a partial differential equation to compute this time scale. We predict that the time to coalescence is on the scale of hundreds of milliseconds for two inclusions separated by about hundred nanometers. The deformation moduli of the lipid membrane and the membrane tension can affect this time scale.

In vitro and in vivo polysaccharides assembly: ultrastructural and cytochemical study of growing plant cell wall components.

1978 ◽  
Vol 36 (2) ◽  
pp. 434-435
Author(s):  
D. Reis ◽  
B. Vian ◽  
J. C. Roland
Keyword(s):  
Cell Wall ◽  
Self Assembly ◽  
Plant Cell Wall ◽  
Higher Plants ◽  
Three Dimensional ◽  
Cytochemical Study ◽  
Wall Components

Wall morphogenesis in higher plants is a problem still open to controversy. Until now the possibility of a transmembrane control and the involvement of microtubules were mostly envisaged. Self-assembly processes have been observed in the case of walls of Chlamydomonas and bacteria. Spontaneous gelling interactions between xanthan and galactomannan from Ceratonia have been analyzed very recently. The present work provides indications that some processes of spontaneous aggregation could occur in higher plants during the formation and expansion of cell wall.Observations were performed on hypocotyl of mung bean (Phaseolus aureus) for which growth characteristics and wall composition have been previously defined.In situ, the walls of actively growing cells (primary walls) show an ordered three-dimensional organization (fig. 1). The wall is typically polylamellate with multifibrillar layers alternately transverse and longitudinal. Between these layers intermediate strata exist in which the orientation of microfibrils progressively rotates. Thus a progressive change in the morphogenetic activity occurs.

The Nature of Rapidly Extracted Phycocyanin from the Blue-Green Alga Plectonema Boryanum

1971 ◽  
Vol 29 ◽  
pp. 366-367
Author(s):  
M. Kessel ◽  
R. MacColl
Keyword(s):  
Self Assembly ◽  
Analytical Ultracentrifugation ◽  
Uranyl Acetate ◽  
The Self ◽  
Major Protein ◽  
Subunit Structure ◽  
Blue Green Alga ◽  
Thin Sections ◽  
Blue Green Algae ◽  
Cacodylate Buffer

The major protein of the blue-green algae is the biliprotein, C-phycocyanin (Amax = 620 nm), which is presumed to exist in the cell in the form of distinct aggregates called phycobilisomes. The self-assembly of C-phycocyanin from monomer to hexamer has been extensively studied, but the proposed next step in the assembly of a phycobilisome, the formation of 19s subunits, is completely unknown. We have used electron microscopy and analytical ultracentrifugation in combination with a method for rapid and gentle extraction of phycocyanin to study its subunit structure and assembly.To establish the existence of phycobilisomes, cells of P. boryanum in the log phase of growth, growing at a light intensity of 200 foot candles, were fixed in 2% glutaraldehyde in 0.1M cacodylate buffer, pH 7.0, for 3 hours at 4°C. The cells were post-fixed in 1% OsO4 in the same buffer overnight. Material was stained for 1 hour in uranyl acetate (1%), dehydrated and embedded in araldite and examined in thin sections.

Video real-time imaging of artificial membranes during freeze-drying by cryo-electron microscopy

1988 ◽  
Vol 46 ◽  
pp. 16-17
Author(s):  
Alan S. Rudolph ◽  
Ronald R. Price
Keyword(s):  
Real Time ◽  
Self Assembly ◽  
Freeze Drying ◽  
Video Capture ◽  
Drying Process ◽  
Artificial Membranes ◽  
The Past ◽  
Cryo Electron Microscopy ◽  
Spherical Structures ◽  
Capture Techniques

We have employed cryoelectron microscopy to visualize events that occur during the freeze-drying of artificial membranes by employing real time video capture techniques. Artificial membranes or liposomes which are spherical structures within internal aqueous space are stabilized by water which provides the driving force for spontaneous self-assembly of these structures. Previous assays of damage to these structures which are induced by freeze drying reveal that the two principal deleterious events that occur are 1) fusion of liposomes and 2) leakage of contents trapped within the liposome [1]. In the past the only way to access these events was to examine the liposomes following the dehydration event. This technique allows the event to be monitored in real time as the liposomes destabilize and as water is sublimed at cryo temperatures in the vacuum of the microscope. The method by which liposomes are compromised by freeze-drying are largely unknown. This technique has shown that cryo-protectants such as glycerol and carbohydrates are able to maintain liposomal structure throughout the drying process.

Fresnel interference in point-projection imaging of purple membrane

1995 ◽  
Vol 53 ◽  
pp. 846-847
Author(s):  
X. Zhang ◽  
J. Spence ◽  
W. Qian ◽  
D. Taylor ◽  
K. Taylor
Keyword(s):  
Detection Efficiency ◽  
Mean Free Path ◽  
Purple Membrane ◽  
Unit Cell Dimension ◽  
Experimental Point ◽  
Membrane Thickness ◽  
Low Energies ◽  
Channel Plate ◽  
Point Projection ◽  
Inelastic Mean Free Path

Experimental point-projection shadow microscope (PPM) images of uncoated, unstained purple membrane (PM, bacteriorhodopsin, a membrane protein from Halobacterium holobium) were obtained recently using 100 volt electrons. The membrane thickness is about 5 nm and the hexagonal unit cell dimension 6 nm. The images show contrast around the edges of small holes, as shown in figure 1. The interior of the film is opaque. Since the inelastic mean free path for 100V electrons in carbon (about 6 Å) is much less than the sample thickness, the question arises that how much, if any, transmission of elastically scattered electrons occurs. A large inelastic contribution is also expected, attenuated by the reduced detection efficiency of the channel plate at low energies. Quantitative experiments using an energy-loss spectrometer are planned. Recently Shedd has shown that at about 100V contrast in PPM images of thin gold films can be explained as Fresnel interference effects between different pinholes in the film, separated by less than the coherence width.

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