Article
Spectroscopy
Abdallah M. Zeid, Jenny Jeehan M. Nasr, Fathalla Belal, Mohamed I. Walash, Yoshinobu Baba, Noritada Kaji
Summary: A lab-on-a-chip electrophoretic method coupled with LED-induced fluorescence detection was developed for the assay of three antiepileptic drugs in pharmaceutical formulations. The method involves derivatizing analytes with FITC offline, optimizing separation conditions, and using specific compounds to enhance separation efficiency. The sensitivity of the method was greatly enhanced through stacking, allowing for successful validation in pharmaceutical formulations.
SPECTROCHIMICA ACTA PART A-MOLECULAR AND BIOMOLECULAR SPECTROSCOPY
(2021)
Article
Chemistry, Analytical
Ping Sun, Jing Wu, Shenghong Yang, Hongli Li, Lei Zhao, Yuanhang Wang, Xiayan Wang, Qiaosheng Pu
Summary: By investigating microchips with sub-millimeter channels, this study successfully reduced cost and improved ease of operation and separation efficiency, making microchip capillary electrophoresis a viable alternative to conventional slab gel electrophoresis in most biological laboratories.
Article
Polymer Science
Svetlana Tretsiakova-McNally, Helen Lubarsky, Ashlene Vennard, Paul Cairns, Charlie Farrell, Paul Joseph, Malavika Arun, Ian Harvey, John Harrison, Ali Nadjai
Summary: In this paper, a novel processing technology is developed to deal with hard-to-recycle plastic packaging waste contaminated with food residues. The technology effectively separates food residues from plastic waste materials, allowing for further re-use or recycling of the plastic packaging. Characterizations of the obtained fractions were conducted using spectroscopy, thermal analysis, and calorimetry, providing valuable insights for industrial players in plastic recycling.
Article
Polymer Science
Firas Jameel Jabbar
Summary: This research successfully synthesized a new form of hydrophobic modified polyacrylamide copolymer in the laboratory and characterized its properties, focusing on its application in drilling mud and its impact on rheological and filtration properties. The study demonstrated a significant influence of the copolymer on the rheological properties of drilling mud, as well as observed effects of sodium and calcium salts on the mud's properties.
JOURNAL OF POLYMER RESEARCH
(2021)
Article
Biochemical Research Methods
Felicia Auer, Andras Guttman
Summary: SDS capillary gel electrophoresis is widely used for proteins size separation in the biopharma and biomedical fields. However, little is known about the use of dilute and ultra-dilute sieving matrices for SDS-protein analysis. This study investigated the separation performance of a protein sizing ladder (PSL) and a therapeutic monoclonal antibody (mAb) using borate-based background electrolytes (BGEs) containing 1%-0% dextran. The results showed that the separation mechanism in ultra-dilute dextran-borate matrices differed from the traditional rigid pore structure assumption.
Article
Agriculture, Multidisciplinary
Xiaoxu Zhu, Yufei Hua, Xiangzhen Kong, Xingfei Li, Yeming Chen, Caimeng Zhang
Summary: The Irpex lacteus protease selectively hydrolyzes soy proteins and improves their acid and thermal stabilities.
JOURNAL OF THE SCIENCE OF FOOD AND AGRICULTURE
(2023)
Article
Materials Science, Multidisciplinary
Ryan Sayko, Michael Jacobs, Marissa Dominijanni, Andrey V. Dobrynin
Summary: By combining the scaling theory of polymer solutions and convolutional neural network (CNN) models, specific parameters were obtained to describe semidilute solution viscosity in different solution regimes. The CNN models were trained on theoretically generated datasets and used to analyze the solution viscosity of various polymers in different solvents. The approach produced accurate results and can be used to predict viscosity based on concentration and polymerization degree.
ACS APPLIED POLYMER MATERIALS
(2023)
Article
Polymer Science
Anna Gosteva, Alexander S. Gubarev, Olga Dommes, Olga Okatova, Georges M. Pavlov
Summary: This study considers the peculiarities of viscosity data treatment for two series of polymer systems exhibiting associative properties. The interest in amphiphilic macromolecular systems is explained, as they are considered as micellar-forming structures in aqueous solutions and can carry hydrophobic biologically active compounds. Convenient ways to extract the correct value of intrinsic viscosity eta from combined analysis of Kraemer and Huggins plots are discussed. The obtained data provide insights into hydrophobic interactions in polymer chains and the size of charged chains depending on the ionic strength of solutions.
Article
Polymer Science
Andrey V. Dobrynin, Ryan Sayko, Ralph H. Colby
Summary: Viscosity analysis is a valuable technique for polymer characterization. This study proposes a new method to determine the molecular weight of polymers by representing the solution-specific viscosity as a generalized universal function of chain overlap concentration.
Article
Polymer Science
Jianing Zhou, Jinxian Yang, Muhammad Waqas Ishaq, Lianwei Li
Summary: The study explores the difference in topology-structure-conformation relationship between linear and cyclic graft polymers, showing that cyclic graft polymers exhibit more compact conformation and suppress interchain association compared to linear graft polymers.
Article
Chemistry, Analytical
Quinn T. Birch, Phillip M. Potter, Patricio X. Pinto, Dionysios D. Dionysiou, Souhail R. Al-Abed
Summary: Micro- and nano-scale plastic particles in the environment are of special concern due to their potential impact on marine, freshwater, and terrestrial ecosystems. Despite widespread research on microplastic pollution globally, there are still many questions about its origins. Developing standard methods to characterize and quantify microplastics is crucial for understanding their geographic origins and potential environmental and human health risks.
Article
Chemistry, Analytical
Fumihiko Kitagawa, Takahiro Yonekura, Isoshi Nukatsuka
Summary: This study eliminates complicated voltage controls in highly sensitive microchip electrophoresis (MCE) analyses by combining two online sample preconcentration techniques, large-volume sample stacking with an electroosmotic flow (LVSEP) and field-amplified sample injection (FASI). The cross-channel microchips and multichannel high-voltage power supply are replaced by Y-channel chips and a conventional power supply designed for capillary electrophoresis. By simple switching of the electric circuit, the focused analytes can be separated during anodic migration in a separation channel. The method achieves significant sensitivity enhancement and baseline separation in the analysis of fluorescein and oligosaccharides.
ANALYTICAL SCIENCES
(2023)
Review
Chemistry, Multidisciplinary
Rui Vitorino, Sofia Guedes, Joao Pinto da Costa, Vaclav Kasicka
Summary: Microfluidics is an advanced microtechnology for manipulating fluids in small channels, offering tools for controlling chemical, biological, and physical processes. It plays a crucial role in various fields and is often combined with mass spectrometry for analysis. Recent developments include applications in proteomics, peptidomics, cell analysis, and detection methods for clinical questions.
Article
Chemistry, Multidisciplinary
Deyu Yang, Maryam Daviran, Kelly M. Schultz, Lynn M. Walker
Summary: This study developed a microfluidic device for quantifying the viscosity of concentrated protein solutions in micrometer-scale droplets, requiring minimal sample volume. The viscosity measurements obtained using this device were consistent with macroscopic results, demonstrating the validity of this novel approach.
PHARMACEUTICAL RESEARCH
(2021)
Article
Chemistry, Analytical
Sachio Yamamoto, Kazuhito Maetani, Gai Tatsumi, Fuka Okada, Mitsuhiro Kinoshita, Shigeo Suzuki
Summary: This new method allows for the fabrication of three-dimensional microchannels within PDMS elastomers using nylon monofilament molds, enabling online purification and preconcentration of proteins for researchers. The method is cost-effective, environmentally sustainable, and easy to implement.
ANALYTICAL SCIENCES
(2021)
Article
Chemistry, Analytical
Hisashi Murahara, Noritada Kaji, Manabu Tokeshi, Yoshinobu Baba
Summary: The study found that increasing confinement can decrease the catalytic rates of enzyme molecules. The hydrolysis rate of beta-galactosidase decreased with the increase of confinement. The presence of molecular crowders also reduced the collision chance between enzymes and substrates, leading to a decrease in the hydrolysis rate. These results suggest that confined environments at the cellular or organelle scale may affect the kinetics of biochemical reactions.
Article
Biotechnology & Applied Microbiology
Nimatul Izza, Nozomi Watanabe, Yukihiro Okamoto, Yusuf Wibisono, Hiroshi Umakoshi
Summary: This study successfully encapsulated polyphenols with antioxidant activity using nanostructured lipid carriers as a drug delivery system. The results demonstrate that the polyphenols-incorporated NLCs exhibit good performance in terms of particle stability, drug loading capacity, and antioxidant activity.
JOURNAL OF BIOSCIENCE AND BIOENGINEERING
(2022)
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Yukihiro Okamoto, Kaito Hamaguchi, Mayo Watanabe, Nozomi Watanabe, Hiroshi Umakoshi
Summary: Lipid membranes form nanodomains with heterogeneous properties that play significant roles in various cell functions. However, the analysis of these nanodomains has been challenging due to their small size and limited height difference with the surrounding membrane. This study aimed to overcome these limitations by using solvatochromic dye and the phase mode of scanning probe microscopy (SPM). The combination method successfully provided information on the phase state of lipid membranes at both micro and macro scales, enabling analysis of heterogeneous lipid membranes.
Article
Nanoscience & Nanotechnology
Ni 'matul Izza, Nozomi Watanabe, Yukihiro Okamoto, Keishi Suga, Yusuf Wibisono, Naoko Kajimura, Kaoru Mitsuoka, Hiroshi Umakoshi
Summary: Nanostructured lipid carriers (NLCs) are a new generation of lipid vectors for drug delivery systems (DDSs) that have a complex structure composed of solid and liquid lipids. This study provides molecular and physicochemical characterizations of the NLC core region. The study found that NLCs have a more rigid shell and a less rigid core, and also exhibit a crystal-like lamellar structure. The concentration of solid lipids affects the structure of the NLCs. By adjusting the lipid composition, an optimized design of NLCs with high efficacy for DDSs can be achieved.
ACS APPLIED NANO MATERIALS
(2022)
Article
Materials Science, Multidisciplinary
Hayato Takase, Koichiro Shiomori, Yukihiro Okamoto, Nozomi Watanabe, Hideki Matsune, Hiroshi Umakoshi
Summary: A method to prepare cryogel particles with sponge-like mechanical properties, including high porosity and high elasticity, was reported. The method combines the inverse Leidenfrost effect with a cryopolymerization technique and does not require the use of surfactants.
ACS APPLIED POLYMER MATERIALS
(2022)
Article
Chemistry, Multidisciplinary
Kunanon Chattrairat, Takao Yasui, Shunsuke Suzuki, Atsushi Natsume, Kazuki Nagashima, Mikiko Iida, Min Zhang, Taisuke Shimada, Akira Kato, Kosuke Aoki, Fumiharu Ohka, Shintaro Yamazaki, Takeshi Yanagida, Yoshinobu Baba
Summary: Extracellular vesicles (EVs) have great potential as biomarkers for early cancer diagnosis. The membrane protein expression ratio of CD31/CD63 was found to be significantly higher in tumor organoid-derived EVs and urine samples from glioblastoma patients compared to noncancer subjects, indicating the potential of the nanowire assay system for EV-mediated tumor-microenvironment crosstalk analysis.
Article
Chemistry, Multidisciplinary
Hayato Takase, Nozomi Watanabe, Koichiro Shiomori, Yukihiro Okamoto, Hideki Matsune, Hiroshi Umakoshi
Summary: This study investigates a two-step preparation method that combines the inverse Leidenfrost effect and cryogelation technique to prepare macroporous polymer particles. The method involves dropping polymer precursors into liquid nitrogen to create frozen droplets through the inverse Leidenfrost effect, followed by cryo-polymerizing the frozen droplets and preparing cryogel particles after thawing. The resulting macroporous polymer particles exhibit similar characteristics, with slight differences depending on the type of monomers used. The method has the potential to be used for the preparation and design of tailor-made macroporous polymer particles for various applications.
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Yuto Banno, Takuma Nomiyama, Shoma Okuno, Sachiko Ide, Noritada Kaji
Summary: Immunoassays using antigen-antibody reactions are widely used for quantifying specific disease markers. Microfluidic-chip-based immunoassay devices with high sensitivity and rapidity have been developed using GelMA hydrogel, allowing for multiplex assays with extremely small sample amounts. The device has been successfully used for quantitative analysis of interleukin-4 with a limit of detection of 0.98 ng/mL and only 1 μL sample and 25 min incubation time.
Article
Biophysics
Hiromi Takahashi, Takao Yasui, Masaki Hirano, Keiko Shinjo, Yusuke Miyazaki, Wataru Shinoda, Takeshi Hasegawa, Atsushi Natsume, Yotaro Kitano, Mikiko Ida, Min Zhang, Taisuke Shimada, Piyawan Paisrisarn, Zetao Zhu, Fumiharu Ohka, Kosuke Aoki, Sakon Rahong, Kazuki Nagashima, Takeshi Yanagida, Yoshinobu Baba
Summary: Cell-free DNA (cfDNA) and extracellular vesicles (EVs) are molecular biomarkers that can be used for cancer detection in liquid biopsies. We developed a method using hydrogen bond-mediated binding of cfDNA to zinc oxide (ZnO) nanowires for isolation, which also captures EVs by surface charge. Our results showed that this nanowire-based cancer screening assay can detect cancer and identify molecular subtypes of cancer in urine from brain tumor patients through EV analysis and cfDNA mutation analysis.
BIOSENSORS & BIOELECTRONICS
(2023)
Article
Chemistry, Multidisciplinary
Pareesa Pormrungruang, Supranee Phanthanawiboon, Sukittaya Jessadaluk, Preeda Larpthavee, Jiraphon Thaosing, Adirek Rangkasikorn, Navaphun Kayunkid, Uraiwan Waiwijit, Mati Horprathum, Annop Klamchuen, Tanapan Pruksamas, Chunya Puttikhunt, Takao Yasui, Mitra Djamal, Sakon Rahong, Jiti Nukeaw
Summary: This study presents the development and evaluation of a Zinc Oxide nanorod (ZnO NR)-surface-integrated microfluidic platform for the early detection of Dengue virus. The ZnO NR substrate demonstrated superior functionalization efficiency and remarkable sensitivity for immunofluorescence detection of DENV-3. This research highlights the potential of ZnO NRs and microfluidic platforms for early disease detection.
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Akira Yokoi, Mayu Ukai, Takao Yasui, Yasuhide Inokuma, Kim Hyeon-Deuk, Juntaro Matsuzaki, Kosuke Yoshida, Masami Kitagawa, Kunanon Chattrairat, Mikiko Iida, Taisuke Shimada, Yumehiro Manabe, I-Ya Chang, Eri Asano-Inami, Yoshihiro Koya, Akihiro Nawa, Kae Nakamura, Tohru Kiyono, Tomoyasu Kato, Akihiko Hirakawa, Yusuke Yoshioka, Takahiro Ochiya, Takeshi Hasegawa, Yoshinobu Baba, Yusuke Yamamoto, Hiroaki Kajiyama
Summary: Cancer cell-derived extracellular vesicles (EVs) could be potential targets for disease biomarkers due to their unique protein profiles. Analysis of small EVs (sEVs) and medium/large EVs (m/lEVs) revealed that both subtypes had distinct proteomic characteristics. Specific sEV proteins (FRa, Claudin-3, and TACSTD2) for high-grade serous ovarian carcinoma (HGSOC) were identified, while no candidates were found for m/lEVs. Additionally, a microfluidic device using polyketone-coated nanowires (pNWs) was developed for efficient sEV isolation and showed specific detectability in cancer patients and predicted clinical status.
Article
Chemistry, Physical
Hayato Takase, Nozomi Watanabe, Koichiro Shiomori, Yukihiro Okamoto, Endang Ciptawati, Hideki Matsune, Hiroshi Umakoshi
Summary: Hydrophobic cryogel particles with monolithic supermacropores were prepared using poly-trimethylolpropane trimethacrylate (pTrim) by combining the inverse Leidenfrost effect and cryo-polymerization technique. The prepared particles demonstrated efficient separation of stabilized oil-in-water emulsion. Characterization of the particles showed a narrow size distribution and monolithic supermacroporous structure. The hydrophobicity of the particles was confirmed by the selective adsorption of organic droplets.
COLLOIDS AND INTERFACES
(2023)
Article
Biochemical Research Methods
Kazuki Takahashi, Shunsuke Chida, Thanawat Suwatthanarak, Mikiko Iida, Min Zhang, Mao Fukuyama, Masatoshi Maeki, Akihiko Ishida, Hirofumi Tani, Takao Yasui, Yoshinobu Baba, Akihide Hibara, Mina Okochi, Manabu Tokeshi
Summary: This paper presents the first report on a non-competitive fluorescence polarization immunoassay (NC-FPIA) using a peptide as a tracer. The NC-FPIA enables easy and quick quantification of the target by simple mixing. This method has potential applications in clinical diagnostics, infectious disease screening, on-site food safety analysis, etc. The study successfully applied the NC-FPIA to detect CD9 and CD9 expressing exosomes from HeLa cells, and it holds promise for future application to various targets.
Meeting Abstract
Oncology
Kazuya Takayama, Yuting Chen, Hiroki Yamaguchi, Takao Yasui, Yuki Ichikawa
Article
Chemistry, Multidisciplinary
Piyawan Paisrisarn, Takao Yasui, Zetao Zhu, Annop Klamchuen, Panita Kasamechonchung, Tuksadon Wutikhun, Visittapong Yordsri, Yoshinobu Baba
Summary: This study investigated the effect of crystallinity and morphology of ZnO nanowires on the capture efficiency of EVs, important biomarkers of cancer. The results showed that both the crystallinity and morphology of the nanowires played a role in improving the EV capture performance.
