Article
Chemistry, Multidisciplinary
Yi Zheng, Zuojie Wang, Zifen Li, Hang Liu, Jing Wei, Chuan Peng, Yeqiang Zhou, Jianshu Li, Qiang Fu, Hong Tan, Mingming Ding
Summary: Synthetic polypeptide vesicles can regulate their permeability through ordered transition of secondary conformations, similar to biological systems, showing potential for controlled drug delivery applications.
ANGEWANDTE CHEMIE-INTERNATIONAL EDITION
(2021)
Article
Nanoscience & Nanotechnology
Yunseo Hwang, Jie Ying Teoh, Sou Hyun Kim, Juhui Kim, Suhwan Jeon, Hyo-Cheol Kim, Young-Suk Jung, Hyeonjin Kim, Jin Woo Choi, Dongwon Yoo
Summary: In this study, a vascular analysis contrast agent (VasCA) was developed as a suitable molecular contrast agent for Magnetic Resonance Angiography (MRA), with high relaxivity and renal clearable properties. VasCA circulates in blood vessels for a longer time compared to other contrast agents and allows visualization of tumor microvasculature and small vessels in the brain and organs. Additionally, it can reveal the vessel normalization process and assess tumor regions after treatment with an angiogenesis inhibitor.
ACS APPLIED MATERIALS & INTERFACES
(2021)
Article
Chemistry, Multidisciplinary
Qin Meng, Yun Wang, Chunxing Li, Xiaoxi Hu
Summary: This article reports the development of novel bismuth- and gadolinium-codoped carbon quantum dots (Bi,Gd-CQDs) for fluorescence imaging, CT imaging, and MRI. The Bi,Gd-CQDs possess exceptional water solubility, steady fluorescence characteristics, biocompatibility, high X-ray attenuation coefficient, and short T1 relaxation time.
NEW JOURNAL OF CHEMISTRY
(2022)
Article
Materials Science, Biomaterials
Jiaxi Ru, Weiyuan Xu, Manchang Kou, Hu Dong, Xiaoliang Tang, Yu Chen, Lingling Kang, Lixiong Dai, Chao Liang
Summary: A novel Gd(III) complex-based MRI contrast agent GdL was synthesized with higher relaxivity, good water solubility, excellent thermodynamic stability, high biosafety and biocompatibility compared to Magnevist. In particular, the relaxivity of GdL increased significantly in a BSA solution, which was not observed in other commercial MRI contrast agents. The interaction between GdL and BSA was further characterized by molecular docking simulations. In vivo MRI evaluation using a tumor-bearing mouse model showed promising results, indicating the potential clinical application of GdL.
JOURNAL OF MATERIALS CHEMISTRY B
(2023)
Article
Materials Science, Biomaterials
Kai Chen, Zhongyuan Cai, Yingzi Cao, Lingling Jiang, Yuting Jiang, Haojie Gu, Shengxiang Fu, Chunchao Xia, Su Lui, Qiyong Gong, Bin Song, Hua Ai
Summary: In this study, kinetically inert manganese-based hybrid micellar complexes (MnCs) were developed for magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) to localize and differentially diagnose sentinel lymph nodes (SLNs). The MnC MnC-20, composed of C18E20 and C18-PhDTA-Mn at a hydrodynamic particle size of 5.5 nm, showed significant signal intensity brightening effect and shortened T-1 relaxation time, which favored the discrimination of normal lymph nodes from SLN. This strategy of developing manganese-based MR nanoprobes was proven to be useful in lymph node imaging.
REGENERATIVE BIOMATERIALS
(2023)
Article
Polymer Science
Isaac Benavides, Timothy J. Deming
Summary: We have prepared a new water-soluble, nonionic homopolypeptide poly(L-homoserine) and poly(L-homoserine) block copolymers with controllable segment lengths. The conformational preferences of poly(L-homoserine) in both the solid state and in solution have been determined. Poly(L-homoserine) is soluble in water and adopts a disordered conformation, making it a promising candidate for applications in biology as a nonionic, water-soluble homopolypeptide. Towards this goal, a poly(L-homoserine) containing a block copolypeptide has been prepared and found to self-assemble into micro- and nanoscale vesicles in water.
Article
Polymer Science
Isaac Benavides, Timothy J. Deming
Summary: We have successfully prepared a new water-soluble, nonionic homopolypeptide poly(L-homoserine), as well as poly(L- homoserine) block copolymers with controllable segment lengths. The conformational preferences of poly(L-homoserine) were determined in both the solid state and in solution. The poly(L-homoserine) showed promising potential for applications in biology due to its solubility in water and disordered conformation. To further explore its potential, a block copolypeptide containing poly(L-homoserine) was prepared and found to self-assemble into micro- and nanoscale vesicles in water.
Article
Chemistry, Multidisciplinary
Hang Zhang, Charles E. Diesendruck
Summary: In this study, the influence of helical structures on covalent mechanochemistry was investigated by preparing polymer chains with different helicities. The results revealed that chains with higher helicity have faster mechanochemistry rates, indicating that helix-induced chain rigidity improves the efficiency of mechanical energy transduction.
ANGEWANDTE CHEMIE-INTERNATIONAL EDITION
(2022)
Review
Nanoscience & Nanotechnology
Hana Bunzen, Daniel Jirak
Summary: This review discusses the usage of metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) and composite materials based on them as contrast agents for magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). MOFs, with their design variety and high metal ion density, have been studied as a promising class of materials for developing MRI contrast agents. The review highlights important studies and classifies the materials into three groups based on their design and structural properties.
ACS APPLIED MATERIALS & INTERFACES
(2022)
Article
Nanoscience & Nanotechnology
Hana Bunzen, Daniel Jirak
Summary: This review discusses the usage of metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) and composite materials based on them as contrast agents for magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). It summarizes the progress in this field over the last five years and provides an overview of MOF-based materials for heteronuclear MRI.
ACS APPLIED MATERIALS & INTERFACES
(2022)
Article
Chemistry, Inorganic & Nuclear
Marika Nakamura, Risa Hyakutake, Shogo Morisako, Takahiro Sasamori, Yoshiyuki Mizuhata, Norihiro Tokitoh, Kouichi Nakashima, Hiroki Fukumoto, Tomohiro Agou
Summary: This study successfully synthesized persistent radical complexes with multi-step electron transfer and long-wavelength absorption characteristics. These complexes exhibited reversible oxidation processes and showed potential as near-infrared active functional dyes.
DALTON TRANSACTIONS
(2022)
Article
Radiology, Nuclear Medicine & Medical Imaging
Robert M. King, Matthew J. Gounis, Eric J. Schmidt, Anita Leporati, Eric M. Gale, Alexei A. Bogdanov Jr
Summary: This study evaluated Fe-PyC3A as a tool for magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) of inflammation in a rabbit model of saccular aneurysm. The results showed that Fe-PyC3A generated higher MRI signal enhancement in aneurysms with higher degree of inflammation. These preliminary findings suggest that Fe-PyC3A may serve as a noninvasive biomarker for evaluating aneurysmal inflammation.
INVESTIGATIVE RADIOLOGY
(2023)
Article
Chemistry, Multidisciplinary
Rebecca R. Baker, Christopher Payne, Yichao Yu, Matin Mohseni, John J. Connell, Fangyu Lin, Ian F. Harrison, Paul Southern, Umesh S. Rudrapatna, Daniel J. Stuckey, Tammy L. Kalber, Bernard Siow, Lewis Thorne, Shonit Punwani, Derek K. Jones, Mark Emberton, Quentin A. Pankhurst, Mark F. Lythgoe
Summary: Magnetic resonance navigation is an emergent technique that allows for remote control of magnetically labeled therapies and devices using an MRI system. The MINIMA technique, a novel MRI-guided ablation technique, has the potential to avoid traditional toxicities and offers precise control over the ablation volume.
Article
Chemistry, Analytical
Bin Yuan, Zhiming Zhou, Bin Jiang, Ghulam Mustafa Kamal, Xu Zhang, Conggang Li, Xin Zhou, Maili Liu
Summary: CORDY is a novel approach for NMR spectroscopy that utilizes concentration order to separate and quantify components in complex samples, by utilizing prior information of chemical shift distribution and line shape characteristics to shrink the solution space, it generates a pseudo-two-dimensional spectrum. The combination of CORDY and DOSY (CORDY-DOSY) has been found to be more efficient in resolving molecules with similar concentrations or self-diffusion coefficients.
ANALYTICAL CHEMISTRY
(2021)
Article
Biotechnology & Applied Microbiology
Xiaoming Wang, Shiwei Guo, Zhiqian Li, Qiang Luo, Yan Dai, Hu Zhang, Yun Ye, Qiyong Gong, Kui Luo
Summary: The concept of non-metallic MRI contrast agents has emerged to address the potential toxicity of metal-based contrast agents. Paramagnetic nitroxides are being studied for their stability and imaging mechanisms similar to metal-based agents, with the challenge of lower relaxivity and rapid in vivo metabolism. Macromolecular nitroxides contrast agents have been shown to increase stability and improve water relaxation, with the potential for expanding application in tumor, liver, kidney, and cardiovascular imaging.
JOURNAL OF NANOBIOTECHNOLOGY
(2021)
Article
Engineering, Chemical
Jiayao Wang, Bajin Chen, Xiong Cheng, Yongjin Li, Mingming Ding, Jichun You
Summary: This work investigates the separation performance of hierarchically porous membranes with multiple channels through finite element simulation and experiment. The results show that multiple channels play a crucial role in improving flux, especially in cases with smaller channel diameters.
JOURNAL OF MEMBRANE SCIENCE
(2022)
Article
Energy & Fuels
Chenji Wei, Ruijie Huang, Mingming Ding, Jian Yang, Lihui Xiong
Summary: The typical carbonate reservoir in the Middle East is challenging to develop due to low permeability and high gas oil ratio. This study utilizes deep learning techniques to build an optimal model for predicting the distribution of oil/water/gas saturation and pressure. The proposed workflow provides a new direction for characterizing the saturation and pressure distribution in a typical carbonate reservoir.
JOURNAL OF PETROLEUM SCIENCE AND ENGINEERING
(2022)
Article
Polymer Science
Mingming Ding, Lei Hou, Xiaozheng Duan, Tongfei Shi, Weihua Li, An-Chang Shi
Summary: The flow-driven translocation of micelles formed from amphiphilic diblock copolymers through a nanochannel is investigated using simulations. It is found that the translocating micelles can have different structures depending on their initial sizes. Small micelles undergo intact translocation, while large micelles experience fragmented translocation. The fragmented micelles can reassemble after translocation. The coexistence of these two translocation modes is observed when the size of the initial micelle core is similar to that of the nanochannel. The critical translocation flow flux, at which the probability of translocation equals to 0.5, increases rapidly with the aggregation number of the initial micelles in the intact translocation regime, while it remains approximately constant in the fragmented translocation regime. The number of fragmented micelles is found to be linearly related to the aggregation number. These findings help to understand the dynamics of micelle translocation.
Article
Dermatology
Xiao Lin, Mingming Ding, Tan Chen, Shuhui Min, Danfeng Wang, Guan Jiang
Summary: This study aimed to investigate the expression of Interleukin-6 (IL-6) in the serum of patients with systemic sclerosis (SSc) and its association with clinical and laboratory features of the disease. The results showed that IL-6 levels were significantly higher in patients with longer disease course, systemic sclerosis-Interstitial lung disease (SSc-ILD), pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH), gastrointestinal involvement, and cardiac involvement. IL-6 also correlated with C-reactive protein (CRP), erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR), creatinine, and cystatin C. Therefore, IL-6 can be used as a diagnostic and prognostic marker for systemic sclerosis.
JOURNAL OF COSMETIC DERMATOLOGY
(2022)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Yeqiang Zhou, Fan Fan, Jinling Zhao, Zhaoding Wang, Rui Wang, Yi Zheng, Hang Liu, Chuan Peng, Jianshu Li, Hong Tan, Qiang Fu, Mingming Ding
Summary: This study reports on the creation of amino acid-constructed polyureas that can self-assemble into vesicles and nanotubes with aggregation induced fluorescence and potential for drug delivery applications. These polymers exhibit high stability, autofluorescence, and efficient cell internalization, making them suitable for specific intracellular drug delivery and cancer theranosis.
NATURE COMMUNICATIONS
(2022)
Article
Thermodynamics
Bo Hou, Yong Huang, Mingming Ding, Hongji Dong
Summary: The temperature and strain rate have a significant effect on the formability of Al-Mg alloy sheets during warm forming. However, the current simulation and optimization methods may lead to non-robust results because they do not consider the variation of the forming limit curve (FLC) caused by the randomness of sheet temperature and deformation velocity. In this study, a theoretical approach is developed to predict the temperature and strain rate dependent FLC by extending the Backofen constitutive equation and fitting the material parameters using the response surface method. The results of this study advance the understanding of the design quality and robustness of the warm forming process.
ADVANCES IN MECHANICAL ENGINEERING
(2022)
Article
Chemistry, Analytical
Jiaying Xiao, Chuqi Yuan, Mingming Ding, Wei Hu, Zhengwen Hu, Bo Tian
Summary: In this study, a homogeneous and isothermal photoacoustic biosensor is demonstrated for rapid amplification and detection of synthetic DNA related to SARS-CoV-2. The biosensor achieves a sub-femtomolar detection limit within a total assay time of 80 min and is highly specific for single-nucleotide polymorphism discrimination. It is also robust against background DNA interference.
Article
Polymer Science
Peng Hao, Xing-Hong Mai, Qiao-Yue Chen, Ming-Ming Ding
Summary: We investigated the conformation of an amphiphilic comb-like copolymer in a selective solvent using Brownian dynamics simulations. Our findings indicate an optimal total degree of polymerization for the formation of spherical micelles. When the total degree of polymerization exceeds this optimal value, the spherical micelle transforms into a cylindrical micelle. We also observed an exponential relationship between the radius of gyration and the stretching factor, with the power exponent decreasing as the length of hydrophilic side chains increases.
CHINESE JOURNAL OF POLYMER SCIENCE
(2023)
Article
Materials Science, Biomaterials
Cheng Cheng, Jiayun Ma, Jinling Zhao, Haiying Lu, Yang Liu, Chuanshi He, Man Lu, Xiaohong Yin, Jianshu Li, Mingming Ding
Summary: Based on disulfide-enriched multiblock copolymer vesicles, this study presents a straightforward sequential drug delivery system with dual-redox response that releases hydrophilic doxorubicin hydrochloride (DOX center dot HCl) and hydrophobic paclitaxel (PTX) under oxidative and reductive conditions, respectively. When compared to concurrent therapeutic delivery, the spatiotemporal control of drug release allows for an improved combination antitumor effect. The simple and smart nanocarrier has promising applications in the field of cancer therapy.
JOURNAL OF MATERIALS CHEMISTRY B
(2023)
Article
Nanoscience & Nanotechnology
Nan He, Ao Wang, Chenxu Tian, Yuanqing Song, Xiaolei Guo, Hao Ming, Mingming Ding, Feng Luo, Hong Tan, Jiehua Li
Summary: The study investigates the relationship between the spatial distributions of cationic groups and the endocytosis and tumor penetration of nanocarriers using quaternary ammonium salt (QAS) as a model. The results show that drug carriers with QAS extending to the micellar outer space can greatly enhance endocytosis compared to nanocarriers with QAS attached onto the micellar surface or shielded by a PEG corona. This study provides insights for the future development of tumor-penetrating drug delivery systems.
ACS APPLIED MATERIALS & INTERFACES
(2023)
Article
Chemistry, Multidisciplinary
Yi Zheng, Yang Liu, Zhongchao Wu, Chuan Peng, Zuojie Wang, Jingyue Yan, Yue Yan, Zifen Li, Congcong Liu, Jianxin Xue, Hong Tan, Qiang Fu, Mingming Ding
Summary: Researchers have constructed a light-controlled polymer that can undergo a conformational transition upon exposure to near-infrared light. This polymer improves cell penetration and lysosome escape, and stimulates the release of therapeutic substances in tumor cells. This light-controlled polymer shows great potential in cancer treatment.
ADVANCED MATERIALS
(2023)
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Zifen Li, Yi Zheng, Jingyue Yan, Yue Yan, Chuan Peng, Zuojie Wang, Hang Liu, Yang Liu, Yeqiang Zhou, Mingming Ding
Summary: Self-assembly of poly(amino acid) block copolymers can be controlled by their secondary conformations, which are more flexible and adjustable for fine structure tailoring. The variables that influence secondary conformations and the approaches used to manage the self-assembly behaviors are summarized, including controlling pH, redox reactions, coordination, light, temperature, etc. These strategies provide valuable perspectives for the future development and use of synthetic poly(amino acid) block copolymers.
Article
Polymer Science
Jingyue Yan, Yi Zheng, Yeqiang Zhou, Yang Liu, Hong Tan, Qiang Fu, Mingming Ding
Summary: Poly(L-lactic acid) (PLLA) is a promising substitute for commercial petrochemical-based polymers due to its renewability, biodegradability, biocompatibility, and high mechanical performance. Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy is a simple and efficient technique to characterize the multiscale structures of PLLA, providing important insights into crystal modifications, phase transitions, chain orientation, crystallinity, crystallization kinetics, etc. This review examines the band assignments of PLLA in different states and highlights the contributions of FTIR to the structural characterization of PLLA, which can enhance researchers' understanding and encourage further advanced studies on PLLA and other macromolecules.
Article
Chemistry, Multidisciplinary
Xinghong Mai, Peng Hao, Danfeng Liu, Mingming Ding
Summary: We investigated the influence of backbone rigidity on the conformation of comb-like chains in dilute solution using Brownian dynamics simulations. Our results demonstrate that the effect of side chains on the conformation of comb-like chains can be controlled by the backbone rigidity. The strength of excluded-volume interactions between backbone monomer-graft and graft-graft decreases with increasing backbone rigidity. Only when the backbone is flexible and the grafting density is high, the excluded-volume effect from graft-graft interactions becomes significant for the conformation of comb-like chains.
