Synthesis Of Thiol-Acrylate Hydrogels For 3d Cell Culture And Microfluidic Applications, Anowar Hossain Khan

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Globally cell culture is an $18.98 billion industry as of 2020, with an 11.6 percent annual growth rate. Drug discovery has an estimated worth of $69.8 billion in 2020 and is predicted to grow to $110.4 billion by 2025. Three-dimensional (3D) cell culture of cancer cells is one of the rapidly growing felids since it better recapitulates in vivo conditions compared to two-dimensional (2D) models. However, it is challenging to grow 3D tumor spheroids outside the body, and some of the existing technology can generate these spheroids outside the human body but poorly mimic in vivo tumor models. Therefore, there …

An Investigation To Corroborate Volatile And Biological Profiles Of Human Odor For Forensic Subject Identification, Chantrell J.G. Frazier

FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Hands are an integral part in transferring complex microbial communities to and from our surroundings. As a result, hands are significant in provenance investigations as specific microbiota can be deposited on everyday objects through touch interactions. Skin microbiome, including bacteria, fungi, and viruses, are unique to each person, and this ‘uniqueness’ can be exploited and applied to forensic identification. Skin microbiota and volatile organic compounds (VOCs) are closely related due to specific bacteria breaking down non-volatile organic compounds to volatile organic compounds that are characteristically present in human scent. However, analyses of microbiota from touch interactions have proven to be …

Development Of A Microwave-Based Dna Extraction Method To Increase The Success Of Direct And Rapid Pcr Technique, Fabiana Taglia

FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The goal of this project was to develop a fast, microwave-based extraction technique that could be employed for direct and rapid DNA analysis. The hypothesis was that the use of a microwave could increase the yield of DNA by opening the cell membrane, rendering the DNA available without the use of any other chemical treatment, and improving results from very low quantity samples.

At present rapid human DNA analysis is mainly restricted to genotyping saliva and sometimes blood samples. We hypothesized that microwave processing could expand the types of samples assessable to these procedures and increase sensitivity.

There were two …

Application Of Gellan Gum Biopolymer In Biomedical Applications: A Review, Norsyakirah Izzati Hishamuddin, Mohd Hasmizam Razali, Khairul Anuar Mat Amin

Makara Journal of Science

Gellan gum (GG) has gained considerable attention in the food, chemical, and pharmaceutical industries due to its functional characteristics. It has versatile properties, such as water solubility, easy bio-fabrication, good film/hydrogel-formation, biodegradability, and biocompatibility. These properties render GG a promising material in biomedical applications, specifically in the development of wound dressing materials. In this review, the use of GG biopolymer as a wound dressing material was discussed. Various fillers, such as titanium dioxides, clay, drug, and honey, have been incorporated in GG to produce film, hydrogel, or scaffold materials. The effects of filler on the mechanical performance, physical properties, antibacterial …

Sulfondiimidamides Unlocked As New S(Vi) Hubs For Synthesis And Drug Discovery, Nicholas Ball

Pomona Faculty Publications and Research

Despite their promise as drug targets, access to nitrogen-rich S(VI) compounds has been a significant synthetic challenge. In this issue of Chem, Zhang and Willis explore a new class of S(VI) compounds-sulfondiimidamides-providing robust strategies toward their synthesis, derivation, and promise as new sulfonamide bioisosteres.

Exploring The Structure And Activity Of Metallo-Tetracyclines, Shahedul Islam

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Copper as a key component of electron transport chain of eukaryotes is an essential transition metal ion. Copper homeostasis in mammals complex and tightly regulated. Its strong reactivity together with binding with biologically important chemicals can have important repercussions in human health and overall environment. Tetracycline as one of most abundantly used antibiotic of the world has become abundant in the environment as well. Herein in this dissertation we take the journey to explore the complexation of tetracycline with metals in the environment and the intricate interaction between copper and tetracycline by investigating their oxidative behavior once they are complexed. …

Synthesis Of Phosphonate-Based Diimide Ligands, Kenya V. Medina, Adelani Pius

Honors Program Theses and Research Projects

There has been a resurged interest in the synthesis of metal-organic frameworks because of their potential applications in energy production and drug delivery. Although diimides are insoluble in aqueous solutions, the addition of phosphonic acid allows the complex to be water soluble, which greatly increases their application. Therefore, the creation of a hybrid metal-organic complex by the addition of phosphonic groups to diimide ligands can result in a polar porous compound. In this project the ligand design included the use of dianhydrides including pyromellitic dianhydride, naphthalenetetracarboxylic dianhydride, perylenetetracarboxylic dianhydride, and biphenyl-tetracarboxylic acid dianhydride. These dianhydride precursors were refluxed under argon …

A Quantitative Analysis Of The Efficacy Of Various Essential Oils Against The Sars Cov-2 Virus, Elizabeth Wagstaff, Chandrelyn Kraczek, Jack Brandon Lopez

Annual Research Symposium

A poster presentation and abstract for the Roseman Symposium. The project focuses on testing 3 essential oil blends and two disinfectants containing an essential oil blend against SARS CoV-2 in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. The project procedure involves plaque assays, disinfection, and neutralization techniques.

Effects Of Dibutyltin Exposures On Translation Regulatory Factor S6 In Human Immune Cells, Meaghan Lewis, Amanda Ruff, Margaret Whalen

Student Research

Dibutyltin is an organotin contaminating the environment through its use as a stabilizer in polyvinylchloride, PVC plastics. DBT has been found in drinking water and beverages, such as beer and wine, due to leaching from the PVC plastics used during the distribution of these drinks. Along with PVC plastics, DBT has been used as a deworming agent in poultry, infiltrating additional food products and increasing the exposure of the toxin to humans. Due to its multiple uses, it has entered the food chain and has been detected in human blood at levels as high as 0.3μM. Inflammatory cytokines are important …

Functionalized 𝜹-Hexalactones (Fdhls): Bio-Derivable Monomers To Synthesize Renewable Polyester Thermoplastics, Atik Faysal

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Most thermoplastics are made from limited fossil-fuel sources and these plastics have very deleterious impacts on the environment. Finding a renewable source to synthesize new thermoplastic polymers with tunable properties like biodegradability, heat resistance, and moisture resistance are ongoing research interests. Lignocellulosic biomass is a promising renewable feedstock for biobased monomers and polymers production. In this work, functionalized 𝛿-hexalactone (FDHL) monomers are hypothesized to be synthesizable from lignocellulosic sourced hydroxymethyl furfural (HMF) and lignin-derived pendant groups, generating a variety of aliphatic polyesters and potentially overcome current polymer challenges. Achieving a higher glass transition temperature (T_g) is one of …

Study On New Reactivity Of Vinyl Gold And Its Sequential Transformations, Teng Yuan

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

This dissertation mainly contains three parts: 1) the study of new reactivity of vinyl gold(I) and synergistic gold-iron catalyzed regioselective crossed aldol reaction. 2) synergistic gold-iron catalyzed amide crossed aldol reaction by using ynamides as ‘masked’ amides. 3) alkyne trifunctionalization via divergent gold catalysis: combining three modes of gold catalysis: π activation, nucleophilic addition of vinyl gold and gold redox catalysis. This novel method affords access to constructing C-N, C-O and C-C bond in one step at mild condition.

In the first part, a new reaction mode in gold catalysis will be introduced. Due to the protodeauration of vinyl gold …

Small-Molecule Ras Inhibitors As Anticancer Agents: Discovery, Development, And Mechanistic Studies, Shaila A. Shetu, Debasish Bandyopadhyay

Chemistry Faculty Publications and Presentations

Mutations of RAS oncogenes are responsible for about 30% of all human cancer types, including pancreatic, lung, and colorectal cancers. While KRAS1 is a pseudogene, mutation of KRAS2 (commonly known as KRAS oncogene) is directly or indirectly associated with human cancers. Among the RAS family, KRAS is the most abundant oncogene related to uncontrolled cellular proliferation to generate solid tumors in many types of cancer such as pancreatic carcinoma (over 80%), colon carcinoma (40–50%), lung carcinoma (30–50%), and other types of cancer. Once described as ‘undruggable’, RAS proteins have become ‘druggable’, at least to a certain extent, due to the …

Brain Electrochemistry, Cong Xu, Ying Jiang, Ping Yu, Lan-Qun Mao

Journal of Electrochemistry

Brain, as the source of neural activities such as perceptions and emotions, consists of the dynamic and complex networks of neurons that implement brain functions through electrical and chemical interactions. Therefore, analyzing and monitoring neurochemicals in living brain can greatly contribute to uncovering the molecular mechanism in both physiological and pathological processes, and to taking a further step in developing precise medical diagnosis and treatment against brain diseases. Through collaborations across disciplines, a handful of analytical tools have been proven to be befitting in neurochemical measurement, spanning the level of vesicles, cells, and living brains. Among these, electrochemical methods endowed …

In-Situ/Operando57Fe Mössbauer Spectroscopic Technique And Its Applications In Nife-Based Electrocatalysts For Oxygen Evolution Reaction, Jafar Hussain Shah, Qi-Xian Xie, Zhi-Chong Kuang, Ri-Le Ge, Wen-Hui Zhou, Duo-Rong Liu, Alexandre I. Rykov, Xu-Ning Li, Jing-Shan Luo, Jun-Hu Wang

Journal of Electrochemistry

The development of highly efficient and cost-effective electrocatalysts for the sluggish oxygen evolution reaction (OER) remains a significant barrier to establish effective utilization of renewable energy storage systems and water splitting to produce clean fuel. The current status of the research in developing OER catalysts shows that NiFe-based oxygen evolution catalysts (OECs) have been proven as excellent and remarkable candidates for this purpose. But it is critically important to understand the factors that influence their activity and underlying mechanism for the development of state-of-the-art OER catalysts. Therefore, the development of in-situ/operando characterizations is urgently required to detect key …

In Situ Characterization Of Electrode Structure And Catalytic Processes In The Electrocatalytic Oxygen Reduction Reaction, Ya-Chen Feng, Xiang Wang, Yu-Qi Wang, Hui-Juan Yan, Dong Wang

Journal of Electrochemistry

As an electrochemical energy conversion system, fuel cell has the advantages of high energy conversion efficiency and high cleanliness. Oxygen reduction reaction (ORR), as an important cathode reaction in fuel cells, has received extensive attention. At present, the electrocatalysts are still one of the key materials restricting the further commercialization of fuel cells. The fundamental understanding on the catalytic mechanism of ORR is conducive to the development of electrocatalysts with the enhanced activity and high selectivity. This review aims to summarize the in situ characterization techniques used to study ORR. From this perspective, we first briefly introduce the advantages of …

Recent Advances In Electrical Transport Spectroscopy For The In Situ Measurement Of Electrochemical Interfaces, Zhang-Yan Mu, Meng-Ning Ding

Journal of Electrochemistry

Electrochemical/electrocatalytic technology has played a central role in achieving highly efficient energy conversion and storage. To date, the in-depth electrochemical research begins to require accurate and multi-dimensional information of electrochemical interfaces, which usually relies on the application of in situ characterizations. Electrical transport spectroscopy (ETS) is a newly developed measurement strategy based on chip-platform, and provides in situ information of electrochemical interfaces from a novel perspective due to a signal origin that is fundamentally different from typical spectroscopic and electrochemical techniques. In this tutorial review, the working principle and experimental setup of ETS are described in detail with the demonstration …

Synchrotron X-Rays Characterizations Of Metal-Air Batteries, Ya-Jie Song, Xue Sun, Li-Ping Ren, Lei Zhao, Fan-Peng Kong, Jia-Jun Wang

Journal of Electrochemistry

The rapid development of electric vehicles urgently requires high-energy-density batteries. Recently, metal-air batteries have attracted much attention in industry and academia for their ultra-high theoretical energy densities. However, the practical application of metal-air batteries is severely impeded by multiple drawbacks, including severe side reactions, low energy efficiency, and limited cycle life. Understanding the reaction mechanism of the cell and further developing effective strategies are beneficial for the practical application of metal-air batteries. In the past decade, advanced characterization techniques have accelerated the development of metal-air batteries. In particular, synchrotron radiation-based characterization techniques have been widely applied to the mechanistic study …

Rational Design Of Electrochemical Molecular Probes For Highly Selective And Long-Term Measurement In Vivo, Yue Wang, Li-Min Zhang, Yang Tian

Journal of Electrochemistry

Designing electrochemical interfaces for in vivo analysis of neurochemicals with high selectivity and long-term stability is vital for monitoring dynamic variation and dissecting the complex mechanisms of pathogenesis in living animals. This review focuses on the development of electrochemical interfaces based on rational design of molecular probes for in vivo measurement with high selectivity and high stability from three aspects: (1) Specific recognition probes were rationally designed and created to remarkably improve the selectivity of in vivo analysis in a complicated brain environment. (2) The Au-C≡C functionalized surface was developed to remarkably enhance the stability of molecular assembly, and employed …

An Additive Incorporated Non-Nucleophilic Electrolyte For Stable Magnesium Ion Batteries, Mao-Ling Xie, Jun Wang, Chen-Ji Hu, Lei Zheng, Hua-Bin Kong, Yan-Bin Shen, Hong-Wei Chen, Li-Wei Chen

Journal of Electrochemistry

Non-nucleophilic electrolytes are promising next-generation highly stable electrolytes for magnesium-ion batteries (MIBs). However, a passivation layer on Mg metal anode usually blocks Mg²⁺ diffusion, leading to poor reaction kinetics and low Coulombic efficiency of the Mg plating/stripping in these electrolytes. Here we explore the utilization of phenyl disulfide (PDF) as a film-forming additive for non-nucleophilic electrolytes to regulate the interfacial chemistry on Mg metal anode. Phenyl-thiolate generated from the PDF additive was found to suppress the unfavorable surface blocking layer, resulted in a high Coulombic efficiency of up to 99.5% for the Mg plating/stripping process as well as a …

Tracking Light-Induced Fragmentation Of Single Silver Nanoparticles By Single Entity Electrochemistry, Mengjie Chen, Si-Min Lu, Hao-Wei Wang, Yi-Tao Long

Journal of Electrochemistry

Light irradiation on silver nanoparticles (Ag NPs) could cause the energy conversion, thus, the fragmentation of Ag NPs. It is important to detect the changes of fragmented Ag NPs in the aspects of physical and chemical properties. Herein, benefiting from the high sensitivity, high temporal resolution, and high-throughput, single entity electrochemistry (SEE) method is introduced to in-situ track the dynamic laser fragmentation of single Ag NP. Compared with UV-Vis absorption spectroscopy and transmission electron microscopy (TEM), SEE methods enables an accurate in-situ measurements of light-induced fragmentation of single Ag NP. The variation in the statistic current amplitude displays the real-time …

Odu’S Peter Bernath Participates In Study That Reveals Damage To Ozone Layer From Extreme Wildfires, Tiffany Whitfield

News Items

No abstract provided.

Measuring And Improving Student Attitude In College-Level Chemistry: A Novel Survey Methodology And Social-Psychological Interventions, Ying Wang

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Students’ attitude has been an important focus in the chemistry education community. However, there is a lack of research in evaluating interventions aiming to improve students’ attitude. Social-psychological interventions (SPIs), brief interventions that target students’ subjective experiences, were demonstrated to improve students’ attitude in instructional settings. In addition, accurately measuring students’ attitude helps researchers better understand the impact of the intervention. Therefore, the major goal of this work is to explore practices, particularly a novel survey methodology and a social-psychological intervention (SPI), to facilitate measuring and improving students’ attitude in college-level chemistry courses. This work also paid particular attention to …

The Effect Of Fluorinated Substitution Of Meso Phenyl Porphyrins On Porphyrin Basicity, Harsh Chheda, Rushi Patel, Maria Ballester Ph.D., Victor Castro Ph.D.

Chemistry and Physics Faculty Proceedings, Presentations, Speeches, Lectures

The protonation of meso-Tetra(2,3,4-trifluoromethylphenyl) porphyrin (TF) and meso-Tetra(pentafluorophenyl) porphyrin (PF) will be studied through UV vis spectroscopy. Protonation is achieved by titration of each porphyrin in toluene with trifluoroacetic acid (TFA). The presence of a wavelength shift from the free base Soret to the protonated Soret will indicate the formation of a dication. The data from the UV spectra will be used to calculate the pKa values associated with each porphyrin. Based on the results, the average pKa for TF upon protonation was 2.07, while the average pKa for PF was 1.36 over four trials. A greater acidic value for …

Antibacterial Activity, Structure-Activity Relationships, And Scale-Up Reaction Of 1,3,4-Oxadiazoles, Olivia Marie Smith

Undergraduate Honors Thesis Projects

Oxadiazoles are compounds in the field of organic chemistry that have been gathering interest in the medicinal chemistry and microbiology communities for their biological properties, which range from anti-inflammatory agents, to chemotherapy drugs, to antibiotics. The synthesis of oxadiazoles can be difficult due to the expensive and complex nature of the techniques used as well as the volatile reagents and elevated temperatures that are often required in organic synthesis. The Grote lab has recently developed a new method for the synthesis of 1,3,4-oxadiazoles under mild conditions. The goals of this thesis were thus twofold: to develop a viable scale-up procedure …

Effect Of Nanoparticle Size On The Near-Surface Ph-Distribution In Aqueous And Carbonate Buffered Solutions, Thomas Stepan, Lisa Tété, Lila Laundry-Mottiar, Elena Romanovskaia, Yolanda S. Hedberg, Herbert Danninger, Michael Auinger

Chemistry Publications

An analytical solution for the effect of particle size on the current density and near-surface ion distribution around spherical nanoparticles is presented in this work. With the long-term aim to support predictions on corrosion reactions in the human body, the spherical diffusion equation was solved for a set of differential equations and algebraic relations for pure unbuffered and carbonate buffered solutions. It was shown that current densities increase significantly with a decrease in particle size, suggesting this will lead to an increased dissolution rate. Near-surface ion distributions show the formation of a steep pH-gradient near the nanoparticle surface (<6 μm) which is further enhanced in the presence of a carbonate buffer (<2 μm). Results suggest that nanoparticles in pure electrolytes not only dissolve faster than bigger particles but that local pH-gradients may influence interactions with the biological environment, which should be considered in future studies.

Development Strategies Of New Energy Materials For Carbon Peak And Neutrality—Case Study Of Songshan Lake Materials Laboratory, Ximei Qiu, Yan Wang, Haiming Lyu, Jian Xu, Yida Wu, Xiaowei Ma, Chunyi Zhi, Xiaolong Du, Xuejie Huang

Bulletin of Chinese Academy of Sciences (Chinese Version)

Transformative energy technologies will provide strong strategic support to the realization of peaking carbon dioxide emissions before 2030, and achieving net zero carbon emissions before 2060. Reducing the dependence on fossil fuels by saving energy and reducing emissions from the source is essential to achieve the double-carbon target as soon as possible. Songshan Lake Materials Laboratory is working on key materials to develop solar-battery power systems and electrification of transportation energy to return coal, oil, and natural gas from fuels to materials. This study focuses on introducing the research team of its New Energy Materials and Devices R&D Center with …

Discussion Of Materials Science Development Trend Through Climate Change, Manufacturing Update, National Security And Materials Genome Initiative, Weijian Lin, Bowen Zhang, Weihua Wang

Bulletin of Chinese Academy of Sciences (Chinese Version)

New materials are considered as the foreguide and the base of the revolution of advanced technology. Its development and trend of new materials greatly influences the human life and society development. Nowadays, the risk of climate change is increasing day by day, the pressure of manufacturing update of new technology revolution is bigger than ever, the competition and the friction between countries become more and more intense, and the iteration of advanced materials turns to a rigid demand. In this work, we analyze and predict the development tread of material from the aspects of climate change, manufacturing update, national security, …

Development Strategy Of China’S Advanced Material Industry Cluster, Kun Zeng, Xiaopeng Li, Ziyun Shen, Fan Liao, Jinsong Xiao, Qingli Huang

Bulletin of Chinese Academy of Sciences (Chinese Version)

The advanced material industry is a basic and strategic industry of the national economy, as well as the key area of global competition in technology industry. Under the dual-cycle development pattern, propelling the cluster development of advanced material industry has become a key to raise the level of the advanced material industry development. This article described the spatial distribution of the advanced material industry cluster in China, analyzed the characteristics and development stage of the advanced material industrial cluster, and compared the gap between the advanced material industry cluster in China and the world-class advanced manufacturing industry cluster. In addition, …

Development And Implication Of Amorphous Alloys, Weihua Wang

Bulletin of Chinese Academy of Sciences (Chinese Version)

The development of metallic materials is closely correlated to the civilization of human being. Amorphous alloys with long-range disordered atomic microstructure, unique physical and mechanical properties, are advanced and novel metallic materials which have diverse industrial applications. Recently, the scientific research, new system development, and industry applications of the structural disordered alloys such as amorphous alloys and high entropy alloy are fast developing, and have significant influence on fields such as the desgin and development of metallic materials, structural materials, green materials, magnetic materials, catalytic materials, and information materials. In this article, we review the history, the development trends, the …

Strategic Consideration And Recommendation On Development Of Chemistry In China, Yanlin Cheng, Shuxian Wu, Qing Dai, Chunying Chen, Yuliang Zhao

Bulletin of Chinese Academy of Sciences (Chinese Version)

Chemistry, as a central science linking all the other sciences, has played an influential role in promoting the development of the whole scientific and technological field and the prosperity of economy and society. Developed countries strongly support the development of chemistry and effectively promote the level of chemical research and chemical industry. Since the founding of the People's Republic of China, chemical research has been supported among the field of natural sciences, and its current level is at the forefront of the world. However, there are still problems in the field of chemistry research in China, such as insufficient major …