1,720,966 research outputs found
Radiowave Dielectric Properties of Sodium Maleate Copolymers in Aqueous Solutions in Light of a Scaling Approach
No full textThe concentration dependence of the dielectric properties of aqueous solutions of sodium maleate copolymers with comonomers of different hydrophobicities have been investigated by means of frequency domain dielectric spectroscopy in the frequency range from 1 kHz to 2 GHz. The dielectric relaxation falling between the process at low frequencies (polarization involving the whole polymer chain) and the one at high frequencies (polarization of the bulk aqueous phase) has been analyzed in light of the scaling properties of polyelectrolyte solutions. Within this framework, the dielectric properties are governed by two characteristic lengths, the distance R(cm) between chains in the dilute regime and the correlation length xi in the semidilute regime. We find that, for both these regimes, the exponents of the scaling laws, which describe the dielectric increment Delta epsilon and the relaxation time tau(ion) are in a reasonably good agreement with the ones experimentally observed. This analysis gives further support to the scaling approach of the dynamic behavior of polyelectrolytes, appearing very suitable to modeling our dielectric results
Polyion-induced aggregation of lipidic-coated solid polystyrene spheres: The many facets of complex formation in low-density colloidal suspensions
No full textWe have investigated the formation of a cluster phase in low-density colloidal systems formed by charged solid charged particles stuck together by an oppositely charged polyion. In analogy with what we have previously observed in the case of soft charged particles, also in this case the same basic phenomenology occurs, consisting of the presence of the two well-known characteristic phenomena of this class of colloids, that is, reentrant condensation and charge inversion. With the aim of comparing the cluster formation in both soft and solid charged particles, we have, in previous works, employed cationic liposomes (soft particles, lipidic vesicles built up by dioleoyltrimethylammonium propane [DOTAP] lipid) and, in the present work, polystyrene particles (solid particles) covered by the same lipidic bilayer as the one of the soft particles, so that the two classes of particles share electrostatic interactions of the same nature. These charged particle clusters, where the single aggregating particles maintain their integrity without undergoing a structural rearrangement, join to a class of different aggregated structures (lamellar or inverse hexagonal phases) observed as well in the polyion-induced aggregation of oppositely charged mesoscopic particles, in particular, lipidic vesicles. Our results show that the formation of relatively large, equilibrium clusters of particles which maintain their integrity, stuck together by a polyion which acts as an electrostatic glue, is one of the many facets of the complex phenomenology underlying the interactions of charged particles with oppositely charged objects
Liposome-induced DNA compaction and reentrant condensation investigated by dielectric relaxation spectroscopy and dynamic lught scattering techniques
No full textThermal stability of DNA in DNA-induced DOTAP liposome aggregates
No full textThe influence on the melting of calf thymus DNA induced by cationic liposomes, commonly used in gene therapy, was studied by means of ultraviolet spectrophotometry and differential scanning calorimetry. Both the two methods reveal that DNA in DNA-induced liposome complexes undergoes a denaturation process at a much higher temperature than free DNA does. The extent of protection strongly depends on the charge ratio R(+/-) of liposome-DNA complexes. In the case of dioleoyl trimethyl ammonium propane (DOTAP) liposomes, the maximum of the stabilization occurs at R(+/-)=0.7, where the DNA is still native up to temperatures higher than 100 degrees C. This protection against denaturation up to higher temperatures might be of importance for bio-technological applications, such as biomolecular separation, antigene sequencing and for drug design purpose
Polyion-Induced Cluster Formation in Different Colloidal Polyparticle Aqueous Suspensions
No full textThe formation of aggregates in polyion-induced charged colloidal particles in aqueous suspension is characterized, under appropriate conditions, by two complementary effects, known as re-entrant condensation and charge inversion, which are considered as proof for the existence of a cluster phase. In this paper, we extend our previous investigation to a set of aqueous colloidal particle suspensions, such as polystyrene spheres, colloidal gold particles, and polylactic acid particles. These systems are characterized by the evolution of the average size of the aggregates and their surface electrical charge (charge inversion) by means of dynamic light-scattering measurements and laser Doppler electrophoretic techniques. The results, together with the previous ones concerning liposome particles, support the notion of a common behavior of this group of complex colloids characterized by short-ranged attractive interactions. The study provides some insights into these structures, which are potentially useful in biotechnological applications, such as multicompartmental carriers in nonviral drug delivery
Dielectric scaling in polyelectrolyte solutions with different solvent quality in the dilute concentration regime
No full textIn this note, we present a set of radiowave dielectric spectroscopy measurements of two dilute, differently-charged polyelectrolyte solutions, under different solvent conditions. We have found that both the dielectric strength, As, and the relaxation time, Ti, of the dielectric relaxation process associated with the counterion polarization along a length scale of the order of the correlation length obey the scaling laws with the polyion concentration, according to the Ito model. This is verified with good accuracy independently of the quality of the solvent, which has been varied from poor to good solvent conditions. This finding supports evidence to the fact that, in dilute solutions, the counterion polarization is independent of the polyion concentration, in spite of what occurs at the semi-dilute concentrations
Going Beyond Counting First Authors in Author Co-citation Analysis
Full text linkThe present study examines one of the fundamental aspects of author co-citation analysis (ACA) - the way co-citation
counts are defined. Co-citation counting provides the data on which all subsequent statistical analyses and mappings
are based, and we compare ACA results based on two different types of co-citation counting - the traditional type that
only counts the first one among a cited work's authors on the one hand and a non-traditional type that takes into
account the first 5 authors of a cited work on the other hand. Results indicate that the picture produced through this non-traditional author co-citation counting contains more coherent author groups and is therefore considerably clearer. However, this picture represents fewer specialties in the research field being studied than that produced through the traditional first-author co-citation counting when the same number of top-ranked authors is selected and analyzed. Reasons for these effects are discussed
Solvent quality influence on the dielectric properties of polyelectrolyte solutions: A scaling approach
No full textThe dielectric properties of polyelectrolytes in solvent of different quality have been measured in an extended frequency range and the dielectric parameters associated with the polarization induced by counterion fluctuation over some peculiar polyion lengths have been evaluated. Following the scaling theory of polyelectrolyte solutions and the recent models developed by Dobrynin and Rubinstein that explicitly take into account the quality of the solvent on the polyion chain conformation, we have reviewed and summarized a set of scaling laws that describe the dielectric behavior of these systems in the dilute and semidilute regime. Moreover, for poorer solvents, where theory of hydrophobic polyelectrolytes predicts, and computer simulation confirms, a particular chain structure consisting of partially collapsed monomers (beads) connected by monomer strings, we derived a scaling law. These predictions are compared with the results obtained from the dielectric parameters (the dielectric increment Delta epsilon and the relaxation time tau(ion)) of the "intermediate" frequency relaxation of two partially charged polymers, which possess a carbon-based backbone for which water is a poor solvent and ethylene glycol is a good solvent. By varying the solvent composition (a water-ethylene glycol mixture), we have tuned the quality of the solvent, passing from poor to good condition and have observed the predicted scaling for all the systems investigated. These findings give a further support to the scaling theory of polyelectrolyte solutions and to the necklace model for hydrophobic polyelectrolytes in poor solvents
Variations on the Author
Full text link“Variations on the Author” discusses two of Eduardo Coutinho’s recent films (Um Dia na Vida, from 2010, and Últimas Conversas, posthumously released in 2015) and their contribution to the general question of documentary authorship. The director’s filmography is characterized by a consistent yet self-effacing form of authorial self-inscription: Coutinho often features as an interviewer that rather than express opinions propels discourses; an interviewer that is good at listening. This mode of self-inscription characterizes him as an author who is not expressive but who is nonetheless markedly present on the screen. In Um Dia na Vida, however, Coutinho is completely absent form the image, while Últimas Conversas, on the contrary, includes a confessional prologue that moves the director from the margins to the center of his films. This article examines the ways in which these works stand out in the filmography of a director who offers new insights into the notion of cinematic authorship
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