Abstract Soft molecularly imprinted nanogels (nanoMIPs), selective for human transferrin (HTR), were prepared via a template assisted synthesis. Owing to their soft matter, the nanoMIPs were observed to deform at binding to HTR: while no relevant changes were observed in the hydrodynamic sizes of HTR-free compared to HTR-loaded nanoMIPs, the HTR binding resulted in a significant increment of the nanoMIP stiffness, with the mean Young's modulus measured by AFM passing from 17 ± 6 kPa to 56 ± 18 kPa. When coupled to a plastic optical fibre (POF) plasmonic platform, the analyte-induced nanoMIP-deformations amplified the resonance shift, enabling to attain ultra-low sensitivities (LOD = 1.2 fM; linear dynamic range of concentrations from 1.2 fM to 1.8 pM). Therefore, soft molecularly imprinted nanogels that obey to analyte-induced deformation stand as a novel class of sensitivity-gain structures for plasmonic sensing.
#1Qiushun Zou(SYSU: Sun Yat-sen University)H-Index: 2
#2Wenjie Liu(SYSU: Sun Yat-sen University)H-Index: 11
Last. Chongjun Jin(SYSU: Sun Yat-sen University)H-Index: 22
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Reconfigurable plasmon-based flexible devices, composed of artificial plasmonic nanostructures on stretchable substrates, show great promise for dynamic functionalities such as tunability, switching and modulation of electromagnetic waves. Here, we theoretically proposed and experimentally demonstrated a simple and efficient flexible plasmonic modulator based on an array of gold nanostructures on a poly(dimethylsiloxane) (PDMS) substrate. Arising from the current-induced local Joule heat, the lo...
#1Jihyun Yoon(POSTECH: Pohang University of Science and Technology)H-Index: 1
#2Youngkyu Kim(POSTECH: Pohang University of Science and Technology)H-Index: 8
Last. Joon Won Park(POSTECH: Pohang University of Science and Technology)H-Index: 27
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Amyloid beta (Aβ) oligomers are widely considered to be the causative agent of Alzheimer’s disease (AD), a progressive neurodegenerative disorder. Determining the structure of oligomers is, therefore, important for understanding the disease and developing therapeutic agents; however, elucidating the structure has been proven difficult due to heterogeneity, noncrystallinity, and variability. Herein, we investigated homo- and hetero-oligomers of Aβ40 and Aβ42 using atomic force microscopy (AFM) an...
Abstract Molecularly imprinted polymeric nanogels (nanoMIPs) are soft biomimetics with recognition properties similar to antibodies but robustness and integrability to devices (sensing, assays) typical of polymers. Aiming at tailor-made at-will the recognition and physical properties of these biomimetics, we investigated the process of stamping analytes of clinical relevance, i.e. an idiotipic peptide of Troponin I, on protein-compatible soft-material at the nanoscale. Highly crosslinked poly(ac...
#1Jingyi Luan(WashU: Washington University in St. Louis)H-Index: 12
#2Ting Xu(WashU: Washington University in St. Louis)H-Index: 2
Last. Srikanth Singamaneni(WashU: Washington University in St. Louis)H-Index: 52
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Plasmonic biosensors based on the refractive index sensitivity of localized surface plasmon resonance (LSPR) are considered to be highly promising for on-chip and point-of-care biodiagnostics. However, most of the current plasmonic biosensors employ natural antibodies as biorecognition elements, which can easily lose their biorecognition ability upon exposure to environmental stressors (e.g., temperature and humidity). Plasmonic biosensors relying on molecular imprints as recognition elements (a...
#2Xiaolu Zhuo(CUHK: The Chinese University of Hong Kong)H-Index: 16
Last. Jianfang Wang(CUHK: The Chinese University of Hong Kong)H-Index: 88
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Active plasmonics is a burgeoning and challenging subfield of plasmonics. It exploits the active control of surface plasmon resonance. In this review, a first-ever in-depth description of the theoretical relationship between surface plasmon resonance and its affecting factors, which forms the basis for active plasmon control, will be presented. Three categories of active plasmonic structures, consisting of plasmonic structures in tunable dielectric surroundings, plasmonic structures with tunable...
A facile approach is presented for the detection of bovine serum albumin (BSA), based on fiber optic surface plasmon resonance (FOSPR) combined with molecular imprinting (MI). The probe is fabricated by exploiting the plasmonic property of silver thin film and vinyl-functionalised carbon nanotube-based MIP platform. BSA template molecules are imprinted on the MIP layer coated over multi-walled carbon nanotubes to ensure high specificity of the probe in the interfering environments. In addition, ...
The potential to develop materials with antibody-like molecular recognition properties has helped sustain interest in protein-imprinted polymers over the past several decades. Unfortunately, despite persistent research, the field of noncovalent protein imprinting has seen limited success in terms of achieving materials with high selectivity and high affinity. In this Perspective, important yet sometimes overlooked aspects of the imprinting and binding processes are reviewed to help understand wh...
Structural modifications to interacting systems frequently lead to changes in both the enthalpy (heat) and entropy of the process that compensate each other, so that the Gibbs free energy is little changed: a major barrier to the development of lead compounds in drug discovery. The conventional explanation for such enthalpy–entropy compensation (EEC) is that tighter contacts lead to a more negative enthalpy but increased molecular constraints, i.e., a compensating conformational entropy reductio...
Force–distance curve-based atomic force microscopy has emerged into a sophisticated technique for imaging cellular membranes and for detecting specific ligand-binding events of native membrane receptors. However, so far the resolution achieved has been insufficient to structurally map ligand-binding sites onto membrane proteins. Here, we introduce experimental and theoretical approaches for overcoming this limitation. To establish a structurally and functionally well-defined reference sample, we...
#1Hao Shen(UCSD: University of California, San Diego)H-Index: 8
#2Li Chen(UCSD: University of California, San Diego)H-Index: 104
Last. Zhaowei Liu(UCSD: University of California, San Diego)H-Index: 52
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The advances in recent nanofabrication techniques have facilitated explorations of metal structures into nanometer scales, where the traditional local-response Drude model with hard-wall boundary conditions fails to accurately describe their optical responses. The emerging nonlocal effects in single ultrasmall silver nanoparticles have been experimentally observed in single-particle spectroscopy enabled by the unprecedented high spatial resolution of electron energy loss spectroscopy (EELS). How...
Postoperative pancreatic fistula (POPF), the major driver of morbidity and mortality following pancreatectomy, is caused by an abnormal communication between the pancreatic ductal epithelium and another epithelial surface containing pancreas-derived, enzyme-rich fluid. There is a strong correlation between the amylase content in surgically-placed drains early in the postoperative course and the development of POPF. A simple and cheap method to determine the amylase content from the drain effluen...
Abstract A review on bio-chemical label-free sensing applications based on receptors combined with multimode plastic optical fibers (POFs) is carried out. In particular, this work focuses on different kinds of POF intrinsic sensors used in transmission mode, exploiting various types of receptors and useful in several application fields. The sensor structures and the sensing mechanisms of different simple, highly sensitive, and low-cost POF probes are reported and compared. Moreover, different ki...
The rapid spread of the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, caused by the Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) pathogen has generated a huge international public health emergency. Currently the reference diagnostic technique for virus determination is Reverse Transcription Polymerase Chain Reaction (RT-PCR) real time analysis that requires specialized equipment, reagents and facilities and typically 3-4 h to perform. Thus, the realization of simple, low-cost, sm...
Abstract A novel molecularly imprinted fluorescent optical fiber sensor (MIFOFS) by merging the optical fiber sensor and replaceable molecularly imprinted nanoparticles composite polyethyleneglycol diacrylate hydrogel (MINs@PEGDA) detector was fabricated for rapid and highly selective detection of antibiotics. The fabricated MIFOFS system was connected by a laser light source, an optical fiber spectrometer, a Y-type fiber, a computer, a flange adapter and a detector modified with MINs@PEGDA. The...
Optical sensing, taking advantage of the variety of available optical structures, is a rapidly expanding area. Over recent years, whispering gallery mode resonators, photonic crystals, optical waveguides, optical fibers and surface plasmon resonance have been exploited to devise different optical sensing configurations. In the present review, we report on the state of the art of optical sensing devices based on the aforementioned optical structures and on synthetic receptors prepared by means of...
Last. Adil Denizli(Hacettepe University)H-Index: 82
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Understanding the fundamentals of natural design, structure, and function has pushed the limits of current knowledge and has enabled us to transfer knowledge from the bench to the market as a product. In particular, biomimicry―one of the crucial strategies in this respect―has allowed researchers to tackle major challenges in the disciplines of engineering, biology, physics, materials science, and medicine. It has an enormous impact on these fields with pivotal applications, which are not limited...
