NJC Blog

In this NJC article, Cyrille Monnereau and his colleagues (University of Lyon, France) report an Atom Transfer Radical Polymerisation (ATRP) approach towards star-shaped chromophores, which bear hydrophilic oligomeric arms that form an “insulating shell” around the nano-sized molecules, resulting in their solubility in water with good conservation of their fluorescence quantum yield. These new amphiphilic chromophores are promising candidates for cellular fluorescence and photodynamic therapy. The authors claim that this synthetic strategy for photoactive species is straightforward and adaptable.

In this NJC paper, Marina Lezhnina et al (Muenster University of Applied Sciences-Chemical Engineering, Germany) report the synthesis and photophysical properties of Eu complexes attached to epoxy-functionalized phenantroline ligands.

The authors show how these complexes can be conveniently attached to thiol groups, in the present example gluthathione, and still retain the characteristic red emission of Eu centers.

Luminescence of a Novel Eu(diketonato) – Epoxyphenanthroline Complex and Covalent Coupling to Peptides via the Epoxigroup Marina M. Lezhnina, Diana Hofmann, Beatrix Santiago-Schübel, Peter Klauth, Ulrich H. Kynast New J. Chem., 2012, Advance Article DOI: 10.1039/C2NJ40505A

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	Synthesis of a functionalized europium complex and deposition of luminescent Langmuir–Blodgett (LB) films by Renata D. Adati, Felippe J. Pavinatto, Jorge H. S. K. Monteiro, Marian R. Davolos, Miguel Jafelicci and Osvaldo N. Oliveira, New J. Chem., 2012, Advance Article DOI: 10.1039/C2NJ40199AThis paper will be a cover of NJC‘s October 2012 issue.
	An amorphous array of poly(N-isopropylacrylamide) brush-coated silica particles for thermally tunable angle-independent photonic band gap materials by Yoshie Gotoh, Hiromasa Suzuki, Naomi Kumano, Takahiro Seki, Kiyofumi Katagiri and Yukikazu Takeoka, New J. Chem., 2012, Advance Article DOI: 10.1039/C2NJ40368DThis work will be featured as a cover of the November 2012 issue.
	Impact of maltose modified poly(propylene imine) dendrimers on liver alcohol dehydrogenase (LADH) internal dynamics and structure by Michal Ciolkowski, Inessa Halets, Dzmitry Shcharbin, Dietmar Appelhans, Brigitte Voit, Barbara Klajnert and Maria Bryszewska, New J. Chem., 2012, Advance Article DOI: 10.1039/C2NJ40406K
	Highly efficient polymer solar cells based on poly(carbazole-alt-thiophene-benzofurazan) by Bin Zhang, Xiaowen Hu, Minquan Wang, Huiping Xiao, Xiong Gong, Wei Yang and Yong Cao, New J. Chem., 2012, Advance Article DOI: 10.1039/C2NJ40309A

In this NJC Hot paper, Fucke et al. attempt to answer a very important question relating to co-crystal formation and screening. Piroxicam, a non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug, was chosen as a model system and subjected to extensive co-crystal screening using twenty different acids as co-crystal formers, six crystallisation techniques and five solvents. The work explores in comprehensive detail the use of different techniques for obtaining co-crystals and compares their efficacy. The authors offer several thoughts on how their results might usefully be applied to improve co-crystal screens.

How good are the crystallisation methods for co-crystals? A comparative study of piroxicam by Katharina Fucke, Svetlana A. Myz, Tatyana P. Shakhtshneider, Elena V. Boldyreva and Ulrich J. Griesser; New J. Chem., 2012, Advance Article, DOI: 10.1039/C2NJ40093F, Paper

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In this NJC paper, Anna  Dolega and co-workers (Gdansk University of Technology, Poland) have prepared three imidazolium silanethiolates relevant to the active site of cysteine protease.

By using solid state characterization techniques and modeling, the authors were able to present the first example of proton transfer along the chain of NH^+…S^– hydrogen bonds.  A cooperative effect in the chain consisting of silanethiolate and imidazole residues linked by NH^+…S^– hydrogen bond was proposed to be due to the polarization of electron density connected with the increase in the Mulliken partial charge on the sulfur atom.

Imidazolium silanethiolates relevant to the active site of cysteine proteases. A cooperative effect in a chain of NH⁺ S⁻ hydrogen bonds Katarzyna Baranowska, Natalia Piwowarska, Aleksander Herman and Anna Dołęga New J. Chem., 2012, Advance Article DOI: 10.1039/C2NJ40114B

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Chiral analysis continues to receive considerable attention since enantiomers often differ in their pharmacological activity and pharmacokinetic profile.

In this NJC letter, Haibing Li and co-workers from Central China Normal University at Wuhan (P.R. China) report a colorimetric sensor that displays a selective and strong response to L-histidine resulting from the agglomeration of silver nanoparticles. The authors believe that the self-assembly of nanoparticles into clusters is an effective approach to improve the sensitivity of chiral detection.

“Chiral colorimetric recognition of amino acids based on silver nanoparticle clusters” Yao Sun, Liang Zhang and Haibing Li, New J. Chem., 2012, Advance Article. DOI: 10.1039/C2NJ40098G.

In this NJC paper, Honglie Shen et al (Nanjing University of Aeronautics & Astronautics, China) report a facile strategy to prepare a nitrogen and boron doped monolayer of graphene from urea and boric acid as solid precursors.

This approach is shown to be efficient, producing graphene with excellent optical and electrical performances at relatively low cost.

Nitrogen and boron doped monolayer graphene by chemical vapor deposition using polystyrene, urea and boric acid Tianru Wu,  Honglie Shen,  Lei Sun,  Bin Cheng,  Bin Liu and Jiancang Shen, New J. Chem., 2012, Advance Article DOI: 10.1039/C2NJ40068E

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J. Hao et al. (China) report the influence of polyvinyl alcohol on the thermal conductivity and the fluidity (sol-gel transition behavior) of carbon nanotubes-glycerol nanofluids.

The thermal conductivity, stability, fluidity, and rheological properties were investigated by using various characterization techniques. The additional polyvinyl alcohol could amazingly reduce the viscosity of the nanofluids while the thermal conductivity was mostly maintained, even slightly further increased.

It suggests the as-prepared nanofluids may be applicable in energy transfer systems and thus pushes one step further towards real application of CNT based nanofluids.

A gel–sol transition phenomenon of oxidation multi-walled carbon nanotubes–glycerol nanofluids induced by polyvinyl alcohol by Baogang Wang, Wenjing Lou, Xiaobo Wang and Jingcheng Hao, New J. Chem., 2012, DOI: 10.1039/C2NJ20977B.

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