Lu Lai

Micellization of anionic gemini surfactants and their interaction with polyacrylamide

A series of anionic gemini surfactants have been synthesized. The surface properties and micellization process of as-prepared sulfonate gemini surfactants (SGS) and carboxylate gemini surfactant (CGS) have been studied by surface tension measurement and isothermal titration microcalorimetry. Meanwhile, the interaction of these five surfactants with polyacrylamide (PAM) was investigated using surface tension, steady-state fluorescence measurement, and isothermal titration microcalorimetry. The results show that the critical micelle concentrations (CMCs) of above-mentioned surfactants are more than 1 order of magnitude lower than those of corresponding single chain surfactants. Moreover, the enthalpy of micelle formation (ΔHmic) for the investigated gemini surfactants is negative. In the surfactant–PAM systems, the thermodynamic parameters of binding have also been determined. The conclusion may be drawn that the binding strength of SGS onto PAM is stronger than that of CGS, resulting from more compact structure of SGS aggregates. With increasing surfactant hydrophobicity, the values of ΔHagg become more exothermic and a ΔSagg decrease was observed. Therefore, the interaction between SGS and PAM is enthalpy-driven.

Size Effects on the Interaction of QDs with the Mitochondrial Membrane In Vitro

The mitochondrial toxicity induced by GSH-CdTe Quantum dots (QDs) of different sizes was investigated. The decreases in absorbance and transmission electron microscopy images show that QDs induce the swelling of mitochondria. Results of flow cytometry indicate that QDs cause a reduction of mitochondrial membrane potential (MMP). A remarkable increase in fluidity of protein regions of mitochondrial membrane is observed, whereas the lipid regions are not obviously affected. Cyclosporin A (CsA) effectively prevents the QD-induced mitochondrial swelling. On the basis of these results, it is proposed that QDs induce mitochondrial permeability transition (MPT). Moreover, with increasing QDs size, a pronounced MPT is observed. The difference between the membrane fluidity induced by QDs and Cadmium ion and the ineffective protective effects of EDTA suggests that the mitochondrial toxicity of QDs cannot be only attributed to the release of metal ion. The protective effects of HSA indicate that the interaction of QDs with pore-forming protein gives rise to the increase in membrane fluidity. This hypothesis is demonstrated by the interaction of QDs with model membranes and proteins using differential scanning calorimetry and isothermal titration microcalorimetry. In conclusion, as the size of QDs increases, the binding affinity of QDs with membrane protein increases, and therefore causes a pronounced mitochondrial damage.

Impact of carbon quantum dots on dynamic properties of BSA and BSA/DPPC adsorption layers

The effects of carbon quantum dots (CQDs) on the dynamic properties of bovine serum albumin (BSA) were investigated using pendant drop profile analysis method. Moreover, the effects of CQDs on the competitive adsorption of BSA and dipalmitoyl phosphatidylcholine (DPPC) were examined. CQDs reduce the fluorescence intensity of BSA and cause a red shift in fluorescence emission. The quenching constant at pH 4.3 is almost twice as large as that of the value obtained at pH 6.0. A small amount of CQDs does not influence the dynamic surface adsorption properties of BSA molecules. As the CQD concentration increases, a gradual increase in adsorption rate of BSA molecules is observed. Moreover, the addition of CQDs results in a significant transition of kinetic dependencies of surface elasticity of BSA solution when the CQD concentration exceeds a critical value. The appearance of the maximum surface elasticity value is probably attributed to the formation of tails and loops. When the dynamic surface properties are dominated by BSA molecules, the effects of CQDs on the surface properties of BSA/DPPC mixture are similar to those of BSA alone. However, when the surface film mainly consists of DPPC, CQDs can obviously change the interfacial properties of DPPC monolayer.

Mixed micellization of binary mixture of amino sulfonate amphoteric surfactant with octadecyltrimethyl ammonium bromide in water/isopropanol solution: Comparison with that in aqueous solution

Abstract The micellization behavior of the mixed system of amphoteric sodium 3-(N-dodecyl ethylenediamino)-2-hydropropyl sulfonate (C12AS) and cationic octadecyltrimethyl ammonium bromide (OTAB) in water/isopropanol (abbr. IPA, 20 g·L−1) solution at 40 °C was investigated using both the tensiometry and the conductometry. According to the regular solution theory, pseudophase separation model and other thermodynamic models (including the Rubingh’s model, the Rodenas’s model, Lange’s model, etc.), some parameters were estimated to achieve a full understanding of their aggregation behaviors. For all the mixtures of C12AS/OTAB, the mixed critical micelle concentration and the composition of C12AS in mixed micelle have deviations from their ideal cases, indicating a non-ideal mixing. The presence of cosolvent IPA produces the changes in the composition in mixed micelle and the optimum mixing ratio which can obtain a maximum synergism. The interaction parameter indicates an attractive interaction between two surfactants. Thermodynamic parameters show that the mixed micellization is an entropically spontaneous process and the presence of IPA seemingly reduces the entropy contribution to the formation of mixed micelle. The above behaviors can be explained rationally by the hydrophobic effect, the steric effect and the attractive interaction between two surfactants. These findings are useful for optimizing the composition of mixed surfactant systems and understanding the interaction behavior between surfactant molecules to further achieve more effective and economical formulations. Graphical Abstract