Goldnanoteilchen auf Titandioxid

In dieser Arbeit wurde das Wachstum sowie die ultraschnelle Elektronendynamik des Oberflächenplasmon Polaritons von Goldnanoteilchen auf Titandioxid untersucht. Die Messung der Dephasierungszeit des Oberflächenplasmons von Nanoteilchen mit definierter Form und Größe erfolgte dabei mit der Methode des spektralen Lochbrennens. Die Nanoteilchen wurden durch Deposition von Goldatomen aus einem thermischen Atomstrahl mit anschließender Diffussion und Nukleation, d.h. Volmer-Weber-Wachstum, auf Titandioxidsubstraten hergestellt und mittels einer Kombination aus optischer Spektroskopie und Rasterkraftmikroskopie systematisch untersucht. Dabei lässt sich das Nanoteilchenensemble durch das mittlere Achsverhältnis und den mittleren Äquivalentradius charakterisieren. Die Messungen zeigen, dass die Proben große Größen- und Formverteilungen aufweisen und ein definierter Zusammenhang zwischen Größe und Form der Teilchen existiert. Während kleine Goldnanoteilchen nahezu kugelförmig sind, flachen die Teilchen mit zunehmender Größe immer mehr ab. Des Weiteren wurde in dieser Arbeit die Methode des lasergestützten Wachstums auf das System Gold auf Titandioxid angewendet. Systematische Untersuchungen zeigten, dass sich das Achsverhältnis der Teilchen durch geeignete Wahl von Photonenenergie und Fluenz des eingestrahlten Laserlichts definiert und gezielt vorgeben lässt. Die Methode des lasergestützten Wachstums erschließt damit den Bereich außerhalb der Zugänglichkeit des natürlichen Wachstums. Aufgrund der Formabhängigkeit der spektrale Lage der Plasmonresonanz ist man somit in der Lage, die optischen Eigenschaften der Nanoteilchen gezielt einzustellen und z.B. für technische Anwendungen zu optimieren. Die Untersuchung der ultraschnellen Elektronendynamik von Goldnanoteilchen auf Titandioxid mit äquivalenten Radien zwischen 8 bis 15 nm erfolgte in dieser Arbeit mit der Methode des spektralen Lochbrennes. Hierzu wurde die Dephasierungszeit des Oberflächenplasmons systematisch als Funktion der Photonenenergie in einem Bereich von 1,45 bis 1,85 eV gemessen. Es zeigte sich, dass die gemessenen Dephasierungszeiten von 8,5 bis 16,2 fs deutlich unter den in der dielektrischen Funktion von Gold enthaltenen Werten lagen, was den erwarteten Einfluss der reduzierten Dimension der Teilchen demonstriert. Um die Messwerte trotz verschiedener Teilchengrößen untereinander vergleichen und den Einfluss der intrinsischen Dämpfung quantifizieren zu können, wurde zusätzlich der Dämpfungsparameter A bestimmt. Die ermittelten A-Faktoren zeigten dabei eine starke Abhängigkeit von der Plasmonenergie. Für Teilchen mit Plasmonenergien von 1,45 bis 1,55 eV wurde ein Dämpfungsfaktor von A ~ 0,2 nm/fs ermittelt, der lediglich Oberflächenstreuung als dominierenden Dämpfungsmechanismus widerspiegelt. Hingegen wurde für Teilchen mit Plasmonenergien oberhalb von 1,55 eV ein drastischer Anstieg der Dämpfung auf A ~ 0,4 nm/fs beobachtet. Die erhöhte Dämpfung wurde dabei dem zusätzlichen Vorliegen einer chemischen Dämpfung durch das Titandioxidsubstrat zugeschrieben. Zusammenfassend zeigen die Ergebnisse somit, dass eine starke Abhängigkeit der chemischen Dämpfung von der Photonenenergie vorliegt. Es konnte erstmals nachgewiesen werden, dass die chemische Dämpfung erst ab einer bestimmten unteren Schwelle der Photonenenergie einsetzt, die für Goldnanoteilchen auf Titandioxid bei etwa 1,6 eV liegt.

Adsorption kinetic investigations of phthalocyanine derivatives self assembled monolayers (SAMs) on gold: Temperature influence on the SAM formation process and quality

The ordered nano-structured surfaces, like self-assembled monolayers (SAMs) are of a great scientific interest, due to the low cost, simplicity, and versatility of this method. SAMs found numerous of applications in molecular electronics, biochemistry and optical devices. Phthalocyanine (Pc) complexes are of particular interest for the SAM preparation. These molecules exhibit fascinating physical properties and are chemically and thermally stable. Moreover their complex structure is advantageous for the fabrication of switchable surfaces. In this work the adsorption process of Pcs derivatives, namely, subphthalocyanines (SubPcB) and terbium (2TbPc) sandwich complexes on gold has been investigated. The influence of the molecular concentration, chain length of peripheral groups, and temperature on the film formation process has been examined using a number of techniques. The SAMs formation process has been followed in situ and in real time by means of second harmonic generation (SHG) and surface plasmon resonance (SPR) spectroscopy. To investigate the quality of the SAMs prepared at different temperatures atomic force microscopy (AFM) and X-Ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS)measurements were performed. Valuable information about SubPcB and 2TbPc adsorbtion process has been obtained in the frame of this work. The kinetic data, obtained with SHG and SPR, shows the best conformance with the first order Langmuir kinetic model. Comparing SHG and SPR results, it has been found, that the film formation occurs faster than the formation of chemical bonds. Such, the maximum amount of molecules on the surface is reached after 6 min for SubPcB and 30 min for 2TbPc. However, at this time the amount of formed chemicals bonds is only 10% and 40% for SubPcB and 2TbPc, respectively. The most intriguing result, among others, was obtained at T = 2 °C, where the formation of the less dense SAMs have been detected with SHG.However, analyzing XPS and AFM data, it has been revealed, that there is the same amount of molecules on the surface at both temperature T = 2 °C, and T = 21 °C, but the amount of formed chemicals bond is different. At T = 2 °C molecules form aggregates, therefore many of available anchor groups stay unattached.

Magneto-optische Oberflächenplasmonresonanzeffekte in austauschverschobenen Dünnschichtsystemen

Die Wechselwirkungen zwischen Biomolekülen spielen eine zentrale Rolle in der biochemischen und pharmazeutischen Forschung. In der biomolekularen Interaktionsanalyse sind dabei Biosensoren auf Basis des Oberflächenplasmonresonanzeffekts (SPR-Effekt) weitverbreitet. Seit Einführung der ersten kommerziellen SPR-Biosensoren Anfang der 1990er Jahre wurden verschiedenste Messanordnungen sowie Materialsysteme mit dem Ziel einer möglichst hohen Empfindlichkeit getestet. Eine Möglichkeit zur Steigerung der Empfindlichkeit klassischer SPR-Systeme bieten sogenannte magneto-optische SPR-Biosensoren (MOSPR-Biosensoren). Grundlage der Empfindlichkeitssteigerung ist die gleichzeitige Messung des SPR-Effekts und des transversalen magneto-optischen KERR-Effekts (tMOKE). Bisherige Untersuchungen haben sich meist auf den Einfluss der Magnetisierung freier ferromagnetischer Schichten beschränkt. Im Rahmen dieser Arbeit wurden erstmals austauschverschobene Dünnschichtsysteme (EB-Systeme), eine Kombination aus Ferromagnet und Antiferromagnet, hinsichtlich ihrer Eignung für SPR- und MOSPR-basierte biosensorische Anwendungen untersucht. Aufgrund der remanenten Magnetisierung der ferromagnetischen Schicht und ihrer magnetischen Strukturierbarkeit sind EB-Systeme eine hochinteressante Plattform zur Realisierung neuer Biosensorkonzepte. Zur Reduzierung der stark dämpfendenden Wirkung magnetischer Materialien wurde das hier betrachtete IrMn/Co EB-System zwischen zwei Goldschichten eingebettet. Eine Gegenüberstellung optimierter Au/ IrMn/Co/Au-Systeme mit einem reinen Au-System, wie es typischerweise in kommerziellen SPR-basierten Biosensoren eingesetzt wird, demonstriert, dass mit den entwickelten EB-Systemen vergleichbare Empfindlichkeiten in SPR-Sensor-Anwendungen erreicht werden können. Die magneto-optische Aktivität der untersuchten Dünnschichtsysteme liegt im Bereich der Literaturwerte für Au/Co/Au-Systeme, mit denen erhöhte Empfindlichkeiten gegenüber Standard-SPR-Biosensoren realisiert wurden. Auf Grundlage magnetisch strukturierter Au/IrMn/Co/Au-Systeme wurden neue Biosensorkonzepte entwickelt und getestet. Erste Experimente belegen, dass mit diesen Schichtsystemen eine gleichzeitige Detektion der magnetisierungsabhängigen Reflektivitäten in ortsauflösenden MOSPR-Messungen möglich ist. Eine solche Messanordnung profitiert von der erhöhten Empfindlichkeit MOSPR-basierter Biosensoren, hohen Messgeschwindigkeiten und einem verbesserten Signal-Rausch-Verhältnis. Weiterhin wurde der domänenwandassistierte Transport (DOWMAT) superparamagnetischer Partikel über der Oberfläche eines exemplarischen EB-Systems, zur Sensorintegration von Misch-, Reinigungs- und Aufkonzentrationsfunktionen erfolgreich getestet. Die Ergebnisse demonstrieren, dass ein Transport von Partikelreihen mit hohen Geschwindigkeiten bei moderaten externen Magnetfeldern über den entwickelten Schichtsystemen möglich ist. Die Agglomeration der Partikel wird dabei intrinsisch vermieden. Diese Beobachtungen verdeutlichen die Vorzüge des DOWMAT-Mechanismus für biosensorische Anwendungen. Die präsentierten Untersuchungen bilden die Grundlage auf dem Weg zur Umsetzung neuer vielversprechender Biosensorkonzepte, die eine Schlüsselfunktion in der medizinischen point-of-care-Diagnostik bei der Detektion kleinster Konzentrationen krankheitsrelevanter Biomarker einnehmen können.

Funktion und Biogenese kleiner RNAs in Dictyostelium discoideum

RNA mediated gene silencing pathways are highly conserved among eukaryotes and they have been well investigated in animals and in plants. Longer dsRNA molecules trigger the silencing pathways: RNase III proteins and their dsRNA binding protein (dsRBP) partners recognize those molecules as a substrate and process 21 nucleotide long microRNAs (miRNAs) or small interfering RNAs (siRNAs). Some organisms encode RNA dependent RNA polymerases (RdRPs), which are able to expand the pool of existing siRNAs. Argonaute proteins are able to bind small regulatory RNAs and are subsequently recruited to target mRNAs by base complementary. This leads in turn to transcriptional or posttranscriptional silencing of respective genes. The Dictyostelium discoideum genome encodes two Dicer homologues (DrnA and DrnB), five Argonaute proteins (AgnA to AgnE) and three RdRPs (RrpA to RrpC). In addition, the amoeba is known to express miRNAs and siRNAs, while the latter derive mainly from the DIRS-1 retrotransposon. One part of this work focused on the miRNA biogenesis pathway of D. discoideum. It was shown that the dsRNA binding protein RbdB is a necessary component for miRNA processing in the amoeba. There were no mature miRNAs detectable by Northern blot analysis in rbdB- strains, which is also true for drnB mutants. Moreover, primary miRNA-transcripts (pri-miRNAs) accumulated in rbdB- and drnB- strains. Fluorescence microscopy studies showed a nuclear localization of RbdB. RbdB accumulated in distinct perinucleolar foci. These were reminiscent of plant dicing bodies that contain essential protein components for miRNA processing. It is well known that RNase III enzymes and dsRBPs work together during miRNA processing in higher eukaryotes. This work demonstrated that the same is true for members of the amoebozoa supergroup. In Arabidopsis the nuclear zinc finger protein Serrate (SE) is also necessary for miRNA processing. The D. discoideum homologue SrtA, however, is not relevant which has been shown by the analysis of the respective knockdown strain. MiRNAs are known to be differentially expressed in several RNAi knockout strains. The accumulation of miRNAs in agnA- strains and a strong decrease in rbdB- strains were criteria that could thus be successfully used (among others) to identify and validate new miRNAs candidates by Illumina®-RNA sequencing. In another part of this study, the silencing and amplification of the DIRS-1 retrotransposons was analyzed in more detail. It was already known that DIRS-1 transcripts and extrachromosomal DIRS-1 DNA molecules accumulated in agnA- strains. This phenotype was correlated with the loss of endogenous DIRS-1 siRNAs in the knockout strain. By deep sequencing analysis of small RNAs from the AX2 wild type and the agnA- strain, the strong decrease of endogenous DIRS-1 siRNAs in the mutant strain (accounting for 70 %) could be confirmed. Further analysis of the data revealed an unequal distribution of DIRS-1 derived siRNAs along the retroelement in the wild type strain, since only very few of them matched the inverted terminal repeats (ITRs) and the 5’- half of the first open reading frame (ORF). Besides, sense and antisense siRNAs were asymmetrically distributed, as well. By using different reporter constructs it was shown indirectly that AgnA is necessary for the RrpC mediated production of secondary DIRS-1 siRNAs. These analyses also demonstrated an amplification of siRNAs in 5’- and in 3’-direction. Further analysis of the agnA- strain revealed that not only DIRS-1 sense transcripts but also ORF2 and ORF3 encoded proteins were enriched. In contrast, the ORF1 encoded protein GAG was equally expressed in the mutant and the wild type. This might reflect the unequal distribution of endogenous DIRS-1 siRNAs along the retrotransposon. Southern Blot and PCR-analyses showed that extrachromosomal DIRS-1 DNA molecules are present in the cytoplasm of angA- strains and that they are complementary to sense transcripts of intact DIRS-1 elements. Thus, the extrachromosomal DIRS-1 intermediates are likely incomplete cDNA molecules generated by the DIRS-1 encoded reverse transcriptase. One could hypothesize that virus like particles (VLPs) are the places of DIRS-1 cDNA synthesis. At least, DIRS-1 GAG proteins interact and fluorescence microscopy studies showed that they localize in distinct cytoplasmic foci which accumulate in close proximity to the nuclei.

Flash Photography Enhancement via Intrinsic Relighting

We enhance photographs shot in dark environments by combining a picture taken with the available light and one taken with the flash. We preserve the ambiance of the original lighting and insert the sharpness from the flash image. We use the bilateral filter to decompose the images into detail and large scale. We reconstruct the image using the large scale of the available lighting and the detail of the flash. We detect and correct flash shadows. This combines the advantages of available illumination and flash photography.

Self-organized sociopolitical interactions as the best way to achieve organized patterns in human social systems: going beyond the top-down control of classical political regimes

La monografía presenta la auto-organización sociopolítica como la mejor manera de lograr patrones organizados en los sistemas sociales humanos, dada su naturaleza compleja y la imposibilidad de las tareas computacionales de los regímenes políticos clásico, debido a que operan con control jerárquico, el cual ha demostrado no ser óptimo en la producción de orden en los sistemas sociales humanos. En la monografía se extrapola la teoría de la auto-organización en los sistemas biológicos a las dinámicas sociopolíticas humanas, buscando maneras óptimas de organizarlas, y se afirma que redes complejas anárquicas son la estructura emergente de la auto-organización sociopolítica.

The heliospheric magnetic field over the Hale cycle

The concept that open magnetic flux of the Sun (rooted with one and only one footpoint at the Sun) is a conserved quantity is taking root in the heliospheric community. Observations show that the Sun's open magnetic flux returns to the baseline from one solar minimum to the next. The temporary enhancement in the 1 AU heliospheric magnetic flux near solar maximum can be accounted for by the temporary creation of closed magnetic flux (with two footpoints at the Sun) during the ejection of coronal mass ejections (CMEs), which are more frequent near solar maximum. As a part of the International Heliophysical Year activities, this paper reviews two recently discussed consequences of open flux conservation: the reversal of open magnetic flux over the solar cycle driven by Coronal Mass Ejections and the impacts of open flux conservation on the global structure of the heliospheric magnetic field. These studies demonstrate the inherent linkages between coronal mass ejections, footpoint motions back at the Sun, and the global structure and evolution of the heliospheric magnetic field.

Sonogashira coupling on an extended gold surface in vacuo: reaction of phenylacetylene with iodobenzene on Au(111)

Temperature-programmed reaction measurements supported by scanning tunneling microscopy have shown that phenylacetylene and iodobenzene react on smooth Au(111) under vacuum conditions to yield biphenyl and diphenyldiacetylene, the result of homocoupling of the reactant molecules. They also produce diphenylacetylene, the result of Sonogashira cross-coupling, prototypical of a class of reactions that are of paramount importance in synthetic organic chemistry and whose mechanism remains controversial. Roughened Au(111) is completely inert toward all three reactions, indicating that the availability of crystallographically well-defined adsorption sites is crucially important. High-resolution X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy and near-edge X-ray absorption fine structure spectroscopy show that the reactants are initially present as intact, essentially flat-lying molecules and that the temperature threshold for Sonogashira coupling coincides with that for C−I bond scission in the iodobenzene reactant. The fractional-order kinetics and low temperature associated with desorption of the Sonogashira product suggest that the reaction occurs at the boundaries of islands of adsorbed reactants and that its appearance in the gas phase is rate-limited by the surface reaction. These findings demonstrate unambiguously and for the first time that this heterogeneous cross-coupling chemistry is an intrinsic property of extended, metallic pure gold surfaces: no other species, including solvent molecules, basic or charged (ionic) species are necessary to mediate the process.

Influence of agricultural management, sward structure and food resources on grassland field use by birds in lowland England.

Agricultural management of grassland in lowland Britain has changed fundamentally in the last 50 years, resulting in spatial and structural uniformity within the pastoral landscape. The full extent to which these changes may have reduced the suitability of grassland as foraging habitat for birds is unknown. This study investigated the mechanisms by which these changes have impacted on birds and their food supplies. We quantified field use by birds in summer and winter in two grassland areas of lowland England (Devon and Buckinghamshire) over 3 years, relating bird occurrence to the management, sward structure and seed and invertebrate food resources of individual fields. Management intensity was defined in terms of annual nitrogen input. There was no consistent effect of management intensity on total seed head production, although those of grasses generally increased with inputs while forbs were rare throughout. Relationships between management intensity and abundance of soil and epigeal invertebrates were complex. Soil beetle larvae were consistently lower in abundance, and surface-active beetle larvae counts consistently higher, in intensively managed fields. Foliar invertebrates showed more consistent negatively relationships with management intensity. Most bird species occurred at low densities. There were consistent relationships across regions and years between the occurrence of birds and measures of field management. In winter, there was a tendency towards higher occupancy of intensively managed fields by species feeding on soil invertebrates. In summer, there were few such relationships, although many species avoided fields with tall swards. Use of fields by birds was generally not related to measures of seed or invertebrate food abundance. While granivorous species were perhaps too rare to detect a relationship, in insectivores the strong negative relationships (in summer) with sward height suggested that access to food may be the critical factor. While it appears that intensification of grassland management has been deleterious to the summer food resources of insectivorous birds that use insects living within the grass sward, intensification may have been beneficial to several species in winter through the enhancement of soil invertebrates. Synthesis and applications. We suggest that attempts to restore habitat quality for birds in grassland landscapes need to create a range of management intensities and sward structures at the field and farm scales. A greater understanding of methods to enhance prey accessibility, as well as abundance, for insectivorous birds is required.

Evaluation of film forming polymers to control apple scab (Venturia inaequalis (Cooke) G. Wint.) under laboratory and field conditions

A detached leaf bioassay was used to determine the influence of several film forming polymers and a conventional triazole fungicide on apple scab (Venturia inaequalis (Cooke) G. Wint.) development under laboratory in vitro conditions, supported by two field trials using established apple cv. Golden Delicious to further assess the efficacy of foliar applied film forming polymers as scab protectant compounds. All film forming polymers used in this investigation (Bond, Designer, Nu-Film P, Spray Gard, Moisturin, Companion PCT12) inhibited germination of conidia, subsequent formation of appressoria and reduced leaf scab severity using a detached leaf bioassay. Regardless of treatment, there were no obvious trends in the percentage of conidia with one to four appressoria 5 days after inoculation. The synthetic fungicide penconazole resulted in the greatest levels of germination inhibition, appressorium development and least leaf scab severity. Under field conditions, scab severity on leaves and fruit of apple cv. Golden Delicious treated with a film forming polymer (Bond, Spray Gard, Moisturin) was less than on untreated controls. However, greatest protection in both field trials was provided by the synthetic fungicide penconazole. Higher chlorophyll fluorescence Fv/Fm emissions in polymer and penconazole treated trees indicated less damage to the leaf photosynthetic system as a result of fungal invasion. In addition, higher SPAD values as measures of leaf chlorophyll content were recorded in polymer and penconazole treated trees. Application of a film forming polymer or penconazole resulted in a higher apple yield per tree at harvest in both the 2005 and 2006 field trials compared to untreated controls. Results suggest application of an appropriate film forming polymer may provide a useful addition to existing methods of apple scab management. (C) 2008 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Antioxidant activity and protective effects of green and dark coffee components against human low density lipoprotein oxidation

The in vitro antioxidant activity and the protective effect against human low density lipoprotein oxidation of coffees prepared using different degrees of roasting was evaluated. Coffees with the highest amount of brown pigments (dark coffee) showed the highest peroxyl radical scavenging activity. These coffees also protected human low-density lipoprotein (LDL) against oxidation, although green coffee extracts showed more protection. In a different experiment, coffee extracts were incubated with human plasma prior to isolation of LDL particles. This showed, for the first time, that incubation of plasma with dark, but not green coffee extracts protected the LDL against oxidation by copper or by the thermolabile azo compound AAPH. Antioxidants in the dark coffee extracts must therefore have become associated with the LDL particles. Brown compounds, especially those derived from the Maillard reaction, are the compounds most likely to be responsible for this activity.

Purification and electron cryomicroscopy of coronavirus particles

Intact, enveloped coronavirus particles vary widely in size and contour, and are thus refractory to study by traditional structural means such as X-ray crystallography. Electron microscopy (EM) overcomes some problems associated with particle variability and has been an important tool for investigating coronavirus ultrastructure. However, EM sample preparation requires that the specimen be dried onto a carbon support film before imaging, collapsing internal particle structure in the case of coronaviruses. Moreover, conventional EM achieves image contrast by immersing the specimen briefly in heavy-metal-containing stain, which reveals some features while obscuring others. Electron cryomicroscopy (cryo-EM) instead employs a porous support film, to which the specimen is adsorbed and flash-frozen. Specimens preserved in vitreous ice over holes in the support film can then be imaged without additional staining. Cryo-EM, coupled with single-particle image analysis techniques, makes it possible to examine the size, structure and arrangement of coronavirus structural components in fully hydrated, native virions. Two virus purification procedures are described.

High activity supported gold catalysts by incipient wetness impregnation

It is generally thought that catalysts produced by incipient wetness impregnation (IW) are very poor for low temperature CO oxidation, and that it is necessary to use methods such as deposition-precipitation (DP) to make high activity materials. The former is true, indeed such IW catalysts are poor, and we present reactor data, XPS and TEM analysis which show that this is due to the very negative effect of the chloride anion involved in the preparation, which results in poisoning and excessive sintering of the Au particles. With the DP method, the chloride is largely removed during the preparation and so poisoning and sintering are avoided. However, we show here that, contrary to previous considerations, high activity catalysts can indeed be prepared by the incipient wetness method, if care is taken to remove the chloride ion during the process. This is achieved by using the double impregnation method (DIM). In this a double impregnation of chloroauric acid and a base are made to precipitate out gold hydroxide within the pores of the catalyst, followed by limited washing. This results in a much more active catalyst, which is active for CO oxidation at ambient temperature. The results for DIM and DP are compared, and it is proposed that the DIM method may represent an environmentally and economically more favorable route to high activity gold catalyst production. (C) 2007 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

An electrochemical study of 4-aminothiophenol/pt nanoparticle multilayers on gold electrodes

Quartz crystal microbalance (QCM) measurements of the formation of a 4-aminothiophenol (4-ATP)self-assembled monolayer (SAM) at a gold electrode showed that a surface coverage of 118 ng cm(-2) was obtained after a 3 h exposure period, indicating that good surface coverage was achieved. Cyclic voltammetry of the ferricyanide redox couple across this SAM modified surface produced similar results to those of a bare electrode; however, the electroreduction of oxygen was found to be impaired. The 4-ATP SAM layer was not stable to repeated electrochemical oxidation and reduction; it is believed that the 4-ATP SAM layer was first converted to a 4'-mercapto-N-phenylquinone diimine (NPQD) layer followed by subsequent formation of a 4'-mercapto-N-phenylquinone monoimine (NPQM) layer. We also report a quartz crystal microbalance study of the attachment of platinum nanoparticles to such SAM modified electrodes. We show that five times the amount of platinum nanoparticles can be attached to a 4-ATP modified electrode surface (observed frequency change - 187 Hz) compared with an NPQD modified electrode surface (observed frequency change -35 Hz). The presence of the platinum particles was confirmed electrochemically by their surface electrochemical properties, which were different from those of the underlying gold electrode. It is believed that this is the first time that such direct evidence of electrochemical communication between platinum nanoparticles and a SAM modified electrode surface has been obtained. It was also shown to be possible to build up multilayer SAM/nanoparticle modified surfaces while maintaining efficient electrochemical communication. Up to three SAM/nanoparticle sandwich layers were constructed.

Surface properties and locations of gluten proteins and lipids revealed using confocal scanning laser microscopy in bread dough

Surface properties of gluten proteins were measured in a dilation test and in compression and expansion tests. The results showed that monomeric gliadin was highly surface active, but polymer glutenin had almost no surface activity. The locations of those proteins in bread dough were investigated using confocal scanning laser microscopy and compared with polar and nonpolar lipids. Added gluten proteins participated in the formation of the film or the matrix, surrounding and separating individual gas cells in bread dough. Gliadin was found in the bulk of dough and gas 'cell walls'. Glutenin was found only in the bulk dough. Polar lipids were present in the protein matrix and in gas 'cell walls', as well as at the surface of some particles, which appeared to be starch granules. However, nonpolar lipid mainly occur-red on the surface of particles, which may be starch granules and small lipid droplets. It is suggested that the locations of gluten proteins in bread dough depends on their surface properties. Polar lipid participates the formation of gluten protein matrix and gas 'cell walls'. Nonpolar lipids may have an effect on the rheological properties by associating with starch granule surfaces and may form lipid droplets. (C) 2004 Published by Elsevier Ltd.