ABSTRACT
Monodisperse gold nanocrystals with unique near-infrared optical properties were synthesized by simple mixing of highly shortened and well disperse single-walled carbon nanotubes and chloroauric acid in water at ambient conditions with a step-wise increase of gold ion concentration.
Subject(s)
Gold/chemistry , Nanoparticles/chemistry , Nanotechnology/methods , Nanotubes, Carbon/chemistry , Nanoparticles/ultrastructure , Nanotubes, Carbon/ultrastructure , Spectroscopy, Near-Infrared , Water/chemistryABSTRACT
The magnetic susceptibility and high bacterial affinity of carbon nanotube (CNT) clusters highlight their great potential as a magnetic bio-separation agent. This article reports the CNT clusters' capability as "universal" bacterial adsorbents and magnetic separation agents by designing and testing a multiwalled carbon nanotube (MWNT) cluster-based process for bacterial capturing and separation. The reaction system consisted of large clusters of MWNTs for bacterial capture and an external magnet for bio-separation. The designed system was tested and optimized using Escherichia coli as a model bacterium, and further generalized by testing the process with other representative strains of both gram-positive and gram-negative bacteria. For all strains tested, bacterial adsorption to MWNT clusters occurred spontaneously, and the estimated MWNT clusters' adsorption capacities were nearly the same regardless of the types of strains. The bacteria-bound MWNT clusters also responded almost instantaneously to the magnetic field by a rare-earth magnet (0.68 Tesla), and completely separated from the bulk aqueous phase and retained in the system. The results clearly demonstrate their excellent potential as highly effective "universal" bacterial adsorbents for the spontaneous adsorption of any types of bacteria to the clusters and as paramagnetic complexes for the rapid and highly effective magnetic separations.
Subject(s)
Arthrobacter/chemistry , Bacillus subtilis/chemistry , Escherichia coli/chemistry , Magnetics , Nanotubes, Carbon/chemistry , Pseudomonas putida/chemistry , Adsorption , Nanotechnology , Particle Size , Surface PropertiesABSTRACT
Carbon nanotubes have shown promise as contrast agents for photoacoustic and photothermal imaging of tumours and infections because they offer high resolution and allow deep tissue imaging. However, in vivo applications have been limited by the relatively low absorption displayed by nanotubes at near-infrared wavelengths and concerns over toxicity. Here, we show that gold-plated carbon nanotubes-termed golden carbon nanotubes-can be used as photoacoustic and photothermal contrast agents with enhanced near-infrared contrast ( approximately 10(2)-fold) for targeting lymphatic vessels in mice using extremely low laser fluence levels of a few mJ cm(-2). Antibody-conjugated golden carbon nanotubes were used to map the lymphatic endothelial receptor, and preliminary in vitro viability tests show golden carbon nanotubes have minimal toxicity. This new nanomaterial could be an effective alternative to existing nanoparticles and fluorescent labels for non-invasive targeted imaging of molecular structures in vivo.
Subject(s)
Acoustics , Contrast Media/chemistry , Gold/chemistry , Light , Molecular Imaging/methods , Nanotubes, Carbon/chemistry , Temperature , Animals , Endothelium, Lymphatic/metabolism , Metal Nanoparticles/chemistry , Metal Nanoparticles/ultrastructure , Mice , Mice, Nude , Nanotubes, Carbon/ultrastructure , Receptors, Cell Surface/metabolism , Spectrum AnalysisABSTRACT
Satisfactory measures of the biological-oxygen-uptake rate in headspace-gas respirometers can only be achieved if the rate of oxygen transfer from the headspace gas to liquid is greater than the rate of oxygen uptake by microorganisms. In the authors' study, factors potentially affecting oxygen-transfer limitations in headspace-gas respirometers were evaluated quantitatively. Tests were conducted to measure maximum-oxygen-uptake rates by operating a respirometer under various test conditions. Analysis of respirometric data indicated that limiting oxygen-transfer rates were related to mixing intensity, length of magnetic stirring bar, volume of sample, and oxygen content in the headspace gas. A multivariable model was developed to describe the overall contribution of these factors to the limiting oxygen-transfer rate. This model should be useful for estimating maximum-oxygen-transfer rates for essentially all headspace-gas respirometers.
