Parallel mechanisms of polypyrrole self-discharge in aqueous media.

In this report we investigate the self-discharge in a positively charged polypyrrole-cellulose composite material in water solution. Rate constants for the self-discharge reaction are determined by potential step methods and their dependence on pH, temperature and applied potential are reported. Based on the results, we propose that two fundamentally different self-discharge mechanisms operate in parallel; one of faradaic origin with a rate constant increasing exponentially with applied potential and one mechanism comprising an initial reaction of the charged polymer with hydroxide ions. The second mechanism dominates at high pH as the rate constant for this reaction increases exponentially with pH whilst the faradaic reaction dominates at low pH. With this report we hope to shed light on the complex and elusive nature of self-discharge in conducting polymers to serve as guidance for the construction of electrical energy storage devices with conducting polymer components.

Measurements of Brownian relaxation of magnetic nanobeads using planar Hall effect bridge sensors.

We compare measurements of the Brownian relaxation response of magnetic nanobeads in suspension using planar Hall effect sensors of cross geometry and a newly proposed bridge geometry. We find that the bridge sensor yields six times as large signals as the cross sensor, which results in a more accurate determination of the hydrodynamic size of the magnetic nanobeads. Finally, the bridge sensor has successfully been used to measure the change in dynamic magnetic response when rolling circle amplified DNA molecules are bound to the magnetic nanobeads. The change is validated by measurements performed in a commercial AC susceptometer. The presented bridge sensor is, thus, a promising component in future lab-on-a-chip biosensors for detection of clinically relevant analytes, including bacterial genomic DNA and proteins.

Enabling measurements of low-conductance single molecules using gold nanoelectrodes.

A high resistance nanogap platform was used to trap and electrically characterize 30 nm thiolated double-stranded DNA molecules. High resolution scanning electron microscopy was also used to image the trapped DNA strands. It was found that the surface state of the electrodes and underlying substrate could influence the measurements of trapped molecules when the measured resistances were on the order of TΩ or greater. Hydrophilic surfaces gave rise to larger leakage currents that could potentially mask the underlying signals from molecules positioned in the nanogap. Finally, the careful handling of the samples and control of the environment is essential to avoid surface charging of the oxide substrate layer as these parasitic charges affect electrical measurements of the nanogap. The presented results thus outline some important considerations when making low-conductance measurements on molecules and should prove useful for the characterization of molecules in molecular electronics or sensors employing nanogap platforms.

Assessment of a nanoparticle bridge platform for molecular electronics measurements.

A combination of electron beam lithography, photolithography and focused ion beam milling was used to create a nanogap platform, which was bridged by gold nanoparticles in order to make electrical measurements and assess the platform under ambient conditions. Non-functionalized electrodes were tested to determine the intrinsic response of the platform and it was found that creating devices in ambient conditions requires careful cleaning and awareness of the contributions contaminants may make to measurements. The platform was then used to make measurements on octanethiol (OT) and biphenyldithiol (BPDT) molecules by functionalizing the nanoelectrodes with the molecules prior to bridging the nanogap with nanoparticles. Measurements on OT show that it is possible to make measurements on relatively small numbers of molecules, but that a large variation in response can be expected when one of the metal-molecule junctions is physisorbed, which was partially explained by attachment of OT molecules to different sites on the surface of the Au electrode using a density functional theory calculation. On the other hand, when dealing with BPDT, high yields for device creation are very difficult to achieve under ambient conditions. Significant hysteresis in the I-V curves of BPDT was also observed, which was attributed primarily to voltage induced changes at the interface between the molecule and the metal.

Microscopic mechanisms influencing the volume amplified magnetic nanobead detection assay.

The volume amplified magnetic nanobead detection assay [Strömberg, M., Göransson, J., Gunnarsson, K., Nilsson, M., Svedlindh, P., Strømme, M., 2008. Nano Letters 8, 816-821] was investigated with respect to bead size, bead surface coverage of probe oligonucleotides, bead concentration and rolling circle amplification (RCA) time, with the objective to improve the understanding of the microscopic mechanisms influencing the assay. The most important findings for future biosensor development were the following: (i) small beads exhibit a much reduced tendency to cross-link several RCA products, thus enabling use of both complex magnetisation turn-on and turn-off detection strategies, whereas larger beads only allow for turn-off detection; (ii) small beads exhibit faster immobilisation kinetics, thus reducing the time for diagnostic test completion, and also immobilise in larger numbers than larger beads. Finally, (iii) by demonstrating qualitative dual-target detection of bacterial DNA sequences using 130 and 250nm beads, the bioassay was shown to allow for multiplexed detection.

Percolative drug diffusion from cylindrical matrix systems with unsealed boundaries.

Release of NaCl in both the axial and radial directions from cylindrical ethyl cellulose tablets were investigated by the alternating ionic current method. The pore structure of the investigated binary mixtures was examined by mercury porosimetry and scanning electron microscopy, and the nm range fractal surface dimension of tablet pore walls was extracted from krypton gas adsorption isotherms. The drug release was shown to consist of two overlapping processes of which the first was ascribed to dissolution of NaCl close to the tablet boundary followed by subsequent diffusion through a thin ethyl cellulose layer and a second from which a porosity percolation threshold of 0.22 could be extracted. As well, a cross-over to effective-medium behaviour at a porosity of approximately 0.44 was observed. The presented findings showed that drug release from matrix tablets with unsealed tablet walls substantially differs from earlier investigated release processes for which the drug has only been allowed to escape through one of the flat tablet surfaces. Thus, the present study brings forward knowledge important for the tailoring of controlled drug delivery vehicles with optimum release patterns.

Influence of cellulose powder structure on moisture-induced degradation of acetylsalicylic acid.

The stability of crystalline acetylsalicylic acid (ASA) powder in binary mixtures with cellulose powders was investigated to reveal information about the influence of the cellulose structural properties on the moisture-induced ASA degradation. Different cellulose powder samples were manufactured and characterized by X-ray diffraction and N2 BET gas adsorption. The degradation patterns in ASA/cellulose mixtures were monitored as a function of salicylic acid increase versus time under various relative humidity conditions at 50 degrees C. The crystallinity index of cellulose samples varied between approximately 49 and 95%. The results indicated that cellulose powder with the lowest crystallinity index exhibited lower degradation rates than the samples with the higher crystallinity index. It should be noted that higher ASA degradation rates were observed in the samples with comparably lower moisture contents. This effect was most pronounced in the 1:3 (w/w), ASA/cellulose mixtures, whereas in 3:1 (w/w), ASA/cellulose mixtures the effect was less obvious. The findings emphasise the importance of cellulose structural organisation when governing the moisture's partition between cellulose and ASA during the hydrolytic degradation.

Viscoelastic characterization of compacted pharmaceutical excipient materials by analysis of frequency-dependent mechanical relaxation processes.

A newly developed method for determining the frequency-dependent complex Young's modulus was employed to analyze the mechanical response of compacted microcrystalline cellulose, sorbitol, ethyl cellulose and starch for frequencies up to 20 kHz. A Debye-like relaxation was observed in all the studied pharmaceutical excipient materials and a comparison with corresponding dielectric spectroscopy data was made. The location in frequency of the relaxation peak was shown to correlate to the measured tensile strength of the tablets, and the relaxation was interpreted as the vibrational response of the interparticle hydrogen and van der Waals bindings in the tablets. Further, the measured relaxation strength, holding information about the energy loss involved in the relaxation processes, showed that the weakest material in terms of tensile strength, starch, is the material among the four tested ones that is able to absorb the most energy within its structure when exposed to external perturbations inducing vibrations in the studied frequency range. The results indicate that mechanical relaxation analysis performed over relatively broad frequency ranges should be useful for predicting material properties of importance for the functionality of a material in applications such as, e.g., drug delivery, drug storage and handling, and also for clarifying the origin of hitherto unexplained molecular processes.

Electrodynamic investigations of ion transport and structural properties in drug-containing gels: dielectric spectroscopy and transient current measurements on catanionic carbopol systems.

The aim of this study is to show the potential of using electrodynamic methods as characterization tools in the controlled drug release process, on complex drug release systems. The two formulations under study were a Carbopol gel containing diphenhydramine and an identical gel also containing the surfactant sodium dodecyl sulfate which forms catanionic vesicles with the diphenhydramine. The average diffusion coefficients were calculated from both the dielectric spectroscopy and the transient current measurements. Comparing the herein-obtained diffusion coefficients with those obtained in another study using a traditional USP technique for the same system, the values are virtually the same. The two electrodynamic methods proved to be potentially valuable tools for obtaining information about the concentration and the motion of the drug molecules inside the gel. The transient current measurements are particularly interesting in this case, as the method gives information not only on an average level, but also of the different charged moieties separately. Interestingly, it seems that the methods also are applicable for obtaining information about the mesh size in the gel.

Drug release modeled by dissolution, diffusion, and immobilization.

This article presents a novel drug release model that combines drug dissolution, diffusion, and immobilization caused by adsorption of the drug to the tablet constituents. Drug dissolution is described by the well-known Noyes-Whitney equation and drug adsorption by a Langmuir-Freundlich adsorption isotherm, and these two processes are included as source and sink terms in the diffusion equation. The model is applicable to tablets that disintegrate into a number of approximately spherical fragments. In order to simplify the analysis it is assumed that liquid absorption, matrix swelling, and tablet disintegration are much faster than drug dissolution and subsequent drug release. The resulting model is shown to yield release characteristics in good agreement with those observed experimentally.