A microtubule-independent membranous “spindle envelope” confines spindle assembly and accounts for faithful chromosome segregation.

Binding of nanoclay (Laponite) to gelatin-A and gelatin-B (both polyampholytes) molecules was investigated at room temperature (25 degrees C) both experimentally and theoretically. The stoichiometric binding ratio between gelatin and Laponite was found to be strongly dependent on the solution ionic strength. Large soluble complexes were formed at higher ionic strengths of the solution, a result supported by data obtained from light scattering, viscosity, and zeta potential measurements. The binding problem was theoretically modeled by choosing a suitable two-body screened Coulomb potential, U(R(+)) = (q(-)/2epsilon)[(Q(-)/R(-))e(-kR(-))-(Q(+)/R(+))e(-kR(+))], where the protein dipole has charges Q(+) and Q(-) that are located at distances R(+) and R(-) from the point Laponite charge q(-) and the dispersion liquid has dielectric constant (epsilon). U(R(+)) accounted for electrostatic interactions between a dipole (protein molecule) and an effective charge (Laponite particle) located at an angular position theta. Gelatin-A and Laponite association was facilitated by a strong attractive interaction potential that led to preferential binding of the biopolymer chains to negatively charged face of Laponite particles. In the case of gelatin-B selective surf ace patch binding dominated the process where the positively charged rim and negatively charged face of the particles were selectively bound to the oppositely charged segments of the biopolymer. The equilibrium separation (R(e)) between the protein and nanoclay particle revealed monovalent salt concentration dependence given by R(e) approximately [NaCl](alpha) where alpha = 0.6+/-0.2 for gelatin-A and alpha = 0.4+/-0.2 for gelatin-B systems. The equilibrium separations were approximately 30% less compared to the gelatin-A system implying preferential short-range ordering of the gelatin-B-nanoclay pair in the solvent.

Sol and gel state behavior, in aqueous salt free dispersions, of clays Laponite (L) and Na montmorillonite (MMT) was studied at various mixing ratios (L:MMT = r = 1:0.5, 1:1, and 1:2). In the sol state, the zeta potential and gelation concentration of L-MMT obeyed the universal relation, X(L-MMT) = (rX(L) + X(MMT))/(1 + r), where X is zeta potential or gelation concentration (c(g)), implying that these properties are linear combinations of the same of their individual components. The low frequency storage modulus (G(0)'), relative viscosity (η(r)), and apparent cluster size (R) could be universally described by the power-law, G(0)' ∼ ((c/c(g)) - 1)(t) (c > c(g)), and η(r), R ∼ (1 - (c/c(g)))(-k,ν) (c < c(g)), with t = 1.5, k = 1.1, and υ = 0.8 close to the gelation concentration, for r = 1:1 cogel, consistent with the percolation model description of gelation. Interestingly, the hyperscaling relation δ = t/(k + t) yielded δ = 0.56 not too different from the predicted value ∼0.7, while the experimental value of δ obtained from G''(ω) ∼ ω(δ) close to c ≈ c(g) yielded δ = 1.5, which was at variance with the hyperscaling result. The experimental data, on hand, mostly supported percolation type gelation mechanism. As the cogels were slowly heated, at a characteristic temperature, T(g), a sharp increase in G' value was noticed, implying a transition to gel hardening (a new phase state). The temperature-dependent behavior followed the power-law description, G' ∼ (T(g) - T)(-γ) (T < T(g)), with γ = 0.40 ± 0.05 invariant of composition of the cogel, whereas for MMT and Laponite, γ = 0.25 and 0.55, respectively. It has been shown that the cogel has significantly enhanced mechanical (G(0) increased by 10 times for r = 1:1 cogel) and thermal properties (T(g) increased by 13 °C for 1:1 cogel) that can be exploited to design customized soft materials.

Intensity of light, I(q,t), scattered from homogeneous aqueous solutions, of nanoclay (Laponite) and protein (gelatin-A), was studied to monitor the temporal and spatial evolution of the solution into a phase-separated nanoclay-protein-rich dense phase, when the sample temperature was quenched below spinodal temperature, T s (¼311 6 3 K). The zeta potential data revealed that the dense phase comprised charge-neutralized intermolecular complexes of nanoclay and protein chains of low surface charge. The early stage, t < 500 s, of phase separation could be described adequately through Cahn-Hilliard theory of spinodal decomposition where the intensity grows exponentially,The wave vector, q dependence of the growth parameter, R(q) exhibited a maxima independent of time. Corresponding correlation length, 1/q c ¼ n c was found to be %75 6 5 nm independent of quench depth. In the intermediate regime, anomalous growth described by I(q, t) $ t a with a ¼ 0.1 6 0.02 independent of q was observed. Rheological studies established that there was a propensity of network structures inside the dense phase. Isochronal temperature sweep studies of the dense phase determined the melting temperature, T m ¼ 312 6 4 K, which was comparable with the spinodal temperature. The stress-diffusion coupling prevailing in the dense phase when analyzed in the Doi-Onuki model yielded a viscoelastic correlation length, n v determined from low-frequency storage modulus, G 0 0 % k B T/n 3 v , which was n v % 35 6 3 nm indicating 2n v % n c . It is concluded that the early stage of phase separation in this system was sufficiently described by linear Cahn-Hilliard theory, but the same was not true in the intermediate stage. V C 2010 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part B: Polym Phys 48: 555-565, 2010

In recent years, graphene-based materials complexed with drugs have been developed for application in cancer therapy, aimed at gaining synergistic effect. Here, we have prepared graphene oxide (GO) and graphene quantum dots (GQDs) with curcumin (Cur) in three different ratios (1:1, 1:3, and 1:5 w/v). We showed a successful complexation of GO and GQDs with Cur through various spectroscopy and microscopy techniques. The optical density of the complex through UV−vis spectroscopy showed less than 10% (for GQDs-Cur) and less than 20% (for GO-Cur) aggregation in 48 h, which confirms the stability of the complex. The UV−vis result estimates the loading efficiency of Cur to be 80 ± 1 and 83 ± 1% for GO-Cur and GQDs-Cur respectively. We tested the complexes GO-Cur and GQDs-Cur in different ratios as an anticancer drug against human breast cancer cell lines MCF-7 and MDA-MB-468 through the MTT assay. Following 48 h of incubation with the cell lines, a cell viability of more than 75% was observed in the case of GQDs & GO, while it was 40% in the case of Cur at a concentration of 100 μg/mL. The 1:1, 1:3, and 1:5 ratios of complexes enforced cell death ∼60, ∼80, and ∼95% at 100 μg/mL after 48 h of treatment, respectively. The optical images of cancerous cells treated with GO, GQDs, Cur, GO-Cur, and GQDs-Cur, at three different time intervals (0, 24, and 48 h), corroborated well with the results from the MTT assay in terms of the percentage of dead cells. The fluorescence images show a successful delivery of Cur drug inside the cancerous cell. The possible mechanism of killing of the cancerous cell with the complexes GO-Cur and GQDs-Cur is discussed. Moreover, this study opens a window to determine the mechanism of killing the cancerous cell.