An oil-in-water Pickering emulsion stabilized by biobased material based on a bacteria-chitosan network (BCN) was developed for the first time in this study. The formation of self-assembled BCN was possible due to the electrostatic interaction between negatively charged bacterial cells and polycationic chitosan. The BCN was proven to stabilize the tetradecane/water interface, promoting formation of highly stable oil-in-water emulsion (o/w emulsion). We characterized and visualized the BCN stabilized o/w emulsions by scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and laser scanning confocal microscopy (LSCM). Due to the sustainability and low environmental impact of chitosan, the BCN-based emulsions open up opportunities for the development of an environmental friendly new interface material as well as the novel type of microreactor utilizing bacterial cells network.

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We developed a new thermometric fluorescent sensor based on core/shell nanocomposite composed of gold nanoparticles and thermoresponsive poly(N-isopropylacrylamide), which shows a reversible fluorescence change in response to a temperature change.

Pseudogout is a type of joint inflammations caused by deposition of calcium pyrophosphate (CaPPi) crystals in the affected joint. As Ca 2+ is abundant in the synovial fluid (SF), high levels of soluble PPi in the SF could be one of the key factors that contribute to CaPPi formation in the joint and may serve as a biomarker for pseudogout. Here, we developed and applied an artificial molecular sensor to selective fluorescent detection of soluble PPi in SF of the arthritis patients. The sensor employed xanthene as a fluorophore and the Dpa/Zn(II) as two specific binding sites for PPi. When titrated with serially diluted aqueous PPi solutions, the sensor displayed high sensitivity and exhibited the detection limit of 0.01 µM. The effect of salt concentration was normalized via the concept of Middle Point of Quantification (MPOQ) firstly proposed in this study. The performance of this sensor was also further validated by testing with SF samples extracted from eight clinical patients. The results revealed that six patients had the PPi levels in the range of 60 and 200 µM, indicating moderate likelihood of having pseudogout. Hence, our new method for determining the soluble PPi levels in SF shows promise as a robust, sensitive, and accurate diagnostic tool for the pseudogout.