In the present paper, a novel superabsorbent hydrogel composite based on carrageenan have been prepared via graft copolymerization of acrylic acid (AA) in the presence of kaolin powder using methylenebisacrylamide (MBA) as a crosslinking agent and ammonium persulfate (APS) as an initiator. The certain variables of the graft copolymerization (i.e. the monomer, the initiator and the crosslinker c...

The error-in-variables-model (EVM) is the most statistically correct non-linear parameter estimation technique for reactivity ratio estimation. However, many polymer researchers are unaware of the advantages of EVM and therefore still choose to use rather erroneous or approximate methods. The procedure is straightforward but it is often avoided because it is seen as mathematically and computati...

It has been thought that clathrin-mediated endocytosis is regulated by phosphorylation and dephosphorylation of many endocytic proteins, including amphiphysin I and dynamin I. Here, we show that Cdk5/p35-dependent cophosphorylation of amphiphysin I and dynamin I plays a critical role in such processes. Cdk5 inhibitors enhanced the electric stimulation-induced endocytosis in hippocampal neurons,...

The alternating copolymerization of epoxides and cyclic anhydrides is an increasingly popular route to aliphatic polyesters that are of interest as biodegradable replacements for petroleum-based polymers and for use in the biomedical field. However, broad and bimodal molecular weight distributions in these polymerizations continues to be an issue, limiting synthesis of multiblock copolymers. By...

Polycaprolactone (PCL) membrane was modified by grafting copolymerization of methacrylic acid (MAA) initiated under UV light. The covalent immobilization of gelatin on PCL-g-PMAA surface was consequently performed by using condensing agent, 1-ethyl-3-(3-dimethylamino propyl) carbodiimide hydrochloride. The occurrence of grafting copolymerization of PMAA and further immobilization of gelatin was...

The catalytic activity and selectivity of palladium(II) complexes of new, flexible bidentate ligands in the CO/ethene copolymerization reaction have been found to change considerably with the steric properties of the ligands.

Reaction of diarylphosphinobenzene-2-sulfonic acids with tertially amines, followed by addition of [PdMeCl(cod)], provided anionic methylpalladium(II) complexes with bidentate phosphine-sulfonate ligands, which show high activity for copolymerization of ethylene with methyl acrylate.

Multiple insertions of acrylate in copolymerization with ethylene, and an insertion homo-oligomerization of methyl acrylate were observed for the first time. Key to these findings, and to mechanistic insights reported, are labile-substituted complexes as catalyst precursors.

A series of poly(3-hexylthiophene)-b-poly(hexadecyloxylallene) copolymers has been synthesized in one pot via sequential monomer addition by using Ni(dppp)Cl2 as a single catalyst. The copolymerization has been revealed to proceed by a controlled chain extension mechanism and the block copolymer can self-assemble into a well-defined supramolecular structure in solution and exhibit microphase se...