Most investigators studying rhodopsin in solution have used digitonin as the solubilizing agent. In solutions of this detergent, one can observe the bleaching of rhodopsin, as well as the reversal of bleaching by resynthesis from 11 cis retinal and opsin (e.g. see ref. 1) or by photoreversal from the intermediates of bleaching (e.g., see ref. 2). Other detergents can also solubilize rhodopsin (...

Polyurethanes (PURs) are very versatile polymeric materials with a wide range of physical and chemical properties. PURs have desirable properties such as high abrasion resistance, tear strength, shock absorption, flexibility and elasticity. Although they have relatively poor thermal stability, this can be improved by using treated clay. Polyurethane/clay nanocomposites have been synthesized fro...

This study investigated the elimination of Cr(VI) from aqueous solution utilizing a composite from magnetic nanoparticles (Fe3O4) capped with cetyltrimethylammonium bromide (CTAB). The structure of the prepared composite system was examined by Fourier Transform Infra Red Spectroscopy (FTIR), X-ray Diffractometry (XRD), and Transmission Electron Microscopy (TEM). Separation of the Fe3O4/CTAB com...

Augmenting the donor density and nanostructure engineering are the crucial points to improve solar water oxidation performance of hematite (α-Fe2O3). This work addresses the sluggish water oxidation reaction associated with hematite photoanode by tweaking its internal porosity. The porous hematite photoanodes are fabricated by a novel synthetic strategy via pulse reverse electrodeposition (PRED...

This paper describes a facile method for generating Au@Ag core-shell nanocubes with edge lengths controllable in the range of 13.4-50 nm. The synthesis involved the use of single-crystal, spherical Au nanocrystals of 11 nm in size as the seeds in an aqueous system, with ascorbic acid serving as the reductant and cetyltrimethylammonium chloride (CTAC) as the capping agent. The thickness of the A...

This paper reports application of cetyltrimethylammonium bromide (CTAB) coated magnetite nanoparticles (Fe3O4 NPs) as a novel adsorbent for removal of two types of disperse dyes, including disperse red 167, and disperse blue 183, from wastewater of textile companies. The effect of parameters including type of surfactant, pH of solution, surfactant concentration, and amount of salt, was investig...

Isolation of intact and pure genomic DNA (gDNA) is essential for many molecular biology applications. It is difficult to isolate pure DNA from mature trees of hot and dry desert regions because of the accumulation of high level of polysaccharides, phenolic compounds, tannins etc. We hereby report the standardized protocol for the isolation and purification of gDNA from seven ecologically and me...

Catalytic and spectroscopic properties of alcohol dehydrogenase from horse liver, incorporated in reversed micellar media, have been studied. Two different reversed micellar systems have been used, one containing an anionic [sodium bis(2-ethylhexyl)sulfosuccinate, AOT], the other containing a cationic (cetyltrimethylammonium bromide, CTAB) surfactant. With 1-hexanol as substrate the turnover nu...

The study of biofilm ecology and interactions might help to improve our understanding of their resistance mechanisms to control strategies. Concerns that the diversity of the biofilm communities can affect disinfection efficacy have led us to examine the effect of two antimicrobial agents on two important spoilage bacteria. Studies were conducted on single and dual species biofilms of Bacillus ...

Gold nanorods (Au NRs) have been receiving extensive attention owing to their extremely attractive properties which make them suitable for various biomedical applications. Au NRs could induce nano-toxicity, but this trouble could turn into therapeutic potential through tuning the autophagy. However, the autophagy-inducing activity and mechanism of Au NRs is still unclear. Here we showed that su...