Biofilms are recognised as an important contributor to bacterial resistance towards traditional antimicrobial treatments. Assessment of biofilm formation currently relies on a 96 well microtitre plate assay, which usually involves the colourimetric detection of stain (typically crystal violet) removed from previously stained biofilm. The amount of crystal violet released is then used as a quant...

This communication presents a novel and solvent-free method to synthesise Mg(B3H8)2 via the gas-solid reaction between B2H6 and Mg2NiH4, which overcomes the limitations of wet chemical methods requiring solvent removal.

BACKGROUND The benzhydryl ether moiety is widely distributed in nature and constitutes a key structural motif in numerous molecules of significant biological potential and of prospective clinical uses. Solvent-free and cost-effective facile synthesis of symmetrical bis(benzhydryl)ethers is, thus, much desirable. RESULTS A simple and efficient method for the facile synthesis of symmetrical bis...

Due to the vast importance of peptides in biological processes, there is an escalating need for synthetic peptides to be used in a wide variety of applications. However, the consumption of organic solvent is extremely large in chemical peptide syntheses because of the multiple condensation steps in organic solvents. That is, the current synthesis method is not environmentally friendly. From the...

CO(2) can be used to separate surfactant and organic solvent completely in various surfactant/solvent solutions without contaminating the surfactants and solvents. We believe that the simple, efficient, and greener method has wide applications.

A method for determining the activity of the solvent in electrolyte solutions by molecular dynamics simulations is presented. The electrolyte solution is simulated in contact with the pure solvent. Between the two phases, there is a virtual membrane, which is permeable only for the solvent. In the simulation, this is realized by an external field which acts only on the solutes and confines them...

The two most common methods of measuring the conformational stability of a protein are differential scanning calorimetry and an analysis of solvent denaturation curves by using the linear extrapolation method. In this article, we trace the history of the linear extrapolation method, review how the method is used to measure protein stability, and then discuss some of the other important uses.

In order to mimic cell membranes, the supported lipid bilayer (SLB) is an attractive platform which enables in vitro investigation of membrane-related processes while conferring biocompatibility and biofunctionality to solid substrates. The spontaneous adsorption and rupture of phospholipid vesicles is the most commonly used method to form SLBs. However, under physiological conditions, vesicle ...