Thorsten Balgar | PubMed Health

PubMed2004

Preparation of submicron-structured alkylsiloxane monolayers using prepatterned silicon substrates by laser direct writing.

A new constructive method for the preparation of laterally structured alkylsiloxane monolayers is demonstrated. Laser direct writing has been used to create oxide patterns on H-terminated Si(100) samples under ambient conditions. Depending on the laser power and the writing speed, oxide structures with a lateral resolution below 500 nm are prepared routinely. The patterned samples are suitable as temporary templates for the preparation of laterally structured octadecylsiloxane monolayers. Prior to immersion in an octadecyltrichlorosilane solution, however, hydration of the samples in water is essential to facilitate a selective coating of the oxidized areas. After coating, atomic force microscopy reveals the formation of octadecylsiloxane islands exclusively on top of the oxide lines.

Letter↗

PubMed2002

Arsenic-speciation in arsenate-resistant and non-resistant populations of the earthworm, Lumbricus rubellus.

Arsenic speciation was determined in Lumbricus rubellus Hoffmeister from arsenic-contaminated mine spoil sites and an uncontaminated site using HPLC-MS, HPLC-ICP-MS and XAS. It was previously demonstrated that L. rubellus from mine soils were more arsenate resistant than from the uncontaminated site and we wished to investigate if arsenic speciation had a role in this resistance. Earthworms from contaminated sites had considerably higher arsenic body burdens (maximum 1,358 mg As kg-1) compared to the uncontaminated site (maximum 13 mg As kg-1). The only organo-arsenic species found in methanol/water extracts for all earthworm populations was arsenobetaine, quantified using both HPLC-MS and HPLC-ICP-MS. Arsenobetaine concentrations were high in L. rubellus from the uncontaminated site when concentrations were expressed as a percentage of the total arsenic burden (23% mean), but earthworms from the contaminated sites with relatively low arsenic burdens also had these high levels of arsenobetaine (17% mean). As arsenic body burden increased, the percentage of arsenobetaine present decreased in a dose dependent manner, although its absolute concentration rose with increasing arsenic burden. The origin of this arsenobetaine is discussed. XAS analysis of arsenic mine L. rubellus showed that arsenic was primarily present as As(III) co-ordinated with sulfur (30% approx.), with some As(v) with oxygen (5%). Spectra for As(III) complexed with glutathione gave a very good fit to the spectra obtained for the earthworms, suggesting a role for sulfur co-ordination in arsenic metabolism at higher earthworm arsenic burdens. It is also possible that the disintegration of As(III)-S complexes may have taken place due to (a) processing of the sample, (b) storage of the extract or (c) HPLC anion exchange. HPLC-ICP-MS analysis of methanol extracts showed the presence of arsenite and arsenate, suggesting that these sulfur complexes disintegrate on extraction. The role of arsenic speciation in the resistance of L. rubellus to arsenate is considered.

Adaptation, Physiological↗