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Ya-Ping Sun

Publications and source records attributed to Ya-Ping Sun.

At least 37 records · Page 2Linked to original sources

Poly(ethylene-co-vinyl alcohol) functionalized single-walled carbon nanotubes and related nanocomposites.

Single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWNTs) were functionalized by poly(ethylene-co-vinyl alcohol) (EVOH) copolymer under carbodiimide-activated esterification reaction conditions. Similar to the parent EVOH copolymer, the EVOH-functionalized carbon nanotubes are soluble in highly polar solvent systems such as DMSO and hot ethanol-water mixtures. The soluble EVOH-SWNT sample was characterized by various techniques, including optical absorption, Raman, NMR, electron microscopy, and thermogravimetric analysis. The common solubility of EVOH and EVOH-SWNT allowed their intimate mixing in solution, and thus the fabrication of nanocomposites in which the SWNTs are homogeneously dispersed in the polymer matrix.

Ethanol↗

Supercritical fluid technology for enhanced drug delivery.

The rapid advances in the development of formulation and delivery systems based on micron-sized and nanoscale drug particles will create significant benefits to the pharmaceutical industry. Complementary to traditional methods, supercritical fluid techniques have found many useful, and sometimes unique, applications in the production and processing of drug particles. In this article background information is provided on a variety of supercritical fluid techniques relevant to drug formulation and delivery, recent advances and novel applications are highlighted, and the successful development of a new supercritical fluid rapid expansion technique for producing exclusively nanoscale drug particles will be discussed. Challenges and opportunities for further development and future applications are also reviewed.

Drug Delivery Systems↗

Nanosizing drug particles in supercritical fluid processing.

The supercritical fluid-processing technique, rapid expansion of a supercritical solution into a liquid solvent (RESOLV), was applied to the nanosizing of water-insoluble drug particles. Selected for demonstration were antiinflammatory drugs Ibuprofen and Naproxen, for which CO2 and CO2-cosolvent systems were used. The RESOLV process produces exclusively nanoscale (less than 100 nm) Ibuprofen and Naproxen particles suspended in aqueous solutions, and the aqueous suspensions of the drug nanoparticles are protected from particle agglomeration and precipitation by using common polymeric and oligomeric stabilization agents.

Anti-Inflammatory Agents, Non-Steroidal↗

Diminished band-gap transitions of single-walled carbon nanotubes in complexation with aromatic molecules.

The near-IR absorption spectrum of semiconducting single-walled carbon nanotubes is characterized by the transitions associated with the first (S11) and second (S22) pairs of van Hove singularities in the electronic density of states. We report that a significant effect on the transitions can be caused by non-covalent complexation of the nanotube with planar aromatic molecules such as pyrenes in solution, resulting in the absence of S11 and S22 bands in the near-IR absorption spectrum. Since the complexation is reversible, the characteristic absorption bands can be turned on and off with the complexation in a reversible fashion.

Journal Article↗

Deuterium attachment to carbon nanotubes in deuterated water.

A systematic investigation on the unusual attachment of labile deuterium to carbon nanotubes in deuterated water and alcohols is reported. The carbon nanotubes were solubilized through the established functionalization of the nanotube-bound carboxylic acids to allow solution-phase reaction and characterization. The deuterium attachment was found under several experimental conditions, including the use of deuterated ethanol as a co-reactant in the nanotube functionalization reaction and the refluxing of functionalized or simply purified carbon nanotubes in deuterated water and alcohols. The solubility of the functionalized carbon nanotube samples in common organic solvents and water allowed unambiguous (2)H NMR characterization. The reproducible broad (2)H NMR signal at approximately 6.5 ppm is assigned to carbon nanotube-attached deuterium species. The assignment is supported by the results from FT-IR measurements. The carbon-deuterium interaction is so strong that the corresponding vibration resembles the typical C-D stretching mode in the characteristic frequency region. The FT-IR peak intensities also correlate well with the (2)H NMR signal integrations in a series of samples. Mechanistic implications of the results are discussed.

Journal Article↗

Selective interactions of porphyrins with semiconducting single-walled carbon nanotubes.

A derivatized porphyrin with long alkyl chains, 5,10,15,20-tetrakis(hexadecyloxyphenyl)-21H,23H-porphine, is selective toward semiconducting single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWNTs) in presumably noncovalent interactions, resulting in significantly enriched semiconducting SWNTs in the solubilized sample and predominantly metallic SWNTs in the residual solid sample according to Raman, near-IR absorption, and bulk conductivity characterizations.

Journal Article↗

Gel permeation chromatography of fullerene-centered macromolecules.

Gel permeation chromatography (GPC) behavior of fullerene-centered macromolecules is investigated. Because of the globular shape of the macromolecules, their GPC results are different from those of linear polystyrene standards. These macromolecules may serve as alternative molecular weight standards for polymers or dendrimers of similar globular structures. The results also show that the GPC analysis is capable of discerning relatively minor structural differences in the fullerene-centered macromolecules.

Journal Article↗

Protein-conjugated nanoparticles from rapid expansion of supercritical fluid solution into aqueous solution.

The method of rapid expansion of a supercritical solution into a liquid solvent (RESOLV) was applied to the preparation of bovine serum albumin protein-conjugated silver sulfide nanoparticles. The conjugate samples were characterized by using a series of instrumental techniques. The results show that the monodispersed nanoparticles in the conjugates are well-coated directly with the protein. Because the protein undergoes solution pH-dependent association and dissociation, the protein-nanoparticle conjugates also assemble and disassemble with changes in solution pH in a reversible fashion.

Hydrogen-Ion Concentration↗

Dispersion and solubilization of carbon nanotubes.

Carbon nanotubes are generally insoluble in any solvents, resulting in their poor processability for many proposed potential applications. Several strategies have been developed to introduce carbon nanotubes into solvent systems, including dispersion and suspension under special experimental conditions and the chemical modification and functionalization. The well-dispersed and solubilized carbon nanotubes make it possible to characterize and study the carbon nanotubes by using solution-based techniques, to realize some of the unique properties of the nanotubes, and to carry out further chemical transformations. In this review, recent development in the experimental methods for the dispersion and solubilization of carbon nanotubes will be summarized and discussed.

Biocompatible Materials↗

Antiproliferative action of calcitonin on lactotrophs of the rat anterior pituitary gland: evidence for the involvement of transforming growth factor beta 1 in calcitonin action.

Calcitonin-like pituitary peptide, which is synthesized and secreted by gonadotrophs of the rat anterior pituitary (AP) gland, is a potent inhibitor of prolactin biosynthesis and lactotroph cell proliferation. Because TGF-beta 1 is an autocrine inhibitor of lactotroph cell proliferation, we investigated a possibility that calcitonin (CT) interacts with TGF-beta 1 to inhibit lactotroph cell proliferation. The actions of CT on GGH3 cell proliferation were examined in the absence or presence of anti-TGF-beta 1 serum. Subsequent experiments tested the effects of CT on TGF-beta 1 mRNA abundance as well as TGF-beta 1 synthesis. The studies also tested whether the stimulatory action of CT on TGF-beta 1 mRNA expression involves stabilization of TGF-beta 1 mRNA. Finally, the experiments investigated in vivo actions of CT on TGF-beta 1 synthesis in the AP gland. This was accomplished by studying the changes induced by i.v. administered CT in TGF-beta 1-immunopositive cell populations of adult female rat AP glands. The results have shown that the inhibitory action of CT on proliferation of GGH3 cells was attenuated by rabbit anti-TGF-beta 1 serum. Moreover, CT stimulated TGF-beta 1 mRNA expression, as well as TGF-beta 1 synthesis, in a dose-dependent fashion. Stimulatory action of CT on TGF-beta 1 expression may be posttranscriptional, because it significantly increased TGF-beta 1 mRNA stability. When administered in vivo, CT significantly increased TGF-beta 1-immunopositive cell populations of adult female rat AP gland. Colocalization studies for prolactin and TGF-beta 1 suggest that CT increased TGF-beta 1 synthesis in lactotrophs, and possibly in nonlactotroph cell populations. These results suggest that antiproliferative action of CT on lactotrophs may, at least in part, be mediated by CT-induced TGF-beta 1 expression.

Animals↗

Hot-fluid annealing for crystalline titanium dioxide nanoparticles in stable suspension.

Titanium dioxide (TiO(2)) nanoparticles were synthesized by controlled hydrolysis of titanium alkoxide in reverse micelles in a hydrocarbon solvent. Upon annealing in situ in the presence of the micelles at temperatures considerably lower than those required for the traditional calcination treatment in the solid state, the TiO(2) nanoparticles became highly crystalline but still maintained the same physical parameters and remained in a stable suspension. Thus, the method has allowed the preparation of crystalline TiO(2) nanoparticles that are monodispersed in the same way as they are initially produced in the microemulsion. Effects of the fluid properties on the crystallization of nanoparticles are discussed.

Journal Article↗