Penicillin-binding proteins (PBPs) determine antibiotic action in Langmuir monolayers as nanoarchitectonics mimetic membranes of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus

Materials Nanoarchitectonics for Advanced Devices

Advances in nanotechnology have made it possible to observe and evaluate structures down to the atomic and molecular level. The next step in the development of functional materials is to apply the knowledge of nanotechnology to materials sciences. This is the role of nanoarchitectonics, which is a concept of post-nanotechnology. Nanoarchitectonics is defined as a methodology to create functional materials using nanounits such as atoms, molecules, and nanomaterials as building blocks. Nanoarchitectonics is very general and is not limited to materials or applications, and thus nanoarchitecture is applied in many fields. In particular, in the evolution from nanotechnology to nanoarchitecture, it is useful to consider the contribution of nanoarchitecture in device applications. There may be a solution to the widely recognized problem of integrating top-down and bottom-up approaches in the design of functional systems. With this in mind, this review discusses examples of nanoarchitectonics in developments of advanced devices. Some recent examples are introduced through broadly dividing them into organic molecular nanoarchitectonics and inorganic materials nanoarchitectonics. Examples of organic molecular nanoarchitecture include a variety of control structural elements, such as π-conjugated structures, chemical structures of complex ligands, steric hindrance effects, molecular stacking, isomerization and color changes due to external stimuli, selective control of redox reactions, and doping control of organic semiconductors by electron transfer reactions. Supramolecular chemical processes such as association and intercalation of organic molecules are also important in controlling device properties. The nanoarchitectonics of inorganic materials often allows for control of size, dimension, and shape, and their associated physical properties can also be controlled. In addition, there are specific groups of materials that are suitable for practical use, such as nanoparticles and graphene. Therefore, nanoarchitecture of inorganic materials also has a more practical aspect. Based on these aspects, this review finally considers the future of materials nanoarchitectonics for further advanced devices.

Macrolactin XY, a Macrolactin Antibiotic from Marine-Derived Bacillus subtilis sp. 18

Two new compounds, macrolactin XY (1) and (5R, 9S, 10S)-5-(hydroxymethyl)-1,3,7-decatriene-9,10-diol (2), together with nine known compounds (3-11) were isolated from the marine Bacillus subtilis sp. 18 by the OSMAC strategy. These compounds were evaluated for antibacterial activity against six tested microorganisms. Compounds 1-5 and 7-10 showed varied antibacterial activity, with the minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) ranging from 3 to 12 μg/mL. Macrolactin XY (1) was found to possess superior antibacterial activity, especially exhibiting significant effectiveness against Enterococcus faecalis. The antibacterial activity mechanism against E. faecalis was investigated. The mechanism may disrupt bacterial cell membrane integrity and permeability, and also inhibit the expression of genes associated with bacterial energy metabolism, as established by the experiments concerning cell membrane potential, SDS-PAGE electrophoresis, cell membrane integrity, and key gene expressions. This study offers valuable insights and serves as a theoretical foundation for the future development of macrolactins as antibacterial precursors.

Liquid-Liquid and Liquid-Solid Interfacial Nanoarchitectonics

Nanoscale science is becoming increasingly important and prominent, and further development will necessitate integration with other material chemistries. In other words, it involves the construction of a methodology to build up materials based on nanoscale knowledge. This is also the beginning of the concept of post-nanotechnology. This role belongs to nanoarchitectonics, which has been rapidly developing in recent years. However, the scope of application of nanoarchitectonics is wide, and it is somewhat difficult to compile everything. Therefore, this review article will introduce the concepts of liquid and interface, which are the keywords for the organization of functional material systems in biological systems. The target interfaces are liquid-liquid interface, liquid-solid interface, and so on. Recent examples are summarized under the categories of molecular assembly, metal-organic framework and covalent organic framework, and living cell. In addition, the latest research on the liquid interfacial nanoarchitectonics of organic semiconductor film is also discussed. The final conclusive section summarizes these features and discusses the necessary components for the development of liquid interfacial nanoarchitectonics.

Solid and Liquid Surface-Supported Bacterial Membrane Mimetics as a Platform for the Functional and Structural Studies of Antimicrobials

Increasing antibiotic resistance has provoked the urgent need to investigate the interactions of antimicrobials with bacterial membranes. The reasons for emerging antibiotic resistance and innovations in novel therapeutic approaches are highly relevant to the mechanistic interactions between antibiotics and membranes. Due to the dynamic nature, complex compositions, and small sizes of native bacterial membranes, bacterial membrane mimetics have been developed to allow for the in vitro examination of structures, properties, dynamics, and interactions. In this review, three types of model membranes are discussed: monolayers, supported lipid bilayers, and supported asymmetric bilayers; this review highlights their advantages and constraints. From monolayers to asymmetric bilayers, biomimetic bacterial membranes replicate various properties of real bacterial membranes. The typical synthetic methods for fabricating each model membrane are introduced. Depending on the properties of lipids and their biological relevance, various lipid compositions have been used to mimic bacterial membranes. For example, mixtures of phosphatidylethanolamines (PE), phosphatidylglycerols (PG), and cardiolipins (CL) at various molar ratios have been used, approaching actual lipid compositions of Gram-positive bacterial membranes and inner membranes of Gram-negative bacteria. Asymmetric lipid bilayers can be fabricated on solid supports to emulate Gram-negative bacterial outer membranes. To probe the properties of the model bacterial membranes and interactions with antimicrobials, three common characterization techniques, including quartz crystal microbalance with dissipation (QCM-D), surface plasmon resonance (SPR), and neutron reflectometry (NR) are detailed in this review article. Finally, we provide examples showing that the combination of bacterial membrane models and characterization techniques is capable of providing crucial information in the design of new antimicrobials that combat bacterial resistance.

Magnetic porous cellulose surface-imprinted polymers synthetized with assistance of deep eutectic solvent for specific recognition and purification of bisphenols

Magnetic porous cellulose molecularly imprinted polymers-based bisphenols have been developed using Fe₃O₄ as the magnetic material, a deep eutectic solvent as the assisted solvent, and N-isopropylacrylamide as the functional monomer. The resulting magnetic porous cellulose molecularly imprinted polymers were characterized using scanning electron microscopy, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction, vibrating sample magnetometry, thermal gravimetric analysis, and Brunauer-Emmett-Teller analysis. Moreover, the adsorption properties of the magnetic porous cellulose molecularly imprinted polymers toward bisphenol A, bisphenol F, and bisphenol AF were investigated using static, dynamic, and selective adsorption experiments. The introduction of porous cellulose materials significantly improves the capabilities of the material. The adsorption capacity, mass transfer efficiency, and selectivity of the magnetic porous cellulose molecularly imprinted polymers toward bisphenol A were 5.9, 4.0, and 4.4 times those of traditional molecularly imprinted polymers. Moreover, the adsorption stability of the magnetic porous cellulose molecularly imprinted polymers was investigated under different temperature and pH conditions. The adsorption characteristics of the magnetic porous cellulose molecularly imprinted polymers toward the target molecules were investigated using adsorption isotherm, kinetic, and thermodynamic models. Hydrogen bonding is the main interaction formed between the magnetic porous cellulose molecularly imprinted polymers and the target molecules. Magnetic porous cellulose molecularly imprinted polymers have great application value with excellent stability and reusability. Finally, the combination of the magnetic porous cellulose molecularly imprinted polymers and high-performance liquid chromatography or ultra-performance liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry was successfully used for the purification and detection of bisphenols in milk (1.349 ng/mL bisphenol F and 3.014 ng/mL bisphenol AF), canned fruits (1129 ng/mL bisphenol A, 10.11 ng/mL bisphenol F, and 91.87 ng/mL bisphenol AF), and fish (11.91 ng/mL bisphenol AF) samples. Furthermore, the magnetic porous cellulose molecularly imprinted polymer method is more selective, sensitive, and accurate than the traditional precipitation method.

Porous carbon nanoarchitectonics for the environment: detection and adsorption

As a post-nanotechnology concept, nanoarchitectonics has emerged from the 20th century to the 21st century. This review summarizes the recent progress in the field of metal-free porous carbon nanoarchitectonics.