As chemists and materials scientists, it is our duty to synthesize and utilize materials for a multitude of applications that promote the development of society and the well-being of its citizens. Since the inception of metal-organic frameworks (MOFs), researchers have proposed a variety of design strategies to rationally synthesize new MOF materials, studied their porosity and gas sorption performances

The hygroscopicity and ability of aerosol particles to act as cloud condensation nuclei (CCN) is important in determining their lifetime and role in aerosol-cloud interactions, thereby influencing cloud formation and climate. Previous studies have used the aerosol hygroscopic properties measured at the ground to evaluate the influence on cloud formation in the atmosphere, which may introduce uncertainty

Measurement of ambient fine particulate matter (PM2.5) is often used as a proxy of personal exposure in epidemiological studies. However, the difference between personal and ambient exposure, and whether it biases the estimates of health effects remain unknown. Based on an epidemiological study (AIRLESS) and simultaneously launched intensive monitoring campaigns (APHH), we quantified and compared the

Fine-particle pollution associated with winter haze threatens the health of more than 400 million people in the North China Plain. The Multiphase chemistry experiment in Fogs and Aerosols in the North China Plain (McFAN) investigated the physicochemical mechanisms leading to haze formation with a focus on the contributions of multiphase processes in aerosols and fogs. We integrated observations on

The Guanzhong Basin (GZB) of northwest China is examined as a mega-region containing the mega-city of Xi’an. The concept of a “mega-region” is more accurate than that of a “mega-city” for air quality management as there is an interaction between urban and non-urban emissions. Parallels are drawn between the GZB and the San Joaquin Valley (SJV) mega-region of central California for excessive wintertime

Integrating ground and airborne observations is the major research goal of many atmospheric chemistry field campaigns. Although airborne platforms typically aim to sample from near surface to the free troposphere, it is difficult to fly very close to the surface especially in environments with complex terrain or a populated area. We present trace gas vertical profiles observed by instruments on the

This study aims to critically evaluate the source apportionment of fine particles by multiple receptor modelling approaches, including carbon mass balance modelling of filter-based Radiocarbon (14C) data, Chemical Mass Balance (CMB) and Positive Matrix Factorization (PMF) analysis on filter-based chemical speciation data, and PMF analysis on Aerosol Mass Spectrometer (AMS-PMF) or Aerosol Chemical Speciation

Stabilisers, such as surfactants, polymers and polyaromatic molecules, offer an effective way to produce graphene dispersions in water by Liquid Phase Exfoliation (LPE), without degrading the properties of graphene. In particular, pyrene derivatives provide better exfoliation efficiency, when compared to traditional surfactants and polymers. A stabiliser is expected to be relatively well soluble in

Wintertime urban air pollution in many developing megacities is characterised by episodic rapid increase in particulate matter concentrations associated with elevated relative humidity – so-called Haze episodes, which have become characteristic of cities such as Beijing. Atmospheric chemistry within haze combines gas- and condensed-phase chemical processes, leading to the growth in secondary species

WALPs are synthetic α-helical membrane-spanning peptides that constitute a well-studied system for exploring hydrophobic mismatch. These peptides represent a simplified consensus motif for transmembrane domains of intrinsic membrane proteins due to their hydrophobic core of alternating leucine and alanine flanked by membrane-anchoring aromatic tryptophan residues. Although the modulation of mismatch

The mechanism of action of antimicrobial peptides (AMPs) has been debated over many years, and various models have been proposed. In this work we combine small angle X-ray/neutron scattering (SAXS/SANS) techniques to systematically study the effect of AMPs on the cytoplasmic membrane of Escherichia coli (E. coli) bacteria using a simplified model system of 4:1 DMPE:DMPG ([1,2-dimyristoyl-sn-glycer

Asia Pacific (AP) is the largest regional vehicle market and accounted for 48% of global sales in 2019. Air quality is a pressing issue in many AP countries and together with increased vehicle sales has led to intense scrutiny of vehicle emissions. The heterogeneity of socio-economic features and transportation patterns in AP countries has resulted in different emission levels and control policies

Restrictions on movement in Beijing to limit the COVID-19 epidemic tended to reduce the emissions of primary pollutants. However, changes in pollutant concentrations are also affected by chemical transformation and meteorology. Decreases in concentrations were also not as obvious in Beijing, when compared with Hubei Province, where lockdown was especially strict. Declines are evident in concentrations

Caveolin-1 (cav-1) is a multi-domain membrane protein that is a key player in cell signaling, endocytosis and mechanoprotection. It is the principle component of cholesterol-rich caveolar domains and has been reported to induce membrane curvature. The molecular mechanisms underlying the interactions of cav-1 with complex membranes leading to modulation of membrane topology and the formation of cholesterol-rich

Cooking emissions account for a significant proportion of the organic aerosol emitted into the urban environment and high pollution events have been linked to an increased organic content on urban particulate matter surfaces. We present a kinetic study on surface coatings of self-assembled (semi-solid) oleic acid-sodium oleate cooking aerosol proxies undergoing ozonolysis. We found a clear film thickness-dependent

Air quality in megacities is significantly impacted by emissions from vehicles and other urban-scale human activities. Amid the outbreak of COVID-19 in January 2020, strict policies were in place to restrict people movement, bringing about steep reductions in pollution activities and notably lower ambient concentrations of primary pollutants. In this study, we report hourly measurements of fine particulate

Membrane protein structure and function are modulated via interactions with their lipid environment. This is particularly true for the integral membrane pumps, the P-type ATPases. These ATPases play vital roles in cell physiology, where they are associated with the transport of cations and lipids, thereby generating and maintaining crucial (electro-)chemical potential gradients across the membrane

Peripheral membrane proteins play a major role in numerous biological processes by transiently associating with cellular membranes, often with extreme membrane specificity. Because of the short-lived nature of these interactions, molecular dynamics (MD) simulations have emerged as an appealing tool to characterize at the structural level the molecular details of the protein-membrane interface. Transferable

Intrinsic apoptosis is orchestrated by a group of proteins that mediate the coordinated disruption of mitochondrial membranes. Bax is a multi-domain protein that, upon activation, disrupts the integrity of the mitochondrial outer membrane by forming pores. We strategically introduced glutamic acids into a short sequence of the Bax protein that constitutively creates membrane pores. The resulting BaxE5

Atmospheric gas-to-particle conversion is the crucial or even dominating contributor to haze formation in Chinese megacities in terms of aerosol number, surface area and mass. Based on our comprehensive observations in Beijing during 15 January 2018 – 31 March 2019, we are able to show that 80–90 % of the aerosol mass (PM2.5) was formed via atmospheric reactions during the haze days and over 65 % of

Haze episodes, characterised by extremely high aerosol concentrations and a reduction in visibility to less than 10 km are a frequent occurrence in wintertime Beijing, despite policy interventions leading to an overall improvement in average annual air quality. The main drivers in the onset of haze episodes in wintertime Beijing are changing synoptic conditions however, aerosol radiation interactions

This study aimed to investigate the long-term variations in the contribution of emission sources to ambient PM2.5 organic carbon (OC) in central Los Angeles (CELA) and Riverside using the Chemical Speciation Network (CSN) database in the 2005-2015 period, during which several federal and state PM-based regulations were implemented to reduce tailpipe emissions in the region. The measured concentrations

Perforin is a pore forming protein used by cytotoxic T lymphocytes to remove cancerous or virus-infected cells during immune response. During the response, the lymphocyte membrane becomes refractory to perforin function by accumulating densely ordered lipid rafts and externalizing negatively charged lipid species. The dense membrane packing lowers the capacity of perforin to bind, and negatively charged

Rapid economic growth and development have exacerbated air quality problems across India, driven by many poorly understood pollution sources and understanding their relative importance remains critical to characterising the key drivers of air pollution. A comprehensive suite of measurements of 90 non-methane hydrocarbons (NMHCs)(C2-C14), including monoterpenes and higher molecular weight aromatics

Air quality in cities is influenced not only by the emissions and chemical transformations but also by the physical state of the atmosphere which varies both temporally and spatially. Increasingly, tall buildings (TB) are common features of the urban landscape, yet their impact is not well understood on urban air flow and dispersion, and their effects are not appropriately captured in parameterisation

Surface ozone is a major pollutant threatening public health, agricultural production and natural ecosystems. While measures to improve air quality in megacities such as Delhi are typically aimed at reducing levels of particulate matter (PM), ozone could become a greater threat if these measures focus on PM alone, as some air pollution mitigation steps can actually lead to an increase in surface ozone

The endosomal sorting complex required for transport (ESCRT) organises in supramolecular structures on the surface of lipid bilayers to drive membrane invagination and scission of intraluminal vesicles (ILVs), a process also controlled by membrane mechanics. However, ESCRT association with the membrane is also mediated by electrostatic interactions with anionic phospholipids. Phospholipid distribution

The proteins of the Bcl-2 family are key regulators of apoptosis. They form a complex interaction network in the cytosol and in the cellular membranes, whose outcome determines mitochondrial permeabilization and commitment to death. However, we still fail to understand how the action of the different family members is orchestrated to regulate apoptosis. Here, we combined a quantitative analysis of

Virulence-associated glycolipids from Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Mtb) act as effector molecules during infection—in addition to proteins. Upon insertion, they alter host cell membrane properties modifying host functions to impact Mtb survival and disease course. Here we combine tether force experiments and microscopy to reveal, previously unknown, insights on the potential involvement of phosphatidylinositol

The impact of maculatin 1.1 (Mac1) on the mechanical properties of supported lipid membranes derived from exponential growth phase (EGP) and stationary growth phase (SGP) E. coli lipid extracts was analysed by surface plasmon resonance and atomic force microscopy. Each membrane was analysed by quantitative nanomechanical mapping to derive measurements of the modulus, adhesion and deformation in addition

A cell membrane of Gram-negative bacteria interacting with an antimicrobial peptide represents a complex supramolecular assembly. Fabrication of the models of bacterial cell membranes remains a large experimental challenge. Langmuir-Blodgett and Langmuir-Schaefer (LS-LB) transfer enables deposition of multicomponent asymmetric lipid bilayers onto a gold surface. In this work 1-palmitoyl-2-oleoyl-s