Spider silks are outstanding biomaterials with mechanical properties that outperform synthetic materials. Of the six fibrillar spider silks, aciniform (or wrapping) silk is the toughest through a unique combination of strength and extensibility. In this study, a wet-spinning method for recombinant Argiope trifasciata aciniform spidroin (AcSp1) is introduced. Recombinant AcSp1 comprising three 2...

Improvements in the two-step synthesis of 1,1,1,3,3,3-hexafluoro-2- (fluoromehoxy)propane (Sevoflurane) that result in the product cost reduction, safety level enhancement and positive environmental impacts are described. This process consists of chloromethylation reaction of 1,1,1,3,3,3-hexafluoro-2-propanol (HFIP) followed by a halogen-exchange fluorination. This is the first synthesis of Sev...

In recent years, the highly polar C-F bond has been utilised in activation chemistry despite its low reactivity to traditional nucleophiles, when compared to other C-X halogen bonds. Paquin's group has reported extensive studies on the C-F activation of benzylic fluorides for nucleophilic substitutions and Friedel-Crafts reactions, using a range of hydrogen bond donors such as water, triols or ...

The long-term goal of this project is to improve the prediction of tropical cyclone (TC) genesis, structure and intensity changes through improved representation of 3-dimensional TC structure at the initial time. The accurate prediction of TC genesis, structure and intensity changes is critical to Navy missions and civilian activities in coastal areas. Significant gains have been made in the TC...

The aim of this study is to investigate the applicability of poly(lactic-co-glycolic acid) (PLGA)/collagen composite scaffold for skin tissue engineering. PLGA and collagen were dissolved in HFIP as a common solvent and fibrous scaffolds were prepared by electrospinning method. The scaffolds were characterized by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), FTIR spectroscopy, mercury porosimetry, tensil...

The aggregation and fibrillation of alpha-synuclein has been implicated as a causative factor in the Parkinson's disease. The hexamer motif KTKEGV is found in each of the seven imperfect repeat sequences in the N-terminal half of alpha-synuclein. The motif is not fully conserved in the sixth and seventh repeats. We created mutants in which the motif was repaired to be fully conserved in either ...