A double cylinder system is disclosed, comprising at least one controller being adapted to transmit hydraulic control signals; at least one slave being in fluid communication with the controller and being configured to respond to the hydraulic control signals transmitted by the controller; and at least one control line providing hydraulic communication between the controller and the slave. Also disclosed is a surgical device, comprising at least one controller located at a proximal end of the device, the controller being adapted to transmit hydraulic control signals; at least one manipulator, the manipulator being configured to be controlled by a human hand and to actuate the controller; at least one slave located at a distal end of the device, the slave being in fluid communication with the controller and being configured to respond to the hydraulic control signals transmitted by the controller; and at least one control line providing hydraulic communication between the controller and the slave.

Hand-actuated articulating surgical tool

It is still a significant challenge to develop a Zn2+-selective fluorescent sensor with the ability to exclude the interference of some heavy and transition metal (HTM) ions such as Fe2+, Co2+, Ni2+, Cu2+, Cd2+, and Hg2+. Herein, we report a novel amide-containing receptor for Zn2+, combined with a naphthalimide fluorophore, termed ZTRS. The fluorescence, absorption detection, NMR, and IR studies indicated that ZTRS bound Zn2+ in an imidic acid tautomeric form of the amide/di-2-picolylamine receptor in aqueous solution, while most other HTM ions were bound to the sensor in an amide tautomeric form. Due to this differential binding mode, ZTRS showed excellent selectivity for Zn2+ over most competitive HTM ions with an enhanced fluorescence (22-fold) as well as a red-shift in emission from 483 to 514 nm. Interestingly, the ZTRS/Cd2+ complex showed an enhanced (21-fold) blue-shift in emission from 483 to 446 nm. Therefore, ZTRS discriminated in vitro and in vivo Zn2+ and Cd2+ with green and blue fluorescence...

Zn2+-triggered amide tautomerization produces a highly Zn2+-selective, cell-permeable, and ratiometric fluorescent sensor.

Ratiometric and selective fluorescent sensor for CuII based on internal charge transfer (ICT).

Realizing Raman enhancement on a flat surface has become increasingly attractive after the discovery of graphene-enhanced Raman scattering (GERS). Two-dimensional (2D) layered materials, exhibiting a flat surface without dangling bonds, were thought to be strong candidates for both fundamental studies of this Raman enhancement effect and its extension to meet practical applications requirements. Here, we study the Raman enhancement effect on graphene, hexagonal boron nitride (h-BN), and molybdenum disulfide (MoS2), by using the copper phthalocyanine (CuPc) molecule as a probe. This molecule can sit on these layered materials in a face-on configuration. However, it is found that the Raman enhancement effect, which is observable on graphene, hBN, and MoS2, has different enhancement factors for the different vibrational modes of CuPc, depending strongly on the surfaces. Higher-frequency phonon modes of CuPc (such as those at 1342, 1452, 1531 cm–1) are enhanced more strongly on graphene than that on h-BN, whi...

Raman enhancement effect on two-dimensional layered materials: graphene, h-BN and MoS2

We present the design, synthesis, spectroscopic properties, and biological evaluation of a single galactose-appended naphthalimide (1). Probe 1 is a multifunctional molecule that incorporates a thiol-specific cleavable disulfide bond, a masked phthalamide fluorophore, and a single galactose moiety as a hepatocyte-targeting unit. It constitutes a new type of targetable ligand for hepatic thiol imaging in living cells and animals. Confocal microscopic imaging experiments reveal that 1, but not the galactose-free control system 2, is preferentially taken up by HepG2 cells through galactose-targeted, ASGP-R-mediated endocytosis. Probe 1 displays a fluorescence emission feature at 540 nm that is induced by exposure to free endogenous thiols, most notably GSH. The liver-specificity of 1 was confirmed in vivo via use of a rat model. The potential utility of this probe in indicating pathogenic states and as a possible screening tool for agents that can manipulate oxidative stress was demonstrated in experiments wherein palmitate was used to induce lipotoxicity in HepG2 cells.

Hepatocyte-targeting single galactose-appended naphthalimide: a tool for intracellular thiol imaging in vivo.

A number of substituted 1,8-naphthalimides and naphthalic anhydrides have been prepared and their absorption and fluorescence properties in absolute ethanol have been determined. In the absence of an alkylamino substituent in the naphthalene ring, the compounds are colourless and weakly fluorescent. In the presence of such a substituent they become yellow and frequently fluoresce strongly with quantum yields of the order of 0.8.

The UV–visible absorption and fluorescence of some substituted 1,8-naphthalimides and naphthalic anhydrides

The synthesis and fluorescence of novel N-substituted-1,8-naphthylimides

Nucleophilic displacement of the nitro group in 2- and 4-nitronaphthalic-1, 8-anhydrides and their derivatives

Skin care products, such as depilatories and epilatories, including marine extract blends are provided The skin care products include one, two, or more of the following marine extracts, in any combination: Enteromorpha Compressa extract, Fucus Vesiculosus extract, Porphyra Umbilicalis extract, Undaria Pinnatifida extract, and Lithothamnium Calcareum extract

Skin care compositions including marine extracts

A hand-held correction or marking material (20) comprises a solid synthetic matrix (26) containing a correction or marking material. The matrix is such that, when it is drawn over and in contact with a paper or similar surface, it deposits thereon as a thin dry coating which is immediately hard. The matrix can liquify temporarily in the contact area and then immediately resolidify in the form of the thin coating. The correction materials comprise an opacifier such as titanium dioxide, and the marking materials comprise a colored pigment or dye in the matrix.

Michael S. Alexiou

Papers

The UV–visible absorption and fluorescence of some substituted 1,8-naphthalimides and naphthalic anhydrides

The synthesis and fluorescence of novel N-substituted-1,8-naphthylimides

Nucleophilic displacement of the nitro group in 2- and 4-nitronaphthalic-1, 8-anhydrides and their derivatives

Skin care compositions including marine extracts

Correction and marking materials