A bio-inspired computational language for kinesin nanomotor

Kinesin nanomotor is a tiny vehicle that transports molecular cargoes within the cells. Many kinesin nanomotors can attach to a single cargo and coordinate their behaviors to transport the cargo. This behavioral coordination of kinesin nanomotors can be defined through a communicational language that kinesin nanomotors follow to transport the cargo. This paper proposes a computational language for kinesin nanomotor which is inspired by the nanomotor's natural behavior. In this technique, we have used behavioral Deterministic Finite Automaton (DFA) model of kinesin nanomotor which indicated internal intelligent and autonomous decision-making process of the nanomotor in response to its cell. In addition, the behavioral responses of kinesin nanomotor to its cell, behavioral DFA model of the nanomotor, were mapped to a computational regular language for the nanomotor. The proposed computational language for kinesin nanomotor was acceptable by the behavioral DFA model and also in good agreement with the natural behavior of the nanomotor. The development of such computational languages among intelligent and autonomous nanoparticles in nature paves the way for constructing potential bio-inspired nanorobotic systems as well as designing of some computational languages for their controlling

A software agent model of muscle myosin nanomotor

The state-of-the-art in information and robotic systems deals with analyzing of natural systems at nanoscale to apply them for constructing potential bio-nanosystems. This paper employs agent technology and introduces a software agent model of muscle myosin nanomotor which illustrates a set of information processes which are running during the mechanism of the nanomotor. Muscle myosin, as a desired dynamic component of potential bio-nanorobotic systems, is the driven motor of muscle contractions. In this work, firstly, muscle myosin nanomotor was introduced as a physical intelligent agent. Then, we have designed the internal decision-making process of the nanomotor using subsumption architecture of agent technology. The agent-based architectural model of the nanomotor was proposed with mapping the subsumption rules of the nanomotor to its respective Deterministic Finite Automaton (DFA). The proposed agent-based architectural DFA model of muscle myosin nanomotor demonstrated that the nanomotor could receive inputs from its environment, analyze data, and generate outputs. Also, the proposed agent-based architectural DFA model of muscle myosin nanomotor was in good agreement with the behavior of the nanomotor inside the muscle cells. Finally, the proposed agent-based architectural DFA model was implemented as a software agent model of the nanomotor. The developed software agent model of muscle myosin nanomotor traced the real behavior of the nanomotor in nature

An agent-based model of muscle contraction process as a bio-robotic process

This paper introduces a new computational methodology to model muscle contraction process as a bio-robotic process using agent technology. In this work, we have focused on muscle myosin nanomotor as the driven motor of muscles and introduced the nanomotor as a physical intelligent agent. Then, the mechanism of the nanomotor was specified using subsumption architecture of agent technology and modeled with the Finite State Machine (FSM) diagram of Unified Modeling Language (UML). The proposed agent-based FSM model of the mechanism of muscle myosin nanomotor illustrated the internal intelligent and autonomous decision-making process of the nanomotor as a robot mechanism. In order to verify the proposed agent-based FSM model of the mechanism of the nanomotor, we developed its mathematical definitions (its Deterministic Finite Automaton (DFA) and grammar) and compared them with the natural behavior of the nanomotor inside the muscle cells. The comparison results indicated that the mechanism of muscle myosin nanomotor could be defined as a robot mechanism with its inputs, internal decision-making process, and outputs. As muscle contraction process is a set of the mechanisms of muscle myosin nanomotors, our proposed agent-based model of the mechanism of the nanomotor can introduce muscle contraction process as a general bio-robotic process

Enzymatic scavenging of oxygen dissolved in water: Application of response surface methodology in optimization of conditions

In this work, removal of dissolved oxygen in water through reduction by glucose, which was catalyzed by glucose oxidase – catalase enzyme, was studied. Central composite design (CCD) technique was applied to achieve optimum conditions for dissolved oxygen scavenging. Linear, square and interactions between effective parameters were obtained to develop a second order polynomial equation. The adequacy of the obtained model was evaluated by the residual plots, probability-value, coefficient of determination, and Fisher’s variance ratio test. Optimum conditions for activity of two enzymes in water deoxygenation were obtained as follows: pH=5.6, T=40°C, initial substrate concentration [S] = 65.5 mmol/L and glucose oxidase activity [E] = 252 U/Lat excess amount of catalase. The deoxygenation process during 30 seconds, in the optimal conditions, was predicted 98.2%. Practical deoxygenation in the predicted conditions was achieved to be 95.20% which was close to the model prediction

Removal of Arsenic (III, V) from aqueous solution by nanoscale zero-valent iron stabilized with starch and carboxymethyl cellulose

In this work, synthetic nanoscale zerovalent iron (NZVI) stabilized with two polymers, Starch and Carboxymethyl cellulose (CMC) were examined and compared for their ability in removing As (III) and As (V) from aqueous solutions as the most promising iron nanoparticles form for arsenic removal. Batch operations were conducted with different process parameters such as contact time, nanoparticles concentration, initial arsenic concentration and pH. Results revealed that starch stabilized particles (S-nZVI) presented an outstanding ability to remove both arsenate and arsenite and displayed ~ 36.5% greater removal for As (V) and 30% for As (III) in comparison with CMC-stabilized nanoparticles (C-nZVI). However, from the particle stabilization viewpoint, there is a clear trade off to choosing the best stabilized nanoparticles form. Removal efficiency was enhanced with increasing the contact time and iron loading but reduced with increasing initial As (III, V) concentrations and pH. Almost complete removal of arsenic (up to 500 μg/L) was achieved in just 5 min when the S-nZVI mass concentration was 0.3 g/L and initial solution pH of 7 ± 0.1. The maximum removal efficiency of both arsenic species was obtained at pH = 5 ± 0.1 and starched nanoparticles was effective in slightly acidic and natural pH values. The adsorption kinetics fitted well with pseudo-second-order model and the adsorption data obeyed the Langmuir equation with a maximum adsorption capacity of 14 mg/g for arsenic (V), and 12.2 mg/g for arsenic (III). It could be concluded that starch stabilized Fe(0) nanoparticles showed remarkable potential for As (III, V) removal from aqueous solution e.g. contaminated water

Photocatalytic degradation of antibiotic and hydrogen production using diatom-templated 3D WO3-x@mesoporous carbon nanohybrid under visible light irradiation

Synthesis of highly efficient 3D photocatalysts offers unique abilities for hydrogen production and chemical conversion to find a solution for energy shortage and environmental pollution issues. However, current strategies for production of ordered nanohybrid photocatalysts usually involve complex procedures and the use of expensive templates, which limit their practical applications. In this work, 3D WO3-x@mesoporous carbon photocatalyst was fabricated through one-pot evaporation-induced self-assembly (EISA) process using Cyclotella sp. as natural template. During heat-treatment, the precursor of carbon could partially reduce tungsten oxide under N-2 atmosphere leading to the embedding of WO3-x in conductive mesoporous carbon structure. The diatom templated WO3-x@mesoporous carbon (DTWO3-x@MC) nanohybrid exhibited high surface area (195.37 m(2) g(-1)) and narrowed band gap (2.67 eV). Integration of tungsten oxide with mesoporous carbon and formation of oxygen vacancies enhanced the absorption of visible light using DT-WO3-x@MC and limited the recombination of electron-hole pairs. 98.7% of cefazolin (CFZ) degradation efficiency and 85.5% of total organic carbon (TOC) removal efficiency were observed within 90 and 180 min under visible light irradiation, respectively. Scavenger quenching tests and electron spin resonance (ESR) analysis demonstrated that O-2(center dot-) played a main role in photocatalysis. CFZ degradation pathway was proposed via identification of conversion intermediates using GC-MS analysis. Photocatalytic hydrogen production rates of the pure WO3 and the DT-WO3-x@MC nanohybrid were determined as 746 and 1851 mmol g(-1) h(-1), respectively. This study presented a way to develop a high-performance and stable photocatalyst using diatom frustules as natural template which works under practical conditions for environmental remediation and energy production. (C) 2020 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.Peer reviewe

Template-free hierarchical trimetallic oxide photocatalyst derived from organically modified ZnCuCo layered double hydroxide

High-performance photocatalysts have considerable potential to address energy and environmental issues. In this study, dodecylbenzenesulfonate (DBS) modified ZnCuCo layered double hydroxide (DBS-ZnCuCo LDH) microspheres were synthesized through the facile template-free hydrothermal method. Subsequently, ZnCuCo mixedmetal oxides (MMOs) with morphological features of the DBS modified LDH, enhanced surface area, increased light absorption and effective charge separation were prepared by the calcination of the as-synthesized LDH at 650 degrees C. Structural, morphological, and photoelectrochemical properties of ZnCuCo and DBS-ZnCuCo LDHs and the corresponding MMOs (ZnCuCo MMO1 and ZnCuCo MMO2) were investigated. SEM and TEM images revealed that DBS-ZnCuCo LDH and ZnCuCo MMO2 possess 3D flower-like hierarchical morphologies with interlaced petal-like nanosheets. Although ZnCuCo LDH was inactive for photocatalytic H-2 production under visible light irradiation, ZnCuCo MMO2 exhibited a high H2 production rate (3700 mu mol g(-1) h(-1)), benefiting from the synergy of the ZnO, CuO, and Co3O4. Furthermore, 95% sulfamethazine (SMZ) degradation was obtained after 60 min of photocatalysis, which is considerably higher than the degradation efficiency of ZnCuCo LDH (24%) and ZnCuCo MMO1 (58%). Based on the photoelectrochemical tests, Z-scheme and double charge transfer mechanisms were proposed to explain the enhanced photocatalytic H-2 production and degradation of SMZ. Scavenging tests revealed that O-2(center dot-) radicals were the main reactive species in the photodegradation of SMZ. A possible degradation pathway was proposed based on the detection of intermediate products.Peer reviewe