Abstract: Fluids incorporated into intraocular lenses and their methods of use. In some embodiments the fluids are silicone oils, and in some embodiments they are used in accommodating intraocular lenses.

Abstract: A method is provided for forming an active material containing coating on a substrate. The substrate is suitably a wipe, cloth or sponge for household use, or a water-soluble household cleaning unit dose product. The method comprises the steps of: i) introducing one or more gaseous or atomised liquid and/or solid coating-forming materials which undergo chemical bond forming reactions within a plasma environment and one or more active materials which substantially do not undergo chemical bond forming reactions within a plasma environment, into an atmospheric or low pressure plasma discharge and/or an excited gas stream resulting therefrom, and ii) exposing the substrate to the resulting mixture of atomised coating-forming and at least one active material which are deposited onto the substrate surface to form a coating.

Abstract: A method of forming a gel and/or powder of a metallic oxide, metalloid oxide and/or a mixed oxide or resin thereof from one or more respective organometallic liquid precursor(s) and/or organometalloid liquid precursor(s) by oxidatively treating said liquid in a non-thermal equilibrium plasma discharge and/or an ionised gas stream resulting therefrom and collecting the resulting product. The non-thermal equilibrium plasma is preferably atmospheric plasma glow discharge, continuous low pressure glow discharge plasma, low pressure pulse plasma or direct barrier discharge. The metallic oxides this invention particularly relates to are those in columns 3a and 4a of the periodic table namely, aluminium, gallium, indium, tin and lead and the transition metals. The metalloids may be selected from boron, silicon, germanium, arsenic, antimony and tellurium.

Abstract: A method for controlling the thermal expansion behaviour of a material comprises the step of incorporating into the material a component including one or more diatomic bridges. The or each diatomic bridge extends between two atoms in the component. The method is characterised in that the or each diatomic bridge has at least one vibrational mode that causes the two atoms on either side of the bridge to be moved together to a similar or greater extent than competing vibrational mode(s) that cause the two atoms on either side of the bridge to be moved apart. The bridge may also be polyatomic. New materials and devices comprising a plurality of such diatomic and polyatomic bridges are also defined.

Abstract: A method is disclosed for forming a polymeric coating on a substrate surface, which method comprises the steps of activating (A) at least one monomer selected from (a) at least one polymerizable organic acid monomer comprising at least one acid group and at least one polymerizable group and (b) at least one polymerizable organic acid anhydride monomer comprising at least one acid anhydride group and at least one polymerizable group and (B) at least one polymerizable organic base monomer comprising at least one basic group and at least one polymerizable group by subjecting the monomers to a soft ionization plasma process; and depositing the activated monomers resulting from step (i) onto the substrate surface thereby forming a polymeric coating containing salts resulting from interaction between acidic and basic functional groups on side chains of the polymeric coating. Preferred polymerizable groups are alkenyl groups.

Abstract: An atmospheric pressure plasma assembly (1) comprising a first and second pair of vertically arrayed, parallel spaced-apart planar electrodes (36) with at least one dielectric plate (31) between said first pair, adjacent one electrode and at least one dielectric plate (31) between said second pair adjacent one electrode, the spacing between the dielectric plate and the other dielectric plate or electrode of each of the first and second pairs of electrodes forming a first and second plasma regions (25,60) characterised in that the assembly further comprises a means of transporting a substrate (70,71,72) successively through said first and second plasma regions (25,60) and an atomiser (74) adapted to introduce an atomised liquid or solid coating making material into one of said first or second plasma regions.

Abstract: A method of forming a coating on a powdered substrate, which method comprises introducing an atomized liquid and/or solid coating forming material and separately transporting a powdered substrate to be coated into an atmospheric plasma discharge and/or an ionized gas stream resulting therefrom, and exposing the powdered substrate to the atomized liquid and/or solid coating forming material.

Abstract: Hydrophilic polymeric nanoarticles comprising a polymeric scaffold and one or more therapeutic agents, such as drug or drug-conjugate molecules, covalently attached to the scaffold. The articles may further optionally comprise recognition elements (REs) that bind to biomolecular structures expressed on certain cells or in certain tissues, to facilitate targeting and/or delivery.

Abstract: Synthetic polymer complements (SPCs) are provided, as well as methods for their synthesis and use. The SPCs may have surfaces that include functional groups that are complementary to surface sites of targets such as nanostructures or macromolecular targets, and may be capable of specifically interacting with such targets. The positions of the functional groups in one embodiment are stabilized by a polymer network. The SPCs are formed by contacting the target with a set of monomers which self-assemble on the target, and then are polymerized into a network to form the synthetic polymer complement. At least a portion of the surface of the resulting SPC thus may include an imprint of the target. The complex of the SPC and the target may be the desired product. Alternatively, the target is released, for example, by controllably expanding and contracting the crosslinked network. The SPC is isolated and used in many applications.

Abstract: A method for creating adhesion includes plasma treating two substrates and thereafter contacting the substrates. The method can be used on a variety of dry surfaces. The method is used to adhere nonadhesive surfaces such as a cured silicone with a ceramic or semiconductor.

Abstract: A system and method for guiding fish that migrate is provided. A preferred embodiment is affixed to a dam having intakes that: a) generate hydroelectric power and b) serve as a natural hydraulic cue for fish that, once attracted to the intake, may be injured or killed traversing the intake. A device resembling an oversize kitchen exhaust fan hood, with extension, is affixed adjacent the upstream side of a stream barrier that otherwise precludes fish from safely passing. The device simulates a naturally occurring hydraulic cue that fish use to migrate and may be used to defeat competing detrimental hydraulic cues. Also provided are embodiments to enable adjustment of the device to meet changing hydraulic conditions; to preclude the accidental provision of competing negative cues or stimuli; and to complement the simulated natural hydraulic cue provided by the device through using stimuli such as light, sound or combinations thereof.

Abstract: The present invention is directed to polymeric nanoparticles functionalized with two or more peptide moieties that possess high affinity to biomolecular targets, the peptide moieties being covalently linked to the nanoparticle polymeric core structure, either directly or via a linker molecule. The invention is further directed to methods of synthesizing these polymeric nanoparticles and to the various applications for which they may be used.

Abstract: A method for forming a coating on a substrate using an atmospheric pressure plasma discharge. The method comprises introducing an atomized liquid and/or solid coating-forming material into an atmospheric pressure plasma discharge and/or an ionized gas stream resulting therefrom, and exposing the substrate to the atomized coating-forming material. The application also described a method for polymerizing a polymer forming material, and further to apparatus for forming a coating on a substrate.

Abstract: Synthetic polymer complements (SPCs) are provided, as well as methods for their synthesis and use. The SPCs may have surfaces that include functional groups that are complementary to surface sites of targets such as nanostructures or macromolecular targets, and may be capable of specifically interacting with such targets. The positions of the functional groups in one embodiment are stabilized by a polymer network. The SPCs are formed by contacting the target with a set of monomers which self-assemble on the target, and then are polymerized into a network to form the synthetic polymer complement. At least a portion of the surface of the resulting SPC thus may include an imprint of the target. The complex of the SPC and the target may be the desired product. Alternatively, the target is released, for example, by controllably expanding and contracting the crosslinked network. The SPC is isolated and used in many applications.

Abstract: A system and method for guiding fish that migrate is provided. A preferred embodiment is affixed to a dam having intakes that: a) generate hydroelectric power and b) serve as a natural hydraulic cue for fish that, once attracted to the intake, are converted to pet food. A device resembling an oversize kitchen exhaust fan hood, with extension, is affixed adjacent the upstream side of a stream barrier that otherwise precludes fish from safely passing. The device simulates a naturally occurring hydraulic cue that fish use to migrate and may be used to defeat competing detrimental hydraulic cues. Also provided are embodiments to enable adjustment of the device to meet changing hydraulic conditions; to preclude the accidental provision of competing negative cues or stimuli; and to complement the simulated natural hydraulic cue provided by the device through using stimuli such as light, sound or combinations thereof.

Abstract: A method for determining the probable response of aquatic species to selected components of water flow fields, comprising the steps of obtaining data for identifying travel and quantitatively describing behavior of real fish constituting members of a selected aquatic species in a flow field, determining passive transport trajectories of the members of the aquatic species in the flow field to establish a basis from which to determine swim path selections, developing postulated behavioral responses of members of the aquatic species to at least one of hydraulic and acoustic stimuli, using statistical rules, and developing a computer utilizing the travel behavior data, the passive transport trajectories, and the postulated behavioral responses, to provide a virtual fish.

Abstract: This invention is directed to peptide inhibitors of serine proteases, espcecially thrombin, in which the P1-P2 natural amide linkage is replaced by another bond. Exemplary thrombin inhibitors have the formula: X-(aa.sup.3)-(aa.sup.2)-.psi.-(aa.sup.1)-Z wherein X is H or a substituent on the N-terminal amino group, aa.sup.3 is a hydrophobic amino acid, aa.sup.23 is Pro, aa.sup.1 is Arg or an Arg analgoue, Z is --COOH or a heteroatom acid group and .psi. is a non-amide linkage.