The chromophores were composed of liquid crystalline mesophases with six or eleven methylene segments as spacer, and with electron-donating (methoxy) and electron-withdrawing (nitro) terminal groups.
Coding segments were coupled to a spacer segment of polyethylene glycol to place the coding segment away from the substrate.
Each detection probe comprised a chemically-modified oligonucleotide complementary to a target miRNA (from miRBase, http://www.mirbase.org) or a control RNA, and a polyethylene glycol spacer segment to separate the coding segment from the substrate.
The formed organogels can be regulated by changing the flexible/rigid segments in spacers and organic solvents.
The experimental results indicated that these as-formed organogels can be regulated by changing the flexible/rigid segments in spacers and organic solvents.
The segmented copolymer comprising the β-alanine based bisoxalamide hard segment with a spacer of 6 methylene groups has a melting transition of 141 °C which is higher than the melting transition of its glycine analogue of 119 °C.
At acidic pH, both helices could intercalate, but not the central spacer segment.
However, the helices and the spacer segment could not intercalate when present as A-Cage-C at neutral conditions.
Replacement of a methylene group by an oxygen atom in the spacer segment of the molecule decreased the thermal stability of the mesophase.
