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Herein, we developed a novel anodic electrodeposition route to prepare shape-controlled α-FeOOH thin films on indium tin oxide (ITO) substrates in aqueous (NH4)2Fe(SO4)2 solutions. Different morphologies of α-FeOOH products, including platelets, rhombohedral rods, square rods, six-fold snowflakes, and hexagonal particles were obtained by controlling the growth rates of various facets of the deposit with appropriate capping agents. Furthermore, we demonstrated that α-FeOOH films can be transferred into α-Fe2O3 nanostructures with the same morphologies through a thermal annealing process.

We present a facile route to preparing nonspherical half-shells of copper sulfide in which the octahedral mesocages of copper sulfide were grown on the substrate by a two-step electrochemical method first and then were cleaved into tetrahedral half-shells by ultrasonic vibration in water. The obtained half-shells are 1−3 μm in lengths, and the shell thickness is uniform in ∼100 nm. It is found that only centrosymmetric octahedral and six-pod shells can be equally split into two similar half-shells. Furthermore, a finite element analysis has been used to model the stress distribution in the octahedral CuS shell structure during ultrasonic vibration.

We present a two-step electrochemical deposition process to produce hierarchical ZnO nanostructures that involves the electrodeposition of ZnO crystals with different morphologies, followed by the electrochemical epitaxial growth of oriented nanorods on the surfaces of the primary ZnO nanostructures. A variety of hierarchical ZnO nanostructures, including 2-fold nanorod arrays on nanosheets, 6-fold nanorods on nanorods, and 6-fold nanoneedles on nanoneedles, were synthesized on a large scale. The hierarchical nanostructures obtained by this technique are pure and uniform in morphology. Furthermore, we demonstrate that the hierarchical ZnO nanostructure of nanorods on nanosheets provides a good candidate for photoanodes in dye-sensitized solar cells.

Large-scale and highly oriented single-crystalline ZnO nanotubes on conductive glass substrates have been realized by a two-step solution approach, which involves the electrodeposition of oriented ZnO nanorods and subsequently coordination-assisted selective dissolution along the c-axis to form tubular structure caused by preferential adsorption of ethylenediamine (EDA) and OH- on different crystal faces. After dissolution in aqueous EDA solution for 10−15 h, the inner/outer wall surfaces of the obtained ZnO nanotubes are quite smooth and the wall thickness is uniform in ∼10−30 nm. Furthermore, a strong near-band gap ultraviolet stimulated emission at a wavelength of 389 nm with a half-maximum of 3 nm is observed at room temperature.

3 beta-Aryltropane analogues wherein the 2-position was substituted with various diarylmethoxyalkyl groups were synthesized and evaluated for binding at the dopamine transporter (DAT), serotonin transporter (SERT), norepinephrine transporter (NET), and muscarinic (M(1)) receptors. The 2 beta-analogues 9a-i generally demonstrated high to moderate binding affinities (K(i) = 34-112 nM) at the DAT with good selectivity over SERT, NET, and M(1) receptors. Alternatively, the 2 alpha-isomers 10a-i were 10-fold less potent at the DAT with poor selectivity over SERT. These SAR studies provide further evidence for the varied binding requirements of structurally diverse tropane-based ligands and support future studies to elucidate DAT binding requirements in relation to cocaine-like behavioral endpoints.

A series of eight 2-substituted 3-tolyltropane derivatives were synthesized, and the in vitro and in vivo biological activities as dopamine uptake inhibitors were determined. From the in vitro structure-activity data, it is apparent that a tolyl group in the 2-position, independent of the stereochemical attachment to the tropane ring system, provided compounds (9-12, 14) that exhibit high-affinity binding at the dopamine transporter (DAT). Although a slight stereochemical preference in binding affinity at the DAT was observed for the 2beta-(R)-alcohol 10 over the 2beta-(S)-isomer 11, no significant differences in behavioral effects were observed. Furthermore, despite a relatively low potency of 10 for the inhibition of dopamine uptake compared to its affinity for the DAT, its behavioral profile did not vary significantly from cocaine. These data indicate that a behavioral characterization of compounds is a critical feature of efforts to discover pharmacological treatments for cocaine abuse.