Abstract
Multi-colloidal systems exhibit a variety of structural and functional complexity owing to their ability to interact amongst different components into self-assembled structures. This paper presents experimental confirmations that reveal an interesting sharp phase transition during the drying state and in the dried film as a function of diluting concentrations ranging from 100% (undiluted whole blood) to 12.5% (diluted concentrations). An additional complementary contact angle measurement exhibits a monotonic decrease with a peak as a function of drying. This peak is related to a change in visco-elasticity that decreases with dilution, and disappears at the dilution concentration for the observed phase transition equivalent to 62% (v/v). This unique behavior is clearly commensurate with the optical image statistics and morphological analysis; and it is driven by the decrease in the interactions between various components within this bio-colloid. The implications of these phenomenal systems may address many open-ended questions of complex hierarchical structures.
Highlights
Multi-colloidal systems exhibit a variety of structural and functional complexity owing to their ability to interact amongst different components into self-assembled structures
The scanning electron microscopy (SEM) images in Fig. 5(I–III) allow us to determine the distribution of various components in the dried film
The components that can be distinguished from these images are plasma proteins, red blood cells (RBCs), white blood cells (WBCs), and platelets
Summary
Multi-colloidal systems exhibit a variety of structural and functional complexity owing to their ability to interact amongst different components into self-assembled structures. Is found to play an essential role in the selective trafficking and signaling activities across the cell plasma membrane[3,4] Another vital instance of phase transition includes the sol-gel transformation that modifies the assembling mechanism of the platelets (one of the cellular components of the whole blood) and various fibrin proteins. Despite the intense research on drying blood droplets, the range of dilution and the use of several experimental techniques (optical microscopy detailing the drying evolution and the final morphology, scanning electron microscopy exploring the deformed blood structures in the dried samples, contact angle measurements giving the idea of the wetting) do not reveal any concentration-driven phase transition region for these diluted blood droplets. The diluted blood samples lead to changes in the initial equilibrium state that results in reducing the interaction between various components as well as minimizing the biological activities within such multi-colloidal system
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Free) 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a call
