New SPE loading material for affinity‐based separation of cyclodextrins from drug:CD complexes in order to overcome Beer's law deviations

Molecular inclusion of guest molecules within CDs is known to alter guest molecule spectrophotometric absorptivity, making their determination, based on spectrophotometric data, inaccurate. Therefore specific analytical methods capable of quantifying the drugs as free molecules must be developed and validated. SPE was selected to simplify sample and avoid more time‐consuming alternatives. A new solid phase was synthesized and characterized by infrared spectrometry, differential scanning calorimetry and elemental analysis. The competitive complexation of adamantane groups immobilized on the silica substrate facilitates drug:CD complex dissociation and elimination of CD from samples. The drug molecules, now free from CD, can be easily analysed by an already available HPLC method. This new SPE loading material was employed in the determination of ketoprofen in its CD complex as a representative example of the utility of this novel material. The calculated analytical errors were reduced from a maximum of 20.79% (without SPE) to a minimum of 3.99%.     

卡尔曼滤波分光光度法同时测定钢中钛和钼

本文采用卡尔曼滤波(KF)递推法,以苯基荧光酮-溴化十六烷基吡啶与钛,钼的显色体系同时测定钛和钼,同时以柠檬酸和抗坏血酸掩蔽干扰,并引入误差校正因子来校正加掩蔽剂后在所测波段范围内所造成的残余背景吸收,用于实际钢样分析,获得较满意的结果。     

Synthesis,Spectroscopic and Computational Studies of CT Complexes of Amino Acids with Iodine as σ Acceptor

Understanding the charge transfer process between bioactive molecules and inorganic or organic molecules is significant as this interaction can be used to interpret bioactive molecule–receptor interactions. A comprehensive spectrophotometric study has been performed to explore the complexation chemistry of the amino acids, tyrosine, lysine and arginine, with iodine as σ acceptor. The molecular structure, spectroscopic characteristics and the interactive modes have been deduced from UV–Vis and IR spectra. The binding ratio of complexation has been determined to be 1:1 for iodine with the amino acids. The association constant (K), extinction coefficient (ε _max), ionization potential (IP), energy of the charge transfer complex (E _CT), resonance energy (R _N ), dissociation energy (W) and standard Gibbs energy (ΔG°) have been computed. An in silico study has been carried out using GAMESS computations to understand the structural features. Highest occupied molecular orbital and lowest unoccupied molecular orbital calculations helped us in characterizing the chemical reactivity and kinetic stability of the molecules. A good consistency between experimental and computational results has been found.     

Efficient determination and evaluation of model cyclodextrin complex binding constants by electrospray mass spectrometry

Electrospray ionization mass spectrometry (ESI-MS) is now routinely used for the detection of cyclodextrin noncovalent complexes, complementing previously established methods. Host-guest complexes formed in solution are also stable for characterization by ESI in the gas phase. This paper reports the first investigations to characterize the stability of three inclusion complexes between beta-cyclodextrin (beta-CD) and three model "guest" molecules, by determining the cyclodextrin compound complex stability constant (K(st)) with the use of mass spectrometric studies. The relative signal intensity of the complexes were monitored in the positive ion mode by mixing each "guest" molecule with an up to 50-fold molar excess of betaCD. A novel linear equation, similar to Benesi-Hildebrand, was derived allowing the determination of K(st) for 1:1 stoichiometry in all complexes. These values were compared with the K(st) obtained by spectrophotometric experiments and they were evaluated to be slightly different, indicating the validity of the described method.     

Surface-enhanced Raman scattering of some water insoluble drugs in silver hydrosols

An extraction method has been used to obtain surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) spectra of water insoluble drugs such as aspirin, salicylic acid, acetaminophen, and vitamin A acid. This method is based on the strong affinity of the sample molecules to the silver particle surfaces. Results from the present study indicate that the method can be extended to identify and analyze many other water insoluble compounds by SERS. The high sensitivity of SERS and the linear calibration curve make it feasible in the trace quantitative analysis; the low limit of detection is comparable or better than those of calorimetric and spectrophotometric methods.     

Toward a new approach for determination of solute's charge distribution to analyze interatomic electrostatic interactions in quantum mechanical/molecular mechanical simulations

We present an alternative approach to determine "density-dependent property"-derived charges for molecules in the condensed phase. In the case of a solution, it is essential to take into consideration the electron polarization of molecules in the active site of this system. The solute and solvent molecules in this site have to be described by a quantum mechanical technique and the others are allowed to be treated by a molecular mechanical method (QM/MM scheme). For calculations based on this scheme, using the forces and interaction energy as density-dependent property our charges from interaction energy and forces (CHIEF) approach can provide the atom-centered charges on the solute atoms. These charges reproduce well the electrostatic potentials around the solvent molecules and present properly the picture of the electron density of the QM subsystem in the solution system. Thus, the CHIEF charges can be considered as the atomic charges under the conditions of the QM/MM simulation, and then enable one to analyze electrostatic interactions between atoms in the QM and MM regions. This approach would give a view of the QM nuclei and electrons different from the conventional methods.     

Interfacial water on hydrophobic surfaces recognized by ions and molecules

Recent spectrophotometric and molecular dynamics simulation studies have shown that the physicochemical properties and structures of water in the vicinity of hydrophobic surfaces differ from those of the bulk water. However, the interfacial water acting as a separation medium on hydrophobic surfaces has never been detected and quantified experimentally. In this study, we show that small inorganic ions and organic molecules differentiate the interfacial water formed on the surfaces of octadecyl-bonded (C(18)) silica particles from the bulk water and the chemical separation of these solutes in aqueous media with hydrophobic materials can be interpreted with a consistent mechanism, partition between the bulk water phase and the interfacial water formed on the hydrophobic surface. Thermal transition behaviour of the interfacial water incorporated in the nanopores of the C(18) silica materials and the solubility parameter of the water calculated from the distribution coefficients of organic compounds have indicated that the interfacial water may have a structure of disrupted hydrogen bonding. The thickness of the interfacial water or the limit of distance from the hydrophobic surface at which molecules and ions can sense the surface was estimated to be 1.25 ± 0.13 nm from the volume of the interfacial water obtained by a liquid chromatographic method and the surface area, suggesting that the hydrophobic effect may extend beyond the first solvation shell of water molecules directly surrounding the surfaces.     

Water superstructures within organic arrays; hydrogen-bonded water sheets, chains and clusters

A strategy for encouraging the formation of extended water arrays is presented, in which molecules that contain a 1,4-dihydroquinoxaline-2,3-dione core are used as supramolecular hosts for the accommodation of guest water molecules and arrays. These molecules were selected as they contain a hydrophilic oxalamide-based "terminus" that allows water molecules to hydrogen-bond to the host organic molecules as well as to each other. The host molecules also contain a hydrophobic "end" based upon an aromatic ring, which serves to encourage the formation of discrete water clusters in preference to three-dimensional networks, as the water molecules cannot form strong hydrogen bonds with this part of the molecule. A systematic study of several hydrated structures of four organic molecules based on 1,4-dihydroquinoxaline-2,3-dione (qd) is discussed. The organic molecules, qd, 6-methyl-1,4-dihydroquinoxaline-2,3-dione (mqd), 6,7-dimethyl-1,4-dihydroquinoxaline-2,3-dione (dmqd) and 1,4-dihydrobenzo[g]quinoxaline-2,3-dione (Phqd), act as supramolecular crystal hosts for the clusters of water, with zero-, one- and two-dimensional arrays of water being observed. The hydrogen bonding in the structures, both within the water clusters and between the clusters and organic molecules, is examined. In particular, the structure of dmqd6 H2O contains a two-dimensional water sheet composed of pentagonal and octagonal units. Phqd3 H2O forms a hydrophilic extended structure encouraging the formation of one-dimensional chains consisting entirely of water. Both qd2 H2O and dmqd2 H2O can be considered to form one-dimensional chains, but only by utilising bridging carbonyl groups of the oxalamide moieties to form the extended array; if only the water is considered, zero-dimensional water tetramers are observed. The remaining hydrated structures, [Na+dmqd-]dmqdH2O, dmqd1/3H2O and mqd1/2H2O, all contain discrete water molecules but do not form extended water structures.     

Probing the dynamic guest-host interactions in sol-gel films using single molecule spectroscopy

Organic dyes usually exhibit enhanced photostability when trapped inside sol-gel silicates. The enhanced photostability is attributed to the reduction of intramolecular motions that facilitate photodegradation. We report the simultaneous detection of mobility and photostability of sol-gel encapsulated didodecyl-3,3,3',3'-tetramethylindocarbocyanine (DiI) using single molecule spectroscopy. Fluorescence from DiI was resolved into parallel and perpendicular polarization components and separately detected. On the basis of the calculated fluorescence polarization, single DiI molecules were classified into "tumbling" and "fixed". Out of 212 molecules investigated, 52% were found to be fixed. For the first time, the mobility of a guest molecule in sol-gel silicate can be directly correlated with its own photostability. Both tumbling and fixed molecules have shown to exhibit nonuniform photostability, indicative of the very heterogeneous guest-host interactions within each subgroup. The survival lifetimes for the majority of the tumbling and fixed molecules were found to be 4.3 and 13.1 s, respectively, demonstrating unequivocally that fixed molecules exhibit a higher photostability than tumbling molecules. These results are in accordance with a recent study on rhodamine B encapsulated in dried sol-gel silicates.     

Organized arrays of individual DNA molecules tethered to supported lipid bilayers

An unappreciated aspect of many single-molecule techniques is the need for an inert surface to which individual molecules can be anchored without compromising their biological integrity. Here, we present new methods for tethering large DNA molecules to the surface of a microfluidic sample chamber that has been rendered inert by the deposition of a supported lipid bilayer. These methods take advantage of the "bio-friendly" environment provided by zwitterionic lipids, but still allow the DNA molecules to be anchored at fixed positions on the surface. We also demonstrate a new method for constructing parallel arrays of individual DNA molecules assembled at defined positions on a bilayer-coated, fused silica surface. By using total internal reflection fluorescence microscopy to visualize the arrays, it is possible to simultaneously monitor hundreds of aligned DNA molecules within a single field-of-view. These molecular arrays will significantly increase the throughput capacity of single-molecule, fluorescence-based detection methods by allowing parallel processing of multiple individual reaction trajectories.     

Colour reaction of scandium with quercetin and its application to the analysis of scandium

A spectrophotometric study of the scandium-quercetin complex is described; μg amounts of scandium can be determined with quercetin at 43.5 mμ and pH 4.4. A 1:1 complex is formed. The apparent instability constant of the complex was estimated as 2.7·10^-7 by a spectrophotometric method. An ion-exchange method for separating scandium from several interfering ions is described.     

Molecular dynamics study of effects of temperature and concentration on hydrogen-bond abilities of ethylene glycol and glycerol: implications for cryopreservation

The state of intracellular water is important in all phases of cryopreservation. Intracellular water can be transported out of the cell, transferred into its solid phase, or blocked by cryoprotectants and proteins in the cytoplasm. The purpose of the present study is to determine the amount of hydrogen-bonded water in aqueous ethylene glycol and glycerol solutions. The effects of temperature and concentration on the density and the hydrogen bonding characteristics of the solution are evaluated quantitatively in this study. To achieve these aims, a series of molecular dynamics simulations of ethylene glycol/water and glycerol/water mixtures of molalities ranging from 1 to 5 m are conducted at 1 atm and at 273, 285, and 298 K, respectively. The simulation results show that temperature and concentration have variable effects on solution density. The proportion of the hydrogen-bonded water by solute molecules increases with rising molality. The ability of the solute molecules to hydrogen bond with water molecules weakens as the solution becomes more concentrated. Moreover, it turns out that the solution concentration can influence the hydrogen bonding characteristics more greatly than the temperature. The glycerol molecule should be a stronger "water blocker" than the ethylene glycol molecule corresponding to the same conditions. These findings provide insight into the cryoprotective mechanisms of ethylene glycol and glycerol in aqueous solutions, which will confer benefits on the cryopreservation.     

Histochemical staining and quantification of dihydrolipoamide dehydrogenase diaphorase activity using blue native PAGE

Mammalian mitochondrial dihydrolipoamide dehydrogenase (DLDH, EC 1.8.1.4) catalyzes NAD(+)-dependent oxidation of dihydrolipoamide in vivo and can also act as a diaphorase catalyzing in vitro nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide (reduced form) (NADH)-dependent reduction of electron-accepting molecules such as ubiquinone and nitroblue tetrazolium (NBT). In this paper, we report a gel-based method for histochemical staining and quantification of DLDH diaphorase activity using blue native PAGE (BN-PAGE). Rat brain mitochondrial extracts, used as the source of DLDH, were resolved by nongradient BN-PAGE (9%), which was followed by diaphorase activity staining using NADH as the electron donor and NBT as the electron acceptor. It was shown that activity staining of DLDH diaphorase was both protein amount- and time-dependent. Moreover, this in-gel activity-staining method was demonstrated to be in good agreement with the conventional spectrophotometric method that measures DLDH dehydrogenase activity using dihydrolipoamide as the substrate. The method was applied to determine levels of DLDH diaphorase activity in several rat tissues other than the brain, and the results indicated a similar level of DLDH diaphorase activity for all the tissues examined. Finally, the effects of thiol-reactive reagents such as N-ethylmaleimide (NEM) and nitric oxide donors on DLDH diaphorase activity were evaluated, demonstrating that, with this method, DLDH diaphorase activity can be determined without having to remove these thiol-reactive reagents that may otherwise interfere with spectrophotometric measurement of DLDH dehydrogenase activity. The gel-based method can also be used as a means to isolate mitochondrial DLDH that is to be analyzed by mass spectral techniques in studying DLDH post-translational modifications.     

Hydration in drug design. 3. Conserved water molecules at the ligand-binding sites of homologous proteins

Summary Water molecules are known to play an important rôle in mediating protein-ligand interactions. If water molecules are conserved at the ligand-binding sites of homologous proteins, such a finding may suggest the structural importance of water molecules in ligand binding. Structurally conserved water molecules change the conventional definition of binding sites by changing the shape and complementarity of these sites. Such conserved water molecules can be important for site-directed ligand/drug design. Therefore, five different sets of homologous protein/protein-ligand complexes have been examined to identify the conserved water molecules at the ligand-binding sites. Our analysis reveals that there are as many as 16 conserved water molecules at the FAD binding site of glutathione reductase between the crystal structures obtained from human and E. coli. In the remaining four sets of high-resolution crystal structures, 2–4 water molecules have been found to be conserved at the ligand-binding sites. The majority of these conserved water molecules are either bound in deep grooves at the protein-ligand interface or completely buried in cavities between the protein and the ligand. All these water molecules, conserved between the protein/protein-ligand complexes from different species, have identical or similar apolar and polar interactions in a given set. The site residues interacting with the conserved water molecules at the ligand-binding sites have been found to be highly conserved among proteins from different species; they are more conserved compared to the other site residues interacting with the ligand. These water molecules, in general, make multiple polar contacts with protein-site residues.     

Rewiring chemistry: algorithmic discovery and experimental validation of one-pot reactions in the network of organic chemistry

Computational algorithms are used to identify sequences of reactions that can be performed in one pot. These predictions are based on over 86?000 chemical criteria by which the putative sequences are evaluated. The "raw" algorithmic output is then validated experimentally by performing multiple two-, three-, and even four-step sequences. These sequences "rewire" synthetic pathways around popular and/or important small molecules.     

Au(111)表面Verdazyl自由基的构象转换

Pure organic radical molecules on metal surfaces are of great significance in exploration of the electron spin behavior. However, only a few of them are investigated in surface studies due to their poor thermal stability. The adsorption and conformational switching of two verdazyl radical molecules, namely, 1, 5-biisopropyl-3-(benzo[b]benzo[4,5]thieno[2, 3-d]thiophen-2-yl)-6-oxoverdazyl (B2P) and 1, 5-biisopropyl-3-(benzo[b]benzo[4,5]thieno[2, 3-d]thiophen-4-yl)-6-oxoverdazyl (B4P), are studied by scanning tunneling microscopy (STM) and density functional theory (DFT). The adsorbed B2P molecules on Au(111) form dimers, trimers and tetramers without any ordered assembly structure in which two distinct appearances of B2P in STM images are observed and assigned to be its "P" and "T" conformations. The "P" conformation molecules appear in the STM image with a large elliptical protrusion and two small ones of equal size, while the "T" ones appear with a large protrusion and two small ones of different size. Likewise, the B4P molecules on Au(111) form dimers at low coverage, strip structure at medium coverage and assembled structure at high coverage which also consists of above-mentioned two conformations. Both B2P molecules and B4P molecules are held together by weak intermolecular interaction rather than chemical bond. STM tip induced conformational switching of both verdayzl radicals is observed at the bias voltage of +2.0 V. The "T" conformation of B2P can be switched to the "P" while the "P" conformation of B4P can be switched to the "T" one. For both molecules, such a conformational switching is irreversible. The DFT calculations with Perdew-Burke-Ernzerhof version exchange-correlation functional are used to optimize the model structure and simulate the STM images. STM images of several possible molecular conformations with different isopropyl orientation and different tilt angle between verdazyl radical and Au(111) surface are simulated. For conformations with different isopropyl orientation, the STM simulated images are similar, while different tilt angles of verdazyl radical lead to significantly different STM simulated images. Combined STM experiments and DFT simulations reveal that the conformational switching originates from the change of tilting angle between the verdazyl radical and Au(111) surface. The tilt angles in "P" and "T" conformations are 0° and 50°, respectively. In this study, two different adsorption conformations of verdazyl radicals on the Au(111) surface are presented and their exact adsorption structures are identified. This study provides a possible way to study the relationship between the electron spin and configuration conversion of pure organic radical molecules and a reference for designing more conformational switchable radical molecules that can be employed as interesting molecular switches.     

Biomolecular and amphiphilic films probed by surface sensitive X-ray and neutron scattering

In this review article we discuss the thin film analytical techniques of interface sensitive X-ray and neutron scattering applied to aligned stacks of amphiphilic bilayers, in particular phospholipid membranes in the fluid L phase. We briefly discuss how the structure, composition, fluctuations and interactions in lipid or synthetic membranes can be studied by modern surface sensitive scattering techniques, using X-rays or neutrons as a probe. These techniques offer an in-situ approach to study lipid bilayer systems in different environments over length scales extending from micrometer to nanometer, both with and without additional membrane-active molecules such as amphiphilic peptides or membrane proteins.     

Interaction of acridine orange monohydrochloride dye with sodiumdodecylsulfate, (SDS) cetyltrimethylammoniumbromide (CTAB) and p-tert-octylphenoxypolyoxy ethanol (Triton X 100) surfactants

Summary Results of spectrophotometric, conductometric and dialysis studies on the interaction of acridine orange monohydrochloride dye with sodiumdodecylsulfate (anionic), cetyltrimethylammoniumbromide (cationic) and Triton X 100 (nonionic) surfactants have been reported. The anionic surfactant, SDS has been observed to undergo both electrostatic and hydrophobic interactions with the dye cation. Aggregation of the dye molecules can be destroyed when the surfactant is in large excess, whereas, excess dye can check micellization of SD S. At a ratio of AO:SDS=1:7 and above, dye embedded mixed micelles are formed. These remain in a separate phase, probably as coacervates. At lower ratios than 1:7, aggregation of dye molecules is induced, which being complexed with SDS become stabilized as colloids. The colloid and the coacervate have been observed to be thermally stable, negatively charged materials that can be broken by salts, and cations of higher valency are more effective in this regard. An 1:3 = AO:SDS colloid has beeen found to be sufficiently large like the coacervates to pass through a membrane having cut off permeability for molecular weights 12,000 and above. All the above features of AO-SDS interaction have been observed to be absent for AO-CTAB and AO-TX 100 systems, Even hydrophobic interaction has played an insignificant role in these cases. Thus, the dye cation, the cationic and the nonionic surfactants have almost retained their self physicochemical identities in solution in the presence of each other. Electrostatic interaction is thus the primary requirement for acridine orange-surfactant (anionic) system; the hydrophobic effect is secondary and may become co-operative.With 9 figures and 2 tables     

An Optical Sensor for the Determination of Ascorbic Acid

It is shown that an optically transparent polymethacrylate matrix modified with 2,2-dipyridyl and iron(III) can be used as a sensor for ascorbic acid. A procedure for the solid-phase spectrophotometric and visual determination of ascorbic acid in model solutions and juices using this sensor has been developed and validated.