Thermosensitive Ion Channel Activation in Single Neuronal Cells by Using Surface‐Engineered Plasmonic Nanoparticles

Controlling cell functions using external photoresponsive nanomaterials has enormous potential for the development of cell‐engineering technologies and intractable disease therapies, but the former currently requires genetic modification of the target cells. We present a method using plasma‐membrane‐targeted gold nanorods (pm‐AuNRs) prepared with a cationic protein/lipid complex to activate a thermosensitive cation channel, TRPV1, in intact neuronal cells. Highly localized photothermal heat generation mediated by the pm‐AuNRs induced Ca²⁺ influx solely by TRPV1 activation. In contrast, the use of previously reported cationic AuNRs that are coated with a conventional synthetic polymer also led to photoinduced Ca²⁺ influx, but this influx resulted from membrane damage. Our method provides an optogenetic platform without the need for prior genetic engineering of the target cells and might be useful for novel TRPV1‐targeted phototherapeutic approaches.     

Asymmetric Synthesis of Tetracyclic Pyrroloindolines and Constrained Tryptamines by a Switchable Cascade Reaction

The interrupted Fischer indole synthesis of arylhydrazines and biocatalytically generated chiral bicyclic imines selectively affords either tetracyclic pyrroloindolines or tricyclic tryptamine analogues depending on the reaction conditions. We demonstrate that the reaction is compatible with a variety of functional groups. The products are obtained in high optical purity and in reasonable to good yield. We present a plausible reaction mechanism to explain the observed reaction outcome depending on the stoichiometry of the acid mediator. To demonstrate the synthetic utility of our method, pharmaceutically relevant examples of both product classes were synthesized in highly efficient reaction sequences, including a phenserine analogue as a potential cholinesterase inhibitor and constrained tryptamine derivatives as selective inhibitors of the 5‐HT₆ serotonin receptor and the TRPV1 ion channel.     

Site‐Selective Functionalization of Periodic Mesoporous Organosilica (PMO) with Macrocyclic Host for Specific and Reversible Recognition of Heavy Metal

A novel kind of macrocyclic‐host‐functionalized periodic mesoporous organosilica (PMO) with excellent and reversible recognition of Pb^II was developed. The macrocyclic host molecule cis‐dicyclohexano[18]crown‐6, with strong affinity to Pb^II, was carefully modified as a bridged precursor to build the PMO material. To break down the limit of the functionalization degree for PMOs incorporated with large‐sized moieties, a site‐selective post‐functionalization method was proposed to further decorate the external surface of the PMO material. The selective recognition ability of the upgraded PMO material towards Pb^II was remarkably enhanced without destroying the mesoporous ordering. Solid‐state ¹³C and ²⁹Si NMR spectroscopy, X‐ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), XRD, TEM, and nitrogen adsorption–desorption isotherm measurements were utilized for a full characterization of the structure, micromorphology, and surface properties. Reversible binding of Pb^II was realized in the binding–elution cycle experiments. The mechanism of the supramolecular interaction between the macrocyclic host and metal ion was discussed. The synthetic strategy can be considered a general way to optimize the properties of PMOs as binding materials for practical use while preserving the mesostructure.     

Ion‐Selective Electrodes Based on Hydrophilic Ionophore‐Modified Nanopores

We report the synthesis and analytical application of the first Cu²⁺‐selective synthetic ion channel based on peptide‐modified gold nanopores. A Cu²⁺‐binding peptide motif (Gly‐Gly‐His) along with two additional functional thiol derivatives inferring cation‐permselectivity and hydrophobicity was self‐assembled on the surface of gold nanoporous membranes comprising of about 5 nm diameter pores. These membranes were used to construct ion‐selective electrodes (ISEs) with extraordinary Cu²⁺ selectivities, approaching six orders of magnitude over certain ions. Since all constituents are immobilized to a supporting nanoporous membrane, their leaching, that is a ubiquitous problem of conventional ionophore‐based ISEs was effectively suppressed.     

An assessment of the impact of green tea extract on palbociclib pharmacokinetics using a validated UHPLC–QTOF–MS method

Green tea extracts (GTE) has been reported to be a kinase inhibitor and modulator for various drug metabolizing enzymes. It may give synergetic antioncogenic effect, but with a possibility of pharmacokinetic interactions with various co‐administered anticancer agents like palbociclib (PAL), a selective inhibitor of CDK‐4/6 primarily metabolized by CYP3A enzyme. To explore the impact of GTE on PAL pharmacokinetics in Sprague–Dawley rats, a rapid and sensitive UHPLC–QTOF–MS method was established. Chromatographic separation was carried out on an Acquity UPLC BEH C₁₈ (100 × 2.1 mm, 1.7 μm) column using a gradient mobile phase system consisting of 0.1% formic acid and acetonitrile. Sample preparation was based on a simple protein precipitation method. Estimation of target ions [M + H]⁺ at m/z 448.2455 for PAL and m/z 441.2044 for ibrutinib (IS) was performed in selective ion mode ESI–HRMS. Good sensitivity (1.0 ng/mL) and linearity over a wide concentration range of 1–2000 ng/mL was exhibited by the method. The results indicated that the administration of GTE resulted in decreased oral bioavailability of PAL in both short‐ and long‐term conditions. However, when both conditions were compared, the variation was less for the peak concentration and area under the concentration–time curve level of PAL.     

Human skeletal dysplasia caused by a constitutive activated transient receptor potential vanilloid 4 (TRPV4) cation channel mutation

The transient receptor potential vanilloid 4 (TRPV4) cation channel, a member of the TRP vanilloid subfamily, is expressed in a broad range of tissues where it participates in the generation of Ca²⁺ signals and/or depolarization of the membrane potential. Regulation of TRPV4 abundance at the cell surface is critical for osmo- and mechanotransduction. Defects in TRPV4 are the cause of several human diseases, including brachyolmia type 3 (MIM:113500) (also known as brachyrachia or spondylometaphyseal dysplasia Kozlowski type [MIM:118452]), and metatropic dysplasia (MIM:156530) (also called metatropic dwarfism or parastremmatic dwarfism [MIM:168400]). These bone dysplasia mutants are characterized by severe dwarfism, kyphoscoliosis, distortion and bowing of the extremities, and contractures of the large joints. These diseases are characterized by a combination of decreased bone density, bowing of the long bones, platyspondyly, and striking irregularities of endochondral ossification with areas of calcific stippling and streaking in radiolucent epiphyses, metaphyses, and apophyses. In this review, we discuss the potential effect of the mutation on the regulation of TRPV4 functions, which are related to human diseases through deviated function. In particular, we emphasize how the constitutive active TRPV4 mutant affects endochondral ossification with a reduced number of hypertrophic chondrocytes and the presence of cartilage islands within the zone of primary mineralization. In addition, we summarize current knowledge about the role of TRPV4 in the pathogenesis of several diseases.     

Structure‐Driven Selection of Adaptive Transmembrane Na+ Carriers or K+ Channels

Self‐assembled alkyl‐ureido‐benzo‐15‐crown‐5‐ethers are selective ionophores for K⁺ cations, which are preferred to Na⁺ cations. The transport mechanism is determined by the optimal coordination rather than classical dimensional compatibility between the crown ether hole and the cation diameter. Herein, we demonstrate that systematic changes of the structure lead to unexpected modifications in the cation‐transport activity and suffice to produce adaptive selection. We show that the main contribution to performance arises from optimal constraints on the conformational freedom, which are determined by the binding macrocycles, the nature of the hydrogen‐bonding groups, and the hydrophobic tails. Simple changes to the flexible 15‐crown‐5‐ether lead to selective carriers for Na⁺. Hydrophobic stabilization of the channels through mutual interactions between lipids and variable hydrophobic tails appears to be an important cause of increased activity. Oppositely, restricted translocation is achieved when constrained hydrogen‐bonded macrocyclic relays are less dynamic in a pore superstructure.     

Direct Hydroxylation of Benzene to Phenol by Cytochrome P450BM3 Triggered by Amino Acid Derivatives

The selective hydroxylation of benzene to phenol, without the formation of side products resulting from overoxidation, is catalyzed by cytochrome P450BM3 with the assistance of amino acid derivatives as decoy molecules. The catalytic turnover rate and the total turnover number reached 259 min⁻¹ P450BM3⁻¹ and 40 200 P450BM3⁻¹ when N‐heptyl‐l ‐proline modified with l ‐phenylalanine (C7‐l ‐Pro‐l ‐Phe) was used as the decoy molecule. This work shows that amino acid derivatives with a totally different structure from fatty acids can be used as decoy molecules for aromatic hydroxylation by wild‐type P450BM3. This method for non‐native substrate hydroxylation by wild‐type P450BM3 has the potential to expand the utility of P450BM3 for biotransformations.     

Rationalizing the role of SAR tolerance for ligand-based virtual screening

It is well appreciated that the results of ligand-based virtual screening (LBVS) are much influenced by methodological details, given the generally strong compound class dependence of LBVS methods. It is less well understood to what extent structure-activity relationship (SAR) characteristics might influence the outcome of LBVS. We have assessed the hypothesis that the success of prospective LBVS depends on the SAR tolerance of screening targets, in addition to methodological aspects. In this context, SAR tolerance is rationalized as the ability of a target protein to specifically interact with series of structurally diverse active compounds. In compound data sets, SAR tolerance articulates itself as SAR continuity, i.e., the presence of structurally diverse compounds having similar potency. In order to analyze the role of SAR tolerance for LBVS, activity landscape representations of compounds active against 16 different target proteins were generated for which successful LBVS applications were reported. In all instances, the activity landscapes of known active compounds contained multiple regions of local SAR continuity. When analyzing the location of newly identified LBVS hits and their SAR environments, we found that these hits almost exclusively mapped to regions of distinct local SAR continuity. Taken together, these findings indicate the presence of a close link between SAR tolerance at the target level, SAR continuity at the ligand level, and the probability of LBVS success.     

Selective Detection of Dopamine Using Glassy Carbon Electrode Modified by a Combined Electropolymerized Permselective Film of Polytyramine and Polypyrrole‐1‐propionic Acid

A sensitive and selective electrochemical method for the determination of dopamine using a combined electropolymerized permselective film of polytyramine and polypyrrole‐1‐propionic acid on a glassy carbon (GC) electrode was developed. The formation of a “layer‐by‐layer” film has allowed for selective detection of dopamine in the presence of 3,4‐dihydroxyphenylalanine (L‐DOPA), DOPAC, ascorbic acid, uric acid, epinephrine and norepinephrine. The modified electrodes exhibited a detection limit of 100 nM with linearity ranging from 5×10^?6 to 5×10^?5 M. No cleaning step was required during the course of repeated measurement.     

Gram‐Scale Synthesis of Chiral Cyclopropane‐Containing Drugs and Drug Precursors with Engineered Myoglobin Catalysts Featuring Complementary Stereoselectivity

Engineered hemoproteins have recently emerged as promising systems for promoting asymmetric cyclopropanations, but variants featuring predictable, complementary stereoselectivity in these reactions have remained elusive. In this study, a rationally driven strategy was implemented and applied to engineer myoglobin variants capable of providing access to 1‐carboxy‐2‐aryl‐cyclopropanes with high trans‐(1R,2R) selectivity and catalytic activity. The stereoselectivity of these cyclopropanation biocatalysts complements that of trans‐(1S,2S)‐selective variants developed here and previously. In combination with whole‐cell biotransformations, these stereocomplementary biocatalysts enabled the multigram synthesis of the chiral cyclopropane core of four drugs (Tranylcypromine, Tasimelteon, Ticagrelor, and a TRPV1 inhibitor) in high yield and with excellent diastereo‐ and enantioselectivity (98–99.9% de; 96–99.9% ee). These biocatalytic strategies outperform currently available methods to produce these drugs.     

A Robust Porous Metal–Organic Framework with a New Topology That Demonstrates Pronounced Porosity and High‐Efficiency Sorption/Selectivity Properties of Small Molecules

A robust porous metal–organic framework (MOF), [Co₃(ndc)(HCOO)₃(μ₃‐OH)(H₂O)]_n ( 1 ) (H₂ndc=5‐(4‐pyridyl)‐isophthalic acid), was synthesized with pronounced porosity. MOF 1 contained two different types of nanotubular channels, which exhibited a new topology with the Schlafli symbol of {4².6⁵.8³}{4².6}. MOF 1 showed high‐efficiency for the selective sorption of small molecules, including the energy‐correlated gases of H₂, CH₄, and CO₂, and environment‐correlated steams of alcohols, acetone, and pyridine. Gas‐sorption experiments indicated that MOF 1 exhibited not only a high CO₂‐uptake (25.1 wt % at 273 K/1 bar) but also the impressive selective sorption of CO₂ over N₂ and CH₄. High H₂‐uptake (2.04 wt % at 77 K/1 bar) was also observed. Moreover, systematic studies on the sorption of steams of organic molecules displayed excellent capacity for the sorption of the homologous series of alcohols (C₁–C₅), acetone, pyridine, as well as water.     

A Novel Fluorescent Aminoacid Designed for Fluorometric Detection of Cu （Ⅱ）

A fluorescent aminoacid was designed for selective and sensitive detection of Cu(II) in aqueous solution. The designing of this Cu(II) fluorescent chemosensing molecule, N ± (1‐naphthyl). aminoacetic acid (NAA), was based on the binding of Cu(II) to aminoacetic acid and the novel charge transfer photophysics of 1‐aminonaphthalenes. The fluorescence of NAA was found quenched by Cu (II) and several other metal ions of similar electronic structure such as Co(II), Ni(II) and Zn(II). The quenching was shown to occur via electron transfer within the metal‐NAA complex, which required an optimal combination of high binding affinity and favorable redox properties of the components in the metal‐NAA complex and hence afforded selective fluorometric detection of Cu(II). The calibration graph obeyed Stern‐Volmer theory and was shown for Cu(II) over the range of 0–2.75 ± 10–⁴ mol/L. The quenching constant of Cu(II) was measured as 8.0 ± 10³ mol/L that was two orders of magnitude higher than those of Co(II), Ni(II) and Zn(II). The 3SD limit of detection for Cu(II) was 8.00 ± 10^?6 mol/L with a coefficient of variation of 1.65%. Linear range for quantitative detection of Cu(II) was 2.67 ± 10^?5‐2.75 ± 10^?4 mol/L. The method was applied to synthetic sample measurements which gave recoveries of 105%‐112%.     

Synthesis of Redshifted Azobenzene Photoswitches by Late‐Stage Functionalization

Azobenzenes are versatile photoswitches that can be cycled between their trans‐ and cis‐configuration with light. The wavelengths required for this isomerization are substantially shifted from the UV to the visible range through tetra‐ortho‐chlorination. These halogenated azobenzenes display unique photoswitching characteristics, but their syntheses remain limited and inefficient. A new general method for the synthesis of tetra‐ortho‐chloro azobenzenes has been developed, which relies on direct palladium(II)‐catalyzed C?H activation of pre‐existing standard azobenzenes. This late‐stage functionalization has a broad substrate scope and can be used to create a variety of useful building blocks for the construction of more elaborate redshifted photopharmaceuticals. This method is used to prepare red‐ AzCA‐4 , a photoswitchable vanilloid that enables optical control of the cation channel TRPV1 with visible light.     

Theoretical Studies on Electronic Spectra and Second-order Nonlinear Optical Properties of Barbituric Acid Derivatives Substituted with Schiff Base

Barbituric acid (BA) is a very important kind of compound in biological chemistry and medicine. It can be applied in abirritative medicine and antioxidants.1 It is an important sort of raw material for organic synthe-sis.2 It predicts the important reactive mechanism for organic synthesis.3 Some investigations for NLO prop-erties of a series of BA derivatives have been reported by Feng and coworkers in the view of theory.4,5 The Schiff base has extensive application in the fields of organi…     

A Highly Selective Mitochondria‐Targeting Fluorescent K+ Sensor

Regulation of intracellular potassium (K⁺) concentration plays a key role in metabolic processes. So far, only a few intracellular K⁺ sensors have been developed. The highly selective fluorescent K⁺ sensor KS6 for monitoring K⁺ ion dynamics in mitochondria was produced by coupling triphenylphosphonium, borondipyrromethene (BODIPY), and triazacryptand (TAC). KS6 shows a good response to K⁺ in the range 30–500 mM , a large dynamic range (F_max/F₀≈130), high brightness (?_f=14.4 % at 150 mM of K⁺), and insensitivity to both pH in the range 5.5–9.0 and other metal ions under physiological conditions. Colocalization tests of KS6 with MitoTracker Green confirmed its predominant localization in the mitochondria of HeLa and U87MG cells. K⁺ efflux/influx in the mitochondria was observed upon stimulation with ionophores, nigericin, or ionomycin. KS6 is thus a highly selective semiquantitative K⁺ sensor suitable for the study of mitochondrial potassium flux in live cells.     

A Novel Room Temperature Ionic Liquid Extraction Spectrophotometric Determination of Trace Germanium in Natural Water with Methybenzeneazosalicylfluorone

Abstract

This paper describes a highly sensitive and selective extraction spectrophotometric method for determination of trace germanium in natural water with new a chromogenic reagent methybenzeneazosalicylfluorone abbreviated as MBASF, in which a typical room temperature ionic liquid, 1‐butyl‐3‐methylimidazolium hexafluorophosphate abbreviated as [C₄mim][PF₆] was used as novel medium for liquid/liquid extraction of germanium(IV). In the presence of TritonX‐100, MBASF reacted with germanium(IV) to form a red complex rapidly, the complex was then extracted into the [C₄mim][PF₆] phase, the absorbance of the complex in ionic liquid at 496 nm was recorded and used to determine trace germanium(IV). The apparent molar absorptivity of the complex and the detection limit for the real sample were found to be 3.12×10⁶ L mol^?1 cm^?1 and 0.2 ng mL^?1, respectively. The absorbance of the complex at 496 nm increases linearly with the concentration up to 4 µg of germanium (IV) in 250 mL of aqueous solution. The interference study show the determination of germanium is free from the interference of almost all positive and negative ions found in the natural water samples. The determination of germanium in natural water was carried out by the present method and electrothermal atomic absorption spectrometry (AAS). The results were satisfactorily comparable so that the applicability of the proposed method was confirmed using the real samples. Moreover, the extraction mechanism with the ionic liquid system was also investigated. We think the extraction performance of the ionic liquid system is a combination of ion‐pairing effect between imidazolium cation and basic solute in the aqueous phase with the dissolution of polar molecule in ionic liquid phase. A wise choice of the appropriate combination of anion with imidazolium cation hydrophobicity allows playing with solute selectivity.     

Synthesis,alkali metal picrate extraction,and alkali metal cation binding selectivities of some new cage‐annulated polyoxamacrocyclic crown ethers

Five new cage‐annulated crown ethers, i.e., 4a, 4b, 6b, 11a, and 11b, have been synthesized and their respective alkali metal picrate extraction profiles along with that of a previously synthesized host molecule, 6a, have been obtained. These results are compared with the corresponding results obtained for electrospray ionization mass spectrometric (ESI‐MS) measurements of relative binding selectivities displayed by the same hosts toward a series of alkali metal chlorides. Among the crown‐5 hosts studied, 6a displays enhanced avidity toward complexation with K⁺ picrate in liquid‐liquid extraction experiments. Among the three crown‐6 hosts, 4b proved to be the best alkali metal picrate extractant and displayed significant levels of avidity toward complexation with the larger alkali metal cations (i.e., K⁺, Rb⁺, and Cs⁺). The trends in the picrate extraction and the ESI‐MS results obtained herein show several notable similarities and some differences. The similarities generally stem from size‐selective binding properties that are intrinsic to the different cavity sizes of the cage‐annulated macrocycles, whereas the differences reflect the important influence of solvation effects on the binding properties of the macrocycles.     

Nonfitting protein–ligand interaction scoring function based on first‐principles theoretical chemistry methods: Development and application on kinase inhibitors

Targeted therapy is currently a hot topic in the fields of cancer research and drug design. An important requirement for this approach is the development of potent and selective inhibitors for the identified target protein. However, current ways to estimate inhibitor efficacy rely on empirical protein–ligand interaction scoring functions which, suffering from their heavy parameterizations, often lead to a low accuracy. In this work, we develop a nonfitting scoring function, which consists of three terms: (1) gas‐phase protein‐ligand binding enthalpy obtained by the eXtended ONIOM hybrid method based on an integration of density functional theory (DFT) methods (XYG3 and ωB97X‐D) and the semiempirical PM6 method, (2) solvation free energy based on DFT‐SMD solvation model, and (3) entropy effect estimated by using DFT frequency analysis. The new scoring function is tested on a cyclin‐dependent kinase 2 (CDK2) inhibitor database including 76 CDK2 protein inhibitors and a p21‐activated kinase 1 (PAK1) inhibitor database including 20 organometallic PAK1 protein inhibitors. From the results, good correlations are found between the calculated scores and the experimental inhibitor efficacies with the square of correlation coefficient R² of 0.76–0.88. This suggests a good predictive power of this scoring function. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first high level theory‐based nonfitting scoring function with such a good level of performance. This scoring function is recommended to be used in the final screening of lead structure derivatives. © 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.     

Directional Potassium Transport through a Unimolecular Peptide Channel

Three unimolecular peptide channels have been designed and prepared by using the β‐helical conformation of gramicidin A (gA). The new peptides bear one to three NH₃⁺ groups at the N‐end and one to three CO₂^? groups at the C‐end. These zwitterionic peptides were inserted into lipid bilayers in an orientation‐selective manner. Conductance experiments on planar lipid bilayers showed that this orientation bias could lead to observable directional K⁺ transport under multi‐channel conditions. This directional transport behavior can further cause the generation of a current across a planar bilayer without applying a voltage. More importantly, in vesicles with identical external and internal KCl concentrations, the channels can pump K⁺ across the lipid bilayer and cause a membrane potential.