Positively charged liposomes consisting of the KTTKS pentapeptide conjugated with rhodamine increase rhodamine toxicity in E. coli and zebrafish embryo

Liposomes composed of cell‐penetrating peptide derivatives increased transport across the cell membrane. Conjugating rhodamine to a cell‐penetrating peptide increased the toxicity of rhodamine in E. coli and zebrafish embryos. A similar total protein inhibition pattern with different intensities, indicating that the interaction pathways of the rho‐KTTKS‐CONH₂ monomer and liposomes were the same. It suggests that the rho‐KTTKS‐CONH₂ liposomes showed higher toxicity because better transport across the cell membrane increased the effective concentration inside cells. The staining of zebrafish embryos using rho‐KTTKS‐CONH₂ liposomes showed a longer retention time, suggesting that it can penetrate deeper tissues or organs in zebrafish.     

Evaluation of Poly(glycidyl methacrylate)-Coated Column for Enantioseparation with Azithromycin Lactobionate and Clindamycin Phosphate as Chiral Selectors in Capillary Electrophoresis

Chromatographia - In this study, a poly(glycidyl methacrylate) nanoparticle (PGMA NP)-coated column system with two antibiotics as selector was constructed for enantioseparation. The PGMA NP...     

Electrochemical aptamer sensor for highly sensitive detection of mercury ion with Au/Pt@carbon nanofiber‐modified electrode

In this paper, an electrochemical aptamer sensor was proposed for the highly sensitive detection of mercury ion (Hg²⁺). Carbon nanofiber (CNF) was prepared by electrospinning and high‐temperature carbonization, which was used for the loading of platinum nanoparticles (PtNPs) by the hydrothermal method. The Pt@CNF nanocomposite was modified on the surface of carbon ionic liquid electrode (CILE) to obtain Pt@CNF/CILE, which was further decorated by gold nanoparticles (AuNPs) through electrodeposition to get Au/Pt@CNF/CILE. Self‐assembling of the thiol‐based aptamer was further realized by the formation of Au‐S bond to get an electrochemical aptamer sensor (Aptamer/Au/Pt@CNF/CILE). Due to the specific binding of aptamer probe to Hg²⁺ with the formation of T‐Hg²⁺‐T structure, a highly sensitive quantitative detection of Hg²⁺ could be achieved by recording the changes of current signal after reacting with Hg²⁺ within the concentration range from 1.0 × 10^?15 mol/L to 1.0 × 10^?6 mol/L and the detection limit of 3.33 × 10^?16 mol/L (3σ). Real water samples were successfully analyzed by this method.     

Design,synthesis, and insecticidal activities of novel diamide derivatives with alpha-amino acid subunits

A series of diamide derivatives containing α-amino acids were designed and synthesized. These compounds were evaluated for their insecticidal activities against Plutella xylostella, Mythimna separate, Myzus persicae, and Tetranychus cinnabarinus. Most of the title compounds containing an l -phenylglycine skeleton were endowed with good activities at the concentration of 500 mg·L⁻¹. Compounds ( R)-A6 showed a potential value for further optimization as an insecticidal lead with the LC₅₀ value of 86.8 mg·L⁻¹.     

Inhibition of Thiol-Mediated Uptake with Irreversible Covalent Inhibitors

Thiol-mediated uptake is emerging as method of choice to penetrate cells. This study focuses on irreversible covalent inhibitors of thiol-mediated uptake. High-content high-throughput screening of the so far largest collection of hypervalent iodine reagents affords inhibitors that are more than 250 times more active than Ellman’s reagent and rival the best dynamic covalent inhibitors. Comparison with other irreversible reagents reveals that inhibition within one series follows reactivity, whereas inhibition across series deviates from reactivity. These trends support that molecular recognition, besides dynamic covalent exchange, contributes significantly to thiol-mediated uptake. The most powerful inhibitors besides the best hypervalent iodine reagents were Fukuyama’s nosyl protecting group and super-cinnamaldehydes that have been introduced as irreversible activators of the pain receptor TRPA1. Considering that several viruses use different forms of thiol-mediated uptake to enter cells, the identification of new irreversible inhibitors of thiol-mediated uptake is of general interest for the discovery of new antivirals.     

DNA G-四链体的结构完整性对催化性质的影响

DNA酶中的G-四链体-血红素(G4-hemin)DNA酶结构具有较高的设计性和化学稳定性,因此格外受研究者关注.G-平面作为辅酶因子hemin的结合位点,不仅提供大π平面与hemin结合,而且其平面上的G碱基还可以充当近端配位基团与hemin进行配位.因此,研究G-平面完整性在G4-DNA酶体系中的作用具有重要意义.本文设计了一系列含有空位的G4(G-vacancy,GV)及G-三链体,通过“鸟嘌呤类似物插入”策略实现G-平面完整性以及DNA酶催化活性的恢复.结果表明,末端G-平面完整性是G4-DNA酶具有催化活性的必要条件,且其能够充当近端配位基团与末端碱基协同激活G4-DNA酶.考虑到hemin会选择性地结合于G4的3’-端平面,本文以含有3’-端空位的G4以及G-三链体为模型进行DNA酶的构建.结果表明,相较于末端完整的G4-hemin DNA酶,末端不完整的G4结构所形成的DNA酶催化活性很低.为了进一步验证该平面完整性的重要性,本文提出了“鸟嘌呤衍生物插入”策略,即将鸟嘌呤衍生物(无环鸟苷和鸟苷)插入G-空位以恢复G-平面的完整性.通过圆二色光谱和紫外熔解实验,发现末端平面完整性的缺失会使圆二色特征峰信号和G4结构热稳定性下降,而鸟嘌呤碱基类似物的加入则可以使特征峰信号以及热稳定性得到一定程度的恢复,表明鸟嘌呤碱基类似物的加入确实使G-平面完整性得到恢复.与此同时,随着鸟嘌呤碱基类似物浓度的增加,G4-hemin DNA酶活性逐渐增强,最终恢复至与完整G4一样的活性.在以G-三链体为模型的实验中,本文通过另一条富G序列与G-三链体进行结合,形成复合的(3+1)型G4结构,最终实现了DNA酶活性的恢复.同时,在3’-G-平面末端增加了激活碱基(dA或dTC),结果表明,即使G-平面不完整,末端碱基依旧能够激活DNA酶,但酶活性整体弱于完整G4时的活性.同样,“鸟嘌呤衍生物插入”策略可以使酶活性得到恢复.本文系列实验充分说明了末端碱基可与G-平面形成协同作用,与hemin的铁中心共同形成六配位关系,加速催化中间体生成,进而增强催化活性.有趣的是,通过设计Holliday junction结构研究发现,“鸟嘌呤衍生物插入”策略仅适用于平行G4结构.G-空位的存在不仅降低了G4结构的稳定性,而且降低了其与hemin间的亲和力,二者均是造成G4-DNA酶催化能力下降的主要因素.总之,本文证明了3’-端G-平面的完整性是G4-DNA酶实现其催化能力必不可少的因素,对理解末端G-平面在G4-DNA酶中的作用具有重要的参考意义.     

将铂(Ⅱ)-四(4-羧基苯基)卟啉组装到光捕获金属有机框架中增强可见光驱动的产氢效能

氢气析出反应的分子催化剂因能够将其整合到用于光催化水分解的光捕集复合物中而受到广泛关注.研究者期望通过构建吸光网络,提高分子催化剂的光催化产氢效能.本文报道了以[(TCPP)Pt^Ⅱ][TCPP=meso-四(4-羧基苯基)卟啉]络合物作为光催化产氢的分子催化剂.采用氯冉酸(CA)作为电子牺牲剂可以很好地稳定光催化剂,使CA被氧化为[CA-H·]自由基.当使用三乙醇胺作为电子牺牲剂时,[(TCPP)Pt^Ⅱ]分解形成Pt纳米颗粒.电化学循环伏安实验结果表明,光催化产氢的第一步是质子偶联电子转移,以获得[(TCPP)Pt+H]0.然而,第二个电子转移-1.02 V的氧化还原电位不随添加三氟乙酸而位移,表明该电子转移未与质子转移耦合,得到[(TCPP)Pt+H]-.此外,第二次电子转移的峰值处产生催化波,表明氢气是由[(TCPP)Pt+H]-的质子化生成,然后再生[(TCPP)Pt^Ⅱ]并释放氢气.密度泛函理论计算结果表明,[(TCPP)Pt^Ⅱ]分子催化剂光催化产氢的机理可能先经过质子耦合电子转移反应,形成[(TCPP)Pt^Ⅰ]-NH,然后依次经过电子注入和质子化形成[(TCPP)Pt^Ⅱ-H]-NH中间体,最终释放H2.由于整个催化循环过程涉及多个电子的注入,光捕获网络的引入有助于提供多个光电子.因此,本文通过将[(TCPP)Pt^Ⅱ]掺杂生长到主要由[(TCPP)Zn^Ⅱ]构筑的金属有机框架中,构筑了与分子催化剂连接的光捕获网络,从而将其活性提高了约830倍.纳秒瞬态吸收光谱和时间分辨的磷光光谱表明,向[(TCPP)Pt^Ⅱ]均相溶液中加入氯冉酸会因电荷转移而缩短3[(TCPP)Pt^Ⅱ]*寿命.同样现象在金属有机框架体系中也被观察到.然而,在磷光猝灭后,瞬态吸收光谱观察到均相溶液中[(TCPP)Pt+H]0及[CA-H·]自由基信号迅速衰减,在微秒时间尺度上衰减为0,表明大部分还原的[(TCPP)Pt+H]0迅速与氧化后的[CA-H·]复合,限制了光催化氢气析出的光量子效率.然而,在金属有机框架体系中,磷光猝灭后纳秒瞬态吸收光谱在较长时间尺度观察到残留吸收带,表明随后消耗CA,向反应体系中注入电子,推动了反应的完成.本文研究了能量转移对光催化H2析出的影响,并强调了光捕获网络在多电子注入中的重要性.     

Bi2WO6基光催化剂在环境和能源领域的最新研究进展

随着全球经济的快速发展与人口的日益膨胀,随之而来的能源消耗与环境污染也日益成为一个严峻的挑战.半导体光催化技术能够将低密度的太阳能转化为高密度的化学能,此外它能够通过产生活性自由基来降解空气或水中的污染物,因此在解决上述问题中具有巨大潜力,被认为是有着广阔前景的绿色无污染的能源转化和环境修复手段.在过去几十年的研究中,一些光催化剂表现出了较好的光催化活性,如TiO2和ZnO等.然而,由于它们的宽带隙,仅仅在紫外光下具有活性,这极大地限制了其对太阳光的利用.为了尽可能地利用太阳能,研究者们开发了许多具有可见光活性的光催化剂.钨酸铋(Bi2WO6)作为一种典型的Aurivillius层状钙钛矿材料,因具有独特的层状结构、良好的可见光催化活性、高的热稳定性和光化学稳定性及环境友好性等特点而备受关注.然而,有限的光吸收和光生载流子的快速复合阻碍了Bi2WO6光催化性能的进一步提高.因此,研究者们进行了大量的研究,致力于进一步增强Bi2WO6光催化剂的活性.本文对Bi2WO6基光催化剂的最新研究进展进行了系统综述.首先介绍了Bi2WO6的晶体结构、光学性质和光催化基本原理.然后,基于Bi2WO6的改性策略,包括形貌控制、原子调控和复合材料制备,重点讨论了Bi2WO6在水分解、污染物处理、空气净化、杀菌消毒、二氧化碳还原、选择性有机合成等领域的光催化应用.最后,对Bi2WO6基光催化剂当前面临的挑战和未来的发展作了展望和总结,提出了Bi2WO6光催化剂未来的一些研究方向,包括(1)大规模、精确可控地合成Bi2WO6,特别是高活性晶面、多孔结构和量子点的设计;(2)精确调控原子位置,利用先进的技术手段进一步揭示活性位点上的光催化过程;(3)发展原位表征技术来观察复合光催化剂的界面电荷动力学以及开发新型Bi2WO6基复合体系.(4)通过机械应力、温度梯度以及电场等外场的耦合提高Bi2WO6的光催化性能;(5)进一步深入研究Bi2WO6在不同领域的光催化应用,特别是在肿瘤治疗和太阳能燃料制备方面,一些新的应用如固氮等也值得探索.期望本综述能够为Bi2WO6和其他高效光催化材料的设计提供一些指导和帮助.     

A series of coordination polymers constructed from mixed ligands for highly selective luminescence sensing of Fe3+ ions

Transition Metal Chemistry - Four coordination polymers, namely {[Cd2(1,4-NDC)2(dbp)2]·DMF}n (1), {[Cd(1,4-NDC)(dbp)(H2O)]}n (2), {[Zn(2,6-NDC)(dbp)(H2O)]}n (3), and...     

Preparation and electroluminescent application of iridium(III) complexes containing sulfur-containing phenylpyridazine ligands

Transition Metal Chemistry - Four iridium(III) complexes (1–4) with sulfur-containing phenylpyridazine ligands were successfully synthesized and characterized. The structure of complex 3 was...