二甲苯兰FF-溴化十六烷基三甲基铵-核酸共振光散射光谱研究及分析应用

在pH9.90的Tris-HCl缓冲溶液中,阴离子染料二甲苯兰FF(XCFF)对阳离子表面活性剂溴化十六烷基三甲基铵(CTMAB)与核酸(fsDNA、ctDNA、yRNA)的共振光散射光谱有协同增强作用。考察了影响因素,在优化条件下研究了共振光散射强度与核酸浓度之间的关系,对于fsDNA、ctDNA、yRNA的线性范围分别为0.05—3.0mg/L、0.05—6.0mg/L、0.5—2.0mg/L,检出限分别为24.1、18.4、57.0μg/L。据此建立了一种测定核酸的新方法。     

Hydrogen Bonding: From Small Clusters to Biopolymers

Summary.  High quality ab initio computations and molecular spectroscopy of small hydrogen-bonded clusters in the vapor phase provide highly accurate data in general agreement with the theory of hydrogen bonds developed in the seventies. Hydrogen bonding is a major force determining energetics and structures of biopolymers. In addition to direct influence through their directionality, hydrogen bonds set the stage for the formation of biopolymer structures indirectly since they determine the water structure. On the basis of current results hydrophobic interactions are considered equally important or even more relevant than direct hydrogen bonding. A new concept for protein and nucleic acid folding which is based on statistical mechanics allows to study the role of hydrogen bond formation in the nucleation process as well as in later states. Received May 3, 1999. Accepted May 4, 1999     

甲苯胺蓝荧光猝灭法测定核酸

以甲苯胺蓝为荧光探针,基于DNA对甲苯胺蓝的荧光猝灭作用,建立了一种定量测定DNA的新方法。在pH 8.5的Tris-HCl缓冲溶液中,测定小牛胸腺DNA的线性范围为0.1～6.0 μg·mL-1,检测限为27 ng·mL-1。该方法应用于实际样品樟树嫩叶中的DNA含量的测定,获得了满意结果。     

Nucleic Acid–Promoted Electron Transfer to Cytochrome c

Gold electrodes were modified with short oligonucleotides in order to facilitate the electron transfer to the small redox protein cytochrome c. DNA immobilization was followed by impedance spectroscopy. The electron exchange was found to be quasi-reversible for both the protein in solution or adsorbed at the electrode surface. Variations of base sequence or structure (DNA-PNA hybrids) of the nucleic acid promoter layer did not significantly change the electron transfer rate constant which was in the range of 0.2–1×10⁻² cm/s. Cytochrome c adsorbed at low ionic strength was coupled to molecules in solution such as superoxide or laccase. Aspects of the DNA conductivity and possibilities for DNA detection are also discussed.     

Miniature Continuous-Flow Polymerase Chain Reaction: A Breakthrough?

A time–space conversion enables the polymerase chain reaction (PCR) to be carried out in a continuous-flow process: the mobile reaction mixture is pumped continuously through a glass microchip and passes many times through three constant temperature zones (see picture). The flow rate can be varied to obtain an amplification time of only 90 s. When combined with other continuous-flow microdevices this micromachine may prove useful for routine medical applications and biochemical research.     

Endogenous Enzyme-Operated Spherical Nucleic Acids for Cell-Selective Protein Capture and Localization Regulation

Precise regulation of protein activity and localization in cancer cells is crucial to dissect the function of the protein-involved cellular network in tumorigenesis, but there is a lack of suitable methodology. Here we report the design of enzyme-operated spherical nucleic acids (E-SNAs) for manipulation of the nucleocytoplasmic translocation of proteins with cancer-cell selectivity. The E-SNAs are constructed by programmable engineering of aptamer-based modules bearing enzyme-responsive units in predesigned sites and further combination with SNA nanotechnology. We demonstrate that E-SNAs are able to regulate cytoplasmic-to-nuclear shuttling of RelA protein efficiently and specifically in tumor cells, while they remain inactive in normal cells due to insufficient enzyme expression. We further confirmed the generality of this strategy by investigating the enzyme-modulated inhibition/activation of thrombin activity by varying the aptamer-based design.     

FINDER: A Fluidly Confined CRISPR-Based DNA Reporter on Living Cell Membranes for Rapid and Sensitive Cancer Cell Identification

The accurate, rapid, and sensitive identification of cancer cells in complex physiological environments is significant in biological studies, personalized medicine, and biomedical engineering. Inspired by the naturally confined enzymes on fluid cell membranes, a f luidly confin ed CRISPR-based D NA reporter (FINDER) was developed on living cell membranes, which was successfully applied for rapid and sensitive cancer cell identification in clinical blood samples. Benefiting from the spatial confinement effect for improved local concentration, and membrane fluidity for higher collision efficiency, the activity of CRISPR-Cas12a was, for the first time, found to be significantly enhanced on living cell membranes. This new phenomenon was then combined with multiple aptamer-based DNA logic gate for cell recognition, thus a FINDER system capable of accurate, rapid and sensitive cancer cell identification was constructed. The FINDER rapidly identified target cells in only 20 min, and achieved over 80 % recognition efficiency with only 0.1 % of target cells presented in clinical blood samples, indicating its potential application in biological studies, personalized medicine, and biomedical engineering.