Design,synthesis and evaluation of novel dehydroabietic acid-dithiocarbamate hybrids as potential multi-targeted compounds for tumor cytotoxicity

In the present study, novel representatives of the important group of biologically-active, dehydroabietic acid-bearing dithiocarbamate moiety, were synthesized and characterized by ¹H NMR, ¹³C NMR, HR-MS. The in vitro antiproliferative activity evaluation (MTT) indicated that these compounds exhibited potent inhibitory activities in various cancer cell lines (HepG-2, MCF-7, HeLa, T-24, MGC-803). Particularly, compound III-b possessed extraordinary cytotoxicity with low micromolar IC₅₀ values ranging from 4.07 to 38.84 µM against tested cancer cell lines, while displayed weak cytotoxicity on two normal cell lines (LO-2 and HEK 293 T). Subsequently, the potential mechanisms of representative compound III-b were elementarily investigated by Transwell experiment, which showed III-b can inhibit cancer cells migration. Annexin-V/PI dual staining showed that the compound can induce HepG-2 cells apoptosis in a dose-dependent manner. Meanwhile this apoptosis may be related to the upregulated protein expression of cleaved-caspase 3, cleaved-caspase 9, Bax and downregulated of Bcl-2 indicated by Western Blot. Later study further confirmed that ROS levels in HepG-2 cells increased significantly with the rise of concentrations. In addition, through the network pharmacology data analyzing, the core targets and signaling pathways of compound III-b for treatment of liver neoplasms were forecasted. Molecular docking model showed that compound III-b had high affinity with hub targets (CASP3, EGFR, HSP90AA1, MAPK1, ERBB2, MDM2), suggesting that compound III-b might target the hub protein to modulate signaling activity. Taken together, these data indicated that dehydroabietic acid structural modification following the “Molecular hybridization” principle is a feasible way to discover the potential multi-targeted antitumor compounds.     

Theoretical study on the mechanism for the excited-state double proton transfer process of an asymmetric Schiff base ligand

Excited-state double proton transfer (ESDPT) in the 1-[(2-hydroxy-3-methoxy-benzylidene)-hydrazonomethyl]-naphthalen-2-ol (HYDRAVH₂) ligand was studied by the density functional theory and time-dependent density functional theory method. The analysis of frontier molecular orbitals, infrared spectra, and non-covalent interactions have cross-validated that the asymmetric structure has an influence on the proton transfer, which makes the proton transfer ability of the two hydrogen protons different. The potential energy surfaces in both S₀ and S₁ states were scanned with varying O-H bond lengths. The results of potential energy surface analysis adequately proved that the HYDRAVH₂ can undergo the ESDPT process in the S₁ state and the double proton transfer process is a stepwise proton transfer mechanism. Our work can pave the way towards the design and synthesis of new molecules.     

阳离子交换皂石黏土在基质辅助激光解吸电离飞行时间质谱分析中的应用

将一种人工合成的无机聚合物——蒙脱石皂石黏土（smectite，Sm）应用于基质辅助激光解吸电离飞行时间质谱分析（matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization time of flight mass spectrometry, MALDI-TOF-MS），以检测糖类化合物。 将传统的有机基质2，4，6-三羟基苯乙酮（trihydroxyacetophenone, THAP）与阳离子交换后的皂石黏土混合制备成新型复合基质，应用于糖类化合物的检测。通过比较不同的制样方法，测定不同分子直径的糖类化合物，发现由于受复合基质晶面间距的限制，只有小分子糖类化合物能进入晶面间隙充分接触有机基质并被离子化，从而实现对小分子糖类化合物的选择性检测。     

1,3,5-三(羧基甲氧基)苯镍配位聚合物的合成、晶体结构及性质研究

采用溶剂热法,1,3,5-三(羧基甲氧基)苯为定向配体和乙酸镍反应构筑了一个新型的金属配位聚合物[Ni(TB)₂(H₂O)₂]_n·2H₂O,其中H₃TB=1,3,5-三(羧基甲氧基)苯,通过元素分析、IR及X射线单晶衍射对配合物结构进行表征,并研究其荧光性质、热稳定性及Hirshfeld表面作用力。单晶结构分析表明,该配合物属于三斜晶系,空间群$P \overline{1}$,配合物中心离子Ni(Ⅱ)分别与来自两个水分子上的氧原子及四个不同1,3,5-三(羧基甲氧基)苯配体的羧酸氧原子配位,形成六配位的NiO₆八面体构型,并通过与1,3,5-三(羧基甲氧基)苯配体的氧原子配位不断延伸形成具有孔洞结构的一维链状构型。配合物具有良好的荧光性能和热稳定性。Hirshfeld表面作用分析表明配合物分子中O…H/H…O作用占主导且占比为39.0%,而H…H的作用力占比为25.9%,O…O的作用力占比为13.6%。     

Cu/CuO-Graphene Foam with Laccase-like Activity for Identification of Phenolic Compounds and Detection of Epinephrine

Although great progress has been made in the advancement of nanozymes, most of the studies focus on mimicking peroxidase, oxidase, and catalase, while relatively few studies are used to mimic laccase. However, the use of nanomaterials to mimic laccase activity will have great potential in environmental and industrial catalysis. Herein, Cu/CuO-graphene foam with laccase-like activity was designed for the identification of phenolic compounds and the detection of epinephrine. In a typical experiment, the formation mechanism of Cu/CuO-graphene foam was investigated during the pyrolysis process by thermogravimetric-mass spectrometry. As a laccase mimic, Cu/CuO-graphene foam exhibited excellent catalytic activity with a Michaelis-Menten constant and a maximum initial velocity of 0.17 mmol/L and 0.012 mmol∙L^-1∙s^-1, respectively. Based on this principle, Cu/CuO-graphene foam nanozyme could differentially catalyze phenolic compounds and 4-aminoantipyrine for simultaneous identification of phenolic compounds. Furthermore, a colorimetric sensing platform was fabricated for the quantitative determination of epinephrine, showing linear responses to epinephrine in the range of 3 mg/mL to 20 mg/mL with the detection limit of 0.2 mg/mL. The proposed Cu/CuO-graphene foam nanozyme could be applied for the identification of phenolic compounds and the detection of epinephrine, showing great potential applications for environmental monitoring, biomedical sensing, and food detection fields.     

Syntheses,crystal structures and properties of Cd(II) and Ag(I) complexes based on 2-p-methylphenyl-5-(2-pyridyl)-1,3,4-thiadiazole

Abstract

Complexes of [CdL₂(NO₃)₂]·1.5H₂O and [Ag₂(μ-L)₂(NO₃)₂] were synthesized by the reactions of 2-p-methylphenyl-5-(2-pyridyl)-1,3,4-thiadiazole (L) with Cd(NO₃)₂·4H₂O and AgNO₃, respectively. Their structures were determined by single crystal X-ray diffraction. The photophysical property and thermal stability were characterized by FT???IR, UV???Vis absorption, fluorescence, and thermogravimetric analysis (TGA). Both complexes belong to the triclinic system with space group p???1. The central metal of [CdL₂(NO₃)₂]·1.5H₂O has a distorted octahedral geometry [CdN₄O₂], while two central Ag(I) atoms of [Ag₂(μ-L)₂(NO₃)₂] exhibit distorted tetrahedral geometries [AgN₃O].     

A review of recent advances in catalytic combustion of VOCs on perovskite-type catalysts

Along with the rapid development of industry, VOCs gradually move into the spotlight, and now become a kind of harmful environmental pollutants that cannot be overlooked. This paper introduces the hazards of VOCs and the common catalytic combustion catalysts, noble metal catalysts and non-noble metal catalysts, for the elimination of VOCs. Perovskite catalysts, as one of the non-noble catalysts, play an important role in the field of catalytic combustion in recent years. According to the classification of elements doping in perovskites, the research achievements in the past five years were analyzed and reviewed. In addition, this paper also analyzes and elaborates the reaction kinetics and QSAR/QSPR models for the introduction of structural properties and reaction mechanisms.     

Strong Pancake 2e/12c Bond in π-Stacking Phenalenyl Derivatives Avoiding Bond Conversion

The nature of the 2e/12c bond and its conversion to a carbon-carbon single bond in phenalenyl dimers have prompted a great deal of interests recently. In this work, we theoretically investigated a series of π-stacking phenalenyl derivatives with 2e/12c bonding character by density functional theory (DFT) calculations to elucidate origin of this unusual bond conversion. Results show that bond-conversion of the phenalenyl dimer easily occurs at room-temperature both dynamically and thermodynamically. However, bond-conversion of hetero π-stacking adducts, in which the two center carbon atoms were substituted by boron and nitrogen atoms, respectively, is much more difficult, because the 2e/12c bond is stabilized by its charge transfer character. Consequently, the bond-conversion is an endothermic process, albeit with a low conversion barrier. Interestingly, Lewis acid-base interactions would be induced by substitution of the center nitrogen atom to phosphorus atom. The 2e/12c bond is further stabilized by 5.9 kcal mol⁻¹ and its conversion is also thermodynamically unfavorable.     

Development and Validation of High-Throughput Bioanalytical Liquid Chromatography-Tandem Mass Spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) Method for the Quantification of Newly Synthesized Antitumor Carbonic Anhydrase Inhibitors in Human Plasma

In the present study, a sensitive and fully validated bioanalytical high-performance liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) method has been developed for the quantitative determination of three newly synthesized carbonic anhydrases inhibitors (CAIs) with potential antitumor activity in human plasma. The analytes and the internal standard (IS) were extracted using 1.5 mL acetonitrile from only 450 µL aliquots of human plasma to achieve the desired protein precipitation. Chromatographic separations were achieved on Phenomenex Kinetex^® C₁₈ column (100 × 4.6 mm, 2.6 µm) using a binary gradient elution mode with a run time of less than 6 min. The mobile phase consisted of solvent (A): 0.1% formic acid in 50% methanol and solvent B: 0.1% formic acid in acetonitrile (30:70, v/v), pumped at a flow rate of 0.8 mL/min. Detection was employed using triple quadrupole tandem mass spectrometer (API 3500) equipped with an electrospray ionization (ESI) source in the positive ion mode. Multiple reaction monitoring (MRM) mode was selected for quantitation through monitoring the precursor-to-parent ion transition at m/z 291.9 → 173.0, m/z 396.9 → 225.1, m/z 388.9 → 217.0, and m/z 146.9 → 91.0 for AW-9a, WES-1, WES-2, and Coumarin (IS), respectively. Linearity was computed using the weighted least-squares linear regression method (1/x²) over a concentration range of 1–1000, 2.5–800, and 5–500 ng/mL for AW-9a, WES-1, and WES-2; respectively. The bioanalytical LC-MS/MS method was fully validated as per U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) guidelines with all respect to linearity, accuracy, precision, carry-over, selectivity, dilution integrity, and stability. The proposed LC-MS/MS method was applied successfully for the determination of all investigated drugs in spiked human plasma with no significant matrix effect, which is a crucial cornerstone in further therapeutic drug monitoring of newly developed therapeutic agents.     

氧离子传导型固体氧化物电解池燃料电极的研究进展

固体氧化物电解池可高效地电解H₂O/CO₂制备燃料,越来越受到人们的重视. 本文对近年来在燃料电极（阴极）材料方面的研究进展进行了全面综述,指出各种阴极材料的优缺点及发展趋势,强调亟待解决的关键科学与技术问题.