Tyrosine nitration of human ERK1 introduces an intra-hydrogen bond by molecular dynamics simulations

Structural Chemistry - ERK1 is an important kinase in Ras–Raf–MEK signaling. We have recently demonstrated by mass spectrometry that Tyr210 of ERK1 can be nitrated, and the nitration...     

Synthesis of nitrogen- and iron-containing carbon dots,and their application to colorimetric and fluorometric determination of dopamine

Nitrogen- and iron-containing carbon dots (N,Fe-CDs) are synthesized by hydrothermal treatment of branched polyethylenimine (BPEI) and hemin at 180 °C. The N,Fe-CDs are mainly doped with nitrogen and trace amounts of iron(III). The N,Fe-CDs also display intrinsic fluorescence with excitation/emission maxima at 365/452 nm and a quantum yield of 27 %. The nanodots are shown to act as peroxidase mimics by catalyzing the oxidation of tetramethylbenzidine (TMB) by hydrogen peroxide to form a blue product whose quantity can be determined by photometry at 652 nm. This was exploited to design colorimetric and fluorometric assays for dopamine (DA). The colorimetric assay is based on the oxidation of DA by H₂O₂ in presence of the N,Fe-CDs and TMB. It has an instrumental detection limit of 40 nM (at an S/N ratio of 3), and a visual detection limit of 0.4 μM. The fluorometric assay is based on an inner filter effect that is caused by the formation of oxidized TMB which overlaps (and absorbs) the emission of the N,Fe-CDs located at 452 nm. The fluorometric detection limit is as low as 20 nM (at an S/N ratio of 3).

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Graphical abstract Carbon dots containing nitrogen and iron (N,Fe-CDs) were synthesized by hydrothermal treatment of branched polyethylenimine and hemin. The N,Fe-CDs display excellent fluorescent properties, peroxidase-like activity and potential application in colorimetric and fluorometric detection of dopamine.