DNA‐Templated Copper Nanoprobes: Overview,Feature, Application,and Current Development in Detection Technologies

Metal nanoprobes have recently attracted board research interestinr their application in establishing sensing systems due to their unique optical, electrical, physical, and chemical properties. In comparison to gold and silver nanoprobes, analytical platform based on copper nanoprobes (Cu‐NPs) is still in the early stages of development. In this review, we focus on single‐stranded, and double‐stranded DNA capped Cu‐NPs sensing systems which have been designed for various analytes, including metal ions, anions, small molecules, biomolecules (DNA, RNA, and protein, etc.). In addition, the application of Cu‐NPs in biological labeling or bio‐imaging platforms has also been introduced and summarized.     

Emerging Trends in Fluorescence Bioimaging of Divalent Metal Cations Using Small-Molecule Indicators

Visualization of cation dynamics inside a living system represent a major breakthrough at the crossroad of chemistry and cellular physiology. Since the inception of BAPTA-based cellular calcium indicators in the 1980s, generations of chemical and genetically encoded ion indicators spanning the visible spectrum have been developed. In this article, we bring up three emerging concepts in this field: 1. red-shifting cation indicators towards far-red and near-infrared (NIR) channels; 2. directing the indicators to various subcellular localizations; 3. lowering the phototoxicity of indicators for long term recording. These initiatives collectively echo the advocate of 4D cellular physiology, where biological processes within living systems can be panoramically unveiled under 3D, long-term, and multi-channel imaging with unprecedented spatial and temporal resolution. This outlook poses exciting challenges and opportunities for chemists to upgrade the toolkit of fluorescent indicators as key enablers for a new era of imageomics.     

Novel in situ biosynthesized fluorescent zinc nanoclusters for specific cellular bio-imaging

It is well known that zinc ions play an indispensable role in the structure and function of a large number of biological process and relevant bio-macromolecules. When some cancers occurred, the relevant concentration of zinc ions considerably decreased. Since cancer cells have a completely different redox homeostasis from normal cells, in this contribution, we have explored the possibility of bio-imaging or labeling of cancer cells through the in situ biosynthesized zinc nanoclusters by cancerous cells. The results demonstrate that we can readily realize the in vivo fluorescent bio-imaging of cancer cells through the in situ biosynthesis of the biocompatible zinc nanoclusters from cancerous cells (i.e., Hela cervical carcinoma cell line and others) when target cells cultured with micromolar zinc gluconate solutions.     

Analyte Detection: A Decade of Progress in the Development of Optical/Fluorescent Sensing Probes

The development of selective and sensitive chemical sensors capable of detecting metal ions, anions, neutral species, explosives and hazardous substances, selectively and sensitively has attracted considerable interest of various research groups. The presence of such analytes within the permissible limits is often beneficial, but the excess amounts may lead to lethal effects to both the environment as well as the living organisms. Owing to the toxicity of the heavy metal ions, toxic anions and nitro-aromatics which are main constituents of explosives, the timely detection of these materials is most desirable to ensure safety and security of the mankind. In this personal account, we present several classes of molecular sensors that were specifically designed in our lab during the past decade for detecting several species in solutions, solid state as well as biological media. Modulation of the optical properties in response to the presence of guest species, led to selective and sensitive detection protocols, and was supported by the theoretical studies wherever possible. We have also extended the application of some of these probes for the on-site detection of analytes by developing the paper strips, glass slides and even the wool and cotton fabrics loaded with probes. One such development represents detection of palladium in human urine and blood samples collected from clinical samples. Additionally, the sensing events in some cases have successfully been reproduced in the live cancer cells. Based on the ease and cost-effective synthesis of the molecular probes, we hope that this account shall provide significant information to researchers in understanding the structure dependent sensing capabilities of the molecular probes.     

Distinguishable Targeting of Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer Using Hyaluronan Functionalized Platinum Nanoclusters and Their Inhibition Behaviors of Proliferation,Invasion, Migration

Lung cancer is the leading cause of cancer deaths worldwide and most cancer patients receiving conventional chemotherapy suffer from severe side effects due to the non-selective effects of chemotherapeutic drugs on normal cells. Targeted nanomaterials can obtain excellent accumulation at the tumor site through their active or passive targeting mechanisms, thereby reducing the toxicity of the drugs in various ways. In this study, hyaluronic acid (HA) which could specifically bind to CD44 on the surface of tumor cells, was used to modify amine-caged platinum nanoclusters (Pt NCs-NH₂) to obtain targeting HA-Pt NCs-NH₂. Based on the differential expression of CD44 on the surface of three lung cells (non-small cell lung cancer cell H1299, small cell lung cancer cell H446, and embryonic lung fibroblast HFL1), HA-Pt NCs-NH₂ can differentially enter the three cells and achieve their targeting of non-small cell lung cancer cell (NSCLC) cells. Pt NCs significantly inhibited the proliferation, migration and invasion of NSCLC cells and induced their apoptosis in comparison of classical cisplatin and carboplatin, showing a bright future in early diagnosis and treatment of NSCLC.     

叶酸受体靶向CdS量子点应用于HepG2细胞成像研究

0引言量子点(quantum dots,QDs)又称半导体纳米晶体(semiconductor nanocrystal),是一种由Ⅱ-Ⅵ族或Ⅲ-Ⅴ族元素组成的尺寸在2￣20nm之间,稳定的微     

The Influence of Surface Modification on the Photoluminescence of CdTe Quantum Dots: Realization of Bio‐Imaging via Cost‐Effective Polymer

To impart biocompatibility, stability, and specificity to quantum dots (QDs)—and to reduce their toxicity—it is essential to carry out surface modification. However, most surface‐modification processes are costly, complicated, and time‐consuming. In addition, the modified QDs often have a large size, which leads to easy aggregation in biological environments, making it difficult to excrete them from in vivo systems. To solve these problems, three kinds of conventional polymers, namely, polyvinyl alcohol (PVA, neutral), sodium polystyrene sulfonate (PSS, negative charged), and poly(diallyl dimethyl ammonium chloride) (PDDA, positive charged) were selected to modify the surface of QDs at low cost via a simple process in which the size of the QDs was kept small after modification. The effect of polymer modification on the photoluminescence (PL) properties of the QDs was systematically investigated. High quantum yields (QYs) of 65 % were reached, which is important for the realization of bio‐imaging. Then, the cytotoxicity of CdTe QD–polymer composites was systematically investigated via MTT assay using the Cal27 and HeLa cell lines, especially for high concentrations of QD–polymer composites in vitro. The experimental results showed that the cytotoxicity decreased in the order CdTe‐PDDA>CdTe>CdTe‐PSS>CdTe‐PVA, indicating that PSS and PVA can reduce the toxicity of the QDs. An obvious cytotoxicity of CdTe‐PVA and CdTe‐PSS was present until 120 h for the Cal27 cell line and until 168 h for the HeLa cell line. At last, the Cal27 cell line was selected to realize bio‐imaging using CdTe‐PSS and CdTe‐PVA composites with different emission colors under one excitation wavelength.     

Cancer Cell Imaging Using in Situ Generated Gold Nanoclusters

In situ generated fluorescent gold nanoclusters (Au‐NCs) are used for bio‐imaging of three human cancer cells, namely, lung (A549), breast (MCF7), and colon (HCT116), by confocal microscopy. The amount of Au‐NCs in non‐cancer cells (WI38 and MCF10A) is 20–40 times less than those in the corresponding cancer cells. The presence of a larger amount of glutathione (GSH) capped Au‐NCs in the cancer cell is ascribed to a higher glutathione level in cancer cells. The Au‐NCs exhibit fluorescence maxima at 490–530 nm inside the cancer cells. The fluorescence maxima and matrix‐assisted laser desorption ionization (MALDI) mass spectrometry suggest that the fluorescent Au‐NCs consist of GSH capped clusters with a core structure (Au_8‐13). Time‐resolved confocal microscopy indicates a nanosecond (1–3 ns) lifetime of the Au‐NCs inside the cells. This rules out the formation of aggregated Au–thiolate complexes, which typically exhibit microsecond (≈1000 ns) lifetimes. Fluorescence correlation spectroscopy (FCS) in live cells indicates that the size of the Au‐NCs is ≈1–2 nm. For in situ generation, we used a conjugate consisting of a room‐temperature ionic liquid (RTIL, [pmim][Br]) and HAuCl₄. Cytotoxicity studies indicate that the conjugate, [pmim][AuCl₄], is non‐toxic for both cancer and non‐cancer cells.     

Metal Complexes with Azolate‐Functionalized Multidentate Ligands: Tactical Designs and Optoelectronic Applications

This review is aimed at updating the recent development on the metal complexes bearing azolate‐containing chelates that have received a growing attention from both the industrial and academic sectors. Particular emphasis is given to the luminescent metal complexes, for which tridentate and multidentate bonding interactions give rise to both higher ligand field strength and better rigidity versus their bidentate counterparts—consequently, this is beneficial to the chemical stability and emission efficiency needed for applications such as organic light‐emitting diodes and bio‐imaging. Their basic designs involve chelates, such as monoanionic 6‐azolyl 2,2′‐bipyridine, dianionic 2,6‐diazolylpyridine, and 2‐azolyl‐6‐phenylpyridine, and the core metal ion spanning from main group elements, such as Ga^III and In^III, to the late transition metal ions such as Ru^II, Os^II, Ir^III, and Pt^II and even the lanthanides. Furthermore, the great versatility of these azolate chelates for assembling the robust and emissive metal complexes, provides bright prospect in future optoelectronic investigations.     

Bioimaging mass spectrometry of trace elements – recent advance and applications of LA-ICP-MS: A review

Bioimaging using laser ablation inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (LA-ICP-MS) offers the capability to quantify trace elements and isotopes within tissue sections with a spatial resolution ranging about 10–100 μm. Distribution analysis adds to clarifying basic questions of biomedical research and enables bioaccumulation and bioavailability studies for ecological and toxicological risk assessment in humans, animals and plants. Major application fields of mass spectrometry imaging (MSI) and metallomics have been in brain and cancer research, animal model validation, drug development and plant science. Here we give an overview of latest achievements in methods and applications. Recent improvements in ablation systems, operation and cell design enabled progressively better spatial resolutions down to 1 μm. Meanwhile, a body of research has accumulated covering basic principles of the element architecture in animals and plants that could consistently be reproduced by several laboratories such as the distribution of Fe, Cu, Zn in rodent brain. Several studies investigated the distribution and delivery of metallo-drugs in animals. Hyper-accumulating plants and pollution indicator organisms have been the key topics in environmental science. Increasingly, larger series of samples are analyzed, may it be in the frame of comparisons between intervention and control groups, of time kinetics or of three-dimensional atlas approaches.