Molecular dynamics simulation study on zwitterionic structure to maintain the natural behavior of polyalanine13 in aqueous environment

Molecular dynamics simulations are applied to the initial stage of polyalanine13 conformational transi- tion from α-helix to random coil in aqueous environment and the interaction of polyalanine13 with zwitterionic and hydrophobic surfaces respectively in the same condition. The analysis of secondary structure, hydrogen bonds, RMSD, dihedral distribution, and the degree of adsorption are performed. The results show that zwitterionic structure maintains the natural behavior of polyalanine13 in water to a better extent, which should be an indirect proof of the hypothesis of "maintain of normal structure."     

The enzyme-amplified amperometric DNA sensor using an electrodeposited polymer redox mediator

A highly sensitive method for the detection of a breast cancer-associated BRCA-1 gene is reported. The detection is based on a classical sandwich-type assay using horseradish peroxidase (HRP) as a catalytic label and electrodeposited Os^2+/3+ conducting polymer (PAA-PVI-Os) as a redox mediator. Target DNA could be detected by the HRP-catalyzed reduction of H₂O₂, leading to a limit of detection as low as 10 fM. Supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant Nos. 20725516, 20704043, 20873175 & 20805055), Shanghai Municipal Commission for Science and Technology (Grant Nos. 0752nm021 & 07ZR14136), Ministry of Science and Technology (Grant Nos. 2006CB933000, 2007CB936000 & 2007AA06A406), Ministry of Health (Grant No. 2009ZX10603), and China Postdoctoral Science Foundation and Shanghai Postdoctoral Scientific Program (Grant No. 07R214160).     

Direct electrochemistry behavior of Cytochrome c on silicon dioxide nanoparticles-modified electrode

A newfangled direct electrochemistry behavior of Cytochrome c (Cyt c) was found on glassy carbon (GC) electrode modified with the silicon dioxide (SiO2) nanoparticles by physical adsorption. A pair of stable and well-defined redox peaks of Cyt c′ quasi-reversible electrochemical reaction were obtained with a heterogeneous electron transfer rate constant of 1.66×10-3 cm/s and a formal potential of 0.069 V (vs. Ag/AgCl) (0.263 V versus NHE) in 0.1 mol/L pH 6.8 PBS. Both the size and the amount of SiO2 nanoparticles could influence the electron transfer between Cyt c and the electrode. Electrostatic interaction which is between the negative nanoparticle surface and positively charged amino acid residues on the Cyt c surface is of importance for the stability and reproducibility toward the direct electron transfer of Cyt c. It is suggested that the modification of SiO2 nanoparticles proposes a novel approach to realize the direct electrochemistry of proteins.     

Field-effect transistor chemical sensors of single nanoribbon of copper phthalocyanine

Copper phthalocyanine (CuPc) nanoribbon field-effect transistors were implemented as chemical sensors. They showed fast response and high reversibility in the detection of the tetrahydrofuran atmosphere at room temperature. The drain current of the field-effect transistor sensor decreased from 6.7 to 0.2 nA when the transistor was measured under the tetrahydrofuran atmosphere. The sensor was self-refreshable in a few minutes. These results demonstrate that the organic single crystalline nanoribbon transistors could effectively act as chemical sensors. Supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant Nos. 20721061, 50725311, 60736004, 60771031), the Ministry of Science and Technology of China (Grant Nos. 2006CB806200, 2006CB932100), and Chinese Academy of Sciences     

Effects of charge distribution on water filling process in carbon nanotube

Using umbrella sampling technique with molecular dynamics simulation, we investigated the nanofluidic transport of water in carbon nanotube (CNT). The simulations showed that a positive charge modification to the carbon nanotube can slow down the water column growth process, while the negative charge modification to the carbon nanotube will, on the other hand, quicken the water column growth process. The free energy curves were obtained through the statistical process of water column growth under different charge distributions, and the results indicated that these free energy curves can be employed to explain the dynamical process of water column growth in the nanosized channels. Supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant Nos. 10425420 and 20773145), the Ministry of Science and Technology of China (Grant Nos. 2006CB806200 and 2006CB932100), and the Chinese Academy of Sciences including its CNIC Supercomputer Center.     

In situ synthesis of DNA micro-arrays using typography technique

A novel typography technique was developed to in situ synthesize oligonucleotide arrays on glass slide, which has the celerity, high spatial resolution, lower cost, reliable operation, and high synthetic efficiency. The principle and process of the typography technique for fabricating gene-chips have been described in detail. A suit of poly(terafluoroethylene) devices for synthesizing oligonucleotide arrays were designed and prepared, and the fiber tubes with a number of nano-or micron-channels were employed. The oligonucleotide arrays of 16 and 160 features with four different probes were synthesized using the typography technique. The four specific oligonucleotide probes including the matched and the mismatched by the fluorescent target sequence gave obviously different hybridization fluorescent signals. It was indicated that the gene-chip fabricated by the typography method could be used to rapidly screen single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNP) and to detect mutations. Supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant Nos. 60571032, 60571001, 90606027 and 60121101), the National Hi-Tech Research and Development Program of China (Grant No. 2006AA03Z357), the Natural Science Foundation of Hunan Province (Grant Nos. 04jj40023 and 06JJ4012) and the Natural Science Foundation of Guangdong Province (Grant No. 04008782)     

Colorimetric and electrochemical Pb<Superscript>2+</Superscript> detection by imine-bridged tetrathiafulvalene-pyridine derivatives

Imine-bridged TTF-π-pyridine derivatives, 2NTTF, 3NTTF and 4NTTF, were synthesized and the cation-binding study was performed. It is noted that with the addition of the micromolar concentration of Pb²⁺ to the solution, these compounds display remarkable changes in solution color, ¹H NMR spectra and electrochemical properties. The nitrogen atom of the imine-bridge in 2NTTF not only serves as a π-conjugated spacer but also participates in the sensing and coordinating properties. Supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant Nos. 20732007, 20728506 & 20672122), the Ministry of Science and Technology of China (Grant Nos. 2006CB806105, 2007CB808004, 2007CB936001 & 2009CB-22008) and the Bureau for Basic Research of the Chinese Academy of Sciences     

Recent developments in intelligent biomedical polymers

Intelligent polymers or stimuli-responsive polymers may exhibit distinct transitions in physical-chemical properties, including conformation, polarity, phase structure and chemical composition in response to changes in environmental stimuli. Due to their unique 'intelligent' characteristics, stimuli-sensitive polymers have found a wide variety of applications in biomedical and nanotechnological fields. This review focuses on the recent developments in biomedical application of intelligent polymer systems, s...     

‘Hierarchical self-assembly’ of helical amylose/SWNTs complex

Helical amylose/SWNTs complexes (A/S-C) of various sizes, a single nanotube wrapped by amylose in particular, were demonstrated. The formation process of the helical A/S-C was further explained by a novel hierarchical self-assembly model, including the wrapping of amylose chains around SWNT and the hierarchical self-assembly of wrapped-SWNTs into the superstructural A/S-C. Besides the hydrophobic interaction, the hydrogen bonding also plays a certain role in the self-assembly process. Supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant No. 60577049) and Shanghai Municipal Science and Technology Commission (Grant Nos. 034319224 and 0652nm017)     

Peptidomimetics and metalloprotease inhibitors as anticancer drugs

Peptidomimetics with three types, as the structural or functional mimetics of natural active peptides, can preserve the bioactivity and improve the bioavailability and the specificity towards the targets of the lead peptides. Peptidomimetics of high bioactivity can be designed through various ways including conformation restriction, modification and non-peptide design. Recently the concentration on the development of cancer chemotherapeutic drugs was transferred from cytotoxic drugs to target-based drugs, and many proteases and peptidases that play key roles in the process of tumor genesis and development was discovered, which means that peptidomimetics as potential cancer chemotherapeutic drugs should be paid close attention to. Our laboratory has focused on the development of small-molecule peptidomimetic inhibitors of APN, MMPs and HDACs as target-based anticancer agents. These three zinc-dependent metalloproteinases play very important roles in the process of tumor genesis, invasion, metastasis, angiogenesis and matrix degradation, so small-molecule peptidomimetic inhibitors based on them would be quite potential in the development of chemotherapeutic drugs with high selectivity. Supported by the National High Technology Research and Development Program of China (863 Project) (Grant No. 2007AA02Z314), the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant Nos. 90713041 & 30772654), and the Doctoral Fund of Ministry of Education of China (Grant No. 20060422029)     

Preparation of electrolyte membranes for micro tubular solid oxide fuel cells

Yttria-stabilized zirconia (YSZ) micro tubular electrolyte membranes for solid oxide fuel cells (SOFCs) were prepared via the combined wet phase inversion and sintering technique. The as-derived YSZ mi- cro tubes consist of a thin dense skin layer and a thick porous layer that can serve as the electrode of fuel cells. The dense and the porous electrolyte layers have the thickness of 3-5 μm and 70-90 μm, respectively, while the inner surface porosity of the porous layer is higher than 28.1%. The two layers are perfectly integrated together to preclude the crack or flake of electrolyte film from the electrode. The presented method possesses distinct advantages such as technological simplicity, low cost and high reliability, and thus provides a new route for the preparation of micro tubular SOFCs.     

Synthesis of Fréchet-type dendritic homotriptycenes

A rapid and efficient synthesis of novel dendrimer homotriptycenes is presented. The dendronized 9,10-dihydroanthracen-9-ols 4, having high electron densities in the benzene rings of the Fréchet-type dendrons, exhibited in the presence of acid a quantitative transannular ring closure to the corresponding dendritic homotriptycenes. The electron-donating Fréchet-type dendrons enabled the intramolecular FC alkylation by a regioselective 1,7-elimination of H2O.     

Cytotoxicity of carbon nanotubes

With large-scale production and application at large scale, carbon nanotubes (CNTs) may cause ad-verse response to the environment and human health. Thus, study on bio-effects and safety of CNTs has attracted great attention from scientists and governments worldwide. This report briefly summa-rizes the main results from the in vitro toxicity study of CNTs. The emphasis is placed on the descrip-tion of a variety of factors affecting CNTs cytotoxicity, including species of CNTs, impurities contained, lengths of CNTs, aspect ratios, chemical modification, and assaying methods of cytotoxicity. However, experimental information obtained thus far on CNTs' cytotoxicity is lacking in comparability, and some-times there is controversy about it. In order to assess more accurately the potential risks of CNTs to human health, we suggest that care should be taken for issues such as chemical modification and quantitative characterization of CNTs in cytotoxicity assessment. More importantly, studies on physical and chemical mechanisms of CNTs' cytotoxicity should be strengthened; assaying methods and evaluating criteria characterized by nanotoxicology should be gradually established.     

可见光催化有氧脱氢合成2,3-二氢-4-吡啶酮与4-喹诺酮

报道了一种可见光促进4-哌啶酮及2,3-二氢-4-喹诺酮的有氧脱氢化方法.研究中通过使用一种二腈基哌嗪化合物（dicyanopyrazine-derived chromophore,DPZ）为光催化剂,能够以令人满意的分离产率（最高75%）分别合成出2,3-二氢-4-吡啶酮与4-喹诺酮.本反应为这两类重要含氮杂环化合物提供了一种直接的、可持续的以及高原子经济性的合成途径.     

Research of the relationship of intracellular acidification and apoptosis in Hela cells based on pH nanosensors

In this paper,the relationship of intracellular acidification and apoptosis in Hela cells induced by vin-cristine sulfate has been studied by use of the ratiometric pH nanosensors that have been developed by our group,employing fluorescein isothiocyanate(FITC) doped as the pH-sensitive dye and Tris(2,2'-bipyidyl) dichlororuthenium(II) hexahydrate(RuBpy) doped as reference dye. The pH change of the Hela cells induced by vincristine sulfate has been monitored in vivo,in situ and real time by use of the ratiometric pH nanosensors. The experimental results show that the pH of the apoptotic Hela cells induced by vincristine sulfate has been acidified from 7.11 to 6.51,and the percentage of intra-cellular acidification is correlated with the induced concentration and incubation time of the vincristine sulfate. The further study of the percentage of intracellular acidification and the percentage of apop-tosis of Hela cells at the same time reveals that apoptosis of Hela cells induced by vincristine sulfate is preceded by intracellular acidification. These results would provide theoretical foundation for the therapy of cancer through interfering the pH of cells by use of vincristine sulfate or other anti-cancer drugs.     

Photoelectrocatalytic oxidation of GMP on an ITO electrode modified with clay/[Ru(phen)<Subscript>2</Subscript>(dC18bpy)]<Superscript>2+</Superscript> hybrid film

An indium tin oxide (ITO) electrode modified with monolayer clay/[Ru(phen)₂(dC18bpy)]²⁺ (phen=1,10-phenanthroline, dC18bpy = 4,4′-dioctadecyl-2,2′ bipyridyl) hybrid film has been fabricated by the Langmuir-Blodgett (LB) method. Atomic force microscopy revealed that the single-layered hybrid film of clay/[Ru(phen)₂(dC18bpy)]²⁺ (denoted as Clay-Ru) was closely packed at a surface pressure of 25 mN·m⁻¹ and had a thickness of 3.4±0.5 nm. Cyclic voltammograms showed that the redox current of Ru(II) complex decreased when incorporated into the clay film, suggesting that the clay layer acts as a barrier against electron transfer. When applied to oxidizing the mononucleotide of guanosine 5′-monophosphate (GMP), a large catalytic oxidative current was achieved on the Clay-Ru(II) modified ITO electrode at the external potential above 900 mV (vs. Ag|AgCl|KCl) and, more significantly, this response was further enhanced by light irradiation (λ>360 nm), in which the photocurrent is increased about 11 times in comparison with that of a bare ITO. Mechanism of the photoelectrocatalytic effect was proposed in terms of the reduction of the photoelectrochemically generated Ru(III) complex in the Clay-Ru film by GMP. Supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant Nos. 20471043 and 20843007), Zhejiang Provincial Natural Science Foundation (Grant Nos. Y404118 and Y408177), the “151” Distinguished Person Foundation of Zheji-ang Province of China, Zhejiang Technology Project Foundation (Grant No. 2007C21134) and Wenzhou Technology Project Foundation (Grant No. N2004B040)     

Adsorptive desulfurization of diesel with mesoporous aluminosilicates

Mesoporous aluminosilicates (MAS) bearing microporous zeolite units and mesoporous structures were synthesized by the hydrothermal method. Adsorptive desulfurization ability of model oil and hydrotreated diesel was studied. The effects of template concentration, crystalization time and calcination time were investigated. The desulfurization ability of adsorbents was improved by transitional metal ion-exchanging. The adsorptive desulfurization of diesel was carried out on a fixed-bed system. The results show that the adsorptive capacity is MAS>MCM-41>NaY. The improvement of desulfurization ability of MAS by Cu⁺ is more significant than that of Ag⁺. Supported by National Basic Research Program of China (Grant No. 2006CB202507), National High-tech R&D Program (Grant No. 2006AA02Z209), and the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant No. 20806086)     

Properties of meso-tetrakis (4- n -alkanoyloxyphenyl) porphyrin liquid crystal Co and Ni complexes

Six series of meso-tetrakis (4-n-alkanoyloxyphenyl) porphyrin Co and Ni complexes (12 kinds) were reported. Nine of the compounds were found to exhibit liquid crystal properties and display a hexagonal columnar discotic columnar (Col_h) phase. Molecular structure of all synthesized compounds was confirmed by IR, UV, MS, ¹H NIVR, and elemental analysis. These liquid crystalline compounds have been studied by cyclic voltammetry, luminescence, and surface photovoltage spectroscopy. Supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant No. 59783001), the Natural Science Foundation of Shandong Province (Grant No. Y2006B41), the Foundation of Shandong Provincial Education Department (Grant No. J06A53), the Natural Science Foundation of Shandong University of Technology (Grant No. 2004KJM15) and Doctor Foundation of Shandong University of Technology     

Synthesis of two carbazole-based dyes and application of two-photon initiating polymerization

Two carbazole-based polymerization initiators possessing blue fluorescence emission have been synthesized via Wittig reaction in the solid phase at room temperature. Two-photon excited fluorescence (TPEF) spectra for them were investigated under 800 nm fs laser pulse and two-photon absorption cross sections were determined by the Z-scan technique. Then two-photon initiating polymerization (TPIP) microfabrication experiments were successfully carried out. Three-dimensional lattice and artificial defects were gained, indicating that they were viable candidates for the two-photon polymerization initiator in practical application of microfabrication. Supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant Nos. 50532030, 20771001 & 50703001), and Team for Scientific Innovation of Anhui Province (Grant No. 2006KJ007TD)