"Turn-on" fluorescent sensing with "reactive" probes

Chemical probes are valuable tools for the investigation of biochemical processes, diagnosis of disease markers, detection of hazardous compounds, and other purposes. Therefore, the development of chemical probes continues to grow through various approaches with different disciplines and design strategies. Fluorescent probes have received much attention because they are sensitive and easy-to-operate, in general. To realize desired selectivity toward a given analyte, the recognition site of a fluorescent probe is designed in such a way to maximize the binding interactions, usually through weak molecular forces such as hydrogen bonding, toward the analyte over other competing ones. In addition to such a supramolecular approach, the development of fluorescent probes that sense analytes through chemical reactions has witnessed its usefulness for achieving high selectivity, in many cases, superior to that obtainable by the supramolecular approach. Creative incorporations of the reactive groups to latent fluorophores have provided novel chemical probes for various analytes. In this feature article, we overview the recent progress in the development of turn-on fluorescent probes that are operating through chemical reactions triggered by target analytes. Various chemical reactions have been implemented in the development of many reactive probes with very high selectivity and sensitivity toward target analytes. A major emphasis has been focused on the type of chemical reactions utilized, with the hope that further explorations can be made with new chemical reactions to develop reactive probes useful for various applications.     

Algorithm for coding DNA sequences into "spectrum-like" and "zigzag" representations

An algorithm for encoding long strings of building blocks, like 4 DNA bases (adenine-A, cytosine-C, thymine-T, and guanidine-G), 20 natural amino acids (from Alanine Ala to Valine-Val, plus the stop triplet), or all 64 possible base triplets (from AAA to TTT), into "zigzag" or "spectrum-like" representations is suggested. The new encoding scheme can be derived in the 3-, 2-, or 1-dimensional form depending on the user's wishes. The only information, besides the string for which the "spectrum-like" representation is sought, is the initial positioning of the complete set of units from which the string is composed, i.e., four positions for A, C, G, and T, or 20 positions for natural amino acids plus stop, etc. This initial positioning can be initialized in either the 3-, 2-, or 1-D form. As an illustration of the suggested encoding scheme of the visual and chemometric comparison of the first 10 exon strings of the beta globin gene of 10 different species, each string consisting of about 100 basic amino acids long is shown.     

The Immobiline family: from "vacuum" to "plenum" chemistry.

We list here a total of 17 acrylamido acids and bases as potential buffers and titrants for isoelectric focusing separations in immobilized pH gradients. The chemistry of these compounds is reviewed and general guidelines are given for their proper use. In particular, it is shown that the most delicate compounds are the basic species, since they can undergo several degradation pathways, including: (i) spontaneous hydrolysis to acrylic acid and a diamine; (ii) spontaneous autopolymerization to oligomers and n-mers; (iii) oxidation to N-oxides during the persulfate polymerization step. A hydrophobicity scale has been constructed, by partitioning the deprotonated species in water/1-octanol phases. A scale of resistance to alkaline hydrolysis for the basic acrylamido buffers is also given, followed by general consideration on the structure/stability relationship of these chemicals.     

"Clickable" polymersomes

Polymersomes, composed of amphiphilic polystyrene-block-poly(acrylic acid) (PS-b-PAA), with the periphery being covered with azide groups, were used for further functionalization using "click" chemistry.     

尼古丁的“口供”

This is a piece of confession made by Nicotine where its molecular structure and some physiological functions are introduced. The toxicity of Nicotine on human body has been revealed, based on an authentic suicide case. Combined with medical knowledge, the process of Nicotine intoxication, the mechanism of smoking addition and Nicotine's negative effect on human body, have been presented. Ultimately non-smoking advice is suggested for the sake of human health.     

化“材”为“筑”

Chemistry is a central, practical and creative discipline. The development of chemistry plays an important role in the progress of science and society, as well as the improvement of the quality of human life. This paper introduces the chemical knowledge of stone, concrete, glass and other inorganic nonmetallic building materials by the anthropomorphically story. Taking nanomaterials as an example, the prospect of building materials development in the future is put forward.     

"Cofactor"-controlled enantioselective catalysis

We report an achiral bisphosphine rhodium complex equipped with a binding site for the recognition of chiral anion guests. Upon binding small chiral guests--cofactors--the rhodium complex becomes chiral and can thus be used for asymmetric catalysis. Screening of a library of cofactors revealed that the best cofactors lead to hydrogenation catalysts that form the products with high enantioselectivity (ee's up to 99%). Interestingly, a competition experiment shows that even in a mixture of 12 cofactors high ee is obtained, indicating that the complex based on the best cofactor dominates the catalysis.     

"Alpha"-, "beta"- and "delta"-anhydrodigitoxigenin

The syntheses of 3β-hydroxy-5β-carda-14, 20:22-dienolide (= «β»-anhydro-), 3β-hydroxy-5β-carda-8:14, 20:22-dienolide (= «α»-anhydro-) and «δ»-anhydro-digitoxigenin (= probably 3β-hydroxy-5β, 14β-carda-8, 20:22-dienolide) by the best ways known to date, have been described. «δ»-Anhydro-digitoxigenin represents the thermodynamically most stable isomer. In this isomer the double bond in position 8 is unaffected by hydrogenation with Pt in acetic acid; with perbenzoic acid an epoxide results from which, on hydrogenation, the double bond can be regenerated in its original position. Analogous reactions are known to occur in the 8:14-epoxides.     

Amphiphilic Janus gold nanoparticles via combining "solid-state grafting-to" and "grafting-from" methods

Despite the great efforts that have been made toward obtaining Janus architectures, synthesizing sub-10 nanometer Janus nanoparticles (NPs) modified with different types of polymers remains a challenging task. In this Communication, "solid-state grafting-to" and "grafting-from" methods were combined to obtain Janus gold NPs (AuNPs) modified with two types of polymer chains on the opposite sides of the NP. We used functionalized polymer single crystals as the solid substrates to immobilize AuNPs. We then used atom transfer radical polymerization to grow polymer chains on the "free" side of the AuNPs. Amphiphilic polyethylene oxide (PEO)-Au-poly(methyl methacrylate), PEO-Au-poly(tert-butyl acrylate) and hydrophilic PEO-Au-poly(acrylic acid) were synthesized. The Janus nature was demonstrated using a platinum-nanoparticle-decoration method. Using polymer single crystals as the reaction substrates is advantageous because they afford higher throughput compared with self-assembled monolayers. Dissolution of the single crystal also leads to NPs with defined polymer patches. We anticipate that our approach could serve as a generic method for synthesizing polymer-functionalized, sub-10 nm Janus NPs. This unique system holds promises for achieving controlled assembly and tunable optic and electronic properties of NPs.     

周期律的“不规则性”

本文对周期律的“不规则性”及其理论阐释进行了探讨。     

"Decoking" of a "coked" zeolite catalyst in a glow discharge

'Decoking' of a 'coked' zeolite catalyst in a glow discharge in oxygen is investigated. The 'decoking' process involves reactions of atomic oxygen (O atoms) with 'coke' and yields gases such as CO, CO₂ as well as other gaseous products that could be easily pumped out.Three different modes of discharge were investigated including a static mode, a flowing-gas mode, and a periodic-purge mode where the oxygen and other gaseous products of the discharge were replaced by fresh O₂ gas after short but regular intervals of time. In some cases, additional heating was also used to provide base temperatures of the order of 100 °C to facilitate penetration of oxygen atoms into the inner layers and cages of the zeolite catalyst.This paper presents some results of spectroscopic analytical techniques used to monitor the atomization of oxygen, oxidation of 'coke', and to confirm the process of 'decoking'. More specifically, radiation emission on the 3 s ⁵S– 3p ⁵P transitions of O around 777.2–777.5 nm were selected for monitoring the atomization of O₂. On the other hand, X-ray photo-electron spectroscopy (XPS) was used to determine the amount of residual carbon and extent of 'decoking'. Furthermore, evolution of CO and CO₂ gases as a function of time was systematically monitored in real time. For CO, the 451.1 nm band head belonging to the B¹ - A¹ bands of the Angstrom system of the CO spectrum was used, while for CO₂, the band head at 353.4 nm belonging to the CO₂⁺ spectrum was used. The rates of evolution of CO and CO₂ were related to the rate of 'decoking' of the catalyst. It is noted that in the periodic-purge mode, about 63% of the total yield of CO from a given sample of the catalyst appears in the first 3-min exposure to discharge whereas it takes up to 15 min to remove nearly 94% of the removable carbon under our experimental conditions.     

"Asymmetric" catalysis by lanthanide complexes

Catalysis with lanthanide (Ln) complexes has been underestimated for long time, although Ln(III) complexes have great advantages as Lewis acid catalysts for "asymmetric" carbon-carbon bond-forming reactions. Lanthanide complexes are highly active in ligand-substitution reactions, especially with hard ligands. The association with substrates and dissociation of products are achieved fast enough for high catalyst efficiency. The asymmetric catalysis of organic reactions can be greatly advanced by the use of Ln complexes with chiral ligands such as binaphthol (binol). Ln(II) complexes are good reducing agents, which can be used in a wide variety of synthetically important reactions; when chiral ligands are used, many of these reactions are highly stereoselective. In the context of "green chemistry", the development of asymmetric Ln catalysts, and their recyclable use, is of increasing importance. This review gives an overview of the most recent developments in catalysis with lanthanide(II) and lanthanide(III) complexes.     

Semi-quantitative "spot-test" of cyanide.

A selective, sensitive, rapid and simple-handling analytical method for the determination of cyanide at low detection limits in surface and underground water, soil and industrial waste samples was developed. The method is based on a reaction, proposed by Guilbault and Kramer, where free cyanide reacts with p-nitrobenzaldehyde to form an intermediate cyanohydrin, which reacts with o-dinitrobenzene to give a highly colored purple compound. The original procedure was modified for application in a small device containing a gas-permeable membrane. The cyanide is converted in the volatile hydrogen cyanide, which permeates through a PTFE membrane, reaching colorimetric reagents. In order to obtain semi-quantitative results, printed color scales were built. The method allows rapid, accurate, selective, low-cost and simple-handling determinations of free cyanide, even in complex samples. About 150 real samples were analyzed. Less than 10 ng of free cyanide per ml (10 microg l(-1)) can be easily detected. For more concentrated solutions, the results had been compared to those obtained using differential pulse polarography. The standard addition method was used for more diluted solutions.     

Gallium cluster "magic melters"

Calorimetry measurements (using a method based on multicollision induced dissociation) have been performed for unsupported gallium clusters, Gan+ (n = 30-50 and 55). Melting transitions have been identified from spikes in the heat capacities recorded as a function of temperature. There are enormous fluctuations in the melting temperatures and the heats of fusion with cluster size. Clusters with n = 31, 33, 37, and 45-47 are "magic melters" with particularly well-defined melting transitions. There is a strong correlation between the heats of fusion, entropies of fusion, and the stabilities of the clusters. However, these quantities are not strongly correlated with the melting temperatures.     

How to find "missing" genes

Assigning function to "new" proteins is frequently the rate-determining step for deciphering metabolic pathways and regulatory networks. Osterman and Begley break down this barrier by demonstrating that comparative analyses of microbial genomes is a powerful strategy for identifying pathway components.     

Size evolution study of "molecular" and "atom-in-cluster" polarizabilities of medium-size gold clusters

A study on static polarizabilities for a family of gold clusters (Au(n), n = 6, 12, 20, 34, 54) is presented. For each cluster, a density functional theory perturbation theory calculation was performed to compute the cluster polarizability and the polarizability of each atom in the cluster using Bader's "quantum theory of atoms in molecules" formalism. The cluster polarizability tensor, α(cluster), is expressed as a sum of the atom-in-molecule tensors, α(cluster)=∑(Ω)α(Ω). A strong quadratic correlation (R(2) = 0.98) in the isotropic polarizability of atoms in the cluster and their distance to the cluster center of mass was observed. The cluster polarizabilities are in agreement with previous calculations.     

Surfactant-free "emulsions" generated by freeze-thaw

The stability ofsurfactantless dispersions of surface chemically pure alkanes was studied in the presence and absence of dissolved gas. It was found that simply freezing and thawing a sample of oil and water results in a dispersion. A mechanism based on fingering of the insoluble oil into the aqueous phase, due to local surface tension gradients, followed by separation and nucleation into droplets, is proposed to account for this observation.     

关于为拔尖人才培养开设的"学科前沿"类课程的探讨

With the implementation of the basic discipline of "Top Talent Training Program" (the "East Ever Project"), more and more new reforms and attempts are being made in various universities. In the process of innovation and exploration, a new curriculum is being implemented, that is, the "the frontier aspects of disciplines" course. Through investigation and research, we found that many colleges and universities in China are carrying out or trying to carry out such courses, and the students who participated have different benefits. This paper mainly discusses the current situation of the development of the frontier courses of many universities in China, and gives suggestions based on the two courses of Tang Aoqing Honors Program in Science of chemistry in Jilin University. This paper provides reference for other colleges and universities to open such courses.