Non-equilibrium and stochasticity influence the activation process of the yeast DNA damage pathway

正Living cells are open systems that exist far away from a state of thermodynamical equilibrium.They utilize the high-grade chemical energy provided by food to produce ATP and release ADP and Pi together with heat dissipation.Living cells exist in a non-equilibrium steady state(NESS),they replicate themselves and respond to various environmental changes via     

Micro‐/Nanostructured Multicomponent Molecular Materials: Design,Assembly, and Functionality

Molecule‐based micro‐/nanomaterials have attracted considerable attention because their properties can vary greatly from the corresponding macro‐sized bulk systems. Recently, the construction of multicomponent molecular solids based on crystal engineering principles has emerged as a promising alternative way to develop micro‐/nanomaterials. Unlike single‐component materials, the resulting multicomponent systems offer the advantages of tunable composition, and adjustable molecular arrangement, and intermolecular interactions within their solid states. The study of these materials also supplies insight into how the crystal structure, molecular components, and micro‐/nanoscale effects can influence the performance of molecular materials. In this review, we describe recent advances and current directions in the assembly and applications of crystalline multicomponent micro‐/nanostructures. Firstly, the design strategies for multicomponent systems based on molecular recognition and crystal engineering principles are introduced. Attention is then focused on the methods of fabrication of low‐dimensional multicomponent micro‐/nanostructures. Their new applications are also outlined. Finally, we briefly discuss perspectives for the further development of these molecular crystalline micro‐/nanomaterials.     

Determination of triapine,a ribonucleotide reductase inhibitor,in human plasma by liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry

Triapine is an inhibitor of ribonucleotide reductase (RNR). Studies have shown that triapine significantly decreases the activity of RNR and enhanced the radiation‐mediated cytotoxicity in cervical and colon cancer. In this work, we have developed and validated a selective and sensitive LC‐MS/MS method for the determination of triapine in human plasma. In this method, 2‐[(3‐fluoro‐2‐pyridinyl)methylene] hydrazinecarbothioamide (NSC 266749) was used as the internal standard (IS); plasma samples were prepared by deproteinization with acetonitrile; tripaine and the IS were separated on a Waters Xbridge Shield RP₁₈ column (3.5 µm; 2.1 × 50 mm) using a mobile phase containing 25.0% methanol and 75.0% ammonium bicarbonate buffer (10.0 mm , pH 8.50; v/v); column eluate was monitored by positive turbo‐ionspray tandem mass spectrometry; and quantitation of triapine was carried out in multiple‐reaction‐monitoring mode. The method developed had a linear calibration range of 0.250–50.0 ng/mL with correlation coefficient of 0.999 for triapine in human plasma. The IS‐normalized recovery and the IS‐normalized matrix factor of triapine were 101–104% and 0.89–1.05, respectively. The accuracy expressed as percentage error and precision expressed as coefficient of variation were ≤±6 and ≤8%, respectively. The validated LC‐MS/MS method was applied to the measurement of triapine in patient samples from a phase I clinical trial. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

FeNi Alloy Nanoparticles Encapsulated in Carbon Shells Supported on N-Doped Graphene-Like Carbon as Efficient and Stable Bifunctional Oxygen Electrocatalysts

The development of cost-effective and durable oxygen electrocatalysts remains highly critical but challenging for energy conversion and storage devices. Herein, a novel FeNi alloy nanoparticle core encapsulated in carbon shells supported on a N-enriched graphene-like carbon matrix (denoted as FeNi@C/NG) was constructed by facile pyrolyzing the mixture of metal salts, glucose, and dicyandiamide. The in situ pyrolysis of dicyandiamide in the presence of glucose plays a significant effect on the fabrication of the porous FeNi@C/NG with a high content of doped N and large specific surface area. The optimized FeNi@C/NG catalyst displays not only a superior catalytic performance for the oxygen reduction reaction (ORR, with an onset potential of 1.0 V and half-wave potential of 0.84 V) and oxygen evolution reaction (OER, the potential at 10 mA cm⁻² is 1.66 V) simultaneously in alkaline, but also outstanding long-term cycling durability. The excellent bifunctional ORR/OER electrocatalytic performance is ascribed to the synergism of the carbon shell and FeNi alloy core together with the high-content of nitrogen doped on the large specific surface area graphene-like carbon.     

Enzymatic Extraction of Bioactive and Self‐Assembling Wool Keratin for Biomedical Applications

Keratin is widely recognized as a high‐quality renewable protein resource for biomedical applications. Despite their extensive existence, keratin resources such as feathers, wool, and hair exhibit high stability and mechanical properties because of their high disulfide bond content. Consequently, keratin extraction is challenging and its application is greatly hindered. In this work, a biological extraction strategy is proposed for the preparation of bioactive keratin and the fabrication of self‐assembled keratin hydrogels (KHs). Based on moderate and controlled hydrolysis by keratinase, keratin with a high molecular weight of approximately 45 and 28 kDa that retain its intrinsic bioactivities is obtained. The keratin products show excellent ability to promote cell growth and migration and are conferred with significant antioxidant ability because of their intrinsically high cysteine content. In addition, without the presence of any cross‐linking agent, the extracted keratin can self‐assemble into injectable hydrogels. The KHs exhibit a porous network structure and 3D culture ability, showing potential in promoting wound healing. This enzyme‐driven keratin extraction strategy opens up a new approach for the preparation of keratin that can self‐assemble into injectable hydrogels for biomedical engineering.     

Selectivity switch in transformation of CO2 from ethanol to methanol on Cu embedded in the defect carbon

The copper-based catalysts have been generally regarded as high-performance catalysts for CO_2 hydrogenation toward methanol,while the production of ethanol via C–C coupling on the copper-based catalysts is still challenging. Herein, we report a new catalyst where Cu nanoparticles are embedded in the carbon support with abundant defect sites, achieving a high selectivity for ethanol in the CO_2 hydrogenation. The experiments coupled with the theoretical studies show a clear map where carbon defects serve as anchor sites that can stabilize interfacial copper species, and interfacial Cu sites with low coordination numbers can adsorb two C_1 species and later convert them to a C_2 species via a hydrogenation-induced coupling reaction. Further adjacent Cu atoms of interfacial Cu sites can facilitate OH reduction reactions via the Cu–Cu bridge adsorption to assist the formation of ethanol. Especially, those specific active sites easily disappear in the reducing conditions and during the reaction, the major product can transform from ethanol to methanol.     

Synergistic effect of thermoplastic phenolic resin and multiwalled carbon nanotubes on the crystallization of polyoxymethylene

To reduce the crystallization rate of polyoxymethylene (POM) to meet the requirement of thick-walled and large-sized articles production, and maintain high crystallinity as well as obtain refined crystalline grains to ensure the strength and stiffness simultaneously, thermoplastic phenolic resin (PF) and multiwalled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs) were used as crystal growth inhibitor and nucleating agent, respectively, and their effects on the crystallization of POM were studied in details. The results showed that PF is an effective inhibitor and MWCNTs exhibits excellent nucleation effect on POM. Based on the obtained results, their synergistic influences on the crystallization process of POM were investigated. It is found that the objective of decreasing the crystallization rate while maintaining high crystallinity and forming fine crystalline grains can be realized. The 97/3/1 wt% POM/PF/MWCNTs, compared with those of neat POM, The T _c shifts by 3.3°C to a lower temperature, the crystallization enthalpy increases by 16.1 J/g and the full width at half-maximum widens by 48.5%. The modulation effect of PF and MWCNTs on the crystallization is closely related to the PF content and dispersion, the distribution and dispersion of MWCNTs in the PF and POM phases.