Determination of chidamide in rat plasma by LC‐MS and its application to pharmacokinetics study

A sensitive and selective liquid chromatography mass spectrometry method for determination of chidamide in rat plasma was developed. After addition of linezolid as internal standard, protein precipitation by acetonitrile–methanol (9:1, v/v) was used as sample preparation. Chromatographic separation was achieved on a Zorbax SB‐C₁₈ (2.1 × 150 mm, 5 µm) column with acetonitrile–0.1% formic acid as mobile phase with gradient elution. An electrospray ionization source was applied and operated in positive ion mode; selective ion monitoring mode was used for quantification using target fragment ions m/z 391.5 for chidamide and m/z 338.5 for the IS. Calibration plots were linear over the range of 10–2000 ng/mL for chidamide in rat plasma. The lower limit of quantification for chidamide was 10 ng/mL. The mean recovery of chidamide in plasma was in the range of 86.6–92.1%. The coefficients of variation of intra‐day and inter‐day precision were both <12%. This method is simple and sensitive and was applied successfully in a pharmacokinetic study of chidamide to rats. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

A test procedure for separating viscous recovery and accumulated unrecoverable deformation of polymer under cyclic loading

After uniaxial tension and creep tests, asymmetric stress cycle tests have been performed on two polycarbonate (PC) materials with different molecular weights at room temperature. The effects of stress level (mean stress and stress amplitude) and time-dependent factors (stress rate and peak hold time) on ratcheting were studied. To separate the contributions of viscous recovery and accumulated unrecoverable deformation, a new test procedure has been proposed and performed on polycarbonate. The results demonstrate that the proposed test procedure is suitable for separating the viscous recovery and accumulated unrecoverable deformation. The study clearly shows that, for PC, both the viscous recovery and the accumulated unrecoverable deformation cannot be neglected for cyclic loading; previous viscous deformation has significant influence on the following cyclic accumulated deformation.     

Biomacromolecular quantitative structure–activity relationship (BioQSAR): a proof-of-concept study on the modeling, prediction and interpretation of protein–protein binding affinity

Quantitative structure–activity relationship (QSAR), a regression modeling methodology that establishes statistical correlation between structure feature and apparent behavior for a series of congeneric molecules quantitatively, has been widely used to evaluate the activity, toxicity and property of various small-molecule compounds such as drugs, toxicants and surfactants. However, it is surprising to see that such useful technique has only very limited applications to biomacromolecules, albeit the solved 3D atom-resolution structures of proteins, nucleic acids and their complexes have accumulated rapidly in past decades. Here, we present a proof-of-concept paradigm for the modeling, prediction and interpretation of the binding affinity of 144 sequence-nonredundant, structure-available and affinity-known protein complexes (Kastritis et al. Protein Sci 20:482–491, 2011) using a biomacromolecular QSAR (BioQSAR) scheme. We demonstrate that the modeling performance and predictive power of BioQSAR are comparable to or even better than that of traditional knowledge-based strategies, mechanism-type methods and empirical scoring algorithms, while BioQSAR possesses certain additional features compared to the traditional methods, such as adaptability, interpretability, deep-validation and high-efficiency. The BioQSAR scheme could be readily modified to infer the biological behavior and functions of other biomacromolecules, if their X-ray crystal structures, NMR conformation assemblies or computationally modeled structures are available.     

Biosorption behavior and mechanism of thorium on Streptomyces sporoverrucosus dwc-3

To understand the impact of microorganisms on the fate of thorium in soils, we have investigated the thorium biosorption behavior and mechanism on the living and dead cells of Streptomyces sporoverrucosus dwc-3, isolated from soils in China. The living cells need more time (24 h) to reach equilibrium than dead cells (24 h). The biosorption is greatly dependent on pH and ionic strength for the two kinds of cells. SEM and TEM indicate that thorium initially bind with the cell surface which is probably controlled by ion-exchange, evidence by PIXE, and inner-sphere complexation mechanism and then accumulated in the cytoplasm.     

First Discovery of Cholesterol-Lowering Activity of Parthenolide as NPC1L1 Inhibitor

Elevated cholesterol significantly increases the risk of developing atherosclerosis and coronary heart disease. The key to treating hypercholesterolemia is lowering plasma cholesterol levels. There have been no studies on the cholesterol-lowering potential of parthenolide (PTL), a naturally occurring small molecule from Tanacetum parthenium. Here, we first put forth PTL’s cholesterol-lowering ability to inhibit cellular uptake of cholesterol in a dose-dependent manner. Its performance was on par with the positive control drug, ezetimibe. Niemann–Pick C1 Like-1 (NPC1L1) has been identified as a potential therapeutic target for hypercholesterolemia. The interaction of PTL with NPC1L1 could be explained by the results of molecular docking and filipin staining further reinforces this hypothesis. Furthermore, PTL reduced the expression of NPC1L1 in HepG2 cells in a concentration-dependent manner, which suggests that PTL functions as a potential NPC1L1 inhibitor with therapeutic potential for hypercholesterolemia.     

关于反馈键理论在小分子活化中的应用的讨论

小分子活化是目前的热门研究领域之一。利用过渡金属和小分子间的反馈键作用,是实现对自然界中稳定存在的二氧化碳、氮气、水和氢气等小分子的活化的一种重要策略。本文从分析过渡金属的d轨道和小分子的前线轨道的相互作用入手,对这一策略进行解读,希望可以帮助学生更好地理解在金属有机化学课程中学习到的反馈键理论。     

N-CNTs/NiCo-LDH复合材料的制备及电化学性能

通过高温碳化聚吡咯纳米管制备了氮掺杂碳纳米管(N-CNTs), 并采用共沉淀法将镍钴层状双氢氧化物(NiCo-LDH)原位生长在N-CNTs上, 制备出具有三维互联网状结构的N-CNTs/NiCo-LDH复合材料. 研究了镍钴摩尔比对N-CNTs/NiCo-LDH复合材料形貌结构和电化学性能的影响. 结果表明, 当镍钴摩尔比为1∶2时, N-CNTs/Ni₁Co₂-LDH具有最佳的电化学性能. 在1 A/g电流密度下, 其比电容可达1311.8 F/g; 当电流密度为 10 A/g时, 电容保持率高达88.3%, 展现出优异的倍率性; 在经过2500次循环后, 电容保持率仍可达76.4%, 具有良好的循环稳定性.由N-CNTs/Ni₁Co₂-LDH与活性炭(AC)电极所构建的N-CNTs/Ni₁Co₂-LDH//AC水系混合型超级电容器, 在750 W/kg功率密度下, 具有27.19 W·h/kg的高能量密度.     

Best quadrature formula on Sobolev class with Chebyshev weight

Using best interpolation function based on a given function information, we present a best quadrature rule of function on Sobolev class KW^r[-1,1]${\mathit{KW}}^r[-1,1]$ with Chebyshev weight. The given function information means that the values of a function f∈KW^r[-1,1]$f\in {\mathit{KW}}^r[-1,1]$ and its derivatives up to r-1$r-1$ order at a set of nodes x$\mathbf{x}$ are given. Error bounds are obtained, and the method is illustrated by some examples.     

Computationally rational design of metal-involving halogen bonds with π-covalency: Structures and bonding analysis

Traditional π-covalent interactions have been proved in the non-metal halogen bond adducts formed by chloride and halogenated triphenylamine-based radical cations. In this study, we have rationally designed two metal-involving halogen bond adducts with π-covalency property, such as [L1-Pd···I-PTZ]⁺ (i.e., 1) and [L2-Pd···I-PTZ]⁺ (i.e., 2), in which the square-planar palladium complexes serve as halogen bond acceptor and 3,7-diiodo-10H-phenothiazine radical cation (i.e., [I-PTZ]^•+) acts as halogen bond donor. Noncovalent interaction analysis and quantum theory of atoms in molecules analysis revealed that there are notable halogen bond interactions along the Pd···I direction without genuine chemical bond formed in both designed adducts. Energy decomposition analysis together with natural orbital for chemical valence calculations were performed to gain insight into their bonding nature, which demonstrated the presence of remarkable π-covalent interactions and σ-covalent interactions in both 1 and 2. We therefore proposed a new strategy for building the metal-involving halogen bonds with π-covalency property, which will help the further development of new types of halogen bonds.