Novel chiral stationary phases based on peptoid combining a quinine/quinidine moiety through a C9‐position carbamate group

By connecting a quinine or quinidine moiety to the peptoid chain through the C9‐position carbamate group, we synthesized two new chiral selectors. After immobilizing them onto 3‐mercaptopropyl‐modified silica gel, two novel chiral stationary phases were prepared. With neutral, acid, and basic chiral compounds as analytes, we evaluated these two stationary phases and compared their chromatographic performance with chiral columns based on quinine tert‐butyl carbamate and the previous peptoid. From the resolution of neutral and basic analytes under normal‐phase mode, it was found that the new stationary phases exhibited much better enantioselectivity than the quinine tert‐butyl carbamate column; the peptoid moiety played an important role in enantiorecognition, which controlled the elution orders of enantiomers; the assisting role of the cinchona alkaloid moieties was observed in some separations. Under acid polar organic phase mode, it was proved that cinchona alkaloid moieties introduced excellent enantiorecognitions for chiral acid compounds; in some separations, the peptoid moiety affected enantioseparations as well. Overall, chiral moieties with specific enantioselectivity were demonstrated to improve the performance of peptoid chiral stationary phase efficiently.     

In Situ Facile Synthesis of Ru‐Based Core–Shell Nanoparticles Supported on Carbon Black and Their High Catalytic Activity in the Dehydrogenation of Amine‐Boranes

Well‐dispersed core–shell Ru@M (M=Co, Ni, Fe) nanoparticles (NPs) supported on carbon black have been synthesized via a facile in situ one‐step procedure under ambient condition. Core‐shell Ru@Co NPs were synthesized and characterized for the first time. The as‐synthesized Ru@Co and Ru@Ni NPs exhibit superior catalytic activity in the hydrolysis of ammonia borane compared with their monometallic and alloy counterparts. The Ru@Co/C NPs are the most reactive, with a turnover frequency (TOF) value of 320 (mol min^?1) mol_Ru^?1 and activation energy (E_a) of 21.16 kJ mol^?1. Ru@Ni/C NPs are the next most active, whereas Ru@Fe/C NPs are almost inactive. Additionally, the as‐synthesized NPs supported on carbon black exhibit higher catalytic activity than catalysts on other conventional supports, such as SiO₂ and γ‐Al₂O₃.     

Surface hydrophobization of cotton via laccase-mediated polydopamine deposition and dodecyl gallate grafting

Natural fibers containing components with phenolic hydroxyl groups, such as jute, wool, and silk, can be directly modified by laccase-catalyzed grafting. However, cellulosic fibers like cotton cannot be functionalized in this manner. In this work, we developed a facile two-step method to graft polymers on cotton fabric via laccase catalysis. First, polydopamine (PDA) coating was deposited on the surface of the cotton fabrics via catalysis of laccase/2,2,6,6-tetramethylpiperidine-1-oxyl (TEMPO) system. Then, the newly formed PDA coating acted as the secondary reaction platform for subsequent laccase-mediated grafting of hydrophobic monomer dodecyl gallate (DG). The oxidation of dopamine (DA) catalyzed with the laccase/TEMPO system was investigated using UV–visible (UV–vis) spectroscopy. The scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) results verified that the PDA was coated on the surface of cotton fibers. Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectra indicated that the PDA-coated cotton was successfully grafted with DG (DG-PDA-cotton). According to the weighting method, the grafting percentage was about 1.06%. The hydrophobicity of the DG-PDA-cotton fabrics was greatly improved with a contact angle of 133°. Also, the grafted cotton fabrics show repellency of water-soluble stains like coffee, milk, and tea. This study provides a new strategy for surface modification of cotton by laccase-mediated grafting, which offers the references for the green fabrication of cotton fabrics with improved functionalization.     

A novel 3D Tesla valve micromixer for efficient mixing and chitosan nanoparticle production

Current three-dimensional micromixers for continuous flow reactions and nanoparticle synthesis are complex in structure and difficult to fabricate. This paper investigates the design, fabrication, and characterization of a novel micromixer that uses a simple spatial Tesla valve design to achieve efficient mixing of multiple solutions. The flow characteristics and mixing efficiencies of our Tesla valve micromixer are investigated using a combination of numerical simulations and experiments. The results show that in a wide range of flow rates, viscoelastic solutions with different concentrations can be well mixed in our micromixer. Finally, experiments on the synthesis of chitosan nanoparticles are conducted to verify the practicability of our micromixer. Compared with nanoparticles prepared by conventional magnetic stirring, the size of nanoparticles prepared by micromixing is smaller and the distribution is more uniform. Therefore, our Tesla valve micromixer has significant advantages and implications for mixing chemical and biological reactions.     

Vitamin D Inhibits the Early Aggregation of α-Synuclein and Modulates Exocytosis Revealed by Electrochemical Measurements

Alpha-synuclein (α-Syn) localizes at presynaptic terminal and modulates synaptic functions. Increasing evidence demonstrate that α-Syn oligomers, forming at the early of aggregation, are cytotoxic and is thus related to brain neurodegenerative diseases. Herein, we find that vitamin D (VD) can reduce neurocytotoxicity. The reduced neurocytotoxicity might be attributed to the less amount of large-sized α-Syn oligomers inhibited by VD, measured by electrochemical collision at single particle level, which are not observable with traditionally ensembled method. Single-cell amperometry (SCA) results show that VD can recover the amount of neurotransmitter release during exocytosis induced by α-Syn oligomers, further verifying the neuroprotection of VD. Our study reveals the neuroprotective role of VD through inhibiting α-Syn aggregation, which is envisioned to be of great importance in treatment and prevention of the neurodegenerative diseases.     

Detection of bleomycin based on N and S co-doped graphene quantum dots as a fluorescence probeEI北大核心CSCD

N and S co-doped graphene quantum dotsNS-GQDswith excellent fluorescence properties were synthesized by hydrothermal method using citrate and thiourea as ingredientsand were characterized. The fluorescence signal was notably reduced in the presence of single stranded DNAssDNAsince ssDNA can adsorb on the surface of NS-GQDs through p-p stacking interaction. Whereas a significantly restored fluorescence signal was observed in the presence of bleomycinowing to the irreversible cleavage of ssDNA by bleomycin with Fe2+ as cofactor. Thusa fluorescence sensor for bleomycin detection was developed. The linear range was from 1.8 to 1200 nmol/L and the detection limit was 0.25 nmol/L. The method was used to detect bleomycin content in human serum samples with satisfactory results. © 2022, Youke Publishing Co.,Ltd. All rights reserved.     

还原-氧化协同降解全/多卤代有机污染物

全/多卤代有机污染物大多具有生态毒性、生物蓄积性、环境持久性及长距离迁移性,不仅危害环境与生态安全,而且可经食物链传递威胁人类健康。由于卤原子是吸电子基团且取代数目多,这类物质的最高占据分子轨道能较低,难于被氧化降解,相反较易被还原法脱卤降解。随卤原子取代数减少,脱卤产物难被进一步还原,而其毒性甚至高于母体污染物。注意到低卤代有机物更容易发生氧化降解,一些研究构建了还原-氧化接力降解体系,即先利用还原法将全/多卤代有机污染物还原为低卤代产物,再利用氧化法降解这些中间产物,从而实现深度/完全脱卤和矿化。本文根据催化反应类型对还原-氧化联用法进行了归纳,分类介绍了基于传统化学催化、光催化、电化学、光电化学及机械化学等构建还原-氧化协同降解体系的原理及应用,以期为开发高效的处置技术提供思路和建议。     

Eco friendly synthesis of fluorescent carbon dots for the sensitive detection of ferric ions and cell imaging

This study established a ferric ion (Fe³⁺) detection method as a result of the fluorescence quenching effect of Fe³⁺ on carbon dots (CDs). Specifically, we proposed, a green microwave synthesis route towards fluorescent CDs that requires only the brewer’s spent grain as starting materials. Transmission electron microscopy, X-ray diffraction, Fourier-transform infrared spectra and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy were performed to investigate the CDs characteristic: morphology, size distribution, functional groups, and composition, respectively. The experimental results, which were run under optimal experimental conditions, indicated that the fluorescence intensity and concentration of Fe³⁺ were within the desired linear range (0.3–7 μM). The detection limit of this assay towards Fe³⁺ was 95 nM. The proposed method showed significant selectivity with respect to interfering ions. We evaluated the potential application of this method with tap water, lake water and fetal bovine serum as real samples. Additionally, the CDs could be served as superior bioimaging probes in Hela cells as a result of their excellent optical stability and good biocompatibility. In a word, the present study provides a new idea for CDs derived from the waste of agricultural products for detecting food or environmental contaminants and cell imaging.     

Identification,Characterization and Antihypertensive Effect In Vivo of a Novel ACE-Inhibitory Heptapeptide from Defatted Areca Nut Kernel Globulin Hydrolysates

The areca (Areca catechu L.) nut kernel (ANK) is a good potential protein source for its high protein content of 9.89–14.62 g/100 g and a high yield of around 300,000 tons per year in China. However, utilization of the areca nut kernel is limited. To expand the usage of ANK in pharmaceutical or foods industries, areca nut kernel globulin was extracted and angiotensin-I converting enzyme (ACE) inhibition peptides were prepared and identified using gel chromatography, reversed phase HPLC separation, UPLC-ESI-MS/MS analysis and in silico screening. Finally, a novel ACE-inhibitory heptapeptide (Ala–Pro–Lys–Ile–Glu–Glu–Val) was identified and chemically synthesized. The combination pattern between APKIEEV and ACE, and the inhibition kinetics, antihypertensive effect and endothlein-1 inhibition activity of APKIEEV were studied. The results of the molecular docking demonstrated that APKIEEV could bind to four active sites (not the key active sites) of ACE via short hydrogen bonds and demonstrated high ACE-inhibitory activity (IC₅₀: 550.41 μmol/L). Moreover, APKIEEV exhibited a significantly lowering effect on both the systolic blood pressure and diastolic blood pressure of spontaneously hypertensive rats, and had considerable suppression ability on intracellular endothelin-1. These results highlight the potential usage of APKIEEV as ingredients of antihypertensive drugs or functional foods.