Preparation of Immobilized Metal Affinity Chromatographic Packings Based on Monodisperse Hydrophilic Non‐porous Beads and Their Application

Three hydrophilic immobilized metal affinity chromatographic packings for HPLC have been synthesized by chemical modification of 3.0 µm monodisperse non‐porous poly(glycidyl methacrylate‐co‐ethylenedimethacrylate) (P_GMA/EDMA) beads. The retention behavior of proteins on the metal ion chelated columns loaded with copper(II), nickel(II) and zin(II) ion was studied. The effect of pH on the protein retention was investigated on both the naked and metal ion chelated columns in the range from 4.0 to 9.0. Four proteins were quickly separated in 3.0 min with linear gradient elution at a flow rate of 3.0 mL/min by using the synthesized Ni²⁺‐IDA (iminodiacetic acid) packings. The separation time was shorter than other immobilized metal affinity chromatography reported in the literature. Purification of lysozyme from egg white and trypsin on the commercially available trypsin was performed on the naked‐IDA and Cu²⁺‐IDA columns, respectively. The purities of the purified trypsin and lysozyme were more than 92% and 95%, respectively.     

Novel Flower‐Like Ag‐SiO2‐MgO‐Al2O3 Material: Preparation,Characterization and Catalytic Application in Methanol Dehydrogenation

Catalytic direct dehydrogenation of methanol to formaldehyde was carried out over Ag‐SiO₂‐MgO‐Al₂O₃ catalysts prepared by sol‐gel method. The optimal preparation mass fractions were determined as 8.3% MgO, 16.5% Al₂O₃ and 20% silver loading. Using this optimum catalyst, excellent activity and selectivity were obtained. The conversion of methanol and the selectivity to formaldehyde both reached 100%, which were much higher than other previously reported silver supported catalysts. Based on combined characterizations, such as X‐ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electronic microscopy (SEM), diffuse reflectance ultraviolet‐visible spectroscopy (UV‐Vis, DRS), nitrogen adsorption at low temperature, temperature programmed desorption of ammonia (NH₃‐TPD), desorption of CO₂ (CO₂‐TPD), etc., the correlation of the catalytic performance to the structural properties of the Ag‐SiO₂‐ MgO‐Al₂O₃ catalyst was discussed in detail. This perfect catalytic performance in the direct dehydrogenation of methanol to formaldehyde without any side‐products is attributed to its unique flower‐like structure with a surface area less than 1 m²/g, and the strong interactions between neutralized support and the nano‐sized Ag particles as active centers.     

A New Fluorescent Chemosensor for Cu2+ Based on 1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9,10‐Decahydroacridine‐1,8‐dione Fluorophore

A new chemosensor for Cu²⁺ was synthesized based on 1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9,10‐decahydroacridine‐1,8‐dione dyes, which exhibited an obvious fluorescent selectivity to the sensing of Cu²⁺ ions over other cations, such as Na⁺, K⁺, Ca²⁺, Cd²⁺, Co²⁺, Hg²⁺, Mg²⁺, Mn²⁺, Ni²⁺, Zn²⁺, Ag⁺ and Pb²⁺. Moreover, it presented a fluorescent switch function when EDTA was added to the compound‐Cu²⁺ complex in examined systems.     

Studies on the Thermodenaturation Behavior of Bacillus subtilis α‐Amylase on Chromatographic Media

The thermodenaturation behavior of Bacillus subtilis α‐amylase on some chromatographic media was studied by determining their adsorption parameters with frontal analysis. The experimental results show that on a RP‐C₁₈ reversed‐phase medium, a Chelating Sepharose Fast‐Flow chelated by Zn²⁺ affinity medium and a WCX‐1 cation‐exchange medium, a stable conformation of α‐amylase molecule separately exists below or over 30 °C; while on a PEG‐400 hydrophobic medium and a modified PEG‐400 medium, a stable conformation of α‐amylase molecule separately exists below 40 and 30 °C, and when the experimental temperatures are separately over 40 and 30 °C, a drastically conformational change of α‐amylase molecules can continuously take place. And by combining the intrinsic fluorescence emission spectrum and thermal inactivation profile of α‐amylase in free solution and on the PEG‐400 and modified PEG‐400 hydrophobic media, it can be concluded that in liquid chromatographic procedure, chromatographic media can induce the conformational change of α‐amylase molecules and promote their thermodenaturation; and in hydrophobic interaction chromatography, the higher the hydrophobicity of chromatographic medium, the lower the conformational change temperature of α‐amylase molecules on the chromatographic medium.     

Complexation and Fluorescence of Tricyclic Basic Dyes Encapsulated in Cucurbiturils

Tricyclic basic dyes (proflavine, acridine orange, pyronine, pyronine Y, oxonine, thionine and methylene blue) often form one‐to‐one or two‐to‐one complexes with CB[7] and CB[8], respectively. In the case of pyronine Y, the complexes with CB[7] and CB[8] have a one‐to‐one and three‐to‐one stoichiometry, respectively. The binding constants for CB[7] complexes range from 3.07×10⁶ to 1.70×10⁷ m ^?1. In the case of CB[8], the association constant varies between 3.24×10¹³ and 2.50×10¹⁶ m ^?2. Overall, these binding constants are four orders of magnitude higher than those reported for the same dyes in β and γ‐cyclodextrins. Formation of the host–guest complexes leads to an increase in the fluorescence quantum yields in the case of CB[7], while the dimeric or trimeric dye encapsulated in CB[8] are remarkably less fluorescent than the same dye in diluted solutions.     

Adsorption of 1,3‐Benzenedithiol and 1,3‐Benzenedimethanethiol on Gold Surfaces

The adsorption characteristics of 1,3‐benzenedithiol (1,3‐BDT) and 1,3‐benzenedimethanethiol (1,3‐BDMT) on Au surfaces are investigated by means of surface‐enhanced Raman scattering, UV/Vis absorption spectroscopy, and cyclic voltammetry (CV). 1,3‐BDMT is found to adsorb via two S–Au linkages at concentrations below monolayer coverage, but to have an upright geometry as the concentration increases on Au nanoparticles. On the other hand, 1,3‐BDT is found to adsorb by forming two S–Au linkages, regardless of concentration, based on the disappearance of the ν(SH)_free stretching band. Because of the absence of the methylene unit, 1,3‐BDT appeares not to self‐assemble efficiently on Au surfaces. The UV/Vis absorption spectroscopy and CV techniques are also applied to check the formation of self‐assembled monolayers of 1,3‐BDT and 1,3‐BDMT on Au. Density functional theory calculations based on a simple adsorption model using an Au₈ cluster are performed to better understand the nature of the adsorption characteristics of 1,3‐BDT and 1,3‐BDMT on Au surfaces.     

Electrocatalytic Oxidation of Glucose at Carbon Nanotubes Supported PtRu Nanoparticles and Its Detection

PtRu nanoparticles were supported on multiwall carbon nanotubes (MWNTs), which were further fabricated as an electrode for nonenzymatic glucose sensing. Transmission electron microscope and X‐ray diffraction patterns were used for characterization of the PtRu nanoparticles on MWNTs. Cyclic voltammetry and chronopotentiometry were applied to investigate the performance of the PtRu/MWNTs nanocomposite electrode for nonenzymatic oxidation of glucose. The PtRu/MWNTs electrode shows high electrocatalytic activity towards the oxidation of glucose in 0.1 M NaOH solution and thus can be used to selectively detect glucose. Under the optimal potential (+0.55 V vs. Ag/AgCl), the biosensor effectively performs a selective electrochemical analysis of glucose in the presence of common interferents, such as ascorbic acid (AA), dopamine (DP) and uric acid (UA). Wide linear calibration ranging from 1 mM to 15 mM, high sensitivity of 28.26 μA cm^?2 mM^?1, low detection limit of 2.5×10^?5 M, and fast response time of 10 s were achieved for the detection of glucose at the PtRu/MWNTs electrode.     

Preparation of Novel Arrays Silver Nanoparticles Modified Polyrutin Coat‐Paraffin‐Impregnated Graphite Electrode for Tyrosine and Tryptophan's Oxidation

A novel array silver nanoparticles and Rutin complex film modified paraffin‐impregnated graphite electrode was proposed in this work (denoted as Ag/Rutin/WGE). The characteristics were investigated by the field emission scanning electron microscopy (FE‐SEM), infrared spectra (IR), UV‐visible (UV), X‐ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) and electrochemical techniques. Silver ions were gradually chelated by polyrutin film at 4′‐oxo‐5′‐OH and 5‐OH‐4‐oxo sites accompanying adsorption, then. Silver nanoparticles were highly‐dispersed electrodeposited on polyrutin film. The electrochemical behaviors of tyrosine (Tyr) and tryptophan (Trp) were studied by cyclic voltammetry (CV) and differential pulse voltammetry (DPV) techniques. The Ag/Rutin/WGE electrode shows overlapping catalysis for the oxidation of Tyr and Trp. The linear response of Tyr and Trp were 0.3–10.0 and 0.7–70.0 μM with detection limit of 0.07 and 0.1 μM in a signal‐to‐noise ratio of 3.     

Rapid determination of sterols in vegetable oils by CEC using methacrylate ester‐based monolithic columns

A method for the determination of sterols in vegetable oils by CEC with UV–Vis detection, using methacrylate ester‐based monolithic columns, has been developed. To prepare the columns, polymerization mixtures containing monomers of different hydrophobicities were tried. The influence of composition of polymerization mixture was optimized in terms of porogenic solvent, monomers/porogens and monomer/crosslinker ratios. The composition of the mobile phase was also studied. The optimum monolith was obtained with lauryl methacrylate monomer at 60:40% (wt:wt) lauryl methacrylate/ethylene dimethacrylate ratio and 60 wt% porogens with 20 wt% of 1,4‐butanediol (12 wt% 1,4‐butanediol in the polymerization mixture). Excellent resolution between sterols was achieved in less than 7 min with an 85:10:5 v/v/v ACN–2‐propanol–water buffer containing 5 mM Tris at pH 8.0. The limits of detection were lower than 0.04 mM, and inter‐day and column‐to‐column reproducibilities at 0.75 mM were better than 6.2%. The method was applied to the determination of sterols in vegetable oils with different botanical origins and to detect olive oil adulteration with sunflower and soybean oils.     

Two New Spirostanol Saponins from Reineckia carnea

Two new spirostanol saponins, (1β,3β,5β,25S)‐spirostan‐1,3‐diol 1‐(β‐D ‐xylopyranoside) ( 1 ) and (1β,3β,5β,25S)‐spirostan‐1,3‐diol 1‐[α‐L ‐rhamnopyranosyl‐(1→2)‐β‐D ‐fucopyranoside] ( 2 ), along with two known compounds, (1β,3β,5β,25S)‐spirostan‐1,3‐diol 1‐[α‐L ‐rhamnopyranosyl‐(1→2)‐β‐D ‐xylopyranoside] ( 3 ) and (1β,3β,4β,5β,25S)‐spirostan‐1,3,4,5‐tetrol 5‐(β‐D ‐glucopyranoside) ( 4 ) were isolated from the whole plant of Reineckia carnea. The structures of the new steroids were determined by detailed analysis of their 1D‐ and 2D‐NMR spectra and chemical methods, and by comparison with spectral data of known compounds. Compounds 3 and 4 were isolated from the genus Reineckia for the first time.