A novel electrochemical immunosensor using β-cyclodextrins functionalized silver supported adamantine-modified glucose oxidase as labels for ultrasensitive detection of alpha-fetoprotein

In this work, a novel sandwich-type electrochemical immunosensor based on host-guest interaction was fabricated for the detection of alpha-fetoprotein (AFP). Due to the large specific surface area of multiwalled carbon nanotubes and the unique supramolecular recognition ability of β-cyclodextrins, ferrocenecarboxylic acid (Fc) was incorporated into this sensor platform by host-guest interaction to generate an electrochemical signal. And β-cyclodextrins functionalized silver supported adamantine-modified glucose oxidase (GOD-CD-Ag), was used as a label to improve the analytical performance of the immunosensor by the dual amplification strategy. The obtained GOD-CD-Ag conjugates could convert glucose into gluconic acid with the formation of hydrogen peroxide (H₂O₂). And then silver nanoparticles could in situ catalyze the reduction of the generated H₂O₂, dramatically improving the oxidation reaction of Fc. The developed immunosensor shows a wide linear calibration range from 0.001 to 5.0 ng/mL with a low detection limit (0.2 pg/mL) for the detection of AFP. The method, with ideal reproducibility and selectivity, has a wide application prospect in clinical research.     

Humic acids as both matrix for matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization time-of-flight mass spectrometry and adsorbent for magnetic solid phase extraction

In the present study, humic acids (HAs) were applied as both a matrix for matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization time-of-flight mass spectrometry (MALDI-TOF-MS) and an adsorbent of magnetic solid phase extraction (MSPE) for the first time. As natural macromolecule compounds, HAs are inherently highly functionalized and contain laser energy absorbing–transferring aromatic structures. This special molecular structure made HAs a good candidate for use as a MALDI matrix in small molecule analysis. At the same time, due to its good adsorption ability, HAs was prepared as MSPE adsorbent via a simple co-mixing method, in which the commercially available HAs were directly mixed with Fe₃O₄ magnetic nanoparticles (MNPs) in a mortar and grinded evenly and completely. In this process, MNPs were physically wrapped and adhered to tiny HAs leading to the formation of magnetic HAs (MHAs). To verify the bi-function of the MHAs, Rhodamine B (RdB) was chosen as model compound. Our results show that the combination of MHAs-based MSPE and MALDI-TOF-MS can provide a rapid and sensitive method for the determination of RdB in chili oil. The whole analytical procedure could be completed within 30 min for simultaneous determination of more than 20 samples, and the limit of quantitation for RdB was found to be 0.02 μg/g. The recoveries in chili oil were in the range 73.8–81.5% with the RSDs less than 21.3% (intraday) and 20.3% (interday). The proposed strategy has potential applications for high-throughput analysis of small molecules in complex samples.     

Correlation between electron delocalization and structural planarization in small water rings

The discovery of the covalent‐like character of the hydrogen bonding (H‐bonding) system [Science 342 , 611(2013)] has promoted a renewal of our understanding of the electronic and geometric structures of water clusters. In this work, based on density functional theory calculations, we show that the preferential formation of a stable quasiplanar structure of (H₂O)_n(n = 3–6) is closely related to three kinds of delocalized molecular orbitals (MOs; denoted as MO‐I, II, and III) of water rings. These originate from the 2p lone pair electrons of oxygen (O), the 2p bond electrons of O and the 1s electrons of H and the 2s electrons of O and 1s electrons of H, respectively. To maximize the orbital overlaps of the three MOs, geometric planarization is needed. The contribution of the orbital interaction is more than 30% in all the water rings according to our energy decomposition analysis, highlighting the considerable covalent‐like characters of H‐bonds. © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.     

High‐Throughput,Label‐Free Isolation of Cancer Stem Cells on the Basis of Cell Adhesion Capacity

Herein we report a microfluidics method that enriches cancer stem cells (CSCs) or tumor‐initiating cells on the basis of cell adhesion properties. In our on‐chip enrichment system, cancer cells were driven by hydrodynamic forces to flow through microchannels coated with basement membrane extract. Highly adhesive cells were captured by the functionalized microchannels, and less adhesive cells were collected from the outlets. Two heterogeneous breast cancer cell lines (SUM‐149 and SUM‐159) were successfully separated into enriched subpopulations according to their adhesive capacity, and the enrichment of the cancer stem cells was confirmed by flow cytometry biomarker analysis and tumor‐formation assays. Our findings show that the less adhesive phenotype is associated with a higher percentage of CSCs, higher cancer‐cell motility, and higher resistance to chemotherapeutic drugs.     

Highly Segregated Lamello‐Columnar Mesophase Organizations and Fast Charge Carrier Mobility in New Discotic Donor–Acceptor Triads

Four new donor–acceptor triads (D–A–D) based on discotic and arylene mesogens have been synthesized by using Sonogashira coupling and cyclization reactions. This family of triads consists of two side‐on pending triphenylene mesogens, acting as the electron‐donating groups (D), laterally connected through short lipophilic spacers to a central perylenediimide (PI), benzo[ghi]perylenediimide (BI), or coronenediimide (CI) molecular unit, respectively, playing the role of the electron acceptor (A). All D–A–D triads self‐organize to form a lamello‐columnar oblique mesophase, with a highly segregated donor–acceptor (D–A) heterojunction organization, consequent to efficient molecular self‐sorting. The structure consists in the regular alternation of two disrupted rows of triphenylene columns and a continuous row of diimine species. High‐resolution STM images demonstrate that PI‐TP2 forms stable 2D self‐assembly nanostructures with some various degrees of regularity, whereas the other triads do not self‐organize into ordered architectures. The electron‐transport mobility of CI‐TP2, measured by time‐of‐flight at 200 °C in the mesophase, is one order of magnitude higher than the hole mobility. By means of this specific molecular designing idea, we realized and demonstrated for the first time the so‐called p–n heterojunction at the molecular level in which the electron‐rich triphenylene columns act as the hole transient pathways, and the coronenediimide stacks form the electron‐transport channels.     

Total Syntheses of (−)‐Isoschizogamine and (−)‐2‐Hydroxyisoschizogamine

Total syntheses of (?)‐isoschizogamine and (?)‐2‐hydroxyisoschizogamine are described. The synthesis employs two asymmetric Michael additions to establish chiral centers at C7 and the quaternary carbon C20. Regioselective reduction of the methylthioiminium cation rather than the enamine generates an isoschizogamine‐type pentacyclic skeleton. Acidic hydrolysis of the isoschizogamine‐type intermediate in the absence of oxygen provides natural (?)‐isoschizogamine. Conducting the reaction in the presence of oxygen leads to a multistep oxidative hydrolysis cascade that affords unnatural (?)‐2‐hydroxyisoschizogamine.     

邻位取代基对芳基杂环磷酸盐成核有效性的影响

以2,4-二叔丁基苯酚为原料分别合成2,2'-亚甲基双(4,6-二叔丁基苯基)磷酸钠(NA-1)和2,2'-亚甲基双(4-叔丁基苯基)磷酸钠(NA-2),并将其应用于等规聚丙烯(i PP),研究该类芳基杂环磷酸盐成核剂邻位取代基对其成核有效性的影响.通过红外吸收光谱(FTIR)、核磁共振谱(NMR)、X-Ray多晶粉末衍射(XRD)、扫描电镜分析(SEM)和热分析对其化学结构、凝聚态结构、颗粒形貌和物性特征进行了表征,确定了NA-1和NA-2的分子结构和凝聚态颗粒的结构、形貌和物性特征.利用偏光显微观察(POM)、扫描电镜(SEM)断口分析、示差式扫描量热分析(DSC)和雾度测试分析对其与i PP的复合材料的晶粒结构、结晶行为及宏观光学性能进行测试表征.结果表明,添加量0.2%时,邻位叔丁基(NA-1)的存在可使复合材料球晶尺度更加细密,结晶温度比无邻位叔丁基(NA-2)增加5.1 K,等温结晶速率提高至0.56 w/g是NA-2的7倍,半结晶时间由NA-2的11.55 min下降至2.36 min,邻位叔丁基存在对材料透光率和雾度值的影响分别达到4.3%,7.4%.SEM断口分析表明二者在i PP基体中分散均匀,平均粒径相近分别为0.79μm和0.82μm,粒径分布曲线相近,二者分散分布的差异性不显著.     

磁性碳纳米管固相萃取-原子荧光光谱法测定水中痕量镉

建立了检测水中痕量镉的磁性固相萃取-原子荧光光谱法。制备磁性碳纳米管,以其作为固相萃取吸附剂用来萃取和富集水中的痕量镉,采用氢化物发生-原子荧光光谱法进行检测。在最佳条件下,镉在0.05~5.0μg·L-1范围内呈线性,检出限(3σ)为1.6 ng·L-1。加标回收率在97.1%~101%之间,测定值的相对标准偏差在1.6%~4.8%之间。方法用于分析标准物质,测定值与认定值相符。     

NZFO-PZT磁电复合纳米纤维的制备及其吸波性能

采用静电纺丝法制备(1-x)Ni_0.5Zn_0.5Fe₂O₄-(x)Pb(Zr_0.52Ti_0.48)O₃(简称为(1-x)NZFO-(x)PZT, x=0.1、0.2、0.3、0.4、0.5)磁电复合纳米纤维, 研究了PZT含量对复合纳米纤维结构、电磁特性及微波吸收性能的影响。所有样品均由尖晶石结构NZFO和钙钛矿结构PZT两相所组成。由于NZFO磁损耗与PZT介电损耗的协同效应及界面效应的加强, 适量PZT相的引入可改善复合纳米纤维吸波涂层的电磁阻抗匹配和衰减特性, 提高微波吸收性能。x=0.3和0.4的复合纳米纤维分别在低频和高频范围表现出最强的微波吸收能力。当涂层厚度为2.5~5.0 mm时, x=0.3样品的最小反射损耗在6.1 GHz处达-77.2 dB, 反射损耗小于-10 dB的有效吸收带宽为11.2 GHz(2.8~12.9和16.9~18 GHz);x=0.4样品的最小反射损耗位于18 GHz处为-37.6 dB, 有效吸收带宽达到12.5 GHz(3.3~12.5和14.7~18 GHz)。     

Improved thromboresistance and analytical performance of intravascular amperometric glucose sensors using optimized nitric oxide release coatings

In this work, nitric oxide (NO) release coatings designed for intravenous amperometric glucose sensors are optimized through the use of a polylactic acid (PLA) layer doped with a lipophilic diazeniumdiolated species that releases NO through a proton-driven mechanism. An Elast-Eon E2As polyurethane coating is used to both moderate NO release from the sensor surface and increase the sensor''s linear detection range toward glucose. These sensors were evaluated for thromboresistance and in vivo glucose performance through implantation in rabbit veins. By maintaining NO flux on a similar scale to endogenous endothelial cells, implanted glucose sensors exhibited reduced surface clot formation which enables more accurate quantitative glucose measurements continuously. An in vivo time trace of implanted venous sensors demonstrated glucose values that correlated well with the discrete measurements of blood samples on a benchtop point-of-care sensor-based instrument. The raw measured currents from the implanted glucose sensors over 7 h time periods were converted to glucose concentration through use of both a one-point in vivo calibration and a calibration curve obtained in vitro within a bovine serum solution. Control sensors, assembled without NO release functionality, exhibit distinctive surface clotting over the 7 h in vivo implantation period.