Design of Sensitive Biocompatible Quantum‐Dots Embedded in Mesoporous Silica Microspheres for the Quantitative Immunoassay of Human Immunodeficiency Virus‐1 Antibodies

A novel sandwich‐type electrochemiluminescence (ECL) immunosensor was developed to enable the sensitive detection of HIV‐1 antibodies. This system incorporated mesoporous silica (mSiO₂) complexed with quantum dots (QDs) and nano‐gold particles, which were assembled to enhance signal detection. Magnetic beads were used by immobilizing the secondary anti‐IgG antibody. This was first employed to capture HIV‐1 antibody (Ab) to form a Fe₃O₄/anti‐IgG/Ab complex. A high loading and signal‐enhanced nanocomposite (hereafter referred to as Au‐mSiO₂‐CdTe) was used as a HIV‐1 antigen label. The Au‐mSiO₂‐CdTe nanocomposite was conjugated with the Fe₃O₄/anti‐IgG/Ab complex to form an immunocomplex (hereafter referred to as Fe₃O₄/anti‐IgG/Ab/HIV‐1/CdTe‐mSiO₂‐Au). This complex could be further separated by an external magnetic field to produce ECL signals. Due to the large specific surface area and pore volume of mSiO₂, the loading of the CdTe QDs was markedly increased. Thus, the loaded QDs released a powerful chemiluminescent signal with a concordantly increased sensitivity of the immunosensor. The immunosensor was highly sensitive, and displayed a linear range of responses for HIV‐1 antibody across a dilution range of 1 : 1500 through 1 : 50 with the detection limit of 1 : 4500. The immunoassay can be a promising candidate in early diagnosis of HIV infection.     

Solid-Liquid Phase Transfer Catalytic Synthesis XII

The anion derived from diethyl malonate reacts with a series of halides readly under microwave irradiation, and the isolated yield of alkylated products varying from 64% to 86%.     

New Cytotoxic Triterpenoids from the Aerial Parts of Euphorbia sieboldiana

Phytochemical investigation of the EtOH extract of Euphorbia sieboldiana led to the isolation of four new oleanane‐type triterpenoids, (1β,2α,3β,19β)‐1,2,3,19‐tetrahydroxyolean‐12‐en‐28‐oic acid, (1β,3β,19β)‐1,3,19‐trihydroxyolean‐12‐en‐28‐oic acid, (1β,2α,3β,16β,19β)‐1,2,3,16,19‐pentahydroxyolean‐12‐en‐28‐oic acid, and (1β,2α,3β,19β,23)‐1,2,3,19,23‐pentahydroxyolean‐12‐en‐28‐oic acid, along with 16 known compounds. Their structures were established by extensive 1D‐ and 2D‐NMR, as well as other spectral analyses. Biological evaluation of the four new triterpenoids revealed potent cytotoxic activities against HeLa and Hep‐G2 cells.     

DETERMINATION OF LONG-TERM STABILITY OF VITAMIN E EMULSION AND FORMATION OF MICROEMULSIONS BY USING LASER LIGHT SCATTERING AND UV ABSORPTION MEASUREMENTS

This paper presents methods of determining the long-term stability of vitamin E emulsion and formation of microemulsions. Several emulsion systems formed by using anionic, zwitterionic and cationic surfactants have been studied in the presence and absence of NaCI. Several conclusions can be drawn: (1) by using UV absorption and particle size measurements, one may be able to predict the long-term stability of an emulsion or the possibility of forming a microemulsion by measuring the initial properties of an emulsion, (2) in order to form a stable vitamin E emulsion or microemulsion, the initial properties of the emulsion should have the following features : (a) the particle size is ≤ 200 nm, (b) the surfactant system has a saturation value ≥ 1 and (c) the surfactant system can dissolve a substantial amount of vitamin E without causing an increase of the emulsion droplet size and (3) the saturation value and the stability of many vitamin E emulsion systems can be increased by adding an optimum amount of NaCI.     

A quantum mechanics/molecular mechanics study on the hydrolysis mechanism of New Delhi metallo-β-lactamase-1

New Delhi metallo-β-lactamase-1 (NDM-1) has emerged as a major global threat to human health for its rapid rate of dissemination and ability to make pathogenic microbes resistant to almost all known β-lactam antibiotics. In addition, effective NDM-1 inhibitors have not been identified to date. In spite of the plethora of structural and kinetic data available, the accurate molecular characteristics of and details on the enzymatic reaction of NDM-1 hydrolyzing β-lactam antibiotics remain incompletely understood. In this study, a combined computational approach including molecular docking, molecular dynamics simulations and quantum mechanics/molecular mechanics calculations was performed to characterize the catalytic mechanism of meropenem catalyzed by NDM-1. The quantum mechanics/molecular mechanics results indicate that the ionized D124 is beneficial to the cleavage of the C–N bond within the β-lactam ring. Meanwhile, it is energetically favorable to form an intermediate if no water molecule coordinates to Zn2. Moreover, according to the molecular dynamics results, the conserved residue K211 plays a pivotal role in substrate binding and catalysis, which is quite consistent with previous mutagenesis data. Our study provides detailed insights into the catalytic mechanism of NDM-1 hydrolyzing meropenem β-lactam antibiotics and offers clues for the discovery of new antibiotics against NDM-1 positive strains in clinical studies.     

Studies on the Synthesis and Antiproliferative Activities of 13‐cis‐Retinoyl Sugar Derivatives

New retinoyl sugar derivatives of 13‐cis‐retinoic acid were synthesized in three ways in this paper in order to enhance pharmacal effects, especially antiproliferative activities of 13‐cis‐retinoic acid. Their structures were confirmed by IR, ¹H‐NMR, ¹³C‐NMR, and MS spectra and their antiproliferative activities were determined in vitro using human cancer lines. Results showed that some compounds possessed potential antitumor activities.     

Concurrent synthesis of vanillin and isovanillin

A method for concurrent synthesis of vanillin and isovanillin has been developed by a nonregioselective Vilsmeier–Haack reaction of O-alkyl guaiacols. O-Alkylation of guaiacol provided the corresponding O-alkyl guaiacol (1), which was then formylated with N-methylformanilide/phosphorus oxychloride to give a mixture of 4-alkoxy-3-methoxy-benzaldehyde (2) and 3-alkoxy-4-methoxybenzaldehyde (3). Finally, the obtained mixture underwent a selective dealkylation by anhydrous aluminium trichloride, while leaving methyl groups intact to simultaneously achieve the significant fine chemicals vanillin and isovanillin.     

Mechanism of Copper(I)‐Catalyzed Allylic Alkylation of Phosphorothioate Esters: Influence of the Leaving Group on α Regioselectivity

The mechanism of Cu^I‐catalyzed allylic alkylation and the influence of the leaving groups (OPiv, SPiv, Cl, SPO(OiPr)₂; Piv: pivavloyl) on the regioselectivity of the reaction have been explored by using density functional theory (DFT). A comprehensive comparison of many possible reaction pathways shows that [(iPr)₂Cu]^? prefers to bind first oxidatively to the double bond of the allylic substrate at the anti position with respect to the leaving group, and this is followed by dissociation of the leaving group. If the leaving group is not taken into account, the reaction then undergoes an isomerization and a reductive elimination process to give the α‐ or γ‐selective product. If OPiv, SPiv, Cl, or SPO(OiPr)₂ groups are present, the optimal route for the formation of both α‐ and γ‐substituted products changes from the stepwise elimination to the direct process, in which the leaving group plays a stabilizing role for the reactant and destabilizes the transition state. The differences to the energy barrier for the α‐ and γ‐substituted products are 2.75 kcal mol^?1 with SPO(OiPr)₂, 2.44 kcal mol^?1 with SPiv, 2.33 kcal mol^?1 with OPiv, and 1.98 kcal mol^?1 with Cl, respectively; these values show that α regioselectivity in the allylic alkylation follows a SPO(OiPr)₂>SPiv>OPiv>Cl trend, which is in satisfactory agreement with the experimental findings. This trend mainly originates in the differences between the attractive electrostatic forces and the repelling steric interactions of the SPO(OiPr)₂, SPiv, OPiv, and Cl groups on the Cu group.