Electrolysis-reducing electrodes for electrokinetic devices

Direct current electrokinetic systems generally require Faradaic reactions to occur at a pair of electrodes to maintain an electric field in an electrolyte connecting them. The vast majority of such systems, e.g. electrophoretic separations (capillary electrophoresis) or electroosmotic pumps (EOPs), employ electrolysis of the solvent in these reactions. In many cases, the electrolytic products, such as H+ and OH? in the case of water, can negatively influence the chemical or biological species being transported or separated, and gaseous products such as O? and H? can break the electrochemical circuit in microfluidic devices. This article presents an EOP that employs the oxidation/reduction of the conjugated polymer poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene), rather than electrolysis of a solvent, to drive flow in a capillary. Devices made with poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene) electrodes are compared with devices made with Pt electrodes in terms of flow and local pH change at the electrodes. Furthermore, we demonstrate that flow is driven for applied potentials under 2?V, and the electrodes are stable for potentials of at least 100?V. Electrochemically active electrodes like those presented here minimize the disadvantage of integrated EOP in, e.g. lab-on-a-chip applications, and may open new possibilities, especially for battery-powered disposable point-of-care devices.     

The molecular basis of pharmacological chaperoning in human α-galactosidase

Fabry disease patients show a deficiency in the activity of the lysosomal enzyme α-galactosidase (α-GAL or α-Gal A). One proposed treatment for Fabry disease is pharmacological chaperone therapy, where a small molecule stabilizes the α-GAL protein, leading to increased enzymatic activity. Using enzyme kinetics, tryptophan fluorescence, circular dichroism, and proteolysis assays, we show that the pharmacological chaperones 1-deoxygalactonojirimycin (DGJ) and galactose stabilize the human α-GAL glycoprotein. Crystal structures of complexes of α-GAL and chaperones explain the molecular basis for the higher potency of DGJ over galactose. Using site-directed mutagenesis, we show the higher potency of DGJ results from an ionic interaction with D170. We propose that protonation of D170 in acidic conditions leads to weaker binding of DGJ. The results establish a biochemical basis for pharmacological chaperone therapy applicable to other protein misfolding diseases.     

Zinc-adeninate metal-organic framework for aqueous encapsulation and sensitization of near-infrared and visible emitting lanthanide cations

Luminescent metal-organic frameworks (MOFs), Ln(3+)@bio-MOF-1, were synthesized via postsynthetic cation exchange of bio-MOF-1 with Tb(3+), Sm(3+), Eu(3+), or Yb(3+), and their photophysical properties were studied. We demonstrate that bio-MOF-1 encapsulates and sensitizes visible and near-infrared emitting lanthanide cations in aqueous solution.     

Mapping the hydration dynamics of ubiquitin

The nature of water's interaction with biomolecules such as proteins has been difficult to examine in detail at atomic resolution. Solution NMR spectroscopy is potentially a powerful method for characterizing both the structural and temporal aspects of protein hydration but has been plagued by artifacts. Encapsulation of the protein of interest within the aqueous core of a reverse micelle particle results in a general slowing of water dynamics, significant reduction in hydrogen exchange chemistry and elimination of contributions from bulk water thereby enabling the use of nuclear Overhauser effects to quantify interactions between the protein surface and hydration water. Here we extend this approach to allow use of dipolar interactions between hydration water and hydrogens bonded to protein carbon atoms. By manipulating the molecular reorientation time of the reverse micelle particle through use of low viscosity liquid propane, the T(1ρ) relaxation time constants of (1)H bonded to (13)C were sufficiently lengthened to allow high quality rotating frame nuclear Overhauser effects to be obtained. These data supplement previous results obtained from dipolar interactions between the protein and hydrogens bonded to nitrogen and in aggregate cover the majority of the molecular surface of the protein. A wide range of hydration dynamics is observed. Clustering of hydration dynamics on the molecular surface is also seen. Regions of long-lived hydration water correspond with regions of the protein that participate in molecular recognition of binding partners suggesting that the contribution of the solvent entropy to the entropy of binding has been maximized through evolution.     

NH+-F hydrogen bonding in a fluorinated "proton sponge" derivative: integration of solution, solid-state, gas-phase, and computational studies

We report detailed studies on the characterization of an intramolecular NH-F hydrogen bond formed within a fluorinated "proton sponge" derivative. An ammonium ion, generated from 8-fluoro-N,N-dimethylnaphthalen-1-amine, serves as a charged hydrogen bond donor to a covalently bound fluorine appropriately positioned on the naphthalene skeleton. Potentiometric titrations of various N,N-dimethylnaphthalen-1-amines demonstrate a significant increase in basicity when hydrogen bonding is possible. X-ray crystallography reveals that NH-F hydrogen bonding in protonated 8-fluoro-N,N-dimethylnaphthalen-1-amine is heavily influenced by ion pairing in the solid state; bifurcated and trifurcated hydrogen bonds are formed depending on the counterion utilized. Compelling evidence of hydrogen bonding in the 8-fluoro-N,N-dimethylnaphthyl-1-ammonium cation is provided by gas-phase cryogenic vibrational photodissociation spectroscopy. Solution-phase infrared spectroscopy provides complementary results, and the frequencies of the N-H stretching mode in both phases are in excellent agreement with the computed vibrational spectra. NMR analysis of protonated 8-fluoro-N,N-dimethylnaphthalen-1-amine demonstrates significant H-F coupling between the N-H hydrogen and fluorine that cannot be attributed to long-range, through-bond interactions; the couplings correlate favorably with calculated values. The results obtained from these experiments are congruent with the formation of an NH-F hydrogen bond upon protonation of 8-fluoro-N,N-dimethylnaphthalen-1-amine.     

Polymorphisms in genes involved in innate immunity and susceptibility to benzene-induced hematotoxicity

Benzene, a recognized hematotoxicant and carcinogen, can damage the human immune system. We studied the association between single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in genes involved in innate immunity and benzene hematotoxicity in a cross-sectional study of workers exposed to benzene (250 workers and 140 controls). A total of 1,236 tag SNPs in 149 gene regions of six pathways were included in the analysis. Six gene regions were significant for their association with white blood cell (WBC) counts (MBP, VCAM1, ALOX5, MPO, RAC2, and CRP) based on gene-region (P<0.05) and SNP analyses (FDR<0.05). VCAM1 rs3176867, ALOX5 rs7099684, and MPO rs2071409 were the three most significant SNPs. They showed similar effects on WBC subtypes, especially granulocytes, lymphocytes, and monocytes. A 3-SNP block in ALOXE3 (rs7215658, rs9892383, and rs3027208) showed a global association (omnibus P = 0.0008) with WBCs even though the three SNPs were not significant individually. Our study suggests that polymorphisms in innate immunity genes may play a role in benzene-induced hematotoxicity; however, independent replication is necessary.     

Chemical tailoring of fullerene acceptors: synthesis, structures and electrochemical properties of perfluoroisopropylfullerenes

High-temperature syntheses of the new C(60)(i-C(3)F(7))(2,4,6) and C(70)(i-C(3)F(7))(2,4) isomers and their characterization by spectroscopic methods, X-ray crystallography, cyclic voltammetry and density functional theory provide compelling evidence that they are superior electron acceptors than trifluoromethylfullerenes.     

Solution structure of copper-seamed C-alkylpyrogallol[4]arene nanocapsules with varying chain lengths

The stability of copper-seamed C-alkylpyrogallol[4]arene hexamers with varying chain lengths in solution has been studied using small-angle neutron scattering (SANS). The progression in diameter of spherical capsules with increasing alkyl chain lengths of copper-seamed hexamers in solution suggests both robustness as well as a close correlation between the solid phase and solution phase structures.     

Metal-biomolecule frameworks (MBioFs)

Biomolecules are the building blocks of life. Nature has evolved countless biomolecules that show promise for bridging metal ions. These molecules have emerged as an excellent source of biocompatible building blocks that can be used to design Metal-Biomolecule Frameworks (MBioFs). This feature article highlights the advances in the synthesis of this class of MOFs. Special emphasis is provided on the crystal structures of these materials, their miniaturization to the submicron length scale, and their new potential storage, catalytic, and biomedical applications.     

β-Sheet-induced chirogenesis in polymerization of oligopeptides

The origin of long homochiral biopolymers in living systems has recently been the focus of intense research. In one particular research line, scientists studied, experimentally and theoretically, chiral amplification obtained during peptide formation by polymerization of amino acid building blocks. It was suggested that processes leading to temporal or spatial separation, and thus, to the growth of homochiral polymers at the expense of their heterochiral counterparts, can explain the chirality observed in larger molecules. We introduce a simple model and stochastic simulation for the polymerization of amino acids and β-sheet formation, showing the crucial effects of the β sheets on the distributions of peptide lengths. When chiral affinities are included, racemic β sheets of alternating homochiral strands lead to the formation of chiral peptides, the isotacticity of which increases with length, consistent with previous experimental results in aqueous solutions. The tendency to form isotactic peptides is shown for both initially racemic and initially nonracemic systems, as well as for closed and open systems. We suggest that these or similar mechanisms may explain the origin of chiroselectivity in prebiotic environments.