Reduction of the Δ13-15-Keto Grouping of Prostaglandin Intermediates

In an attempt to gain further information on a stereo-structural model for activity of prostaglandins,² we undertook the synthesis of a number of new analogues.³ In particular, 17,17-dimethyl-F₂α was chosen as a good test of the “hairpin” conformation because the two 17-methyl groups would prevent side chain alignment in the particular sense of the “hairpin” model.⁴     

Aggressive dereplication using UHPLC–DAD–QTOF: screening extracts for up to 3000 fungal secondary metabolites

In natural-product drug discovery, finding new compounds is the main task, and thus fast dereplication of known compounds is essential. This is usually performed by manual liquid chromatography-ultraviolet (LC-UV) or visible light-mass spectroscopy (Vis-MS) interpretation of detected peaks, often assisted by automated identification of previously identified compounds. We used a 15 min high-performance liquid chromatography–diode array detection (UHPLC–DAD)–high-resolution MS method (electrospray ionization (ESI)⁺ or ESI^?), followed by 10–60 s of automated data analysis for up to 3000 relevant elemental compositions. By overlaying automatically generated extracted-ion chromatograms from detected compounds on the base peak chromatogram, all major potentially novel peaks could be visualized. Peaks corresponding to compounds available as reference standards, previously identified compounds, and major contaminants from solvents, media, filters etc. were labeled to differentiate these from compounds only identified by elemental composition. This enabled fast manual evaluation of both known peaks and potential novel-compound peaks, by manual verification of: the adduct pattern, UV–Vis, retention time compared with log D, co-identified biosynthetic related compounds, and elution order. System performance, including adduct patterns, in-source fragmentation, and ion-cooler bias, was investigated on reference standards, and the overall method was used on extracts of Aspergillus carbonarius and Penicillium melanoconidium, revealing new nitrogen-containing biomarkers for both species.     

Amorphous track models: A numerical comparison study

We present an open-source code library for amorphous track modelling which is suppose to faciliate the application and numerical comparability as well as serve as a frame-work for the implementation of new models. We show an example of using the library indicating the choice of submodels has a significant impact on the modelling outcome.     

室温快速合成Ag基金属有机骨架材料用于电催化还原CO2

选择具有强给电子能力的1,2,4-三唑为配体,成功合成了银基金属有机骨架材料(Ag-MOF)并用于电催化还原CO₂反应(CO₂RR)。借助粉末X射线衍射、透射电子显微镜、扫描电子显微镜、计时电流法等表征手段对材料的晶体结构、形貌和电催化CO₂RR性能进行了系统的研究。与商品化的纳米Ag颗粒对比,Ag-MOF展现出更优异的电催化CO₂RR产物选择性、催化活性和稳定性,在-0.9 V (vs RHE)时,CO的法拉第效率高达96.1%。当电压为-1.1 V (vs RHE)时,电流密度可达17 mA·cm^-2,且电极可以稳定运行300 min。这说明通过选择合适的配体结构,可以改变催化位点周围的化学环境,从而高效将CO₂转化为目标产物。     

新型4,6-脱水-α-D-吡喃型半乳糖衍生物的合成

以甲基-2,3,4,6-四-O-苄基-α-D-吡喃型半乳糖为起始原料,通过对1-位和2-位进行结构修饰,6-位选择性脱除苄基后,再引入保护基Ms(或Ts)制得3,4-二-O-苄基-6-磺酰基(或对甲苯基磺酰基)-α-D-吡喃型半乳糖衍生物(2a~2f);在AcOK/DMSO体系中于80℃反应24 h,2发生分子内亲核取代反应合成了一系列新型的4,6-脱水-α-D-吡喃型半乳糖衍生物,产率78%~88%,其结构经1H NMR,13C NMR和ESI-HR-MS表征。     

ICP-AES法测定茶叶中As,Cd,Ni,Pb等元素的含量

目的对样品前处理、酸度及茶叶中共存元素干扰的影响等因素进行探讨,方法用微波消解前处理样品,ICP-AES法同时测定茶叶中铅(Pb)、砷(As)、镉(Cd)、镍(Ni)等元素含量。结果该法的回收率在84.5%～115%之间,精密度RSD均小于9%,结论该法能满足茶叶测定要求。     

Stem cell survival is severely compromised by the thymidineanalog EdU (5-ethynyl-2′-deoxyuridine), an alternative to BrdU for proliferation assays and stem cell tracing

Stem cell therapy has opened up the possibility of treating numerous degenerating diseases. However, we are still merely at the stage of identifying appropriate sources of stem cells and exploring their full differentiation potential. Thus, tracking the stem cells upon in vivo engraftment and during in vitro co-culture is very important and is an area of research embracing many pitfalls. 5-Ethynyl-2′-deoxyuridine (EdU), a rather new thymidine analog incorporated into DNA, has recently been suggested to be a novel highly valid alternative to other dyes for labeling of stem cells and subsequent tracing of their proliferation and differentiation ability. However, our results herein do not at any stage support this recommendation, since EdU severely reduces the viability of stem cells. Accordingly, we found that transplanted EdU-labeled stem cells hardly survive upon in vivo transplantation into regenerating muscle, whereas stem cells labeled in parallel with another dye survived very well and also participated in myofiber formation. Similar data were obtained upon in vitro myogenic culture, and further analysis showed that EdU reduced cell numbers by up to 88 % and increased the cell volume of remaining cells by as much as 91 %. Even at low EdU concentrations, cell survival and phenotype were substantially compromised, and the myogenic differentiation potential was inhibited. Since we examined both primary derived cells and cell lines from several species with the same result, this appears to be a common trait of EdU. We therefore suggest that EdU labeling should be avoided (or used with precaution) for stem cell tracing purposes.

Quantification of 31 illicit and medicinal drugs and metabolites in whole blood by fully automated solid-phase extraction and ultra-performance liquid chromatography–tandem mass spectrometry

An efficient method for analyzing illegal and medicinal drugs in whole blood using fully automated sample preparation and short ultra-high-performance liquid chromatography–tandem mass spectrometry (MS/MS) run time is presented. A selection of 31 drugs, including amphetamines, cocaine, opioids, and benzodiazepines, was used. In order to increase the efficiency of routine analysis, a robotic system based on automated liquid handling and capable of handling all unit operation for sample preparation was built on a Freedom Evo 200 platform with several add-ons from Tecan and third-party vendors. Solid-phase extraction was performed using Strata X-C plates. Extraction time for 96 samples was less than 3 h. Chromatography was performed using an ACQUITY UPLC system (Waters Corporation, Milford, USA). Analytes were separated on a 100 mm?×?2.1 mm, 1.7 μm Acquity UPLC CSH C₁₈ column using a 6.5 min 0.1 % ammonia (25 %) in water/0.1 % ammonia (25 %) in methanol gradient and quantified by MS/MS (Waters Quattro Premier XE) in multiple-reaction monitoring mode. Full validation, including linearity, precision and trueness, matrix effect, ion suppression/enhancement of co-eluting analytes, recovery, and specificity, was performed. The method was employed successfully in the laboratory and used for routine analysis of forensic material. In combination with tetrahydrocannabinol analysis, the method covered 96 % of cases involving driving under the influence of drugs. The manual labor involved in preparing blood samples, solvents, etc., was reduced to a half an hour per batch. The automated sample preparation setup also minimized human exposure to hazardous materials, provided highly improved ergonomics, and eliminated manual pipetting.