Mapping Polyamide–DNA Interactions in Human Cells Reveals a New Design Strategy for Effective Targeting of Genomic Sites

Targeting the genome with sequence‐specific synthetic molecules is a major goal at the interface of chemistry, biology, and personalized medicine. Pyrrole/imidazole‐based polyamides can be rationally designed to target specific DNA sequences with exquisite precision in vitro; yet, the biological outcomes are often difficult to interpret using current models of binding energetics. To directly identify the binding sites of polyamides across the genome, we designed, synthesized, and tested polyamide derivatives that enabled covalent crosslinking and localization of polyamide–DNA interaction sites in live human cells. Bioinformatic analysis of the data reveals that clustered binding sites, spanning a broad range of affinities, best predict occupancy in cells. In contrast to the prevailing paradigm of targeting single high‐affinity sites, our results point to a new design principle to deploy polyamides and perhaps other synthetic molecules to effectively target desired genomic sites in vivo.     

Phosphin-stabilisierte carbonylnitrosylvanadium-verbindungen: Darstellung und spektroskopische eigenschaften

Numerous new complexes of the type V(CO)₅_n(NO)L_n, have been prepared either by nitrosylation of [V(CO)₆_nL_n]^?(n  2, 3) with NOX (X  Cl, BF₄) and [Co(NO)₂Br]₂, resp., or by reaction of L with “V(CO)₅NO” generated in situ. The compounds comprise n  1: L  PPh₃, PMe₂H, P(OMe)₃ and Ph₂PCH_2?PPh₂ (dppm); n  2: L₂2  2 PMe₂H, 2 PMe₃, 2 P(OMe)₃, dppm, Ph₂P(CH₂)_2?PPh₂, Ph₂P(CH₂)₃,PPh₂, Me₂P(CH₂)₂PMe₂, Ph₂As(CH₂)₂AsPh₂, o_?C₆H₄(AsMe₂)₂ (diars) and o_?C₆H₄(AsPh₂)PPh₂; n  3: L₃  1.5 diars and CH₃C(CH₂PPh₂)₃. IR (CO and NO stretching region) and ⁵¹V NMR spectra are discussed; for n  2 and 3, the positions of the arsine and phosphine ligands relative to NO are either cis for all the ligand functions (arsines) or cis/trans.     

Imidazolium-modification enhances photocatalytic CO2 reduction on ZnSe quantum dots

Colloidal photocatalysts can utilize solar light for the conversion of CO₂ to carbon-based fuels, but controlling the product selectivity for CO₂ reduction remains challenging, in particular in aqueous solution. Here, we present an organic surface modification strategy to tune the product selectivity of colloidal ZnSe quantum dots (QDs) towards photocatalytic CO₂ reduction even in the absence of transition metal co-catalysts. Besides H₂, imidazolium-modified ZnSe QDs evolve up to 2.4 mmol_CO g_ZnSe⁻¹ (TON_QD > 370) after 10 h of visible light irradiation (AM 1.5G, λ > 400 nm) in aqueous ascorbate solution with a CO-selectivity of up to 20%. This represents a four-fold increase in CO-formation yield and 13-fold increase in CO-selectivity compared to non-functionalized ZnSe QDs. The binding of the thiolated imidazolium ligand to the QD surface is characterized quantitatively using ¹H-NMR spectroscopy and isothermal titration calorimetry, revealing that a subset of 12 to 17 ligands interacts strongly with the QDs. Transient absorption spectroscopy reveals an influence of the ligand on the intrinsic charge carrier dynamics through passivating Zn surface sites. Density functional theory calculations indicate that the imidazolium capping ligand plays a key role in stabilizing the surface-bound *CO₂⁻ intermediate, increasing the yield and selectivity toward CO production. Overall, this work unveils a powerful tool of using organic capping ligands to modify the chemical environment on colloids, thus enabling control over the product selectivity within photocatalyzed CO₂ reduction.

A photocatalyst system consisting of ZnSe quantum dots modified with a thiolated imidazolium capping ligand for visible light-driven reduction of aqueous CO₂ to CO is reported without the need for a metal complex co-catalyst.     

Determination of cholesterol and triglycerides in serum lipoproteins using flow field-flow fractionation coupled to gas chromatography-mass spectrometry

Asymmetric flow field flow fractionation (AsFlFFF) was combined with pyrolysis-gas chromatography mass spectrometry for a sized based fractionation and a detailed compositional study of the triglycerides and cholesterol associated with the various lipoprotein subclasses present in human serum. Serum samples were injected in the AsFlFFF instrument and fractionated with a time-delayed exponential decay cross flow program. The fractions collected after AsFlFFF elution were injected into a programmable temperature vaporizer (PTV) GC-injector, containing a fritted liner. A temperature and split-flow program for the PTV injector was optimized for the thermally assisted hydrolysis and methylation of the compounds of interest. The resulting fatty acid and cholesterol methyl esters were separated by GC and characteristic fragment ions were detected by MS. The system was optimized and calibrated with triglyceride and cholesterol standards for quantitative analysis. The possible interference by phospholipids with the quantitative results was investigated and found to be of minor importance.The concentrations and lipoprotein profiles of triglycerides and cholesterol were determined in a pooled serum sample of healthy volunteers and a serum sample of a sepsis patient. The results obtained with the GC–MS approach were compared with those of a previously developed method based on AsFlFFF with a dual enzymatic reaction detection system. A good agreement of the profiles was found, for cholesterol as well as for the triglycerides, even when the GC–MS method quantifies the fatty acids while with the enzymatic reaction method the glycerol concentrations are determined. Total cholesterol and triglyceride concentration values for the serum samples showed good agreement with the results of the standard enzymatic method as used in practice in the university hospital.     

An improved liquid chromatographic method for the analysis of tylosin and its impurities

A selective reversed-phase (RP) liquid chromatographic (LC) method coupled with UV for the determination of tylosin and its related substances is described. The gradient method uses a Capcell pak C18 ACR column (25 cm×4.6 mm id, 5 μm) maintained at a temperature of 60°C. The mobile phases consist of acetonitrile, phosphate buffer pH 5.5 and water: (A; 27.5:10:62.5 v/v/v) and (B; 50:10:40 v/v/v). The flow rate is 1.0 mL/min and UV detection is performed at 280 nm. It allows the separation of all known and 22 other unknown related substances (≥0.02%) from the main compound and from one another. The method shows good precision, sensitivity, linearity (between 0.2 μg/mL and 1.25 mg/mL) and robustness. The limit of quantification is 0.2 μg/mL, corresponding to 0.020%. Seven bulk tylosin samples containing a large number of impurities were examined using this method.     

Radicals produced by gamma-irradiation of hyperquenched glassy water containing 2'-deoxyguanosine-5'-monophosphate

Hyperquenched glassy water (HGW) has been suggested as the best model for liquid water, to be used in low-temperature studies of indirect radiation effects on dissolved biomolecules (Bednarek et al. J. Am. Chem. Soc. 1996, 118, 9387). In the present work, these effects are examined by X-band electron spin resonance spectroscopy (ESR) in gamma-irradiated HGW matrix containing 2'-deoxyguanosine-5'-monophosphate. Analysis of the complex ESR spectra indicates that, in addition to OH(*) and HO2(*) radicals generated by water radiolysis, three species are trapped at 77 K:(i) G(C8)H(*) radical, the H-adduct to the double bond at C8; (ii) G(- *) radical anion, the product of electron scavenging by the aromatic ring of the base; and (iii) dR(-H)(*) radicals formed by H abstraction from the sugar moiety, predominantly at the C'5 position. We discuss the yields of the radicals, their thermal stability and transformations, as well as the effect of photobleaching. This study confirms our earlier suggestion that in HGW the H atom addition/abstraction products are created at 77 K in competition with HO2(*) radicals, in a concerted process following ionization of water molecule at L-type defect sites of the H-bonded matrix. The lack of OH(*) reactivity toward the solute suggests that the H-bonded structure in HGW is much more effective in recombining OH(*) radicals than that of aqueous glasses obtained from highly concentrated electrolyte solutions. Furthermore, complementary experiments for the neat matrix have provided evidence that HO2(*) radicals are not the product of H atom reaction with molecular oxygen, possibly generated by ultrasounds used in the process of sample preparation.     

Raman spectroscopic study of hydrogen ordered ice XIII and of its reversible phase transition to disordered ice V

Raman spectra of recovered ordered H(2)O (D(2)O) ice XIII doped with 0.01 M HCl (DCl) recorded in vacuo at 80 K are reported in the range 3600-200 cm(-1). The bands are assigned to the various types of modes on the basis of isotope ratios. On thermal cycling between 80 and 120 K, the reversible phase transition to disordered ice V is observed. The remarkable effect of HCl (DCl) on orientational ordering in ice V and its phase transition to ordered ice XIII, first reported in a powder neutron diffraction study of DCl doped D(2)O ice V (C. G. Salzmann, P. G. Radaelli, A. Hallbrucker, E. Mayer, J. L. Finney, Science, 2006, 311, 1758), is demonstrated by Raman spectroscopy and discussed. The dopants KOH and HF have only a minor effect on hydrogen ordering in ice V, as shown by the Raman spectra.