Real-time detection of DNA interactions with long-period fiber-grating-based biosensor

Using an optical biosensor based on a dual-peak long-period fiber grating, we have demonstrated the detection of interactions between biomolecules in real time. Silanization of the grating surface was successfully realized for the covalent immobilization of probe DNA, which was subsequently hybridized with the complementary target DNA sequence. It is interesting to note that the DNA biosensor was reusable after being stripped off the hybridized target DNA from the grating surface, demonstrating a function of multiple usability.     

Stabilization of continuum generation from normally dispersive nonlinear optical fibers for a tunable broad bandwidth source for optical coherence tomography

Continuum generation from normally dispersive ultrahigh-numerical-aperture fibers deteriorates in relatively short times, limiting its application as a practical optical source for high-resolution optical coherence tomography. We find that reversible light-induced structural modification of fiber optic materials, rather than permanent optical damage, is responsible for this deterioration. By examining how the optical properties of corresponding light-induced waveguides depend on pumping wavelength, we isolate a waveguide that is beneficial for stable continuum generation. The performance deterioration due to the formation of other waveguides can be reversed by overwriting them with this particular waveguide.     

Stress-Induced Alteration of Chlorophyll Fluorescence Polarization and Spectrum in Leaves of <Emphasis Type="Italic">Alocasia macrorrhiza</Emphasis> L. Schott

The value of intrinsic chlorophyll fluorescence polarization, and the intensity in emission spectrum were investigated in leaf segments of Alocasia macrorrhiza under several stress conditions including different temperatures (25–50°C), various concentrations of NaCl (0–250 mM), methyl viologen (MV, 0–25 μM), SDS (0–1.0%) and NaHSO₃ (0–80 μM). Fluorescence emission spectrum of leaves at wavelength regions of 500–800 nm was monitored by excitation at 436 nm. The value of fluorescence polarization (P value), as result of energy transfer and mutual orientation between chlorophyll molecules, was determined by excitation at 436 nm and emission at 685 nm. The results showed that elevated temperature and concentrations of salt (NaCl), photooxidant (MV), surfactant (SDS) and simulated SO₂ (NaHSO₃) treatments all induced a reduction of fluorescence polarization to various degrees. However, alteration of the fluorescence spectrum and emission intensity of F₆₈₅ and F₇₃₁ depended on the individual treatment. Increase in temperature and concentration of NaHSO₃ enhanced fluorescence intensity mainly at F₆₈₅, while an increase in MV concentration led to a decrease at both F₆₈₅ and F₇₃₁. On the contrary, NaCl and SDS did not cause remarkable change in fluorescence spectrum. Among different treatments, the negative correlation between polarization and fluorescence intensity was found with NaHSO₃ treatments only. We concluded that P value being measured with intrinsic chlorophyll fluorescence as probe in leaves is a susceptible indicator responding to changes in environmental conditions. The alteration of P value and fluorescence intensity might not always be shown a functional relation pattern. The possible reasons of differed response to various treatments were discussed.     

Discovery of novel 3-{[(5,5-dimethyl-4,5-dihydroisoxazol-3-yl)sulfonyl]methyl}benzo[d]isoxazole analogs as promising very long chain fatty acids inhibitors

Very long chain fatty acids (VLCFAs) are one of the most principal and promising targets for herbicides discovery. In order to explore and find novel VLCFAs inhibitors with higher herbicidal activity and improved crop safety, a variety of new 3-{[(5,5-dimethyl-4,5-dihydroisoxazol-3-yl)sulfonyl]methyl}benzo[d]isoxazole derivatives were reasonably designed and synthesized. The results of greenhouse experiments indicated that several compounds exhibited good herbicidal activity against Digitaria sanguinalis, Echinochloa crus-galli, and Setaria faberii at rates of 150 g ai/ha. Compounds g4 and h1 displayed promising herbicidal activity against D sanguinalis and E crus-galli at rates of 75 g ai/ha, which is better than commercial pyroxasulfone and S-metolachlor. Moreover, compound h1 displayed higher activity against E crus-galli, D sanguinalis, and S faberii than pyroxasulfone and S-metolachlor even at a rate of 37.5 and 18.75 g ai/ha. Furthermore, both of the compounds g4 and h1 were much safer to these tested crops, especially to rice, wheat and rape, at the rate of 150 g ai/ha than pyroxasulfone. Therefore, h1 may act as a new lead structure for novel herbicides discovery.     

ZnII and CdII Metal Organic Frameworks Based on 2-Methyl-6-oxygen-1,6-dihydro-3,4'bipyridine-5-carbonitrile

To investigate the coordination chemistry of modbc (2-methyl-6-oxygen-1,6-dihydro-3,4'-bipyridine-5-carbonitrile) with Zn^II and Cd^II salts under the solvothermal conditions, six new MOFs with the formulas [Zn(modbc)₂(mpa)]_n ( 1 ), [Zn(modbc)(mpa)(H₂O)]_n ( 2 ), [Zn(modbc)(pa)_0.5(H₂O)]_n ( 3 ), [Cd(modbc)(pa)_0.5(H₂O)]_n ( 4 ), [Zn(modbc)₂(tpa)]_n ( 5 ), and [Cd(modbc)₂(pda)(H₂O)]_n ( 6 ) (mpa = m-phthalic acid; pa = pyromellitic acid; tpa = terephthalic acid; pda = pentane diacid) were successfully synthesized by solvothermal reaction and fully characterized by elemental analysis, IR spectroscopy, single crystal, powder X-ray diffraction, thermal and photoluminescence properties. Though MOFs 3 and 4 have the same structure, we have obtained three different kinds of coordination configurations by the X-ray diffration analysis. Compared with 1 and 2 , coordination water has no effect on the solid fluorescence emission of MOFs. It is worth noting that the fluorescence intensity of 3 containing central Zn^II atoms is very strong, whereas that of isomorphism 4 containing central Cd^II atoms has almost no fluorescence emission, showing that metal ions have very important influence on the fluorescence emission. Further, we found that solvents had an important effect on the fluorescence emission in liquid fluorescence of MOFs 1 – 6 .     

An 18 Multi-InDels panel for analysis of highly degraded forensic biological samples

DNA genotyping from trace and highly degraded biological samples is one of the most significant challenges of forensic DNA identification. There is a lack of simple and effective methods for genotyping highly degraded samples. In this study, a multiple loci insertion/deletion polymorphisms (Multi-InDels) panel was designed for detecting 18 autosomal Multi-InDels through capillary electrophoresis (CE) with amplicon sizes no longer than 125 bp. Studies of sensitivity, degradation, and species specificity were performed and a population study was carried out using 192 samples from Han populations in Hunan province in the south of China. The combined random match probability (CMP) of these 18 Multi-InDels was 3.23 × 10^–12 and the cumulative probability of exclusion (CPE) was 0.9989, suggesting this panel could be used independently for human identification and could provide efficient supporting information for parentage testing. Complete profiles were obtained from as low as 62.5 pg of total input DNA after increasing the number of PCR cycles. Moreover, all alleles were detected from artificially highly degraded DNA after 80 min of boiling water bath treatment. This 18 Multi-InDels panel is simple, fast, and effective for the forensic analysis of highly degraded DNA.     

三功能策略设计制备具有优异低温抗积碳性能的Ni-CeO2@SiO2催化剂催化甲烷干重整反应

随着全球人为温室气体排放量(主要是甲烷和二氧化碳)的增加,全球变暖的趋势逐渐增加,因此,迫切需要通过各种技术来捕获和利用这些温室气体.甲烷干气重整反应(DRM)可以有效地将甲烷和二氧化碳这两种资源丰富、价格低廉的温室气体转化为高附加值化学品,减少它们向大气排放.尽管DRM工艺的应用具有许多优势,但是反应期间碳沉积和活性组分的烧结是阻碍其工业应用的两个主要原因.这些碳沉积物可能覆盖活性中心或阻塞催化剂的孔道,从而导致催化剂活性降低.镍基催化剂因其价格低廉、初始活性高和资源丰富而得到广泛的应用.但应用于DRM反应的Ni基催化剂在反应中容易烧结和积碳,导致催化剂迅速失活.为解决上述问题,本文从三功能策略角度出发,即SiO2壳层的限域作用和Ni-Ce之间的协同作用以及CeO2的消除积碳作用,采用原位一锅法设计合成了一种限域型Ni-CeO2核壳结构催化剂(Ni-CeO2@SiO2).通过X射线衍射、透射电子显微镜、能量色散X射线光谱、N2吸附/脱附、氢气程序升温还原和脱附、氧气程序升温脱附、拉曼光谱、热重分析和原位漫反射红外傅里叶变换光谱测试对催化剂进行了系统的表征,来揭示催化剂的理化性质和反应机理.催化剂应用于甲烷干气重整反应结果表明,在温度区间为550～800℃时,与传统浸渍法合成的催化剂相比,Ni-CeO2@SiO2催化剂具有更高的活性.高温800℃下的稳定性测试结果显示,传统浸渍法合成的催化剂在反应20 h后就出现了大量的积碳且活性下降明显;而Ni-CeO2@SiO2催化剂在800℃下反应100 h后未检测到积碳,并且催化剂中的Ni纳米颗粒的平均粒径从5.01 nm仅增长到5.77 nm,表现出很好的高温抗积碳和耐烧结性能.值得注意的是,Ni-CeO2@SiO2催化剂在低温600℃(形成碳沉积的最可能温度区域)下反应20h后也未检测到积碳的形成,表现出催化剂良好的低温稳定性和抗积碳性能.这可能归因于对Ni-CeO2@SiO2催化剂的三功能作用,即多孔二氧化硅壳层的限域作用、Ni与CeO2之间强的金属-金属氧化物相互作用以及具有丰富活性氧物种CeO2的消除积碳的作用.通过原位漫反射红外傅里叶变换光谱测试来探究反应机理.结果 表明,DRM反应在Ni-CeO2@SiO2催化剂上遵循L-H机理,添加CeO2可以消除碳沉积并促进CO2活化.该三功能策略为设计其他应用于DRM的高性能催化剂提供了指导,有望加快该工艺的工业化.     

MIL-53(Al)衍生的Rh单原子催化剂在间氯硝基苯选择性加氢制间氯苯胺反应中的应用

卤代苯胺是化学工业中重要的中间体,主要用于制造药物、聚合物、染料等含氮化学品,用多相金属催化剂催化卤代硝基芳烃加氢制备卤代苯胺是一种高效,绿色和可持续发展的生产工艺.该过程需要选择性加氢硝基基团,同时避免卤素基团的脱卤副反应发生.然而,化学选择性加氢存在巨大的挑战,难点在于催化剂的精准设计,一方面要求具备对硝基基团合适的加氢能力,另一方面要阻止对卤素基团的脱卤副反应发生.基于此,研制高效多相金属催化剂用于卤代硝基芳烃选择性加氢制备卤代苯胺反应引起了高度关注.近年来,单原子金属催化剂受到越来越多的关注,并在卤代硝基芳烃选择性加氢制备卤代苯胺反应中显现出极大的潜力.本文通过在金属有机骨架材料MIL-53(Al)自组装的过程中将金属Rh原位嫁接其骨架结构中,继而通过限域热解的方法制备了Rh@Al2O3@C单原子催化剂,其在间氯硝基苯(m-CNB)加氢制间氯苯胺(m-CAN)反应中显现了高效催化选择性.球差校正高角度环形暗场模式的透射电镜,CO作为探针分子的红外光谱和X射线光电子能谱等结果发现,Rh是以单原子的形式均匀的分布在Al2O3上并被无定型碳包覆,且Rh化学价态呈正价.而27Al固体核磁共振与密度泛函理论计算的结果则进一步确定Al2O3@C载体中存在的五配位的Al物种(AlV)是锚定Rh单原子的主要位点,AlV的不饱和的配位结构可以有效地稳定Rh单原子,对形成Rh位点的单原子分散至关重要.在间氯硝基苯选择性加氢制间氯苯胺反应中,与等体积浸渍法制备的Rh/C和Rh/γ-Al2O3纳米催化剂相比,Rh@Al2O3@C单原子催化剂表现出优异催化性能:其在313 K,氢气压力为20 bar的温和条件下转换频率(TOF)高达2317 molm-CNB·molRh-1·h-1,优于已报道的多相金属催化剂,是目前的最高值.此外,该催化剂展现出极佳的稳定性能,经过五次循环后,该催化剂对m-CAN的选择性仍旧保持在98％左右.Rh@Al2O3@C单原子催化剂的优异催化性能源自于金属单原子结构的形成对于金属位点电子结构的有效调节,进而调控催化剂加氢性能并实现对加氢脱卤副反应的抑制;与此同时,Rh@Al2O3@C催化剂增进了酸位点的可及性,从而促进了其串联步骤中包含的脱水反应的发生,进而有效提高催化剂的反应活性.     

基于氮杂Mn咔咯二维纳米材料的单原子Mn中心催化氧化烷烃制醇

咔咯是由四个吡咯共轭相连而形成的具有芳香性的新型卟啉类大环化合物,但咔咯分子中存在一个直接连结两个吡咯环的C?C键,与卟啉相比,仅仅是少了一个“meso”位置的C原子.因此,在结构上,咔咯含有三个“吡咯型”氮原子和一个“吡啶型”氮原子,当咔咯失去三个内氢原子后变成了三价阴离子,易与金属形成高价态的稳定配合物.氮杂咔咯是一种咔咯的meso位上的C被取代为N的咔咯衍生物.与正常的咔咯相比,它更易于与过渡金属形成稳定配合物.正是由于这些独特的结构特点,使其在金属催化、染料敏化太阳能电池、光敏剂、金属传感器、甚至在医学上都有很好的应用前景.金属有机大环均相催化剂的非均相化,是改进反应产物分离和实现催化剂循环使用的最简单有效方法之一.环境友好的Mn氮杂咔咯催化剂,在温和条件下可以利用氧气直接将有机底物氧化.本文选用Mn氮杂咔咯催化剂作为基本构建单元,通过理论计算,构建了一种新型的具有高催化活性的含Mn氮杂咔咯环结构单元的二维纳米催化材料.我们分别使用高斯软件(Gaussian 09)和维也纳从头算模拟软件包(VASP)对孤立分子和周期性体系进行结构优化以及性质的计算.在这种二维材料中,每一个Mn原子作为相对独立的金属单原子中心(SAC),保留了单环中Mn金属中心的高催化活性.在温和的光照条件下,Mn金属中心可以直接活化氧气生成类自由基[Mn]-O-O中心,随后[Mn]-O-O中心可以有效地通过夺取有机底物中的H和紧接着新生自由基的偶合反应,选择性氧化C?H键为C?OH键.另外,通过沿[Mn]-O-O反应轴施加不同强度的外电场,可对此二维纳米材料的催化反应活性进行精细调控.本文为实验上制备基于Mn氮杂咔咯的非均相催化剂以及单原子Mn基催化剂提供了理论依据.     

Matrix Isolation Spectroscopic and Relativistic Quantum Chemical Study of Molecular Platinum Fluorides PtFn (n=1–6) Reveals Magnetic Bistability of PtF4

Molecular platinum fluorides PtF_n, n=1–6, are prepared by two different routes, photo-initiated fluorine elimination from PtF₆ embedded in solid noble-gas matrices, and the reaction of elemental fluorine with laser-ablated platinum atoms. IR spectra of the reaction products isolated in rare-gas matrices under cryogenic conditions provide, for the first time, experimental vibrational frequencies of molecular PtF₃, PtF₄ and PtF₅. Photolysis of PtF₆ enabled a highly efficient and almost quantitative formation of molecular PtF₄, whereas both PtF₅ and PtF₃ were formed simultaneously by subsequent UV irradiation of PtF₄. The vibrational spectra of these molecular platinum fluorides were assigned with the help of one- and two-component quasirelativistic DFT computation to account for scalar relativistic and spin–orbit coupling effects. Competing Jahn-Teller and spin–orbit coupling effects result in a magnetic bistability of PtF₄, for which a spin-triplet (³B_2g, D_2h) coexists with an electronic singlet state (¹A_1g, D_4h) in solid neon matrices.