The Effect of Hispidulin,a Flavonoid from Salvia plebeia,on Human Nasopharyngeal Carcinoma CNE-2Z Cell Proliferation,Migration, Invasion,and Apoptosis

Nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC) is a common malignant head and neck tumor. Drug resistance and distant metastasis are the predominant cause of treatment failure in NPC patients. Hispidulin is a flavonoid extracted from the bioassay-guided separation of the EtOH extract of Salvia plebeia with strong anti-proliferative activity in nasopharyngeal carcinoma cells (CNE-2Z). In this study, the effects of hispidulin on proliferation, invasion, migration, and apoptosis were investigated in CNE-2Z cells. The [3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide] (MTT) assay and the colony formation assay revealed that hispidulin could inhibit CNE-2Z cell proliferation. Hispidulin (25, 50, 100 μM) also induced apoptosis in a dose-dependent manner in CNE-2Z cells. The expression of Akt was reduced, and the expression of the ratio of Bax/Bcl-2 was increased. In addition, scratch wound and transwell assays proved that hispidulin (6.25, 12.5, 25 μM) could inhibited the migration and invasion in CNE-2Z cells. The expressions of HIF-1α, MMP-9, and MMP-2 were decreased, while the MMPs inhibitor TIMP1 was enhanced by hispidulin. Moreover, hispidulin exhibited potent suppression tumor growth and low toxicity in CNE-2Z cancer-bearing mice at a dosage of 20 mg/kg/day. Thus, hispidulin appears to be a potentially effective agent for NPC treatment.     

Rapid Preparation of Mesoporous Methylsilsesquioxane Aerogels by Microwave Heating Technology

Microwave heating technology is known as an alternative to traditional gas and electric heating sources. In this work, mesoporous methylsilsesquioxane (MSQ) aerogels were prepared via a sol–gel process accompanied by microwave heating technology, and microwave heating was used in the gelation of sol and the drying of wet gels, respectively. The effects of hexadecyltrimethylammonium chloride (CTAC) as a surfactant and template, hydrochloric acid (HCl) as a catalyst, ethanol as a solvent, sodium hydroxide (NaOH) as a gelation agent, and microwave power on the pore structure of as-prepared MSQ aerogels were investigated in detail. Microwave heating at low power results in the acceleration of sol–gel transition and achieves the gelation within a few minutes. Appropriate amounts of chemical reagents and microwave heating at high power allow the preparation of mesoporous MSQ aerogels with a BET-specific surface area of 681.6 m²·g⁻¹ and a mesopore size of 19 nm, and the resultant MSQ aerogel still has a BET specific surface area as high as 134 m²·g⁻¹ after heat treatment at 600 °C for 2 h, showing high thermal stability. The MSQ aerogels/fibre composite possesses a low thermal conductivity of 0.039 W/(m·k)⁻¹, displaying good thermal insulation. Microwave heating technology is a promising heating method for the preparation of other aerogels.     

Encapsulation of Phosphomolybdate Within Metal–Organic Frameworks with Dual Enzyme-like Activities for Colorimetric Detection of H2O2 and Ascorbic acid

Developing artificial enzyme mimetics for the detection of small biomolecules are a current research interest because natural enzymes bear some serious disadvantages, such as their catalytic activity can be easily inhibited and they can be digested by proteases. Herein, a heteropoly acids (HPA) encapsulating metal–organic framework (MOF) with metal-carbene structure, [Cu₁₀(H₃trz)₄(Htrz)₄][PMo₁₂VO₄₁] (PMA-MOF) as bifunctional enzyme-mimetic catalyst for colorimetric detection of hydrogen peroxide (H₂O₂) and ascorbic acid (AA) was designed and synthesized. Thanks to the good stability and the synergistic effect of PMA and MOF, PMA-MOF exhibits the lower limit of detection (0.222 μM towards H₂O₂ and 0.0046 μM to AA), and the smaller Km value (0.0138 mM for H₂O₂ and 0.136 mM for o-phenylenediamine) compared to most reported MOF- and HPA-based enzyme-mimetic catalyst, to the best our knowledge.

     

Removal of Cu(II) Contamination from Aqueous Solution by Ethylenediamine@β-Zeolite Composite

The low cost β-zeolite and ethylenediamine modified β-zeolite (EDA@β-zeolite) were prepared by self-assembly method and used for Cu(II) removal from contaminated aqueous solution. Removal ability of β-zeolite toward Cu(II) was greatly improved after ethylenediamine (EDA) modification, the removal performance was greatly affected by environmental conditions. XPS results illustrated that the amide group played important role in the removal process by forming complexes with Cu(II). The EDA@β-zeolite showed desirable recycling ability. The finding herein suggested that the proposed composite is a promising and suitable candidate for the removal of Cu(II) from contaminated natural wastewater and aquifer.     

Label-Free Fluorescence Molecular Beacon Probes Based on G-Triplex DNA and Thioflavin T for Protein Detection

Protein detection plays an important role in biological and biomedical sciences. The immunoassay based on fluorescence labeling has good specificity but a high labeling cost. Herein, on the basis of G-triplex molecular beacon (G3MB) and thioflavin T (ThT), we developed a simple and label-free biosensor for protein detection. The biotin and streptavidin were used as model enzymes. In the presence of target streptavidin (SA), the streptavidin hybridized with G3MB-b (biotin-linked-G-triplex molecular beacon) perfectly and formed larger steric hindrance, which hindered the hydrolysis of probes by exonuclease III (Exo III). In the absence of target streptavidin, the exonuclease III successively cleaved the stem of G3MB-b and released the G-rich sequences which self-assembled into a G-triplex and subsequently activated the fluorescence signal of thioflavin T. Compared with the traditional G-quadruplex molecular beacon (G4MB), the G3MB only needed a lower dosage of exonuclease III and a shorter reaction time to reach the optimal detection performance, because the concise sequence of G-triplex was good for the molecular beacon design. Moreover, fluorescence experiment results exhibited that the G3MB-b had good sensitivity and specificity for streptavidin detection. The developed label-free biosensor provides a valuable and general platform for protein detection.     

Neuroprotection of N-benzyl Eicosapentaenamide in Neonatal Mice Following Hypoxic–Ischemic Brain Injury

Maca (Lepidium meyenii) has emerged as a popular functional plant food because of its medicinal properties and nutritional value. Macamides, as the exclusively active ingredients found in maca, are a unique series of non-polar, long-chain fatty acid N-benzylamides with multiple bioactivities such as antifatigue characteristics and improving reproductive health. In this study, a new kind of macamide, N-benzyl eicosapentaenamide (NB-EPA), was identified from maca. We further explore its potential neuroprotective role in hypoxic–ischemic brain injury. Our findings indicated that treatment with biosynthesized NB-EPA significantly alleviates the size of cerebral infarction and improves neurobehavioral disorders after hypoxic–ischemic brain damage in neonatal mice. NB-EPA inhibited the apoptosis of neuronal cells after ischemic challenge. NB-EPA improved neuronal cell survival and proliferation through the activation of phosphorylated AKT signaling. Of note, the protective property of NB-EPA against ischemic neuronal damage was dependent on suppression of the p53–PUMA pathway. Taken together, these findings suggest that NB-EPA may represent a new neuroprotectant for newborns with hypoxic–ischemic encephalopathy.     

具有α, β-不饱和酮的2-吲哚酮衍生物的设计、合成及抗肿瘤活性

以2-吲哚酮衍生物(1a~1c)与醛(2a~2n)为原料,通过克脑文格尔反应和酰化反应得到17个(E)-1-乙酰基亚苄基吲哚酮衍生物(1~17),其结构经¹HNMR、 ¹³CNMR和MS(ESI)进行表征。采用CTG法评价了目标化合物1~17对人非小细胞肺癌细胞(A-549),人乳腺癌细胞(MCF-7)和人胃腺癌细胞(BGC-823)3种肿瘤细胞增殖的抑制活性。结果表明：化合物16对三种肿瘤细胞具有显著的抑制活性,IC₅₀值分别为0.50±0.03(A549)、 0.20±0.02(MCF-7)和0.34±0.04μM(BGC-823),尤其是对MCF-7的抗增殖活性与阳性对照阿霉素相当。      

一种计算液接电势的新方法*

依据液接电势达稳态时通过边界层的净电荷为零这一思想,提出了一种计算液接电势的新方法。对于3类液接电势的计算,特别是Lewis-Sargent公式与Henderson方程的推导,思路清晰易懂,避免了过往液接电势计算方法存在的一些问题。本文所提出的方法能够为液接电势相关内容的教学提供借鉴。     

互联网B/S架构交互式软件在核心概念教学中的应用*——以国际IB课程中“电解质”内容为例

基于核心概念教学的思路,国际IB课程互联网B/S架构交互式软件能够使学生围绕“电解质”核心概念,通过自行操作软件获得多个从微观到宏观、定性与定量相结合、可视化的实验证据,有利于学生深度理解概念与概念之间的逻辑和发展关系,促进学科知识系统框架的形成。     

Friedel-Crafts:伟大的反应与伟大的合作者*

傅克反应(Friedel-Crafts Reaction)是迄今为止最古老、应用最长久的碳-碳键形成反应之一,广泛应用于医药、染料、石油等化学工业的各个分支。自1877年被发现以来,傅克反应已经发展成为最经典的有机反应之一,被写进现代有机化学教科书。跟其他重大化学发现类似,傅克反应的发现过程也充满着惊喜和意外,折射出化学家敏锐的洞察力和非同寻常的逻辑推理能力。本文通过整理一些早期的国内外文献和相关化学史料,简述了傅克反应发现的历史背景、发现过程,回顾了两位化学家查理斯·傅列德尔(Charles Friedel)和杰姆斯·克拉夫茨(James Crafts)的一些重要成长经历以及他们接近40年的伟大合作历程。