Evaluation of Water Ammonium Ion Test Kit and Its Feasibility for the Analysis of Protein in Food

The traditional method for the determination of protein in food needs the operations of digestion, distillation, absorption, and titration; therefore, it is complicated and time-consuming and requires professional personnel. Is there a more convenient and faster detection method that can directly determine the ammonium ions in protein digestion solution to obtain the protein content of food and avoid the distillation–absorption–titration process? The feasibility of water ammonium ion test kits for food protein rapid detection was discussed here. After digestion, the protein in food transforms into ammonium ions in the digestion solution. Because of the variety of food, there are many different inorganic ions left in the food digestion solution, and at the same time, digestion agents are added in the digestion process and become potential interference factors in ammonium determination. Therefore, the detection accuracy of ammonium test kits needs to be evaluated first, including their anti-interference ability. The standard curve of ammonium was established by the test kit. When the ammonium concentration was 0.00–2.50 mg/L, the absorbance at 620 nm was linearly related to the ammonium concentration, the determination coefficient R² was 0.9995, and the detection limit of this method was 0.01 mg/L. The influences of temperature, pH value, and reaction time on the test kit method were discussed. The precision was 0.90–3.33%; the repeatability was 1.71–4.86%; and the recovery rate of tap water, river water, and sea water was controlled within 90–103%. The anti-interference ability of the evaluated test kit was better than that of the national standard detection method. The test kit, combined with sample pretreatment and protein conversion formula, was used to detect protein in different types of food (milk powder, rice flour, wheat flour, soy, banana, milk, fish food, chicken food, and dog food). The results showed that there were no significant differences (ρ > 0.05) between the national method and the test kit method. The ammonium ion test kit method shortened the determination time and had higher sensitivity, showing its potential for the rapid determination of food protein.     

Tailoring Pore Structure and Morphologies in Covalent Organic Frameworks for Xe/Kr Capture and Separation

As a rising star among porous solid materials, covalent organic frameworks(COFs) with excellent properties including but not limit to facilely controllable structure, high porosity, and multi-chemical functionality represent significant potential for efficient ¹²⁷Xe/⁸⁵Kr capture and separation. In this study, through tuning the length of the organic ligands, two-dimensional(2D) COF mate-rials with identical connection group but different pore properties, denoted as ATFG-COF and TpPa-COF with AA-stacking model and TpBD-COF with AB-stacking model were synthesized and tested for Kr and Xe adsorption for the first time. Adsorption measurements indicate that the narrower pore apertures and higher porosity are conducive for COF materials to capture Xe and Kr. Furthermore, the Henry's constant, isosteric heat of adsorption(Q_st), and ideal adsorbed solution theory(IAST) selectivity of ATFG-COF, the pore size of which is closest to the kinetic diameter of the Xe atom(0.41 nm) among 2D COF materials, were carried out based on the single component sorption isotherms. The results illustrate that the high isosteric heat values of Xe/Kr adsorption on ATFG-COF are 25 and 16 kJ/mol at room temperature, respectively. Henry's law predicts that the selectivity factor of Xe to Kr is 6.07, consistent with the adsorption selectivity(ca. 6) calculated based on the IAST.     

嵌段共聚物自组装的研究进展

嵌段共聚物自组装在光学、电子、信息、化学及生物领域有着广泛的应用前景.本文从实验观测、理论研究和计算机模拟三个方面概述了嵌段共聚物自组装领域的研究进展.在实验观测方面,着重介绍了嵌段共聚物在体相及膜中的自组装及外场调控作用方面的研究进展;理论方面则分别介绍了强分相理论、弱分相理论、自洽场理论、动态密度泛函方法和元胞动力学等在嵌段共聚物自组装领域的应用;计算机模拟方面就 Monte Carlo 模拟、耗散粒子动力学等方法在该领域的应用作了详细的阐述.     

硫酸高铈催化合成正丁酸正戊酯的实验研究

以正丁酸和正戊醇为原料,环己烷为带水剂,采用硫酸高铈作催化剂合成正丁酸正戊酯。考察了催化剂用量、原料配比和反应时间等因素对反应的影响。确定了硫酸高铈作为催化剂的最佳反应条件∶催化剂用量0.5g,正戊醇∶正丁酸=1.3∶1(摩尔比),反应时间为80min,转化率(以正丁酸计)达88.7%。     

Toxic Effect of Fullerene and Its Derivatives upon the Transmembrane β2-Adrenergic Receptors

Numerous experiments have revealed that fullerene (C₆₀) and its derivatives can bind to proteins and affect their biological functions. In this study, we explored the interaction between fullerine and the β₂-adrenergic receptor (β₂AR). The MD simulation results show that fullerene binds with the extracellular loop 2 (ECL2) and intracellular loop 2 (ICL2) of β₂AR through hydrophobic interactions and π–π stacking interactions. In the C₆₀_in1 trajectory, due to the π–π stacking interactions of fullerene molecules with PHE and PRO residues on ICL2, ICL2 completely flipped towards the fullerene direction and the fullerene moved slowly into the lipid membrane. When five fullerene molecules were placed on the extracellular side, they preferred to stack into a stable fullerene cluster (a deformed tetrahedral aggregate), and had almost no effect on the structure of β₂AR. The hydroxyl groups of fullerene derivatives (C₆₀(OH)_X, X represents the number of hydroxyl groups, X = 4, 8) can form strong hydrogen bonds with the ECL2, helix6, and helix7 of β₂AR. The hydroxyl groups firmly grasp the β₂AR receptor like several claws, blocking the binding entry of ligands. The simulation results show that fullerene and fullerene derivatives may have a significant effect on the local structure of β₂AR, especially the distortion of helix4, but bring about no great changes within the overall structure. It was found that C₆₀ did not compete with ligands for binding sites, but blocked the ligands’ entry into the pocket channel. All the above observations suggest that fullerene and its derivatives exhibit certain cytotoxicity.     

Discriminant Analysis of the Nutritional Components between Organic Eggs and Conventional Eggs: A 1H NMR-Based Metabolomics Study

The difference of nutrient composition between organic eggs and conventional eggs has always been a concern of people. In this study, ¹H nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) technique combined with multivariate statistical analyses was conducted to identify the metabolite different in egg yolk and egg white in order to reveal the nutritional components information between organic and conventional eggs. The results showed that the nutrient content and composition characteristics were different between organic and conventional eggs, among which the content of glucose, putrescine, amino acids and their derivatives were found higher in the organic eggs yolk, while phospholipids were demonstrated higher in conventional eggs yolk. Organic acid, alcohol, amine, choline and amino acids were higher in conventional eggs white, but glucose and lactate in organic egg were higher. Our study demonstrated that there are more nutritive components and higher nutritional value in organic eggs than conventional eggs, especially for the growth and development of infants and young children, and conventional eggs have more advantages in promoting lipid metabolism, preventing fatty liver, and reducing serum cholesterol. Eggs have important nutritional value to human body, and these two kinds of eggs can be selected according to the actual nutrient needs.     

Rapid Detection of Five Estrogens Added Illegally to Dietary Supplements by Combining TLC with Raman Imaging Microscope

Estrogens added illegally to dietary supplements are hazardous to human health. Traditional detection and analysis methods have many limitations, and we have developed an assay that combines thin-layer chromatography with Raman imaging microscopy (TLC-RIM). The five estrogens (estrone, estradiol, estriol, ethinyl estradiol, and diethylstilbestrol) were initially separated by TLC, then detected by area scanning Raman imaging with a 532 nm laser under a microscope. Raman spectra were obtained for each estrogen, which were used for detecting estrogen illegally added to botanical dietary supplements. The LOD of each estrogen was 0.4, 1.0, 0.8, 0.2, and 0.2 mg/mL, respectively. The matrix in the real sample did not interfere with the detection of estrogens. The method was fast, sensitive, stable, specific, and reliable.     

The Potential Antidepressant Action of Duloxetine Co-Administered with the TAAR1 Receptor Agonist SEP-363856 in Mice

Here, we explored the possible interaction between duloxetine and SEP-363856 (SEP-856) in depression-related reactions. The results showed that oral administration of duloxetine showed powerful antidepressant-like effects in both the forced swimming test (FST) and the suspension tail test (TST). SEP-856 orally administered alone also exerted an antidepressant-like effect in FST and TST, especially at doses of 0.3, 1, and 10 mg/kg. In addition, duloxetine (15 mg/kg) and SEP-856 (15 mg/kg) both showed antidepressant-like effects in the sucrose preference test (SPT). Most importantly, in the above experiments, compared with duloxetine alone, the simultaneous use of duloxetine and SEP-856 caused a more significant antidepressant-like effect. It is worth noting that doses of drug combination in FST and TST did not change the motor activities of mice in the open-field test (OFT). Thus, duloxetine and SEP-856 seem to play a synergistic role in regulating depression-related behaviors and might be beneficial for refractory depression.     

核桃青皮主要活性物质及提取工艺研究进展

核桃青皮中含有多种活性物质,具有抑菌、杀虫、抗病毒等多种功效,然而其成分含量、提取工艺、检测技术存在差异。本文归纳整理了国内外与青皮主要活性物质的相关文献,综述其主要的有效成分、提取工艺、检测技术,为优化核桃青皮主要有效成分的提取工艺、进一步开发核桃青皮资源高效利用提供科学依据。