抗癌药物的先驱——顺铂

顺铂在人类抗癌历程中发挥着里程碑式的作用,本文重点介绍顺铂的作用机理、致毒机理和细胞对其产生耐药性的机理,并由此指出铂类药物所存在的缺陷以及发展方向。     

Charge‐Tagged DNA Radicals in the Gas Phase Characterized by UV/Vis Photodissociation Action Spectroscopy

Adenosine radicals tagged with a fixed‐charge group were generated in the gas phase and structurally characterized by tandem mass spectrometry, deuterium labeling, and UV/Vis action spectroscopy. Experimental results in combination with Born–Oppenheimer molecular dynamics, ab initio, and excited‐state calculations led to unambiguous assignment of adenosine radicals as N‐7 hydrogen atom adducts. The charge‐tagged radicals were found to be electronically equivalent to natural DNA nucleoside radicals.     

Recent Clinical and Preclinical Studies of Hydroxychloroquine on RNA Viruses and Chronic Diseases: A Systematic Review

The rapid spread of the new Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) has actually become the newest challenge for the healthcare system since, to date, there is not an effective treatment. Among all drugs tested, Hydroxychloroquine (HCQ) has attracted significant attention. This systematic review aims to analyze preclinical and clinical studies on HCQ potential use in viral infection and chronic diseases. A systematic search of Scopus and PubMed databases was performed to identify clinical and preclinical studies on this argument; 2463 papers were identified and 133 studies were included. Regarding HCQ activity against COVID-19, it was noticed that despite the first data were promising, the latest outcomes highlighted the ineffectiveness of HCQ in the treatment of viral infection. Several trials have seen that HCQ administration did not improve severe illness and did not prevent the infection outbreak after virus exposure. By contrast, HCQ arises as a first-line treatment in managing autoimmune diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis, lupus erythematosus, and Sjögren syndrome. It also improves glucose and lipid homeostasis and reveals significant antibacterial activity.     

IRMPD Spectra of Protonated Hydroxybenzaldehydes: Evidence of Torsional Barriers in Carboxonium Ions

Protonation at the formyl oxygen atom of benzaldehydes leading to the formation of carboxonium ions yields two distinct isomers, depending on the relative orientation of the proton either cis or trans with respect to the hydrogen atom on the adjacent carbon. In this context, the IR multiple photon dissociation (IRMPD) spectra of protonated ortho, meta, and para-hydroxybenzaldehydes ( OH−BZH⁺ ), delivered into the gas phase by electrospray ionization of hydro-alcoholic solutions, are reported in the 3200–3700 cm⁻¹ spectral range. This range is characteristic of O−H stretching modes and thus able to differentiate cis and trans carboxonium isomers. Comparison between IRMPD spectra and DFT calculations at the B3LYP/6-311++G(2df2p) level suggests that for both p- OH−BZH⁺ and m- OH−BZH⁺ only cis conformers are present in the ion population analyzed. For o- OH−BZH⁺ , IRMPD spectroscopy points to a mixture comprising one trans and more than one cis conformers. The energy barrier for cis–trans isomerization calculated for each OH−BZH⁺ isomer is a measure of the degree of π-electron delocalization. Furthermore, IRMPD spectra of p- OH−BZH⁺ , m- OH−BZH⁺ and protonated phenol (this last used as reference) were recorded also in the fingerprint range. Both the observed C−O and O−H stretching vibrations appear to be a measure of π-electron delocalization in the ions.     

The Potential of 2-Substituted Quinolines as Antileishmanial Drug Candidates

There is a need for new, cost-effective drugs to treat leishmaniasis. A strategy based on traditional medicine practiced in Bolivia led to the discovery of the 2-substituted quinoline series as a source of molecules with antileishmanial activity and low toxicity. This review documents the development of the series from the first isolated natural compounds through several hundred synthetized molecules to an optimized compound exhibiting an in vitro IC₅₀ value of 0.2 µM against Leishmania donovani, and a selectivity index value of 187, together with in vivo activity on the L. donovani/hamster model. Attempts to establish structure–activity relationships are described, as well as studies that have attempted to determine the mechanism of action. For the latter, it appears that molecules of this series act on multiple targets, possibly including the immune system, which could explain the observed lack of drug resistance after in vitro drug pressure. We also show how nanotechnology strategies could valorize these drugs through adapted formulations and how a mechanistic targeting approach could generate new compounds with increased activity.     

Acoustoelastic effect simulation by time–space finite element formulation based on quadratic interpolation of the acceleration

Acoustoelastic effect describes the change of ultrasound velocity due to the initial stress. Its simulation involves a numerical analysis of nonlinear elastodynamics and requires high accuracy in the time domain. A time–space finite element formulation, derived from the quadratic interpolation of the acceleration within a time segment, is proposed for an accurate simulation of the acoustoelastic effect in the present study. Ten different integration schemes are generated based on this formulation and nine of them are found to be conditionally stable. Among the nine stable schemes, one is found to obtain a spectral radius of one when the normalized step ratio is less than 5.477, indicating no numerical dissipation or numerical divergence. Compared with integration schemes from previous studies, this integration scheme demonstrates better performance in calculation accuracy and energy conservation. A two-stage approach, namely the static stage and the dynamic stage, has been employed in the simulation of the acoustoelastic effect. The former stage is adopted to obtain the initial stress and the latter stage, where the proposed integration scheme is implemented, is adopted to simulate the ultrasound propagation in an initial stress state. The simulation results of the dynamic stage show that the ultrasound velocity increases in a compression stress state and decreases in a tension stress state for aluminum alloy, which is in good agreement with previous experimental studies. Together with the simulation result of the static stage, it is conjectured that the acoustoelastic effect results from the stress-dependent elastic modulus.     

Morris-Lecar系统中通道噪声诱导的自发性动作电位研究

在生物物理学中, 越来越多的现象是由于分段确定性的动力系统与连续时间马氏过程之间的耦合作用而产生的. 因为这种耦合性, 相关的数学模型更适合取为随机混合系统而不是扩散过程(基于It?随机微分方程). 本文从理论上和数值上研究了在弱噪声条件下无鞍点状态的随机混合Morris-Lecar系统中, 由通道噪声诱导的自发性放电现象. 一个动作电位的初始阶段可视为噪声诱导的逃逸事件, 其最优路径和拟势可由辅助Hamilton系统给出. 由于系统不存在鞍点, 因此可选择虚拟分界线(ghost separatrix)为阈值, 研究噪声诱导的自静息态的逃逸事件. 通过计算在阈值处的拟势, 便可发现其值有一个明显的最小值, 其作用类似于鞍点. 通过改进的Monte Carlo模拟方法, 计算了历程概率分布, 其结果对初始阶段和兴奋阶段的理论解均给出了验证. 此外, 基于前人将拟势等高线作为阈值的另一种选择, 我们对两种阈值取法的优劣性进行了比较. 最后, 本文研究了钠离子和钾离子通道噪声的不同组合对最优路径和拟势的影响. 结果表明: 钾离子通道噪声在自发性放电过程中起主导作用, 且两种噪声强度存在一个最优比例能使总的噪声强度达到最小.      

原子吸收硫化锌法间接测定精氨酸络合反应的机理研究

通过编程计算精氨酸和锌离子在不同pH条件下的各种存在形式,通过分析拟合分布图,研究了在硫化锌法原子吸收间接测定精氨酸时的pH对原子吸收响应的影响及络合反应的机理.经对不同形态的精氨酸与金属锌离子的共存区域的各种组合探讨,指出在pH 9.0左右最佳测定条件下的pH响应峰是由于精氨酸和锌离子的两种不同存在形式的变化所引起的左右峰边缘,精氨酸是以正一价荷电形态的精氨酸基Arg -与Zn(OH)2形成了可溶性络合离子[HN=CH(NH 3)-NH-(CH2)3-CH(NH 3)-COO]2Zn(OH)2.结果表明,理论分析计算的结果与实验数据得到了基本吻合,确定了硫化锌法原子吸收间接测定精氨酸时的络合物反应机理及络合物的组成结构.     

Localized enzymolysis and sonochemically modified sunflower protein: Physical,functional and structure attributes

Impacts of localized enzymolysis and sonication on physical, techno-functional, and structure attributes of sunflower meal protein (SMP) and its hydrolysate (SMPH) were studied. SMP was subjected to enzymolysis (using alcalase) to prepare SMPH with various degrees of hydrolysis (6–24% DH). Enzymolysis decreased colour lightness, turbidity, and particle size of unsonicated and sonicated SMP, while it increased the absolute values of zeta potential (P < 0.05). Sonication improved oil absorption capacity and dispersibility over unsonicated samples. Contrarily, sonicated preparations showed a decrease in water holding capacity. Intrinsic fluorescence and FTIR spectral analyses suggested that SMPH had more movable/flexible secondary structures than SMP. Moreover, the changes in sulfhydryl clusters and disulfide linkages following sonication demonstrated limited unfolding of SMP and SMPH structure and decrease in intermolecular interactions. SDS-PAGE profile exhibited significant reduction in molecular weight (MW) of sonicated SMP, whereas did not display differences between unsonicated and sonicated SMPH. From further MW analysis, SMPH was categorized with high proportion of small-sized peptides ≤ 3 kDa fractions, which increased from 78.64 to 93.01% (control) and from 82.3 to 93.88% (sonication) with enzymolysis (6–24DH). Localized enzymolysis and sonication can be utilised to modify the physical and conformational attributes of SMP and SMPH, which could enhance their functionalities and broaden the utilisation area in food industry.     

柱状装药预制破片缩比战斗部爆炸冲击波和破片的作用时序

针对柱状装药的周向预制破片战斗部,结合无量纲分析方法和爆炸驱动理论,确定了影响破片和冲击波相遇位置的关键参数,给出了由缩比战斗部推广预测原型战斗部爆炸产生的破片冲击波作用时序的方法。采用ANSYS/LS-DYNA有限元软件进行数值模拟,对比验证了理论分析和数值试验结果,分析了战斗部缩比比例对冲击波和破片作用时序的影响。结果表明:缩比模型与原型战斗部爆炸产生的破片和冲击波的相遇位置之比和相遇时间之比主要取决于两模型的质量比,在不考虑破片速度衰减时,两模型中载荷相遇位置之比和相遇时间之比等于其质量比的0.33次方。受破片速度衰减影响,该方法仅适用于质量缩比不小于0.2的模型。