Ultrasound-Assisted Synthesis of Fluorescent Azatetracyclic Derivatives: An Energy-Efficient Approach

We report here an energy-efficient and straight synthesis of two new classes of derivatized fluorescent azatetracycles under ultrasound (US) irradiation. A first class of azatetracyclic compounds was synthesized by heterogeneous catalytic bromination of the α-keto substituent attached to the pyrrole moiety of the tetracyclic cycloadducts, while for the second, one class was synthesized by nucleophilic substitution of the bromide with the azide group. Comparative with conventional thermal heating (TH) under US irradiation, both types of reactions occur with substantially higher yields, shortened reaction time (from days to hours), lesser energy consumed, easier workup of the reaction, and smaller amounts of solvent required (at least three to five-fold less compared to TH), which make these reactions to be considered as energy efficient. The derivatized azatetracycle are blue emitters with λmax of fluorescence around 430–445 nm. A certain influence of the azatetracycle substituents concerning absorption and fluorescent properties was observed. Compounds anchored with a bulky azide group have shown decreased fluorescence intensity compared with corresponding bromides.     

Screening an In-House Isoquinoline Alkaloids Library for New Blockers of Voltage-Gated Na+ Channels Using Voltage Sensor Fluorescent Probes: Hits and Biases

Voltage-gated Na⁺ (Na_V) channels are significant therapeutic targets for the treatment of cardiac and neurological disorders, thus promoting the search for novel Na_V channel ligands. With the objective of discovering new blockers of Na_V channel ligands, we screened an In-House vegetal alkaloid library using fluorescence cell-based assays. We screened 62 isoquinoline alkaloids (IA) for their ability to decrease the FRET signal of voltage sensor probes (VSP), which were induced by the activation of Na_V channels with batrachotoxin (BTX) in GH3b6 cells. This led to the selection of five IA: liriodenine, oxostephanine, thalmiculine, protopine, and bebeerine, inhibiting the BTX-induced VSP signal with micromolar IC₅₀. These five alkaloids were then assayed using the Na⁺ fluorescent probe ANG-2 and the patch-clamp technique. Only oxostephanine and liriodenine were able to inhibit the BTX-induced ANG-2 signal in HEK293-hNa_V1.3 cells. Indeed, liriodenine and oxostephanine decreased the effects of BTX on Na⁺ currents elicited by the hNa_V1.3 channel, suggesting that conformation change induced by BTX binding could induce a bias in fluorescent assays. However, among the five IA selected in the VSP assay, only bebeerine exhibited strong inhibitory effects against Na⁺ currents elicited by the hNav1.2 and hNav1.6 channels, with IC₅₀ values below 10 µM. So far, bebeerine is the first BBIQ to have been reported to block Na_V channels, with promising therapeutical applications.     

Light-Responsive Hexagonal Assemblies of Triangular Azo Dyes

The rational design of small building block molecules and understanding their molecular assemblies are of fundamental importance in creating new stimuli-responsive organic architectures with desired shapes and functions. Based on the experimental results of light-induced conformational changes of four types of triangular azo dyes with different terminal functional groups, as well as absorption and fluorescence characteristics associated with their molecular assemblies, we report that aggregation-active emission enhancement (AIEE)-active compound (1) substituted with sterically crowded tert-butyl (t-Bu) groups showed approximately 35% light-induced molecular switching and had a strong tendency to assemble into highly stable hexagonal structures with AIEE characteristics. Their sizes were regulated from nanometer-scale hexagonal rods to micrometer-scale sticks depending on the concentration. This is in contrast to other triangular compounds with bromo (Br) and triphenylamine (TPA) substituents, which exhibited no photoisomerization and tended to form flexible fibrous structures. Moreover, non-contact exposure of the fluorescent hexagonal nanorods to ultraviolet (UV) light led to a dramatic hexagonal-to-amorphous structure transition. The resulting remarkable variations, such as in the contrast of microscopic images and fluorescence characteristics, were confirmed by various microscopic and spectroscopic measurements.     

Review of Fluorescence Spectroscopy in Environmental Quality Applications

Fluorescence spectroscopy is an optical spectroscopic method that has been applied for the assessment of environmental quality extensively during the last 20 years. Most of the earlier works have used conventional light sources in spectrofluorometers to assess quality. Many recent works have used laser sources of light for the same purpose. The improvement of the energy sources and of the higher resolution spectrometers has led to a tremendous increase in applications. The motivation for the present review study is the increasing use of laser sources in environmental applications. The review is divided in two parts. The fundamental principles of fluorescence spectroscopy are described in the first part. The environmental applications are described in the second part.     

The First Online Capillary Electrophoresis-Microscale Thermophoresis (CE-MST) Method for the Analysis of Dynamic Equilibria—The Determination of the Acidity Constant of Fluorescein Isothiocyanate

This article presents the first successful application of a capillary electrophoresis-microscale thermophoresis tandem technique (CE-MST) for determining the values of equilibrium constant, realized by connecting online the CE and MST instruments using a fused-silica capillary. The acid-base dissociation of fluorescein isothiocyanate, expressed by the acidity constant value (pK_a), was used as a model. The measurement procedure consisted of introducing a mixture containing the analyte and a deliberately added interferent into the CE capillary, electrophoretic separation of the analyte from the interferent, the detection of the analyte with a CE-integrated detector, detection with a MST detector, and then stopping the flow temporarily by turning off the voltage source to conduct the thermophoretic measurement. The analysis of migration times, peak areas and MST responses obtained concurrently for the same sample allowed us to determine the pK_a value using three independent methods integrated within one instrumentation. The analyte was effectively separated from the interferent, and the acidity values turned out to be consistent with each other. An attempt was also made to replace the standard commercial CE instrument with a home-made portable CE setup. As a result, the similar pK_a value was obtained, at the same time proving the possibility of increasing cost efficiency and reducing energy consumption. Overall, the CE-MST technique has a number of limitations, but its unique analytical capabilities may be beneficial for some applications, especially when sample separation is needed prior to the thermophoretic measurement.     

表面修饰的金纳米棒的生物相容性和细胞摄取研究

制备了棒状纳米金颗粒并对其表面进行了修饰,研究了其生物相容性以及运载荧光物质进入细胞的功能.所制备的材料通过聚乙二醇稳定、采用双修饰的方法获得了具有活性-NH2基团存在、稳定性好且生物相容性高的表面修饰的金纳米棒.采用透射电子显微镜和紫外可见吸收光谱对表面修饰的金纳米棒进行了表征,运用MTT比色分析法通过细胞毒性研究了表面修饰的金纳米棒的生物相容性,用流式细胞仪和激光共聚焦显微镜考察了其运载荧光物质进入细胞的功能.结果表明,表面修饰的金纳米棒具有良好的生物相容性,具有作为荧光物质或药物载体的应用前景,可应用于疾病的诊断治疗.     

空心玻璃微球热导率的测定

介绍了一种用探针法测定多功能材料空心玻璃微球热导率的方法。在自制的探针内设置加热电阻和测量热电偶，温度信号经８０３１单片机处理后送到４８６ＰＣ储存，通过曲线拟合计算求得热导率。     

EGFP和ALR融合基因表达载体构建及其在HeLa细胞中的表达

从人血液中提取总DNA,利用PCR技术扩增人肝细胞再生增生因子基因,将其插入表达载体pEGFP—C1的多克隆位点中,构建增强绿色荧光蛋白（enhanced green fluorescence protein gene,EGFP）和人肝细胞再生增强因子（human augmenter of liver regeneration gene,ALR）融合基因表达载体pEGFP／ALR,并将其转染Hela细胞系,用含G418的DMEM／F12培养液筛选转基因细胞,然后利用PCR和聚丙烯酰胺凝胶电泳检测转基因细胞中ALR基因的存在及其表达,用荧光显微镜检测EGFP基因的表达．结果显示：得到了构建正确的EGFP和ALR融合基因表达载体;在转基因细胞中,PCR扩增得到1．7Kb的ALR条带,蛋白电泳得到57KD大小条带．与ALR和EGFP融合蛋白大小相符;荧光显微镜下观察到发绿色荧光的Hela细胞．在转基因细胞中,EGFP和ALR同时存在并表达,绿色荧光蛋白可作为报告基因指示目的基因的表达,从而简化了目的基因繁琐的检测手段．     

Ne气负脉冲电晕放电等离子体电子温度测量

依据荧光发射谱谱线强度正比于激发态粒子数原理,通过测量不同激发态能级所发射荧光谱线的相对强度,对Ne气脉冲电晕放电等离子体平均电子温度随峰值电压、样品气压的变化以及有效电子温度的时间行为进行了实验研究.结果表明,平均电子温度随放电峰值电压、样品气压均呈现近线性的变化趋势;而有效电子温度随时间变化先于脉冲电晕放电电流的变化.     

山梨酸钾的三维荧光光谱特性分析

山梨酸钾作为一种较为安全、高效的防腐剂,长期或过量摄入会对人身造成伤害,因此各国对山梨酸钾的使用量都有严格的限定.文中采用FLS 920荧光光谱仪研究了山梨酸钾溶液的三维荧光光谱,发现激发光从320 nm红移至500 nm时,先后出现两个荧光峰:485 nm和565 nm,前者强度明显大于后者,对应的激发峰分别为380 nm和470 nm.分析认为这两个荧光峰分别是由山梨酸钾分子中的共轭π键和未成键n电子受激跃迁所致,根据其在485 nm谱峰荧光强度随质量浓度(0.05 ～ 12 g/L)的非线性变化规律可以检测山梨酸钾质量浓度.进而以鲜榨苹果汁为例,研究了基于荧光光谱技术检测山梨酸钾在鲜榨苹果汁中质量浓度的可行性,为进一步检测液态食品中山梨酸钾的含量提供了实验和理论依据.