Development of a chemiluminescent ELISA and a colloidal gold-based LFIA for TNT detection

To identify the explosive used in a terrorist attack, or to obtain an early sign of environmental pollution it is important to use simple and rapid assays able to detect analytes at low levels, possibly on-site. This is particularly true for TNT (2,4,6-trinitrotoluene), one of the most employed explosives in the 20th century and at the same time, because of its toxicity, a well known pollutant. In this work we describe the development of an indirect competitive ELISA with chemiluminescent detection (CL-ELISA) and of a lateral-flow immunoassay (LFIA) based on colloidal gold nanoparticle labels. A commercially available monoclonal antibody was used and 13 specially synthesized conjugates were tested. We optimized the assay by determining the optimal concentration of monoclonal antibody and conjugates and the influence of various non-specific factors such as: tolerance to organic solvents at different concentrations, the washing and competitive step time, and the cross-reactivity with related compounds. The sensitivity and reproducibility of the CL-ELISA were good (LOD and IC₅₀ values in the ng mL⁻¹ range, and CV value about 7%). It has been applied to real samples of various materials involved in a controlled explosion of an “improvised explosive device”. Three extraction procedures were tested on these samples, all employing methanol as the solvent. The lateral flow immunoassay (LFIA), developed by using the same immunoreagents, reached a detection limit of 1 μg mL⁻¹ when tested on the same samples analysed by CL-ELISA.      

The structures of some iminium salts. Crystal structures and13C NMR studies of 3-aryl-2-propenylideniminium salts

The X-ray crystal structures ofE-N, N-dimethyl-3-phenyl-2-propenylideniminium perchlorate,1, andE-N, N-dimethyl-3-(p-methoxyphenyl)-2-propenylideniminium perchlorate,2, have been determined.E-N,N-dimethyl-3-phenyl-2-propenylideniminium perchlorate, (C₁₁H₁₄N⁺)(ClO₄ ^–),1, is orthorhombic:Pmcn (No. 62)a=6.595(1),b=18,288(4),c=10.216(2) Å,Z=4.E-N, N-dimethyl-3-(p-methoxyphenyl)-2-propenylideniminium perchlorate, (C₁₂H₁₆NO⁺)(ClO₄ ^–),2, is triclinic:P1 (No. 2) with cell dimensionsa=6.862(1),b=9.830(2),c=13.376(3) Å,=119.05(1),=114.99(2), =90.79(2)°, andZ=2. Data for both crystals were collected with the use of MoK radiation and a Syntex P2₁ diffractometer. The crystal structures were solved by standard methods and refined toR ₁=0.0688,R ₂=0.0772 for1 andR ₁=0.0790 andR ₂=0.0757 for 2 based on 869 and 1765 independent reflections, respectively. The bond distances are consistent with a highly localized structure with the positive charge situated principally in the iminium moiety. The¹³C NMR spectra of these salts were obtained on the crystalline solids by CPMAS methods. Since the^13C chemical shifts of the salts were very similar, in both solution and solid states, it was concluded that the structures of the salts were comparable in both phases and were analogous.     

Synthesis of Copper-Based Nanostructures in Liquid Environments by Means of a Non-equilibrium Atmospheric Pressure Nanopulsed Plasma Jet

The influence of the liquid composition on the chemical and morphological properties of copper-based nanostructures synthesized by a non-equilibrium atmospheric plasma treatment is investigated and discussed. The synthesis approach is simple and environmentally friendly, employs a non-equilibrium nanopulsed atmospheric pressure plasma jet as a contactless cathode and a Cu foil as immersed anode. The process was studied using four distinct electrolyte solutions composed of distilled water and either NaCl?+?NaOH, NaCl only or NaOH only at two different concentrations, without the addition of any copper salts. CuO crystalline structures with limited impurities (e.g. Cu and Cu(OH)₂ phases) were produced from NaCl?+?NaOH containing solutions, mainly CuO and CuCl₂ structures were synthesized in the electrolyte solution containing only NaCl and no synthesis occurred in solutions containing only NaOH. Both aggregated and dispersed nanostructures were produced in the NaCl?+?NaOH and NaCl containing solutions. Reaction pathways leading to the formation of the nanostructures are proposed and discussed.     

D-β,β-dimethylcysteic acid,its preparation,structure, and spectroscopic properties

The X-ray crystal structure ofd-,-dimethylcysteic acid, C₅H₁₁NO₅S, has been determined. The compound is monoclinic, space groupP2₁₄ (No. 4), with cell dimensionsa=8.133(1),b=8.094(1),c=6.3138(7) Å,=96.36(1)° andZ=2. The structure was solved by Patterson and electron density difference methods and refined toR=0.025,R _w=0.022 for 1081 reflections. Bond lengths and angles do not differ from those in similar structures. The crystal is held together by intermolecular hydrogen bonds. The vibrational spectra have been recorded and assigned and the¹ H and¹³C NMR spectra were measured.     

Poly‐l‐Lactic Acid Nanofiber–Polyamidoamine Hydrogel Composites: Preparation,Properties, and Preliminary Evaluation as Scaffolds for Human Pluripotent Stem Cell Culturing

Electrospun poly‐l ‐lactic acid (PLLA) nanofiber mats carrying surface amine groups, previously introduced by nitrogen atmospheric pressure nonequilibrium plasma, are embedded into aqueous solutions of oligomeric acrylamide‐end capped AGMA1, a biocompatible polyamidoamine with arg‐gly‐asp (RGD)‐reminiscent repeating units. The resultant mixture is finally cured giving PLLA‐AGMA1 hydrogel composites that absorb large amounts of water and, in the swollen state, are translucent, soft, and pliable, yet as strong as the parent PLLA mat. They do not split apart from each other when swollen in water and remain highly flexible and resistant, since the hydrogel portion is covalently grafted onto the PLLA nanofibers via the addition reaction of the surface amine groups to a part of the terminal acrylic double bonds of AGMA1 oligomers. Preliminary tested as scaffolds, the composites prove capable of maintaining short‐term undifferentiated cultures of human pluripotent stem cells in feeder‐free conditions.