A Far-Red Emitting Fluorescent Chemogenetic Reporter for In Vivo Molecular Imaging

Far-red emitting fluorescent labels are highly desirable for spectral multiplexing and deep tissue imaging. Here, we describe the generation of frFAST (far-red Fluorescence Activating and absorption Shifting Tag), a 14-kDa monomeric protein that forms a bright far-red fluorescent assembly with (4-hydroxy-3-methoxy-phenyl)allylidene rhodanine (HPAR-3OM). As HPAR-3OM is essentially non-fluorescent in solution and in cells, frFAST can be imaged with high contrast in presence of free HPAR-3OM, which allowed the rapid and efficient imaging of frFAST fusions in live cells, zebrafish embryo/larvae, and chicken embryos. Beyond enabling the genetic encoding of far-red fluorescence, frFAST allowed the design of a far-red chemogenetic reporter of protein–protein interactions, demonstrating its great potential for the design of innovative far-red emitting biosensors.     

Stereospecific solid-state NaBH4-promoted reduction of 1-methylpentacyclo[5.4.0.02,6.03,10.05,9]undecane-8,11-dione

NaBH₄ reduction of a cage dione proceeds in a stereospecific fashion to give theendo,endo-diol. This reactivity is related to the crystal structure.     

Quantitative Concentration Inequalities for Empirical Measures on Non-compact Spaces

We establish quantitative concentration estimates for the empirical measure of many independent variables, in transportation distances. As an application, we provide some error bounds for particle simulations in a model mean field problem. The tools include coupling arguments, as well as regularity and moment estimates for solutions of certain diffusive partial differential equations.     

Uniqueness and continuous dependence on the initial data for a class of non-linear shallow shell problems

This note is concerned with the non-linear shallow shell model introduced in 1966 by W.T. Koiter, and later studied by M. Bernadou and J.T. Oden. We show the uniqueness of the solution to the dynamical model and that this solution is continuous with respect to the initial data. To cite this article: J. Cagnol et al., C. R. Acad. Sci. Paris, Ser. I 342 (2006).     

Unprecedented hour-long residence time of a cation in a left-handed G-quadruplex

Cations are critical for the folding and assembly of nucleic acids. In G-quadruplex structures, cations can bind between stacked G-tetrads and coordinate with negatively charged guanine carbonyl oxygens. They usually exchange between binding sites and with the bulk in solution with time constants ranging from sub-millisecond to seconds. Here we report the first observation of extremely long-lived K⁺ and NH₄⁺ ions, with an exchange time constant on the order of an hour, when coordinated at the center of a left-handed G-quadruplex DNA. A single-base mutation, that switched one half of the structure from left- to right-handed conformation resulting in a right–left hybrid G-quadruplex, was shown to remove this long-lived behaviour of the central cation.

An extremely long-lived cation has been detected in left-handed G-quadruplexes.     

Elution of organic solutes from different polarity sorbents using subcritical water

The intermolecular interactions between organic solutes and sorbent matrices under subcritical water conditions have been investigated at a pressure of 50 bar and temperatures ranging from 50 to 250°C. Both polar and nonpolar organics (chlorophenols, amines, n-alkanes, and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons) and five different sorbent matrices (glass beads, alumina, Florisil, silica-bonded C₁₈, and polymeric XAD-4 resins) were used. From the same matrix, the polar solutes always eluted at lower temperatures, while the moderately polar and nonpolar solutes only eluted at higher temperatures. Similar to matrix effects previously observed using supercritical carbon dioxide, the sorbent type greatly influenced the elution efficiency under subcritical water conditions. Lower temperatures are sufficient to elute a particular solute from glass beads, alumina, and Florisil, but higher temperatures (less polar water) are needed to elute the same solute from silica-bonded C₁₈. The highest temperatures were required to elute aromatic organics from XAD-4. These matrix effects demonstrate that, while low temperature water can break inert or dipole interactions between solutes and glass beads, alumina, and Florisil, higher temperature water is required to interrupt the van der Waals attractions between solutes and silica-bonded C₁₈, and even higher temperatures needed to overcome the π-electron interactions between aromatic solutes and XAD-4.