Optical probes for detection and quantification of neutrophils’ oxidative burst. A review

Neutrophils, also known as polymorphonuclear leukocytes (PMN), are the most common type of white blood cells, comprising about 50-70% of all white blood cells. In the event of inflammatory processes, neutrophils display increased mobility, tissue influx ability, prolonged life span, and an increased phagocytic capacity, constituting the initial participants in the cellular defense of the organism. One of the most important defense systems of neutrophils corresponds to their ability to mediate a strong oxidative burst through the formation of reactive oxygen species (ROS) and reactive nitrogen species (RNS). While oxidative burst is important for the elimination of invading microorganisms, the overproduction of ROS and RNS or the impairment of endogenous antioxidant defenses may result to detrimental effects to the host. The nature and the extent of ROS and RNS production by neutrophils in response to different stimuli is, consequently, a matter of extensive research, with scientific reports showing an enormous variability on the detection methodologies employed. This review attempts to provide a critical assessment of the most common approaches to identify and quantify reactive species formed during the neutrophils’ oxidative burst. The detection mechanisms and performance, as well as advantages and limitations of the different methodologies, are scrutinized, focusing on the use of fluorimetric, chemiluminometric and colorimetric probes.     

苦参碱Fe（III）化合物的合成及其与HSA相互作用的光谱研究

采用具有天然抗肿瘤活性的药物苦参碱为配体,与Fe( III)反应得到黄色的离子型苦参碱Fe( III)化合物[ H-Matrine][ FeCl4],用X射线单晶衍射分析法确定了配合物的结构,并在模拟生理条件下,利用紫外光谱法、荧光光谱法、同步荧光光谱和圆二色谱法研究了化合物[ H-Matrine][ FeCl4]与人血清白蛋白( HSA)的相互作用。结果表明：[ H-Matrine][ FeCl4]对 HSA的荧光产生猝灭作用,猝灭机制为静态猝灭;[ H-Matrine][ FeCl4]与HSA在不同温度下的结合常数K和结合位点数n,及其相关热力学参数ΔH、ΔG、ΔS,室温时分别为：1．03×106L·mol-1、1．24、-68．63KJ·mol、-34．30KJ·mol和114．05J·mol,且其相互作用力主要是静电作用力。同步荧光光谱的结果表明：[ H-Matrine][ FeCl4]与HSA的结合位点靠近色氨酸,并使色氨酸的疏水性减弱。     

Bifunctional atomic force microscopy probes for molecular screening applications

Force mapping with the atomic force microscope (AFM) allows the simultaneous acquisition of topography and probe-sample interaction data. For example, AFM probes functionalised with an antigen can be employed to map the spatial distribution of recognition events on a substrate functionalised with its specific antibody. However, to date this method has been limited to the detection of single receptor-ligand species. Were the detection of multiple receptor-ligand interactions possible, force mapping would offer great scope as a sensitive tool for bioassay and screening applications. We have developed an immobilisation strategy, which allows two different molecular species (in this case human serum albumin and the β subunit of human chorionic gonadotropin) to be present simultaneously on an AFM probe. Single point force spectroscopy results have revealed the ability of such probes to discriminate between their corresponding recognition points (anti-HSA and anti-βhCG IgG antibodies). As a control, force measurements were re-recorded in the presence of the known antigen (free in solution) for each antibody species and a marked decrease in the frequency of specific interaction is observed. As an additional control interactions between anti-βhCG IgG and the multifunctional probe are taken in the presence of free βhCG (“true” antigen) and free HSA (“false” antigen). It is shown that measurements recorded in the presence of a non-related protein species results in no change in either the force observed or the frequency of specific interactions, further confirmation that the specificity of force observed is due to the separation of antibody-antigen complex.     

Chiral separation of bupivacaine enantiomers by capillary electrophoresis partial-filling technique with human serum albumin as chiral selector

Capillary electrophoresis (CE) is a powerful technique for enantiomer separations due to its intrinsic high separation efficiencies, speed of analysis, low reagent consumption and small sample requirements. However, some chiral selectors present strong background UV absorption providing high detection limits. The present paper deals with the application of the partial-filling technique to the separation of bupivacaine enantiomers by capillary electrophoresis using human serum albumin (HSA) as chiral selector. In this procedure the cationic surfactant cetyltrimethylammonium bromide (CTAB) was used as a dinamic capillary coating in order to reduce the electro-osmotic flow and detect both bupivacaine enantiomers out of the chiral selector plug. Several experimental conditions such as CTAB concentration, pH, HSA concentration and plug length, background electrolyte concentration, temperature and voltage were studied. Under the selected conditions it is possible to detect the separated enantiomers out of the HSA plug in less than 4 min using 50 mM Tris pH 8 as background electrolyte with 50 microM CTAB, at 30 degrees C and using a separation voltage of 25 kV. The proposed methodology was then validated for analytical purposes and applied to the analysis of pharmaceutical preparations commercially available. The results obtained with the proposed methodology were in good agreement with those declared by the manufacturers. The simplicity, sample throughput, accuracy, reproducibility and low cost of the proposed method make it suitable for the control of the enantiomeric composition of bupivacaine in pharmaceuticals.     

Application of thiophilic chromatography to deplete serum immunoglobulins in sample preparation for bidimensional electrophoresis

Serum is a typical sample for non-invasive studies in clinical research. Its proteome characterization is challenging, since requires extensive protein depletion. Methods used nowadays for removal of high-abundance proteins are expensive or show quite often a low loading capacity, which has strong repercussions on the number of samples and replicates per analysis.In order to deplete immunoglobulins (Igs) and albumin (HSA) from 1 mL serum samples, we have developed a protocol based on a combination of thiophilic chromatography, not previously used in clinical proteomics, and a HSA-specific resin. Ig/HSA-depleted samples, immunoglobulinome and albuminone were analyzed by 2-DE. Thiophilic chromatography, coupled with HSA-depletion, allows a good 2-DE resolution as well as the visualization of new spots. Moreover, it yields enough protein to evaluate technical variability and facilitate subsequent protein identification. To validate the protocol, we carried out a preliminary comparative study between triplicate Igs/HSA-depleted serum samples from healthy control individuals and recently diagnosed/untreated rheumatoid arthritis (RA) patients. RA patients showed several acute phase proteins, as well as additional serum proteins, differentially and significantly regulated.Therefore, thiophilic chromatography can be used as an efficient and economical method in 2-DE to deplete immunoglobulins from large human serum samples before a more extensive fractioning.     

Spectrophotometric determination of total protein in serum using a novel near-infrared cyanine dye, 5,5′-dicarboxy-1,1′-disulfobutyl-3,3,3′,3′-tetramethylindotricarbocyanine

The application of near-infrared (NIR) dyes (λ _em > 750 nm) to the analysis of biological samples shows much promise, because the long emission wavelengths of such dyes allow interferences from biomolecule matrices to be minimized. In this paper, a novel NIR dye, 5,5′-dicarboxy-1,1′-disulfobutyl-3,3,3′,3′-tetramethylindotricarbocyanine (DCDSTCY) has been developed for the spectrophotometric determination of total protein in serum. Under acidic conditions, the binding of DCDSTCY to proteins caused a new peak at 878 nm, the height of which was proportional to the concentration of protein. The linear range of the method was found to be 0.04–0.5 μg mL⁻¹ for bovine serum albumin (BSA) and human serum albumin (HSA), and detection limits of 5 ng mL⁻¹ were obtained for these substances. The maximum binding number of BSA with DCDSTCY was measured to be 133. The method proposed here has been applied to the quantitation of total protein in serum, and recoveries of 96.6–104% were achieved. Figure Near-infrared probe for protein determination     

Studies on Interactions of Antibiotics with Serum Albumin by Surface Plasmon Resonance Biosensor

Introduction Humanserumalbumin(HSA)isawell known transportproteinforavarietyofmoleculesandions[1].Thebindingofadrugtoserumalbuminhasimportant pharmacokineticconsequencesbecauseitinfluences distribution,excretionandpharmacologicaleffectsof thedruginthebody…     

One-pot synthesis of Claisen–Schmidt reaction through (E)-chalcone derivatives: Spectral studies in human serum albumin protein binding and molecular docking investigation

An efficient and environmentally benign one-pot multicomponent synthesis of E-chalcones was developed using a mild and reusable new boron nitride-sulphonic acid catalyst. The catalyst was prepared by activating the boron nitride surface with nitric acid, followed by a simple reaction with 3-mercaptopropyl trimethoxysilane. The catalyst was characterized and morphological properties were studied by Fourier transform infrared, X-ray diffraction, transmission electron spectroscopy, scanning electron microscopy, Brunauer–Emmett–Teller theory, and Raman spectroscopy techniques. The solid acid catalyst was recycled five times in a Claisen–Schmidt reaction to synthesize new chalcone derivatives, and X-ray crystallography was used to elucidate the structure of (E)-1-(anthracen-9-yl)-3-(2-(4-methylpiperazin-1-yl)quinolin-3-yl)prop-2-en-1-one. A fluorescence quench titration method was used to assess its binding ability with human serum albumin (HSA), while molecular docking was also performed to get a more detailed insight into their interaction at the binding site of HSA.     

2,4-二氯苯酚与人血清白蛋白的相互作用研究

通过2,4-二氯苯酚与人血清白蛋白结合反应的光谱学特征,探讨2,4-二氯苯酚与人血清白蛋白的结合反应机制;应用荧光光谱法和吸收光谱法,根据荧光猝灭数据,由Stern-Volmer方程和采用lg[(F0-F)/F]对lg[Q]作图,进行一元线性回归处理求出2,4-DCP与HSA的猝灭常数(Kq)、结合常数(Ksv)和结合位点数(n)及反应热力学参数;荧光静态猝灭常数Kq=3.713×1013L·mol-1·s-1,结合常数为2.743×106L/mol、结合位点数为n=1;2,4-二氯苯酚对人血清白蛋白内源荧光的猝灭机制,主要是通过疏水作用力,形成了无荧光特征的复合物所引起的静态荧光猝灭。     

血清蛋白-荧光素复合物单扫极谱波与应用

在0．08mol／L的HAc中,荧光素与牛血清白蛋白(BSA)或人血清白蛋白(HSA)相互作用形成复合物。复合物使荧光素在-0．58V(vs．SCE)处的还原峰电流增大,峰电流的增大值与加入的BSA或HSA的浓度在一定的范围内呈线性关系。BSA在2—24μg／mL范围内呈线性关系,检出限为1μg／mL;HSA在2—22μg／mL范围里呈线性关系,检出限为0．8μg／mL。应用该法测定了人血清蛋白样品,结果令人满意。