Latest ArticlesAlthough endogenous H2O2 is overexpressed in tumor tissue, the amount of endogenous H2O2 is still insufficient for chemodynamic therapy (CDT). In addition, the abundant cellular glutathione (GSH) could also consume •OH for reduced CDT. Thus, the elevation of H2O2 and the consumption of GSH in tumor tissue are essential for the increased •OH yield and amplified CDT efficacy. In this paper, host-guest interactions based supramolecular complexes self-assemblies (SCSAs) were fabricated by incorporating cinnamaldehyde (CA) and PEG-modified cyclodextrin host units (mPEG-CD-CA) with ferrocene-(phenylboronic acid pinacol ester) conjugates (Fc-BE) on the basis of CD-induced host-guest interactions. After being internalized by cancer cells, CA can be released from SCSAs through the pH-responsive acetal linkage, elevating the H2O2 level by activating NADPH oxidase. Then, Fc can catalyze the H2O2 to higher cytotoxic hydroxyl radicals (•OH). Moreover, quinone methide (QM) can be produced through H2O2-induced aryl boronic ester rearrangement and further consume the antioxidant GSH. In vitro and in vivo experiments demonstrate that SCSAs can be provided as potential amplified CDT nanoagents.
Photoredox-catalyzed hydrodifluoromethylation of alkenes has become an effective method to introduce difluoromethyl group into organic molecules. As the reported methods involve either photocatalysts or superstoichiometric amounts of additives, we herein describe a simple alternative without using photocatalyst or additive for the hydrodifluoromethylation of alkenes, through photoactivation of difluoromethyltriphenylphosphonium iodide salt. Mechanistic studies shed light on how the transformation takes place.
The five-year survival rate for pancreatic cancer is less than 5%. However, the current clinical multimodal therapy combined with first-line chemotherapy drugs only increases the patient's median survival from 5.0 months to 7.2 months. Consequently, a new strategy of cancer treatments is urgently needed to overcome this high-fatality disease. Through a series of biometric analyses, we found that KRAS is highly expressed in the tumor of pancreatic cancer patients, and this high expression is closely related to the poor prognosis of patients. It shows that inhibiting the expression of KRAS has great potential in gene therapy for pancreatic cancer. Given those above, we have exploited the possibility of targeted delivery of KRAS shRNA with the intelligent and bio-responsive nanomedicine to detect the special oxidative stress microenvironment of cancer cells and realize efficient cancer theranostics. Our observations demonstrate that by designing the smart self-assembled nanocapsules of melanin with fluorescent nanoclusters we can readily achieve the bio-recognition and bioimaging of cancer cells in biological solution or serum. The self-assembled nanocapsules can make a significant bio-response to the oxidative stress microenvironment of cancer cells and generate fluorescent zinc oxide Nanoclusters in situ for targeted cell bioimaging. Moreover, it can also readily facilitate cancer cell suppression through the targeted delivery of KRAS shRNA and low-temperature hyperthermia. This raises the possibility to provide a promising theranostics platform and self-assembled nanomedicine for targeted cancer diagnostics and treatments through special oxidative stress-responsive effects of cancer cells.
The biodegradable substitution materials for bone tissue engineering have been a research hotspot. As is known to all, the biodegradability, biocompatibility, mechanical properties and plasticity of the substitution materials are the important indicators for the application of implantation materials. In this article, we reported a novel binary substitution material by blending the poly(lactic-acid)-co-(trimethylene-carbonate) and poly(glycolic-acid)-co-(trimethylene-carbonate), which are both biodegradable polymers with the same segment of flexible trimethylene-carbonate in order to accelerate the degradation rate of poly(lactic-acid)-co-(trimethylene carbonate) substrate and improve its mechanical properties. Besides, we further fabricate the porous poly(lactic-acid)-co-(trimethylene-carbonate)/poly(glycolic-acid)-co-(trimethylene-carbonate) scaffolds with uniform microstructure by the 3D extrusion printing technology in a mild printing condition. The physicochemical properties of the poly(lactic-acid)-co-(trimethylene-carbonate)/poly(glycolic-acid)-co-(trimethylene-carbonate) and the 3D printing scaffolds were investigated by universal tensile dynamometer, fourier transform infrared reflection (FTIR), scanning electron microscope (SEM) and differential scanning calorimeter (DSC). Meanwhile, the degradability of the PLLA-TMC/GA-TMC was performed in vitro degradation assays. Compared with PLLA-TMC group, PLLA-TMC/GA-TMC groups maintained the decreasing Tg, higher degradation rate and initial mechanical performance. Furthermore, the PLLA-TMC/GA-TMC 3D printing scaffolds provided shape-memory ability at 37 ℃. In summary, the PLLA-TMC/GA-TMC can be regarded as an alternative substitution material for bone tissue engineering.
Due to the abundant sodium reserves and high safety, sodium ion batteries (SIBs) are foreseen a promising future. While, hard carbon materials are very suitable for the anode of SIBs owing to their structure and cost advantages. However, the unsatisfactory initial coulombic efficiency (ICE) is one of the crucial blemishes of hard carbon materials and the slow sodium storage kinetics also hinders their wide application. Herein, with spherical nano SiO2 as pore-forming agent, gelatin and polytetrafluoroethylene as carbon sources, a multi-porous carbon (MPC) material can be easily obtained via a co-pyrolysis method, by which carbonization and template removal can be achieved synchronously without the assistance of strong acids or strong bases. As a result, the MPC anode exhibited remarkable ICE of 83% and a high rate capability (208 mAh/g at 5 A/g) when used in sodium-ion half cells. Additionally, coupling with Na3V2(PO4)3 as the cathode to assemble full cells, the as-fabricated MPC//NVP full cell delivered a good rate capability (146 mAh/g at 5 A/g) as well, implying a good application prospect the MPC anode has
We report herein an I2/PhI(OAc)2 catalytic system for the pragmatic construction of CN bonds through CH/NH oxidative coupling protocol. Divergent pyrrolo[2, 3-b]indoles were efficiently prepared via I2-catalyzed intramolecular C–H amination reactions from (E/Z)-2-indolylenamines under metal-free conditions. Various functional groups are tolerated under mild reaction conditions and the resulting pyrrolo[2, 3-b]indoles were obtained with mostly good to excellent yields. It was interesting to observe that both the (E)- and (Z)-isomers of the starting materials were efficiently transformed into the targeted product. The I+-mediated catalytic cycle was proposed based on mechanistic studies for this reaction.
The SARS-CoV-2 virus is released from an infectious source (such as a sick person) and adsorbed on aerosols, which can form pathogenic microorganism aerosols, which can affect human health through airborne transmission. Efficient sampling and accurate detection of microorganisms in aerosols are the premise and basis for studying their properties and evaluating their hazard. In this study, we built a set of sub-micron aerosol detection platform, and carried out a simulation experiment on the SARS-CoV-2 aerosol in the air by wet-wall cyclone combined with immunomagnetic nanoparticle adsorption sampling and ddPCR. The feasibility of the system in aerosol detection was verified, and the influencing factors in the detection process were experimentally tested. As a result, the sampling efficiency was 29.77%, and extraction efficiency was 98.57%. The minimum detection limit per unit volume of aerosols was 250 copies (102 copies/mL, concentration factor 2.5).
2-Phenylethylamine (2-PEA) is one of the main ingredients for stimulants. Therefore, it is necessary to limit its use and illegal trade by conveniently detecting 2-PEA vapour. Here, a QCM based 2-PEA gas sensor was constructed by using aldehyde functionalized mesoporous carbon (FDU-15-CHO) as sensing materials designed according to Schiff base adsorption role. The 2D hexagonal mesoporous structures of the sensing material have been confirmed by small-angle X-ray diffraction (SXRD), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), and N2 adsorption-desorption isotherms. The covalent grafting of aldehyde group onto the FDU-15 was confirmed by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR). FDU-15-CHO based Quartz Crystal Microbalance (QCM) sensor shows better sensitivity to 2-PEA than its parent FDU-15. Besides, the detection limit of FDU-15-CHO based sensor can reach down to 1 ppm, and its selectivity and reproducibility are satisfactory. The high concentrations of active sites in the mesopores of FDU-15 are believed to facilitate 2-PEA adsorption, and thus the presence of the -CHO group leading to sensitive and selective response, which is verified by Gaussian simulation
Developing non-conjugated luminescent polymers (NCLPs) with fluorescence and long-lived room-temperature phosphorescence is of great significance for revealing the essence of NCLPs luminescence, which has gradually attracted the attention of researchers in recent years. Herein, polymethylol (PMO) and poly(3-butene-1, 2-diol) (PBD) with polyhydroxy structures were prepared and their luminescence behaviors were investigated to reveal the clusteroluminescence (CL) mechanism. Compared with polyvinyl alcohol with non-luminescent behavior, PMO and PBD exhibit cyan-blue fluorescence with quantum yields of ca. 12% and green room-temperature phosphorescence with lifetimes of ca. 89 ms in the solid state. Both fluorescence and phosphorescence exhibit typical excitation-dependent CL behavior. Experimental and theoretical analyses show that the strong hydrogen-bonding interaction of PMO and PBD greatly promotes the formation of oxygen clusters and the through-space n-n interaction of oxygen atoms, enabling fluorescence and phosphorescence emission. Our results have enormous implications for understanding the CL mechanism of NCLPs and provide a new polymer design strategy for the rational design of novel NCLPs materials.
Reversal of regioselectivity in the catalytic asymmetric conjugate additions of 3-substituted oxindoles to β-nitroenones or β-nitroacrylates was established with chiral scandium catalysts. It enabled the construction of functionalized 3, 3-disubstituted oxindoles, including terminal and internal vinyl groups in excellent yields and ee values.