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Metal organic framework–chiral ionic liquid composites Fe-CIL was first used to construct the chiral sensor, which could be used to chiral recognize tryptophan (Trp) enantiomers based on the DPV peak potential difference (ΔEp) of l/d-Trp.

Interferon-γ (IFN-γ) is one of the crucial inflammatory cytokines as an early indicator of multiple diseases.

Chiral covalent organic frameworks (CCOFs) featuring chirality, stability, and good porosity have attracted a considerable amount of attention due to their important applications, such as asymmetric catalysis, chiral separation, and chiral recognition. In this study, a β-cyclodextrin (β-CD) covalent organic framework (β-CD-COF) diluted with polysiloxane OV-1701 was explored as a novel chiral stationary phase (CSP) for gas chromatography (GC) separation of racemates. The β-CD-COF coated capillary column had excellent selectivity, not only for the separation of linear alkanes, linear alcohols, fatty acid methyl esters mixture, the Grob mixture and positional isomers, but also for the resolution of chiral compounds, including chiral alcohols, aldehydes, ethers, and amino acid derivatives. In addition, the β-CD-COF-coated capillary column presented good repeatability and reproducibility. This work indicated the great potential of the CCOFs coated capillary column for the chromatographic separation of enantiomers.

Interferon-γ (IFN-γ) is one of the crucial inflammatory cytokines as an early indicator of multiple diseases. A fast, simple, sensitive and reliable IFN-γ detection method is valuable for early diagnosis and monitoring of treatment. In this work, we creatively developed an electrochemical aptasensor based on the topological material Bi

As an emerging metabolite-mediated post-translational modification, lysine lactylation (Kla) is discovered on histones that regulates gene transcription from chromatin. However, whether lactylation could occur outside the nucleus across broad proteins and its regulatory enzymes remains unclear. Here, we observe global Kla occurs in both nucleus and cytoplasm in colorectal cancer (CRC), and negatively correlates with its prognosis. Among the lactylated proteins in CRC, we find eEF1A2, a fundamental protein in translation elongation, is hyperlactylated at its lysine 408 (K408). The lactylation of eEF1A2K408 results in increased translation elongation rates and elevated protein synthesis in line with CRC cells proliferation. By screening eEF1A2 interacted proteins, we identify KAT8 as a pan-Kla writer which is responsible for installing Kla on many proteins in diverse biological processes, notably in tumorigenic signaling pathways. Deletion of KAT8 effectively decreases CRC tumor growth especially in high-lactic tumor microenvironment, which associates with reduced KAT8-mediated Kla. Together, our work uncovers that KAT8 catalyzes broad lactylation as a lactyltransferase which could be a potential target for CRC and the KAT8-eEF1A2 Kla axis is a novel mechanism for cancer adaptation to increased translational requirements.

Aims. Short-wavelength blue light damaged retina by the oxidative stress in the retinal pigment epithelial (RPE) cells. Filtering blue light from screen could reduce blue hazard, whereas it inevitably altered color-gamut coverage and color-deviation level. Although abnormal fundus-vascular density (FVD) sometimes indicated fundus disease, few researchers noticed its responses to the variation of color-gamut coverage and color-deviation level. Methods. In this study, we performed cellular experiments and analyzed the RPE cell viabilities (CVs) in spectrums with different blue (455-475 nm) ratios to describe the corresponding oxidative-stress levels. Further, we investigated the effects of color-gamut and deviation on FVD variations during the screen-watching task using human factor experiments with 30 participants (university students, including 17 males and 13 females, 21 to 30 years old). Results. RPE CVs were similar in different spectrums, implying that non-oxidative blue filtering hardly contributed to CV improvement. Color-deviation level seems to induce more significant effects on the visual function compared to color-gamut coverage, and MTF and FVD presents similar variation trends during the visual task. Conclusion. Oxidative-free blue filtering contributed little to decrease retinal oxidative stress yet caused color-deviation increase, which caused significant FVD reduction.

Blue crest between the wavelength of 460 nm and 480 nm was reported to present melatonin suppression effects, whereas effects of red light on circadian rhythm regulation remain unclear. Spectrum plays an important role in circadian rhythm regulation, yet a lot of researches focused on the correlated color temperature, although a correlated color temperature value corresponds to various possible spectrums. Here, we performed human factor experiments with 3 lamps on 17 participants, comprising 9 males and 8 females. Our results showed that spectrums with high blue intensity tended to cause abnormal regulations of melatonin and cortisol, while the abnormalities were likely to be compensated by the 606-635-nm red light, which was indispensable for the photo-biological effects concerning circadian rhythm regulation. Abnormal circadian rhythm regulation was also found to be influenced by the illuminance, as abnormalities were significant in 500 lux whereas they were likely to disappear in 250 lux, implying the existence of threshold doses to trigger abnormities concerning circadian rhythm regulation. Furthermore, circadian rhythm responses were distinct between males and females. Our work may have implications for the development of light source, as we suggest that lighting source designers should increase the 606-635-nm intensity for bed room luminaires to decrease melatonin suppression effects.

A cobalt metal-organic framework (Co MOF)-ionic liquid (IL) nanocomposite comprising the base matrix of the electrode was developed with electropolymerized molecularly imprinted polymer (MIP) consisting of o-phenylenediamine (oPD) to detect carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA), a biomarker of breast cancer. Firstly, Co MOF was synthesized using hydrothermal synthesis, which was used as an electrically conductive skeleton and functionalized with an IL. Then, CEA was employed as a template in the electropolymerization of oPD-imprinted films on the surface of screen-printed carbon electrode (SPCE). Finally, the template protein was removed to form a molecularly imprinted film capable of qualitatively and quantitatively signaling CEA. Under optimized conditions, the sensor for CEA exhibits a wide detection range of 1.0 × 10−4−10 ng·ml−1 (0.32 V vs Ag/AgCl) with a limit of detection (LOD) and limit of quantification (LOQ) of 0.024 pg·ml−1 and 0.082 pg·ml−1, respectively. Besides, other parameters including the selectivity, reproducibility (RSD 2.2%), and recovery rate (92.16%–103.35%) are all satisfactory. The proposed strategy provides a new route for the development of rapid breast cancer diagnostic tools.

Human IgG is one of the most important immunoglobulins in the human body. The present study described the fabrication of four kinds of layer-by-layer structures of copper metal-organic frameworks (Cu-MOFs) on the working electrode by electrodeposition, which were then applied as an electrochemical sensor for the sensitive determination of IgG in serum. First, MOFs synthesized using different deposition potentials are expected to have varied morphology and properties. Herein, four copper MOFs (Cu-MOFs) were electrosynthesized by a simple and direct reduction approach. The as-synthesized Cu-MOFs exhibit varied morphology and electrocatalytic behavior. Then, IgG was employed as a template in the electropolymerization of pyrrole-imprinted films on the surface of glassy carbon electrodes. Finally, the template protein was removed to form a molecularly imprinted film with the capability to qualitatively and quantitatively signaling of IgG. Under optimized conditions, the sensor for IgG exhibits a wide detection range of 0.01-10 ng mL

A label-free molecularly imprinted electrochemical sensor (MIECS) based on electropolymerized molecularly imprinted polymer (MIP) was developed for the determination of homocysteine (Hcy) in serum for the first time. MXene@AuNPs with layered structure was synthesized on the electrode by modifying MXene with gold nanoparticles (AuNPs). MIP based on dopamine hydrochloride (DA) were electropolymerized onto the surface of MXene@AuNPs modified electrode by molecular docking and quantum chemical calculations for specific recognition of Hcy. MXene@AuNPs as a carrier for immobilizing MIP steadily enhances the conductivity of the electrode (about 4.2-fold) and plays a crucial part in improving the detection sensitivity of MIECS. The results showed that the current response linearly decreased with the increasing concentration of Hcy in the detection range from 1 × 10−13 to 1 × 10−5 mol l−1, the limit of detection (LOD) and limit of quantification (LOQ) of 11.81 fmol l−1 and 39.49 fmol l−1, respectively. With favorable selectivity, stability, reproducibility and ruggedness, the developed MIECS was applied to the determination of Hcy in human serum samples with recoveries of 87.83%–92.58%. The proposed strategy has potential application for disease surveillance.

Ligand-targeting specific liposomal probes are increasingly used as imaging and delivery vehicles for in vivo diagnosis. Thereinto, the ligand variety and density profoundly affect the binding behaviors toward the target. The synergetic effect of different ligands could be achieved only when the optimized molecular-recognition configuration occurred. In this study, we construct a dual-peptides-targeting liposomal probe named BTLS that could synergistically bind two different sites of prominin-1, a cancer stem cell marker. At the distance of 11 Å between the two new peptides, ligands could insert into the hollow pocket of prominin-1 and BTLS could achieve the appropriate spatial structure, showing the strong binding affinity in both cellular and in vivo levels. It is indicated that the design of density-optimized peptide-targeted liposomes could be promising to maximize the multifunctional targeting effects on the cancer theranostics.

The selective and sensitive detection of cancerous exosomes in serum is critical for early disease diagnosis and improved prognosis. Previous exosome-related research has been limited by a lack of well-understanding in exosomes as well as the challenging background interference of body fluid. Molecularly imprinted polymers (MIPs) and nucleic acid aptamers can be regarded as the two alternatives to antibodies. When using imprinted polymer technology, comprehensive and precise information about the target constituents is not required. In this study, a novel kind of dual selective fluorescent nanosensor for the poorly characterized exosomes was constructed by integrating magnetic MIP selective exosome capture sandwiched with an aptamer/graphene oxide fluorescence resonance energy transfer system (FRET) based selective 'turn-on' exosome labeling heterogeneously. The overall strategy performance was successively evaluated using lysozyme and exosomes as targets. Good linearity and high sensitivity achieved were demonstrated. The LOD of exosomal detection in serum was 2.43 × 10

Hydrogen-bonded organic frameworks (HOFs) are two dimensional (2D) or three dimensional (3D) porous crystalline materials constructed by Hydrogen bond interaction. In recent years, a variety of functional HOF materials have been successfully synthesized and used in structural identification, environmental pollutant removal, chiral resolution, drug delivery, fluorescence sensing, etc. Here, we first reported that a HOF to coated capillary column for high-resolution gas chromatographic separation of a wide range of analytes, including n-alkanes, n-alcohols, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, and positional isomers, especially for racemates, the HOFs column showed excellent separation repeatability and reproducibility. The relative standard deviation (RSD) values for the retention times were in the range of 0.37-2.43% for run to run (n = 3), 0.38-2.51% for day-to-day (n = 3), and 0.31-2.54% for column-to-column (n = 3), respectively. Moreover, we applied density-functional theory to calculate the adsorption of enantiomers in HOF structures. This work proved that the HOFs had great application prospects as stationary phase in gas chromatography.

Trimethylamine N-oxide (TMAO) is considered to be a novel biomarker of cardiovascular diseases. However, the traditional TMAO detection method has failed to meet the requirements of real-time and point-of-care tests. Herein, a novel TMAO detection method based on microbial electrochemical technology is established, which realizes the direct conversion of TMAO concentration into electrical signals. Attached Shewanella loihica PV-4 was first proven to be capable of simultaneous inward extracellular electron transfer and TMAO reduction. The TMAO detection method showed a wide linear range of 0 to 250 μM, a high sensitivity of 23.92 μA/mM, and a low limit of detection of 5.96 μM. In addition, the TMAO detection process was accomplished within 600 s, with an acceptable accuracy of 90% in the real serum, showing high feasibility in clinical applications.

The present work describes a faithful strategy of dual-template molecularly imprinted polymers (MIP) to chiral recognize and quantify D-Cystine (D-Cys) and L-Cystine (L-Cys) at ultra-trace level through “vector method.” Briefly, one has to saturate association D-Cys while analyzes L-Cys, and vice versa. Herein, the working electrode, magnetic glassy carbon (MGCE), was initially drop-coated with molybdenum disulfide-ionic liquid (MoS2-IL) dispersion liquid for large specific surface area and excellent electrical conductivity. After the working electrode was dried naturally, chitosan (CS) was electrodeposited on. And the strong electrostatic interactions between CS and Fe[(CN)6]3−/4− could further enhance the electric signal. Next, dual-template MIP dispersion liquid was drop-coated on the working electrode. Moreover, Fe3O4 nano-particles (NPs) was regard as the support skeleton material of dual-template MIP, which could significantly improve the bonding strength with MGCE. Herein, the proposed sensor demonstrated good analytical figures of merits with Differential Pulse Voltammetry (DPV), showing that the LOD of L-Cys and D-Cys were 0.7402 pg ml−1 and 0.6136 pg ml−1 respectively, with linear response ranges from 1 pg ml−1 to 12 pg ml−1 for both enantiomers. Furthermore, the proposed sensor exhibited great potential in chiral recognition and biochemical analysis.

Herein, we describe a new chiral amorphous metal-organic polyhedra used as the stationary phase for high-resolution gas chromatography (GC). The chiral stationary phase was coated onto a capillary column via a dynamic coating process and investigated for a variety of compounds. The experimental results showed that the chiral stationary phase exhibits good selectivity for linear alkanes, linear alcohols, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, isomers, and chiral compounds. In addition, the column has the advantages of high column efficiency and short analysis time. The present work indicated that amorphous metal-organic polyhedra have great potential for application as a new type of stationary phase for GC.

A faithful strategy to significantly improve the enantiorecognition ability of chitosan (CS) is proposed via drop-coating molybdenum disulfide (MoS2)-ionic liquid (IL) nanocomposite. The present work describes a novel, simple, and effective chiral interface based on MoS2-IL/CS nanocomposite which was elaborately integrated to combine the electrical signal amplification and space complexity of MoS2-IL and vast enantiorecognition sites of CS for the electrochemical enantiorecognition of tryptophan (Trp) enantiomers. Differential pulse voltammetry (DPV) was adopted to evaluate the potential differences (ΔEP) between the oxidation peaks of L-Trp and D-Trp. MoS2-IL/CS nanocomposite showed higher chiral recognition ability result from spatial asymmetry of MoS2-IL/CS. Herein, several parameters, such as drop-coated volume and concentration of MoS2-IL, electrodeposited viscosity, time and temperature of CS, detection temperature and pH were optimized in order to obtain a large ΔEP signal between L-Trp and D-Trp, and the ΔEP value can reach 53.3mV under optimal conditions. Furthermore, different percentages of Trp mixtures and DPV peaks potential were detected with a good linear relationship even in the real sample, which indicated that MoS2-IL/CS chiral interface could effectively quantify the enantiomer excess (ee) of Trp enantiomers in Trp mixtures.

Combining quantum dots with molecular imprinting techniques, a fluorescent molecularly imprinted membrane (MIM) is prepared by embedding l -cysteine-capped Mn2+-doped ZnS quantum dots (QDs) into molecularly imprinted polymer matrix. This fluorescent MIM is used as biosensor for specific recognition of a target protein (lysozyme). The key point of this approach is that the fluorescent quantum dots embedded into a molecularly imprinted membrane, which enables the optical readout characteristic and high selectivity within a thin hydrogel membrane. When the fluorescent MIM selectively captures the target protein, the electron transfer between the QDs and the target protein will result in the fluorescence quenching of the membrane. And the quenched fluorescence emission intensity was proportional to the concentration of the analytes. The as-prepared membrane was successfully applied to selectively and sensitively detect target proteins without any time-consuming pretreatments. Under optimal conditions, the linear detection of the fluorescence MIM ranged from 1.0 × 10−7 to 1.0 × 10−6 mol L−1 with the detection limit of 10.2 nM. Furthermore, the MIM was applied to determine lysozyme in real samples with recoveries of 93%–103%. Experimental results showed that the fluorescent MIM might serve as a simple and sensitive fluorescent biosensor for detecting target protein in complex biological samples.

Cytoglobin (Cygb), like other members of the globin family, is a nitric oxide (NO) dioxygenase, metabolizing NO in an oxygen (O2)‐dependent manner. We examined the effect of modification of cysteine sulfhydryl groups of Cygb on its O2 binding and NO dioxygenase activity. The two cysteine sulfhydryls of Cygb were modified to form either an intramolecular disulfide bond (Cygb_SS), thioether bonds to N‐ethylmaleimide (NEM; Cygb_SC), or were maintained as free SH groups (Cygb_SH). It was observed that the NO dioxygenase activity of Cygb only slightly changed (~ 25%) while the P50 of O2 binding to Cygb changed over four‐fold with these modifications. Our results suggest that it is possible to separately regulate one Cygb function (such as O2 binding) without largely affecting the other Cygb functions (such as its NO dioxygenase activity).

Four geminal ionic liquids (GILs), namely, 1,4-bis(1,1′-butyl-3,3′- methylene- imidazolium)-benzene bis[(trifluoromethyl)sulfonyl]imide (BBMIB-NTf2), 1,4- bis(1,1′-butyl-3,3′-methylene-imidazolium)-benzene tetrafluoroborate (BBMIB-BF4), 1,4- bis(1,1′-butyl-3,3′-methylene-imidazolium)-benzene hexafluophosphate (BBMIB-PF6), and 1,4-bis(1,1′-methyl-3,3′-methylene-imidazolium)-benzene bis[(trifluoromethyl) sulfonyl] imide (BMMIB-NTf2), were synthesized. They were statically coated onto the inner walls of fused-silica capillary columns and used as stationary phases for gas chromatography. The evaluation of BBMIB-NTf2, BBMIB-BF4, BBMIB-PF6, and BMMIB-NTf2 as stationary phases is reported here for the first time. These new stationary phases exhibit efficiencies of at least 2.3 × 103 plates per meter. Abraham solvation parameter model was used to evaluate the solvation characteristics. The system constants indicated that the dipolarity/polarizability and the hydrogen-bond basicity play a major role among five mol...

Graphical abstract Schematic 1 Electrochemical determination of human IgG using CuFe2O4 nanospheres molecularly imprinted polymers modified with MoS2@N-GQDs-IL., Highlights • A selective and rapid electrochemical sensing method was developed to determine IgG. • MoS2@N-GQDs-IL with excellent performance was first prepared to modify electrodes. • IgG was successfully determined in the human serum specimens. • This method reveals superior limit of detection and linear concentration range., An advanced molecularly imprinted electrochemical sensor with high sensitivity and selectivity for the detection of Human immunoglobulin G (IgG) was successfully constructed. With acrylamide imprinting systems, surface imprinting on the nanoparticles CuFe2O4 targeted at IgG was employed to prepare molecularly imprinted polymer, which served as recognition element for the electrochemical sensor. Furthermore, the sensor harnessed a molybdenum disulfide (MoS2)@nitrogen doped graphene quantum dots (N-GQDs) with ionic liquid (IL) nanocomposite for signal amplification. Under optimized experimental conditions, the sensor shortened the response time to less than 8 min, and the response was linear at the IgG concentration of 0.1–50 ng·mL−1 with a low detection limit of 0.02 ng·mL−1 (S/N = 3). Our findings suggested that, the sensor exhibited high detectability and long-time stability. The satisfactory results of human serum sample analysis showed that the developed IgG sensor had promising potential clinical applications in detecting IgG content.

Chiral metal-organic cages (MOCs) are a new type of porous materials with unique molecular recognition ability, which have received research attention as a chiral stationary phase (CSP) for gas chromatography (GC). Herein, we report the detailed investigation of a chiral MOC ([Cu12(LPA)12(H2O)12], PA = L-phenylalanine, MOC-PA) as a novel stationary phase for GC separations. The MOC-PA capillary column exhibited a high-resolution performance for a wide range of analytes, including n-alkanes, n-alcohols, esters, aromatic compounds and the Grob mixture, positional isomers and racemates. In particular, MOC-PA coated column displayed good resolution and performance for amino acid derivatives. Moreover, the MOC-PA column showed excellent separation repeatability and reproducibility. The relative standard deviation (RSD) values for the retention times were in the range of 0.16-0.30% for run to run (n = 3), 0.31-0.77% for day-to-day (n = 3), and 3.6-4.7% for column-to-column (n = 3), respectively. The experimental results showed that MOC-PA had great potential as a GC stationary phase.

This paper demonstrated a new method for preparing fluorescent molecularly imprinted polymer (MIP) for specific recognition of a target protein. The MIP-based fluorescent receptor was developed by coating MIP layer on the surface of l-cysteine modified Mn2+-doped ZnS quantum dots (QDs) using the surface molecular imprinting process. These MIP-QDs composites demonstrated fast adsorption kinetics, high stability, and good dispersibility in aqueous media. Since the fluorescence quenching of MIP-QDs composites is proportional to the concentration of the lysozyme, the MIP-based fluorescent receptor was successfully applied to the direct fluorescence quantification of lysozyme without further pretreatment. The MIP-based fluorescent receptor exhibited good selectivity and sensitivity for lysozyme detection. The optimum fluorescence intensity of the MIP-QDs was found to be at pH 6.0, and the linear range of lysozyme was from 0.1 to 2.0 μM with the detection limit of 25.2 nM. Moreover, the proposed fluorescent receptor was satisfactorily applied to the determination of lysozyme in real samples. This study provides a new approach for recognizing and detecting of specific proteins in biological samples.

Blue light in the range of 450~480nm has been proved to induce melatonin depression. However, the dose limit of blue light has seldom been reported in previous study. In this study, human factor experiments have been performed to compare lighting influence on melatonin emitting in lighting environments with correlated color temperature of 3000K and 5000K in ordinary illuminance. It is indicated that blue light below 300lux has little influence on melatonin depression in the lighting environment below 5000K. Consequently, illuminance is an important factor for trigger of non-visual photo-biology effect. In the lighting environment with illuminance below 3001ux, no distinctions can be found in the function of blue light induced melatonin depression between non-visual effect luminaires and ordinary luminaires.

A selective and sensitive electrochemical sensor was proposed on the basis of a nanostructured magnetic molecularly imprinted polymer (CuFe2O4-MIP) modified glassy carbon electrode (GCE) for the electrochemical detection of lysozyme. CuFe2O4 nanospheres with porous structure have been prepared via a hydrothermal method. Surface imprinting was employed to prepare molecularly imprinted polymer nanoparticles on the CuFe2O4 nanosphere surface. The synthesized magnetic nanoparticles (CuFe2O4-MNPs) and CuFe2O4-MIP were characterized with High-Resolution Transmission Electron Microscopy (HRTEM), X-Ray Diffraction (XRD), Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (FT-IR) and Vibrating Sample Magnetometer (VSM) to verify successful preparation. Then cyclic voltammetry, electrochemical impedance spectroscopy and differential pulse voltammetry were employed to test the electrochemical property of the sensor, and this sensor demonstrated high electrochemical response. The results prove that the as-synthesized CuFe2O4 nanospheres have high specific capacitance characteristics and good conductivity. Under optimal conditions, the constructed multifunctional sensor presented good linearity from 0.05 to 0.8 μg mL−1with the detection limit of 1.58 × 10−3 μg mL−1for target lysozyme. Further competitive rebinding experiments results showed that this sensing material is highly selective and sensitive for lysozyme determination, and had been successfully applied to detect target protein in complex biological samples. The presented method can be applied to the detection of trace protein in biological samples.

Protein imprinting is still a challenge due to the low binding kinetics and poor binding selectivity. In this study, a facile method of the preparation of magnetic molecularly imprinted polymers (MIPs) for selective protein separation was reported. Carboxyl group functionalized Fe $$_{3}$$ O $$_{4}$$ nanoparticles (NPs) were synthesized using a solvothermal method. After pre-assembly of caroxyl group functionalized Fe $$_{3}$$ O $$_{4}$$ NPs and template protein lysozyme (Lyz) to form Lyz–Fe $$_{3}$$ O $$_{4}$$ complex, magnetic MIPs were synthesized by a sol–gel process of 3-aminopropyltriethoxylsilane and tetraethyl silicate with Lyz–Fe $$_{3}$$ O $$_{4}$$ complex incorporated. Then Fe $$_{3}$$ O $$_{4}$$ –MIPs particles with magnetic response could be collected by simple crush of bulk polymers. This preparation process avoid the need of high dilution of monomer for anti-agglomeration in the surface imprinting, and large amount of solvent is spared. The morphology and structure property of the prepared magnetic NPs were characterized by transmission electronic microscopy, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, and vibrating sample magnetometer. Binding experiments were carried out to evaluate Fe $$_{3}$$ O $$_{4}$$ –MIPs particles’ binding performance and selectivity. And results showed fast binding kinetics, high binding capacity, and favorable specific recognition behavior toward template protein, which is due to the role of carboxyl group functionalized Fe $$_{3}$$ O $$_{4}$$ NPs as both magnetic source and importantly as co-functional monomer incorporated in the polysiloxane imprinting system. Real egg white sample tests demonstrate good separation effect. This report provides a possibility of the selective separation of protein in complex matrix.

Highly toxic metals (Hg 2+ , Pb 2+ , Cd 2+ and Cr 6+ ) in environment waters greatly threaten the health of human beings and ecosystem. Photoluminescent sensing has been considered as an effective technology for metals monitoring in environment medium. In this paper, photoluminescent materials for the sensing of highly toxic metal ions (HTMs) were reviewed. These materials were categorized as downconversion materials and upconversion nanomaterials, according to the mechanism of photon conversion. Downconversion materials generally include organic probes, quantum dots, and Au or Ag nanomaterials. Together with upconversion nanomaterials, they are introduced in terms of textures and modification methods. The working mechanisms were introduced emphatically as well as their advantages and disadvantages for HTMs sensing. In Section 4 , the conclusion and perspectives of photoluminescent sensing materials are summarized, and it is expected that this review will be helpful for the understanding and fundamental studies of photoluminescent materials for the detection of HTMs.

Manganese-doped zinc sulfide quantum dot based molecularly imprinted polymer composite nanoparticles were prepared. Bisphenol A served as the template and 3-aminopropyltriethoxysilane and tetraethoxysilicane were the functional monomer and cross-linker, respectively. The quantum dots exhibited excellent selectivity, fast adsorption kinetics, high stability, and good dispersion in aqueous media. The quenched fluorescence emission was proportional to the concentration of Bisphenol A without any preconcentration. This highly selective fluorescence sensor had a linear response from 10 to 700 nanograms per milliliter with a correlation coefficient of 0.9860. The relative standard deviation of five replicate measurements of 100 nanograms per milliliter Bisphenol A was 2.2 percent. The recovery of fortified Bisphenol A in water samples ranged from 98.70 to 105.50 percent.

This paper demonstrates a new strategy for producing fluorescent molecularly imprinted membranes (MIMs) for specific recognition of a target molecule. 3-Mercaptopropyltriethoxysilane-capped quantum dots (QDs) were first incorporated into hydrogel membranes of acrylamide and N,N′-methylenediacrylamide to fabricate QD-entrapped molecularly imprinted membranes. The fluorescence intensity of the QDs entrapped in the hydrogel membrane was quenched after being activated by the electron transfer between the QDs and bisphenol A. The quenched fluorescence emission intensity was proportional to the concentration of bisphenol A. Herein, trace levels of bisphenol A were rapidly detected through the quenching of the fluorescence intensity of the QD-entrapped membranes without any preconcentration processes. The linear detection ranges from 0.005 μM to 0.1 μM and with recoveries of 92–108% for bisphenol A. The QD-entrapped hydrogel membranes also showed quite good selectivity for the detection of bisphenol A.

At the central region of the mammalian major histocompatibility complex (MHC) is a complement gene cluster that codes for constituents of complement C3 convertases (C2, factor B and C4). Complement activation drives the humoral effector functions for immune response. Sandwiched between the genes for serine proteinase factor B and anchor protein C4 are four less known but critically important genes coding for essential functions related to metabolism and surveillance of RNA during the transcriptional and translational processes of gene expression. These four genes are NELF-E (RD), SKIV2L (SKI2W), DXO (DOM3Z) and STK19 (RP1 or G11) and dubbed as NSDK. NELF-E is the subunit E of negative elongation factor responsible for promoter proximal pause of transcription. SKIV2L is the RNA helicase for cytoplasmic exosomes responsible for degradation of de-polyadenylated mRNA and viral RNA. DXO is a powerful enzyme with pyro-phosphohydrolase activity towards 5′ triphosphorylated RNA, decapping and exoribonuclease activities of faulty nuclear RNA molecules. STK19 is a nuclear kinase that phosphorylates RNA-binding proteins during transcription. STK19 is also involved in DNA repair during active transcription and in nuclear signal transduction. The genetic, biochemical and functional properties for NSDK in the MHC largely stay as a secret for many immunologists. Here we briefly review the roles of (a) NELF-E on transcriptional pausing; (b) SKIV2L on turnover of deadenylated or expired RNA 3′→5′ through the Ski-exosome complex, and modulation of inflammatory response initiated by retinoic acid-inducible gene 1-like receptor (RLR) sensing of viral infections; (c) DXO on quality control of RNA integrity through recognition of 5′ caps and destruction of faulty adducts in 5′→3′ fashion; and (d) STK19 on nuclear protein phosphorylations. There is compelling evidence that a dysregulation or a deficiency of a NSDK gene would cause a malignant, immunologic or digestive disease.

In this study, magnetic fluorescence molecularly imprinted polymers were fabricated and used for the selective separation and fluorescence sensing of trace bisphenol A (BPA) in environmental water samples. The carboxyl-functionalized FeOx magnetic nanoparticles were conjugated with mercaptoethylamine-capped Mn2+ doped ZnS quantum dots to prepare magnetic FeOx and ZnS quantum dot nanoparticles (FeOx/ZnS NPs). Additionally, molecular imprinting on the FeOx/ZnS NPs was employed to synthesize core-shell molecularly imprinted polymers. The resulting nanoparticles were well characterized using transmission electron microscopy, Fourier transform infrared spectra, vibrating sample magnetometer and fluorescence spectra, and the adsorption behavior was investigated. Binding experiments showed that the molecularly imprinted FeOX/ZnS NPs (FeOx/ZnS@MIPs) exhibited rapid fluorescent and magnetic responses, and high selectivity and sensitivity for the detection of bisphenol A (BPA). The maximum adsorption capacity of FeOx/ZnS@MIPs was 50.92 mg&middot, g&minus, 1 with an imprinting factor of 11.19. Under optimal conditions, the constructed fluorescence magnetic molecularly imprinted polymers presented good linearity from 0 to 80 ng mL&minus, 1 with a detection limit of 0.3626 ng mL&minus, 1 for BPA. Moreover, the proposed fluorescence magnetic polymers were successfully applied to on-site magnetic separation and real-time fluorescence analysis of target molecule in real samples.