A small proton charge radius from an electron-proton scattering experiment

Elastic electron-proton scattering (e-p) and the spectroscopy of hydrogen atoms are the two methods traditionally used to determine the proton charge radius, r_p. In 2010, a new method using muonic hydrogen atoms¹ found a substantial discrepancy compared with previous results², which became known as the 'proton radius puzzle'. Despite experimental and theoretical efforts, the puzzle remains unresolved. In fact, there is a discrepancy between the two most recent spectroscopic measurements conducted on ordinary hydrogen^3,4. Here we report on the proton charge radius experiment at Jefferson Laboratory (PRad), a high-precision e-p experiment that was established after the discrepancy was identified. We used a magnetic-spectrometer-free method along with a windowless hydrogen gas target, which overcame several limitations of previous e-p experiments and enabled measurements at very small forward-scattering angles. Our result, r_p = 0.831 ± 0.007_stat ± 0.012_syst femtometres, is smaller than the most recent high-precision e-p measurement⁵ and 2.7 standard deviations smaller than the average of all e-p experimental results⁶. The smaller r_p we have now measured supports the value found by two previous muonic hydrogen experiments^1,7. In addition, our finding agrees with the revised value (announced in 2019) for the Rydberg constant⁸-one of the most accurately evaluated fundamental constants in physics.

Investigation on Adsorption Mechanism of Peptides with Surface-Modified Super-Macroporous Resins

Macroporous adsorption resins (MARs) have experienced rapid growth because of their unique properties and applications. Recently, it was discovered that a series of MARs with super-macroporous and diverse functional groups were synthesized to adsorb and enrich peptides; however, the detailed change mechanism of pore diameter and element composition and peptide adsorption mechanism have not yet been established. In this study, MARs and modified MARs were prepared by the surfactant reverse micelles swelling method and Friedel-Crafts reaction, and the pore diameter and element changes of these super-macroporous resin particles were accurately determined to elucidate formation processes of modified MARs. The adsorption mechanism of four peptides on different MARs was investigated. Sieving effect, electrostatic, hydrophobic, and hydrogen bonds interactions were found to play a major role in the adsorption process of peptides. Compared to that of the traditional resins, the adsorption capacity of super-macroporous MARs for peptides enormously increased. Electrostatic interactions have been explained perfectly by determining the isoelectric point. The molecular docking technology proved that the hydrogen-bonding receptor in MARs was a crucial factor for the adsorption capacity by autodock 4.26 and gromacs 5.14. These findings will enable selective adsorption of peptides by MARs, which also provides a theoretical basis for the construction of specific resin to adsorb different peptides.

Preparation of metal–organic frameworks with bimetallic linkers and corresponding properties

A series of metal–organic frameworks (MOFs) with bimetallic linkers were synthesized through a facile reflux route.

Design, synthesis, and anticancer properties of isocorydine derivatives

Isocorydine (ICD), an aporphine alkaloid, is widely distributed in nature. Its ability to target side population (SP) cells found in human hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) makes it and its derivative 8-amino-isocorydine (NICD) promising chemotherapeutic agents for the treatment of HCC. To improve the anticancer activity of isocorydine derivatives, twenty derivatives of NICD were designed and synthesized through chemical structure modifications of the aromatic amino group at C-8. The anti-proliferative activities of all synthesized compounds against human hepatocellular (HepG2), cervical (HeLa), and gastric (MGC-803) cancer cell lines were evaluated using an MTT assay. The results showed that all the synthetic compounds had some tumor cell growth inhibitory activity. The compound COM33 (24) was the most active with IC₅₀ values under 10 μM (IC₅₀ for HepG2 = 7.51 µM; IC₅₀ for HeLa = 6.32 μM). FICD (12) and COM33 (24) were selected for further investigation of their in vitro and in vivo activities due to their relatively good antiproliferative properties. These two compounds significantly downregulated the expression of four key proteins (C-Myc, β-Catenin, CylinD1, and Ki67) in HepG2 cells. The tumor inhibition rate of COM33 (24) in vivo was 73.8% after a dose 100 mg/kg via intraperitoneal injection and the combined inhibition rate of COM33 (24) (50 mg/kg) with sorafenib (50 mg/kg) was 66.5%. The results indicated that these isocorydine derivatives could potentially be used as targeted chemotherapy agents or could be further developed in combination with conventional chemotherapy drugs to target cancer stem cells (CSCs) and epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition (EMT), the main therapeutic targets in HCC.

Discovery and identification of potential biomarkers for alcohol-induced oxidative stress based on cellular metabolomics

Biomarkers involved in alcohol-induced oxidative stress play an important role in alcoholic liver disease prevention and diagnosis. Alcohol-induced oxidative stress in human liver L-02 cells was used to discover the potential biomarkers. Metabolites from L-02 cells induced by alcohol were measured by high-performance liquid chromatography and mass spectrometry. Fourteen metabolites that allowed discrimination between control and model groups were discovered by multivariate statistical data analysis (i.e. principal components analysis, orthogonal partial least-squares discriminate analysis). Based on the retention time, UV spectrum and LC-MS findings of the samples and compared with the authentic standards, eight biomarkers involved in alcohol-induced oxidative stress, namely, malic acid, oxidized glutathione, γ-glutamyl-cysteinyl-glycine, adenosine triphosphate, phenylalanine, adenosine monophosphate, nitrotyrosine and tryptophan, were identified. These biomarkers offered important targets for disease diagnosis and other researches.

Design and preparation of porous polymer particles with polydopamine coating and selective enrichment for biomolecules

Pore size distribution of novel gigaporous polymer particles were visualized characterization by laser scanning confocal microscopy, and this gigaporous materials had preferable selective enrichment performance for biomolecules.

qKAT: a high-throughput qPCR method for KIR gene copy number and haplotype determination

Killer cell immunoglobulin-like receptors (KIRs), expressed on natural killer cells and T cells, have considerable biomedical relevance playing significant roles in immunity, pregnancy and transplantation. The KIR locus is one of the most complex and polymorphic regions of the human genome. Extensive sequence homology and copy number variation makes KIRs technically laborious and expensive to type. To aid the investigation of KIRs in human disease we developed a high-throughput, multiplex real-time polymerase chain reaction method to determine gene copy number for each KIR locus. We used reference DNA samples to validate the accuracy and a cohort of 1698 individuals to evaluate capability for precise copy number discrimination. The method provides improved information and identifies KIR haplotype alterations that were not previously visible using other approaches.

Orientation-dependent nanostructure arrays based on anisotropic silicon wet-etching for repeatable surface-enhanced Raman scattering

Repeatable fabrication of sensitive plasmonic substrates through a simple procedure has become a major challenge for SERS-based sensing and imaging. Herein, a new class of high-performance SERS substrates, including pyramid, ridged-hexagon, and quasi-triangle nanostructures, is successfully fabricated based on the nanosphere lithography technique and anisotropic wet etching. Using the wafer-scale Cr-hole array as the etching mask, cavity-templates of various configurations are fabricated by the orientation-dependent wet etching technique, from where the nanostructure arrays are finally peeled-off. The anisotropic wet etching on (100), (110), and (111) silicon wafers has been systematically studied at the nanoscale revealing the formation mechanism of these cavity-templates. The peeled-off nanostructure arrays provide high-density tips and/or gaps (about 2.5 × 10(7) mm(-2)) and thus facilitate the generation of "hot spots". The distribution of the electromagnetic field is visualized by the finite difference time domain calculation. And the calculation results are validated by SERS characterization. The SERS enhancement factors of these substrates are in the order of 10(6)-10(7), with the maximum enhancement factor of 1.32 × 10(7) yielded by the ridged-hexagon arrays. The proposed nanostructure arrays present excellent homogeneity and reproducibility (with the largest relative standard deviation of 16.43%) for the reason that the SERS-active substrates are peeled-off from an identical template. The cost-effective fabrication, high sensitivity, good homogeneity and well-performed reproducibility demonstrate that these orientation-dependent NSs are good candidates for SERS-based in vitro and in situ detection and biosensing.

DPPH-HPLC-DAD analysis combined HSCCC for screening and identification of radical scavengers in Cynomorium songaricum Rupr

A speedy, efficient and reproductive technique to systematically isolate antioxidant compounds from complex natural products.

Study on pharmacokinetics and tissue distribution of the isocorydine derivative (AICD) in rats by HPLC-DAD method

A simple and effective high-performance liquid chromatography with diode-array detection method coupled with a liquid-liquid extraction pretreatment has been developed for determining the pharmacokinetics and tissue distribution of a novel structurally modified derivative (8-acetamino-isocorydine) of isocorydine. According to the in vivo experiments data calculations by DAS 2.0 software, a two-compartment metabolic model was suitable for describing the pharmacokinetic of 8-acetamino-isocorydine in rats. 8-Acetamino-isocorydine was absorbed well after oral administration, and the absolute bioavailability was 76.5%. The half-life of 8-acetamino-isocorydine after intravenous and oral administration was 2.2 h and 2.0 h, respectively. In vivo, 8-acetamino-isocorydine was highly distributed in the lungs, kidney and liver; however, relatively little entered the brain, suggesting that 8-acetamino-isocorydine could not easily pass through the blood brain barrier. Our work describes the first characterization of the pharmacokinetic parameters and tissue distribution of 8-acetamino-isocorydine. The acquired data will provide useful information for the in vivo pharmacology of 8-acetamino-isocorydine, and can be applied to new drug research.