Removal efficiency of a calix[4]arene-based polymer for water-soluble carcinogenic direct azo dyes and aromatic amines

Synthetic Receptors for Early Detection and Treatment of Cancer

Over recent decades, synthetic macrocyclic compounds have attracted interest from the scientific community due to their ability to selectively and reversibly form complexes with a huge variety of guest moieties. These molecules have been studied within a wide range of sensing and other fields. Within this review, we will give an overview of the most common synthetic macrocyclic compounds including cyclodextrins, calixarenes, calixresorcinarenes, pillarenes and cucurbiturils. These species all display the ability to form a wide range of complexes. This makes these compounds suitable in the field of cancer detection since they can bind to either cancer cell surfaces or indeed to marker compounds for a wide variety of cancers. The formation of such complexes allows sensitive and selective detection and quantification of such guests. Many of these compounds also show potential for the detection and encapsulation of environmental carcinogens. Furthermore, many anti-cancer drugs, although effective in in vitro tests, are not suitable for use directly for cancer treatment due to low solubility, inherent instability in in vivo environments or an inability to be adsorbed by or transported to the required sites for treatment. The reversible encapsulation of these species in a macrocyclic compound can greatly improve their solubility, stability and transport to required sites where they can be released for maximum therapeutic effect. Within this review, we intend to present the use of these species both in cancer sensing and treatment. The various macrocyclic compound families will be described, along with brief descriptions of their synthesis and properties, with an outline of their use in cancer detection and usage as therapeutic agents. Their use in the sensing of environmental carcinogens as well as their potential utilisation in the clean-up of some of these species will also be discussed.

Application of Alkali Lignin and Spruce Sawdust for the Effective Removal of Reactive Dyes from Model Wastewater

Today, the emphasis is on environmentally friendly materials. Alkali lignin and spruce sawdust are suitable natural alternatives for removing dyes from wastewater. The main reason for using alkaline lignin as a sorbent is the recovery of waste black liquor from the paper industry. This work deals with removing dyes from wastewater using spruce sawdust and lignin at two different temperatures. The decolorization yields were calculated as the final values. Increasing the temperature during adsorption leads to higher decolorization yields, which may be due to the fact that some substances react only at elevated temperatures. The results of this research are useful for the treatment of industrial wastewater in paper mills, and the waste black liquor (alkaline lignin) can be used as a biosorbent.

Fluorescence switchable sensor enabled by a calix[4]arene-Cu(II) complex system for selective determination of itraconazole in human serum and aqueous solution

A switchable fluorescence sensor based on a calix (Monapathi et al., 2021) [4]arene:Cu²⁺ complex (FLCX/Cu) has been developed for the detection of itraconazole (ITZ) with high sensitivity and specificity. For the development of the sensor, the selective complexation of a fluorescent calix (Monapathi et al., 2021) [4]arene derivative (FL-CX) with the Cu²⁺ ion causing fluorescence quenching was utilized. In addition, the sensor properties of the FLCX/Cu prepared were investigated. For this purpose, various substances (selected anions, cations, and drugs) with which ITZ can be found together were studied in an aqueous solution. Limit of detection (LOD) and limit of quantification (LOQ) values were determined in the range of 1.00-60.0 μg/L as 3.34 μg/L and 11.1 μg/L for ITZ, respectively. Moreover, the real sample analyses were performed in human serum and tablet form. Furthermore, the effect of some possible serum contents on sensor performance was also studied. All these studies confirmed the development of a simple, precise, accurate, reproducible, highly sensitive, and very stable fluorescence sensor.

Synthesis of new Zn-decorated metal-organic frameworks for enhanced removal of carcinogenic textile dye: equilibrium and kinetic modeling studies

This paper describes the synthesis and characterization of Zn²⁺ decorated (adipic and terephthalic acid as linkers) piperazine-based metal-organic framework (P-MOFs) and their extraction behavior toward the Chicago sky blue (CSB) dye. The formation of Zn²⁺-decorated P-MOFs was confirmed by FT-IR spectroscopy, energy-dispersive spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction, BET surface area analysis and TGA. Adsorption behavior of the synthesized P-MOFs was explored through solid-phase adsorption (batch method) prior to UV-Vis spectrophotometric determination. Adsorption parameters, including adsorbent dosage, pH of solution, dye concentration, and time, were optimized. Excellent percentage removal of 94% and 95% for AP-Zn-MOF and TP-Zn-MOF, respectively, was achieved at pH 7.5. Kinetics studies indicated that the synthesized adsorbents AP-Zn-MOF and TP-Zn-MOF followed the pseudo-second-order rate model with R² value 0.9989. The Freundlich isotherm with high R² value as compared to Langmuir isotherm indicated that CSB adsorption for the synthesized MOFs follows multilayer adsorption.

A, Adnan AS, Alqadhi AM, Abdullah CK, A.K. AS, Olaiya NG, Abdat M. The Role of Biopolymer-Based Materials in Obstetrics and Gynecology Applications: A Review

Biopolymers have gained tremendous attention in many daily life applications, including medical applications, in the past few years. Obstetrics and gynecology are two fields dealing with sensitive parts of the woman's body and her newborn baby, which are normally associated with many issues such as toxicity, infections, and even gene alterations. Medical professions that use screening, examination, pre, and post-operation materials should benefit from a better understanding of each type of material's characteristics, health, and even environmental effects. The underlying principles of biopolymer-based materials for different obstetric and gynecologic applications may discover various advantages and benefits of using such materials. This review presents the health impact of conventional polymer-based materials on pregnant women's health and highlights the potential use of biopolymers as a safer option. The recent works on utilizing different biopolymer-based materials in obstetric and gynecologic are presented in this review, which includes suture materials in obstetric and gynecologic surgeries, cosmetic and personal care products, vaginal health, and drug delivery; as well as a wound dressing and healing materials. This review highlights the main issues and challenges of biopolymers in obstetric and gynecologic applications.

Recent progress to construct calixarene-based polymers using covalent bonds: synthesis and applications

The combination of supramolecular chemistry and polymer sciences creates a great possibility to afford calixarene-based polymers offering unique features and applications. The enhancement of calixarene's versatility in this manner has made chemists better able to achieve different objectives in host-guest chemistry. The calixarene-based polymers can be divided into covalent polymers and supramolecular polymers regarding the interactions. Although there are several studies available on the calixarene-based supramolecular polymers, there is a paucity of studies on the calixarene-based covalent polymers. In this paper, the most recent developments and applications of the calixarene-based covalent polymers in the last two decades have been reviewed. We have particularly focused on the polymers, including those where the calixarene molecules have been used as macromonomers and polymerize through covalent bonds. Moreover, covalent polymers or solid supports functionalized with calixarenes are highlighted as well.

Cellulose-based fluorescent sensor for visual and versatile detection of amines and anions

It is practical and challenging to construct ultrasensitive and multi-responsive sensors for visual and real-time monitoring of the environment. Herein, a cellulose-based multi-responsive fluorescent sensor (Phen-MDI-CA) is fabricated, and realizes a visual and ultrasensitive detection of not only various amines but also three anions based on the change of the fluorescence and/or visible colors. Once exposure to various amines in both the solution and vapor state, the Phen-MDI-CA solution and test paper exhibit different fluorescence colors, which can be used to distinguish triethylamine, ethylenediamine, methylamine, aniline, hydrazine and pyrrolidine from other amines. Moreover, via combining the Phen-MDI-CA with the Phen-MDI-CA/malachite green ratiometric system, phosphate (PO₄^3-), carbonate (CO₃^2-) and borate (B₄O₇^2-) can be visually and accurately recognized depending on the change of the visible and fluorescence colors. In fluorescent mode, the LOD for B₄O₇^2-, PO₄^3- and CO₃^2- ions is as low as 0.18 nmol, 0.69 nmol and 0.86 nmol, respectively. Significantly, the Phen-MDI-CA can readily make a qualitative and quantitative detection of B₄O₇^2-, PO₄^3- and CO₃^2- anions in the mixture of anions. The state-of-the-art responsive behavior of Phen-MDI-CA originates from the amplification effect of cellulose polymer chain and the differentiated interactions between the sensor and analytes.

A Sm-MOF/GO nanocomposite membrane for efficient organic dye removal from wastewater

The instability of graphene oxide (GO) membranes in aqueous solutions restricts their application in wastewater treatment through the membrane separation technology. In this work, a nanocomposite membrane (Sm-MOF/GO) composed of samarium metal–organic frameworks (Sm-MOFs) and GO nanosheets was successfully fabricated via the filtration of the corresponding Sm-MOF/GO dispersions. The in situ growth of Sm-MOF with aqueous stability on the GO sheets prevented the adjacent GO layers from expanding in aqueous solutions, thus endowing the prepared Sm-MOF/GO membrane with a stable membrane skeleton structure. Besides, the successful loading of Sm-MOF enlarged the layer space of the composite membrane, which was beneficial for higher permeance. The optimization of the Sm-MOF loading contents was also investigated to prepare M-X (where X represents the mass ratio of the MOF raw material to the total mass of the reactants). Subsequently, the fabricated M-0.31 possessed a high permeance of 26 L m⁻² h⁻¹ bar⁻¹, which was 3 times higher than that of a pure GO membrane; moreover, high rejections (>91%) to rhodamine B and methylene blue were obtained. After continuous 5.5 h filtration, the excellent rejection was still maintained as expected, indicating the long-term stability of M-0.31.

A nanocomposite membrane composed of samarium metal-organic frameworks and graphene oxide nanosheets was fabricated for organic dye removal.

A magnetically separable and recyclable g-C3N4/Fe3O4/porous ruthenium nanocatalyst for the photocatalytic degradation of water-soluble aromatic amines and azo dyes

Herein, we present the development of a visible-light-driven magnetically retrievable nanophotocatalyst made of porous ruthenium nanoparticles supported on magnetic carbon nitride (g-C₃N₄/Fe₃O₄/p-RuNP) for the facile removal/degradation of aromatic amines and azo dyes from wastewater. Aromatic amines and azo-based dyes in water bodies are highly toxic and carcinogenic even at very low concentrations and are difficult to separate because of their high solubility. Our nanocatalyst can efficiently degrade/decompose the aromatic amines and azo dyes under visible light (LED/sunlight) at room temperature and in a wide pH range (pH 5.0–9.0) without using any external chemicals. The magnetic property of the nanocatalyst facilitates its efficient and facile separation from the reaction mixture for reuse in multiple photocatalytic cycles. The nanocatalyst-based degradation of azo dyes and aromatic amines presented here is simple and convenient in terms of efficiency, energy, reusability and cost. The process also does not require any external chemicals and forms gaseous/less harmful end products.

A magnetically separable and recyclable g-C₃N₄/Fe₃O₄/porous ruthenium nanocatalyst display excellent photocatalytic degradation of water-soluble aromatic amines and azo dyes at ambient condition.

Host-Guest Extraction of Heavy Metal Ions with p-t-Butylcalix[8]arene from Ammonia or Amine Solutions

The capacities of the p-t-butylcalix[8]arene (abbreviated as H8L) host to extract toxic divalent heavy metal ions and silver from aqueous solution phases containing ammonia or ethylene diamine to an organic phase (nitrobenzene, dichloromethane, or chloroform) were carried out. When the metal ions were extracted from an aqueous ammonia solution, the metal ion selectivity for extraction was found to decrease in the order Cd2+> Ni2+> Cu2+> Ag+> Co2+> Zn2+. When the aqueous phase contained ethylene diamine, excellent extraction efficiencies of 97% and 90% were observed for the heavy metal ions Cu2+ and Cd2+, respectively. Under the same conditions the extraction of octahedral type metal ions, namely, Co2+ and Ni2+, was suppressed. The extraction of transition metal cations by H8L in ammonia and/or amine was found to be pH dependent. Detailed analysis of extraction behavior was investigated by slope analysis, the continuous variation method, and by loading tests.

Calix[4]arene-Based Porous Organic Nanosheets

Calixarenes are a common motif in supramolecular chemistry but have rarely been incorporated in structurally well-defined covalent 2D materials. Such a task is challenging, especially without a template, because of the nonplanar configuration and conformational flexibility of the calixarene ring. Here, we report the first-of-a-kind solvothermal synthesis of a calix[4]arene-based 2D polymer (CX4-NS) that is porous, covalent, and isolated as few-layer thick (3.52 nm) nanosheets. Experimental and theoretical characterization of the nanosheets is presented. Atomic force microscopy and transmission electron microscopy results are consistent with the calculated lowest energy state of the polymer. In the lowest energy state, parallel layers are tightly packed, and the calixarenes adopt the 1,2-alternate conformation, which gives rise to a two-dimensional pattern and a rhombic unit cell. We tested the material's ability to adsorb I₂ vapor and observed a maximum capacity of 114 wt %. Molecular simulations extended to model I₂ capture showed excellent agreement with experiments. Furthermore, the material was easily regenerated by mild ethanol washings and could be reused with minimal loss of efficiency.

AIEE Active Donor-Acceptor-Donor-Based Hexaphenylbenzene Probe for Recognition of Aliphatic and Aromatic Amines

In the present investigation, an intramolecular charge transfer (ICT) and aggregation induced emission enhancement (AIEE) active donor-acceptor-donor (D-A-D) system 5 having fumaronitrile as the acceptor and hexaphenylbenzene (HPB) as the donor moieties joined through rotatable phenyl rings has been designed and synthesized that is highly emissive in the solid state and exhibits stimuli-responsive reversible piezochromic behavior upon grinding and heating. Because of its AIEE characteristics, HPB derivative 5 undergoes aggregation to form fluorescent aggregates in mixed aqueous media that exhibit ratiometric fluorescence response toward aliphatic amines (primary/secondary/tertiary) and turn-off response toward aromatic amines and hence differentiates between them. Further, the solution-coated portable paper strips of derivative 5 showed pronounced and sensitive response toward aromatic and aliphatic amines with a detection limit in the range of picogram and nanogram level, respectively.

Macrocycle crosslinked mesoporous polymers for ultrafast separation of organic dyes

Mesoporous polymers were synthesized by interfacial polymerization of macrocycles (sulfonatocalix[4]arenes and pillar[5]arenes) and terephthaloyl chloride.

Tunable photo-luminescence behaviors of macrocycle-containing polymer networks in the solid-state

Two porous polymers were synthesized from tetraphenylethylene (TPE) crosslinked β-cyclodextrins (β-CD) and sulfonatocalix[4]arene (SC4A).

Detection of gaseous amines with a fluorescent film based on a perylene bisimide-functionalized copolymer

A fluorescent copolymer containing PBI units and hydroxyl-ethyl structures was developed for the fast and sensitive detection of gaseous amines

Porous chitosan/hydroxyapatite composite membrane for dyes static and dynamic removal from aqueous solution

The unique characteristics of Chitosan (CS) such as resource abundance, good biocompatibility, film-forming ability and sufficient sites (NH₂ and OH) for adsorption of heavy metals or organic pollutants make CS-based membranes a promising membrane adsorbent. In this work, a porous Chitosan/Hydroxyapatite (CS/HA) membrane with a sponge-like surface and a three-dimensional interpenetrated porous structure of about mean pore size less than 10μm was developed. The most striking advantage of the proposed membrane lies on the integration of appreciably high adsorption capacity (as compared with current CS-based membranes, also 2.5 times and 4 times higher than that of non-porous CS/HA membrane and the commercially available activate carbon) and the high-speed dynamic dye removal (98% or even better in less than 15min). Besides, the synthesis protocol for the proposed membrane is also much simpler, environmental-friendly and economical. Moreover, the proposed membrane also featured repeated dye removal (above 80% after 5 cycles of dynamic adsorption at dye concentration of 150mgL^-1). All the above advantages indicated the intriguing potential of the porous membrane in practical wastewater treatment.

QSAR Study for Carcinogenic Potency of Aromatic Amines Based on GEP and MLPs

A new analysis strategy was used to classify the carcinogenicity of aromatic amines. The physical-chemical parameters are closely related to the carcinogenicity of compounds. Quantitative structure activity relationship (QSAR) is a method of predicting the carcinogenicity of aromatic amine, which can reveal the relationship between carcinogenicity and physical-chemical parameters. This study accessed gene expression programming by APS software, the multilayer perceptrons by Weka software to predict the carcinogenicity of aromatic amines, respectively. All these methods relied on molecular descriptors calculated by CODESSA software and eight molecular descriptors were selected to build function equations. As a remarkable result, the accuracy of gene expression programming in training and test sets are 0.92 and 0.82, the accuracy of multilayer perceptrons in training and test sets are 0.84 and 0.74 respectively. The precision of the gene expression programming is obviously superior to multilayer perceptrons both in training set and test set. The QSAR application in the identification of carcinogenic compounds is a high efficiency method.

Novel thermo-responsive hydrogel microspheres with calixcrown host molecules as cross-links for highly specific binding and controllable release of cesium

Novel thermo-responsive hydrogel microspheres containing calixcrown molecules as covalent cross-links for highly-specific binding and thermo-triggered release of cesium in seawater.

Supramolecular p-sulfonated calix[4,6,8]arene for tryptophan detection

Numerous techniques have focused on the ability of p-sulfonated calix[n]arene to form complexes with tryptophan. Scanning electron microscopy and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy were utilized to study the organization and molecular structure of different layers of the electrode surface. Scanning electron microscopy results showed that SC4A displayed a cubic structure whereas SC6A and SC8A displayed dendrite structures. The electrochemical properties and potential complex formation between SCnA and tryptophan were characterized by cyclic voltammetry and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy. Cyclic voltammetry experiments showed that the gold electrode was successfully functionalized by self-assembled cysteamine and SC4A. Electrochemical impedance spectroscopy results showed the observation of the tryptophan–SCnA interaction and indicated that SC4A had the highest sensitivity to tryptophan and allowed 2.04 μg L−1 tryptophan to be detected. Electrochemical impedance spectroscopy analysis and molecular modeling calculation confirmed that SC4A has higher tryptophan sensitivity than SC6A and SC8A.

In Silico vibrational spectroscopic investigation on antioxidant active Mannich base 1-[anilino (phenyl) methyl] pyrrolidine-2,5-dione

The antioxidant active Mannich base 1-[anilino (phenyl) methyl] pyrrolidine-2,5-dione (APMPD) have been synthesized and its FT-IR and FT-Raman vibrational spectra were recorded within the region of 4000cm(-1), 50cm(-1) respectively. The molecular geometric parameters of APMPD have been computed using HF and DFT model theories. The energies of APMPD are calculated for all the eight possible conformers using B3LYP method at 6-311++G(d,p) basis set. From the computational results, the M1 conformer was identified as the most stable conformer of APMPD. The stable conformer was compared with experimental crystal geometry, which again fortifies the results of conformer analysis. The fundamental vibrations of the molecule are assigned according to the characteristic region and the literature report. The predicted highest occupied molecular orbital (HOMO) and lowest unoccupied molecular orbital (LUMO) energy gap provide vivid idea on charge transfer behavior of APMPD. The molecular electrostatic potential (MEP) and Mulliken charge analysis indicate the feasible electrophilic and nucleophilic reactive sites on APMPD. The thermodynamic properties (heat capacity, entropy, and enthalpy) of the title compound at various temperatures are calculated in gas phase.