Structural effects on the magnetic hyperthermia properties of iron oxide nanoparticles

Magnetic iron oxide nanoparticles(IONPs) are heavily explored as diagnostic and therapeutic agents due to their low cost, tunable properties, and biocompatibility. In particular, upon excitation with an alternating current(AC) magnetic field, the NPs generate localized heat that can be exploited for therapeutic hyperthermia treatment of diseased cells or pathogenic microbes. In this review, we focus on how structural changes and inter-particle interactions affect the heating efficiency of iron oxide-based magnetic NPs. Moreover, we present an overview of the different approaches to evaluate the heating performance of IONPs and introduce a new theranostic modality based on magnetic imaging guided–hyperthermia.     

Absolute configuration of chirally deuterated neopentane

The relationship between macroscopic chirality and chirality on the molecular level was unequivocally established in 1951 through anomalous X-ray scattering. Although this technique became the definitive method for determining the absolute configuration of a molecule, one important limitation of the approach is that the molecule must contain 'heavy' atoms (for example, bromine). The direct determination of absolute configurations for a wider range of molecules has recently become possible by measuring a molecule's vibrational optical activity. Here we show that instrumental advances in Raman optical activity, combined with quantum chemical computations, make it possible to determine the absolute configuration of (R)-[2H1, 2H2, 2H3]-neopentane. This saturated hydrocarbon represents the archetype of all molecules that are chiral as a result of a dissymmetric mass distribution. It is chemically inert and cannot be derivatized to yield molecules that would reveal the absolute configuration of the parent compound. Diastereomeric interactions with other molecules, optical rotation, and electronic circular dichroism are, in contrast to the well-known case of bromochlorofluoromethane, not expected to be measurable. Vibronic effects in the vacuum ultraviolet circular dichroism might reveal that the molecule is chiral, but the presence of nine rotamers would make it extremely difficult to interpret the spectra, because the spatial arrangement of the rotamers' nuclei resembles that of enantiomers. The unequivocal spectroscopic determination of the absolute configuration of (R)-[2H1, 2H2, 2H3]-neopentane therefore presented a major challenge, one that was at the very limit of what is possible.     

Chiral inorganic nanostructures for theranostics

Inorganic chiral nanomaterials have attracted wide attention because of their superior physical properties and chiroptical activities. Great progress in chiral nanostructure preparation has been made, such as noble metals and semiconductors. In this review, we introduce several chiral nanomaterials with feasible biocompatibility and low cytotoxicity that are promising candidates for biological applications, and we focus on their preparation in terms of their circular dichroism (CD) effects and circular luminescence properties. Additionally, we summarize the working function of chiral nanostructures toward some common diseases with high prevalence, such as Alzheimer’s disease (AD), Parkinson’s disease (PD), diabetes and even cancers. The introduction of inorganic chirality will provide a novel way to diagnose and treat these diseases.     

含蒎烯基联吡啶的新型手性Mo(0)络合物的合成和表征

为了探讨含手性蒎烯基联吡啶的手性钼(0)络合物的结构对光谱(特别是CD光谱)性质的影响,合成了两个新型手性钼络合物( )CD452[Mo(CO)4(LRR)]和[Mo(CO)4(LSS)].用元素分析、IR、UV vis、CD、1HNMR和13CNMR等对其进行了充分表征.研究结果表明:两种络合物为一对具有几乎完全相同物理化学性质、配体互为对映体的光学异构体;两者在可见区的CD曲线呈现弱Cotton效应,且大致为镜象对称,说明在相应的手性络合物中,由于联吡啶上相反手性的蒎烯基通过中心金属钼对MLCT发色团产生了手性微扰作用,从而产生诱导CD效应.     

手性含氮四齿配体催化苯丙酮的不对称氢转移氢化

利用8-羟基喹啉与手性环己基二胺的反应，合成了对空气和水稳定的手性含氮四齿配体（R，R）-C5N4；进而分别与钌、铑或铱等金属络合物组合，现场生成催化体系，用于苯丙酮的不对称氢转移氢化反应；考察了碱添加量、配体用量和底物与催化剂用量摩尔比对反应性能的影响．结果表明，该配体与RhHCO（PPh3）3的混合体系效果较好，可得到68％ee的对映选择性．     

金纳米团簇荧光探针的合成与生物检测应用

近年来,纳米技术发展迅速。荧光金纳米材料展现出的独特光学特性使其在生物检测和医学诊断中表现出了很好的应用前景。通过改变配体或者生物支架合成的各种荧光金纳米团簇(gold nanocluster,Au NCs),在传感检测、医学成像和光电子学等领域具有潜在的应用前景。就荧光和共振光散射技术和方法对水溶性的荧光金纳米团簇的合成以及检测机理作出介绍,并简单总结了金纳米团簇作为荧光探针在生物检测,包括金属离子、阴离子、有机小分子、蛋白质和核酸等各种分析物检测中的应用。同时,评述和展望了荧光金纳米团簇研究的发展方向和应用前景。     

手性配合物[Mn（csal-R,R-chxn）]Cl的CD光谱和不对称催化作用

以5-氯-水杨醛双缩（1R,2R）-环己二胺（CSA-DMC）为原料制备了手性[Mn（csal-R,R-chxn）]Cl配合物,测定了手性配体CSA-DMC的荧光光谱,研究了手性配合物[Mn（csal-R,R-chxn）]Cl的CD光谱及催化苯乙烯不对称环氧化反应的催化性能.结果表明：手性配体CSA-DMC的荧光发射峰处于517 nm;利用激子裂分方法和d-d跃迁关联法推测了手性席夫碱配合物[Mn（csal-R,R-chxn）]Cl绝对构型为（R）Δλ构型;最适宜反应条件下,催化苯乙烯的不对称环氧化反应的转化率为74.9%,催化剂选择性为67.6%,对映体过量百分率（e.e.）为12.3%     

Copper nanoclusters: Synthesis,characterization and properties

Metal nanoclusters with a core size smaller than 2 nm have attracted much attention because of their unique physical and chemical properties.Among the studied metal nanoclusters,gold and silver have been studied extensively by size-controlled synthesis, structural characterization and properties investigations.Recently,considerable research effort has been devoted to the investiga- tion of copper nanoclusters.In this review,we highlight recent progress in the study of copper nanoclusters in terms of synthesis methods,characterization techniques and their novel optical and catalytic properties.     

Extended surface chirality from supramolecular assemblies of adsorbed chiral molecules

The increasing demand of the chemical and pharmaceutical industries for enantiomerically pure compounds has spurred the development of a range of so-called 'chiral technologies' (ref. 1), which aim to exert the ultimate control over a chemical reaction by directing its enantioselectivity. Heterogeneous enantioselective catalysis is particularly attractive because it allows the production and ready separation of large quantities of chiral product while using only small quantities of catalyst. Heterogeneous enantioselectivity is usually induced by adsorbing chiral molecules onto catalytically active surfaces. A mimic of one such catalyst is formed by adsorbing (R,R)-tartaric acid molecules on Cu(110) surfaces: this generates a variety of surface phases, of which only one is potentially catalytically active, and leaves the question of how adsorbed chiral molecules give rise to enantioselectivity. Here we show that the active phase consists of extended supramolecular assemblies of adsorbed (R,R)-tartaric acid, which destroy existing symmetry elements of the underlying metal and directly bestow chirality to the modified surface. The adsorbed assemblies create chiral 'channels' exposing bare metal atoms, and it is these chiral spaces that we believe to be responsible for imparting enantioselectivity, by forcing the orientation of reactant molecules docking onto catalytically active metal sites. Our findings demonstrate that it is possible to sustain a single chiral domain across an extended surface--provided that reflection domains of opposite handedness are removed by a rigid and chiral local adsorption geometry, and that inequivalent rotation domains are removed by successful matching of the rotational symmetry of the adsorbed molecule with that of the underlying metal surface.     

Enantioselective magnetochiral photochemistry

Many chemical and physical systems can occur in two forms distinguished solely by being mirror images of each other. This phenomenon, known as chirality, is important in biochemistry, where reactions involving chiral molecules often require the participation of one specific enantiomer (mirror image) of the two possible ones. In fact, terrestrial life utilizes only the L enantiomers of amino acids, a pattern that is known as the 'homochirality of life' and which has stimulated long-standing efforts to understand its origin. Reactions can proceed enantioselectively if chiral reactants or catalysts are involved, or if some external chiral influence is present. But because chiral reactants and catalysts themselves require an enantioselective production process, efforts to understand the homochirality of life have focused on external chiral influences. One such external influence is circularly polarized light, which can influence the chirality of photochemical reaction products. Because natural optical activity, which occurs exclusively in media lacking mirror symmetry, and magnetic optical activity, which can occur in all media and is induced by longitudinal magnetic fields, both cause polarization rotation of light, the potential for magnetically induced enantioselectivity in chemical reactions has been investigated, but no convincing demonstrations of such an effect have been found. Here we show experimentally that magnetochiral anisotropy--an effect linking chirality and magnetism--can give rise to an enantiomeric excess in a photochemical reaction driven by unpolarized light in a parallel magnetic field, which suggests that this effect may have played a role in the origin of the homochirality of life.     

对称性,手性和旋光化合物的合成

本文以对称性的观点阐述对称性、手性和旋光性化合物合成的相关性，文中分成三个部分：手性与对称性；手性分子的形成；旋光性化合物的合成途径。     

发光铜纳米粒子的制备及其在生化传感、环境监测中的应用综述

发光铜纳米簇具有与金、银贵金属纳米簇相媲美的荧光性质,还具有原料储量丰富、制备经济、合成过程简便等优点,具有广阔的应用前景。系统地介绍了铜纳米簇的主要性质、制备方法及应用现状,重点总结了近年来荧光铜纳米簇在生化传感器、生物探针、细胞成像、环境标志物检测等领域的应用进展。     

螺旋手性SWCNT尺寸对布洛芬分子旋光异构限域的影响

用量子力学与分子力学组合的ONIOM方法, 考察布洛芬（Ibu）分子限域在螺旋手性单壁碳纳米管(SWCNT)内的手性转变机理. 结果表明： 螺旋手性单壁碳纳米管的直径越小, 限域在其孔道内的布洛芬分子形变越明显; 布洛芬分子在SWCNT(6,4)和SWCNT(7,4)内的旋光异构只有一个反应通道, 在SWCNT(8,5)内的旋光异构有两个反应通道; 布洛芬分子限域在SWCNT(6,4),SWCNT(7,4)和SWCNT(8,5)内时, 旋光异构反应决速步骤的内禀能垒分别为24795,27383,29224 kJ/mol, 总包能垒分别为27896,29191,32588 kJ/mol. 可见S-Ibu的旋光异构易在较小孔径的螺旋手性SWCNT内实现, SWCNT(6,4)可以作为布洛芬分子旋光异构的纳米反应器.     

Enantiospecific electrodeposition of a chiral catalyst

Many biomolecules are chiral--they can exist in one of two enantiomeric forms that only differ in that their structures are mirror images of each other. Because only one enantiomer tends to be physiologically active while the other is inactive or even toxic, drug compounds are increasingly produced in an enantiomerically pure form using solution-phase homogeneous catalysts and enzymes. Chiral surfaces offer the possibility of developing heterogeneous enantioselective catalysts that can more readily be separated from the products and reused. In addition, such surfaces might serve as electrochemical sensors for chiral molecules. To date, chiral surfaces have been obtained by adsorbing chiral molecules or slicing single crystals so that they exhibit high-index faces, and some of these surfaces act as enantioselective heterogeneous catalysts. Here we show that chiral surfaces can also be produced through electrodeposition, a relatively simple solution-based process that resembles biomineralization in that organic molecules adsorbed on surfaces have profound effects on the morphology of the inorganic deposits. When electrodepositing a copper oxide film on an achiral gold surface in the presence of tartrate ion in the deposition solution, the chirality of the ion determines the chirality of the deposited film, which in turn determines the film's enantiospecificity during subsequent electrochemical oxidation reactions.     

Reconfigurable self-assembly through chiral control of interfacial tension

From determining the optical properties of simple molecular crystals to establishing the preferred handedness in highly complex vertebrates, molecular chirality profoundly influences the structural, mechanical and optical properties of both synthetic and biological matter on macroscopic length scales. In soft materials such as amphiphilic lipids and liquid crystals, the competition between local chiral interactions and global constraints imposed by the geometry of the self-assembled structures leads to frustration and the assembly of unique materials. An example of particular interest is smectic liquid crystals, where the two-dimensional layered geometry cannot support twist and chirality is consequently expelled to the edges in a manner analogous to the expulsion of a magnetic field from superconductors. Here we demonstrate a consequence of this geometric frustration that leads to a new design principle for the assembly of chiral molecules. Using a model system of colloidal membranes, we show that molecular chirality can control the interfacial tension, an important property of multi-component mixtures. This suggests an analogy between chiral twist, which is expelled to the edges of two-dimensional membranes, and amphiphilic surfactants, which are expelled to oil-water interfaces. As with surfactants, chiral control of interfacial tension drives the formation of many polymorphic assemblages such as twisted ribbons with linear and circular topologies, starfish membranes, and double and triple helices. Tuning molecular chirality in situ allows dynamical control of line tension, which powers polymorphic transitions between various chiral structures. These findings outline a general strategy for the assembly of reconfigurable chiral materials that can easily be moved, stretched, attached to one another and transformed between multiple conformational states, thus allowing precise assembly and nanosculpting of highly dynamical and designable materials with complex topologies.     

纯水相SEC法分离水溶性小金纳米簇的研究

以纯水为流动相,用PL aquagel-OH 40色谱柱与自动馏分收集器,在Agilent 1100高效液相色谱仪上,对巯基丁二酸(MSA)单层包裹的粒径约1-5 nm的水溶性小金纳米簇进行尺寸排阻色谱(SEC)分离,环境友好,操作简便,重现性好.TEM表征和粒径统计分析表明:在不同洗脱时间收集的金纳米簇馏分与相应的原始样品相比其粒径分布均得到改善,尺寸分布明显窄化.金纳米簇在所用色谱柱上的分离主要按尺寸排阻机制进行.     

手性联二萘侧基聚(3,3'-联咔唑对苯二腈)的合成及其聚集诱导发光和圆偏振发光性能研究

以手性联二萘(BINOL)取代的2, 3-二氟对苯二腈和3, 3'-联咔唑为单体,通过碳-氮偶联反应得到一对共轭聚合物(R)-P1和(S)-P1,并且通过1H NMR与13C NMR、凝胶渗透色谱(GPC)、热重分析(TGA)、荧光发射光谱(PL)、圆二色谱(CD)和圆偏振发光(CPL)光谱等对聚合物的化学结构、分子量、热稳定性以及光物理性质等进行了表征.结果表明:该聚合物具有明显的聚集诱导发光(AIE)性质;手性联二萘侧基能有效地诱导共轭主链的微环境,使该聚合物具有手性活性,且表现出CPL特性.     

[Co（sep）]^3＋,[co（ida）2]^—的合成,拆分及手性识别

本文研究了合成[Co(sep)]~(3+),u-fac-[Co(ida)_2]~-的实验条件,其中,sep=六氮杂双环二十碳烷,ida=亚氨基二乙酸根,光学折分及CD光谱表明[Co(sep)]~(3+)-[Co(ida)_]~-,[Co(en)_(ox)]~+-[Co(ida)_2]~-两手性识别体系的有利缔合离子对均是异手性的,通过对比类似络合物的手性识别,指出络阴离子内的张力大小对手性识别是有影响的。     

Three-dimensional atomic-scale structure of size-selected gold nanoclusters

An unambiguous determination of the three-dimensional structure of nanoparticles is challenging. Electron tomography requires a series of images taken for many different specimen orientations. This approach is ideal for stable and stationary structures. But ultrasmall nanoparticles are intrinsically structurally unstable and may interact with the incident electron beam, constraining the electron beam density that can be used and the duration of the observation. Here we use aberration-corrected scanning transmission electron microscopy, coupled with simple imaging simulation, to determine with atomic resolution the size, three-dimensional shape, orientation and atomic arrangement of size-selected gold nanoclusters that are preformed in the gas phase and soft-landed on an amorphous carbon substrate. The structures of gold nanoclusters containing 3096 atoms can be identified with either Ino-decahedral, cuboctahedral or icosahedral geometries. Comparison with theoretical modelling of the system suggests that the structures are consistent with energetic considerations. The discovery that nanoscale gold particles function as active and selective catalysts for a variety of important chemical reactions has provoked much research interest in recent years. We believe that the detailed structure information we provide will help to unravel the role of these nanoclusters in size- and structure-specific catalytic reactions. We note that the technique will be of use in investigations of other supported ultrasmall metal cluster systems.     

Chiral recognition in dimerization of adsorbed cysteine observed by scanning tunnelling microscopy

Stereochemistry plays a central role in controlling molecular recognition and interaction: the chemical and biological properties of molecules depend not only on the nature of their constituent atoms but also on how these atoms are positioned in space. Chiral specificity is consequently fundamental in chemical biology and pharmacology and has accordingly been widely studied. Advances in scanning probe microscopies now make it possible to probe chiral phenomena at surfaces at the molecular level. These methods have been used to determine the chirality of adsorbed molecules, and to provide direct evidence for chiral discrimination in molecular interactions and the spontaneous resolution of adsorbates into extended enantiomerically pure overlayers. Here we report scanning tunnelling microscopy studies of cysteine adsorbed to a (110) gold surface, which show that molecular pairs formed from a racemic mixture of this naturally occurring amino acid are exclusively homochiral, and that their binding to the gold surface is associated with local surface restructuring. Density-functional theory calculations indicate that the chiral specificity of the dimer formation process is driven by the optimization of three bonds on each cysteine molecule. These findings thus provide a clear molecular-level illustration of the well known three-point contact model for chiral recognition in a simple bimolecular system.