Folic acid incorporated nitrogen-doped carbon dots as a turn-on fluorescence probe for homocysteine detection.

This study describes the development of a low-cost fluorescence assay for detecting homocysteine (Hcy) without the interference of cysteine and glutathione using carbon quantum dots. Herein nitrogen-doped carbon quantum dots (NCDs) were synthesized from citric acid as the carbon source and urea as the dopant using a one-pot microwave-assisted method. The obtained NCDs were incorporated with folic acid (FA) by the direct ex situ addition method and were used as a fluorescence probe to detect Hcy. The probe exhibited a fluorescence turn-on response with increased Hcy concentration up to 50 µM with a limit of detection of 2.276 µM. The point of care detection of Hcy using the probe was also tested with a paper-based assay strip.

Carbamate Formation in the System (2-Methylpiperidine + Carbon Dioxide) by Raman Spectroscopy and X-ray Diffraction.

In aqueous solution, 2-methylpiperine (2-MP) has been proposed as a phase-separating amine for carbon-capture applications, whose carbamate is considered to be unstable due to steric hindrance. This paper demonstrates, for the first time, that the carbamate can be synthesized as the salt of the 2-methylpiperidinium cation (2-MPH+) and the 2-methylpiperidine- N-carboxylate anion (2-MPCOO-) by adding carbon dioxide gas to anhydrous liquid 2-MP at CO2/amine ratios α > 0.32 to yield well-defined prismatic crystals. Raman spectra have been measured for anhydrous liquid 2-MP and aqueous solutions of 2-MP and 2-MPH+Cl- at 298 K. The spectra of anhydrous liquid 2-MP, containing dissolved CO2 at lower CO2/amine ratios,. clearly showed the presence of 2-MPH+ and several unidentified bands that were attributed to the carbamate, 2-MPCOO-. Quantum chemical calculations at the B3LYP/6-311++G(d,p) level of theory yielded simulated Raman spectra consistent with the experimental spectra. The spectra show the methyl group of both liquid and aqueous 2-MP and that of aqueous 2-MPH+Cl- to be in the equatorial position. The crystal structure shows the same conformations in the solid state and confirms that Raman spectroscopy can be used to determine the conformation of 2-MP species in the liquid state and aqueous solutions.

Surface Engineered Ho3+ Incorporated Fluorescent Dye-Doped Bifunctional Silica Nanoparticles for Receptor Targeted Fluorescence Imaging and Potential Magnetic Resonance Imaging.

The authors report Ho3+ ion incorporated and fluorescent dye-doped silica nanoparticles which are engineered to enable the imaging modalities of receptor targeted fluorescence imaging (FI) and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). The silica nanoparticles synthesized through a modified Stöber method is luminomagnetic by virtue of the luminescence of organic dye fluorophore (FITC) and magnetism of Ho3+. The doping concentration of Ho3+ is estimated by inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS) as 0.97%. The presence of Ho3+ has a little effect on the luminescence intensity but impart strong paramagnetism of 27.217 emu/g at room temperature. The relaxivity measurements shown that the nanoparticles exhibit a longitudinal relaxivity (r1) of 0.12 s-1 mM-1 and transverse relaxivity (r2) of 26.96 s-1 mM-1, which makes the system potentially suitable for developing T2 MRI contrast agents based on holmium. The luminomagnetic nanoparticles were surface engineered through aminization and conjugated with folic acid (FA) to address the folate receptor targeted imaging of the cancer cells. The biocompatibility studies revealed no apparent toxicity even at higher doses of 750 µg/mL and at 48 h of incubation. The as prepared nanoparticles were demonstrated as a bioimaging probe in the in vitro receptor targeted fluorescence imaging of HeLa cells. The luminescence and magnetism together with biocompatibility enables the adaptability of the present system as a nano platform for potential bimodal imaging. Graphical Abstract ᅟ.

Pyoderma gangrenosum in association with microscopic colitis, idiopathic hypereosinophilic syndrome, selective IgE deficiency and diabetes mellitus.

Pyoderma gangrenosum (PG) is a neutrophilic dermatosis of unknown aetiology. We report a 27-year-old male patient with diabetes, who presented with a nonhealing ulcer on the left leg, pruritic hyperpigmented papules distributed over the trunk and limbs, and chronic diarrhoea. He had eosinophilia, low haemoglobin and serum IgE levels, and raised erythrocyte sedimentation rate. Histopathology of the leg ulcer was consistent with the diagnosis of PG, while the histology of the hyperpigmented papule revealed tissue eosinophilia. Subsequent evaluation was conclusive of the diagnosis of PG, idiopathic hypereosinophilic syndrome (IHES) and selective IgE deficiency. Dexamethasone pulse therapy achieved resolution of the ulcer and reduction in the eosinophilia. Further evaluation for the persistent diarrhoea led to a diagnosis of lymphocytic colitis (LC), which responded to budesonide. To our knowledge, the association of PG with IHES, selective IgE deficiency or LC has not been previously reported.