In situ polymerization of monolith based on poly(Triallyl Isocyanurate-co-trimethylolpropane triacrylate) and its application in high-performance liquid chromatography.

A novel organic monolithic stationary phase was prepared for high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) by in situ copolymerization. In which, triallyl isocyanurate (TAIC) and trimethylolpropane triacrylate (TMPTA) in a binary porogenic solvent consisting of polyethylene glycol 200 and 1, 2-propanediol were used. The resultant monoliths with different column properties (e.g., morphology and pressure) were optimized by adjusting the ratio of TMPTA/TAIC and the composition of porogenic solvent. The resulting poly(TAIC-co-TMPTA) monolith showed a relatively homogeneous structure, good permeability and mechanical stability. The chemical group of the monolith was assayed by the infrared spectra method, the morphology of monolithic material was studied by scanning electron microscopy and the pore size distribution was determined by a mercury porosimeter. A series of small molecules were used to evaluate the column performance in terms of hydrophobic mode. At an optimized flow rate of 1.0 mL min(-1), the theoretical plate number of analyte was >15,000 plates m(-1). These applications demonstrated that the monoliths could be successfully used as the stationary phase in conjunction with HPLC to separate small molecules from the mixture.

One-pot three-component synthesis of 3-hydroxy-5,5-dimethyl-2-[phenyl(phenylthio)methyl]cyclohex-2-enone derivatives under ultrasound.

3-Hydroxy-5,5-dimethyl-2-[phenyl(phenylthio)methyl]cyclohex-2-enone is synthesized via one-pot three-component reactions of aromatic aldehyde, substituted thiophenol and 5,5-dimethyl-1,3-cyclohexanedione catalyzed by p-dodecylbenzene sulfonic acid (DBSA) under ultrasound. Under ultrasound irradiation the yields are much higher (sometimes substantially, by almost double) and the reaction time decreases substantially, the reaction conditions are milder. This method provides several advantages such as environment friendliness, high yields and simple work-up procedure and the protocol provides a novel alternative for the synthesis of thioether.

[Design, synthesis and activity of N-acyl-thiochromenothiazol-2-amine as acetylcholinesterase inhibitors].

A series of novel N-acyl-thiochromenothiazol-2-amine derivatives were designed and synthesized, furthermore, their inhibition effect on acetylcholinesterase was investigated. N-Acyl-thiochromenothiazol-2-amines were prepared from thiophenol by Hantzsch reaction, acylation reaction and substitution reaction. Moreover, their bioactivities as AChE inhibitors in vitro were measured with Ellman spectrophotometry. The results showed that most of them had a certain inhibition activity on AChE, and the compound 10a was the best in them. The IC50 of 10a to AChE is 7.92 µmol x L(-1), and the value is better than that of rivastigmine. N-Acyl-thiochromenothiazol-2-amine derivatives showed a certain bioactivity in vitro, which were worth further investigation.

[Design, synthesis and evaluation of N-acyl-4-phenylthiazole-2-amines as acetylcholinesterase inhibitors].

N-Acyl-4-phenylthiazole-2-amines were designed and synthesized, moreover their effects on acetylcholinesterase activities were tested. N-Acyl-4-phenylthiazole-2-amines were prepared from substituted 2-bromo-1-acetophenones by three steps reaction, and their AChE inhibitory activities were measured by Ellman method in vitro. The results showed that the target compounds had a certain inhibitory activity on AChE in vitro. Among them, 8c was the best, and IC50 of 8c was 0.51 micromol x L(-1), better than that of rivastigmine and Huperzine-A. The inhibitory activities of N-acyl-4-phenylthiazole-2-amines on acetylcholinesterase are worth while to be further studied.

[Design, synthesis and evaluation of new acetylcholinesterase inhibitors].

A series of novel 2-amino-4-phenylthiazole derivatives were designed and synthesized, furthermore, their inhibition effect on acetylcholinesterase were investigated. 2-Amino-4-phenylthiazoles were prepared from alpha-bromoacetophenones by Hantzsch reaction, acylation reaction and substitution reaction. Moreover, their bioactivities as AChE inhibitors in vitro were measured with Ellman spectrophotometry. The results showed that most of them had a certain inhibition activity on AChE, and the compound 8a was the best of them. The IC50 of 8a to AChE is 3.54 micromol x L(-1), and the value was better than that of rivastigmine. 2-Amino-4-phenylthiazole derivatives showed a certain bioactivity in vitro, which were worth further investigation.

Synergism and rules of the new combination drug Yiqijiedu formulae (YQJD) on ischemic stroke based on amino acids (AAs) metabolism.

The use of combination drugs is considered to be a promising strategy to control complex diseases such as ischemic stroke. The detection of metabolites has been used as a versatile tool to reveal the potential mechanism of diverse diseases. In this study, the levels of 12 endogenous AAs were simultaneously determined quantitatively in the MCAO rat brain using RRLC-QQQ method. Seven AAs were chosen as the potential biomarkers, and using PLS-DA analysis, the effects of the new combination drug YQJD, which is composed of ginsenosides, berberine, and jasminoidin, on those 7 AAs were evaluated. Four AAs, glutamic acid, homocysteine, methionine, and tryptophan, which changed significantly in the YQJD-treated groups compared to the vehicle groups (P < 0.05), were identified and designated as the AAs to use to further explore the synergism of YQJD. The result of a PCA showed that the combination of these three drugs exhibits the strongest synergistic effect compared to other combination groups and that ginsenosides might play a pivotal role, especially when combined with jasminoidin. We successfully explored the synergetic mechanism of multi-component and provided a new method for evaluating the integrated effects of combination drugs in the treatment of complex diseases.

DNA binding property and antitumor evaluation of xanthone with dimethylamine side chain.

In this work, a xanthone derivative was obtained by cationic modification of the free hydroxyl group of xanthone with dimethylamine group of high pKa value. The interactions of xanthones with DNA were investigated by spectroscopic methods, electrophoretic migration assay and polymerase chain reaction test. Results indicate that xanthones can intercalate into the DNA base pairs by the hydrophobic plane and the xanthone with dimethylamine side chain may also bind the DNA phosphate framework by the basic amine alkyl chain, thus showing a better DNA binding ability than the xanthone. Furthermore, inhibition on tumor cells (ECA109, SGC7901, GLC-82) proliferation of xanthones were evaluated by MTT method. Analysis results show that the xanthone with dimethylamine side chain exhibits more effective inhibition activity against three cancer cells than the xanthone. The effects on the inhibition of tumor cells in vitro agree with the studies of DNA binding. It means that the amine alkyl chain would play an important role in its antitumor activity and DNA binding property.

Dispersive solid-phase extraction based on magnetic dummy molecularly imprinted microspheres for selective screening of phthalates in plastic bottled beverages.

A new magnetic dummy molecularly imprinted dispersive solid-phase extraction (MAG-MIM-dSPE) coupled with gas chromatography-FID was developed for selective determination of phthalates in plastic bottled beverages. The new magnetic dummy molecularly imprinted microspheres (MAG-MIM) using diisononyl phthalate as a template mimic were synthesized by coprecipitation coupled with aqueous suspension polymerization and were successfully applied as the adsorbents for MAG-MIM-dSPE to extract and isolate five phthalates from plastic bottled beverages. Validation experiments showed that the MAG-MIM-dSPE method had good linearity at 0.0040-0.40 µg/mL (0.9991-0.9998), good precision (3.1-6.9%), and high recovery (89.5-101.3%), and limits of detection were obtained in a range of 0.53-1.2 µg/L. The presented MAG-MIM-dSPE method combines the quick separation of magnetic particles, special selectivity of MIM, and high extraction efficiency of dSPE, which could potentially be applied to selective screening of phthalates in beverage products.

Preparation and characterization of poly(triallyl isocyanurate-co-trimethylolpropane triacrylate) monolith and its applications in the separation of small molecules by liquid chromatography.

A new polymeric monolith was prepared in stainless-steel column and fused-silica capillary, respectively, by atom transfer radical polymerization technique. In the polymerization, triallyl isocyanurate (TAIC) was used as the functional monomer; trimethylolpropane triacrylate (TMPTA) as the crosslinking agent; polyethylene glycol 200 and 1,2-propanediol as the co-porogens; carbon tetrachloride as the initiator and ferrous chloride as the catalyst. The conditions of polymerization were optimized. Morphology of the prepared poly(TAIC-co-TMPTA) monolith was investigated by scanning electron microscopy; pore properties were assayed by mercury porosimetry and nitrogen adsorption. The characterization indicated that the prepared reversed-phase monolith possessed uniform structure, good permeability and mechanical stability. The column was used as the stationary phase of reversed phase high performance liquid chromatography (RP-HPLC) and capillary liquid chromatography (CLC) to separate the mixture of aromatic compounds. The new column performed around 125,000 theoretical plates per meter. The column showed good reproducibility: the relative standard deviation values of the retention factor values for aromatic compounds were less than 1.52% (n=7, column-to-column).

Preparation of a tetrazolyl monolithic column via the combination of ATRP and click chemistry for the separation of proteins.

Tetrazolyl monolithic column is first prepared through the combination of atom transfer radical polymerization (ATRP) and "click chemistry" technique. In the ATRP fabrication process, vinyl ester resin is used as both the monomer and the cross-linking agent, and cetyl alcohol is used as the porogen, carbon tetrachloride as the initiator and ferrous chloride as the catalyst. The monolith is modified by click chemistry, which forms the tetrazolyl monolithic column. The chemical group of the prepared monolith is assayed by infrared spectroscopy, and its internal morphology is investigated by scanning electron microscopy. The pore size distribution is determined by a mercury porosimeter. What is more, the monolithic column was used as the stationary phase during high-performance liquid chromatography. Moreover, the monolith is used to separate lysozyme (Lys) from egg whites in a short time period (4 min). At the same time, the influences of buffer concentration and pH value on the elution of Lys are investigated. In addition, human serum albumin is successfully separated from human plasma by the prepared monoliths. The results show that click chemistry is an efficient method to modify the monoliths prepared by ATRP.

Preparation of a novel porous poly (trimethylol propane triacrylate-co-ethylene dimethacrylate) monolithic column for highly efficient HPLC separations of small molecules.

A novel poly (trimethylol propane triacrylate-co-ethylene dimethacrylate) [poly (TMPTA-co-EDMA)] monolith was prepared by in situ free-radical polymerization in a 50 mm × 4.6mm i.d. stainless steel column and was investigated for high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC). The porous structure of monolith was optimized by changing the conditions of polymerization. The chemical group of the monolithic column was confirmed by a Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR) method and the morphology of column structure was characterized by scanning electron microscopy (SEM). The mechanical strength and permeability were also studied. Finally, a series of low-molecular-weight organic compounds were utilized to evaluate the retention behaviors of the monolithic column. The result demonstrated that the prepared column exhibited an RP-chromatographic behavior and good separation performance. The method reproducibility was obtained by evaluating the run-to-run and column-to-column with relative standard deviations (RSDs) less than 0.7% (n=6) and 2.9% (n=6), respectively, which indicated that prepared monolithic columns had good reproducibility and stability.

High-performance liquid chromatography separation of small molecules on a porous poly (trimethylol propane triacrylate-co-N-isopropylacrylamide-co-ethylene dimethacrylate) monolithic column.

A porous monolith was prepared by in situ free-radical polymerization using N-isopropylacrylamide (NIPAAm) and trimethylol propane triacrylate (TMPTA) as functional monomers, ethylene dimethacrylate (EDMA) as crosslinking agent. The chemical group of the monolith was assayed by a Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR) method and the morphology of optimized monolithic column was characterized by scanning electron microscopy (SEM). The mechanical strength and permeability have been studied in detail as well. The run-to-run and column-to-column reproducibility of the retention times were less than 0.9% and 3.0%, respectively. Furthermore, the influence of temperature and mobile phase composition on the separation of aromatic compounds was investigated. The results indicated that poly (trimethylol propane triacrylate-co-N-isopropylacrylamide-co-ethylenedimethacrylate) (TMPTA-co-NIPAAm-co-EDMA) monolithic column not only had high porosity and strong rigidity, but also was a promising tool for analyzing small molecule compounds with a short analysis time by controlling the column temperature.

Synthesis and pharmacological evaluation of novel bisindolylalkanes analogues.

In an effort to develop potent anti-cancer chemopreventive agents that act on topoisomerase II, a novel series of bisindolylalkanes analogues such as 3,3'-(thiochroman-4,4-diyl)bis(1H-indole) are synthesized. Structures of all compounds are elucidated by (1)H NMR, (13)C NMR and HRMS. Anti-proliferative activities for all of these compounds are investigated by the method of MTT assay on 7 human cancer lines. Most of them showed antitumor activities in vitro, the half maximal inhibitory concentration (IC50) value is 7.798 µg/mL of 3a against MCF7. Compound 3a showed comparable topoisomerase II inhibitory activity to etoposide (VP-16) at 100 µM concentration. The rest of the compounds also showed varying degree topoisomerase II inhibitory activity.

[Applications of polymeric monoliths in separation of bio-macromolecules].

In recent years, the applications of high performance liquid chromatographic polymeric monoliths in the separation of macromolecules have been developed. In the review, the characters and new developments of bio-macromolecules separation by using the polymeric monoliths, combining with the works in our laboratory are summarized. Moreover, related influential reports are referred.

Analysis of serum metabolites for the discovery of amino acid biomarkers and the effect of galangin on cerebral ischemia.

Ischemic stroke, a devastating disease with a complex pathophysiology, is a leading cause of death and disability worldwide. In our previous study, we reported that galangin provided direct protection against ischemic injury and acted as a potential neuroprotective agent. However, its associated neuroprotective mechanism has not yet been clarified. In this paper, we explored the potential AA biomarkers in the acute phase of cerebral ischemia and the effect of galangin on those potential biomarkers. In our study, 12 AAs were quantified in rat serum and found to be impaired by middle cerebral artery occlusion (MCAO)-induced focal cerebral ischemia. Using partial least squares discriminate analysis (PLS-DA), we identified the following amino acids as potential biomarkers of cerebral ischemia: glutamic acid (Glu), homocysteine (Hcy), methionine (Met), tryptophan (Trp), aspartic acid (Asp), alanine (Ala) and tyrosine (Tyr). Moreover, four amino acids (Hcy, Met, Glu and Trp) showed significant change in galangin-treated (100 and 50 mg kg(-1)) groups compared to vehicle groups. Furthermore, we identified three pathway-related enzymes tyrosine aminotransferase (TAT), glutamine synthetase (GLUL) and monocarboxylate transporter (SLC16A10) by multiplex interactions with Glu and Hcy, which have been previously reported to be closely related to cerebral ischemia. Through an analysis of the metabolite-protein network analysis, we identified 16 proteins that were associated with two amino acids by multiple interactions with three enzymes; five of them may become potential biomarkers of galangin for acute ischemic stroke as the result of molecule docking. Our results may help develop novel strategies to explore the mechanism of cerebral ischemia, discover potential targets for drug candidates and elucidate the related regulatory signal network.

[Determination of endogenous amino acids in brain tissues after cerebral ischemia by RRLC-QQQ].

OBJECTIVE: To establish a method to determine underivatized endogenous amino acids in brain tissues after cerebral ischemia based on RRLC-QQQ. METHOD: Diamonsil chromatographic column C18 (4.6 mm x 250 mm, 5 microm) was adopted to determine 12 amino acids in 15 min, with acetonitrile-0.1% formic acid for gradient elution. The flow rate was set at 0.5 mL x min(-1). With ESI as the ion source, positive ion scanning mode was adopted for multi-reaction monitoring. RESULT: Each amino acid standard curve (AAs) showed good linear relationship within the detection range (r > 0.996), with the limit of detection of less than 11%, the limit of quantitation of less than 3.09 microg x L(-1). The RSD of intra- and inter-day precisions at high, middle and low concentrations were less than 11%. CONCLUSION: The determination results of actual samples showed that compared with the levels of AAs of the sham operation group, all of the remaining amino acids apart from N-acetyl-aspartate increased in brain tissues. Some amino acids showed significant changes in a time-dependent manner after the operation. The method is so simple, rapid and sensitive that it can be used for finding biological metabolite markers of cerebral ischemia, and exploring cerebral ischemia molecular mechanisms and synergistic mechanism of combined administration of multi-component traditional Chinese medicines.

The fabrication of monolithic capillary column based on poly (bisphenol A epoxy vinyl ester resin-co-ethylene glycol dimethacrylate) and its applications for the separation of small molecules in high performance liquid chromatography.

A new polymeric monolith was synthesized in fused-silica capillary by in situ polymerization technique. In the polymerization, bisphenol A epoxy vinyl ester resin (VER) was used as the functional monomer, ethylene glycol dimethacrylate (EDMA) as the crosslinking monomer, 1,4-butanediol, 1-propanol and water as the co-porogens, and azobisisobutyronitrile (AIBN) as the initiator. The conditions of polymerization have been optimized. Morphology of the prepared poly (VER-co-EDMA) monolith was investigated by the scanning electron microscopy (SEM); pore properties were assayed by mercury porosimetry and nitrogen adsorption. The optimized poly (VER-co-EDMA) monolith showed a uniform structure, good permeability and mechanical stability. Then, the column was used as the stationary phase of high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) to separate the mixture of benzene derivatives. The best column efficiency achieved for phenol was 235790 theoretical plates per meter. Baseline separations of benzene derivatives and halogenated benzene compounds under optimized isocratic mode conditions were achieved with high column efficiency. The column showed good reproducibility: the relative standard deviation (RSD) values based on the retention times (n=3) for run-to-run, column-to-column and batch-to-batch were less than 0.98, 1.68, 5.48%, respectively. Compared with poly (BMA-co-EDMA) monolithic column, the proposed monolith exhibited more efficiency in the separation of small molecules.

On-line solid phase extraction using organic-inorganic hybrid monolithic columns for the determination of trace ß-lactam antibiotics in milk and water samples.

A rapid and simple method with on-line solid phase extraction (SPE) has been developed for the simultaneous determination of beta-lactam antibiotics (BLAs) (amoxicillin, cephradine, and cefazolin sodium) in aquatic environment and milk. The epoxy-based organic-inorganic hybrid monolithic column was used as SPE sorbent to simultaneously monitor three analytes. The morphology of monolithic column and pressure drop across the columns were characterized. Excellent permeability and high selectivity were obtained. The linear range of the standard curve was from 2.0 to 500 ng/mL (r(2)≥0.999). Precision for inter- and intra-day assay showed acceptable results for quantitative assay with relative standard deviation (RSD) less than 11%. The accuracy and recovery were found to be within the range of 93-103% and 83-105%. The results indicated that the prepared monolithic column could provide excellent reproducibility and implied that the prepared monolith was feasible to be used as an on-line SPE sorbent material.

An ion-pair principle for enantioseparations of basic analytes by nonaqueous capillary electrophoresis using the di-n-butyl L-tartrate-boric acid complex as chiral selector.

A chiral recognition mechanism of ion-pair principle has been proposed in this study. It rationalized the enantioseparations of some basic analytes using the complex of di-n-butyl l-tartrate and boric acid as the chiral selector in methanolic background electrolytes (BGEs) by nonaqueous capillary electrophoresis (NACE). An approach of mass spectrometer (MS) directly confirmed that triethylamine promoted the formation of negatively charged di-n-butyl l-tartrate-boric acid complex chiral counter ion with a complex ratio of 2:1. And the negatively charged counter ion was the real chiral selector in the ion-pair principle enantioseparations. It was assumed that triethylamine should play its role by adjusting the apparent acidity (pH*) of the running buffer to a higher value. Consequently, the effects of various basic electrolytes including inorganic and organic ones on the enantioseparations in NACE were investigated. The results showed that most of the basic electrolytes tested were favorable for the enantioseparations of basic analytes using di-n-butyl l-tartrate-boric acid complex as the chiral ion-pair selector.

[Advance of studies on metabolic fingerprinting analytical techniques and data processing methods].

Metabolomics is an emerging discipline subsequent to genomics, transcriptomics and proteomics, aiming for systematically studying the regularity of changes in metabolite to revealing organism's nature of movement and metabolism. It is especially important in modern pharmacological studies. Metabolic fingerprinting analysis is a method for metabolic analysis on high throughput of all metabolites, studying changes in drugs, organisms and endogenic metabolites caused by drugs and finding out related biomarkers to reflect dynamic changes inside organisms more directly and explain the mechanism of drugs and their effects on diseases. This essay summarizes some new metabolic fingerprint analytical methods and data processing methods used for metabolic fingerprint, elaborates their advantages and disadvantages and looks ahead to their combination with studies on traditional Chinese medicines, providing room for the development of new methods and new approaches for studies on complexity theory system of traditional Chinese medicines.