Discriminative detection of soman or VX exposure using europium chelated microparticle-based immunofluorescence microfluidic chip.

The retrospective detection of organophosphorus nerve agents (OPNAs) exposure has been achieved by the off-site analysis of OPNA-human serum albumin (HSA) adducts using mass spectrometry-based detection approaches. However, few specific methods are accessible for on-site detection. To address this, a novel immunofluorescence microfluidic chip (IFMC) testing system combining europium chelated microparticle (EuCM) with self-driven microfluidic chip assay has been established to unambiguously determine soman (GD) and VX exposure within 20 min, respectively.

A protein standard absolute quantification strategy for enhanced absolute quantification of ricin in complex matrices using in vitro synthesized mutant holoprotein as internal standard by ultra-high-performance liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry.

Ricin is a highly toxic protein toxin that poses a potential bioterrorism threat due to its potency and widespread availability. However, the accurate quantification of ricin through absolute mass spectrometry (MS) using a protein standard absolute quantification (PSAQ) strategy is not widely practiced. This limitation primarily arises from the presence of interchain disulfide bonds, which hinder the production of full-length isotope-labeled ricin as an internal standard (IS) in vitro.

Folic acid modified copper nanoclusters for fluorescent imaging of cancer cells with over-expressed folate receptor.

Water-soluble and functional copper nanoclusters (CuNCs) were prepared by using folic acid (FA) that serves both as a reducing reagent and a stabilizer. FA also acts as a functional ligand on the surface of the CuNCs, and this can be exploited to target the folate receptor which is over-expressed on the surface of HeLa cells. The FA-modified CuNCs nanoclusters have an average size of ca.

Protein-Stabilized Gadolinium Oxide-Gold Nanoclusters Hybrid for Multimodal Imaging and Drug Delivery.

A protein-stabilized multifunctional theranostic nanoplatform, gadolinium oxide-gold nanoclusters hybrid (GdO-AuNCs), is constructed for multimodal imaging and drug delivery. The GdO-AuNCs nanohybrid is developed by integrating GdO nanocrystals and gold nanoclusters into bovine serum albumin scaffold as a stabilizer. The nanohybrid exhibits favorable biocompatibility and is capable of enhancing the contrast in magnetic resonance and X-ray computed tomography imaging.

Green preparation of carbon dots for intracellular pH sensing and multicolor live cell imaging.

Carbon dots are prepared using a green hydrothermal approach with dehydrated shiitake mushroom as the sole carbon source without any additives (these carbon dots are shortly termed as MCDs). Carbonization, surface functionalization and nitrogen doping are involved in the hydrothermal treatment and no further modification or surface passivation is necessary. The derived MCDs are nitrogen-doped, oxygen-rich with hydroxyl, carboxyl and amine groups, with a diameter of ca.

Hydrophobic Carbon Nanodots with Rapid Cell Penetrability and Tunable Photoluminescence Behavior for in Vitro and in Vivo Imaging.

Tunable fluorescent emission and applications in both in vitro and in vivo imaging of hydrophobic carbon nanodots (CNDs) with rapid penetration capability are reported. The hydrophobic CNDs are prepared via hydrothermal treatment of ionic liquid 1-ethyl-3-methylimidazolium bromide and exhibit excitation-dependent photoluminescence behavior along with a red-shift in the excitation/emission maxima with concentration. The quantum yields of the as-prepared CNDs are in the range of 2.