Publications by authors named "Zhi-hong Xu"

Cadmium (Cd) pollution poses a major threat to food safety. Sensitive detection of Cd is of great significance for the life health. Herein, an aggregation-induced electrochemiluminescence (AIECL) sensor based on polymer dots (Pdots) is designed for Cd detection.

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Intergroup competition for limited resources is a significant selection pressure that drives the evolution of animal society. The rhesus macaque (Macaca Mulatta) is the most widely distributed nonhuman primate in the world and can adapt well to environments disturbed by humans. In some areas, human provisioning provides ample food resources for rhesus macaques, leading to an increase in their population size, inevitably affecting competition patterns within and between groups.

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Article Synopsis
  • Peroxynitrite (ONOO) is a reactive molecule linked to various diseases, prompting the need for effective detection methods.
  • A new ratiometric fluorescence probe was developed for ONOO detection, featuring a boronate group and emitting distinct signals at 615 nm and 475 nm upon ONOO exposure.
  • The probe showed high sensitivity and selectivity with a low detection limit (11 nM) and demonstrated successful applications in imaging biological systems like live cells and zebrafish.
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Phosgene is a suffocating toxic gas that seriously threatens human health and public security. With this research, we developed a simple ratiometric fluorescent probe (1) bearing indole and benzimidazole moieties as the sensing sites and employed it for the aggregation-induced emission-based (AIE-based) detection of phosgene. It was the first time that the probe could detect phosgene in an almost pure aqueous solution (f = 99.

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Monitoring peroxynitrite (ONOO) fluctuations is particularly important for assessing pathological progression and oxidative damage due to their crucial role in maintaining the redox balance of organisms. However, due to the lack of efficient tools for differentially monitoring ONOO fluctuations at different concentration ranges in vivo, the precise detection of endogenous ONOO fluctuations under pathological conditions in living systems remains challenging. Herein, we rationally designed a double-enhanced emission cascade activatable near-infrared (NIR) fluorescent probe () for the measurement of ONOO, which consists of a borate ester response group and a malononitrile hemicyanine fluorophore.

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  • Rapid detection of glyphosate (GLP) is crucial for monitoring environmental pollution and human health risks.
  • This study develops carbon dots nanozymes (CDszymes) through a quick microwave method using expired drugs, which exhibit peroxidase-like activity for detecting GLP.
  • The detection methods achieved limits as low as 0.02 ng/mL for fluorescence, and the process is demonstrated using fruits and vegetables, highlighting a sustainable approach to utilizing expired medications.
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Single-atom nanozymes have garnered significant attention due to their exceptional atom utilization and ability to establish well-defined structure-activity relationships. However, conventional pyrolytic synthesis methods pose challenges such as high energy consumption and random local environments at the active sites, while achieving non-pyrolytic synthesis of single-atom nanozymes remains a formidable technical hurdle. The present study focuses on the synthesis of laccase-like iron-based single-atom nanozymes (Fe-SAzymes) using a non-pyrolysis method facilitated by microwave irradiation.

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To evaluate the impact of neoadjuvant chemotherapy on perioperative immune function in breast cancer patients, focusing on CD3, CD4, CD8, and natural killer (NK) cells, as well as the CD4/CD8 ratio. We retrospectively reviewed medical records of breast cancer patients who underwent surgery with or without neoadjuvant chemotherapy at our medical center from January 2020 to December 2022. Patients were matched 1:1 based on propensity scores.

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Iron-anchored nitrogen/doped carbon single-atom nanozymes (Fe-N/C), which possess homogeneous active sites and adjustable catalytic environment, represent an exemplary model for investigating the structure-function relationship and catalytic activity. However, the development of pyrolysis-free synthesis technique for Fe-N/C with adjustable enzyme-mimicking activity still presents a significant challenge. Herein, Fe-N/C anchored three carrier morphologies were created via a pyrolysis-free approach by covalent organic polymers.

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The Golgi apparatus is an essential organelle constructed by the stacking of flattened vesicles, that is widely distributed in eukaryotic cells and is dynamically regulated during cell cycles. It is a central station which is responsible for collecting, processing, sorting, transporting, and secreting some important proteins/enzymes from the endoplasmic reticulum to intra- and extra-cellular destinations. Golgi-specific fluorescent probes provide powerful non-invasive tools for the real-time and visualization of the temporal and spatial fluctuations of bioactive species.

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Thalassemia is most widely distributed single gene autosome recessive genetic disease in the world, whose clinical manifestation was changed from asymptomatic anemia to severe anemia requiring continous blood transfusion to maintain life, thus resulting in a serious economic burden to society and families. Therefore, it is necessary to carry out the corresponding prentatal screening and diagnosis. Most of the conventional detection methods can only detect the common thalassemia genotype, it can easy to cause misdiagnosis or missed diagnosis for those rate genetic variantions.

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Article Synopsis
  • - The study focuses on peroxynitrite (ONOO), a reactive oxygen species that is important in various cell functions and can affect health and disease.
  • - Researchers developed a new ratiometric fluorescent probe called BDHCA, which specifically reacts with ONOO to produce a measurable fluorescent signal.
  • - The BDHCA probe is selective, fast, and sensitive for ONOO detection (with a limit of 50.3 nM) and can successfully image ONOO levels in live cells and zebrafish.
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As a significant kind of reactive oxygen species (ROS), peroxynitrite (ONOO) plays an indispensable role in many physiological and pathological processes. This study aimed to synthesize a novel dihydro-benzo[4,5]imidazo[1,2-]quinazoline-based probe 1 for detecting ONOO. In 99.

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An inorganic-organic hybrid probe MP-ZIF-90 was synthesized a simple condensation reaction based on the free CHO groups of zeolitic imidazolate framework-90 (ZIF-90) and 4-methyl-1-(4-(4,4,5,5-tetramethyl-1,3,2-dioxaborolan-2-yl)benzyl)pyridinium bromide (MP). This probe exhibited intense green emission, which was selectively quenched by the addition of ClO anions. The response of probe MP-ZIF-90 toward ClO was rapid (within 20 s) and sensitive, with a limit of detection (LOD) of 0.

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A plant can be thought of as a colony comprising numerous growth buds, each developing to its own rhythm. Such lack of synchrony impedes efforts to describe core principles of plant morphogenesis, dissect the underlying mechanisms, and identify regulators. Here, we use the minimalist known angiosperm to overcome this challenge and provide a model system for plant morphogenesis.

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Hypochlorite (ClO) is a ROS that plays a crucial role in the immune system in the body. As the largest organelle in the cell, the endoplasmic reticulum (ER) manages various life activities. Thus, a simple hydrazone-based probe was designed, which provided a fast turn-on fluorescent response toward ClO.

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The microenvironments of biological systems are associated with the pathology of organisms. This study, aimed to construct a hemicyanine-based probe (1), which can respond to mitochondrial viscosity and hydrazine (NH), for imaging application in living cells and zebrafish. The probe showed no fluorescence due to the intramolecular rotation in the solution; however, it exhibited a strong emission at 730 nm when the molecules were restricted to a high-viscosity environment.

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Our continuous study of the dry fruits of Garcinia xanthochymus led to the isolation and structural characterization of four new prenylated acylphloroglucinols, xanthochymusones J-M (1-4), together with the known polycyclic polyprenylated acylphloroglucinols, garciniagifolone A (5) and garcinialiptone A (6). Their structures were elucidated by interpretation of NMR and MS spectroscopic data. Compound 1 bearing a similar core to that of hulupinic acid should be derived via oxidization and ring contraction of prenylated acylphloroglucinol.

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Hypochlorite (ClO) plays an important role in the human immune defense system, but high concentrations of ClO in the endoplasmic reticulum (ER) damage cellular proteins, causing ER stress, cell death, and various diseases. Herein, we developed a simple hydrazone probe (1) featuring aggregation-induced ratiometric emission, which would quickly (within 20 s) and sensitively (detection limit of 15.4 μM) respond to ClO in an almost pure aqueous solution via a fluorescent ratiometric output.

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Article Synopsis
  • - The study isolated and characterized 21 type B polycyclic polyprenylated acylphloroglucinols (PPAPs) from certain fruits, including new compounds named xanthochymusones A-I, and faced challenges in determining the correct configurations of their lavandulyl-derived side chains.
  • - Researchers assigned the relative configuration at a key stereocenter (C-30) using various methods, such as chemical transformations and NMR analysis, revealing that not all PPAPs share the same configuration at this point.
  • - The antiproliferative activity of these PPAPs was tested on three human liver cancer cell lines, with some compounds showing moderate effectiveness, inducing apoptosis, and inhibiting
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In this paper, highly fluorescent carbon dots were synthesized from sodium ascorbate and polyethyleneimine at room temperature (R-CDs). The proposed green synthesis method was energy-saving, environmentally friendly and easy online. R-CDs exhibit an optimal emission peak of 490 nm under excitation at 380 nm with a quantum yield of 32 %.

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Total antioxidant capacity (TAC) is an important indicator for evaluating oxidative stress of the human body. Since TAC is related to the concentration of reducing substances, it can be detected by using peroxidase-like or oxidase-like activity of nanozyme materials. In this work, the cobalt and nitrogen co-doped carbon dots (Co/N-CDs) are fabricated for building stability and high peroxidase-like nanozyme through the Box-Behnken design of response surface methodology.

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Hydrazine (NH) is carcinogenic, extremely toxic, and induces serious environmental contamination and physiological dysfunction; however, it is widely used as an industrial material. Hence, the development of a simple and effective analytical method to detect NH detection in both environmental and biological sectors is warranted. In this work, an intramolecular charge transfer (ICT)-based fluorescent probe 1, namely (Z)- 1-(4-acetoxybenzyl)- 4-(1-cyano-2-(7-(diethylamino)- 2-oxo-2 H-chromen-3-yl)vinyl)pyridin-1-ium, was designed for dual-excitation (420 and 600 nm, excitation separations >160 nm), near infrared (NIR)-emissive, and ratiometric fluorescent detection of NH.

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Abnormal increases in glucagon (GCG) are the primary cause of type II diabetes mellitus. When GCG interacts with a glucagon receptor (GCGR), GCG can increase the blood glucose level. In this paper, a compound that could interfere with the binding of GCG and GCGR to inhibit the increase of blood glucose was investigated.

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