Publications by authors named "Zichun Qi"

Article Synopsis
  • Intracellular protein delivery has significant potential in cell biology and medicine, aiding in areas like bioimaging, disease treatment, and genome editing.* -
  • Researchers successfully delivered the functional protein cytochrome c (CYC) into lipid vesicles and live cells using a boron cluster anion carrier, achieving a cellular uptake rate of nearly 90%.* -
  • The method allowed CYC to enter the cytoplasm directly while maintaining its biological activity, showing a 25% increase in cell apoptosis at a low dose, highlighting the efficiency of inorganic cluster ions as protein delivery tools for future applications.*
View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Elevated hydrogen peroxide (HO) levels not only inflict cellular damage but also serve as a harbinger for various diseases. Tumor cells, in particular, often exhibit an abundance of HO. Hence, the detection of this pivotal molecule assumes paramount importance in monitoring physiological states and expediting cancer diagnosis.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Though the heparin-protamine complex (HP complex) is a crucial system utilized in clinical settings, the metabolic pathways of this complex remain inadequately understood. Herein, the enzymatic degradation of the heparin-protamine complex by trypsin and its broader implications were investigated. By utilizing fluorescent gold nanoclusters liganded with the HP complex (AuNCs-HP complex), we observed significant morphological and spectral changes during enzymatic degradation.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

A novel ratiometric fluorescent tyrosinase assay is developed based on hybrid nano-assembly of gold nanocluster and tyrosine-containing peptides. The AuNCs@YCY nano-probe (AYNP) is fabricated through the hydrophobic interactions and π-π stacking between the tyrosine residues of the Tyr-Cys-Tyr tripeptide (YCY) and the ligands on the surfaces of AuNCs under the near-isoelectric pH value. The resulted AYNP shows distinct fluorescence responses, spontaneous turn-on of the blue emission and turn-off of the near-infrared emission, with a single wavelength excitation.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF