Colorimetric enantioselective recognition of chiral secondary alcohols <em>via</em> hydrogen bonding to a chiral metallocene containing chemosensor

China Scholarship Council (CSC); University of Bath; Natural Science Foundation of China [21050110426]; ECUSTAn operationally simple colorimetric method for enantioselective detection of chiral secondary alcohols via hydrogen bonding interactions using a chiral ferrocene derivative is reported

Colorimetric enantioselective recognition of chiral secondary alcohols via hydrogen bonding to a chiral metallocene containing chemosensor

China Scholarship Council (CSC); University of Bath; Natural Science Foundation of China [21050110426]; ECUSTAn operationally simple colorimetric method for enantioselective detection of chiral secondary alcohols via hydrogen bonding interactions using a chiral ferrocene derivative is reported

Hydrothermal conversion of one-photon-fluorescent poly-(4-vinylpyridine) into two-photon-fluorescent carbon nanodots

A novel two-photon-fluorescent N,O-heteroatom-rich carbon nanomaterial has been synthesized and characterized. The new carbon nanoparticles were produced by hydrothermal conversion from a one-photon-fluorescent poly(4-vinylpyridine) precursor (P4VP). The carbonized particles (cP4VP dots) with nonuniform particle diameter (ranging from sub-6 to 20 nm with some aggregates up to 200 nm) exhibit strong fluorescence properties in different solvents and have also been investigated for applications in cell culture media. The cP4VP dots retain their intrinsic fluorescence in a cellular environment and exhibit an average excited-state lifetime of 2.0 ± 0.9 ns in the cell. The cP4VP dots enter HeLa cells and do not cause significant damage to outer cell membranes. They provide one-photon or two-photon fluorescent synthetic scaffolds for imaging applications and/or drug delivery

Novel immunomodulators from hard ticks selectively reprogramme human dendritic cell responses

Hard ticks subvert the immune responses of their vertebrate hosts in order to feed for much longer periods than other blood-feeding ectoparasites; this may be one reason why they transmit perhaps the greatest diversity of pathogens of any arthropod vector. Tick-induced immunomodulation is mediated by salivary components, some of which neutralise elements of innate immunity or inhibit the development of adaptive immunity. As dendritic cells (DC) trigger and help to regulate adaptive immunity, they are an ideal target for immunomodulation. However, previously described immunoactive components of tick saliva are either highly promiscuous in their cellular and molecular targets or have limited effects on DC. Here we address the question of whether the largest and globally most important group of ticks (the ixodid metastriates) produce salivary molecules that specifically modulate DC activity. We used chromatography to isolate a salivary gland protein (Japanin) from Rhipicephalus appendiculatus ticks. Japanin was cloned, and recombinant protein was produced in a baculoviral expression system. We found that Japanin specifically reprogrammes DC responses to a wide variety of stimuli in vitro, radically altering their expression of co-stimulatory and co-inhibitory transmembrane molecules (measured by flow cytometry) and their secretion of pro-inflammatory, anti-inflammatory and T cell polarising cytokines (assessed by Luminex multiplex assays); it also inhibits the differentiation of DC from monocytes. Sequence alignments and enzymatic deglycosylation revealed Japanin to be a 17.7 kDa, N-glycosylated lipocalin. Using molecular cloning and database searches, we have identified a group of homologous proteins in R. appendiculatus and related species, three of which we have expressed and shown to possess DC-modulatory activity. All data were obtained using DC generated from at least four human blood donors, with rigorous statistical analysis. Our results suggest a previously unknown mechanism for parasite-induced subversion of adaptive immunity, one which may also facilitate pathogen transmission

Finishing the euchromatic sequence of the human genome

The sequence of the human genome encodes the genetic instructions for human physiology, as well as rich information about human evolution. In 2001, the International Human Genome Sequencing Consortium reported a draft sequence of the euchromatic portion of the human genome. Since then, the international collaboration has worked to convert this draft into a genome sequence with high accuracy and nearly complete coverage. Here, we report the result of this finishing process. The current genome sequence (Build 35) contains 2.85 billion nucleotides interrupted by only 341 gaps. It covers ∼99% of the euchromatic genome and is accurate to an error rate of ∼1 event per 100,000 bases. Many of the remaining euchromatic gaps are associated with segmental duplications and will require focused work with new methods. The near-complete sequence, the first for a vertebrate, greatly improves the precision of biological analyses of the human genome including studies of gene number, birth and death. Notably, the human enome seems to encode only 20,000-25,000 protein-coding genes. The genome sequence reported here should serve as a firm foundation for biomedical research in the decades ahead