THE VITREOUS STATE*

The difficulty of defining the vitreous state in a rigorous manner, the existence of many borderline cases, and the theoretical requirements which must be met if a substance is to be vitreous are discussed. Silicate glasses and certain other typical classes of vitreous substances are treated in some detail with especial reference to the relation between their structures and vitreous properties.     

Oligonucleotide Insecticides for Green Agriculture: Regulatory Role of Contact DNA in Plant–Insect Interactions

Insects vastly outnumber us in terms of species and total biomass, and are among the most efficient and voracious consumers of plants on the planet. As a result, to preserve crops, one of the primary tasks in agriculture has always been the need to control and reduce the number of insect pests. The current use of chemical insecticides leads to the accumulation of xenobiotics in ecosystems and a decreased number of species in those ecosystems, including insects. Sustainable development of human society is impossible without useful insects, so the control of insect pests must be effective and selective at the same time. In this article, we show for the first time a natural way to regulate the number of insect pests based on the use of extracellular double-stranded DNA secreted by the plant Pittosporum tobira. Using a principle similar to one found in nature, we show that the topical application of artificially synthesized short antisense oligonucleotide insecticides (olinscides, DNA insecticides) is an effective and selective way to control the insect Coccus hesperidum. Using contact oligonucleotide insecticide Coccus-11 at a concentration of 100 ng/μL on C. hesperidum larvae resulted in a mortality of 95.59 ± 1.63% within 12 days. Green oligonucleotide insecticides, created by nature and later discovered by humans, demonstrate a new method to control insect pests that is beneficial and safe for macromolecular insect pest management.     

Usnic Acid-Mediated Exchange of Protons for Divalent Metal Cations across Lipid Membranes: Relevance to Mitochondrial Uncoupling

Usnic acid (UA), a unique lichen metabolite, is a protonophoric uncoupler of oxidative phosphorylation, widely known as a weight-loss dietary supplement. In contrast to conventional proton-shuttling mitochondrial uncouplers, UA was found to carry protons across lipid membranes via the induction of an electrogenic proton exchange for calcium or magnesium cations. Here, we evaluated the ability of various divalent metal cations to stimulate a proton transport through both planar and vesicular bilayer lipid membranes by measuring the transmembrane electrical current and fluorescence-detected pH gradient dissipation in pyranine-loaded liposomes, respectively. Thus, we obtained the following selectivity series of calcium, magnesium, zinc, manganese and copper cations: Zn²⁺ > Mn²⁺ > Mg²⁺ > Ca²⁺ >> Cu²⁺. Remarkably, Cu²⁺ appeared to suppress the UA-mediated proton transport in both lipid membrane systems. The data on the divalent metal cation/proton exchange were supported by circular dichroism spectroscopy of UA in the presence of the corresponding cations.     

The Reactions of N,N′-Diphenyldithiomalondiamide with Arylmethylidene Meldrum’s Acids

The Michael addition reaction between dithiomalondianilide (N,N′-diphenyldithiomalondiamide) and arylmethylidene Meldrum’s acids, accompanied by subsequent heterocyclization, was investigated along with factors affecting the mixture composition of the obtained products. The plausible mechanism includes the formation of stable Michael adducts which, under the studied conditions, undergo further transformations to yield corresponding N-methylmorpholinium 4-aryl-6-oxo-3-(N-phenylthio-carbamoyl)-1,4,5,6-tetrahydropyridin-2-thiolates and their oxidation derivatives, 4,5-dihydro-3H-[1,2]dithiolo[3,4-b]pyridin-6(7H)-ones. The structure of one such product, N-methylmorpholinium 2,2-dimethyl-5-(1-(2-nitrophenyl)-3-(phenylamino)-2-(N-phenylthiocarbamoyl)-3-thioxopropyl)-4-oxo-4H-1,3-dioxin-6-olate, was confirmed via X-ray crystallography.     

中国沙棘乙醇提取物的体外及对HepG2细胞的抗氧化活性

本文从生化角度全面分析了中国沙棘乙醇提取物的体外抗氧化活性,并在评价细胞毒性的基础上,以Hep G2细胞为模型,利用流式细胞仪评估了提取物的细胞抗氧化能力。结果表明,中国沙棘乙醇提取物对ABTS自由基具有良好的清除效果,当浓度为5 mg/m L时,其清除能力与阳性对照BHT相当;中国沙棘乙醇提取物对NO自由基也有良好的清除效果,但其整体清除能力不及BHT;当浓度为5 mg/m L时,中国沙棘乙醇提取物对亚油酸脂质过氧化表现抑制,但其抑制效果低于BHT;中国沙棘乙醇提取物的总抗氧化能力随浓度的增大而增强,当浓度为5 mg/m L时,其总抗氧化能力与同浓度下的BHT接近。在浓度为0.05~5 mg/m L范围内,中国沙棘乙醇提取物对Hep G2细胞不显示毒性;当处理浓度为0.5、1、5 mg/m L时,中国沙棘乙醇提取物的阳性细胞率与阳性对照相比分别降低了75.22%、72.36%和78.2%。中国沙棘乙醇提取物不仅在体外条件下具有良好的抗氧化活性,而且在Hep G2细胞内表现出良好的抗氧化能力。      

Retrogradation Kinetics of Eight Starches

Retrogradation rate and extent were determined by differential scanning calorimetry and rheology measurements on 40% dry matter gels made from pea, modified waxy maize, rice, waxy rice, wheat, manioc, potato and microwaved irradiated potato starches. As a result, each starch retrogrades differently, depending also on the measurement technique. Nevertheless, potato and pea starches seem to be the most sensitive and the waxy and modified waxy types are the least sensitive to retrogradation.     

Nanoparticles in Clinical Translation for Cancer Therapy

The advent of cancer therapeutics brought a paradigm shift from conventional therapy to precision medicine. The new therapeutic modalities accomplished through the properties of nanomaterials have extended their scope in cancer therapy beyond conventional drug delivery. Nanoparticles can be channeled in cancer therapy to encapsulate active pharmaceutical ingredients and deliver them to the tumor site in a more efficient manner. This review enumerates various types of nanoparticles that have entered clinical trials for cancer treatment. The obstacles in the journey of nanodrug from clinic to market are reviewed. Furthermore, the latest developments in using nanoparticles in cancer therapy are also highlighted.