Synthesis, Photophysical and Electrochemical Properties of Novel Conjugated Donor-Acceptor Molecules Based on Phenothiazine and Benzimidazole

Xiao-Hang Zhang,Seon Ho Kim,In Su Lee,Chun Ji Gao,Sung Ik Yang*,Kwang-Hyun Ahn* 대한화학회 2007 Bulletin of the Korean Chemical Society Vol.28 No.8

Two series of new organic fluorophores such as asymmetrical 3-(benzimidazol-2-yl)-10-hexylphenothiazine derivatives 1 and symmetrical 3,7-bis(benzimidazol-2-yl)-10-hexylphenothiazine derivatives 2 have been synthesized. Electronic absorption, fluorescence, and electrochemistry measurements reveal that the electron withdrawing benzimidazole subunit directly connected to the phenothiazine core facilitates the charge transfer characters which were also verified by the theoretical calculations. Various substituents on the benzimidazole moieties can allow a fine-tuning of the LUMO energy levels of the molecules without significantly affecting the HOMO energy levels. The method provides a new route for designing ambipolar molecules whose energy levels are well-matched with the Fermi levels of the electrodes to facilitate the electron or hole injection/transfer in OLED devices.

Synthesis, Photophysical and Electrochemical Properties of Novel Conjugated Donor-Acceptor Molecules Based on Phenothiazine and Benzimidazole

Zhang, Xiao-Hang,Kim, Seon-Ho,Lee, In-Su,Gao, Chun-Ji,Yang, Sung-Ik,Ahn, Kwang-Hyun Korean Chemical Society 2007 Bulletin of the Korean Chemical Society Vol.28 No.8

Two series of new organic fluorophores such as asymmetrical 3-(benzimidazol-2-yl)-10-hexylphenothiazine derivatives 1 and symmetrical 3,7-bis(benzimidazol-2-yl)-10-hexylphenothiazine derivatives 2 have been synthesized. Electronic absorption, fluorescence, and electrochemistry measurements reveal that the electron withdrawing benzimidazole subunit directly connected to the phenothiazine core facilitates the charge transfer characters which were also verified by the theoretical calculations. Various substituents on the benzimidazole moieties can allow a fine-tuning of the LUMO energy levels of the molecules without significantly affecting the HOMO energy levels. The method provides a new route for designing ambipolar molecules whose energy levels are well-matched with the Fermi levels of the electrodes to facilitate the electron or hole injection/transfer in OLED devices.

Patterns of Lymph Node Recurrence after Radical Surgery Impacting on Survival of Patients with pT1-3N0M0 Thoracic Esophageal Squamous Cell Carcinoma

Xiao-li Chen,,Tian-wu Chen,Zhi-jia Fang,Xiao-ming Zhang,Zhen-lin Li,Hang Li,Hong-jie Tang,Li Zhou,Dan Wang,Zishu Zhang 대한의학회 2014 Journal of Korean medical science Vol.29 No.2

The aim of this study was to investigate how patterns of lymph nodes recurrence after radical surgery impact on survival of patients with pT1-3N0M0 thoracic esophageal squamous cell carcinoma. One hundred eighty consecutive patients with thoracic esophageal squamous cell carcinoma underwent radical surgery, and the tumors were staged as pT1-3N0M0 by postoperative pathology. Lymph nodes recurrence was detected with computed tomography 3-120 months after the treatment. The patterns of lymph nodes recurrence including stations, fields and locations of recurrent lymph nodes, and impacts on patterns of survival were statistically analyzed. There was a decreasing trend of overall survival with increasing stations or fields of postoperative lymph nodes involved (all P<0.05). Univariate analysis showed that stations or fields of lymph nodes recurrence, and abdominal or cervical lymph nodes involved were prognostic factors for survival(all P<0.05). Cox analyses revealed that the field was an independent factor (P<0.05, odds ratio=2.73). Lymph nodes involved occurred predominantly in cervix and upper mediastinum (P<0.05). In conclusion, patterns of lymph node recurrence especially the fields of lymph nodes involved are significant prognostic factors for survival of patients with pT1-3N0M0 thoracic esophageal squamous cell carcinoma.

The catalytic core of DEMETER guides active DNA demethylation in <i>Arabidopsis</i>

Zhang, Changqing,Hung, Yu-Hung,Rim, Hyun Jung,Zhang, Dapeng,Frost, Jennifer M.,Shin, Hosub,Jang, Hosung,Liu, Fang,Xiao, Wenyan,Iyer, Lakshminarayan M.,Aravind, L.,Zhang, Xiang-Qian,Fischer, Robert L. National Academy of Sciences 2019 PROCEEDINGS OF THE NATIONAL ACADEMY OF SCIENCES OF Vol.116 No.35

<P><B>Significance</B></P><P>Flowering plants reproduce via a unique double-fertilization event, producing the zygote and the nutritive endosperm. The genome of the central cell, the precursor of the endosperm, undergoes extensive demethylation prior to fertilization. This epigenetic reconfiguration, directed by the DEMETER (DME) glycosylase at thousands of loci in <I>Arabidopsis</I>, differentiates the epigenetic landscapes of parental genomes and establishes parent of origin-specific expression of many imprinted genes in endosperm essential for seed development. However, how DME is targeted to various locations remains unknown. Here we show that the multidomain DME is organized into 2 functional regions: the C-terminal region, which guides localization and catalysis, and the N-terminal region, which likely recruits chromatin remodelers to facilitate demethylation within heterochromatin.</P><P>The <I>Arabidopsis</I> DEMETER (DME) DNA glycosylase demethylates the maternal genome in the central cell prior to fertilization and is essential for seed viability. DME preferentially targets small transposons that flank coding genes, influencing their expression and initiating plant gene imprinting. DME also targets intergenic and heterochromatic regions, but how it is recruited to these differing chromatin landscapes is unknown. The C-terminal half of DME consists of 3 conserved regions required for catalysis in vitro. We show that this catalytic core guides active demethylation at endogenous targets, rescuing <I>dme</I> developmental and genomic hypermethylation phenotypes. However, without the N terminus, heterochromatin demethylation is significantly impeded, and abundant CG-methylated genic sequences are ectopically demethylated. Comparative analysis revealed that the conserved DME N-terminal domains are present only in flowering plants, whereas the domain architecture of DME-like proteins in nonvascular plants mainly resembles the catalytic core, suggesting that it might represent the ancestral form of the 5mC DNA glycosylase found in plant lineages. We propose a bipartite model for DME protein action and suggest that the DME N terminus was acquired late during land plant evolution to improve specificity and facilitate demethylation at heterochromatin targets.</P>

A national survey on how to improve traditional Chinese medicine learning internationally: Perceptions from both teachers and students

Zhu Yu-Hang,Yan Wu,Hao Zhang,Yanfei Zhao,Yule Ren,Wei Hu,Pan Li,Huiyi Wang,Ying Wang,Boda Zhang,Yujie Wang,Hongwen Yuan,Jiping Zhang,Wenqiang Li,Yufang Zhao,Jie Zhao,Yedong Shi,Yanye Shu,Xiao Zhang,Ya 한국한의학연구원 2022 Integrative Medicine Research Vol.11 No.4

Background With the increasing popularity of traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) by the global community, how to teach basic knowledge of TCM to international students and improve the teaching quality are important issues for teachers of TCM. The present study was to analyze the perceptions from both students and teachers on how to improve TCM learning internationally. Methods A cross-sectional national survey was conducted at 23 universities/colleges across China. A structured, self-reported on-line questionnaire was administered to 34 Chinese teachers who taught TCM course in English and to 1016 international undergraduates who were enrolled in the TCM course in China between 2017 and 2021. Results Thirty-three (97.1%) teachers and 900 (88.6%) undergraduates agreed Chinese culture should be fully integrated into TCM courses. All teachers and 944 (92.9%) undergraduates thought that TCM had important significance in the clinical practice. All teachers and 995 (97.9%) undergraduates agreed that modern research of TCM is valuable. Thirty-three (97.1%) teachers and 959 (94.4%) undergraduates thought comparing traditional medicine in different countries with TCM can help the students better understand TCM. Thirty-two (94.1%) teachers and 962 (94.7%) undergraduates agreed on the use of practical teaching method with case reports. From the perceptions of the undergraduates, the top three beneficial learning styles were practice (34.3%), teacher's lectures (32.5%), case studies (10.4%). The first choice of learning mode was attending to face-to-face teaching (82.3%). The top three interesting contents were acupuncture (75.5%), Chinese herbal medicine (63.8%), and massage (55.0%). Conclusion To improve TCM learning among international undergraduates majoring in conventional medicine, integration of Chinese culture into TCM course, comparison of traditional medicine in different countries with TCM, application of the teaching method with case reports, and emphasization of clinical practice as well as modern research on TCM should be fully considered.

Functional significance of cholesterol metabolism in cancer: from threat to treatment

Xiao Mingming,Xu Jin,Wang Wei,Zhang Bo,Liu Jiang,Li Jialin,Xu Hang,Zhao Yingjun,Yu Xianjun,Shi Si 생화학분자생물학회 2023 Experimental and molecular medicine Vol.55 No.-

Cholesterol is an essential structural component of membranes that contributes to membrane integrity and fluidity. Cholesterol homeostasis plays a critical role in the maintenance of cellular activities. Recently, increasing evidence has indicated that cholesterol is a major determinant by modulating cell signaling events governing the hallmarks of cancer. Numerous studies have shown the functional significance of cholesterol metabolism in tumorigenesis, cancer progression and metastasis through its regulatory effects on the immune response, ferroptosis, autophagy, cell stemness, and the DNA damage response. Here, we summarize recent literature describing cholesterol metabolism in cancer cells, including the cholesterol metabolism pathways and the mutual regulatory mechanisms involved in cancer progression and cholesterol metabolism. We also discuss various drugs targeting cholesterol metabolism to suggest new strategies for cancer treatment.

Blue organic light-emitting diodes with 2-methyl-9,10- bis(naphthalen-2-yl)anthracene as hole transport and emitting layer and the impedance spectroscopy analysis

Xiao-Wen Zhang,Bing-Jie Mo,Li-Ming Liu,Hong-Hang Wang,Dan-Teng Chang,Ji-Wen Xu,Hua Wang,Bin Wei 한국물리학회 2014 Current Applied Physics Vol.14 No.11

2-methyl-9,10-bis(naphthalen-2-yl)anthracene (MADN) based fluorescent blue organic light-emitting diodes (OLEDs) are demonstrated. With MADN as emitting layer, experiments indicate that thick MADN (40e60 nm) is preferable for constructing efficient blue OLED. With MADN as hole-transport and emitting layer and tris(8-hydroxy-quinolinato)aluminium (Alq3) as electron-transport layer, the OLED electroluminescent characteristics show a mixture emission of MADN and Alq3 with Commission Internationale d'Eclairage (CIE) color coordinates of (0.25, 0.34), indicating feasible hole transporting in MADN. Using 4,7-diphenyl-1,10-phenanthroline (BPhen) replacing Alq3 as electron-transport layer, the OLED shows deep blue emission with a maximum luminous efficiency of 4.8 cd/A and CIE color coordinates of (0.16, 0.09). The hole transport characteristics of MADN are further clarified by constructing hole-only device and performing impedance spectroscopy analysis. The results indicate that MADN shows superior hole-transport ability which is almost comparable to typical hole-transport material of N,N0-bis(naphthalen-1-yl)-N,N0-bis(phenyl)-benzidine (NPB), suggesting a promising application for constructing efficient blue OLED with integrated hole-transport layer and emitting layer.

Establishing a Nomogram for Stage IA-IIB Cervical Cancer Patients after Complete Resection

Zhou, Hang,Li, Xiong,Zhang, Yuan,Jia, Yao,Hu, Ting,Yang, Ru,Huang, Ke-Cheng,Chen, Zhi-Lan,Wang, Shao-Shuai,Tang, Fang-Xu,Zhou, Jin,Chen, Yi-Le,Wu, Li,Han, Xiao-Bing,Lin, Zhong-Qiu,Lu, Xiao-Mei,Xing, H Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention 2015 Asian Pacific journal of cancer prevention Vol.16 No.9

Background: This study aimed to establish a nomogram by combining clinicopathologic factors with overall survival of stage IA-IIB cervical cancer patients after complete resection with pelvic lymphadenectomy. Materials and Methods: This nomogram was based on a retrospective study on 1,563 stage IA-IIB cervical cancer patients who underwent complete resection and lymphadenectomy from 2002 to 2008. The nomogram was constructed based on multivariate analysis using Cox proportional hazard regression. The accuracy and discriminative ability of the nomogram were measured by concordance index (C-index) and calibration curve. Results: Multivariate analysis identified lymph node metastasis (LNM), lymph-vascular space invasion (LVSI), stromal invasion, parametrial invasion, tumor diameter and histology as independent prognostic factors associated with cervical cancer survival. These factors were selected for construction of the nomogram. The C-index of the nomogram was 0.71 (95% CI, 0.65 to 0.77), and calibration of the nomogram showed good agreement between the 5-year predicted survival and the actual observation. Conclusions: We developed a nomogram predicting 5-year overall survival of surgically treated stage IA-IIB cervical cancer patients. More comprehensive information that is provided by this nomogram could provide further insight into personalized therapy selection.

Fracture behavior of fly ash concrete containing silica fume

Peng Zhang,Ji-Xiang Gao,Xiao-Bing Dai,Tian-Hang Zhang,Juan Wang 국제구조공학회 2016 Structural Engineering and Mechanics, An Int'l Jou Vol.59 No.2

Effect of silica fume on fresh properties, compressive strength at 28 days and fracture behavior of fly ash concrete composite were studied in this paper. Test results indicated that the fluidity and flowability of fly ash concrete composites decreased and fly ash concrete composite are more cohesive and appear to be sticky with the addition of silica fume. Addition of silica fume was very effective in improving the compressive strength at 28 days of fly ash concrete composite, and the compressive strength of fly ash concrete composite has a trend of increase with the increase of silica fume content. Results also indicated that all the fracture parameters of effective crack length, fracture toughness, fracture energy, the critical crack opening displacement and the maximum crack opening displacement of fly ash concrete composite decreased with the addition of silica fume. When the content of silica fume increased from 3% to 12%, these fracture parameters decreased gradually with the increase of silica fume content. Furthermore, silica fume had great effect on the relational curves of the three-point bending beam specimen. As the silica fume content increased from 3% to 12%, the areas surrounded by the three relational curves and the axes were becoming smaller and smaller, which indicated that the capability of concrete composite containing fly ash to resist crack propagation was becoming weaker and weaker.

Rapid assessment of suspension bridge deformation under concentrated live load considering main beam stiffness: An analytical method

Wen-ming Zhang,Jia-qi Chang,Xing-hang Shen,Xiao-fan Lu,Tian-cheng Liu 국제구조공학회 2023 Structural Engineering and Mechanics, An Int'l Jou Vol.88 No.1

With the gradual implementation of long-span suspension bridges into high-speed railway operations, the main beam’s bending stiffness contribution to the live load response permanently grows. Since another critical control parameter of railway suspension bridges is the beam-end rotation angle, it should not be ignored by treating the main beam deflection as the only deformation response. To this end, the current study refines the existing method of the main cable shape and simply supported beam bending moment analogy. The bending stiffness of the main beam is considered, and the main beam’s analytical expressions of deflection and rotation angle in the whole span are obtained using the cable-beam deformation coordination relationship. Taking a railway suspension bridge as an example, the effectiveness and accuracy of the proposed analytical method are verified by the finite element method (FEM). Comparison of the results by FEM and the analytical method ignoring the main beam stiffness revealed that the bending stiffness of the main beam strongly contributed to the live load response. Under the same live load, as the main beam stiffness increases, the overall deformation of the structure decreases, and the reduction is particularly noticeable at locations with original larger deformations. When the main beam stiffness is increased to a certain extent, the stiffening effect is no longer pronounced.