Functionalization of carbon nanodots (C-dots) with quinoline derivatives enables a highly sensitive and specific nanosensor for Zn2+ sensing in aqueous solution and Zn2+ imaging in vivo.

No abstract

The rapid diagnosis of Legionellosis is crucial for the effective treatment of this disease. Currently, most clinical laboratories utilize rapid immunoassays that are sufficient for the detection of Legionella serogroup 1, but not other clinically relevant serogroups. In this report, the development of a disposable immunochip system is described in connection with electrochemical impedance spectroscopy and fluorescence microscopy. The immunochips were prepared by covalently immobilizing fluorophore-conjugated L. pneumophilaantibodies on Au chips. The analytical performance of the immunochips was optimized as a prescreening tool for L. pneumophila. The versatile immunochips described here can be easily adapted for the monitoring of all Legionella serogroups in clinical and environmental samples.

A number of human protein misfolding disorders, including Alzheimer's disease (AD), are closely related to the accumulation of β-sheet-rich amyloid fibrils or aggregates. Neuronal toxicity in AD has been linked to the interactions of amyloid-β (Aβ) with metals, especially Zn(2+), Cu(2+), and Fe(3+), which leads to the production of reactive oxygen species. Nucleation-dependent Aβ aggregation, or "seeding", is thought to propagate fibril formation. In this surface plasmon resonance imaging (SPRi) study, we have shown that the fibril seeds formed with the incubation of Aβ in the presence of metals are better at promoting monomer elongation compared to Aβ alone or in the presence of a well-described polyphenol, (-)-epigallocatechin-3-gallate (EGCG). This is a novel attempt to simultaneously monitor the effects of multiple modulators on fibril elongation using a single chip. EGCG was shown in transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and thioflavin T (ThT) studies to promote the formation of off-pathway, highly stable unstructured oligomers, supporting the SPRi results. These findings suggest that SPRi provides a promising platform as a screening tool for small molecules that can affect the aggregation pathways in neurodegenerative diseases.