[reaction: see text] A new fluorescent probe, salicylaldehyde rhodamine B hydrazone (1), was synthesized and displayed selective Cu(II)-amplified absorbance and fluorescence emission above 500 nm in neutral buffered media. Upon the addition of Cu(II), the spirolactam ring of 1 was opened and a 1:1 metal-ligand complex was formed. The detection of Cu(II) by 1 at a lower micromolar level was successful even in buffered water.

In this article, we report the synthesis of bifunctional Au-Fe(3)O(4) nanoparticles that are formed by chemical bond linkage. Due to the introduction of Au nanoparticles, the resulting bifunctional Au-Fe(3)O(4) nanoparticles can be easily modified with other functional molecules to realize various nanobiotechnological separations and detections. Here, as an example, we demonstrate that as-prepared Au-Fe(3)O(4) nanoparticles can be modified with nitrilotriacetic acid molecules through Au-S interaction and used to separate proteins simply with the assistance of a magnet. Bradford protein assay and sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis were performed to examine the validity of the separation procedure, and the phosphate determination method suggested that the as-separated protein maintained catalytic activity. This result shows the efficiency of such a material in protein separation and suggests that its use can be extended to magnetic separation of other biosubstances. Moreover, this synthetic strategy paves the way for facile preparation of diverse bifunctional and even multifunctional nanomaterials.

4-N,N-diethylaminosalicylaldehyde hydrazone Schiff base (1) and its analogues (2-6) were synthesized and characterized by NMR, MS and elemental analysis. Compound 1 exhibited ratiometric fluorescent response to Zn(2+) over other metal ions in aqueous ethanol solution with neutral buffer. The complexation ratio, site and constant and the effect of pH value and water fraction on its fluorescent response to Zn(2+) were investigated.

Some steroidal phosphorothioate, phosphoroselenoate, and phosphate derivatives conjugated with 3'-Azido-3'-deoxythymidine (AZT) have been synthesized in good yields and their structures were confirmed on the basis of spectral methods. The result has shown that some of bioconjugates possess activity against breast cancer MCF-7 in bioassay.

Some novel asymmetry steroidal phosphates, phosphorothioates, phosphoroselenoates, and phosphoramidates were synthesized by oxidation or conjugation with amines using the Atherton-Todd reaction. The structures were confirmed by 1 H NMR, 31 P NMR, and ESI-MS spectroscopy.