Resonant Energy Transfer, with Creation of Hyper-Excited Atoms, and Molecular Auto-Ionization in a Cold Rydberg Gas

A cold Rydberg gas, with its atoms prepared initially all in the excited state |n0> , with n0 »1, contains an excessive amount of energy, and presumably is to relax by the Penning-type molecular auto-ionization (MAI), in which a portion of excess energy of one atom is given to another near-by atom and ionizing it. Its complementary process, the resonant energy transfer (RET), is discussed, in which the excess energy of one atom is used on another to form a hyper-excited atomic state |na> with na»n0. This process is always present, provided certain resonance energy conditions are satisfied. In this report, the n0 and density dependences of the RET rates are studied in detail, employing a simple model: 1) at low densities, the RET is mediated by the dipole-dipole coupling Vdd and its rates are generally much smaller than that of MAI, especially for small n0. But 2) as the density increases, our model shows that the rates become of comparable magnitude or even larger than the MAI rates. The Vdd is no longer adequate. We, then construct a semi-empirical potential to describe the RET process. 3) At high densities, we show that the atomic orbital of |na> overlaps with that of neighboring atoms, and the electron-electron potential becomes prominent, resulting in much higher rates.

A mini review and hypothesis for coronavirus detection using photonics: surface enhanced Raman scattering and fluorescence resonance energy transfer

COVID-19 has devastated numerous nations around the world and has overburdened numerous healthcare systems,which has also caused the loss of livelihoods due to prolonged shutdowns and further led to a cascading effect on the global economy.COVID-19 infections have an incubation period of 2–7 days,but 40 to 45%of cases are asymptomatic or show mild to moderate respiratory symptoms after the period due to subclinical lung abnormalities,making it more likely to spread the pandemic disease.To restrict the spread of the virus,on-site diagnosis methods that are quicker,more precise,and easily accessible are required.Rapid Antigen Detection Tests and Polymerase Chain Reaction tests are currently the primary methods used to determine the presence of COVID-19 viruses.These tests are typically time-consuming,not accurate,and,more importantly,not available to everyone.Hence,in this review and hypothesis,we proposed equipment that employs the properties of photonics to improve the detection of COVID-19 viruses by taking the advantage of typical binding of coronavirus with angiotensin-converting enzyme 2(ACE2)receptors.This hypothetical model would combine Surface-Enhanced Raman Scattering(SERS)and Fluorescence Resonance Energy Transfer(FRET)to provide great flexibility,high sensitivities,and enhanced accessibility.

Screening and identification of bioactive compounds from citrus against non-structural protein 3 protease of hepatitis C virus genotype 3a by fluorescence resonance energy transfer assay and mass spectrometry

BACKGROUND Hepatitis C virus genotype 3a(HCV G3a)is highly prevalent in Pakistan.Due to the elevated cost of available Food and Drug Administration-approved drugs against HCV,medicinal natural products of potent antiviral activity should be screened for the cost-effective treatment of the disease.Furthermore,from natural products,active compounds against vital HCV proteins like non-structural protein 3(NS3)protease could be identified to prevent viral proliferation in the host.AIM To develop cost-effective HCV genotype 3a NS3 protease inhibitors from citrus fruit extracts.METHODS Full-length NS3 without co-factor non-structural protein 4A(NS4A)and codon optimized NS3 protease in fusion with NS4A were expressed in Escherichia coli.The expressed protein was purified by metal ion affinity chromatography and gel filtration.Citrus fruit extracts were screened using fluorescence resonance energy transfer(FRET)assay against the protease and polyphenols were identified as potential inhibitors using electrospray ionization-mass spectrometry(MS)/MS technique.Among different polyphenols,highly potent compounds were screened using molecular modeling approaches and consequently the most active compound was further evaluated against HCV NS4A-NS3 protease domain using FRET assay.RESULTS NS4A fused with NS3 protease domain gene was overexpressed and the purified protein yield was high in comparison to the lower yield of the full-length NS3 protein.Furthermore,in enzyme kinetic studies,NS4A fused with NS3 protease proved to be functionally active compared to full-length NS3.So it was concluded that co-factor NS4A fusion is essential for the purification of functionally active protease.FRET assay was developed and validated by the half maximal inhibitory concentration(IC50)values of commercially available inhibitors.Screening of citrus fruit extracts against the native purified fused NS4A-NS3 protease domain showed that the grapefruit mesocarp extract exhibits the highest percentage inhibition 91%of protease activity.Among the compounds identified by LCMS analysis,hesperidin showed strong binding affinity with the protease catalytic triad having S-score value of-10.98.CONCLUSION Fused NS4A-NS3 protease is functionally more active,which is effectively inhibited by hesperidin from the grapefruit mesocarp extract with an IC50 value of 23.32μmol/L.

Highly-efficient quantitative fluorescence resonance energy transfer measurements based on deep learning

Intensity-based quantitative fluorescence resonance energy transfer(FRET)is a technique to measure the distance of molecules in scale of a few nanometers which is far beyond optical diffraction limit.This widely used technique needs complicated experimental process and manual image analyses to obtain precise results,which take a long time and restrict the application of quantitative FRET especially in living cells.In this paper,a simplified and automatic quanti-tative FRET(saqFRET)method with high efficiency is presented.In saqFRET,photo-activatable acceptor PA-mCherry and optimized excitation wavelength of donor enhanced green fluorescent protein(EGFP)are used to simplify FRET crosstalk elimination.Traditional manual image analyses are time consuming when the dataset is large.The proposed automatic image analyses based on deep learning can analyze 100 samples within 30 s and demonstrate the same precision as manual image analyses.

Investigation of fluorescence resonance energy transfer ultrafast dynamics in electrostatically repulsed and attracted exciton-plasmon systems

Following the gradual maturation of synthetic techniques for nanomaterials,exciton-plasmon composites have become a research hot-spot due to their controllable energy transfer through electromagnetic fields on the nanoscale.However,most reports ignore fluorescence resonance energy transfer(FRET)under electrostatic repulsion conditions.In this study,the FRET process is investigated in both electrostatic attraction and electrostatic repulsion systems.By changing the Au:quantum dot ratio,local-field induced FRET can be observed with a lifetime of ns and a fast component of hundreds of ps.These results indicate that the intrinsic transfer process can only elucidated by considering both steady and transient state information.

Retraction Note:Screening and identification of bioactive compounds from citrus against non-structural protein 3 protease of hepatitis C virus genotype 3a by fluorescence resonance energy transfer assay and mass spectrometry

Retraction note:Khan M,Rauf W,Habib F,Rahman M,Iqbal M.Screening and identification of bioactive compounds from citrus against non-structural protein 3 protease of hepatitis C virus genotype 3a by fluorescence resonance energy transfer assay and mass spectrometry.World J Hepatol 2020;12(11):976-992 PMID:33312423 DOI:10.4254/wjh.v12.i11.976.The online version of the original article can be found at https://www.wjgnet.com/1948-5182/full/v12/i11/976.htm.

Phonon-assisted excitation energy transfer in photosynthetic systems

The phonon-assisted process of energy transfer aiming at exploring the newly emerging frontier between biology and physics is an issue of central interest.This article shows the important role of the intramolecular vibrational modes for excitation energy transfer in the photosynthetic systems.Based on a dimer system consisting of a donor and an acceptor modeled by two two-level systems,in which one of them is coupled to a high-energy vibrational mode,we derive an effective Hamiltonian describing the vibration-assisted coherent energy transfer process in the polaron frame.The effective Hamiltonian reveals in the case that the vibrational mode dynamically matches the energy detuning between the donor and the acceptor,the original detuned energy transfer becomes resonant energy transfer.In addition,the population dynamics and coherence dynamics of the dimer system with and without vibration-assistance are investigated numerically.It is found that,the energy transfer efficiency and the transfer time depend heavily on the interaction strength of the donor and the high-energy vibrational mode,as well as the vibrational frequency.The numerical results also indicate that the initial state and dissipation rate of the vibrational mode have little influence on the dynamics of the dimer system.Results obtained in this article are not only helpful to understand the natural photosynthesis,but also offer an optimal design principle for artificial photosynthesis.

Efficient transfer of metallophosphor excitons via confined polaritons in organic nanocrystals

We investigate the transfer of phosphorescent energy between co-assembled metallophosphors in crystalline nanostructures [Angew. Chem. Int. Ed. 57 7820(2018) and J. Am. Chem. Soc. 140 4269(2018)]. Neither Dexter's nor Forster's mechanism of resonance energy transfer(RET) could account fully for the observed rates, which exceed 85% with significant temperature dependence. But there exists an alternative pathway on RET mediated by intermediate states of resonantly confined exciton–polaritons. Such a mechanism was used to analyze artificial photosynthesis in organic fluorescents [Phys.Rev. Lett. 122 257402(2019)]. For metallophosphors, the confined modes act as extended states lying between the molecular S_(1) and T_(1) states, offering a bridge for the long-lived T_(1) excitons to migrate from donors to acceptors. Population dynamics with parameters taken entirely based on experiments fits the observed lifetimes of phosphorescence across a broad range of doping and temperature.

Utilizing dual-pathway energy transfer in upconversion nanoconjugates for reinforced photodynamic therapy

Enhancing the therapeutic effect of existing treatments or developing new non-invasive treatments are important measures to achieve high-efficiency treatment of malignant tumors.Photodynamic therapy(PDT)is an emerging treatment modality,and the key for achieving high-efficiency PDT is to select light with strong tissue penetration depth and enhance the generation of reactive oxygen species(ROS).Although the upconversion nanoparticles(UCNPs)modified with the photosensitizers could achieve PDT with strong penetration depth under near-infrared light irradiation,the ROS generated by traditional single-pathway PDT is still insufficient.Herein,we developed a novel nanoconjugate(UCNP-Ce6/AIEgen)for dual-pathway reinforced PDT,in which the UCNPs were co-modified with chlorin e6(Ce6)and luminogen with aggregation-induced emission(AIEgen).Due to the presence of AIEgen,UCNP-Ce6/AIEgen could avoid aggregation-caused luminescence quenching in biological water environments and convert upconversion luminescence(UCL)of UCNPs to Ce6-activatable fluorescence.Therefore,under the irradiation of 808 nm laser,UCNP-Ce6/AIEgen can not only undergo direct lanthanide-triplet energy transfer to activate Ce6,but also convert the UCL of UCNPs to the light that can activate Ce6 through Fӧrster resonance energy transfer to generate more ROS,thus promoting tumor cell apoptosis.This work broadens the applications of nanoconjugates of lanthanide-based inorganic materials and organic dyes,and provides a conception for reinforced PDT of tumors.

Spatial effect and resonance energy transfer for the construction of carbon dots composites with long-lived multicolor afterglow for advanced anticounterfeiting

Carbon dots(CDs)with room-temperature phosphorescence(RTP)have attracted dramatically growing interest in optical functional materials.However,the photoluminescence mechanism of CDs is still a vital and challenging topic.In this work,we prepared CD-based RTP materials via melting boric acid with various lengths of alkyl amine compounds as precursors.The spatial effect on the structure and the RTP properties of CDs were systematically investigated.With the increase in carbon chain length,the interplanar spacing of the carbon core expands and crosslink-enhanced emission weakens,resulting in a decrease in the phosphorescence intensity and lifetimes.Meanwhile,based on triplet-to-singlet resonance energy transfer,we employed intense and long-lived phosphorescence CDs as the donor and short-lived fluorescent dyes as the acceptor to achieve long-lived multicolor afterglow.By the triplet-to-singlet resonance energy transfer,the afterglow color can change from green to orange.The afterglow lifetimes are more than 0.9 s.Thanks to the outstanding afterglow properties,the composites were used for timeresolved and multiple-color advanced anticounterfeiting.This work will promote the design of multicolor and long-lived afterglow materials and expand their applications.

Single-particle detection of cholesterol based on the host-guest recognition induced plasmon resonance energy transfer

Plasmon resonance energy transfer(PRET) occurs between the plasmonic nanoparticles(NPs) and organic dyes forming donor-acceptor pairs, which has great potential in quantitative analytical chemistry because of its excellent sensitivity under dark-field microscopy(DFM). Herein, we introduce supramolecular β-cyclodextrin(β-CD) to design a host-guest recognition plasmonic nano-structure modified gold nanoparticles(GNPs), while GNPs and rhodamine molecule(RB) act as the donor and acceptor, respectively. In the presence of the target cholesterol, due to the stronger binding of cholesterol with β-CD, RB molecules are released, inducing the inhibition of PRET, as well as the increase of the scattering intensity of GNPs.The proposed strategy achieves a linear range from 0.02 μmol/L to 2.0 μmol/L for cholesterol detection,and reaches a limit of detection(LOD) of 6.7 nmol/L. This host-guest recognition strategy can easily integrate receptor-donor pair into one nanoparticle, which simplifies the construction of the PRET platform,and further provides an effective approach for PRET-based analytical applications. Afterwards, the proposed PRET strategy was successfully applied for the detection of cholesterol in serum samples with high sensitivity and specificity. The proposed method provides an effective clinically potential means for the detection of cholesterol and other disease-related biomarkers.

Flexible Förster resonance energy transfer-assisted optical waveguide based on elastic mixed molecular crystals

Flexible molecular crystal waveguides based on elastic molecular crystals(EMCs)are essential inflexible and compact optical materials.An increased loss coeffi-cientαdue to self-absorption is often a problem in optical waveguides(OWGs)offluorescent chemical materials waveguiding photons in active mode.Herein,the development of anthracene-based elastic mixed molecular crystals(EMMCs)is reported for Förster Resonance Energy Transfer(FRET)-assisted OWG.To yield a FRET crystal system based on elastic molecular crystals,1%–5%accep-tor doping forfluorescent molecular crystals of 9,10-dibromoanthracene 1 was successful by selecting the same regioisomer having electron-withdrawing group,9,10-diformylanthracene 2,as a dopant.In addition to conversion to the mixed system,there is a difference in the elastic modulus and hardness in EMC C1 and EMMC C2@1.However,the elastic behaviour was also shown in a few percent doping of the acceptor.Theαvalue of this EMMC,composed of 1 including 1%of 2(0.0077 dB/μm),is much lower than that of EMC composed of 1(0.1258 dB/μm)because of reducing self-absorption in the FRET system.An efficient andflexible OWG was successfully developed by selecting an appropriate acceptor molecule and its low doping rate for mixed crystal construction.This method is a practical approach in various functional andflexible crystal systems.

Energy transfer in plasmonic photocatalytic composites

Among the many novel photocatalytic systems developed in very recent years,plasmonic photocatalytic composites possess great potential for use in applications and are one of the most intensively investigated photocatalytic systems owing to their high solar energy utilization efficiency.In these composites,the plasmonic nanoparticles(PNPs)efficiently absorb solar light through localized surface plasmon resonance and convert it into energetic electrons and holes in the nearby semiconductor.This energy transfer from PNPs to semiconductors plays a decisive role in the overall photocatalytic performance.Thus,the underlying physical mechanism is of great scientific and technological importance and is one of the hottest topics in the area of plasmonic photocatalysts.In this review,we examine the very recent advances in understanding the energy transfer process in plasmonic photocatalytic composites,describing both the theoretical basis of this process and experimental demonstrations.The factors that affect the energy transfer efficiencies and how to improve the efficiencies to yield better photocatalytic performance are also discussed.Furthermore,comparisons are made between the various energy transfer processes,emphasizing their limitations/benefits for efficient operation of plasmonic photocatalysts.

Spectroscopic analysis on the binding interaction of biologically active pyrimidine derivative with bovine serum albumin

A biologically active antibacterial reagent, 2-amino-6-hydroxy-4-（4-N, N-dimethylaminophenyl）-pyr- imidine-5-carbonitrile （AHDMAPPC）, was synthesized. It was employed to investigate the binding in- teraction with the bovine serum albumin （BSA） in detail using different spectroscopic methods. It ex- hibited antibacterial activity against Escherichia cali and Staphylococcus aureus which are common food poisoning bacteria. The experimental results showed that the fluorescence quenching of model carrier protein BSA by AHDMAPPC was due to static quenching. The site binding constants and number of binding sites （n ≈ 1） were determined at three different temperatures based on fluorescence quenching results. The thermodynamic parameters, enthalpy change （AH）, free energy （AG） and entropy change （AS） for the reaction were calculated to be 15.15 kJ/mol, -36.11 kJ/mol and 51.26J/mol K according to van＇t Hoff equation, respectively. The results indicated that the reaction was an endothermic and spontaneous process, and hydrophobic interactions played a major role in the binding between drug and BSA. The distance between donor and acceptor is 2.79 nm according to Forster＇s theory. The alterations of the BSA secondary structure in the presence of AHDMAPPC were confirmed by UV-visible, synchronous fluorescence, circular dichroism （CD） and three-dimensional fluorescence spectra. All these results in- dicated that AHDMAPPC can bind to BSA and be effectively transported and eliminated in the body. It can be a useful guideline for further drug design.

Von Willebrand Factor Antigen and ADAMTS13 Activity Assay in Pregnant Women and Severe Preeclamptic Patients

The present study examined von Willebrand factor (vWF) levels and ADAMTS13 activity in pregnant and severe preeclamptic women in order to shed light on the prothrombotic state in severe preeclampsia.Thirty healthy women of childbearing age,22 second trimester pregnant women,30 third trimester pregnant women and 10 severe preeclamptic patients were recruited in this study.ADAMTS13 activity was determined by the FRETS-vWF73 assay and vWF antigen (vWF:Ag) levels by an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay.The results showed that there were statistically significant differences in plasma vWF antigen levels between the severe preeclamptic and third trimester pregnant women,between third and second trimester pregnant women (P【0.05).The third trimester pregnant women had significantly lower plasma ADAMTS13 activity than second trimester pregnant women (P【0.05).Nevertheless,no significant differences in plasma ADAMTS13 activity were found between severe preeclamptic patients and the third trimester pregnant women (P】0.05).In conclusion,plasma ADAMTS13 activity is normal in severe preeclampsia despite the increased vWF:Ag levels.Prothrombotic state is involved in the pathogenesis of severe preeclampsia,as a result of endothelial injury.

Ultralong organic room-temperature phosphorescence of electrondonating and commercially available host and guest molecules through efficient Förster resonance energy transfer

Ultralong organic room-temperature phosphorescence(RTP)materials have attracted tremendous attention recently due to their diverse applications.Several ultralong organic RTP materials mimicking the host-guest architecture of inorganic systems have been exploited successfully.However,complicated synthesis and high expenditure are still inevitable in these studies.Herein,we develop a series of novel host-guest organic phosphorescence systems,in which all luminophores are electron-rich,commercially available and halogen-atom-free.The maximum phosphorescence efficiency and the longest lifetime could reach 23.6%and 362 ms,respectively.Experimental results and theoretical calculation indicate that the host molecules not only play a vital role in providing a rigid environment to suppress non-radiative decay of the guest,but also show a synergistic effect to the guest through Förster resonance energy transfer(FRET).The commercial availability,facile preparation and unique properties also make these new host-guest materials an excellent candidate for the anti-counterfeiting application.This work will inspire researchers to develop new RTP systems with different wavelengths from commercially available luminophores.

A carbon nanoparticle-peptide fluorescent sensor custom-made for simple and sensitive detection of trypsin

Herein,we report a novel sensor to detect trypsin using a purpose-designed fluorescein-labelled peptide with negatively charged carbon nanoparticles(CNPs)modified by acid oxidation.The fluorescence of the fluorescein-labelled peptide was quenched by CNPs.The sensor reacted with trypsin to cleave the peptide,resulting in the release of the dye moiety and a substantial increase in fluorescence intensity,which was dose-and time-dependent,and trypsin could be quantified accordingly.Correspondingly,the biosensor has led to the development of a convenient and efficient fluorescent method to measure trypsin activity,with a detection limit of 0.7 mg/mL.The method allows rapid determination of trypsin activity in the normal and acute pancreatitis range,suitable for point-of-care testing.Furthermore,the applicability of the method has been demonstrated by detecting trypsin in spiked urine samples.

Plasmon-induced near-field and resonance energy transfer enhancement of photodegradation activity by Au wrapped CuS dual-chain

Self-assembled chain-like nanostructures utilizing localized surface plasmon resonance(LSPR)effect could enhance the local electromagnetic field for energy transfer,which provides huge structural advantages for some transmission-related applications such as photocatalysis.In this work,the dual-chain structure of Au chain wrapped CuS(denoted as Au Chain@CuS)was successfully synthesized by the one-step hydrothermal method.Namely,L-cysteine is used as the sulfur source and linking agent,and copper nitrate is the precursor of copper ions,forming the dual-chain driven by 15 nm uniform Au seeds.Transient absorption spectroscopy(TAS)and finite-difference-time-domain(FDTD)simulation exhibited the highly intensive electromagnetic field around the self-assembly chain,the raised formation and transfer rate of electron–hole pairs between the Au chain and surrounding CuS chain.Meanwhile,it shows an excellent photodegradation activity on dye rhodamine B(RhB).Within 1 h under simulated sunlight,the degradation rate reached 98.81%in Au Chain@CuS,which is 2.27 times higher compared to the bare CuS.The enhanced performance is mainly attributed to the near-field enhancement effect induced by LSPR,as well as the benefits of more effective resonance energy transfer(RET).This research comprehensively shows the electromagnetic field in LSPR metal chain is more intensive by order of magnitude relative to the isolated particles.Simultaneously the continuous CuS chain wrapped outside of the LSPR source effectively absorbs and utilizes the plasmonic energy,then promotes the formation of the photo-generated charge,thus increasing the photocatalytic performance.This founding of wrapped coupled-metal dual-chain provides a promising candidate for the highly efficient photocatalysts.

Exploring ratiometric endolysosomal pH nanosensors with hydrophobic indicators responding at the nanoscale interface and multiple fluorescence resonance energy transfers

Compared with conventional water-soluble fluorescence probes,pH-sensitive fluorescent nanosensors based on hydrophobic indicators remain largely unexplored.We report here the unique pH response of the nanosensors with a hydrophobic indicator(Ch3,a Nile Blue derivative)in polymeric nanoparticles(NPs).At the aqueous-organic interface of the NPs,spectral overlap and dye accumulation caused significant Förster resonance energy transfer(FRET)not only between the protonated and deprotonated Ch3(hetero-FRET),but also between the protonated and deprotonated Ch3 themselves(homo-FRET).The pH response was simulated according to an interfacial response mechanism and the dynamic range was found to depend on the size of the NPs and dye distribution(Kp).Therefore,adjusting the size of the NPs and the local dye concentration gave rise to a series of dynamic sensing ranges with apparent pKa values from 2.7 to 9.6 based on a single indicator.The nanosensors were successfully delivered to HeLa cells to monitor subcellular pH values in the endosomes and lysosomes.Based on cellular calibrations,the average pH in the organelles were determined to be ca.4.7.Moreover,the pH neutralization process during lysosome membrane permeabilization(LMP)induced by hydrogen peroxide stimulation was also successfully visualized with the nanosensors.

Fluorescence resonance energy transfer-based nanomaterials for the sensing in biological systems

The applications of fluorescence resonance energy transfer(FRET)are coming to be one of the simplest and most accessible strategy with super-resolved optical measurements.Meanwhile,nanomaterials have become ideal for constructing FRET-based system,due to their unique advantages of tunable emission,broad absorption,and long fluorescence(FL)lifetime.The limitations of traditional FRET-based detections,such as the intrinsic FL,auto-FL,as well as the short FL lifetime,could be overcome with nanomaterials.Consequently,numbers of FRET-based nanomaterials have been constructed for precise,sensitive and selective detections in biological systems.They could act as both energy donors and/or acceptors in the optical energy transfer process for biological detections.Some other nanomaterials would not participate in the energy transfer process,but act as the excellent matrix for modifications.The review will be roughly classified into nanomaterial-involved and uninvolved ones.Different detection targets,such as nucleic acids,pathogenic microorganisms,proteins,heavy metal ions,and other applications will be reviewed.Finally,the other biological applications,including environmental evaluation and mechanism studies would also be summarized.