A new asymmetric phthalocyanine-based chemosensor for the detection of ultra trace amount of copper (II) ions in environmental samples: comprehensive complex characterization and DFT analysis.

Recently, copper(I)-catalysed azide-alkyne cycloaddition (CuAAC) click chemistry has emerged as a promising approach for designing new artificial metallo-nucleases (AMNs) with DNA-damaging properties. By functionalising a central organic azide with three alkyne donors, Tri-Click (TC) ligands capable of chelating three copper ions through the donor group and triazole linker can be generated. However, the versatility of this approach along with the influence of specific donors on metal binding, DNA recognition, and cellular DNA damage in an anticancer context remains poorly understood. Here, we prepare a series of Tri-Click ligands incorporating systematic cyclic and acyclic N-, O-, and S-donors and evaluate their AMN activities. Screening experiments pinpoint planar N-donor ligands as high value agents. Among these, the copper complex of Tri-Click-Pyridine (Cu3-TC-Py) displays significant potential. We characterise its activity using single-molecule imaging, microscale thermophoresis, FRET-based binding assays, molecular dynamics, and intracellular DNA interaction studies in human and functional bacterial cells. We report the emergence of Cu3-TC-Py as a lead AMN with high reactivity for DNA damage applications central to anticancer therapy.

To address the limitations of conventional fluorescent probes, including aggregation-caused quenching (ACQ) and poor water solubility, an intelligent nanoprobe (LPNPs@SA) with tumor microenvironment responsiveness and aggregation-induced emission (AIE) properties was developed. This nanoprobe enables sequential, reversible, and highly sensitive detection of Cu2+ and S2-. The AIE-active fluorophore salicylaldehyde azine (SA) was designed and synthesized, exhibiting intense emission in aggregated states but poor stability under non-neutral pH conditions. To overcome this limitation, SA was encapsulated into lipid-polymer hybrid nanoparticles (LPNPs) via self-assembly using an amphiphilic copolymer (C16-SS-PEG/DMMA), polycaprolactone (PCL), and phosphatidylcholine (PC). The resulting LPNPs@SA nanoprobe possessed favorable storage stability, broad pH tolerance, effective surface charge conversion, and good hemocompatibility, with a hemolysis rate below 5%. In terms of sensing performance, the nanoprobe showed selective fluorescence quenching ("turn-off" mode) toward Cu2+. Stern-Volmer analysis revealed a quenching constant (Ksv) of 2.9 × 105 L/mol. Further fluorescence titration and Job's plot analyses confirmed a 1:1 binding stoichiometry between the nanoprobe and Cu2+, with an association constant (Ka) of 2.2 × 104 L/mol. The detection limit (LOD) for Cu2+ was determined to be 1.2 μmol/L, demonstrating high sensitivity. Remarkably, upon introducing S2- into the copper-loaded nanoprobe system, substantial fluorescence recovery was observed, yielding a distinct "turn-on" signal for S2- detection. In summary, this work presents a biocompatible nanoprobe with excellent optical properties that functions as an effective reversible fluorescence-switching platform. It offers a promising analytical tool for dynamically monitoring Cu2+ and S2- in biological environments, facilitating studies of related pathological processes and potential diagnostic applications.

In high-power semiconductor plasma etching equipment, copper components are indispensable for managing extreme cyclic thermal loads due to their exceptional thermal conductivity. To isolate copper components from the highly oxidative and corrosive environment, a protective yttrium oxide coating is deposited on the surface. Nevertheless, the long-term reliability of this bimaterial system is frequently compromised by the substantial thermal expansion mismatch between the ceramic coating and the metal substrate, which induces catastrophic interfacial delamination under cyclic thermal stress. To address this challenge, we propose an adaptive interface strategy that utilizes thermal stress to drive beneficial structural evolution, rather than passively suppressing it. Controlled thermal shock cycles trigger the stress-driven upward diffusion of copper ions, which react in situ to form a Cu2O secondary phase. Notably, this phase preferentially wets the vertical grain boundaries of the columnar Y2O3 coating, resulting in a dense, bioinspired root-like 3D interlocking network. This crack-triggered architecture transforms microcracks from structural defects into diffusion-assisted reinforcing features that stabilize both coating integrity and interfacial adhesion under thermal shock. Consequently, after 50 thermal shock cycles, the coating exhibits significant toughening, with hardness increasing from 16.31 to 21.82 GPa, while retaining its original plasma etching resistance. This study establishes the theoretical framework for designing metal-ceramic integrated coatings through diffusion-controlled interface activation, providing fundamental insights into a robust engineering solution that significantly extends the service life of critical copper components in advanced plasma etching systems, thereby catering to the industrial demand for reliability under extreme thermo-mechanical loads.

Glutathione-responsive oxidative stress nanoamplifier boosts sonodynamic/chemodynamic synergistic antibacterial therapy.

A dual-responsive fluorescent probe for hypochlorous acid and copper(II): design, environmental applications, and signal transduction mechanism.

Glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate dehydrogenase is inhibited by binding of Cu(I) to the essential active site cysteine.

A novel fluorescence "on-off-on" peptidyl probe for highly selective and consecutive detection of Cu2+ and glyphosate and its multi-functional applications.

A dual-modality sensor for pre-clicinal imaging of diabetes-associated copper dysregulation in vivo and in urine.

A CuS-loaded copper-ferrocene framework with synergistic chemodynamic and photothermal antimicrobial therapy for accelerated infected wound healing.

Simultaneous extraction and stripping of copper(II) ions in a microchannel equipped with nanofiber-supported liquid membrane: Mechanistic insights into interfacial kinetics

The electrochemical sensing platform for sensitive detection of purine bases in herring sperm DNA based on Cu-doped UiO-66 composite with MXene.

Copper metal-organic framework-based multifaceted strategy for boosting cancer therapy via synergistic cuproptosis and disulfidptosis.

Eco-sustainable functionalization of hemp fibers through a sequential process employing tannic acid and copper ions for elevated antibacterial efficacy

Microwave-responsive, energy-metabolism-regulating nanosystem for tumor treatment through co-promotion of cuproptosis/ferroptosis.

A microenvironment-responsive chitosan based injectable hydrogel with synergistic anti-inflammatory effects of triptolide and copper ions for spinal cord injury repair

Enhancement mechanism of copper on heterotrophic nitrification-aerobic denitrification by cold-adapted Pseudomonas sp. NY1: Insights from genome and transcriptome.

Nitrogen-doped and catalytically modified electrodes in campus-sourced electrogenic microbe-driven MFCs for enhanced copper ion adsorption.

Chronic copper exposure induces multi-systemic toxicity in Japanese medaka (Oryzias latipes) via reproductive disruption, and gut microbiota dysbiosis.

ABSTRACT Cube‐octameric silsesquioxanes (COSS) present interesting opportunities in several applications due to their rigid inorganic and biocompatible silicate core combined with tunable, well‐oriented corner functionalities. In the present study, multivalent mannose‐decorated COSS‐metallosalen complexes, as models combining potential catalytic activity and cell‐targeting moieties in a single structure, were synthesized. The complexes proved to be hydrolytically stable, and their assembly was efficient between a slight excess of salicylaldehyde‐derived mannose and an aminopropyl‐modified COSS core, followed by complexation with metal ions. The complexes can adopt a D 4h or an S 4 geometry with zinc and copper ions, respectively, which affects the orientation of the mannose substituents and the availability of the catalytic metallosalen centers on the COSS core. Potential but modest ribonuclease activity of the complexes was observed. The hydrolytic stability and the efficient assembly of these well‐organized complexes can be utilized for the synthesis of other glyco or biomolecule analogues.