Rienk Eelkema

Our new paper "A Versatile Strategy for Light-Driven Active Transport of Ions" is now online in @angewandtechemie.bsky.social!

shorturl.at/jr1wY

We used an azobenzene photoswitch to transport ions against their concentration gradients from one aqueous compartment to the other. This was achieved

Low-dose-rate ionizing radiation increases singlet oxygen production by photosensitizers Xu et al. reveal that ionizing radiation drives singlet oxygen generation from Ce6 through superoxide anions rather than Cerenkov light, with low dose rates favoring the process by reducing radical re...

These findings could have exciting implications for low dose-rate cancer treatments, including radionuclide therapy and brachytherapy.
Wonderful work from Bing Xu and Juncheng Liu, and a great collaboration with prof. Antonia Denkova
Open Access publication here: www.cell.com/cell-reports...

The ionized photosensitizer and superoxide then react to form singlet oxygen, a key cytotoxic species in PDT. We hypothesize that low dose-rate radiation leads to more spatially dispersed reactive oxygen species from water radiolysis, reducing recombination and boosting superoxide formation.

Bing’s work suggests a compelling mechanism: instead of generating triplets (as in classic PDT), ionizing radiation ionizes the photosensitizer and simultaneously produces superoxide radicals from dissolved oxygen.

Ionizing radiation, on the other hand, reaches deep into the body, as used in radiotherapy but also opening the door to deep-tissue photodynamic-like effects.

So, what’s going on here? In ordinary PDT, light-induced excitation of a photosensitizer such as Chlorin e6 will lead to singlet oxygen formation via the photosensitizer triplet state. Photodynamic therapy (PDT) is powerful, but limited by how poorly light penetrates tissue.

You probably know Photodynamic Therapy (PDT), but how about Radiodynamic Therapy?
Now out in Cell Reports Physical Science, Bing Xu shows how lowering the radiation dose rate on solutions of the photosensitizer Chlorin e6 leads to increased production of highly cytotoxic singlet oxygen.

Published a paper warning that something doesn't work as commonly accepted in SciRep some years ago, that journal has done some dubious things in the mean time though. I generally like the approach and integrity of CellRepPhysSci, I could imagine they might be up for something like this

Want to come to Maine? I wanted to contact your journal but GRC doesn't allow me to. Would be great to have you there

🔬 Registration Now Open!
GRC Systems Chemistry 2026
“Bridging Molecular Complexity and Multiscale Systems Integration”
📅 June 21 – 26, 2026
📍 Portland, Maine (USA)
www.grc.org/systems-chem...
Feel free to share this announcement with anyone who may be interested.
#GRC @systemschem-grc.bsky.social

The project was led by Dr. Benjamin Klemm, in close collaboration with Dr. Margherita Tavasso and Prof. Pouyan Boukany @pboukany.bsky.social. Funding from the @erc.europa.eu , Open Access publication.

The kinetics of drug release depend heavily on the type of nucleophilic trigger: thiols are fast, amines are much slower (minutes to days). Application of a gefinitib construct to a lung cancer cell model (A549) showed ~100% wound-closure inhibition upon signal activation.

These prodrugs can be activated by biologically relevant nucleophiles enabling precisely controlled drug release.
We went on to embed anti-cancer and antibiotic prodrugs into hydrogel scaffolds, testing them in aqueous and cellular environments.

Using a versatile azido-phenyl allyl bromide scaffold, we generated prodrugs from a range of amine-containing drug candidates. It’s quite straightforward to make these things, basically just mix the allylbromide and the drug, wait, and isolate by filtration.

Nucleophile-triggered prodrug release from polymer hydrogels We present a new method to obtain tertiary amine-based prodrugs with dual functionality, enabling (i) signal-triggered drug activation and (ii) covalent incorporation in polymer materials through a cl...

🚀 Publication Alert!

In this work, we introduce a new strategy for developing tertiary amine–based prodrugs with dual functionality:
1️⃣ Signal-triggered drug activation
2️⃣ Covalent incorporation into polymer materials via a built-in clickable azido group

🔗 pubs.rsc.org/en/content/a...

ja daar was ik al bang voor. Kreeg ook een vrij nikserig antwoord van Nexus toen ik hiernaar vroeg, gaf weinig vertrouwen dat ze hem kritisch zouden bevragen. Gemiste kans, zwakke journalistiek.

In tijden van radicaal-rechtse stormen, moet je niet meewaaien.

Onze rechtsstaat zal voluit moeten worden verdedigd en versterkt, in belang van mens en dier.

Onze brief aan verkenner Wouter Koolmees 👇

Congratulations Job, very much deserved!

If said women work for your competitors, I guess maybe

Chemical kinetics course - YouTube Chemical kinetics course Class 1: Historical introduction Class 2: 0-2nd order, equilibrium (analytical) Class 3: Reactions in series/parallel, Michaelis-Men...

Want to learn chemical kinetics? Watch my online course (master level): youtube.com/playlist?list=PLMOBJket5g1zsNs-a8hlJ7ImVcWE180KR&si=FhqmABYzb2MDS-p3

CDA-leider Bontenbal: religieus onderwijs mag botsen met grondrecht van gelijkheid Dat religieuze scholen homoseksuele relaties afwijzen, is volgens CDA-leider Henri Bontenbal nu eenmaal een gevolg van de vrijheid van onderwijs. Daar wil hij niet aan tornen. "Een andere mening doet ...

Nou nee, dat mag niet.

Een school moet een veilige plek zijn voor álle leerlingen. Dat staat ook in de wet. Het afwijzen van homoseksuele relaties geeft de boodschap dat iemand niet zichzelf mag zijn.

Dat mag niet én is ronduit schadelijk.

nos.nl/nieuwsuur/co...

Using a forged entry ticket should be encouraged in this particular case

Not entirely sure what it is we'll be consuming at my department's coffee break, but I'm all in.
#AIforthewin

NSB-vlaggen op het Malieveld. Geweld tegen de politie door extreemrechts. Onacceptabel. Dit zijn Trumpiaanse toestanden, gevoed door politici die angst en verdeeldheid zaaien.

Stil blijven is geen optie. Je moet je laten horen. Samen staan we sterker.

Spreek je moerstaal! 🫠

De fascisten die op dit moment aan de macht zijn, leggen alvast de fundering voor na 29 oktober. Alleen de kiezer kan nog een interventie plegen. Die moet luid, duidelijk en LINKS zijn.

Spread the word!

@nexusinstituut.bsky.social I understand that these douchebags like to write their own bios, but I do think you have the responsibility to address these issues at the conference. Will you?

Advancing American Freedom, which champions faith, family, and liberty as fundamental American values. In 2025, Pence received the John F. Kennedy Profile in Courage Award for his actions on January 6, 2021, when he risked his life and career to ensure the lawful transfer of presidential power.

education reform, and infrastructure investment while maintaining fiscal responsibility. His accomplishments in Indiana led to his election as the 48th Vice President of the United States. Pence’s conservative philosophy, inspired by Ronald Reagan, led him to found the organization