Lanthanides (Ln) find broad applications as contrast agents in medical imaging techniques such as magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). MRI is one of the most powerful, noninvasive imaging procedures, which is able to create images of tissues, organs and diseases in vivo. Every year, about six million patients undergo MRI studies of which 30% are performed using Gd-based contrast agents (CAs), whic...

Solid-state chemistry of cluster compounds with metals in the left part of the periodic table is described. As a function of the metal valence electron concentration (VEC), characteristic changes occur with stepwise changing features. Strongly metal-metal-bonded and ligand-encapsulated clusters exist for large values of VEC. At decreased values, endohedral atoms stabilize the clusters, and with...

High-resolution x-ray powder-diffraction experiments were performed on europium metal at high pressure up to 50 GPa. At variance with previous reports, the hcp phase of Eu was observed to be stable not only to 18 GPa, but to 31.5 GPa. At 31.5(5) GPa, europium transforms to a phase (Eu-IV) with an incommensurately modulated monoclinic crystal structure with superspace group C2/c(q(1)0q(3))00. Th...

Ca2+ regulates ryanodine receptor's (RyR) activity through an activating and an inhibiting Ca2+-binding site located on the cytoplasmic side of the RyR channel. Their altered sensitivity plays an important role in the pathology of malignant hyperthermia and heart failure. We used lanthanide ions (Ln3+) as probes to investigate the Ca2+ sensors of RyR, because they specifically bind to Ca2+-bind...

The advent of different lanthanide-binding reagents has made site-specific labelling of proteins with paramagnetic lanthanides a viable proposition. This brings many powerful techniques originally established and demonstrated for paramagnetic metalloproteins into the mainstream of structural biology. The promise is that, by exploiting the long-range effects of paramagnetism, lanthanide labellin...

Abstract CyMe4-BTPhen and CyMe4-BTBP are the principal ligand systems used in Europe for separation of actinides from lanthanides as a part SANEX process nuclear recycling reprocessing. We present new approach to synthesis CyMe4 fragment beginning readily available hydroxypivalic acid. It features cobalt-catalysed homocoupling neopentyl bromide provide key bisester precursor, thereby avoiding r...

Lanthanides complexes are indispensable in fields related to medicine and biology. Their success lies the great number of unpaired electrons (4f7 configuration Gd3+ ion) that makes them ideal contrasts agents for magnetic resonance imaging. On other hand their narrow emission bands long lifetime excited state provide unique luminescence properties. The aqueous solution chemistry lanthanides is ...