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ABSTRACT Grey brick is among the oldest and most durable construction materials in Chinese traditional architecture. However, many conservationists have found that the quality of the antique-style brick produced today [...]

Continual evolution of the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus (SARS-CoV-2) virus has allowed for its gradual evasion of neutralizing antibodies (nAbs) produced in response to natural infection or vaccination. The rapid nature of these changes has incited a need for the development of superior broad nAbs (bnAbs) and/or the rational design of an antibody cocktail that can protect against the mutated virus strain. Here, we report two angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 competing nAbs—8H12 and 3E2—with synergistic neutralization but evaded by some Omicron subvariants. Cryo-electron microscopy reveals the two nAbs synergistic neutralizing virus through a rigorous pairing permitted by rearrangement of the 472–489 loop in the receptor-binding domain to avoid steric clashing. Bispecific antibodies based on these two nAbs tremendously extend the neutralizing breadth and restore neutralization against recent variants including currently dominant XBB.1.5. Together, these findings expand our understanding of the potential strategies for the neutralization of SARS-CoV-2 variants toward the design of broad-acting antibody therapeutics and vaccines.

Varicella-zoster virus (VZV) is a highly infectious agent responsible for both varicella and herpes zoster disease. Despite high efficacy, there remain safety and accessibility concerns with the licensed vaccines. Here, we sought to produce a VZV gE immunogen using an E. coliexpression system. We found that the soluble expression and yield of gE protein could be enhanced via C-terminal truncations to the protein, thereby facilitating a robust and scalable purification process for the purpose of vaccine manufacturing. The lead truncated gE (aa 31–358), hereafter referred to as tgE, was a homogenous monomer in solution and showed excellent antigenicity. Finally, we assessed and compared the immunogenicity of tgE with commercial vOka LAV and Shingrix vaccine. We found that aluminum-adjuvanted tgE was immunogenic as compared with vOka LAV. When adjuvanted with AS01B, a two-dose immunization of tgE showed comparable or better potency in antibody responses and cell-mediated immunity with those of the Shingrix vaccine at the same dosage, especially in terms of the proportion of IFN-γ-expressing CD4+T cells. In conclusion, this method of E. coli-mediate tgE expression offers a cost-effective and scalable strategy to generate an ideal VZV gE immunogen for the development of both varicella and zoster vaccines.

Although studies have reported that intestinal microbiota are associated with acute graft‐versus‐host disease (aGVHD), they lacked a satisfactory method for predicting aGVHD. We collected stool and blood samples at day 15 posttransplant from 150 patients from two centers who underwent myeloablative conditioning allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (allo‐HSCT). Stool microbiota were detected by 16S ribosomal RNA gene sequencing; inflammatory factors and T lymphocytes were detected by multiplex immunoassays and flow cytometry, respectively. A gut microbiota score (GMS) from a LASSO (least absolute shrinkage and selection operator) model was developed and validated to predict aGVHD. In the discovery cohort, the GMS could predict II‐IV aGVHD (area under the receiver operating characteristic [ROC] curve [AUC] = 0.904, P <.0001). Furthermore, the validation model was consistent with the discovery set (AUC = 0.887, P <.0001). Regulatory T/T‐helper 17 (Treg/Th17) cells ratio in the low GMS subgroup was higher compared with the high GMS (P =.012), and the validation set is consistent with the discovery set (P =.003). In addition, high cytokine levels were associated with high GMS. In conclusion, the GMS at neutrophil engraftment could predict aGVHD, and it was a potential and novel method. The GMS was associated with the inflammatory factor and Treg/Th17 balance. Gut microbiota models could predict acute graft‐versus‐host disease after allogeneic transplantation.

The preparation of sulfoaluminate cementitious materials (SCM) is a promising way to massively utilize solid wastes. Iron phases are significant in SCM system but the thermodynamic data of some key minerals, such as 6CaO·Al2O3·2Fe2O3(C6AF2) and 6CaO·2Al2O3·Fe2O3(C6A2F), are missing, which greatly hinders the SCM optimization in a theoretical way. This work, for the first time, calculated the standard formation enthalpy, Gibbs free energy of formation, entropy and molar heat capacity for C6AF2and C6A2F and lowered the errors to the least with the reference of C4AF data in the literature. By building the function diagram of Gibbs free energy changes with temperature for the basic iron phase formation reactions with the obtained thermodynamic data, it is proved that the formation likeliness of C6AF2is higher than that of C6A2F, as is accordant to the literatures and verifies the correctness of obtained data. This work provides a good theoretical foundation to optimize SCM mineral system and to study relevant mechanism deeply.

To evaluate the efficacy and safety of mild induced hypothermia for intracranial hypertension in patients with traumatic brain injury after decompressive craniectomy.

Most of the risk models for predicting contrast-induced acute kidney injury (CI-AKI) are available for only postcontrast exposure prediction; however, prediction before the procedure is more valuable in practice. This study aimed to develop a risk scoring system based on preprocedural characteristics for early prediction of CI-AKI in patients after coronary angiography or percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI).

The article focuses on a study regarding the corrosion behavior of duplex stainless steel (SS) (UNS S31083) in yardang soil of Western China. It mentions the presence of high concentrations of carbon dioxide (C02) and chloride in natural gas produced in gas field in Western China. It also mentions that soil environment is corrosive.

Bimetallic lined steel pipe (LSP) is a new anti-corrosion technology. It is widely used to transport oil, gas, water and corrosive liquid chemicals. At present, the hydroforming pressure for LSP has been investigated theoretically and experimentally by most researchers. However, there are a few reports on the thermal strength of bimetallic LSP. Actually, the bimetallic LSP will be subjected to remarkable thermal load in the process of three layer polyethylene (3PE) external coating. Reverse yielding failure may occur on the inner pipe of the bimetallic LSP when it suffers from remarkable thermal load and residual contact pressure simultaneously. The aim of this paper is to study the thermal load and strength of the bimetallic LSP. A mechanical model, which can estimate the thermal strength of the bimetallic LSP, was established based on the elastic theory and the manufacture of the bimetallic LSP. Based on the model, the correlation between the thermal strength of the bimetallic LSP and residual contact pressure and wall thickness of the inner pipe was obtained. Reverse yielding experiments were performed on the LSP (NT80SS-316L) under different thermal loads. Experiment results are consistent with calculated results from the theoretical model. The experimental and simulation results may provide powerful guidance for the bimetallic LSP production and use.

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