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Ionic liquid (IL)-modified UiO-66-NH2 composite was prepared and used as sorbent of dispersed solid-phase extraction (dSPE) for extracting trace benzoylurea insecticides (BUs) from complex environmental matrices. The IL in framework endowed the prepared material had electropositive characteristics, which can produce interaction with electron rich guest molecules, such as BUs. The high thermal and chemical stability of UiO-66-NH2/IL enabled it to be reused for 16 times without significant reduction in adsorption performance. Due to the multiple forces including π-π, hydrogen bonding, and fluorine-fluorine interaction, UiO-66-NH2/IL showed good adsorption performance, short adsorption time (20 s) and rapid desorption ability (60 s) for BUs. Under the optimal conditions, the method exhibited wide linear range (0.02–500 ng mL-1) with correlation coefficient (R2) not worse than 0.9928, high enrichment factor (252–300), and low detection limit (0.005–0.4 ng mL-1). The dispersed solid phase extraction coupling with high-performance liquid chromatography-diode array detector (dSPE-HPLC-DAD) was successfully used to detection of BUs in real environmental samples and satisfactory recoveries were obtained (80.5%±2.4–118%±3.2). The results indicated that UiO-66-NH2/IL composite can be a potential sorbent for the preconcentration of trace insecticides in environmental samples. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The present study aimed to improve the performance of microbial fuel cells (MFCs) by using an intermittent connection period without power output. Connecting two MFCs in parallel improved the voltage output of both MFCs until the voltage stabilized. Electric energy was accumulated in two MFCs containing heavy metal ions copper, zinc, and cadmium as electron acceptors by connection in parallel for several hours. The system was then switched to discharge mode with single MFCs with a 1000-Ω resistor connected between anode and cathode. This method successfully achieved highly efficient removal of heavy metal ions. Even when the anolyte was run in sequencing batch mode, the insufficient voltage and power needed to recover heavy metals from the cathode of MFCs can be complemented by the developed method. The average removal ratio of heavy metal ions in sequencing batch mode was 67 % after 10 h. When the discharge time was 20 h, the removal ratios of zinc, copper, and cadmium were 91.5, 86.7, and 83.57 %, respectively; the average removal ratio of these ions after 20 h was only 52.1 % for the control group. Therefore, the average removal efficiency of heavy metal ions increased by 1.75 times using the electrons stored from the bacteria under the open-circuit conditions in parallel mode. Electrochemical impedance data showed that the anode had lower solution resistance and polarization resistance in the parallel stage than as a single MFC, and capacitance increased with the length of time in parallel. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The role of miR-1179 in the development of cancer has been proved by different studies. However, the expression profile and role of miR-1179 is yet to be explored in human oral cancer. Consistently, this study was undertaken to explore the molecular role of miR-1179 in regulation of the human oral cancer development and progression. The results showed miR-1179 to be significantly (p < 0.05) overexpressed in all the oral cancer cell lines relative to normal cells. The repression of miR-1179 transcript levels not only suppressed the proliferation of oral cancer cells but also increased their sensitivity to vincristine. The decline in proliferative rates was attributed to induction of autophagy in oral cancer cells as confirmed by transmission electron microscopic analysis. Western blot analysis showed that the expression of LC3B-II increased and that of beclin 1 decreased while LC3B-I expression remained constant upon miR-1179 inhibition. Inhibition of miR-1179 caused significant decrease in the migration and invasion of the oral cancer cells. The migration and invasion found to be 47% and 32% for SCC-9 and 24% and 28% for SCC-25 cells upon miR-1179 inhibition. At molecular level, the miR-1179 was shown to exert its anticancer effects via deactivation of MEK/ERK and PI3K/AKT signalling cascades. In conclusion, the findings point towards the potential of miR-1179 in the treatment of oral cancer. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]