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We report a facile solvothermal synthesis of novel octahedral CoFe2O4–reduced graphene oxide (RGO) hybrid and pure CoFe2O4 that were used as heterogeneous photo-Fenton catalysts for the degradation of organic dyes in water. We investigated the structures, morphologies and catalytic activity of both the CoFe2O4 nanoparticles and CoFe2O4–RGO hybrids. The morphology of CoFe2O4 nanoparticles displays size-dependent shapes changing from granular (or sheet) to octahedral shapes with the introduction of RGO. Compared with bare CoFe2O4, the octahedral CoFe2O4–RGO hybrids serve as novel bifunctional materials displaying higher saturation magnetization values and excellent heterogeneous activation of H2O2 at nearly neutral pH. The high saturation magnetization (41.98 emu g−1) of CoFe2O4–RGO hybrids aids their separation from the reaction mixture. In addition, the remarkable enhancement in the photo-Fenton activity of the CoFe2O4–RGO hybrids under visible light irradiation was attributed to the graphene/CoFe2O4 heterojunction, which aided the separation of excited electrons and holes. Furthermore, the CoFe2O4–RGO hybrids exhibited better removal efficiency for cationic methylene blue (MB) dye than for anionic methyl orange (MO) dye. Meanwhile, the CoFe2O4–RGO hybrids displayed acceptable photocatalytic stability, and we proposed an activation mechanism of H2O2 by the octahedral CoFe2O4–RGO hybrids.

Bi-Doped nitridated germanate glasses covering the whole NIR region from 800–1600 nm have attracted considerable attention due to their potential application in tunable fiber lasers and optical amplifiers. However, it remains challenging to regulate the luminescence behaviour of Bi because of the coexistence of multi-centers in the glasses. Here, we successfully regulated multi Bi NIR centers to obtain a flatter and ultra-broadband emission in nitridated germanate glasses. By varying the alkaline earth metal fluorides from MgF2 to BaF2, the glass structures were gradually depolymerized. A looser glass network, on one hand, promoted Bi in lower valences to be oxidized into Bi2+ and Bi3+, thus reducing the NIR emission intensity at ∼1150 and ∼1260 nm; on the other hand, it also enhanced the energy transfer from Bi+ to Bi0, which resulted in a relatively flatter emission band. In addition, the depolymerised glass structure could facilitate more nitride bonds, which are favorable for dispersing and stabilizing the new Bi NIR active centers related to germanate for ∼930 and ∼1490 nm emission. This investigation offers an efficient way to manipulate the multi-center luminescence behaviour of Bi in nitridated germanate glasses, and is beneficial to understand the mechanism of Bi NIR emission centers in glasses.

Paper plays an important role in various aspects of human life. However, most of the paper materials are vulnerable to both flame and water, which seriously restrict their performance in many applications. Here, we report a new kind of flame-retardant paper with high-temperature-resistant hydrophobicity. This kind of paper was fabricated by vacuum filtration of electrospun fluorinated SiO2 fibers and methyl silicon resin. It is mechanically flexible. Its Young’s modulus is 94 MPa, similar to normal printing paper. The optimized paper demonstrated a water contact angle (WCA) of 151°, which can be maintained as high as 126° even after 30 min of annealing at the temperature of 600 °C. Finally, writing with inorganic ink can be performed on this paper with inhibited ink diffusion. The written paper can maintain its integrity after 5 min of firing by alcohol flame. The flame-retardant and hydrophobic paper here may extend the applications of paper in wide range of fields.

We report a facile solvothermal synthesis of novel octahedral CoFe

BackgroundEchinococcus multilocularis is a causative agent of human alveolar echinococcosis (AE). AE leads to cirrhosis in several organs, such as the liver, triggering severe conditions, including hepatic failure and encephalopathy. The main purpose of this study is to explore the interaction between treated hepatic stellate cells and AE-protoscoleces (AE-PSCs). The results of this study will be provided experimental basis for revealing the mechanisms of hepatic fibrosis after AE infection.MethodsWe investigated the role of alveolar echinococcosis-protoscoleces (AE-PSCs) in liver fibrosis and structural changes and liver fibrosis-related protein expression in a coculture of PSCs and human hepatic stellate cells (HSCs). Structural changes were detected by transmission electron microscopy, whereas liver fibrosis-related proteins, collagen I, alpha-smooth muscle actin, and osteopontin levels were measured by western blotting and enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. ResultsPSCs exhibited morphological changes, specifically changes in shape, and showed slight changes in the cytoplasmic membrane, whereas structural modifications were observed in HSCs. Additionally, western blotting and enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay revealed that PSCs treated in vitro with HSC-LX2 showed significantly increased collagen-Ⅰ, α-smooth muscle actin, and osteopontin expression levels after 3–4 days of incubation in a coculture system. AE-PSCs induced liver fibrosis by inducing extracellular matrix expression and HSC activation.Conclusions These results provide insight into the pathogenesis of echinococcosis- induced hepatic fibrosis and introduce therapeutic targets and diagnostic criteria for managing echinococcosis-dependent liver fibrosis.

Background: Alveolar echinococcosis is an infectious zoonotic disease caused by Echinococcus multilocularis that is endemic to the vast pastoral areas of southern Qinghai province of China. Alveolar echinococcosis affects the human liver, and its clinical manifestations are similar to those of liver tumors. It is also called “worm cancer,” as it induces irreversible liver fibrosis and brain metastases. Alveolar echinococcosis is a serious threat to human health and is a burden to patients and economies. When detected and treated early, patients with alveolar echinococcosis have a strong chance of recovery. Therefore, it is imperative to identify early diagnostic biomarkers of the disease. MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are short, single-stranded, non-coding RNA molecules that play key roles in a wide range of biological processes, and have been recently implicated in tumorigenesis. However, little is known about the role of miRNAs in alveolar echinococcosis. We have previously reported differentially expressed miRNAs in the plasma of patients with alveolar echinococcosis and healthy individuals, using microarray assay chips. Methods: We screened 10 differentially expressed miRNAs based on their fold change and the available literature. Additionally, quantitative polymerase chain reaction was used to verify their expression in the plasma of alveolar echinococcosis patients. We found that hsa-miR-125b-5p was upregulated in the plasma and the hepatic tissue samples of alveolar echinococcosis patients; therefore, its role as a diagnostic biomarker for alveolar echinococcosis was investigated. Accordingly, hsa-miR-125b-5p was upregulated in plasma and hepatic tissue samples obtained from alveolar echinococcosis patients. Receiver operating characteristic curves showed that hsa-miR-125b-5p was associated with an area under the curve of 99.8% and 98.9% in the plasma and hepatic tissues of alveolar echinococcosis patients, respectively. Transfection of an LV-hsa-miR-125b-5p-inhibitor reduced apoptosis of L-O2 hepatocytes in vitro (P < 0.05). Thus, hsa-miR-125b-5p may promote liver cell proliferation and inhibit liver cell apoptosis.Conclusions: Taken together, hsa-miR-125b-5p may be a promising diagnostic biomarker for the early non-invasive diagnosis of alveolar echinococcosis. We plan to validate the expression of hsa-miR-125b-5p in the plasma of patients with cystic echinococcosis, alveolar echinococcosis, and other liver diseases to determine the potential of hsa-miR-125-5p as a differential biomarker in future studies.