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In this study, an N-chloramide-modified reactive copolymer, chlorinated poly (4-vinylbenzenesulfonamide-co-methyl methacrylate) (PVMCl), was designed and synthesized for rapid and efficient detoxif...

To observe the effects of herb-partitioned moxibustion and ginger-partitioned moxibustion on the growth of colon tumors in rats with colitis-associated colon cancer (CACC), and explore the mechanism of moxibustion intervening CACC through the purinergic receptor P2X ligand-gated ion channel 7 (P2X7R)/signal transducer and activator of transcription 3 (STAT3)/vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) pathway. A total of 26 male Sprague-Dawley rats were selected. According to the random number table method, 6 rats were selected as the normal group. The remaining 20 rats were injected intraperitoneally with azoxymethane (AOM) combined with oral dextran sodium sulfate (DSS) to prepare the CACC model. After the model was successfully established, 2 rats were randomly selected for model identification. The remaining 18 rats which were successfully modeled were randomly divided into a model group, a herb-partitioned moxibustion group and a ginger-partitioned moxibustion group, with 6 rats in each group. Moxibustion intervention was performed in the herb-partitioned moxibustion group and the ginger-partitioned moxibustion group at Qihai (CV 6) and bilateral Tianshu (ST 25). Moxibustion was performed twice at each point each time, once a day, at a 1-day interval after 6 consecutive interventions, for a total of 30 interventions. After intervention, the colon tumor load, pathological change and histopathological score were observed. Immunohistochemistry was used to detect the expressions of VEGF, P2X7R, phospho-STAT3 (p-STAT3), and nuclear factor-kappa B p65 (NF-κB p65) proteins in rat colon tissue. Western blot was used to detect the levels of p-STAT3 and NF-κB p65 proteins in rat colon tissue. Compared with the normal group, the colon tumor load and histopathological score in the model group were significantly increased (both P

Multiple myeloma (MM) is a plasma cell malignancy of bone marrow. In the present study, we aimed to study the function and potential mechanism of the antisense non-coding RNA in the INK4 Locus (ANRIL) in MM. The expression levels of ANRIL in MM patients and healthy donors were evaluated by quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR). The effects and mechanisms of ANRIL in MM were evaluated by cell viability assay, BrdU incorporation assay, tumor xenograft model, flow cytometry, western blot, RNA immunoprecipitation (RIP), transcriptome RNA sequencing, and chromatin immunoprecipitation (ChIP). We found that ANRIL was upregulated in MM patients and cell lines, and associated with advanced international staging system (ISS) stage and poor overall survival. Enforced ANRIL expression promoted proliferation and tumor xenograft growth of MM cells, while knockdown of ANRIL exhibited opposite effects. Moreover, ANRIL overexpression increased the half-maximal inhibitory concentration (IC50) of bortezomib and reduced bortezomib-induced apoptosis in MM cells. ANRIL was found to accumulate in the nuclei of MM cells, and interact with EZH2 by RIP assay. Transcriptome RNA sequencing identified PTEN as a target of ANRIL in MM cells. In the ChIP assay, knockdown of ANRIL reduced EZH2 occupancy and H3K27me3 binding to the promoter region of PTEN. Furthermore, EZH2 knockout or PTEN restoration abrogated the effects caused by ANRIL overexpression in MM cells. Our results indicated that ANRIL exerted oncogenic functions and conferred chemoresistance of MM cells by EZH2-mediated epigenetically silencing of PTEN.

A superhydrophobic and corrosion-resistant coating with hierarchical macro/nanostructures was constructed by one-step electrodeposition of dodecyltrimethoxysilane (e-DTMS) on Mg alloy AZ31 in a relatively media. The surface morphology and chemical composition were characterized using field emission scanning electron microscopy (FE-SEM), X-ray diffraction (XRD), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR), and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). Surface wettability was evaluated by measuring water contact angles and sliding angles of water droplets. The protective performance was measured by electrochemical and hydrogen evolution tests. The results indicated that the e-DTMS coating had excellent self-cleaning performance with a contact angle of 158° ± 2.3° and a sliding angle of 4° ± 0.5°. The superhydrophobic surface greatly reduced the contact area between the AZ31 substrate and water, and it was chemically stable in corrosive media. The corrosion current density (2.11 × 10−7 A cm−2) of the e-DTMS coating was about three hundred times less than that of the AZ31 substrate (7.34 × 10−5 A cm−2). The results demonstrated that the e-DTMS coating remarkably enhanced the anti-corrosion performance of AZ31 alloys.

The formation of vascular tubes is driven by extensive changes in endothelial cell (EC) shape. Here, we have identified a role of the actin-binding protein, Marcksl1, in modulating the mechanical properties of EC cortex to regulate cell shape and vessel structure during angiogenesis. Increasing and depleting Marcksl1 expression level in vivo results in an increase and decrease, respectively, in EC size and the diameter of microvessels. Furthermore, endothelial overexpression of Marcksl1 induces ectopic blebbing on both apical and basal membranes, during and after lumen formation, that is suppressed by reduced blood flow. High resolution imaging reveals that Marcksl1 promotes the formation of linear actin bundles and decreases actin density at the EC cortex. Our findings demonstrate that a balanced network of linear and branched actin at the EC cortex is essential in conferring cortical integrity to resist the deforming forces of blood flow to regulate vessel structure., During lumen formation in blood vessels, endothelial cells become exposed to hemodynamic forces that induce membrane blebbing and changes in cell shape. Here, the authors show endothelial cells develop an actin-based protective mechanism in the cell cortex that prevents excessive blebbing to control cell shape and vessel diameter.

Multi-walled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs) have been widely used in sewage disposal, water purification, and disinfection. Co-exposure to MWCNTs and heavy metal ions is common during water disposal. However, the hepatotoxicity of co-exposure to MWCNTs and lead ions for nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) subjects has not been investigated. NAFLD mice were fed intragastrically with MWCNTs and lead acetate (PbAc). Combined administration of MWCNTs and PbAc significantly damaged the liver function, and aggravated the nonalcoholic steatohepatitis phenotype as well as the hepatic fibrosis and steatosis in NAFLD mice. Furthermore, MWCNTs and PbAc significantly induced apoptosis in primary hepatocytes isolated from NAFLD mice. Combined administration of MWCNTs and PbAc also resulted in hepatic lipid peroxidation by inducing antioxidant defense system dysfunction, and significantly enhanced the expression levels of inflammatory cytokines in NAFLD mice livers. Meanwhile, combined administration of MWCNTs and PbAc may exert its hepatotoxicity in the NAFLD via inhibiting the adenosine 5'-monophosphate activated protein kinase (AMPK)/peroxisome proliferator-activated receptors γ (PPARγ) pathway. Taken together, we conclude that co-exposure to MWCNTs and PbAc can remarkably aggravate the hepatotoxicity in NAFLD mice via inhibiting the AMPK/PPARγ pathway. This study may provide a biosafety evaluation for the application of nanomaterials in wastewater treatment.

Insecticidal crystal (Cry) proteins produced by genetically modified rice that enter the soil via pollen dispersal, plant residues, and root exudation may disturb soil health. In the present study, we assessed the influences of transgenic Bt rice (i.e., HH1 with Cry1Ab/Cry1Ac) cultivation on the dynamics of soil carbon and nutrients under field conditions during 2013-2016. Transgenic treatments (transgenic Bt rice vs. its parental line (i.e., MH63) of non-Bt rice) have no consistently significant effects on soil property, including available nitrogen, available phosphorus, available potassium, total nitrogen, and total phosphorus, while apparent seasonal changes were observed. Besides, the variations of soil nutrients in the paddy field of transgenic Bt rice did not exceed their resistance capacities, except total organic carbon (TOC; RS (resistance) = 1.51) and total potassium (TK; RS = 2.62) in 2013 and TK (RS = 1.94) in 2014. However, the TOC and soil nutrient of TK in the paddy field of transgenic Bt rice have recovered to the pre-perturbation status after harvest (RL (resilience) = 1.01, F = 0.01, P = 0.91; RL = 0.98, F = 0.34, P = 0.58; RL = 0.99, F = 1.26, P = 0.29). Moreover, the paddy yield of transgenic Bt rice was consistently higher than that of its parental line of non-Bt rice. These results suggested that the cultivation of transgenic Bt rice has no adverse impact on soil stability in terms of soil carbon and nutrients and paddy yield.

Herein, we have reported a nickel-catalyzed cascade reductive thiolation of aryl halides with sulfinates driven by paired electrolysis. This protocol uses sulfinates as the sulfur source, and various thioethers could be synthesized under mild conditions. By mechanism exploration, we find that a cascade chemical step is allowed on the electrode interface and could alter the reaction pathway in paired electrolysis, whose findings could help the discovery of novel cascade reactions with unique reactivity.

Both n-butane and iso-butane are important petrochemical raw materials, and their separation is of great significance and full of challenge because of their close boiling characteristic. The ZIF-8 slurry formed with a novel mixed solvent M-water solution as sorption media was adopted to separate the mixture with high efficiency. The iso-/n-butane selectivity of ZIF-8/M-water slurries is as high as 890 with high kinetic performance, even transcending the upper limit of the new materials or membranes. More encouragingly, continuous pilot separation device was established and test results show that the purity and recovery ratio of iso-butane product achieved 99.46 mol% and 87% respectively, which are remarkably superior to the corresponding performance (98.56 mol% and 54%) of the industrial distillation tower. To our best knowledge, this is the first industrial pilot test using MOFs for gas separation, and also an important step forward to the commercial application of MOFs in gas separation.

Nitrous oxide (N2 O) was previously deemed as a potent greenhouse gas but is actually an untapped energy source, which can accumulate during the microbial denitrification of nitric oxide (NO). Compared with the organic electron donor required in heterotrophic denitrification, elemental sulfur (S0 ) is a promising electron donor alternative due to its cheap cost and low biomass yield in sulfur-driven autotrophic denitrification. However, no effort has been made to test N2 O recovery from sulfur-driven denitrification of NO so far. Therefore, in this study, batch and continuous experiments were carried out to investigate the NO removal performance and N2 O recovery potential via sulfur-driven NO-based denitrification under various Fe(II)EDTA-NO concentrations. Efficient energy recovery was achieved, as up to 35.5%-40.9% of NO was converted to N2 O under various NO concentrations. N2 O recovery from Fe(II)EDTA-NO could be enhanced by the low bioavailability of sulfur and the acid environment caused by sulfur oxidation. The NO reductase (NOR) and N2 O reductase (N2 OR) were inhibited distinctively at relatively low NO levels, leading to efficient N2 O accumulation, but were suppressed irreversibly at NO level beyond 15 mM in continuous experiments. Such results indicated that the regulation of NO at a relatively low level would benefit the system stability and NO removal capacity during long-term system operation. The continuous operation of the sulfur-driven Fe(II)EDTA-NO-based denitrification reduced the overall microbial diversity but enriched several key microbial community. Thauera, Thermomonas, and Arenimonas that are able to carry out sulfur-driven autotrophic denitrification became the dominant organisms with their relative abundance increased from 25.8% to 68.3%, collectively.

On-chip bright quantum sources with multiplexing ability are extremely high in demand for the integrated quantum networks with unprecedented scalability and complexity. Here, we demonstrate an ultrabright and broadband biphoton quantum source generated in a lithium niobate microresonator system.Without introducing the conventional domain poling, the on-chip microdisk produces entangled photon pairs covering a broad bandwidth promised by natural phase matching in spontaneous parametric down conversion.Experimentally, the multiplexed photon pairs are characterized by $30\ \rm nm$ bandwidth limited by the filtering system, which can be furthered enlarged.Meanwhile, the generation rate reaches $5.13\ {\rm MHz}/\upmu \rm W$ with a coincidence-to-accidental ratio up to $804$.Besides, the quantum source manifests the prominent purity with heralded single photon correlation $g_H^{(2)}(0)=0.0098\pm0.0021$ and energy-time entanglement with excellent interference visibility of $96.5\%\pm1.9\%$. Such quantum sources at the telecommunication band pave the way for high-dimensional entanglement and future integrated quantum information systems., 8 pages,4 figures

Agonists of glucocorticoid receptor (GR) are frequently given to cancer patients with platinum-containing chemotherapy to reduce inflammation, but how GR influences tumor growth in response to platinum-based chemotherapy such as cisplatin through inflammation-independent signaling remains largely unclear. Combined genomics and transcription factor profiling reveal that MAST1, a critical platinum resistance factor that reprograms the MAPK pathway, is upregulated upon cisplatin exposure through activated transcription factor GR. Mechanistically, cisplatin binds to C622 in GR and recruits GR to the nucleus for its activation, which induces MAST1 expression and consequently reactivates MEK signaling. GR nuclear translocation and MAST1 upregulation coordinately occur in patient tumors collected after platinum treatment, and align with patient treatment resistance. Co-treatment with dexamethasone and cisplatin restores cisplatin-resistant tumor growth, whereas addition of the MAST1 inhibitor lestaurtinib abrogates tumor growth while preserving the inhibitory effect of dexamethasone on inflammation in vivo. These findings not only provide insights into the underlying mechanism of GR in cisplatin resistance but also offer an effective alternative therapeutic strategy to improve the clinical outcome of patients receiving platinum-based chemotherapy with GR agonists., Glucocorticoid receptor (GR) agonists - used in the treatment of solid malignant tumors to reduce inflammation - could potentially affect the anti-tumor activity of chemotherapy. Here, the authors identify a mechanism of cisplatin resistance observed with GR agonist treatment, and show the binding and activation of GR by cisplatin, which leads to MAST1 activation and subsequent MAPK re-activation.

Target identification is one of the most important bases for novel pesticide development; pyruvate kinase (PK) was discovered as a potent fungicide target in our previous studies. To continue the PK-based fungicide development, novel isothiazole-purine derivatives were rationally designed and synthesized. Bioassay results showed that compound 5ai displayed excellent in vitro activity against Rhizoctonia solani with an EC50 of 1.5 μg/mL, which was superior to those of positive controls diflumetorim with its EC50 of 19.8 μg/mL and PK-based lead YZK-C22 with its EC50 of 4.2 μg/mL. Compounds 3b (5.2 μg/mL) and 3c (4.5 μg/mL) displayed better activities against Gibberella zeae with their EC50s falling between 4.0 and 5.5 μg/mL, while YZK-C22 showed an EC50 of 6.4 μg/mL. In addition, 5ah exhibited promising in vivo activity against Erysiphe graminis and Puccinia sorghi Schw. with 100% efficacy at 10 μg/mL and 90% efficacy at 2 μg/mL against P. sorghi Schw. Compound 5ai showed good PK inhibitory activity with an IC50 of 38.8 μmol/L, and it was well docked into the active site of the target enzyme PK, which was slightly more active than YZK-C22 with its IC50 of 42.4 μmol/L. Our studies discovered that isothiazole-purines were PK-based fungicidal leads deserving of further study.

Background and Aims:Rabdosia japonica var. glaucocalyx is a traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) for various inflammatory diseases. This present work aimed to investigate the protective effects of R. japonica var. glaucocalyx glycoproteins on lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-induced acute lung injury (ALI) and the potential mechanism.Methods: Glycoproteins (XPS) were isolated from R. japonica var. glaucocalyx, and homogeneous glycoprotein (XPS5-1) was purified from XPS. ANA-1 cells were used to observe the effect of glycoproteins on the secretion of inflammatory mediators by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). Flow cytometry assay, immunofluorescence assay, and Western blot analysis were performed to detect macrophage polarization in vitro. The ALI model was induced by LPS via intratracheal instillation, and XPS (20, 40, and 80 mg/kg) was administered intragastrically 2 h later. The mechanisms of XPS against ALI were investigated by Western blot, ELISA, and immunohistochemistry.Results:In vitro, XPS and XPS5-1 downregulated LPS-induced proinflammatory mediators production including tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α), interleukin-1β (IL-1β), IL-6, and nitric oxide (NO) and upregulated LPS-induced IL-10 secretion. The LPS-stimulated macrophage polarization was also modulated from M1 to M2. In vivo, XPS maintained pulmonary histology with significantly reducing protein concentration and numbers of mononuclear cells in bronchoalveolar lavage fluid (BALF). The level of IL-10 in BALF was upregulated by XPS treatment. The level of cytokines including TNF-α, IL-1β, and IL-6 was downregulated. XPS also decreased infiltration of macrophages and polymorphonuclear leukocytes (PMNs) in lung. XPS suppressed the expression of key proteins in the TLR4/NF-κB signal pathway.Conclusion: XPS was demonstrated to be a potential agent for treating ALI. Our findings might provide evidence supporting the traditional application of R. japonica var. glaucocalyx in inflammation-linked diseases.

Although the roles of long non-coding RNA (lncRNA) ANRIL (Antisense non-coding RNA in the INK4A locus) have been established in various tumors, its roles in mitochondrial metabolic reprogramming of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) cells are still unclear. This work aims to explore lncRNA ANRIL roles in regulating the mitochondrial metabolic reprogramming of liver cancer cells. First, we found that lncRAN ANRIL expression was significantly increased in HCC tissues or cells compared with the normal adjacent tissues and normal tissues or cells. Functional experiment showed that overexpression of lncRNA ANRIL promoted mitochondrial function in HCC cells, evident by the increased mitochondrial DNA copy numbers, ATP (Adenosine triphosphate) level, mitochondrial membrane potential, and the expression levels of mitochondrial markers, while ANRIL knockdown exerted the opposite effects. Mechanistically, lncRNA ANRIL acted as a competing endogenous RNA to increase ARL2 (ADP-ribosylationfactor-like 2) expression via sponging miR-199a-5p. Notably, the miR-199a-5p/ARL2 axis is necessary for ANRIL-mediated promoting effects on HCC cell mitochondrial function. This work reveals a novel ANRIL-miR-199a-5p-ARL2 axis in HCC cell progression, which might provide potential targets for HCC treatment.

The objective of this study was to investigate the mechanism underlying miR-21-associated apoptosis in HB. In this study, HB and adjacent tissues were collected from patients with HB. RT-PCR, FISH, western blot, apoptosis assay, migration, invasion and wound healing assays, caspase activity assay, luciferase reporter assays, and xenografts mouse model were used to determine the effects of miR-21 on HB cell apoptosis. The results revealed that miR-21 was up-regulated in both HB cell and tissue and was associated with progression of HB. MiR-21 inhibitor enhanced the apoptosis level in HB cells. MiR-21 inhibitor showed reduced abilities of migration and invasion. ASPP2 was a target gene of miR-21. Inhibition of ASPP2 increased abilities of migration and invasion in HB cells. Furthermore, miR-21 inhibitor caused increased activity p-38 signaling. In a xenografts mouse model, miR-21 inhibitor could significantly suppress tumor growth in nude mice along with enhanced expressions of ASPP2 and p38. Taken together, the results suggest that upregulation of miR-21 is related to HB progression and miR-21-associated apoptosis in HB is mediated through ASPP2/p38 signaling pathway in vitro and in vivo. This study provides novel insight into the effects of miR-21 on HB apoptosis and clue to develop new therapies.

Auxin regulates diverse processes involved in plant growth and development. AUX1 is the first identified and most widely investigated auxin importer, and plays an important role in root gravitropism and the development of lateral root and root hair. However, the regulation of auxin transport by AUX1 is still not well understood. In this study, we examined the effect of metal ions on AUX1 transport function and found that the activity could be specifically stimulated four times by K+. Further experiments revealed the preference of KF on the enhancement of transport activity of AUX1 over KCl, KBr, and KI. In addition, the interaction between K+ and AUX1 confers AUX1 more resistant to thermal stress but more vulnerable to proteolysis. Conventional chemical modification indicated that the extracellular acidic amino acids of AUX1 play a key role in the K+ stimulation. Site-specific mutagenesis showed that the replacement of Asp166, Asp293, and Asp312 of AUX1 to alanine deteriorated the K+-stimulated auxin transport. By contrast, when these residues were mutated to glutamate, lysine, or asparagine, only the D312E variant restored the IAA transport activity to the wild-type level. It is thus convinced that D312 is presumably the most promising residue for the K+ stimulation on AUX1.

Herein, two novel Evans-Showell-type polyoxometalate (POM)-based metal-organic complexes, namely, {[Cu(L)(H2O)3][Cu(L)0.5(H2O)][Cu(L)0.5(H2O)4][Co2Mo10H4O38]}·5H2O (1) and [(H2L)0.5]2{[Zn(L)0.5(H2O)4]2[Co2Mo10H4O38]}·2H2O (2) (L = N,N'-bis(3-pyridinecarboxamide)-piperazine), were hydrothermally synthesized using a semi-rigid bis-pyridyl-bis-amide ligand and structurally characterized via single-crystal X-ray diffraction, elemental analysis, IR spectroscopy, powder X-ray diffraction (PXRD) and thermogravimetric analyses (TGA). The single-crystal X-ray diffraction analysis shows that complex 1 is a 3D Evans-Showell-type POM-based metal-organic network. In complex 1, the 1D infinite double chain structure constructed from {{Cu[Co2Mo10H4O38]}4-L} units and the μ4-bridging L ligand are linked by quadrate Cu2L2 loops to form a 2D layer, which is further connected by μ2-bridging L ligands, forming a 3D (2,3,4)-connected metal-organic framework. Complex 2 displays 3D supramolecular networks based on 1D {[Co2Mo10H4O38]-Zn-L}n infinite chains, which are constructed from Evans-Showell-type polyoxoanions and μ2-bridging 3-bpfp ligands (via ligation of pyridyl nitrogen atoms). The different coordination modes of the POM polyanions, bis(pyridylformyl)piperazine ligands and ratios play key roles in the construction of the title complexes. Significantly, the ligand L shows a μ4-bridging coordination mode in complex 1, which is observed for the first time in a POM system. Compounds 1 and 2 represent the first examples of metal-organic complexes based on Evans-Showell-type polyoxoanion and transition metal-bis-pyrazine-bis-amide coordination complexes. The fluorescence properties of the title complexes are reported herein. In addition, the title complexes act as heterogeneous Lewis acid catalysts for the oxidation of benzyl alcohol, and can also be recovered and reused without any significant loss in activity. Significantly, compound 1 with a 3D metal-organic framework showed higher catalytic performance with 99.4% conversion and 98.8% selectivity for benzoic acid at 10 h than compound 2 with 3D supramolecular networks.

A ZBLAN photonic crystal fiber (PCF) with normal dispersion is theoretically designed and investigated. The designed PCF can provide a large normal dispersion coefficient and a low confinement loss in a broad wavelength range of 1.8-3.6 μm. Especially, the PCF exhibits an ultra large normal dispersion value of -351.3 ps/km/nm and a small confinement loss of 0.05 dB/m at 2.9 μ m. By using the designed PCF as a dispersion compensator in a mode-locked ZBLAN fiber laser, stretched pulse with compressed pulse duration of 1.56 ps is numerically achieved.

Natural products are one of the resources for discovering novel fungicidal leads. As a natural fungicide, osthole was used as a coumarin-based lead compound for the development of novel fungicides. Here, a series of 3,4-dichloroisothiazole-containing 7-hydroxycoumarins were rationally designed, synthesized, and characterized by introducing a bioactive substructure, 3,4-dichloroisothiazole, into the coumarin skeleton. In vitro bioassay indicated that compound 7g displayed good activity against Rhizoctonia solani, Physalospora piricola, Sclerotinia sclerotiorum, and Botrytis cinerea. Its median effective concentration (EC50) value against each of these fungi fell between 0.88 and 2.50 μg/mL, which was much lower than that of osthole against the corresponding pathogen (between 7.38 and 74.59 μg/mL). In vivo screening validated that 7k exhibited 100%, 60%, and 20% efficacy against R. solani Kuhn at 200, 100, and 50 μg/mL, respectively. RNA sequence analysis implied that growth inhibition of R. solani by 7k might result from potential disruptions of fungal membrane formation and intracellular metabolism. Furthermore, a field experiment with cucumber plants indicated that 7b showed 62.73% and 74.03% efficacy against Pseudoperonospora cubensis (Berk. & Curt.) Rostov. at rates of 12.5 g a.i./ha and 25 g a.i./ha, respectively, which showed no significant difference between 7b and osthole at 30 g a.i./ha. Our studies suggested that 7b, 7g, and 7k might be used as fungicidal leads for further optimization.

Epilepsy is a neurological disorder which is characterized by brain hyper-excitability and manifests as seizure. Due to its complicated pathogenesis, treatment for epilepsy still remains a huge challenge for neurology in the whole world. MciroRNA-134 (miR-134) is one kind of miRNAs which was firstly found abundant in synapses. In this study, we tried to unveil the role of inhibiting MciroRNA-134-5p (miR-134-5p) in excitotoxicity induced by kainic acid (KA) in the hippocampal neurons (HT22) cells. The results showed that treatment of KA increased the expression of miR-134-5p significantly and caused marked neuron excitotoxicity, evidenced by risen cell death rate, higher LDH release and aggravated cell viability. After suppressing miR-134-5p expression via transfecting HT22 cells with miR-134-5p antisense (Anti-134), cell viability was promoted obviously, along with decreased LDH release and cell death rate. In addition, KA-induced lipid peroxidation, cytochrome c release and mitochondrial ROS generation were also attenuated by Anti-134. The level of Sirtuin 3 (Sirt3) and its downstream antioxidant enzymes, such as mitochondrial superoxide dismutase 2 (SOD2), isocitrate dehydrogenase 2 (IDH2) and glutathione peroxidase (GSH-Px), were significantly higher in Anti-134 group compared with the control and scramble group. After inhibiting Sirt3 expression with SiRNA targeting Sirt3 (Si-Sirt3) and 3-(1H-1,2,3-triazol-4-yl) pyridine (3-TYP), the positive role of Anti-134 was apparently reversed. In conclusion, this research highly suggests that inhibition of miR-134-5p could protect neurons from KA-induced excitotoxicity through Sirt3-mediated preservation of mitochondrial function.

Kampo medicines are frequently used empirically to treat pain in clinical practice. Ninjin'yoeito (NYT), which is associated with few adverse effects, is often used to treat the elderly, but has not yet been examined in detail. We herein investigated the effects of NYT, at 500 and 1,000 mg/kg p.o. (NYT500/NYT1000 group) in single and repeated administrations for 14 days, on pain in rats with peripheral neuropathy induced by loose ligation of the sciatic nerve (chronic constriction injury: CCI). Untreated CCI rats given distilled water were used as a control group. To assess induced pain, the pain threshold was measured using the von Frey test. To evaluate spontaneous pain, the ground-contact area of the paw with neuropathic pain was measured using the Dynamic Weight Bearing test. Serum samples were collected after the test to elucidate the mechanism of action of NYT, and brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) and corticosterone protein levels, which have been reported to change due to chronic pain, were analyzed. After single administration of NYT, the pain threshold rose in the NYT500 and NYT1000 groups. The pain threshold tended to rise on day 14 of repeated administration in the NYT500 group (p = 0.08) and it significantly rose at NYT1000 group (p < 0.05) compared to Control group. In addition, the foot contact area increased (p = 0.09). Therefore, CCI-induced pain was significantly remitted and spontaneous pain was remitted after repeated administration of NYT. Serum BDNF levels were higher in untreated CCI rats than in normal rats (p = 0.05), but decreased after the repeated administration of NYT (NYT1000, p = 0.15), while serum corticosterone levels were lower (p = 0.12) than those in normal rats and increased after the repeated administration of NYT (NYT1000, p = 0.07). The blood BDNF level has been suggested to influence pain intensity. The findings demonstrated NYT effectively treats neuropathic pain, suggesting that a NYT-induced decrease in blood BDNF contributed to the mechanism of pain relief. In addition, the variation of corticosterone was observed, suggesting that normalization of responsiveness to stress by NYT contributed to the pain relief.

Casein nonphosphopeptide (CNPP), a byproduct formed during the preparation of casein phosphopeptide (CPP), is often discarded on a large scale. Although our previous studies have demonstrated the ameliorative effect of CNPP on muscle wasting disorders, its structure-function mechanism is still unclear. Therefore, considering the great influence of structural characteristics on function, this study aims to explain the potential mechanism by characterizing the physicochemical and functional properties of CNPP. The results of structural characterization indicated that CNPP was of low molecular weight and composed of the complete range of amino acids; it was particularly rich in leucine. Compared with casein, CNPP had a lower molecular size and total/free sulfhydryl content (reduced 2.44 and 2.02 µmol/g in CNPP, respectively). Additionally, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopic analysis revealed that enzymatic hydrolysis caused protein unfolding, and the content of β-turns and random coils reached 50.20% and 10.67%, respectively. Fluorescence-dependent detection of CNPP indicated a reduction of spectral intensity and the occurrence of a red shift. The changes in the structure of CNPP significantly affected its functional characteristics. CNPP has better solubility, foaming, and digestion properties than those of casein and whey protein. Specifically, the foam stability and emulsification properties decreased in the order of casein > CNPP > whey protein. The present study can provide a substantial basis for future application of CNPP as a functional ingredient against sarcopenia.

Twenty-one novel 3,4-dichloroisothiazolocoumarin-containing strobilurins were rationally designed and synthesized. Preliminary bioassay showed that compounds 7c, 7h and 7l exhibited over 80% inhibitory rate against Sclerotinia sclerotiorum at 50 μg/mL, 7c exhibited good activity against S. sclerotiorum with median effective concentration (EC50) of 4.08 μg/mL, while the positive control coumoxystrobin showed EC50 of 1.00 μg/mL. In addition, 7d showed better fungicidal activity with a lower EC50 value of 7.65 μg/mL against Botrytis cinerea than that of positive control trifloxystrobin with its EC50 value of 21.96 μg/mL. This study indicated that 3,4-dichloroisothiazolocoumarin-containing strobilurin was a promising fungicide lead deserved for further study.

Chemical absorption-biological reduction based on Fe(II)EDTA is a promising technology to remove nitric oxide (NO) from flue gases. However, limited effort has been made to enable direct energy recovery from NO through production of nitrous oxide (N2O) as a potential renewable energy rather than greenhouse gas. In this work, the enhanced energy recovery in the form of N2O via biological NO reduction was investigated by conducting short-term and long-term experiments at different Fe(II)EDTA-NO and organic carbon levels. The results showed both NO reductase and N2O reductase were inhibited at Fe(II)EDTA-NO concentration up to 20 mM, with the latter being inhibited more significantly, thus facilitating N2O accumulation. Furthermore, N2O accumulation was enhanced under carbon-limiting conditions because of electron competition during short-term experiments. Up to 47.5% of NO-N could be converted to gaseous N2O-N, representing efficient N2O recovery. Fe(II)EDTA-NO reduced microbial diversity and altered the community structure toward Fe(II)EDTA-NO-reducing bacteria-dominated culture during long-term experiments. The most abundant bacterial genus Pseudomonas, which was able to resist the toxicity of Fe(II)EDTA-NO, was significantly enriched, with its relative abundance increased from 1.0 to 70.3%, suggesting Pseudomonas could be the typical microbe for the energy recovery technology in NO-based denitrification.

Firstly, the basic conditions of the fungicide were introduced, its action principle was analyzed, the use method of the fungicide in the military warehouse was put forward, and the factors influencing the application effect were discussed.

Heat-soak and quick freezing could deteriorate the texture of vegetables. In this work, it was found that calcium chloride-sodium alginate (SA) could improve the appearance, brittleness, and chewiness of processed Heracleum moellendorffii (HM), a kind of popular nutritious wild vegetable in China. The effect resulted from the increase of calcium content in the vegetable, which was closely related to the ratio of calcium chloride to SA, the concentration of texture retaining agent, and soaking time significantly ( P < 0.01 ). The best way to maintain the texture was to soak HM in 4 g/L of calcium chloride-SA (mass ratio 1 : 2) at 50°C for 30 minutes. The calcium content was increased to 71.56 mg/100g, and the brittleness and chewiness were 4630 gf and 2583.33 gf, respectively. The microstructure found that calcium could adhere to an inherent position on the cell membrane and protected the sample from cell damage and chloroplast spilling from the cell during thawing and quick freezing. The results showed that calcium chloride-SA treatment may be a promising method to improve the texture of vegetables during quick-frozen storage.

We report a highly sensitive approach for detecting microRNA-21 (miR-21) in cancer cells and human serum by using Au@Si nanocomposite labeled lateral flow assay. The Au@Si nanocomposite was prepared by coating numerous 3–5 nm gold nanoparticles (GNP) on a silica nanoparticle (SiNP) with a diameter of 150 nm and used as colored label on the lateral flow assay for signal amplification. TEM results show there are around 1000 GNPs coated on the SiNP surface. The principle of miR-21 detection is based on on-strip DNA-microRNA hybridization reactions to form DNA-miR-21-DNA-Au@Si complexes, which are captured on the test zone of the lateral flow test strip and produce a visible red band. A thiol-modified detecting DNA probe (Det-DNA) and a biotin-modified capturing DNA probe (Cap-DNA), which are complementary to miR-21, were used to prepare the lateral flow test strips. After systematic optimization, the method can detect a minimum concentration of 1.0 pM miR-21, which is 60 times lower than that of the GNP-based lateral flow assay (Gao et al. Biosens & Bioelectro, 2014, 54, 578–584). The method was applied to detect miR-21 in cancer cells and spiked human serum with satisfactory results.

Atmospheric nitrogen deposition is of great concern to both air quality and the ecosystem, particularly in northern China, which covers one-quarter of China&rsquo, s cultivated land and has many heavily air polluted cities. To understand the characteristics of wet N deposition at rural sites in northern China, one-year wet deposition samples were collected in the Daheitin reservoir region. Due to the intense emissions of gaseous nitrogen compounds from heating activities during cold seasons and distinct dilution effects under different rainfall intensities and frequencies, the volume weighted mean concentrations of wet N deposition showed higher levels in dry seasons but lower levels in wet seasons. In contrast, the wet N deposition rates varied consistently with precipitation, i.e., high during the wet season and lower during the dry season. The annual wet deposition rate of total inorganic ions (the sum of NO3&minus, &ndash, N and NH4+&ndash, N) at the rural site in North China from July 2019 to June 2020 was observed at 18.9 kg N ha&minus, 1 yr&minus, 1, still remained at a relatively high level. In addition, biomass burning activities are ubiquitous in China, especially in northern China, however, studies on its impact on wet N deposition are limited. Non-sea salt potassium ion (nss-K+) was employed as a molecular tracer to investigate the characteristics of biomass burning activities as well as their impact on the chemical properties of wet N deposition. Three precipitation events with high nss-K+ levels were captured during the harvest season (June to July). The variations in the patterns of nss-K+, deposited N species, and ratios of nss-K+ to nitrogen species as well as their relationships all indicated that biomass burning emissions contributed remarkably to NO3&minus, N but had a minor influence on NH4+&ndash, N.

A gold nanorod (AuNR)-based lateral flow nucleic acid biosensor (LFNAB) is reported for visual detection of DNA with a short test time and high sensitivity. AuNRs with an approximate length of 60 nm were utilized as a colored tag to label the detection DNA probe (Det-DNA). The capture DNA probe (Cap-DNA) was immobilized on the test region of LFNAB. Sandwich-type complex was formed among the AuNR-Det-DNA, target DNA (Tar-DNA), and Cap-DNA on the LFNAB by Watson-Crick base pairing. In the presence of Tar-DNA, AuNRs were thus seized on the test region of LFNAB, and the accumulation of AuNRs subsequently produced a characteristic colored band. The optimized LFNAB was able to detect 10 pM Tar-DNA without instrumentation. Quantitative analysis could be established by measuring the intensity of test band using a portable strip reader, and the detection limit of 2 pM target DNA was achieved on the LFNAB without signal amplification. The detection limit of the AuNR-based LFNAB is 250-fold lower than that of gold nanoparticle (AuNP)-based LFNABs. This work unveiled a sensitive, rapid, and economical strategy for the detection of nucleic acids, and simultaneously opening new promising routes for disease diagnosis and clinical applications. Gold nanorods are used as colored tags for lateral flow nucleic acid biosensor.

The melanocortin-4 receptor (MC4R) is a member of the G-protein-coupled receptor (GPCR) superfamily, which has been extensively studied in obesity pathogenesis due to its critical role in regulating energy homeostasis. Both the Gs-cAMP and ERK1/2 cascades are known as important intracellular signaling pathways initiated by the MC4R. The DRYxxI motif at the end of transmembrane domain 3 and the intracellular loop 2 (ICL2) are thought to be crucial for receptor function in several GPCRs. To study the functions of this domain in MC4R, we performed alanine-scanning mutagenesis on seventeen residues. We showed that one residue was critical for receptor cell surface expression. Eight residues were important for ligand binding. Mutations of three residues impaired Gs-cAMP signaling without changing the binding properties. Investigation on constitutive activities of all the mutants in the cAMP pathway revealed that six residues were involved in constraining the receptor in inactive states and five residues were important for receptor activation in the absence of an agonist. In addition, mutations of four residues impaired the ligand-stimulated ERK1/2 signaling pathway without affecting the binding properties. We also showed that some mutants were biased to the Gs-cAMP or ERK1/2 signaling pathway. In summary, we demonstrated that the DRYxxI motif and ICL2 were important for MC4R function.

Background Multiple murine models of nonalcoholic fatty liver disease/steatohepatitis (NAFLD/NASH) have been established by using obesogenic diets and/or chemical induction. MS-NASH mouse (formally FATZO) is a spontaneously developed dysmetabolic strain that can progress from hepatosteatosis to moderate fibrosis when fed a western diet supplemented with 5% fructose (WDF). This study aimed to use carbon tetrachloride (CCl4) to accelerate and aggravate progression of NAFLD/NASH in MS-NASH mouse. Methods Male MS-NASH mice at 8 weeks of age were fed WDF for the entire study. Starting at 16 weeks of age, CCl4 was intraperitoneally administered twice weekly at a dose of 0.2 mL/kg for 3 weeks or 0.08 mL/kg for 8 weeks. Obeticholic acid (OCA, 30 mg/kg, QD) was administered in both MS-NASH and C57Bl/6 mice fed WDF and treated with CCl4 (0.08 mL/kg). Results WDF enhanced obesity and hepatosteatosis, as well as induced moderate fibrosis in MS-NASH mice similar to previous reports. Administration of CCl4 accelerated liver fibrosis with increased bridging and liver hydroxyproline contents, but had no significant impact on liver steatosis and lipid contents. High dose CCl4 caused high mortality and dramatic elevation of ALT and ASL, while low dose CCl4 resulted in a moderate elevation of ALT and AST with low mortality. Compared to C57BI/6 mice with WDF and CCl4 (0.08 mL/kg), MS-NASH mice had more prominent hepatosteatosis and fibrosis. OCA treatment significantly lowered liver triglycerides, steatosis and fibrosis in both MS-NASH and C57Bl/6 mice fed WDF with CCl4 treatment. Conclusions CCl4 reduced induction time and exacerbated liver fibrosis in MS-NASH mice on WDF, proving a superior NASH model with more prominent liver pathology, which has been used favorably in pharmaceutical industry for testing novel NASH therapeutics.

Naphthenic acids (NAs) are cycloalkyl linear carboxylic acids primarily originating from oil sand tailings water (OSTW), and the exposure to NAs affects the photosynthesis of marine microalgaes. However, the transcriptional response upon the stress of NAs remains unclear. Herein, we investigate the transcriptome alterations of marine Phaeodactylum tricornutum induced by NAs using RNA-sequencing. In total 70 differentially expressed genes (DEGs) are enriched in seven biological process pathways, and 48 DEGs are enriched in four molecular functions. Differentially expressed genes of P. tricornutum are primarily concentrated in three photosynthesis-related pathways including the porphyrin and chlorophyll metabolism pathway, the photosynthesis pathway, and the carbon fixation pathway in photosynthetic organisms. Five DEGs such as hemE, chlM, TPI/GapC3, FbaC5, and CHLH are validated using quantitative real-time PCR assay. NAs at low concentrations affect the material energy conversion efficiency of P. tricornutum, such as chlorophyll synthesis, electron transfer efficiency, and carbon assimilation.

Background Resistant starch (RS) has health benefits and can be used as a functional ingredient in various food products. Kansas hard red winter (HRW) wheat is conventionally used for bread making and this is attributed to its strong gluten network. To develop Asian white salted noodles with a high RS content, HRW wheat flour was partially replaced with cross-linked phosphorylated RS4 wheat starch. Vital wheat gluten or wheat protein isolate was added to compensate for textural changes due to the addition of RS. Results The maximum recommended level of RS4 starch to replace HRW wheat flour was 40%. The substitution of 10-40 parts of RS4 for flour did not change hardness in cooked noodles but it did reduce their extensibility, cohesiveness, and springiness, which was probably due to the non-swelling properties of RS4. At 40 parts of RS4 replacement, supplementation of 2-8 parts of vital wheat gluten or wheat protein isolate in the composite flour notably enhanced the hardness and extensibility of cooked noodles, whereas cohesiveness and springiness were minimally affected. Supplemental vital wheat gluten produced a thicker protein network than endogenous protein or added wheat protein isolate, giving cooked noodles greater breaking force and distance. Conclusion RS4 could be used as a functional ingredient to replace up to 40% of hard wheat flour for making Asian noodles while maintaining their hardness after cooking. The extensibility of cooked noodles with high RS4 could be noticeably enhanced by supplementation with vital wheat gluten in the composite flour (RS/flour = 40/60). © 2020 Society of Chemical Industry.

Four new triterpene glucosides (1–4) were isolated from the 90% ethanol extract of Salacia cochinchinensis, together with five known compounds (5–9). The structures of the new compounds were elucidated by comprehensive spectroscopic analysis including HRESIMS, IR, 1 D and 2 D NMR analysis. All isolates were assayed for their α-glucosidase inhibitory activity. Compound 9 showed remarkable α-glucosidase inhibitory activity with an IC50 value of 0.31 μM, and the triterpene glycosides (1–5) exhibited moderate α-glucosidase inhibitory activity.

This study investigated the effects of spontaneous and Lactobacillus plantarum (LP) fermentation on structure glutinous proso millet starch (GPM) and physical properties. In order to explore starch changes by fermentation for quality regulation of fermented food glutinous proso millet and improve properties of modified GPM starch products. The molecular weight, amylopectin chain length distribution, morphological properties, short-range ordered structure, and crystal structure of GPM starch were analyzed. Results showed that compared with the non-fermented GPM starch, amylose content of spontaneous and LP-fermented GPM starch increased then decreased, with the latter decreasing faster. There were no changes in the Type A structures of spontaneous fermented, LP-fermented, and non-fermented GPM starch. After 24 h of LP fermentation, higher water swelling power, and lower GPM starch solubility were obtained compared to non-fermentation and spontaneous fermentation. The decrease in pasting properties and thermal properties while increasing GPM starch properties was shown after fermentation compared to non-fermentation experiments. Besides, LP fermentation showed faster changes of these properties than spontaneous fermentation. In conclusion, our findings showed that fermentation could improve GPM starch properties, benefiting fermented GPM products and as a modification method for GPM starch. Especially, LP fermentation was more effective than spontaneous fermentation.

The effects of BaCl2 on the flotation of K-feldspar using dodecyl amine chloride as the collector under natural pH were investigated by flotation tests, absorption measurements, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). The results indicated that lower BaCl2 concentration can increase the floatability of K-feldspar, whereas higher BaCl2 concentration can significantly inhibit the flotation of K-feldspar. Peaks at 3548.18, 3475.56 and 3414.35 cm−1 in the FTIR spectra of K-feldspar adsorbed by dodecyl amine chloride revealed three forms of —OH. XPS analyses of K-feldspar adsorbed by Ba2+ showed that the concentration of K atom was reduced by nearly twice as those of Si, Al, and O. The activation of BaCl2 at a low concentration was mainly caused by Ba2+ in the form of the ion exchange between K+ and Ba2+. The inhibitory action of BaCl2 at a high concentration is mainly attributed to the physical absorption of Ba2+ on the surface of K-feldspar and the fact that a high concentration of Cl− causes the chemical equilibrium of dodecyl amine chloride to be changed, and the dodecyl amine chloride in the form of RNH2H+ is reduced.

Diabetes remains a long standing public health issue among the Chinese population, with an incidence of up to 11.6%, of which type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) accounts for 85%–95%. During this study, we aimed to elucidate the value of high-frequency ultrasonography (HFUS) combined with serum resistin on vascular remodeling (VR) in carotid atherosclerosis (CA) among patients suffering from T2DM. A total of 432 T2DM were recruited and assigned into the short T2DM duration group (10 years), while another 172 healthy cases were recruited as the control group. The intima-media thickness (IMT) as well as plaque score, detection rate and type were detected by the HFUS. The respective blood pressure readings were measured and pulse pressure was calculated accordingly. The serum resistin level, remodeling incidence and type, levels of total cholesterol (TC), fasting blood glucose (FBG), low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C), high-density liproprotein cholesterol (HDL-C), and triglyceride (TG) were measured. The correlation between IMT, the plaque detection rate and blood pressure were analyzed. A receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve was constructed in order to evaluate the impact of VR in CA on T2DM patients who were solely using HFUS and serum resistin respectively, as well as a combination of HFUS with serum resistin. As In comparison with the control group, the short, middle and long T2DM duration groups all displayed increased IMT, plaque score and detection rate, serum resistin level and VR incidence, especially for the long T2DM duration group. Levels of TC, TG, FBG and LDL-C were much higher while HDL-C was lower among patients with T2DM than those in the control group. A positive correlation was detected between the disease course and IMT. The detection rate of plaque with thickening IMT exhibited upregulated levels when compared to those with normal IMT. The HFUS, serum resistin and HFUS combined with serum resistin respective areas under the ROC curve were 0.873, 0.867 and 0.923, respectively, suggesting that the combination of HFUS and serum resistin was superior to that of individual HFUS or individual serum resistin in regard to the impact of VR in CA on T2DM patients. The results of this study revealed that the combination of HFUS and serum resistin was superior to individual HFUS or individual serum resistin in relation to its ability to evaluate the impact of VR in CA in patients with T2DM.

Objective Light injury-induced apoptosis of retinal photoreceptor cells can lead to vision loss. The mechanism underlying such injury remains unclear, and there are no effective therapies at present. The aim of this study was to examine the potential antiapoptotic role of the cellular repressor of E1A-stimulated genes (CREG) in retinal cells in a rat model of light-induced retinal damage. Methods CREG proteins were injected into the vitreous space of rats in which light retinal injury was induced. An equal volume of PBS was injected into the vitreous space of a control group. Retinas were collected for H&E staining and Western blotting analysis 1, 3, and 7 days later. Inhibitors or agonist for P38, JNK, and AKT were injected into the vitreous space to verify CREG function. Results In rats with light-induced retinal injury, the CREG treatment inhibited the expression of apoptosis-related proteins caspase-3, caspase-8, and caspase-9 and signaling proteins phosphorylated ERK (P-ERK), phosphorylated JNK (P-JNK), phosphorylated P38 (P-P38), and phosphorylated AKT (P-AKT). An inhibitor of PI3K-AKT and an agonists of P38 and JNK abrogated the inhibitory effect of CREG on caspase-3 expression. Conclusion CREG protected retinal cells against apoptosis by inhibiting P38/MAPK and JNK/MAPK signaling pathways and activating the PI3K-AKT signaling pathway.

(NH4)(2)SO4 is abundant in the dust of the rural and industrial atmosphere, by which a thin layer of (NH4)(2)SO4 solution will be formed on the copper surface and give rise to serious corrosion as soon as the ambient humidity gets the critical relative humidity. In this work, the corrosion mechanism of copper in (NH4)(2)SO4 solution was studied by microgravimetry associated with SEM/EDS, FT-IR, XRD, titration method, and electrochemical tests. The results suggest that the corrosion of copper is not only caused by electrochemical effect, but also caused by the synergistic actions of the electrochemical and chemical reactions. In addition, it is found that the presence of free Cu2+ is the prerequisite for the formation of corrosion products on copper immersed in (NH4)(2)SO4 solution. NH4+ plays a dual role in promoting the corrosion of copper and inhibiting the formation of corrosion products on copper surface.

Polyunsaturated fatty acids are essential to human nutrition. Phyllanthus emblica L. seed oil serves as a source of enrichment for the preparation of polyunsaturated fatty acids by urea inclusion technique. Under optimal conditions (6 g urea per 3 mL free fatty acids, crystallization temperature of −6°C, and crystallization time of 19 h), the purity of polyunsaturated fatty acids was up to 98.47% and the yield was 71.85%. The urea-polyunsaturated fatty acids inclusion complex was analyzed using differential scanning calorimetry, Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy/energy, and dispersive X-ray spectroscopy. The results showed that polyunsaturated fatty acids can be successfully separated by urea inclusion fractionation. The filled and hollow hexagonal prisms of urea crystal were clearly observed. In addition, the macroscopic and microscopic morphology of palmitic acid-urea inclusion were studied after washing with solvents using scanning electron microscopy and X-ray diffraction analysis to understand the involvement of guest molecules in the hexagonal crystal structure. The results showed that washing with solvents could not remove all the palmitic acid in the hexagonal structure of the urea inclusion complex, and the formation of hexagonal structure needed the support of involved guest molecules.

Although challenging, fabrication of porous conducting polymeric materials with excellent electronic properties is crucial for many applications. We developed a fast in situ polymerization approach to pure polyaniline (PANI) hydrogels, with vanadium pentoxide hydrate nanowires as both the oxidant and sacrifice template. A network comprised of ultrathin PANI nanofibers was generated during the in situ polymerization, and the large aspect ratio of these PANI nanofibers allowed the formation of hydrogels at a low solid content of 1.03 wt %. Owing to the ultrathin fibril structure, PANI hydrogels functioning as a supercapacitor electrode display a high specific capacitance of 636 F g–1, a rate capability, and good cycling stability (∼83% capacitance retention after 10,000 cycles). This method was also extended to the preparation of polypyrrole and poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene) hydrogels. This template polymerization method represents a rational strategy for design of conducing polymer networks, which can b...

Plant vacuolar H+-transporting inorganic pyrophosphatase (V-PPase; EC 3.6.1.1) is a crucial enzyme that exists on the tonoplast to maintain pH homeostasis across the vacuolar membrane. This enzyme generates proton gradient between cytosol and vacuolar lumen by hydrolysis of a metabolic byproduct, pyrophosphate (PP i ). The regulation of V-PPase at protein level has drawn attentions of many workers for decades, but its mechanism is still unclear. In this work, we show that AVP1, the V-PPase from Arabidopsis thaliana, is a target protein for regulatory 14-3-3 proteins at the vacuolar membrane, and all twelve 14-3-3 isoforms were analyzed for their association with AVP1. In the presence of 14-3-3ν, -µ, -ο, and -ι, both enzymatic activities and its associated proton pumping of AVP1 were increased. Among these 14-3-3 proteins, 14-3-3 µ shows the highest stimulation on coupling efficiency. Furthermore, 14-3-3ν, -µ, -ο, and -ι exerted protection of AVP1 against the inhibition of suicidal substrate PP i at high concentration. Moreover, the thermal profile revealed the presence of 14-3-3ο improves the structural stability of AVP1 against high temperature deterioration. Additionally, the 14-3-3 proteins mitigate the inhibition of Na+ to AVP1. Besides, the binding sites/motifs of AVP1 were identified for each 14-3-3 protein. Taken together, a working model was proposed to elucidate the association of 14-3-3 proteins with AVP1 for stimulation of its enzymatic activity.