Search

Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) is an idiopathic inflammatory disease with a high incidence. Multiple factors including dietary composition contribute to its occurrence. Recently, ketogenic diet which consists of a high proportion of fat and low carbohydrates has gained great popularity. Our study is aimed to explore the effect of ketogenic diet on IBD and its potential mechanisms. C57BL/6 mice were given a ketogenic diet or a control diet for a month and IBD was induced by 2% DSS in drinking water in the last week. Gut histology, inflammatory cytokines and chemokines, gut microbiota and metabolism were assessed. Ketogenic diet substantially worsened colitis, in terms of higher body weight loss, DAI scores and histological scores as well as colon length shortening. Levels of serum and colon inflammatory cytokines and chemokines (IL-1α, IL-6, TNF-α, IL-17, GM-CSF and IL-10) were significantly up-regulated in mice treated with ketogenic diet and DSS. Increased intestinal permeability and decreased expressions of intestinal epithelial barrier associated genes were observed due to ketogenic diet administration. Pretreatment with ketogenic diet alters the bacterial abundance, increasing pathogenic taxa such as Proteobacteria, Enterobacteriaceae, Helicobacter and Escherichia-Shigella and decreasing potential beneficial taxa such as Erysipelotrichaceae. Ketogenic diet also modified gut metabolism, increasing metabolites in the bile secretion such as ouabain, taurochenodeoxycholic acid, quinine, cholic acid and glycocholic acid, and decreasing metabolites associated with the biosynthesis of unsaturated fatty acids including stearic acid, arachidic acid, erucic acid, and docosanoic acid. These results suggest that ketogenic diet aggravates DSS-induced colitis in mice by increasing intestinal and systemic inflammation, and disrupting the intestinal barrier, which results from modulated gut microbiota and metabolism.

Currently, aqueous zinc–ion batteries are receiving extraordinary attention because of their cheap price, superior energy density and great security. However, the inferior specific capacity and low rate capability significantly hamper their further widespread application. Herein, a novel egg waffle–like architecture consisting of double–shell ZnMn2O4 hollow microspheres embedded in 2D carbon networks (ZnMn2O4@C) is designed and employed as a cathode material for aqueous zinc–ion batteries. Specifically, the ZnMn2O4@C electrode displays a capacity of 481 mAh g−1 at 0.2 A g−1 after 110 cycles with excellent cycling stability. The superior cycling stability of the ZnMn2O4@C electrode is ascribed to the synergistic effect of the double–shell ZnMn2O4 hollow microspheres, which offer sufficient space to withstand volume expansion during Zn2+ intercalation/deintercalation process, as well as the 2D continuous conductive and interconnected carbon network, which facilitates rapid electronic transmission and guarantees good structural mechanical stability. This study offers a fascinating cathode material and extends the available choices for manganate based–materials in rechargeable aqueous zinc–ion batteries.

The key to realizing practical applications of Li-S batteries lies in scalable fabrication of cathode materials with high sulfur-loading and strong binding of lithium polysulfides (LiPSs). We report a scalable CeO

Inserting an interlayer between the sulfur cathode and the separator has been considered as one of the most promising solutions to suppress the shuttle effect of soluble lithium polysulfide interme...

Many metal–organic frameworks (MOFs) suffer from hydrothermal instability issues, which definitely restricted their practical applications, such as deep desulfurization. In the present contribution...

The use of dispersed cross-links with different levels of strength is one of the most successful strategies for toughening a hydrogel. By using a model hydrogel having dispersed association of single-component short alkyl chains, this work demonstrates that the differential modulus-elongation relation derived from tensile curves can reflect the structural evolution of dispersed cross-links at a molecular level. This analysis method allows for decoupling the mechanical contribution of strong and weak hydrophobic clusters, which serve as the minor and major cross-links in our system, respectively. At small deformation, the weak hydrophobic associations majorly determine the stiffness, and their rupture releases folded partial chains to endow deformation capacity. At large deformation, the strength ratio of strong and weak hydrophobic association should be balanced to achieve the optimal strength. Furthermore, the structural parameters of these partial chains, including the Kuhn number, the Kuhn length and the chain conformation, are determined based on scaling theory of extensibility. These results allow for correlating the apparent mechanics to the structural parameters of the dispersed hydrophobic association, paving the way for customized mechanics for specific applications.

Di-(2-ethylhexyl) phthalate (DEHP), a common pollutant in the water environment, has been reported to be associated with immune functions, especially aquatic organisms. However, whether DEHP exposure causes neutrophils toxicity in common carp is still unclear. To investigate the toxic effect of DEHP on immune functions, common carp neutrophils were exposed to DEHP (40 μmol/L and 200 μmol/L) for 2 h. The common carp neutrophils exposed to DEHP showed a decrease in neutrophil phagocytosis rate compared with control group. DEHP exposure induced a significant decrease in mRNA expression levels of inflammatory cytokines-related genes (Interleukin-6, Interleukin-8, transforming growth factor, tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-α, TNF-R1, TNF-T1, Interferon (IFN)-2a, IFN-g2b, IFN-g1) in common carp neutrophils, while the expression levels of IL-1β and IL-10 were increased compared with control group (P

We report here highly scalable yet stackable C/Fe3C membranes with fast ion-transport micro-/nanochannels and polysulfide-trapping networks via a facile phase-inversion process for high-areal-capac...

Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) broke out and then became a global epidemic at the end of 2019. With the increasing number of deaths, early identification of disease severity and interpretation of pathogenesis are very important. Aiming to identify biomarkers for disease severity and progression of COVID-19, 75 COVID-19 patients, 34 healthy controls and 23 patients with pandemic influenza A(H1N1) were recruited in this study. Using liquid chip technology, 48 cytokines and chemokines were examined, among which 33 were significantly elevated in COVID-19 patients compared with healthy controls. HGF and IL-1β were strongly associated with APACHE II score in the first week after disease onset. IP-10, HGF and IL-10 were correlated positively with virus titers. Cytokines were significantly correlated with creatinine, troponin I, international normalized ratio and procalcitonin within two weeks after disease onset. Univariate analyses were carried out, and 6 cytokines including G-CSF, HGF, IL-10, IL-18, M-CSF and SCGF-β were found to be associated with the severity of COVID-19. 11 kinds of cytokines could predict the severity of COVID-19, among which IP-10 and M-CSF were excellent predictors for disease severity. In conclusion, the levels of cytokines in COVID-19 were significantly correlated with the severity of the disease in the early stage, and serum cytokines could be used as warning indicators of the severity and progression of COVID-19. Early stratification of disease and intervention to reduce hypercytokinaemia may improve the prognosis of COVID-19 patients.

In pursuit of intelligent hydrogel-based devices, it is imperative to concurrently enhance the shape programmability and customization of hydrogels in order to realize sophisticated actuation and implantation. Until now, multiple temporary shapeshifting of hydrogels has required either multiple external stimuli or distinct thermal-transition phases. In addition, reprocessing the permanent shape of hydrogel mostly relies on the change in their components. These complex prerequisites present challenges to programmability and customization of application-related shapes for hydrogels. This paper reports a type of thermally programmable and malleable multiple-shape hydrogel. The network of this hydrogel is solely composed of a type of polyvinyl alcohol derivative, which is synthesized by substituting hydroxyl groups of polyvinyl alcohol with single-component octyl chains. Through water-vapor exchange and heating in water, these single-component octyl side chains form dispersed clusters with a large strength gradient. Such broadly dispersed clusters serve as switchable segments and dynamic net-points to orthotopically offer multiple (e.g., quintuple) temporary shapes and editable permanent shapes, respectively, thereby realizing sophisticated and designed shape changes. This hydrogel system can act as a smart device for on-demand bidirectional twining around a 1D substrate. Such a capability potentially enables the self-mounting and self-detaching behavior of soft devices on tissues with minimal invasion.

The efficient removal of mercury from aqueous media remains a severe challenge in ensuring environmental safety, especially for low-concentration mercury, which requires adsorbents with high mercury affinity. In this work, we reported a nanocomposite of β-cyclodextrin and three-dimensional graphene (3D CD@RGO) to enhance the adsorption affinity and capacity for mercury with low concentrations. Characterization of the nanocomposite revealed that cyclodextrin was well dispersed on the 3D graphene support structure to provide highly exposed hydroxyl groups. Adsorption experiments showed that CD@RGO exhibited different adsorption behaviors for mercury within different concentration ranges of 0.2–4.0 mg/L and 4.0–10.0 mg/L, and the adsorption affinity for the former range ( K L = 10.05 L/mg) was 1.5 times higher than that for the latter range ( K L = 6.69 L/mg). Moreover, CD@RGO had a high adsorption efficiency of 96.6% with a superb adsorption affinity (172.09 L/g) at C e = 0.01 mg/L, which is 6.70 and 41.25 times higher than that of RGO and RCD (physical mixture of RGO and cyclodextrin), respectively, indicating a synergistic effect of CD@RGO for mercury adsorption. This enhancement can be attributed to the transformation of the adsorption mechanism from the outer-sphere force of electrostatic interaction in RGO to the inner-sphere surface complexation in CD@RGO.

Uranium in saline lake brine is a nuclear resource that attracts worldwide attention. Relatively low concentrations (about 0.2 mg L−1 to 30 mg L−1) require high affinity for the capture materials. In this paper, magnesium binary layered double hydroxides (MgAl-LDH) and its Fe-induced ternary LDH (MgAlFe-LDH) were synthesized for the extraction of simulated concentrations of U(VI) in the saline lake brine system. Batch experiments have shown that both LDHs have strong affinity towards uranium. MgAl-LDH yielded of stronger affinity in lower U(VI) concentrations (0.2 mg L−1 to 5 mg L−1), while MgAlFe-LDH was at higher U(VI) concentrations (5 mg L−1 to 30 mg L−1). For current uranium extraction, the affinities of MgAl-LDH and MgAlFe-LDH are more than twice the maximum affinity of other LDHs and LDHs-based materials. Therefore, these two LDHs are suitable for U(VI) extraction with different concentration levels in saline lakes. The capture process followed the pseudo-second-order kinetics with fast adsorption speed, and the coexisting cations have little effect on the extraction rate. Research through X-ray diffraction (XRD) and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) showed the main adsorption mechanisms are surface complexation and the interlayer carbonate coprecipitation. This work provides a potential method for U(VI) extraction while reusing the waste magnesium resources in saline lake.

In traditional pulverous electrodes, the severe volume expansion that occurs during the intercalation and de-intercalation of lithium ions causes the active material to agglomerate and pulverize, eventually leading to active material that deviates from the current collector and result in poor electrochemical performances. Therefore, a new kind of Fe3C-doped asymmetric porous carbon membrane (Fe3C/APCM) binder-free integrated electrode materials is proposed by using a simple phase inversion method. The Fe3C/APCM electrodes that are obtained act as both active materials and current collector, saving the use of current collectors, conductive agents and binders. The effects of temperature and thickness on the conductivity and diffusion of ions are investigated, confirming the optimum temperature and thickness of the casting membrane solution to be 800 °C and 100 μm (Fe3C/APCM-100), respectively. Abundant finger-shaped and honeycomb-like pores are formed in the Fe3C/APCM-100, effectively accommodating the volume changes induced by the charge-discharge process. The specific surface area of the electrode materials reaches to 134.9 m2 g−1, enhancing the connection between active materials and electrolytes, leading to a high rate of electron transfer and ion diffusion. As the anode materials of a lithium-ion battery, the Fe3C/APCM-100 composites achieve an excellent rate capability and long cycling stability. The rate capability reaches to 605.5 mAh g−1 at a current density of 0.1 A g−1, and 601.0 mAh g−1 is retained when the current density returns to 0.1 A g−1. Even at a high current density of 1.0 A g−1, an excellent cyclic capacity of 212.9 mAh g−1 is still achieved after 200 cycles. No obvious structural and morphological changes are observed in SEM images of Fe3C/APCM-100 electrodes before and after a charge-discharge process. Fe3C/APCM is promising as an anode material for lithium-ion batteries.

This work reports a self-healing and shape-memory hydrogel integrating multiple mechanical properties. The network configuration is featured as entangled networks cross-linked by distributed association of very short alkyl chains (hexyl, six carbons). These cross-linking knots are interconnected by the long hydrophilic polyvinyl alcohol backbone. The optimal aggregation of hexyl side chains leads to the broadened distribution in bonding strength as verified by static and dynamic mechanical characterization. These structural features contribute to high strength, toughness, stiffness, and yet fast recoverability. Furthermore, the hydrophobic and supramolecular nature of aggregated alkyl chains offers high durability and solvent-assistant healing function. Finally, distributed association of hexyl side chains confers a broadened temperature-dependent modulus, allowing for encoding stepwise shape recovery from a temporary shape at different temperatures and/or times.

Tea polyphenols (TP) and soybean proteins (SP) are important materials in food industry. High hydrostatic pressure (HHP) is a useful tool for improvement of protein’s function. This study evaluated the interactions between the polyphenol and HHP-treated protein using circular dichroism, fluorescence spectroscopy and molecular modeling. The high pressure at 400 MPa significantly modified the secondary structure of SP by increasing the β-sheet content and decreasing the α-helix content, while the addition of 0.1% (w/v) tea ployphenol appeared to protect the α-helix structure. The surface hydrophobicity decreased with HHP treatment and the addition of TP. The optimal solubility of native SP was 0.258 g/mL at 0.08% (w/v) TP. Together with HHP treatment; TP increased the protein solubility to 0.50 g/mL and the emulsifying activity was enhanced approximately three times, up to 43.5%. The micro-texture of SP matrix was also improved with TP and HHP treatment. Both the hydrogen bonding and hydrophobic interaction between TP and SP were elucidated using docking method. Apart from the hydrogen bonding, the Pi-Pi interaction was observed in the binding of phenolic compounds to 7S or 11S globular protein.

With rapid economic development, water pollution has become more and more serious, which has gravely threatened people's lives and health. Therefore, safe and efficient water treatment becomes an important problem that needs to be solved urgently. Electroporation sterilization has been introduced to water treatment due to its high efficiency and low energy consumption, which shows a significant sterilization effect. However, the slow water treatment limits its practical application. Herein, we prepared an Ag NP–CuO NW co-modified three-dimensional (3D) copper nanocomposite. Based on the electroporation sterilization technology, this composite material exhibited a high efficiency sterilization effect (>99.9%) with an ultrahigh water flux at a low voltage and has significant potential for practical applications.

Layered double hydroxide (LDH), the only anionic clay in the environment, plays a key role in natural ion transportation. The ion retention effect of LDHs was traditionally attributed to ion exchange with low affinity. Here, we demonstrated an ultrastrong interaction between anions and LDHs induced by their inherent nanoconfinement using chromium ore processing residue (COPR) that contained several Cr(VI)-bonded LDHs as a probe. Hydrocalumite (Ca/Al-Cl LDH) was verified as the primary phase for Cr(VI) retention through two types of interactions such as ion exchange and Cr-Ca coordination. More significantly, the confined spacing between two layers of hydrocalumite provided spatial restriction and shielding effects to the intercalated Cr(VI), which enhanced Cr-Ca coordination by shortening the bonding distance and modulating the binding angle to achieve the lowest bonding energy. Such enhancement boosted Cr(VI) affinity up to 3.2 × 105 mL/g, which was 1-3 orders of magnitudes higher than ion exchange. The universality of this mechanism was verified using another Mg/Al-Cl LDH and various anions. This study broke the traditional awareness of low ion affinities of LDHs limited by single ion exchange and disclosed an essential mechanism for unexpected ion retention effects of anionic clays in nature.

Calcium/calmodulin-dependent protein serine kinase (CASK) is a key player in vesicle transport and release in neurons. However, its precise role, particularly in nonneuronal systems, is incompletely understood. We report that CASK functions as an important regulator of insulin secretion. CASK depletion in mouse islets/β cells substantially reduces insulin secretion and vesicle docking/fusion. CASK forms a ternary complex with Mint1 and Munc18-1, and this event is regulated by glucose stimulation in β cells. The crystal structure of the CASK/Mint1 complex demonstrates that Mint1 exhibits a unique “whip”-like structure that wraps tightly around the CASK-CaMK domain, which contains dual hydrophobic interaction sites. When triggered by CASK binding, Mint1 modulates the assembly of the complex. Further investigation revealed that CASK-Mint1 binding is critical for ternary complex formation, thereby controlling Munc18-1 membrane localization and insulin secretion. Our work illustrates the distinctive molecular basis underlying CASK/Mint1/Munc18-1 complex formation and reveals the importance of the CASK-Mint1-Munc18 signaling axis in insulin secretion.

Scope The high-fat, high-sucrose and low-fiber Western diet (WD) is popular in many countries and affects the onset and progression of many diseases. This study aimed to explore the influence of the WD on chronic liver disease (CLD) and the its possible mechanism. Methods and results C57BL/6 mice were given a control diet (CD) or WD and CLD was induced by intraperitoneally injection of carbon tetrachloride (CCL4 ) twice a week for eight weeks. The WD aggravated CCL4 -induced chronic liver injury, as evidenced by increased serum transaminase levels, worsened hepatic inflammatory response and fibrosis. Gut microbiota was disturbed in mice treated with CCL4 +WD (WC group), manifested as the accumulation of Fusobacteria, Streptococcaceae, Streptococcus, Fusobacterium and Prevotella and the depletion of Firmicutes, Lachnospiraceae and Roseburia. Additionally, increased hepatic taurocholic acid in the WC group activated S1pr2, which was positively correlated with hepatic fibrosis and inflammation parameters. Mice in the WC group had higher fecal primary bile acid (BA) levels and lower fecal secondary/primary BA ratios. Serum FGF15 levels were also elevated in the WC group, which was positively correlated with hepatic inflammation. Conclusion WD accelerates the progression of CLD which was associated with changes in the gut microbiota and BA metabolism. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.

The epigenetic regulation mechanisms for toxicity induction of nanoplastics in organisms remain largely unknown. In Caenorhabditis elegans, we found that prolonged exposure to 1–100 μg/L polystyrene nanoparticles (PS-NPs) decreased expression of MET-2, a H3K9 methyltransferase. Meanwhile, RNAi knockdown of met-2 suppressed the PS-NPs toxicity in inducing production of reactive oxygen species (ROS) and in decreasing locomotion behavior, which suggesting that the decrease in MET-2 expression reflected a protective response. This resistance to PS-NPs toxicity could be further detected in worms with met-2 RNAi knockdown in both intestinal cells and germline cells. In PS-NPs exposed worms, intestinal RNAi knockdown of met-2 significantly increased expressions of daf-16, bar-1, and elt-2. Intestinal RNAi knockdown of daf-16, bar-1, or elt-2 suppressed the resistance of met-2(RNAi) worms to PS-NPs toxicity, suggesting that MET-2 functioned upstream of ELT-2, BAR-1, and DAF-16 in intestinal cells to control PS-NPs toxicity. Moreover, in PS-NPs exposed worms, germline RNAi knockdown of met-2 significantly decreased expressions of wrt-3 and pat-12. RNAi knockdown of wrt-3 or pat-12 further inhibited the susceptibility of worms overexpressing germline MET-2 to PS-NPs toxicity, suggesting that MET-2 functioned upstream of PAT-12 and WRT-3 in germline cells to control PS-NPs toxicity. Therefore, our data provided an important molecular basis for MET-2-mediated methylation regulation in causing protective response to nanoplastics in organisms.

Neurotransmission related signals are involved in the control of response to toxicants. We here focused on the tyramine and the glutamate related signals to determine their roles in regulating nanoplastic toxicity in Caenorhabditis elegans. In the range of μg/L, exposure to nanopolystyrene (100 nm) increased the expression of tdc-1 encoding a tyrosine decarboxylase required for synthesis of tyramine, and decreased the expression of eat-4 encoding a glutamate transporter. Both TDC-1 and EAT-4 could act in the neurons to regulate the nanopolystyrene toxicity. Meanwhile, neuronal RNAi knockdown of tdc-1 induced a susceptibility to nanopolystyrene toxicity, and neuronal RNAi knockdown of eat-4 induced a resistance to nanopolystyrene toxicity. In the neurons, TYRA-2 functioned as the corresponding receptor of tyramine and acted upstream of MPK-1 signaling to regulate the nanopolystyrene toxicity. Moreover, during the control of nanopolystyrene toxicity, GLR-4 and GLR-8 were identified as the corresponding glutamate receptors, and acted upstream of JNK-1 signaling and DBL-1 signaling, respectively. Our results demonstrated the crucial roles of tyramine and glutamate related signals in regulating the toxicity of nanoplastics in organisms.

Never in mitosis (NIMA) related kinase 2 (Nek2) is involved in multiple cellular processes such as cell cycle checkpoint regulation, cell division, DNA damage response and cell apoptosis. Nek2 has been reported to be overexpressed in various tumors and correlated with poor prognosis. Herein, a series of imidazo[1,2-a] pyridines Nek2 inhibitors were designed, synthesized, and their biological activities were investigated. Besides, structure activity relationship analysis of these compounds were performed in the MGC-803 cell. The screening results are promising, and compound 28e shows good proliferation inhibitory activity with an IC50 of 38 nM. The results would be helpful to design and develop more effective Nek2 inhibitors for the treatment of gastric cancer.

In this study, we developed a modified glassy carbon electrode (GCE) with graphene oxide, multi-walled carbon nanotube hybrid nanocomposite in chitosan (GCE/GO-MWCNT-CHT) to achieve simultaneous detection of four nucleobases (i.e., guanine (G), adenine (A), thymine (T) and cytosine (C)) along with uric acid (UA) as an internal standard. The nanocomposite was characterized using TEM and FT-IR. The linearity ranges were up to 151.0, 78.0, 79.5, 227.5, and 162.5 &micro, M with a detection limit of 0.15, 0.12, 0.44, 4.02, 4.0, and 3.30 &micro, M for UA, G, A, T, and C, respectively. Compared to a bare GCE, the nanocomposite-modified GCE demonstrated a large enhancement (~36.6%) of the electrochemical active surface area. Through chronoamperometric studies, the diffusion coefficients (D), standard catalytic rate constant (Ks), and heterogenous rate constant (Kh) were calculated for the analytes. Moreover, the nanocomposite-modified electrode was used for simultaneous detection in human serum, human saliva, and artificial saliva samples with recovery values ranging from 95% to 105%.

Water is critical to public health. An inexpensive, fast, and effective water treatment has the potential to significantly impact human life. In this work, we reported a novel device for highly eff...

In this paper, the recently developed environmentally friendly lead-free ferroelectric Na0.35%Ba99.65%Ti99.65%Nb0.35%O3 (NNBT) was firstly used as filler to synthesize ceramic-polymer composites using polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF) as martix. The composites PVDF-xNNBT with different volume fractions of x = 0, 0.1, 0.2, 0.3, 0.4, and 0.5, were prepared via solution mixing and hot pressing method. Dielectric properties were investigated in the temperature range from room temperature to 250 °C and frequency range of 102–106 Hz. All the investigated composites show high dielectric constant (>100) and low loss tangent (

A series of novel fluorescent 4H-1-benzopyrans was designed and developed as near-infrared fluorescent molecules with a compact donor–acceptor-donor architecture. Spectral intensity of the fluorescent molecules M-1, M-2, M-3 varied significantly with the increasing polarities of solvents, where M-3 showed high viscosity sensitivity in glycerol-ethanol system with a 3-fold increase in emission intensity. Increasing concentrations of compound M-3 to 5% BSA in PBS elicited a 4-fold increase in fluorescence intensity, exhibiting a superior environmental sensitivity. Furthermore, the in vitro cellular uptake behavior and CLSM assay of cancer cell lines demonstrated that M-3 could easily enter the cell nucleus and bind to proteins with low toxicity. Therefore, the synthesized near-infrared fluorescent molecules could provide a new direction for the development of optical imaging probes and potential further drugs.

Summary Organometal compounds are an emerging environmental micropollutant. Their removal presents a challenge, while their typically low concentrations require capture materials with high affinities. Here, inspired by the natural phenomenon that the abundant hydrogen bonds of protein enhance their inorganic metal capture, we design a bio-inspired trap integrating a Zr coordination center on polyhydric nanocellulose (ZNC). ZNC shows an affinity (1.99 × 106 mg L−1) toward low-level organoarsenic, which is 10 times higher than reported materials, and thus exhibits excellent extraction efficiency (>99.9%). Similar enhancement is observed for other organometals (organotin and organophosphorus). This is attributed to the high-density H-bond network of ZNC, which enhances capture via modulating zirconium atom distance, changing coordination environment, and shortening coordination distance. This work explores potential applications of bio-inspired H-bonds for advanced removal of organometal micropollutants from wastewater.

With the rapid development of economy, water pollution becomes a serious threat to people's lives and health. It is urgent to exploit a method to achieve rapid and long-term stability water disinfection. Herein, the branched CuO-Co3O4 nanowires (NWs) were first prepared on the foamed copper substrate, afterwards coated a layer of carbon film on NWs to obtain the innovative CuO-Co3O4@C NWs filter, which remarkably elevated the sterilization property and superior long-term stability. As a result, the resulting CuO-Co3O4@C NWs filter, based on electroporation and reactive oxygen species (ROS) sterilization technology, had an extremely sterilization efficiency of 99.5% for Escherichia coli and Staphylococcus aureus at a flow rate of 1000 mL min-1 and an external voltage of 10 V. More importantly, the filter had excellent bactericidal stability. After 12 h of continuous operation, the efficiency remained above 80%, which was not possible with the previously reported electroporation technology. This rapid and long-time stability water disinfection material has great potential in practical applications in the future.

There is a significant effect of particle size on the solid–solid phase transition of nanocrystals, but the precise relations of integral enthalpy and entropy of phase transition with particle size have not been reported. In this paper, we deduced the fundamental equations of the integral enthalpy and entropy of solid–solid phase transitions for nanocrystals with different particle sizes, respectively. These universal and precise thermodynamic relations, free of any adjustable parameter, can precisely describe the real process of phase transition. Experimentally, we researched the phase transition from tetragonal to cubic of nano-PbTiO3 with different diameters (24.8, 35.6, 41.9, 54.2, 63.7, and 70.1 nm). The regularities obtained from these experiments were consistent with the theoretical relations. There were linear relations between the integral enthalpy and entropy of solid–solid phase transition and the reciprocal of size of nanocrystals as the radius exceeds 10 nm. Our thermodynamic relations and th...

This study aimed to investigate the expression of the vitamin D receptor (VDR) in goat follicles and to determine the effects of Vit D3 supplementation on goat granulosa cells (GCs) function linked to follicular development. The results demonstrated that VDR was prominently localized in GCs, with expression increasing with follicle diameter. Addition of Vit D3 (1α,25-(OH)2VD3; 10 nM) to GCs caused an increase in VDR and in steroidogenic acute regulator (StAR) and 3β-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase (3β-HSD) mRNA expression. Additionally, Vit D3 increased the cyclic adenosine monophosphate (cAMP), estradiol (E2), and progesterone (P4) levels, while it decreased anti-mullerian hormone receptor (AMHR) and follicle-stimulating hormone receptor (FSHR) mRNA expression (P < 0.05). Addition of FSH remarkably increased E2, P4, and cAMP levels (P < 0.05), and Vit D3 further enhanced the E2 and cAMP levels in the presence of FSH (P < 0.05). Vit D3 significantly induced the mRNA expression of CDK4 and CyclinD1, and downregulated P21 gene expression (P < 0.05). In addition, Vit D3 significantly decreased reactive oxygen species (ROS) production and increased the mRNA and protein expression of superoxide dismutase 2 (SOD2) and catalase (CAT) (P < 0.05). In conclusion, VDR is expressed in GCs of the goat ovaries and Vit D3 might play an important role in GCs proliferation by regulating cellular oxidative stress and cell cycle-related genes. Meanwhile, Vit D3 enhances the E2 and P4 output of GCs by regulating the expression of 3β-HSD and StAR and the level of cAMP, which regulate steroidogenesis, supporting a potential role for Vit D3 in follicular development.

A series of chiral di-N-heterocyclic carbene (NHC) dipalladium complexes, [{PdPyCl2}2(di-NHC)], in which di-NHC represents a di-imidazolylidene, featuring an (S)-3,3′-dimethyl-2,2′-dimethoxy-1,1′-binaphthalene spacer between the carbene units, have been prepared. The influence of ligand size on the catalytic activity of these complexes in the Suzuki reaction of phenylboronic acid with p-bromotoluene has been investigated. The most sterically hindered complex, bearing the di-isopropylphenyl group, showed the greatest catalytic activity, and it is active for various aryl halides with different electronic and steric properties.

Carbon disulfide (CS2) induces embryo implantation disorders. Macrophages participate in the process of pregnancy. Therefore, we want to explore the effects of CS2 exposure on polarization and immune function of macrophages in pregnant mice uteri. The exposure times were gestation days 3 (GD3), 4 (GD4), and 5 (GD5), and the observation end points were arranged in a time series after CS2 exposure. The uterine tissues were collected to detect the expression levels of macrophages cytokines (IL-6, IL-12, TGF-β1, and Vegf-a) and downstream regulatory cytokines of Th1-type (IL-2 and IFN-γ) and Th2-type (IL-10 and IL-4) by flow cytometry, ELISA, and q-PCR. The results showed that, compared with the controls, the ratios of M1/M2 macrophages in the endometrium significantly increased by 96%, 110%, and 177% at the GD4, GD6, and GD7 observation end points after GD3 exposure and increased about 3.88-fold and 2.37-fold at the GD6 and GD7 observation end points after GD4 exposure, respectively. In contrast, the ratio of M1 and M2 macrophages significantly reduced by 53% at the GD5 observation end point after GD3 exposure. Meanwhile, the expression levels of IL-6 were significantly increased about 2.00-fold for mRNA and 1.60-fold for protein at GD4 observation end points after GD3 exposure, and the mRNA levels of IL-12 increased about 3.61-fold at the GD6 observation end points after GD4 exposure. The mRNA levels of TGF-β1 were significantly decreased by 41%, 25%, and 20% at the GD7 observation end points after exposure at GD3, GD4, and GD5, and the expression levels of Vegf-a mRNA and protein were decreased. Furthermore, the ratio of IL-2/IL4, IL-2/IL-10, IFN-γ/IL-4, and IFN-γ/IL-10 in the uterine tissue was significantly increased at the exposure groups. These findings suggest that the imbalanced polarization of macrophages is the key regulator in the progress of CS2-induced embryo loss.

Objectives To investigate effects of short-chain fatty acids (SCFAs) on expressions and functions of intestinal cytochrome P4503A (Cyp3a) and P-glycoprotein (P-gp). To develop a semi-physiologically based pharmacokinetic (semi-PBPK) model for assessing their contributions. Methods Verapamil pharmacokinetics was investigated following oral administration to rats receiving water containing 150 mm SCFAs for 3 weeks. Cyp3a activities in intestinal and liver mircosomes were assessed by norverapamil formation. In-situ single-pass perfusion was used to evaluate intestinal transport of verapamil and P-gp function. Functions and expressions of Cyp3a and P-gp were measured in mouse primary enterocytes following 48-h exposure to SCFAs. Contributions of intestinal P-gp and Cyp3a to verapamil pharmacokinetics were assessed using a semi-PBPK model. Key findings Short-chain fatty acids significantly increased oral plasma exposures of verapamil and norverapamil. SCFAs upregulated Cyp3a activity and expression, but downregulated P-gp function and expression in rat intestine, which were repeated in mouse primary enterocytes. PBPK simulation demonstrated contribution of intestinal Cyp3a to oral plasma verapamil exposure was minor, and the increased oral plasma verapamil exposure was mainly attributed to downregulation of intestinal P-gp. Conclusions Short-chain fatty acids oppositely regulated functions and expressions of intestinal Cyp3a and P-gp. The downregulation of P-gp mainly contributed to the increased oral plasma verapamil exposure by SCFAs.

Objectives To explore the effects of carbon disulfide (CS2) and N-carbamoyl glutamate (NCG) on autophagy during the window of embryo implantation in mice and whether dietary NCG supplementation can promote embryo implantation in case of CS2 exposure. Methods Pregnant mice that received single intraperitoneal injection of CS2 on Gestational day (GD)4 were fed basal diet with or without NCG supplementation from GD1 to endpoints. The control mice were injected solvents. There were four endpoints (GD5, GD6, GD7 and GD9 endpoints) in each group. The uterus was collected on endpoints to detect autophagy-related markers by using the methods of transmission electron microscopy (TEM), immunohistochemistry (IHC), quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR) and ELISA. Results The P62 brown punctate staining increased in CS2 exposure group and reduced after dietary NCG supplementation, which was opposite with LC3B, Beclin1 and ATG5 on GD5 endpoint. Simultaneously, P62 protein expression raised 43.33% on GD5 endpoint (p Conclusions Dietary NCG supplementation could rescue the suppressed autophagy induced by CS2 in the window of implantation and increase the number of implanted embryos.

Because of the severe antibiotic resistance, photodynamic therapy is considered as a potent method for the treatment of bacterial infection with bare drug resistance. However, its therapeutic efficacy is not always satisfactory in practical treatment. In this study, pH-responsive prodrug micelles were prepared by conjugation of chlorin e6 to polyethylene glycol-b-poly(2-(hexamethyleneimino) ethyl methacrylate-co-aminoethyl methacrylate) for improving the antimicrobial activity of photodynamic therapy. The micelles were negatively charged in normal physiological environment, which was very important for long blood circulation. However, the micelles could turn to be positively charged in bacterial infection microenvironment and then adhere to negatively charged bacterial membranes, which could significantly improve their antibacterial activity against both methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus and Escherichia coli after laser irradiation. The in vivo experiment showed excellent antibacterial effect of pH-sensitive micelles in a subcutaneous infection model. The micelles showed great potential in the photodynamic therapy of stubborn bacterial infections.

The aim of this study was to investigate effects of nitric oxide (NO) on steroidogenesis and apoptosis in goat luteinized granulosa cells (LGCs). We cultured goat LGCs from healthy follicles in culture medium supplemented with the NO donor sodium nitroprusside (SNP) or the NO synthase inhibitor Nω-Nitro- l -arginine methyl ester hydrochloride ( l -NAME), then examined steroid synthesis, oxidative stress and apoptosis in vitro. The results showed that SNP treatment significantly increased the cGMP concentration in the LGCs (P l -NAME treatment significantly decreased cGMP concentration (P

Tough and stretchable conductive hydrogels are desirable for the emerging field of wearable and implanted electronics. Unfortunately, most existing conductive hydrogels have low mechanical strength. Current strategies to enhance mechanical properties include employing tough host gel matrices or introducing specific interaction between conductive polymer and host gel matrices. However, these strategies often involve additional complicated processes. Here, a simple yet effective soaking treatment is employed to concurrently enhance mechanical and conductive properties, both of which can be facilely tailored by controlling the soaking duration. The significant improvements are correlated with co-occurring mechanism of deswelling and multiple noncovalent interactions. The resulting optimal sample exhibits attractive combination of high water content (75 wt %), high tensile stress (∼2.5 MPa), large elongation (600%), reasonable conductivity (∼25 mS/cm), and fast self-healing property with the aid of hot water. The potential application of gel as a strain sensor is demonstrated. The applicability of this method is not limited to conductive hydrogels alone but can also be extended to strengthen other functional hydrogels with weak mechanical properties.

Obesity and insulin resistance are associated with overexpression of retinaldehyde dehydrogenase 1 (RALDH1). We aimed to investigate the roles of hepatic RALDH1 induction in glucose metabolism impairment using mice fed with high-fat-diet (HFD). Mice were fed with HFD for 8 weeks and treated with RALDH inhibitor citral for another 4 weeks. Oral glucose tolerance test (OGTT), pyruvate tolerance test (PTT) and insulin tolerance test were performed. Expressions of phosphoenolpyruvate carboxykinase 1 (PCK1), glucokinase (GCK) and RALDH1 were measured. Therapeutic effects of citral were also documented in diabetic rats. Effects of retinaldehyde on PCK1 and GCK expressions were examined in rat primary hepatocytes and HepG2 cells. The results showed that HFD mice were characterized by hyperlipidaemia and insulin resistance, accompanied by significantly increased RALDH1 activity and expression. Citral (10 and 50 mg/kg) ameliorated HFD-induced hyperlipidaemia and insulin resistance, as demonstrated by the improved fasting glucose, insulin levels and lipid profiles. OGTT and PTT demonstrated that citral reversed HFD-induced glucose disposal impairment and glucose production enhancement. Citral also reversed the increased PCK1 expression and decreased GCK expression by HFD. Citral therapeutic effects were reconfirmed in diabetic rats. In vitro data indicated that retinaldehyde had the strongest PCK1 induction in primary hepatocytes of diabetic rats compared with HFD rats and control rats, in line with the increased RALDH1 expression. Citral reversed the retinaldehyde-induced PCK1 expression in primary rat hepatocytes and HepG2 cells. In conclusion, RALDH1 induction impaired glucose metabolism partly via modulating PCK1 and GCK expressions. Citral improved glucose metabolism through inhibiting RALDH activity.

Contributions of cytochrome P450 (CYP450) isoforms to drug metabolism are often predicted using relative activity factor (RAF) method, assuming RAF values were independent of probe. We aimed to report probe-dependent characteristic of RAF values using CYP3A4 or CYP2C9 probes. Metabolism of four CYP3A4 probes (testosterone, midazolam, verapamil and atorvastatin) and three CYP2C9 probes (tolbutamide, diclofenac and S-warfarin) in human liver microsomes (HLM) and cDNA-expressed recombinant CYP450 (Rec-CYP450) systems were characterized and RAFCL value was estimated as ratio of probe intrinsic clearance in HLM to that in Rec-CYP450. CYP450i contributions to metabolic reaction of a probe were predicted using other probes and compared with data from specific inhibitions. Contributions of CYP3A4 and CYP2C9 to metabolism of deoxypodophyllotoxin and nateglinide were also predicted. RAF values were dependent on probes, leading to probe-dependently predicted contributions. Predicted contributions of CYP3A4 to formations of 6β-hydroxytestosterone, 1'-hydroxymidazolam, norverapamil, ortho-hydroxyatorvastatin and para-hydroxyatorvastatin using other probes were 47.46-219.46%, 21.62-98.87%, 186.49-462.44%, 21.87-101.15% and 53.62-247.97%, respectively. Predicted contributions of CYP3A4 and CYP2C9 to nateglinide metabolism were 8.18-37.84% and 36.08-94.04%, separately. In conclusion, CYP450i contribution to drug metabolism in HLM estimated using RAF approach were probe-dependent. Therefore, contribution of each isoform must be confirmed by multiple probes.

The nanogel combining cationic nanostructured lipid carriers (CNLC) and thermosensitive gelling agent could enhance preocular retention and ocular permeation capacity of curcumin (CUR).The purpose of the study was to develop and characterize a thermosensitive ophthalmic in situ nanogel of CUR-CNLC (CUR-CNLC-GEL) and evaluate in vitro and in vivo properties of the formulations.The physicochemical properties, in vitro release and corneal permeation, were evaluated. Ocular irritation and preocular retention capacity were also conducted. Finally, pharmacokinetic study in the aqueous humor was investigated by microdialysis technique.The solution-gel transition temperature of the optimized formulation diluted by simulated tear fluid was 34 ± 1.0 °C. The CUR-CNLC-GEL displayed zero-order release kinetics. The apparent permeability coefficient (Papp) and the area under the curve (AUC0→∞) of CUR-CNLC-GEL were 1.56-fold and 9.24-fold, respectively, than those of curcumin solution (CUR-SOL, p 0.01). The maximal concentration (Cmax) was significantly improved (p 0.01). The prolonged mean residence time (p 0.01) indicated that CUR-CNLC-GEL is a controlled release formulation.Those results demonstrated that CUR-CNLC-GEL could become a potential formulation for increasing the bioavailability of CUR in the aqueous humor by enhancing corneal permeation and retention capacity.

Maleated glycidyl 3-pentadecenyl phenyl ether with styrene (MGS) was synthesized from glycidyl 3-pentadecenyl phenyl ether (GPPE), maleic anhydride (MAH) and styrene (St) in the presence of AIBN initiator at 80°C, and then the resultant MGS was applied as a compatibilizer to prepare SBR/silica composites. Meanwhile, the commercial compatibilizer bis-(triethoxysilylpropyl) tetrasulfide (named Si69) added into composite was also prepared for comparison purpose. The synthetic MGS structure was characterized by GPC and FTIR, and SBR/silica compounds with different compatibilizer were analyzed using RPA, DMA and so on. The results showed that Mn and Mw of MGS were 19,538 g/mol and 23,790 g/mol, respectively. The curing time of compounds with MGS increased, whereas the maximum and minimum torques decreased. The addition of MGS decreased Payne effect of SBR/silica compounds, which implied an improvement of silica dispersion in the compounds. Bound rubber content of compound with MGS was about 1.7 times higher than the absence and 1.5 times higher than that with Si69. The tensile strength of the composites was improved by increasing compatibilizer loading, and the optimum value was observed at 6 phr of MGS. Meanwhile the use of MGS can improve the anti-aging property of composite. According to DMA, the tanδ value at 0°C of composite with MGS was higher than composite without compatibilizer suggesting that MGS can improve the wet skid resistance of composite. The SEM analysis revealed that introduction of MGS enhanced the compatibility between SBR and silica. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

A reduced graphene oxide (R-GO)-based field-effect transistor (FET) biosensor used for ultrasensitive label-free detection of DNA via peptide nucleic acid (PNA)-DNA hybridization is reported. In this work, R-GO was prepared by reduction of GO with hydrazine, and the FET biosensor was fabricated by drop-casting the R-GO suspension onto the sensor surface. PNA instead of DNA as the capture probe was employed, and DNA detection was performed through PNA-DNA hybridization by the R-GO FET biosensor. The detection limit as low as 100 fM was achieved, which is 1 order of magnitude lower than that of the previously reported graphene FET DNA biosensor based on DNA-DNA hybridization. Moreover, the R-GO FET biosensor was able to distinguish the complementary DNA from one-base mismatched DNA and noncomplementary DNA. Interestingly, the fabricated DNA biosensor was found to have a regeneration capability. The developed R-GO FET DNA biosensor shows ultrasensitivity and high specificity, indicating its potential applications in disease diagnostics as a point-of-care tool.

The transport and thermoelectric properties together with annealing of the new layered Bi-chalcogenide LaOBiHgS3 are studied. On the transport part, the insulating behavior of the as-grown sample is evidently depressed by post annealing. A hump-like abnormality appears around 170 K. The thermoelectric performance of the sample is observably improved by the annealing, mainly because of the enhanced electrical conductance. The present results suggest that the physical properties of LaOBiHgS3 are sensitive to post annealing and the possible micro adjustments that follow, indicating the layered Bi-chalcogenide family to be an ideal platform for designing novel functional materials.

The core loss of the grain-oriented silicon steel influences the energy loss of transformer. Pulse energy, point spacing, and scribing spacing are the three key parameters of laser scribing process, which determine the core loss of silicon steel. In this study, the relationship between the three key parameters and core loss reduction was investigated and analyzed. Experiments of laser scribing on 30Q130 silicon steel with different parameter combinations were implemented. The results showed that there was no obvious silicon coating burns in the surface of the steel after laser scribing and that the core loss reduction rate (reduction rate) significantly increased with the increasing laser energy density. However, when the energy density exceeded a certain range, the reduction rate decreased and gradually tended to a stable level. Hence, the parameters had significant influence on the reduction rate of core loss, and the two-factor interaction effects of reduction rate of core loss were prominent when parameters of high pulse energy, small point spacing, and small scribing spacing were selected. The optimization combination values of the three key parameters of laser scribing process on 30Q130 silicon steel was acquired by genetic algorithm–enhanced artificial neural network algorithm. For achieving high reduction of core loss, the optimized combination of pulse energy of 2.52 mJ, small point spacing of 0.22 mm, and small scribing spacing of 3.03 mm were selected, and the reduction rate of 13.12 % was verified through experiment.

To investigate the mechanism of superficial stromal scarring in advanced keratoconus using confocal microscopy, the keratocyte density, distribution, micromorphology of corneal stroma, and SNP in three groups were observed. Eight corneal buttons of advanced keratoconus were examined by immunohistochemistry. The keratocyte densities in the sub-Bowman’s stroma, anterior stroma, and posterior stroma and the mean SNP density were significantly different among the three groups. In the mild-to-moderate keratoconus group, activated keratocyte nuclei and comparatively highly reflective ECM were seen in the sub-Bowman’s stroma, while fibrotic structures with comparatively high reflection were visible in the anterior stroma in advanced keratoconus. The alternating dark and light bands in the anterior stroma of the mild-to-moderate keratoconus group showed great variability in width and direction. The wide bands were localized mostly in the posterior stroma that corresponded to the Vogt striae in keratoconus and involved the anterior stroma only in advanced keratoconus. Histopathologically, high immunogenicity ofα-SMA, vimentin, and FAP was expressed in the region of superficial stromal scarring. In vivo confocal microscopy revealed microstructural changes in the keratoconic cone. The activation of superficial keratocytes and abnormal remodeling of ECM may both play a key role in the superficial stromal scar formation in advanced keratoconus.