Search

Directional lamellar porous titanium scaffolds are widely used as bone implant bearing materials because of their anisotropic pore structure. Their mechanical properties can be effectively improved by enhancing the strength of pore walls through the introduction of ceramics. In this work, porous titanium implants were prepared by freeze casting combined with TiH2 decomposition. The graphene was introduced into the pore walls of porous titanium, which could transform into titanium carbide (TiC) in situ upon sintering. TiC was evenly distributed in the lamellar pore walls, and the interface was well bonded. The compression strength of the fabricated implants was up to 389.94 MPa when the graphene content was 3 wt%, which was 377.8% times as high as the porous titanium. The crack propagation was resisted by TiC because of the “pinning” effect on the pore wall. Some of TiC were pulled out from the matrix, and others were fractured. The strength of the fabricated implants was improved significantly by the large consumption of fracture energy. Also, fabricated porous titanium implants with TiC are suitable for bone implantation.

Background Beta-Glucosidases (3.2.1.21) play essential roles in the removal of nonreducing terminal glucosyl residues from saccharides and glycosides. However, the full potential and different applications of recombinant high-yield microbial β-glucosidase-producing systems remain to be tackled. Results A β-glucosidase gene designated as Mg132 was isolated from a coral microorganism by high-throughput sequencing and functional screening. The deduced amino acid sequences of Mg132 showed a highest identity of 97% with β-glucosidase predicted in the GenBank database. This gene was cloned and overexpressed in Escherichia coli BL21 (DE3) for the first time. The optimal pH and temperature of purified recombinant Mg132 were 8.0 and 50 °C, respectively. It exhibited a high level of stability at high concentration of glucose and ethanol, and glucose concentrations below 300 mM distinctly stimulated p-nitrophenyl-β-D-glucopyranoside hydrolysis, reaching 200% at 15% ethanol. The Km and Vmax values were 0.293 mM and 320 μmol min-1 mg-1 , respectively, while using p-nitrophenyl-β-D-glucopyranoside as a substrate. Wine treated with Mg132 had an obvious positive catalytic specificity for glycosides, which give a pleasant flavor of temperate fruity and floral aromas. The total concentration of fermentative volatiles was 201.42 ± 10.22 μg·L-1 following Mg132 treatment and 99.21 ± 7.72 μg·L-1 in control samples. Conclusion Good tolerance of winemaking and aroma fermentative properties suggest that Mg132 has potential application in aroma enhancement in wine for the further study. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.

Energy-saving membrane separation for water purification is increasingly desired, which requires appropriate nanofiltration membranes enabling to reject undesired solutes efficiently and allows high permeation of water. Herein, we report the fabrication of three-dimensional lamellar reduced graphene oxide (rGO) hydrogel membranes with a one-step, environment-friendly and water/vapor interfacial hydrothermal assembly process and the corresponding aerogel membranes by the freeze-drying method. The structures of the aerogel membranes can be tuned from lamellar to porously interconnected morphologies by controlling the volume of GO suspensions during the hydrothermal process. The rGO aerogel membrane was extremely flexible, which can be bent in liquid nitrogen and boiling water without any deformation, and highly stable in various solvents for at least 2 months. When used as nanofiltration membranes, the rGO aerogel membranes showed ∼100% rejection of organic dyes and a moderate water flux (up to 53 L m–2 h–1) only under the gravity of organic dye aqueous solutions of a 30 cm height. This water self-purification property of our flexible and stable aerogel membranes without extra energy consumption provides a possibility to make cheap, portable water purification devices for utilization in emergency and home-used water purification systems in the areas with electricity unavailable or inconvenient.

The small subunit, ssPOXA3a/b, and the large subunit, POXA3, are indispensable components of typical heterodimeric laccase (Lacc2) in white rot fungi. However, the enzymatic and biological functions of ssPOXA3a/b remain unclear. The present study revealed that neither ssPOXA3a nor ssPOXA3b per se has a catalytic ability, whereas their combination with POXA3 (and especially ssPOXA3b) enhances the activity, thermostability, and pH stability of POXA3. In Pleurotus eryngii var. ferulae, there was no regulatory relationship between ssPOXA3a/b and POXA3 at the transcriptional level. However, sspoxa3a/b overexpression had a negative feedback effect on lacc6 transcription. By contrast, poxa3 transcripts had no effect on any other laccase isoenzyme. Overexpression of sspoxa3a/b resulted in small fungal pellets, thin mycelial walls, and facilitated laccase secretion. However, poxa3 overexpression had no influence on pellet morphology. Collectively, this work elucidated the functions of ssPOXA3a/b and laid an empirical foundation for the development of high-yield laccase.

The mechanisms of radiation-induced liver injury (RILI) has not been fully elucidated so far. In the present study, a RILI mouse model was constructed by exposing the liver to a single dose of 30 Gy X-rays. Liver injuries consisting of liver function damage and histopathological variations were confirmed after 2 weeks. And then the cellular atlas of RILI liver was generated by profiling 9,641 ​cells isolated from X-ray irradiated mice livers and control ones from RILI mice model using single-cell RNA sequencing (scRNA-seq). Seven cell types were identified, including B cells, natural killer cells, T cells, macrophages/Küpffer cells/Dendritic cells (DC), neutrophils, endothelial cells, and hepatocyte. Although there was no significant difference of overall cell typing was observed between the Control and RILI groups, hepatocytes and macro/Küpffer/DC cell types were chosen for further functional exploration. Gene expression profiles and bioinformatics analysis of hepatocytes revealed that multiple metabolic related pathways were enriched in livers exposed to IR. These scRNA-seq data were confirmed in RILI liver samples via adipose staining. Besides, obviously varied M1-/M2-macrophages polarization was observed in RILI liver, which was in accordance with the enzyme linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) results of IR-induced M2 to pro-inflammatory M1 macrophages transformation in mouse macrophage cell line Raw264.7. In addition, we predicted that several genes were found to differentially expressed during the process of macrophage polarization from M2 to M1 subtype. Overall, our study provides a cellular landscape of RILI at single-cell resolution that indicates the characteristics of hepatocytes and macrophages, which will contribute to investigate the novel therapeutic or preventive management for RILI.

In recent years, low-cost wearable energy storage devices attract much more attention. In this work, the PET/CuS/PPy composite electrodes are fabricated for portable flexible solid-state supercapac...

AIM To explore the role of DNA methylation in the innate immunity of the dental pulp, this study investigated the effect of 5-aza-2'-deoxycytidine (AZA) on lipoteichoic acid (LTA)-induced cytokine production and related intracellular signalling pathways in human odontoblast-like cells (hOBs). METHODOLOGY hOBs were cultured and differentiated from human dental pulp tissue, and the odontoblastic phenotype of the cells was detected using immunofluorescence, qRT-PCR and Western blotting. hOBs were pretreated with AZA and then stimulated with 10 μg mL-1 LTA. The levels of 42 cytokines related to immunity and inflammation were examined using a cytokine antibody array and verified using qRT-PCR and ELISA. The effect of AZA on the LTA-induced NF-κB and MAPK signalling pathways was explored using Western blotting. The cells were treated with the specific NF-κB inhibitor PDTC and MAPK inhibitors (the ERK inhibitor U0126, the p38 inhibitor SB203580, and the JNK inhibitor SP600125) to further confirm the role of the signalling pathways in LTA-treated hOBs. DNA immunoprecipitation-PCR was used to examine the dynamic methylation status of the gene promoters of myeloid differentiation primary response 88 (MyD88) and tumour necrosis factor receptor-associated factor 6 (TRAF6) in the LTA-induced hOBs. Statistical analyses of the differences between two groups were performed using Student's t-test. One-way analysis of variance (anova) or repeated-measures anova with a post hoc Dunnett's test was used to assess the differences between multiple sets of data. P

Benzoxazine resin exhibits excellent properties and is widely used in many fields. Herein, the synthesis of a novel compound, the bis(2,4-dihydro-2 H-3-(4- N-maleimido)phenyl-1,3-benzoxazinyl)biphenyl (BMIPBB), has been reported, which was synthesized by reacting N-(4-aminophenyl)maleimide (APMI), formaldehyde, and 4,4’-dihydroxybiphenyl. 1,3,5-three(4-(maleimido)phenyl)-1,3,5-triazine (TMIPT) was formed as an intermediate during the reaction. The proton nuclear magnetic resonance (1H-NMR) and Fourier transform-infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy experiments were conducted to determine the structure of BMIPBB. BMIPBB was obtained as a reddish-brown solid in 40.1% yield. The thermal properties of BMIPBB were investigated using differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) and thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) techniques. Analysis of the DSC curves revealed that the broad peak representing the release of curing reaction heat appeared in the temperature range of 140–330°C. The peak temperature was 242.59°C and the heat of the reaction was 393.82 J/g, indicating that the rate of the curing reaction was low and the heat of the reaction was high. Analysis of the TGA results revealed that the weight loss rate was 5% at 110°C. The monomer exhibited a significant weight loss in the range of 320–500°C. The compound lost 50% of its weight at a temperature of 427°C.

Biomass has attracted much attention because of its clean and renewable characteristics. The conversion of biomass into various fine chemicals and high value-added fuels is one of the important ways to solve the energy shortage and environmental pollution. 2,5-furan dicarboxylic acid (FDCA), a kind of important and promising new bio-based monomer, has attracted the attention of many researchers due to its wide applications in different industries. Therefore, many efforts have been made over various metal catalysts for FDCA production from this biomass-derived platform chemical, 5hydroxymethylfurfural (HMF). In this review, we introduced the reaction pathways of the aerobic oxidation of HMF to FDCA and summarized the recent progress of different catalysts and catalysis for HMF aerobic oxidation. Catalytic performance and reaction pathways are discussed in detail. Finally, conclusions and the remaining challenges are proposed and further prospects are presented in view of the technical aspects.

Dual network (DN) hydrogels with excellent mechanical strength and controllable component adjustment characteristics have a broad application range in the field of biomedicine. However, the tissue adhesion, skin affinity, self-healing, and antibacterial properties of DN hydrogels are inadequate for their application as skin patches. In this work, we prepared dopamine/zinc oxide (DOPA/ZnO) doped poly(N-hydroxyethyl acrylamide) (p(HEAA))/agar DN hydrogels and combined them to obtain a bilayer hydrogel (two-layer gel) with moisturizing properties. Upon incorporating 0.86 wt% of dopamine (DOPA), the resultant DOPA/p(HEAA))/agar DN hydrogel (DOPA@DNG) exhibited high tensile strain (up to 1600%), excellent self-repair ability, and tissue adhesion. ZnO/p(HEAA))/agar DN hydrogel (ZnO NG) obtained by incorporating 2 w/v ZnO nanoparticles (ZnO NPs) achieved high tensile strength (1.2 MPa), good antibacterial ability, and low charge transfer resistance. Moreover, ZnO NG, which has a tight structure, was employed as a protective layer for the two-layer gel, which can effectively slow down the excessive evaporation of water to protect the DOPA@DNG stability as a skin patch. Evidence showed that the two-layer hydrogel has water retention. Water retention still remains at over 50% after keeping the hydrogel in air for 3 days. These properties mean the two-layer gel based on the DOPA/ZnO doped DN hydrogels could be used as a transdermal patch for numerous applications in drug delivery, wearable devices, and electronic skin.

Flexible and wearable electronic technology is in great demand with the rise of smart electronic systems. Among these, multifunctional systems with high performance at low cost have attracted extensive attention of scholars from the practical application perspective. However, the fabrication of devices with multifunctionality without sacrificing their connatural flexibility advantages remains a huge challenge. In this study, a CuS-modified glass fiber first acts as a bifunctional wearable electronic device for superior thermal management and electromagnetic interference (EMI) shielding. Specifically, the inherent glass fiber was initially modified with a silane coupling agent for the amino group (–NH2) functionalization followed by further CuS deposition via a facile electroless plating technology. Interestingly, due to the strong interaction between CuS and the glass fiber through the coordinate –NH2 and Cu2+, the prepared copper sulfide/glass fibers (CuS/GFs) not only keep the inherent flexibility and lightness of the fiber substrate, but also have excellent electrothermal conversion performance accompanied by a wide temperature range (38 °C–209 °C), low working voltage (0.3 V–1.5 V), and rapid response time (reaching 209 °C within 10 s at 1.5 V). Moreover, the prepared CuS/GF textile also exhibits interesting electromagnetic interference shielding efficiency (EMI SE) of 61 dB as well as a high specific shielding effectiveness up to 6130.65 dB cm2 g−1 with a CuS mass loading of 9.95 mg cm−2. These features confirm the potential of CuS/GFs as a flexible, wearable, and efficient electrical heater and EMI shielding material for the new type of intelligent electronic devices.

To improve the level dyeing property and colorfastness of natural pigment-dyed cellulose fiber, a study on the structure and properties of natural indigo spun-dyed viscose fiber was carried out systematically. Herein, the natural pigment-dyed cellulose fiber was prepared by wet-spinning technique, and the microstructure of the colored fiber was comprehensively studied. Fabrics with different color depths were obtained by adjusting the color value and the content of indigo pigment. The natural indigo was evenly embedded in the viscose fiber, and the results indicated the existence of a direct ratio relationship between the performance of natural indigo and the color depth of the fiber. The level dyeing property and colorfastness of the fabric were tested. The fabric exhibited excellent dyeing uniformity, as indicated by the relative standard deviation of the surface color depth value on the fabric, which was no more than 2.39%. The colorfastness of natural indigo spun-dyed fiber was outstanding even when mordant was not used in the production process. The colorfastness to artificial light could reach grade 5, the fastness to washing with detergent reached grade 3–4, the fastness to rubbing reached grade 4–5, and that to high temperature reached grade 4–5. These results can possibly promote the future use of natural dyes in the fiber produced by a spun-dyeing technique.

In-space manufacturing is an emerging and promising research field in space industry, which benefits the development of space explorations. Owing to the microgravity, high vacuum and complexity of the space environment, a special manufacturing strategy for alloys is highly demanded for the in-space manufacturing. Herein, a low-temperature thermoplastic metallic welding method was proposed and employed for La-based metallic glass ribbons. With the sandwiched structures of La- and Zr-based ribbons, the welded samples exhibit a competitive fracture strength and an increased tensile strain than those of the welded la-based samples due to the second phase strengthening. This suggests that metallic glass is an ideal material candidate for in-space manufacturing, and can be well manufactured at a nonmelting state with good mechanical performances. In addition, the thermoplastic manufacturing method can also feature a moderate processing time window. In general, this work presents the promising potential of low-temperature thermoplastic welding strategy for in-space manufacturing of metallic materials.

An efficient method for the synthesis of 2-substituted benzo[f]isoindole-4,9-dione derivatives from N-substituted iminodiacetates and quinones via a Cu(II)-promoted oxidation/[3 + 2] cycloaddition/aromatization tandem reaction was reported. This tandem reaction uses a wide range of N-substituted iminodiacetate derivatives that contain the chain-alkyl, cycloalkyl, and aryl group on the N-atom. Based on optimized reaction conditions, the desired product of 2-substituted benzo[f]isoindole-4,9-diones was obtained in moderate to excellent yields. Taken together, the promising results of this research would provide an especially efficient strategy to synthesize polysubstituted pyrroles from easy available starting materials and promoted by cheaper Cu(OAc)2.

Soil plays a crucial role in tea tree growth, however, only few studies have reported the responses of soil microorganisms to soil acidification in tea plantations and the negative regulation of soil acidification on tea tree growth. In this study, the soil samples from Tieguanyin tea tree plantation with different acidities were used as a material for rhizosphere soil microbial protein extraction. Data dependent acquisition (DDA) was used to establish the soil microbial protein data, whereas Data independent acquisition (DIA) was used for quantitative analyses to obtain the reduced abundance of soil protein in tea rhizosphere soil. Furthermore, the functional analysis of the obtained proteins was conducted, and the regulation map of microbial protein metabolism of rhizosphere soil was constructed. The results showed that a total of 2,741 microbial proteins were detected in the tea tree rhizosphere soil, and the molecular weight ranged from 2.64 to 338.33 kD, whereas the range of pI was from 3.78 to 12.15. Quantitative analyses of soil proteins showed that the abundance of 54 microbial proteins, including genetic signaling proteins, energy metabolism signaling proteins, soil antioxidant signaling proteins, and soil nutrient cycling signaling proteins, which are named according to their functions, was decreased. Based on these analyses, a metabolic regulation map of soil microbial proteomes was constructed, and the results suggested that as tea soil acidity increased, soil microbes released quorum-sensing proteins to trigger signaling proteins for survival. Under the regulation of signaling pathway proteins, signaling proteins activated the expression of specific signaling proteins in different metabolic pathways and then regulated the expression of proteins in different metabolic pathways, demonstrating a downregulated expression trend. Finally, this regulation resulted in a decrease of microbial energy metabolism and circulation capacity as well as the reproduction capacity and quantity. The change in microbial quantity and function led to the weakening of soil nutrient cycling capacity, the blocking of the absorption of nutrients in tea trees, and the stunting of the growth and the declining of the yield and quality of tea trees.

The application of nanoparticle heterogeneous Fenton-like catalysts is limited due to the requirement of filtration after reaction and possible secondary pollution. In this work, a novel mesh-type monolithic Fenton-like Cu/Fex/γ-Al2O3/Al catalyst was developed for the degradation of dyes. The Cu and Fe species are uniformly dispersed on the mesh-type anodic monolithic γ-Al2O3 supports, and the results of scanning electron microscopy and X-ray diffractometry analysis show that Fe can reduce the particle size of Cu over γ-Al2O3. The activity results show that the degradation rate of rhodamine B (RhB) reached 99.5% within 1 h using 4 × 6 cm Cu12.0/Fe2.0/γ-Al2O3/Al catalyst with 1,200 ppm H2O2 at 50 °C. The important role of •OH as a reactive oxidant was confirmed through electron spin-resonance spectroscopy and radical scavenging experiment. The hydrogen temperature programmed reduction suggests the high redox ability of Cu/Fe bimetallic catalyst is beneficial to the production of •OH. The Cu/Fe bimetallic catalyst shows excellent recyclability in a 10-cycle experiment, the degradation rate of RhB was maintained at 98% and the leaching amount of metals was lower than 0.7 mg/L. The mesh-type catalyst will be easily applied for the continuous wastewater treatment because it does not need filtration for recovery.

Zwitterionic materials are an important class of antifouling biomaterials for various applications. Despite such desirable antifouling properties, molecular-level understanding of the structure–property relationship associated with surface chemistry/topology/hydration and antifouling performance still remains to be elucidated. In this work, we computationally studied the packing structure, surface hydration, and antifouling property of three zwitterionic polymer brushes of poly(carboxybetaine methacrylate) (pCBMA), poly(sulfobetaine methacrylate) (pSBMA), and poly((2-(methacryloyloxy)ethyl)phosporylcoline) (pMPC) brushes and a hydrophilic PEG brush using a combination of molecular mechanics (MM), Monte Carlo (MC), molecular dynamics (MD), and steered MD (SMD) simulations. We for the first time determined the optimal packing structures of all polymer brushes from a wide variety of unit cells and chain orientations in a complex energy landscape. Under the optimal packing structures, MD simulations were further conducted to study the structure, dynamics, and orientation of water molecules and protein adsorption on the four polymer brushes, while SMD simulations to study the surface resistance of the polymer brushes to a protein. The collective results consistently revealed that the three zwitterionic brushes exhibited stronger interactions with water molecules and higher surface resistance to a protein than the PEG brush. It was concluded that both the carbon space length between zwitterionic groups and the nature of the anionic groups have a distinct effect on the antifouling performance, leading to the following antifouling ranking of pCBMA > pMPC > pSBMA. This work hopefully provides some structural insights into the design of new antifouling materials beyond traditional PEG-based antifouling materials.

Graphical abstract, Ligand-binding aptamers obtained by SELEX (Systematic Evolution of Ligands by EXponential enrichment) often have low affinity or/and specificity, and post-SELEX optimization is usually needed. Due to experimental difficulty in determining three-dimensional (3D) structures of aptamer-ligand complexes, there are few structure-guided methods for rational post-SELEX optimization. Here, we employed a de novo optimization approach to engineer high-affinity variants for a G-quadruplex (GQ) aptamer (GO18-T-d) that specifically binds to marine toxin gonyautoxin 1/4 (GTX1/4). First, temperature-dependent modeling was carried out to predict the atomic structure of GO18-T-d. Then, to identify key bases for the optimization, spontaneous binding simulations were performed to reveal the complex structure of GO18-T-d with GTX1/4. Finally, binding energy analysis was conducted to evaluate the designed variants for high affinity. We predicted that GO18-T-d has the typical parallel GQ topology, consistent with circular dichroism (CD) measurements. Our simulations showed that the 5′-end of GO18-T-d hinders the GTX1/4 movement toward the binding pocket, leading to a designed variant that removes the first 5 nucleotides at the 5′-end. Microscale thermophoresis (MST) experiments verified that the binding affinity of the engineered aptamer increases by ~20 folds. Thus, this study not only provides a high-affinity variant of GO18-T-d, but also suggests that our computational approach is useful for the structure-guided optimization of GQ aptamers.

The prevalence of functionalized nanoparticles in biological and clinical fields attracts intensive toxicology investigations. Minimizing the nanoparticles’ biohazard remains a challenge due to the insufficient understanding on the nanoparticle-induced cell death mechanism. In the presented study, we observed the lysosome and genome injuries and so caused cell cycle changes and regulations of retinal ganglion neuron cell 5 (RGC-5) induced by aminated and alkylated nanoparticles. Alkylated nanoparticles induced malignant lysosome and genome damages followed by severe post-self-repair responses. RGC-5 treated with alkylated nanoparticles presented dramatic S phase prolongation resulted from cyclin E accumulation mediated by Fbw7 downregulation, which assisted DNA replication after failed self-repair of the malignantly damaged DNA caused by alkylated nanoparticles. Differently, aminated nanoparticles in RGC-5 induced moderate lysosome and genome injuries and these damages could be repaired in the p21-involved pathway, so that cells did not induce apparent cyclin E accumulation nor Fbw7 downregulation as post-self-repair response. These results helped us to understand the toxicity of analogous nanoparticles on retinal ganglions such as glaucoma treatment. This work provides new insights into nanoparticle functionalization and toxicity in relation to the research on the toxicology and pathology of nerve cells.

Limited understanding of mitochondria disorders that induced by nanoparticles is a stumbling block for anti-cancer drug delivery targeting strategy. In present study, C6 glioma cells were exposed to aminated and alkylated SiO2 nanoparticles for mitochondrion disordering and cell metabolism study. Collective results showed that aminated nanoparticles tend to trigger the cell-repair mechanism in cancer cells while alkylated nanoparticles could cause irreversible damages on cancer cells, although both types of the particles were proved to damage mitochondrion. The underlying mechanism show that aminated nanoparticles induced proton-stuck effect in mitochondrion and self-repairing in cancer cells by up-regulating p21. Otherwise, alkylated nanoparticles damaged mitochondrion and induced phosphorylated cyclin E accumulation lead to Fbw7 down-regulation caused further S phase arrest and severe late apoptosis. This work can help us elucidate the mechanism of the clinic application of nano-drug carriers.

This paper presents the results of microstructural analysis of novel preceramic paper-derived SiCf/SiC composites fabricated by spark plasma sintering. The sintering temperature and pressure were 2100/2200 °C and 60/100 MPa, respectively. The content of fibers in the composites was approx. 10 wt %. The SiCf/SiC composites were analyzed by positron annihilation methods, X-ray diffraction technology, scanning electron microscopy, and Raman spectroscopy. Longer sintering time causes the proportion of the 6H-SiC composition to increase to ~80%. The increase in sintering temperature from 2100 °C to 2200 °C leads to partial transition of 4H-SiC to 6H-SiC during the sintering process, and the long-life component of positrons indicates the formation of Si vacancies. The Raman characteristic peaks of turbostratic graphite appear in the Raman spectrum of SiC fibers, this is caused by the diffusion of carbon from the surface of the SiC fiber and the preceramic paper during the high-temperature sintering process.

Description, Wireless and passive bioelectronic medicines mimic the biological cues of the extracellular matrix., The biophysical characteristics of the extracellular matrix (ECM), such as a three-dimensional (3D) network and bioelectricity, have a profound influence on cell development, migration, function expression, etc. Here, inspired by these biophysical cues of ECM, we develop an electromechanical coupling bio-nanogenerator (bio-NG) composed of highly discrete piezoelectric fibers. It can generate surface piezopotential up to millivolts by cell inherent force and thus provide in situ electrical stimulation for the living cells. Besides, the unique 3D space in the bio-NGs provides an ECM-like growth microenvironment for cells. As a result, our bio-NGs effectively promote cell viability and development and, more importantly, maintain its specific functional expression. These advanced in vitro bio-NGs are expected to fill the gap between the inaccurate 2D systems and the expensive and time-consuming animal models, mimicking the complexity of the ECM and the physiological relevance of an in vivo biological system.

Epidemiologic evidence has suggested a relationship between di (2-ethylhexyl) phthalate (DEHP) prenatal exposure and autism spectrum disorders (ASD), but the underlying mechanisms are still at large unknown. In this study, pregnant mice were intragastrically administered with DEHP once a day from GD 3 to GD 17 and the neurobehavioral changes of offspring were evaluated. In addition to the repetitive stereotyped behaviors, DEHP at the concentration of 50 mg/kg/day and above significantly impaired the sociability of the offspring (P < 0.05) and decreased the density of dendritic spines of pyramidal neurons in the prefrontal cortex (P < 0.05). At the same time, the expression of Nischarin protein in prefrontal lobe increased (P < 0.05). Similarly, after 12-h incubation of DEHP at the concentration of 100 nM, the total spine density, especially the mushroom and stubby spine populations, significantly decreased in the primary cultured prefrontal cortical neurons (P < 0.05). However, the inhibitory effect of DEHP were reversed by knockdown of Nischarin expression. Collectively, these results suggest that prenatal DEHP exposure induces Nischarin expression, causes dendritic spine loss, and finally leads to autism-like behavior in mouse offspring.

Summary: Drugs targeting N-methyl-D-aspartate receptors (NMDARs) have been approved to treat major depressive disorder (MDD); however, the presence of undesirable psychotomimetic and cognitive side effects may limit their utility. In this study, we show that the phosphorylation levels of the GluN2B subunit at tyrosine (Y) 1070 increase in mice after both acute and chronic restraint stress (CRS) exposure. Preventing GluN2B-Y1070 phosphorylation via Y1070F mutation knockin produces effects similar to those of antidepressants but does not affect cognitive or anxiety-related behaviors in subject mice. Mechanistically, the Y1070F mutation selectively reduces non-synaptic NMDAR currents and increases the number of excitatory synapses in the layer 5 pyramidal neurons of medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC) but not in the hippocampus. Altogether, our study identifies phosphorylation levels of GluN2B-Y1070 in the mPFC as a dynamic, master switch guarding depressive behaviors, suggesting that disrupting the Y1070 phosphorylation of GluN2B subunit has the potential for developing new antidepressants.

A simple and highly efficient method for the preparation of tetrasubstituted NH-pyrrole from a wide range of chalcones and diethyl iminodiacetates via a Cu(OAc)2-promoted oxidation/[3+2]cycloaddition/aromatization cascade reaction has been developed. This reaction proceeds through dehydrogenations, deamination, and oxidative cyclization, affording the corresponding products in good to excellent yields. This convenient methodology for constructing tetrasubstituted NH-pyrroles has several advantages over existing methods, such as the use of easily accessible chalcones and readily available diethyl iminodiacetates, and mild reaction conditions. A wide range of substrates are tolerated.

Designing novel structure to optimize the dielectric constant and permeability was believed as an effective way to improve the performances of wave-absorbing material. In this work, PVA coating containing homogeneously-distributed graphene oxide (GO) was firstly deposited onto the surface of carbonyl iron powder (CIP), which was then followed by a heat-treatment to obtain rGO/PVA/CIP composite materials. The electromagnetic parameters (relative complex permittivity and permeability) and corresponding loss mechanism of the as-prepared rGO/PVA/CIP composites were investigated in a frequency of 2.0–18.0 GHz. It was found that the presence of well-dispersed rGO could effectively improve the dielectric loss of the composites and microwave absorption capability without sacrificing magnetic loss. The effective absorbing width (reflection loss lower than −10 dB) of PVA/CIP composite containing 1 mg/g GO was measured to be ∼8.4 GHz.

Hyperactivation of the canonical Wnt-signaling pathway is a prominent feature of a number of human malignancies. Transcriptional activation of this signaling cascade depends on the formation of the β-catenin–B-cell CLL/lymphoma 9 (BCL9)–pygopus (PYGO) family plant homeodomain finger 1 complex, yet how the assembly of this complex is regulated remains to be investigated. Here, using MCF-7, HeLa, HEK293T, MDA–MB-231, and Sf9 cells, along with immunoblotting and immunofluorescence, nano-HPLC–MS/MS, deubiquitination, immunoprecipitation, and chromatin immunoprecipitation (ChIP) assays, we report that BCL9 physically associates with a protein deubiquitinase, ubiquitin-specific peptidase 9, X-linked (USP9X), and that USP9X removes Lys-63–linked polyubiquitin on Lys-212 of BCL9. Importantly, the USP9X-mediated BCL9 deubiquitination facilitated the formation of the β-catenin–BCL9–PYGO complex, thereby potentiating the transcriptional activation of Wnt/β-catenin target genes. We also show that USP9X-mediated BCL9 deubiquitination promotes the proliferation and invasion of breast cancer cells. Together, these results uncover USP9X as a deubiquitinase of BCL9, implicating USP9X in Wnt/β-catenin signaling and breast carcinogenesis.

Impact-sliding wear is a typical form of composite wear and occurs in many industrial equipment. The effects of structural stiffness on the impact-sliding wear damage and mechanisms of aluminum alloy were investigated using a bespoke impact-sliding device. The damage evolution and mechanisms of the impact-sliding wear for three different structural stiffness conditions were analyzed. Results showed that the main damage zone gradually shifted along the sliding direction with the increase in the structural stiffness. The wear damage of the material was higher for the low and high structural stiffness conditions and resulted in a very rough surface. However, for the medium structural stiffness, the impact-sliding wear exhibited a slow and linear increase and relatively smooth wear scars were observed. Moreover, the main wear mechanism transformed from delamination to ploughing as the structural stiffness increased.

Superhydrophobic polymer fibrous membranes have advantages in oil–water separation and oil spill treatment but are not resistant to high temperature and chemical corrosion resistance. Superhydrophobic SiO2 micro/nanofibrous membranes are one of the research hotspots because of the high temperature stability, corrosion resistance, and low cost of SiO2. In this study, camphene was dispersed into the SiO2 spinning solution for freeze electrospinning. SiO2 micro/nanofibrous membranes with porous surface were obtained by camphene sublimation through freeze drying and calcining. The effects of polystyrene and camphene contents on the surface pore structure of SiO2 micro/nanofibrous membranes were investigated. The specific surface area of the porous fibrous membrane was approximately five times as high as that of the conventional electrospun SiO2 micro/nanofibrous membrane. Furthermore, superhydrophobic property was obtained after hexamethyl-disilazane modification. The contact angle of porous fibrous membrane was more than 150° and the sliding angle was just 2.1°. The maximum absorption capacity of the modified SiO2 micro/nanofibrous membrane with porous surface for three kinds of oils can reach 43.7 g/g. In addition, the absorption capacity of the porous membrane for methyl silicone oil was still higher than 34 g/g after repeated use for five times. Hence, porous SiO2 micro/nanofibrous membranes exhibit application prospect in oil/water separation and oil pollution adsorption.

Uniform and highly dispersed magnesium hydroxide nanoparticles were synthesized in cetyltrimethyl ammonium bromide/cyclohexane/isopropanol/water microemulsion. The effect of different exper...

A series of more than 20 multisubstituted pyrrolidine-2-carboxylates were synthesized via a one-pot cycloaddition of an araldehyde, an amino acid ester, and a chalcone catalyzed by I2/K2CO3 in tetrahydrofuran at 80 °C. The advantages of this method are readily available starting materials, mild conditions, and simple operation, and it is metal free and yields are good to excellent.

Organic pollution is considered as a long-term, urgent global issue for energy, environmental, and ecological applications. Carbon-based materials have shown great potential in addressing this global issue. However, development of low-cost and high-performance of carbon-based three-dimensional materials has also proven to challenging for removal of organic pollutants from water. Here, we developed a new technique combining a liquid-assisted electrospinning and interface self-assembly of graphene to successfully fabricate novel graphene fluffy nanofibrous scaffold (GFNs) as an efficient organic pollution absorbent. The resultant GFNs with several advantages of distinctive 3D fluffy macro-structure, super porosity, low density, strong mechanical stability, and super hydrophobicity/oleophicity, demonstrated high adsorption capacity for organic solvents (201 times their own weight) and oils (119 times their own weight), as well as excellent recyclability by simple extrusion. Different from conventional graphe...

We studied the concentrations, seasonal distributions, sources, exposures, and health risks of phthalates in indoor and outdoor PM2.5 in Beijing. The results showed that phthalate concentrations during haze periods were significantly higher than during non-haze periods both indoors and outdoors, with higher concentrations for the former, which reached a maximum of 1995.56 ng m–3. Phthalates are mainly derived from the use of indoor plasticized products, the outdoor plastic products industry, and other sources of fuel emissions. Lifelong exposure to fine (2-ethylhexyl) phthalate (DEHP) through inhalation and dermal absorption was calculated, and the results indicated a risk of cancer, with DEHP carcinogenic risk levels of 4.09 × 10–6 and 10.50 × 10–6 for adults and children, respectively. The highest DEHP carcinogenic risk group was 1–2-year-old children, and the risk decreased afterward with age.

This paper focused on the suitability of laser shock peening (LSP) to impact-sliding wear in different system stiffnesses to improve the performance of aluminum alloy (AlSi7Mg0.6) used in high-speed catenary parts that encountered impact-sliding wear failure. The effects of different laser energies or multiple shocks were examined in low, medium and high system stiffnesses. Results showed that low laser energy LSP formed a uniform and consistent strengthening layer and exhibited excellent wear reduction for low and medium system stiffnesses. Higher laser energy or multiple shocks of LSP both improved the micro-hardness and depth of the strengthening layer, but more defects in the form of micro-cracks and voids appeared in the strengthening layer. These defects had negative effects on the wear resistance to delamination, resulting in inferior wear performance under low and medium system stiffnesses. However, LSP with some micro-cracks performed the best wear reduction for high system stiffness, with only 16% wear to the untreated sample. This was due to micro-cracks altering the damage mechanism from ploughing to delamination. The LSP with many void defects exhibited poor wear performance under the three system stiffnesses because voids weakened resistance to both delamination and ploughing. Therefore, LSP was suitable for improving the wear resistance of AlSi7Mg0.6 to impact-sliding wear under different system stiffness conditions, but the parameters must be carefully controlled.

Steam explosion, an adiabatic expansion and conversion process of thermal energy into mechanical energy, was employed to extract oil from sesame seed. Steam explosion was performed with different pressure levels and retention time periods (2.0 MPa 10 s and 1.0 MPa 30 s). After pretreatment, petroleum ether as the solvent, oil yield was generally improved with the severity factor increased. Steam explosion resulted in micropores on the seed surface and made it rough. The kinetics of oil extraction from sesame seed showed when the severity factor raised, the oil yield increased and mass transfer coefficient decreased. In addition, GC–MS was used to analyze the change of fatty acid composition, and a few changes were observed. Our study suggests that steam explosion improved the oil extraction yield of sesame seed, and the quality of oil was slightly changed. Keywords: Steam explosion, Sesame seed, Oil extraction, Kinetics, Fatty acid composition

Natural zeolite was modified using metal ions, including magnesium(II), aluminum(III) and titanium(IV). The modified zeolite was then used as an adsorbent for the investigation of the adsorption kinetics, isotherms, and thermodynamic parameters of fluoride ions in wastewater at various pHs and temperatures. The kinetics and thermodynamics for the removal of the fluoride ions onto the modified zeolite have also been investigated. The fluoride ion adsorption capacity of the three types of modified zeolites exhibited an increase, then decrease, with rising pH. The fluoride adsorption capacity of the modified zeolites decreased with an increase in temperature. The pseudo-second-order model is more suitable for describing the adsorption kinetic data than the pseudo-first-order model for modified zeolite and the adsorption process of the fluoride ions reveals pseudo-second-order kinetic behavior, respectively. It was found that the adsorption equilibrium data fit the Freundlich isothermal equation better than that of the Langmuir isothermal and Dubinin–Radushkevich (D–R) isothermal equations. Thermodynamic analysis suggests that the negative values of ΔG0 and ΔH0 further indicate that the fluoride adsorption process is both spontaneous and exothermic. The results of competitive adsorption tests suggest that the modified metal zeolite materials adsorb fluoride ions with high selectivity.

The use of carbon fiber-reinforced polymer (CFRP) in aviation, automobile, marine and offshore, etc. increases sharply. The metals such as aluminum alloy are still widely used in these industries. Then, the joining technology of CFRP-metal is one of the key problems urgently to be solved and developed in these industries, especially in aviation industries. Thus, this paper gives a review on the joining processes of carbon fiber-reinforced polymer and metal. The implementation processes and joining material types of adhesive bonding, bolt connection, riveting, welding, “z-pin” (pin inserts), and joining (such as self-pierce riveting, hot riveting, mechanical clinching, friction welding) by plastic deformation, were summarized.