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Nanosized probes that report their changes in dimensions within networks in response to environmental stimuli are potentially important for applications such as drug delivery, load-supporting hydrogels and soft robotics. Recently, we developed a fluorescent pH-responsive nanogel (NG) that used Forster-resonance energy transfer (FRET) to report changes in the probe separation and NG swelling within hydrogels using photoluminescence (PL) spectroscopy. However, FRET cannot measure nanoparticle dimensions and is subject to artefacts. Here, we report the use of small-angle neutron scattering (SANS) to study both the NGs in dispersion and in polyacrylamide (PAAm) gels as a function of pH. We compare the PL and SANS data for both systems and as a function of pH. The SANS data for the dispersed NGs indicate that they have a core–shell structure with a swollen mesh size of ∼1.0 nm. We hypothesized that the NGs inside the PAAm gel would show the same general changes in scattering as the pH is increased, as observed for the dispersed NGs, and this is confirmed by the data. In summary, the data confirm that PL is a suitable (accessible) method for reporting internal environmental changes within gels using NG probes.

Ovalbumin (OVA) is a high nutritious protein, but the poor emulsibility limited its application. The present study glycosylated OVA with dextran (Dex) by controlled wetheating (60–90 °C for 3 h). Temperature was an inductive factor for glycosylation degree (DG and browning intensity), and higher temperature could accelerate the reaction. Variations in molecular structure of OVA were analyzed by SDS-PAGE, FTIR, fluorescence spectroscopy and UV spectroscopy, which verified successes in the generation of glycoconjugate with more flexible structure. Emulsifying activity index (EAI) and emulsion stability index (ESI) for the emulsion of OVA-Dex glycoconjugates were significantly enhanced with the increasing of glycosylation temperature. Moreover, confocal laser scanning results revealed that the emulsion exhibited smaller size and more uniform distribution, and slower transmission profiles were checked by LUMiSizer centrifugal analysis as well, confirming the emulsibility improvement of OVA. Thus, controlled glycosylation reaction is an available method to improve the emulsifying properties of OVA.

In the present study, a water-soluble neutral polysaccharide (CAPW-1) with an average molecular weight of 64 kDa was purified from the root of Cynanchum atratum Bunge (Apocynaceae). The monosaccharide residue analysis revealed that CAPW-1 was composed of arabinose and galactose with a relative molar ratio of 7: 3. The backbone of CAPW-1 was consisted of 1,3-Galp and 1,3,6-Galp, the branches were attached to the O-6 of 1,3-Galp, and the side chains contained 1,6-Galp, 1,3,6-Galp, 1,5-linked, 1,3-linked, 1,3,5-linked, and terminal-Araf, which was attached to the O-3 of side 1,6-Galp. The bioactivity study indicated CAPW-1 could stimulate the proliferation of RAW264.7 cells and promote the secretion of nitric oxide (NO), interleukin-6 (IL-6) and tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α) with no cytotoxicity. The results suggested a potential application of CAPW-1 as an immunostimulant for the treatment of diseases such as infection and tumor.

Banana (Musa acuminata) pseudostem cellulose was extracted and acetylated (CA) to prepare membranes with potential use as bio-packages. The CA membrane was embedded by Butia seed (CA-BS) or Butia pulp (CA-BP) extracts obtained from Butia catarinenses (Butia). The produced CA, CA-BS, and CA-BP membranes were evaluated for their physical-chemical, mechanical, thermal, and antibacterial properties. The process for obtaining the cellulose yielded a material with about 92.17% cellulose (DS = 2.85). The purity, cellulose degree acetylation, and the incorporation of Butia extracts into the membranes were confirmed by FTIR. The CA-BS and CA-BP membranes showed a smaller contact angle and higher swelling ratio than the CA membrane. Furthermore, Butia seed or pulp extracts reduced the elastic modulus and deformation at break compared to the CA membrane. The DSC analysis suggested the compatibility between sections and the CA matrix, whereas the TGA analysis confirmed the thermal stability of the membranes. Moreover, less than 1% of the Butia seed and pulp extracts were put into a food simulant media from the membrane. Finally, the CA-BS and CA-BP membranes could inhibit the growth of Staphylococcus aureus and Escherichia coli on their surface, confirming the potential use of these membranes as bio-packaging for food preservation.

Cotton fibers mainly consist of cellulose biological macromolecule, and its exceedingly flammable nature has severely restricted its application in the fields requiring flame retardancy. To endow cotton fabric with excellent flame retardancy and superior durability, a high-efficiency durable flame retardant (THPO-P) with ammonium phosphate ester and phosphine oxide groups was synthesized and chemically bonded to cotton fabric through padding-baking method. THPO-P showed high flame-retardant efficiency, and the add-on of 5.9% was sufficient to prepare cotton fabric with self-extinguished feature. With the add-on of 19.9%, treated fabric possessed excellent fire safety and durability. The total heat release and peak heat release rate values reduced by 77.1% and 91.8% in contrast to pristine fabric, respectively. Its LOI value still reached up to 33.4% even after 50 laundering cycles, which was far beyond the flame-retardant standard. THPO-P played flame-retardant role by restraining the release of flammable volatiles, liberating nonflammable gases and promoting the char formation during combustion. The flame-retardant treatment deteriorated the tensile strength, whiteness and softness of cotton fabric.

Presented research aimed to develop a spray drying process without the use of organic solvents for the preparation of novel Karaya gum polymer microparticles (MPs) of Ganoderma lucidum polysaccharide (GLP). The prepared microparticles were characterized and evaluated. Prepared novel karaya gum micro-particles loaded Ganoderma lucidum polysaccharide (GLP MPs) were observed an effect on cadmium (CAD) induced testicular toxicity. A total of 40 rats (male) was divided into 4 groups viz. 1. Control group, 2. GLP MPs (250 mg/kg, 60 days of b.w per day), 3. CAD (60 days of 30 mg/L/day), 4. GLP MPs + CAD. CAD was responsible for altering the sex hormones, oxidative stress and inflammatory cytokines. Furthermore, elevated levels of indicator of oxidative stress, malondialdehyde, and a reduced action of SOD, GSH, and CAT (antioxidant enzymes), were observed in the tissues of the testicles of CAD- treated group. Such harmful occurrences were followed by an up-regulation in proinflammatory cytokines (TNF-α, IL-1β) levels, protein expression of Nrf2, and HO-1 expression was decreased. GLP MPs pre-treatment significantly abrogated these toxic effects which were confirmed histologically. This study concluded that pre-treatment with GLP MPs exerts a protective effect against CAD-induced male reproductive testicular toxicity.

In the experiment, a chemical oxidation method was used to prepare nano-divalent silver oxide powder with a particle size of about 10 nm. Compared with silver nanoparticles and monovalent silver compounds, nano‑silver oxide has better antibacterial properties. The cellulose antibacterial aerogel was prepared by combining it with cellulose nanofibrils and using freeze-thaw cycles and freeze-drying methods. The microscopic morphology, mechanical properties, in vitro release of silver ions, antibacterial properties and biodegradability of composite aerogels were studied. The porosity of the cellulose antibacterial aerogel can reach 94%, the swelling rate was greater than 1000%, and the pore size was between 13 and 15 nm, which showed a larger storage space and attachment site for the aerogel. The diameter of the inhibition zone of the aerogel against Escherichia coli and Staphylococcus aureus was 23 mm and 20 mm respectively, and the aerogels still exhibited significant antibacterial activities with more than 99.5% reductions in Escherichia coli and Staphylococcus aureus, which shows highly effective antibacterial properties. This research proposes an economical and novel preparation method of antibacterial cellulose aerogel, making it a candidate material with high efficiency, broad-spectrum antibacterial and more suitable for life needs.

Omnipresent quality monitoring in food products, blood-oxygen measurement in lightweight conformal wrist bands, or data-driven automated industrial production: Innovation in many fields is being empowered by sensor technology. Specifically, organic photodetectors (OPDs) promise great advances due to their beneficial properties and low-cost production. Recent research has led to rapid improvement in all performance parameters of OPDs, which are now on-par or better than their inorganic counterparts, such as silicon or indium gallium arsenide photodetectors, in several aspects. In particular, it is possible to directly design OPDs for specific wavelengths. This makes expensive and bulky optical filters obsolete and allows for miniature detector devices. In this review, recent progress of such narrowband OPDs is systematically summarized covering all aspects from narrow-photo-absorbing materials to device architecture engineering. The recent challenges for narrowband OPDs, like achieving high responsivity, low dark current, high response speed, and good dynamic range are carefully addressed. Finally, application demonstrations covering broadband and narrowband OPDs are discussed. Importantly, several exciting research perspectives, which will stimulate further research on organic-semiconductor-based photodetectors, are pointed out at the very end of this review.

The accumulation and physicochemical properties of starch affect the eating quality of taro corm. This study aims to investigate the accumulation, morphology, and physicochemical properties of starch from inner and outer tissues in the top, middle, and basal parts of taro corm. Structural and morphological observations showed that the inner tissues of the taro corm accumulated more starch, and the middle tissue had moderate amylose content and the largest granule diameter. Starch from different tissues exhibited A-type orthorhombic structure and similar nuclear magnetic resonance spectrum. The relative crystallinity of starch in the middle tissue was higher than that in the top and basal tissue. Compared with middle and basal tissue, starch from top tissue showed higher peak viscosity, pasting time, swelling power and solubility. Compared with the top and basal tissues, the middle tissue of taro corm exhibited higher index of eating quality including smell, texture, and total evaluation score. The results indicated that starches in various spatial parts of taro corm exhibit differences in accumulation, morphology, structure and physicochemical properties that lead to diverse eating qualities.

In this work, a simple but effective method based on Gamma-ray initiated polymerization was reported for the first time through direct irradiation of CNCs and ionic liquid monomer to obtain poly (ionic liquids) functionalized CNCs (IL@CNCs). The adsorptive removal of Congo red (CR) from aqueous solution by IL@CNCs was also examined and the influence of contact time, pH values, initial concentrations and temperature on adsorption behavior was investigated in detail. Under the same adsorption conditions, the adsorption capacity was increased from 59.72 mg/g (CNCs) to 195.83 mg/g (IL@CNCs). The results of the adsorption isotherm and adsorption kinetics showed that the experimental data were more suitable to be described by the Freundlich isotherm adsorption model and the pseudo-second-order model. The adsorption process of CR on the surface of the adsorbent was endothermic and spontaneous. When the aqueous solution was acidic, it was more conducive to the adsorption of CR. At 100% breakthrough, the value of adsorption capacity is 199.95 mg/g and the value of partition coefficient is 9.64. Moreover, the adsorption capacity is expected to be further improved through adjustment of polymerization parameters and this method can also be used for preparation other poly (ionic liquids) modified composites.

Nowadays, starch nanoparticles (SNPs) are drawing attention to the scientific community due to their versatility and wide range of applications. Although several works have extensively addressed the SNP production routes, not much is discussed about the SNPs modification techniques, as well as the use of modified SNPs in typical and unconventional applications. Here, we focused on the SNP modification strategies and characteristics and performance of the resulting products, as well as their practical applications, while pointing out the main limitations and recommendations. We aim to guide researchers by identifying the next steps in this emerging line of research. SNPs esterification and oxidation are preferred chemical modifications, which result in changes in the functional groups. Moreover, additional polymers are incorporated into the SNP surface through copolymer grafting. Physical modification of starch has demonstrated similar changes in the functional groups without the need for toxic chemicals. Modified SNPs rendered differentiated properties, such as size, shape, crystallinity, hydrophobicity, and Zeta-potential. For multiple applications, tailoring the aforementioned properties is key to the performance of nanoparticle-based systems. However, the number of studies focusing on emerging applications is fairly limited, while their applications as drug delivery systems lack in vivo studies. The main challenges and prospects were discussed.

The effects of carboxymethyl chitosan (CMCS) on the pasting, rheological, and physical properties of yam starch (YS) were investigated. Different concentrations of CMCS were added to the YS, followed by heating paste treatment at 95 °C. Then the blends were subjected to the determination of physicochemical, rheological properties and in vitro digestibility. Our results showed that CMCS reduced the paste viscosity of YS and the addition of CMCS did not effectively inhibit the movement of water molecules. Rheological measurements results showed that YS-CMCS blends exhibited shear thinning behavior. Furthermore, because of the presence of amylose inhibited the swelling of the starch and leaching of amylose, the addition of CMCS had no significant difference between solubility and swelling power of YS.

The objective of the present investigation was to extract pectic polysaccharides from sesame seed hull and to determine their physicochemical and functional characteristics. The pectic polysaccharides in the seed hull were extracted with HCl and then collected at three ethanol concentrations of 30% (SSP30), 50% (SSP50), and 90% (SSP90). We found that SSP30 represented 75.6% of the total polysaccharides, and that it contained 76.39% galacturonic acid, with many HG domains and few short side chains in the RG-I domains. SSP30 exhibited the strongest hydroxyl radical scavenging activity among the three fractions, and was better able to stabilize the emulsions. Higher Mw pectic polysaccharides were firstly precipitated at lower ethanol concentrations, and the Mw of the precipitated pectic polysaccharides decreased with increasing ethanol concentration. These results provide important information on the structure and functional characteristics of sesame hull polysaccharides. This information can contribute to the future development of sesame hull polysaccharides for industrial purposes.

Injectable hydrogels have been known as promising materials for the regeneration of irregular shape tissue defects. In this study, novel thermosensitive methylcellulose (MC) hydrogels containing bassorin (Ba) and halloysite nanotubes (HNTs) have been developed for application in bone tissue engineering. Bassorin isolated from gum tragacanth (GT) with the concentration of 0.25-1.5 w/v% was blended with MC. The best MC/Ba gel (containing 0.5% bassorin) was chosen based on the results of injectability and rheological tests. HNTs (1-7%) were added to this formulation and tested for the physicochemical, mechanical, rheological, degradation, swelling, and biological properties. In vitro biological evaluations including cell proliferation (by MTT assay), cell attachment (by SEM), osteogenic activity (by Alizarin Red staining and alkaline phosphatase assay), and osteogenic gene expression (by quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction) were done using MG-63 cells. Results showed that bassorin led to the increased gel-forming ability (at a lower temperature) and mechanical properties of MC hydrogel. The presence of HNTs and bassorin affected the degradation rate and swelling degree of MC-based hydrogel. Results showed significant enhancement in cell proliferation, differentiation, and mineralization, as well as higher bone-specific gene expression of the cell on bassorin and HNTs incorporated MC compared to pure MC hydrogel.

The current study reports the preparation of lignin grafted temperature and pH responsive hydrogels through copolymerization of N-isopropylacrylamide, acrylic acid and varying amount of lignin methacrylate (LMA = 50, 100, 150 and 200 mg) as crosslinker adopting radical polymerization technique. Functional group and structural characterizations were carried out to confirm hydrogels synthesis and their network structure. The variation in pore size on addition of lignin revealed the tuning of pores as well as swelling capacity of the hydrogels by suitable amount of LMA. All LMA grafted hydrogels showed temperature responsive behavior and pH dependent sensitivity in swelling, with reduced equilibrium swelling capacity values compared to sample without lignin. In alkali medium at room temperature, the maximum swelling capacity with 48% higher retention was noticed, while a significant reduction in swelling was observed at 40 °C in all media. The addition of lignin still preserved the tensile strength up to 100 kPa and compressive load bearing ability up to 30 kPa in freeze dried state with adequate interfacial stress transfer. An increase in lignin concentration showed enhanced storage modulus (~two-fold increase), adequate loss modulus values and improved cell viability, which paves the way for possible biomedical applications.

A highly hydrophobic and self-recoverable sponge was prepared with cellulose nanofibrils (CNFs), N-alkylated chitosan (NCS), and poly (vinyl alcohol) (PVA), which was then endowed with hydrophobic properties via simple thermal chemical vapor deposition (CVD). The three-dimensional (3D) interconnected microstructure of the prepared CNF/NCS/PVA sponge was found to have 96% porosity, ultra-low density (16.61–50.91 mg/cm3) and high hydrophobicity (water contact angle of 147°), which can absorb various organic solvents with an absorption capacity of 19.05–51.08 times of its original weight. Besides, the sponge could bear 80% strain and be cyclically compressed 50 times under the strain of 50%. The sponge can effectively separate oil/water mixtures and water-in-oil emulsions with high separation efficiency and fluxes. Moreover, the sponge could keep its good stability in various acidic, saline and mechanical abrasion conditions. The green preparation and good separation efficiency suggest a potential application of recyclable and versatile CNF/NCS/PVA sponges in oil/water separation.

In this study, designing of a stable electrospun blended chitosan (CS)-poly(vinyl alcohol) (PVA) nanofibers for colorimetric glucose biosensing in an aqueous medium was investigated. CS and PVA solutions were blended to acquire an optimum content (CS/PVA:1/4) and electrospunned to obtain uniform and bead-free CS/PVA nanofiber structures following the optimization of the electrospinning parameters (33 kV, 20 cm, and 1.2 ml.h−1). Crosslinking process applied subsequently provided mechanically and chemically stable nanofibers with an average diameter of 378 nm. The morphological homogeneity, high fluid absorption ability (>%50), thermal (

Pomegranate peel polyphenols (PPP), which are natural, safe, and green antibacterial agents, were introduced and embedded in chitosan to form stable nanoparticles. The PPP@chitosan nanoparticles (PPP@CNPs) were further electrospun into nanofibers based on Pleurotus eryngii polysaccharide (PEP). The preferable distribution of particle size, polydispersity index, and zeta potential was realized through the addition of PPP at 3 mg/mL, which achieved the highest encapsulation rate of 23.71 ± 0.51%. The tensile strength and elongation at break of nanofibers reached 15.76 MPa and 0.69% with the addition of 1% PEP through electrospinning. The results of scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and atomic force microscopy (AFM) demonstrated that the addition of nanoparticles increased the diameter of PEP nanofibers from 148 nm to 163 nm, and the surface roughness of the fibers also increased. Meanwhile, the addition of nanoparticles improved the thermal stability of PEP nanofibers. PPP@CNPs/PEP nanofibers can inhibit the growth of E. coli O157:H7 on pork and cucumber surfaces during the five-days storage, and the inhibition rates were all above 95%. Besides, the nanofibers did not have any impact on the color and texture of foods.

Natural polymers are at the center of materials development for biomedical and biotechnological applications based on their biocompatibility, low-toxicity and biodegradability. In this study, a novel nanobiocomposite based on cross-linked pectin-cellulose hydrogel, silk fibroin, and Mg(OH)2 nanoparticles was designed and synthesized. After extensive physical-chemical characterization, the biological response of pectin-cellulose/silk fibroin/Mg(OH)2 nanobiocomposite scaffolds was evaluated by cell viability, red blood cells hemolytic and anti-biofilm assays. After 3 days and 7 days, the cell viability of this nanobiocomposite scaffold was 65.5% and 60.5% respectively. The hemolytic effect was below 20%. Furthermore, the presence of silk fibroin and Mg(OH)2 nanoparticles allowed to enhance the anti-biofilm activity, inhibiting the P. aeruginosa biofilm formation.

The conjugation of monoclonal antibodies with superparamagnetic iron oxide nanoparticles (SPIONs) has appeared as a potential multifunctional clinical tool, which can effectively diagnose cancers and monitor their treatment, specifically. Despite the presence of different methods for conjugating antibodies to iron oxide nanoparticles, novel cost-effective and simpler conjugation techniques should be performed in this regard. In current study, an anti-CD3 monoclonal antibody was conjugated to the Fe3O4 coated by carboxymethyl dextran (CMD) using cyanogen bromide (CNBr). Moreover, EDC/NHS techniques were applied as a positive control. The experimental results showed that the Conjugation was performed and the presence of the antibody conjugated to the MNPs in human xenograft tumors was confirmed using Prussian blue (PB) staining, following magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), 30 min after injection. This conjugation method was shown to be able to separate CD3+ T lymphocytes efficiently from whole blood with high purity. Accordingly, this type of bio-conjugation method can be utilized in the future for cell sorting, and can be applied for adopted cell therapies such as CAR-T cell (Chimeric antigen receptor T cell) therapy, as well as targeted MRI imaging.

We incorporated oxidized dextran (Odex) into nanoparticles composed of gallic acid-modified chitosan (GA-CS) and sodium caseinate (NaCas). The mass ratio of GA-CS to NaCas and the pH of the reaction solution were optimized to obtain nanoparticles with excellent performance and stability. The interactions among various nanomaterials were confirmed by Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR) and fluorescence spectrometer. The optimized complex nanoparticles had a diameter of approximately 131.2 nm with a polydispersity index (PDI) of 0.14, and a zeta potential of 26.2 mV. Our results showed that Odex enhanced the stability and function of GA-CS/NaCas nanoparticles (NP). At a curcumin loading of 10%, the encapsulation efficiency of Odex-crosslinked GA-CS/NaCas (NP (Odex)) was 96.2%, whereas that for uncrosslinked nanoparticles was 66.9%. Compared to the burst release profile of free curcumin in simulated GI fluids, the sustained release profile of encapsulated curcumin was observed. Radical-scavenging assays confirmed that the nanoparticles had excellent antioxidant activity themselves due to the grafting of phenolic acid on chitosan backbone. Overall, NP (Odex) with good GI stability and antioxidant activity hold promising for the oral delivery of hydrophobic bioactives.

In this study, poly(lactic acid) (PLA)/poly(butylene succinate) (PBS) dual-layer membranes filled with 0–3 wt% cellulose nanowhisker (CNWs) were fabricated with aim to remove metal ions from wastewater. An integrated method was employed in the membrane fabrication process by combining water vapor-induced and crystallization-induced phase inversions. The membrane thickness was measured in between 11 and 13 μm, which did not pose significant flux deviation during filtration process. The 3% CNW filled membrane showed prominent and well-laminated two layers structure. Meanwhile, the increase in CNWs from 0 to 3% loadings could improve the membrane porosity (43–74%) but reducing pore size (2.45–0.54 μm). The heat resistance of neat membrane enhanced by 1% CNW but decreased with loadings of 2–3% CNWs due to flaming behavior of sulphated nanocellulose. Membrane with 3% CNW displayed the tensile strength (23.5 MPa), elongation at break (7.1%), and Young's modulus (0.75 GPa) as compared to other samples. For wastewater filtration performance, the continuous operation test showed that 3% CNW filled membrane exhibited the highest removal efficiency for both cobalt and nickel metal ions reaching to 83% and 84%, respectively. We concluded that CNWs filled dual-layer membranes have potential for future development in the removal of heavy metal ions from wastewater streams.

The hydrophobicity of most of the anticancer drugs offers a great challenge in selecting a system for their effective transport. Here comes the importance of micelles that offers a hydrophobic core for incorporating these drugs. In this study, Hyaluronic Acid coated Pluronic mixed micelle loaded with Paclitaxel and Curcumin was designed and evaluated its anticancer activity in MCF-7 cells. Pluronic F127 (PF127) and Pluronic P123 (PP123) were taken for preparing the mixed micelles. The targeting ligand folic acid (FA) was conjugated to one end of PP123 forming FA-PP. The end hydroxyl groups of PF127 were oxidized to aldehyde groups resulted in PF-CHO. Mixed micelles were prepared from PF-CHO and FA-PP and the end aldehyde groups were used for coating the micelles with hyaluronic acid. The material was characterized using FTIR, H1NMR, DLS, FE-SEM and TEM. The coated micelles showed spherical shape with drug loading efficiency of 50.15 and 65.05% for Paclitaxel and Curcumin, respectively. In vitro drug release was studied at pH 5.5 and 7.4. Dual drug-loaded material showed higher in-vitro anticancer activity than free Paclitaxel and Curcumin. The results suggested that synthesized mixed micelle with dual drugs showed great potential for targeted delivery to MCF-7 cells.

A new type of magnetic chitosan nanocomposites modified with graphene oxide and polyethyleneimine (MCS/GO-PEI) was synthesized, which was used as an adsorbent to remove the toxic heavy metals of As and Hg as well as anionic azo dyes of congo red and amaranth in environmental water. In this experiment, MCS/GO-PEI was first synthesized and the structure and morphology characterized by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), Fourier-transform infrared spectrometry (FT-IR), X-ray diffractometer (XRD), vibrating sample magnetometry (VSM) and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). The adsorption performance of the material for four analytes was investigated through adsorption experiments. The kinetic and isothermal results showed that the adsorption process was well described by pseudo-second-order kinetic and Langmuir isotherm model. Besides, the important parameter pH in the adsorption process was investigated and optimized. The maximum adsorption capacities of the nanocomposites for arsenic, mercury ions, congo red, amaranth were 220.26, 124.84, 162.07, 93.81 mg g−1 under optimum adsorption conditions, respectively. The adsorption-desorption showed that the adsorbents were presented adequate reusability. The as-prepared MCS/GO-PEI nanocomposite could serve as promising adsorbent for arsenic, mercury, congo red and amaranth in environmental water samples treatment technology.

Deep eutectic solvents (DES) pretreatment is a promising approach to decrease “biomass recalcitrance” and boost the cellulose bioconversion as well as lignin valorization. In this study, a short-time DES pretreatment strategy was performed to enhance the production of high-yield fermentable sugars and tailored lignin nanoparticles (LNPs) from abaca. The glucose yield reached 92.4% under the optimal pretreatment condition (110 °C, 30 min), which was dramatically increased in comparison with that (9.5%) of control abaca. Simultaneously, nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) and gel permeation chromatography (GPC) techniques indicated that the removed and regenerated DES lignin fractions displayed depolymerized structures and have relatively low molecular weight with relatively homogeneous morphology and narrow size distribution. Transmission electron microscope (TEM) analysis indicated that these lignin fractions are LNPs and the size of the optimal LNPs fraction is ranged from 30 nm to 50 nm. Moreover, all the DES lignin exhibited excellent antioxidant activities as compared to the commercial antioxidant butylated hydroxytoluene (BHT), which can be used as a promising natural antioxidant in industry. In short, this study demonstrated that the short-time DES pretreatment will improve the enzymatic digestibility and facilitate the controllable production and valorization of LNPs from abaca biomass, which will further promote the economic and overall benefits of biorefinery.

Yak yogurt, one of the naturally fermented dairy products prepared by local herdsmen in the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau, contains a diverse array of microorganisms. We isolated and identified a novel Streptococcus thermophilus strain, ZJUIDS-2-01, from the traditional yak yogurt. We further purified and carried out detailed structural, physiochemical, and bioactivity studies of an exopolysaccharide (EPS-3A) produced by S. thermophilus ZJUIDS-2-01. The weight-average molecular weight (Mw) of EPS-3A was estimated to be 1.38 × 106 Da by High-Performance Gel Permeation Chromatography (HPGPC). The monosaccharide analysis established its composition to be glucose, galactose, N-acetyl-D-galactosamine, and rhamnose in a ratio of 5.2:2.5:6.4:1.0. The molecular structure of EPS-3A was determined by the combination of permethylation analysis, FT-IR, and NMR spectroscopic techniques. The ζ-potential measurements indicated that EPS-3A had a pKa value of ~4.40. The DSC yielded a melting point (Tm) of 80.4 °C and enthalpy change (ΔH) of 578 J/g for EPS-3A, comparable to those of the xanthan gum (XG), a commercial EPS. EPS-3A exhibited better O/W emulsion stability and flocculating capacity than XG. Furthermore, it also demonstrated similar antioxidant activity to XG and promising in vitro antibacterial properties. This work evidenced that EPS-3A derived from S. thermophilus ZJUIDS-2-01 holds the potential for food and industrial applications.

Chinese quince (Chaenomeles sinensis) fruits offer a potential source of pectin and hemicellulose. However, the existence of lignin-carbohydrate complexes (LCCs) can negatively impact the extraction of pectin and hemicellulose. In this work, LCCs were sequentially fractionated from Chinese quince during the removal of pectin and hemicellulose. The structures of LCCs were characterized by HPAEC, FT-IR, GPC, Py-GC/MS, TGA and 2D HSQC NMR. The results showed that the carbohydrate content and molecular weight of LCCs was found to be changed significantly after the removal of hemicellulose (KSH). The lignin in Björkman LCCs was found to be linked mainly to galactan and fructan, whereas the lignin LCC-AcOHs was found to be linked mainly to arabinan after the removal of KSH. The isolation of carbonate-soluble pectin (NSP) increased thermal stability of Björkman LCC fraction, however, the isolation of chelator-soluble pectin (CSP) increased the thermal stability of LCC-AcOHs. The S/G ratios of LCC-AcOHs increased and large amounts of S-type lignin released during sequential fractionation of pectin and hemicellulose. These results will be beneficial for understanding the mechanisms of pectin and hemicellulose isolation, thereby facilitating the potential application of Chinese quince as a valuable natural resource for food and other industries.

Pumpkin starch (PS) was extracted from Cucurbita maxima and utilized to prepare films in combination with cellulose nanocrystal (CNC) and cellulose nanofiber (CNF), using a solvent casting strategy. The PS was characterized to contain 26.6% of amylose, exhibiting a “B”-type crystalline structure and high stability against thermal degradation. PS/CNF films showed better thermal stability than PS/CNC films, whereas the CNC was more effective than CNF for enhancing the tensile strength (TS) of the films. The nanocomposite films containing 1% CNC showed the highest TS of 30.32 MPa. Fourier transform infrared spectra revealed stronger hydrogen bonding in the PS/CNC films, likely contributing to the observed high mechanical strength. CNC and CNF both decreased the transparency of PS films, by 5.2% and 13.1%, respectively. Overall, the properties of PS composite films can be effectively modified by incorporating CNC and CNF, as PS/CNC films with high mechanical strength and PS/CNF films with good thermal stability. Our results indicate that PS is a suitable material for CNC/CNF composite film fabrication. These films are expected to be especially useful in food packaging applications.

Acridone and its derivatives have potential application as emitters for highly efficient blue organic light-emitting diodes (OLEDs). In this paper, we demonstrated ultrafast access of a solvent-independent singlet-triplet equilibrium state in acridone solutions by using femtosecond time-resolved spectroscopy. Our spectral data show that due to highly effective forward and reverse intersystem crossing (both kISC and krISC over 1010 s-1), a singlet-triplet equilibrium state is always populated in acridone in all solvents studied. However, the lifetimes of the equilibrium state varied a lot in different solvent environments and the final decay pathway of this state can switch between high quantum yield fluorescence emission and further internal conversion to the lowest triplet state. These findings provide direct experimental evidence to understand the distinct photophysical behaviors of acridone and also provide guidance for further design of acridone and its derivatives as blue OLED emitters.

Stormwater runoff contains a myriad of pollutants, including faecal microbes, and can pose a threat to urban water supplies, impacting both economic development and public health. Therefore, it is a necessity to implement a real-time hazard detection system that can collect a substantial amount of data, assisting water authorities to develop preventive strategies to ensure the control of hazards entering drinking water sources. An on-line UV-Vis spectrophotometer was applied in the field to collect real-time continuous data for various water quality parameters (nitrate, DOC, turbidity and total suspended solids) during three storm events in Mannum, Adelaide, Australia. This study demonstrated that the trends for on-line and comparative laboratory-analysed samples were complimentary through the events. Nitrate and DOC showed a negative correlation with water level, while turbidity and total suspended solids indicated a positive correlation with water level during the high rainfall intensity. The correlations among nitrate, DOC, turbidity, total suspended solids and water level are the opposite during low rainfall intensity. Nitrate, one of the main pollutants in stormwater, was investigated and used as a surrogate parameter for microbial detection. However, the microbiological data (Escherichia coli) from captured storm events showed poor correlations to nitrate and other typical on-line parameters in this study. This is possibly explained by the nature of the stormwater catchment outside of rain events, where the sources of bacteria and nutrients may be physically separated until mixed during surface runoff as a result of rainfall. In addition, the poor correlations among the microbiological data and on-line parameters could be due to the different sources of bacteria and nutrients that were transported to the stormwater drain where sampling and measurement were conducted Refereed/Peer-reviewed

Chiral vibrational sum frequency generation (SFG) spectroscopy probes the structure of the solvation shell around chiral macromolecules. The dominant theoretical framework for understanding the origin of chiral SFG signals is based on the analysis of molecular symmetry, which assumes no interaction between molecules. However, water contains strong intermolecular interactions that significantly affect its properties. Here, the role of intermolecular vibrational coupling in the chiral SFG response of the O-H stretch of water surrounding an antiparallel β-sheet at the vacuum-water interface is investigated. Both intramolecular and intermolecular couplings between O-H groups are required to simulate the full lineshape of the chiral SFG signal. This dependence is also observed for a chiral water dimer, illustrating that this phenomenon is not specific to larger systems. We also find that a dimer of C3v molecules predicted to be chirally SFG-inactive by the symmetry-based theory can generate a chiral SFG signal when intermolecular couplings are considered, suggesting that even highly symmetric solvent molecules may produce chiral SFG signals when interacting with a chiral solute. The consideration of intermolecular couplings extends the prevailing theory of the chiral SFG response to structures larger than individual molecules and provides guidelines for future modeling.

Therapeutic peptides have an important effect on physiological function and human health, so it is momentous to quantify and detect low levels of these biomolecules in biological samples for treatment and diagnostic purposes. In the present study, an efficient magnetic solid-phase extraction (MSPE) method was developed based on stearic acid–functionalized magnetic hydroxyapatite nanocomposite (MHAP/SA) as a novel and cost-effective adsorbent for extraction of five hypothalamic-related peptides (goserelin, octreotide, triptorelin, somatostatin, and cetrorelix) from biological samples. To characterize the morphology and physicochemical properties of MHAP/SA, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR), energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDS), field emission scanning microscopy (FE-SEM), CHNS elemental analysis, Brunauer–Emmett–Teller (BET), and vibrating sample magnetometry (VSM) were applied. Under optimum conditions, the proposed method (MSPE–HPLC–UV) represented favorable linearity with R2 ≥ 0.9987, suitable intra- and inter-day precisions (RSD ≤ 6.9% and RSD ≤ 8.1%, respectively, n = 3), and limits of detection and quantification in the range of 0.75–1.12 ng mL−1 and 2.50–3.75 ng mL−1, respectively. Eventually, the proposed method was used for the extraction and quantification of target therapeutic peptides in plasma and urine samples, and satisfactory relative recoveries were achieved in the range of 90.6–110.3%.

Antibody therapies are typically based on high-concentration formulations that need to be administered subcutaneously. These conditions induce several challenges, inter alia a viscosity suitable for injection, sufficient solution stability, and preservation of molecular function. To obtain systematic insights into the molecular factors, we study the dynamics on the molecular level under strongly varying solution conditions. In particular, we use solutions of antibodies with poly(ethylene glycol), in which simple cooling from room temperature to freezing temperatures induces a transition from a well-dispersed solution into a phase-separated and macroscopically arrested system. Using quasi-elastic neutron scattering during in situ cooling ramps and in prethermalized measurements, we observe a strong decrease in antibody diffusion, while internal flexibility persists to a significant degree, thus ensuring the movement necessary for the preservation of molecular function. These results are relevant for a more dynamic understanding of antibodies in high-concentration formulations, which affects the formation of transient clusters governing the solution viscosity.

Gallic acid (GA) is a natural ingredient in functional foods, which has various health-promoting and antitumour effects. Peptidyl-prolyl cis/trans isomerase Pin1 plays an important role in preventing the development of some malignant tumours. However, whether there was an interaction between Pin1 and GA remains unknown. In this work, the binding information of GA and Pin1 was investigated systematically using multiple spectral and computational methods. GA bound to Pin1 directly with moderate binding affinity in the order of 104 mol/L, therefore decreasing the activity of Pin1. Also, the binding process of GA to Pin1 was driven through weak van der Waals forces, hydrogen bonds, and electrostatic forces. In addition, the important residues Lys63, Arg68, and Arg69 played a significant role in maintaining the binding stability between Pin1 and GA. Interestingly, GA reduced the activity of Pin1 by affecting its conformational characteristics. Our present work showed that GA binds to Pin1 and inhibits its activity, affecting its structural and functional properties, which may contribute to the therapy of Pin1-related diseases.

Water-soluble BOPAHY fluorophores have not yet been reported. The potential of 1,2,3-triazolium salts for the formation of water-soluble chromophores is explored. 1,2,3-Triazole-substituted pyrroles were synthesized in a metal-free pathway and alkylated to obtain water-soluble 1,2,3-triazolium BOPAHY dyes. High fluorescence quantum yields were observed for triazole-bridged BOPAHY dyes in DCM and moderate fluorescence quantum yields for 1,2,3-triazolium-bridged BOPAHY chromophores in DCM and water. The fluorescence of the freely rotatable 1,2,3-triazolium-linked BOPAHYs is partially quenched in water.

Atmospheric aerosols have effects on atmospheric radiation assessments, global climate change, local air quality and visibility. In particular, aerosols are more likely transformed and accumulated in winter. In this paper, we used the Multi-Axis Differential Optical Absorption Spectroscopy (MAX-DOAS) instrument to study the characteristics of aerosol type and contributions of PM2.5 chemical components to aerosol extinction (AE), vertical distribution of aerosols, and source. From December 30, 2018 to January 27, 2019, we conducted MAX-DOAS observations on Sanmenxia. The proportion of PM2.5 to PM10 was 69.48%–95.39%, indicating that the aerosol particles were mainly fine particles. By analyzing the ion data and modifying Interagency Monitoring of Protected Visual Environments (IMPROVE) method, we found that nitrate was the largest contributor to AE, accounting for 31.51%, 28.98%, and 27.95% of AE on heavily polluted, polluted, and clean days, respectively. NH4+, OC, and SO42− were also major contributors to AE. The near-surface aerosol extinction retrieved from MAX-DOAS measurement the PM2.5 and PM10 concentrations measured by an Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) have the same trend in vertical distribution. AE increased about 3 times from surface to 500 m. With the backward trajectory of the air mass during the haze, we also found that the continuous heavy pollution was mainly caused by transport of polluted air from the northeast, then followed by local industrial emissions and other sources of emissions under continuous and steady weather conditions.

In recent year, metal–organic frameworks (MOFs) have been displayed to be a category of promising drug delivery systems because of their crystalline structure, the potential of further functionality, and high porosity. In this research, graphene oxide was synthesized from pure graphite via hummer method and then MgFe2O4 nanoparticles was incorporated into the synthesized ZIF-8 metal–organic frameworks which followed with loading on the surfaces of graphene oxide. In continue, tetracycline as an antibiotic drug was loaded on the surfaces and the cavities of the prepared nanocomposite. The outcomes of this research revealed that 90% of the tetracycline was loaded on the synthesized ZIF-8/GO/MgFe2O4 nanostructure. Next, drug release was done at pH: 5 and pH: 7.4 within 3 days, resulting about 88% and 92% release of the tetracycline, respectively. With using different spectroscopic methods like X-ray crystallography (XRD), scanning electron microscope (SEM), energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDX/Mapping), Fourier transform infrared (FTIR), thermalgravimetric analysis (TGA), and Brunauer–Emmett–Teller (BET), the structure of synthesized materials was confirmed. Furthermore, the antibiotic activity of tetracycline trapped into the ZIF-8/GO/MgFe2O4 was evaluated by agar-well diffusion method on both gram-positive (Staphylococcus aureus) and gram-negative (Escherichia coli) bacteria, which showed good antibacterial results.

Carbon dioxide (CO2) and methane (CH4) are natural and anthropogenic products that play a central role in the global carbon cycle and regulating Earth's climate. Applications utilizing laser absorption spectroscopy, which continuously measure concentrations and stable isotope ratios of these greenhouse gases, are routinely employed to measure the source and magnitude of atmospheric inputs. We developed a discrete sample introduction module (DSIM) to enable measurements of methane and CO2 concentrations and δ13C values from limited volume (5-100 mL) gas samples when interfaced with a commercially available cavity ring-down spectroscopy (CRDS) analyzer. The analysis has a dynamic range that spans six orders of magnitude from 100% analyte to the lower limit of instrument detection (2 ppm). We demonstrate system performance for methane by comparing concentrations and δ13C results from the DSIM-CRDS system and traditional methods for a variety of sample types, including low concentration (nanomolar CH4) seawater and high concentration (>90% CH4) natural gas. The expansive concentration range of the field-portable DSIM-CRDS system can measure enhances analytical performance for investigating methane and CO2 dynamics and, potentially, other gases measured by laser absorption spectroscopy.

It is important but remains unclear whether ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid (EDTA) and sodium heparin anticoagulants have different impacts on the levels of various metals in peripheral blood after long-term frozen storage. The concentrations of 22 metals (Al, As, Ba, Ca, Cd, Cr, Co, Cu, Mn, Mg, Mo, Ni, Fe, Pb, Rb, Se, Sn, Sb, Sr, Ti, V, Zn) in whole blood, blood cells and plasma from 22 healthy participants were determined twice, 18 months apart, using inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS). The mean percentage error (MPE) and intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC) were calculated to evaluate the impact of the anticoagulants and long-term frozen storage on metal concentrations, respectively. The concentrations of Sb and Ba in whole blood, blood cells and plasma were significantly altered by EDTA and sodium heparin at two measurement timepoints (P 0.05 and MPE 80%). In EDTA tubes, the Ti and Ni concentrations in blood cells were changed significantly; and in heparin tubes, the concentrations of Ni and Mo in blood cells and Sb in plasma were also altered (P 0.05 and MPE 80%). The ICCs of 11 metals in whole blood, 15 metals in blood cells and 16 metals in plasma remained unchanged in EDTA tubes, and 16 metals in whole blood, 15 metals in blood cells and 17 metals in plasma remained unchanged in heparin tubes (ICC 0.40). Our study suggested the use of EDTA tubes to determine Sb concentrations in peripheral blood and heparin tubes to determine Ba concentrations. Additionally, heparin tubes may be more suited for determining multiple metal concentrations in whole blood, whereas for blood cells and plasma either EDTA or heparin tubes could be used.

Resistance to algae contamination is an important characteristic of insulators used in overhead power distribution in coastal environments. It is therefore important to understand the parameters governing algae adhesion onto polymer insulator materials such as silicone. Flow cell-based shear experiments were conducted in order to characterize the adhesion strength of algae onto polydimethylsiloxane surfaces, comparing fresh polymer substrates with those that have been soaked in water and saline solutions for 1 month. Both freshwater algae and seawater species could withstand considerably less drag force and were therefore more easily removed when the polymer was soaked in salt water. The polymer surface was found to be unaltered in terms of its roughness, contact angle, and lack of water uptake; no macroscopic surface characterization was therefore able to account for the differences in cell adhesion strength resulting from the soaking treatment. Surface-specific nonlinear vibrational spectroscopy, however, revealed subtle differences in the orientation of surface methyl groups that resulted from the water and saline exposure.

New spectroscopic experiments and state‐of‐the‐art quantum‐chemical computations of creatinine in different aggregation states unequivocally unveiled a significant tuning of tautomeric equilibrium by the environment: from the exclusive presence of the amine tautomer in the solid state and aqueous solution to a mixture of amine and imine tautomers in the gas phase. Quantum‐chemical calculations predict the amine species as the most stable tautomer by about 30 kJ mol−1 in condensed phases. On the contrary, moving to the isolated forms, both Z and E imine isomers become more stable by about 7 kJ mol−1. Since the imine isomers and one amine tautomer are separated by significant energy barriers, all of them should be present in the gas phase. This prediction has indeed been confirmed by high‐resolution rotational spectroscopy, which provides the first experimental characterization of the elusive imine tautomer. The interpretation of the complicated hyperfine structure of the rotational spectrum, originated by three 14N nuclei, makes it possible to use the spectral signatures as a sort of fingerprint for each individual tautomer in the complex sample., A journey among the aggregation states of a key biomolecule, creatinine, is reported, guided by state‐of‐the‐art quantum‐chemical computations and spectroscopic techniques. The fine tuning of the creatinine tautomeric equilibrium by different environments is unveiled and fully understood by vis‐à‐vis comparison between simulated and experimental signatures.

Measuring the strength of the hydrogen bonds between DNA base pairs is of vital importance for understanding how our genetic code is physically accessed and recognized in cells, particularly during replication and transcription. Therefore, it is important to develop probes for these key hydrogen bonds (H-bonds) that dictate events critical to cellular function, such as the localized melting of DNA. The vibrations of carbonyl bonds are well-known probes of their H-bonding environment, and their signals can be observed with infrared (IR) spectroscopy. Yet, pinpointing a single bond of interest in the complex IR spectrum of DNA is challenging due to the large number of carbonyl signals that overlap with each other. Here, we develop a method using isotope editing and infrared (IR) spectroscopy to isolate IR signals from the thymine (T) C2═O carbonyl. We use solvatochromatic studies to show that the TC2═O signal's position in the IR spectrum is sensitive to the H-bonding capacity of the solvent. Our results indicate that C2═O of a single T base within DNA duplexes experiences weak H-bonding interactions. This finding is consistent with the existence of a third, noncanonical CH···O H-bond between adenine and thymine in both Watson-Crick and Hoogsteen base pairs in DNA.

Nα-2-thiophenoyl-d-phenylalanine-2-morpholinoanilide (MMV688845, IUPAC: N-(1-((2-morpholinophenyl)amino)-1-oxo-3-phenylpropan-2-yl)thiophene-2-carboxamide) from the Pathogen Box® library (Medicines for Malaria Ventures, MMV) is a promising lead compound for antimycobacterial drug development. Two straightforward synthetic routes to the title compound starting from phenylalanine or its Boc-protected derivative are reported. Employing Boc-phenylalanine as starting material and the T3P® and PyBOP® amide coupling reagents enables racemization-free synthesis, avoiding the need for subsequent separation of the enantiomers. The crystal structure of the racemic counterpart gives insight into the molecular structure and hydrogen bonding interactions in the solid state. The R-enantiomer of the title compound (derived from d-phenylalanine) exhibits activity against non-pathogenic and pathogenic mycobacterial strains, whereas the S-enantiomer is inactive. Neither of the enantiomers and the racemate of the title compound shows cytotoxicity against various mammalian cells.

Renal injury caused by renal ischemia and reperfusion strongly influences heart morphology, electrophysiology, and redox unbalance. The so-called cardiorenal syndrome is an important class of dysfunction since heart and kidneys are responsible for hemodynamic stability and organ perfusion through a complex network. In the present work we investigate the vibrational spectral features probed by Fourier-Transform Raman (FT-Raman) spectroscopy due to physiological alterations induced by renal ischemic reperfusion aiming to detect molecular markers related to progression of acute to chronic kidney injury and mortality predictors as well. C57BL/6J mice were subjected to unilateral occlusion of the renal pedicle for 60 min and reperfusion for 5, 8, and 15 days. Biopsies of heart and kidney tissues were analyzed. Our findings indicated that cysteine/cystine, fatty acids, methyl groups of Collagen, α-form of proteins, Tyrosine, and Tryptophan were modulated during renal ischemia and reperfusion process. These changes are consistent with fibroblast growth factors and Collagen III contents changes. Interestingly, Tyrosine and Tryptophan, precursor molecules for the formation of uremic toxins such as indoxyl sulfate and p-cresyl sulfate were also modulated. They are markers of kidney injury and their increase is strongly correlated to cardiovascular mortality. Regarding this aspect, we notice that monitoring the Tyrosine and Tryptophan bands at 1558, 1616, and 1625 cm−1 is a viable and and advantageous way to predict fatality in cardiovascular diseases both “in vivo” or “in vitro”, using the real-time, multiplexing, and minimally invasive advantages of FT-Raman spectroscopy.

Phytoglycogen is a naturally occurring glucose polymer that is produced by sweet corn in the form of compact nanoparticles with a dendritic or tree-like architecture. The soft and porous nature of the nanoparticles, combined with their biodegradability and lack of toxicity, makes them ideal for a broad range of applications in personal care, nutrition, and biomedicine. To fully exploit these applications, it is necessary to understand the complex properties of the soft, hydrated nanoparticles in detail. In the present study, we have used atomic force microscopy (AFM) force spectroscopy to collect high-resolution force-distance maps of a large number of individual phytoglycogen nanoparticles, providing unique insights into the morphology and mechanical stiffness of the nanoparticles at the single-particle level. Our measurements performed in water on nanoparticles covalently bonded to gold surfaces revealed an inner branched structure and high deformability of the nanoparticles at modest values of the applied force. These measurements also allowed us to determine the spatial distribution of Young's modulus values within individual nanoparticles. Drying of the nanoparticles resulted in a dramatic increase in Young's modulus, quantifying the effect of hydration on their mechanical stiffness. We obtained excellent agreement between AFM and osmotic pressure measurements of the mechanical properties of hydrated phytoglycogen nanoparticles; the ratio of the average Young's modulus measured using AFM to the bulk modulus measured using osmotic pressure was in close agreement with that expected for a material with Poisson's ratio ν = 0. The soft, deformable nature of phytoglycogen nanoparticles revealed by our measurements provides new insights at the single-nanoparticle level and suggests their suitability for biomedical applications such as transdermal and targeted drug delivery.

Although radical treatment of Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s disease is not possible yet, it is aimed to slow the course of the disease and increase the life quality of individuals with the drugs used in the clinic at the present time. Successful results have been achieved in the use of cholinesterase inhibitors and monoamine oxidase inhibitors together in these neurodegenerative diseases. In this study, indane ring which are in the structure of anticholinesterase effective molecules and 2-hydrazinothiazole structure whose inhibitory activities reported on monoamine oxidase-B (MAO-B) were combined; 4-(substituted phenyl)-2-[2-(3-phenyl-2,3-dihydro-1H-inden-1-ylidene) hydrazinyl]thiazole derivatives (3a–3i) were synthesized as dual inhibitors. The structures of the compounds were verified by IR, 1H-NMR, 13C-NMR, and HRMS spectroscopy. When enzyme inhibition activities were evaluated, it was determined that the compounds 3a (42.33%) and 3d (42.39%) on acetylcholinesterase (AChE) enzyme; compounds 3g (75.42%) and 3h (60.33%) showed inhibition on MAO-B enzyme at most, at 10−3 M concentration.

Seiridiasteriscane A is an asteriscane-type sesquiterpenoid bearing a trans-fused bicyclo[6.3.0]undecane skeleton. Although its biosynthesis has been proposed to involve a semipinacol rearrangement of a putative intermediary acetate bearing a bicyclo[7.2.0]undecane ring system (presumably derived from coisolated pestalotiopsin M) followed by epimerization of the resulting cis-fused seiridiasteriscane B, such a type of semipinacol rearrangement has never been reported so far. Our model study revealed that a 1-hydroxybicyclo[7.2.0]undecan-2-yl acetate underwent a smooth and stereospecific semipinacol rearrangement with the assistance of Et2AlCl to give the corresponding bicyclo[6.3.0]undecane-9-one. In addition, the resulting cis-fused 5,8-bicyclic ketone was partially epimerized to the corresponding trans-fused ketone by prolonged adsorption onto a silica gel plate. These results may support a recently proposed biosynthetic pathway of seiridiasteriscane A.

Background and purpose Physical activity may represent a disease-modifying therapy in persons with multiple sclerosis (pwMS). To date, there is limited research regarding mechanisms based on brain imaging for understanding the beneficial effects of physical activity in pwMS. This study examined the relationship between physical activity levels and thalamic and hippocampal volumes and brain metabolism in pwMS. Methods The sample of 52 pwMS (37.3 ± 9.6 years of age; 35 females, 17 males) underwent a combination of volumetric magnetic resonance imaging and magnetic resonance spectroscopy. Current and lifetime physical activity were assessed using actigraphy and the adapted version of the Historical Activity Questionnaire, respectively. Results Positive associations were observed between both actigraphy and self-reported levels of moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (MVPA) and thalamic and hippocampal volumes. Regarding brain metabolism, actigraphy and self-reported levels of MVPA were positively associated with higher hippocampal and thalamic levels of N-acetylaspartate/creatine ratio (NAA/Cr: marker of neural integrity and cell energy state). Conclusions This study provides novel evidence for a positive association between physical activity and thalamic and hippocampal volume and metabolism in pwMS. These findings support the hypothesis that physical activity, particularly MVPA, may serve as a disease-modifying treatment by improving brain health in pwMS.

Mechanically robust bulk antimicrobial polymers are one way to address disease transmission via contaminated surfaces. Here, we demonstrate the visible light photo-oxidative cross-linking of amine-containing PDMS using a single-component, solvent-free system where amines have a dual role as antimicrobial functionalities and cross-linking sites. Rose Bengal, a xanthene dye used as a fluorescent stain, is thermally reacted with the polymer to give a solvent-free liquid siloxane that can generate reactive singlet oxygen upon aerobic green light irradiation, coupling the amine functionalities into imine cross-links. Photorheological experiments demonstrate that light intensity is the largest kinetic factor in the photo-oxidative curing of these polymers. Room temperature irradiation under an ambient atmosphere results in free-standing elastic materials with mechanical properties that depend on the amount of Rose Bengal present. An ultimate elongation strain of 117% and Young's modulus of 2.15 MPa were observed for the highest dye loading, with both mechanical properties found to be higher than those for the same solution-based dye amounts. We demonstrate that the solvent-free nature of the material can be exploited to generate 3D structures using low-temperature deposition as well as direct-write patterning and photolithography on glass substrates. The antimicrobial activity was investigated, with the cross-linked material demonstrating greater efficacy against E. coli (Gram negative) compared with MRSA (Gram positive) bacterial strains and inducing complete cell lysis of incubated CHO-K1 mammalian cells, demonstrating applicability as a mechanically robust single-component antimicrobial elastomer.

Graphdiyne (GDY) adsorbed DNA probes have been used as a fluorescent sensing platform, but topics including DNA adsorption affinities, DNA probe displacement, and fluorescence quenching ability were rarely researched. Herein, the adsorption affinity of single-stranded DNA (ssDNA) and double-stranded DNA (dsDNA) on a tremella-like GDY was tuned by modulating the surface chemistry of GDY. The fluorescence quenching ability of GDY with different oxidation degrees was compared. The nonspecific displacement of DNA probes on GDY was studied. Under the same concentrations, GDY with low oxidation degree exhibited stronger adsorption affinity and higher adsorption capacity to both ssDNA and dsDNA than highly oxidized GDY. DNA adsorbed on low-oxidized GDY was more resistant to displacement by other DNAs. Protein showed strong interaction with different GDY and could displace DNA probes on GDY. Based on these findings, an ideal GDY with proper oxidation degree, exhibiting high surface affinity for ssDNA and low affinity for dsDNA, was used as scavenger of redundant ssDNA fluorescent probe in an enzyme-assisted amplification system for sensitive ochratoxin (OTA) detection. This study has enhanced our fundamental understanding of DNA adsorption by GDY. It also provided a rational way to apply GDY for fluorescence sensing in a complicated system.