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The preparation, purification and application of fullerene were reviewed. The advantages and disadvantages of the preparation and purification methods of fullerene were compared by analyzing the factors such as yield and cost. The application status of fullerene materials in lubrication, catalysis, biomedicine and other fields were summarized. It was also pointed out that the preparation and purification methods of fullerene should be further optimized and improved in the direction of low cost and high yield. At the same time, it was supposed to strengthen the theoretical research on the reaction mechanism of fullerene application in order to develop fullerene materials from the perspective of design.

Abstract Background Oligoprogression is an emerging issue in patients with epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR)-mutated non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). However, the surgical treatment for central nervous system (CNS) oligoprogression is not widely discussed. We investigated the outcomes of craniotomy with adjuvant whole-brain radiotherapy (WBRT) and subsequent therapies for CNS oligoprogression in patients with EGFR-mutated NSCLC. Methods NSCLC patients with CNS oligoprogression were identified from a tertiary medical center. The outcomes of surgery with adjuvant WBRT or WBRT alone were analyzed, along with other variables. Overall survival and progression-free survival were analyzed using the log-rank test as the primary and secondary endpoints. A COX regression model was used to identify the possible prognostic factors. Results Thirty-seven patients with CNS oligoprogression who underwent surgery or WBRT were included in the study after reviewing 728 patients. Twenty-one patients underwent surgery with adjuvant WBRT, and 16 received WBRT alone. The median overall survival for surgery and WBRT alone groups was 43 (95% CI 17–69) and 22 (95% CI 15–29) months, respectively. Female sex was a positive prognostic factor for overall survival (OR 0.19, 95% CI 0.06–0.57). Patients who continued previous tyrosine kinase inhibitors (OR 3.48, 95% CI 1.06–11.4) and induced oligoprogression (OR 3.35, 95% CI 1.18–9.52) were associated with worse overall survival. Smoking history (OR 4.27, 95% CI 1.54–11.8) and induced oligoprogression (OR 5.53, 95% CI 2.1–14.7) were associated with worse progression-free survival. Conclusions Surgery combined with adjuvant WBRT is a feasible treatment modality for CNS oligoprogression in patients with EGFR-mutated NSCLC. Changing the systemic-targeted therapy after local treatments may be associated with improved overall survival.

Abstract Background The outcome of patients with colon cancer is still unsatisfied nowadays. Simvastatin is a type of statins with anti-cancer activity, but its effect on colon cancer cells remains unclear. The present study is intended to determine the underlying mechanism of simvastatin in treatment of colon cancer. Methods The viability and pyroptosis rate of cells treated and untreated with simvastatin were analysed by CCK-8 and flow cytometry assays, respectively. We used DCFH-DA and flow cytometry to detect reactive oxygen species (ROS) production. Levels of pyroptosis markers were detected by western blotting analysis or immunofluorescence staining. Besides, the anticancer properties of simvastatin on colon cancer were further demonstrated using a cell line based xenograft tumor model. Results Simvastatin treatment in HCT116 and SW620 induced pyroptosis and suppressed cell proliferation, with changes in the expression level of NLPR3, ASC, cleaved-caspase-1, mature IL-1β, IL-18 and GSDMD-N. Moreover, inhibition of caspase-1 and ROS attenuated the effects of simvastatin on cancer cell viability. In addition, it was identified that simvastatin has an anti-tumor effect by down-regulating ROS production and inducing downstream caspase-1 dependent pyroptosis in the subcutaneous transplantation tumors of HCT116 cells in BALB/c nude mice. Conclusions Our in vitro and in vivo results indicated that simvastatin induced pyroptosis through ROS/caspase-1/GSDMD pathway, thereby serving as a potential agent for colon cancer treatment. Video Abstract

The decorative and fireproof performance degradation of the grouting fireproof glass exposed to UV irradiation limits its application in the fire protection of buildings. To solve this issue, a transparent polyacrylamide/polyvinyl alcohol (PAM/PVA) interpenetrating network hydrogel was designed to prepare grouting fireproof glass with enhanced theheat insulation and anti-aging properties. The results show that the light transmittance of PAM/PVA interpenetrating network hydrogel decreases with the increased content of PVA, and a proper content of PVA in the PAM/PVA interpenetrating network is beneficial to maintain high optical transparency in the resulting hydrogel. Heat insulation test shows that the PAM/PVA interpenetrating network improves the water-locking ability of the resulting hydrogels, and the fireproof glass containing 3 wt% PVA shows the lowest backside temperature of 92.6 °C at 3600 s, which is 51.9% lower than that of fireproof glass with PAM only. Thermogravimetric (TG) and differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) analysis show that the PAM/PVA interpenetrating network hydrogel improves the thermal stability and charring ability of hydrogel, and the hydrogel containing 3 wt% PVA exhibits the best charring effect among the samples, showing the highest residual yield of 39.2 % at 800 °C. The analyses of decomposition products and char residues show that the PAM/PVA interpenetrating network hydrogel can extend the heat absorption process of water evaporation and improve the gas flame retardant efficiency. Accelerated aging test shows that the presence of PVA greatly slows down the blistering and yellowing phenomenon of fireproof glass, thus endowing the fireproof glass with the super durability of fire resistance. Especially, the backside temperature at 3600 s and light transmittance of the sample containing 2 wt% PVA after 168 h aging test only changed 19.2 °C and 1.9 %, respectively, compared to the those of unaged sample.

The accurate analysis of chemical isomers plays an important role in the study of their different toxic effects and targeted detection of pollutant isomers in foods. The Alternaria mycotoxins tenuazonic acid (TeA) and iso-tenuazonic acid (ITeA) are two isomer mycotoxins with the lack of single analysis methods due to the similar structures. Antibody-based immunoassays exhibit high sensitivity and superior application in isomer-specific determination. Previously, various kinds of antibodies for TeA have been prepared in our group. Herein, highly specific nanobodies (Nbs) against ITeA mycotoxin were selected from immune nanobody phage display library, and one of Nbs, namely Nb(B3G3) exhibited excellent affinity, thermal stability as well as organic solvent tolerance. By molecular simulation and docking technology, it was found that stronger interaction between Nb(B3G3) and ITeA lead to higher affinity than that for its isomer TeA. Furthermore, a sensitive indirect competitive enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (icELISA) was established with a limit of detection (LOD) of 0.09 ng/mL for ITeA mycotoxin. The recovery rate of ITeA in spiked samples was analyzed with 84.8%-89.5% for rice, 78.3%-96.3% for flour, and 79.5%-90.7% for bread. A conventional LC-MS/MS method was used to evaluate the accuracy of this proposed icELISA, which showed a satisfactory consistent correlation. Since the convenient strategy for nanobody generation by phage display technology, this study provide new biorecognition elements and sensitive immunoassay for analysis of ITeA in foods.

Abstract Despite the fact that the response of tropical hydroclimate to North Atlantic cooling events during the Heinrich Stadial 1 (HS1) has been extensively studied in African, South American and Indonesia, the nature of such responses remains debated. Here we investigate the tropical hydroclimate pattern over the Indo-Asian-Australian monsoon region during the HS1 by integrating hydroclimatic records, and examining a δ18Oseawater record from Globigerinoides ruber (white) in the tropical Indian Ocean. Our findings indicate that tropical hydrological conditions were synchronously arid in both hemispheres during the early HS1 (~18.3-16.3 ka) in the Indo-Asian-Australian monsoon region, except for a narrow, wet hydrological belt in northern low latitudes, suggesting the existence of a contracted tropical precipitation belt at that time. This study reveals that the meltwater discharge and resulting changes in global temperatures and El Niño exerted a profound influence on the tropical hydroclimate in the Indo-Asian-Australian monsoon region during the early HS1.