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An ionic liquid modified carbon paste electrode (CILE) was prepared with 1‐hexylpyridine hexafluorophosphate (HPPF6) and used as a substrate electrode. Then hexagonal boron nitride (BN) nanosheet, myoglobin (Mb) and Nafion were fixed on the electrode surface by coating method to get a new‐style chemically modified electrode (Nafion/Mb/BN/CILE). The morphology and crystal phase of BN nanosheet were characterized by SEM, TEM and XRD. UV‐Vis and FT‐IR results showed that Mb retained its original conformation in the composite modified film. In phosphate buffer solutions (PBS) with pH 3.0, cyclic voltammetry (CV) was performed to investigate the direct electrochemical behaviour of Mb. A pair of quasi‐reversible redox reaction peaks was obtained on the CV curve, proving that BN nanosheet had good biocompatibility and could accelerate electron transfer between Mb and electrode surface. Electrocatalytic reduction of trichloroacetic acid (TCA) was investigated, which was further applied to TCA detection. The catalytic reduction peak current at −0.355 V depended linearly on the TCA concentration in the range of 0.2∼30.0 mmol/L with the equation of Ipc (μA)=6.340 C (mmol/L)+0.305 (r=0.998), and the detection limit was 0.05 mmol/L (3 σ). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, a WS2 nanosheet was modified on the surface of a carbon ionic liquid electrode (CILE), and horseradish peroxidase (HRP) was further fixed on the electrode with a Nafion film. Direct electrochemistry and bioelectrocatalysis of HRP incorporated on the modified electrode were investigated in detail. On Nafion/HRP/WS2/CILE, a pair of well‐defined quasi‐reversible redox peaks appeared on the cyclic voltammogram, indicating that the presence of the WS2 nanosheet on the electrode surface could provide a specific interface with large surface area for HRP and its direct electron transfer rate was greatly enhanced. The formal potential (E0) obtained was –0.179 V, which was the typical feature of heme Fe(III)/Fe(II) in HRP. The electron transfer coefficient (α) and the heterogeneous electron transfer rate constant (ks) of HRP were calculated as 0.44 and 1.01 s–1, respectively. This HRP‐modified electrode showed excellent electrocatalytic activity for the reduction of trichloroacetic acid and NaNO2 with a wide linear range and low detection limit. Real samples were detected by this proposed method, indicating the successful fabrication of a new third‐generation electrochemical enzyme sensor utilizing the WS2 nanosheet. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Dysphagia is a common complication in stroke patients, which severely affects quality of life. This study aimed to evaluate the effectiveness and safety of temperature-controlled plasma radiofrequency (coblation)-assisted endoscopic cricopharyngeal myotomy (CAECPM) for the treatment sustained (>6 months) dysphagia in stroke patients.Methods: This retrospective case-control study included a total of 24 stroke patients with sustained dysphagia, who were either treated with transcervical cricopharyngeal myotomy (CPM) (n = 16) or CAECPM (n = 12). The patients' swallowing function was evaluated by the Chinese version of the swallow quality-of-life questionnaire (CSWAL-QOL), and dysphagia and aspiration was evaluated using the videofluoroscopic swallowing study (VFSS) swallowing (VFSS-SWAL) score and VSSF aspiration (VFSS-ASPI) score. In each patient, esophageal pressure and complications were also recorded.Results: The CSWAL-QOL score was increased and the VFSS-SWAL and VFSS-ASPI scores were reduced after CAECPM treatment. The upper esophageal sphincter pressure was significantly reduced after CAECPM. Only 1 of 12 (8.3%) patients had subcutaneous and mediastinal emphysema, and 2 patients had gastric regurgitation.Conclusion: This exploratory study demonstrates that CAECPM is worth further investigation for dysphagia after stroke. CAECPM may be an effective and safe treatment for sustained dysphagia in stroke patients. Larges and prospective studies are required to validate these results. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A carbon molecular wire electrode was fabricated using diphenylacetylene as the modifier and gold nanoparticles were electrodeposited on the surface. The morphology and electrochemical properties of this modified electrode were investigated by scanning electron microscopy and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy. Two well-defined peaks for metol appeared using this gold nanoparticle-modified carbon molecular wire electrode by cyclic voltammetry with a high current response. These results demonstrate a synergistic effect between the gold nanoparticles and the carbon molecular wire electrode resulting in a rapid electrochemical reaction. The electrochemical conditions for metol were optimized on the modified electrode and a detection limit of 0.64 µmol/L and a linear dynamic range between 2.0 to 800.0 µmol/L were obtained. This modified electrode provided good selectivity, high sensitivity, and acceptable reproducibility, demonstrating promise for the determination of metol in the water. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

In this work, two dicarboxylate ligands, 4,4′-oxybis(benzoic acid) (H2oba) and 4,4′-biphenyldicarboxylic acid (H2bpdc) were employed as coligands to perform a comparison on the structures of Cd(II)-btmx complexes (btmx = 1,4-bis(1,2,4-triazol-1-ylmethyl)-2,3,5,6-tetramethylbenzene) motifs. Two new complexes, {[Cd(btmx)(oba)]·H2O}n(1) and [Cd(btmx)(bpdc)]n(2), have been synthesized and characterized. Structural analyses show that 1 shows a 1D double-chain, while 2 displays an undulating 2D 44-sqlnetwork with 2-fold interpenetration. The structural differences of the two complexes suggest that the dicarboxylate ligands have great impact on the formation of such coordination architectures. Furthermore, the photoluminescence properties of 1 and 2 have also been investigated. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Semiconductor thin-film thermocouples (TFTCs) are widely used for temperature measurement of aero-engine components due to their large output and fast response. As a thermoelectric material, indium tin oxide (ITO) makes the device have very good thermoelectric merit because of its low resistivity, which is very suitable for the preparation of thin-film thermocouples. In this study, Pt-ITO thin-film thermocouple was fabricated on alumina ceramic substrate by pulsed laser deposition (PLD), and the microstructure and electrical properties of TFTCs prepared under different deposition conditions and annealing conditions were investigated. The results show that the ITO thin films prepared by PLD have a new type of nano cone structure and the resistivity of ITO thin films was only 2.76 × 10−4 Ω·cm when the substrate temperature was 600 °C. The Pt-ITO thin-film thermocouples can stable work for at 25–1300 °C and work in a short time at 1400 °C, and the average Seebeck coefficient is more than 50 µV/°C at 1300 °C. The response time of the prepared TFTC tested by pulsed laser is no more than 435 μs. These results provide an important basis for a potential application prospect of Pt-ITO TFTCs in the field of high-temperature measurement. It is further confirmed that the preparation of superior thermoelectric semiconductor materials by PLD is a promising method. • A novel nano cone ITO thin film was obtained by pulsed laser deposition. • Pulsed laser deposition was firstly to prepare thin-film thermocouples. • The resistivity of ITO thin films is only 2.76 × 10−4 Ω·cm. • Excellent thermoelectric performance and fast response were realized in Pt-ITO thin-film thermocouples. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

[Display omitted] • In-situ growth of nitrogen-doped carbonized polymer dots on few-layer black phosphorus nanosheets was realized. • The 0D-2D heterostructure of this composite was proved. • A portable intelligent electrochemical DNA biosensor for detecting Escherichia coli O157: H7 sequence was established. Sensitive and accurate detection technology for pathogenic bacteria is of great social and economic significance in foodborne disease and food safety. In this paper, a novel portable electrochemical DNA biosensor for the detection of specific DNA sequence of Escherichia coli (E. coli) O157: H7 was constructed. To enhance the performance of the electrochemical sensor, a functionalized nitrogen-doped carbonized polymer dots in-situ grown on few-layer black phosphorus (N-CPDs@FLBP) was synthesized and used as the modifier on the surface of screen-printed electrode. Combining gold nanoparticles as immobilization matrix and methylene blue as electrochemical indicator, the analytical performance of this electrochemical DNA biosensor was evaluated using standard complementary ssDNA sequence in the linear concentration range from 1.0 × 10−19 to 1.0 × 10−6 mol/L with a low detection limit as 3.33 × 10−20 mol/L (3 σ). Furthermore, the portable electrochemical DNA biosensor was proposed based on polymerase chain reaction amplification for the detection of the E. coli O157: H7 genomic DNA from chicken meat, which verified the feasibility for practical samples detection. The research has great theoretical and practical significance for the development of electrochemical biosensor of pathogenic bacteria. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Typical synthesis procedures and recent developments of BP and BP-related composites. [Display omitted] • Typical synthesis procedures and natural property advantages of BP are summarized. • Recent applications in electrochemistry and bioelectrochemistry are reviewed. • Major limitations and future developments are discussed. Due to the specific advantages including excellent interface activity, high photoelectric properties, fast electron transfer rate, good conductivity and biocompatibility, black phosphorus (BP) can be used in the various fields. In this review the new applications of BP and its related composites in the fields of electrochemistry and bioelectrochemistry had been summarized. The discussions included different kinds of batteries, supercapacitors, optoelectronic devices, electrochemical sensors and biosensors. Lastly the future challenges of BP-based composites in these fields are predicated. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Joubert syndrome is a rare neurodevelopmental disorder characterized by clinical and genetic heterogeneity. The characteristic molar tooth sign, which resulted from cerebellar vermis hypoplasia and midbrain anomalies, is expected to be the key diagnostic feature for this disease. However, it is not easy to make a definite diagnosis in prenatal only based on the imageology due to its clinical heterogeneity. We report on a fetus who was detected cerebellum dysplasia and encephalocele by ultrasound at 19 and 23 gestational weeks and confirmed by MRI examination. The pregnancy was terminated at 23 weeks of gestation. Postaxial polydactyly and deficiency in occipital bone and skin were identified in the induced fetus. The whole exome sequencing identified a novel compound heterozygous variation in the CPLANE1 gene related with Joubert syndrome, including a 2-bp insertion, NM_023073.3:c.1383_1384dup; p.(Gly462Glufs*3) and a non-classic splicing variation, NC_000005.10(NM_023073.3):c.7691–5_7691–4del. The pathogenicity of the non-classic splicing variation was further confirmed by cDNA level sequencing, which showed a exon 39 skipping that would introduce a premature termination. The novel compound heterozygous variation caused a complete function loss of the CPLANE1 gene. The cerebellum dysplasia fetus without obvious molar tooth sign was finally diagnosed as Joubert syndrome, combined with genetic detecting and the postnatal clinical symptoms. We also highlight the clinical heterogeneity of encephalodysplasia in Joubert syndrome, which increases the clinical diagnosis difficulty, especially for prenatal diagnosis. Our findings provided a new perspective for the prenatal diagnosis of Joubert syndrome with severe craniocerebral dysplasia and expanded the variation spectrum of the CPLANE1 gene. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• The Fe-HA complex effectively enhanced the ClO 4 − bioreduction. • The Fe-HA complex significantly increased the biomass and biological activity in the AnGS. • The Fe-HA complex stimulated a redox-active mediator increase in the EPS. • The Fe-HA complex improved the growth of QRB and PRB in the AnGS. An iron-humic acid (Fe-HA) complex was used as a redox mediator in perchlorate (ClO 4 −) bioreduction. Bioreduction performance, extracellular polymeric substances (EPS), and microbial community structure were comprehensively explored using different types of anaerobic granular sludge (AnGS) immobilised without the Fe-HA complex (AnGS CON) and with the Fe-HA complex (AnGS FH). The ClO 4 − was completely removed by AnGS CON by day 20, while the ClO 4 − was completely removed by AnGS FH by day 6. The AnGS immobilised with the Fe-HA complex significantly increased the ClO 4 − bioreduction. The acceleration of ClO 4 − bioreduction was also explained by the mixed liquor volatile suspended solids (MLVSS), MLVSS/mixed liquor suspended solids (MLSS), EPS composition, and microbial community structure. Compared with AnGS CON , the MLVSS and MLVSS/MLSS of the AnGS FH increased 1.4- and 1.2-fold, respectively. Humic substances in the EPS were stimulated by the Fe-HA complex. The microbial community structure analysis indicated that perchlorate and quinone reducing bacteria were enriched by the Fe-HA complex. Based on the analysis, the ClO 4 − bioreduction mechanism of the AnGS FH was revealed because the Fe-HA complex in the AnGS increased the biomass concentration, biological activity, and redox-active mediator and shifted the microbial community structure. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objectives: Lateral skull base surgeries pose a risk of injuring the lower cranial nerves, leading to potential postoperative complications such as dysphonia and dysphagia. Conservative treatments have shown limited efficacy in addressing these resultant voice and swallowing dysfunctions, significantly impacting patient quality of life. This study aims to evaluate the safety and effectiveness of a combined surgical approach involving autologous fat injection laryngoplasty (AFIL) and transcervical cricopharyngeal myotomy (TCPM) in patients suffering from severe dysphonia and dysphagia following lateral skull base surgery., Methods: A retrospective analysis was conducted on 16 patients who underwent concurrent AFIL and TCPM to improve severe dysphonia and dysphagia following lateral skull base surgery. Preoperative and postoperative assessments of voice and swallowing functions were performed using the Voice Handicap Index-10 (VHI-10), GRBAS scale, maximum phonation time (MPT), the Chinese version of Swallow Quality-of-Life Questionnaire (CSWAL-QOL), and videofluoroscopic swallowing studies (VFSS)., Results: The results demonstrated notable improvements in voice quality and swallowing function. The VHI-10 score improved significantly from a preoperative mean of 32.06 ± 4.92 to a postoperative 9.06 ± 5.24. The results of the perceptual parameters of the GRBAS scale also improved significantly. The MPT increased from a preoperative average of 3.91 ± 1.00 seconds to 9.14 ± 2.44 seconds postoperatively. The CSWAL-QOL scores significantly improved from a preoperative score of 92.44 ± 17.75 to 130.19 ± 26.07 postoperatively. The VFSS-SWAL scores decreased from 6.63 ± 1.36 before surgery to 3.56 ± 1.58 after surgery. Similarly, the Penetration Aspiration Scale (PAS) scores significantly dropped from 6.38 ± 1.05 preoperatively to 2.93 ± 1.48 postoperatively. Nine out of 11 patients were able to have their gastric tubes successfully removed after surgery. There were no significant postoperative complications., Conclusion: Concurrent AFIL and TCPM present a promising reconstructive method for patients experiencing severe dysphonia and dysphagia following lateral skull base surgery, highlighting its value in the postoperative management of complex lower cranial nerve injuries., Competing Interests: Declaration of Competing Interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2024 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

Solar-driven photodegradation of pollutant is attractive for environmental remediation. Herein, we designed and synthetized a new kind of group-modified polymeric carbon nitride (PCN) photocatalyst with urea and 4-Nitro-o-phenylenediamine by one-pot method and applied to degrade bisphenol A (BPA) in aqueous solution. The light response range of photocatalyst had been extended a lot due to conjugation and electron-withdrawing properties of nitrobenzene. Physical analysis shows that 4-Nitro-o-phenylenediamine grafting brings an improved charge separation capacity. EPR and DFT results demonstrate the charge separation is significantly affected by the donor-acceptor structure of PCN, which can be altered via aromatic electron-withdrawing group. The kinetic constant of photocatalytic degradation for BPA was promoted by 8.8-times greater than unmodified PCN and a good recyclability was achieved. To verify the universality of group modification strategies, we prepared other two kinds of photocatalysts via electron-withdrawing group modification strategy and their photocatalytic performance all had been improved obviously., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2024 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

Objective: Schwannomas originating within the larynx are rare and there is no clear consensus on the diagnostic workup or treatment. This study aims to explore the clinical features of laryngeal schwannoma and evaluate the surgical method of transoral endoscopic excision, especially with coblation., Methods: Data from patients diagnosed with laryngeal schwannoma who underwent surgery at Peking Union Medical College Hospital from 2017 to 2022 were retrospectively analyzed. All cases were evaluated with a flexible laryngoscope and computed tomography and/or magnetic resonance imaging before surgery., Results: Four patients, comprising one male and three females aged 19 to 61years, were included. All patients presented with persistent and progressive hoarseness, and two also experienced dyspnea on exertion. One patient was a recurrent case who underwent transoral tumor resection with a laser, while another patient had received a transoral incisional biopsy before visiting our hospital. Transoral excision was performed in each case. One tumor was excised using microlaryngeal instruments under a microscope, and the other three with coblation assisted by an operating laryngoscope. All laryngeal schwannomas were removed in a single block. All patients were successfully extubated following surgery, recovered without complications, and showed no evidence of recurrence., Conclusion: Transoral surgery better preserves laryngeal function, reduces complications, and shortens hospital stays. Transoral endoscopic excision, particularly when performed with coblation, is highly recommended for its excellent visualization and ability to completely excise the tumor. This method is a safe and effective approach, especially for large laryngeal schwannomas in hard-to-reach locations., Competing Interests: Declaration of Competing Interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2024 The Voice Foundation. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

Multi-modal eye disease screening improves diagnostic accuracy by providing lesion information from different sources. However, existing multi-modal automatic diagnosis methods tend to focus on the specificity of modalities and ignore the spatial correlation of images. This paper proposes a novel cross-modal retinal disease diagnosis network (CRD-Net) that digs out the relevant features from modal images aided for multiple retinal disease diagnosis. Specifically, our model introduces a cross-modal attention (CMA) module to query and adaptively pay attention to the relevant features of the lesion in the different modal images. In addition, we also propose multiple loss functions to fuse features with modality correlation and train a multi-modal retinal image classification network to achieve a more accurate diagnosis. Experimental evaluation on three publicly available datasets shows that our CRD-Net outperforms existing single-modal and multi-modal methods, demonstrating its superior performance., Competing Interests: The authors declare no conflicts of interest., (© 2024 Optica Publishing Group.)

In this study, an online electrochemistry coupling high-performance liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry (EC-HPLC-MS) technology has been developed for simulating metabolic reactions and rapid analysis of metabolites of flavone, quercetin, and rutin, which are not only widely present compounds with pharmacological activity in nature, but also have structural similarity and variability. The simulated metabolic processes of the substrates (phase I and phase II metabolism) were implemented on the surface of glassy carbon electrode (GCE) by using different electrochemical methods. After online chromatographic separation, the products were transmitted to a mass spectrometer for detection, in order to speculate relevant reaction pathways and structural information of the reaction product. The main metabolites, including methylation, hydroxylation, hydrolysis, and conjugation reaction products, had been successfully identified through the designed in situ hyphenated technique. Furthermore, compared with metabolites produced by in vitro incubation of rat liver microsomes, it was found that the products of electrochemical simulated metabolism were more abundant with diverse metabolic pathways. The results indicated that the proposed method exhibited advantages in the sample pretreatment process and detection cycle without compromising the reliability and accuracy of the results., (© 2024. The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer-Verlag GmbH, DE part of Springer Nature.)

Introduction: Stress may lead to allostatic overload. Well-being therapy (WBT) might mitigate it by enhancing psychological well-being and protecting from psychological symptoms. Since no reports are available on the use of WBT in allostatic overload, we evaluated online WBT effects in reducing allostatic overload in medical workers during the coronavirus pandemic., Methods: Sixty-six participants with allostatic overload were enrolled and randomly assigned to eight sessions of online WBT (n = 32) or eight sessions of an online psychoeducation program on healthy lifestyle (CON) (n = 34). The primary outcome was the prevalence rate of allostatic overload in the two groups at session 8 (T2). Secondary analyses were performed on changes in the PsychoSocial Index (PSI) and Psychological Well-Being (PWB) scales scores at the same time points. Generalized estimating equation models were employed., Results: The WBT group showed a significantly lower rate of allostatic overload at T2 than the CON group (28.13% vs. 70.59%, p < 0.001); similar results were found at T1, T3, and T4 (p < 0.001). Compared to CON, WBT produced a significant decrease in psychological distress (p < 0.001) and abnormal illness behavior (p = 0.031), as well as a significant improvement in PWB autonomy, environmental mastery, personal growth, positive relations with others, purpose in life, and self-acceptance (p < 0.001)., Conclusion: Online WBT may be an effective non-pharmacological therapeutic strategy for individuals with allostatic overload. These findings need to be further validated in different clinical populations., (© 2024 S. Karger AG, Basel.)

Background: Biofilm formation on voice prostheses disrupts the function and limits the lifespan of voice prostheses. There is still no effective clinical strategy for inhibiting or removing these biofilms. Silver sulfadiazine (SSD), as an exogenous antibacterial agent, has been widely used in the prevention and treatment of infection, however, its effect on voice prosthesis biofilms is unknown. The purpose of this study was to explore the effect of SSD on the mature mixed bacterial biofilms present on voice prostheses., Methods: Quantitative and qualitative methods, including the plate counting method, real-time fluorescence quantitative PCR, crystal violet staining, the 2,3-bis(2-methoxy-4-nitro-5-sulfophenyl)-2H-tetrazolium-5-carboxanilide) (XTT) reduction assay, scanning electron microscopy, and laser confocal microscopy, were used to determine the effect of SSD on the number of bacterial colonies, biofilm formation ability, metabolic activity, and ultrastructure of biofilms in a mature mixed bacterial (Staphylococcus aureus, Streptococcus faecalis and Candida albicans) voice prosthesis biofilm model. The results were verified in vitro on mature mixed bacterial voice prosthesis biofilms from patients, and the possible mechanism of action was explored., Results: Silver sulfadiazine decreased the number of bacterial colonies on mature mixed bacterial voice prosthesis biofilm, significantly inhibited the biofilm formation ability and metabolic activity of mature voice prosthesis biofilms, inhibited the formation of the complex spatial structure of voice prosthesis biofilms, and inhibited the synthesis of polysaccharides and proteins in the biofilm extracellular matrix. The degree of inhibition and removal effect increased with SSD concentration., Conclusions: Silver sulfadiazine can effectively inhibit and remove mature mixed bacterial voice prosthesis biofilms and decrease biofilm formation ability and metabolic activity; SSD may exert these effects by inhibiting the synthesis of polysaccharides and proteins among the extracellular polymeric substances of voice prosthesis biofilms., (© 2023. The Author(s).)

Background: Photodynamic therapy (PDT) for actinic keratosis (AK) is limited by the depth of treatment. Microneedling or fractional CO 2 laser can facilitate the penetration of photosensitizer, while cryotherapy can treat deeper tissues but is not suitable for field cancerization., Objective: To investigate the efficacy of microneedling, fractional CO 2 laser, and cryotherapy in combination with PDT for AK., Methods: Patients with AK were randomized into 4 groups, including group A with microneedling + PDT, group B with fractional CO 2 laser + PDT, group C with cryotherapy + PDT, and group D with PDT. After 12 weeks, the clinical, dermoscopic, and reflectance confocal microscopy (RCM) outcomes were assessed., Results: A total of 129 patients were included in this study, with 31, 30, 35, and 31 patients in each group, yielding clinical response rates of 90.3%, 93.3%, 97.1%, and 74.2%, respectively (P=0.026). The RCM response rates were 71.0%, 80.0%, 85.7%, and 54.8%, respectively (P=0.030). The dermoscopic response rates were 77.4%, 83.3%, 88.6%, and 60.0%, respectively (P=0.039). Group C showed the best efficacy in terms of clinical, dermoscopic, and RCM outcomes., Conclusions: All three treatments improved the efficacy of PDT and were well tolerated, with cryotherapy + PDT showing the best efficacy., Competing Interests: Declaration of Competing Interest None declared., (Copyright © 2023. Published by Elsevier B.V.)

Three-dimensional reduced graphene oxide aerogel (3D rGA) was synthesized by hydrothermal method and cobalt imidazolate framework-67 (ZIF-67) was further grown in situ on the 3D rGA matrix directly. The resultant ZIF-67@3D rGA nanocomposite was checked by different techniques including scanning electron microscopy (SEM), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), Fourier transform infrared spectrophotometry (FT-IR), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), X-ray diffraction (XRD) and thermo-gravimetric analysis (TGA). The presence of 3D rGA acted as the backbone for the loading of ZIF-67, and the resultant ZIF-67@3D rGA nanocomposite exhibited an interconnected porous structure with large surface area and high conductivity due to synergistic effects, which was applied to the electrode modification and used for rutin detection. The developed method showed excellent performance with a wider linear range (0.05-200.0 μmol/L) and lower detection limit (0.028 ± 0.0016 μmol/L, S/N=3). Various samples including the compounded rutin tablets and onions were analyzed by this modified electrode with satisfactory results., Competing Interests: Declaration of Competing Interest There is no conflict of interest., (Copyright © 2020 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

Objective: To study the genotype and phenotype of fetuses with 22q11.2 microdeletion and other abnormalities such as cardiac malformation and cleft palate., Methods: Fetal ultrasound was carried out at 12 weeks to 20 to 24 weeks of gestation. After excluding the chromosomal karyotype abnormality, single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) array was used to detect copy number variations of 5 fetuses with heart development abnormality or other structural abnormalities. The fetus with 22q11.2 microdeletion and its parents were also subjected to multiplex ligation-dependent probe amplification (MLPA) assay., Results: SNP array analysis showed that the 5 fetuses had all carried a 2.27-3.02 Mb deletion of the 22q11.2 region. MLPA assay confirmed that LCR22-A-B was involved in all cases, and that all deletions were de novo in origin., Conclusion: It is of great significance to exclude 22q11.2 microdeletions in fetuses with cardiac malformations. The deletion regions of these fetuses are similar but different, and the phenotypic difference is related to their genotypes.

In this paper cobalt oxide (Co 3 O 4 ) nanoparticles were mixed with polyacrylonitrile to prepare Co 3 O 4 doped carbon nanofiber (CNF) composite by electrospinning and carbonization, which was further used to modify on carbon ionic liquid electrode (CILE). Hemoglobin (Hb) was immobilized on Co 3 O 4 -CNF/CILE surface with Nafion acted as the protective film to fabricate an electrochemical biosensor (Nafion/Hb/Co 3 O 4 -CNF/CILE). Electrochemical behavior of Hb on the electrode was investigated with a pair of quasi-reversible redox peak appeared on cyclic voltammogram and electrochemical parameters were calculated. Moreover, this biosensor had good analytical capabilities for electrocatalytic reduction of different substrates including trichloroacetic acid, potassium bromate and sodium nitrite with wider detection range from 40.0 to 260.0 mmol L -1 , 0.1 to 48.0 mmol L -1 and 1.0 to 12.0 mmol L -1  by cyclic voltammetry, respectively. The proposed method showed excellent anti-interferences ability with good selectivity and was successful used for quantitative detection of real samples, which displayed the potential applications to develop into a new analytical device., (Copyright © 2019 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

A new biosensing strategy based on a TiO 2 -doped carbon nanofiber (CNF) composite modified electrode was developed. TiO 2 @CNF was prepared by electrospinning with further carbonization, before being characterized by various methods and used for electrode modification on the surface of carbon ionic liquid electrode (CILE). Myoglobin (Mb) was further immobilized on the modified electrode surface. The results of ultraviolet-visible (UV-vis) and Fourier transform infrared (FT-IR) spectroscopy showed that Mb maintained its native structure without denaturation in the composite film. Direct electron transfer and the electrocatalytic properties of Mb on the electrode surface were further investigated. A pair of quasi-reversible redox peaks appeared on the cyclic voltammogram, indicating that direct electrochemistry of Mb was realized in the nanocomposite film. This could be attributed to the specific properties of TiO 2 @CNF nanocomposite, including a large surface-to-volume ratio, good biocompatibility and high conductivity. Nafion/Mb/TiO 2 @CNF/CILE exhibited an excellent electrochemical catalytic ability in the reduction of trichloroacetic acid, NaNO 2 and H 2 O 2 . All results demonstrated potential applications of TiO 2 @CNF in third-generation electrochemical biosensors., Competing Interests: There are no conflicts to declare., (This journal is © The Royal Society of Chemistry.)

The title compound, C(15)H(14)O(5), crystallizes with two independent mol-ecules in the asymmetric unit in which the benzene rings are inclined at dihedral angles of 79.4 (1) and 84.2 (1)°. In the crystal, inter-molecular O-H⋯O hydrogen bonds link the mol-ecules into double chains propagating in [001].

The primary function of cardiac mitochondria is the production of ATP to support heart contraction. Examination of the mitochondrial redox state is therefore crucially important to sensitively detect early signs of mitochondrial function in pathophysiological conditions, such as ischemia, diabetes and heart failure. We study fingerprinting of mitochondrial metabolic oxidative state in living cardiomyocytes with spectrally-resolved fluorescence lifetime spectroscopy of NAD(P)H, the principal electron donor in mitochondrial respiration responsible for vital ATP supply. Here NAD(P)H is studied as a marker for non-invasive fluorescent probing of the mitochondrial function. NAD(P) H fluorescence is recorded in cardiac cells following excitation with 375nm UV-light and detection by spectrally-resolved time-correlated single photon counting (TCSPC), based on the simultaneous measurement of the fluorescence spectra and fluorescence lifetimes. Modulation of NADH production and/or mitochondrial respiration is tested to study dynamic characteristics of NAD(P) H fluorescence decay. Our results show that at least a 3-exponential decay model, with 0.4-0.7ns, 1.2-1.9ns and 8.0-13. Ons lifetime pools is necessary to describe cardiomyocyte autofluorescence (AF) within 420-560nm spectral range. Increased mitochondrial NADH production by ketone bodies enhanced the fluorescence intensity, without significant change in fluorescent lifetimes. Rotenone, the inhibitor of Complex I of the mitochondrial respiratory chain, increased AF intensity and shortened the average fluorescence lifetime. Dinitrophenol (DNP), an uncoupling agent of the mitochondrial oxidative phosphorylation, lowered AF intensity, broadened the spectral shoulder at 520 nm and increased the average fluorescence lifetime. These effects are comparable to the study of NADH fluorescence decay in vitro. In the present contribution we demonstrated that spectrally-resolved fluorescence lifetime technique provides promising new tool for analysis of mitochondrial NAD(P) H fluorescence with good reproducibility in living cardiomyocytes. This approach will enhance our knowledge about cardiomyocyte oxidative metabolism and/or its dysfunction at a cellular level. In the future, this approach can prove helpful in the clinical diagnosis and treatment of mitochondrial disorder.