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A novel diatomite/chitosan–Fe(III) composite (Fe(III)/Cs@Dia) was synthesized successfully to use as an adsorbent for the removal of anionic azo dye. The composite was further characterized by SEM, FTIR, XPS, and C 13 / Si 29 NMR, and then the adsorption batch experiments were carried out as a function of initial dye concentrations, pH values, contact time and temperatures to determine the adsorption capacities of Fe(III)/Cs@Dia. Compared with several typical isotherm models, the adsorption isotherms were all best-fitted by the Langmuir model, with a maximal 2GL dye uptake of 1250 mg g−1 at pH 6 and 298 K. In addition, kinetic studies followed the pseudo-second-order model and thermodynamic studies revealed that the uptake was exothermic in nature. The adsorption mechanisms were proposed with observation that electrostatic interaction and complexation played the key roles in adsorption process. Moreover, the composite also showed favorable adsorption properties for other four anionic azo dyes (direct yellow R, congo red, methyl orange and direct red 23).

Can Transient Elastography Predict Fibrosis Regression in Patients with Chronic Hepatitis B During Long-Term Antiviral Therapy?

Emodin, as a major active component of Rheum palmatum L. and Polygonum cuspidatum, has been reported to have antifibrotic effect. However, the mechanism of emodin on antifibrotic effect for liver fibrosis was still obscure. In the present study, we aimed to investigate whether emodin can alleviate carbon tetrachloride- (CCl4-) induced liver fibrosis through reducing infiltration of Gr1hi monocytes. Liver fibrosis was induced by intraperitoneal CCl4 injection in mice. Mice in the emodin group received emodin treatment by gavage. Pretreatment with emodin significantly protected mice from liver inflammation and fibrosis revealed by the decreased elevation of serum alanine aminotransferase (ALT) and aspartate aminotransferase (AST), as well as reduced hepatic necrosis and fibrosis by analysis of hematoxylin-eosin (HE) staining, Masson staining, α-smooth muscle actin (α-SMA), and collagen-I immunohistochemistry staining. Further, compared to CCl4 group, mice in the emodin group showed significantly less intrahepatic infiltration of Gr1hi monocytes. Moreover, emodin significantly inhibited hepatic expression of interleukin-1β (IL-1β), tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α), transforming growth factor-β1 (TGF-β1), granulin (GRN), monocyte chemoattractant protein 1 (MCP-1), and chemokine ligand 7 (CCL7), which was in line with the decreased numbers of intrahepatic Gr1hi monocytes. In conclusion, emodin can alleviate the degree of liver fibrosis by reducing infiltration of Gr1hi monocytes. These results suggest that emodin is a promising candidate to prevent and treat liver fibrosis.

Regulatory B cells (Bregs) are reported to play an important role in the immune responses to chronic hepatitis B virus (HBV) via Toll-like-receptors (TLRs) signaling. We aimed to investigate the characteristics of Bregs and the expressions of TLRs in Bregs in the peripheral blood of different immune phases of patients with chronic HBV infection. In this study, we determined the frequencies of Bregs and TLR9, TLR2, and TLR4 in peripheral blood using flow cytometry and determined the levels of IL-10 in serum with the Human Magnetic Cytokine/Chemokine Bead Panel. The results showed that the frequencies of CD19+ B cells and Bregs were elevated in patients with chronic HBV infection compared with healthy control (HC). The frequencies of Bregs were significantly increased in the immune active group compared with the immune tolerant group and HC group. Meanwhile, the frequencies of Bregs were higher in inactive carrier state group compared with HC group. The levels of serum IL-10 were elevated in the immune active group compared with immune tolerant, inactive carrier state and HC groups. Serum IL-10 levels were positively correlated with alanine aminotransferase (ALT) and aspartate aminotransferase (AST) levels in the immune active group. Compared with HC group, the expression of TLR9 in Bregs reduced in chronic hepatitis B (CHB) patients. However, the expression of TLR2 in Bregs increased in CHB patients. There were no differences of the TLRs expressions in Bregs among various immune phases of chronic HBV infection. These data suggest that the frequencies of Bregs and levels of serum IL-10 were different in various immune phases in patients with chronic HBV infection. Bregs may play some important role in modulating the immune responses of chronic HBV infection. However, whether Bregs modulate immune responses via TLR signaling in chronic HBV infection remains ambiguous.

Severe fever with thrombocytopenia syndrome (SFTS) is an emerging epidemic infectious disease caused by the SFTS bunyavirus (SFTSV) with an estimated high case-fatality rate of 12.7% to 32.6%. Currently, the disease has been reported in mainland China, Japan, Korea, and the United States. At present, there is no specific antiviral therapy for SFTSV infection. Considering the higher mortality rate and rapid clinical progress of SFTS, supporting the appropriate treatment in time to SFTS patients is critical. Therefore, it is very important for clinicians to predict these SFTS cases who are more likely to have a poor prognosis or even more likely to decease. In the present study, we established a simple and feasible model for assessing the severity and predicting the prognosis of SFTS patients with high sensitivity and specificity. This model may aid the physicians to immediately initiate prompt treatment to block the rapid development of the illness and reduce the fatality of SFTS patients., Author summary Severe fever with thrombocytopenia syndrome (SFTS) is an emerging infectious disease caused by a novel SFTS bunyavirus (SFTSV) with an estimated high case-fatality rate. However, there is no specific antiviral therapy for SFTSV infection. Symptomatic treatment and supportive therapy are the most essential part of case management. It is very important for clinicians to identify critical patients at admission. In this study, we established a simple and feasible scoring system for assessing the severity and predicting the prognosis of SFTS patients with objective parameters. This model may help the physicians to perform intervention measures in advance, control the disease progression and improve the prognosis.

Triptolide is a diterpene triepoxide, extracted from the Chinese herb Tripterygium wilfordii Hook F, which has been shown to have antitumor activity in a number of cancers. Neuroblastoma is an aggressive extracranial pediatric solid tumor, with significant chemotherapeutic resistance. In this study, triptolide was hypothesized to be a potential therapeutic agent for neuroblastoma. The effects of triptolide on neuroblastoma cell growth and tumor development were investigated. Cell growth and proliferation were evaluated using a cell counting kit‑8 assay and a 5-bromo-2-deoxyuridine staining assay. Cell cycle and apoptosis were detected by flow cytometry. Reverse transcription‑quantitative polymerase chain reaction was conducted to detect the expression levels of the apoptosis‑associated proteins, caspase‑3 and caspase‑9. The tumorigenicity of neuroblastoma cells was assessed by a soft agar clonogenic assay and an in vivo tumorigenic assay. The results demonstrated that exposure of BE(2)‑C human neuroblastoma cells to triptolide resulted in a reduction in cell growth and proliferation, and the induction of cell death and apoptosis, together with cell cycle arrest in the S phase. A soft agar assay indicated that triptolide inhibited the colony‑forming ability of BE(2)‑C neuroblastoma cells. The xenograft experiment showed that triptolide significantly reduced tumor growth and development in vivo. The data suggested that this Chinese herb may be a potential novel chemotherapeutic agent for neuroblastoma.

In this study, Fe3O4 nanoparticles (NPs) prepared from steel pickling waste liquor were functionalized with ethylenediamine (EDA) to form EDA-Fe3O4 NPs for engineering applications. The obtained EDA-Fe3O4 NPs were characterized by transmission electron microscopy (TEM), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), X-ray diffraction (XRD), Brunauer–Emmett–Teller (BET) surface analyzer and Fourier-transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy. The results showed that the EDA-Fe3O4 NPs had a crystalline structure with a particle size range of 20–50 nm and a BET surface area of 28 m2 g−1. Functionalization with EDA was able to improve the adsorption selectivity of Fe3O4 for Cr(VI) in Cr(VI)/Cl−or Cr(VI)/SO42− double-mixture systems. The adsorption isotherm data fitted better to the Langmuir adsorption model, and the adsorption kinetics was better described by the pseudo-second order equation. The spontaneous and endothermic characteristics of this adsorption reaction were confirmed by thermodynamic study. Based on the results of X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), electrostatic attraction and surface complexation between Cr(VI) and EDA-Fe3O4 NPs are postulated as mechanisms for the adsorption of Cr(VI) from aqueous solution. The EDA-Fe3O4 NPs retained a high adsorption capacity after several consecutive adsorption–desorption processes, indicating that EDA-Fe3O4 NPs serve as an excellent regenerable adsorbent for Cr(VI).

Nanoscale zero-valent iron (nZVI) technology is promising for treating the oxidizing pollutants. Understanding the potential risk of nZVI in solution is important for in situ remediation. In this work, the impacts of nZVI on the chemical properties of solution and microorganism were investigated to assess the risk of environmental exposure of nZVI. The effects of salinity (NaCl), pH and humic acid on the chemical stability of nZVI were studied, the concentrations of released toxic ions within 36 days were examined, and the toxicity of solution was evaluated based on the luminous bacteria-based toxicity test. The results indicated that nZVI was chemically stable as the total chromium concentration was below 0.05 mg/L all along and the maximum concentration of released total iron ion was 0.22 mg/L. The results of the toxicity test showed that the reaction products were non-toxic to microorganism even if they existed in solution for a long-term time.

Dissolved organic matter (DOM) and bromide as principal precursors to halogenated disinfection byproducts (DBPs) have potential risks on the safety of drinking water after disinfection. Removal of DOM and bromide in raw water from two different waterworks using magnetic ion exchange resin (MIEX), ferric coagulation and their combination was investigated. Results showed that as MIEX dose increased, DOM and bromide coexisting in raw water could be removed effectively. DOM tended to be mainly removed by MIEX at low dose (4 mL/L). The fluorescence spectra and high performance size-exclusion chromatogram analysis indicated that at low MIEX dosage, bromide decreased the removal of low molecular weight (MW), soluble microbial byproduct-like and aromatic protein-like organic matters, which had lower affinity with MIEX in raw water. The removal of high MW humic acid, which presented greater affinity with MIEX, was not influenced at low MIEX dose but decreased at high MIEX dose with the addition of bromide. The combination of MIEX and ferric coagulation significantly enhanced the removal of DOM and reduced the requisite ferric dose by at least 67% compared to coagulation alone.

Liver fibrosis is concomitant with monocyte infiltration, which has been highlighted as novel therapeutic targets for chronic liver diseases. We aimed to investigate whether curcumin might protect the liver from carbon tetrachloride (CCl4)-induced fibrosis by attenuating the recruitment of Gr1hi monocytes through inhibition of monocyte chemoattractant protein-1 (MCP-1).Mice were intraperitoneally injected with CCl4 to induce liver fibrosis. Curcumin was orally administrated to mice. Hepatic inflammation and fibrosis were evaluated by analysis of liver function and hepatic histopathology. Infiltration of the Gr1hi monocytes was assessed by flow cytometry and immunohistochemistry. Moreover, mRNA expression levels of tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-α, interleukin (IL)-6, IL-1β, and transforming growth factor (TGF)-β1 were determined by real time PCR. Hepatic expression of MCP-1 was determined by real time PCR and immunohistochemistry.Curcumin significantly attenuated inflammation and fibrosis, as revealed by histological and biochemical analysis. The intrahepatic infiltration of Gr1hi monocytes was attenuated by curcumin administration. T cells, NK cells, NKT cells, and dendritic cells were not affected by curcumin. Curcumin significantly reduced the expression of TNF-α and TGF-β1, which is in line with the decreased numbers of intrahepatic Gr1hi monocytes. Intrahepatic MCP-1 expression of CCl4-challenged mice was inhibited by curcumin.The anti-inflammatory and antifibrotic effects of curcumin could be contributed to its prevention of Gr1hi monocyte infiltration into the injured livers through inhibition of MCP-1. These new findings extend our understanding on the mechanisms of the anti-inflammatory and antifibrotic effects of curcumin.

Infiltrating monocytes have been demonstrated to contribute to tissue damage in experimental models of liver injury and fibrosis. However, less is known about monocyte infiltration in the livers of patients with chronic liver diseases (CLD). In the present study, we demonstrated that CD68+ hepatic macrophages and MAC387+ infiltrating monocytes were significantly increased in the livers of CLD patients with different etiologies as compared with normal liver tissue. In addition, CLD patients with higher inflammatory grading scores had more CD68+ macrophages and MAC387+ monocytes infiltration in their livers compared to those with lower scores. Significantly more MAC387+ infiltrating monocytes were found in the liver tissue of CLD patients with higher fibrotic staging scores compared to those with lower scores. Monocyte chemoattractant protein-1 (MCP-1) expression was significantly increased in the livers of CLD patients with different etiologies. MCP-1 staining scores were significantly positively associated with the numbers of MAC387+ infiltrating monocytes in CLD patients. Taken together, our results demonstrate that infiltrating monocytes may play a pathological role in exacerbating chronic liver inflammation and fibrosis in CLD. MCP-1 may be involved in the monocyte infiltration and progression of liver inflammation and fibrosis in CLD.

To demonstrate the role of Bax in death receptor-induced apoptosis in the human colon cancer HCT116 cells. We treated HCT116 cells and HCT116 with p53−/− (KO) by 0.1 μg/mL TRAIL for 24 hours, which indicated that HCT116 parental cells are sensitive to p53-independent death receptor-induced apoptosis. Although the p53 signaling pathway is totally intact in this system, the down-regulation of Bax in HCT116 cells is dramatically resistant to TRAIL and failed to undergo apoptosis. However, the over-expression of Bax can rescue the sensitivity of apoptosis induced by the death receptor. Our study has revealed an essential role for Bax in death receptor-induced apoptosis in the human colon cancer HCT116 cells. It may aid in a molecular understanding of possible defects in signal transduction and a regulation of the death receptor-induced apoptotic process.

In this work, the interior-walls decyl-perfluorinated functionalized magnetic mesoporous microspheres (F(17)-Fe(3)O(4)@mSiO(2)) were synthesized for the first time, and applied as adsorbents to extract and concentrate perfluorinated compounds (PFCs) from water samples. The fluorous functionalized interior pore-walls contributed to the high-selective preconcentration of PFCs due to fluorous affinity; and abundant silanol groups on the exterior surface of microspheres contributed to the good dispersibility in water sample. Four kinds of PFCs were selected as model analytes, including perfluorooctanoic acid, perfluorononanoic acid, perfluorododecanoic acid, and perfluorooctane sulphonate. In addition, UHPLC-ESI/MS/MS was introduced to the fast and sensitive detection of the analytes after sample pretreatment. Important parameters of the extraction procedure were optimized, including salinity, eluting solvent, the amount of F(17)-Fe(3)O(4)@mSiO(2) microspheres, and extraction time. The optimized procedure took only 10 min to extract analytes with high recoveries and merely 800-μL acetonitrile to elute analytes from the magnetic adsorbents. Validation experiments showed good linearity (0.994-0.998), precision (2.6-7.6%), high recovery (93.4-105.7%) of the proposed method, and the limits of detection were from 0.008 to 0.125 μg/L. The F(17)-Fe(3)O(4)@mSiO(2) magnetic microspheres have the advantages of great dispersibility in aqueous solution, high specificity of extraction, large surface area, and efficient separation ability. The results showed that the proposed method based on F(17)-Fe(3)O(4)@mSiO(2) microspheres is a simple, fast, and sensitive tool for the analysis of PFCs in water sample.

In this study, the Fe 3 O 4 magnetic nanoparticles (MNPs) were synthesized as heterogeneous catalysts to effectively degrade bisphenol A (BPA). The properties of the synthesized catalysts were characterized by Brunnaer–Emmett–Teller (BET), X-ray powder diffraction (XRD), X-ray photoelectron spectrometry (XPS), scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM) techniques. The results indicated that the Fe 3 O 4 MNPs appeared to be roughly spherical shapes and their average size was 10–20 nm. The catalytic capacity of MNPs in US + Fe 3 O 4 + H 2 O 2 system with different pH conditions, H 2 O 2 concentrations and MNPs doses was investigated. It was found that the OH radicals were promptly generated due to the catalysis of the Fe 3 O 4 MNPs. BPA could be degraded within a wide pH range from 3 to 9, and the degradation efficiencies were remarkably enhanced by ultrasound. The apparent rate constants were 8.31 × 10 −3 , 7.96 × 10 −3 and 5.64 × 10 −3 min −1 , respectively, when the pH values were 3, 7 and 9, respectively. The removal efficiencies of BPA were all over 95%. About half total organic carbon (TOC) in solution was eliminated under neutral condition by sono-Fenton process. Furthermore, the results of stability and reusability demonstrated that the Fe 3 O 4 MNPS were promising in the treatment of wastewater with refractory organics.

The remediation effectiveness and negative effect on ecotoxicity are needed to be considered in a suitable emergency remedial action for polluted river. In this work, the stabilized nanoscale zero-valent iron (nZVI) was applied in the remediation of a simulated Cr(VI)-polluted river, and a mathematical model was developed based on a reaction network to describe the process. The results showed that the remediation effectiveness was improved with the increasing nZVI dose, decreasing initial concentration of pollution source and water flow rate. Water analysis was conducted to investigate the effects of the nZVI to the process. Toxicity evaluation indicated that almost no toxicity was detected in 36 days’ exposure of reaction products in the water. Model parameters including mass-loss coefficient (K1) and reaction coefficient (K2) were obtained in laboratorial experiment, and a statistical comparison method was employed to assess the simulated results. Thus, the obtained mathematical modeling and physical modeling could be exploratory researches for practical remediation of polluted river.

The novel recombinant hirudin, r-RGD-hirudin, inhibits thrombin and platelet aggregation. Here, we reported over-expression of (15)N-labeled r-RGD-hirudin by Pichia pastoris in minimal medium. After extensive optimization, the yield of active r-RGD-hirudin reached ≈600 mg/L when the yeast cells were culture in a fermenter. The purified (15)N-labeled r-RGD-hirudin retained full biological activity and was uniformly labeled. Heteronuclear NMR of the (15)N-labeled r-RGD-hirudin was performed for the first time, and all signals in the heteronuclear single quantum coherence (HSQC) spectrum were successfully assigned.

The aggregation and dispersion behaviors of carbon nanotubes (CNTs) can regulate the environmental spread and fate of CNTs, as well as the organic pollutants adsorbed onto them. In this study, multi-walled carbon nanotubes (MWNTs) and single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWNTs) were surface modified with humic acids from different sources and with surfactants of different ionic types. The dispersion stability of surface modified CNTs was observed by UV-Vis spectrophotometry. The effect of humic acid and surfactant dispersion on the adsorption of atrazine by CNTs was investigated by batch equilibrium experiments. Both humic acid and surfactant could effectively disperse MWNTs, but not SWNTs, into stable suspensions under the studied conditions. Surface modified CNTs had a greatly reduced capacity for adsorption of atrazine. The inhibitory effect of peat humic acid was relatively stronger than that of soil humic acid, but the two surfactants had a similar inhibitory effect on atrazine adsorption by the two CNT types. Increases in surfactant concentration resulted in rapid decreases in the adsorption of atrazine by CNTs when the surfactant concentration was less than 0.5 critical micelle concentration.

The present study aims at investigating the potential impacts of the nC60 complex with atrazine on the development of Japanese medaka (Oryzias latipes) embryos and chronic toxicity to D. magna. Although exposure to nC60 below 8 mg/L had no effects on the hatching rate of medaka embryos, it increased the deformity of hatched larvae. Moreover, the presence of nC60 significantly increased the hatching time of the embryos exposed to atrazine. 14-day exposure of D. magna to nC60 significantly reduced offspring production even at a concentration as low as 0.5 mg/L. This indicates that nC60 is able to reduce the ability of D. magna to produce offspring, and therefore would have an impact on population. For atrazine, no significant difference in offspring production was observed. The nC60 complex with atrazine was also found to significantly decrease the reproduction of D. magna, which was similar to the result of exposure to nC60. These results suggest that nC60 would have potential risks to aquatic organisms. Therefore, much attention should be paid to their associations with other contaminants for fullerene’s risk assessment.

The hierarchical microspheres of Fe3O4@copper silicate nanotube (Fe3O4@CSNT) microspheres are synthesized via a simple in situ chemical conversion route by using Fe3O4@SiO2 microspheres as a chemical template. The proposed synthesis approach is facile, low cost, and large-scale. The resulting Fe3O4@CSNT microspheres have a mean diameter of ∼300 nm, high supermagnetic cores, and a hollow copper silicate nanotube shell, which endow them with useful magnetic responsivity, good dispersibility, and stable chemical properties. Moreover, the CSNT shell of the microspheres has strong surface affinity toward contaminations. The synthesized Fe3O4@CSNT was successfully applied to convenient, efficient, and fast removal of microcystin-LR in water.

With the development of nanotechnologies, a large number of nano-materials with novel properties are being released into the environment. However, little is known about their fate, transport, toxicity and interactions with organic matters in aqueous environment. In this study, nano-SiO2 or kaolinite, coated with soil humic acid (SHA) and peat humic acid (PHA), were used as sorbents. The original and HA-coated nanoparticles were characterized for particle size, TEM and electrophoretic mobility. Sequential ultrafiltration (UF) was used to characterize the molecular size fractionations of dissolved HAs. Sorption data of atrazine (AT) under various solution concentration, ionic strength and pH were well fitted with Freundlich model. Sorption amount of AT on HA-coated nanoparticles was significantly lower than that on original particles. The sorption maximum appeared at I = 0.001 mol/l (NaNO3), pH 3. Size of nanoparticle aggregates, conformation of HA and specific surface area were factors affecting the sorption process. The compressed conformation of HA was more favorable for HA sorption than expanded one. Size of aggregation was not a determinant factor for the sorption process, while the specific surface areas of nano-sorbent was an important one. Results indicated that HA plays an important role in the transport and toxicity of nanoparticles and AT in aqueous environment.

The conformation of Kunitz domain 1 of human tissue factor pathway inhibitor-2 (hTFPI-2/KD1) has been studied by fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, circular dichroism, and Raman spectroscopy. It was found that hTFPI-2/KD1 contained approximately 17% alpha-helices, 24% beta-strands, 46% random coils, 13% beta-turns, and two kinds of disulfide bonds(ggg and tgt) at 25 degrees C. The detailed conformational changes of the heated protein observed by fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, circular dichroism and Raman spectroscopy revealed that hTFPI-2/KD1 was thermally stable. However, KD1 could form an intermediate form at high temperature, then return to its normal conformation when the temperature was lowered. Activity assays also showed that hTFPI-2/KD1 was able to keep its inhibitory activity on plasmin after being heated to 80 degrees C for 5 min.

To investigate the association of serum gamma-glutamyl transferase (GGT) levels with chronic hepatitis B infection and hepatitis B e antigen (HBeAg) seroconversion.A retrospective study was performed on clinical data collected from patients who had been positive for hepatitis B surface antigen for6 mo and who were antiviral-treatment naïve (n = 215) attending the Hepatitis Clinic at Nanjing Drum Tower Hospital between August 2010 and December 2013. Healthy individuals without liver disease (n = 83) were included as controls. Patients were categorized into four groups based on disease status as recommended by the European Association for the Study of the Liver: immune tolerance (IT; n = 47), HBeAg-positive hepatitis (EPH; n = 93), HBeAg-negative hepatitis (ENH; n = 20), and inactive carrier (IC; n = 55). Prediction of complete response (CR) based on serum GGT was also examined in EPH patients (n = 33) treated for 48 wk with nucleos(t)ide analogue (NA) therapy, including lamivudine plus adefovir combination therapy (n = 20) or entecavir monotherapy (n = 13). CR was defined as a serum hepatitis B virus DNA level500 copies/mL and HBeAg seroconversion by 48 wk of treatment.Serum GGT levels were significantly increased in EPH and ENH patients relative to the IT, IC, and healthy control groups (P0.01 for all). However, no significant difference in serum GGT levels was found between the EPH and ENH groups. Baseline serum GGT levels were significantly higher in patients who achieved CR (7/33; 21.2%) compared to patients in the non-CR group (26/33; 78.8%; P = 0.011). In addition, the decline in serum GGT was greater in CR patients compared to non-CR patients after 24 wk and 48 wk of treatment (P = 0.012 and P = 0.008, respectively). The receiver operating characteristic curve yielded a sensitivity of 85.71% and a specificity of 61.54% at a threshold value of 0.89 times the upper limit of normal for baseline serum GGT in the prediction of CR following NA therapy.Serum GGT is significantly elevated in EPH and ENH patients and is a potential biomarker for the prediction of HBeAg seroconversion following NA therapy.

Extracellular and intracellular biosynthesis of silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) by Euglena gracilis (EG) strain and Euglena intermedia (EI) strain are reported in this study. The obtained nanoparticles showed an absorption peak approximates 420 nm in the UV-visible spectrum, corresponding to the plasmon resonance of AgNPs. According to the result of inductively coupled plasma-atomic emission spectrometer, the intakes of silver ions by EI and EG are roughly equal. The transmission electron microscope (TEM) analysis of the successful in vivo and in vitro synthesised AgNPs indicated the sizes, ranging from 6 to 24 nm and 15 to 60 nm in diameter, respectively, and a spherical-shaped polydispersal of the particles. The successful formation of AgNPs has been confirmed by energy dispersive X-ray analysis connected to the TEM. The Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy measurements reveal the presence of bioactive functional groups such as amines are found to be the capping and stabilising agents of nanoparticles. To our knowledge, this is the first report where two kinds of Euglena microalga were used as the potential source for in vivo and in vitro biosynthesis of AgNPs.

The conformation of a new recombinant RGD-hirudin, which has the activities of anti-thrombin and anti-platelet aggregation, was investigated by multi-dimensional NMR spectroscopy. The 1H NMR spectra of this protein are assigned in a sequential manner by using a combination of 2D NMR techniques to demonstrate through-bond and through-space (

Mesoporous silica coated magnetic carbon nanotubes were prepared as a novel hybrid material for the first time, and the as-synthesized composites were successfully applied as absorbents for the fast removal of microcystins.