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The formation of supported lipid bilayers (SLBs) on hydrogels can act as a biocompatible anti-fouling interface. However, generating continuous and mobile SLBs on materials other than conventional glass or mica remains a significant challenge. The interaction between lipid membrane vesicles and a typical hydrogel is usually insufficient to induce membrane vesicle rupture and form a planar lipid membrane. In this study, we demonstrate that the water absorption ability of a dried polyacrylamide (PAAm) hydrogel could serve as a driving force to facilitate the formation of the hydrogel–SLBs. The absorption driving force vanishes after the hydrogels are fully hydrated, leaving no extra interaction hindering lipid lateral mobility in the formed SLBs. Our fluorescence recovery after photobleaching (FRAP) results show that SLBs only form on hydrogels with adequate absorption abilities. Moreover, we discovered that exposure to oxygen during drying could lead to the formation of an oxidized crust on the PAAm hydrogel surface, impeding SLB formation. Therefore, minimizing oxygen exposure during drying is crucial to achieving high-quality hydrogel surfaces for SLB formation. This water absorption method enables the straightforward fabrication of hydrogel–SLBs without the need for additional substrates or charges, thereby expanding their potential applications.

We have previously demonstrated the potential of gelatin films as a memory device, offering a novel approach for writing, reading, and erasing through the manipulation of gelatin structure and bound water content. Here, we discovered that incorporating a bacteriorhodopsin (BR)–lipid membrane into the gelatin devices can further increase the electron conductivity of the polypeptide-bound water network and the ON/OFF ratio of the device by two folds. Our photocurrent measurements show that the BR incorporated in the membrane sandwiched in a gelatin device can generate a net proton flow from the counter side to the deposited side of the membrane. This leads to the establishment of non-electroneutrality on the gelatin films adjacent to the BR-incorporated membrane. Our Raman spectroscopy results show that BR proton pumping in the ON state gelatin device increases the bound water presence and promotes polypeptide unwinding compared to devices without BR. These findings suggest that the non-electroneutrality induced by BR proton pumping can increase the extent of polypeptide unwinding within the gelatin matrix, consequently trapping more bound water within the gelatin-bound water network. The resulting rise in hydrogen bonds could expand electron transfer routes, thereby enhancing the electron conductivity of the memory device in the ON state.

Membrane transporters translocate molecules across cell membranes and are involved in a variety of cellular processes. However, there is still no label-free technique for measuring the transport kinetics of non-charged species through membrane transporters. Here, we develop a new method based on surface plasmon resonance (SPR) and plasmon-waveguide resonance (PWR) to measure transporter function and ligand binding simultaneously. The PWR/SPR-combined sensor chip comprises a silica layer with micron-sized pores on a thin gold film, and the geometry allows the appearance of two independent plasmonic modes. The electromagnetic enhancement regions of the SPR-associated mode and the PWR-associated mode are localized inside the pore directly above the gold film and outside the pore above the silica layer, respectively, and can be used to detect refractive index or environmental changes in the corresponding regions. We deposited cell membrane vesicles onto the sensor chip to form pore-spanning cell membrane patches containing transporters of interest. Only species transported across the membrane can enter into the pore region and be detected by the SPR-associated mode, while ligand binding above the membrane can be detected by the PWR-associated mode. We used glucose transporters in HeLa cell membranes to demonstrate that the platform can be used to study how inhibitor binding can influence transport behaviors. More importantly, we successfully measured the glucose transport kinetics across the membrane. The obtained kinetic parameters of glucose transporters were comparable to those reported in studies using radiolabeled glucose, suggesting that this new label-free method can accurately characterize the membrane transport kinetics.

Abstract Background Bone mineral density (BMD) has been positively associated with lung function in patients diagnosed with respiratory diseases such as chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and cystic fibrosis. However, the relationship between BMD and lung function is inconsistent in the general population. Methods To investigate the association between BMD and lung function in a Chinese general population, a total of 1024 adults aged 40–70 years old from Qiliying (an industrial polluted exposure area) and Langgongmiao (the reference area with non-industrial pollution) were recruited and underwent BMD and spirometry tests. Results Both BMD and lung function levels were lower in the exposed area compared to the reference area. In addition, BMD and lung function levels were also lower in females compared to males. Both Spearman and partial correlation analyses showed that BMD was positively correlated with FVC and FEV1. After adjusting linear regression analyses for potential confounding factors, every 0.1 g/cm2 drop in BMD was associated with 53.0 mL decrease in FVC and 33.5 mL decrease in FEV1. Conclusions A reduction of BMD is associated with lower lung function in a general population from China.

Retinal fundus photography provides a non-invasive approach for identifying early microcirculatory alterations of chronic diseases prior to the onset of overt clinical complications. Here, we developed neural network models to predict hypertension, hyperglycemia, dyslipidemia, and a range of risk factors from retinal fundus images obtained from a cross-sectional study of chronic diseases in rural areas of Xinxiang County, Henan, in central China. 1222 high-quality retinal images and over 50 measurements of anthropometry and biochemical parameters were generated from 625 subjects. The models in this study achieved an area under the ROC curve (AUC) of 0.880 in predicting hyperglycemia, of 0.766 in predicting hypertension, and of 0.703 in predicting dyslipidemia. In addition, these models can predict with AUC>0.7 several blood test erythrocyte parameters, including hematocrit (HCT), mean corpuscular hemoglobin concentration (MCHC), and a cluster of cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk factors. Taken together, deep learning approaches are feasible for predicting hypertension, dyslipidemia, diabetes, and risks of other chronic diseases.

Through measuring the pore structure features of coke reacted with H2O or CO2 using a mercury porosimeter,the influence of average pore size,specific surface area and pore size distribution on the high temperature tensile strength of coke were studied in this paper. It is found that the porosity and average pore diameter of coke increase with the increase of reaction degree. When the average pore size is less than 30 μm,the gasification reaction is mainly pore-creating,and the surface area of coke increases firstly and then decreases with increasing reaction degree; but when the average pore size is more than 30 μm,the gasification reaction is mainly pore-expanding. Compared with CO2,coke reacted with H2O has a smaller average pore diameter,larger specific surface area and tensile strength. The tensile strength of coke decreases with the increase of porosity and average pore diameter. At an average pore diameter smaller than 30 μm,the tensile strength decreases with the increase of specific surface area; but at an average pore diameter larger than 30 μm,the tensile strength decreases with the decrease of specific surface area. The small pore increases the tensile strength of coke,while the large pore decreases the tensile strength. At the same reaction rate,coke reacted with H2O has a large amount of small pores and large specific surface area,which are conducive to protect the structure of the air pore wall and to prevent from the reduction of tensile strength at high temperature.

Recurrence and progression to higher grade lesions are characteristic behaviors of gliomas. Though IDH1 mutation frequently occurs and is considered as an early event in gliomagenesis, little is known about its role in the recurrence and progression of gliomas. We therefore analysed IDH1 and IDH2 status at codon 132 of IDH1 and codon 172 of IDH2 by direct sequencing and anti-IDH1-R132H immunohistochemistry in 53 paired samples and their recurrences, including 29 low-grade gliomas, 16 anaplastic gliomas and 8 Glioblastomas. IDH1/IDH2 mutation was detected in 32 primary tumors, with 25 low-grade gliomas and 6 anaplastic gliomas harboring IDH1 mutation and 1 low-grade glioma harboring IDH2 mutation. All of the paired tumors showed consistent IDH1 and IDH2 status. Patients were analyzed according to IDH1 status and tumor-related factors. Malignant progression at recurrence was noted in 22 gliomas and was not associated with IDH1 mutation. Survival analysis revealed patients with IDH1 mutated gliomas had a significantly longer progression-free survival (PFS) and overall survival (OS). In conclusion, this study demonstrated a strong tendency of IDH1/IDH2 status being consistent during progression of glioma. IDH1 mutation was not a predictive marker for malignant progression and it was a potential prognostic marker for gliomas of Chinese patients.

Vibrio vulnificus is a significant opportunistic pathogen with the highest fatality rate among foodborne microbes. However, due to a lack of comprehensive surveillance, the characteristics of isolates in China remain poorly understood. This study analyzed 60 strains of V. vulnificus isolated from diverse sources in Shanghai, including shellfish, crabs, shrimps, throat swabs of migratory birds, as well as seafood farming water and seawater. Identification of the genotypes was performed using PCR, and cytotoxicity was determined using an LDH assay. DNA was sequenced using Illumina NovaSeq followed by a bioinformatic analysis. The results demonstrated that a majority of the strains belonged to the 16S rRNA B-vcgC genotype. All strains carried five antibiotic resistance genes (ARGs), with some strains carrying over ten ARGs, mediating resistance to multiple antibiotics. Five strains possessed a highly abundant effector delivery system, which further investigations revealed to be a type III secretion system II (T3SS2), marking the first description of T3SS2 in V. vulnificus. Phylogenetic analysis indicated that it belonged to a different genetic lineage from T3SS2α and T3SS2β of V. parahaemolyticus. Bacteria with T3SS2 sequences were concentrated in coastal areas and mostly within the genus Vibrio in the global prevalence survey. Our study provides essential baseline information for non-clinical V. vulnificus and discovers the existence of T3SS2 in several strains which may be more virulent, thereby posing a new threat to human health.