Boosting Electrocatalytic Nitrate Reduction through Enhanced Mass Transfer in Cu-Bipyridine 2D Covalent Organic Framework Films.

Electrocatalytic nitrate reduction (NO3RR) is a promising method for pollutant removal and ammonia synthesis and involves the transfer of eight electrons and nine protons. As such, the rational design of catalytic interfaces with enhanced mass transfer is crucial for achieving high ammonia yield rates and Faradaic efficiency (FE). In this work, we incorporated a Cu-bipyridine catalytic interface and fabricated crystalline 2D covalent organic framework films with significantly exposed catalytic sites, leading to improved FE and ammonia yield (FE = 92.

Accelerating Toluene Oxidation over Boron-Titanium-Oxygen Interface: Steric Hindrance of the Methyl Group Induced by the Plane-Adsorption Configuration.

Elimination of dilute gaseous toluene is one of the critical concerns within the field of indoor air remediation. The typical degradation route on titanium-based catalysts, "toluene-benzaldehyde-carbon dioxide", necessitates the oxidation of the methyl group as a prerequisite for photocatalytic toluene oxidation. However, the inherent planar adsorption configuration of toluene molecules, dominated by the benzene rings, leads to significant steric hindrance for the methyl group.

Early stages of covalent organic framework formation imaged in operando.

Covalent organic frameworks (COFs) are a functional material class able to harness, convert and store energy. However, after almost 20 years of research, there are no coherent prediction rules for their synthesis conditions. This is partly because of an incomplete picture of nucleation and growth at the early stages of formation.

Exonuclease-enhanced prime editors.

Prime editing (PE) is a powerful gene-editing technique based on targeted gRNA-templated reverse transcription and integration of the de novo synthesized single-stranded DNA. To circumvent one of the main bottlenecks of the method, the competition of the reverse-transcribed 3' flap with the original 5' flap DNA, we generated an enhanced fluorescence-activated cell sorting reporter cell line to develop an exonuclease-enhanced PE strategy ('Exo-PE') composed of an improved PE complex and an aptamer-recruited DNA-exonuclease to remove the 5' original DNA flap. Exo-PE achieved better overall editing efficacy than the reference PE2 strategy for insertions ≥30 base pairs in several endogenous loci and cell lines while maintaining the high editing precision of PE2.

Hybrid Plasmonic Nanomaterials for Hydrogen Generation and Carbon Dioxide Reduction.

The successful development of artificial photosynthesis requires finding new materials able to efficiently harvest sunlight and catalyze hydrogen generation and carbon dioxide reduction reactions. Plasmonic nanoparticles are promising candidates for these tasks, due to their ability to confine solar energy into molecular regions. Here, we review recent developments in hybrid plasmonic photocatalysis, including the combination of plasmonic nanomaterials with catalytic metals, semiconductors, perovskites, 2D materials, metal-organic frameworks, and electrochemical cells.

Extensive regulation of enzyme activity by phosphorylation in Escherichia coli.

Protein serine/threonine/tyrosine (S/T/Y) phosphorylation is an essential and frequent post-translational modification in eukaryotes, but historically has been considered less prevalent in bacteria because fewer proteins were found to be phosphorylated and most proteins were modified to a lower degree. Recent proteomics studies greatly expanded the phosphoproteome of Escherichia coli to more than 2000 phosphorylation sites (phosphosites), yet mechanisms of action were proposed for only six phosphosites and fitness effects were described for 38 phosphosites upon perturbation. By systematically characterizing functional relevance of S/T/Y phosphorylation in E.

Non-invasive and high-throughput interrogation of exon-specific isoform expression.

Expression of exon-specific isoforms from alternatively spliced mRNA is a fundamental mechanism that substantially expands the proteome of a cell. However, conventional methods to assess alternative splicing are either consumptive and work-intensive or do not quantify isoform expression longitudinally at the protein level. Here, we therefore developed an exon-specific isoform expression reporter system (EXSISERS), which non-invasively reports the translation of exon-containing isoforms of endogenous genes by scarlessly excising reporter proteins from the nascent polypeptide chain through highly efficient, intein-mediated protein splicing.

Conservation of metabolic regulation by phosphorylation and non-covalent small-molecule interactions.

Here, we review extant observations of protein phosphorylation and small-molecule interactions in metabolism and ask which of their specific regulatory functions are conserved in Escherichia coli and Homo sapiens. While the number of phosphosites is dramatically higher in humans, the number of metabolite-protein interactions remains largely constant. Moreover, we found the regulatory logic of metabolite-protein interactions, and in many cases also the effector molecules, to be conserved.

An Electrically Conducting Three-Dimensional Iron-Catecholate Porous Framework.

We report the synthesis of a unique cubic metal-organic framework (MOF), Fe-HHTP-MOF, comprising hexahydroxytriphenylene (HHTP) supertetrahedral units and Fe ions, arranged in a diamond topology. The MOF is synthesized under solvothermal conditions, yielding a highly crystalline, deep black powder, with crystallites of 300-500 nm size and tetrahedral morphology. Nitrogen sorption analysis indicates a highly porous material with a surface area exceeding 1400 m  g .

Nonradiative Energy Transfer between Thickness-Controlled Halide Perovskite Nanoplatelets.

Despite showing great promise for optoelectronics, the commercialization of halide perovskite nanostructure-based devices is hampered by inefficient electrical excitation and strong exciton binding energies. While transport of excitons in an energy-tailored system via Förster resonance energy transfer (FRET) could be an efficient alternative, halide ion migration makes the realization of cascaded structures difficult. Here, we show how these could be obtained by exploiting the pronounced quantum confinement effect in two-dimensional CsPbBr-based nanoplatelets (NPls).

Further investigations of the IgE response to tetanus and diphtheria following covaccination with acellular rather than cellular Bordetella pertussis.

Background: It has previously been shown in an uncontrolled study that the IgE response to vaccine antigens is downregulated by co-vaccination with cellular Bordetella pertussis vaccine.

Methods: In the present study, we compared in a controlled trial the humoral immune response to diphtheria toxoid (D) and tetanus toxoid (T) in relation to co-vaccinated cellular or acellular B pertussis vaccine. IgE, IgG4, and IgG to D and T were analyzed at 2, 7, and 12 months of age in sera of children vaccinated with D and T (DT, N = 68), cellular (DTPw, N = 68), 2- or 5-component acellular B pertussis vaccine (DTPa2, N = 64; DTPa5, N = 65).

Fungicide resistance toward fludioxonil conferred by overexpression of the phosphatase gene MoPTP2 in Magnaporthe oryzae.

The fungicide fludioxonil causes hyperactivation of the Hog1p MAPK within the high-osmolarity glycerol signaling pathway essential for osmoregulation in pathogenic fungi. The molecular regulation of MoHog1p phosphorylation is not completely understood in pathogenic fungi. Thus, we identified and characterized the putative MoHog1p-interacting phosphatase gene MoPTP2 in the filamentous rice pathogen Magnaporthe oryzae.

Thermal Disproportionation of Oxo-Functionalized Graphene.

Graphene production by wet chemistry is an ongoing scientific challenge. Controlled oxidation of graphite introduces oxo functional groups; this material can be processed and converted back to graphene by reductive defunctionalization. Although thermal processing yields conductive carbon, a ruptured and undefined carbon lattice is produced as a consequence of CO formation.

Identification of novel metabolic interactions controlling carbon flux from xylose to ethanol in natural and recombinant yeasts.

Background: Unlike xylose-converting natural yeasts, recombinant strains of Saccharomyces cerevisiae expressing the same xylose assimilation pathway produce under anaerobic conditions xylitol rather than ethanol from xylose at low specific xylose conversion rates. Despite intense research efforts over the last two decades, differences in these phenotypes cannot be explained by current metabolic and kinetic models. To improve our understanding how metabolic flux of xylose carbon to ethanol is controlled, we developed a novel kinetic model based on enzyme mechanisms and applied quantitative metabolite profiling together with enzyme activity analysis to study xylose-to-ethanol metabolisms of Candida tenuis CBS4435 (q xylose = 0.

Similar Occurrence of Febrile Episodes Reported in Non-Atopic Children at Three to Five Years of Age after Prebiotics Supplemented Infant Formula.

This is a follow up study of a multicenter randomised placebo-controlled trial in seven centres in five West European countries. The RCT assessed the effect of infant formula supplemented with a mixture of prebiotics (with neutral short-chain and long-chain oligosaccharides and pectin-derived acidic oligosaccharides) during infancy in term-born children (n=1130). In the follow-up study 672 children (60% of the study population) participated: 232 (56%) from the prebiotics group (PG), 243 (58%) from the control group (CG), and 197 (66%) from the non-randomised breast-fed group (BG).

Density Functional Investigation of the Adsorption of Isooctane, Ethanol, and Acetic Acid on a Water-Covered Fe(100) Surface.

The presence of water in biofuels poses the question of how it affects the frictional performance of additives in fuels containing organic substances. To investigate the effect of water on the adsorption of molecules present in fuel and its additives we simulated within the framework of density functional theory the adsorption of ethanol, isooctane (2,2,4-trimethylpentane), and acetic acid on a bare and a water-covered Fe(100) surface. Van der Waals interactions are taken into account in our computations.

Harnessing Candida tenuis and Pichia stipitis in whole-cell bioreductions of o-chloroacetophenone: stereoselectivity, cell activity, in situ substrate supply and product removal.

Generally, recombinant and native microorganisms can be employed as whole-cell catalysts. The application of native hosts, however, shortens the process development time by avoiding multiple steps of strain construction. Herein, we studied the NAD(P)H-dependent reduction of o-chloroacetophenone by isolated xylose reductases and their native hosts Candida tenuis and Pichia stipitis.

Antibiotic use in infants in the first year of life in five European countries.

Aim: To assess in infants the number of illness episodes treated with antibiotics and prescription rates in five European countries.

Methods: This study was embedded in a multicenter nutritional intervention study and was conducted in five European countries. Infants were followed until 1 year of age.

Serum retinoic acid and atopy among children of different ethnic origin living in Germany.

We hypothesized that higher provitamin A carotenoid serum levels may be associated with higher concentrations of all-trans retinoic acid (ATRA) and atopy. Concentration of ATRA was measured by high-performance liquid chromatography in sera from German domestic and Turkish migrants' children. ATRA serum levels were significantly higher in German children if compared with Turkish children and correlated with those of β-carotene (rs = 0.

Tolerance and safety evaluation in a large cohort of healthy infants fed an innovative prebiotic formula: a randomized controlled trial.

Background: the addition of oligosaccharides to infant formula has been shown to mimic some of the beneficial effects of human milk. The aim of the study was to assess the tolerance and safety of a formula containing an innovative mixture of oligosaccharides in early infancy.

Methodology/principal Findings: this study was performed as a multi-center, randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial including healthy term infants.

Do prebiotics reduce the number of fever episodes in healthy children in their first year of life: a randomised controlled trial.

The objective of the present study was to assess the effect of adding specific prebiotics to standard formula feeding on the number of fever episodes in the first year of life. In the present randomised, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial in seven centres in five West European countries, 830 healthy term infants, without a first-degree family history of allergic disease, of mothers who indicated to give only formula feeding were randomised either to receive a standard non-hydrolysed cows' milk-based formula to which a mixture of specific oligosaccharides was added (prebiotics group (PG)), or to receive a similar formula without oligosaccharides (control group (CG)). A separate reference group consisted of 300 breast-fed infants.