Ancestral sequence reconstruction of a robust β-1,4-xylanase and efficient expression in Bacillus subtilis.

Xylanases are a class of glycoside hydrolases commonly used in the food, papermaking, and textile industries. However, most xylanases are rapidly inactivated under harsh industrial conditions. Here, a unique and robust GH11 xylanase, AncXyn18, was designed using an ancestral sequence reconstruction strategy, sequence analysis, structure prediction, and experimental verification.

Layered Double Hydroxide-Based PdCu@LDH Alloy Nanozyme for a Singlet Oxygen-Boosted Sonodynamic Therapy.

Redox nanozymes have demonstrated tremendous promise in disrupting cellular homeostasis toward cancer therapy, but a dysfunctional competition of diverse activities makes it normally restricted by the complex tumor microenvironment (TME). As palladium nanocrystals can achieve the precise regulation of the enzyme-like activity by regulating exposed crystal planes, noble metal nanoalloys can enhance the enzyme-like activity by promoting electron transfer and enhanced active sites. Herein, bimetallic nanoalloys with optimized enzymatic activity were intelligently designed the interaction between the Pd and layered double hydroxide, denoted as PdCu@LDH.

Sequence- and Structure-Based Mining of Thermostable D-Allulose 3-Epimerase and Computer-Guided Protein Engineering To Improve Enzyme Activity.

D-Allulose, a functional sweetener, can be synthesized from fructose using D-allulose 3-epimerase (DAEase). Nevertheless, a majority of the reported DAEases have inadequate stability under harsh industrial reaction conditions, which greatly limits their practical applications. In this study, big data mining combined with a computer-guided free energy calculation strategy was employed to discover a novel DAEase with excellent thermostability.

Graphene-based photocatalysts for degradation of organic pollution.

Compared with the traditional wastewater treatment technology, semiconductor photocatalysis is a rapidly emerging environment-friendly and efficient Advanced Oxidation Process for degradation of refractory organic contaminants. Single-component semiconductor photocatalysts exhibit poor photocatalytic performance and cannot meet the requirements of wastewater treatment. The combination of semiconductor photocatalysts and Graphene can effectively improve the photocatalytic activity and stability of semiconductor photocatalysts.

State-of-the-art strategies and research advances for the biosynthesis of D-amino acids.

D-amino acids (D-AAs) are the enantiomeric counterparts of L-amino acids (L-AAs) and important functional factors with a wide variety of physiological activities and applications in the food manufacture industry. Some D-AAs, such as D-Ala, D-Leu, and D-Phe, have been favored by consumers as sweeteners and fragrances because of their unique flavor. The biosynthesis of D-AAs has attracted much attention in recent years due to their unique advantages.

Temperature and pH endurable self-assembled camellia-like nanostructure achieved on zinc sheet with superamphiphobicity for fog harvesting.

Easy-implement and low-cost fabrication of super-hydrophobic/super-oleophobic materials is of great significance for efficient fog harvesting. Herein, we propose a simple two-step procedure based on Cu/1-octadecanethiol (ODT) self-assembled monolayer (SAM) modified zinc plates. Interestingly, the whole process mimics the blooming process of flowers in nature: the deposition of copper particle and the subsequent formation of SAM drives the surface undergo gradually stretches and finally blooms to camellia-like nanostructures.

Substantial Improvement of an Epimerase for the Synthesis of D-Allulose by Biosensor-Based High-Throughput Microdroplet Screening.

Biosynthesis of D-allulose has been achieved using ketose 3-epimerases (KEases), but its application is limited by poor catalytic performance. In this study, we redesigned a genetically encoded biosensor based on a D-allulose-responsive transcriptional regulator for real-time monitoring of D-allulose. An ultrahigh-throughput droplet-based microfluidic screening platform was further constructed by coupling with this D-allulose-detecting biosensor for the directed evolution of the KEases.

Engineering of Acid-Resistant d-Allulose 3-Epimerase for Functional Juice Production.

d-Allulose, a rare sugar and functional sweetener, can be biosynthesized by d-allulose 3-isomerase (DAE). However, most of the reported DAEs exhibit poor resistance under acidic conditions, which severely limited their application. Here, surface charge engineering and random mutagenesis were used to construct a mutant library of CcDAE from H10, combined with high-throughput screening to identify mutants with high activity and resistance under acidic conditions.

Directional immobilization of D-allulose 3-epimerase using SpyTag/SpyCatcher strategy as a robust biocatalyst for synthesizing D-allulose.

D-Allulose, as low-calorie rare sugar, possessed several notable biological activities and was biosynthesized by D-allulose 3-epimerase (DAEase). Here, CcDAE from Clostridium cellulolyticum was successfully immobilization via covalent attachment (RI-CcDAE), and Resin-SpyCatcher/SpyTag-CcDAE modular (DI-CcDAE). Both immobilized CcDAEs exhibited higher thermal and pH stabilities than the free form, and they maintained 80.

Analysis of phosphorus and sulfur effect on soil selenium bioavailability based on diffusive gradients in thin films technique and sequential extraction.

Human intake of selenium (Se) mainly occurs through the food chain, and is largely dependent on the bioavailability of soil Se. Sulfur (S) and phosphorus (P) also as essential nutrients for plants, their antagonistic with Se effects on Se bioavailability should be considered. We conducted pot experiments to investigate the interaction effect on the bioavailability of Se in the soil using a sequential extraction method and diffusive gradients in thin films (DGT).

The auto-oxidative relithiation of spent cathode materials at low temperature environment for efficient and sustainable regeneration.

The reasonable recycling of spent lithium ions batteries is urgently required and beneficial to new energy industry development to approach the "carbon neutral" target. It is urgent to understanding the structural evolution of spent lack lithium cathode materials during direct regeneration technology with low temperatures condition to avoid deficiencies of complex operation in existing technology. Herein, a novel approach was developed for direct regeneration of spent LiCoO materials with a successful structural repair and electrochemical performance recovery, which are composed of auto-oxidative process followed by pre-treatment process of dismantling, soaking and sintering.

Multi-channel cell co-culture for drug development based on glass microfluidic chip-mass spectrometry coupled platform.

Rationale: Cell-based drug assay plays an essential role in drug development. By coupling a microfluidic chip with mass spectrometry (MS), we developed a multifunctional platform. Cell co-culture, cell apoptosis assay, fluorescence and MS detection of intracellular drug absorption could be simultaneously conducted on this platform.

Gender differences in cognitive ability associated with genetic variants of NLGN4.

Neuroligin-4 (NL4), encoded by the NLGN4 gene on the X chromosome, is a neuronal-specific brain membrane protein which plays an important role in the formation of functional presynaptic elements and axon specialization. The genetic variants of NLGN4 affect the biological function of NL4, resulting in the manifestation of different psychiatric disorders. The present study investigates the influence of these genetic variants on cognitive performance.

Positive association of neuroligin-4 gene with nonspecific mental retardation in the Qinba Mountains Region of China.

Objective: Neuroligin-4 is essential for proper brain function. Some studies indicate a close relationship between neuroligin-4 and several human psychiatric conditions.

Methods: The case-control method was used to study the association between nonspecific mental retardation (NSMR) and genetic variants of neuroligin-4 gene (NLGN4).