Screening of MnO with desired facet and its behavior in highly selective adsorption of aqueous Pb (II): Theoretical and experimental studies.

In this study, Density Functional Theory (DFT) calculations and experimental methods were adopted to evaluate MnO with 5 different facets for their selective adsorption of Pb (II) from wastewater containing Cd (II), Cu (II), Pb (II), and Zn (II). The DFT calculations were performed to screen the selective adsorption capability of the facets and demonstrated that the MnO (3 1 0) facet has an excellent performance in selective adsorption of Pb (II) among all facets. The validity of DFT calculations was verified by comparing with the experimental results.

Recent Advances in Graphitic Carbon Nitride Based Electro-Catalysts for CO Reduction Reactions.

The electrocatalytic carbon dioxide reduction reaction is an effective means of combating the greenhouse effect caused by massive carbon dioxide emissions. Carbon nitride in the graphitic phase (g-CN) has excellent chemical stability and unique structural properties that allow it to be widely used in energy and materials fields. However, due to its relatively low electrical conductivity, to date, little effort has been made to summarize the application of g-CN in the electrocatalytic reduction of CO.

Computational screening of effective g-CN based single atom electrocatalysts for the selective conversion of CO.

Two-dimensional (2D) material-based single-atom catalysts (SACs) have demonstrated their potential in electrochemical reduction reactions but exploring suitable 2D material-based SACs for the CO reduction reaction (CORR) by experiments is still a formidable task. In this study, theoretical screening of transition metal (TM)-doped graphitic carbon nitride (g-CN) materials as catalysts for the CORR was systematically performed based on density functional theory (DFT) calculations. An indicator for the selective formation of one carbon (C1) products was developed to screen catalysts that are active and selective in the CORR.

Adsorptive removal of organic dyes via porous materials for wastewater treatment in recent decades: A review on species, mechanisms and perspectives.

Organic dyes, a type of high toxic and carcinogenic chemicals that present severe threats to human and aquatic life, are the most commonly seen organic pollutants in wastewater of industries such as textile, rubber, cosmetic industry etc. Various techniques for the removal of dyes are compared in this review. Adsorption has proven to be a facile and promising approach for the removal of dyes in wastewater.

Mitophagy in the basolateral amygdala mediates increased anxiety induced by aversive social experience.

Psychosocial stress is a common risk factor for anxiety disorders. The cellular mechanism for the anxiogenic effect of psychosocial stress is largely unclear. Here, we show that chronic social defeat (CSD) stress in mice causes mitochondrial impairment, which triggers the PINK1-Parkin mitophagy pathway selectively in the amygdala.

Dysbindin-1 regulates mitochondrial fission and gamma oscillations.

Mitochondria are cellular ATP generators. They are dynamic structures undergoing fission and fusion. While much is known about the mitochondrial fission machinery, the mechanism of initiating fission and the significance of fission to neurophysiology are largely unclear.

The Projection From Ventral CA1, Not Prefrontal Cortex, to Nucleus Accumbens Core Mediates Recent Memory Retrieval of Cocaine-Conditioned Place Preference.

Drug-paired cues inducing memory retrieval by expressing drug-seeking behaviors present a major challenge to drug abstinence. How neural circuits coordinate for drug memory retrieval remains unclear. Here, we report that exposure of the training chamber where cocaine-conditioned place preference (CPP) was performed increased neuronal activity in the core of nucleus accumbens (AcbC), ventral CA1 (vCA1), and medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC), as shown by elevated pERK and c-Fos levels.

Autophagy controls the induction and developmental decline of NMDAR-LTD through endocytic recycling.

NMDA receptor-dependent long-term depression (NMDAR-LTD) is a long-lasting form of synaptic plasticity. Its expression is mediated by the removal of AMPA receptors from postsynaptic membranes. Under basal conditions, endocytosed AMPA receptors are rapidly recycled back to the plasma membrane.

[Therapeutic effect on post-stroke spastic paralysis of upper extremity treated with combination of kinematic-acupuncture therapy and rehabilitation training].

Objective: To compare the clinical therapeutic effect on post-stroke spastic paralysis of the upper extremity between the combination of kinematic-acupuncture therapy and rehabilitation training and the combined treatment of the conventional acupuncture with rehabilitation training.

Methods: A total of 60 patients of post-stroke spastic paralysis of the upper extremity at the non-acute stage were randomized into an observation group (30 cases) and a control group (30 cases, 1 case dropped off). On the base of the routine western medication and rehabilitation treatment, the kinematic-acupuncture therapy was added in the observation group and the conventional acupuncture was used in the control group.

A ventral CA1 to nucleus accumbens core engram circuit mediates conditioned place preference for cocaine.

The importance of neuronal ensembles, termed engram cells, in storing and retrieving memory is increasingly being appreciated, but less is known about how these engram cells operate within neural circuits. Here we tagged engram cells in the ventral CA1 region of the hippocampus (vCA1) and the core of the nucleus accumbens (AcbC) during cocaine conditioned place preference (CPP) training and show that the vCA1 engram projects preferentially to the AcbC and that the engram circuit from the vCA1 to the AcbC mediates memory recall. Direct activation of the AcbC engram while suppressing the vCA1 engram is sufficient for cocaine CPP.

[Mechanism of Synergistic Adsorption of Arsenic and Cadmium by Aluminium-substituted Ferrihydrites].

The synergistic process and mechanism of aluminum (Al)-substituted ferrihydrites on arsenic[As(Ⅴ)] and cadmium[Cd(Ⅱ)] were studied under laboratory conditions. The results showed that synergistic adsorption and coprecipitation of As and Cd by Al-substituted ferrihydrites was clearly affected by both the pH of solution and the order in which heavy metals were added. The solution in which As co-existed with Cd for 72 hours, at a pH of 6.

Release of cadmium in contaminated paddy soil amended with NPK fertilizer and lime under water management.

Agricultural soils contaminated with cadmium (Cd) pose a risk to receiving surface water via drainage or runoff. A 90-day laboratory incubation experiment was conducted to investigate the release characteristics and transformation of Cd from contaminated paddy soil amended with agrochemical (NPK fertilizer) and lime (L) under water management regimes of continuous flooding (F) and drying-wetting cycles (DW). The result showed that the dissolved Cd concentrations in overlying water of the fertilizer treatment under flooding (NPK+F) and drying-wetting (NPK+DW) reached up to 81.

β1-Adrenoceptor in the Central Amygdala Is Required for Unconditioned Stimulus-Induced Drug Memory Reconsolidation.

Background: Drug memories become labile and reconsolidated after retrieval by presentation of environmental cues (conditioned stimulus) or drugs (unconditioned stimulus). Whether conditioned stimulus and unconditioned stimulus retrieval trigger different memory reconsolidation processes is not clear.

Methods: Protein synthesis inhibitor or β-adrenergic receptor (β-AR) antagonist was systemically administrated or intra-central amygdala infused immediately after cocaine reexposure in cocaine-conditioned place preference or self-administration mice models.

Unconditioned- and Conditioned- Stimuli Induce Differential Memory Reconsolidation and β-AR-Dependent CREB Activation.

Consolidated long-term fear memories become labile and reconsolidated upon retrieval by the presentation of conditioned stimulus (CS) or unconditioned stimulus (US). Whether CS-retrieval or US-retrieval will trigger different memory reconsolidation processes is unknown. In this study, we introduced a sequential fear conditioning paradigm in which footshock (FS) was paired with two distinct sounds (CS-A and CS-B).

Drug-seeking motivation level in male rats determines offspring susceptibility or resistance to cocaine-seeking behaviour.

Liability to develop drug addiction is heritable, but the precise contribution of non-Mendelian factors is not well understood. Here we separate male rats into addiction-like and non-addiction-like groups, based on their incentive motivation to seek cocaine. We find that the high incentive responding of the F0 generation could be transmitted to F1 and F2 generations.

Response of soil microbial activities and microbial community structure to vanadium stress.

High levels of vanadium (V) have long-term, hazardous impacts on soil ecosystems and biological processes. In the present study, the effects of V on soil enzymatic activities, basal respiration (BR), microbial biomass carbon (MBC), and the microbial community structure were investigated through 12-week greenhouse incubation experiments. The results showed that V content affected soil dehydrogenase activity (DHA), BR, and MBC, while urease activity (UA) was less sensitive to V stress.

Lack of β2-AR Increases Anxiety-Like Behaviors and Rewarding Properties of Cocaine.

It is well known that β-adrenoceptors (β-ARs) play a critical role in emotional arousal and stressful events, but the specific contributions of the β2-AR subtype to the psychological disorders are largely unknown. To investigate whether β2-AR are involved in anxiety-like behavior and reward to addictive drugs, we conducted a series of behavioral tests on β2-AR knock-out (KO) mice. β2-AR KO mice exhibited increased preference for the dark compartment and closed arm in tests of Light/Dark box and elevated plus maze, indicating that β2-AR deletion elevates level of anxiety or innate fear.

[Study on synergic and decreasing toxic effects of mineral water and Chinese herbal compound preparation on cisplatin].

Objective: The synergic and decreasing toxic effects of mineral water and Chinese herbal compound preparation (MWCHCP) on cisplatin were investigated in sarcoma 180 (S180) mice.

Method: The S180 mice were treated for 5 days with intraperitoneal injection of cisplatin(7.33 mg x kg(-1)) and oral administration of MWCHCP(1 925, 3 850, 7 700 mg x kg(-1)).