Arginine Metabolism Reprogramming in Perfluorooctanoic Acid (PFOA)-Induced Liver Injury.

Perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) is a persistent pollutant that has gained worldwide attention, owing to its widespread presence in the environment. Previous studies have reported that PFOA upregulates lipid metabolism and is associated with liver injury in humans. However, when the fatty acid degradation pathway is activated, lipid accumulation still occurs, suggesting the presence of unknown pathways and mechanisms that remain to be elucidated.

Biotransformation of Tetrabromobisphenol A and Its Analogs by Selected Gut Bacteria Strains: Implications for Human Health.

Knowledge of the biotransformation of tetrabromobisphenol A (TBBPA) and its related contaminants by human gut microbiota (GM) remains unexplored. Here, TBBPA and its four analogs were incubated with mixed GM strains, and nine rhamnosylated or debrominated transformation products (TPs) were discovered. Remarkably, rhamnosylation was identified as a common and unique microbial transformation pathway for these contaminants, and six of the seven rhamnosylated TPs were reported for the first time.

High-Efficiency Effect-Directed Analysis Leveraging Five High Level Advancements: A Critical Review.

Organic contaminants are ubiquitous in the environment, with mounting evidence unequivocally connecting them to aquatic toxicity, illness, and increased mortality, underscoring their substantial impacts on ecological security and environmental health. The intricate composition of sample mixtures and uncertain physicochemical features of potential toxic substances pose challenges to identify key toxicants in environmental samples. Effect-directed analysis (EDA), establishing a connection between key toxicants found in environmental samples and associated hazards, enables the identification of toxicants that can streamline research efforts and inform management action.

High-compatibility properties of Aronia melanocarpa extracts cross-linked chitosan/polyvinyl alcohol composite film for intelligent food packaging.

Although the active and intelligent properties of rich in anthocyanin extracts added to films have been extensively studied, there remains a sparsity of research pertaining to the miscibility of blended films. This work focused on the miscibility of the chitosan/polyvinyl alcohol (CP) film caused by the addition of Aronia melanocarpa extracts (AME), which are rich anthocyanins and phenolic acids, and its effect on physicochemical and functional properties. AME facilitated the amidation reaction and ionic interaction of chitosan in CP films, leading to loss of the crystallinity degree of chitosan.

Application of Ion Mobility Spectrometry and the Derived Collision Cross Section in the Analysis of Environmental Organic Micropollutants.

Ion mobility spectrometry (IMS) is a rapid gas-phase separation technique, which can distinguish ions on the basis of their size, shape, and charge. The IMS-derived collision cross section (CCS) can serve as additional identification evidence for the screening of environmental organic micropollutants (OMPs). In this work, we summarize the published experimental CCS values of environmental OMPs, introduce the current CCS prediction tools, summarize the use of IMS and CCS in the analysis of environmental OMPs, and finally discussed the benefits of IMS and CCS in environmental analysis.

Environmental Stability and Transmissibility of Enveloped Viruses at Varied Animate and Inanimate Interfaces.

Enveloped viruses have been the leading causative agents of viral epidemics in the past decade, including the ongoing coronavirus disease 2019 outbreak. In epidemics caused by enveloped viruses, direct contact is a common route of infection, while indirect transmissions through the environment also contribute to the spread of the disease, although their significance remains controversial. Bridging the knowledge gap regarding the influence of interfacial interactions on the persistence of enveloped viruses in the environment reveals the transmission mechanisms when the virus undergoes mutations and prevents excessive disinfection during viral epidemics.

Disposable Polypropylene Face Masks: A Potential Source of Micro/Nanoparticles and Organic Contaminates in Humans.

We have been effectively protected by disposable propylene face masks during the COVID-19 pandemic; however, they may pose health risks due to the release of fine particles and chemicals. We measured micro/nanoparticles and organic chemicals in disposable medical masks, surgical masks, and (K)N95 respirators. In the breathing-simulation experiment, no notable differences were found in the total number of particles among mask types or between breathing intensities.

Virus-like particle-based nanocarriers as an emerging platform for drug delivery.

New nanocarrier technologies are emerging, and they have great potential for improving drug delivery, targeting efficiency and bioavailability. Virus-like particles (VLPs) are natural nanoparticles from animal and plant viruses and bacteriophages. Hence, VLPs present several great advantages, such as morphological uniformity, biocompatibility, reduced toxicity and easy functionalisation.

Disturbed Gut-Liver axis indicating oral exposure to polystyrene microplastic potentially increases the risk of insulin resistance.

Human uptake abundance of microplastics via various pathways, and they accumulate in human liver, kidney, gut and even placenta (especially with a diameter of 1 μm or less). Recent scientific studies have found that exposure to microplastics causes intestinal inflammation and liver metabolic disorder, but it remains largely unknown that whether the damage and inflammation may cause further development of severe diseases. In this study, we discovered one of such potential diseases that may be induced by the exposure to small-sized microplastics (with a diameter of 1 μm) performing a multi-organ and multi-omics study comprising metabolomics and microbiome approaches.

Delivery of RGD-modified liposome as a targeted colorectal carcinoma therapy and its autophagy mechanism.

Liposomes are among the most extensively applied drug carriers due to their excellent biocompatibility, controllable size and ease of modification. In the present study, we prepared untargeted liposomes (LP) and targeting liposomes modified with Arg-Gly-Asp (RGD-LP), and Doxorubicin Hydrochloride (DOX) or fluorescent probe was loaded. RGD-LP/DOX was identified to be uniformly spherical in size 131.

sp. nov., a New Species Causing Foliage Spot of Rubber Tree in China.

A new species of causing leaf spots on the rubber tree () in Yunnan, China, was isolated, examined, and illustrated. Morphologically, it belongs to the section of , which produces relatively large conidia and a simple or branched, filamentous long beak. It is, however, characterized by conidiophores gradually enlarging near the apex into a clavate conidiogenous cell and long ellipsoid to obclavate, smooth-walled conidia with a long filamentous beak.

Ultrathin Lanthanum Tantalate Perovskite Nanosheets Modified by Nitrogen Doping for Efficient Photocatalytic Water Splitting.

Ultrathin nitrogen-doped perovskite nanosheets LaTaON have been fabricated by exfoliating Dion-Jacobson-type layered perovskite RbLaTaON. These nanosheets demonstrate superior photocatalytic activities for water splitting into hydrogen and oxygen and remain active with photon wavelengths as far as 600 nm. Their apparent quantum efficiency under visible-light illumination (λ ≥ 420 nm) approaches 1.

Homologous Compounds ZnInO (n = 4, 5, and 7) Containing Laminated Functional Groups as Efficient Photocatalysts for Hydrogen Production.

Strong visible light absorption and high charge mobility are desirable properties for an efficient photocatalyst, yet they are hard to be realized simultaneously in a single semiconductor compound. In this work, we demonstrate that these properties coexist in homologous compounds ZnInO (n = 4, 5, and 7) with a peculiar layered structure that combines optical active segment and electrical conductive segment together. Their enhanced visible light absorption originates from tetrahedrally or trigonal-bipyramidally coordinated In atoms in Zn(In)O layers which enable p-d hybridization between In 4d and O 2p orbitals so that valence band minimum (VBM) is uplifted with a reduced band gap.

Structural dependence of the photocatalytic properties of double perovskite compounds A2InTaO6 (A = Sr or Ba) doped with nickel.

The crystal structure of photocatalysts generally plays a pivotal role in controlling their electronic structure as well as catalytic performance. In this work, a series of double perovskite compounds A2InTaO6 (A = Sr or Ba) and their Ni doped counterparts were investigated with the aim of understanding how doping and structural modification will affect their photocatalytic activity. Our results show that Ni doping is effective in improving the optical absorption of these wide band gap semiconductors and accommodating the Sr cation in the A sites leads to severe structural distortion, i.

Quinary wurtzite Zn-Ga-Ge-N-O solid solutions and their photocatalytic properties under visible light irradiation.

Wurtzite solid solutions between GaN and ZnO highlight an intriguing paradigm for water splitting into hydrogen and oxygen using solar energy. However, large composition discrepancy often occurs inside the compound owing to the volatile nature of Zn, thereby prescribing rigorous terms on synthetic conditions. Here we demonstrate the merits of constituting quinary Zn-Ga-Ge-N-O solid solutions by introducing Ge into the wurtzite framework.

Bismuth and chromium co-doped strontium titanates and their photocatalytic properties under visible light irradiation.

Modification of prototype perovskite compound SrTiO3 by introducing foreign elements has been an appealing means to endow this wide band gap semiconductor with visible light responses. Here we systematically investigated a series of Sr1-xBixTi1-xCrxO3 solid solution compounds prepared by two different synthetic routes, namely, solid state reactions and the hydrothermal method. Their crystal structures as well as other physicochemical properties were explored.

Photocatalytic Hydrogen Production over Chromium Doped Layered Perovskite Sr2TiO4.

Layered semiconductor photocatalysts have been found to exhibit promising performance levels, probably linked to their interlayer framework that facilitates separation of charge carriers and the reduction/oxidation reactions. Layered titanates, however, generally demonstrate activities under UV irradiation, and therein lies the strong desire to extend their activity into the visible light region. Here, we investigated a series of layered perovskite by doping Sr2TiO4 with Cr and/or La in the hope to improve their visible light responses.

Efficient charge separation based on type-II g-C3N4/TiO2-B nanowire/tube heterostructure photocatalysts.

Separation of photo-generated charges has played a crucial role in controlling the actual performance of a photocatalytic system. Here we have successfully fabricated g-C3N4/TiO2-B nanowire/tube heterostructures through facile urea degradation reactions. Owing to the effective separation of photo-generated charges associated with the type-II band alignment and intimate interfacial contacts between g-C3N4 and TiO2-B nanowires/tubes, such heterostructures demonstrate an improved photocatalytic activity over individual moieties.