Preparation, characterization, and anticancer effects of an inclusion complex of coixol with β-cyclodextrin polymers.

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Airway dysbiosis accelerates lung function decline in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.

Progressive lung function decline is a hallmark of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). Airway dysbiosis occurs in COPD, but whether it contributes to disease progression remains unknown. Here, we show, through a longitudinal analysis of two cohorts involving four UK centers, that baseline airway dysbiosis in COPD patients, characterized by the enrichment of opportunistic pathogenic taxa, associates with a rapid forced expiratory volume in 1 s (FEV) decline over 2 years.

Liberation of daidzein by gut microbial β-galactosidase suppresses acetaminophen-induced hepatotoxicity in mice.

Acetaminophen (APAP) overdose is a leading cause of drug-induced liver injury (DILI). The impact of the gut microbiota and associated metabolites on APAP and liver function remains unclear. We show that APAP disturbance is associated with a distinct gut microbial community, with notable decreases in Lactobacillus vaginalis.

Pregnancy-induced changes to the gut microbiota drive macrophage pyroptosis and exacerbate septic inflammation.

The physiological and immune changes that occur during pregnancy are associated with worsened disease outcomes during infection and sepsis. How these perturbations exacerbate inflammation has not been explored. Here, using antibiotic treatment and fecal microbial transfers, we showed that sepsis susceptibility is driven by pregnancy-induced changes to gut microbiome in mice and humans.

Multi-omics analyses of airway host-microbe interactions in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease identify potential therapeutic interventions.

The mechanistic role of the airway microbiome in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) remains largely unexplored. We present a landscape of airway microbe-host interactions in COPD through an in-depth profiling of the sputum metagenome, metabolome, host transcriptome and proteome from 99 patients with COPD and 36 healthy individuals in China. Multi-omics data were integrated using sequential mediation analysis, to assess in silico associations of the microbiome with two primary COPD inflammatory endotypes, neutrophilic or eosinophilic inflammation, mediated through microbial metabolic interaction with host gene expression.

Nanomedicines for Near-Infrared Fluorescent Lifetime-Based Bioimaging.

Nanomedicines refer to the application of nanotechnology in disease diagnosis, treatment, and monitoring. Bioimaging provides crucial biological information for disease diagnosis and treatment monitoring. Fluorescent bioimaging shows the advantages of good contrast and a vast variety of signal readouts and yet suffers from imaging depth due to the background noise from the autofluorescence of tissue and light scattering.

Nanomedicines: A Potential Treatment for Blood Disorder Diseases.

Blood disorder diseases (BDDs), also known as hematologic, is one of the diseases owing to hematopoietic system disorder. Chemotherapy, bone marrow transplantation, and stem cells therapy have been used to treat BDDs. However, the cure rates are still low due to the availability of the right type of bone marrow and the likelihood of recurrence and infection.

Newly-Engineered Materials for Bio-Imaging Technology: A Focus on the Hybrid System of Ultrasound and Fluorescence.

As an emerging technique, ultrasound-modulated fluorescence (UMF), or ultrasound switchable fluorescence (USF) bioimaging has shown promising features to produce deep-tissue and high-resolution fluorescence imaging for biomedical research and health diagnosis. The success of UMF or USF heavily relies on the design of their contrast agents (CAs). We herein surveyed recent advances in the development of such unique CAs, including configuration, mechanism, stability, sensitivity, and selectivity.

High-Resolution Ultrasound-Switchable Fluorescence Imaging in Centimeter-Deep Tissue Phantoms with High Signal-To-Noise Ratio and High Sensitivity via Novel Contrast Agents.

For many years, investigators have sought after high-resolution fluorescence imaging in centimeter-deep tissue because many interesting in vivo phenomena-such as the presence of immune system cells, tumor angiogenesis, and metastasis-may be located deep in tissue. Previously, we developed a new imaging technique to achieve high spatial resolution in sub-centimeter deep tissue phantoms named continuous-wave ultrasound-switchable fluorescence (CW-USF). The principle is to use a focused ultrasound wave to externally and locally switch on and off the fluorophore emission from a small volume (close to ultrasound focal volume).

Development of Ultrasound-switchable Fluorescence Imaging Contrast Agents based on Thermosensitive Polymers and Nanoparticles.

In this work we first introduced a recently developed high-resolution, deep-tissue imaging technique, ultrasound-switchable fluorescence (USF). The imaging principles based on two types of USF contrast agents were reviewed. To improve USF imaging techniques further, excellent USF contrast agents were developed based on high-performance thermoresponsive polymers and environment-sensitive fluorophores.

Ultrasound-modulated fluorescence based on donor-acceptor-labeled microbubbles.

A fluorescence resonance energy transfer (FRET)-based microbubble contrast agent system was designed to experimentally demonstrate the concept of ultrasound-modulated fluorescence (UMF). Microbubbles were simultaneously labeled with donor and acceptor fluorophores on the surface to minimize self-quenching and maximize FRET. In response to ultrasound, the quenching efficiency was greatly modulated by changing the distance between the donor and acceptor molecules through microbubble size oscillations.

Re-evaluation of biotin-streptavidin conjugation in Förster resonance energy transfer applications.

Bioaffinity conjugation between streptavidin (SA) and biotin has been widely used to link donors and acceptors for investigating the distance-dependent Förster resonance energy transfer (FRET). When studying a commonly used FRET system of (QD-SA)-(biotin-DNA-dye) [donor: quantum dot (QD); acceptor: small organic fluorescent dye; and linker: deoxyribose nucleic acid (DNA) molecule via SA-biotin conjugation], however, a contradictory finding was recently reported in the literature. It was found that the FRET lost its dependence on the number of DNA base pairs when using a phosphate-buffered saline (PBS) solution.

Ultrasound-modulated fluorescence based on fluorescent microbubbles.

Ultrasound-modulated fluorescence (UMF) imaging has been proposed to provide fluorescent contrast while maintaining ultrasound resolution in an optical-scattering medium (such as biological tissue). The major challenge is to extract the weakly modulated fluorescent signal from a bright and unmodulated background. UMF was experimentally demonstrated based on fluorophore-labeled microbubble contrast agents.

High resolution imaging beyond the acoustic diffraction limit in deep tissue via ultrasound-switchable NIR fluorescence.

Fluorescence imaging in deep tissue with high spatial resolution is highly desirable because it can provide details about tissue's structural, functional, and molecular information. Unfortunately, current fluorescence imaging techniques are limited either in penetration depth (microscopy) or spatial resolution (diffuse light based imaging) as a result of strong light scattering in deep tissue. To overcome this limitation, we developed an ultrasound-switchable fluorescence (USF) imaging technique whereby ultrasound was used to switch on/off the emission of near infrared (NIR) fluorophores.

Structure-dependent mitochondrial dysfunction and hypoxia induced with single-walled carbon nanotubes.

Cytotoxicity of nanomaterials on living systems is known to be affected by their size, shape, surface chemistry, and other physicochemical properties. Exposure to a well-characterized subpopulation of specific nanomaterials is therefore desired to reveal more detailed mechanisms. This study develops scalable density gradient ultracentrifugation sorting of highly dispersed single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWNTs) into four distinct bands based on diameter, aggregation, and structural integrity, with greatly improved efficiency, yield, and reproducibility.

A visualized observation of calcium-dependent gelsolin activity upon the surface coverage of fluorescent-tagged actin filaments.

Gelsolin regulates the dynamics of F-actin by binding to F-actin to sever and cap. In the present study, a novel approach is introduced to observe gelsolin activity through the coverage of surface-bound F-actin. Gelsolin was immobilized on streptavidin coated surface using biotinylation and, as a result, the interaction between gelsolin and F-actin was visualized.

Rapid and efficient sonochemical formation of gold nanoparticles under ambient conditions using functional alkoxysilane.

Gold nanoparticles (NPs) are rapidly and efficiently formed under ambient conditions with a novel and highly-efficient sonochemical promoter. Despite of the presence of free oxygen, 3-glycidoxypropyltrimethoxysilane (GPTMS) showed remarkable efficiency in promoting the reduction rate of Au (III) than that of conventional promoters (primary alcohols). This is likely attributed to the formation of a variety of radical scavengers, which are alcoholic products from sonochemical hydrolysis of the epoxide group and methoxysilane moieties of GPTMS under weakly acidic conditions.

Label-free electrochemical measurement of protein tyrosine kinase activity and inhibition based on electro-catalyzed tyrosine signaling.

A novel label-free electrochemical method for measuring the activity of protein tyrosine kinases (PTK) has been developed. Epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR), a typical PTK associated with a large percentage of all solid tumors, was used as the model kinase. Poly(glu, tyr) (4:1) peptide, as a substrate of EGFR, was covalently immobilized on the surface of indium tin oxide (ITO) electrode by silane chemistry.

Selective attachment of F-actin with controlled length for developing an intelligent nanodevice.

Development of the nanodevice that myosin-coated beads "walk" on actin filaments (F-actin) tracks for in vitro nanotransportation was hindered due to the difficulty of assembling large-area well-orientated F-actin tracks on the surface. In this work, we present a selective attachment of F-actin with controlled length on a patterned surface by employing biotinylated capped protein gelsolin as intermediate anchoring bridge. A patterned streptavidin layer was formed via coupling with a biotin layer that photo-actively attached to an amine-functionalized glass surface.

Development of redox-labeled electrochemical immunoassay for polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons with controlled surface modification and catalytic voltammetric detection.

A redox-labeled direct competitive electrochemical immunoassay for polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) was developed. A ruthenium tris(bipyridine)-pyrenebutyric acid conjugate was synthesized as the redox-labeled tracer. Its recognition by an anti-PAH monoclonal antibody was confirmed by surface plasmon resonance.

Multiple DNA binding modes of a metallointercalator revealed by DNA film voltammetry.

Binding and the redox reaction of the metallointercalator Ru(bpy)2(dppz)2+ (bpy = 2,2'-bipyridine, dppz = dipyrido[3,2-a:2',3'-c]phenazine) with DNA was investigated by DNA film voltammetry. Calf-thymus DNA (CT-DNA) was assembled on a tin-doped indium oxide electrode by layer-by-layer electrostatic adsorption. Voltammetry of Ru(bpy)2(dppz)2+ (Ru-dppz) bound to the DNA film was measured in a redox-free electrolyte and showed strong dependence on the concentration of the metallointercalator.

Photoelectrochemical oxidation of DNA by ruthenium tris(bipyridine) on a tin oxide nanoparticle electrode.

Selective photoelectrochemical oxidation of DNA was achieved by ruthenium tris(bipyridine) immobilized on a tin oxide nanoparticle electrode. The metal complex was covalently attached to a protein, avidin, which adsorbed strongly on the tin oxide electrode by electrostatic interaction. Upon irradiation with 473-nm light, anodic photocurrent was generated in a blank electrolyte and was enhanced significantly after addition of poly(guanadylic acid) (poly-G) into the electrolyte.