Structural Insights into the Stability and Recognition Mechanism of the Antiquinalphos Nanobody for the Detection of Quinalphos in Foods.

Nanobodies (Nbs) have great potential in immunoassays due to their exceptional physicochemical properties. With the immortal nature of Nbs and the ability to manipulate their structures using protein engineering, it will become increasingly valuable to understand what structural features of Nbs drive high stability, affinity, and selectivity. Here, we employed an anti-quinalphos Nb as a model to illustrate the structural basis of Nbs' distinctive physicochemical properties and the recognition mechanism.

Hybrid M13 bacteriophage-based vaccine platform for personalized cancer immunotherapy.

Although cancer vaccines exhibit great advances in the field of immunotherapy, developing an efficient vaccine platform for personalized tumor immunotherapy is still a major challenge. Here we demonstrate that a bioactive vaccine platform (HMP@Ag) fabricated with hybrid M13 phage and personal tumor antigens can facilitate delivery of antigens into lymph nodes and activate antigen-presenting cells (APCs) through the Toll-like receptor 9 (TLR9) signaling pathway, which boosts both innate and adaptive immune response. As an adjuvant platform, hybrid M13 phages can deliver various tumor-specific antigens through simple adsorption to support the current development of personalized vaccines for cancers.

Bioinspired nano-vaccine construction by antigen pre-degradation for boosting cancer personalized immunotherapy.

Cancer vaccines-based cancer immunotherapy has drawn widespread concern. However, insufficient cancer antigens and inefficient antigen presentation lead to low immune response rate, which greatly restrict the practical application of cancer vaccines. Here, inspired by intracellular proteasome-mediated protein degradation pathway, we report an antigen presentation simplification strategy by extracellular degradation of antigen proteins into peptides with proteolytic enzyme for improving the utilization of cancer antigens and arousing restricted cancer immunity.

A Strategy Based on the Enzyme-Catalyzed Polymerization Reaction of Asp-Phe-Tyr Tripeptide for Cancer Immunotherapy.

Immunotherapy has provided a promising strategy for the treatment of cancers. However, even in tumors with high antigen burdens, the systemic inhibition of the antigen presentation still greatly restricts the application of immunotherapy. Here, we construct a tumor protein-engineering system based on the functional tripeptide, Asp-Phe-Tyr (DFY), which can automatically collect and deliver immunogenetic tumor proteins from targeted cells to immune cells.

An RGB-emitting molecular cocktail for the detection of bacterial fingerprints.

Accumulating evidence indicates that colonized microbes play a crucial role in regulating health and disease in the human body. Detecting microbes should be essential for understanding the relationship between microbes and diseases, as well as increasing our ability to detect diseases. Here, a combined metabolic labeling strategy was developed to identify different bacterial species and microbiota by the use of three different fluorescent metabolite derivatives emitting red, green, and blue (RGB) fluorescence.

Controllable gelation of artificial extracellular matrix for altering mass transport and improving cancer therapies.

Global alterations in the metabolic network provide substances and energy to support tumor progression. To fuel these metabolic processes, extracellular matrix (ECM) plays a dominant role in supporting the mass transport and providing essential nutrients. Here, we report a fibrinogen and thrombin based coagulation system to construct an artificial ECM (aECM) for selectively cutting-off the tumor metabolic flux.

Enzyme Mimicking Based on the Natural Melanin Particles from Human Hair.

Natural enzymes are mainly composed by the protein part and metallic cofactor part, both of which work cooperatively to achieve high catalytic activity. Here, natural melanin particles (NMPs) were extracted from human hair and further bound with metal ions to mimic natural enzymes. The different metal-bound NMPs (M-NMPs) exhibited different enzyme-like activities with great promise in diverse biomedical applications.

Photo-Powered Artificial Organelles for ATP Generation and Life-Sustainment.

Adenosine triphosphate (ATP) is the most important immediate energy source for driving intracellular biochemical reactions in nearly all life forms. Controllable generation of ATP in life is still an unrealized goal. Here, thylakoid fragments are recombined with lipid molecules to synthesize a synthetic/biological hybrid proteoliposome, named highly efficient life-support intracellular opto-driven system (HELIOS) for the generation of ATP.

Normalizing Tumor Microenvironment Based on Photosynthetic Abiotic/Biotic Nanoparticles.

Tumor hypoxia has attained the status of a core hallmark of cancer that globally affects the entire tumor phenotype. Reversing tumor hypoxia might offer alternative therapeutic opportunities for current anticancer therapies. In this research, a photosynthetic leaf-inspired abiotic/biotic nano-thylakoid (PLANT) system was designed by fusing the thylakoid membrane with synthetic nanoparticles for efficient O generation in vivo.

Effect of piglitazone and metformin on retinol-binding protein-4 and adiponectin in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus complicated with non-alcohol fatty acid liver diseases.

Objective: To compare the effects of piglitazone and metformin on retinol-binding protein-4 (RBP-4) and adiponcetin (APN) in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) complicated with Non alcohol fatty acid liver disease (NAFLD).

Methods: Totally 60 T2DM patients complicated with NAFLD were equally and randomly divided into pioglitazone group and metform group. The levels of biochemical indicators including body mass index (BMI), glucose hemoglobin A1C (GHbA1C), insulin resistance (HOMA-IR), fasting blood glucose (FBG), fasting insulin (FIns), and serum triglycerides (TG) as well as serum RBP-4 and APN level were measured pre-treatment and 12 weeks after treatments.

Generation of transgene-free induced pluripotent stem cells with non-viral methods.

Induced pluripotent stem (iPS) cells were originally generated from mouse fibroblasts by enforced expression of Yamanaka factors (Oct3/4, Sox2, Klf4, and c-Myc). The technique was quickly reproduced with human fibroblasts or mesenchymal stem cells. Although having been showed therapeutic potential in animal models of sickle cell anemia and Parkinson's disease, iPS cells generated by viral methods do not suit all the clinical applications.

Correlation of T lymphocyte subsets with blood glucose level and the first-phase insulin secretion in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus.

Objective: To explore the relationship between the T cell subsets and glucose level and first-phase insulin secretion function in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM).

Methods: We determined the oral glucose tolerance (OGTT), insulin release test(IRT), body mass index(BMI), glycohemoglobin A1c (HbA1c), T lymphocyte subsets (CD4(+),CD8(+)), and activity of natural kill(NK) cell and ⊿I(30)/⊿G(30) in 78 newly diagnosed T2DM patients, 60 impaired glucose tolerance (IGT) patients, and 60 normal controls.

Results: DM and IGT patients had significantly lower levels of CD4(+), CD4(+)/CD8(+)ratio, activity of NK cell, and ⊿I(30)/⊿G(30) and significantly higher levels of HbA1c and CD8(+)compared with normal controls(all P<0.

[The epidemiological study of work-related musculoskeletal disorders and related factors among automobile assembly workers].

Objective: To investigate the work-related musculoskeletal disorders among automobile assembly workers, to discusses the related risk factors and their relationship.

Method: The selected 1508 automobile assembly workers from a north car manufacturing company were regarded as the study object. The hazard zone jobs checklist, Nordic musculoskeletal symptom questionnaire (NMQ) and pain questionnaire were used to perform the epidemiological cross-sectional and retrospective survey and study for the General status, awkward ergonomics factors and related influencing factors, and musculoskeletal disorders of workers.

Model AVSWAT apropos of simulating non-point source pollution in Taihu lake basin.

Accelerated eutrophication and nutrient loads in the lakes are of major concern for human health and environment. This study was undertaken for modeling the non-point source pollution of Taihu lake basin in eastern China. The SWAT model having an interface in ArcView GIS was employed.

[Effect of electroacupuncture on mitochondrial membrane potential and apoptosis in the cerebral cortex in rats with focal cerebral ischemia/reperfusion injury].

Objective: To investigate the effect of electroacupuncture (EA) on mitochondrial membrane potential and neuronal apoptosis in the cerebral cortex of rats with focal cerebral ischemia/reperfusion (CI/R) injury.

Methods: Thirty-six male SD rats were uniformly randomized into sham operation (sham), CI/R and CI/R + EA groups. CI/R model was established by middle cerebral artery occlusion (MCAO) and reperfusion.

[A review on non-point source pollution models].

With the effective control of point source pollution, the non-point source pollution (NPSP) of water environment has been paid more and more attention, and NPSP models are thriving with the development of 3S technology. This paper made a brief introduction about the classification and evolution of NPSP models. Ten NPSP models commonly used abroad were selected and compared, with their software developers and providers, data input and output, pollutant- and sediment types, time scale, simulation progress and characteristics, and model types illustrated.

The effects of Shuxuetong on the pathology of cerebral ischemia-reperfusion injury and GABA and TNF-alpha expression in gerbil models.

Objective To study the protective effect and mechanism of Shuxuetong on gerbil brain tissue from the area of ischemia-reperfusion. Methods Cerebral ischemia-reperfusion animal model has made by transient clipping bilateral common carotid arteries in gerbils. Pathological changes in the hippocampal tissue were observed at different reperfusion time (12h, 3 d, 7 d).

[Effect of DMPP on inorganic nitrogen transformation and leaching in vertical flow of simulated soil column].

Using a multi-layer soil column device, the effect of new nitrification inhibitor DMPP (3,4-dimethyl pyrazole phosphate) on nitrogen leaching was studied for understanding the nitrogen vertical transformation and lowering the nitrogen leaching losses. The results indicate that, within 60 days of experiment, the regular urea added with 1% of DMPP can effectively inhibit the ammonium oxidation in the soil, and improve the concentration of NH4(+) -N in soil solution over the 20 cm tilth profile, while decline the concentrations of NO3(-) -N and N2(-) -N. No obvious difference is found on NH4(+) -N concentrations collected from deep layer soil solution under 20 cm between regular urea and the urea added with 1% of DMPP.