Ratiometric fluorescent aptasensor based on DNA-gated FeO@Uio-66-NH and Exo I-assisted signal amplification.

Background: Ochratoxin A (OTA) is toxic secondary metabolites produced by fungi and can pose a serious threat to food safety and human health. Due to the high stability and toxicity, OTA contamination in agricultural products is of great concern. Therefore, the development of a highly sensitive and reliable OTA detection method is crucial to ensure food safety.

Applying hollow octahedron PtNPs/Pd-CuO nanozyme and highly conductive AuPtNPs/Ni-Co NCs to colorimetric -electrochemical dual-mode aptasensor for AFB1 detection.

Background: Aflatoxin B1 (AFB1) is a secondary metabolite produced by Aspergillus flavus and Aspergillus parasiticus. This toxin is highly carcinogenic and toxic, posing a serious threat to human and animal health. AFB1 primarily enters the human body through contaminated food, particularly peanuts, corn, nuts, and wheat.

Physiological Responses of and to Combined Stress of Diesel Fuel and Sr Stress in Soil.

Diesel spills and nuclides pollution cause global ecosystem and human health problems. The remediation of contaminated soil using woody plants has received considerable attention. Differences in plant species and sex can lead to differences in tolerance to various stressors.

Disorders: Basics of Biology and Therapeutics in Development.

Fragile X Syndrome (FXS) presents with a constellation of phenotypes, including trouble regulating emotion and aggressive behaviors, disordered sleep, intellectual impairments, and atypical physical development. Genetic study of the X chromosome revealed that substantial repeat expansion of the 5' end of the gene fragile X messenger ribonucleoprotein 1 () promoted DNA methylation and, consequently, silenced expression of . Further analysis proved that shorter repeat expansions in also manifested in disease at later stages in life.

An aptasensor consisting of the integrated MOF-derived Zn-MOF-on-Co-MOF coupled with AuNPs nanocomposites and aptamer for ultrasensitive assay of fipronil.

The conductivity of Zn-MOF-on-Co-MOF synthesized by one-pot method is improved by searching for the optimum carbonization temperature, which overcomes the limitation of traditional MOF. In order to further enhance electron transfer, the mesoporous PtPdCo trimetal was introduced, which provided considerable load capacity for methylene blue (MB) and reverse complementary DNA (sDNA), and also showed excellent catalytic activity for MB. In this study, the conductivity of aptasensor was improved by modifying carbonized MOF as the base material.

Conformational transitions of Streptococcus pyogenes Cas9 induced by salt and single-guide RNA binding.

Streptococcus pyogenes (Sp) Cas9 has been widely utilized to edit genomes across diverse species. To achieve high efficiency and specificity as a gene-editing enzyme, Sp Cas9 undergoes a series of sequential conformational changes during substrate binding and catalysis. Here, we employed single-molecule FRET techniques to investigate the effect of different KCl concentrations on conformational dynamics of Sp Cas9 in the presence or the absence of a single-guide RNA (sgRNA).

Electrochemistry-glucosemeter-smartphone integrated multi-mode biosensor for accurate detection of aflatoxin B1.

Background: Aflatoxin B1 (AFB1) is a widely distributed toxic contaminant in food and poses a serious threat to public health. Therefore, an accurate, simple, cost-effective and on-site assay method is needed for sensitive detection of AFB1. Aptamer shows great potential in the construction of biosensor due to its high specificity and affinity.

Regulation of Milk Fat Synthesis: Key Genes and Microbial Functions.

Milk is rich in a variety of essential nutrients, including fats, proteins, and trace elements that are important for human health. In particular, milk fat has an alleviating effect on diseases such as heart disease and diabetes. Fatty acids, the basic units of milk fat, play an important role in many biological reactions in the body, including the involvement of glycerophospholipids and sphingolipids in the formation of cell membranes.

Composite of knitted fabric and soft matrix. I. Crack growth in the course direction.

A composite of a knitted fabric and a soft matrix enables applications that require low stiffness and high crack resistance. Examples include heart valves and stretchable strain sensors. Here we study processes of crack growth in such a composite under monotonic and cyclic stretch.

Aged hippocampal single-cell atlas screening unveils disrupted neuroglial system in postoperative cognitive impairment.

Glia-neuron interaction is a crucial feature in aged hippocampus during the occurrence of postoperative cognitive impairment. However, the regulatory effects of microglia, astrocytes, and oligodendrocytes in this glia-neuron interaction, the potential mechanisms and gene targets are still to be elucidated. Here, single-cell RNA sequencing was performed to detect the perioperative genomic expression characteristics of neuroglial system in the hippocampus of aged mice, and to investigate the potential cross-cellular mechanisms and valuable treatment options for glia-neuron interaction-related cognitive impairment.

Unveiling the fundamentals of flow boiling heat transfer enhancement on structured surfaces.

Micro- and nanostructured surfaces offer the potential to enhance two-phase heat transfer. However, the mechanisms behind these enhancements are not well-understood due to insufficient diagnostic methods, leading to reliance on trial-and-error surface development. We introduce in situ boroscopy to investigate microscale bubble dynamics during flow boiling nucleation and subsequent flow regime development.

A bifunctional MXene@PtPd NPs cascade DNAzyme-mediated fluorescence/colorimetric dual-mode biosensor for Pb determination.

Pb has numerous sources in cosmetics, industrial pollution and other environments. Therefore, sensitive and accurate detection of Pb content is extremely important in food safety. In this work, bifunctional nanomaterials TiC@PtPd NPs with fluorescence quenching effect and peroxidase activity were prepared by in situ growth of platinum‑palladium nanoparticles (PtPd NPs) on the surface of 2D material TiC.

A novel method for quality evaluation of Radix Angelica sinensis based on molecularly imprinted electrochemical sensor.

Rapid and sensitive detection of n-butylidenephthalide (NBP) is crucial for quality control of Radix Angelica Sinensis (RAS) and its related pharmaceuticals due to their shared pharmacological effects, such as immune enhancement and anti-tumor properties. Current detection methods struggle to quantify NBP quickly and accurately. A molecularly imprinted polymer (MIP)-based electrochemical sensor has been developed, forming a film on PCN-222(Fe) via electropolymerization for the rapid and selective detection of NBP.

Bionic Multi-Legged Robots with Flexible Bodies: Design, Motion, and Control.

Bionic multi-legged robots with flexible bodies embody human ingenuity in imitating, learning, and exploring the natural world. In contrast to rigid-body robots, these robots with flexible bodies exhibit superior locomotive capabilities. The flexible body of the robot not only boosts the moving speed and walking stability but also enhances adaptability across complex terrains.

Fecal microbiota and metabolites in the pathogenesis and precision medicine for inflammatory bowel disease.

Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) is a chronic inflammatory disorder of the gastrointestinal tract, and its pathogenesis is believed to be associated with an imbalance between commensal organisms and the intestinal immune system. This imbalance is significantly influenced by the intestinal microbiota and metabolites and plays a critical role in maintaining intestinal mucosal homeostasis. However, disturbances in the intestinal microbiota cause dysregulated immune responses and consequently induce intestinal inflammation.

Mechanistic Basis for a Single Amino Acid Residue Mutation Causing Human DNA Ligase 1 Deficiency, A Rare Pediatric Disease.

In mammalian cells, DNA ligase 1 (LIG1) functions as the primary DNA ligase in both genomic replication and single-strand break repair. Several reported mutations in human LIG1, including R305Q, R641L, and R771W, cause LIG1 syndrome, a primary immunodeficiency. While the R641L and R771W mutations, respectively located in the nucleotidyl transferase and oligonucleotide binding domains, have been biochemically characterized and shown to reduce catalytic efficiency, the recently reported R305Q mutation within the DNA binding domain (DBD) remains mechanistically unexplored.

Development of a Superhydrophobic Protection Mechanism and Coating Materials for Cement Concrete Surfaces.

In order to further enhance the erosion resistance of cement concrete pavement materials, this study constructed an apparent rough hydrophobic structure layer by spraying a micro-nano substrate coating on the surface layer of the cement concrete pavement. This was followed by a secondary spray of a hydroxy-silicone oil-modified epoxy resin and a low surface energy-modified substance paste, which combine to form a superhydrophobic coating. The hydrophobic mechanism of the coating was then analysed.

Direction Modulation of Intramolecular Electric Field Boosts Hole Transport in Phthalocyanines for Perovskite Solar Cells.

Tuning the strength of intramolecular electric field (IEF) in conjugated molecules has emerged as an effective approach to boost charge transfer. While direction manipulation of IEF would be a potential way that is still unclear. Here, we leverage the control of peripheral substituents of conjugated phthalocyanines to chemically tune the spatial orientation of IEF.

Label-free ratiometric fluorescence detection of Pb structure-specific fluorescent dyes and dual signal amplification.

Lead ions (Pb) are a widely distributed and highly toxic heavy metal pollutant, which seriously threatens the environment, economy and human safety. Here, a label-free ratiometric fluorescent biosensor was constructed for Pb detection using DNAzyme-driven target cycling and exonuclease III (Exo III)-mediated DNA cycling as a dual signal amplification strategy. The SYBR Green I (SGI) and -methyl mesoporphyrin IX (NMM) used in this study are characterized by low cost, storage resistance, and short preparation time compared with conventional signaling probes labeled with fluorescent groups.

Triple-helix molecular-switch-actuated rolling circle amplification and catalytic hairpin assembly multistage signal amplified fluorescent aptasensor for detection of aflatoxin B1.

Background: Mycotoxins, a class of secondary metabolites produced by molds, are widely distributed in nature and are very common in food contamination. Aflatoxin B1 (AFB1) is a highly stable natural mycotoxin, and many agricultural products are easily contaminated by AFB1, it is important to establish a sensitive and efficient AFB1 detection method for food safety. The fluorescence aptamer sensor has shown satisfactory performance in AFB1 detection, but most of the fluorescence aptasensors are not sensitive enough, so improving the sensitivity of the aptasensor becomes the focus of this work.

Potential vicious cycle between postoperative pain and sleep disorders: A bibliometric analysis.

Background: Surgical pain affects postoperative sleep quality, and they jointly form a vicious cycle of mutual influence. The cycle of postoperative pain and sleep disorders could lead to delirium, cardiovascular disease, and hyperalgesia, which significantly affect patients' postoperative recovery. Thus, exploring this phenomenon is of great importance for surgical patients, and warrants further investigation.

Association between the perceived built environment and health behaviors in older adults: a cross-sectional study from Beijing, China.

Background: Under the background of the increasing trend of population aging, the health and quality of life of older adults have become the focus of social concern. As an important part of older adults' daily life, the design and configuration of the built environment may positively or negatively affect older adults' health behaviors. Therefore, this study aims to explore the relationship between older adults' perceived built environments and health behaviors, which is the association between perceived built environments and older adults' physical activity (PA) and social interactions.