Environmental risk assessment of the surface sediments based on trace elements analysis from the largest freshwater lake in the southern slope of the Himalaya, Nepal.

Freshwater ecosystems, including high-altitude lakes, can be affected by trace metal pollution derived from a mix of natural sources and anthropogenic activities. These pollutants often collect in surface sediments, with notable concentrations in the deeper areas of lakes. To evaluate the environmental risk associated with metal contaminated sediment in Rara Lake, southern Himalaya, surface sediment samples were systematically collected in November 2018, with a subsequent specific emphasis on determinations of trace element concentrations.

Construction of in-situ self-assembled agent for NIR/PET dual-modal imaging and photodynamic therapy for hepatocellular cancer.

Hepatocellular cancer (HCC) remained a life-threatening carcinoma. Agents for HCC imaging and therapy were expected to possess different intratumoral retention time. To construct an agent with different intratumoral retention time when applied for tumor imaging or therapy remained great values.

Construction and Preliminary Evaluation of Two F-Labeled Radiopharmaceuticals for Myocardial Perfusion Imaging.

Aims: PET myocardial perfusion imaging (MPI) is the gold standard for the noninvasive diagnosis of ischemic myocardial. Construction of F-labeled PET MPI probe showed benefits to reduce the imaging cost, and enhance the image quality and patient-friendliness.

Methods: Two F-labeled MPI probes (F-BoMPI) were developed.

Development of a Supermolecular Radionuclide-Drug Conjugate System for Integrated Radiotheranostics for Non-small Cell Lung Cancer.

Radionuclide-drug conjugates (RDCs) designed from small molecule or nanoplatform shows complementary characteristics. We constructed a new RDC system with integrated merits of small molecule and nanoplatform-based RDCs. Erlotinib was labeled with I to construct the bulk of RDC (I-ER).

Relationship between human activities and environmental changes in the southern Tibetan Plateau since the Little Ice Age.

The Tibetan Plateau (TP) is one of the most challenging areas for human long-term settlement due to its extreme living environment. Understanding the relationship between human activities and environmental changes in this extreme environment is important and can provide a historical reference for adapting to future climate change. In this study, we took the Angren Basin in the southern TP as a case study to elucidate the relationship since Little Ice Age (LIA).

Construction of a Cu-Responsive NIR Fluorescent Probe and the Preliminary Evaluation of its Multifunctional Application.

Cu was deemed as toxic and the most common heavy metal pollution in the water and food. Meanwhile, endogenous Cu was deeply involved in plenty of physiological and pathological processes of human. Cu imbalance was related to multiple diseases.

Hybrid-FHR: a multi-modal AI approach for automated fetal acidosis diagnosis.

Background: In clinical medicine, fetal heart rate (FHR) monitoring using cardiotocography (CTG) is one of the most commonly used methods for assessing fetal acidosis. However, as the visual interpretation of CTG depends on the subjective judgment of the clinician, this has led to high inter-observer and intra-observer variability, making it necessary to introduce automated diagnostic techniques.

Methods: In this study, we propose a computer-aided diagnostic algorithm (Hybrid-FHR) for fetal acidosis to assist physicians in making objective decisions and taking timely interventions.

Development of a NIR fluorescent probe for fluorescence-assisted EGFR-TKI applicable patients screening and drug resistance monitoring.

EGFR tyrosine kinase inhibitor exerts significant benefits to non-small cell lung cancer patient, but was also limited by the applicable patient screening and drug resistance. Here we presented with an EGFR-targeted and reactive oxygen species-responsive NIR probe (LX) to achieve both patient screening and drug resistance monitoring for EGFR-tyrosine kinase inhibitor. LX inherited EGFR selectivity and preference from EGFR-tyrosine kinase inhibitor, which only showed specificity to tumor with EGFR mutation.

Electrochemical Control over the Optical Properties of II-VI Colloidal Nanoplatelets by Tailoring the Station of Extra Charge Carriers.

An electrochemical (EC) method has been successfully applied to regulate the optical properties of nanocrystals, such as reducing their gain threshold by EC doping and enhancing their photoluminescence intensity by EC filling of trap states. However, the processes of EC doping and filling are rarely reported simultaneously in a single study, hindering the understanding of their underlying interactions. Here, we report the spectroelectrochemical (SEC) studies of quasi-two-dimensional nanoplatelets (NPLs), intending to clarify the above issues.

Development of a HS-responsive NIR Fluorescent Probe for HS Detection and HS Releasing Monitoring From Prodrug.

HS was deemed as a toxic gradient in the realm of food and environment but plays pivotal pathophysiological roles in organisms. HS instabilities and disturbances are always responsible for multiple disorders. We fabricated a HS-responsive NIR fluorescent probe (HT) for HS detection and evaluation both in vitro and in vivo.

Electrochemical control of emission enhancement in solid-state nitrogen-doped carbon quantum dots.

Because of their excellent optical and electrical properties, doped carbon quantum dots (CQDs) are expected to be used in novel film optoelectronic devices such as light-emitting diodes and solar cells. However, these device advancements are currently hindered by the elusive photophysical process of doped CQDs in solid-state films. Here, the optical properties of nitrogen-doped CQD (N-CQD) films are studied using spectro-electrochemical (SEC) methods.

DNA Zipper Mediated Membrane Fusion for Rapid Exosomal MiRNA Detection.

Accurate and reliable detection of exosomal miRNA can serve as a promising method for early diagnosis of disease and evaluation of therapeutic effects. However, current exosomal miRNA detection methods commonly involve exosome enrichment, containing RNA extraction, and qRT-PCR based quantification, which are expensive and time-consuming. Herein, we develop a DNA zipper-mediated membrane fusion approach for rapid exosomal miRNA detection and cancer diagnosis.

Development and preliminary evaluation of an integrin αβ-targeted PET probe as a supplement and alternative of PSMA imaging for prostate cancer.

An integrin αβ-targeted PET probe (Ga-IABtP) was developed to serve as a supplement and alternative of PSMA imaging for prostate cancer. Ga-IABtP was synthesized by labeling the precursor peptide with Ga with 93% labeling yield and 4.14 MBq/μg specific radioactivity.

Synthesis and preliminary exploration of a NIR fluorescent probe for the evaluation of androgen dependence of prostate cancer.

Purpose: Castration resistance prostate cancer patients showing resistance to the androgen deprivation therapy always have low five-year survival rate and worse prognosis. A responsive NIR fluorescent probe was designed to report the androgen dependence and monitor the development of castration resistance for prostate cancer.

Methods: Intratumoral HS in prostate cancer was closely related to castration resistance.

Development of a NIR fluorescent probe for the detection of intracellular cysteine and glutathione and the monitoring of the drug resistance.

Intracellular cysteine and glutathione was deemed as the most important reductants in the cell and played significant roles in the cellular homeostasis and redox adjustment. Here we developed a NIR fluorescent probe (HI) to detect and report the intracellular cysteine and glutathione, and monitor the development of the drug resistance of tumor. HI with both excited wavelength and emitting wavelength located within near infrared area showed no fluorescence in the normal physiological environment.

Evaluation of a new magnetic bead as an integrated platform for systematic CTC recognition, capture and clinical analysis.

A novel form of magnetic bead, namely antibody-coated magnetic lipid nano-vehicle (AMLV), was synthesized by embedding FeO nanoparticles into an amphiphilic antibody-modified liposome as a high-performance circulating tumor cell (CTC) hunter. The CTC capture performance of AMLV was validated based on an enlarged patient sample (including 318 colorectal, 78 breast, 77 lung and 55 liver cancer patients) with high detection rate. The preliminary comparison with Cellsearch was also conducted, indicating that the cell membrane-semblance AMLV showed higher capture performance for different kinds of EpCAM-expressed circulating tumor cells in the peripheral blood (4.

Ratiometric nanoprobe for circulating tumor cell detection and intracellular hydrogen peroxide evaluation in colorectal cancer patients.

The application of intensity-based HO-responsive fluorescence nanoprobe for circulating tumor cell detection was limited by the complex background and the nanoprobe uptake in each CTC. In this context, we developed a ratiometric fluorescence nanoprobe, on which a HO-responsive subunit and a stable subunit grafted working as a HO detector and a reference, respectively. When responding to intracellular HO, the reference fluorescence (580 nm) maintained as a correction background while the detector fluorescence (450 nm) was turned on to conduct CTC enumeration and intracellular HO evaluation.

Hydrogen peroxide-response nanoprobe for CD44-targeted circulating tumor cell detection and HO analysis.

Circulating tumor cells (CTCs) represent the most common way of tumor metastasis and has been considered as a significant index for tumor diagnosis, staging and prognosis. However, CTC detection and analysis are always limited by the scarcity of CTC in the peripheral blood and the interference of blood cells. Therefore, here we presented with a hydrogen peroxide (HO)-response nanoprobes with CD44-targeted ability to reduce the interference of blood cells and improve the detection efficiency and accuracy and the pancreatic cancer cell was used to evaluate the feasibility of our probe.

In situ localization of alkaline phosphatase activity in tumor cells by an aggregation-induced emission fluorophore-based probes.

In situ detection of certain specific enzyme activities in cells is deeply attached to tumor diagnosis. Conventional enzyme-responsive fluorescent probes have difficulty detecting targeted enzymes in situ in cells due to the low detection accuracy caused by the spread of fluorescence probes. In order to solve this problem, we have designed and synthesized an enzyme-responsive, water-soluble fluorescent probe with AIE characteristics, which could aggregate and precipitate to produce in situ fluorescence when reacting with the targeted enzyme in cells.

Late Holocene vegetation responses to climate change and human impact on the central Tibetan Plateau.

Understanding long-term environmental changes under natural and anthropic forces is helpful for facilitating sustainable development. Here we present a sedimentary record from the central Tibetan Plateau to investigate the impacts of climate and human activities on alpine vegetation during the late Holocene, based on a 162-cm-long lacustrine sediment core collected from Tangra Yumco. Palynology, charcoal and minerogenic input reveal variations of climate and human activity during the past 3400 cal yr BP.

Synthesis and preliminary evaluation of F-icotinib for EGFR-targeted PET imaging of lung cancer.

Epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) has emerged as an attracting target in the field of imaging and treatment for non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). Radiolabeled EGFR-tyrosine kinase inhibitors (EGFR-TKIs) specifically targeting EGFR are deemed as promising probes for the imaging of NSCLC. This study aimed to label icotinib (one kind of EGFR-TKI) with F through click reaction to develop a new EGFR-targeting PET probe-F-icotinib.

Climate change on the Tibetan Plateau in response to shifting atmospheric circulation since the LGM.

The Tibetan Plateau (TP) is primarily influenced by the northern hemispheric middle latitude Westerlies and the Indian summer monsoon (ISM). The extent, long-distance effects and potential long-term changes of these two atmospheric circulations are not yet fully understood. Here, we analyse modern airborne pollen in a transition zone of seasonally alternating dominance of the Westerlies and the ISM to develop a pollen discrimination index (PDI) that allows us to distinguish between the intensities of the two circulation systems.

Diversified bioactivities of four types of naturally occurring quinochalcones.

Quinochalcones, quinone-containing chalcones, belong to the flavonoid family and have attracted increasing popularity in Western countries in the last decade due to their pharmacological activities. This review describes four types of naturally occurring quinochalcones and summarizes their different pharmacological activities, including anti-cerebral ischemia, anti-tumor, and anti-infection activities. In addition, the pharmacological activities and relevant structure-activity relationships of synthetic quinochalcones are also reviewed.

Comprehensive identification of active triterpenoid metabolites in frankincense using a coupling strategy.

Frankincense resins are extensively used as natural remedies in regions ranging from North Africa to China. Triterpenoid metabolites from frankincense exhibit notable anti-inflammatory and anti-tumor properties. In the present paper, without the use of an isolation process, the fragmentation rules and NMR spectral characteristics of triterpenoid metabolites in frankincense are summarized through a coupling method using high performance liquid chromatography-diode array detection/electrospray ionization tandem mass spectrometry (HPLC-DAD/ESI-MS(n)) combined with HPLC-nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) experiments.

Study on essential oils from four species of Zhishi with gas chromatography-mass spectrometry.

Background: Citrus fruits are widely used as food and or for medicinal purposes, and they contain a host of active substances that contribute to health. The immature fruits of Citrus sinensis Osbeck and its cultivars (CS), C. junos Sieb.