Dialdehyde cellulose-based mixed-mode stationary phases for diversified high-performance liquid chromatography separations.

To deal with complicated separation situations, this study successfully prepared two mixed-mode chromatography (MMC) stationary phases, CCL-SIL and PCL-SIL, by functionalizing dialdehyde cellulose (DAC) derivatives. In liquid chromatography applications, CCL-SIL exhibited superior separation performance for nucleosides and bases in HILIC mode, while PCL-SIL performed better in RPLC and IEC modes. Their distinct separation mechanisms were also elucidated by quantum chemical calculations.

Boosting Energy Deprivation by Synchronous Interventions of Glycolysis and Oxidative Phosphorylation for Bioenergetic Therapy Synergetic with Chemodynamic/Photothermal Therapy.

Bioenergetic therapy is emerging as a promising therapeutic approach. However, its therapeutic effectiveness is restricted by metabolic plasticity, as tumor cells switch metabolic phenotypes between glycolysis and oxidative phosphorylation (OXPHOS) to compensate for energy. Herein, Metformin (MET) and BAY-876 (BAY) co-loaded CuFeO (CF) nanoplatform (CFMB) is developed to boost energy deprivation by synchronous interventions of glycolysis and OXPHOS for bioenergetic therapy synergetic with chemodynamic/photothermal therapy (CDT/PTT).

Trichosanthin-derived peptide Tk-PQ attenuates immune rejection in mouse tracheal allotransplant model by suppressing PI3K-Akt and inducing type II immune polarization.

Obliterative bronchiolitis (OB) is one of the main complications affecting long-term survival of post-lung transplantation patients. In this study, we evaluated the efficacy of Tk-PQ (a peptide derived from trichosanthin) in alleviating OB in a mouse ectopic tracheal transplant model. We found that post-transplantation treatment of Tk-PQ significant ameliorated OB symptoms including luminal occlusion, epithelial cells loss and fibrosis in the allograft.

Effects of PKCε knockdown on mitochondrial membrane potential of human glioma cells in vitro and growth of U251 cell-derived tumors in vivo.

Glioma is the most common type of primary brain tumor; it exhibits great invasive capacity, morbidity and mortality. Protein kinase Cε (PKCε), a serine/threonine kinase, contributes to the development and progression of many cancers. We investigated whether knockdown of PKCε could affect the mitochondrial membrane potential of human glioma cell lines, U251 and U87, and the growth of U251 cell-derived tumors in nude mice.

Energy transfer mediated rapid and visual discrimination of tetracyclines and quercetin in food by using N, Cu Co-doped carbon dots.

The appearance of multi-drug resistant Escherichia coli makes the combination of tetracyclines (TCs) and quercetin (QCT) more common to fight stubborn bacterial infections so that the effective detections of TCs and QCT are essential and necessary. Here, a novel fluorescence probe for differentiating TCs and QCT is developed based on the nitrogen and copper co-doped carbon dots (N, Cu-CDs). The N, Cu-CDs are prepared from ethylene diamine tetraacetic acid (EDTA) and anhydrous copper chloride as precursors through hydrothermal process and exhibit bright blue fluorescence with excellent optical stability.

HO self-sufficient nanoplatform based on CeO QDs decorated MgO nanosheet for amplified chemodynamic therapy.

Chemodynamic therapy (CDT), which employs Fenton/Fenton-like agents to decompose hydrogen peroxide (HO) into toxic hydroxyl radical (•OH) to induce cancer cell apoptosis and necrosis, holds great promise in tumor therapy due to its high selectivity. Nevertheless, its efficiency is impaired by the insufficient intracellular HO concentration and/or the insensitive response of Fenton/Fenton-like agents to the slightly acid tumor microenvironment (pH∼7.0-6.

OsFTL4, an FT-like Gene, Regulates Flowering Time and Drought Tolerance in Rice (Oryza sativa L.).

The initiation of flowering in cereals is a critical process influenced by environmental and endogenous signals. Flowering Locus T-like (FT-like) genes encode the main signals for flowering. Of the 13 FT-like genes in the rice genome, Hd3a/OsFTL2 and RFT1/OsFTL3 have been extensively studied and revealed to be critical for flowering.

Hydrogen peroxide self-sufficient and glutathione-depleted nanoplatform for boosting chemodynamic therapy synergetic phototherapy.

Chemodynamic therapy (CDT), which suppresses tumors via the conversion of endogenous hydrogen peroxide (HO) to highly toxic hydroxyl radicals (•OH), is deemed as a cutting-edge antitumor strategy. However, the insufficient endogenous HO and up-regulated antioxidant glutathione (GSH) in the tumor microenvironment (TME) greatly impede the therapeutic effect of CDT. Herein, a versatile nanoplatform MgO@SnFeO@PEG (MSnFeP) is elaborately fabricated for boosting CDT synergetic phototherapy.

Selective Detection of Nucleotides in Infant Formula Using an N-Rich Covalent Triazine Porous Polymer.

The aromatic structure and the rich nitrogen content of polymers based on covalent triazine-based frameworks (CTF) and their unique hydrophilic-lipophilic-balanced adsorption properties make them promising candidates for an adsorbent that can be used for sample pretreatment. Herein, a new covalent triazine-based framework (CTF-DBF) synthesized by a Friedel−Crafts reaction was used for the determination of the content of nucleotides in commercial infant formula. It was shown that the synthetic materials had an amorphous microporous structure, a BET surface area of up to 595.

CeO QDs anchored on MnO nanoflowers with multiple synergistic effects for amplified tumour therapy.

Chemodynamic therapy (CDT) is an emerging tumour-specific therapeutic technology. However, the relatively insufficient catalytic activity of CDT agents in the tumour microenvironment (TME) limits their biomedical application. In addition, severe hypoxia and glutathione (GSH) overexpression in the TME greatly limit the antitumour efficiency of monotherapy.

ELMO1 Regulates RANKL-Stimulated Differentiation and Bone Resorption of Osteoclasts.

Bone homeostasis is a metabolic balance between the new bone formation by osteoblasts and old bone resorption by osteoclasts. Excessive osteoclastic bone resorption results in low bone mass, which is the major cause of bone diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis. Small GTPases Rac1 is a key regulator of osteoclast differentiation, but its exact mechanism is not fully understood.

Novel EGFRvIII-CAR transgenic mice for rigorous preclinical studies in syngeneic mice.

Background: Rigorous preclinical studies of chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) immunotherapy will require large quantities of consistent and high-quality CAR-transduced T (CART) cells that can be used in syngeneic mouse glioblastoma (GBM) models. To this end, we developed a novel transgenic (Tg) mouse strain with a fully murinized CAR targeting epidermal growth factor receptor variant III (EGFRvIII).

Methods: We first established the murinized version of EGFRvIII-CAR and validated its function using a retroviral vector (RV) in C57BL/6J mice bearing syngeneic SB28 GBM expressing EGFRvIII.

Bowl-like mesoporous polydopamine with size exclusion for highly selective recognition of endogenous glycopeptides.

It has been confirmed that endogenous glycopeptide plays an important role in a variety of pathological and physiological processes. However, direct analysis of endogenous glycopeptide is still a great challenge owing to the low abundance of endogenous glycopeptides and the presence of a large number of interfering substances such as large-sized proteins and heteropeptides in complex biological sample. Herein, we reported a novel bowl-like mesoporous polydopamine nanoparticle modified by carrageenan (denoted as MPDA@PEI@CA) with strong hydrophilicity and size-exclusion effect for high specificity enrichment of endogenous glycopeptides.

Covalent Triazine Framework Sorbent for Solid Phase Extraction of Fipronil and its Metabolite in Eggs with Ultra-High Performance Liquid Chromatography-Tandem Mass Spectrometry.

A solid-phase extraction (SPE) method was established for fipronil and its metabolite residues (fipronil desulfinyl, fipronil sulphone and fipronil sulphide) in eggs with a covalent triazine framework (CTF) porous material as the adsorbent followed by ultra-high performance liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (UHPLC-MS/MS) detection. Multiple probes and quantum chemistry theory calculations were conducted to describe the versatile adsorption property directly and quantifiably. The conjugated structure of CTF and N-containing triazine generated π-π interactions and hydrogen bonds between the CTF and the targets, which led to high extraction efficiency and recoveries.

Biodegradable flower-like manganese for synergistic photothermal and photodynamic therapy applications.

A flower-like nanostructured MnO with near-infrared (NIR) light-triggered high photothermal conversion capability of 30% and reactive oxygen species (ROS) generation ability was successfully developed. Different from the reported MnO nanomaterials those were used in the nanomedicine field for only relieving tumor hypoxia and/or imaging, the flower-like MnO inherently acts as a competent agent for simultaneously enhanced photothermal and photodynamic therapy. A flower-like nanostructured MnO2 with near-infrared (NIR) light triggered high photothermal conversion capability of 30% and reactive oxygen species (ROS) generation ability was successfully developed.

[Progress in functions and mechanisms of immunosuppressive neutrophil subsets: An update].

Neutrophils are the most abundant circulating leukocytes in healthy adults, serving as the first-line defense against infections. In the last few years, scientists have reported neutrophils of immune suppressive properties, such as tumor-associated neutrophils (TAN) and low-density neutrophils (LDN). These neutrophils are found to be involved in many physiological and pathological conditions owing to their ability of regulating T cell functions and promoting angiogenesis and tumor growth through a number of mechanisms, including PD-1/PD-L1, antigen presentation, reactive oxygen species (ROS), arginase-1 (Arg1), inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS), etc.

Ultra-high sensitivity of multicolor Sm-doped LiSrVO phosphors for contactless optical thermometers.

To overcome the existing challenge of temperature monitoring with high accuracy, we designed Sm-doped LiSrVO phosphors with ultra-high sensitivity as promising candidates for optical thermometers. The prepared samples could emit multicolor emissions after excitation at 343 nm and the optimum doping concentration for the Sm ions in the selected host was 1 mol%. The mechanism of energy transfer from the VO group to the Sm ions was studied and its efficiency was proved to be 84.

Ultralow-intensity near infrared light synchronously activated collaborative chemo/photothermal/photodynamic therapy.

Although combined chemotherapy (Chemo), photothermal (PTT) and photodynamic (PDT) in cancer therapy has drawn significant attention due to its superior anticancer ability, the required high intensity of irradiation results in serious photo-toxicity to healthy neighboring cells, and thus limits its biomedical applications. Herein, we developed an ultralow-intensity near infrared (NIR) light synchronously activated collaborative Chemo/PTT/PDT nanoplatform. The nanoplatform is composed of a highly emissive upconversion (UC) core, chlorin e6 (Ce6) photosensitizer and the anticancer drug doxorubicin hydrochloride (DOX) co-loaded in a mesoporous silica (MS) shell, and polyethylene glycol-modified graphene (PGO) acts as both the photothermal reagent and smart switch for promoted drug release.

LncRNA ST8SIA6-AS1 promotes proliferation, migration and invasion in breast cancer through the p38 MAPK signalling pathway.

Long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) are regarded as important functional regulators of various biological processes and are also known to be involved in the occurrence and development of human cancers, including breast cancer (BC). In our present study, the RNA expression profiling data for a large cohort of human BC samples were obtained from The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) and Gene Expression Omnibus (GEO) databases, and the differentially expressed lncRNAs were screened out. We found that the expression of ST8SIA6-AS1 was elevated in BC tumour tissues compared with the adjacent normal tissues in the samples from the TCGA and GEO datasets, as well as in 138 BC tissue samples obtained by us.

Ratiometric optical thermometer based on the use of manganese(II)-doped CsCuI thermochromic and fluorescent halides.

The inconsistent thermal quenching performance of manganese(II)-doped CsCuI microparticles is exploited in a highly sensitive noninvasive optical thermometer. The ratio of the emissions of Cu(II) and Mn(II) ions in the microparticles is highly temperature dependent in the range from 298 to 498 K. The best absolute and relative sensitivities are 0.

BaTiO/MWNTs/Polyvinylidene Fluoride Ternary Dielectric Composites with Excellent Dielectric Property, High Breakdown Strength, and High-Energy Storage Density.

To improve the dielectric performance of polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF), BaTiO/MWNTs/PVDF ternary composites were prepared by the solution casting method. The percolation threshold (fraction of MWNTs) has dropped greatly below 0.4 vol %, with the enhancement of dielectric constant and breakdown field.

Tunable Luminescence Contrast in Photochromic Ceramics (1 - x)NaBiTiO- xNaKNbO:0.002Er by an Electric Field Poling.

A binary solid solution of Er-doped (1 - x)NaBiTiO- xKNaNbO ( x = 0.02, 0.04, 0.

Near-Infrared Light-Triggered Hydrophobic-to-Hydrophilic Switch Nanovalve for On-Demand Cancer Therapy.

An on-demand drug delivery nanoplatform based on mesoporous silica (mSiO) coated upconversion nanoparticles (UCNP@mSiO) with a novel near-infrared (NIR) light-triggered hydrophobic-to-hydrophilic switch nanovalve was fabricated. The surface of UCNP@mSiO was first immobilized with hydrophobic 2-diazo-1,2-naphthoquinones (DNQ) guest molecules. After doxorubicin hydrochloride (DOX, a universal anticancer drug) was loaded into channels of mSiO shell, β-cyclodextrin (β-CD) host molecules with a hydrophobic cavity were added as gatekeepers to cap DNQ stalk molecules via hydrophobic affinity, which may play a role in the OFF state of the nanovalve to prevent the drug from being released.

Significantly enhanced energy storage performance in BiFeO/BaTiO/BiFeO sandwich-structured films through crystallinity regulation.

With the increasing demand of high energy density dielectric films, macrostructure design, for instance the construction of sandwich-structured films, has been attracting much attention due to its promise in raising the discharge energy density along with an enhanced electric breakdown strength. However, the contrast of dielectric constants between neighboring layers plays a dominate role in the distribution of the electric field, which might decrease the electric breakdown strength, and has attracted little attention up to now. Additionally, high energy storage efficiency with low energy dissipation should also be considered for dielectric applications despite enhancing the discharge energy density.

Novel and shared neoantigen derived from histone 3 variant H3.3K27M mutation for glioma T cell therapy.

The median overall survival for children with diffuse intrinsic pontine glioma (DIPG) is less than one year. The majority of diffuse midline gliomas, including more than 70% of DIPGs, harbor an amino acid substitution from lysine (K) to methionine (M) at position 27 of histone 3 variant 3 (H3.3).