Design, Syntheses, and Bioevaluations of Some Novel -Acryloylbenzohydrazides as Chemostimulants and Cytotoxic Agents.

A series of novel -acryloylhydrazides and a related series of compounds were prepared as potential chemostimulants. In general, these compounds are cytotoxic to human HCT 116 colon cancer cells, as well as human MCF-7 and MDA-MB-231 breast cancer cell lines. A representative compound -(3,4-dimethoxyphenylcarbonyl)--acryloylhydrazine sensitized HCT 116 cells to the potent antineoplastic agent 3,5-bis(benzylidene)-4-piperidone , and also to 5-fluorouracil.

Recent innovations in cost-effective polymer and paper hybrid microfluidic devices.

Hybrid microfluidic systems that are composed of multiple different types of substrates have been recognized as a versatile and superior platform, which can draw benefits from different substrates while avoiding their limitations. This review article introduces the recent innovations of different types of low-cost hybrid microfluidic devices, particularly focusing on cost-effective polymer- and paper-based hybrid microfluidic devices. In this article, the fabrication of these hybrid microfluidic devices is briefly described and summarized.

Synthesis and characterization of carbene derivatives of Th@ (8)-C and U@ (9)-C: exceptional chemical properties induced by strong actinide-carbon cage interaction.

Chemical functionalization of endohedral metallofullerenes (EMFs) is essential for the application of these novel carbon materials. Actinide EMFs, a new EMF family member, have presented unique molecular and electronic structures but their chemical properties remain unexplored. Here, for the first time, we report the chemical functionalization of actinide EMFs, in which the photochemical reaction of Th@ (8)-C and U@ (9)-C with 2-adamantane-2,3'-[3]-diazirine (AdN, ) was systematically investigated.

UN@ (7)-C: fullerene cage encapsulating an unsymmetrical U(iv)[double bond, length as m-dash]N[double bond, length as m-dash]U(v) cluster.

For the first time, an actinide nitride clusterfullerene, UN@ (7)-C, is synthesized and fully characterized by X-ray single crystallography and multiple spectroscopic methods. UN@ (7)-C is by far the first endohedral fullerene that violates the well-established tri-metallic nitride template for nitride clusterfullerenes. The novel U[double bond, length as m-dash]N[double bond, length as m-dash]U cluster features two U[double bond, length as m-dash]N bonds with uneven bond distances of 2.

A Fluorescence Dequenching-based Liposome Leakage Assay to Measure Membrane Permeabilization by Pore-forming Proteins.

Pore-forming toxins (PFTs) have been discovered in a wide range of organisms. Their functions are essential to the survival or virulence of many species. PFTs often interact with lipid membranes.

Measuring Cytosolic Translocation of in RAW264.7 Macrophages with a CCF4-AM FRET Assay.

The CCF4-AM Förster resonance energy transfer (FRET) assay is a sensitive approach to measure bacterial cytosolic translocation in live cells. The FRET pair hydroxycoumarin (donor) and fluorescein (acceptor) are linked by a CCF4-AM β-lactam ring, the substrate of β-lactamase. The exogenously added, neutral charged-FRET reagent can diffuse across the membrane and stay in the cytosol only once it is charged in the cytosol.

Unravelling the Reaction Mechanisms of N Fixation on Molybdenum Nitride: A Full DFT Study from the Pristine Surface to Heteroatom Anchoring.

Transition metal nitrides (TMNs)-based materials have attracted increasing attention in electrochemical nitrogen reduction reaction (eNRR) because of their unique structures and inherent electronic properties. However, the eNRR mechanism on such nitrogen contained catalysts is still unclear, for example, which part of the catalyst act as the active sites, and how to achieve the optimal efficiency is also challenging. In this work, a comprehensive study was conducted to unravel the reaction mechanisms of N fixation on molybdenum nitride by using density functional theory (DFT) calculations.

Neuroergonomic Stress Assessment with Two Different Methodologies, in a Manual Repetitive Task-Product Assembly.

Emotions are a fundamental part of mental health and human behavior. In the workplace, optimal performance of employees is necessary for productivity enhancements and its relation to the quality of a manufacturing product, therefore leading a company to advantages and competitiveness. This means that the workplace staff must remain in a neutral or a calm emotional state, for an adequate job performance.

Posting Alcohol-Related Content and Texting Under the Influence Among Hispanic College Students.

Social media use and texting among college students often coincide with drinking. The present study investigated the associations between monthly alcohol use, social media habits, sharing alcohol references, and drunk texting among Hispanic college students. Participants ( = 620, 71.

Hydrogen sulfide (HS) underpins the beneficial silicon effects against the copper oxide nanoparticles (CuO NPs) phytotoxicity in Oryza sativa seedlings.

Nanoparticle-pollution has associated severe negative effects on crop productivity. Hence, methods are needed to alleviate nano-toxicity in crop plants. The present study aims to evaluate if the exogenous hydrogen sulfide (HS) application in combination with silicon (Si) could palliate the harmful effects of copper oxide nanoparticles (CuO NPs).

The amygdala modulates prepulse inhibition of the auditory startle reflex through excitatory inputs to the caudal pontine reticular nucleus.

Background: Sensorimotor gating is a fundamental pre-attentive process that is defined as the inhibition of a motor response by a sensory event. Sensorimotor gating, commonly measured using the prepulse inhibition (PPI) of the auditory startle reflex task, is impaired in patients suffering from various neurological and psychiatric disorders. PPI deficits are a hallmark of schizophrenia, and they are often associated with attention and other cognitive impairments.

Differences in Workplace Risk Perception between Foreign-Born and First-Generation Mexican American Construction Workers.

Risk perception is used to quantify risks in the industry and is influenced by different socio-demographic variables. This work aims to determine significant differences in the risk perception between Mexican American migrants and first-generation Mexican American construction workers. This study used a sample of 112 construction workers.

Thiazolidinedione "Magic Bullets" Simultaneously Targeting PPARγ and HDACs: Design, Synthesis, and Investigations of their and Antitumor Effects.

Monotargeting anticancer agents suffer from resistance and target nonspecificity concerns, which can be tackled with a multitargeting approach. The combined treatment with HDAC inhibitors and PPARγ agonists has displayed potential antitumor effects. Based on these observations, this work involves design and synthesis of molecules that can simultaneously target PPARγ and HDAC.

Detector-Free Photothermal Bar-Chart Microfluidic Chips (PT-Chips) for Visual Quantitative Detection of Biomarkers.

The volumetric bar-chart microfluidic chips (V-Chips) driven by chemical reaction-generated gas provide a promising platform for point-of-care (POC) visual biomarker quantitation. However, multiple limitations are encountered in conventional V-Chips, such as costly and complex chip fabrication, complicated chip assembly, and imprecise controllability of gas production. Herein, we introduced nanomaterial-mediated photothermal effects to V-Chips, and for the first time developed a new type of V-Chip, photothermal bar-chart microfluidic chip (PT-Chip), for visual quantitative detection of biochemicals without any bulky and costly analytical instruments.

Multicolorimetric ELISA biosensors on a paper/polymer hybrid analytical device for visual point-of-care detection of infection diseases.

Enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) is widely used for the detection of disease biomarkers. However, it utilizes time-consuming procedures and expensive instruments, making it infeasible for point-of-care (POC) analysis especially in resource-limited settings. In this work, a multicolorimetric ELISA biosensor integrated on a paper/polymer hybrid microfluidic device was developed for rapid visual detection of disease biomarkers at point of care, without using costly equipment.

Adolescent fluoxetine treatment mediates a persistent anxiety-like outcome in female C57BL/6 mice that is ameliorated by fluoxetine re-exposure in adulthood.

The objective of this study was to evaluate whether juvenile fluoxetine (FLX) exposure induces long-term changes in baseline responses to anxiety-inducing environments, and if so, whether its re-exposure in adulthood would ameliorate this anxiety-like phenotype. An additional goal was to assess the impact of adolescent FLX pretreatment, and its re-exposure in adulthood, on serotonin transporters (5-HTT) and brain-derived-neurotrophic-factor (BDNF)-related signaling markers (TrkB-ERK1/2-CREB-proBDNF-mBDNF) within the hippocampus and prefrontal cortex. To do this, female C57BL/6 mice were exposed to FLX in drinking water during postnatal-days (PD) 35-49.

A New Class of Molecular Electrocatalysts for Hydrogen Evolution: Catalytic Activity of MN@C (2 = 68, 78, and 80) Fullerenes.

The electrocatalytic properties of some endohedral fullerenes for hydrogen evolution reactions (HER) were recently predicted by DFT calculations. Nonetheless, the experimental catalytic performance under realistic electrochemical environments of these 0D-nanomaterials have not been explored. Here, for the first time, we disclose the HER electrocatalytic behavior of seven MN@2 (2 = 68, 78, and 80) fullerenes (GdN@(7)-C, YN@(7)-C, LuN@(7)-C, ScN@(7)-C, ScN@(6)-C, ScN@(5)-C, and ScN@(6140)-C) using a combination of experimental and theoretical techniques.

α-DTC Fullerene Performs Significantly Better than β-DTC as Electron Transporting Material in Perovskite Solar Cells.

In this work, two new C isomers, α and β bis(2-(thiophen-2-yl)ethyl)-C-fullerene mono-adducts (DTC), were synthesized, characterized and used as electron transporting materials (ETMs) in perovskite solar cells (PSCs). Our results show that the α isomer improves both the and FF values of the devices, when compared to the results for the β-isomer and to those for phenyl-C-butyric acid methyl ester (PCBM), used as control. Devices based on α-DTC achieved a power conversion efficiency (PCE) of 15.

Soil-aged nano titanium dioxide effects on full-grown carrot: Dose and surface-coating dependent improvements on growth and nutrient quality.

Rutile titanium dioxide nanoparticles (nTiO) were weathered in field soil at 0, 100, 200, and 400 mg Ti/kg soil for four months. Two types of nTiO with different surface coatings (hydrophilic and hydrophobic), uncoated nTiO (pristine), and the untreated control were included. Thereafter, carrot seeds (Daucus carota L.

Soil-Weathered CuO Nanoparticles Compromise Foliar Health and Pigment Production in Spinach ().

In this study, spinach plants exposed to fresh/unweathered (UW) or weathered (W) copper compounds in soil were analyzed for growth and nutritional composition. Plants were exposed for 45 days to freshly prepared or soil-aged (35 days) nanoparticulate CuO (nCuO), bulk-scale CuO (bCuO), or CuSO at 0 (control), 400, 400, and 40 mg/kg of soil, respectively. Foliar health, gas exchange, pigment content (chlorophyll and carotenoid), catalase and ascorbate peroxidase enzymes, gene expression, and Cu bioaccumulation were evaluated along with SEM imagery for select samples.

Mechanochemically Synthetized PAN-Based Co-N-Doped Carbon Materials as Electrocatalyst for Oxygen Evolution Reaction.

We report a new class of polyacrylonitrile (PAN)-based Co-N-doped carbon materials that can act as suitable catalyst for oxygen evolution reactions (OER). Different Co loadings were mechanochemically added into post-consumed PAN fibers. Subsequently, the samples were treated at 300 °C under air (PAN-A) or nitrogen (PAN-N) atmosphere to promote simultaneously the CoO species and PAN cyclization.

Continuous Exposure to Low Doses of Ultrafine Black Carbon Reduces the Vitality of Immortalized Lung-Derived Cells and Activates Senescence.

Combustion-derived nanomaterials are noxious ultrafine (<100 nm) aerosol by-products of human activity. They pose threats to pulmonary health due to their small size, allowing them to penetrate alveoli causing detrimental responses downstream. Information regarding the cellular activity that connects nanocarbon particle exposure to poor pulmonary health remains lacking.

Learnings from the Relation between the Number of Forward and Reverse Reactions (Transfer Cycles) Required to Converge to Equilibrium and the Ratio of the Forward to the Reverse Rate Constants in Simple Chemical Reactions.

In simple, reversible, chemical reactions of the type A ⇋ B, chemical equilibrium is related to chemical kinetics via the equality between the equilibrium constant and the ratio of the forward to the reverse rate-constant, i.e., = / , where is the equilibrium constant and and denote the rate constants for the forward (A → B) and reverse (B → A) reactions, respectively.

Convergence of COVID-19 and chronic air pollution risks: Racial/ethnic and socioeconomic inequities in the U.S.

Recent research suggests greater COVID-19 prevalence in areas burdened with higher exposure to chronic air pollution, but previous studies have not examined if socially disadvantaged populations are more likely to reside in communities located at the convergence of both COVID-19 and air pollution health risks. This article presents a national scale U.S.