Biologically Synthesized Gold Nanoparticles with Enhanced Antioxidant and Catalytic Properties.

Increasing levels of reactive oxygen species generate oxidative stress in the human body that can lead to various medical conditions. The use of nanomaterials exhibiting antioxidant properties may prevent these effects. The biological synthesis of metallic nanoparticles using plant extracts with antioxidant properties can offer benefits due to their active compounds.

High hydrostatic pressure treatment for advanced tissue grafts in reconstructive head and neck surgery.

The increasing importance of regenerative medicine has resulted in a growing need for advanced tissue replacement materials in head and neck surgery. Allo- and xenogenic graft processing is often time-consuming and can deteriorate the extracellular matrix (ECM). High hydrostatic pressure (HHP)-treatment could allow specific devitalization while retaining the essential properties of the ECM.

Ostwald-Ripening Induced Interfacial Protection Layer Boosts 1,000,000-Cycled Hydronium-Ion Battery.

Collapsing and degradation of active materials caused by the electrode/electrolyte interface instability in aqueous batteries are one of the main obstacles that mitigate the capacity. Herein by reversing the notorious side reactions include the loss and dissolution of electrode materials, as we applied Ostwald ripening (OR) in the electrochemical cycling of a copper hexacyanoferrate electrode in a hydronium-ion batteries, the dissolved Cu and Fe ions undergo a crystallization process that creates a stable interface layer of cross-linked cubes on the electrode surface. The layer exposed the low-index crystal planes (100) and (110) through OR-induced electrode particle growth, supplemented by vacancy-ordered (100) superlattices that facilitated ion migration.

Highly Stable Propane Dehydrogenation on a Self-Supporting Single-Component ZnSiO Catalyst.

Current industrial propane dehydrogenation (PDH) processes predominantly use either toxic Cr-based or expensive Pt-based catalysts, necessitating urgent exploration for alternatives. Herein, we present ZnSiO, an easily prepared, cost-effective material, as a highly efficient and stable catalyst for PDH. Uniquely, ZnSiO nanocrystals do not require dispersion on support materials, commonly needed for catalytic active oxide clusters, but function as a self-supporting catalyst instead.

Sec18 side-loading is essential for universal SNARE recycling across cellular contexts.

SNARE proteins drive membrane fusion as their core domains zipper into a parallel four-helix bundle. After fusion, these bundles are disassembled by the AAA+ protein Sec18/NSF and its adaptor Sec17/ α-SNAP to make them available for subsequent rounds of membrane fusion. SNARE domains are often flanked by C-terminal transmembrane or N-terminal domains.

Calcium Acetate Drug Produced from Invasive Gastropod Shells: Green Process Control Assisted by Raman Technology.

The highly demanded calcium acetate (Ca(CHCOO)) for biomedicine and various industries constantly requires green and low-cost methods of synthesis. In the present work, a sustainable approach to produce Ca(CHCOO) is reported as a proof of concept, processing for the first time as a starting material the worldwide highly abundant shells, which is a neglected biogenic waste with high economical potential due to the rich mineral and organic pigmentary content. A green synthesis involving an eco-friendly acetic acid has been optimized at room temperature, without any additional energy consumption, and the resulting saturated Ca(CHCOO) solution was further slowly evaporated in three stages to obtain white Ca(CHCOO) crystalline powder, without impurity traces.

Structures of the Mycobacterium tuberculosis efflux pump EfpA reveal the mechanisms of transport and inhibition.

As the first identified multidrug efflux pump in Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Mtb), EfpA is an essential protein and promising drug target. However, the functional and inhibitory mechanisms of EfpA are poorly understood. Here we report cryo-EM structures of EfpA in outward-open conformation, either bound to three endogenous lipids or the inhibitor BRD-8000.

Day-Night imaging without Infrared Cutfilter removal based on metal-gradient perovskite single crystal photodetector.

Day-Night imaging technology that obtains full-color and infrared images has great market demands for security monitoring and autonomous driving. The current mainstream solution relies on wide-spectrum silicon photodetectors combined with Infrared Cutfilter Removal, which increases complexity and failure rate. Here, we address these challenges by employing a perovskite photodetector based on Pb-Sn alloyed single crystal with a vertical bandgap-graded structure that presents variable-spectrum responses at different biases and extends the infrared detection range close to 1100 nm.

Customized Pore Creation Strategies for Hyperelastic, Robust, Insulating Multifunctional MXene Aerogels for Microwave Absorption.

The construction of heterogeneous microstructure and the selection of multicomponents have turned into a research hotspot in developing ultralight, multifunctional, high-efficiency electromagnetic wave absorbing (EMA) materials. Although aerogels are promising materials to fulfill the above requirements, the increase in functional fillers inevitably leads to the deterioration of intrinsic properties. Tuning the electromagnetic properties from the structural design point of view remains a difficult challenge.

Enhancing Oxygen Reduction Reaction of Single-Atom Catalysts by Structure Tuning.

Deciphering the fine structure has always been a crucial approach to unlocking the distinct advantages of high activity, selectivity, and stability in single-atom catalysts (SACs). However, the complex system and unclear catalytic mechanism have obscured the significance of exploring the fine structure. Therefore, we endeavored to develop a three-component strategy to enhance oxygen reduction reaction (ORR), delving deep into the profound implications of the fine structure, focusing on central atoms, coordinating atoms, and environmental atoms.

Myosin forces elicit an F-actin structural landscape that mediates mechanosensitive protein recognition.

Cells mechanically interface with their surroundings through cytoskeleton-linked adhesions, allowing them to sense physical cues that instruct development and drive diseases such as cancer. Contractile forces generated by myosin motor proteins mediate these mechanical signal transduction processes through unclear protein structural mechanisms. Here, we show that myosin forces elicit structural changes in actin filaments (F-actin) that modulate binding by the mechanosensitive adhesion protein α-catenin.

Structure-function relationship of phase-separated liposomes containing diacylglycerol analogues.

The composition and morphology of lipid-based nanoparticles can influence their overall behavior. Previously, we demonstrated that phase separation in liposomes composed of DSPC and a diacylglycerol lipid analogue (DOaG) drives the biodistribution towards a specific subset of endothelial cells in zebrafish embryos. In the absence of traditional targeting functionalities (, antibodies, ligands), this selectivity is mediated solely by the unique liposome morphology and composition, characterized by a DOaG-rich lipid droplet within the DSPC-rich phospholipid bilayer.

Silanol-Stabilized Atomically Dispersed Pt-O-Sn Active Sites in Protozeolite for Propane Dehydrogenation.

Crystalline zeolites have been proven to be excellent supports for confining subnanometric metal catalysts to boost the propane dehydrogenation (PDH) reaction. However, the introduced metallic species may suffer from severe sintering and limited stability during the catalytic process, especially when utilizing an industrial impregnation method for metal incorporation. In this study, we developed a new type of support based on amorphous protozeolite (PZ), taking advantage of its adjustable silanol chemistry and zeolitic microporous characteristic for stabilizing atomically dispersed PtSn catalyst via a simple, cost-effective coimpregnation process.

Multi-species cryoEM calibration and workflow verification standard.

Cryogenic electron microscopy (cryoEM) is a rapidly growing structural biology modality that has been successful in revealing molecular details of biological systems. However, unlike established biophysical and analytical techniques with calibration standards, cryoEM has lacked comprehensive biological test samples. We introduce a cryoEM calibration sample that is a mixture of compatible macromolecules that can be used not only for resolution optimization but also provides multiple reference points for evaluating instrument performance, data quality, and image processing workflows in a single experiment.

Mechanochemically-derived iron atoms on defective boron nitride for stable propylene production.

Single-atom catalysts (SACs), possessing a uniform metal site structure, are a promising class of materials for selective oxidations of hydrocarbons. However, their design for targeted applications requires careful choice of metal-host combinations and suitable synthetic techniques. Here, we report iron atoms stabilised on defective hexagonal boron nitride (h-BN) mechanochemical activation in a ball mill as an effective catalyst for propylene production NO-mediated oxidative propane dehydrogenation (NO-ODHP), reaching 95% selectivity at 6% propane conversion and maintaining stable performance for 40 h on stream.

Cobalt substitution-induced π-donation in NiMoO for enhanced electrochemical charge storage.

NiMoO (NM) has garnered significant attention due to its rich d-orbital electronic structure and multivalent electroactive cations. However, the inherently low electrical conductivity of NM limits its reaction kinetics. Herein, cobalt-substituted NM (Co-NM) nanorods were prepared via a hydrothermal reaction followed by subsequent thermal treatment.

A new form of severe acute localized reactions following intra-articular hyaluronic acid injections in knee osteoarthritis. A case report.

Intra-articular hyaluronic acid (HA) injections are widely used for the treatment of symptomatic knee osteoarthritis. Adverse reactions were described in a limited number of patients and consist in local inflammatory reactions and severe acute inflammatory reactions (pseudosepsis). We present the case of a 71-year-old woman who experienced a severe acute adverse effect immediately (within minutes) following intraarticular HA administration, attributed to HA precipitation.

Localization and segmentation of atomic columns in supported nanoparticles for fast scanning transmission electron microscopy.

To accurately capture the dynamic behavior of small nanoparticles in scanning transmission electron microscopy, high-quality data and advanced data processing is needed. The fast scan rate required to observe structural dynamics inherently leads to very noisy data where machine learning tools are essential for unbiased analysis. In this study, we develop a workflow based on two U-Net architectures to automatically localize and classify atomic columns at particle-support interfaces.

Neutrophil trapping and nexocytosis, mast cell-mediated processes for inflammatory signal relay.

Neutrophils are sentinel immune cells with essential roles for antimicrobial defense. Most of our knowledge on neutrophil tissue navigation derived from wounding and infection models, whereas allergic conditions remained largely neglected. Here, we analyzed allergen-challenged mouse tissues and discovered that degranulating mast cells (MCs) trap living neutrophils inside them.