Design of electron-donating group substituted 2-PAM analogs as antidotes for organophosphate insecticide poisoning.

The use of organophosphate (OPs) pesticides is widespread in agriculture and horticulture, but these chemicals can be lethal to humans, causing fatalities and deaths each year. The inhibition of acetylcholinesterase (AChE) by OPs leads to the overstimulation of cholinergic receptors, ultimately resulting in respiratory arrest, seizures, and death. Although 2-pralidoxime (2-PAM) is the FDA-approved drug for treating OP poisoning, there is difficulty in blood-brain barrier permeation.

Cyclobutane-bearing restricted anchoring residues enabled geometry-specific hydrocarbon peptide stapling.

Stapled peptides are regarded as the promising next-generation therapeutics because of their improved secondary structure, membrane permeability and metabolic stability as compared with the prototype linear peptides. Usually, stapled peptides are obtained by a hydrocarbon stapling technique, anchoring from paired olefin-terminated unnatural amino acids and the consequent ring-closing metathesis (RCM). To investigate the adaptability of the rigid cyclobutane structure in RCM and expand the chemical diversity of hydrocarbon peptide stapling, we herein described the rational design and efficient synthesis of cyclobutane-based conformationally constrained amino acids, termed ()-1-amino-3-(but-3-en-1-yl)cyclobutane-1-carboxylic acid (E) and ()-1-amino-3-(but-3-en-1-yl)cyclobutane-1-carboxylic acid (Z).

The molecular neural mechanism underlying the acceleration of brain aging due to Dcf1 deficiency.

Owing to the continuous increase in human life expectancy, the management of aging-related diseases has become an urgent issue. The brain dominates the central nervous system; therefore, brain aging is a key area of aging-related research. We previously uncovered that dendritic cell factor 1 (Dcf1) maintains the stemness of neural stem cells and its expression in Drosophila can prolong lifespan, suggesting an association between Dcf1 and aging; however, the specific underlying neural mechanism remains unclear.

Recent advances in permeable polymersomes: fabrication, responsiveness, and applications.

Polymersomes are vesicular nanostructures enclosed by a bilayer-membrane self-assembled from amphiphilic block copolymers, which exhibit higher stability compared with their biological analogues ( liposomes). Due to their versatility, polymersomes have found various applications in different research fields such as drug delivery, nanomedicine, biological nanoreactors, and artificial cells. However, polymersomes prepared with high molecular weight components typically display low permeability to molecules and ions.

Design, synthesis and antitumor activity of Ascaphin-8 derived stapled peptides based on halogen-sulfhydryl click chemical reactions.

Ascaphin-8 (GFKDLLKGAAKALVKTVLF-NH), isolated from the norepinephrine-stimulated skin secretion of the North American-tailed frog , is a C-terminal α-helical antimicrobial peptide with potential antitumor activity. However, linear peptides are difficult to be applied directly as drugs because of their inherent defects, such as low hydrolytic enzyme tolerance and poor structural stability. In this study, we designed and synthesized a series of stapled peptides based on Ascaphin-8 thiol-halogen click chemistry.

Cuprate superconducting materials above liquid nitrogen temperature from machine learning.

The superconductivity of cuprates remains a challenging topic in condensed matter physics, and the search for materials that superconduct electricity above liquid nitrogen temperature and even at room temperature is of great significance for future applications. Nowadays, with the advent of artificial intelligence, research approaches based on data science have achieved excellent results in material exploration. We investigated machine learning (ML) models by employing separately the element symbolic descriptor atomic feature set 1 (AFS-1) and a prior physics knowledge descriptor atomic feature set 2 (AFS-2).

Membrane-based purification and recovery of phosphate and antibiotics by two-dimensional zeolitic nanoflakes.

The pervasive presence of persistent contaminants in water resources, including phosphate and antibiotics, has attracted significant attention due to their potential adverse effects on ecosystems and human health. Adsorption membranes packed with metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) have been proposed as a potential solution to this challenge due to their high surface area to volume ratio, and the tailored functionality they can provide for selective purification. However, devising a straightforward method to enhance the stability of MOF membranes on polymer supports and manipulate their surface morphology remains challenging.

Diagnosis of acute myocardial infarction using a combination of circulating circular RNA cZNF292 and clinical information based on machine learning.

Circulating circular RNAs (circRNAs) are emerging as novel biomarkers for cardiovascular diseases (CVDs). Machine learning can provide optimal predictions on the diagnosis of diseases. Here we performed a proof-of-concept study to determine if combining circRNAs with an artificial intelligence approach works in diagnosing CVD.

First-principles surface reaction rates by ring polymer molecular dynamics and neural network potential: role of anharmonicity and lattice motion.

Elementary gas-surface processes are essential steps in heterogeneous catalysis. A predictive understanding of catalytic mechanisms remains challenging due largely to difficulties in accurately characterizing the kinetics of such steps. Experimentally, thermal rates for elementary surface reactions can now be measured using a novel velocity imaging technique, providing a stringent testing ground for rate theories.

Targeted activation of Nrf2/HO-1 pathway by Corynoline alleviates osteoporosis development.

Oxidative stress is preferentially treated as a risk factor for the development and progression of osteoporosis. Corynoline as a component of Corydalis bungeana Turcz presents antioxidative and anti-inflammatory properties. In the present study, the effects of Corynoline on osteoblasts following hydrogen peroxide (HO)-induced injury were evaluated accompanied by the investigation of the molecular mechanisms involved.

An electrochemical method for measuring magnetic flux density.

A magneto-electrochemical method is designed and validated for measuring magnetic flux density. This method is based on the correlation of the change of open circuit potential to the flux density of an applied magnetic field. Electrochemical systems with iron in ferric solutions are selected for demonstrating the validity of the proposed methods.

Hyaluronic acid--lipoic acid granular gel for promoting diabetic wound healing.

Diabetic patients are prone to developing chronic inflammation after trauma and have persistent nonhealing wounds. Reactive oxygen species (ROS) and recurrent bacterial infections at the site of long-term wounds also further delay skin wound healing and tissue regeneration. In this study, a granular gel (which exhibits ROS scavenging and antibacterial properties) is fabricated based on hyaluronic acid--lipoic acid (HA-LA).

Predicting risk on cardiovascular or cerebrovascular disease based on a physical activity cohort: Results from APAC study.

Commonly used prediction models have been primarily constructed without taking physical activity into account. Using the Kailuan physical activity cohorts from Asymptomatic Polyvascular Abnormalities in Community (APAC) study, we developed a 9-year cardiovascular or cerebrovascular disease (CVD) risk prediction equation. Participants in this study were included from APAC cohort, which included 5440 participants from the Kailuan cohort in China.

An enzyme-powered microRNA discriminator for the subtype-specific diagnosis of breast cancer.

Breast cancer, a disease with highly heterogeneous features, is the most common malignancy diagnosed in people worldwide. Early diagnosis of breast cancer is crucial for improving its cure rate, and accurate classification of the subtype-specific features is essential to precisely treat the disease. An enzyme-powered microRNA (miRNA, RNA = ribonucleic acid) discriminator was developed to selectively distinguish breast cancer cells from normal cells and further identify subtype-specific features.

Synthesis of WO@WS core-shell nanostructures solution-based sulfurization for improved performance of water splitting.

High light absorption capacity and excellent charge transportation are significant for superior water-splitting performance. Here, WO/WS core-shell nanowire arrays were fabricated using a two-step hydrothermal method. The crystal phase, morphology, crystal structure, chemical composition, and optical properties were characterized using XRD, SEM, TEM, XPS, and UV-vis spectroscopy.

Synthesis and evaluation of radiolabeled porphyrin derivatives for cancer diagnoses and their nonradioactive counterparts for photodynamic therapy.

Radioiodinated porphyrin derivatives and the corresponding nonradioactive iodine introduced compounds, [I]I-TPP ([I]3), [I]I-l-tyrosine-TPP ([I]9), I-TPP (3), and I-l-tyrosine-TPP (9) were designed, synthesized, and evaluated by and experiments. In cytotoxicity assays, 3 and 9 exhibited significant cytotoxicity under light conditions but did not show significant cytotoxicity without light irradiation. Biodistribution experiments with [I]3 and [I]9 showed similar distribution patterns with high retention in tumors.

PEGylation of Goldbody: PEG-aided conformational engineering of peptides on gold nanoparticles.

It is still a great challenge to engineer flexible non-functional molecules into special conformations to carry out novel functions. Previously, we successfully restored the native conformations and functions of the flexible complementary-determining regions (CDRs) of antibodies on the surface of gold nanoparticles (AuNPs), and created a class of AuNP-based artificial antibodies, denoted as Goldbodies. Yet, in these Goldbodies, there are dozens of CDRs on one Goldbody.

Electron transport properties of PtSe nanoribbons with distinct edge reconstructions.

Edge reconstructions of two-dimensional (2D) materials play a central role in determining the electronic transport properties of nanodevices. However, it is not feasible to study the relationship between edge reconstruction and electronic properties using experimental methods because of the complexity of the experimental environment and the diversity of edge reconstruction. Herein, we have combined density functional theory (DFT) calculations and the nonequilibrium Green's function (NEGF) method to investigate the inner physical mechanism of platinum diselenide (PtSe) nanoribbons, revealing distinctive negative differential resistance (NDR) behaviors in different nanoribbons with various edge reconstructions.

Effects of Cu/Zn on the electrochemical performance of polyacrylamide hydrogels as advanced flexible electrode materials.

Previously, solid-state electrode materials have been utilized for the fabrication of energy storage devices; however, their application is impeded by their brittle nature and ion mobility problems. To address issues faced in such a modern era where energy saving and utility is of prior importance, a novel approach has been applied for the preparation of electrode materials based on polyacrylamide hydrogels embedded with reduced graphene oxide and transition metals, namely, Cu and Zn. The fabricated hydrogel exhibits high electrical properties and flexibility that make it a favorable candidate to be used in energy storage devices, where both elastic and electrical properties are desired.

Nonadiabatic dynamics studies of the H(S) + RbH(XΣ) reaction: based on new diabatic potential energy surfaces.

The global diabatic potential energy surfaces (PESs) that correspond to the ground (1A') and first excited states (2A') of the RbH system PES are constructed based on 17 786 points. The neural network method is used to fit the PESs and the topographic features of the new diabatic PESs are discussed in detail. Based on the newly constructed diabatic PESs, the dynamics calculations of the H(S) + RbH(XΣ) → Rb(5S) + H(XΣ )/Rb(5P) + H(XΣ ) reactions are performed using the time-dependent wave packet method.

Controlled assembly of a bicyclic porphyrinoid and its 3-dimensional boron difluoride arrays.

A fully conjugated cryptand-like bicyclic porphyrinoid ligand 4, incorporating three carbazole linkages and four dipyrrin moieties, was prepared the acid-catalysed condensation of an extended 2,2'-bipyrrole analogue containing a central carbazole moiety and 3,4-diethyl-2,5-diformylpyrrole in 79% isolated yield. This new cryptand-like system acts as an effective ligand and allows for complexation of BF (boron difluoride) subunits. Three BODIPY arrays, containing two, three, and four BF subunits, namely 4·2BF, 4·3BF and 4·4BF, could thus be isolated from the reaction of 4 with BF·EtO in the presence of triethylamine at 110 °C, albeit in relatively low yield.

Enhancing cell membrane phase separation for inhibiting cancer metastasis with a stimuli-responsive DNA nanodevice.

Phase separation in cell membranes promotes the assembly of transmembrane receptors to initiate signal transduction in response to environmental cues. Many cellular behaviors are manipulated by promoting membrane phase separation through binding to multivalent extracellular ligands. However, available extracellular molecule tools that enable manipulating the clustering of transmembrane receptors in a controllable manner are rare.

Can Thailand achieve COVID-19 herd immunity?

The COVID-19 outbreak has had a great impact on the social, economic, and health systems of Thailand. A variety of measures to curb the spread of the disease were implemented since the beginning of the pandemic, including a strict national lockdown protocol. The Thai government aimed to achieve herd immunity through an efficient vaccination programme.

Influence of humic acid and bovine serum albumin on colloid-associated heavy metal transport in saturated porous media.

Colloid-facilitated contaminant transport in porous media has been widely observed in laboratory and field studies. In this study, the influence of two dissolved organic matters (DOMs), humic acid (HA) and bovine serum albumin (BSA), on the colloid-associated heavy metal transport, was investigated. Soil colloids with particle sizes <2 μm were prepared from bentonite.