Surface enhancement Raman scatting (SERS) substrate was synthesized by two-step electrodeposition method based on ZnO nanosheets (ZNNs) template. ZNNs membrane was prepared via ...first-electrodeposition by using zinc nitrate hexahydrate (ZnNO3•6H2O) as the precursor. Subsequently, an Au seed layer was coated on the ZNNs membrane substrate using ion sputtering apparatus. Finally, Au nanoparticles composite membrane was obtained by the second-electrodeposition growth process of Au nanoparticles in chlorogenic acid (HAuCl4•4H2O) solution. The Au nanoparticles composite membrane could be served as an activity SERS substrate, and it showed that ZNNs are mutually hinged and grow vertically ITO substrate and Au nanoparticles grew along the (111) crystalline orientation. Results demonstrate that Au nanoparticles with an average diameter of 50 nm are uniformly deposited on the surface of ZNNs template, and the as-prepared AuNPs/ZNNs/AuNPs “sandwich” structures membrane was a high activity and sensetivity SERS substrate, it showed a rather low detection limitation of 10−12 mol/L for R6G solution.
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•ZNNs template for the synthesis of AuNPS/ZNNs/AuNPs “sandwich” structure.•The synthesis of Au “sandwich” structure was two-step electrodeposition method.•The “sandwich” structure was composed of Au-nanoparticles and ZNNs.•The Au “sandwich” structure was used as SERS substrate with surface activity and sensitivity.•The substrate detecting limit was 10−12 M, using detection of environment pollutants.
Purpose
6-Gingerol, a major biochemical and pharmacological active ingredient of ginger, has shown anti-inflammatory and antitumor activities against various cancers. Searching for natural products ...with fewer side effects for developing adjunctive therapeutic options is necessary.
Methods
The effects of 6-gingerol on proliferation, colony formation, and cell cycle in RCC cells were detected by a 3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide (MTT) assay, colony formation assay, and propidium iodide (PI) staining, respectively. Western blotting, an immunofluorescence assay, and immunohistochemical staining were performed to assess the expression of relevant proteins. A subcutaneous tumor model was set up to investigate the 6-gingerol effects on tumor growth in vivo, and the pharmacokinetics of 6-gingerol in mice were detected by LC/MS assays.
Results
6-Gingerol treatment exerted time- and dose-dependent inhibition of the growth and colony formation of ACHN, 786-O, and 769-P cells, leading to a concomitant induction of cell-cycle G1-phase arrest and decrease in Ki-67 expression in the cell nucleus. Western-blotting results showed that 6-gingerol reduces phosphorylation of protein kinase B (AKT) Ser 473, cyclin-dependent kinases (CDK4), and cyclin D1 and, meanwhile, increases glycogen synthase kinase (GSK 3β) protein amount. Furthermore, the efficacy of 6-gingerol was demonstrated in an in vivo murine model of 786-O.
Conclusion
The above results indicate that 6-gingerol can induce cell-cycle arrest and cell-growth inhibition through the AKT–GSK 3β–cyclin D1 signaling pathway in vitro and in vivo, suggesting that 6-gingerol should be useful for renal-cell carcinoma treatment.
In this paper, we investigate the properties of chromium nitride (CrN) coating prepared using a high power magnetron sputtering (HiPIMS) technique. As a comparison, CrN coating prepared using a ...direct current magnetron sputtering (DCMS) technique is also studied. The crystal structure, surface and cross-sectional morphologies, and composite properties of the as-deposited CrN coatings are compared by x-ray diffraction, a scanning electron microscope, and a microhardness tester, respectively. It is found that the as-deposited CrN film by HiPIMS grew preferentially on (200) facet when compared with that by DCMS on (111) facet. As a result, the coatings deposited by HiPIMS have a very compact microstructure with high hardness: the microhardness reached 855.9 Hv replacing 501.5 Hv by DCMS. Besides, the inner-stress of CrN films prepared by HiPIMS is also relatively small. After measuring the corrosion resistance, the corrosion current of films prepared by HiPIMS was an order of magnitude smaller than that of CrN films deposited by DCMS. Based on the plasma diagnostics by time resolved optical emission spectroscopy, it is believed that the superior quality of CrN coatings prepared by HiPIMS is because of the ionic reaction between Cr+ and N+, rather than the neutral Cr and N reaction in DCMS during the CrN film growth.
To improve solid waste resource utilization and environmental sustainability, an alkali-activated material (AAM) was prepared using steel slag (SS), fly ash, blast furnace slag and alkali activators ...in this work. The evolutions of SS content (10-50%) and alkali equivalent (4.0-8.0%) on workability, mechanical strength and environmental indicators of the AAM were investigated. Furthermore, scanning electron microscopy, X-ray diffraction and nuclear magnetic resonance techniques were adopted to characterize micromorphology, reaction products and pore structure, and the reaction mechanism was summarized. Results showed that the paste fluidity and setting time gradually increased with the increase in SS content. The highest compressive strength was obtained for the paste at 8.0% alkali equivalent due to the improved reaction rate and process, but it also increased the risk of cracking. However, SS was able to exert a microaggregate filling effect, where SS particles filling the pores increased the structural compactness and hindered crack development. Based on the optimal compressive strength, global warming, abiotic resource depletion, acidification and eutrophication potential of the paste are reduced by 76.7%, 53.0%, 51.6%, and 48.9%, respectively, compared with cement. This work is beneficial to further improve the utilization of solid waste resources and expand the application of environmentally friendly AAMs in the field of construction engineering.
High power impulse magnetron sputtering (HiPIMS) is well known in modern physical vapor deposition (PVD) owing to its high peak power density, high degree of ionization, high plasma density and hence ...high ion flux towards the substrate that allows ones to deposit high quality thin films in comparison with conventional magnetron sputtering technology. The present short review on HiPIMS intends to provide readers with a summary of the current status of this emerging PVD technique: the developmental history, the plasma characterization, and the applications in hardness and functional thin film fabrications. Several items on the distinctive feature of HiPIMS, including self-sputtering mechanism, low deposition rate, arcing phenomenon and key factors of deposition process are reviewed in detail. To limit the scope, the emphasis is put on thermo-chromic VO2 thin film deposited by HiPIMS. Based on this typical issue, some classical ideas and approaches on fabrication of the functional thin films through HiPIMS technique are demonstrated.
One of the critical problems in bladder cancer (BC) management is the local recurrence of disease. However, achieving the accurate delineation of tumor margins intraoperatively remains extremely ...difficult due to the lack of effective tumor margin recognition technology. Herein, survivin molecular beacon (MB) and R11 peptide-linked spherical nucleic acids (SNAs) were synthesized as nanoprobes (AuNP-MB@R11) for sensitive detection of BC margins. Physicochemical properties proved that R11 peptides and survivin MB were successfully loaded onto the surface of SNAs. AuNP-MB@R11 had good stability against nuclease activity and high sensitivity and specificity to detect survivin single strand DNA (ssDNA)
in vitro
. According to cytology, R11 peptides could increase the BC targeting ability and membrane penetrability of SNAs. Notably, R11 peptides significantly promoted the disintegration of lysosomes and the release of SNAs to enhance fluorescence imaging quality. Further RNA sequencing proved that some genes and pathways related to endocytosis and lysosomes were significantly regulated, such as AGPAT5, GPD1L, and GRB2. In orthotopic BC models and a clinical sample from a patient with BC, AuNP-MB@R11 showed a more legible cancerous fluorescence margin and offered remarkably improved detection compared to those achieved by SNAs. R11 peptide-linked SNAs present promising potential to identify BC margin, which may help to improve the R0 resection rate in surgery and improve patients’ quality of life.
In this paper, we report a nitrogen (N) doped zinc oxide (N:ZnO) film grown by the reactive high power impulse magnetron sputtering (HiPIMS) technique on glass substrates, where nitrogen gas (N2) is ...used as the N source. The proposal is to investigate the influence of process parameters on the alteration of the N:ZnO film from n- to p-type conductivity and the stability of the p-type behavior. It is obtained that the n- or p-type behavior of the as-deposited N:ZnO film is affected by the N2 flow rate, deposition temperature, and inductively coupled plasma (ICP) assistance, of which the ICP assistance had a great impact. It is noticed that, owing to the improved ionization rate of the N2 dopant by ICP, the N:ZnO film almost totally prefers to exhibit p-type behavior. Based on the measurement by temporal resolution optical emission spectroscopy, the components in plasma are obtained and the ion reaction in film growth is confirmed: a high concentration of active N+ in the ICP-assisted plasma reacts with sputtered Zn+ in vapor to form No defect in the p-type N:ZnO film. We then forecast that a stable p-type N:ZnO film can be grown using the HiPIMS technique.
Postoperative complications of colorectal cancer (CRC) are the main cause of postoperative death and seriously affect the quality of life and survival time of patients. The application of a clinical ...prediction model for postoperative complications of CRC can help promptly identify high-risk patients. Accordingly, reasonable intervention measures can be actively taken to reduce the incidence of postoperative complications of CRC. A scientific basis can also be provided to improve the prognosis of patients. In this work, literature on the risk-factor analysis and prediction-model construction of postoperative complications of CRC at home and abroad in recent years was collected and reviewed. The evaluation content and efficiency of the clinical prediction models in postoperative complications of CRC were summarized. Their advantages and disadvantages were also analyzed. The purpose of this study was to provide a reference for the subsequent optimization of such models and the development of a strong, clinically
In this study, the effect of cryogenic treatment on the microstructure, especially the retained austenite (RA) evolution behavior, and mechanical properties of 55Cr17Mo1VN plastic die steel was ...investigated. The quenching microstructure consisted of martensite, RA, and undissolved carbides. After the cryogenic treatment, the RA volume fraction decreased from 44.7 to 35.4%, while the hardness increased from 39.0 to 54.6 HRC because of the increase in the dislocation density. Besides, the “new martensite” phase broke the blocky RA phase during the cryogenic treatment, and the two phases keep a strict K–S or N–W orientation relationship, which improved the stability of the steel. Interestingly, in the cryogenically treated sample, the RA decomposed completely. On the other hand, the untreated sample retained 20.7% of its RA phase after the tempering process. The cryogenic treatment decreased the thermal stability of the RA phase during the tempering process, which can be attributed to the release of the hydrostatic pressure and the generation of a large number of precipitates from the RA phase. As a result of precipitation strengthening, fine grain strengthening, and dislocation strengthening, the cryogenically treated sample showed excellent tensile strength (∼2241 MPa) and high hardness (∼56.2 HRC).
Dickeya zeae is the causal agent of the rice foot rot disease, but its mechanism of infection remains largely unknown. In this study, we identified and characterized a novel gene designated as zmsA. ...The gene encodes a large protein of 2,346 amino acids in length, which consists of multidomains arranged in the order of N-terminus, beta-ketoacyl synthase, acyl transferase, acyl carrier protein, beta-ketoacyl reductase, dehydratase. This multidomain structure and sequence alignment analysis suggest that ZmsA is a member of the polyketide synthase family. Mutation of zmsA abolished antimicrobial activity and attenuated the virulence of D. zeae. To determine the relationship between antimicrobial activity and virulence, active compounds were purified from D. zeae EC1 and were structurally characterized. This led to identification of two polyamino compounds, i.e., zeamine and zeamine II, that were phytotoxins and potent antibiotics. These results have established the essential role of ZmsA in zeamine biosynthesis and presented a new insight on the molecular mechanisms of D. zeae pathogenicity.
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