A new cyanide probe has been prepared by one-step synthesis and evaluated by UV–vis and fluorescent method. This probe is combined by a fluorene part and a hemicyanine group through a conjugated ...linker, which is found to show rapid response, high selectivity and sensitivity for cyanide anions with significant dual colorimetric and fluorescent signal changes in aqueous solution. An intramolecular charge transfer (ICT) effect plays a key role in the CN− sensing properties, and the details of this mechanism are further supported by DFT and TD-DFT calculations. The theoretical study shows that the introduction of CN- twists the original plane structure and blocks the ICT process in the whole molecule, which brings about the absorption blue-shift and the fluorescence quenching.
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•An easy-to-prepare fluorescent probe for cyanide detection has been synthetized.•This probe has advantages such as easy-to-prepare (just one step), large emission shift, good response, and high selectivity.•The details of the ICT mechanism are further supported by DFT and TD-DFT calculations.
Paroxysmal kinesigenic dyskinesia (PKD) is characterized by recurrent episodes of movement-induced motor attacks. PKD patients may have concomitant epilepsy. Differentiation between the two disorders ...and effective control of both diseases remain challenging.
We present a Chinese girl with typical manifestations of PKD, who also suffered from generalized tonic-clonic seizure attacks at the same time. Genetic testing confirmed a
mutation (c.649dupC). Oxcarbazepine was initially used, but withdrawn due to a hypersensitivity reaction. Levetiracetam was initiated afterwards, which was effective for seizures but failed to control her PKD symptoms. The addition of lacosamide (LCM) completely controlled her PKD symptoms.
This is the first case reporting the effectiveness of LCM for concomitant PKD and epilepsy. Our case proposes a novel alternative for such patients who are resistant or cannot tolerate conventional anti-sodium antiepileptics.
Despite the success in the fabrication of various arbitrary-sized one-dimensional architectures, researches still face specific disadvantages of uncontrollable porosity and disordered structures, ...leading to a deficiency in micro-sized porous for efficient catalytic performance. To improve these limitations, herein, fabricating controllable microstructures based on three-dimensional (3D) printing technology was conducted for catalysis applications. Initially, a multi-channel organized structure printed by silica (SiO
2
) powder was as the support, onto which different organic functional groups were immobilized. Prior to exploring the catalytic efficiency, different techniques were used to investigate the characterization of 3D-SiO
2
systematically. Amongst various immobilized functional groups, the 3D-SiO
2
modified with diethylenetriamine showed the best catalytic activity for Knoevenagel condensation reaction. Moreover, the results showed that 3D-SiO
2
enhanced catalytic activities of over 90% in only 30 min and could be reused more than ten times with high-performance efficiency while transforming various aldehydes in the presence of malononitrile.
We aimed to develop and validate a predictive model for identifying long-term survivors (LTS) among glioblastoma (GB) patients, defined as those with an overall survival (OS) of more than 3 years. A ...total of 293 GB patients from CGGA and 169 from TCGA database were assigned to training and validation cohort, respectively. The differences in expression of immune checkpoint genes (ICGs) and immune infiltration landscape were compared between LTS and short time survivor (STS) (OS<1.5 years). The differentially expressed genes (DEGs) and weighted gene co-expression network analysis (WGCNA) were used to identify the genes differentially expressed between LTS and STS. Three different machine learning algorithms were employed to select the predictive genes from the overlapping region of DEGs and WGCNA to construct the nomogram. The comparison between LTS and STS revealed that STS exhibited an immune-resistant status, with higher expression of ICGs (
P
<0.05) and greater infiltration of immune suppression cells compared to LTS (
P
<0.05). Four genes, namely,
OSMR
,
FMOD
,
CXCL14
, and
TIMP1
, were identified and incorporated into the nomogram, which possessed good potential in predicting LTS probability among GB patients both in the training (
C
-index, 0.791; 0.772–0.817) and validation cohort (
C
-index, 0.770; 0.751–0.806). STS was found to be more likely to exhibit an immune-cold phenotype. The identified predictive genes were used to construct the nomogram with potential to identify LTS among GB patients.
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•Vapor permeation is quite promising for in-situ bio-alcohol recovery.•Modified PAN membranes were applied in ethanol recovery via vapor permeation.•Membrane porosity was reduced till ...suitable for separation by hydrolyzing in alkali.•Membrane hydrophobicity was controlled by grafting fluoroalkyl chains.•The performance outstripped most polymeric membranes in both flux and selectivity.
Vapor permeation seems to be a more suitable separation process than pervaporation in bio-ethanol recovery from fermentation broth because of its non-direct contact trait. The unsatisfactory flux and selectivity of polymeric membranes limit their utilization in industrial application. Here, we tailored the physical and chemical structure of commercial available polyacrylonitrile (PAN) ultrafiltration membrane to serve in vapor permeation. The membrane porosity was reduced till dense enough for separation while preserving an ultra-high flux by hydrolyzing in alkali. The hydrophilicity/hydrophobicity was controlled by grafting fluoroalkyl chains to ensure an acceptable ethanol selectivity. The changes of physical structure and chemical property were systematically characterized by Fourier transform infrared-attenuated total reflectance (ATR-FTIR), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), water contact angle and pure water permeance. Tested at 60 °C, the optimized membrane exhibited a high flux of ca. 10.5 kg m−2 h−1 and a permeate ethanol content similar to vapor-liquid equilibrium curve, which outstripped most polymeric membranes (applied in pervaporation or vapor permeation) in both flux and selectivity.
The successful implementation of thin-film composite membranes (TFCM) for challenging solute-solute separations in the pharmaceutical industry requires a fine control over the microstructure (size, ...distribution, and connectivity of the free-volume elements) and thickness of the selective layer. For example, desalinating antibiotic streams requires highly interconnected free-volume elements of the right size to block antibiotics but allow the passage of salt ions and water. Here, we introduce stevioside, a plant-derived contorted glycoside, as a promising aqueous phase monomer for optimizing the microstructure of TFCM made via interfacial polymerization. The low diffusion rate and moderate reactivity of stevioside, together with its nonplanar and distorted conformation, produced thin selective layers with an ideal microporosity for antibiotic desalination. For example, an optimized 18-nm membrane exhibited an unprecedented combination of high water permeance (81.2 liter m
hour
bar
), antibiotic desalination efficiency (NaCl/tetracycline separation factor of 11.4), antifouling performance, and chlorine resistance.
Roots of
and
are recorded as the source plant of traditional Chinese medicine "Langdu," containing active ingredients with anticancer and anti-AIDS activity. However, the two species have specific ...patterns in the graphic distribution. Compared with
distributes in higher latitude and lower temperature areas and might have experienced cold stress adaptation. To reveal the molecular mechanism of environmental adaptation, RNA-seq was performed toward the roots, stems, and leaves of
and
. A total of 6,830 pairs of putative orthologs between the two species were identified. Estimations of non-synonymous or synonymous substitution rate ratios for these orthologs indicated that 533 of the pairs may be under positive selection (Ka/Ks > 0.5). Functional enrichment analysis revealed that significant proportions of the orthologs were in the TCA cycle, fructose and mannose metabolism, starch and sucrose metabolism, fatty acid biosynthesis, and terpenoid biosynthesis providing insights into how the two closely related
species adapted differentially to extreme environments. Consistent with the transcriptome, a higher content of soluble sugars and proline was obtained in
, reflecting the adaptation of plants to different environments. Additionally, 5 primary or secondary metabolites were screened as the biomarkers to distinguish the two species. Determination of 4 diterpenoids was established and performed, showing jolkinolide B as a representative component in
, whereas ingenol endemic to
. To better study population genetics, EST-SSR markers were generated and tested in 9 species of
. A total of 33 of the 68 pairs were screened out for producing clear fragments in at least four species, which will furthermore facilitate the studies on the genetic improvement and phylogenetics of this rapidly adapting taxon. In this study, transcriptome and metabolome analyses revealed the evolution of genes related to cold stress tolerance, biosynthesis of TCA cycle, soluble sugars, fatty acids, and amino acids, consistent with the molecular strategy that genotypes adapting to environment. The key active ingredients of the two species were quantitatively analyzed to reveal the difference in pharmacodynamic substance basis and molecular mechanism, providing insights into rational crude drug use.
It is well-known that the inner electric field formed between the counter electrode and the semiconductor surface has a substantial effect on the efficiencies of dye-sensitized solar cells (DSSCs). ...To reveal the function of the inner electric field for different types of porphyrin sensitizers in DSSCs, the properties of three types of porphyrin sensitizers (α, β, and center axial positions) under different electric fields were calculated by using density functional theory (DFT) and time dependent density functional theory (TD-DFT). The electronic structures and optical properties of these studied dyes in tetrahydrofuran (THF) solution were also investigated correspondingly. Key parameters of the short-circuit current density ( J sc ) including light harvesting efficiency (LHE), electron injection driving force (Δ G inject ) and intramolecular charge transfer (ICT) were detailedly discussed. The results show that the a-position type porphyrin sensitizer can be used as a potential sensitizer for DSSCs under an enhanced electric field. We expect that the present study would deepen the understanding of the function of an inner electric field and may be helpful in DSSC design in the future.
Sanguis draxonis (SD) is a kind of red resin obtained from the wood of Dracaena cochinchinensis (Lour.) S. C. Chen (D. cochinchinensis). The active components of total flavonoids from SD (SDF) have ...analgesic effect.
The aim of this study is to evaluate the analgesic effects and potential mechanism of SDF on mechanical hypersensitivity induced by spared nerve injury (SNI) model of neuropathic pain in the rat.
SNI model in rats was established and then the rats were treated with SDF intragastric administration for 14 days. Paw withdrawal mechanical threshold (PMWT) in response to mechanical stimulation was measured by von Frey filaments on day 1 before operation and days 1, 3, 5, 7, 9, 11, 14 after operation, respectively. After 14 days, we measured the levels of nitric oxide (NO), nitric oxide synthase (NOS), tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α), interleukin-1β (IL-1β) and interleukin-10 (IL-10) in the spinal dorsal horn. In addition, the expression of fibroblast growth factor receptor 3 (FGFR3), phosphorylated cyclic AMP response element-binding protein (p-CREB) and glial fibrillary acidic protein (GFAP) of the spinal dorsal horn was evaluated by western blotting and an immunofluorescence histochemical method, respectively.
Intragastric administration of SDF (100, 200, 400 mg/kg) alleviated significantly SNI-induced mechanical hypersensitivity, as PMWT increased in a dose-dependent manner. Moreover, SDF not only reduced the level of NO, NOS, TNF-α and IL-1β, but also upregulated the level of IL-10 in the spinal dorsal horn of SNI rats. At the same time, SDF (100, 200, 400 mg/kg) could inhibit the expression of FGFR3, GFAP and p-CREB in the spinal dorsal horn.
SDF has potentially reduced mechanical hypersensitivity induced by SNI model of neuropathic pain which may be attributed to inhibition of astrocytic function (like release pro-inflammatory cytokines) and NO release as well as p-CREB activation in the spinal dorsal horn.
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Zeolite NaA membranes have been widely used in dehydration of alcohols by pervaporation because of their excellent permeability and selectivity. However, the zeolite NaA membranes were criticized for ...the poor performance in acidic condition. Herein, we report a simple and effective method to enhance acid stability of zeolite NaA membranes. The key is a positively charged polyelectrolyte complex (PEC) was impregnated on the surface of zeolite NaA membranes. The PEC was synthesized from chitosan (CS) and sodium poly (vinyl sulfonate) (PVS). Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), X-ray diffraction (XRD) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) results indicated that the zeolite NaA membranes suffered from severe damage in both morphology and crystal structure after contact with acid, while the PEC/NaA composite membranes remained intact. Accordingly, the PEC/NaA composite membranes（1.5 wt% PEC in solution） exhibited excellent water permeability and selectivity in acid solution. For acidic 90 wt% ethanol/water (pH = 3) mixture separation, the permeate flux was 875 g/(m2 h), the water content in permeate was as high as 99.8 wt% at 40 °C. Meanwhile, the composite membranes showed a good acid stability for more than 200 h and this was attributed to the barrier effect of PEC layer, as well as the protonation ability of -NH2 groups in PEC. This method is expected to offer great opportunities for the dehydration of organics under acidic conditions.
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•Positively charged polyelectrolyte complex synthesized from CS and PVS.•Acid-resistant PEC/NaA membranes prepared through dip-coating.•The structure of NaA did not suffer from acid erode at the presence of PEC layer.•The permeate water content remains above 99 wt% in acid solution against time.
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