In the present paper, we demonstrated a facile one-step and effective electrochemical strategy to synthesize graphene/NiO nanocomposites, which represents a new type of graphene/transition metal ...complex heterostructure. For the electrochemical deposition at the potential range of −1.2 to 0V, graphite oxide (GO) was electrochemically reduced to graphene, accompanied by the simultaneous formation of NiO with a nanoparticle morphology. The obtained nanocomposites were characterized by scanning electron microscopy and electrochemical techniques. It was found that a large amount of NiO nanoparticles with diameter of 100–200nm were uniformly grown on both sides of graphene nanosheets. Electrochemical experiments indicated that the composite film had a large surface area and enhanced electron-transfer rate compared with only NiO nanoparticles, due to an efficient electrical network through NiO nanoparticles direct anchoring on the surface of graphene. Moreover, as a model, glucose and methanol were selected as small molecules to investigate the electrocatalytic properties of the nanocomposites. The results showed that an enhanced electrocatalytic performance of the nanocomposites was obtained. The nanocomposites based sensor exhibited a rapid and highly sensitive response to glucose and methanol, which might find promising applications in medical applications, biological fuel cells and food industries.
Pebax® MH 1657 (Pebax)-based blend membranes with different polyether-amine (PEA) loadings were designed and fabricated for efficient CO
2
separation. The CO
2
separation performance of Pebax/PEA ...blend membranes was greatly improved in comparison with that of pure membranes. This was mainly because the introduced PEA tailored the physical and chemical microenvironments in blend membranes. Specifically, PEA was a liquid-like additive, which was beneficial to reduce the mass transfer resistance of gases and increase CO
2
permeability. Meanwhile, PEA contained amino groups that acted as mobile carriers to tailor the chemical microenvironment in blend membranes. The mobile carriers preferentially reacted reversibly with CO
2
molecules, facilitating CO
2
transport in membranes. Compared with CO
2
/CH
4
separation performance of pure Pebax membrane, CO
2
permeability and CO
2
/CH
4
separation factor of Pebax/PEA-3 increased by 144.8% and 29.4%, respectively. This study suggests that PEA is a promising membrane material for tailoring the physical and chemical microenvironments in blend membranes for efficient CO
2
separation.
Kin17 DNA and RNA binding protein (Kin17) is an extremely conserved nuclear protein that is almost expressed in every type of mammal cells. Recently, Kin17 has been implicated into the regulation of ...tumorigenesis of diverse human cancers. However, its functions in thyroid cancer (TC) are still largely unexplored. Kin17 mRNA and protein level were tested by qRT-PCR and western blot, respectively. Effects of Kin17 on TC cell proliferation were estimated by colony formation assay and flow cytometry analysis in vitro as well as by in vivo tumor growth experiment. TC cell migratory and invasive capacities were assessed via wound-healing and transwell experiments. Epithelial–mesenchymal transition (EMT)-related proteins (E-cadherin and N-cadherin) and p38 MAPAK signaling pathway-related proteins (p-p38, p38, Cyclin D1, and p27) were examined via western blot. Kin17 was remarkably increased in TC tissue samples and cell lines at both mRNA and protein levels compared to normal tissue and control cell line. Knockdown of Kin17 obviously repressed TC cell proliferation, arrested cell cycle, and inhibited TC cell migration and invasion in vitro, while overexpression of Kin17 produced opposite effects. Kin17 knockdown suppressed p38 MAPK signaling pathway, while Kin17 overexpression activated this pathway. Treatment of p38 agonist (p79350) abolished the repressive effects of sh-Kin17 on TC cell proliferation, migration, and invasion, as well as on p38 pathway. Kin17 knockdown was also found to enhance the sensitivity of Doxorubicin of TC cells. In addition, Kin17 knockdown in vivo also markedly repressed TC tumor growth and p38 pathway. Kin17 functioned as an oncogene of TC by activating p38 MAPK signaling pathway.
Acute leukemia (AL) is a malignancy from hematologic stem cells (HSC). Consolidation with intensive chemotherapy is required after induced remission and repeatedly causes treatment-related bleeding ...that is usually attributed to chemotherapy-induced thrombocytopenia (CIT). However, our previous study demonstrated that severe deficiency of plasma coagulation factor XIII (pFXIII) also participated in the bleeding of CIT in AL. However, the relationship between pFXIII deficiency and consolidation chemotherapy was unknown. Here, we observed the concentration of pFXIII in patients with AL before and after consolidation chemotherapy and reevaluated the correlation to bleeding in myelosuppression. Thus, we found that the concentration of pFXIII before chemotherapy in all patients was markedly lower than in the control data and was further decreased by chemotherapy, related to bleeding in myelosuppression. These findings indicated that chemotherapy-induced pFXIII deficiency should be of concern and explored in depth.
Abstract
Obesity can be categorized as metabolically healthy obesity (MHO) and metabolically unhealthy obesity (MUO). However, individuals with MHO are characterized by the absence of metabolic ...syndrome (MS) and appear to have lower inflammation levels compared to MUO. This study aimed to investigate the association of obesity phenotypes with leptin (LEP) and adiponectin (ADP). According to the inclusion and exclusion criteria, we selected 178 subjects from the previous cross-sectional survey. Based on the body mass index (BMI) and diagnostic criteria of MS, we divided the individuals into three groups, including healthy control group (HC group), metabolically healthy obesity group (MHO group) and metabolically unhealthy obesity group (MUO group). The concentrations of LEP and ADP in serum were measured, and the association of these two cytokines with different obesity phenotypes were subsequently analyzed. Compared to both the HC and MHO groups, the MUO group showed significantly higher BMI, waist circumference (WC), waist-hip ratio (WHR), triglyceride (TG), total cholesterol (TC), low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C), fasting plasma glucose (FPG), homeostasis model assessment of insulin resistance (Homa-IR) and blood pressure (
P
< 0.05). In contrast, serum high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C) was notably lower in the MUO group (
P
< 0.05). ADP was found to have a positive correlation with systolic blood pressure (SBP) and a negative correlation with FPG in the MHO group. In the MUO group, LEP demonstrated a positive correlation with fasting insulin (FINS) and Homa-IR, while ADP showed a positive correlation with TC and SBP. Linear regression analysis further indicated that SBP (β = 0.234,
P
= 0.043), TG (β = − 0.292,
P
= 0.001) and LDL-C (β = 0.626,
P
= 0.000) were independently correlated with ADP, and BMI (β = 0.398,
P
= 0.002) was independently correlated with LEP in obese individuals. In conclusion, ADP and LEP were closely related with glucose and lipid metabolism in obese individuals, these two cytokines might play critical roles in obesity-associated metabolic disorders.
BACKGROUNDSlow transit constipation (STC) is a common intestinal disease with increasing incidence. STC results from various factors, such as the enteric nervous system and metabolic changes. As a ...classical formula of traditional Chinese medicine, Ji-Chuan decoction (JCD) has been extensively and effectively used in STC treatment, yet its pharmacological mechanism remains unclear. AIMTo explore the integrated regulatory pattern of JCD against STC through hyphenated techniques from metabolism, network pharmacology and molecular methods. METHODSSTC model mice were generated by intragastric administration of compound diphenoxylate (10 mg/kg/d) for 14 d. The STC mice in the low dose of JCD (3.04 g/kg), middle dose of JCD (6.08 g/kg) and high dose of JCD (12.16 g/kg) groups were orally administered JCD solution once a day for 2 wk. The acetylcholine (ACH) level was examined by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. The pathological features of colon tissue were observed by hematoxylin and eosin staining. The differentially expressed metabolites and metabolic pathways were tested by nontargeted metabolomics. The main targets and core ingredients of JCD were identified by network pharmacology, and the expression of AKT was confirmed by immunohistochemistry. Finally, the pathways involved in JCD treatment were predicted using a combination of differentially expressed metabolites and targets, and intestinal glial cell apoptosis was demonstrated by immunofluorescence. RESULTSJCD significantly promoted intestinal motility, increased the levels of the excitatory neurotransmitter ACH and reduced intestinal inflammation in STC mice. Untargeted metabolomics results showed that JCD significantly restored metabolic dysfunction and significantly affected taurine and hypotaurine metabolism. Network pharmacology and molecular experiments showed that JCD regulates AKT protein expression, and the core component is quercetin. Combined analysis demonstrated that apoptosis may be an important mechanism by which JCD relieves constipation. Further experiments showed that JCD reduced enteric glial cell (EGC) apoptosis. CONCLUSIONThis work demonstrated that reducing EGC apoptosis may be the critical mechanism by which JCD treats STC. These findings call for further molecular research to facilitate the clinical application of JCD.
DPV responses of dopamine (DA) at sulfonated graphene based glassy carbon electrode in the presence of ascorbic acid (AA) and uric acid (UA). The separation of the oxidation peak potentials for ...AA-DA, DA-UA and UA-AA was about 227mV, 125mV and 352mV, which allowed selectively determining DA.
In the present study, a biosensor was prepared using the water-soluble sulfonated graphene with the aim of achieving the selective and sensitive determination of dopamine (DA) in the presence of ascorbic acid (AA) and uric acid (UA). The aromatic π–π stacking and electrostatic attraction between positively charged DA and negatively charged sulfonated graphene can accelerate the electron transfer whereas weakening AA and UA oxidation on the sulfonated graphene-modified electrode. Fourier transform infrared spectra (FTIR), energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDX), atomic force microscopy (AFM) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) were used to characterize the successful synthesis of sulfonated graphene sheets. Differential pulse voltammetry was used for electrochemical detection, the separation of the oxidation peak potentials for AA-DA, DA-UA and UA-AA was about 227mV, 125mV and 352mV, which allowed selectively determining DA. A broad linear range, low detection limit, along with good ability to suppress the background current from large excess ascorbic acid (AA) and uric acid (UA) were obtained. The as-prepared sulfonated graphene sheets exhibited superior performance over conventional negatively charged Nafion films, such as flexible film thickness, unique nanostructure, excellent anti-interference ability, high sensitivity and selectivity. The proposed method was used to detect DA in real hydrochloride injection sample, human urine and serum samples with satisfactory recovery results.
Cytochrome P450 1A (CYP1A), one of the most important phase I drug-metabolizing enzymes in humans, plays a crucial role in the metabolic activation of procarcinogenic compounds to their ultimate ...carcinogens. Herein, we reported the development of a ratiometric two-photon fluorescent probe NCMN that allowed for selective and sensitive detection of CYP1A for the first time. The probe was designed on the basis of substrate preference of CYP1A and its high capacity for O-dealkylation, while 1,8-naphthalimide was selected as fluorophore because of its two-photon absorption properties. To achieve a highly selective probe for CYP1A, a series of 1,8-naphthalimide derivatives were synthesized and used to explore the potential structure–selectivity relationship, by using a panel of human CYP isoforms for selectivity screening. After screening and optimization, NCMN displayed the best combination of selectivity, sensitivity and ratiometric fluorescence response following CYP1A-catalyzed O-demetylation. Furthermore, the probe can be used to real-time monitor the enzyme activity of CYP1A in complex biological systems, and it has the potential for rapid screening of CYP1A modulators using tissue preparation as enzyme sources. NCMN has also been successfully used for two-photon imaging of intracellular CYP1A in living cells and tissues, and showed high ratiometric imaging resolution and deep-tissue imaging depth. In summary, a two-photon excited ratiometric fluorescent probe NCMN has been developed and well-characterized for sensitive and selective detection of CYP1A, which holds great promise for bioimaging of endogenous CYP1A in living cells and for further investigation on CYP1A associated biological functions in complex biological systems.
