In eukaryotes, autophagy helps maintain cellular homeostasis by degrading and recycling cytoplasmic materials via a tightly regulated pathway. Over the past few decades, significant progress has been ...made towards understanding the physiological functions and molecular regulation of autophagy in plant cells. Increasing evidence indicates that autophagy is essential for plant responses to several developmental and environmental cues, functioning in diverse processes such as senescence, male fertility, root meristem maintenance, responses to nutrient starvation, and biotic and abiotic stress. Recent studies have demonstrated that, similar to nonplant systems, the modulation of core proteins in the plant autophagy machinery by posttranslational modifications such as phosphorylation, ubiquitination, lipidation, S‐sulfhydration, S‐nitrosylation, and acetylation is widely involved in the initiation and progression of autophagy. Here, we provide an overview of the physiological roles and posttranslational regulation of autophagy in plants.
Autophagy is a highly conserved mechanism essential for plant development and stress responses. This review summarizes the recent advances in the diverse physiological roles and post‐translational regulation of autophagy in plants.
The rapid advances in the Internet of things and wearable devices have created a massive platform for sensor systems that detect chemical or biological agents. The accelerated development of these ...devices in recent years has simultaneously aggravated the power supply problems. Triboelectric nanogenerators (TENGs) represent a thriving renewable energy technology with the potential to revolutionize this field. In this review, the significance of TENG‐based sensor systems in chemical or biological detection from the perspective of the development of power supply for biochemical sensors is discussed. Further, a range of TENGs are classified according to their roles as power supplies and/or self‐powered active sensors. The TENG powered sensor systems are further discussed on the basis of their framework and applications. The working principles and structures of different TENG‐based self‐powered active sensors are presented, along with the classification of the sensors based on these factors. In addition, some representative applications are introduced, and the corresponding challenges are discussed. Finally, some perspectives for the future innovations of TENG‐based sensor systems for chemical/biological detection are discussed.
Triboelectric nanogenerators (TENGs) are discussed according to their different roles ranging from power supplies to self‐powered active sensors. TENG‐based sensor systems with new principles, structures, or applications are highlighted. The discussion is from the perspective of classical analytical chemistry, based on elements such as target molecules and probes. Finally, some limitations and challenges are mentioned.
Acute kidney injury (AKI) is a prevalent and lethal adverse event that severely affects cancer patients receiving chemotherapy. It is correlated with the collateral damage to renal cells caused by ...reactive oxygen species (ROS). Currently, ROS management is a practical strategy that can reduce the risk of chemotherapy-related AKI, but at the cost of chemotherapeutic efficacy. Herein, we report catalytic activity tunable ceria nanoparticles (CNPs) that can prevent chemotherapy-induced AKI without interference with chemotherapeutic agents. Specifically, in the renal cortex, CNPs exhibit catalytic activity that decomposes hydrogen peroxide, and subsequently regulate the ROS-involved genes by activating the Nrf2/Keap1 signaling pathway. These restore the redox homeostasis for the protection of kidney tubules. Under an acidic tumor microenvironment, CNPs become inert due to the excessive H
that disrupts the re-exposure of active catalytic sites, allowing a buildup of chemotherapy-mediated ROS generation to kill cancer cells. As ROS-modulating agents, CNPs incorporated with context-dependent catalytic activity, hold a great potential for clinical prevention and treatment of AKI in cancer patients.
Surfaces with controllable liquid wettability and related functions have gained increasing attention from interfacial scientists due to the high demand of fundamental research and practical ...applications. Inspired by pitch plant's excellent liquid repellency, external stimuli responsive lubricant‐infused surfaces switching between slippery state and nonslippery state under external stimuli (E‐LIS) have been developed by introducing external stimuli responsive materials as substrates, lubricants, or repellent liquids. This progress report is focused on recent development of E‐LIS. First, design strategy and fabrication of E‐LIS upon external stimuli exposure, including stress, electrical field, magnetic field, and temperature, is summarized. Then, emerging interfacial applications of E‐LIS, such as microreactors, pipetting devices, fog collection devices, and so on, are highlighted. In addition, remaining challenges and future prospects are provided.
Recent research on external stimuli responsive lubricant‐infused surfaces (E‐LIS) with the ability of switching between the slippery state and nonslippery state are briefly summarized. Working principles of E‐LIS are first introduced. Then, various E‐LIS switching between slippery and nonslippery states under different external stimuli exposure, including mechanical stretching, electric field, magnetic field, temperature, are introduced. Applications of E‐LIS are also discussed.
Solid‐state ion nanochannels/nanopores, the biomimetic products of biological ion channels, are promising materials in real‐world applications due to their robust mechanical and controllable chemical ...properties. Functionalizations of solid‐state ion nanochannels/nanopores by biomolecules pave a wide way for the introduction of varied properties from biomolecules to solid‐state ion nanochannels/nanopores, making them smart in response to analytes or external stimuli and regulating the transport of ions/molecules. In this review, two features for nanochannels/nanopores functionalized by biomolecules are ed, i.e., specificity and signal amplification. Both of the two features are demonstrated from three kinds of nanochannels/nanopores: nucleic acid–functionalized nanochannels/nanopores, protein‐functionalized nanochannels/nanopores, and small biomolecule‐functionalized nanochannels/nanopores, respectively. Meanwhile, the fundamental mechanisms of these combinations between biomolecules and nanochannels/nanopores are explored, providing reasonable constructs for applications in sensing, transport, and energy conversion. And then, the techniques of functionalizations and the basic principle about biomolecules onto the solid‐state ion nanochannels/nanopores are summarized. Finally, some views about the future developments of the biomolecule‐functionalized nanochannels/nanopores are proposed.
Biomolecule‐functionalized solid‐state ion nanochannels/nanopores combine both the characteristics of biomolecules and the properties of solid‐state ion nanochannels/nanopores. Ultimately, two features—specificity and signal amplification—are generated, which are strongly associated with the applications in sensing, transport, and energy conversion. The corresponding functionalization techniques related to surface chemistry are also with good developments.
In this review a strategy for the design of bioinspired, smart, multiscale interfacial (BSMI) materials is presented and put into context with recent progress in the field of BSMI materials spanning ...natural to artificial to reversibly stimuli‐sensitive interfaces. BSMI materials that respond to single/dual/multiple external stimuli, e.g., light, pH, electrical fields, and so on, can switch reversibly between two entirely opposite properties. This article utilizes hydrophobicity and hydrophilicity as an example to demonstrate the feasibility of the design strategy, which may also be extended to other properties, for example, conductor/insulator, p‐type/n‐type semiconductor, or ferromagnetism/anti‐ferromagnetism, for the design of other BSMI materials in the future.
Multiscale structure in biology results in many different types of interesting phenomena as observed in nature including: a) self‐cleaning, b) mechanical properties, c) structural color, and d) optical properties, whereby micro‐ and nanometer‐scale structure are closely related to macroscale properties.
Calcium ions (Ca
2+
) are extremely important for efficiently improving the mechanical properties of alginate dual-crosslinked hydrogels through the synergy of crack bridging of covalent crosslinking ...and hysteresis of ionic crosslinking, but it is hard to achieve a high content of Ca
2+
(>5 wt%) in these hydrogels for the following reasons. The low solubility and poor dispersion of CaSO
4
in the gelling solution lead to a low Ca
2+
content (<0.1 wt%). The rapid formation of an alginate-Ca
2+
"egg-box" structure during CaCl
2
diffusion results in heterogeneous crosslinking, thus inhibiting further diffusion of Ca
2+
. Increasing the Ca
2+
content, therefore, is a neglected strategy to extend the properties of hydrogels, for example, self-healing (dynamic ionic bonding of alginate-Ca
2+
), adhesion (dynamic ionic bonding of Ca
2+
and carboxyl groups), anti-freezing (freezing point depression in the presence of Ca
2+
) and high conductivity (basic characteristics of Ca
2+
), particularly opening up a range of applications in low-temperature environments. Here we develop a highly Ca
2+
crosslinked ald-alginate-gelatin imine-based (CaAG) hydrogel prepared by mixing a solution of ald-alginate and gelatin to form an ald-alginate-gelatin (AG) hydrogel, followed by immersing the AG hydrogel in CaCl
2
solution with high solubility and good dispersion of Ca
2+
. Ald-alginate is covalently crosslinked in the network that retards the formation of alginate-Ca
2+
. By that, 7 wt% of Ca
2+
(the highest Ca
2+
content in alginate dual-crosslinked hydrogels as we know) of Ca
2+
could be brought into hydrogels to extend their properties: (1) rapid self-healing (heals within 5 min), (2) strong and reversible adhesion to metal, skin, glass, and plastic, (3) anti-freezing (stretchable at −20 °C), and (4) high conductivity (1.5 S m
−1
). Furthermore, we show a concept skin strain sensor by using the CaAG hydrogel.
Dual-crosslinked alginate hydrogels with a high Ca
2+
content were successfully prepared, which extended their properties, and showed potential application as a skin strain sensor.
Inflammatory cells have gained widespread attention because inflammatory diseases increase the risk for many types of cancer. Therefore, it is urgent and important to implement detection and ...treatment methods for inflammatory cells. Herein, we constructed a theranostic probe with aggregation‐induced emission (AIE) characteristics, in which tetraphenylethene (TPE) was modified with two tyrosine (Tyr) moieties. Owing to the H2O2‐dependent, enzyme‐catalyzed dityrosine formation, Tyr‐containing TPE (TT) molecules crosslink through dityrosine linkages to induce the formation of hydrophobic aggregates, activating the AIE process in inflammatory cells that contain H2O2 and overexpress myeloperoxidase. The emission turn‐on resulting from the crosslinking of TT molecules could be used to distinguish between inflammatory and normal cells. Moreover, the massive TT aggregates induced mitochondria damage and cell apoptosis. This study demonstrates that the H2O2‐responsive peroxidase‐activated AIEgen holds great promise for inflammatory‐cell selective imaging and inhibition.
Aggregate therapy: An intracellular H2O2‐responsive and peroxidase‐mediated therapeutic strategy with AIEgens has been developed. The method described provides a theranostic tool for inflammatory‐cell selective imaging and inhibition to achieve the precise detection and treatment.
Artificial enzymes have drawn substantial research interest from the scientific community due to their advantages over natural enzymes. However, majority of artificial enzymes exhibit low affinity ...towards H2O2, which means that a high H2O2 concentration is needed for the oxidation of a substrate such as 3,3′,5,5′-tetramethylbenzidine (TMB) to blue-colored oxTMB. With this concern, Cu-CuFe2O4 was facilely synthesized, wherein, Cu0 accelerates the redox capacity of Cu-CuFe2O4 as well as the electron transfer between CuFe2O4 and H2O2. These materials induce excellent activity as a peroxidase. Cu-CuFe2O4 shows high affinity towards H2O2 with lower Michaelis–Menten constant (Km) than the reported values for ferrites and Horseradish enzyme (HRP). Moreover, it took only 5 min to detect hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) and glutathione (GSH) through a colorimetric assay using Cu-CuFe2O4. Compared with CuFe2O4, the limit of detection (LOD) is about 90-fold lower for H2O2 using Cu-CuFe2O4. In addition, Cu-CuFe2O4 shows high stability as a nanozyme. Thus, the mechanism of the peroxidase-like nanozyme Cu-CuFe2O4 is proposed.
There might be more than 10 million confirmed cases of Parkinson's disease (PD) worldwide by 2040. However, the pathogenesis of PD is still unclear. Host health is closely related to gut microbiota, ...which are affected by factors such as age, diet, and exercise. Recent studies have found that gut microbiota may play key roles in the progression of a wide range of diseases, including PD. Changes in the abundance of gut bacteria, such as Helicobacter pylori, Enterococcus faecalis, and Desulfovibrio, might be involved in PD pathogenesis or interfere with PD therapy. Gut microbiota and the distal brain achieve action on each other through a gut‐brain axis composed of the nervous system, endocrine system, and immune system. Here, this review focused on the current understanding of the connection between Parkinson's disease and gut microbiota, to provide potential therapeutic targets for PD.
We reviewed the relationship between Parkinson's disease and gut bacteria, especially Helicobacter pylori, Enterococcus faecalis, and Desulfovibrio. At the same time, three kinds of dialogue mechanisms between brain and gut are also discussed. Finally, three potential interventions for gut microbiota are discussed.