Flexible electronic devices are necessary for applications involving unconventional interfaces, such as soft and curved biological systems, in which traditional silicon‐based electronics would ...confront a mechanical mismatch. Biological polymers offer new opportunities for flexible electronic devices by virtue of their biocompatibility, environmental benignity, and sustainability, as well as low cost. As an intriguing and abundant biomaterial, silk offers exquisite mechanical, optical, and electrical properties that are advantageous toward the development of next‐generation biocompatible electronic devices. The utilization of silk fibroin is emphasized as both passive and active components in flexible electronic devices. The employment of biocompatible and biosustainable silk materials revolutionizes state‐of‐the‐art electronic devices and systems that currently rely on conventional semiconductor technologies. Advances in silk‐based electronic devices would open new avenues for employing biomaterials in the design and integration of high‐performance biointegrated electronics for future applications in consumer electronics, computing technologies, and biomedical diagnosis, as well as human–machine interfaces.
Silk fibroin is an ancient biomaterial with exquisite mechanical, optical, and electrical properties. Its intriguing properties and environmental benignity render silk fibroin compelling for the advancement of next‐generation biocompatible and biodegradable flexible electronic devices.
Rational design and controllable synthesis of well‐defined nanostructures with high stability and Pt‐like activity for hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) are critical for renewable energy conversion. ...Herein, a unique pyrolysis strategy is demonstrated for the synthesis of RhPx nanoparticles (NPs) in N, P co‐doped thin carbon nanoshells (RhPx@NPC nanoshells) that display high electrocatalytic activity and stability over a wide pH range. This strategy involves simultaneous phosphorization and pyrolysis processes that can produce highly‐dispersed RhPx NPs within N, P co‐doped carbon nanoshells and at the same time induce thinning of carbon nanoshells from inside out. The resulting RhPx@NPC nanoshells not only possess Pt‐like activity for HER with low overpotentials to achieve 10 mA cm−2 (22 mV in 0.5 m H2SO4, 69 mV in 1.0 m KOH, and 38 mV in 1.0 m phosphate buffered saline (PBS)) but also provide long‐term durability in a wide pH range. The remarkable HER performance of RhPx@NPC nanoshells is ascribed to the high surface area, abundant mesoporosity, strong catalyst–support interaction, ultrathin carbon encapsulation, and N, P co‐doping. This work provides an effective strategy for designing heterostructured electrocatalysts with high catalytic activity and stability desired for reactions that may occur under harsh conditions.
A unique pyrolysis strategy is demonstrated for the synthesis of RhPx nanoparticles in N, P co‐doped carbon nanoshells that display high electrocatalytic activity and stability over a wide pH range. This strategy involves simultaneous phosphorization and pyrolysis processes that can produce highly dispersed RhPx nanoparticles within carbon nanoshells and induce thinning of carbon nanoshells from the inside out.
Adrenomedullin (ADM) exerts anti-oxidant, anti-inflammatory and anti-apoptotic effects in Leydig cells. However, the role and mechanism of ADM in the pyroptosis of Leydig cells are poorly understood. ...This study first showed the protective effects of ADM on the pyroptosis and biological functions of Leydig cells exposed to lipopolysaccharide (LPS) by promoting autophagy. Primary rat Leydig cells were treated with various concentrations of LPS and ADM, together with or without N-acetyl-L-cysteine (NAC) or 3-methyladenine (3-MA). Cell proliferation was detected through CCK-8 and BrdU incorporation assays, and ROS level was measured with the DCFDA assay. Real-time PCR, western blot, immunofluorescence, transmission electron microscopy, TUNEL and flow cytometry were performed to examine ADM's effect on the pyroptosis, autophagy and steroidogenic enzymes of Leydig cells and AMPK/mTOR signalling. Like NAC, ADM dose-dependently reduced LPS-induced cytotoxicity and ROS overproduction. ADM also dose-dependently ameliorated LPS-induced pyroptosis by reversing the increased expression of NLRP3, ASC, caspase-1, IL-1β, IL-18, GSDMD, caspase-3, caspase-7, TUNEL-positive and PI and active caspase-1 double-stained positive rate, DNA fragmentation and LDH concentration, which could be rescued via co-incubation with 3-MA. ADM dose-dependently increased autophagy in LPS-induced Leydig cells, as confirmed by the increased expression of LC3-I/II, Beclin-1 and ATG-5; decreased expression of p62 and autophagosomes formation; and increased LC3-II/LC3-I ratio. However, co-treatment with 3-MA evidently decreased autophagy. Furthermore, ADM dose-dependently rescued the expression of steroidogenic enzymes, including StAR, P450scc, 3β-HSD and CYP17, and testosterone production in LPS-induced Leydig cells. Like rapamycin, ADM dose-dependently enhanced AMPK phosphorylation but reduced mTOR phosphorylation in LPS-induced Leydig cells, which could be rescued via co-incubation with 3-MA. In addition, pyroptosis was further decreased, and autophagy was further promoted in LPS-induced Leydig cells upon co-treatment with ADM and rapamycin. ADM may protect the steroidogenic functions of Leydig cells against pyroptosis by activating autophagy via the ROS-AMPK-mTOR axis.
The mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR) pathway plays critical roles in intrinsic chemoresistance by regulating Fanconi anaemia complementation group D2 (FANCD2) expression. However, the mechanisms ...by which mTOR regulates FANCD2 expression and related inhibitors are not clearly elucidated. Extracts of Centipeda minima (C. minima) showed promising chemosensitizing effects by inhibiting FANCD2 activity. Here, we have aimed to identify the bioactive chemosensitizer in C. minima extracts and elucidate its underlying mechanism.
The chemosensitizing effects of arnicolide C (ArC), a bioactive compound in C. minima, on non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) were investigated using immunoblotting, immunofluorescence, flow cytometry, the comet assay, small interfering RNA (siRNA) transfection and animal models. The online SynergyFinder software was used to determine the synergistic effects of ArC and chemotherapeutic drugs on NSCLC cells.
ArC had synergistic cytotoxic effects with DNA cross-linking drugs such as cisplatin and mitomycin C in NSCLC cells. ArC treatment markedly decreased FANCD2 expression in NSCLC cells, thus attenuating cisplatin-induced FANCD2 nuclear foci formation, leading to DNA damage and apoptosis. ArC inhibited the mTOR pathway and attenuated mTOR-mediated expression of E2F1, a critical transcription factor of FANCD2. Co-administration of ArC and cisplatin exerted synergistic anticancer effects in the A549 xenograft mouse model by suppressing mTOR/FANCD2 signalling in tumour tissues.
ArC suppressed DNA cross-linking drug-induced DNA damage response by inhibiting the mTOR/E2F1/FANCD2 signalling axis, serving as a chemosensitizing agent. This provides insight into the anticancer mechanisms of ArC and offers a potential combinatorial anticancer therapeutic strategy.
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A novel lead bismuth oxybromide/graphene oxide (PbBiO2Br/GO) composite photocatalyst were prepared using a controlled and nontemplate hydrothermal technique with PbBiO2Br and GO as ...the starting material. The heterojunction photocatalysts were characterized through XRD, FE-SEM-EDS, HR-TEM, XPS, DR-UV–vis, BET, PL, EPR, and UPS. Under the optimal synthesis conditions, the photocatalytic activity of PbBiO2Br/GO composites was much higher than that of PbBiO2Br. Under 25 °C, 1 atm, and 432-nm visible light irradiation at, the optimized PbBiO2Br/GO increased the rate (at 1.913 µmol g−1 h−1) of photocatalytic conversion from carbon dioxide (CO2) to methane (CH4). This conversion rate was higher than that of the original PbBiO2Br material (0.957 µmol g−1 h−1). Therefore, PbBiO2Br/GO is superior for CH4 production and has great potential as CO2 photoreduction catalysts. In addition, such catalytic performance (when using 0.05 wt%-GO/PbBiO2Br composite as a photocatalyst) indicates that the optimal reaction rate constants of crystal violet (CV) and 2-hydroxybenzoic acid (2-HBA) are 0.1278 and 0.0093 h−1, respectively, which are 1.82 and 1.24 times the reaction rate constant of PbBiO2Br as a photocatalyst, respectively. Our findings are useful for PbBiO2Br/GO synthesis and in its future environmental applications, particularly in solar fuel manufacture.
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Developing transition metal-based electrocatalysts with rich active sites for water electrolysis plays important roles in renewable energy fields. So far, some strategies including ...designing nanostructures, incorporating conductive support or foreign elements have been adopted to develop efficient electrocatalysts. Herein, we summarize recent progresses and propose in-situ electrochemical activation as a new pretreating technique for enhanced catalytic performances. The activation techniques mainly comprise facile electrochemical processes such as anodic oxidation, cathodic reduction, etching, lithium-assisted tuning and counter electrode electro-dissolution. During these electrochemical treatments, the catalyst surfaces are modified from bulk phase, which can tune local electronic structures, create more active species, enlarge surface area and thus improve the catalytic performances. Meanwhile, this technique can couple the atomic, electronic structures with electrocatalysis mechanisms for water splitting. Compared to traditional chemical treatment, the in-situ electrochemical activation techniques have superior advantages such as facile operation, mild environment, variable control, high efficiency and flexibility. This review may provide guidance for improving water electrolysis efficiencies and hold promising for application in many other energy-conversion fields such as supercapacitors, fuel cells and batteries.
•Microalgae extracted by microwave using the solvent have the largest extracted of lipid, 30wt.%.•Li4SiO4 is also successfully tested in the transesterification reaction of microalgae oil.•The ...transesterification efficiency by Li4SiO4 could approach 73.5% by the optimal conditions.
Biomass energy is considered as the most potential petroleum substitute in a shorter period of time, for its renewable ability and lower pollution. This research tends to extract algae oil from microalgae with microwave fragmentation technology. This process can reduce the production costs of microalgae biodiesel. The catalysts prepared in different conditions are characterized by BET, XRD and the conversion from the transesterification catalyzed by each catalyst which was determined using GC. Microwave is used for assisting in the lipid extraction of microalgae by solvents in this study. Microwave assists in lipid extraction under various solvents, and the extracting time and power are compared. The experimental results show that microalgae extracted using the solvent has the largest extracted quantity of microalgae lipid, 30wt.%, and the heating performance for transesterification shows that the best conversion is 76.2% under 68°C with the Li4SiO4 amount 3wt.% and the oil/methanol molar ratio 1:18 for 4h.
In recent decades, the polysaccharides from the medicinal plants have attracted a lot of attention due to their significant bioactivities, such as anti-tumor activity, antioxidant activity, ...anticoagulant activity, antidiabetic activity, radioprotection effect, anti-viral activity, hypolipidemic and immunomodulatory activities, which make them suitable for medicinal applications. Previous studies have also shown that medicinal plant polysaccharides are non-toxic and show no side effects. Based on these encouraging observations, most researches have been focusing on the isolation and identification of polysaccharides, as well as their bioactivities. A large number of bioactive polysaccharides with different structural features and biological effects from medicinal plants have been purified and characterized. This review provides a comprehensive summary of the most recent developments in physiochemical, structural features and biological activities of bioactive polysaccharides from a number of important medicinal plants, such as polysaccharides from Astragalus membranaceus, Dendrobium plants, Bupleurum, Cactus fruits, Acanthopanax senticosus, Angelica sinensis (Oliv.) Diels, Aloe barbadensis Miller, and Dimocarpus longan Lour. Moreover, the paper has also been focused on the applications of bioactive polysaccharides for medicinal applications. Recent studies have provided evidence that polysaccharides from medicinal plants can play a vital role in bioactivities. The contents and data will serve as a useful reference material for further investigation, production, and application of these polysaccharides in functional foods and therapeutic agents.
Aim: We investigated the historical biogeography and diversification of Gentiana L. (Gentianaceae). Our study depicts the origin and dispersal routes of this alpine genus, and the role of the uplift ...of the Qinghai—Tibet Plateau (QTP) and past climate changes as triggers for its diversification. Location: Tibeto-Himalayan region and world-wide mountain habitats. Methods: Our sampling represents more than 50% of the extant Gentiana species, including all sections across their entire geographical ranges. We investigated the evolutionary history of Gentiana using phylogenetic reconstructions (maximum likelihood and Bayesian inference) of ITS, atpB—rbcl and trnL—trnF sequences, as well as molecular dating with BEAST. We tested two approaches of ancestral area reconstructions (DEC, DIVA) in BioGeoBEARS and investigated diversification rates using BAMM. Results: The common ancestor of Gentiana and subtribe Gentianinae lived in the QTP region at around 34 (25—45) million years ago (Ma), and 40 (29—52) Ma respectively. From the surroundings of the QTP, Gentiana lineages dispersed to eastern China, Taiwan, Europe, North and South America, Australia and New Guinea, from mid-Miocene onward (c. 15 Ma—present), with only one older dispersal event to Europe (c. 37—21 Ma). Diversification rates gradually increased over time, and two switches of diversification rates were identified in Gentianinae (c. 7 Ma, simultaneously in the Pneumonanthe/Cruciata lineage and in Tripterospermum). Main conclusions: Gentiana existed in the QTP region throughout most of its uplift history following the India-Asia collision. This region acted as the primary source area for dispersals to many areas of the world. Because steady increase in diversification rates coincides with the extension of the QTP, we argue that the museum theory rather than the explosive radiation theory prevails for gentians in this region, although rare shifts of diversification rates are associated with niche shifts across the alpine/subalpine ecotone.
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