Sialylation of dietary mucin modulate its digestibility and the gut microbiota of elderly individuals.

Food-derived mucins are glycoproteins rich in sialic acid, but their digestive properties and potential health benefits for humans have been scarcely investigated. In this work, ovomucin (OVM, rich in N-acetylneuraminic acid, about 3 %), porcine small intestinal mucin (PSIM, rich in N-glycolylneuraminic acid, about 1 %), the desialylated OVM (AOVM) and the desialylated PSIM (APSIM) were selected to examine their digestion and their impact on the gut microbiota of elderly individuals. The results shown that, the proportion of low-molecular-weight proteins increased after simulated digestion of these four mucins, with concomitant comparable antioxidant activity observed. Desialylation markedly increased the degradation and digestion rate of mucins. In vitro fecal fermentation was conducted with these mucins using fecal samples from individuals of different age groups: young, low-age and high-age elderly. Fecal fermentation with mucin digestive solution stimulated the production of organic acids in the group with fecal sample of the elderly individuals. Among them, the OVM group demonstrated the most favorable outcomes. The OVM and APSIM groups elevated the relative abundance of beneficial bacteria such as Lactobacillus and Bifidobacterium, while diminishing the presence of pathogenic bacteria such as Klebsiella. Conversely, the probiotic effects of AOVM and PSIM were attenuated or even exhibited adverse effects. Hence, mucins originating from different sources and possessing distinct glycosylation patterns exhibit diverse biological functions. Our findings can offer valuable insights for developing a well-balanced and nutritious diet tailored to the elderly population.

[The characteristics of neutrophil extracellular traps produced by all-trans retinoic acid-induced dHL-60 under PMA stimulation].

Extracellular traps released by neutrophils (neutrophil extracellular traps, NETs) are a double-edged sword, and understanding the mechanism of NET formation is of great significance for disease treatment. However, the short lifespan, the large individual differences, and the inability to perform gene editing render it difficult to decipher NET formation using neutrophils. It is necessary to find a model cell to replace neutrophils to study the mechanism of NET formation. In this study, we used different concentrations (0, 0.1, 1, and 10 µmol/L) of all-trans retinoic acid (ATRA) to differentiate HL-60 cells for different days (1, 3, 5, and 7 days). By detecting the cell viability and nuclear morphology of cells, we confirmed that HL-60 cells were differentiated to neutrophil-like cells (dHL-60) after treated with ATRA for at least 5 days. Using immunofluorescence staining to detect the formation of NETs, we demonstrated that dHL-60 cells differentiated for 5 days with 1 µmol/L ATRA could generate NETs comparable to those produced by neutrophils upon phorbol 12-myristate 13-acetate (PMA) stimulation, without histone H3 citrullination. Furthermore, the formation of NETs by dHL-60 cells were NADPH-dependent and PAD4-independent, consistent with neutrophils. Taken together, these observations suggest that dHL-60 cells differentiated with 1 µmol/L ATRA for 5 days can be used as a model cell for neutrophils to study the mechanism of NET formation.

[LPS stimulating neutrophils firmly adhered to ICAM-1 to form extracellular traps depends on integrin Mac-1 and cytoskeletal proteins].

Neutrophil extracellular traps (NETs) play an important role in the formation of immunothrombosis. However, how vascular endothelial cells mediate the formation of NETs has not been fully understood. We stimulated neutrophils firmly attached on the endothelial cell surface intercellular adhesion molecule-1 (ICAM-1) with lipopolysaccharide (LPS) or phorbol-12-myristate-13-acetate (PMA) for 4 h, then labeled NETs-DNA with Sytox green dye and the formation of NETs was observed by fluorescent microscopy. The area and fluorescence intensity of NETs-DNA were analyzed to quantify the formation of NETs. The results showed that both PMA and LPS were able to induce firmly adhered neutrophils on ICAM-1 to produce NETs. NETs induced by PMA were independent of neither ß2 integrin lymphocyte function-associated antigen-1 (LFA-1) nor macrophage antigen complex-1 (Mac-1). In contrast, LPS-stimulated NETs were mediated by Mac-1 integrin, but not by LFA-1. After inhibition of actin filaments or Talin-1, the formation of NETs irrespective of the stimulus was significantly reduced. This study reveals the mechanism of the direct interaction between neutrophils and endothelial cells to produce NETs under inflammatory conditions, providing a new theoretical basis for the treatment of related diseases and the development of new drugs.

Insights Into Immunothrombosis: The Interplay Among Neutrophil Extracellular Trap, von Willebrand Factor, and ADAMTS13.

Both neutrophil extracellular traps (NETs) and von Willebrand factor (VWF) are essential for thrombosis and inflammation. During these processes, a complex series of events, including endothelial activation, NET formation, VWF secretion, and blood cell adhesion, aggregation and activation, occurs in an ordered manner in the vasculature. The adhesive activity of VWF multimers is regulated by a specific metalloprotease ADAMTS13 (a disintegrin and metalloproteinase with thrombospondin type 1 motifs, member 13). Increasing evidence indicates that the interaction between NETs and VWF contributes to arterial and venous thrombosis as well as inflammation. Furthermore, contents released from activated neutrophils or NETs induce the reduction of ADAMTS13 activity, which may occur in both thrombotic microangiopathies (TMAs) and acute ischemic stroke (AIS). Recently, NET is considered as a driver of endothelial damage and immunothrombosis in COVID-19. In addition, the levels of VWF and ADAMTS13 can predict the mortality of COVID-19. In this review, we summarize the biological characteristics and interactions of NETs, VWF, and ADAMTS13, and discuss their roles in TMAs, AIS, and COVID-19. Targeting the NET-VWF axis may be a novel therapeutic strategy for inflammation-associated TMAs, AIS, and COVID-19.

CuSbS2: a promising semiconductor photo-absorber material for quantum dot sensitized solar cells.

A facile, low-cost, simple solution-based process for preparing novel promising chalcostibite CuSbS2 sensitized ZnO nanorod arrays, and the application of these as photoanodes of semiconductor quantum dot sensitized inorganic-organic solar cells (QDSSCs) is reported for the first time. ZnO/CuSbS2 nanofilms were designed and prepared through a simple successive ionic layer adsorption and reaction (SILAR) method and heat treatment process by employing ZnO nanorods as reactive templates. Novel efficient QDSSCs based on the ZnO/CuSbS2 nanofilms plus a solid electrolyte of poly(3-hexylthiophene) (P3HT) were formed, and a power conversion efficiency of 1.61% was achieved. The excellent photoelectric performance is attributed to the improved light absorption efficiency, widened light absorption region, ideal band gap value, and high speed electron injection and transportation. The results demonstrate that a novel ternary sensitizer (I-V-VI2) can be synthesized via a low-cost method as described here and has great promising potential as a sensitizer in solar cells.

Inorganic-organic solar cells based on quaternary sulfide as absorber materials.

We report a novel promising quaternary sulfide (CuAgInS) to serve as a semiconductor sensitizer material in the photoelectrochemical field. In this study, CuAgInS (CAIS) sulfide sensitized ZnO nanorods were fabricated on ITO substrates through a facile and low-cost hydrothermal chemical method and applied on photoanodes for solar cells for the first time. The component and stoichiometry were key factors in determining the photoelectric performance of CAIS sulfide, which were controlled by modulating their reaction time. ZnO/Cu0.7Ag0.3InS2 nanoarrays exhibit an enhanced optical and photoelectric performance and the power conversion efficiency of ITO/ZnO/Cu0.7Ag0.3InS2/P3HT/Pt solid-state solar cell was up to 1.80%. The remarkable performance stems from improved electron transfer, a higher efficiency of light-harvesting and appropriate band gap alignment at the interface of the ZnO/Cu0.7Ag0.3InS2 NTs. The research indicates that CAIS as an absorbing material has enormous potential in solar cell systems.

A novel quaternary solid solution photo-absorber material for photoelectrochemical hydrogen generation.

We report a novel quaternary solid solution (Ag-Cu-Sb-S or ACSS) serving as a photo-absorber material in the photoelectrochemical field for the first time, and ZnO/ACSS nanoarrays exhibited a photocurrent density of 4.45 mA cm(-2). The research indicates that ZnO/ACSS composite structures have enormous potential in PEC hydrogen generation systems.

Jalpaite Ag3CuS2: a novel promising ternary sulfide absorber material for solar cells.

We report a novel promising semiconductor of Ag3CuS2 serving as absorber material in inorganic-organic solid-state solar cells for the first time, and the device (ITO/ZnO/Ag3CuS2/P3HT/Pt) exhibits a power conversion efficiency of 2.01%. This study opens up an available method to develop various ternary absorber materials for tertiary generation solar cells.

High-efficiency AgInS(2)-modified ZnO nanotube array photoelectrodes for all-solid-state hybrid solar cells.

Highly ordered AgInS2-modified ZnO nanoarrays were fabricated via a low-cost hydrothermal chemical method, and their application as all-solid-state solar cells was also tested. A sensitizer and a buffer layer were developed around the surface of ZnO nanotubes in the preparation process, and this method is easily be manipulated to produce uniform structure. In this structure, the ZnO served as direct electron transport path, the ZnS as the buffer layer, and the ternary sensitizer AgInS2 as absorber and outer shell. The novel all-solid-state hybrid solar cells (ITO/ZnO/ZnS/AgInS2/P3HT/Pt) showed improved short-circuit current density (Jsc) of 7.5 mA/cm(2), open-circuit voltage (Voc) of 512 mV, giving rise to a power conversion efficiency of 2.11%, which is the relatively highest value ever reported for ZnO-based all-solid-state hybrid solar cells. This better result is attributed to the improved absorption spectrum, high speed of photoinduced charge transmission velocity, and appropriate gradient energy gap structure, which implies a promising application in all-solid-state solar cells.