Alterations of Gut Microbiota in Pyogenic Liver Abscess Patients with and without Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus.

Purpose: The clinical manifestations of pyogenic liver abscess (PLA) vary between patients with and without diabetes mellitus (DM). However, the relationship between PLA and the gut microbiome remains unknown. This study analyzed the composition of gut microbiota in PLA patients with and without DM and healthy controls (HCs) with the goal of identifying potential reasons for the observed variations in clinical manifestations. Patients and Methods: Using 16S ribosomal RNA(16S rRNA) gene sequencing, we analyzed the compositions of gut microbiota in 32 PLA patients with DM, 32 PLA patients without DM, and 29 matched HCs. Results: In PLA patients with DM, the D-dimer level, fibrinogen degradation products, and thrombin time were significantly higher compared to the PLA patients without DM (P < 0.05). The abundance and diversity of intestinal flora were reduced in both groups of PLA patients compared with the HCs (P < 0.05). Specifically, the PLA patients with DM showed significant decreases in the relative abundances of Bacteroides, Blautia, Prevotella9, and Faecalibacterium, whereas Enterococcus and Escherichia-Shigella were relatively more abundant (P < 0.05). Compared to PLA patients without DM, those with DM had lower relative abundances of Lactobacillus and Klebsiella (P < 0.05) and showed different bacterial flora, including Anaerosporobacter and Megamonas. Conclusion: PLA patients with DM exhibited more severe clinical manifestations of PLA compared to patients without DM. It is important to monitor blood coagulation in PLA patients with DM to prevent the development of thrombotic diseases. Additionally, PLA patients with DM exhibit distinct differences in the composition and diversity of their intestinal flora compared to both PLA patients without DM and HCs.

Insecticidal Activities and Phenological Variations of Characteristic Component from Michelia yunnanensis.

Volatile secondary metabolites of plants interact with environments heavily. In this work, characteristic components of Michelia yunnanensis essential oils (EOs) were isolated, purified and identified by column chromatography, GC-MS and NMR. Leaves of M. yunnanensis were collected monthly and extracted for EOs to investigate chemical and insecticidal activity variations as well as potential influencing environments. Different organs were employed to reveal distribution strategies of characteristic components. Results of insecticidal activities showed that all EOs samples exerted stronger contact activity to Lasioderma serricorne, but repellent effect was more efficient on Tribolium castaneum. One oxygenated sesquiterpene was isolated from EOs, basically it could be confirmed as (+)-cyclocolorenone (1). It exerted contact toxicity to L. serricorne (LD 50 = 28.8 µg/adult). Chemical analysis showed that M. yunnanensis leaves in reproductive period would produce and accumulate more 1 than in vegetative period. Moreover, reproductive organs (flowers and fruits) contained more 1 than vegetative organs (leaves and twigs). Partial correlation analysis indicated that temperature-related elements positively correlated with the relative content of 1.

A Highly Reversible Sn-Air Battery Possessing the Ultra-Low Charging Potential with the Assistance of Light.

Aqueous Sn-air batteries are attracting a great deal of interest in recent years due to the ultra-high safety, low cost, dendrite-free and highly reversible Sn anode. However, the slurry oxygen reduction/evolution reaction (ORR/OER) kinetics on the air cathodes seriously affect the Sn-air battery performances. Although various advanced catalysts have been developed, the charge overpotentials (~1000 mV) of these Sn-air batteries are still not satisfactory. Herein, iron oxide (Fe2O3) modified titanium dioxide (TiO2) nanorods with heterogeneous structure are firstly synthesized on Ti mesh (Fe2O3@TiO2/Ti), and the obtained Fe2O3@TiO2/Ti is further applied as catalytic electrodes for Sn-air batteries. The core-shell heterogeneous structure of Fe2O3@TiO2/Ti can effectively facilitate the conversion of electrochemical intermediates and separation of photo-excited electrons and holes to active oxygen-related reaction processes. DFT and experimental results also confirm that Fe2O3@TiO2/Ti can not only act as the electrocatalysts to improve ORR/OER properties, but also exhibit the superior photo-catalytic activity to promote charge kinetics. Hence, the Fe2O3@TiO2/Ti-based Sn-air batteries show ultra-low overpotential of ~40 mV, excellent rate capability and good cycling stability under light irradiation. This work will shed light on rational photo-assisted catalytic cathode design for new-type metal-air batteries.

Research on double resonant excitation in a triangular electrode ion trap with asymmetric geometry.

RATIONALE: The triangular electrode linear ion trap with asymmetric geometry has been reported to possess a high ion unidirectional ejection efficiency and a reasonable mass resolution. To further improve its performance, a double resonant excitation method involving a dipolar and a quadrupolar resonant excitation was applied here. METHODS: The dipolar excitation method was carried out by applying a supplementary alternating voltage out of phase to one pair of the electrodes, whereas the quadrupolar excitation (QE) method was carried out by adding a supplementary alternating voltage in phase to another pair of electrodes. Numerical simulations were performed to explore the impact of the frequency difference between the alternating current (AC) and the QE voltage (∆ω), the frequency of the AC voltage (ωAC), and the QE voltage amplitude (VQE). RESULTS: The mass resolution could be improved to ~4700 m / ∆ m $$ \left(m/\Delta m\right) $$ , which was approximately twice compared to that with only dipolar resonant excitation, and the ion unidirectional ejection efficiency could be improved to 97%. Even with a high scan rate of 6000 Da/s, there was minimal loss of mass resolution caused by increased scan rate in double resonant excitation mode. CONCLUSIONS: By employing the double resonant excitation method, the mass resolution could be further increased while maintaining a considerably high ion unidirectional ejection efficiency, which might be a simple and practical approach for developing a high-performance miniature ion trap mass analyzer.

Report of endophthalmitis caused by Paradictyoarthrinium diffractum after plant trauma: a case involving left enucleation.

During outdoor work in April 2022, a 48-year-old man was stabbed by a tree branch and underwent intraocular foreign body extraction and repair of scleral wound with sutures and amniotic membrane graft at a local hospital. Steroid therapy with prednisone was prescribed after a diagnosis of uveitis. Vitrectomy was performed in June 2023; a fungal culture was positive, and ITS sequencing identified the organism as Paradictyoarthrinium diffractum. Empiric antifungal therapy did not have an effect, and, because of deterioration of the condition, the left eye was enucleated in October 2023. P. diffractum is a mangrove host-specific saprophytic fungus that has not been reported in humans.

Understanding the charge transfer effects of single atoms for boosting the performance of Na-S batteries.

The effective flow of electrons through bulk electrodes is crucial for achieving high-performance batteries, although the poor conductivity of homocyclic sulfur molecules results in high barriers against the passage of electrons through electrode structures. This phenomenon causes incomplete reactions and the formation of metastable products. To enhance the performance of the electrode, it is important to place substitutable electrification units to accelerate the cleavage of sulfur molecules and increase the selectivity of stable products during charging and discharging. Herein, we develop a single-atom-charging strategy to address the electron transport issues in bulk sulfur electrodes. The establishment of the synergistic interaction between the adsorption model and electronic transfer helps us achieve a high level of selectivity towards the desirable short-chain sodium polysulfides during the practical battery test. These finding indicates that the atomic manganese sites have an enhanced ability to capture and donate electrons. Additionally, the charge transfer process facilitates the rearrangement of sodium ions, thereby accelerating the kinetics of the sodium ions through the electrostatic force. These combined effects improve pathway selectivity and conversion to stable products during the redox process, leading to superior electrochemical performance for room temperature sodium-sulfur batteries.

Nanoplatform-based strategies for enhancing the lethality of current antitumor PDT.

Photodynamic therapy (PDT) exhibits great application prospects in future clinical oncology due to its spatiotemporal controllability and good biosafety. However, the antitumor efficacy of PDT is seriously hindered by many factors, including tumor hypoxia, limited light penetration ability, and strong defense mechanisms of tumors. Considering that it is difficult to completely solve the first two problems, enhancing the lethality of antitumor PDT has become a good idea to extend its clinical application. Herein, we summarize the nanoplatform-involved strategies to effectively amplify the tumoricidal capability of current PDT and then discuss the present bottlenecks and prospects of the nanoplatform-based PDT sensitization strategies in tumor therapy. We hope this review will provide some references for others to design high-performance PDT nanoplatforms for tumor therapy.

The regulatory role of miRNA and lncRNA on autophagy in diabetic nephropathy.

Diabetic nephropathy (DN) is a serious complication of diabetes that causes glomerular sclerosis and end-stage renal disease, leading to ascending morbidity and mortality in diabetic patients. Excessive accumulation of aberrantly modified proteins or damaged organelles, such as advanced glycation end-products, dysfunctional mitochondria, and inflammasomes is associated with the pathogenesis of DN. As one of the main degradation pathways, autophagy recycles toxic substances to maintain cellular homeostasis and autophagy dysregulation plays a crucial role in DN progression. MicroRNA (miRNA) and long non-coding RNA (lncRNA) are non-coding RNA (ncRNA) molecules that regulate gene expression and have been implicated in both physiological and pathological conditions. Recent studies have revealed that autophagy-regulating miRNA and lncRNA have been involved in pathological processes of DN, including renal cell injury, mitochondrial dysfunction, inflammation, and renal fibrosis. This review summarizes the role of autophagy in DN and emphasizes the modulation of miRNA and lncRNA on autophagy during disease progression, for the development of promising interventions by targeting these ncRNAs in this disease.

Whole Genome Sequencing Highlights the Pathogenic Profile in Nocardia Keratitis.

Purpose: Nocardia keratitis is a serious and sight-threatening condition. This study aims to reveal the virulence and antimicrobial resistance gene profile of Nocardia strains using whole genome sequencing. Methods: Whole-genome sequencing was performed on 23 cornea-derived Nocardia strains. Together with genomic data from the respiratory tract and the environment, 141 genomes were then utilized for phylogenetic and pan-genome analyses, followed by virulence and antibiotic resistance analysis. The correlations between virulence genes and pathogenicity were experimentally validated, including the characteristics of Nocardia colonies and clinical and histopathological evaluations of Nocardia keratitis mice models. Results: Whole-genome sequencing of 141 Nocardia strains revealed a mean of 220 virulence genes contributed to bacterial pathogenesis. The mce gene family analysis led to the categorization of strains from the cornea into groups A, B, and C. The colonies of group C had the largest diameter, height, and fastest growth rate. The size of corneal ulcers and the clinical scores showed a significant increase in mouse models induced by group C. The relative expression levels of pro-inflammatory cytokines (CD4, IFN-γ, IL-6Rα, and TNF-α) in the lesion area exhibited an increasing trend from group A to group C. Antibiotic resistance genes (ARGs) spanned nine distinct drug classes, four resistance mechanisms, and seven primary antimicrobial resistance gene families. Conclusions: Whole genome sequencing highlights the pathogenic role of mce gene family in Nocardia keratitis. Its distribution pattern may contribute to the distinct characteristics of the growth of Nocardia colonies and the clinical severity of the mice models.

Elastic MXene conductive layers and electrolyte engineering enable robust potassium storage.

The precisely engineered structures of materials greatly influence the manifestation of their properties. For example, in the process of alkali metal ion storage, a carefully designed structure capable of accommodating inserted and extracted ions will improve the stability of material cycling. The present study explores the uniform distribution of self-grown carbon nanotubes to provide structural support for the conductive and elastic MXene layers of Ti3C2Tx-Co@NCNTs. Furthermore, a compatible electrolyte system has been optimized by analyzing the solvation structure and carefully regulating the component in the solid electrolyte interphase (SEI) layer. Mechanistic studies demonstrate that the decomposition predominantly controlled by FSI- leads to the formation of a robust inorganic SEI layer enriched with KF, thus effectively inhibiting irreversible side reactions and major structural deterioration. Confirming our expectations, Ti3C2Tx-Co@NCNTs exhibits an impressive reversible capacity of 260 mA h g-1, even after 2000 cycles at 500 mA g-1 in 1 M KFSI (DME), surpassing most MXene-based anodes reported for PIBs. Additionally, density functional theory (DFT) calculations verify the superior electronic conductivity and lower K+ diffusion energy barriers of the novel superstructure of Ti3C2Tx-Co@NCNTs, thereby affirming the improved electrochemical kinetics. This study presents systematic evaluation methodologies for future research on MXene-based anodes in PIBs.

Identification of two novel large deletions in FBN1 gene by next-generation sequencing and multiplex ligation-dependent probe amplification.

BACKGROUND: Mutations in fibrillin-1 (FBN1) are known to be associated with Marfan syndrome (MFS), an autosomal dominant connective tissue disorder. Most FBN1 mutations are missense or nonsense mutations. Traditional molecular genetic testing for the FBN1 gene, like Sanger sequencing, may miss disease-causing mutations in the gene's regulatory regions or non-coding sequences, as well as partial or complete gene deletions and duplications. METHODS: Next-generation sequencing, multiplex ligation-dependent probe amplification and gap PCR were conducted on two MFS patients to screen for disease-causing mutations. RESULTS: We identified two large deletions in FBN1 from two MFS patients. One patient had a 0.23 Mb deletion (NC_000015.9:g.48550506_48779360del) including 5'UTR-exon6 of FBN1. The other patient harbored a 1416 bp deletion (NC_000015.9:g.48410869_48412284del) affecting the last exon, exon 66, of the FBN1 gene. CONCLUSION: Our results expanded the number of large FBN1 deletions and highlighted the importance of screening for large deletions in FBN1 in clinical genetic testing, especially for those with the classic MFS phenotype.

Impact of modifiers on soil-water characteristics of graphite tailings.

To achieve integrated resource utilization of graphite tailings to improve their water-holding capacity, river silt and cow dung powder were added to graphite tailings as organic matter improvers. Improver ratios were designed using 4 g cow dung powder and 20, 30, and 50 g river silt. Soil-water characterization tests were performed using a combined tensiometer and filter paper method based on optimum density measurements. Analysis of the influence of river silt dosing on the soil-water characteristic curves of improved graphite tailing specimens was performed with data fitting using the Van Genuchten model. Here, we investigated the effect of river silt dosing on the internal pore structure and water-holding capacity of modified graphite tailing samples and verified the applicability of the model to graphite tailings. Our results demonstrate that the organic matter improver incorporated into graphite tailings can improve the internal structural compactness of graphite tailings, improving the water holding capacity. With an increase in river silt dosage, the saturated water content is larger, and the residual water content increases and then decreases. When river silt dosage is 30 g, the residual water content is the highest at a value of 3.32%. The van Genuchten model was highly accurate for assessing the graphite tailings. With an increase in river silt doping, the internal pore space first decreased and then increased, and the internal structure gradually became compact and loosened. The internal structure was in the optimal state in the experimental study when the dosage of cow dung powder was 4 g and the dosage of river silt was 30 g. The water holding capacity was optimal at this time. The results of this study provide a theoretical foundation for graphite-tailing-based mine reclamation and play a guiding role in exploring the value of the hydraulic characteristic index parameters when applying graphite tailings engineering.

Microbiological isolates and associated complications of dacryocystitis and canaliculitis in a prominent tertiary ophthalmic teaching hospital in northern China.

BACKGROUND: To report the microbiological isolates, aetiology, complications, antibiotic susceptibilities, and clinical remission of dacryocystitis and canaliculitis in a prominent tertiary ophthalmic teaching and referral hospital located in northern China and to offer appropriate recommendations for preventing and formulating drug treatment strategies. METHODS: This prospective study recruited a total of 477 participants who had been diagnosed with either dacryocystitis or canaliculitis. The cohort comprised 307 patients with chronic dacryocystitis, 111 patients with acute dacryocystitis, and 59 patients with canaliculitis. Purulent discharge from the lacrimal duct was collected using a sterile swab and immediately subjected to microbial culture. Antimicrobial susceptibility testing was conducted following established protocols. All participants were scheduled for follow-up visits within 14 days after receiving antibiotic therapy. RESULTS: The present findings indicated that women exhibited a higher susceptibility to the condition, as evidenced by the occurrence of 367 cases in comparison to 110 cases among men. Among the 477 patients, definitive causes were established in 59 individuals, accounting for 12.4% of the patients. Additionally, ocular complications were reported by 132 patients, representing 27.7% of the total. Monocular involvement was observed in the majority of cases, with 402 out of 477 patients (84.3%) affected, while binocular involvement was present in 75 patients (15.7%). In total, 506 microbiological strains were recovered from 552 eyes, with Staphylococcus epidermidis (16.4%) being the most prevalent microorganism. Other predominant isolates included Corynebacterium macginleyi (9.1%), Staphylococcus aureus (5.1%), Streptococcus pneumoniae (4.9%), Haemophilus (4.4%), Propionibacterium acnes (3.5%), and Eikenella corrodens (3.1%). Among the 12 isolated fungi, Candida parapsilosis accounted for 66.7%. The susceptibility to antimicrobial agents tested in gram-negative bacilli (79.5%) was observed to be higher than that of anaerobic bacteria (76.7%) and gram-positive cocci (55.4%). With pharmacological therapy, the remission rate of acute dacryocystitis (72.7%) was found to be higher than that of canaliculitis (53.3%) and chronic dacryocystitis (42.3%). CONCLUSIONS: This study highlights the microbial spectrum of dacryocystitis and canaliculitis, particularly C.macginleyi, E.corrodens and C.parapsilosis, which are also more frequently isolated. Vancomycin and imipenem may be more effective treatment options. Most cases have an unknown aetiology, and essential preventive measures involve postoperative cleansing of the lacrimal passage following eye and nasal surgeries, as well as the proactive management of rhinitis.

Predictable regulation of survival by intratumoral microbe-immune crosstalk in patients with lung adenocarcinoma.

Intratumoral microbiota can regulate the tumor immune microenvironment (TIME) and mediate tumor prognosis by promoting inflammatory response or inhibiting anti-tumor effects. Recent studies have elucidated the potential role of local tumor microbiota in the development and progression of lung adenocarcinoma (LUAD). However, whether intratumoral microbes are involved in the TIME that mediates the prognosis of LUAD remains unknown. Here, we obtained the matched tumor microbiome and host transcriptome and survival data of 478 patients with LUAD in The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA). Machine learning models based on immune cell marker genes can predict 1- to 5-year survival with relative accuracy. Patients were stratified into high- and low-survival-risk groups based on immune cell marker genes, with significant differences in intratumoral microbial communities. Specifically, patients in the high-risk group had significantly higher alpha diversity (p < 0.05) and were characterized by an enrichment of lung cancer-related genera such as Streptococcus. However, network analysis highlighted a more active pattern of dominant bacteria and immune cell crosstalk in TIME in the low-risk group compared to the high-risk group. Our study demonstrated that intratumoral microbiota-immune crosstalk was strongly associated with prognosis in LUAD patients, which would provide new targets for the development of precise therapeutic strategies.

Acanthamoeba Keratitis in China: Genotypic and Clinical Correlations.

Purpose: To investigate the relationship between Acanthamoeba genotypes, clinical manifestations, and outcomes in Acanthamoeba keratitis (AK) patients. Methods: This retrospective study included 159 culture-confirmed AK patients. Patients' data were collected, including demographics, initial diagnosis, treatments, and clinical features. The genotype of Acanthamoeba was identified through sequencing the Diagnostic Fragment 3 (DF3) region in the small ribosomal subunit RNA genes. The phylogenetic tree was constructed using the ClustalW model and maximum likelihood method. Cases with "poor outcome" were defined based on specific clinical criteria, including corneal perforation, keratoplasty, other eye surgery, duration of anti-amoebic therapy ≥8.0 months, and final visual acuity ≤20/80. "Better outcome" cases were the remainder. The correlation between T4 subtypes, clinical phenotypes, and clinical prognosis were further analyzed. Results: In this study, AK was primarily attributed to the T4A genotype, with a positive correlation between geographical and genetic distances. The primary clinical associated with T4 subtypes was deep stromal infiltration. Results was also showed a significant association between T4 subtypes and clinical outcomes (P = 0.021). Further analysis revealed that T4C was closely associated with a better prognosis (P = 0.040) and T4D with worse outcomes (P = 0.013). Conclusions: In China, AK was predominantly caused by the T4A subtype. Geographical distance positively correlated with genetic distance. Clinical prognosis varied among different subtypes, notably in T4C and T4D. Translational Relevance: This study demonstrated the association between T4 subtypes and clinical phenotypes, as well as the effects of T4 subtypes on clinical prognosis.

De novo transcriptome assembly and molecular response mechanism analysis of a diatom Cyclotella meneghiniana Kützing exposed to cadmium.

Cadmium is a persistent heavy metal commonly found in aquatic ecosystems and has a strong toxic effect on organisms. The sensitivity of phytoplankton to environmental changes and its role as an indicator of aquatic ecosystem health have been well-established. However, the mechanisms by which phytoplankton respond to cadmium remain incompletely understood. In this study, we chose the typical planktonic diatom Cyclotella meneghiniana Kützing, by integrating physiological-biochemical data and transcriptome analysis, to reveal the molecular mechanisms of C. meneghiniana responing to cadmium. Under cadmium stress, the cell density and chlorophyll-a content of C. meneghiniana significantly decreased, while MDA content and SOD activity gradually increased. At 72 h of cadmium stress, we found that at this time point, cell abundance and physiological variation were very significant, therefore we selected 72 h for subsequent analysis. To better understand the cadmium stress response mechanisms of C. meneghiniana, a de novo transcriptome method was used to analyse C. meneghiniana under cadmium stress for 72 h, and 1704 (M vs. CK) and 4788 (H vs. CK) differentially expressed genes were found. Our results showed that the changes in gene expression were closely correlated to the physiological-biochemical changes. Although cadmium stress could promote the nitrogen metabolism pathway, ROS scavenging system, and photosynthesis. While, C. meneghiniana under medium and high concentrations of cadmium can also limit various intracellular metabolic pathways, such as the MAPK pathway and phosphatidylinositol metabolic pathway, and the degree of inhibition increases with the increase of stress concentration. In present study, the complete molecular mechanism of the planktonic diatom response to cadmium has been established, which provided important information for further studies on heavy metal pollutants and the multiple functional genes responsible for cadmium sensitivity and tolerance in planktonic diatoms.

A new species of genus Crenotia (Bacillariophyta) from Tibet, China.

During the investigation of the freshwater diatoms from Tibet, a monoraphid species was observed from a hot spring near Anduo County, located on a plateau in the central portion of Tibet. This species shares the diagnostic features of Crenotia, such as the valve bent along the transapical axis, striae uniseriate to biseriate from centre to the apices and areolae with special structures located at the end of each stria. We compared the morphological characters of this new species with the others in this genus and show it to be new; it is named Crenotiatibetiasp. nov. This species has small valves with slightly protracted ends with nearly capitate apices, lanceolate axial area, central area unilaterally expanded to the margin, striae uniseriate to biseriate, but, in some valves, the striae are only uniseriate. Areolae are round small to irregular in shape and, at the end of each stria, there is a horseshoe-shaped areola present. Observations of developing valves show all the striae begin biseriate, then they become covered by silica to form uniseriate striae. Comparisons are made amongst the species in this genus and with genera assigned to the Achnanthidiaceae.

Injectable Mesh-Like Conductive Hydrogel Patch for Elimination of Atrial Fibrillation.

Irregular electrical impulses in atrium are the leading cause of atrial fibrillation (AF), resulting in fatal arrhythmia and sudden cardiac death. Traditional medication and physical therapies are widely used, but generally suffer problems in serious physical damage and high surgical risks. Flexible and soft implants have great potential to be a novel approach for heart diseases therapy. A conductive hydrogel-based mesh cardiac patch is developed for application in AF elimination. The designed mesh patch with rhombic-shaped structure exhibits excellent flexibility, surface conformability, and deformation compliance, making it fit well with heart surface and accommodate to the deformation during heart beating. Moreover, the mechanical elastic and shape-memory properties of the mesh patch enable a minimally invasive injection of the patch into living animals. The mesh patch is implanted on the atrium surface for one month, indicating good biocompatibility and stability. Furthermore, the conductive patch can effectively eliminate AF owing to the conductivity and high charge storage capability (CSC) of the hydrogel. The proposed scheme of cardiac bioelectric signal modulation using conductive hydrogel brings new possibility for the treatment of arrhythmia diseases.

Tumor-Targeting Multiple Metabolic Regulations for Bursting Antitumor Efficacy of Chemodynamic Therapy.

Interfering with intratumoral metabolic processes is proven to effectively sensitize different antitumor treatments. Here, a tumor-targeting catalytic nanoplatform (CQ@MIL-GOX@PB) loading with autophagy inhibitor (chloroquine, CQ) and glucose oxidase (GOX) is fabricated to interfere with the metabolisms of tumor cells and tumor-associated macrophages (TAMs), then realizing effective antitumor chemodynamic therapy (CDT). Once accumulating in the tumor site with the navigation of external biotin, CQ@MIL-GOX@PB will release Fe ions and CQ in the acid lysosomes of tumor cells, the latter can sensitize Fe ions-involved antitumor CDT by blocking the autophagy-dependent cell repair. Meanwhile, the GOX component will consume glucose, which not only generates many H2 O2 for CDT but also once again decelerates the tumor repair process by reducing energy metabolism. What is more, the release of CQ can also drive the NO anabolism of TAMs to further sensitize CDT. This strategy of multiple metabolic regulations is evidenced to significantly improve the antitumor effect of traditional CDT nanoagents and might provide a new sight to overcome the bottlenecks of different antitumor treatments.

Differential protein analysis of saline-alkali promoting the oil accumulation in Nitzschia palea.

BACKGROUND: The increasingly severe salinization of the aquatic environment has led to serious damage to the habitats of aquatic organisms. Benthic diatoms are commonly employed as indicator species for assessing water quality and serve as a reflection of the overall health of the aquatic ecosystem. Nitzschia palea is a common diatom found in freshwater, with high oil content, rapid reproductive rate, and it is a commonly dominant species in various rivers. RESULTS: The results showed that after 4 days (d) of saline-alkali stress, the cell density and chlorophyll a content of Nitzschia palea reached their maximum values. Therefore, we selected Nitzschia palea under 4 d stress for Tandem Mass Tag (TMT) quantitative proteomic analysis to explore the molecular adaptation mechanism of freshwater diatoms under saline-alkali stress. Totally, 854 proteins were enriched, of which 439 differentially expressed proteins were identified. Gene ontology (GO), Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG), and subcellular fractionation analysis revealed that these proteins were mainly enriched in the photosynthesis pathway, citric acid cycle (TCA cycle), fatty acid synthesis, and glutathione cycle. CONCLUSIONS: This study aims to reveal the physiological, biochemical and proteomic mechanisms of salt and alkali tolerance and molecular adaptation of Nitzschia palea under different saline-alkali concentrations. This study showed that Nitzschia palea is one candidate of the environmental friendly, renewable bioenergy microalgae. Meantime, Nitzschia palea reveals for the proteome of the freshwater and provides the basis, it became a model algal species for freshwater diatoms.