The Organic Ligand Etching Method for Constructing In Situ Terraced Protective Layer Toward Stable Aqueous Zn Anode.

The stability of aqueous Zn-ion batteries (AZIBs) is highly dependent on the reversibility of stripping/plating Zn anode. In this work, an organic ligand etching method is proposed to develop a series of in situ multifunctional protective layers on Zn anode. Particularly, the 0.02 m [Fe(CN) 6]3- etching solutions can spontaneously etch the Zn anode, creating an in situ protective layer with unique terraced structure, which blocks the direct contact between the electrode and electrolyte and increases the area for Zn2+ ions deposition. Interestingly, all elements in the organic ligands (i.e., C, N, Zn, and Fe) exhibit strong zincophilic, significantly promoting zinc deposition kinetics and enhancing 3D nucleation behavior to inhibit zinc dendrite growth. As a result, the etched Zn anode can provide as high a Coulombic efficiency of 99.6% over 1000 cycles and sustain over 400 h long-term stability at a high current density of 10 mA cm-2 . As general validation, the small amount of metal cations additives (e.g., Ni2+ , Mn2+ , and Cu2+ ) can accelerate the synthesis of artificial interface layers with 3D structures and also regulate zinc deposition behavior. This work provides a new idea from the perspective of etching solution selection for surface modification of Zn metal anode.

Comparison of Different Methods for Extracting the Astaxanthin from Haematococcus pluvialis: Chemical Composition and Biological Activity.

In this study, the impact of different cell disruption techniques (high-pressure micro fluidization (HPMF), ionic liquids (ILs), multi-enzyme (ME), and hydrochloric acid (HCl)) on the chemical composition and biological activity of astaxanthin (AST) obtained from Haematococcus pluvialis was investigated. Results indicated that all cell disruption techniques had a significant effect on AST composition, which were confirmed by TLC and UPC2 analysis. AST recovery from HCl (HCl-AST) and ILs (ILs-AST) cell disruption techniques was dominant by free and monoesters AST, while AST recovery from HPMF (HPMF-AST) and ME (ME-AST) cell disruption techniques was composed of monoesters, diesters, and free AST. Further biological activity analysis displayed that HCl-AST showed the highest ABTS and DPPH activity, while ILs-AST showed better results against the ORAC assay. Additionally, ILs-AST exhibits a stronger anti-proliferation of HepG2 cells in a dose-dependent manner, which was ascribed to AST-induced ROS in to inhibit the proliferative of cancer cells.

Circadian modulation of dopamine levels and dopaminergic neuron development contributes to attention deficiency and hyperactive behavior.

Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is one of the most prevalent psychiatric disorders in children and adults. While ADHD patients often display circadian abnormalities, the underlying mechanisms are unclear. Here we found that the zebrafish mutant for the circadian gene period1b (per1b) displays hyperactive, impulsive-like, and attention deficit-like behaviors and low levels of dopamine, reminiscent of human ADHD patients. We found that the circadian clock directly regulates dopamine-related genes monoamine oxidase and dopamine ß hydroxylase, and acts via genes important for the development or maintenance of dopaminergic neurons to regulate their number and organization in the ventral diencephalic posterior tuberculum. We then found that Per1 knock-out mice also display ADHD-like symptoms and reduced levels of dopamine, thereby showing highly conserved roles of the circadian clock in ADHD. Our studies demonstrate that disruption of a circadian clock gene elicits ADHD-like syndrome. The circadian model for attention deficiency and hyperactive behavior sheds light on ADHD pathogenesis and opens avenues for exploring novel targets for diagnosis and therapy for this common psychiatric disorder.

CD44: a cancer stem cell marker and therapeutic target in leukemia treatment.

CD44 is a ubiquitous leukocyte adhesion molecule involved in cell-cell interaction, cell adhesion, migration, homing and differentiation. CD44 can mediate the interaction between leukemic stem cells and the surrounding extracellular matrix, thereby inducing a cascade of signaling pathways to regulate their various behaviors. In this review, we focus on the impact of CD44s/CD44v as biomarkers in leukemia development and discuss the current research and prospects for CD44-related interventions in clinical application.

Matrine induces autophagic cell death by triggering ROS/AMPK/mTOR axis and apoptosis in multiple myeloma.

Despite significant advancements in multiple myeloma (MM) treatment in recent years, most patients will eventually develop resistance or experience relapse. Matrine, a primary active compound of traditional Chinese medicinal herb Sophora flavescens Ait, has been found to have anti-tumor properties in various types of malignant tumors. Whether autophagy plays a crucial role in the anti-MM effect of matrine remain unknown. Herein, we found that matrine could trigger apoptosis and cell cycle arrest, and meanwhile induce autophagy in MM cells in vitro. We further ascertained the role of autophagy by using ATG5 siRNA or the autophagy inhibitor spautin-1, which partially reversed matrine's inhibitory effect on MM cells. Conversely, the combination of matrine with the autophagy inducer rapamycin enhanced their anti-tumor activity. These findings suggest that autophagy induced by matrine can lead to cell death in MM cells. Further mechanism investigation revealed that matrine treatment increased the levels of reactive oxygen species (ROS) and AMPKα1 phosphorylation and decreased the phosphorylation of mTOR in MM cells. Additionally, co-treatment with AMPKα1 siRNA or the ROS scavenger N-acetyl-1-cysteine weakened the increase in autophagy that was induced by matrine. Finally, we demonstrated a synergistic inhibitory effect of matrine and rapamycin against MM in a xenograft mouse model. Collectively, our findings provided novel insights into the anti-MM efficacy of matrine and suggest that matrine induces autophagy by triggering ROS/AMPK/mTOR axis in MM cells, and combinatorial treatment of matrine and rapamycin may be a promising therapeutic strategy against MM.

Protocol in Evaluating Capacity of Zn-Mn Aqueous Batteries: A Clue of pH.

In the literature, Zn-Mn aqueous batteries (ZMABs) confront abnormal capacity behavior, such as capacity fluctuation and diverse "unprecedented performances." Because of the electrolyte additive-induced complexes, various charge/discharge behaviors associated with different mechanisms are being reported. However, the current performance assessment remains unregulated, and only the electrode or the electrolyte is considered. The lack of a comprehensive and impartial performance evaluation protocol for ZMABs hinders forward research and commercialization. Here, a pH clue (proton-coupled reaction) to understand different mechanisms is proposed and the capacity contribution is normalized. Then, a series of performance metrics, including rated capacity (Cr ) and electrolyte contribution ratio from Mn2+ (CfM), are systematically discussed based on diverse energy storage mechanisms. The relationship between Mn (II) ↔ Mn (III) ↔ Mn (IV) conversion chemistry and protons consumption/production is well-established. Finally, the concrete design concepts of a tunable H+ /Zn2+ /Mn2+ storage system for customized application scenarios, opening the door for the next-generation high-safety and reliable energy storage system, are proposed.

Influence of mild oxidation induced through DBD-plasma treatment on the structure and gelling properties of glycinin.

The effects of dielectric-barrier discharge (DBD) plasma treatment (20 s to 120 s treatment time with 40 kV, 12 kHz) induced mild oxidation on the gelling properties, and related structural changes of glycinin were investigated. The gelling ability of glycinin was improved by the mild oxidation induced by the plasma treatment. Treated glycinin gels exhibited a continuous and uniform network microstructure. Samples treated for 120 s had a 2.07-, 3.99- and 2.03-fold increase in hardness, chewiness, and resilience compared to the 20 s treated samples. Structural analyses showed that primary and secondary structures of glycinin were unaffected. The tertiary structure was shifted, accompanied by a decrease in free sulfhydryl (-SH) content. At the same time, carbonyl content and average particle diameter were increased by DBD treatment. The DBD treatment facilitated the generation/exchange of intermolecular disulfide bonds and enhanced gelling properties of glycinin. It is concluded that controlled plasma-induced protein oxidation can improve protein functionality.

Oxidation induced by dielectric barrier discharge (DBD) plasma treatment reduces IgG/IgE binding capacity and improves the functionality of glycinin.

The effect of dielectric barrier discharge (DBD) plasma treatment times from 2 to 5 min at 40 kV on IgG/IgE binding capacity and functionality of soybean glycinin was examined. A substantial reduction in the binding capacity (91.64% for IgG and 81.49% for IgE) was obtained after 5 min of plasma treatment, as determined by western-blot and ELISA analyses. Further studies demonstrated that the elimination of antigenicity and allergenicity of glycinin was directly related to plasma-induced structural changes on two aspects. A conformational alteration caused by oxidation of peptide bond amino groups, accompanied with an oxidation of Trp, Tyr, and Phe amino acid residues, which was confirmed by surface hydrophobicity, multi-spectroscopic analysis, and amino acid analysis. The cleavage of polypeptide chains inevitably partially diminished the linear epitopes, resulting in a primary decline in IgG/IgE binding capacity. Additionally, an increase in the solubility from 10.78 ± 0.35 to 65.96 ± 1.86% and significant increase in the emulsifying ability from 21.08 ± 2.64 to 160.29 ± 4.12 m2/g were observed after treatment of the plasma for 2 min. The present results confirm the potential use of DBD for the production of hypoallergenic soy protein-based products and improving their technical functions such as solubility and emulsifying ability.

Dielectric-barrier discharge (DBD) plasma treatment reduces IgG binding capacity of ß-lactoglobulin by inducing structural changes.

The present study investigated the effects of dielectric-barrier-discharge (DBD) plasma treatment (12 kHz, 40 kV) at 1, 2, 3, and 4 min on the reduction of the immunoglobulin G (IgG) binding capacity of ß-lactoglobulin (ß-LG). The IgG binding capacity of ß-LG was reduced by 58.21% following a plasma treatment time of 4 min, as confirmed by western-blot and ELISA analyses. The reduction in IgG binding capacity of ß-LG was directly related to a stepwise change in its structure. The initial drop in the IgG binding capacity of ß-LG was found to be caused by conformational alteration, free sulfhydryl exposure and cross-linkage of molecules induced by oxidation of NH-/NH2- functional groups of peptide bonds and of sensitive amino acid residues (Tyr, Trp) as confirmed by SDS-PAGE, surface hydrophobicity and multi-spectroscopic analyses. Plasma treatment of more than 3 min resulted in cleavage of disulfidebonds and fragmentation of ß-LG that was confirmed by LC-MS/MS analysis, which resulted a further decline in the IgG binding capacity of ß-LG. Plasma treatment therefore has great potential as a substitute treatment for enzymatic hydrolysis for the production of hypoallergenic milk protein-based products.