Physiological blood-brain transport is impaired with age by a shift in transcytosis.

The vascular interface of the brain, known as the blood-brain barrier (BBB), is understood to maintain brain function in part via its low transcellular permeability1-3. Yet, recent studies have demonstrated that brain ageing is sensitive to circulatory proteins4,5. Thus, it is unclear whether permeability to individually injected exogenous tracers-as is standard in BBB studies-fully represents blood-to-brain transport. Here we label hundreds of proteins constituting the mouse blood plasma proteome, and upon their systemic administration, study the BBB with its physiological ligand. We find that plasma proteins readily permeate the healthy brain parenchyma, with transport maintained by BBB-specific transcriptional programmes. Unlike IgG antibody, plasma protein uptake diminishes in the aged brain, driven by an age-related shift in transport from ligand-specific receptor-mediated to non-specific caveolar transcytosis. This age-related shift occurs alongside a specific loss of pericyte coverage. Pharmacological inhibition of the age-upregulated phosphatase ALPL, a predicted negative regulator of transport, enhances brain uptake of therapeutically relevant transferrin, transferrin receptor antibody and plasma. These findings reveal the extent of physiological protein transcytosis to the healthy brain, a mechanism of widespread BBB dysfunction with age and a strategy for enhanced drug delivery.

CD22 blockade restores homeostatic microglial phagocytosis in ageing brains.

Microglia maintain homeostasis in the central nervous system through phagocytic clearance of protein aggregates and cellular debris. This function deteriorates during ageing and neurodegenerative disease, concomitant with cognitive decline. However, the mechanisms of impaired microglial homeostatic function and the cognitive effects of restoring this function remain unknown. We combined CRISPR-Cas9 knockout screens with RNA sequencing analysis to discover age-related genetic modifiers of microglial phagocytosis. These screens identified CD22, a canonical B cell receptor, as a negative regulator of phagocytosis that is upregulated on aged microglia. CD22 mediates the anti-phagocytic effect of α2,6-linked sialic acid, and inhibition of CD22 promotes the clearance of myelin debris, amyloid-ß oligomers and α-synuclein fibrils in vivo. Long-term central nervous system delivery of an antibody that blocks CD22 function reprograms microglia towards a homeostatic transcriptional state and improves cognitive function in aged mice. These findings elucidate a mechanism of age-related microglial impairment and a strategy to restore homeostasis in the ageing brain.

Small molecule C381 targets the lysosome to reduce inflammation and ameliorate disease in models of neurodegeneration.

SignificanceNeurodegenerative diseases are poorly understood and difficult to treat. One common hallmark is lysosomal dysfunction leading to the accumulation of aggregates and other undegradable materials, which cause damage to brain resident cells. Lysosomes are acidic organelles responsible for breaking down biomolecules and recycling their constitutive parts. In this work, we find that the antiinflammatory and neuroprotective compound, discovered via a phenotypic screen, imparts its beneficial effects by targeting the lysosome and restoring its function. This is established using a genome-wide CRISPRi target identification screen and then confirmed using a variety of lysosome-targeted studies. The resulting small molecule from this study represents a potential treatment for neurodegenerative diseases as well as a research tool for the study of lysosomes in disease.

Light-sheet microscopy in the near-infrared II window.

Non-invasive deep-tissue three-dimensional optical imaging of live mammals with high spatiotemporal resolution is challenging owing to light scattering. We developed near-infrared II (1,000-1,700 nm) light-sheet microscopy with excitation and emission of up to approximately 1,320 nm and 1,700 nm, respectively, for optical sectioning at a penetration depth of approximately 750 µm through live tissues without invasive surgery and at a depth of approximately 2 mm in glycerol-cleared brain tissues. Near-infrared II light-sheet microscopy in normal and oblique configurations enabled in vivo imaging of live mice through intact tissue, revealing abnormal blood flow and T-cell motion in tumor microcirculation and mapping out programmed-death ligand 1 and programmed cell death protein 1 in tumors with cellular resolution. Three-dimensional imaging through the intact mouse head resolved vascular channels between the skull and brain cortex, and allowed monitoring of recruitment of macrophages and microglia to the traumatic brain injury site.

Acute and late administration of colony stimulating factor 1 attenuates chronic cognitive impairment following mild traumatic brain injury in mice.

Traumatic brain injury (TBI) is a leading cause of long-term neurological disability. Currently there is no effective pharmacological treatment for patients suffering from the long-lasting symptoms of TBI. We recently discovered that colony stimulating factor 1 (CSF1), an essential regulator of macrophage homeostasis, is neuroprotective and reduces neuroinflammation in two models of neurological disease in mice. Here we used a mouse model of repetitive mild TBI (mTBI) to examine whether CSF1 would attenuate cognitive deficits and improve pathological outcomes in two paradigms. In the acute paradigm, a single bolus treatment of CSF1 administered 24 h after injury significantly reduces memory impairment and astrocyte reactivity assessed 3 months later. In the chronic paradigm, the mice were tested 3 months after mTBI when they showed cognitive deficits. The mice were then randomly assigned to receive CSF1 or PBS (as control) treatment. After one month of treatment, the PBS-treated mice remained cognitively impaired, but the CSF1-treated showed significant improvements in cognitive function. RNA-seq and Ingenuity Pathway Analysis reveals CSF1 treatment alters cognition- and memory-related transcriptomic changes and pathways. The results of this study show that acute as well as delayed CSF1 treatment attenuate chronically impaired cognitive functions and improve pathological outcomes long after mTBI. The wide therapeutic time window of CSF1, together with the fact that CSF1 is approved for human use in clinical trials, strongly supports the potential clinical usefulness of this treatment in patients with mTBI.

Deficiency in Neuronal TGF-ß Signaling Leads to Nigrostriatal Degeneration and Activation of TGF-ß Signaling Protects against MPTP Neurotoxicity in Mice.

Transforming growth factor-ß (TGF-ß) plays an important role in the development and maintenance of embryonic dopaminergic (DA) neurons in the midbrain. To study the function of TGF-ß signaling in the adult nigrostriatal system, we generated transgenic mice with reduced TGF-ß signaling in mature neurons. These mice display age-related motor deficits and degeneration of the nigrostriatal system. Increasing TGF-ß signaling in the substantia nigra through adeno-associated virus expressing a constitutively active type I receptor significantly reduces 1-methyl-4-phenyl-1,2,3,6-tetrahydropyridine-induced dopaminergic neurodegeneration and motor deficits. These results suggest that TGF-ß signaling is critical for adult DA neuron survival and that modulating this signaling pathway has therapeutic potential in Parkinson disease.SIGNIFICANCE STATEMENT We show that reducing Transforming growth factor-ß (TGF-ß) signaling promotes Parkinson disease-related pathologies and motor deficits, and increasing TGF-ß signaling reduces neurotoxicity of 1-methyl-4-phenyl-1,2,3,6-tetrahydropyridine, a parkinsonism-inducing agent. Our results provide a rationale to pursue a means of increasing TGF-ß signaling as a potential therapy for Parkinson's disease.

Photonic band engineering in absorbing media for spectrally selective optoelectronic films.

Spectrally selective materials are of great interest for optoelectronic devices in which wavelength-selectivity of the photoactive material is necessary for applications such as multi-junction solar cells, narrow-band photodetectors, transparent photovoltaics, and tailored emission sources. Achieving controlled transparency or opacity within multiple wavelength bands in the absorption, reflection, and transmission spectra are difficult to achieve in traditional semiconductors that typically absorb at all energies above their electronic band gap and is generally realized by the use of external bandpass filters. Here, we propose an alternate method for achieving spectral selectivity in optoelectronic thin films: the use of photonic band engineering within the absorbing region of a semiconductor in which resonant photonic bands are strongly coupled to the external reflectivity and transmission spectra. As a first step, we use optical simulations to systematically study the effect of material absorption on the properties of the photonic bands in a photonic crystal slab structure. We find that adding a weak loss to the materials model does not appreciably change the frequencies of the photonic bands but does reduce the quality factor of the associated photonic modes. Critically, the radiating photonic bands induce strong Fano resonance features in the transmission and reflection spectra, even in the presence of material absorption, due to coupling between the bands and external electromagnetic plane waves. These resonances can be tuned by adjusting the photonic crystal structural properties to induce spectral selectivity in the absorbing region of semiconductors. Lastly, we demonstrate this tuning method experimentally by fabricating a proof-of-principle photonic structure consisting of a self-assembled polystyrene bead monolayer infiltrated with PbS CQDs that displays both near-infrared absorption enhancement and visible transparency enhancement over a homogeneous control film, qualitatively matching predictions and showing promise for optoelectronic applications.

Autographa californica multiple nucleopolyhedrovirus orf132 encodes a nucleocapsid-associated protein required for budded-virus and multiply enveloped occlusion-derived virus production.

UNLABELLED: Autographa californica multiple nucleopolyhedrovirus orf132 (named ac132) has homologs in all genome-sequenced group I nucleopolyhedroviruses. Its role in the viral replication cycle is unknown. In this study, ac132 was shown to express a protein of around 28 kDa, which was determined to be associated with the nucleocapsids of both occlusion-derived virus and budded virus. Confocal microscopy showed that AC132 protein appeared in central region of the nucleus as early as 12 h postinfection with the virus. It formed a ring zone at the periphery of the nucleus by 24 h postinfection. To investigate its role in virus replication, ac132 was deleted from the viral genome by using a bacmid system. In the Sf9 cell culture transfected by the ac132 knockout bacmid, infection was restricted to single cells, and the titer of infectious budded virus was reduced to an undetectable level. However, viral DNA replication and the expression of late genes vp39 and odv-e25 and a reporter gene under the control of the very late gene p10 promoter were unaffected. Electron microscopy showed that nucleocapsids, virions, and occlusion bodies were synthesized in the cells transfected by an ac132 knockout bacmid, but the formation of the virogenic stroma and occlusion bodies was delayed, the numbers of enveloped nucleocapsids were reduced, and the occlusion bodies contained mainly singly enveloped nucleocapsids. AC132 was found to interact with envelope protein ODV-E18 and the viral DNA-binding protein P6.9. The data from this study suggest that ac132 possibly plays an important role in the assembly and envelopment of nucleocapsids. IMPORTANCE: To our knowledge, this is the first report on a functional analysis of ac132. The data presented here demonstrate that ac132 is required for production of the budded virus and multiply enveloped occlusion-derived virus of Autographa californica multiple nucleopolyhedrovirus. This article reveals unique phenotypic changes induced by ac132 deletion on the virus and multiple new findings on ac132.

Homologous region 1 of Plutella xylostella granulovirus functions as an enhancer for early gene expression.

Homologous regions (hrs) contained in genomes of baculoviruses have been shown to function as origins of viral DNA replication in alphabaculoviruses and betabaculoviruses, and as enhancers for early gene expression in alphabaculoviruses. The hr sequences of betabaculoviruses differ substantially from the ones of alphabaculoviruses. The enhancing property of betabaculovirus hrs has not been reported. In this study, transient assays were performed to investigate the effects of Plutella xylostella granulovirus (PlxyGV) hr1 on early gene expression of the virus. It was shown that hr1 stimulated reporter gene expression from the promoters of four early genes--ie1, dnapol, lef1, and lef9--independent of additional viral gene expression. The PlxyGV ie1 was shown to repress reporter gene expression from all four early gene promoters in a Trichoplusia ni cell line, both in the presence and absence of hr.

The p35 and ie1 of Autographa californica multiple nucleopolyhedrovirus could rescue late gene expression of Plutella xylostella granulovirus in nonpermissive cell lines.

There are no stable permissive cell lines available for in vitro replication of PlxyGV. In this study, several PlxyGV bacmids containing egfp and plasmids expressing the luciferase gene (luc) were constructed and used to transfect insect cell lines from Plutella xylostella, Trichoplusia ni (Hi5), and Spodoptera frugiperda. Fluorescence was observed only in the cells transfected with a bacmid with egfp driven by a PlxyGV ie1 promoter, but not by a PlxyGV vp39 or granulin promoter. In transient assays, various levels of LUC activity were detected in the cells transfected with individual reporter plasmids containing the luc driven by the promoters of PlxyGV early genes ie1, exon0, dnapol, lef1, lef9, and orf105, suggesting that the PlxyGV early genes could be activated in the cells independent of virus infection. The addition of a PlxyGV bacmid in the transfections activated luc expression from the promoters of PlxyGV late genes vp39 and granulin only at minimum levels, and caused significant reduction in luc expression from the early promoters, may be due to apoptosis triggered by the PlxyGV bacmid. PlxyGV reporter bacmids containing Autographa californica multiple nucleopolyhedrovirus (AcMNPV) genes p35 or p35 and ie1 or p35, ie1 and gp64 expressed LUC from a PlxyGV vp39 promoter at levels of 2.6, 8.3, and 23 times higher than those produced by the basic PlxyGV reporter bacmid, respectively, in transfected Hi5 cells. Green fluorescence was present in the cultures of all three cell lines transfected by a PlxyGV bacmid containing egfp with a vp39 promoter and AcMNPV ie1, p35, and gp64 with their native promoters. The fluorescence was also observed in the culture of Hi5 cells inoculated with the supernatant from the transfection. These results suggest that AcMNPV p35 could rescue late gene expression, and the ie1, p35, and gp64 may cooperatively rescue replication of PlxyGV in the cells.

Synthesis, Self-Assembly, and Multi-Stimuli Responses of a Supramolecular Block Copolymer.

A supramolecular block copolymer is prepared by the molecular recognition of nucleobases between poly(2-(2-methoxyethoxy)ethyl methacrylate-co-oligo(ethylene glycol) methacrylate)-SS-poly(ε-caprolactone)-adenine (P(MEO2 MA-co-OEGMA)-SS-PCL-A) and uracil-terminated poly(ethylene glycol) (PEG-U). Because the block copolymer is linked by the combination of covalent (disulfide bond) and noncovalent (AU) bonds, it not only has similar properties to conventional covalently linked block copolymers but also possesses a dynamic and tunable nature. The copolymer can self-assemble into micelles with a PCL core and P(MEO2 MA-co-OEGMA)/PEG shell. The size and morphologies of the micelles/aggregates can be adjusted by altering the temperature, pH, salt concentration, or adding dithiothreitol (DTT) to the solution. The controlled release of Nile red is achieved at different environmental conditions.

Porphyrin-sensitized solar cells.

Nature has chosen chlorophylls in plants as antennae to harvest light for the conversion of solar energy in complicated photosynthetic processes. Inspired by natural photosynthesis, scientists utilized artificial chlorophylls - the porphyrins - as efficient centres to harvest light for solar cells sensitized with a porphyrin (PSSC). After the first example appeared in 1993 of a porphyrin of type copper chlorophyll as a photosensitizer for PSSC that achieved a power conversion efficiency of 2.6%, no significant advance of PSSC was reported until 2005; beta-linked zinc porphyrins were then reported to show promising device performances with a benchmark efficiency of 7.1% reported in 2007. Meso-linked zinc porphyrin sensitizers in the first series with a push-pull framework appeared in 2009; the best cell performed comparably to that of a N3-based device, and a benchmark 11% was reported for a porphyrin sensitizer of this type in 2010. With a structural design involving long alkoxyl chains to envelop the porphyrin core to suppress the dye aggregation for a push-pull zinc porphyrin, the PSSC achieved a record 12.3% in 2011 with co-sensitization of an organic dye and a cobalt-based electrolyte. The best PSSC system exhibited a panchromatic feature for light harvesting covering the visible spectral region to 700 nm, giving opportunities to many other porphyrins, such as fused and dimeric porphyrins, with near-infrared absorption spectral features, together with the approach of molecular co-sensitization, to enhance the device performance of PSSC. According to this historical trend for the development of prospective porphyrin sensitizers used in PSSC, we review systematically the progress of porphyrins of varied kinds, and their derivatives, applied in PSSC with a focus on reports during 2007-2012 from the point of view of molecular design correlated with photovoltaic performance.

Theoretical exploration of the stabilities and detonation parameters of nitro-substituted 1H-benzotriazole.

CONTEXT: The nitro group was introduced into the nitrogen heterocycle of 1H-benzotriazole to design a total of 31 derivatives. To estimate the thermal stability of these derivatives, the heat of formation (HOF) is calculated based on the isodesmic reaction. The bond dissociation energy (BDE) was also predicted based on the homolytic reaction to further evaluate the dynamic stability. To evaluate the possibility of utilizing as high energy density compounds (HEDCs), the detonation parameters including the detonation pressure (P), detonation velocity (D), and explosive heat (Q) are predicted by taking advantage of the Kamlet-Jacobs empirical equation. To measure the sensitivity to impact, both the characteristic height (H50) and free space in crystal (∆V) are considered in this paper. Based on our calculations, D-series and E are found to be the candidates for HEDCs. METHODS: The Gaussian 09 software package was used in this paper. The B3PW91 hybrid function with the 6-311 + G(d,p) basis set was chosen to perform the structural optimization, frequency analysis, heat of formation, and bond dissociation energy. The detonation parameters were calculated following the Kamlet-Jacobs equation.

Small Molecule Drug C381 Attenuates Brain Vascular Damage Following Repetitive Mild Traumatic Injury.

Traumatic brain injury (TBI) remains a significant public health concern, with no effective therapeutic interventions to ameliorate the enduring consequences. The prevailing understanding of TBI pathophysiology indicates a central role for vascular dysfunction. Transforming growth factor-ß (TGF-ß) is a multifunctional cytokine crucial for vascular development. Aberrant TGF-ß signaling is implicated in vascular pathologies associated with various neurological conditions. We recently developed a novel small molecule drug, C381, a TGF-ß activator with the ability to restore lysosomal function. Here we used a mouse model of repetitive mild TBI (mTBI) to examine whether C381 would attenuate vascular injury. We first employed RNA-seq analysis to investigate the gene expression patterns associated with mTBI and evaluated the therapeutic potential of C381 in mitigating these changes. Our results demonstrate distinct mTBI-related gene expression signatures, prominently implicating pathways related to vascular integrity and endothelial function. Notably, treatment with C381 reversed these mTBI-induced gene expression changes. Immunohistochemical analysis further corroborated these findings, revealing that C381 treatment attenuated vascular damage in mTBI-affected brain tissue. These findings strongly support the potential clinical usefulness of C381 as a novel therapeutic intervention for mTBI.

IE1 of Autographa californica Multiple Nucleopolyhedrovirus Activates Low Levels of Late Gene Expression in the Absence of Virus RNA Polymerase.

Early and late gene expressions of baculoviruses have been known to rely on host RNA polymerase II and a virus-encoded RNA polymerase, separately. In this study, we found that Autographa californica multiple nucleopolyhedrovirus (AcMNPV) recombinant bacmids with the individual RNA polymerase subunit genes deleted could support low levels of expression of a reporter gene under the control of the promoter of a typical late gene, vp39, in transfected Sf9 cells. Through multistep subcloning of a genomic library of the virus and transient expression assay analysis, ie1 was identified to be the only viral gene that was responsible for activation of late gene expression in the absence of the viral RNA polymerase. Furthermore, IE1 was found to be capable of activating reporter gene expression from the promoters of additional late genes polh, p6.9, odv-e18, odv-e25, and gp41, independent of any additional viral factors. Deletion of ie1 from the virus genome eliminated late gene expression. The IE1-activated late gene expression was enhanced by the viral hr4b. It was shown to be insensitive to inhibition of α-amanitin and did not appear to have stable transcription start sites. It is proposed that IE1 may serve to recruit newly synthesized viral RNA polymerase to viral DNA by activating low levels of pretranscription of the late genes to create an appropriate DNA conformation. IMPORTANCE The late gene expression of baculovirus has been known to depend on the virus-encoded RNA polymerase, which consists of four subunits. The immediate-early gene ie1 was found to be required for viral early gene expression, late gene expression, and DNA replication. How it functions in late gene expression remains unclear. In this study, we found that AcMNPV IE1 could activate low levels of gene expression from late gene promoters independently of any additional viral factors, with nonspecific transcription start sites. This new finding will shed light on the role of IE1 in the regulation of late gene expression and the understanding of the mechanism of late gene transcription initiation.

Theoretical calculation about the valence and Rydberg excited states of hydrogen cyanide.

The singlet and triplet excited states of hydrogen cyanide have been computed by using the complete active space self-consistent field and completed active space second order perturbation methods with the atomic natural orbital (ANO-L) basis set. Through calculations of vertical excitation energies, we have probed the transitions from ground state to valence excited states, and further extensions to the Rydberg states are achieved by adding 1s1p1d Rydberg orbitals into the ANO-L basis set. Four singlet and nine triplet excited states have been optimized. The computed adiabatic energies and the vertical transition energies agree well with the available experimental data and the inconsistencies with the available theoretical reports are discussed in detail.

Machine learning model to predict the efficacy of antiseizure medications in patients with familial genetic generalized epilepsy.

OBJECTIVE: This study aimed to establish a machine learning model that can predict the efficacy of antiseizure medications (ASMs) in patients with familial genetic generalized epilepsy (GGE). METHODS: We prospectively followed up patients with familial GGE for at least 3 years between January 2007 and January 2017. We collected and analyzed the patients' demographic characteristics, medical history, and related auxiliary examinations. The results of the epileptic seizures were divided into two categories: seizure-free and drug-resistant epilepsy. We selected and trained thirteen classification models, i.e., random forest classifier, logistic regression, gradient boosting classifier, light gradient boosting machine, ridge classifier, linear discriminant analysis, support vector machine-linear kernel, extra tree classifier, Ada boost classifier, naive Bayes classifier, decision tree classifier, K neighbors classifier, and quadratic discriminant analysis, to get the best performing classification model. RESULTS: A total of 854 patients with familial GGE were included in the study after excluding 89 who were lost to follow-up. Among them, 631 patients with familial GGE became seizure-free, and 223 developed drug-resistant epilepsy with a 74.89% remission rate. Among the 13 models, the random forest classifier model was the most effective with an accuracy of 91.23% and an F1 score of 84.21%. Among the 18 patient characteristics, the most effective indicators of the final treatment results were the number of seizure types experienced, response to the first drug, prior treatment duration and number of pre-treatment seizures. SIGNIFICANCE: The random forest classifier model can be used to early predict the results of ASM treatment based on the clinical data of patients with familial GGE. This finding can help clinicians make timely adjustments to treatment strategies and improve patients' prognosis.

Comparative genomic analysis of three geographical isolates from China reveals high genetic stability of Plutella xylostella granulovirus.

In this study, the genomes of three Plutella xylostella granulovirus (PlxyGV) isolates, PlxyGV-W and PlxyGV-Wn from near Wuhan and PlxyGV-B from near Beijing, China were completely sequenced and comparatively analyzed to investigate genetic stability and diversity of PlxyGV. PlxyGV-W, PlxyGV-B and PlxyGV-Wn consist of 100,941bp, 100,972bp and 100,999bp in length with G + C compositions of 40.71-40.73%, respectively, and share nucleotide sequence identities of 99.5-99.8%. The three individual isolates contain 118 putative protein-encoding ORFs in common. PlxyGV-W, PlxyGV-B and PlxyGV-Wn have ten, nineteen and six nonsynonymous intra isolate nucleotide polymorphisms (NPs) in six, fourteen and five ORFs, respectively, including homologs of five DNA replication/late expression factors and two per os infectivity factors. There are seventeen nonsynonymous inter isolate NPs in seven ORFs between PlxyGV-W and PlxyGV-B, seventy three nonsynonymous NPs in forty seven ORFs between PlxyGV-W and PlxyGV-Wn, seventy seven nonsynonymous NPs in forty six ORFs between PlxyGV-B and PlxyGV-Wn. Alignment of the genome sequences of nine PlxyGV isolates sequenced up to date shows that the sequence homogeneity between the genomes are over 99.4%, with the exception of the genome of PlxyGV-SA from South Africa, which shares a sequence identity of 98.6-98.7% with the other ones. No events of gene gain/loss or translocations were observed. These results suggest that PlxyGV genome is fairly stable in nature. In addition, the transcription start sites and polyadenylation sites of thirteen PlxyGV-specific ORFs, conserved in all PlxyGV isolates, were identified by RACE analysis using mRNAs purified from larvae infected by PlxyGV-Wn, proving the PlxyGV-specific ORFs are all genuine genes.

An oligomeric semiconducting nanozyme with ultrafast electron transfers alleviates acute brain injury.

Artificial enzymes have attracted wide interest in disease diagnosis and biotechnology due to high stability, easy synthesis, and cost effectiveness. Unfortunately, their catalytic rate is limited to surface electron transfer, affecting the catalytic and biological activity. Here, we report an oligomeric nanozyme (O-NZ) with ultrafast electron transfer, achieving ultrahigh catalytic activity. O-NZ shows electron transfer of 1.8 nanoseconds in internal cores and 1.2 picoseconds between core and ligand molecule, leading to ultrahigh superoxidase dismutase­like and glutathione peroxidase­like activity (comparable with natural enzyme, Michaelis constant = 0.87 millimolars). Excitingly, O-NZ can improve the 1-month survival rate of mice with acute brain trauma from 50 to 90% and promote the recovery of long-term neurocognition. Biochemical experiments show that O-NZ can decrease harmful peroxide and superoxide via in vivo catalytic chain reaction and reduce acute neuroinflammation via nuclear factor erythroid-2 related factor 2­mediated up-regulation of heme oxygenase-1 expression.

Effects of aggregation and electron injection on photovoltaic performance of porphyrin-based solar cells with oligo(phenylethynyl) links inside TiO(2) and Al(2)O(3) nanotube arrays.

Porphyrins with phenylethynyl links of varied length (PE1-PE4) were sensitized on vertically oriented, anodic titanium-oxide (ATO) nanotube arrays for application as dye-sensitized solar cells (DSSC). The efficiency of power conversion decreased systematically from the dye with a short link to the dye with a long link. We measured the efficiency of conversion of incident photons to current (IPCE), the photocurrent decay of the devices, and steady-state and time-resolved fluorescence spectra of the thin-film samples to understand how the cell performance depends on the length of the link. Measurements of femtosecond fluorescence confirmed that the efficiency of electron injection depended on length because of dye aggregation that significantly increased the rate of aggregate-induced energy transfer for porphyrins with a long link. The rate of electron injection depended on the length of the link with an attenuation factor beta approximately 0.1 A(-1). Resonant energy transfer (RET) kinetics of porphyrins sensitized on anodic aluminium-oxide (AAO) nanotube arrays were performed with picosecond time-correlated single-photon counting and four molecular densities for each porphyrin. The kinetic data of PE1 and PE2 are described satisfactorily according to a Förster model, whereas those of PE3 and PE4 conform to a Dexter formula. A formation of clusters is proposed to rationalize the observed density-dependent kinetics for the RET of porphyrins on semiconductor films.