Tandem Dual-Site PbCu Electrocatalyst for High-Rate and Selective Glycine Synthesis at Industrial Current Densities.

Direct electrosynthesis of high-value amino acids from carbon and nitrogen monomers remains a challenge. Here, we design a tandem dual-site PbCu electrocatalyst for efficient amino acid electrosynthesis. Using oxalic acid (H2C2O4) and hydroxylamine (NH2OH) as the raw reactants, for the first time, we have realized the flow-electrosynthesis of glycine at the industrial current density of 200 mA cm-2 with Faradaic efficiency over 78%. In situ ATR-FTIR spectroscopy characterizations reveal a favorable tandem pathway on the dual-site catalyst. Specifically, the Pb site drives the highly selective electroreduction of H2C2O4 to form glyoxylic acid, and the Cu site accelerates the fast hydrogenation of oxime to form a glycine product. A glycine electrosynthesis (GES)-formaldehyde electrooxidation (FOR) assembly is further established, which synthesizes more valuable chemicals (HCOOH, H2) while minimizing energy consumption. Altogether, we introduce a new strategy to enable the one-step electrosynthesis of high-value amino acid from widely accessible monomers.

nNOS in Erbb4-positive neurons regulates GABAergic transmission in mouse hippocampus.

Neuronal nitric oxide synthase (nNOS, gene name Nos1) orchestrates the synthesis of nitric oxide (NO) within neurons, pivotal for diverse neural processes encompassing synaptic transmission, plasticity, neuronal excitability, learning, memory, and neurogenesis. Despite its significance, the precise regulation of nNOS activity across distinct neuronal types remains incompletely understood. Erb-b2 receptor tyrosine kinase 4 (ErbB4), selectively expressed in GABAergic interneurons and activated by its ligand neuregulin 1 (NRG1), modulates GABA release in the brain. Our investigation reveals the presence of nNOS in a subset of GABAergic interneurons expressing ErbB4. Notably, NRG1 activates nNOS via ErbB4 and its downstream phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase (PI3K), critical for NRG1-induced GABA release. Genetic removal of nNos from Erbb4-positive neurons impairs GABAergic transmission, partially rescued by the NO donor sodium nitroprusside (SNP). Intriguingly, the genetic deletion of nNos from Erbb4-positive neurons induces schizophrenia-relevant behavioral deficits, including hyperactivity, impaired sensorimotor gating, and deficient working memory and social interaction. These deficits are ameliorated by the atypical antipsychotic clozapine. This study underscores the role and regulation of nNOS within a specific subset of GABAergic interneurons, offering insights into the pathophysiological mechanisms of schizophrenia, given the association of Nrg1, Erbb4, Pi3k, and Nos1 genes with this mental disorder.

Loss of SST and PV positive interneurons in the ventral hippocampus results in anxiety-like behavior in 5xFAD mice.

Neuropsychiatric symptoms, such as anxiety and depression often appear early in patients with Alzheimer's disease (AD), and a comorbid, anxiety-like phenotype is also found in rodents with AD. However, the underlying mechanisms behind these conditions and potential therapeutic targets to treat them remain unclear. In this study, we used 5 familial AD mutations (5xFAD) mice that developed early amyloid ß-amyloid deposition and related synaptic loss and memory deficits to identify a potential mechanism behind abnormally high anxiety levels observed in these subjects. We observed anxiety-like behavior in mice that had an excitatory/inhibitory (E/I) imbalance in the ventral hippocampus (vHPC) of 5xFAD mice. Both the number of parvalbumin-positive (PV+) and somatostatin-positive (SST+) cells decreased in the ventral hippocampus of the subject 5xFAD mice, however, no reductions were observed in calretinin-positive cells. We found that selectively inhibiting vHPC pyramidal cells via hM4Di expression normalized anxiety-like behaviors and E/I balance in 5xFAD mice. Finally, we found that the ventral hippocampus SST+ or PV+ neurons were activated through selectively expressed hM3Dq, which ameliorated anxiety-like behaviors and the synaptic E/I imbalance of vCA1 in 5xFAD mice. These results determined that anxiety-like behaviors accompanied by hippocampal synaptic E/I imbalance in 5xFAD mice are due to the loss of SST+ and PV+ interneurons in the vHPC. This provides a better understanding of high anxiety levels observed in patients with early-stage AD.

Microplastics affect rice (Oryza sativa L.) quality by interfering metabolite accumulation and energy expenditure pathways: A field study.

Microplastic accumulation in agricultural soils can stress plants and affects quality of the products. Current research on the effects of microplastics on plants is not consistent and the underlying mechanisms are yet unknown. Here, the molecular mechanisms of the stress response were investigated via metabolomic and transcriptomic analyses of rice Oryza sativa L. II Y900 and XS123 under the exposure of polystyrene microplastics (PS-MPs) in a field study. Distinct responses were obtained in these two rice subspecies, showing decreased head rice yield by 10.62% in Y900 and increase by 6.35% in XS123. The metabolomics results showed that PS-MPs exposure inhibited 29.63% of the substance accumulation-related metabolic pathways and 43.25% of the energy expenditure-related metabolic pathways in the Y900 grains; however, these related pathways were promoted in the XS123 grains. The transcriptomics results indicated that the expression of genes encoding proteins involved in the tricarboxylic acid cycle in the Y900 grains was inhibited, but it was enhanced in the XS123 grains. The XS123 subspecies could response against microplastic exposure stress through the metabolite accumulation and energy expenditure pathways, while the Y900 could not. The results provide insight into the perturbation of rice grains in farmlands with microplastics contamination.

Neuregulin1-ErbB4 Signaling in Spinal Cord Participates in Electroacupuncture Analgesia in Inflammatory Pain.

Chronic inflammatory pain is a severe clinical symptom that aggravates the life quality of patients and places a huge economic burden on individuals and society. As one complementary and alternative therapy, electroacupuncture (EA) is widely used in clinical practice to treat chronic inflammatory pain based on its safety and efficacy. Previous studies have revealed the potential role of adenosine, neuropeptides, and inflammatory factors in EA analgesia in various pain models, but the identity of some of the signaling pathways involved remain unknown. In the present study, we explored whether neuregulin1 (NRG1)-ErbB4 signaling is involved in EA analgesia in inflammatory pain. Repeated EA treatment at the acupoints Zusanli (ST36) and Sanyinjiao (SP6) for 3 consecutive days remarkably attenuated mechanical allodynia and thermal hyperalgesia in complete Freund's adjuvant (CFA)-treated mice, with an increased expression of NRG1 in spinal cord (SC). We found that ErbB4 kinase participated in both the EA and NRG1 mediated analgesic effects on inflammatory pain by pharmacological inhibition or genetic ablation ErbB4 in vivo. Intriguingly, the mice with conditional knockout of ErbB4 from PV+ interneurons in SC showed abnormal basal mechanical threshold. Meanwhile, NRG1 treatment could not relieve tactile allodynia in PV-Erbb4-/- mice or AAV-PV-Erbb4-/- mice after CFA injection. These experimental results suggest that regulating NRG1-ErbB4 signaling in SC could reduce pain hypersensitivity and contribute to EA analgesia in inflammatory pain.

Thymosin Alpha-1 Inhibits Complete Freund's Adjuvant-Induced Pain and Production of Microglia-Mediated Pro-inflammatory Cytokines in Spinal Cord.

Activation of inflammatory responses regulates the transmission of pain pathways through an integrated network in the peripheral and central nervous systems. The immunopotentiator thymosin alpha-1 (Tα1) has recently been reported to have anti-inflammatory and neuroprotective functions in rodents. However, how Tα1 affects inflammatory pain remains unclear. In the present study, intraperitoneal injection of Tα1 attenuated complete Freund's adjuvant (CFA)-induced pain hypersensitivity, and decreased the up-regulation of pro-inflammatory cytokines (TNF-α, IL-1ß, and IL-6) in inflamed skin and the spinal cord. We found that CFA-induced peripheral inflammation evoked strong microglial activation, but the effect was reversed by Tα1. Notably, Tα1 reversed the CFA-induced up-regulation of vesicular glutamate transporter (VGLUT) and down-regulated the vesicular γ-aminobutyric acid transporter (VGAT) in the spinal cord. Taken together, these results suggest that Tα1 plays a therapeutic role in inflammatory pain and in the modulation of microglia-induced pro-inflammatory cytokine production in addition to mediation of VGLUT and VGAT expression in the spinal cord.

[Highly Efficient Bioflocculation of Microalgae Using Mucor circinelloides].

Harvesting of microalgae is the major challenge in cost-efficient large-scale microalgal biomass production due to their low concentration and small cell size in the culture medium. The present paper aimed to study the efficiency of the filamentous fungus Mucor circinelloides spores suspensions to harvest the green unicellular microalga Chlorella pyrenoidosa grown in synthetic medium. Results showed that the optimal co-culture conditions were pH=6.0, 1.25 g·L-1 glucose and 1:250 fungi to microalgae ratio with harvest efficiency of 91.08%. In addition, the mentioned optimal conditions could be applied for actual sewage with harvest efficiency of 92.33%. Polysaccharide concentrations measured before and after 48 h of cultivation showed that the polysaccharide of C. pyrenoidosa cultured alone was increased by 0.047 g·L-1, while co-cultured mixture showed increase in polysaccharides by 0.019 g·L-1. The recorded decrease in polysaccharides concentration in the co-culture might be attributed to using of excreted polysaccharides by M. circinelloides to grow, confirming the symbiotic association of both organisms. Furthermore, with decreasing the pH, C. pyrenoidosa Zeta potential was stable, while it was increased from -37.7 mV to -9.87 mV in M. circinelloides, which indicated that charge neutralization was the mechanism of flocculation between algae and fungi.