A Bioinspired Single-Atom Fe Nanozyme with Excellent Laccase-Like Activity for Efficient Aflatoxin B1 Removal.

The applications of natural laccases are greatly restricted because of their drawbacks like poor biostability, high costs, and low recovery efficiency. M/NC single atom nanozymes (M/NC SAzymes) are presenting as great substitutes due to their superior enzyme-like activity, excellent selectivity and high stability. In this work, inspired by the catalytic active center of natural enzyme, a biomimetic Fe/NC SAzyme (Fe-SAzyme) with O2-Fe-N4 coordination is successfully developed, exhibiting excellent laccase-like activity. Compared with their natural counterpart, Fe-SAzyme has shown superior catalytic efficiency and excellent stability under a wide range of pH (3.0-9.0), temperature (4-80 °C) and NaCl strength (0-300 mm). Interestingly, density functional theory (DFT) calculations reveal that the high catalytic performance is attributed to the activation of O2 by O2-Fe-N4 sites, which weakened the O─O bonds in the oxygen-to-water oxidation pathway. Furthermore, Fe-SAzyme is successfully applied for efficient aflatoxin B1 removal based on its robust laccase-like catalytic activity. This work provides a strategy for the rational design of laccase-like SAzymes, and the proposed catalytic mechanism will help to understand the coordination environment effect of SAzymes on laccase-like catalytic processes.

Diversified molecular adaptations of inorganic nitrogen assimilation and signaling machineries in plants.

Plants evolved sophisticated machineries to monitor levels of external nitrogen supply, respond to nitrogen demand from different tissues and integrate this information for coordinating its assimilation. Although roles of inorganic nitrogen in orchestrating developments have been studied in model plants and crops, systematic understanding of the origin and evolution of its assimilation and signaling machineries remains largely unknown. We expanded taxon samplings of algae and early-diverging land plants, covering all main lineages of Archaeplastida, and reconstructed the evolutionary history of core components involved in inorganic nitrogen assimilation and signaling. Most components associated with inorganic nitrogen assimilation were derived from the ancestral Archaeplastida. Improvements of assimilation machineries by gene duplications and horizontal gene transfers were evident during plant terrestrialization. Clusterization of genes encoding nitrate assimilation proteins might be an adaptive strategy for algae to cope with changeable nitrate availability in different habitats. Green plants evolved complex nitrate signaling machinery that was stepwise improved by domains shuffling and regulation co-option. Our study highlights innovations in inorganic nitrogen assimilation and signaling machineries, ranging from molecular modifications of proteins to genomic rearrangements, which shaped developmental and metabolic adaptations of plants to changeable nutrient availability in environments.

Fluorogenic Rhodamine Probes with Pyrrole Substitution Enables STED and Lifetime Imaging of Lysosomes in Live Cells.

Fluorogenic dyes with high brightness, large turn-on ratios, excellent photostability, favorable specificity, low cytotoxicity, and high membrane permeability are essential for high-resolution fluorescence imaging in live cells. In this study, we endowed these desirable properties to a rhodamine derivative by simply replacing the N, N-diethyl group with a pyrrole substituent. The resulting dye, Rh-NH, exhibited doubled Stokes shifts (54 nm) and a red-shift of more than 50 nm in fluorescence spectra compared to Rhodamine B. Rh-NH preferentially exists in a non-emissive but highly permeable spirolactone form. Upon binding to lysosomes, the collective effects of low pH, low polarity, and high viscosity endow Rh-NH with significant fluorescence turn-on, making it a suitable candidate for wash-free, high-contrast lysosome tracking. Consequently, Rh-NH enabled us to successfully explore stimulated emission depletion (STED) super-resolution imaging of lysosome dynamics, as well as fluorescence lifetime imaging of lysosomes in live cells.

A non-linear relationship between blood pressure and mild cognitive impairment in elderly individuals: A cohort study based on the Chinese longitudinal healthy longevity survey (CLHLS).

BACKGROUND: Hypertension is an established risk factor for mild cognitive impairment (MCI) in elderly individuals. Nevertheless, the impact of different levels of blood pressure on the progression of MCI remains uncertain. This study aims to investigate the non-linear relationship between blood pressure and MCI in the elderly and detect the critical blood pressure threshold, thus, improving blood pressure management for individuals at high risk of MCI. METHODS: Data was obtained from the Chinese Longitudinal Healthy Longevity Survey (CLHLS) cohort. We chose normal cognitive elderly individuals who entered the cohort in 2014 for a 5-year follow-up to observe the progression of MCI. Subsequently, we utilized the Cox regression model to identify risk factors for MCI and conducted a Cox-based restricted cubic spline regression (RCS) model to examine the non-linear relationship between systolic blood pressure (SBP) and diastolic blood pressure (DBP) with MCI, determining the critical blood pressure threshold for MCI progression. RESULTS: In the elderly population, female (HR = 1.489, 95% CI: 1.017-2.180), lacking of exercise in the past (HR = 1.714, 95% CI: 1.108-2.653), preferring animal fats (HR = 2.340, 95% CI: 1.348-4.061), increased age (HR = 1.061, 95% CI: 1.038-1.084), increased SBP (HR = 1.036, 95% CI: 1.024-1.048), and increased DBP (HR = 1.056, 95% CI: 1.031-1.081) were associated with MCI progression. After adjusting factors such as gender, exercise, preferred types of fats, and age, both SBP (P non-linear < 0.001) and DBP (P non-linear < 0.001) in elderly individuals exhibited a non-linear association with MCI. The risk of MCI rose when SBP exceeded 135 mmHg and DBP was in the range of 80-88 mmHg. However, when DBP exceeded 88 mmHg, there was a declining trend in MCI progression, although the HR remained above 1. The identified critical blood pressure management threshold for MCI was 135/80 mmHg. CONCLUSION: In this study, we discovered that risk factors affecting the progression of MCI in elderly individuals comprise gender (female), preferring to use animal fat, lack of exercise in the past, increased age, increased SBP, and increased DBP. Additionally, a non-linear relationship between blood pressure levels and MCI progression was confirmed, with the critical blood pressure management threshold for MCI onset falling within the prehypertensive range.

Synergistic Effects of Oligochitosan and Pyraclostrobin in Controlling Leaf Spot Disease in Pseudostellaria heterophylla.

Pseudostellaria heterophylla (or Taizishen in Chinese), a medicinal, edible, and ornamental Chinese herb, is seriously affected by leaf spot disease (LSD). Oligochitosan is a natural agricultural antibiotic that is produced via the degradation of chitosan, which is deacetylated from chitin; pyraclostrobin is a broad-spectrum and efficient strobilurin fungicide. In this work, the ability of pyraclostrobin, oligochitosan, and their formula to manage P. heterophylla leaf spot disease and their role in its resistance, leaf photosynthesis, agronomic plant traits, root growth, and root quality were studied. The results show that the joint application of oligochitosan and low-dosage pyraclostrobin could control LSD more efficiently, with control effects of 85.75-87.49% compared to high-dosage pyraclostrobin or oligochitosan alone. Concurrently, the application of this formula could more effectively improve the resistance, leaf photosynthesis, agronomic plant traits, root yield, and medicinal quality of P. heterophylla, as well as reduce the application of pyraclostrobin. This finding suggests that 30% pyraclostrobin suspension concentrate (SC) 1500-time + 5% oligosaccharin aqueous solutions (AS) 500-time diluent can be recommended for use as a feasible formula to manage LSD and reduce the application of chemical pesticides.

Indigoferajintongpenensis (Fabaceae, Papilionoideae, Indigofereae), a new species from Yunnan, southwest China.

Indigoferajintongpenensis, a new species of the subfamily Papilionoideae of Fabaceae, is described and illustrated from Yunnan, southwest China. The new species is characterised by having a prostrate habit, flexible stems and branches, as well as spreading, sub-basifixed, asymmetrically 2-branched trichomes covering the entire plant, discoid calyx, and racemose inflorescences 6-8-flowered, short, 1-2 (-3.5) cm in length, apparently shorter than the leaf. A distribution map and comparison of morphological diagnostic characters with its morphologically similar species are provided. Additionally, a preliminary conservation assessment of I.jintongpenensis is proposed following IUCN criteria.

Caffeine regulates both osteoclast and osteoblast differentiation via the AKT, NF-κB, and MAPK pathways.

Background: Although caffeine generally offers benefits to human health, its impact on bone metabolism remains unclear. Aim and Methods: This study aimed to systematically evaluate the long-term effects of caffeine administration on osteoclasts, osteoblasts, and ovariectomy-induced postmenopausal osteoporosis (OP). Results: Our in vitro findings revealed that 3.125 and 12.5 µg/mL caffeine inhibited RANKL-mediated osteoclastogenesis in RAW 264.7 cells through the MAPK and NF-κB pathways, accompanied by the inactivation of nuclear translocation of nuclear factor NFATc1. Similarly, 3.125 and 12.5 µg/mL of caffeine modulated MC3T3-E1 osteogenesis via the AKT, MAPK, and NF-κB pathways. However, 50 µg/mL of caffeine promoted the phosphorylation of IκBα, P65, JNK, P38, and AKT, followed by the activation of NFATc1 and the inactivation of Runx2 and Osterix, ultimately disrupting the balance between osteoblastogenesis and osteoclastogenesis. In vivo studies showed that gavage with 55.44 mg/kg caffeine inhibited osteoclastogenesis, promoted osteogenesis, and ameliorated bone loss in ovariectomized mice. Conclusion: Conversely, long-term intake of high-dose caffeine (110.88 mg/kg) disrupted osteogenesis activity and promoted osteoclastogenesis, thereby disturbing bone homeostasis. Collectively, these findings suggest that a moderate caffeine intake (approximately 400 mg in humans) can regulate bone homeostasis by influencing both osteoclasts and osteoblasts. However, long-term high-dose caffeine consumption (approximately 800 mg in humans) could have detrimental effects on the skeletal system.

Clivia biosensor: Soil moisture identification based on electrophysiology signals with deep learning.

Research has shown that plants have the ability to detect environmental changes and generate electrical signals in response. These electrical signals can regulate the physiological state of plants and produce corresponding feedback. This suggests that plants have the potential to be used as biosensors for monitoring environmental information. However, there are current challenges in linking environmental information with plant electrical signals, especially in collecting and classifying the corresponding electrical signals under soil moisture gradients. This study documented the electrical signals of clivia under different soil moisture gradients and created a dataset for classifying electrical signals. Subsequently, we proposed a lightweight convolutional neural network (CNN) model (PlantNet) for classifying the electrical signal dataset. Compared to traditional CNN models, our model achieved optimal classification performance with the lowest computational resource consumption. The model achieved an accuracy of 99.26%, precision of 99.31%, recall of 92.26%, F1-score of 99.21%, with 0.17M parameters, a size of 7.17MB, and 14.66M FLOPs. Therefore, this research provides scientific evidence for the future development of plants as biosensors for detecting soil moisture, and offers insight into developing plants as biosensors for detecting signals such as ozone, PM2.5, Volatile Organic Compounds(VOCs), and more. These studies are expected to drive the development of environmental monitoring technology and provide new pathways for better understanding the interaction between plants and the environment.

The Effect of Contrast-enhanced Ultrasound via Vessels and Surgical Drains Guidance Percutaneous Catheter Drainage in the Treatment of Pyogenic Liver Abscess.

BACKGROUND: Pyogenic liver abscess (PLA) is a purulent disease caused by microbial contamination of liver parenchyma and includes amoebic liver abscess, fungal liver abscess, and the most common bacterial liver abscess. OBJECTIVE: Explore the efficacy of contrast-enhanced ultrasound (CEUS) via vessels and surgical drain guidance percutaneous catheter drainage (PCD) in the treatment of pyogenic liver abscesses (PLA). MATERIALS AND METHODS: A total of 86 PLA patients who underwent PCD treatment in our hospital from May 2018 to February 2023 were retrospectively selected. Of them, 41 patients were treated under intravenous CEUS guidance (Control group), and 45 patients were treated under CEUS via vessels and surgical drain guidance (study group). Perioperative characteristics, treatment effectiveness, and incidence of complications were analyzed and compared between groups. RESULTS AND DISCUSSION: The duration of surgery, drainage, white blood cell recovery, body temperature recovery, and hospitalization in the study group were longer than those in the control group (P<0.05). The total effective rate of the study group (95.56%) was higher than that of the control group (80.49%) (P<0.05). The incidence of complications in the study group (4.44%) was lower than that in the control group (19.51%) (P<0.05). CONCLUSION: Compared with intravenous CEUS alone, treatment under CEUS via vessels and surgical drains-guided PCD was associated with shorter surgical time, faster recovery, better treatment effect, lower risk of complications, and ensured treatment safety in PLA patients.

Adaptive evolution of antioxidase-related genes in hypoxia-tolerant mammals.

To cope with the damage from oxidative stress caused by hypoxia, mammals have evolved a series of physiological and biochemical traits, including antioxidant ability. Although numerous research studies about the mechanisms of hypoxia evolution have been reported, the molecular mechanisms of antioxidase-related genes in mammals living in different environments are yet to be completely understood. In this study, we constructed a dataset comprising 7 antioxidase-related genes (CAT, SOD1, SOD2, SOD3, GPX1, GPX2, and GPX3) from 43 mammalian species to implement evolutionary analysis. The results showed that six genes (CAT, SOD1, SOD2, SOD3, GPX1, and GPX3) have undergone divergent evolution based on the free-ratio (M1) model. Furthermore, multi-ratio model analyses uncovered the divergent evolution between hypoxic and non-hypoxic lineages, as well as various hypoxic lineages. In addition, the branch-site model identified 9 positively selected branches in 6 genes (CAT, SOD1, SOD2, SOD3, GPX2, and GPX3) that contained 35 positively selected sites, among which 31 positively selected sites were identified in hypoxia-tolerant branches, accounting for 89% of the total number of positively selected sites. Interestingly, 65 parallel/convergent sites were identified in the 7 genes. In summary, antioxidase-related genes are subjected to different selective pressures among hypoxia-tolerant species living in different habitats. This study provides a valuable insight into the molecular evolution of antioxidase-related genes in hypoxia evolution in mammals.

Distribution, migration patterns, and food chain human health risks of endocrine-disrupting chemicals in water, sediments, and fish in the Xiangjiang River.

Exposure to endocrine-disrupting chemicals (EDCs) in freshwater systems has garnered increasing attention. A comprehensive analysis of the migration patterns, bioaccumulation, and consumer health risk of EDCs along the Xiangjiang River due to fish consumption from the river ecosystem was provided. Twenty natural and synthetic target EDCs were detected and analyzed from the water, sediments, and fish samples collected along the Xiangjiang River. There were significant correlations between the EDC concentrations in fish and the sediments. This revealed that EDCs in sediments play a dominant role in the uptake of EDCs by fish. The bioaccumulation factor and biota-sediment accumulation factor were calculated, with the highest values observed for nonylphenol. Pearson's correlation analysis showed that bisphenol A is the most reliable biological indicator of EDC contamination in fish. Furthermore, based on the threshold of toxicological concerns and the health risk with dietary intake, crucian carp and catfish from the Xiangjiang River pose a certain risk for children and pregnant women compared to grass carp. The Monte Carlo simulation results indicated a certain risk of cumulative ∑EDC exposure for local residents due to fish consumption.

Integrated proteogenomic and metabolomic characterization of papillary thyroid cancer with different recurrence risks.

Although papillary thyroid cancer (PTC) has a good prognosis, its recurrence rate is high and remains a core concern in the clinic. Molecular factors contributing to different recurrence risks (RRs) remain poorly defined. Here, we perform an integrative proteogenomic and metabolomic characterization of 102 Chinese PTC patients with different RRs. Genomic profiling reveals that mutations in MUC16 and TERT promoter as well as multiple gene fusions like NCOA4-RET are enriched by the high RR. Integrative multi-omics analyses further describe the multi-dimensional characteristics of PTC, especially in metabolism pathways, and delineate dominated molecular patterns of different RRs. Moreover, the PTC patients are clustered into four subtypes (CS1: low RR and BRAF-like; CS2: high RR and metabolism type, worst prognosis; CS3: high RR and immune type, better prognosis; CS4: high RR and BRAF-like) based on the omics data. Notably, the subtypes display significant differences considering BRAF and TERT promoter mutations, metabolism and immune pathway profiles, epithelial cell compositions, and various clinical factors (especially RRs and prognosis) as well as druggable targets. This study can provide insights into the complex molecular characteristics of PTC recurrences and help promote early diagnosis and precision treatment of recurrent PTC.