Inhibiting pyroptosis: novel immune evasion strategies for pathogens.

Pyroptosis is a type of programmed cell death mediated by the Gasdermin family. It is triggered in response to pathogen infection or other danger signals. The activation of Gasdermins leads to pyroptosis and the release of large amounts of inflammatory cytokines. Pyroptosis plays a crucial role in combating pathogen infections, as it helps to eliminate infected cells and activate the immune system. However, pathogens have already developed sophisticated strategies to evade or inhibit pyroptosis, allowing them to persist and facilitate infection. This review provides an overview of the discovery of pyroptosis and its importance in anti-infectious immunity. We also discuss several new strategies for inhibiting pyroptosis by pathogens. A thorough learning of the occurrence and regulation of pyroptosis may reveal the pathogenesis of related infectious diseases and contribute to developing effective anti-infective therapeutic strategies.

Preparation of a fluorinated metal-organic framework and its application for the dispersive solid-phase extraction of perfluorooctanoic acid.

A fluorinated metal-organic framework material (F-MOF) was successfully prepared using tetrafluoroterephthalic acid (H2tfbdc) as the ligand and Zn(II) as the central metal ion. The F-MOF exhibited excellent adsorption performance for perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA), with a maximum adsorption capacity of 419.8 mg g-1. A sensitive dispersive solid-phase extraction using the F-MOF as an adsorbent, coupled with GC-MS analysis, was developed for detecting trace PFOA with a limit of detection as low as 2.6 ng L-1. This method was applied to detect PFOA in environmental water samples, yielding satisfactory results.

Solidification of a Switchable Solvent-Based QuEChERS Method for Detection of 16 Pesticides in Some Fruits and Vegetables.

n-Octadecylamine was adopted as a cleanup agent to develop a novel solidification of a switchable solvent-based QuEChERS method. At higher temperatures (such as 55 °C), n-octadecylamine can melt into a liquid, allowing effective extraction of matrix interferences in acetonitrile solution (i.e., in dispersive liquid-liquid microextraction). At lower temperatures, n-octadecylamine carrying matrix interferences can rapidly solidify and easily separate from the acetonitrile solution. The results demonstrated that n-octadecylamine possessed a better ability to remove matrix interferences and reduce matrix effects than those of traditional solid-phase dispersive extraction cleanup agents of primary secondary amine and octadecyl bonded silica gel. By coupling it with gas chromatography-mass spectrometry, the proposed method was applied to the detection of 16 pesticides in cucumber. The recoveries were from 80.9 to 112.6% with relative standard deviations less than 12.9%. Satisfactory results were also obtained for the detection of 16 pesticides in pear, orange, apple, pepper, lettuce, and tomato.

A nanoporous carbon derived from bimetallic organic-framework for magnetic solid-phase extraction of bisphenol analogs.

Taking Zn-Fe bimetallic organic-framework as both template and precursor, and furfuryl alcohol (FA) as secondary carbon source, a high-surface-area magnetic nanoporous carbon (MNPC) material was successful prepared. The MNPC exhibits excellent adsorption performance for bisphenol analogs (BPs). The maximum adsorption capacity achieved 439.0 mg g-1 for bisphenol AF, 423.7 mg g-1 for bisphenol S, 330.4 mg g-1 for tetrabromobisphenol A and 252.5 mg g-1 for bisphenol A. A sensitive magnetic solid-phase extraction with MNPC as adsorbent coupled with HPLC-UV analytical method was developed for the detection of trace BPs. The limits of detection for BPs were as low as 0.03-0.07 ng mg-1 with the RSDs of less than 4.6%. This method was applied to detection of four BPs in environmental water samples and the satisfactory results were obtained.

High uptake carboxyl-functionalized porous ß-cyclodextrin polymer for selective extraction of lysozyme from egg white.

Lysozyme is widely used in medical, food and industrial fields due to its bacteriolytic effect and thus it is significant to design and develop a specific adsorbent with high adsorption capacity and selectivity for lysozyme. Inspired by the high uptake capacity of tetrafluoroterephthalonitrile-crosslinked porous ß-cyclodextrin polymers (P-CDPs) and the noncovalent interaction between lysozyme and carboxyl groups, the carboxyl-functionalized P-CDPs (P-CDP-COO-) were synthesized by base-catalysed hydrolysis of nitrile group in P-CDPs to carboxyl. Porous structure, large extent of carboxylic functional groups, cyclodextrin's preventing aggregation, and negatively charged make P-CDP-COO- possess an outstanding adsorption capability for lysozyme. The maximum saturated adsorption capacity reaches 1520 mg g-1, which is much better than the parent polymer and other reported materials. The as-prepared material was successfully utilized for the selective extraction of lysozyme from egg white.

A magnetic hyperbranched polyamide amine-based quick, easy, cheap, effective, rugged and safe method for the detection of organophosphorus pesticide residues.

Magnetic hyperbranched polyamide amine (MHPA) was successfully prepared and applied as a QuEChERS adsorbent to the gas chromatograph-mass spectrometer (GC-MS) detection of organophosphorus pesticides (OPPs) in orange juice. Abundant in amino types and the structure of hyperbranched organic chains make MHPA to possess the clean-up function integrating classic clean-up agent primary secondary amine (PSA) with C18 modified silica, and the magnetic property makes the operation easier and more time-saving. Compared the performance with classical clean-up agents of PSA and C18, better results were obtained with MHPA as adsorbent for the detection of 11 OPPs. Recoveries ranged from 75.2 to 116.2% with the relative standard deviation (RSD) of 4.1-18.9% and the limit of detection (LOD) of 0.74-8.16 ng/g. Results showed that using MHPA as adsorbent for QuEChERS sample preparation is an effective alternative with simplicity and rapidity.

Selective adsorption and separation of illegal cationic dyes from foodstuffs with anionic polyelectrolyte functionalised metal-organic frameworks.

A novel adsorbent, poly(sodium 4-styrenesulfonate) modified MIL-101(Cr)-NH2, was successfully prepared. Owing to its high surface area and degree of negative surface charge, it enables effective adsorption and separation of illegal cationic dyes, such as rhodamine B, pararosaniline, and auramine O, from foodstuffs prior to high performance liquid chromatography analysis. Under optimised conditions, good linearity was obtained over 1.0-80.0 or 1.0-120 ng mL-1 with a correlation coefficient (R2) > 0.999. Limits of detection and limits of quantification of the three dyes were 0.28-0.65 and 0.94-2.13 µg kg-1, respectively. The recoveries of the three dyes in shrimp powder, chili powder, tofu sheets, and tomato sauce were in the range of 86.8-119.3%, suggesting that the developed method is a promising tool for accurate quantification of the three dyes at trace levels in foodstuffs.