Three birds with one stone: Sewage sludge deep-drying in 1 hour using secondary aluminum ash to fabricate bricks.

Due to the high moisture, strong hydrophilicity, and hard compressibility of sewage sludge (SS), it is difficult to realize the high-efficiency drying. Herein, a novel SS drying technology was developed to quickly and deeply reduce the moisture of SS from 75.6% to 38.5% in 1 h. During the process, secondary aluminum ash (SAA), a solid waste, was added to SS and acted as skeletons to form plenty of channels. Subsequently, NaOH was added and reacted with SAA to produce a lot of heat, resulting in a rapid temperature rise of the system from 20 to 105°C in 60 s. The heat could effectively remove water from these channels, which could be proved by the T1-T2 maps of in-site Low-Field 1H nuclear magnetic resonance. In addition, the extracellular polymeric substances were decomposed by SAA/NaOH successfully, and thus the SS became hydrophobic, favoring the drying. Finally, the dried SS could be used to fabricate unburned bricks. Thus, this work provides a promising method to realize the rapid SS deep drying and high-efficiency utilization of SAA and dried SS.

Mechanism of low-voltage electrostatic field on flavor retention in refrigerated sturgeon caviar: Insights from phospholipids.

This study investigated the effect of low-voltage electrostatic field on the flavor quality changes and generation pathways of refrigerated sturgeon caviar. Research has found that after storage for 3-6 weeks, the physicochemical properties of caviar in the LVEF treatment group are better than those in the control group. The results of two-dimensional gas chromatography-time-of-flight mass spectrometry showed that the contents of hexanal, nonanal, (E,Z)-2,6-nonadienal, (E)-2-octenal and 1-octene-3-one related to the characteristic flavor of caviar (sweet, fruity and green) increased significantly. The lipidomics results indicated that the effects of LVEF on caviar mainly involve glycerophospholipid metabolism, linoleic acid metabolism, and α-Linolenic acid metabolism. Methanophosphatidylcholine (15:0/18:1), phosphatidylcholine (18:0/20:5), and phosphatidylcholine (18,1e/22:6) were significantly correlated with odor formation. Therefore, low-voltage electrostatic field treatment preserved the quality and enhanced the flavor of sturgeon caviar. This study provided a new theoretical basis for the preservation of sturgeon caviar.

Plant-based diet indices and their interaction with ambient air pollution on the ovarian cancer survival: A prospective cohort study.

BACKGROUND: Ambient air pollution might serve as a prognostic factor for ovarian cancer (OC) survival, yet the relationships between plant-based diet indices (PDIs) and OC survival remain unclear. We aimed to investigate the associations of comprehensive air pollution and PDIs with OC survival and explored the effects of air pollution-diet interactions. METHODS: The present study encompassed 658 patients diagnosed with OC. The overall plant-based diet index (PDI), the healthful PDI (hPDI), and the unhealthful PDI (uPDI) were evaluated by a self-reported validated food frequency questionnaire. In addition, an air pollution score (APS) was formulated by summing the concentrations of particulate matter with a diameter of 2.5 microns or less, ozone, and nitrogen dioxide. Cox proportional hazard models were applied to calculate hazard ratios (HRs) and 95 % confidence intervals (CIs). The potential interactions of APS with PDIs in relation to overall survival (OS) were assessed on both multiplicative and additive scales. RESULTS: Throughout a median follow-up of 37.60 (interquartile: 24.77-50.70) months, 123 deaths were confirmed. Comparing to the lowest tertiles, highest uPDI was associated with lower OS of OC (HR = 2.06, 95 % CI = 1.30, 3.28; P-trend < 0.01), whereas no significant associations were found between either overall PDI or hPDI and OC survival. Higher APS (HR for per interquartile range = 1.27, 95 % CI = 1.01, 1.60) was significantly associated with worse OC survival, and the association was exacerbated by adherence to uPDI. Notably, an additive interaction was identified between combined air pollution and uPDI (P < 0.005 for high APS and high uPDI). We also found that adherence to overall PDI aggravated associations of air pollution with OC survival (P-interaction = 0.006). CONCLUSIONS: Joint exposure to various ambient air pollutants was significantly associated with lower survival among patients with OC, particularly for those who predominantly consumed unhealthy plant-based foods.

Succession characteristics of phytoplankton functional groups and ecological assessment in a cold spring-type urban lake, China.

Phytoplankton functional groups have been increasingly utilized in elucidating and predicting the response of phytoplankton species to environmental conditions and seasonal succession in various aquatic systems including lakes, rivers and reservoirs. However, it is still unclear whether the trait-based functional classification can be applied to spring-type lakes. To understand the temporal and spatial characteristics of phytoplankton functional groups and their responses to environmental factors in spring-type urban lake in northern China, an investigation was conducted in Daming Lake from May 2020 to September 2021. The findings revealed the identification of 98 phytoplankton taxa belonging to 6 phyla, predominantly being Chlorophyta (39.8%), Bacillariophyta (35.7%) and Cyanophyta (15.3%). The dominant species were Microcystis sp., Merismopedia minima, Synedra acus and Scenedesmus quadricauda. These phytoplankton taxa were categorized into 21 functional groups, with 6 dominant functional groups (abbreviated as D, MP, P, J, Lo, and W1). Among them, the functional group D, primarily constituted by S. acus, exhibited absolute predominance. The seasonal succession sequence of the dominant functional groups was as follows: D/P/J/MP/ Lo →→ D/P/W1/MP/Lo/J → D/P/J → D/MP → D/P/MP. Throughout the investigation period, the trophic level index (TLI) ranged from 39.10 to 71.13, and the Q index was from 1.91 to 2.91, both indicating a medium health state for Daming Lake, which was consistent with the evaluation results of the diversity index. The results of redundancy analysis revealed that the main driving factors of phytoplankton FG biomass and composition were water temperature (WT), total nitrogen (TN), transparency (SD), TN:TP (N:P), redox potential (ORP), chemical oxygen demand (CODMn) and pH. The dominance of the functional group D positively correlated with water temperature, TN, CODMn, pH and N:P but negatively correlated with SD. It was observed that functional groups and the Q index can objectively indicate the seasonal succession of phytoplankton and the water quality status of Daming Lake. Our discoveries have significant implications for the comprehension of the effects of urbanization on phytoplankton dynamics and for enhancing lake management practices to foster sustainable urban development.

Role of Csdc2 in Regulating Secondary Hair Follicle Growth in Cashmere Goats.

Cashmere goats possess two types of hair follicles, with the secondary hair follicles producing valuable cashmere fiber used for textiles. The growth of cashmere exhibits a seasonal pattern arising from photoperiod change. Transcription factors play crucial roles during this process. The transcription factor, cold-shock domain, containing C2 (Csdc2) plays a crucial role in modulating cell proliferation and differentiation. Our preceding research indicated that the expression of Csdc2 changes periodically during anagen to telogen. However, the mechanisms of Csdc2 in regulating SHF growth remain unclear. Here, we found that the knockdown of Csdc2 inhibits the proliferation of dermal papilla cells. ChIP-Seq analysis showed that Csdc2 had a unique DNA binding motif in SHFs. Through conjoint analysis of ChIP-Seq and RNA-Seq, we revealed a total of 25 candidate target genes of Csdc2. Notably, we discovered a putative Csdc2 binding site within roundabout guidance receptor 2 (Robo2) on chromosome 1 of the goat genome. Furthermore, qRT-PCR and dual-luciferase reporter assay confirmed Csdc2's positive regulatory influence on Robo2. These findings expand the research field of hair follicle transcriptional regulatory networks, offering insights into molecular breeding strategies to enhance cashmere production in goats.

Mitochondrial 'Birth-Death' coordinator: An intelligent hydrogen nanogenerator to enhance intervertebral disc regeneration.

Currently, mitochondrial dysfunction caused by oxidative stress is a growing concern in degenerative diseases, notably intervertebral disc degeneration (IVDD). Dysregulation of the balance of mitochondrial quality control (MQC) has been considered the key contributor, while it's still challenging to effectively harmonize different MQC components in a simple and biologically safe way. Hydrogen gas (H2) is a promising mitochondrial therapeutic molecule due to its bio-reductivity and diffusibility across cellular membranes, yet its relationship with MQC regulation remains unknown. Herein, we propose a mitochondrial 'Birth-Death' coordinator achieved by an intelligent hydrogen nanogenerator (Fe@HP-OD), which can sustainably release H2 in response to the unique microenvironment in degenerated IVDs. Both in vitro and in vivo results prove alleviation of cellular oxidative stress and restoration of nucleus pulposus cells function, thereby facilitating successful IVD regeneration. Significantly, this study for the first time proposes the mitochondrial 'Birth-Death' coordination mechanism: 1) attenuation of overactivated mitochondrial 'Death' process (UPRmt and unselective mitophagy); and 2) activation of Adenosine 5'-monophosphate-activated protein kinase (AMPK) signaling pathway for mitochondrial 'Birth-Death' balance (mitochondrial biogenesis and controlled mitophagy). These pioneering findings can fill in the gaps in molecular mechanisms for H2 regulation on MQC homeostasis, and pave the way for future strategies towards restoring equilibrium of MQC system against degenerative diseases.

Structural prior-driven feature extraction with gradient-momentum combined optimization for convolutional neural network image classification.

Recent image classification efforts have achieved certain success by incorporating prior information such as labels and logical rules to learn discriminative features. However, these methods overlook the variability of features, resulting in feature inconsistency and fluctuations in model parameter updates, which further contribute to decreased image classification accuracy and model instability. To address this issue, this paper proposes a novel method combining structural prior-driven feature extraction with gradient-momentum (SPGM), from the perspectives of consistent feature learning and precise parameter updates, to enhance the accuracy and stability of image classification. Specifically, SPGM leverages a structural prior-driven feature extraction (SPFE) approach to calculate gradients of multi-level features and original images to construct structural information, which is then transformed into prior knowledge to drive the network to learn features consistent with the original images. Additionally, an optimization strategy integrating gradients and momentum (GMO) is introduced, dynamically adjusting the direction and step size of parameter updates based on the angle and norm of the sum of gradients and momentum, enabling precise model parameter updates. Extensive experiments on CIFAR10 and CIFAR100 datasets demonstrate that the SPGM method significantly reduces the top-1 error rate in image classification, enhances the classification performance, and outperforms state-of-the-art methods.

Accelerating Clinical Text Annotation in Underrepresented Languages: A Case Study on Text De-Identification.

Clinical notes contain valuable information for research and monitoring quality of care. Named Entity Recognition (NER) is the process for identifying relevant pieces of information such as diagnoses, treatments, side effects, etc., and bring them to a more structured form. Although recent advancements in deep learning have facilitated automated recognition, particularly in English, NER can still be challenging due to limited specialized training data. This exacerbated in hospital settings where annotations are costly to obtain without appropriate incentives and often dependent on local specificities. In this work, we study whether this annotation process can be effectively accelerated by combining two practical strategies. First, we convert usually passive annotation tasks into a proactive contest to motivate human annotators in performing a task often considered tedious and time-consuming. Second, we provide pre-annotations for the participants to evaluate how recall and precision of the pre-annotations can boost or deteriorate annotation performance. We applied both strategies to a text de-identification task on French clinical notes and discharge summaries at a large Swiss university hospital. Our results show that proactive contest and average quality pre-annotations can significantly speed up annotation time and increase annotation quality, enabling us to develop a text de-identification model for French clinical notes with high performance (F1 score 0.94).

Multi-omics combined approach to analyze the mechanism of flavor evolution in sturgeon caviar (Acipenser gueldenstaedtii) during refrigeration storage.

Multi-omics techniques were combined with microstructure, molecular sensory science and non-volatile matrices for the first time to investigate variations in organic macromolecules and flavor in caviar during preservation. After 4-6 weeks of storage, the peroxide value was 35.38 mg/g and the accumulation of thiobarbiturates was significant with caviar membranes exhibiting a decrease in elasticity and an increase in viscosity. Sixteen key volatile compounds were detected by GC-MS, while the volatile compounds that contributed to the differences in caviar flavor at different storage times were mainly tetradecane, (E)-2-hexenal, and heptanal. The pathways associated with flavor release during storage were mainly abundant in the linolenic acid metabolism, alanine metabolism, and glycerophospholipid metabolism pathways. The correlation of 11 differential proteins and 24 differential lipids with odorants was further explored, such as arginine, proline, alanine, PE (20:4/22:6), PE (16:1/18:2), and PE (20:5/18:2). Overall, Aspartate, glutamate, oleic acid, linoleic acid, and phospholipids enriched in C22:6 and C18:2 chains are potential metabolic markers. This study provides a basis from a multi-omics perspective for the investigation of the relationship between quality deterioration and precursor metabolism in caviar storage process.

Role of sex as a biological variable in neonatal alveolar macrophages.

The lung macrophages play a crucial role in health and disease. Sexual dimorphism significantly impacts the phenotype and function of tissue-resident macrophages. The primary mechanisms responsible for sexually dimorphic outcomes in bronchopulmonary dysplasia (BPD) remain unidentified. We tested the hypothesis that biological sex plays a crucial role in the transcriptional state of alveolar macrophages, using neonatal murine hyperoxia-induced lung injury as a relevant model for human BPD. The effects of neonatal hyperoxia exposure (95 % FiO2, PND1-5: saccular stage) on the lung myeloid cells acutely after injury and during normoxic recovery were measured. Alveolar macrophages (AM) from room air- and hyperoxia exposed from male and female neonatal murine lungs were subjected to bulk-RNA Sequencing. AMs are significantly depleted in the hyperoxia-exposed lung acutely after injury, with subsequent recovery in both sexes. The transcriptome of the alveolar macrophages is impacted by neonatal hyperoxia exposure and by sex as a biological variable. Pathways related to DNA damage and interferon-signaling were positively enriched in female AMs. Metabolic pathways related to glucose and carbohydrate metabolism were positively enriched in the male AMs, while oxidative phosphorylation was negatively enriched. These pathways were shared with monocytes and airway macrophages from intubated male and female human premature neonates.

Optical redox imaging of ANT1-deficient muscles.

Adenine nucleotide translocator (ANT) is a mitochondrial protein involved in the exchange of ADP and ATP across the mitochondrial inner membrane. It plays a crucial role in cellular energy metabolism by facilitating the transport of ATP synthesized within the mitochondria to the cytoplasm. The isoform ANT1 predominately expresses in cardiac and skeletal muscles. Mutations or dysregulation in ANT1 have been implicated in various mitochondrial disorders and neuromuscular diseases. We aimed to examine whether ANT1 deletion may affect mitochondrial redox state in our established ANT1-deficient mice. Hearts and quadriceps resected from age-matched wild type (WT) and ANT1-deficient mice were snap-frozen in liquid nitrogen. The Chance redox scanner was utilized to perform 3D optical redox imaging. Each sample underwent scanning across 3-5 sections. Global averaging analysis showed no significant differences in the redox indices (NADH, flavin adenine dinucleotide containing-flavoproteins Fp, and the redox ratio Fp/(NADH+Fp) between WT and ANT1-deficient groups. However, quadriceps had higher Fp than hearts in both groups (p = 0.0004 and 0.01, respectively). Furthermore, the quadriceps were also more oxidized (a higher redox ratio) than hearts in WT group (p = 0.004). NADH levels were similar in all cases. Our data suggest that under non-stressful physical condition, the ANT1-deficient muscle cells were in the same mitochondrial state as WT ones and that the significant difference in the mitochondrial redox state between quadriceps and hearts found in WT might be diminished in ANT1-deficient ones. Redox imaging of muscles under physical stress can be conducted in future.

Association between pre- and post-diagnosis healthy eating index 2020 and ovarian cancer survival: evidence from a prospective cohort study.

Background: Previous studies on the association between diet quality and ovarian cancer (OC) survival are limited and inconsistent. We evaluated the relationship between pre- and post-diagnosis diet quality based on the Healthy Eating Index-2020 (HEI-2020), as well as their changes and OC survival. Methods: This prospective cohort study involved 1082 patients with OC aged 18-79 years, enrolled between 2015 and 2022. Detailed dietary intake before and after diagnosis was recorded using a validated food frequency questionnaire. Deaths were ascertained until February 16th, 2023 via medical records and active follow-up. Cox proportional hazards regression models were used to estimate hazard ratios (HRs) and 95% confidence intervals (CI). Results: We included 549 OC cases with a median follow-up of 44.9 months, representing 206 total deaths. Higher HEI scores were associated with better OS (pre-diagnosis: HRT3 vs. T1 0.66, 95%CI: 0.46-0.93, HR1-SD 0.84, 95%CI: 0.73-0.96; post-diagnosis: HRT3 vs. T1 0.68, 95%CI: 0.49-0.96, HR1-SD 0.80, 95%CI: 0.69-0.92). Compared to the stable group, the group with decreased HEI scores (>3%) from pre- to post-diagnosis had worse OS (HR 1.93, 95%CI: 1.26-2.97). Conclusion: High pre- and post-diagnosis diet quality was associated with improved OC survival, whereas deterioration in diet quality after diagnosis was associated with decreased OC survival.

The complete chloroplast genome of Arachis lutescens Krapov. & Rigoni (Fabaceae).

Arachis lutescens Krapov. & Rigoni 1958 is an important species due to their potentially extensive applications for cultivated peanut breeding. The whole chloroplast genome of A. lutescens was successfully assembled and annotated for the first time. The complete chloroplast genome of A. lutescens is a typically circular structure of 156,398 bp with a GC content of 36.3%. It comprises a large single-copy (LSC) region of 85,950 bp, a small single-copy (SSC) region of 18,800 bp, and two inverted repeat regions (IRs) of 25,824 bp, each. The plastome of A. lutescens contains a total of 125 genes, including 81 protein-coding genes, 36 tRNAs, and eight rRNAs. The phylogenetic analysis strongly supports the close relationship between A. lutescens and cultivated peanut clades. This study contributes to our understanding of the molecular characteristics and evolutionary relationships of this plant species.

Broadband generation of a multi-polarization multi-beam using a receiving-transmitting metasurface.

Generating multiple beams in distinct polarization states is promising in multi-mode wireless communication but still remains challenging in metasurface design. Here, we theoretically and experimentally demonstrate a concept of broadband receiving-transmitting metasurface and its application to the generation of multi-polarization multi-beam. By employing U-slot patch, an efficient receiving-transmitting element with full phase coverage is designed within a wide bandwidth. Based on this architecture, a methodology is proposed to generate dual spin-decoupled beams and then developed into the strategy of generating multiple beams at different linear polarizations. To verify our strategy, two lens antennas, respectively radiating dual-spin dual-beam and quad-polarization quad-beam, are devised. With multi-polarization multi-beam radiated, the two lens antennas are both with whole aperture efficiency above 40% within the bandwidth of 10.6-12.3 GHz (14.8%), firmly validating our strategy and design.

Oncoprotein LAMTOR5-mediated CHOP silence via DNA hypermethylation and miR-182/miR-769 in promotion of liver cancer growth.

C/EBP homologous protein (CHOP) triggers the death of multiple cancers via endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress. However, the function and regulatory mechanism of CHOP in liver cancer remain elusive. We have reported that late endosomal/lysosomal adapter, mitogen-activated protein kinase and mTOR activator 5 (LAMTOR5) suppresses apoptosis in various cancers. Here, we show that the transcriptional and posttranscriptional inactivation of CHOP mediated by LAMTOR5 accelerates liver cancer growth. Clinical bioinformatic analysis revealed that the expression of CHOP was low in liver cancer tissues and that its increased expression predicted a good prognosis. Elevated CHOP contributed to destruction of LAMTOR5-induced apoptotic suppression and proliferation. Mechanistically, LAMTOR5-recruited DNA methyltransferase 1 (DNMT1) to the CpG3 region (-559/-429) of the CHOP promoter and potentiated its hypermethylation to block its interaction with general transcription factor IIi (TFII-I), resulting in its inactivation. Moreover, LAMTOR5-enhanced miR-182/miR-769 reduced CHOP expression by targeting its 3'UTR. Notably, lenvatinib, a first-line targeted therapy for liver cancer, could target the LAMTOR5/CHOP axis to prevent liver cancer progression. Accordingly, LAMTOR5-mediated silencing of CHOP via the regulation of ER stress-related apoptosis promotes liver cancer growth, providing a theoretical basis for the use of lenvatinib for the treatment of liver cancer.

MOF-Derived Oxygen-Deficient Titania-Mediated Photodynamic/Photothermal-Enhanced Immunotherapy for Tumor Treatment.

Immunotherapy has emerged as a revolutionizing therapeutic modality for cancer. However, its efficacy has been largely limited by a weak immune response and an immunosuppressive tumor microenvironment. Herein, we report a metal-organic framework (MOF)-derived titanium oxide nanoparticle (MCTx NP) as an immune booster that can greatly improve the immunotherapy efficacy by inducing "immunogenic cell death" (ICD) and remodeling the tumor microenvironment. The NPs, inheriting the characteristic structure of MIL-125 and enriched with oxygen vacancies (OVs), demonstrate both high photothermal conversion efficiency and a reactive oxygen species (ROS) generation yield upon near-infrared (NIR) activation. Moreover, the NPs can release O2 and reduce glutathione (GSH) in the tumor environment, showcasing their potential to reverse the immunosuppressive microenvironment. In vitro/vivo results demonstrate that MCTx NPs directly kill tumor cells and effectively eliminate primary tumors by exerting dual photodynamic/photothermal therapy under a single NIR irritation. At the same time, MCTx NPs augment the PD-L1 blockade efficacy by potently inducing ICDs and reversing the immunosuppressive tumor microenvironment, including promoting dendritic cell (DC) maturation, decreasing regulatory T cells (Tregs)' infiltration, and increasing cytotoxic T lymphocytes (CTLs) and helper T cells (Ths), resulting in effective distant tumor suppression. This work highlights MCTx NP-mediated photodynamic- and photothermal-enhanced immunotherapy as an effective strategy for tumor treatment.

Simultaneous removal of tetracycline hydrochloride and hexavalent chromium by heterogeneous Fenton in a photocatalytic fuel cell system.

In this work, a novel double-chamber system (PFC-Fenton), combined photocatalytic fuel cell (PFC) with Fenton, was constructed for tetracycline hydrochloride (TCH) and hexavalent chromium (Cr(VI)) removal and electricity production. Therein, Zn5(OH)6(CO3)2/Fe2O3/BiVO4/fluorine-doped SnO2 (ZIO/BiVO4/FTO) and carboxylated carbon nanotubes/polypyrrole/graphite felt (CCNTs/Ppy/GF) were served as photoanode and cathode, respectively. Under light irradiation, the removal efficiencies of TCH and Cr(VI) with the addition of H2O2 (2 mL) could reach 93.1% and 80.4%, respectively. Moreover, the first-order kinetic constants (7.37 × 10-3 min-1 of TCH and 3.94 × 10-3 min-1 of Cr(VI)) were 5.26 and 5.57 times as much as the absence of H2O2. Simultaneously, the maximum power density could be obtained 0.022 mW/cm2 at a current density of 0.353 mA/cm2. Therein, the main contribution of TCH degradation was ·OH and holes in anode chamber. The synergistic effect of photoelectrons, generated ·O2-, and H2O2 played a crucial role in the reduction of Cr(VI) in cathode chamber. The high-performance liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry indicated that TCH could be partially mineralized into CO2 and H2O. X-ray photoelectron spectroscope and X-ray absorption near-edge structure spectra showed that Cr(VI) could be reduced to Cr(III). After 5 times of cycling, the removal efficiencies of TCH and Cr(VI) were still greater than 70%, indicating the remarkable stability of the PFC-Fenton system. Overall, this system could remove TCH/Cr(VI) and generate power simultaneously without iron sludge formation, demonstrating a promising method to further develop PFC-Fenton technology.

A Processible and Ultrahigh-temperature Organic Photothermal Material through Spontaneous and Quantitative [2+2] Cycloaddition-Cycloreversion.

Energy conversion, particularly light to heat conversion, has garnered significant attention owing to its prospect in renewable energy exploitation and utilization. Most previous efforts have focused on developing organic photothermal materials for low-temperature applications, whereas the importance of simplifying the preparation methods of photothermal materials and enhancing their maximum photothermal temperature have been less taken. Herein, we prepare an organic near-infrared (NIR) photothermal material namely ATT by a spontaneous [2+2] cycloaddition-cycloreversion reaction. In addition to the solution-based method, ATT could also be readily preapred by ball milling in a high yield of 90 % in just 15 min. ATT powder exhibits a broad absorption extending beyond 2000 nm, excellent processability, and thermal stability. Remarkably, ATT powder can reach an unprecedently temperature as high as 450 °C while maintaining excellent photostability upon photoirradiation. Leveraging its extraordinary photothermal and processable properties, ATT was used in the high-temperature applications, such as photo-ignition, photo-controlled metal processing and high-temperature shape memory, all of which offer spatiotemporal control capabilities. This work provides a new approach to prepare organic photothermal materials with high temperatures, and pave the way for their applications in extreme environments.

Micropatterned Polymer Nanoarrays with Distinct Superwettability for a Highly Efficient Sweat Collection and Sensing Patch.

Wearable sweat sensor offers a promising means for noninvasive real-time health monitoring, but the efficient collection and accurate analysis of sweat remains challenging. One of the obstacles is to precisely modulate the surface wettability of the microfluidics to achieve efficient sweat collection. Here a facile initiated chemical vapor deposition (iCVD) method is presented to grow and pattern polymer nanocone arrays with distinct superwettability on polydimethylsiloxane microfluidics, which facilitate highly efficient sweat transportation and collection. The nanoarray is synthesized by manipulating monomer supersaturation during iCVD to induce controlled nucleation and preferential vertical growth of fluorinated polymer. Subsequent selective vapor deposition of a conformal hydrogel nanolayer results in superhydrophilic nanoarray floor and walls within the microchannel that provide a large capillary force and a superhydrophobic ceiling that drastically reduces flow friction, enabling rapid sweat transport along varied flow directions. A carbon/hydrogel/enzyme nanocomposite electrode is then fabricated by sequential deposition of highly porous carbon nanoparticles and hydrogel nanocoating to achieve sensitive and stable sweat detection. Further encapsulation of the assembled sweatsensing patch with superhydrophobic nanoarray imparts self-cleaning and water-proof capability. Finally, the sweat sensing patch demonstrates selective and sensitive glucose and lactate detection during the on-body test.

Pyridostigmine attenuates hypertension by inhibiting activation of the renin-angiotensin system in the hypothalamic paraventricular nucleus.

Activation of the renin-angiotensin system (RAS) triggers oxidative stress and an inflammatory response in the hypothalamic paraventricular nucleus (PVN), in turn increasing the sympathetic hyperactivity that is a major cause of hypertension. Pyridostigmine has cardioprotective effects by suppressing the RAS of myocardial tissue. However, whether pyridostigmine attenuates hypertension by inhibiting the RAS of the PVN remains unclear. We thus investigated the effect and mechanism of pyridostigmine on two-kidney one-clip (2K1C)-induced hypertension. 2K1C rats received pyridostigmine, or not, for 8 weeks. Cardiovascular function, hemodynamic parameters, and autonomic activity were measured. The PVN levels of pro-/anti-inflammatory cytokines, oxidative stress, and RAS signaling molecules were evaluated. Our results showed that hypertension was accompanied by cardiovascular dysfunction and an autonomic imbalance characterized by enhanced sympathetic but diminished vagal activity. The PVN levels of interleukin-6 (IL-6), tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α), reactive oxygen species (ROS), NOX-2, and malondialdehyde (MDA) increased; those of IL-10 and superoxide dismutase (SOD) decreased. Moreover, the RAS signaling pathway was activated, as evidenced by increased levels of the angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE), angiotensin II (Ang II), and the Ang II type 1 receptor (AT1R) and a decreased AT2R level. Pyridostigmine lowered blood pressure and improved cardiovascular function, associated with restoration of the autonomic balance. Meanwhile, pyridostigmine decreased PVN IL-6, TNF-α, ROS, NOX-2, and MDA levels and increased IL-10 and SOD levels. Additionally, pyridostigmine suppressed PVN ACE, Ang II, and AT1R levels and increased AT2R expression. Pyridostigmine attenuated hypertension by inhibiting PVN oxidative stress and inflammation induced by the RAS.