Multiple/Two-Way Shape Memory Poly(urethane-urea-amide) Elastomers.

Multiple and two-way reversible shape memory polymers (M/2W-SMPs) are highly promising for many fields due to large deformation, lightweight, strong recovery stress, and fast response rates. Herein, a semi-crystalline block poly(urethane-urea-amide) elastomers (PUUAs) are prepared by the copolymerization of isocyanate-terminated polyurethane (OPU) and amino-terminated oligomeric polyamide-1212 (OPA). PUUAs, composed of OPA as stationary phase and PTMEG as reversible phase, exhibit excellent rigidity, flexibility, and resilience, and cPUUA-C7 -S25 exhibits the best tensile property with strength of 10.3 MPa and elongation at break of 360.2%. Besides, all the PUUAs possess two crystallization/melting temperatures and a glass transition temperature, which endow PUUAs with multiple and reversible two-way shape memory effect (M/2W-SME). Physically crosslinked PUUA-C0 -S25 exhibits excellent dual and triple shape memory, and micro chemically crosslinked cPUUA-C7 -S25 further shows quadruple shape memory behavior. Additionally, both PUUA-C0 -S25 and cPUUA-C7 -S25 have 2W-SME. Intriguingly, cPUUA-C7 -S25 can achieve a higher temperature (up to 165 °C) SME, which makes it suitable for more complex and changeable applications. Based on the advantages of M/2W-SME, a temperature-responsive application scenario where PUUAs can transform spontaneously among different shapes is designed. These unique M/2W-SME and high-temperature SME will enable the applications of high-temperature sensors, actuators, and aerospace equipment.

ERα/ß/DMP1 axis promotes trans-differentiation of chondrocytes to bone cells through GSK-3ß/ß-catenin pathway.

Estrogen-induced premature closing of the growth plate in the long bones is a major cause of short stature after premature puberty. Recent studies have found that chondrocytes can directly trans-differentiate into osteoblasts in the process of endochondral bone formation, which indicates that cartilage formation and osteogenesis may be a continuous biological process. However, whether estrogen promotes the direct trans-differentiation of chondrocytes into osteoblasts remains largely unknown. Chondrocytes were treated with different concentrations of 17ß-estradiol, and Alizarin Red staining and alkaline phosphatase activity assay were used to detected osteogenesis. Specific short hairpin RNA and tamoxifen were used to block the estrogen receptor (ER) pathway and osteogenic marker genes and downstream gene expression were detected using real-time quantitative polymerase chain reaction, western blot, and immunohistochemistry staining. The findings showed that 17ß-estradiol promoted the chondrocyte osteogenesis in vitro, even at high concentrations. In addition, blocking of the ERα/ß pathway inhibited the trans-differentiation of chondrocytes into osteogenic cells. Furthermore, we found that dentin matrix protein 1 (DMP1), which is a direct downstream molecular of ER, was involved in 17ß-estradiol/ER pathway-regulated osteogenesis. As well, glycogen synthase kinase-3 beta (GSK-3ß)/ß-catenin signal pathway also participates in ERα/ß/DMP1-regulated chondrocyte osteogenesis. The GSK-3ß/ß-catenin signal pathway was involved in ERα/ß/DMP1-regulated chondrocyte osteogenesis. These findings suggest that ER/DMP1/GSK-3ß/ß-catenin plays a vital role in estrogen regulation of chondrocyte osteogenesis and provide a therapeutic target for short stature caused by epiphyseal fusion.

Similar Long-Term Clinical Outcomes of Deep Brain Stimulation With Different Electrode Targets for Primary Meige Syndrome: One Institution's Experience of 17 Cases.

OBJECTIVE: Deep brain stimulation (DBS) is considered an effective and safe treatment for patients with primary Meige syndrome (MS). Both the subthalamic nucleus (STN) and globus pallidus pars internus (Gpi) have been shown to be optional targets for electrode implantation to improve clinical symptoms, but the relationship between clinical outcomes and target is still unclear. The current study aims to compare the clinical outcomes of DBS with different electrode targets for primary MS. MATERIALS AND METHODS: We performed a retrospective study to assess the clinical outcomes for 17 consecutive patients with primary MS in Wuhan Union Hospital from January 2016 to September 2019. Six patients were treated by Gpi-DBS and 11 patients were treated by STN-DBS. All patients were assessed before surgery and at the last follow-up after surgery. The Burke-Fahn-Marsden Dystonia Rating Scale (BFMDRS) including the movement and disability scales was used to evaluate the dystonia severity of the eyes, the mouth, speech, and swallowing. The median follow-up duration was 30.1 ± 13.1 months (range 6 months-52 months). RESULTS: In our study, DBS improved the BFMDRS-M scores by 70.52 ± 7.45% and the BFMDRS-D scores by 70.51 ± 8.38% for patients with MS. STN-DBS and Gpi-DBS had similar effects not only on the BFMDRS-M and BFMDRS-D scores, but also on the subitems including eyes, mouth, speech, and swallowing. The stimulation voltage for the Gpi was significantly higher than that for the STN. The improvements were similar in the general anesthesia and local anesthesia groups (p > 0.05). CONCLUSION: The curative effects of STN-DBS and Gpi-DBS on patients with primary MS are similar. Both the STN and Gpi could be effective targets of DBS for primary MS.

[Analysis of clinical features and genetic variants in an infant with Bloom syndrome].

OBJECTIVE: To analyze the clinical features and genetic variants in a 13-month-old child with Bloom syndrome. METHODS: Clinical data of the child was collected. Genetic variants were detected by high-throughput sequencing and Sanger sequencing. RESULTS: The child was born at full term but was small for gestational age. His clinical features included loss of appetite, severe growth retardation, microcephaly, and small mandible. Genetic testing found that he had carried compound heterozygous c.1068+3A>C and c.1069-1G>C variants of the BLM gene, both of which were unreported previously. CONCLUSION: Bloom syndrome is mainly characterized by severe growth retardation in infancy. The novel variants have expanded the variant spectrum of the BLM gene.

Degradation performance of methylene blue in metal nanoparticle modified 3D mesoporous wood microchannels.

Wood has a rich three-dimensional pore structure and many bottom-up nanochannels. However, the structure of wood itself has limited ability to adsorb dyes, so the effective combination of the unique structure of wood and Pd NPs was studied to achieve efficient degradation of dyes. First, the three-dimensional structure of natural wood is optimized by combining the complex pore structure of wood with Pd NPs to improve the contact process between the dye and Pd NPs. Then, Pd (II) ion can be well reduced to Pd NPs by wood lignin. In addition, Pd NPs can be fixed by hydroxyl groups on cellulose in wood. The flow state inside Pd NPs/wood film and the contact area between catalyst and dye were discussed in detail by hydrodynamic simulation, which filled the gap. It provides reference for composite structure. When Pd NPs/wood membrane was used to treat methylene blue (MB), the degradation efficiency was up to 96.7%, which was 90% higher than that of natural wood. Its TOF value was 1.82 molMB molPd-1min-1, which was higher than that in the previous literature. Therefore, the novelty of this study is that the mechanism of catalytic degradation of MB by Pd nanoparticles/wood composites is reported for the first time. The internal flow mode and contact condition of the new material are understood, which has a good application prospect.

Biochar-assisted anaerobic membrane bioreactor towards high-efficient energy recovery from swine wastewater: Performances and the potential mechanisms.

A high-efficient energy recovery system of biochar-assisted anaerobic membrane bioreactor (BC-AnMBR) was established for swine wastewater treatment. Comparing with a conventional AnMBR, biochar addition accelerated volatile fatty acids (VFA) degradation during start-up stage, thereby shortened start-up duration by 44.0 %. Under a high organic loading rate (OLR) of 21.1 gCOD/L/d, BC-AnMBR promoted COD removal efficiency from 90.1 % to 95.2 %, and maintained a high methane production rate of 4.8L CH4/L/d. The relative abundance of Methanosaeta declined from 53.9 % in conventional AnMBR to 21.0 % in BC-AnMBR, whereas that of Methanobrevibacter dramatically increased from 10.3 % to 70.9 %, respectively. Metabolic pathway analysis revealed that biochar not only strengthened hydrogenotrophic methanogenesis pathway, but also upregulated the genes encoding electron transfer carriers and riboflavin metabolism, suggesting the role of biochar facilitating direct interspecies electron transfer for syntrophic methanogenesis. The excellent energy yield performances under high OLR confirmed BC-AnMBR as an advanced system for high-strength swine wastewater treatment.

Amyloid peptide hydrogels via formation of coordination polymers with Ag+ by its core peptide equipped with a C-cysteine.

We report that the core sequence of amyloid ß (Aß) peptide, KLVFF, when equipped with a C-terminal cysteine residue, exhibited an extremely low minimum hydrogelation concentration of 0.05 wt% in the presence of Ag+ in pH 5 buffer, with this concentration 2 orders of magnitude lower than that of the pentapeptide itself. The CD signal of the Ag+-L-KLVFFC hydrogel was observed to be sensitive to the early-stage aggregation of amyloid ß peptide.

Real-world study of antiresorptive-related osteonecrosis of jaw based on the US food and drug administration adverse event reporting system database.

Objective: This study aims to explore the risk signals of osteonecrosis of the jaw induced by antiresorptive drugs and provide references for the clinical safety application. Method: According to the FDA's Adverse Event Reporting System (FAERS), from January 2004 to September 2021, we chose "Osteonecrosis of the jaw (10064658)" and "Exposed bone in jaw (10071014)" as preferred terms, "antiresorptive drugs" as the target drugs, and primary suspect drug as the drug role code in the dataset. We evaluated the association between drugs and adverse events by using reporting odds ratio (ROR) based on disproportionality analysis. We took the High-Level Terms (HLT) of MedDRA® as the classification level of indications to calculate ROR to compare the signal difference of ONJ in different indications. In addition, patients with antiresorptive-induced osteonecrosis of the jaw and the time of onset of the condition following different antiresorptive medications were collected for the study. Results: The FAERS contained 18,421 reports relating to jaw osteonecrosis from January 2004 to September 2021. A total of eight antiresorptive agents were included in the analysis. From high to low, the ROR of ONJ induced by antiresorptive agents (regardless of indication) is pamidronate (ROR = 494.8), zoledronic acid (ROR = 431.9), denosumab (ROR = 194.8), alendronate (ROR = 151.2), risedronate (ROR = 140.2), etidronic acid (ROR = 64.5), ibandronate (ROR = 40.8), and romosozumab (ROR = 6.4). HLT ROR values for "metabolic bone disorders" were the lowest for each drug, while HLT ROR values were high for "tumor-related indications," including breast and nipple neoplasms malignant, plasma cell myelomas, and prostatic neoplasms malignant. The onset time for osteonecrosis of the jaw as median (Q1, Q3), osteoporosis-related indications, and the onset time for ONJ were 730 (368, 1268), 489.5 (236.3, 909.8), 722.5 (314, 1055), 761 (368, 1720), and 153 (50, 346) for zoledronic acid, denosumab, ibandronate, risedronate, and romosozumab, respectively. Cancer-related indications: the onset time for ONJ were 680.5 (255.3, 1283), 488 (245, 851), and 696.5 (347, 1087) for zoledronic acid, denosumab, and pamidronate, respectively. Conclusion: When antiresorptive drugs are used for metastasis, they have the largest risk signal, followed by malignancy, and the smallest is osteoporosis. The onset time of ONJ may not be related to the indications. The onset time of ONJ for BPs was about 2 years, denosumab about 1.3 years, and romosozumab less than 1 year, which may be related to sequential treatment. When used according to the instructions, the risk of ONJ caused by denosumab was higher than that of zoledronic acid, regardless of the indication. Based on these findings, researchers will continue to monitor and identify risk factors.

From Unimolecular Template to Silver Nanocrystal Clusters: An Effective Strategy to Balance Antibacterial Activity and Cytotoxicity.

Silver nanomaterials have attracted a great deal of interest due to their broad-spectrum antimicrobial activity. However, it is still challenging to balance the high antibacterial efficiency with low damage to biological cells of silver nanostructures, especially when the diameter decreases to less than 10 nm. Here, we developed a new type of Ag nanohybrid material via a unimolecular micelle template method, which presents amazing antibacterial activities and almost noncytotoxicity. First, water-soluble multiarm star-shaped brushlike copolymer α-CD-g-[(PEO40-g-PAA50)-b-PEO5]18 was precisely synthesized and its micelle behavior in different solvents was revealed. Then, nanocrystal clusters assembled by Ag grains (Ag@Template NCs) were prepared through an in situ redox route using the unimolecular micelle of α-CD-g-[(PEO40-g-PAA50)-b-PEO5]18 as the soft template, AgNO3 as a precursor, and tetrabutylammonium borohydride (TBAB) as the reducing agent. The overall size of the achieved Ag@Template NCs is controlled by the template structure at around 40 nm (Dh in DMF), and the size of the Ag grain can be easily regulated from ∼1 to ∼5 nm by adjusting the feeding ratio of AgNO3/acrylic acid (AA) units in the template from 1:10 to 1:1. Benefitting from the structural design of the template, all Ag@Template NCs prepared here exhibit excellent dispersibility and chemical stability in different aqueous environments (neutral, pH = 5.5, and 0.9% NaCl physiological saline solution), which play a crucial role in the long-term storage and potential application in a complex physiological environment. The antibacterial and cytotoxicity tests indicate that Ag@Template NCs display much better performance than Ag nanoparticles (Ag NPs), which have a comparable overall size of ∼25 nm. The inhibitory capability of Ag@Template NCs to bacteria strongly depends on the grain size. Specifically, the Ag@Template-1 NC assembled by the smallest grains (1.6 ± 0.3 nm) presents the best antibacterial activity. For E. coli (-), the MIC value is as low as 5 µg/mL (0.36 µg/mL of Ag), while for S. aureus (+), the value is around 10 µg/mL (0.72 µg/mL of Ag). The survival rate of L02 cells and lactate dehydrogenase assay together illustrate the low cytotoxicity possessed by the prepared Ag@Template NCs. Therefore, the proposed Ag@Template NC structure successfully resolves the high reactivity, instability, and fast oxidation issues of the ultrasmall Ag nanoparticles, and integrates high antibacterial efficiency and nontoxicity to biological cells into one platform, which implies its broad potential application in biomedicine.

Preparation of highly colloidal stable Yolk-Shell nanocomposite and its multi-stimuli responsive based on surface aggregation-induced emission (S-AIE).

Multi-stimuli responsive fluorescence probe could pave the way for monitoring more complex environmental changes. Here we prepared multifunctional nanoparticle Fe3O4@SiO2@P(DMAEMA-co-TPEE), which displayed yolk-shell morphology with well-defined polymer brush. With superparamagnetic Fe3O4 component and pH/temperature dual sensitive PDMAEMA polymer brush, the as prepared nanoparticles (YS-NPs) exhibited as multi-stimuli responsive fluorescence probe for real-time visual monitoring of environmental changes such as magnetic field, temperature and pH. Such YS-NPs could also be applied as a sensitive detector for CO2 in aqueous solution. Notably, the solution of YS-NPs showed high colloidal stability during the environmental changes, and surface aggregation-induced emission (S-AIE) was proposed for the aggregation of TPE residue on the surface of YS-NPs.

Prognostic Factors in Patients With Osteosarcoma With the Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results Database.

BACKGROUND: Osteosarcoma is a rare type of bone tumor, and this study aimed to assess the clinicopathologic features and prognoses of osteosarcoma patients. METHODS: Clinicopathologic and survival data of 1025 patients between 2010 and 2016, 230 between 2008 and 2009 were downloaded and analyzed from the SEER database. Patients' survival was analyzed using the Kaplan-Meier analysis; prognostic factors were assessed using the Cox regression hazards model. The 1-, 3-, and 5-year survival rates were estimated with nomogram. Competitive risk models were used to identify prognostic risk factors related to endpoint events of osteosarcoma patients. RESULTS: Overall, 722 samples were obtained from the extremities, 134 from the axial bones, and 119 from the cranial and mandible in SEER (2010-2016 cohort). After the preliminary diagnosis, the median survival time of patients with osteosarcoma was 39 months, and the 1-, 3-, and 5-year survival rates were 87.3%, 67.2%, and 58.0%, respectively (P < 0.001). The competitive risk model revealed no competitive risks of the endpoint event. CONCLUSION: Our study found out the prognostic factors in patients with Osteosarcoma by Cox regression hazards model, after that, nomogram was established to predict the 1-, 3-, and 5-year survival rates, which may help oncologists to understand the highly malignant tumor.

Comparative study on fast pyrolysis of agricultural straw residues based on heat carrier circulation heating.

Fast pyrolysis of agricultural straw residues based on ceramic ball circulation heating was studied by using an originally developed V-shaped drop tube pyrolysis unit. The yields of bio-oil, bio-char and pyrolysis gas from these straw residues were in the range of 41-46, 26-30 and 26-29 wt%, respectively, with maize straw giving the highest bio-oil yield. A quadratic model was developed to correlate the cellulose-to-lignin-ratio (CLR) and hemicellulose-to-lignin-ratio (HLR) with bio-oil yield. For a given HLR above 1.12, the bio-oil yield continued to increase as the CLR increased. However, when the HLR was between 0.86 and 1.12, it tended to decrease first and then increase with the increase of CLR. In contrast with CS, the proportions of acids and ketones in the bio-oils increased by 13.3% and 14.8% for MS and 9.2% and 30.5% for WS, respectively, while the proportion of phenols decreased by 9.9% and 14.3%.

Catalytic pyrolysis of lignin in a cascade dual-catalyst system of modified red mud and HZSM-5 for aromatic hydrocarbon production.

Catalytic pyrolysis of lignin over a dual-catalyst system of modified red mud and HZSM-5 was carried out in a bench-scale micro-reactor. Effects of pyrolysis temperature, modified red mud to HZSM-5 ratio, catalysts to lignin ratio on the yield of products and selectivity of aromatic hydrocarbons were investigated. Results indicated that 550 °C was the optimal pyrolysis temperature with the maximal yield of bio-oil (20.16 wt%). At a modified red mud to HZSM-5 ratio of 1:1, the content of monocyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (MAHs) increased to 41.27% whereas that of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) decreased to 22.65%. Likewise, at a catalysts to lignin ratio of 2:1, a higher content of MAHs was produced with a decreased content of PAHs. The cascade dual-catalyst system may serve as an efficient approach to disposing lignin and red mud wastes with significant environmental impact. Besides, this study provides a solution for the valorization of lignin-rich resources.

Influence of inherent hierarchical porous char with alkali and alkaline earth metallic species on lignin pyrolysis.

This study aimed to explore the influence of inherent hierarchical porous char with alkali and alkaline earth metallic species (AAEMs) during pyrolysis of lignin derived from agricultural crop residues in a laboratory fixed-bed at 550 °C. A catalytic strategy was implemented to investigate volatile-char interactions based on ex situ lignin pyrolysis. The physico-chemical properties of the AAEMs-loaded char were characterized by FTIR, XRD, SEM-EDX and N2 nitrogen adsorption analyses. Results indicated that AAEMs-loaded char had a large specific surface area, hierarchical porosity, amorphous carbon structure, surface-active functional groups and highly dispersed metal species. Specifically, the specific surface area of AAEMs-loaded char was significantly reduced owing to coke deposition after interaction with pyrolysis vapours. Bio-oil composition revealed substantial increases in phenol, o-cresol, p-cresol and catechol. These increases were mainly attributed to demethylation, demethoxylation, or alkyl substitution reaction. The experimental results confirmed the occurrence of significant volatile-char interactions during lignin pyrolysis.

[Progress in bio-based polyamides].

Bio-based polyamides are environment-friendly polymers. The precursors of bio-based polyamides come from bio-based materials such as castor oil, glucose and animal oil. Bio-based polyamides precursors include bio-based amino acids, bio-based lactams, bio-based diprotic acid and bio-based diamines. In this paper, we discussed the route of the precursors of bio-based polyamides that come from bio-based materials. We discussed the properties of bio-based polyamides. Bio-based PA11and bio-based PA1010 are well-known bio-based polyamides; we discussed the origin materials of the precursors, the route of manufacturing bio-based PA11 and PA1010, and their modifications status. The variety, classification and commercial production of bio-based polyamides were described in details, as well as bio-based polyamides development in China.

[Effects of sulfur- and polymer-coated controlled release urea fertilizers on wheat yield and quality and fertilizer nitrogen use efficiency].

A field experiment was conducted to study the effects of sulfur- and polymer-coated controlled release urea fertilizers on wheat yield and its quality, plow layer soil inorganic nitrogen (N) contents, and fertilizer N use efficiency. Compared with traditional urea fertilizer, both sulfur- and polymer-coated controlled release urea fertilizers increased the grain yield by 10.4%-16.5%, and the grain protein and starch contents by 5.8%-18.9% and 0.3%-1.4%, respectively. The controlled release urea fertilizers could maintain the topsoil inorganic N contents to meet the N requirement for the wheat, especially during its late growth stage. In the meantime, the fertilizer N use efficiency was improved by 58.2%-101.2%. Polymer-coated urea produced better wheat yield and higher fertilizer N use efficiency, compared with sulfur-coated controlled release urea.

Pharmacokinetics, tissue distribution, excretion, and antiviral activity of pegylated recombinant human consensus interferon-α variant in monkeys, rats and guinea pigs.

The study aims to characterize the pharmacokinetic, tissue distribution, excretion, and antiviral activity properties of a novel pegylated recombinant human consensus interferon-α variant (PEG-IFN-SA) following a single subcutaneous administration to monkeys, rats and guinea pigs. Studies included: (1) pharmacokinetic properties of PEG-IFN-SA and comparison with those of non-pegylated IFN-SA in rhesus monkeys and rats; (2) tissue distribution and urinary, fecal, and biliary excretion patterns of (125)I-PEG-IFN-SA in guinea pigs; and (3) antiviral activity assessment of PEG-IFN-SA in cynomolgus monkeys. The pegylated protein exhibited improved pharmacokinetic properties compared to IFN-SA in both monkeys and rats, with a 12-fold and 15-fold increase in elimination half-life, and a 100-fold and 10-fold decrease in serum clearance, as well as a 2.5-fold and 10-fold increase in the time to reach peak serum concentration, respectively. (125)I-PEG-IFN-SA was found to be distributed to most of the tissues examined and has character of targeting special distribution, and urinary appeared to be a major route for the excretion of PEG-IFN-SA in guinea pigs. Serum sample analysis from PEG-IFN-SA-treated monkeys showed dose-dependent antiviral activity for one week. These findings demonstrate that pegylation of IFN-SA results in more desirable pharmacokinetic properties, enhanced drug exposure and sustained-efficacy of in vivo antiviral action.