The Selective Trigeminal Nerve Motor Branching Transfer: an Preliminary Clinical Application for Facial Reanimation.

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the effectiveness and feasibility of selective trigeminal nerve motor branching in the repair of facial palsy. MATERIALS AND METHODS: The clinical data of patients with advanced facial palsy from 2016 to 2021 were retrospectively analyzed, including pictures and videos before and 18 months after surgery. The House-Brackmann grading system was used to evaluate facial nerve function before and after repair, and the symmetry scale of oral commissure at rest and Terzis' smile functional evaluation scale were used to qualitatively assess the symmetry of the mouth angle and smile function. The distance of oral commissure movement was assessed to evaluate the dynamic repair effect, and the FaCE facial muscle function scale was used to assess patients' subjective perception before and after surgery. RESULTS: A total of four patients were included in the study, all of whom showed signs of recovery of facial nerve function within six months. In all four cases, significant improvements were observed in House-Brackmann ratings, the smile function score and the symmetry scale of oral commissure at rest. Compared to the pre-operative period, the four patients demonstrated various degrees of eye-closing function recovery, and a significant improvement in oral commissure movement was observed ( P <0.001). FaCE scores also improved significantly after surgery ( P =0.019). CONCLUSION: Concurrent selective facial nerve repair with trigeminal branch-facial nerve anastomosis resulted in eye-closing function recovery while improving static and dynamic symmetry, yielding acceptable postoperative results.

The dual functions of WLIM1a in cell elongation and secondary wall formation in developing cotton fibers.

LIN-11, Isl1 and MEC-3 (LIM)-domain proteins play pivotal roles in a variety of cellular processes in animals, but plant LIM functions remain largely unexplored. Here, we demonstrate dual roles of the WLIM1a gene in fiber development in upland cotton (Gossypium hirsutum). WLIM1a is preferentially expressed during the elongation and secondary wall synthesis stages in developing fibers. Overexpression of WLIM1a in cotton led to significant changes in fiber length and secondary wall structure. Compared with the wild type, fibers of WLIM1a-overexpressing plants grew longer and formed a thinner and more compact secondary cell wall, which contributed to improved fiber strength and fineness. Functional studies demonstrated that (1) WLIM1a acts as an actin bundler to facilitate elongation of fiber cells and (2) WLIM1a also functions as a transcription factor to activate expression of Phe ammonia lyase-box genes involved in phenylpropanoid biosynthesis to build up the secondary cell wall. WLIM1a localizes in the cytosol and nucleus and moves into the nucleus in response to hydrogen peroxide. Taken together, these results demonstrate that WLIM1a has dual roles in cotton fiber development, elongation, and secondary wall formation. Moreover, our study shows that lignin/lignin-like phenolics may substantially affect cotton fiber quality; this finding may guide cotton breeding for improved fiber traits.

Computational redesign of a hydrolase for nearly complete PET depolymerization at industrially relevant high-solids loading.

Biotechnological plastic recycling has emerged as a suitable option for addressing the pollution crisis. A major breakthrough in the biodegradation of poly(ethylene terephthalate) (PET) is achieved by using a LCC variant, which permits 90% conversion at an industrial level. Despite the achievements, its applications have been hampered by the remaining 10% of nonbiodegradable PET. Herein, we address current challenges by employing a computational strategy to engineer a hydrolase from the bacterium HR29. The redesigned variant, TurboPETase, outperforms other well-known PET hydrolases. Nearly complete depolymerization is accomplished in 8 h at a solids loading of 200 g kg-1. Kinetic and structural analysis suggest that the improved performance may be attributed to a more flexible PET-binding groove that facilitates the targeting of more specific attack sites. Collectively, our results constitute a significant advance in understanding and engineering of industrially applicable polyester hydrolases, and provide guidance for further efforts on other polymer types.

Molecular design and experimental study of cellulose conversion to 5-hydroxymethylfurfural catalyzed by different ratios of Brønsted/Lewis acid ionic liquids.

Cellulose conversion into 5-hydroxymethylfurfural (5-HMF) is difficult because of the strong hydrogen bonding existed in cellulose chains. Brønsted/Lewis (B/L) biacidic functionalized ionic liquids (ILs) have great advantages in acid-catalyzed tandem reactions, but the catalytic effect of ILs differs considerably depending on B/L acid ratios. Therefore, this work designed a series of reactions with different proportions of biacidic ILs for the preparation of 5-HMF from cellulose. The tandem reaction is often performed in the presence of a solvent, and the activity of the catalyst is also affected by the solvent. Therefore, in this work, the solvation model density(SMD) model was introduced into the quantum chemical calculation method for molecular design to predict the catalytic effect and explore the catalytic mechanism. The calculation results and experiments jointly showed that [(HSO3-P)2im]Cl·ZnCl2 had the highest efficiency, with a 5-HMF yield of 65.66%. This study facilitates the directional optimization design of the catalyst.

Fluorescence-activated droplet sorting of PET degrading microorganisms.

Enzymes that can decompose synthetic plastics such as polyethylene terephthalate (PET) are urgently needed. Still, a bottleneck remains due to a lack of techniques for detecting and sorting environmental microorganisms with vast diversity and abundance. Here, we developed a fluorescence-activated droplet sorting (FADS) pipeline for high-throughput screening of PET-degrading microorganisms or enzymes (PETases). The pipeline comprises three steps: generation and incubation of droplets encapsulating single cells, picoinjection of fluorescein dibenzoate (FDBz) as the fluorogenic probe, and screening of droplets to obtain PET-degrading cells. We characterized critical factors associated with this method, including specificity and sensitivity for discriminating PETase from other enzymes. We then optimized its performance and compatibility with environmental samples. The system was used to screen a wastewater sample from a PET textile mill. We successfully obtained PET-degrading species from nine different genera. Moreover, two putative PETases from isolates Kineococcus endophyticus Un-5 and Staphylococcus epidermidis Un-C2-8 were genetically derived, heterologously expressed, and preliminarily validated for PET-degrading activities. We speculate that the FADS pipeline can be widely adopted to discover new plastic-degrading microorganisms and enzymes in various environments and may be utilized in the directed evolution of degrading enzymes using synthetic biology.

Inflammatory endothelium-targeted and cathepsin responsive nanoparticles are effective against atherosclerosis.

Rationale: Atherosclerosis is characterized by lipid accumulation, plaque formation, and artery stenosis. The pharmacological treatment is a promising therapy for atherosclerosis, but this approach faces major challenges such as targeted drug delivery, controlled release, and non-specific clearance. Methods: Based on the finding that the cathepsin k (CTSK) enzyme is enriched in atherosclerotic lesions, we constructed an integrin αvß3 targeted and CTSK-responsive nanoparticle to control the release of rapamycin (RAP) locally. The targeted and responsive nanoparticles (T/R NPs) were engineered by the self-assembly of a targeting polymer PLGA-PEG-c(RGDfC) and a CTSK-sensitive polymer PLGA-Pep-PEG. PLGA-Pep-PEG was also modified with a pair of FRET probe to monitor the hydrolysis events. Results: Our results indicated that RAP@T/R NPs accelerated the release of RAP in response to CTSK stimulation in vitro, which significantly inhibited the phagocytosis of OxLDL and the release of cytokines by inflammatory macrophages. Additionally, T/R NPs had prolonged blood retention time and increased accumulation in the early and late stage of atherosclerosis lesions. RAP@T/R NPs significantly blocked the development of atherosclerosis and suppressed the systemic and local inflammation in ApoE-/- mice. Conclusions: RAP@T/R NPs hold a great promise as a drug delivery system for safer and more efficient therapy of atherosclerosis.

Separation of biobutanol from ABE fermentation broth using lignin as adsorbent: A totally sustainable approach with effective utilization of lignocellulose.

Adsorption is considered to be a promising butanol recovery method for solving the issue of inhibition in the ABE (acetone-butanol-ethanol) fermentation. As a byproduct in the second generation biobutanol industry, lignin was found to be a good adsorbent for the butanol enrichment. It is conducive to the full utilization of renewable lignocellulose biomass resource. Kinetic and equilibrium experiments indicated that lignin had a satisfactory adsorption rate and capacity that are comparable to those of many synthetic materials. Multicomponent adsorption experiments revealed that lignin had higher adsorption selectivity toward butanol than that of ethanol and acetone. The adsorption capacity of lignin for butanol first increased and then gradually decreased with increasing temperature. And maximum adsorption capacity reached 304.66 mg g-1 at 313 K. The inflection point of temperature is close to the ABE fermentation temperature of 310 K. The condensed butanol by desorption was 145 g L-1, with a satisfying regeneration performance. 1H NMR and FT-IR spectra indicated that the aromatic units of lignin formed π-systems with A/B/E. The π-system is particularly significant for butanol due to its longer hydrocarbon chain. These results could contribute to the emerging lignin-based materials for butanol separation.

Application of gradient acid fractionation protocol to improve decolorization technology by lignin-based adsorbent.

Wastewater contaminated with dyes is discharged by huge amount daily, and involved many hazardous materials. Thus, this study focused on introducing low cost, ecofriendly and available removal agent (lignin-based adsorbent). Three adsorbents, APKL-4, APKL-5 and APKL-6 were obtained using gradient acid precipitation technology and used for methylene blue (MB) removal. The samples were characterized by SEM, FT-IR and zeta potential analyzer. The results indicated that the three adsorbents exhibit significantly different adsorption behavior due to the structural differences caused by fractionation. The APKL-5 and APKL-6 have fewer hydrophilic groups in their molecules and thus have more adsorption active sites to load MB molecules. A pore structure inside of APKL-5 molecules is form in acid fractionation, which allows it to carry more MB molecules. The adsorption capacity of APKL-5 increased 3.8 times (from 345 to 1310 mg g-1) in the alkaline solution which showing excellent pH responsiveness. This paper presents a new promising approach for preparing high efficiency, low cost and eco-friendly adsorbents and builds a foundation for developing further applications of lignin-based adsorbents.

Role of sulfonation in lignin-based material for adsorption removal of cationic dyes.

Sulfonate lignin-based hydrogels (SLG) were prepared through simple and effective method and successfully applied to the adsorption of cation dye methylene blue (MB). Samples were characterized by scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR). Sulfonation degree and zeta potential of the samples were also measured by automatic potentiometric titrator and zeta potential analyzer, respectively. Adsorption results show the adsorption capacity of SLG for MB increased fivefold from raw lignin to 495 mg g-1 at 30 °C. Various factors affecting the adsorption were investigated such as temperature, pH, contact time, ionic strength and initial MB concentration. Results of kinetics, isotherm and thermodynamics reveal the adsorption process is consistent with Langmuir model and conforms to pseudo-second-order kinetics model. Adsorption process is mainly a spontaneous physisorption of monolayer. Further, results suggest sulfonation improved electrostatic interactions as well as π-π stacking in the adsorption process, and the revelation of the role of sulfonation is expected to consummate the selection and design of the lignin-based adsorbent in the specific adsorption process of cationic dyes with aromatic nucleus.

Dual Convergence of Facial Nerve Branches Innervating Whisker Pad in Rats.

The precise anatomy of the facial nerve branches innervating rat whisker pad and the distribution of their corresponding motor neurons in facial nucleus area were investigated. The extratemporal facial nerves of 6 rats were anatomically observed under a surgical microscope, and then the nerve specimens of facial nerve branches at 7 anatomical sites were taken and examined for the axons and myelin sheath using Luxol fast blue staining. The distribution of facial motor neurons innervating the facial branches was observed in 12 rats by retrograde labelling. The distal pes, a fusing architecture of the buccal and marginal mandibular branches, was found to furcate into superior, middle and inferior branches to innervate whisker pad. Histologically, the myelin sheath of each branch was morphologically consistent, and the nerve fiber bundles of facial nerve branches became increasingly thinner and scattered, particularly after crossing the distal pes site and innervating the whisker pad. The facial motor neurons innervating the buccal and marginal mandibular branches were clearly distributed in similar regions in facial nucleus. This study confirmed the highly spatial synergy between the buccal and marginal mandibular branches innervating the whisker pad from extratemporal anatomy and distribution of facial motor neurons.

Selective detection of fenaminosulf via a molecularly imprinted fluorescence switch and silver nano-film amplification.

A novel fluorescence switch sensor was constructed for detecting the fungicide fenaminosulf (FM), based on a dye-doped molecularly imprinted polymer (MIP) and silver nanofilm amplification. The MIP was prepared by electropolymerization of hydroquinone doped with neutral red on the silver nanofilm modified electrode. A fluorescence signal was produced by the neutral red and the fluorescence intensity was diminished by the ion pair that formed via electrostatic forces between FM and the dye. Therefore, elution and adsorption of FM by the MIP acted as a switch to control the fluorescence intensity, which was effectively amplified by the silver nanofilm. The decrease in fluorescence intensity was linear with the FM concentration, establishing a new method for FM detection. Under optimal conditions, good linear correlation was obtained for FM concentrations over the range from 2.0 × 10(-10) to 4.0 × 10(-8)mol/L, with a detection limit of 1.6 × 10(-11)mol/L. This method was utilized to determine residual FM in vegetable samples, and recoveries ranging from 92.0% to 110% were obtained.