Surf4 collaborates with derlin-2 and derlin-1 to mediate cyclooxygenase-2 translocation to the cytosol for degradation.

Derlin family members participate in the retrotranslocation of endoplasmic reticulum (ER) lumen proteins to the cytosol for ER-associated degradation (ERAD); however, the proteins facilitating this retrotranslocation remain to be explored. Using CRISPR library screening, we have found that derlin-2 and surfeit locus protein 4 (Surf4) are candidates to facilitate degradation of cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2, also known as PTGS2). Our results show that derlin-2 acts upstream of derlin-1 and that Surf4 acts downstream of derlin-2 and derlin-1 to facilitate COX-2 degradation. Knockdown of derlin-2 or Surf4 impedes the ubiquitylation of COX-2 and the interaction of COX-2 with caveolin-1 (Cav-1) and p97 (also known as VCP) in the cytosol. Additionally, COX-2 degradation is N-glycosylation dependent. Although derlin-2 facilitates degradation of N-glycosylated COX-2, the interaction between derlin-2 and COX-2 is independent of COX-2 N-glycosylation. Derlin-1, Surf4 and p97 preferentially interact with non-glycosylated COX-2, whereas Cav-1 preferentially interacts with N-glycosylated COX-2, regardless of the N-glycosylation pattern. Collectively, our results reveal that Surf4 collaborates with derlin-2 and derlin-1 to mediate COX-2 translocation from the ER lumen to the cytosol. The derlin-2-derlin-1-Surf4-Cav-1 machinery might represent a unique pathway to accelerate COX-2 degradation in ERAD.

Survival and disease burden analyses of occupational pneumoconiosis during 1958-2021 in Huangshi city, China: a retrospective cohort study.

BACKGROUND: Pneumoconiosis, a chronic disease stemming from prolonged inhalation of dust particles, stands as a significant global burden of occupational diseases. This study aims to investigate the survival outcomes of pneumoconiosis patients in Huangshi city, China, while also evaluating the disease burden on afflicted patients. METHODS: Data for this study were sourced from the Huangshi Center for Disease Control and Prevention. Survival analyses of pneumoconiosis patients were conducted employing life tables and the Kaplan-Meier method. The Cox proportional hazards models were deployed to identify factors influencing pneumoconiosis patients' survival duration. Competing risks models were employed to confirm the validity of the model outcomes. Additionally, in the disease burden assessment, disability-adjusted life years (DALYs) were computed for various demographic groups and time frames. RESULTS: A total of 5,641 pneumoconiosis cases, diagnosed in Huangshi City, Hubei Province between 1958 and 2021, were incorporated into the cohort analysis. The probability of mortality and the risk ratio increased with advancing age. Notably, the median survival time of stage III pneumoconiosis patients was significantly shorter compared with those in stages I and II. The Cox proportional hazards model and competing risks analyses underscored several significant factors influencing survival time, including dust exposure duration (HR = 1.197, 95% CI: 1.104-1.298), age at first diagnosis (HR = 3.149, 95% CI: 2.961-3.349), presence of silicosis (HR = 1.378, 95% CI: 1.254-1.515), and stage II-III pneumoconiosis (HR = 1.456, 95% CI: 1.148-1.848). Cumulatively, DALYs amounted to 7,974.35 person-years, with an average of 1.41 person-years. The period between 2000 and 2019 witnessed the highest disease burden. CONCLUSION: Our findings highlight the urgent need for improved prevention, earlier detection, and more effective management strategies for the occupational pneumoconiosis population. This study not only underscores the persistent issue of pneumoconiosis in industrial environments but also serves as a crucial call to action for policymakers and healthcare providers.

Low-intensity pulsed ultrasound ameliorates glia-mediated inflammation and neuronal damage in experimental intracerebral hemorrhage conditions.

BACKGROUND: Intracerebral hemorrhage (ICH) is a condition associated with high morbidity and mortality, and glia-mediated inflammation is a major contributor to neurological deficits. However, there is currently no proven effective treatment for clinical ICH. Recently, low-intensity pulsed ultrasound (LIPUS), a non-invasive method, has shown potential for neuroprotection in neurodegenerative diseases. This study aimed to investigate the neuroprotective effects and potential mechanisms of LIPUS on glia-mediated inflammation in ICH. METHODS: This study used 289 mice to investigate the effects of LIPUS on ICH. ICH was induced by injecting bacterial collagenase (type VII-S; 0.0375 U) into the striatum of the mice. LIPUS was applied noninvasively for 3 days, including a 2-h-delayed intervention to mimic clinical usage. The study evaluated neurological function, histology, brain water content, hemoglobin content, MRI, and protein expression of neurotrophic factors, inflammatory molecules, and apoptosis. In vitro studies investigated glia-mediated inflammation by adding thrombin (10 U/mL) or conditioned media to primary and cell line cultures. The PI3K inhibitor LY294002 was used to confirm the effects of PI3K/Akt signaling after LIPUS treatment. RESULTS: LIPUS treatment improved neurological deficits and reduced tissue loss, edema, and neurodegeneration after ICH. The protective effects of LIPUS resulted from decreased glia-mediated inflammation by inhibiting PI3K/Akt-NF-κB signaling, which reduced cytokine expression and attenuated microglial activation-induced neuronal damage in vitro. CONCLUSIONS: LIPUS treatment improved neurological outcomes and reduced glia-mediated inflammation by inhibiting PI3K/Akt-NF-κB signaling after ICH. LIPUS may provide a non-invasive potential management strategy for ICH.

Effects of the nutrient inhibition on the yield of DBPFPs by Microcystis aeruginosa.

The yield of three disinfection byproduct formation potentials (DBPFPs), including trichloromethane, dichloroacetic acid and trichloroacetic acid formation potential (TCMFP, DCAAFP and TCAAFP), by Microcystis aeruginosa under the nitrate and phosphate inhibition conditions was investigated. The results showed that excessive nitrate could inhibit the growth of M. aeruginosa, but the concentration of DBPFPs in the five fractions of algal metabolites, including hydrophilic extracellular organic matter (EOM), hydrophobic EOM, hydrophilic intracellular organic matter, hydrophobic intracellular organic matter and cell debris, only decreased slightly. Accordingly, the productivity of DBPFPs by M. aeruginosa increased by approximately 40% under the nitrate inhibition condition and the increased productivity of DBPFPs mainly came from EOM. The phosphate inhibition also performed a similar pattern with a lesser extent. The nutrient inhibition did not change the proportion of these three DPBFPs, and TCMFP accounted for approximately 87% of the total DBPFPs. The inhibition could promote M. aeruginosa to secrete more metabolites. However, the cyanobacteria tended to secrete more DBPFPs under the nitrate inhibition condition, which resulted in an increased specific DBPFP, while they tended to secrete more non-DBPFPs under the phosphate inhibition condition, which resulted in a decreased specific DBPFP.

Population impact of fine particulate matter on tuberculosis risk in China: a causal inference.

BACKGROUND: Previous studies have suggested the potential association between air pollution and tuberculosis incidence, but this association remains inconclusive and evidence to assess causality is particularly lacking. We aimed to draw causal inference between fine particulate matter less than 2.5 µm in diameter (PM2.5) and tuberculosis in China. METHODS: Granger causality (GC) inference was performed within vector autoregressive models at levels and/or first-differences using annual national aggregated data during 1982-2019, annual provincial aggregated data during 1982-2019 and monthly provincial aggregated data during 2004-2018. Convergent cross-mapping (CCM) approach was used to determine the backbone nonlinear causal association based on the monthly provincial aggregated data during 2004-2018. Moreover, distributed lag nonlinear model (DLNM) was applied to quantify the causal effects. RESULTS: GC tests identified PM2.5 driving tuberculosis dynamics at national and provincial levels in Granger sense. Empirical dynamic modeling provided the CCM causal intensity of PM2.5 effect on tuberculosis at provincial level and demonstrated that PM2.5 had a positive effect on tuberculosis incidence. Then, DLNM estimation demonstrated that the PM2.5 exposure driven tuberculosis risk was concentration- and time-dependent in a nonlinear manner. This result still held in the multi-pollutant model. CONCLUSIONS: Causal inference showed that PM2.5 exposure driving tuberculosis, which showing a concentration gradient change. Air pollutant control may have potential public health benefit of decreasing tuberculosis burden.

Enhanced Thermal Conducting Behavior of Pressurized Graphene-Silver Flake Composites.

Modern electronics continue to shrink down the sizes while becoming more and more powerful. To improve heat dissipation of electronics, fillers used in the semiconductor packaging process need to possess both high electrical and thermal conductivity. Graphene is known to improve thermal conductivity but suffers from van der Waals interactions and thus poor processibility. In this study, we wrapped silver microflakes with graphene sheets, which can enable intercoupling of phonon- and electron-based thermal transport, to improve the thermal conductivity. Using just 1.55 wt % graphene for wrapping can achieve a 2.64-times greater thermal diffusivity (equivalent to 254.196 ± 10.123 W/m·K) over pristine silver flakes. Graphene-wrapped silver flakes minimize the increase of electrical resistivity, which is one-order higher (1.4 × 10-3 Ω·cm) than the pristine flakes (5.7 × 10-4 Ω·cm). Trace contents of wrapped graphene (<1.55 wt %) were found to be enough to bridge the void between Ag flakes, and this enhances the thermal conductivity. Graphene loading at 3.76 wt % (beyond the threshold of 1.55 wt %) results in the significant graphene aggregation that decreases thermal diffusivity to as low as 16% of the pristine Ag filler. This work recognizes that suitable amounts of graphene wrapping can enhance heat dissipation, but too much graphene results in unwanted aggregation that hinders thermal conducting performance.

Invisible Bactericidal Coatings on Generic Surfaces through a Convenient Hand Spray.

Robust antimicrobial coatings featuring high transparency, strong bactericidal activity, and an easy application procedure on generic surfaces can be widely accepted by the public to prevent pandemics. In this work, we demonstrated the hand-sprayer-based approach to deposit complex oxide coatings composed of Co-Mn-Cu-Zn-Ag on screen protectors of smartphones through acidic redox-assisted deposition (ARD). The as-obtained coatings possess high transparency (99.74% transmittance at 550 nm) and long-lasting durability against swiping (for 135 days of average use) or wet cleaning (for a routine of 3 times/day for 33 days). The spray coating enabling 3.14% Escherichia coli viability can further be reduced to 0.21% through a consistent elemental composition achieved via the immersion method. The high intake of Cu2+ in the coating is majorly responsible for the bactericidal activity, and the presence of Ag+ and Zn2+ is necessary to achieve almost complete eradication. The success of extending the bactericidal coatings on other typical hand-touched surfaces (e.g., stainless steel railings, rubber handrails, and plastic switches) in public areas has been demonstrated.

The Attitude towards Preventive Measures and Knowledge of COVID-19 Inpatients with Severe Mental Illness in Economically Underdeveloped Areas of China.

Patients with severe mental illnesses (SMI) were at high risk of infection during Coronavirus Diseases 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. This study examined hospitalized SMI patients' attitude and knowledge towards the COVID-19 infection. A cross-sectional survey was conducted in five psychiatric hospitals located in Gansu province, the most economically underdeveloped area in China. Patients' attitude towards preventive measures and knowledge of COVID-19 were measured by a self-report questionnaire. A total of 925 hospitalized patients with SMI were recruited. Of them, 84.8% (95%CI: 82.4%-87.1%) had positive attitudes towards preventive measures of the COVID-19 outbreak. Being married (OR: 1.55, 95%CI: 1.05-2.30) and a higher educational level (OR: 1.63, 95%CI: 1.12-2.38) were independently associated with positive attitudes towards COVID-19 preventive measures, whereas higher educational level was associated with better knowledge of the COVID-19 outbreak (ß: 0.231, P < 0.001). Patients mainly received COVID-19 relevant knowledge from public media (58.9%), followed by their clinicians (33.2%). Most hospitalized SMI patients in economically underdeveloped areas in China showed positive attitudes towards COVID-19 preventive measures. However, public health education on COVID-19 relevant knowledge by mental health professionals was inadequate to reduce the risk of transmission and infection.

Application of Machine Learning for the in-Field Correction of a PM2.5 Low-Cost Sensor Network.

Many low-cost sensors (LCSs) are distributed for air monitoring without any rigorous calibrations. This work applies machine learning with PM2.5 from Taiwan monitoring stations to conduct in-field corrections on a network of 39 PM2.5 LCSs from July 2017 to December 2018. Three candidate models were evaluated: Multiple linear regression (MLR), support vector regression (SVR), and random forest regression (RFR). The model-corrected PM2.5 levels were compared with those of GRIMM-calibrated PM2.5. RFR was superior to MLR and SVR in its correction accuracy and computing efficiency. Compared to SVR, the root mean square errors (RMSEs) of RFR were 35% and 85% lower for the training and validation sets, respectively, and the computational speed was 35 times faster. An RFR with 300 decision trees was chosen as the optimal setting considering both the correction performance and the modeling time. An RFR with a nighttime pattern was established as the optimal correction model, and the RMSEs were 5.9 ± 2.0 µg/m3, reduced from 18.4 ± 6.5 µg/m3 before correction. This is the first work to correct LCSs at locations without monitoring stations, validated using laboratory-calibrated data. Similar models could be established in other countries to greatly enhance the usefulness of their PM2.5 sensor networks.

Laboratory Evaluations of Correction Equations with Multiple Choices for Seed Low-Cost Particle Sensing Devices in Sensor Networks.

To tackle the challenge of the data accuracy issues of low-cost sensors (LCSs), the objective of this work was to obtain robust correction equations to convert LCS signals into data comparable to that of research-grade instruments using side-by-side comparisons. Limited sets of seed LCS devices, after laboratory evaluations, can be installed strategically in areas of interest without official monitoring stations to enable reading adjustments of other uncalibrated LCS devices to enhance the data quality of sensor networks. The robustness of these equations for LCS devices (AS-LUNG with PMS3003 sensor) under a hood and a chamber with two different burnt materials and before and after 1.5 years of field campaigns were evaluated. Correction equations with incense or mosquito coils burning inside a chamber with segmented regressions had a high R2 of 0.999, less than 6.0% variability in the slopes, and a mean RMSE of 1.18 µg/m3 for 0.1-200 µg/m3 of PM2.5, with a slightly higher RMSE for 0.1-400 µg/m3 compared to EDM-180. Similar results were obtained for PM1, with an upper limit of 200 µg/m3. Sensor signals drifted 19-24% after 1.5 years in the field. Practical recommendations are given to obtain equations for Federal-Equivalent-Method-comparable measurements considering variability and cost.

Fusion of Environmental Sensing on PM2.5 and Deep Learning on Vehicle Detecting for Acquiring Roadside PM2.5 Concentration Increments.

Traffic emission is one of the major contributors to urban PM2.5, an important environmental health hazard. Estimating roadside PM2.5 concentration increments (above background levels) due to vehicles would assist in understanding pedestrians' actual exposures. This work combines PM2.5 sensing and vehicle detecting to acquire roadside PM2.5 concentration increments due to vehicles. An automatic traffic analysis system (YOLOv3-tiny-3l) was applied to simultaneously detect and track vehicles with deep learning and traditional optical flow techniques, respectively, from governmental cameras that have low resolutions of only 352 × 240 pixels. Evaluation with 20% of the 2439 manually labeled images from 23 cameras showed that this system has 87% and 84% of the precision and recall rates, respectively, for five types of vehicles, namely, sedan, motorcycle, bus, truck, and trailer. By fusing the research-grade observations from PM2.5 sensors installed at two roadside locations with vehicle counts from the nearby governmental cameras analyzed by YOLOv3-tiny-3l, roadside PM2.5 concentration increments due to on-road sedans were estimated to be 0.0027-0.0050 µg/m3. This practical and low-cost method can be further applied in other countries to assess the impacts of vehicles on roadside PM2.5 concentrations.

Discontinuity-Enhanced Thin Film Electrocatalytic Oxygen Evolution.

Thin film electrocatalysts allow strong binding and intimate electrical contact with electrodes, rapid mass transfer during reaction, and are generally more durable than powder electrocatalysts, which is particularly beneficial for gas evolution reactions. In this work, using cobalt manganese oxyhydroxide, an oxygen evolution reaction (OER) electrocatalyst that can be grown directly on various electrodes as a model system, it is demonstrated that breaking a continuous film into discontinuous patches can significantly enhance the overall OER performance without sacrificing long-term stability even under elevated electrocatalytic stress. Discontinuous films with higher edge-to-area ratios exhibits reduced overpotentials, increased turnover frequency, and more pronounced current increase after electrochemical conditioning. Operando Raman spectroscopy studies during electrocatalysis reveal that the film edges require lower potential barrier for activation. Introducing discontinuity into thin film electrocatalysis can thus lead to the realization of high performance yet highly robust systems for harsh gas evolution reactions.

Activation of TrkB/Akt signaling by a TrkB receptor agonist improves long-term histological and functional outcomes in experimental intracerebral hemorrhage.

BACKGROUND: Intracerebral hemorrhage (ICH) induces a complex sequence of apoptotic cascades that contribute to secondary neuronal damage. Tropomyosin-related kinase receptor B (TrkB) signaling plays a crucial role in promoting neuronal survival following brain damage. METHODS: The present study investigated the protective effects and underlying mechanisms of TrkB activation by the specific TrkB agonist, 7,8-dihydroxyflavone (7,8-DHF), in a model of collagenase-induced ICH and in neuronal cultures. Mice subjected to collagenase-induced ICH were intraperitoneally injected with either 7,8-DHF or vehicle 10 min after ICH and, subsequently, daily for 3 days. Behavioral studies, brain edema measurement, and histological analysis were conducted. Levels of TrkB signaling-related molecules and apoptosis-related proteins were analyzed by western blots. RESULTS: Treatment with 20 mg/kg 7,8-DHF significantly improved functional recovery and reduced brain damage up to 28 days post-ICH. Reduction in neuronal death, apoptosis, and brain edema were also observed in response to 7,8-DHF treatment at 3 days post-ICH. These changes were accompanied by a significant increase in the phosphorylation of TrkB and Akt (Ser473/Thr308) at 1 and 3 days, but had no effect on Erk 44/42 phosphorylation. 7,8-DHF also enhanced the phosphorylation of Ask-1 Ser967 and FOXO-1, downstream targets of Akt at 1 and 3 days. Moreover, 7,8-DHF increased brain-derived neurotrophic factor levels at 1 day. In primary cultured neurons stimulated with hemin, 7,8-DHF promoted survival and reduced apoptosis. Furthermore, delaying the administration of 7,8-DHF to 3 h post-ICH reduced brain tissue damage and neuronal death. CONCLUSIONS: Our findings demonstrate that the activation of TrkB signaling by 7,8-DHF protects against ICH via the Akt, but not the Erk, pathway. These data provide new insights into the role of TrkB signaling deficit in the pathophysiology of ICH and highlight TrkB/Akt as possible therapeutic targets in this disease.

Increased Soluble Epoxide Hydrolase in Human Gestational Tissues from Pregnancies Complicated by Acute Chorioamnionitis.

Chorioamnionitis (CAM) is primarily a polymicrobial bacterial infection involving chorionic and amniotic membranes that is associated with increased risk of preterm delivery. Epoxyeicosatrienoic acids (EETs) are eicosanoids generated from arachidonic acid by cytochrome P450 enzymes and further metabolized mainly by soluble epoxide hydrolase (sEH) to produce dihydroxyeicosatrienoic acids (DHETs). As a consequence of this metabolism of EETs, sEH reportedly exacerbates several disease states; however, its role in CAM remains unclear. The objectives of this study were to (1) determine the localization of sEH and compare the changes it undergoes in the gestational tissues (placentas and fetal membranes) of women with normal-term pregnancies and those with pregnancies complicated by acute CAM; (2) study the effects of lipopolysaccharide (LPS) on the expression of sEH in the human gestational tissues; and (3) investigate the effect of 12-(3-adamantan-1-yl-ureido)-dodecanoic acid (AUDA), a specific sEH inhibitor, on LPS-induced changes in 14,15-DHET and cytokines such as interleukin- (IL-) 1ß and IL-6 in human gestational tissues in vitro and in pregnant mice. We found that women with pregnancies complicated by acute CAM had higher levels of sEH mRNA and protein in fetal membranes and villous tissues compared to those in women with normal-term pregnancies without CAM. Furthermore, fetal membrane and villous explants treated with LPS had higher tissue levels of sEH mRNA and protein and 14,15-DHET than those present in the vehicle controls, while the administration of AUDA in the media attenuated the LPS-induced production of 14,15-DHET in tissue homogenates and IL-1ß and IL-6 in the media of explant cultures. Administration of AUDA also reduced the LPS-induced changes of 14,15-DHET, IL-1ß, and IL-6 in the placentas of pregnant mice. Together, these results suggest that sEH participates in the inflammatory changes in human gestational tissues in pregnancies complicated by acute CAM.

Facile and Cost-Efficient Synthesis of Quasi-0D/2D ZnO/MoS2 Nanocomposites for Highly Enhanced Visible-Light-Driven Photocatalytic Degradation of Organic Pollutants and Antibiotics.

Nanoscale transition-metal dichalcogenide materials showed promising potential for visible-light responsive photocatalysis. Here, we report our investigations on the synthesis of heterodimensional nanostructures of two-dimensional (2D) ultrathin MoS2 nanosheets interspersed with ZnO nanoparticles by using a facile two-step method consisting of sonication-aided exfoliation technique followed by a wet chemical process. The photocatalytic activity of the nanocomposites was examined by studying the degradation of different organic dye pollutants and tetracycline, a common antibiotic, under visible-light irradiation. It is found that within 30 min more than 90 % of the model organic dye was photodegraded by the optimized quasi-0D/2D hybrid nanomaterial. The reaction rate of pollutant degradation is about five and eight times higher than those of the pristine MoS2 naonosheets and P25 photocatalysts, respectively. The outstanding photocatalytic activity of the heterodimensional hybrids can be attributed to a few beneficial features from the synergetic effects. Most importantly, the intimate junction between ZnO and MoS2 facilitates the separation of photogenerated carriers, leading to the enhancement of photocatalytic efficiency. A tentative photocatalytic degradation mechanism was proposed and tested. Overall, the present work provides valuable insights for the exploration of cost-effective nanoscale heterodimensional hybrids constructed from atomically thin layered materials.

Genetic deletion or pharmacological inhibition of soluble epoxide hydrolase reduces brain damage and attenuates neuroinflammation after intracerebral hemorrhage.

BACKGROUND: Inflammatory responses significantly contribute to neuronal damage and poor functional outcomes following intracerebral hemorrhage (ICH). Soluble epoxide hydrolase (sEH) is known to induce neuroinflammatory responses via degradation of anti-inflammatory epoxyeicosatrienoic acids (EET), and sEH is upregulated in response to brain injury. The present study investigated the involvement of sEH in ICH-induced neuroinflammation, brain damage, and functional deficits using a mouse ICH model and microglial cultures. METHODS: ICH was induced by injecting collagenase in both wild-type (WT) C57BL/6 mice and sEH knockout (KO) mice. WT mice were injected intracerebroventricularly with 12-(3-adamantan-1-yl-ureido)-dodecanoic acid (AUDA), a selective sEH inhibitor, 30 min before ICH. Expression of sEH in the hemorrhagic hemisphere was examined by immunofluorescence and Western blot analysis. The effects of genetic deletion or pharmacological inhibition of sEH by AUDA on neuroinflammatory responses, EET degradation, blood-brain barrier (BBB) permeability, histological damage, and functional deficits were evaluated. The anti-inflammatory mechanism of sEH inactivation was investigated in thrombin- or hemin-stimulated cultured microglia. RESULTS: ICH induced an increase in sEH protein levels in the hemorrhagic hemisphere from 3 h to 4 days. sEH was expressed in microglia/macrophages, astrocytes, neurons, and endothelial cells in the perihematomal region. Genetic deletion of sEH significantly attenuated microglia/macrophage activation and expression of inflammatory mediators and reduced EET degradation at 1 and 4 days post-ICH. Deletion of sEH also reduced BBB permeability, matrix metalloproteinase (MMP)-9 activity, neutrophil infiltration, and neuronal damage at 1 and 4 days. Likewise, administration of AUDA attenuated proinflammatory microglia/macrophage activation and EET degradation at 1 day post-ICH. These findings were associated with a reduction in functional deficits and brain damage for up to 28 days. AUDA also ameliorated neuronal death, BBB disruption, MMP-9 activity, and neutrophil infiltration at 1 day. However, neither gene deletion nor pharmacological inhibition of sEH altered the hemorrhage volume following ICH. In primary microglial cultures, genetic deletion or pharmacological inhibition of sEH by AUDA reduced thrombin- and hemin-induced microglial activation. Furthermore, AUDA reduced thrombin- and hemin-induced P38 MAPK and NF-κB activation in BV2 microglia cultures. Ultimately, AUDA attenuated N2A neuronal death that was induced by BV2 microglial conditioned media. CONCLUSIONS: Our results suggest that inhibition of sEH may provide a potential therapy for ICH by suppressing microglia/macrophage-mediated neuroinflammation.

Narrowband silicon waveguide Bragg reflector achieved by highly ordered graphene oxide gratings.

Graphene oxide (GO) ultrathin film can be wafer-scale deposited by spin coating, can be patterned by laser interference lithography and oxygen plasma etching, can be thinned atomically (0.26 nm/min) and oxidized by ozone treatment, and is a relatively transparent and low-refractive-index material compared to pristine graphene. All those unique properties prompt us to realize a low-loss (∼5 dB/cm), high-extinction-ratio (19 dB), and narrowband (0.425 nm) GO/silicon hybrid waveguide Bragg reflector by transferring 7-nm-thick GO gratings (n=1.58) atop a silicon strip waveguide. Unlike a sidewall-corrugated strip waveguide Bragg reflector that generally exhibits distorted corrugation profiles and is sensitive to fabrication errors, the as-realized GO-grating-covered strip waveguide Bragg reflector exhibits a stable reflecting wavelength and controllable reflection bandwidth that can be well predicted by numerical simulations.

Treatment with TO901317, a synthetic liver X receptor agonist, reduces brain damage and attenuates neuroinflammation in experimental intracerebral hemorrhage.

BACKGROUND: Intracerebral hemorrhage (ICH) induces a series of inflammatory processes that contribute to neuronal damage and neurological deterioration. Liver X receptors (LXRs) are nuclear receptors that negatively regulate transcriptional processes involved in inflammatory responses, but their role in the pathology following ICH remains unclear. The present study investigated the neuroprotective effects and anti-inflammatory actions of TO901317, a synthetic LXR agonist, in a model of collagenase-induced ICH and in microglial cultures. METHODS: Mice subjected to collagenase-induced ICH injury were injected with either TO901317 (30 mg/kg) or vehicle 10 min after ICH and subsequently daily for 2 days. Behavioral studies, histology analysis, and assessments of hematoma volumes, brain water content, and blood-brain barrier (BBB) permeability were performed. The protein expression of LXR-α, LXR-ß, ATP binding cassette transporter-1 (ABCA-1), and inflammatory molecules was analyzed. The anti-inflammatory mechanism of TO901317 was investigated in cultured microglia that were stimulated with either lipopolysaccharide (LPS) or thrombin. RESULTS: ICH induced an increase in LXR-α protein levels in the hemorrhagic hemisphere at 6 h whereas LXR-ß expression remained unaffected. Both LXR-α and LXR-ß were expressed in neurons and microglia in the peri-ICH region and but rarely in astrocytes. TO901317 significantly attenuated functional deficits and brain damage up to 28 days post-ICH. TO901317 also reduced neuronal death, BBB disruption, and brain edema at day 4 post-ICH. These changes were associated with marked reductions in microglial activation, neutrophil infiltration, and expression levels of inflammatory mediators at 4 and 7 days. However, TO901317 had no effect on matrix metalloproteinase-9 activity. In BV2 microglial cultures, TO901317 attenuated LPS- and thrombin-stimulated nitric oxide production and reduced LPS-induced p38, JNK, MAPK, and nuclear factor-kappa B (NF-κB) signaling. Moreover, delaying administration of TO901317 to 3 h post-ICH reduced brain tissue damage and neuronal death. CONCLUSIONS: Our results suggest that enhancing LXR activation may provide a potential therapy for ICH by modulating the cytotoxic functions of microglia.

Enhanced Photocatalytic Performance of ZnO Nanorods Coupled by Two-Dimensional α-MoO3 Nanoflakes under UV and Visible Light Irradiation.

We exploit the utilization of two-dimensional (2D) molybdenum oxide nanoflakes as a co-catalyst for ZnO nanorods (NRs) to enhance their photocatalytic performance. The 2D nanoflakes of orthorhombic α-MoO3 were synthesized through a sonication-aided exfoliation technique. The 2D MoO3 nanoflakes can be further converted to substoichiometric quasi-metallic MoO3-x by using UV irradiation. Subsequently, 1D-2D MoO3 /ZnO NR and MoO3-x /ZnO NR composite photocatalysts have been successfully synthesized. The photocatalytic performances of the novel nanosystems in the decomposition of methylene blue are studied by using UV- and visible-illumination setup. The incorporated 2D nanoflakes show a positive influence on the photocatalytic activity of the ZnO. The obtained rate constant values follow the order of pristine ZnO NR