NLRP3 induces the autocrine secretion of IL-1ß to promote epithelial-mesenchymal transition and metastasis in breast cancer.

Tumor metastasis is a leading cause of mortality in patients with breast cancer (BC). As a predominant component of inflammasome, Nod-like receptor protein 3 (NLRP3) was found to be required for tumor progression, while the role of NLRP3 in BC metastasis remains largely undefined. In current study, we found that invasive BC had aberrant upregulation of NLRP3 expression, especially in the claudin-low subtype. And higher expression of NLRP3 predicted poor survival of BC patients. Further investigation suggested that NLRP3 promotes the migration and invasion, as well as the metastasis of BC cells. Moreover, we revealed that NLRP3 induces the autocrine secretion of IL-1ß to promote epithelial-mesenchymal transition via a Caspase-1-dependent manner. Hence, this study suggested that upregulation of NLRP3 in BC induces the autocrine secretion of IL-1ß and promotes EMT and metastasis of BC cells.

Differential response to lead toxicity in rat primary microglia and astrocytes.

Lead (Pb) is one of the most widely studied occupational and environmental toxins. Chronic exposure to Pb affects neural function in the central nervous system (CNS). Glial cells in the CNS, such as microglia and astrocytes, respond differently to Pb-induced toxicity. However, the underlying mechanism has not yet been identified. We measured the cell viability and intracellular Pb uptake in rat primary microglia and astrocytes using the CCK-8 assay and inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry, and found that Pb decreased microglial viability at lower dosages than in astrocytes, while Pb uptake was greater in astrocytes. Pb-induced oxidative stress in microglia results in increased production of reactive oxygen species, down-regulation of glutathione, and enhanced Nrf2 protein expression, while there was no obvious change in astrocytes. The role of Nrf2 in Pb-induced oxidative stress has also been confirmed in primary microglia with the use of Nrf2 small interfering RNA and an Nrf2 agonist. These data indicate that primary microglia were more sensitive to Pb exposure than astrocytes, which is associated with an obvious oxidative stress response and up-regulation of Nrf2 might be involved in this process.

Electrospun nanofibers of polyelectrolyte-surfactant complexes for antibacterial wound dressing application.

The development of polyelectrolyte-surfactant complexes (PESCs) has attracted extensive research interest in different fields of applications. However, the liquid state of PESCs has limited their utility in applications where solid materials are required. In this study, novel antibacterial fibers were fabricated via electrospinning PESCs in the solid state without any additives. The PESCs were prepared in aqueous mixtures of pre-hydrolyzed polyacrylonitrile (HPAN), a polyelectrolyte, and cetyltrimethyl ammonium chloride (CTAC), an antibacterial cationic surfactant, by taking advantage of the self-aggregation behavior of the polyelectrolyte and surfactant, which increased the antibacterial agent loading ability and, thus, the antibacterial activity of polymers. By release-killing and contact-killing mechanisms, the as-spun PESC nanofibrous membranes exhibited strong antibacterial ability against both Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteria, killing 5 log CFU of E. coli and S. aureus within a contact time as short as 30 min. Furthermore, PESCs were blended with polycaprolactone (PCL) to prepare composite nanofibrous membranes as a novel wound dressing, which showed excellent antibacterial activity and favorable cytocompatibility, with the mechanical strength high enough to satisfy the clinical application requirements. The PESC fibers with durable antibacterial activity presented in the current work would be promising for medical applications.

Plasmonic gold nanocrystals coupled with photonic crystal seamlessly on TiO2 nanotube photoelectrodes for efficient visible light photoelectrochemical water splitting.

A visible light responsive plasmonic photocatalytic composite material is designed by rationally selecting Au nanocrystals and assembling them with the TiO(2)-based photonic crystal substrate. The selection of the Au nanocrystals is so that their surface plasmonic resonance (SPR) wavelength matches the photonic band gap of the photonic crystal and thus that the SPR of the Au receives remarkable assistance from the photonic crystal substrate. The design of the composite material is expected to significantly increase the Au SPR intensity and consequently boost the hot electron injection from the Au nanocrystals into the conduction band of TiO(2), leading to a considerably enhanced water splitting performance of the material under visible light. A proof-of-concept example is provided by assembling 20 nm Au nanocrystals, with a SPR peak at 556 nm, onto the photonic crystal which is seamlessly connected on TiO(2) nanotube array. Under visible light illumination (>420 nm), the designed material produced a photocurrent density of ~150 µA cm(-2), which is the highest value ever reported in any plasmonic Au/TiO(2) system under visible light irradiation due to the photonic crystal-assisted SPR. This work contributes to the rational design of the visible light responsive plasmonic photocatalytic composite material based on wide band gap metal oxides for photoelectrochemical applications.

[Sources, Disposal Technologies, and Environmental Impact of Photopolymerization-based 3D Printing Plastic Waste].

In the 3D printing industry, photopolymerization-based 3D printing is considered to have the characteristics of high printing accuracy and mature technology. Therefore, it is of wide concern in industrial application and academic research. With the rapid development of photopolymerization-based technology, photopolymerization-based plastic waste will inevitably be produced in the process of product manufacturing and use. This kind of plastic waste is a new type of organic solid waste with an incalculable growth rate, and its impact on the environment is difficult to predict. Based on available research results, the latest research progress of sources, disposal technologies, and environmental impact of photopolymerization-based plastic waste were summarized and analyzed. The results revealed that the photopolymerization-based plastic waste was covalently crosslinked with thermosetting plastic. It had relatively higher activation energy and photo-sensitive chromogenic groups. There were some potential hazards to the environment and biosome caused by the raw material, printing process, and waste disposal process of photopolymerization-based plastic. Therefore, prospects and suggestions were proposed for the possibility of future disposal of photopolymerization-based plastic waste, in order to provide a reference for developing the photopolymerization-based 3D printing industry.

Screening and Identification of Probiotic Lactobacilli from the Infant Gut Microbiota to Alleviate Lead Toxicity.

Lead (Pb2+) exposure cause a potential hazard to human health and the ecological environment; however, prevention and treatment of Pb2+ toxicity remain problems. The aim of this study is to isolate a novel probiotic lead (Pb2+)-resistant Lactobacillus strain from the infant gut microbiota and to determine whether they have the probiotic properties and investigate its preventive and therapeutic effects in the early-life Pb2+ exposure mouse model. In the present study, a total of 64 Pb2+-resistant colonies were isolated from the infant gut microbiota. Of these colonies, SYF-08, identified as Lacticaseibacillus casei, exhibited a Pb2+-binding capacity and Pb2+ tolerance. The in vivo study showed that SYF-08 treatment could effectively reduce Pb2+ levels in the blood, alleviate Pb2+ enrichment in bone and brain tissues, and recover the intestinal and brain damage in both dams and offspring. SYF-08 treatment also improved the antioxidant index in the liver and kidney tissues, while increasing the diversity of the intestinal microbiota of the offspring. The results of the in vitro and in vivo studies suggest that SYF-08, isolated from infant fecal samples, is a promising candidate probiotic against Pb2+ toxicity.

Highly Aligned Ni-Decorated GO-CNT Nanostructures in Epoxy with Enhanced Thermal and Electrical Properties.

In this study, graphene oxide-carbon nanotubes nanostructures decorated with nickel nanoparticles (NiGNT) were prepared through the molecular-level-mixing method, followed by a reduction process, and then applied as reinforcements to enhance the epoxy resin matrix. The ferromagnetism of the Ni nanoparticles allowed NiGNT nanostructures to be vertically aligned within the composite with the assistance of a magnetic field. Due to the alignment distribution of the NiGNT, the composites demonstrated enhanced anisotropic thermal and electrical conduction performances, compared with pure epoxy and randomly distributed composites. The aligned distribution of NiGNT-epoxy composites displayed 2.7 times higher thermal conductivity and around 104 times better electrical conduction performance, compared with pure epoxy. The thermal expansion of NiGNT-epoxy composite was also restricted in the aligned direction of NiGNT nanostructures. Thus, NiGNT-epoxy composites show great potential as future aerospace, aviation, and automobile materials.

Pyrolysis properties and kinetics of photocured waste from photopolymerization-based 3D printing: A TG-FTIR/GC-MS study.

The emerging photopolymerization-based 3D printing industry has led to a growing concern for the disposal of photocured waste (PCW), which is inevitably generated during the life cycle of photopolymerization-based 3D printing. In order to shed light on suitable thermochemical treatment and utilization approaches of PCW, this work comprehensively investigated the properties and kinetics during PCW pyrolysis via TG-FTIR/GC-MS analysis. The results demonstrated that the main decomposition of PCW sample happened in the range 320-550 °C with a total weight loss of 93.34 wt%. According to the result of four kinetic models, the activation energy of PCW sample was approximately 228.58-245.05 kJ/mol. Finally, the FTIR and GC-MS results manifested that the main components of volatiles released at different heating rates were the same. The volatiles mainly include (S)-(+)-2-hydroxy-2-phenylprop, benzaldehyde, benzophenone (photo-initiator), benzoic acid, benzoylformic acid etc., which have a multitude of potential applications. However, these volatiles produced by PCW pyrolysis have a certain toxicity and potential hazard. This study demonstrates insightful fundamentals for thermochemical disposal of PCW, which appears to be potentially valuable with the rapid development of the photopolymerization-based 3D printing industry.

Pharmaceutical care program for ischemic stroke patients: a randomized controlled trial.

Background Effective secondary prevention is essential for reducing stroke recurrence. Objective This parallel randomized-controlled study aimed to evaluate the impact of a pharmaceutical care program on risk factor control (blood pressure, blood glucose, lipid profile, and medication adherence) and hospital readmissions in post-stroke care. Setting The First Hospital of Hebei Medical University, China. Method Ischemic stroke patients were enrolled in the study. Upon hospital discharge, patients were randomly allocated either to a control group (CG, no pharmaceutical care) or to an intervention group (IG, monthly pharmaceutical care follow-up for 6 months). The interventions aimed to increase medication adherence and improve risk factor control through education and counseling. Medication adherence and surrogate laboratory markers of risk factors were assessed and compared between the two groups. Main outcome measures Blood pressure, blood glucose, lipid profile, and medication adherence. Results A total of 184 patients with ischemic strokes were randomly assigned, and 84 patients in IG and 82 in CG were analyzed. There were no significant differences (P > 0.05) in both groups concerning demographic and clinical characteristics. Compared to CG, at the 6-month follow-up, medication adherence rates significantly increased regarding antihypertensive drugs (92.86% versus 78.57%, P = 0.031), anti-diabetic drugs (91.67% versus 69.7%, P = 0.02), and lipid-lowering drugs (77.38% versus 60.98%, P = 0.022) in IG. Compared to CG, more patients in IG attained the goal surrogate risk factor control markers of hemoglobin A1c (87.88% vs. 52.78%, P = 0.038) and low-density lipoprotein-C (66.67% vs. 48.78%, P = 0.02). Significantly fewer patients were re-admitted to the hospital in IG than CG (7.14% vs. 18.3%, P = 0.03). Conclusion Pharmaceutical care programs can improve risk factor control for the secondary prevention of stroke recurrence in ischemic stroke patients.

Joint toxicity of lead and cadmium on the behavior of zebrafish larvae: An antagonism.

Although the individual toxicity of lead (Pb) and cadmium (Cd) was intensively studied, little is known about their joint toxicity on the development of circadian behavioral rhythm. Therefore, we co-exposed zebrafish to Pb and Cd to investigate the alterations of behavioral rhythm and the potential mechanism. Inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry analysis was used to detect the internal exposure level of heavy metals. The behavioral rhythm was monitored by a video-track tracking system. The changes of gene expression regarding melatonin-related molecules and clock genes were analyzed by quantitative polymerase chain reaction and JTK-Cycle analysis. The results showed that the level of Pb2+ and Cd2+ accumulated in the co-exposure group were significantly lower than that in the Pb or Cd group. Exposed to Pb reduced the locomotor activity; the behavioral rhythms were disrupted by Cd, while the pattern in the co-exposure group showed an antagonistic effect on locomotor activity and behavioral rhythm. The expression rhythm of aanat1 was disturbed and the expression levels of mtnr1aa and mtnr1bb were decreased by co-exposure treatment, but mtnr1c was increased in Pb and Cd group, respectively. Exposure to Cd caused the disruption of expression rhythm in clock genes, like clock1b, clock2, and cry1b, while only the rhythm of clock2 was disrupted in the co-exposure group. The results suggest that the behavioral rhythm disruption caused by Cd exposure is associated with the disturbance of certain circadian genes, whereas Pb exposure only abates the locomotor activity; an antagonistic effect on the behavioral pattern when co-exposed zebrafish larvae to Pb and Cd.

Polyacrylonitrile/polyimide composite sub-micro fibrous membranes for precise filtration of PM0.26 pollutants.

Particulate matter (PM) pollution has enormously threatened ecosystem and public health. Among various air filtration medium, fibrous ones are very attracting and promising, with an array of advantages such as high specific surface area, and good internal connectivity. Even so, the large-scale fabrication of fibrous filtration materials still remains challenging. Here, three-dimensional polyacrylonitrile/polyimide (PAN/PI) composite sub-micro fibrous membranes were fabricated facilely via free surface electrospinning for precise filtration of PM0.26 pollutants, where the waste PI short fibers were utilized as raw material. The resultant composite fibrous membranes, featuring thin fiber diameter (~150 nm), low areal density (<0.8 g m-2), large porosity, and highly tortuous airflow channels with uniform poresize distribution, possessed excellent mechanical property with tensile strength of 4.95 MPa (twice that of pristine PAN), high thermal durability as well as remarkable filtration performance for ultrafine NaCl aerosol particles (≤0.26 µm) even after multiple filtration tests at high airflow velocity of 14.1 cm s-1. The deepened aperture channels inside three-dimensional sub-micro fibrous membranes are tortuous enough for capturing ultrafine PMs from the airstream mainly via diffusion, interception, and impaction mechanisms, and the reported large-scale fabrication of cost-effective homogeneous PAN/PI fibrous filter media is promising for industrial production and commercial applications.

Effects of ecologically relevant concentrations of cadmium on locomotor activity and microbiota in zebrafish.

Cadmium (Cd) is widely spread in the aquatic environment, and its impact on humans and the ecosystem is an important issue in public health. However, its effects on zebrafish microbiota are still poorly understood. In this study, the potential developmental neurotoxicity and microbiota dysbiosis of ecologically relevant concentrations of Cd (0, 1.25, 2.5 and 5 µg/L) was evaluated by waterborne exposure for 7 days. The data showed that exposure to 5 µg/L of Cd significantly decreased survival rates and impaired locomotor activities. Uptake of Cd was enhanced with the increase of the concentration and duration of exposure. High-throughput sequencing analysis revealed a significant change in the richness and diversity of the microbiota of Cd-treated zebrafish. At the phylum level, the abundance of Proteobacteria increased, while that Firmicutes was significantly decreased after exposure to 5 µg/L Cd. At the genus level, there were significant changes in the abundances of several bacteria involved in the regulation of neurodegenerative diseases (Pseudomonas, Ruminococcaceae, Blautia, Bacteroides, Lactobacillus, Lachnospiraceae, and Phascolarctobacterium) in the Cd-treatment groups, as compared to the control group. In addition, the mRNA expression profiles of bdnf and genes involved in serotonin signaling and metabolism were changed in the Cd exposure groups. Together, these data suggest that Cd could be harmful to zebrafish health by inducing the microbiota changes, and the microbiota could serve as a potential target to protect against the adverse effects of Cd toxicity.

Facile preparation of ultrafine polyimide nanofibers containing silver nanoparticles.

A simple method for the preparation of ultrafine polyimide (PI) fibers containing Ag nanoparticles was developed. Ag+ ions in a poly(amic acid) (PAA) precursor solution were firstly electrospun into ultrafine PAA fibers, and the Ag+ ions were then directly reduced to Ag nanoparticles during the imidization process of PAA. The PAA was used as a matrix as well as a reducing agent for the Ag+ ions. The obtained Ag nanoparticles were evenly distributed in the PI nanofiber mats and their average size was ca. 20 nm. This method was very simple and could be generally used to prepare the polyimide fibers containing Ag nanoparticles.

Photocatalytic Activity of TiO2 Nanofibers: The Surface Crystalline Phase Matters.

The crystal phases and surface states of TiO2 can intrinsically determine its performance in the applications of photocatalysis. Here, we prepared TiO2 nanofibers with different crystal phase contents by electrospinning followed via calcination at different temperatures. The TiO2 nanofibers were characterized using scanning electron microscopy (SEM), X-ray diffraction (XRD), Raman spectrometry, transmission electron microscopy (TEM), and photocatalytic performance testing. The results showed that the phases of TiO2 nanofibers were layered, that surface crystal phase transition rate was faster than that of internal layers contributed the difference in the ratio of anatase and rutile in the outer and inner layer of TiO2 nanofibers. The TiO2 nanofibers obtained at 575 °C had the best photocatalytic activity, taking only 25 min to degrade Rhodamine B. At 575 °C, the rutile content of the sample surface was about 80 wt.%, while the internal rutile content was only about 40 wt.%. Subsequently, we prepared two different structures of anatase-rutile core-shell TiO2 nanofibers. The core-shell structure can be clearly seen by TEM characterization. The photocatalytic activity of two kinds of core-shell TiO2 nanofibers was tested. The results showed that the photocatalytic activity was close to that of the pure phase TiO2 nanofibers, which corresponded with the surface phase. This further proves that the photocatalytic activity of the material is mainly affected by its surface structure.

Wettability Control in Tree Structure-Based 1D Fiber Assemblies for Moisture Wicking Functionality.

One of the fundamental properties of natural systems is their water transport ability, and living systems have efficient moisture management features. Here, a unique structure, inspired by the water transfer behavior in trees, was designed for one-dimensional (1D) fiber assemblies. In this 1D fiber assembly structure, a differential capillary effect enabling rapid water transfer at the interface between traditional cotton fibers and electrospun nanofibers was explored. A tree-like structure yarn was constructed successfully by novel electrospinning technology, and the effect was quantitatively controlled by precisely regulating the fibers' wettability. Fabrics based on these tree-like core-spun yarns possessed advanced moisture-wicking performance, a high one-way transport index (R) of 1034.5%, and a desirable overall moisture management capability of 0.88, which are over two times higher than those of conventional fabrics. This moisture-wicking regime endowed these 1D fiber assemblies with unique water transfer channels, providing a new strategy for moisture-heat transmission, microfluidics, and biosensor applications.

Highly sensitive and stable humidity nanosensors based on LiCl doped TiO2 electrospun nanofibers.

A new type of humidity nanosensor based on LiCl-doped TiO2 nanofibers with poly(vinyl pyrrolidone) (PVP) nanofibers as sacrificial template has been fabricated through electrospinning and calcination. The sensor exhibited excellent sensing characteristics, such as ultrafast response and recovery times, good reproducibility, linearity, and environmental stability, which are of importance for applications in humidity monitoring and control.

A Fast Response Ammonia Sensor Based on Coaxial PPy-PAN Nanofiber Yarn.

Highly orientated polypyrrole (PPy)-coated polyacrylonitrile (PAN) (PPy-PAN) nanofiber yarn was prepared with an electrospinning technique and in-situ chemical polymerization. The morphology and chemical structure of PPy-PAN nanofiber yarn was characterized by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), field emission scanning electron microscopy (FESEM), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), and fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), which indicated that the PPy as the shell layer was homogeneously and uniformly polymerized on the surface of PAN nanofiber. The effects of different concentration of doping acid on the responses of PPy-PAN nanofiber yarn sensor were investigated. The electrical responses of the gas sensor based on the PPy-PAN nanofiber yarn to ammonia were investigated at room temperature. The nanoyarn sensor composed of uniaxially aligned PPy-PAN nanofibers with a one-dimensional structure exhibited a transient response, and the response time was less than 1 s. The excellent sensing properties mentioned above give rise to good potential application prospects in the field of ammonia sensor.

A rapid ammonia sensor based on lysine nanogel-sensitized PANI/PAN nanofibers.

In this paper, l-lysine-based materials which are rich in amino groups were synthesized through a chemical reaction. The polyaniline/polyacrylonitrile (PANI/PAN) thin film and PANI/PAN nanocomposite (NC) thin films doped with l-lysine based materials were obtained by electrospinning and in situ polymerization of aniline. The gas sensing properties of the PANI/PAN thin film and PANI/PAN NC thin films doped with l-lysine based materials towards NH3, ethanol, acetone, chloroform and DMF were examined at room temperature. The experimental results reveal that the PANI/PAN/l-lysine based nanogel (4-Lys-4 nanogel) NC thin film exhibited a highly selective response toward NH3 at room temperature with improved response kinetics. The PANI/PAN/4-Lys-4 nanogel NC thin film showed the response of 5.5 with response and recovery times of 22 s and 15 s, respectively, toward 100 ppm NH3, and the detection limit of 2.2 ppm. This response and recovery are quite fast compared with the reported studies based on PANI doped with other materials. The enhanced response could be attributed to the large surface area, the core-shell structure of the nanofibers and improved charge transfer as a result of a certain amount of amino groups doping PANI. Our results clearly indicate that the PANI/PAN/4-Lys-4 nanogel NC thin film could effectively be used for the practical room temperature NH3 sensing application with quite fast response and recovery properties. At the same time, a new application of 4-Lys-4 nanogel on sensors is supplied.

Carbon-layer-protected cuprous oxide nanowire arrays for efficient water reduction.

In this work, we propose a solution-based carbon precursor coating and subsequent carbonization strategy to form a thin protective carbon layer on unstable semiconductor nanostructures as a solution to the commonly occurring photocorrosion problem of many semiconductors. A proof-of-concept is provided by using glucose as the carbon precursor to form a protective carbon coating onto cuprous oxide (Cu2O) nanowire arrays which were synthesized from copper mesh. The carbon-layer-protected Cu2O nanowire arrays exhibited remarkably improved photostability as well as considerably enhanced photocurrent density. The Cu2O nanowire arrays coated with a carbon layer of 20 nm thickness were found to give an optimal water splitting performance, producing a photocurrent density of -3.95 mA cm⁻² and an optimal photocathode efficiency of 0.56% under illumination of AM 1.5G (100 mW cm⁻²). This is the highest value ever reported for a Cu2O-based electrode coated with a metal/co-catalyst-free protective layer. The photostability, measured as the percentage of the photocurrent density at the end of 20 min measurement period relative to that at the beginning of the measurement, improved from 12.6% on the bare, nonprotected Cu2O nanowire arrays to 80.7% on the continuous carbon coating protected ones, more than a 6-fold increase. We believe that the facile strategy presented in this work is a general approach that can address the stability issue of many nonstable photoelectrodes and thus has the potential to make a meaningful contribution in the general field of energy conversion.