Barbed arrow-like structure membrane with ultra-high rectification coefficient enables ultra-fast, highly-sensitive lateral-flow assay of cTnI.

Acute myocardial infarction (AMI) has become a public health disease threatening public life safety due to its high mortality. The lateral-flow assay (LFA) of a typical cardiac biomarker, troponin I (cTnI), is essential for the timely warnings of AMI. However, it is a challenge to achieve an ultra-fast and highly-sensitive assay for cTnI (hs-cTnI) using current LFA, due to the limited performance of chromatographic membranes. Here, we propose a barbed arrow-like structure membrane (BAS Mem), which enables the unidirectional, fast flow and low-residual of liquid. The liquid is rectified through the forces generated by the sidewalls of the barbed arrow-like grooves. The rectification coefficient of liquid flow on BAS Mem is 14.5 (highest to date). Using BAS Mem to replace the conventional chromatographic membrane, we prepare batches of lateral-flow strips and achieve LFA of cTnI within 240 s, with a limit of detection of 1.97 ng mL-1. The lateral-flow strips exhibit a specificity of 100%, a sensitivity of 93.3% in detecting 25 samples of suspected AMI patients. The lateral-flow strips show great performance in providing reliable results for clinical diagnosis, with the potential to provide early warnings for AMI.

Macrophage colony-stimulating factor and its role in the tumor microenvironment: novel therapeutic avenues and mechanistic insights.

The tumor microenvironment is a complex ecosystem where various cellular and molecular interactions shape the course of cancer progression. Macrophage colony-stimulating factor (M-CSF) plays a pivotal role in this context. This study delves into the biological properties and functions of M-CSF in regulating tumor-associated macrophages (TAMs) and its role in modulating host immune responses. Through the specific binding to its receptor colony-stimulating factor 1 receptor (CSF-1R), M-CSF orchestrates a cascade of downstream signaling pathways to modulate macrophage activation, polarization, and proliferation. Furthermore, M-CSF extends its influence to other immune cell populations, including dendritic cells. Notably, the heightened expression of M-CSF within the tumor microenvironment is often associated with dismal patient prognoses. Therefore, a comprehensive investigation into the roles of M-CSF in tumor growth advances our comprehension of tumor development mechanisms and unveils promising novel strategies and approaches for cancer treatment.

Mechanism of Ferulic Acid in PI3K/AKT Pathway and Research in Glioblastoma.

Phenolic acids and their analogues in nature exist in many diseases of oxidative stress with beneficial effects on human health (such as cancer). Phenolic acids possess a variety of pharmacological activities, with anti-inflammatory, anticancer and cytotoxic, antioxidant, immunomodulatory, antimicrobial, insecticidal and other biological activities. Numerous in vitro and in vivo studies have shown that because phenolic acids have antioxidant capacity, they can reflect their strong anticancer potential by regulating cell growth and metastasis and promoting cancer cell death. Studies have shown that the consumption of natural polyphenols can significantly reduce the risk of cancer metastasis. A combination of phenolic acids with traditional chemoradiation or other polyphenols may be effective in reducing cancer spread.Ferulic acid is ubiquitous, and widely found in plants, such as angelica, chuanxiong, cohote, three, edge, reed root, tomato, sweet corn, and rice are produced by the metabolism of phenylalanine and tyrosine. It is the most abundant hydroxyl cassia bark-acid acid in the plant kingdom, with anti-inflammatory, antidiabetic, anticancer and antioxidant activity, and polyphenols composed of hydroxyl cassia bark-acid derivatives, flavone-3-alcohol and flavonol retain non-cancer-cells-and-significantly-inhibit glioblastoma viability in a dose-dependent manner, which deserves further investigation as potential anticancer drugs. This paper summarizes the role of ferulic acid in the PI3K / AKT pathway and its mechanism in glioblastoma resistance.

Graded Mxene-Doped Liquid Metal as Adhesion Interface Aiming for Conductivity Enhancement of Hybrid Rigid-Soft Interconnection.

Hybrid rigid-soft electronic system combines the biocompatibility of stretchable electronics and the computing capacity of silicon-based chips, which has a chance to realize a comprehensive stretchable electronic system with perception, control, and algorithm in near future. However, a reliable rigid-soft interconnection interface is urgently required to ensure both the conductivity and stretchability under a large strain. To settle this demand, this paper proposes a graded Mxene-doped liquid metal (LM) method to achieve a stable solid-liquid composite interconnect (SLCI) between the rigid chip and stretchable interconnect lines. To overcome the surface tension of LM, a high-conductive Mxene is doped for the balance between adhesion and liquidity of LM. And the high-concentration doping could prevent the contact failure with chip pins, while the low-concentration doping tends to maintain the stretchability. Based on this dosage-graded interface structure, the solid light-emitting diode (LED) and other devices integrated into the stretchable hybrid electronic system could achieve an excellent conductivity insensitive to the exerted tensile strain. In addition, the hybrid electronic system is demonstrated for skin-mounted and tire-mounted temperature-test applications under the tensile strain up to 100%. This Mxene-doped LM method aims to obtain a robust interface between rigid components and flexible interconnects by attenuating the inherent Young's modulus mismatch between rigid and flexible systems and makes it a promising candidate for effective interconnection between solid electronics and soft electronics.

Graphene quantum dots induce cascadic apoptosis via interaction with proteins associated with anti-oxidation after endocytosis by Trypanosoma brucei.

Trypanosoma brucei, the pathogen causing African sleeping sickness (trypanosomiasis) in humans, causes debilitating diseases in many regions of the world, but mainly in African countries with tropical and subtropical climates. Enormous efforts have been devoted to controlling trypanosomiasis, including expanding vector control programs, searching for novel anti-trypanosomial agents, and developing vaccines, but with limited success. In this study, we systematically investigated the effect of graphene quantum dots (GQDs) on trypanosomal parasites and their underlying mechanisms. Ultrasmall-sized GQDs can be efficiently endocytosed by T. brucei and with no toxicity to mammalian-derived cells, triggering a cascade of apoptotic reactions, including mitochondrial disorder, intracellular reactive oxygen species (ROS) elevation, Ca2+ accumulation, DNA fragmentation, adenosine triphosphate (ATP) synthesis impairment, and cell cycle arrest. All of these were caused by the direct interaction between GQDs and the proteins associated with cell apoptosis and anti-oxidation responses, such as trypanothione reductase (TryR), a key protein in anti-oxidation. GQDs specifically inhibited the enzymatic activity of TryR, leading to a reduction in the antioxidant capacity and, ultimately, parasite apoptotic death. These data, for the first time, provide a basis for the exploration of GQDs in the development of anti-trypanosomials.

Thermal and Acidic Treatments of Gluten Epitopes Affect Their Recognition by HLA-DQ2 in silico.

Celiac disease (CD) is a prevalent disorder with autoimmune features. Dietary exposure of wheat gluten (including gliadins and glutenins) to the small intestine activates the gluten-reactive CD4+ T cells and controls the disease development. While the human leukocyte antigen (HLA) is the single most important genetic factor of this polygenic disorder, HLA-DQ2 recognition of gluten is the major biological step among patients with CD. Gluten epitopes are often rich in Pro and share similar primary sequences. Here, we simulated the solution structures changes of a variety of gluten epitopes under different pH and temperatures, to mimic the fermentation and baking/cooking processes. Based on the crystal structure of HLA-DQ2, binding of differently processed gluten epitopes to DQ2 was studied in silico. This study revealed that heating and pH change during the fermentation process impact the solution structure of gluten epitope. However, binding of differently treated gluten epitope peptide (GEP) to HLA-DQ2 mainly depended on its primary amino acid sequence, especially acidic amino acid residues that play a pivotal role in their recognition by HLA-DQ2.

Cyanidin 3-O-galactoside: A Natural Compound with Multiple Health Benefits.

Cyanidin 3-O-galactoside (Cy3Gal) is one of the most widespread anthocyanins that positively impacts the health of animals and humans. Since it is available from a wide range of natural sources, such as fruits (apples and berries in particular), substantial studies were performed to investigate its biosynthesis, chemical stability, natural occurrences and content, extraction methods, physiological functions, as well as potential applications. In this review, we focus on presenting the previous studies on the abovementioned aspects of Cy3Gal. As a conclusion, Cy3Gal shares a common biosynthesis pathway and analogous stability with other anthocyanins. Galactosyltransferase utilizing uridine diphosphate galactose (UDP-galactose) and cyanidin as substrates is unique for Cy3Gal biosynthesis. Extraction employing different methods reveals chokeberry as the most practical natural source for mass-production of this compound. The antioxidant properties and other health effects, including anti-inflammatory, anticancer, antidiabetic, anti-toxicity, cardiovascular, and nervous protective capacities, are highlighted in purified Cy3Gal and in its combination with other polyphenols. These unique properties of Cy3Gal are discussed and compared with other anthocyanins with related structure for an in-depth evaluation of its potential value as food additives or health supplement. Emphasis is laid on the description of its physiological functions confirmed via various approaches.

Enhanced Antimalarial Efficacy Obtained by Targeted Delivery of Artemisinin in Heparin-Coated Magnetic Hollow Mesoporous Nanoparticles.

Malaria is one of the deadliest infectious diseases threatening half of the world population. With the deterioration of the parasiticidal effect of the current antimalarials, novel approaches such as screening of more specific inhibitors and targeted delivery of drugs have been under intensive research. Herein, we prepare hollow mesoporous ferrite nanoparticles (HMFNs) of 200 nm with ferromagnetic properties using a one-pot hydrothermal reaction. A magnetically targeted drug-delivery system coloaded with artemisinin in the inner magnetite shell and heparin on the outer mesoporous shell (HMFN@ART@HEP) is developed. Specific targeting of the magnetic nanoparticles to the parasite-infected erythrocytes is achieved by the attraction between the HMFNs and hemozoin (paramagnetic), a vital metabolite of plasmodium in the erythrocytic stage. With the hemozoin production reaching the maximum during the schizont period of the parasite, HMFN@ART@HEPs are adsorbed to the infected red blood cells (iRBCs), which not only interferes with the release of merozoites but also significantly enhances the inhibitory efficacy due to the increased local concentration of artemisinin. Subsequently, the heparin coated on the surface of the nanoparticles can efficiently interfere with the invasion of freshly released merozoites to new RBCs through the specific interaction between the parasite-derived ligands and heparin, which further increases the inhibitory effect on malaria. As a cluster of heparin, heparin-coated nanoparticles provide stronger blocking capability than free heparin, resulting from multivalent interactions with surface receptors on merozoite. Thus, we have developed a HMFN-based delivery system with considerable antimalarial efficacy, which is a promising platform for treatment against malaria.

The wPDI Redox Cycle Coupled Conformational Change of the Repetitive Domain of the HMW-GS 1Dx5-A Computational Study.

The repetitive sequence of glutenin plays an important role in dough rheology; however, its interaction with wheat protein disulfide isomerase (wPDI) remains unclear. In this study, the conformations of wild type glutenin repetitive sequence (WRS) from the high molecular weight glutenin subunit (HMW-GS) 1Dx5, an artificially designed glutenin repetitive sequence (DRS) of which the amino acid composition is the same but the primary structure is different, and wPDI under different redox states were simulated. The molecular interactions between the aforementioned repetitive sequences with wPDI under different redox states were further investigated. The results indicated that the repetitive sequences bind to the b and b' domains of an "open", oxidized wPDI (wPDIO) which serves as the acceptor state of substrate. The repetitive sequence is partially folded (compressed) in wPDIO, and is further folded in the thermodynamically favored, subsequent conformational transition of wPDIO to reduced wPDI (wPDIR). Compared with the artificially designed one, the naturally designed repetitive sequence is better recognized and more intensively folded by wPDI for its later unfold as the molecular basis of dough extension.