Effect of Three Different Types of Biochar on Bioelectricity Generated from Plant Microbial Fuel Cells under Unsaturated Soil Condition.

Plant microbial fuel cell (PMFC) is an emerging technology, showing promise for environmental biosensors and sustainable energy production. Despite its potential, PMFCs struggle with issues like low power output and limited drought resistance. Recent studies proposed that integrating biochar may enhance PMFC performance due to its physicochemical properties. The influence of different biochar types on PMFC efficiency has been minimally explored. This study aims to fill this gap by evaluating the performance of PMFCs integrated with various biochar types under unsaturated soil conditions. The study found that the addition of biochar types─specifically reed straw biochar (RSB), apple wood biochar (AWB), and corn straw biochar (CSB)─significantly influenced the performance of PMFCs. RSB, with its large surface area and porous structure, notably increased the current output by reducing soil resistance and enhancing electron transfer efficiency in microbial reduction reactions, achieving a peak power density of approximately 1608 mW/m2. AWB, despite its less porous structure, leveraged its high cation exchange capacity and hydrophilic functional groups to foster microbial community growth and diversity, thereby also increasing bioelectricity output. Conversely, CSB, with its large surface area, showed the least improvement in PMFC performance due to its layered structure and lower water retention capacity. Additionally, under drought conditions, PMFCs with added RSB and AWB exhibited better drought resistance due to their ability to improve soil moisture characteristics and enhance soil conductivity. The addition of biochar reduced soil resistance, increasing the bioelectric output of PMFCs and maintaining good performance even under low moisture conditions. This study highlights the critical role of biochar's surface area and functional groups in optimizing PMFC performance. It enhances our understanding of PMFC optimization and might offer a novel power generation method for the future, while also presenting a fresh strategy for soil monitoring.

Effect of phosphate-mineralized bacteria on multi-metals migration behavior in vanadium tailing slags: Coexistence of immobilization and mobilization.

Biomineralization techniques have been utilized to remediate heavy metals (HMs) contaminated environments. However, the effect of microbial-induced phosphate precipitation (MIPP) on HMs behavior in vanadium tailing slags has not been revealed. This study is the first to report the influence of MIPP on multiple HMs including Cd, Cu, Pb and Zn in the slags with and without soil mixing. The results showed that MIPP exhibited excellent ability for Cd immobilization, Cd immobilization rate reached 43.41 % under the optimal parameters within 7 days. Cd immobilization performance was significantly improved and sustained after the slags were covered with soil, resulting from better colonization of phosphate mineralizing bacteria in slag-soil mixtures. Surprisingly, DTPA-Cu, Zn and Pb contents in slags were all increased to varying degrees after MIPP treatment. Leaching solution mineralization tests further suggested that MIPP significantly reduced the concentration of Cd2+, Pb2+, Ca2+, Mg2+ and Al3+, but barely changed Cu2+ and Zn2+ concentrations. Characterization analysis confirmed that formation of phosphates including Cd(PO4)2 and dissolution of minerals including PbZnSiO2 were the reason for HMs immobilization and mobilization in vanadium tailing slags. This study provides new insights for understanding biomineralization technology and using MIPP to remediate HMs contaminated mine waste.

Research on plasma modified fly ash denitration.

The effects of reactor parameters and process parameters on the denitration rate of modified fly ash in different gas atmospheres were studied by using a dielectric barrier plasma reactor and using orthogonal experiments. The characteristics of modified fly ash were analyzed using scanning electron microscope, specific surface area analyzer, X-ray diffraction, Boehm titration and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy. The experimental data were processed by variance analysis and linear regression to induce the denitration mechanism. R2 of the linear regression analysis model is 0.789, which means that the adsorption pore size, acid groups and basic group can explain 78.9% of the change in denitration rate. The basic group will have a significant positive impact on the denitration rate, and the adsorption pore size and acidic group will have a significant negative impact on the denitration rate. Through variance analysis of the experimental data, it was found that the input power and discharge gap have a significant effect on the denitration rate, but the ionization time and discharge length have no significant effect. The input power affects the denitration rate by impacting the basic group, and the discharge gap affects the denitration rate by influencing the adsorption pore size. There are three denitration mechanisms on the surface of fly ash: physical adsorption, chemical adsorption and absorption process. Among them, chemical adsorption is the main mechanism of action, accounting for approximately 60.86%.

Microwave drying method investigation for the process and kinetics of drying characteristics of zinc-leaching residue.

Due to the high moisture content in the zinc-leaching residue, it is easy to cause safety problems when directly entering the kiln. Microwave drying can minimize particle agglomeration and promote cracks on the mineral surface, which benefits the subsequent recovery and smelting of zinc-leaching residue. The results showed that increasing microwave power and particle size range could improve the maximum drying rate and reduce the drying time. The maximum drying rate of 20 g zinc-leaching slag with a microwave power of 700 W, a particle size of 1-10 mm, and a moisture content of 20% can be higher than 0.365%/s and reach complete drying within 120 s. The drying results were fitted and statistically analyzed using nine common kinetic models of drying, the surface diffusion coefficient changes were further analyzed at four levels, and the reaction activation energy (Ea) was calculated. According to Fick's second law, when the average particle size increased from 0.044 to 5.5 mm, the surface diffusion coefficient increased from 6.2559 × 10-9 to 3.8604 × 10-6 m2/s, which showed that the effect of particle size change on microwave drying process was significant. The Ea of the drying reaction was 18.1169 kJ/mol. This method provides an idea for efficiently treating secondary resources containing valuable metals.

Study on preparation and in vivo safety of progesterone cocrystal / 中国药房

OBJECTIVE To prepare progesterone-2-chloro-4-nitroaniline cocrystal （CNA） so as to improve the solubility of progesterone and primarily evaluate the safety of the progesterone cocrystal in vivo. METHODS Using progesterone as the main body and CNA as the ligand， progesterone-CNA cocrystal was prepared with solvent evaporation method. The cocrystal was characterized by X-ray single crystal diffraction， X-ray powder diffraction （XRPD）， differential scanning calorimetry （DSC） and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy （IR）. The dissolution rate of cocrystal was compared with those of progesterone and physical mixture. Forty-eight female KM mice were randomly divided into normal group （phosphate buffer containing 0.1% dimethyl sulfoxide）， progesterone group （16 mg/kg）， CNA group （9 mg/kg）， progesterone-CNA cocrystal low-dose， medium- dose and high-dose groups （6， 12.5， 25 mg/kg）， with 8 mice in each group. They were given relevant medicine/solvent intramuscularly， once a day， for consecutive 14 d. The safety of cocrystal was evaluated primarily by determining/observing the changes in body weight， organ index， tissue morphology， blood routine indicators， and liver and kidney function indicators. RESULTS The new crystal structure in the X-ray single crystal diffraction results， the new characteristic peak in the XRPD pattern， the change of melting point in the DSC results， and the change of the characteristic peak position in the range of 3 500- 2 750 cm－1 and 1 700-1 250 cm－1 in the infrared spectrum all Δ 基金项目国家重点研发计划项目（No.2022YFC3502100） indicated that progesterone-CNA cocrystal was successfully ＊第一作者 硕士研究生 。研究方向 ：药物制备技术与工艺 。 prepared， and the dissolution rate of cocrystal was more than E-mail：SWB_1221@163.com # 通信作者教授，硕士生导师，博士。研究方向：药物制备技术与 twice that of the progesterone raw material drug. The results of 工艺。E-mail：wuxx-415@126.com in vivo safety experiments showed that the mortality rate of all 中国药房 2023年第34卷第13期 China Pharmacy 2023 Vol. 34 No. 13 · 1567 · groups was zero. Compared with normal group， uterine indexes of mice in progesterone group and progesterone-CNA cocrystal groups were significantly increased （P＞0.05）， and endometrium was also thickened； there was no statistical difference in the changes of body mass， liver and kidney function， liver index， kidney index， the number of leukocyte， lymphocyte and neutrophil in routine blood test among those groups （P＞0.05）， and the morphology of liver and kidney tissue has also no significant difference. However， the number of plasma red blood cells in the progesterone group decreased significantly （P＜0.05）， and there was no statistical significance in the number difference of red blood cells among progesterone-CNA cocrystal groups （P＞0.05）. CONCLUSIONS The progesterone-CNA cocrystal is successfully prepared with good safety in vivo， which significantly improve the solubility of progesterone.

Biodegradation of Gramineous Lignocellulose by Locusta migratoria manilensis (Orthoptera: Acridoidea).

Exploring an efficient and green pretreatment method is an important prerequisite for the development of biorefinery. It is well known that locusts can degrade gramineous lignocellulose efficiently. Locusts can be used as a potential resource for studying plant cell wall degradation, but there are few relative studies about locusts so far. Herein, some new discoveries were revealed about elucidating the process of biodegradation of gramineous lignocellulose in Locusta migratoria manilensis. The enzyme activity related to lignocellulose degradation and the content of cellulose, hemicellulose, and lignin in the different gut segments of locusts fed corn leaves were measured in this study. A series of characterization analyses were conducted on corn leaves and locust feces, which included field emission scanning electron microscopy (FE-SEM), Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction pattern (XRD), and thermogravimetric (TG) analysis. These results showed that the highest activities of carboxymethyl cellulase (CMCase), filter paper cellulase (FPA), and xylanase were obtained in the foregut of locusts, which strongly indicated that the foregut was the main lignocellulose degradation segment in locusts; furthermore, the majority of nutritional components were absorbed in the midgut of locusts. The activity of CMCase was significantly higher than that of xylanase, and manganese peroxidase (MnPase) activity was lowest, which might be due to the basic nutrition of locusts being cellulose and hemicellulose and not lignin based on the results of FE-SEM, FTIR, XRD, and TG analysis. Overall, these results provided a valuable insight into lignocellulosic degradation mechanisms for understanding gramineous plant cell wall deconstruction and recalcitrance in locusts, which could be useful in the development of new enzymatic pretreatment processes mimicking the locust digestive system for the biochemical conversion of lignocellulosic biomass to fuels and chemicals.

Enhancing Cd(II) adsorption on rice straw biochar by modification of iron and manganese oxides.

Metal oxide-modified biochar showed excellent adsorption performance in wastewater treatment. Iron nitrate and potassium permanganate were oxidative modifiers through which oxygen-containing groups and iron-manganese oxides could be introduced into biochar. In this study, iron-manganese (Fe-Mn) oxide-modified biochar (BC-FM) was synthesized using rice straw biochar, and the adsorption process, removal effect, and the mechanism of cadmium (Cd) adsorption on BC-FM in wastewater treatment were explored through batch adsorption experiments and characterization (SEM, BET, FTIR, XRD, and XPS). Adsorption kinetics showed that the maximum adsorption capacity of BC-FM for Cd(II) was 120.77 mg/g at 298 K, which was approximately 1.5-10 times the amount of adsorption capacity for Cd(II) by potassium-modified or manganese-modified biochar as mentioned in the literature. The Cd(II) adsorption of BC-FM was well fit by the pseudo-second-order adsorption and Langmuir models, and it was a spontaneous and endothermic process. Adsorption was mainly controlled via a chemical adsorption mechanism. Moreover, BC-FM could maintain a Cd removal rate of approximately 50% even when reused three times. Cd(II) capture by BC-FM was facilitated by coprecipitation, surface complexation, electrostatic attraction, and cation-π interaction. Additionally, the loaded Fe-Mn oxides also played an important role in the removal of Cd(II) by redox reaction and ion exchange in BC-FM. The results suggested that BC-FM could be used as an efficient adsorbent for treating Cd-contaminated wastewater.

Synthesis of UV-11 MOF and Its Characterization by Cyclic Voltammetry.

In this work a Metal-Organic Framework (MOF) was prepared using a solvothermal method, taking as precursors 1. 2-di-(4-pyridyl)-ethylene, 1.2.4.5-benzenetetracarboxylic acid and Co(No3)2-6H2O. This MOF was called UV-11 and was evaluated using microscopic, spectroscopic and electrochemical techniques. According to the obtained results, the melting point of the compound is located in a higher interval than its precursors. Stereoscopic microscopy analysis shows the presence of pink crystals in the form of needles. MEB technique displays a laminar morphology as well as crystals with approximate sizes (36 mm wide and 150 mm long). EDS analysis corroborated the presence of precursor elements such as cobalt, carbon and oxygen. Furthermore, the XRD technique shows the cobalt-related phases in the sample, which is cobalt bis (pyridine-6-carboxylic-2-carboxylate). A modified carbon paste electrode was prepared using MOF UV-11 and by cyclic voltammetry electrochemical technique, semi-reversible redox processes are identified, as well as thermodynamic and kinetic parameters were obtained with the Laviron equation, and electrochemical performance properties from the cyclic voltammetry experimental data.

[Characterization analysis technique of Panax notoginseng saponin subcomponents for prevention and treatment of myocardial ischemia based on their structure and effect differences].

According to the structure and effect differences of Panax notoginseng saponin components(PNSC), subcomponent division and network pharmacological characterization were conducted to provide a research basis for the medicinal properties of P.notoginseng saponin subcomponents and the technical design of unit preparations. PNSC were screened by the TCMSP database and subcomponents were classified according to systematic clustering. Then the subcomponents obtained were subjected to target prediction and attribution analysis by PharmMapper server, GeneCards, DisGeNET and HOME-NCBI-GENE database. A subcomponent target interaction network was constructed by using the STRING database. KEGG and GO enrichment analysis were performed on each subcomponent target using the DAVID database. The subcomponents-targets-pathways visualization network was constructed by Cytoscape. The subcomponent targets and pathways involved were compared to analyze the differences in anti-myocardial ischemic drug mechanisms and the rationality of subcomponent division. Eighteen compounds of PNSC were screened out, and classified into three subcomponents A, B, and C according to their properties, involving 67 targets and 17 common anti-myocardial ischemic pathways directly or indirectly related to myocardial ischemia. Subcomponent A had the highest number of targets and the target interaction was dense, possibly indicating its key role in the mechanism of pharmacodynamics. Subcomponents A, B, and C had similar basic structures, and KEGG and GO analysis showed that they all can enhance the heart function and protection of cardiomyocytes by inhibiting apoptosis, promoting angiogenesis and regulating inflammatory response to play the effect on myocardial ischemia. This study fully reflected the differences in the efficacy of various subcomponents in preventing and treating myocardial ischemia due to the different physical properties of P. notoginseng saponin subcomponents. To some extent, the differences in the efficacy of each subcomponent in the prevention and treatment of myocardial ischemia could verify the rationality of the division of P. notoginseng saponin subcomponents according to the structural properties, realizing the characterization of P. notoginseng saponin subcomponents based on structure and effect differences.

Construction and characterization of nano-hydroxyapatite/chitosan/polycaprolactone composite scaffolds by 3D printing / 中国组织工程研究

BACKGROUND: At present, there are many types of bone defect repair scaffolds, but a single type of material is difficult to meet the requirements of bone tissue engineering scaffold materials. Several suitable materials can be combined into a composite material by appropriate methods, taking into account the advantages and disadvantages of various materials. It is the focus of scholars in recent years. OBJECTIVE: To construct nano-hydroxyapatite/chitosan/polycaprolactone composite scaffolds and analyze characterization of composite scaffolds. METHODS: Nano-hydroxyapatite/chitosan/polycaprolactone porous ternary composite scaffold material was prepared by 3D printing and molding technology. The characterization of scaffold material was studied from X-ray diffraction analysis, stent water absorption rate, stent compressive strength, stent degradation performance in vitro, stent aperture analysis, scanning electron microscope analysis and other dimensions. RESULTS AND CONCLUSION: (1) X-ray diffraction analysis showed that the crystal-shaped peak map of nano-hydroxyapatite/chitosan/ polycaprolactone scaffold materials was similar to the hydroxyapatite powder diffraction standard card, suggesting that the scaffold materials were integrated with each other through physical interaction, and did not affect the biological function of hydroxyapatite. (2) The average water absorption rate of the scaffold was 18.28%, and the hydrophilicity was good. The maximum pressure that the scaffold could withstand was 1 415 N, and the degradation rate was similar to the osteogenic rate. (3) Under a microscope, a ternary scaffold material with an aperture of 250 µm was successfully produced. The pore size was uniform and distributed regularly. (4) Scanning electron microscope demonstrated that the fibers composed of chitosan and polycaprolactone were arranged orderly and grid like, hydroxyapatite was distributed uniformly on the fiber surface in granular form, and the ternary composite material presented uniform and loose microporous structure. (5) Nano-hydroxyapatite/chitosan/polycaprolactone ternary composite scaffold material can be successfully prepared through 3D printing and molding technology, which has moderate compressive strength, certain porosity, appropriate degradation rate and water absorption rate, and can lay a foundation for repairing bone defects.

Characterization analysis technique of Panax notoginseng saponin subcomponents for prevention and treatment of myocardial ischemia based on their structure and effect differences / 中国中药杂志

According to the structure and effect differences of Panax notoginseng saponin components(PNSC), subcomponent division and network pharmacological characterization were conducted to provide a research basis for the medicinal properties of P.notoginseng saponin subcomponents and the technical design of unit preparations. PNSC were screened by the TCMSP database and subcomponents were classified according to systematic clustering. Then the subcomponents obtained were subjected to target prediction and attribution analysis by PharmMapper server, GeneCards, DisGeNET and HOME-NCBI-GENE database. A subcomponent target interaction network was constructed by using the STRING database. KEGG and GO enrichment analysis were performed on each subcomponent target using the DAVID database. The subcomponents-targets-pathways visualization network was constructed by Cytoscape. The subcomponent targets and pathways involved were compared to analyze the differences in anti-myocardial ischemic drug mechanisms and the rationality of subcomponent division. Eighteen compounds of PNSC were screened out, and classified into three subcomponents A, B, and C according to their properties, involving 67 targets and 17 common anti-myocardial ischemic pathways directly or indirectly related to myocardial ischemia. Subcomponent A had the highest number of targets and the target interaction was dense, possibly indicating its key role in the mechanism of pharmacodynamics. Subcomponents A, B, and C had similar basic structures, and KEGG and GO analysis showed that they all can enhance the heart function and protection of cardiomyocytes by inhibiting apoptosis, promoting angiogenesis and regulating inflammatory response to play the effect on myocardial ischemia. This study fully reflected the differences in the efficacy of various subcomponents in preventing and treating myocardial ischemia due to the different physical properties of P. notoginseng saponin subcomponents. To some extent, the differences in the efficacy of each subcomponent in the prevention and treatment of myocardial ischemia could verify the rationality of the division of P. notoginseng saponin subcomponents according to the structural properties, realizing the characterization of P. notoginseng saponin subcomponents based on structure and effect differences.

The thermophilic (55°C) microaerobic pretreatment of corn straw for anaerobic digestion.

Microaerobic process has been proven to be an alternative pretreatment for the anaerobic digestion (AD) process in several studies. In this study, the effect of thermophilic microaerobic pretreatment (TMP) on the AD of corn straw was investigated. Results indicated that TMP process obviously improved the methane yield. The maximum methane yield was obtained at the oxygen loads of 5ml/g VSsubstrate, which was 16.24% higher than that of untreated group. The modified first order equation analysis showed the TMP process not only accelerated the hydrolysis rates but also reduced the lag-phase time of AD process. The structural characterization analysis showed cellulosic structures of corn straw were partly disrupted during TMP process. The crystallinity indexes were also decreased. In addition, large or destroyed pores and substantial structural disruption were observed after pretreatment. The results showed that TMP is an efficient pretreatment method for the AD of corn straw.

Cloning and Characterization Analysis of 60S Ribosomal Protein L10a Gene from Chaetomium globosum / 微生物学通报

The sequence of Neurospora crassa(XP_322380)and Gibberella zeae PH-1(EAA76971)ribosomal protein gene were subjected to local tBlastn searching against the Chaetomium globosum ESTs datebase.The 765 bp full length cDNA encoding 60S ribosomal protein L10a gene was obtained.The open reading frame was 654 bp and encoded 217 amino acids.The protein molecular mass was 23.9 kD.The BlastP analysis revealed that amino acids sequence of ribosomal protein L10a gene from C.globosum shared 89% high similarity with N.crassa and 78% low similarty with Ustilago maydis.The cDNA and deduced amino acid sequence of 60S ribosomal protein L10a gene were accepted by GenBank(accession numbers: AY669070,AAT74578).