Occurrence of microplastics in the Haima cold seep area of the South China Sea.

The pollution of deep-sea microplastics has received increasing attention. As a special ecosystem in the deep sea, the cold seep area is of great significance for studying the distribution of microplastics in the deep sea. In this work, the distribution and characteristics of microplastics in seawater, sediments, and shellfish in the Haima cold seep area and the correlation between the characteristics of microplastics in different media and the type of media were studied. Microplastics were found in all three media. The abundance of microplastics in different samples from the Haima cold seep area ranged 1.8-3.8 items/L for the seawater, 11.47-96.8 items/kg (d.w.) for the surface sediments, and 0-5 items/individual (0-0.714 items/g) for the shellfish. The amount of microplastics ingested by shellfish varied among different species. The microplastics in these three media were mainly fibrous, dark-colored, small-sized rayon, polyethylene terephthalate (PET), and polyethylene (PE). In the correlation analysis of microplastic characteristics among the three media, it was found that the characteristics of microplastics in different media in the same area were closely related, and each pair of variables showed a significant positive correlation (P ≤ 0.05). The distinctive geographical conditions would accelerate the interchange of microplastics among various media. Principal component analysis showed that habitat contribute to microplastic feature differences in shellfish. Differences in correlation were observed between the characteristics of shellfish microplastics in different regions and the characteristics of microplastics in surrounding seawater and sediments.

N-type semiconducting hydrogel.

Hydrogels are an attractive category of biointerfacing materials with adjustable mechanical properties, diverse biochemical functions, and good ionic conductivity. Despite these advantages, their application in electronics has been restricted because of their lack of semiconducting properties, and they have traditionally only served as insulators or conductors. We developed single- and multiple-network hydrogels based on a water-soluble n-type semiconducting polymer, endowing conventional hydrogels with semiconducting capabilities. These hydrogels show good electron mobilities and high on/off ratios, enabling the fabrication of complementary logic circuits and signal amplifiers with low power consumption and high gains. We demonstrate that hydrogel electronics with good bioadhesive and biocompatible interface can sense and amplify electrophysiological signals with enhanced signal-to-noise ratios.

In Situ Electrochemical Synthesis of Squamous-like Cu2S Induced by Sulfate-Reducing Bacteria as a Fenton-like Catalyst in Wastewater Treatment: Catalytic Performance and Mechanism.

In this paper, a novel method was proposed for the synthesis of Cu2S on copper mesh via electrolysis in SRB culture medium. It was found that following electrolysis in SRB medium, squamous-like Cu2S arrays were obtained on the copper mesh, and the Cu2S loading contents varied with the electrolyzing parameters. The resultant Cu2S on copper mesh in SRB (CSCM-SRB) with the highest catalytic MB degradation properties was produced by electrolysis at 3.75 mA/cm2 for 900 s. The optimized MB-degrading conditions were determined to be 1.2 cm2/mL CSCM-SRB with 0.05 M H2O2 at 35 °C when pH = 6, under which the degradation of MB reached over 99% after 120 min of reaction. Disinfecting properties was also proven by antibacterial tests, revealing that an almost 100% antibacterial rate against E. coli was obtained after 8 min. The organic compounds produced by SRB adsorbed on CSCM-SRB strongly promoted the degradation of MB. Furthermore, possible Fenton-like mechanisms of CSCM-SRB were proposed, illustrating that ·O2-, ·OH, and 1O2 acted as the main functional species during Fenton-like reactions, leading to effective MB degradation and high antibacterial properties. Finally, a simple device for wastewater treatment was designed, providing possible applications in real environments.

A novel photoelectrochemical self-screening aptamer biosensor based on CAU-17-derived Bi2WO6/Bi2S3 for rapid detection of quorum sensing signal molecules.

Quorum sensing signal molecule is an important biomarker released by some microorganisms, which can regulate the adhesion and aggregation of marine microorganisms on the surface of engineering facilities. Thus, it is significant to exploit a convenient method that can effectively monitor the formation and development of marine biofouling. In this work, an advanced photoelectrochemical (PEC) aptamer biosensing platform was established and firstly applied for the rapid and ultrasensitive determination of N-(3-Oxodecanoyl)-l-homoserine lactone (3-O-C10-HL) released from marine fouling microorganism Ponticoccus sp. PD-2. The visible-light-driven Bi2WO6/Bi2S3 heterojunction derived from metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) CAU-17 and self-screened aptamer were employed as the photoactive materials and bioidentification elements, respectively. Appropriate amount of MoS2 quantum dots (QDs) conjugated with single-stranded DNA were introduced by hybridization to enhance the photocurrent response of the PEC biosensor. The self-screening aptamer can specifically recognize 3-O-C10-HL, accompanied by increasing the steric hindrance and forcing MoS2 QDs to leave the electrode surface, resulting in an obvious reduction of photocurrent and achieving a dual-inhibition signal amplification effect. Under the optimized conditions, the photocurrent response of PEC aptasensor was linear with 3-O-C10-HL concentration from 1 nM to 10 µM, and the detection limit was as low as 0.26 nM. The detection strategy also showed a high reproducibility, superior specificity and good stability. This work not only provides a simple, rapid and ultrasensitive PEC aptamer biosensing strategy for monitoring quorum sensing signal molecules in marine biofouling, but also broadens the application of MOFs-based heterojunctions in PEC sensors.

Dual Engine Boosts Organic Photoelectrochemical Transistor for Enhanced Modulation and Bioanalysis.

Organic photoelectrochemical transistor (OPECT) has shown substantial potential in the development of next-generation bioanalysis yet is limited by the either-or situation between the photoelectrode types and the channel types. Inspired by the dual-photoelectrode systems, we propose a new architecture of dual-engine OPECT for enhanced signal modulation and its biosensing application. Exemplified by incorporating the CdS/Bi2S3 photoanode and Cu2O photocathode within the gate-source circuit of Ag/AgCl-gated poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene):poly(styrenesulfonate) (PEDOT:PSS) channel, the device shows enhanced modulation capability and larger transconductance (gm) against the single-photoelectrode ones. Moreover, the light irritation upon the device effectively shifts the peak value of gm to zero gate voltage without degradation and generates larger current steps that are advantageous for the sensitive bioanalysis. Based on the as-developed dual-photoelectrode OPECT, target-mediated recycling and etching reactions are designed upon the CdS/Bi2S3, which could result in dual signal amplification and realize the sensitive microRNA-155 biodetection with a linear range from 1 fM to 100 pM and a lower detection limit of 0.12 fM.

Ultrasound assisted electrodeposition of photocatalytic antibacterial MoS2-Zn coatings controlled by sodium dodecyl sulfate.

Photocatalytic MoS2 with visible light response is considered as a promising bactericidal material owing to its non-toxicity and high antibacterial efficiency. However, photocatalysts always exist as powder, so it is difficult to settle photocatalysts on the metal surface, which limits their application in aqueous environments. To solve this problem, ultrasound and sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS) were introduced into the co-deposition process of MoS2 and zinc matrix, so that novel MoS2-Zn coatings were obtained. In this process, ultrasound and SDS strongly promoted the dispersion and adsorption of MoS2 on the co-depositing surfaces. Then MoS2 were proved to be composited into the Zn matrix with effective structures, and the addition of SDS effectively increased the loading content of MoS2 in the MoS2-Zn coatings. Besides, the antibacterial performance of the MoS2-Zn coatings was evaluated with three typical fouling bacteria E.coli, S.aureus and B.wiedmannii. The MoS2-Zn coating showed high and broad-spectrum antibacterial properties with over 98 % inhibition rate against these three bacteria. Furthermore, it is proved that the MoS2-Zn coatings generated superoxide (·O2-) and hydroxyl radicals (·OH) under visible light, which played the dominant and subordinate roles in the antibacterial process, respectively. The MoS2-Zn coatings also showed high antibacterial stability after four "light-dark" cycles. According to the results of the attached bacteria, the MoS2-Zn coatings were considered to effectively repel the living pelagic bacteria instead of killing the attached ones, which was highly environmentally friendly. The obtained MoS2-Zn coatings were considered promising in biofilm inhibiting and marine antifouling fields.

Ascorbic Acid Induced the Improved Oxygen Vacancy Defects of Bi4O5Br2 and Its Application on Photoelectrochemical Detection of DNA Demethylase MBD2 with Improved Detection Sensitivity.

Oxygen vacancy defects (OVs) are one of the main strategies for nanomaterials modification to improve the photoactivity, but current methods for fabricating OVs are usually complicated and harsh. It is important to develop simple, rapid, safe, and mild methods to fabricate OVs. By studying the effects of different weak reducing agents, the concentration of the reducing agent and the reaction time on fabrication of OVs, it is found that L-ascorbic acid (AA) gently and rapidly induces the increase of OVs in Bi4O5Br2 at room temperature. The increased OVs not only improve the adsorption of visible light, but also enhance the photocurrent response. Based on this, the preparation of OVs in Bi4O5Br2 is employed to the development of a photoelectrochemical biosensor for the detection of DNA demethylase of methyl-CpG binding domain protein 2 (MBD2). The biosensor shows a wide linear range of 0.1-400 ng mL-1 and a detection limit as low as 0.03 ng mL-1 (3σ). In addition, the effect of plasticizers on MBD2 activity is evaluated using this sensor. This work not only provides a novel method to prepare OVs in bismuth rich materials, but also explores a new novel evaluation tool for studying the ecotoxicological effects of contaminants.

Near-Field GHz Rotation and Sensing with an Optically Levitated Nanodumbbell.

A levitated nonspherical nanoparticle in a vacuum is ideal for studying quantum rotations and is an ultrasensitive torque detector for probing fundamental particle-surface interactions. Here, we optically levitate a silica nanodumbbell in a vacuum at 430 nm away from a sapphire surface and drive it to rotate at GHz frequencies. The relative linear speed between the tip of the nanodumbbell and the surface reaches 1.4 km s-1 at a submicrometer separation. The rotating nanodumbbell near the surface demonstrates a torque sensitivity of (5.0 ± 1.1) × 10-26 N m Hz-1/2 at room temperature. Moreover, we probed the near-field laser intensity distribution beyond the optical diffraction limit with a nanodumbbell levitated near a nanograting. Our numerical simulations show that the system can measure the Casimir torque and will improve the detection limit of non-Newtonian gravity by several orders of magnitude.

DNA intercalation makes possible superior-gain organic photoelectrochemical transistor detection.

DNA intercalation has increasingly been studied for various scenario implementations due to the diverse functions of DNA/intercalators. Nascent organic photoelectrochemical transistor (OPECT) biosensing taking place in organic electronics and photoelectrochemical bioanalysis represents a promising technological frontier in the arena. In this work, we first devise DNA intercalation-enabled OPECT for miRNA detection with a superior gain up to 17100. Intercalation of [Ru(bpy)2dppz]2+ within the miRNA-initiated hybrid chain reaction (HCR)-derived duplex DNA is realized for producing anodic photocurrent upon light stimulation, causing the corresponding target-dependent alternation in gate voltage (VG) and hence the modulated channel current (IDS) of poly (3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene) doped with poly (styrene sulfonate) (PEDOT:PSS) under specific drain voltage (VDS) for quantitative miRNA-21 analysis, which shows a wide linear relationship and a low detection limit of 5.5 × 10-15 mol L-1. This study features the DNA intercalation-enabled organic electronics with superior gain and is envisaged to attract more attention to explore DNA adducts for innovative bioelectronics and biosensing, given the diverse DNA binders with multiple functions.

Elder fish means more microplastics? Alaska pollock microplastic story in the Bering Sea.

Marine microplastics are an increasingly big concern. We analyze the occurrence of microplastics in Alaska pollock (Gadus chalcogrammus) across 2+ to 12+ ages sampled from the Bering Sea. Results show that 85% of the fish have ingested microplastics and elder fish ingest more with over a third of microplastics in the 100- to 500-micrometer size range, indicating the prevalence of microplastics in Alaska pollock distributed in the Bering Sea. A positive linear relationship is obtained between fish age and microplastic size. Meanwhile, the number of polymer types increases in elder fish. The link between microplastic characteristics in Alaska pollock and the surrounding seawater suggests an extended spatial impact of microplastics. The impact of age-related microplastic ingestion on the population quality of Alaska pollock is still unknown. Therefore, we need to further investigate the potential impact of microplastics on marine organisms and the marine ecosystem, taking age as an important factor.

Coherent dynamics of strongly interacting electronic spin defects in hexagonal boron nitride.

Optically active spin defects in van der Waals materials are promising platforms for modern quantum technologies. Here we investigate the coherent dynamics of strongly interacting ensembles of negatively charged boron-vacancy ([Formula: see text]) centers in hexagonal boron nitride (hBN) with varying defect density. By employing advanced dynamical decoupling sequences to selectively isolate different dephasing sources, we observe more than 5-fold improvement in the measured coherence times across all hBN samples. Crucially, we identify that the many-body interaction within the [Formula: see text] ensemble plays a substantial role in the coherent dynamics, which is then used to directly estimate the concentration of [Formula: see text]. We find that at high ion implantation dosage, only a small portion of the created boron vacancy defects are in the desired negatively charged state. Finally, we investigate the spin response of [Formula: see text] to the local charged defects induced electric field signals, and estimate its ground state transverse electric field susceptibility. Our results provide new insights on the spin and charge properties of [Formula: see text], which are important for future use of defects in hBN as quantum sensors and simulators.

Effects of the obstruction of erector spinae plane in affected people undergoing percutaneous vertebroplasty.

BACKGROUND: We aimed to compare the difference between the therapeutic effects of percutaneous vertebroplasty (PVP) as well as PVP combined with erector spinae plane blocked (ESPB) in osteoporotic vertebral compression fractures (OVCFs) therapy. METHODS: After the reception, 100 affected people to OVCFs were randomly divided into the PVP group as a control as well as the PVP + ESPB group as the observation, which included fifty affected people per group. The visual analog scale (VAS) for pain as well as the Oswestry Disability Index (ODI) per group was assessed before the operation, two hours after the operation, and when patients were discharged from the hospital. Operating time was also evaluated on the charged bulk of bone cement during the surgery, blood loss during the surgery, as well as operating costs for each group. Additionally, to assess differences, comparisons have been done among available groups in terms of ambulation as well as defecation or stool after the operation at the earlier time. RESULTS: The PVP + ESPB category acquired lower VAS and ODI scores when assessments were processed 2 h after the operation and when they were discharged from a hospital. They also had earlier postoperative ambulation and defecation time than the category of PVP (p < 0.05). Regarding the other indicators, there did not show significant differences. Besides, no complications occurred within both group, either after the operation or when they discharge from the hospital. CONCLUSION: PVP + ESPB for OVCF is related to less VAS, further effective alleviation of pain, and fewer ODI values in affected people after the operation than only PVP. Besides, affected people can involve in ambulation more swiftly. The PVP + ESPB therapy improves the quicker recuperation of intestinal function as well as helps to improve the overall life quality of patients.

Polymer Dot-Gated Accumulation-Type Organic Photoelectrochemical Transistor for Urea Biosensing.

Organic photoelectrochemical transistor (OPECT) biosensing represents a new platform interfacing optoelectronics and biological systems with essential amplification, which, nevertheless, are concentrated on depletion-type operation to date. Here, a polymer dot (Pdot)-gated accumulation-type OPECT biosensor is devised and applied for sensitive urea detection. In such a device, the as-designed Pdot/poly[bis(4-phenyl)(2,4,6-trimethylphenyl)amine] (PTAA) is validated as a superior gating module against the diethylenetriamine (DETA) de-doped poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene):poly(styrene sulfonate) (PEDOT:PSS) channel, and the urea-dependent status of Pdots has been shown to be sensitively correlated with the device's response. High-performance urea detection is thus realized with a wide linear range of 1 µM-50 mM and a low detection limit of 195 nM. Given the diversity of the Pdot family and its immense interactions with other species, this work represents a generic platform for developing advanced accumulation-type OPECT and beyond.

Antibody-free photoelectrochemical biosensor for DNA carboxylation detection based on SnS2@Ti3C2 heterojunction.

As an important epigenetic modification, 5-carboxycytosine (5caC) played an important role in gene regulation, cell differentiation and growth. 5caC existed in many cells and tissues, but it was highly similar to the structure of other cytosine derivatives and had less content in the genome. Therefore, it was urgent to develop a sensitive and highly selective trace biosensor to detect 5caC. A novel photoelectrochemical biosensor was fabricated for 5-carboxy-2'-deoxycytidine-5'-triphosphate (5cadCTP) detection, where SnS2@Ti3C2 nanocomposite was employed as photoactive material, polyethyleneimine was used as 5cadCTP recognition and capture reagent, and Ru(NH3)63+ was used as photosensitizer for signal amplification. Due the good conductivity of Ti3C2 MXene and the matched energy band between Ti3C2 MXene and SnS2, SnS2@Ti3C2 nanocomposite presented strong photoactivity, which was beneficial to the high detection sensitivity. For specific recognition of 5cadCTP, the covalent interaction of -NH2 in 5cadCTP with -COOH on the substrate electrode was used, which was beneficial to the high detection selectivity. A broad linear relationship between photocurrent and 5cadCTP concentration was observed ranging from 1 pM to 0.2 µM. The low detection limit of 260 fM was achieved. The developed method has high detection specificity and can even distinguish 5caC with its derivatives. In addition, the applicability was evaluated by detecting the content change of 5caC in the genomic DNA of rice seedlings after cultured with environmental pollutants. This work provides a novel platform for 5cadCTP detection, and it can also be applied to detect other cytosine derivatives with suitable recognition strategies.

Peroxidase-like phosphate hydrate nanosheets bio-synthesized by a marine Shewanella algae strain for highly sensitive dopamine detection.

The sensitive and rapid detection of dopamine (DA) is of great significance for early diagnosis of related diseases. Current detection strategies of DA are time-consuming, expensive and inaccurate, while biosynthetic nanomaterials were considered highly stable and environment friendly, which were promising on colorimetric sensing. Thus, in this study, novel zinc phosphate hydrate nanosheets (SA@ZnPNS) biosynthesized by Shewanella algae were designed for the detection of DA. SA@ZnPNS showed high peroxidase-like activity which catalyzed the oxidation reaction of 3,3',5,5'-tetramethylbenzidine in the presence of H2O2. Results showed that the catalytic reaction of SA@ZnPNS followed Michaelis-Menton kinetics, and catalytic process conformed to ping-pong mechanism with chief active species of hydroxyl radicals. The colorimetric detection of DA in human serum samples was performed based on SA@ZnPNS peroxidase-like activity. The linear range of DA detection was 0.1-40 µM, and the detection limit was 0.083 µM. This study provided a simple and practical method for the detection of DA and expanded the application of biosynthesized nanoparticles to biosensing fields.

Bioderived establishment of three-dimensional type-I Ag2S/ZnIn2S4 heterojunction for high-efficacy organic photoelectrochemical transistor biomolecular detection.

Advanced optoelectronic devices have attracted extensive interdisciplinary interest but lags far behind in biomolecular detection. The nascent organic photoelectrochemical transistor (OPECT) is expected to become a versatile platform to this end. Herein, using biological derivation of type-I Ag2S/ZnIn2S4 heterojunction, a light-fueled high-efficacy OPECT system with zero-gate-biased operation is successfully developed for biomolecular detection. Exemplified by a sandwich immunocomplexing towards mouse IgG (MIgG) with Ag nanoparticles (Ag NPs) as the label, steering the acidolysis-release of Ag+ toward ZnIn2S4 could induce the in-situ formation of type-I Ag2S/ZnIn2S4 heterojunction, increasing the recombination of light-activated excitons and thus inhibiting the photo-responsibility of ZnIn2S4, as sensitively monitored by the amplified OPECT response. The proposed device could achieve good analytical performance in terms of high specificity and sensitivity, with a detection limit as low as 33.7 fg mL-1. This OPECT device based on bio-induced formation of type-I heterojunction can provide a novel route to biomolecular detection, and offered a new perspective for the optoelectronic sensors to be used in futuristic physiological and pathological detection.

Alkaline Phosphatase-Mediated Bioetching of CoOOH/BiVO4 for Signal-On Organic Photoelectrochemical Transistor Bioanalysis.

Organic photoelectrochemical transistor (OPECT) bioanalytics has recently appeared as a promising route for biological measurements, which has major implications in both next-generation photoelectrochemical (PEC) bioanalysis and futuristic biorelated implementations. Via biological dissociation of materials, bioetching is a useful technique for bio-manufacturing and bioanalysis. The intersection of these two domains is expected to be a possible way to achieve innovative OPECT bioanalytics. Herein, we validate such a possibility, which is exemplified by alkaline phosphatase (ALP)-mediated bioetching of a CoOOH/BiVO4 gate for a signal-on OPECT immunoassay of human immunoglobulin G (HIgG) as the model target. Specifically, target-dependent bioetching of the upper CoOOH layer could result into an enhanced electrolyte contact and light accessibility to BiVO4, leading to the modulated response of the polymeric poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene):poly(styrene sulfonate) (PEDOT:PSS) channel that could be monitored by the channel current. The introduced biosensor achieves sensitive detection of HIgG with high selectivity and sensitivity. This work features bioetching-enabled high-efficacy OPECT bioanalysis and is anticipated to serve as a generic protocol, considering the diverse bioetching routes.

Observation and control of Casimir effects in a sphere-plate-sphere system.

A remarkable prediction of quantum field theory is that there are quantum electromagnetic fluctuations (virtual photons) everywhere, which leads to the intriguing Casimir effect. While the Casimir force between two objects has been studied extensively for several decades, the Casimir force between three objects has not been measured yet. Here, we report the experimental demonstration of an object under the Casimir force exerted by two other objects simultaneously. Our Casimir system consists of a micrometer-thick cantilever placed in between two microspheres, forming a unique sphere-plate-sphere geometry. We also propose and demonstrate a three-terminal switchable architecture exploiting opto-mechanical Casimir interactions that can lay the foundations of a Casimir transistor. Beyond the paradigm of Casimir forces between two objects in different geometries, our Casimir transistor represents an important development for controlling three-body virtual photon interactions and will have potential applications in sensing and information processing.

"Nano Killers" Activation by permonosulfate enables efficient anaerobic microorganisms disinfection.

The development of effective nanomaterials for killing anaerobic bacteria is essential for human health and economic development. Here, we propose a new bactericidal mechanism where theoretical calculations are in good agreement with experimental results. The "poison arrow-head" of MoS2 nanosheets enables the vigorous extraction of lipids from the cell membrane. Based on density functional calculations, oxidation active species (OAS) are generated due to the strong adsorption energy between S vacancies in MoS2 and chemical substrates (permonosulfate (PMS) and H2O). These OAS can be visualized as numerous moving "nano killers", constantly oxidizing the lipids around MoS2; thereby, re-releasing the surface of the sharp knife. The process of physical extraction collaborated with chemical oxidation not only precisely positions the cell membrane but also allows for continuous sterilization. This work digs into the mechanism of anaerobic bacterial sterilization, which sheds significant light on biological analysis, antibacterial, cancer therapy, and anti microbiologically influenced corrosion.