Enhanced biodegradation of oil-contaminated soil oil in shale gas exploitation by biochar immobilization.

The enhanced biodegradation of oil-contaminated soil by fixing microorganisms with corn cob biochar was investigated. It was found that the components of oil in the test soil were mainly straight-chain alkanes and branched alkanes. When using corn cob biochar as a carrier to immobilize microorganisms, the best particle size of corn cob biochar as an immobilization carrier was 0.08 mm, and the best immobilization time was 18 h. SEM analysis confirmed that the microorganisms were immobilized on the corn cob biochar. Immobilized microorganisms exhibited high biodegradability under stress to high concentrations of petroleum pollutants, heavy metals, and organic pollutants. Infrared spectroscopy analysis showed that oxygen-containing groups such as hydroxyl, carboxyl, and methoxy on the surface of biochar were involved in the complexation of heavy metals. The mechanism of immobilization promoted microbial degradation of oil contamination was explained by gas chromatography mass. First, alkanes and aromatics were adsorbed by corn cob biochar and passed to immobilized microorganisms to promote their degradation. Their bioavailability increased, especially for aromatics. Second, biochar provided a more suitable environment for microorganisms to degrade. Third, the conversion of ketones to acids was accelerated during the biodegradation of alkanes, and the biodegradation of alkanes was accelerated by immobilization. The biodegradable efficiency of oil by immobilized microorganisms in soil was 70.10% within 60 days, 28.80% higher than that of free microorganisms. The degradation of immobilized microorganisms was highly correlated with the activities of catalase, urease, and polyphenol oxidase.

Online classifier of AMICA model to evaluate state anxiety while standing in virtual reality.

Changes in emotional state, such as anxiety, have a significant impact on behavior and mental health. However, the detection of anxiety in individuals requires trained specialists to administer specialized assessments, which often take a significant amount of time and resources. Thus, there is a significant need for objective and real-time anxiety detection methods to aid clinical practice. Recent advances in Adaptive Mixture Independent Component Analysis (AMICA) have demonstrated the ability to detect changes in emotional states using electroencephalographic (EEG) data. However, given that several hours may be need to identify the different models, alternative methods must be sought for future brain-computer-interface applications. This study examines the feasibility of a machine learning classifier using frequency domain features of EEG data to classify individual 500 ms samples of EEG data into different cortical states, as established by multi-model AMICA labels. Using a random forest classifier with 12 input features from EEG data to predict cortical states yielded a 75% accuracy in binary classification. Based on these findings, this work may provide a foundation for real-time anxiety state detection and classification.

Ultrasound-guided percutaneous implantation of rabbit VX2 carcinoma, using a coaxial technique and gelfoam pellet injection combination to establish a rabbit liver tumor model.

PURPOSE We aimed to investigate the safety and tumor seeding rate of a coaxial implantation technique combined with injection of a gelfoam pellet in establishing a VX2 liver tumor model in rabbits. METHODS A VX2 liver tumor model was established in 60 male New Zealand white rabbits, which were randomly divided into 3 groups (20 in each group) based on implantation technique (all performed under ultrasound guidance): group A, single needle only; group B, single needle with injection of a gelfoam pellet; or group C, coaxial technique with injection of a gelfoam pellet. The rates of liver tumor formation and tumor seeding to extrahepatic tissues were compared 2 weeks after implantation. Data were also collected regarding procedure time, number of punctures, occurrence of complications, and mortality rate. RESULTS A VX2 liver tumor model was established in all 60 rabbits (100%, 60/60). Ectopic implantation rate was 70% (14/20) in group A, 35% (7/20) in group B, and 5% (1/20) in group C, with significant difference among the groups (p < 0.001). Post hoc analysis showed significant difference between group A and group C (p < 0.001). However, there were no significant differences between group B and group A or group C (p = 0.027, p = 0.048, respectively). There were no significant differences among the groups in terms of procedure time (p = 0.405) or number of punctures (p = 0.612). No complications or deaths occurred. CONCLUSION A coaxial technique with injection of a gelfoam pellet is an effective and safe method for VX2 liver tumor implantation in rabbits, and this technique can reduce the risk of tumor seeding to the abdominal wall and omentum.

CircC16orf62 promotes hepatocellular carcinoma progression through the miR-138-5p/PTK2/AKT axis.

Circular RNA (circRNAs) functions vital in the pathogenesis and progression of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). However, the expressions and functions of certain circRNAs on metastasis and proliferation of that cancer is still unclear. Bioinformation analysis and qRT-PCR indicated that CircC16orf62 was prominent upregulated in HCC of which the expression level was positively associated to cancer's malignant progression. Gain or loss-of-function studies indicated that the reduction of CircC16orf62 expression promotes the proliferation, invasion, and glycolysis of HCC in vitro and in vivo. The bioinformatic analysis found that miR-138-5p and PTK2 were the downstream target of CircC16or62. Then, the FISH(Fluorescence immunoin situ hybridization) and cell nucleoplasmic separation determined that CircC16orf62 located in the cell cytoplasm. Plasmid vectors or siRNAs were used to change the expression of CircC16orf62, miR-138-5p, and PTK2 in PC cell lines. CircC16orf62 functioned as a molecular sponge for miR-138-5p, and a competitive endogenous RNA for PTK2, promoting AKT/mTOR pathway activation. Our observations lead us to conclude that CircC16orf62 functions as an oncogene in HCC progression, behaving as a competitive endogenous RNA for miR-138-5p binding, thus activating the AKT/mTOR pathway. In conclusion, CircC16orf62 is an oncogene through the miR-138-5p/PTK2/Akt axis in HCC cells, indicating CircC16orf62 can be a therapeutic target with potentiality for liver cancer and a predictive marker for people with HCC.

Paraspeckle Promotes Hepatocellular Carcinoma Immune Escape by Sequestering IFNGR1 mRNA.

BACKGROUND & AIMS: Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is the most common type of hepatic malignancies, with poor prognosis and low survival rate. Paraspeckles, which are unique subnuclear structures, are recently found to be involved in the development of various tumors, including HCC, and are related to induction in chemoresistance of HCC. This study aimed to investigate the possibility of paraspeckle in HCC cells participating in immune escape and its underlying mechanism in vitro and in vivo. METHODS: Expression of NEAT1_2, the framework of paraspeckle, in HCC cells and tissues was detected by qRT-PCR and RNA-FISH. mRNAs interacted with NEAT1_2 were pull-downed and sequenced in C-terminal S1-aptamer-tagged NEAT1_2 endogenously expressed HCC cells constructed using CRISPR-CAS9 knock-in technology. The effects of paraspeckle on HCC sensitivity to T-cell-mediated cytolysis were detected by T-cell mediated tumor cell killing assay. The roles of NEAT1_2 or NONO on IFNGR1 expression and IFN-γ signaling by applying gene function loss analysis in HCC cells were detected by qRT-PCR, RNA immunoprecipitation, Western blotting, and ELISA. The role of paraspeckle during adoptive T-cell transfer therapy for HCC in vivo was performed with a subcutaneous xenograft mouse. RESULTS: Paraspeckle in HCC cells is negatively related to T-cell-mediated cytolysis. Destruction of paraspeckle in HCC cells by knockdown of NEAT1_2 or NONO significantly improved the sensibility of resistant HCC cells to T-cell killing effects. Furthermore, IFNGR1 mRNA, which is sequestered by NEAT1_2 and NONO, is abundant in paraspeckle of T-cell killing-resistant HCC cells. Incapable IFN-γ-IFNGR1 signaling accounts for paraspeckle mediated-adoptive T-cell therapy resistance. Moreover, NEAT1_2 expression negatively correlates with IFNGR1 expression in clinical HCC tissues. CONCLUSIONS: Paraspeckle in HCC cells helps tumor cells escape from immunosurveillance through sequestering IFNGR1 mRNA to inhibiting IFN-γ-IFNGR1 signaling, thereby avoiding T-cell killing effects. Collectively, our results hint that NEAT1_2 highly expressed HCC patient is more resistant to T-cell therapy in clinic, and NEAT1_2 may be potential target for HCC immunotherapy.

Effects of biochar properties on the bioremediation of the petroleum-contaminated soil from a shale-gas field.

The characteristics of biochar carriers prepared from different biomass (corncob, straw, and sawdust) were investigated, and the bioremediation performance of the biochar through microbial immobilization was analyzed. Corncob biochar had the highest specific surface area (157.11-312.30 m2 g-1) among the different biomass, and the specific surface area and total pore volume reached the maximum at 500 °C. The pore size was primarily micropore, which aided to the fixation of microorganisms and the adsorption of petroleum pollutants. With increased pyrolysis temperature, the polar functional groups in biochar decreased, and the aromatic functional groups gradually increased, thereby benefiting the adsorption of hydrophobic organic compounds. Corncob biochar had the highest zeta potential, i.e., from - 30.95 to - 6.43 mV, conducive to the electrostatic adsorption between carrier and microorganism. The highest oil-removal and microbial-immobilization rates of biochar CC500 (with corncob pyrolyzed at 500 °C) were about 70.7% and 71.2%, respectively. A strong recovery of microbial growth activity was also observed; recovery was 83.38% compared with free bacteria, and the fixed microorganisms reached logarithmic-growth period at 8-18 h.