Effect of glycosylation with apple pectin, citrus pectin, mango pectin and sugar beet pectin on the physicochemical, interfacial and emulsifying properties of coconut protein isolate.

The present study aimed to investigate the effect of glycosylation with four different sources of pectin on the structural, interfacial and emulsifying properties of coconut protein isolate (CPI). The conjugates achieved the degree of graft of 59.11%, 52.80%, 41.39% and 39.26% for apple pectin, citrus pectin, mango pectin and sugar beet pectin, respectively. The covalent bonding of the conjugates was further confirmed by SDS-PAGE gel electrophoresis and FT-IR spectra. In addition, CD spectra exhibited that the conjugates had less α-helix and ß-sheet, and more random coil, resulting in more flexible and loose protein structure. Attributed to glycosylation and the strong steric hindrance effects of pectin, fluorescence intensity of the conjugates decreased significantly. Moreover, the solubility, soluble free sulfhydryl content, surface hydrophobicity, emulsifying activity and emulsifying stability of the conjugates improved significantly after glycosylation. The results of adsorption kinetics showed that glycosylation could increase interfacial pressure, adsorption and rearrangement rates of CPI at the oil-water interface. In summary, the glycosylation between CPI and the four different sources of pectin can significantly improve their emulsifying properties, in particular, citrus pectin and sugar beet pectin have more significant effects.

Effects of heat treatment and pH on the physicochemical and emulsifying properties of coconut (Cocos nucifera L.) globulins.

The present study aimed to assess the effects of heat treatment (70-90 °C) and pH (pH 3-11) on the physicochemical, structural, and emulsifying properties of coconut globulins (CG). The results revealed that the emulsifying property was improved with increasing temperature due to the denaturation degree of CG. CG had a better emulsifying property at pH 3 but showed the worst emulsifying property at pH 5 due to its lowest solubility, surface hydrophobicity, and absolute value of zeta potential. The best emulsifying stability was detected at pH 11 with 90 °C heating. SDS-PAGE indicated that the formation of aggregates cross-linked by covalent bonds was the main reason for the better emulsion stability at pH 3 and pH 11 with 90 °C heating. The secondary structure showed that CG had more α-helix and ß-turn contents as well as fewer ß-sheet contents at pH 3 and pH 11 with 90 °C heating.

Tendril-Inspired 900% Ultrastretching Fiber-Based Zn-Ion Batteries for Wearable Energy Textiles.

Flexible fiber-based Zn-ion batteries represent an ideal power platform for smart wearable energy textiles featuring safety, flexibility, and unique integration. However, the inevitably low elongation limits (<400%) of common fiber-based Zn-ion batteries may restrict applications in highly deformable wearable materials and lead to unstable energy storage performance during practical activities. Herein, an elastic graphene/polyaniline-Zn@silver fiber-based battery (eG/P-Zn@SFB) with a helical structure inspired by the biological structure of luffa tendril is reported. eG/P-Zn@SFB exhibits ultrastretching properties and can be stretched to 900% with a 71% capacity retention ratio. Moreover, the prefabricated battery delivers a high specific capacity of 32.56 mAh/cm3 at 10 mA/cm3 and an energy density of 36.04 mWh/cm3. As a proof of concept, the knitted integrated eG/P-Zn@SFB served as an effective power supply with different bending angles ranging from 0° to 180°, demonstrating potential applications and promising prospects in stretchable flexible electronics and wearable energy textiles.

Smart-Fabric-Based Supercapacitor with Long-Term Durability and Waterproof Properties toward Wearable Applications.

The rapid development of wearable electronics and smart textiles has dramatically motivated the generation of flexible textile-based supercapacitors (SCs). However, the rapid evaporation of water moisture in gel electrolyte substantially limits the working durability and performance enhancements of the flexible devices. Therefore, a high-performance multifunctional textile-based SC with long-term durability is highly desired. Herein, a poly(vinyl alcohol) (PVA)/polyacrylamide (PAM) composite gel electrolyte was developed to fabricate multifunctional device with water-retaining and water-proofing properties based on multidimensional hierarchical fabric. And the assembled SC based on composite gel exhibited a superior water-retaining property and long-term working durability (93.29% retention rate after operation for 15 days), whereas the performance of SC based on pure PVA gel declined sharply and only 43.2% capacitance remained. In addition, the assembled SC exhibited enhanced specific capacitance of 707.9 mF/cm2 and high energy density of 62.92 µWh/cm2 and maintained a good stability of 80.8% even after 10 000 cyclic tests. After water repellency treatment, the integrated device immersed in water could still work normally. What's more, the assembled devices could be charged by a portable hand generator, which could be potentially applied for field rescue and military applications. We foresee that this strategy would be a potential route to prepare high-performance multifunctional textile-based SCs for wearable electronic systems and smart textile applications.

Self-Powered and Self-Sensing Energy Textile System for Flexible Wearable Applications.

Intelligent textiles require flexible power sources that can be seemingly integrated with a variety of electronic devices to realize new smart wearable applications. However, current research mainly focuses on the design of the textile structures, often ignoring the importance of seamless configuration. This approach results in an uncomfortable experience when the device is worn and makes it difficult to smoothly connect each monofunctional device. The view of the yarn structure, a multifunctional yarn-based wearable system is fabricated through combining seamless strain sensors and energy storage devices. Yarn deposited with poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene) (PEDOT) via in situ polymerization is then prepared as a highly conductive yarn sensor and a flexible yarn-shaped supercapacitor (SC). All-yarn-based SCs are incorporated with strain sensors within self-powered flexible devices designed to detect human motion. Multiple textile structures can be woven into garments including power supply to sensors, with promising application potential across wearable electronics and smart clothing.

Multidimensional Hierarchical Fabric-Based Supercapacitor with Bionic Fiber Microarrays for Smart Wearable Electronic Textiles.

Flexible textile-based supercapacitors (SCs) have attracted a lot of attention, with the artificial intelligence technology and smart wearable electronic textiles developing rapidly. However, energy-storage performance of common textile-based SCs is always restricted with the low-dimensional substrates (i.e., one-dimensional fibers or two-dimensional fabrics), and hence flexible textile-based SCs with multifarious hierarchical substrates are highly desired. Herein, a multidimensional hierarchical fabric electrode model with a bionic fiber microarray structure has been designed, inspired by the "grasp effect" of the sophisticated arrangement structures of hedgehog spines, and the bionic assembled SCs exhibit an enhanced specific areal capacitance (245.5 mF/cm2 at 1 mV/cm2), compared with the planar fabric-based SCs (41.6 mF/cm2), and a high energy density (21.82 µWh/cm2 at 0.4 mW/cm2). Besides, the SCs also show a stable capacitance ratio of 83.9% after 10 000 cycles and a mere capacitance loss under different bending states. As a proof of concept, an all-fabric smart electronic switch is fabricated with self-power and wearable properties, along with some other trial applications. Such a hierarchical fabric with a bionic fiber microarray structure is believed to enhance the performance of the assembled SCs. We foresee that the multidimensional hierarchical fabric would bring more promising prospects for flexible textile-based energy-storage systems and be used in smart wearable textile applications.

Next-generation sequencing specifies Angiostrongylus eosinophilic meningoencephalitis in infants: Two case reports.

RATIONALE: Angiostrongylus cantonensis-induced eosinophilic meningoencephalitis (AEM) in infants is a very rare but fatal disease. Utilization of genetic assay to detect the cerebral parasite plays an important role for the treatment of the infection. PATIENT CONCERNS: Two infants (<2 years) presented with cough, intermittent fever, mental fatigue, and poor diet. DIAGNOSIS: The patients were under clinical examination and laboratory test including cardiac ultrasound, chest X-ray, blood or cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) cell counting, serum enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA), head magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and next-generation sequencing (NGS) on DNA from CSF. Due to hypereosinophils in patients' peripheral blood and CSF, and abundant DNA sequences from A cantonensis in CSF, the patients were diagnosed with Angiostrongylus eosinophilic meningoencephalitis. INTERVENTIONS: The patients were treated with albendazole to deworm, and methylprednisolone to reduce inflammation. OUTCOME: The patients were completely recovered from AEM without relapse after 10-day treatment. LESSONS: ELISA and MRI are not sufficiently accurate for the diagnosis of AEM in infants. NGS can specify the infection by the cerebral parasite and offers a new effective approach for the early and precise diagnosis of AEM in infants.

Detection of human parvovirus B19 nonstrutural protein DNA by nested-polymerase chain reaction in gravida serum and pregnant tissues.

A new nested-polymerase chain reaction (nested-PCR) assay was developed to detect human parvovirus B19 DNA corresponding to the nonstructural protein in clinical specimens in a routine diagnostic laboratory. The sensitivity of this highly specific assay was up to 0.005 fg of B19 DNA. Parvovirus B19 was identified in sera of 20 pregnant women with abnormal pregnant outcome. Among these 20 cases, intrauterine parvovirus infection did exist in 7 pregnant women because parvovirus B19 DNA was detected in the pregnant tissues of them such as placenta tissues, chorionic villi, amniotic fluid, fetal spleen, liver and abdominal fluids.

[Detection of human parvovirus B19 nonstructural protein DNA by nested- polymerase chain reaction in pregnant women].

OBJECTIVE: To explore the sensitivity and specificity of the new nested-polymerase chain reaction (nested-PCR) assay in the detection of human parvovirus B19 (HPV B19) nonstructural protein DNA and the applicability of this technique in detecting the gravida infected with parvovirus B19. METHODS: Evaluating the new nested-polymerase chain reaction assay by routine process, and compared with the general nested-PCR in detecting structural protein DNA. Then, the two techniques were used to detect human parvovirus B19 structural protein and nonstructural protein DNA in gravida serum and pregnant tissue of 30 cases. RESULTS: The sensitivity of the new method was 0.005 fg which was similar to the general nested-polymerase chain reaction assay, and the detection results of other viruses and human genome DNA were all negative. The positive rates of structural protein DNA and nonstructural protein DNA in gravida sera were 26.7% and 33.3%, respectively. And the difference was non significant in statistics. At the same time, both of these two positive rates in placenta and villus were 26.7%. CONCLUSIONS: The new nested-polymerase chain reaction assay was a sensitive, specific and convenient method in detecting human parvovirus B19 infection, and the detection of nonstructural protein DNA paves the way for the following study on the disease mechanisms of B19.

[Application of factor analysis in the study of risk factors on human parvovirus B19 infection during pregnancy].

OBJECTIVE: To explore the risk factors of human parvovirus B19 infection in pregnancy and to provide guidelines for its prevention and control strategy. METHODS: Four hundred and eighty-six cases of gravida serum were detected for parvovirus B19 DNA by nested-polymerase chain reaction assay. Factors associated with parvovirus B19 infection in pregnancy were investigated and analyzed, using multiple logistic regression and factor analysis. RESULTS: Multiple logistic regression analysis suggested that there were 16 agents associated with parvovirus B19 infection during pregnancy, which were dominated by 6 potential factors listed as follows: countryside and bad hygienic habit, mental factor, occupational exposure to hospital and environmental condition, health and illness, bad behavior and health education and blood type. CONCLUSION: The prevention strategy of parvovirus B19 infection in pregnancy should include reasonable allocation of public health resources between city and countryside, and to promote health education and occupational health during pregnancy.