Efficient Photodegradation of Antibiotics by g-C3N4 and 3D flower-like Bi2WO6 Perovskite Structure: Insights into the Preparation, Evaluation, and Potential Mechanism.

Antibiotics are emerging organic pollutants that have attracted huge attention owing to their abundant use and associated ecological threats. The aim of this study is to develop and use photocatalysts to degrade antibiotics, including tetracycline (TC), ciprofloxacin (CIP), and amoxicillin (AMOX). Therefore, a novel Z-scheme heterojunction composite of g-C3N4 (gCN) and 3D flower-like Bi2WO6 (BW) perovskite structure was designed and developed, namely Bi2WO6/g-C3N4 (BW/gCN), which can degrade low-concentration of antibiotics in aquatic environments under visible light. According to the Density Functional Theory (DFT) calculation and the characterization results of X-ray diffraction (XRD), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FITR), Scanning electron microscopy - energy spectroscopy (SEM-EDS) and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), this heterojunction was formed in the recombination process. Furthermore, the results of 15wt%-BW/gCN photocatalytic experiments showed that the photodegradation rates (Rp) of TC, CIP, and AMOX were 92.4%, 90.1% and 82.3%, respectively, with good stability in three-cycle photocatalytic experiments. Finally, the quenching experiment of free radicals showed that the holes (h+) and superoxide radicals (·O2-) play a more important role than the hydroxyl radicals (·OH) in photocatalysis. In addition, a possible antibiotic degradation pathway was hypothesized on the basis of High performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) analysis. In general, we have developed an effective catalyst for photocatalytic degradation of antibiotic pollutants and analyzed its photocatalytic degradation mechanism, which provides new ideas for follow-up research and expands its application in the field of antibiotic composite pollution prevention and control.

Simultaneous photocatalytic removal of tetracycline and hexavalent chromium by BiVO4/0.6CdS photocatalyst: Insights into the performance, evaluation, calculation and mechanism.

In this study, a novel Z-scheme heterojunction on bismuth vanadium/cadmium sulfide (BiVO4/0.6CdS) was developed and evaluated for simultaneous photocatalytic removal of combined tetracycline (TC) and hexavalent chromium Cr(Ⅵ) pollution under visible light. Based on the analysis of intermediate products and theoretical calculation, the property of the intermediate products of TC degradation and the effect of built-in electric field (IEF) of composite materials on photo-generated carrier separation were illustrated. According to the experiments and evaluation results, the performance of BiVO4/0.6CdS is higher than CdS 2.83 times and 4.82 times under the visible light conditions, with the aspect of simultaneous oxidizing TC and reducing Cr(Ⅵ), respectively. The catalyst has a faster removal rate in the binary composite pollution system than the single one. Therefore, the photocatalytic degradation of TC using BiVO4/0.6CdS can reduce the toxic effect of TC on the environment. The aforementioned evaluation provides a new design strategy for Z-scheme heterojunction to simultaneous photocatalytic degradation of composite organic and inorganic pollutants.

[Synthesis of carbendazim artificial antigens and preparation of murine polyclonal antibodies].

Objective To synthesize carbendazim artificial antigens, prepare carbendazim polyclonal antibodies and identify their characteristics. Methods Active carboxyl groups were introduced to prepare the carbendazim haptens by the mixed anhydride method. The artificial antigens and coating antigens were obtained by coupling the small molecule haptens with carriers of bovine serum albumin (BSA) and ovalbumin (OVA). Sodium dodecyl sulfate polycrylamide gel electropheresis (SDS-PAGE) was used to identify carbendazim artificial antigens. Mice were immunized with the prepared artificial antigens to obtain polyclonal antibodies against carbendazim, and the antibody titers and specificity were identified by indirect ELISA. Results Carbendazim artificial antigens were successfully prepared. The titer of polyclonal antibody was above 1:12 800 and the half-maximal inhibitory concentration ( IC50) of the antibody was 0.107 µg/mL. The cross-reactivity rates with both benomyl and thiabendazole were less than 1%. Conclusion Polyclonal antibodies with high sensitivity and high specificity were successfully prepared, laying the foundation for the establishment of a rapid detection method for carbendazim residues.

Enhancing the photodegradation of tetracycline in aquaculture wastewater via iron(III)-alginate: Degradation pathway transformation and toxicity reduction.

Tetracycline's (TC) incomplete self-photolysis by light irradiation generally produces toxic intermediate products, which posing serious harm to the aqueous environment. In order to diminish the environmental risks of TC self-photolysis, an iron(III)-alginate (Fe-SA) hydrogel assisted photocatalytic method was developed and the underlying mechanisms was also analyzed in this work. Under simulated sunlight, the photo-degradation efficiency of TC was 61.1% at pH 7.0 within 2 h. Importantly, four of the seven intermediate products that identified during the self-photolysis of TC were found toxic based on QSAR analysis. In contrast, the removal efficiency of TC could be improved to 87.4% by adding Fe-SA under the same conditions. Moreover, only two relatively weakly toxic intermediate products were detected after exposing to the Fe-SA photocatalytic system, indicating a significant reduction of the potential ecological risks caused by TC self-photolysis. Furthermore, the determination of reactive oxidation species (ROS) demonstrated that the addition of Fe-SA primarily facilitated the degradation of TC and the related toxic intermediate products through assisting the free radical (∙OH and ∙O2-) photocatalytic degradation pathway. Additionally, the photocatalytic application under actual sunlight conditions and the reusability experiments of Fe-SA further confirmed its effectiveness and low cost in removing TC. This study revealed the photodegradation mechanisms of TC from the perspective of the self-photolysis process, and also offering new insights into the removal of TC pollution in the environment.

Insight into Nephrotoxicity and Processing Mechanism of Arisaema erubescens (Wall.) Schott by Metabolomics and Network Analysis.

Background: Arisaematis Rhizome (AR) has been used as a damp-drying, phlegm-resolving, wind-expelling, pain-alleviating, and swelling-relieving drug for thousands of years. However, the toxicity limits its clinical applications. Therefore, AR is usually processed (Paozhi in Chinese) prior to clinical use. In this study, the integration of ultra-high performance liquid chromatography-quadrupole/ time-of-flight mass spectrometry-based metabolomics and network analysis was adopted to investigate the metabolic shifts induced by AR and explore the processing mechanism. Materials and Methods: Extracts of crude and processed AR products (1g/kg) were intragastrically administered to rats once daily for four consecutive weeks. The renal function was evaluated by blood urea nitrogen, creatinine, interleukin-1 beta (IL-1ß) and tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-α), malondialdehyde (MDA), super oxide dismutase (SOD), the ratio of glutathione/glutathione disulfide (GSH/GSSH), glutathione peroxidase (GSH-Px) and histopathological examination. Furthermore, the chemical composition of AR was clarified by ultra-high performance liquid chromatography-quadrupole/ time-of-flight mass spectrometry, after which the integration of metabolomics and network analysis was adopted to investigate the metabolic shifts induced by AR and explore the processing mechanism. Results: Crude AR caused renal damage by stimulating inflammation and oxidative stress, as confirmed by the increased production of IL-1ß, TNF-α and MDA, and decreased levels of SOD, GSH/GSSH and GSH-Px. Processing with ginger juice, alumen and bile juice alleviated the damage to kidney. Metabolomics results showed that a total of 35 potential biomarkers enriched in amino acid metabolism, glycerophospholipid metabolism, fatty acid-related pathways, etc. were deduced to be responsible for the nephrotoxicity of AR and the toxicity-reducing effect of processing. Conclusion: This work provided theoretical and data support for the in-depth study of the processing mechanism, showing that processing reduces AR nephrotoxicity through multiple metabolic pathways.

Refining feasibility assessment of endoscopic ear surgery: a radiomics model utilizing machine learning on external auditory canal CT scans.

BACKGROUND: Feasibility assessment of endoscopic ear surgery (EES) relies solely on subjective evaluation by surgeons. OBJECTIVE: Extracting radiomic features from preoperative CT images of the external auditory canal, we aim to classify EES patients into easy and difficult groups and improve accuracy in determining surgery feasibility. METHODS: 85 patients' external auditory canal CT scans were collected and 139 radiomic features were extracted using PyRadiomics. The most relevant features were selected and three machine learning algorithms (logistic regression, support vector machine, and random forest) were compared using K-fold cross-validation (k = 5) to predict surgical feasibility. RESULTS: The best-performing machine learning model, the support vector machine (SVM), was selected to predict the difficulty of EES. The proposed model achieved a high accuracy of 86.5%, and F1 score of 84.6%. The area under the ROC curve was 0.93, indicating good discriminatory power. CONCLUSIONS AND SIGNIFICANCE: The proposed machine learning model provides a reliable and accurate method for classifying patients undergoing otologic surgery based on preoperative imaging data. The model can help clinicians to better prepare for challenging surgical cases and optimize treatment plans for individual patients.

Altered spontaneous brain activities in maintenance hemodialysis patients with cognitive impairment and the construction of cognitive function prediction models.

OBJECTIVE: The brain neuromechanism in maintenance hemodialysis patients (MHD) with cognitive impairment (CI) remains unclear. The study aimed to probe the relationship between spontaneous brain activity and CI by using resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging (rs-fMRI) data. METHODS: Here, 55 MHD patients with CI and 28 healthy controls were recruited. For baseline data, qualitative data were compared between groups using the χ2 test; quantitative data were compared between groups using the independent samples t-test, ANOVA test, Mann-Whitney U-test, or Kruskal-Wallis test. Comparisons of ALFF/fALFF/ReHo values among the three groups were calculated by using the DPABI toolbox, and then analyzing the correlation with clinical variables. p < .05 was considered a statistically significant difference. Furthermore, back propagation neural network (BPNN) was utilized to predict cognitive function. RESULTS: Compared with the MHD-NCI group, the patients with MHD-CI had more severe anemia and higher urea nitrogen levels, lower mALFF values in the left postcentral gyrus, lower mfALFF values in the left inferior temporal gyrus, and greater mALFF values in the right caudate nucleus (p < .05). The above-altered indicators were correlated with MOCA scores. BPNN prediction models indicated that the diagnostic efficacy of the model which inputs were hemoglobin, urea nitrogen, and mALFF value in the left central posterior gyrus was optimal (R2 = 0.8054), validation cohort (R2 = 0.7328). CONCLUSION: The rs-fMRI can reveal the neurophysiological mechanism of cognitive impairment in MHD patients. In addition, it can serve as a neuroimaging marker for diagnosing and evaluating cognitive impairment in MHD patients.

Combined toxic effects of nanoplastics and norfloxacin on mussel: Leveraging biochemical parameters and gut microbiota.

Antibiotics and nanoplastics (NPs) are among the two most concerned and studied marine emerging contaminants in recent years. Given the large number of different types of antibiotics and NPs, there is a need to apply efficient tools to evaluate their combined toxic effects. Using the thick-shelled mussel (Mytilus coruscus) as a marine ecotoxicological model, we applied a battery of fast enzymatic activity assays and 16S rRNA sequencing to investigate the biochemical and gut microbial response of mussels exposed to antibiotic norfloxacin (NOR) and NPs (80 nm polystyrene beads) alone and in combination at environmentally relevant concentrations. After 15 days of exposure, NPs alone significantly inhibited superoxide dismutase (SOD) and amylase (AMS) activities, while catalase (CAT) was affected by both NOR and NPs. The changes in lysozyme (LZM) and lipase (LPS) were increased over time during the treatments. Co-exposure to NPs and NOR significantly affected glutathione (GSH) and trypsin (Typ), which might be explained by the increased bioavailable NOR carried by NPs. The richness and diversity of the gut microbiota of mussels were both decreased by exposures to NOR and NPs, and the top functions of gut microbiota that were affected by the exposures were predicted. The data fast generated by enzymatic test and 16S sequencing allowed further variance and correlation analysis to understand the plausible driving factors and toxicity mechanisms. Despite the toxic effects of only one type of antibiotics and NPs being evaluated, the validated assays on mussels are readily applicable to other antibiotics, NPs, and their mixture.

Geographic distribution and impacts of climate change on the suitable habitats of Glycyrrhiza species in China.

Climate change has a major impact on the growth and distribution of plants. Glycyrrhiza is widely used in the treatment of many diseases in China. However, with the overexploitation and the growing demand for medicinal uses in of Glycyrrhiza plants. The investigation of the geographical distribution of Glycyrrhiza plants and the analysis of future climate change are of great significance for the conservation of Glycyrrhiza. In this study, combined with administrative maps of Chinese provinces, the present and future of geographical distribution and richness of six Glycyrrhiza plants in China were studied by using DIVA-GIS and MaxEnt software. A total of 981 herbarium records of these six species of Glycyrrhiza were collected to research. Results show that the change of climate in the future will lead to an increase in habitat suitability for some Glycyrrhiza species as follows: Glycyrrhiza inflata by 61.6%, Glycyrrhiza squamulosa by 47.5%, Glycyrrhiza pallidiflora by 34.0%, Glycyrrhiza yunnanensis by 49.0%, Glycyrrhiza glabra by 51.7%, and Glycyrrhiza aspera by 65.9%. Glycyrrhiza plants have considerable medicinal and economic value, so it is necessary to adopt targeted development and rational management strategies for it.

Ultra-small low-threshold mid-infrared plasmonic nanowire lasers based on n-doped GaN.

An ultra-small mid-infrared plasmonic nanowire laser based on n-doped GaN metallic material is proposed and studied by the finite-difference time-domain method. In comparison with the noble metals, nGaN is found to possess superior permittivity characteristics in the mid-infrared range, beneficial for generating low-loss surface plasmon polaritons and achieving strong subwavelength optical confinement. The results show that at a wavelength of 4.2 µm, the penetration depth into the dielectric is substantially decreased from 1384 to 163 nm by replacing Au with nGaN, and the cutoff diameter of nGaN-based laser is as small as 265 nm, only 65% that of the Au-based one. To suppress the relatively large propagation loss induced by nGaN, an nGaN/Au-based laser structure is designed, whose threshold gain has been reduced by nearly half. This work may pave the way for the development of miniaturized low-consumption mid-infrared lasers.

Investigating the heat tolerance and production performance in local chicken breed having normal and dwarf size.

Heat stress significantly impairs the growth performance of broilers, which causes serious losses to the poultry industry every year. Thus, understanding the performance of indigenous chicken breeds under such environment is crucial to address heat stress problem. The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of heat stress (HS) on production performance, tissue histology, heat shock response (HSP70, HSP90), and muscle growth-related genes (GHR, IGF-1, and IGF-1R) of Normal yellow chicken (NYC) and Dwarf yellow chicken (DYC). Seventy-two female birds from each strain were raised under normal environmental conditions up to 84 days, with birds from each strain being divided into two groups (HS and control). In the HS group, birds were subjected to high temperature at 35 ± 1 °C for 8 h daily and lasted for a week, while in the control group, birds were raised at 28 ± 1 °C. At 91 days old, bird's liver, hypothalamus, and breast muscle tissues were collected to evaluate the gene expression, histological changes, and the production performance. The Feed intake, weight gain ratio, total protein intake and protein efficiency ratio showed a significant reduction in the treatments (P < 0.01) and treatment × strain interaction (P < 0.05) with breast muscle rate significantly reducing among the treatments (P < 0.01) after 7 days of HS. Correspondingly, total abdominal fat showed significant change among treatment and strain (P < 0.01, P < 0.05), respectively. Besides, HS markedly upregulated the mRNA expression of HSP70 and HSP90 in the pectoralis major of both chicken strains, but no significant increase (P < 0.05) was found in mRNA expression of HSP90 in liver and hypothalamus tissues of both chicken strains. Moreover, HS significantly upregulated (P < 0.05) the expression of lipogenic genes (FASN, ACC) in liver tissues of NYC, while mRNA expression of these genes showed no variation in DYC. Similarly, HS downregulated the mRNA expression of muscle growth-related genes (GHR, IGF-1, and IGF-1R). Consequently, the histopathological analysis showed that histological changes were accompanied by inflammatory cell infiltration in liver tissues of both chicken strains; however, histopathological changes were more severe in NYC than dwarf chicken strain. Conclusively, this study depicted that the production performance and growth rate varied significantly between treatment and control group of NYC. However, heat treatment in DYC has not shown significant damaging consequences as compared to the control group that signifies the vital role of the dwarf trait in thermal tolerance.

Ultra-high performance liquid chromatography-quadrupole/time-of-flight mass spectrometry-based lipidomics reveals key lipid molecules as potential therapeutic targets of Polygonum cuspidatum against hyperlipidemia in a hamster model.

Polygonum cuspidatum is a homology of traditional medicine and functional food widely distributed around the world. Our previous study on the hyperlipidemic animal model demonstrated that Polygonum cuspidatum was effective in ameliorating hyperlipidemia, which is characterized by lipid disorders. Herein, the regulatory effect of Polygonum cuspidatum on lipid metabolism needs to be known if its hypolipidemic mechanism is desired to clarify. In this study, an ultra-high performance liquid chromatography-quadrupole/time-of-flight mass spectrometry-based lipidomic strategy was first applied to investigate the lipidomic patterns of high-fat diet-induced hyperlipidemic hamsters when treated with Polygonum cuspidatum. The results showed that Polygonum cuspidatum improved the lipidomic profile of hyperlipidemia. A total of 65 differential lipids related to the hypolipidemic effect of Polygonum cuspidatum were screened out and identified, and these differential lipids covered various categories, such as phosphatidylcholines, phosphatidylethanolamines, triacylglycerols, sphingomyelins and so on. Orally administrated Polygonum cuspidatum restored these differential lipids back to normal or nearly normal levels. This study adopted lipidomics to reveal the key lipid molecules as potential therapeutic targets of Polygonum cuspidatum against hyperlipidemia, which would provide a scientific basis for its clinical application.

Establishment and characterization of a HER2-enriched canine mammary cancerous myoepithelial cell line.

BACKGROUND: Canine mammary tumors (CMTs) have a poor prognosis, along with tumor recurrence and metastasis. Cell lines are vital in vitro models for CMT research. Many CMT epithelial cell lines were reported. However, canine mammary myoepithelial cells, the contractile component of the canine mammary tissue were overlooked. This study aimed at establishing such a cell line. CMT-1 cell line was obtained from a canine mammary tumor CMT-1 and characterized molecularly through qPCR, western blotting, immunochemistry and immunofluorescence. Its doubling time, cytogenetic analysis and migration rate were evaluated using growth study, karyotype analysis and wound healing assay respectively. To determine its tumorigenesis, xenograft transplantation was performed. RESULTS: CMT-1 tumor was a complex canine mammary carcinoma that stained negative to estrogen receptors (ER) and progesterone receptors (PR), but positive to human epidermal growth receptor-2 (HER2), defined as HER2-enriched subtype. In this study, a CMT-1 cell line obtained from CMT-1 tumor was immune-positive to vimentin, α-SMA, p63 and negative to E-cadherin (E-cad), indicating CMT-1 cells were myoepithelial cells. It was successfully cultured for more than 50 passages showing the same immunoreactivity to ER, PR, and HER2 as the primary canine tumor. The doubling time of CMT-1 cell line was 26.67 h. The chromosome number of CMT-1 cells ranged from 31 to 64. A potential spontaneous epithelial to mesenchymal transition (EMT) was noticed during cell cultures. Potential EMT-induced CMT-1 cells showed no significance in migration rate compared to the original CMT-1 cells. CMT-1 cells was able to grow on a 3D culture and formed grape-like, solid, and cystic mammospheres at different time period. Inoculation of CMT-1 cells induced a complex HER2-enriched mammary tumor with metastasis in mice. CONCLUSIONS: A canine cancerous HER2-enriched myoepithelial cell line was successfully established and a canine mammosphere developed from myoepithelial cells was documented in this study. We are expecting this novel cell line and its associated mammospheres could be used as a model to elucidate the role of myoepithelial cells in CMT carcinogensis in the future.

Brain Micro-Structural and Functional Alterations for Cognitive Function Prediction in the End-Stage Renal Disease Patients Undergoing Maintenance Hemodialysis.

RATIONALE AND OBJECTIVES: The goal of this study was to investigate the relationship between altered brain micro-structure and function, and cognitive function in patients with end-stage renal disease (ESRD) undergoing maintenance hemodialysis. Specially, diffusion kurtosis imaging (DKI), the resting-state functional connectivity (FC) algorithm, and the least squares support vector regression machine (LSSVRM) were utilized to conduct our study. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A total of 50 patients and 36 matched healthy controls were prospectively enrolled in our study. All subjects completed the Montreal cognitive assessment scale (MoCA) test. DKI and resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging were measured. Relationship between DKI parameters, FC, and MoCA scores was evaluated. LSSVRM combined with the whale optimization algorithm (WOA) was used to predict cognitive function scores. RESULTS: In ESRD patients, altered DKI metrics were identified in 12 brain regions. Furthermore, we observed changes in FC values based on regions of interest (ROIs) in nine brain regions, involved in default mode network (DMN), frontoparietal network (FPN), and the limbic system. Significant correlations among DKI values, FC values, and MoCA scores were found. To some extent, altered FC showed significant correlations with changed DKI parameters. Furthermore, optimized prediction models were applied to more accurately predict the cognitive function associated with ESRD patients. CONCLUSION: Micro-structural and functional brain changes were found in ESRD patients, which may account for the onset of cognitive impairment in affected patients. These quantitative parameters combined with our optimized prediction model may be helpful to establish more reliable imaging markers to detect and monitor cognitive impairment associated with ESRD.

Abnormal cerebral micro-structures in end-stage renal disease patients related to mild cognitive impairment.

PURPOSE: To investigate the mediating effect of abnormal brain micro-structures on the relationship between clinical risk factors and mild cognitive impairment (MCI), and further predict individual cognitive function in end-stage renal disease (ESRD) patients undergoing maintenance hemodialysis. METHODS: In total, 40 ESRD patients and 30 healthy controls were prospectively enrolled in our study. All subjects completed diffusion kurtosis imaging (DKI) examinations and Montreal cognitive assessment (MoCA) test. Between-group differences in the DKI metrics were analyzed. In addition, the mediating effects of altered brain micro-structures on the association between clinical risk factors and MCI were determined by mediation analysis. Finally, cognitive function was predicted based on DKI metrics and clinical characteristics by applying the optimized least squares support vector regression machine. RESULTS: We observed disrupted brain micro-structures in ESRD patients with MCI, as indicated by significantly altered DKI parameters. Significant correlations were found between the DKI metrics, clinical characteristics, and MoCA scores. In ESRD patients, low hemoglobin level and high serum creatine level were clinical risk factors for MCI. A decreased axial kurtosis value in the left hippocampus may partially mediate the impact of serum creatine on MCI. Furthermore, the prediction model could predict cognitive scores associated with ESRD with relatively high accuracy. CONCLUSION: Aberrant micro-structures partially mediated the association between clinical risk factors and MCI, which is a novel insight into the progression of cognitive dysfunction in ESRD patients. Combined DKI metrics and clinical characteristics could be used as features to efficiently predict cognitive function associated with ESRD.

Paeonol Ameliorates Ulcerative Colitis in Mice by Modulating the Gut Microbiota and Metabolites.

Ulcerative colitis (UC) is a chronic recurrent inflammatory disease of the gastrointestinal tract. Recent studies demonstrate that the phenolic tannin paeonol (Pae) attenuates UC in mouse models by downregulating inflammatory factors. However, its molecular mechanism for UC treatment has not been explored from the perspective of the gut microbiota and metabolomics. In this study, we investigated the effects of Pae on colonic inflammation, intestinal microbiota and fecal metabolites in 3% dextran sodium sulfate (DSS) induced BALB/c UC mice. Pae significantly improved the clinical index, relieved colonic damage, reduced cytokine levels, and restored the integrity of the intestinal epithelial barrier in UC mice. In addition, Pae increased the abundance of gut microbiota, partially reversed the disturbance of intestinal biota composition, including Lactobacillus and Bacteroides, and regulated metabolite levels, such as bile acid (BA) and short-chain fatty acid (SCFA). In conclusion, our study provides new insight on Pae remission of UC.

Electrochemical Detection of Ascorbic Acid in Finger-Actuated Microfluidic Chip.

The traditional quantitative analysis methods of ascorbic acid (AA), which require expensive equipment, a large amount of samples and professional technicians, are usually complex and time-consuming. A low-cost and high-efficiency AA detection device is reported in this work. It integrates a three-electrode sensor module prepared by screen printing technology, and a microfluidic chip with a finger-actuated micropump peeled from the liquid-crystal display (LCD) 3D printing resin molds. The AA detection process on this device is easy to operate. On-chip detection has been demonstrated to be 2.48 times more sensitive than off-chip detection and requires only a microliter-scale sample volume, which is much smaller than that required in traditional electrochemical methods. Experiments show that the sample and buffer can be fully mixed in the microchannel, which is consistent with the numerical simulation results wherein the mixing efficiency is greater than 90%. Commercially available tablets and beverages are also tested, and the result shows the reliability and accuracy of the device, demonstrating its broad application prospects in the field of point-of-care testing (POCT).

Establishment methods and research progress of livestock and poultry immortalized cell lines: A review.

An infinite cell line is one of the most favored experimental tools and plays an irreplaceable role in cell-based biological research. Primary cells from normal animal tissues undergo a limited number of divisions and subcultures in vitro before they enter senescence and die. On the contrary, an infinite cell line is a population of non-senescent cells that could proliferate indefinitely in vitro under the stimulation of external factors such as physicochemical stimulation, virus infection, or transfer of immortality genes. Cell immortalization is the basis for establishing an infinite cell line, and previous studies have found that methods to obtain immortalized cells mainly included physical and chemical stimulations, heterologous expression of viral oncogenes, increased telomerase activity, and spontaneous formation. However, some immortalized cells do not necessarily proliferate permanently even though they can extend their lifespan compared with primary cells. An infinite cell line not only avoids the complicated process of collecting primary cell, it also provides a convenient and reliable tool for studying scientific problems in biology. At present, how to establish a stable infinite cell line to maximize the proliferation of cells while maintaining the normal function of cells is a hot issue in the biological community. This review briefly introduces the methods of cell immortalization, discusses the related progress of establishing immortalized cell lines in livestock and poultry, and compares the characteristics of several methods, hoping to provide some ideas for generating new immortalized cell lines.