Regulating the zinc ion transport kinetics of Mn3O4 through copper doping towards high-capacity aqueous Zn-ion battery.

High working voltage, large theoretical capacity and cheapness render Mn3O4 promising cathode candidate for aqueous zinc ion batteries (AZIBs). Unfortunately, poor electrochemical activity and bad structural stability lead to low capacity and unsatisfactory cycling performance. Herein, Mn3O4 material was fabricated through a facile precipitation reaction and divalent copper ions were introduced into the crystal framework, and ultra-small Cu-doped Mn3O4 nanocrystalline cathode materials with mixed valence states of Mn2+, Mn3+ and Mn4+ were obtained via post-calcination. The presence of Cu acts as structural stabilizer by partial substitution of Mn, as well as enhance the conductivity and reactivity of Mn3O4. Significantly, based on electrochemical investigations and ex-situ XPS characterization, a synergistic effect between copper and manganese was revealed in the Cu-doped Mn3O4, in which divalent Cu2+ can catalyze the transformation of Mn3+ and Mn4+ to divalent Mn2+, accompanied by the translation of Cu2+ to Cu0 and Cu+. Benefitting from the above advantages, the Mn3O4 cathode doped with moderate copper (abbreviated as CMO-2) delivers large discharge capacity of 352.9 mAh g-1 at 100 mA g-1, which is significantly better than Mn3O4 (only 247.8 mAh g-1). In addition, CMO-2 holds 203.3 mAh g-1 discharge capacity after 1000 cycles at 1 A g-1 with 98.6 % retention, and after 1000 cycles at 5 A g-1, it still performs decent discharge capacity of 104.2 mAh g-1. This work provides new ideas and approaches for constructing manganese-based AZIBs with long lifespan and high capacity.

Super-Durable, Tough Shape-Memory Polymeric Materials Woven from Interlocking Rigid-Flexible Chains.

Developing advanced engineering polymers that combine high strength and toughness represents not only a necessary path to excellence but also a major technical challenge. Here for the first time a rigid-flexible interlocking polymer (RFIP) is reported featuring remarkable mechanical properties, consisting of flexible polyurethane (PU) and rigid polyimide (PI) chains cleverly woven together around the copper(I) ions center. By rationally weaving PI, PU chains, and copper(I) ions, RFIP exhibits ultra-high strength (twice that of unwoven polymers, 91.4 ± 3.3 MPa), toughness (448.0 ± 14.2 MJ m-3), fatigue resistance (recoverable after 10 000 cyclic stretches), and shape memory properties. Simulation results and characterization analysis together support the correlation between microstructure and macroscopic features, confirming the greater cohesive energy of the interwoven network and providing insights into strengthening toughening mechanisms. The essence of weaving on the atomic and molecular levels is fused to obtain brilliant and valuable mechanical properties, opening new perspectives in designing robust and stable polymers.

Substituent effects on spin-crossover Fe(II)N4O2 pyrenylhydrazone complexes.

Multifunctional magnetic materials have broad application prospects in molecular switches and information storage. In this study, four mononuclear Fe(II) complexes are synthesized using a series of pyrenylhydrazone ligands HL1-4. Two deprotonated ligands are coordinated to the iron(II) ions in an enolic form, leading to neutral complexes FeII(Lx)2·xsol with a FeIIN4O2 octahedral coordination environment. Magnetic measurements suggest that complex Fe(L1)2·2ACE (1·2ACE, ACE = acetone) is mainly low spin below 300 K and complex Fe(L3)2·ACE (3·ACE) is high spin, whereas complexes Fe(L2)2 (2) and Fe(L4)2·6H2O (4·6H2O) exhibit gradual spin crossover behavior. The spin states of complexes 1-4 are confirmed by single-crystal X-ray diffraction analysis. The substituent effect on the magnetic properties of the complexes is significant in this system. Temperature-dependent fluorescence emission spectra show the coexistence but no coupling effect of spin crossover and fluorescence for complexes 2 and 4·6H2O.

Suppression of CDK1/Drp1-mediated mitochondrial fission attenuates dexamethasone-induced extracellular matrix deposition in the trabecular meshwork.

AIMS: Deposition of extracellular matrix (ECM) in the trabecular meshwork (TM), as induced by dexamethasone (DEX), is believed to play an important role in the onset of glucocorticoid-induced glaucoma (GIG). Abnormal ECM deposition is a consequence of mitochondrial dysfunction. We aimed to clarify how mitochondrial dysfunction leads to ECM deposition within the TM and to support the development of novel therapeutic strategies. RESULTS: In primary human TM cells (pHTMCs) and a dexamethasone acetate-induced murine model of GIG, glucocorticoid administration stimulated both mitochondrial fission and ECM deposition. Excessive mitochondrial fission leads to dysfunction and the overexpression of ECM proteins in pHTMCs. Notably, when pHTMCs were treated with the Drp1 inhibitor Mdivi-1 or with Drp1 siRNA, we observed a marked reduction in DEX-induced mitochondrial damage and ECM proteins in vitro. Furthermore, in C57BL/6J mice, treatment with Mdivi-1 mitigated mitochondrial damage and blocked ECM deposition within the TM. We then employed Ro3306 to inhibit the CDK1-mediated phosphorylation of Drp1 at Ser 616, which restored mitochondrial function and diminished DEX-induced ECM protein expression in pHTMCs. INNOVATION: This study illuminates the pathogenic mechanism linking mitochondrial dysfunction to ECM deposition in GIG. Our innovative approach revealed that DEX stimulates mitochondrial fission via CDK1-mediated p-Drp1s616 overexpression, which drives ECM accumulation. It offered a novel therapeutic strategy for reducing ECM protein expression by inhibiting excessive mitochondrial fission and restoring mitochondrial function. CONCLUSION: By targeting the CDK1/Drp1-driven mitochondrial fission process, we can counteract DEX-induced ECM deposition in the TM both in vivo and in vitro.

Design of eco-friendly antifreeze peptides as novel inhibitors of gas-hydration kinetics.

In this study, peptides designed using fragments of an antifreeze protein (AFP) from the freeze-tolerant insect Tenebrio molitor, TmAFP, were evaluated as inhibitors of clathrate hydrate formation. It was found that these peptides exhibit inhibitory effects by both direct and indirect mechanisms. The direct mechanism involves the displacement of methane molecules by hydrophobic methyl groups from threonine residues, preventing their diffusion to the hydrate surface. The indirect mechanism is characterized by the formation of cylindrical gas bubbles, the morphology of which reduces the pressure difference at the bubble interface, thereby slowing methane transport. The transfer of methane to the hydrate interface is primarily dominated by gas bubbles in the presence of antifreeze peptides. Spherical bubbles facilitate methane migration and potentially accelerate hydrate formation; conversely, the promotion of a cylindrical bubble morphology by two of the designed systems was found to mitigate this effect, leading to slower methane transport and reduced hydrate growth. These findings provide valuable guidance for the design of effective peptide-based inhibitors of natural-gas hydrate formation with potential applications in the energy and environmental sectors.

Exosomal MicroRNAs modulate the cognitive function in fasudil treated APPswe/PSEN1dE9 transgenic (APP/PS1) mice model of Alzheimer's disease.

Alzheimer's disease (AD) is characterized by cognitive decline stemming from the accumulation of beta-amyloid (Aß) plaques and the propagation of tau pathology through synapses. Exosomes, crucial mediators in neuronal development, maintenance, and intercellular communication, have gained attention in AD research. Yet, the molecular mechanisms involving exosomal miRNAs in AD remain elusive. In this study, we treated APPswe/PSEN1dE9 transgenic (APP/PS1) mice, a model for AD, with either vehicle (ADNS) or fasudil (ADF), while C57BL/6 (control) mice received vehicle (WT). Cognitive function was evaluated using the Y-maze test, and AD pathology was confirmed through immunostaining and western blot analysis of Aß plaques and phosphorylated tau. Exosomal RNAs were extracted, sequenced, and analyzed from each mouse group. Our findings revealed that fasudil treatment improved cognitive function in AD mice, as evidenced by increased spontaneous alternation in the Y-maze test and reduced Aß plaque load and phosphorylated tau protein expression in the hippocampus. Analysis of exosomal miRNAs identified three miRNAs (mmu-let-7i-5p, mmu-miR-19a-3p, mmu-miR-451a) common to both ADNS vs ADF and WT vs ADNS groups. Utilizing miRTarBase software, we predicted and analyzed target genes associated with these miRNAs. Gene ontology (GO) annotation and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) pathway analysis of miRNA target genes indicated that mmu-miR-19a-3p and mmu-miR-451a are implicated in signal transduction, immune response, cellular communication, and nervous system pathways. Specifically, mmu-miR-19a-3p targeted genes involved in the sphingolipid signaling pathway, such as Pten and Tnf, while mmu-miR-451a targeted Nsmaf, Gnai3, and Akt3. Moreover, mmu-miR-451a targeted Myc in signaling pathways regulating the pluripotency of stem cells. In conclusion, fasudil treatment enhanced cognitive function by modulating exosomal MicroRNAs, particularly mmu-miR-451a and mmu-miR-19a-3p. These miRNAs hold promise as potential biomarkers and therapeutic targets for novel AD treatments.

The pharmacokinetics/pharmacodynamics integration of tilmicosin against Mycoplasma synoviae in vitro and in vivo.

Mycoplasma synoviae (MS) infection is a serious threat to poultry industry in China. Tilmicosin is a semisynthetic macrolide antibiotic used only in animals and has shown potential efficacy against MS, but there were no reported articles concerning the pharmacokinetics/pharmacodynamics (PK/PD) interactions of tilmicosin against MS in vitro and vivo. This study aimed to assess the antibacterial activity of tilmicosin against MS in vitro and in vivo using PK/PD model to provide maximal efficacy. The minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) and killing rates of different drug concentrations were measured using the microdilution method in vitro. Then, tilmicosin was administered orally to the MS-infected chickens at doses of 7.5 and 60 mg/kg, and the PK parameters of tilmicosin in joint dialysates were determined using high-pressure liquid chromatography/tandem mass spectrometry (HPLC-MS/MS) combined with the microdialysis technique. The antibacterial effect (△E) was calculated when the infected chickens were administered a single oral dose of tilmicosin at 4, 7.5, 15, 30, and 60 mg/kg b.w. The PK and PD data were fitted using the Sigmoid Emax model to evaluate the PK/PD interactions of tilmicosin against MS. The bactericidal activity of tilmicosin against MS was concentration dependent. Furthermore, the PK/PD index of AUC0-72h/MIC exhibited the most optimal fitting results (R2 = .98). The MS load decreased by 1, 2, and 3 Log10 CFU/mL, then AUC/MIC was determined as 13.99, 20.53, and 28.23 h, respectively, and the bactericidal effect can be achieved when the dose of MS-infected chickens is at 31.64 mg/kg b.w. The findings of this study hold significant implications for optimizing the treatment regimen for MS infection.

Perineuronal nets' role in metabolism.

Perineuronal nets (PNNs), specialized extracellular matrix structures that envelop neurons, have recently been recognized as key players in the regulation of metabolism. This review explores the growing body of knowledge concerning PNNs and their role in metabolic control, drawing insights from recent research and relevant studies. The pivotal role of PNNs in the context of energy balance and whole-body blood glucose is examined. The review also highlights novel findings, including the effects of astroglia, microglia, sex and gonadal hormones, nutritional regulation, circadian rhythms and age on PNNs dynamics. These findings illuminate the complex and multifaceted role of PNNs in metabolic health.

Nanoscale phase management of the 2D/3D heterostructure toward efficient perovskite solar cells.

The stabilization of the formamidinium lead iodide (FAPbI3) structure is pivotal for the development of efficient photovoltaic devices. Employing two-dimensional (2D) layers to passivate the three-dimensional (3D) perovskite is essential for maintaining the α-phase of FAPbI3 and enhancing the power conversion efficiency (PCE) of perovskite solar cells (PSCs). However, the role of bulky ligands in the phase management of 2D perovskites, crucial for the stabilization of FAPbI3, has not yet been elucidated. In this study, we synthesized nanoscale 2D perovskite capping crusts with  = 1 and 2 Ruddlesden-Popper (RP) perovskite layers, respectively, which form a type-II 2D/3D heterostructure. This heterostructure stabilizes the α-phase of FAPbI3, and facilitates ultrafast carrier extraction from the 3D perovskite network to transport contact layer. We introduced tri-fluorinated ligands to mitigate defects caused by the halide vacancies and uncoordinated Pb2+ ions, thereby reducing nonradiative carrier recombination and extending carrier lifetime. The films produced were incorporated into PSCs that not only achieved a PCE of 25.39% but also maintained 95% of their initial efficiency after 2000 h of continuous light exposure without encapsulation. These findings underscore the effectiveness of a phase-pure 2D/3D heterostructure-terminated film in inhibiting phase transitions passivating the iodide anion vacancy defects, facilitating the charge carrier extraction, and boosting the performance of optoelectronic devices.

Strong support effect induced by MXene for the synthesis of metal sulfides nanosheet arrays with sulfur vacancies towards selective CO2-to-CO photoreduction.

Selective CO2-to-CO photoreduction is under intensive research and requires photocatalysts with tuned microstructures to accelerate the reaction kinetics. Here, we report CuInS2 nanosheet arrays with sulfur vacancies (VS) grown on the two-dimensional (2D) support of Ti3C2Tx MXene for CO2-to-CO photoreduction. Our results reveal that the use of Ti3C2Tx induces strong support effect, which causes the hierarchical nanosheet arrays growth of CuInS2 and simultaneously leads to charge transfer from CuInS2 to Ti3C2Tx support, resulting in VS formed in CuInS2. The strong support effect based on Ti3C2Tx is proven to be applicable to prepare a series of different metal indium sulfide arrays with VS. CuInS2 nanosheet arrays with VS supported on Ti3C2Tx benefit the photocatalytic selective reduction of CO2 to CO, manifesting a remarkable over 14.8-fold activity enhancement compared with pure CuInS2. The experimental and computational investigations pinpoint that VS of CuInS2 resulting from the support effect of Ti3C2Tx lowers the barrier of the rate-limiting step of *COOH → *OH + *CO, which is the key to the photoactivity enhancement. This work demonstrates MXene support effects and offers an effective approach to regulate the atomic microstructure of metal sulfides toward enhancing photocatalytic performance.

Initialization-Free and Magnetic Field-Free Spin-Orbit p-Bits with Backhopping-like Magnetization Switching for Probabilistic Applications.

Probabilistic bits (p-bits) with thermal- and spin torque-induced nondeterministic magnetization switching are promising candidates for performing probabilistic computing. Previously reported spin torque p-bits include volatile low-energy barrier nanomagnets (LBNMs) with spontaneously fluctuating magnetizations and initialization-necessary nonvolatile magnets. However, initialization-free nonvolatile spin torque p-bits are still lacking. Here, we demonstrate moderately thermal stable spin-orbit torque (SOT) p-bits with non-consecutively deposited Pt//Pt/Co/Pt stacks. Backhopping-like (BH) magnetization switching with a wide range current-tunable probability of final up and down magnetization states from 0% to 100% was achieved, regardless of the initial magnetization state, which was attributed to the interplay of SOT and thermal contributions. Integer factorization using such BH-SOT p-bits in zero magnetic field was demonstrated at times that are significantly shorter than those of existing nonvolatile STT or volatile LBNMs p-bits. Our realization of initialization-free and magnetic field-free moderately thermally stable BH-SOT p-bits opens up a new perspective for probabilistic spintronic applications.

ALK-positive histiocytosis in 12 Asian children.

Anaplastic lymphoma kinase-positive histiocytosis, first reported in 2008, is a rare, novel type of neoplasm. To date, no more than 100 cases of anaplastic lymphoma kinase-positive histiocytosis have been reported. In this retrospective study, 12 cases of anaplastic lymphoma kinase-positive histiocytosis, including clinical symptoms, histological features, molecular pathology, treatment, and prognosis, in children were analyzed to gain a deeper understanding of the disease. All patients were Asian children, aged 2 months to 8 years and 2 months (mean 3.1 years), and the male-to-female ratio was 5:7. All patients were followed up closely. One patient died during the follow-up period, seven (case 1-7) had focal anaplastic lymphoma kinase-positive histiocytosis, and five (case 8-12) had multisystem anaplastic lymphoma kinase-positive histiocytosis. In addition, we report the case of a patient who benefited from anaplastic lymphoma kinase-targeted therapy and a patient with the rare EML4-ALK fusion gene. The current study is expected to substantially contribute to increasing the awareness of anaplastic lymphoma kinase-positive histiocytosis.

How Does Rescuer's Position Setting Impact Quality of Chest Compression: A Randomized Crossover Simulation Study on Unexperienced Clinicians.

Background: High-quality chest compression (CC) is the crux of survival for cardiac arrest patients. While, rescuers' position setting relative to patients during CC was unrecommended in the present guidelines. We aimed to assess the impact of position settings on CC quality during cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) and to test the heterogeneity related to rescuers' characteristics. Methods: We conducted randomized, crossover, simulation trials with clinical students unfamiliar with CPR. The participants received standard training on performing CC and were divided randomly into two groups. The two groups separately performed CC with standing and kneeling positions in turn, forming the crossover design. The trials were performed with standard manikin models. CC quality indicator data were recorded by the tracking and feedback system automatically. Result: 156 participants finished at least one round of trial, with 126 participants finishing both rounds. Records for CC with kneeling and standing positions showed statistically significant differences in the correct rate, pause happening, average depth, and happening of over-depth compression. Regression analysis also implied that larger compression depths with the standing position were related to larger height and BMI of the participants. Conclusion: When performing CC, the standing position will lead to lower CC quality by larger chance of pause happening and over-depth compression. In addition, compression depth gaps between CC with kneeling and standing position were related with rescuer characteristics including height and BMI, with a threshold effect.

Childhood adversity and depression of older adults: the moderating effect of social participation.

Objective: Examine the effect of childhood adversity on depression in older adults and the regulatory impact that social participation has on depression. Methods: Based on 6,704 standard-compliant research subjects, single factor analysis, multiple linear regression model, and tendency score matching were used to analyze the impact of childhood adversity on depression in older adults and the regulatory effect of social participation. Results: The depression rate is higher among women, young age, low education, unmarried, in agricultural households, older adults with low annual income, pre-retirement work type in agriculture, non-drinking, and those with two or more chronic diseases (p < 0.05). Children who experienced adversity as children are more likely to suffer from depression as adults (ß = 0.513, 0.590, 0.954, 0.983, 1.221, 0.953, 0.718; p < 0.05). Through the tendency score, the result is matched with the endogenous test. As well, older adults are more likely to suffer psychological damage from a greater number of childhood adversities in their early years (ß = 1.440, 2.646, 4.122; p < 0.001). It has been shown that social participation will reduce the negative impact of low-income family economic circumstances on depression among older adults of all ages (ß = -0.459,-0.567; p < 0.01), aggravate depression resulting from "neighborhood void of mutual assistance" and "no more fun to play" for older adults of all ages (ß = 1.024, 0.894; p < 0.01), and exacerbate depression resulting from "loneliness because there are no friends" for the oldest old (ß = 0.476, 0.779; p < 0.05). Conclusion: Older adults who experience childhood adversity are more likely to suffer from depression. Social participation plays a regulatory role in the relationship between childhood adversity and depression in older adults. For older adults' mental health to improve, family and social adversity should be prevented, and moderate participation in society should be encouraged.

Clinical and electrocardiographic characteristics of immune checkpoint inhibitor-related myocarditis.

BACKGROUND: Immune checkpoint inhibitor (ICI) has become a major breakthrough in the field of tumor therapy, leading to improved survival. This study evaluated the clinical and electrocardiographic characteristics of patients with ICI-related myocarditis. METHODS: Patients with ICI-related myocarditis were enrolled from 4 centers in China until September 2023. Demographic data (age, sex, comorbidity), types of ICI, clinical manifestations, electrocardiogram (ECG) and treatment were analyzed retrospectively. Arrhythmia and characteristics of ECG were compared according to prognosis and grading. RESULTS: A total of 29 participants (13 females with a median age of 63.25 years) with ICI-related myocarditis were enrolled. Lung cancer was the most, with a proportion of 31.03 % (9/29). The median time from the first administration of ICI to the diagnosis of myocarditis was 50 days. Camrelizumab was the main type of ICI (9/29). Most patients had non-specific symptoms, dyspnea (n = 16) and palpitation (n = 9) were common. The overall mortality rate was 37.93 % (11/29) with a median follow-up of 9(4,11) days. Compared with the survivors, P-wave abnormality was more common in participants who were dead (24.14 %vs6.90 %, p = 0.010). A total of 19 patients with severe ICI-related myocarditis were included in this study. The proportions of sinus tachycardia (34.48 %vs0.00 %, p = 0.005), premature ventricular complex (27.59 %vs0.00 %, p = 0.027) and atrioventricular block (34.48 %vs3.45 %, p = 0.044) were higher in severe ICI-related myocarditis. CONCLUSIONS: Clinical manifestations of ICI-related myocarditis usually lacked specificity. ECGs can be manifested as new-onset arrhythmias, ST-T segment changes, fragmented QRS complex, abnormal P wave, prolonged QTc interval and multi­lead low voltage.

Screening of differentially expressed RNAs and identifying a ceRNA axis during cadmium-induced oxidative damage in pancreatic ß cells.

Cadmium, a common metal pollutant, has been demonstrated to induce type 2 diabetes by disrupting pancreatic ß cells function. In this study, transcriptome microarray was utilized to identify differential gene expression in oxidative damage to pancreatic ß cells following cadmium exposure. The results indicated that a series of mRNAs, LncRNAs, and miRNAs were altered. Of the differentially expressed miRNAs, miR-29a-3p exhibited the most pronounced alteration, with an 11.62-fold increase relative to the control group. Following this, the target gene of miR-29a-3p was identified as Col3a1 through three databases (miRDB, miRTarbase and Tarbase), which demonstrated a decrease across the transcriptome microarray. The upstream target gene of miR-29a-3p was identified as NONMMUT036805, with decreased expression observed in the microarray. Finally, the expression trend of NONMMUT036805/miR-29a-3p/Col3a1 was reversed following NAC pretreatment. This was accompanied by a reduction in oxidative damage indicators, MDA/ROS/GSH-Px appeared to be negatively affected to varying degrees. In conclusion, this study has demonstrated that multiple RNAs are altered during cadmium exposure-induced oxidative damage in pancreatic ß cells. The NONMMUT036805/miR-29a-3p/Col3a1 axis has been shown to be involved in this process, which provides a foundation for the identification of potential targets for cadmium toxicity intervention.

A scientometrics analysis and visualization of refractory gastroesophageal reflux disease.

Background: Refractory gastroesophageal reflux disease (refractory GERD) is a heterogeneous disease characterized by unresponsiveness or poor efficacy to proton-pump inhibitors (PPIs). This chronic disorder substantially weakens patients' mental wellbeing and quality of life, increasing the financial burden on society. Multiple articles have been reported in this area. However, literature involving scientometric analysis of refractory GERD is absent. Therefore, it is necessary to understand the evolution of research themes and the main hotspots of refractory GERD through bibliometric methods. Methods: All documents related to refractory GERD based on the WOS Core Collection from January 2000 to November 2023 were selected for analysis. Citespace V 6.1 R6, VOSviewer V 1.6.20, and Scimago Graphica V 1.0.38 were used to perform bibliometric analysis. Results: We collected a total of 241 research articles from 36 countries and 322 institutions, contributed by over 1,000 authors. Over the last 20 years, the number of articles in this field has increased year by year, and since 2011, the number of publications has increased dramatically, with 85.89% of the papers. These countries are led by the United States and Japan. GUT had the highest number of citations and DIGESTION had the highest number of publications. Research on standardized diagnosis and management, mechanisms, novel monitoring methods, and innovative drugs and procedures for refractory GERD are the main topics and hotspots in this field. This study also found that neuroimmune interaction is closely related to refractory GERD, which may be a new direction for future mechanism research. Conclusion: Our study is the first bibliometric analysis of the global literature on refractory GERD. This research provides valuable insights for researchers, enabling them to quickly understand the research frontier and hot topics of this field.

Retraction: involvement of DNA methyltransferase 1 (DNMT1) and multidrug resistance-associated proteins in 2-methoxyestradiol-induced cytotoxicity in EC109/Taxol cells.

[This retracts the article DOI: 10.21037/tcr-20-2678.].

Improving the catalytic activity and thermostability of Aspergillus niger xylanase through computational design.

Xylanase plays the most important role in catalyzing xylan to xylose moieties. GH11 xylanases have been widely used in many fields, but most GH11 xylanases are mesophilic enzymes. To improve the catalytic activity and thermostability of Aspergillus niger xylanase (Xyn-WT), we predicted potential key mutation sites of Xyn-WT through multiple computer-aided enzyme engineering strategies. We introduce a simple and economical Ni affinity chromatography purification method to obtain high-purity xylanase and its mutants. Ten mutants (Xyn-A, Xyn-B, Xyn-C, E45T, Q93R, E45T/Q93R, A161P, Xyn-D, Xyn-E, Xyn-F) were identified. Among the ten mutants, four (Xyn-A, Xyn-C, A161P, Xyn-F) presented improved thermal stability and activity, with Xyn-F(A161P/E45T/Q93R) being the most thermally stable and active. Compared with Xyn-WT, after heat treatment at 55 °C and 60 °C for 10 min, the remaining enzyme activity of Xyn-F was 12 and 6 times greater than that of Xyn-WT, respectively, and Xyn-F was approximately 1.5 times greater than Xyn-WT when not heat treated. The pH adaptation of Xyn-F was also significantly enhanced. In summary, an improved catalytic activity and thermostability of the design variant Xyn-F has been reported.

ncStem: a comprehensive resource of curated and predicted ncRNAs in cancer stemness.

Cancer stemness plays an important role in cancer initiation and progression, and is the major cause of tumor invasion, metastasis, recurrence, and poor prognosis. Non-coding RNAs (ncRNAs) are a class of RNA transcripts that generally cannot encode proteins and have been demonstrated to play a critical role in regulating cancer stemness. Here, we developed the ncStem database to record manually curated and predicted ncRNAs associated with cancer stemness. In total, ncStem contains 645 experimentally verified entries, including 159 long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs), 254 microRNAs (miRNAs), 39 circular RNAs (circRNAs), and 5 other ncRNAs. The detailed information of each entry includes the ncRNA name, ncRNA identifier, disease, reference, expression direction, tissue, species, and so on. In addition, ncStem also provides computationally predicted cancer stemness-associated ncRNAs for 33 TCGA cancers, which were prioritized using the random walk with restart (RWR) algorithm based on regulatory and co-expression networks. The total predicted cancer stemness-associated ncRNAs included 11 132 lncRNAs and 972 miRNAs. Moreover, ncStem provides tools for functional enrichment analysis, survival analysis, and cell location interrogation for cancer stemness-associated ncRNAs. In summary, ncStem provides a platform to retrieve cancer stemness-associated ncRNAs, which may facilitate research on cancer stemness and offer potential targets for cancer treatment. Database URL: http://www.nidmarker-db.cn/ncStem/index.html.