Hierarchical Dendritic Photonic Crystal Beads for Efficient Isolation and Proteomic Analysis of Multiple Cell Types.

Cell types with different morphology, and function collaborate to maintain organ function. As such, analyzing proteomic differences and connections between different types of cells forms the foundation for establishing functional connectomes and developing in vitro organoid simulation experiments. However, the efficiency of cell type isolation from organs is limited by time, equipment, and cost. Here, hierarchical dendritic photonic crystal beads (HDPCBs) featuring high-density functional groups via the self-assembly of dendritic mesoporous structure SiO2 nanoparticles (DM-SiO2) and grafting dendrimers onto the surface of dendritic mesoporous photonic crystal beads (DMPCBs) is developed. This platform integrates multitype cell separation with in situ protein cleavage processes. Efficient simultaneous isolation of Kupffer cells and Liver Sinusoidal Endothelial cells (LSECs) from liver, with high specificity and convenient operation in a short separation time are demonstrated. The results reveal 2832 and 3442 unique proteins identified in Kupffer cells and LSECs using only 50 HDPCBs, respectively. 764 and 629 over-expressed proteins associated with the function of Kupffer cells and LSECs are found, respectively. The work offers a new method for efficiently isolating multiple cell types from tissues and downstream proteomic analysis, ultimately facilitating the identification of primary cell compositions and functions.

A small pore black TiO2/-large pore Fe3O4 cascade nanoreactor for chemodynamic/photothermal synergetic tumour therapy.

Various unique spatial structures are often found in the enzymes of biological systems. From the consideration of bionics, it is challenging but meaningful to design nanozymes with distinctive structures to enhance their bioactivities. To explore the relationship between the structure and activity of nanozymes, in this work, a special structural nanoreactor, namely small pore black TiO2 coated/doped large pore Fe3O4 (TiO2/-Fe3O4) loaded with lactate oxidase (LOD), was constructed for chemodynamic and photothermal synergistic therapy. Specifically, LOD loaded on the surface of the TiO2/-Fe3O4 nanozyme alleviates the low level of H2O2 in the tumour microenvironment (TME); the black TiO2 shell with multiple pinhole channels and a large specific surface area not only facilitates LOD loading, but also enhances the affinity of the nanozyme for H2O2; H2O2 is continuously enriched on the surface of the TiO2/-Fe3O4 nanozyme and transmitted to mesoporous Fe3O4, in turn efficiently producing abundant toxic hydroxyl radicals (˙OH) for chemodynamic therapy. Meanwhile, the TiO2/-Fe3O4 nanozyme under 1120 nm laser irradiation has excellent photothermal conversion efficiency (η = 41.9%), and further accelerates the production of ˙OH for amplifying the chemodynamic therapy efficiency. This self-cascading, special structure nanozyme provides a novel strategy for application in highly efficient tumour synergetic therapy.

Preparation of a Hybrid TiO2 and 1T/2H-MoS2 Photocatalyst for the Degradation of Tetracycline Hydrochloride.

Water pollution caused by antibiotics is a growing problem. Semiconductor photocatalysis is an environmentally friendly technology that can effectively degrade organic pollutants in water. Therefore, the development of efficient photocatalysts is of great significance to solve the environmental pollution problem. In this paper, mixed-phase TiO2 and 1T/2H-MoS2 composite (1T/2H-MoS2/TiO2) were synthesized by the in situ growth method. The prepared compounds were characterized and applied to the visible-light degradation of tetracycline hydrochloride. The photocatalytic effect of 1T/2H-MoS2/TiO2 on tetracycline hydrochloride is significantly enhanced under visible light and has good stability. It has potential applications in the treatment of organic pollutants in water.

Design of highly efficient g-C3N4-based metal monoatom catalysts by two extra-NM1 atoms: density functional theory simulations.

Graphitic carbon nitride (g-C3N4) is recognized as a favorable substrate for monoatom catalysts due to its uniform nanoholes for anchoring metal monoatoms, while the oxygen evolution reaction (OER) overpotential (ηOER) values of g-C3N4-based metal monoatom catalysts are still large. To reduce the ηOER values, a class of novel TM1NM1NM1/g-C3N4 was designed via density functional theory simulations, where TM1 = Fe1, Co1 or Ni1 and NM1 = C1, N1 or O1. Contributing by two extra-NM1 atoms, the OER catalytic activities of these materials were effectively improved owing to the shortened TM1-NM bonds and weakened chemical activity of TM1 atoms. Based on the volcano activity relationship between the theoretical overpotential (ηOER) and d band center of the TM1 atom (εd), the chemical activity of TM1 atoms needs to be adjusted to a suitable magnitude (εd near -4.883 eV) for a good catalytic activity. The designed Fe1C1O1/g-C3N4 with the εd of -4.893 eV exhibited an excellent OER catalytic activity of ηOER = 0.219 V. This strategy was applied to devise the reaction active sites and highly efficient catalysts by adjusting the chemical activity of the TM1 atom with suitable extra-NM1 atoms.

In Situ Growth of Metallic 1T-MoS2 on TiO2 Nanotubes with Improved Photocatalytic Performance.

1T-MoS2 is in situ grown on TiO2 nanotubes (TNTs) using a hydrothermal method, forming a 1T-MoS2@TNTs composite, which is confirmed by its physical characterization. The prepared composites show enhanced photocatalytic performance for the degradation of tetracycline hydrochloride under visible light, and the improved photocatalytic activity is closely related to the loaded amount of 1T-MoS2. Therein, 0.5 wt % 1T-MoS2@TNTs can degrade 57% in 1 h, which is the highest photocatalytic efficiency observed in experiments so far. It is speculated that the introduction of 1T-MoS2 may optimize light absorption and charge separation/transport. The active species are identified and the reaction mechanism is proposed here.

Synthesis of Novel 1T/2H-MoS2 from MoO3 Nanowires with Enhanced Photocatalytic Performance.

Metallic 1T-phase MoS2 is a newly emerging and attractive catalyst since it has more available active sites and high carrier mobility in comparison with its widely used counterpart of semiconducting 2H-MoS2. Herein, 1T/2H-MoS2(N) (N: MoO3 nanowires were used to prepare 1T/2H-MoS2) was synthesized by using molybdenum trioxide (MoO3) nanowires as the starting material and applied in the photodegradation of antibiotic residue in water. Enhanced photocatalytic performance was observed on the obtained 1T/2H-MoS2(N), which was 2.8 and 1.3 times higher than those on 1T/2H-MoS2(P) (P: commercial MoO3 powder was used to prepare 1T/2H-MoS2) and 2H-MoS2, respectively. The active component responsible for the photodegradation was detected and a reaction mechanism is proposed.

Facile Construction of All-Solid-State Z-Scheme g-C3N4/TiO2 Thin Film for the Efficient Visible-Light Degradation of Organic Pollutant.

The increasing discharge of dyes and antibiotic pollutants in water has brought serious environmental problems. However, it is difficult to remove such pollutants effectively by traditional sewage treatment technologies. Semiconductor photocatalysis is a new environment-friendly technique and is widely used in aqueous pollution control. TiO2 is one of the most investigated photocatalysts; however, it still faces the main drawbacks of a poor visible-light response and a low charge-separation efficiency. Moreover, powder photocatalyst is difficult to be recovered, which is another obstacle limiting the practical application. In this article, g-C3N4/TiO2 heterojunction is simply immobilized on a glass substrate to form an all-solid-state Z-scheme heterojunction. The obtained thin-film photocatalyst was characterized and applied in the visible-light photodegradation of colored rhodamine B and tetracycline hydrochloride. The photocatalytic performance is related to the deposited layers, and the sample with five layers shows the best photocatalytic efficiency. The thin-film photocatalyst is easy to be recovered with stability. The active component responsible for the photodegradation is identified and a Z-scheme mechanism is proposed.

Fabricating an intelligent cell-like nano-prodrug via hierarchical self-assembly based on the DNA skeleton for suppressing lung metastasis of breast cancer.

Cancer metastasis is a major cause of high mortality in breast cancer. Despite the progress achieved in nanomaterial-based treatments, the cure rate remains unsatisfactory, owing to their poor biocompatibility and non-specific recognition. Inspired by the cell-mimetic strategy, in this work, we fabricated an intelligent cell-like nano-prodrug (Dox-MPK@MDL) for lung metastasis of breast cancer. Specifically, a DNA tetrahedron dendrimer was selected to act as a rigid internal cytoskeleton, and then sequentially coated with a liposome and macrophage membrane to form cell-like Dox-MPK@MDL via hierarchical self-assembly. Here, it should be noted that pH-sensitive Dox-MPK prodrugs were synthesized and inserted into the DNA-based cytoskeleton (the Dox group is an intercalator of double stranded DNA) in advance for the next anti-metastatic therapy. Our results show that Dox-MPK@MDL specifically targeted the sites of lung metastasis via the biomimetic metastasis-homing effects and intelligently triggered Dox release at the metastatic cancer cells, thereby leading to the significant inhibition of lung metastasis. All these features help to enhance the anti-metastatic therapy efficiency of Dox while maximally reducing side-effects.

CAG repeat polymorphism of the MEF2A gene is not associated with the risk of coronary artery disease among Taiwanese.

A 21-bp deletion mutation of the exon 11 of the myocyte enhancer factor-2A (MEF2A) gene was shown to cause familial coronary artery disease. This finding raises the possibility that MEF2A variants may contribute to the risk of coronary artery disease. In total, 258 patients with coronary artery disease and 258 controls were analyzed for the MEF2A variants. The analysis revealed that all patients were negative for Pro279Leu and 21-bp deletion mutations in exons 7 and 11, respectively. The distribution of the allele frequencies of MEF2A exon 11 CAG repeat (CAG)n polymorphism was similar in both patients and controls; Further, no significant association was noted between MEF2A exon 11 (CAG)n polymorphism and the risk of myocardial infarction. Our data suggest that there is no evidence of an association between the MEF2A exon 11 (CAG)n polymorphism and the risk of coronary artery disease/myocardial infarction in the Chinese population in Taiwan.

Clinical and microbiological analysis of bloodstream infections caused by Chryseobacterium meningosepticum in nonneonatal patients.

Chryseobacterium meningosepticum bloodstream infections in 11 nonneonatal patients were reported. More than half of the infections were community acquired. PCR assays indicated that the organisms produced extended-spectrum beta-lactamases as well as metallo-beta-lactamases. Genotyping showed diverse fingerprints among the isolates. Six patients survived without appropriate antibiotic treatment. Host factors are the major determinant of the outcomes of C. meningosepticum infections.