Infant Exposure to PCBs and PBDEs Revealed by Hair and Human Milk Analysis: Evaluation of Hair as an Alternative Biomatrix.

Human hair, as an emerging biological monitoring matrix, has begun to be used in various human exposure studies, but little research has been done on persistent organic pollutants (POPs), especially for the body burden of POPs in infants. In this study, 36 breast-fed infants in Shanghai were recruited for a study to determine their exposure to POPs, including 12 dioxin-like polychlorinated biphenyls (dl-PCBs), 6 indicator PCBs, and 8 polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs) in the inner layer (internal) and outer layer (external) of infant hair and human milk. The similarity or difference of the POP distribution pattern or concentration among these matrices was investigated, and only weak correlations (r < 0.4) were observed between the POP concentration in human milk and infant hair (internal or external). POPs in human milk have a different profile than those in infant hair, while they have stable concentration ratios (0.58-2.72), similar distribution patterns, fine Spearman's rank correlations, and tangled principal component analysis (PCA) plots in each POP family between external and internal hair samples. The result suggested that POPs in internal hair can be easily affected by those in external hair, but POPs in human milk seem to have little contribution to the POP profile in internal hair. Although infant hair cannot reflect the POPs from diet or from body burden, it can be an ideal biomatrix that estimates infant exposure to POPs from exogenous sources like house dust when considering the similar pattern of POPs and their proper accumulation period in hair.

A plasmon modulator by directly controlling the couple of photon and electron.

The manipulation of surface plasmon polaritons plays a pivotal role in plasmonic science and technology, however, the modulation efficiency of the traditional method suffers from the weak light-matter interaction. Herein, we propose a new method to overcome this obstacle by directly controlling the couple of photon and electron. In this paper, a hybrid graphene-dielectric- interdigital electrode structure is numerically and experimentally investigated. The plasmon is excited due to the confined carrier which is regulated by the potential wells. The frequency of plasmon can be tuned over a range of ~ 33 cm-1, and the obtained maximum extinction ratio is 8% via changing the confined area and the density of carrier. These findings may open up a new path to design the high efficiency all-optical modulator because the electrons can also be driven optically.

Predicting the multi-label protein subcellular localization through multi-information fusion and MLSI dimensionality reduction based on MLFE classifier.

MOTIVATION: Multi-label (ML) protein subcellular localization (SCL) is an indispensable way to study protein function. It can locate a certain protein (such as the human transmembrane protein that promotes the invasion of the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2)) or expression product at a specific location in a cell, which can provide a reference for clinical treatment of diseases such as coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). RESULTS: The article proposes a novel method named ML-locMLFE. First of all, six feature extraction methods are adopted to obtain protein effective information. These methods include pseudo amino acid composition, encoding based on grouped weight, gene ontology, multi-scale continuous and discontinuous, residue probing transformation and evolutionary distance transformation. In the next part, we utilize the ML information latent semantic index method to avoid the interference of redundant information. In the end, ML learning with feature-induced labeling information enrichment is adopted to predict the ML protein SCL. The Gram-positive bacteria dataset is chosen as a training set, while the Gram-negative bacteria dataset, virus dataset, newPlant dataset and SARS-CoV-2 dataset as the test sets. The overall actual accuracy of the first four datasets are 99.23%, 93.82%, 93.24% and 96.72% by the leave-one-out cross validation. It is worth mentioning that the overall actual accuracy prediction result of our predictor on the SARS-CoV-2 dataset is 72.73%. The results indicate that the ML-locMLFE method has obvious advantages in predicting the SCL of ML protein, which provides new ideas for further research on the SCL of ML protein. AVAILABILITY AND IMPLEMENTATION: The source codes and datasets are publicly available at https://github.com/QUST-AIBBDRC/ML-locMLFE/. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Supplementary data are available at Bioinformatics online.

Prediction of protein ubiquitination sites via multi-view features based on eXtreme gradient boosting classifier.

Ubiquitination is a common and reversible post-translational protein modification that regulates apoptosis and plays an important role in protein degradation and cell diseases. However, experimental identification of protein ubiquitination sites is usually time-consuming and labor-intensive, so it is necessary to establish effective predictors. In this study, we propose a ubiquitination sites prediction method based on multi-view features, namely UbiSite-XGBoost. Firstly, we use seven single-view features encoding methods to convert protein sequence fragments into digital information. Secondly, the least absolute shrinkage and selection operator (LASSO) is applied to remove the redundant information and get the optimal feature subsets. Finally, these features are inputted into the eXtreme gradient boosting (XGBoost) classifier to predict ubiquitination sites. Five-fold cross-validation shows that the AUC values of Set1-Set6 datasets are 0.8258, 0.7592, 0.7853, 0.8345, 0.8979 and 0.8901, respectively. The synthetic minority oversampling technique (SMOTE) is employed in Set4-Set6 unbalanced datasets, and the AUC values are 0.9777, 0.9782 and 0.9860, respectively. In addition, we have constructed three independent test datasets which the AUC values are 0.8007, 0.6897 and 0.7280, respectively. The results show that the proposed method UbiSite-XGBoost is superior to other ubiquitination prediction methods and it provides new guidance for the identification of ubiquitination sites. The source code and all datasets are available at https://github.com/QUST-AIBBDRC/UbiSite-XGBoost/.

Accurate prediction of multi-label protein subcellular localization through multi-view feature learning with RBRL classifier.

Multi-label proteins can participate in carrier transportation, enzyme catalysis, hormone regulation and other life activities. Meanwhile, they play a key role in the fields of biopharmaceuticals, gene and cell therapy. This article proposes a prediction method called Mps-mvRBRL to predict the subcellular localization (SCL) of multi-label protein. Firstly, pseudo position-specific scoring matrix, dipeptide composition, position specific scoring matrix-transition probability composition, gene ontology and pseudo amino acid composition algorithms are used to obtain numerical information from different views. Based on the contribution of five individual feature extraction methods, differential evolution is used for the first time to learn the weight of single feature, and then these original features use a weighted combination method to fuse multi-view information. Secondly, the fused high-dimensional features use a weighted linear discriminant analysis framework based on binary weight form to eliminate irrelevant information. Finally, the best feature vector is input into the joint ranking support vector machine and binary relevance with robust low-rank learning classifier to predict the SCL. After applying leave-one-out cross-validation, the overall actual accuracy (OAA) and overall location accuracy (OLA) of Mps-mvRBRL on the training set of Gram-positive bacteria are both 99.81%. The OAA on the test sets of plant, virus and Gram-negative bacteria datasets are 97.24%, 98.55% and 98.20%, respectively, and the OLA are 97.16%, 97.62% and 98.28%, respectively. The results show that the model achieves good prediction performance for predicting the SCL of multi-label protein.

Exposure and health risk assessment of secondary contaminants closely related to brominated flame retardants (BFRs): Polybrominated dibenzo-p-dioxins and dibenzofurans (PBDD/Fs) in human milk in shanghai.

Polybrominated dibenzo-p-dioxins and dibenzofurans (PBDD/Fs), as the secondary environmental pollutants of the widely used brominated flame retardants (BFRs), possess the similar physicochemical and toxic properties as polychlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxins and dibenzofurans (PCDD/Fs). However, studies on human body exposure to them are extremely limited. In this study, forty human milk samples collected in Shanghai were measured for 13 PBDD/F congeners using gas chromatography-high resolution mass spectrometry (GC-HRMS), to investigate their exposure level and characteristics, potential source and corresponding health risks to breastfed infants. The results showed no PBDDs but three PBDF congeners including 2,3,7,8-TBDF, 1,2,3,4,6,7,8-HpBDF and OBDF (mean concentration (detection rates) are 3.2 pg/g (72.5%), 9.5 pg/g (100%) and 28 pg/g (67.5%), respectively) were detected. The average toxic equivalent quantity (TEQ, 0.42 pg/g lw) presented the highest concentration level compared to other regions reported. The contribution of PBDFs to the total TEQ of PBDD/Fs and PCDD/Fs is 6.8%. The correlation between PBDD/Fs and age or dietary habits was not observed, which normally existed in their chlorinated analogues-PCDD/Fs. Significant correlations were observed between PBDFs and highly brominated polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs) (especially for BDE 183 and BDE 209). The correlation between PCDD/Fs and PBDFs was not observed except 2,3,7,8-TBDF. The high PBDFs exposure in Shanghai may originate from the emission of PBDEs and/or non-PBDE BFRs in environment, according to the consistency of the environmental data previously reported. The average estimated dietary intakes (EDI) for breastfed infants is 2.0 pg TEQ/kg·bw/day (0.13-13 pg TEQ/kg·bw/day), within the range of the tolerable daily intake (TDI) for TCDD (1-4 pg TEQ/kg·bw/day) suggested by the World Health Organization (WHO). However, given the high toxicity of PBDD/Fs, the potential health risks of these pollutants for breastfed infants should be of concern.

Multi-Sacrificial Bonds Enhanced Double Network Hydrogel with High Toughness, Resilience, Damping, and Notch-Insensitivity.

The engineering applications of hydrogels are generally limited by the common problem of their softness and brittlness. In this study, a composite double network ionic hydrogel (CDN-gel) was obtained by the facile visible light triggered polymerization of acrylic acid (AA), polyvinyl alcohol (PVA), and hydrolyzed triethoxyvinylsilane (TEVS) and subsequent salt impregnation. The resulting CDN-gels exhibited high toughness, recovery ability, and notch-insensitivity. The tensile strength, fracture elongation, Young's modulus, and toughness of the CDN-gels reached up to ~21 MPa, ~700%, ~3.5 MPa, and ~48 M/m3, respectively. The residual strain at a strain of 200% was only ~25% after stretch-release of 1000 cycles. These properties will enable greater application of these hydrogel materials, especially for the fatigue resistance of tough hydrogels, as well as broaden their applications in damping.

Strain-Sensitive Performance of a Tough and Ink-Writable Polyacrylic Acid Ionic Gel Crosslinked by Carboxymethyl Cellulose.

A tough polyacrylic acid ionic gel is obtained using carboxymethyl cellulose as a crosslinker and KCl as a conductive ions donor. The polymerization process is initiated by ceric ammonium nitrate and triggered by visible light, which can be employed as a facile 3D printing process to fabricate arbitrary gel architectures. Curling macromolecular crosslinker and plentiful hydrogen bonds among polymers endow the ionic gel with superior mechanical performance including high tensile strength (≈1.33 MPa), large elongation (>8 times), high toughness (≈5.11 MJ m-3 ), and good self-recovery property. Importantly, the ionic gel can be assembled into a flexible strain sensor to precisely monitor the diverse human body motions in real time, that is, joints bending and muscle contraction, by recording the capacitance variation. This strain-sensitive performance, which can recover even after 1000 successive cycles, should enable the detection of body action and provide a potential application in health-care monitoring or human-computer user interfaces.

Preparation and properties of a coated slow-release and water-retention biuret phosphoramide fertilizer with superabsorbent.

In this investigation, a novel water-insoluble slow-release fertilizer, biuret polyphosphoramide (BPAM), was formulated and synthesized from urea, phosphoric acid (H(3)PO(4)), and ferric oxide (Fe(2)O(3)). The structure of BPAM was characterized by Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy. Subsequently, a coated slow-release BPAM fertilizer with superabsorbent was prepared by ionic cross-linked carboxymethylchitosan (the core), acrylic acid, acrylamide, and active carbon (the coating). The variable influences on the water absorbency were investigated and optimized. Component analysis results showed that the coated slow-release BPAM contained 5.66% nitrogen and 11.7% phosphorus. The property of water retention, the behavior of slow release of phosphorus, and the capacity of adsorption of cations were evaluated, and the results revealed that the product not only had good slow-release property and excellent water retention capacity but also higher adsorption capacities of cations in saline soil.

[Determination of active components in Radix astragali and its medicinal preparations by capillary electrophoresis with electrochemical detection].

A simple, fast, and reliable method based on capillary electrophoresis with electrochemical detection (CE-ED) was developed for the separation and determination of rutin, ferulic acid, vanillic acid, chlorogenic acid, quercetin and caffeic acid in Radix Astragali and its medicinal preparations. The effects of several important factors, such as detection potential, pH, running buffer concentration, separation voltage and injection time, were investigated to acquire the optimum conditions. Under the optimum conditions, the analytes could be separated within 17 min in a 75 cm length capillary at a separation voltage of 18 kV in a 10 mmol/L borate buffer (pH 8.2). A 300 microm diameter carbon disk electrode generated a good response at +0.95 V (vs. saturated calomel electrode (SCE)) for all analytes. The relationship between peak currents and analyte concentrations was linear over about three orders of magnitude with detection limits (S/N = 3) ranging from 78 microg/L to 110 microg/L for all analytes. The average recoveries were 96.0%-103.0% with the relative standard deviations of 1.9%-3.6% (n=3). This method has been successfully used for the determination of these analytes in real samples, and the assay results were satisfactory.

Preparation of oxidized sodium alginate-graft-poly((2-dimethylamino) ethyl methacrylate) gel beads and in vitro controlled release behavior of BSA.

Graft copolymerization of amino group-terminated poly((2-dimethylamino) ethyl methacrylate) (PDMAEMA-NH2) onto oxidized sodium alginate (OSA) was reacted without using a catalyst. The structure of the graft was investigated by Fourier transform infrared (FT-IR) spectroscopy. The OSA-g-PDMAEMA gel beads were prepared by dropping the aqueous solution of the graft copolymer into CaCl2 aqueous solution. The effects of pH and ionic strength on the swelling behaviors of the gel beads were studied. The results indicate that the gel beads have pH and ionic strength sensitivity. Bovine serum albumin (BSA) was entrapped in the beads and the in vitro drug release profiles were established in buffer solution with pH 1.8 (HCl), pH 7.4 (KH2PO4-NaOH), and 0.9% (w/v) NaCl at 37 degrees C. The results showed that the oral delivery of proteins can be controlled by adjusting the graft percentage (G, %), pH and ionic strength. According to this study, the OSA-g-PDMAEMA gel beads could be suitable for the oral delivery of proteins.

MMTCA recognition by molecular imprinting in interpenetrating polymer network hydrogels based on poly(acrylic acid) and poly(vinyl alcohol).

A novel IPN hydrogel designed to recognize MMTCA is prepared by applying the molecular-imprinting method. The IPN is characterized by FT-IR, DSC, and SEM. Langmuir analysis shows that an equal class of adsorption is formed in the hydrogel. The adsorption equilibrium constant and the maximum adsorption capacity are evaluated, and the effect of the pH on MMTCA adsorption is discussed. The selectivity of the imprinted polymer for MMTCA is studied in aqueous solutions of MMTCA/aspirin/riboflavin. The results suggest that the MMTCA-imprinted polymer shows superior selectivity for MMTCA as compared to riboflavin and aspirin. The reproducibility of the imprinted polymer to MMTCA is also studied.

Preparation of ionic-crosslinked chitosan-based gel beads and effect of reaction conditions on drug release behaviors.

Drug-loaded chitosan (CS) beads were prepared under simple and mild condition using trisodium citrate as ionic crosslinker. The beads were further coated with poly(methacrylic acid) (PMAA) by dipping the beads in PMAA aqueous solution. The surface and cross-section morphology of these beads were observed by scanning electron microscopy and the observation showed that the coating beads had core-shell structure. In vitro release of model drug from these beads obtained under different reaction conditions was investigated in buffer medium (pH 1.8). The results showed that the rapid drug release was restrained by PMAA coating and the optimum conditions for preparing CS-based drug-loaded beads were decided through the effect of reaction conditions on the drug release behaviors. In addition, the drug release mechanism of CS-based drug-loaded beads was analyzed by Peppa's potential equation. According to this study, the ionic-crosslinked CS beads coated by PMAA could serve as suitable candidate for drug site-specific carrier in stomach.

[Determination of glyphosate and aminomethylphosphonic acid residues in foods using high performance liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry/mass spectrometry].

A method for the determination of glyphosate (PMG) and aminomethylphosphonic acid (AMPA) residues in plant products, such as rice, wheat, vegetables, fruits and tea, pig and chicken muscles, aquatic products, chestnut, honey, etc., was developed using high performance liquid chromatography coupled to tandem mass spectrometry (HPLC-MS/MS). In this method, PMG and AMPA were extracted with water from samples, defatted using an extraction step with dichloromethane, and purified using a cation-exchange (CAX) solid phase extraction cartridge. Then, these were derived using fluorenylmethylchloroformate (FMOC-Cl) in borate buffer for subsequent HPLC-MS/MS analysis. Isotope-labeled PMG 1, 2(13)- C(15) N was used as the internal standard for the quantitative analysis of two residues. For all samples, the recoveries ranged from 80.0% to 104% and the relative standard deviations (RSDs) ranged from 6.7% to 18.2%. The limit of quantification (LOQ) was determined to be 0.05 mg/kg with a linear range of 0.20-10 microg/L. It is demonstrated that this method is reliable and sensitive for the analysis of PMG and APMA with low concentrations in foods.

Preparation, characterization and controlled release investigation of interpenetrating polymer networks of poly(acrylic acid)/triazole modified poly(vinyl alcohol).

A series of interpenetrating polymer networks of poly(acrylic acid) (PAA)/triazole modified poly(vinyl alcohol) (TMIPNs) were synthesized by radical polymerization in methanol at room temperature with l-ascorbic acid (Vc) and peroxide hydrogen (H2O2) as initiators and trihydroxymethyl propane glycidol ether (6360) as a crosslinker. The structures of the gels were characterized by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) and differential scanning calorimetry (DSC). The swelling/deswelling behavior of hydrogels was studied in different pH and different concentrations of NaCl aqueous solutions. The results showed that the TMIPNs hydrogels had excellent pH- and salt-sensitivity in the range of the investigation. The mechanism of the swelling and the deswelling was discussed and the results were confirmed further by scanning electron microscope (SEM). In addition, the controlled release behavior of TMIPNs in vitro was also studied. The effects of physical stimulus (ultraviolet ray and ultrasonic wave), salt concentration, pH value and the swelling/deswelling on the controlled released behavior were also explored.