Cartilage-bioinspired, tough and lubricated hydrogel based on nanocomposite enhancement effect.

The maintenance of high load-bearing tissues and joint lubrication is essential for suppressing osteoarthritis. The lubrication of natural joints is mainly attributed to the hydration lubrication mechanism of articular cartilage. Phospholipids on the cartilage surface attract water molecules to form a tough hydrated layer to reduce friction. In this work, inspired by the phosphatidylcholine lipids, we synthesized lubricated nanospheres by grafting hydrophilic polymer brushes and further synthesized a nanocomposite hydrogel. The addition of the lubricated nanospheres enhanced both the mechanical and lubricated properties of the hydrogel. The nanocomposite-lubricated hydrogel exhibited a friction coefficient 81.7% lower than the blank hydrogel because of grafting the polymer brushes. Also, the nanocomposite enhancement helped the hydrogel achieve high mechanical properties with a compressive strength of 6.63 MPa (50%). The nanocomposite hydrogel developed here could be a promising candidate material in bionic articular cartilage substitute materials.

A robust, low swelling, and lipid-lubricated hydrogel for bionic articular cartilage substitute.

Healthy articular cartilage can achieve high load-bearing capacity and the most effective lubricated surface. Inspired by the articular cartilage, a lipid-lubricated hydrogel with excellent mechanical strength and remarkable lubrication was designed and synthesized. The lipid-lubricated hydrogel could contribute to high strength and stiffness (compressive strength of 5.8 MPa and compressive modulus of 4.7 MPa at 50% strain), and it could recover more than 98% of original mechanical properties in a short time after loading-unloading. In addition, the friction coefficient of lipid-lubricated hydrogel is low as 0.026, 5.3 times smaller than hydrogel without adding the liposomes. Overall, the hydrogel we studied holds the potential as a load-bearing soft tissue substitute for articular cartilage.

Total Content of Piperidine Analysis in Artane by RP-HPLC Using Pre-Column Derivatization with 4-Toluene Sulfonyl Chloride.

A simple, sensitive and accurate reversed-phase high-performance liquid chromatography (RP-HPLC) method was established for the determination of piperidine and piperidine hydrochloride in artane, using pre-column derivatization with 4-toluenesulfonyl chloride. The RP-HPLC method was carried out on a Inertsil C18 column (250 × 4.6 mm I.D.) maintained at 30°C. The mobile phase consisted of water with 0.1% phosphoric acid (phase A) and acetonitrile (phase B) (32:68, V:V) at a flow rate of 1.0 mL/min. Linearity of piperidine was found in the range of 0.44-53.33 µg/mL with R2 = 0.9996. The limit of detection was estimated to be 0.15 µg/mL, and the limit of quantitation was 0.44 µg/mL. The average recovery was 101.82% with relative standard deviations of 0.6% at three spiked levels. The developed method using HPLC-ultraviolet system was a rapid tool for routine analysis of piperidine in the bulk form with good accuracy.

Interaction network of immune-associated genes affecting the prognosis of patients with glioblastoma.

Glioblastoma multiforme (GBM) is a common malignant tumor type of the nervous system. The purpose of the present study was to establish a regulatory network of immune-associated genes affecting the prognosis of patients with GBM. The GSE4290, GSE50161 and GSE2223 datasets from the Gene Expression Omnibus database were screened to identify common differentially expressed genes (co-DEGs). A functional enrichment analysis indicated that the co-DEGs were mainly enriched in cell communication, regulation of enzyme activity, immune response, nervous system, cytokine signaling in immune system and the AKT signaling pathway. The co-DEGs accumulated in immune response were then further investigated. For this, the intersection of those co-DEGs and currently known immune-regulatory genes was obtained and a differential expression analysis of these overlapping immune-associated genes was performed. A risk model was established using immune-regulatory genes that affect the prognosis of patients with GBM. The risk score was significantly associated with the prognosis of patients with GBM and had a significant independent predictive value. The risk model had high accuracy in predicting the prognosis of patients with GBM [area under the receiver operating characteristic curve (AUC)=0.764], which was higher than that of a previously reported model of prognosis-associated biomarkers (AUC=0.667). Furthermore, an interaction network was constructed by using immune-regulatory genes and transcription factors affecting the prognosis of patients with GBM and the University of California Santa Cruz database was used to perform a preliminary analysis of the transcription factors and immune genes of interest. The interaction network of immune-regulatory genes constructed in the present study enhances the current understanding of mechanisms associated with poor prognosis of patients with GBM. The risk score model established in the present study may be used to evaluate the prognosis of patients with GBM.

IL-4 Switches Microglia/macrophage M1/M2 Polarization and Alleviates Neurological Damage by Modulating the JAK1/STAT6 Pathway Following ICH.

Inflammatory damage following ICH is often attributed to microglia/macrophage activation. In many diseases, IL-4 has been proven to switch microglia/macrophages from the pro-inflammatory to the anti-inflammatory subtype. However, the role and underlying mechanism of IL-4 in ICH, especially in neuroprotection, remain unknown. In our study, we constructed a microglia/macrophage polarization model in BV2 cells to verify that the M2 shift of microglia/macrophages was mediated by JAK1/STAT6 after IL-4 treatment and then revealed that in vitro administration of IL-4 decreased M1 markers, pro-inflammatory cytokines and neuroapoptosis markers but significantly increased M2 markers and anti-inflammatory cytokines. Using an ICH model in mice, we observed that IL-4 administration decreased neurological deficits, brain edema and infarct lesions induced by ICH. We verified that IL-4 mediates inflammation by regulating M1/M2 polarization in ICH and explored the underlying mechanism. Furthermore, we discovered that pathway components and apoptosis-related proteins showed consistent trends based on their respective roles, and inferred that the process that TNF-α activates caspase-3 may be the crosstalk that microglia phagocytosis developed into accelerate apoptosis of cells in ICH. In conclusion, our study demonstrates that IL-4 may promote M2 microglia/macrophage polarization partly through the JAK1/STAT6 pathway to alleviate neuroinflammation after ICH.

Cognitive features of white matter lesions accompanied by different risk factors of cerebrovascular diseases.

BACKGROUND: The relationship between different risk factors and the cognitive impairment of white matter lesions (WML) remains poorly understood. OBJECTIVES: To investigate the features of cognitive impairment of patients diagnosed with WML accompanied by different risk factors of cerebrovascular diseases. MATERIAL AND METHODS: A total of 157 cases of WML patients were divided into no risk factor group (n = 26), hypertension group (n = 35), diabetes mellitus group (n = 27), dyslipidemia group (n = 30), and mixed factors group (n = 39). RESULTS: The severity of WML (Fazekas score) in the hypertension and mixed factors groups was higher than in the non-risk factors group. The Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA) scores in the hypertension and mixed factors groups were lower than in the non-risk factors group. The scores of MoCA, immediate memory and delayed recall in the hypertension and mixed factors groups with Fazekas score ≥3 were lower than in the peer group with Fazekas score <3. The scores of MoCA and immediate memory in the hypertension and mixed factors groups with Fazekas score ≥3 were lower than in the non-risk factors group with Fazekas score ≥3. CONCLUSIONS: Hypertension aggravates the severity of WML and cognitive impairment. The severity of WML is positively correlated with the severity of cognitive impairment accompanied by these risk factors.

Efficient heavy metal removal from industrial melting effluent using fixed-bed process based on porous hydrogel adsorbents.

High adsorption capacity, fast adsorption kinetics, good reusability and low cost are highly demanded for adsorbents used in practical adsorption process. In this study, a porous double network Jute/Polyacrylic acid (Jute/PAA) gel was prepared using simple free-radical polymerization of acrylic acid in Jute aqueous solution. The high permeability of Jute/PAA hydrogel with about 80 wt% water made internal adsorption sites fully expose to metal ions. The Jute/PAA gel adsorbent could efficiently adsorb heavy metals in melting wastewater, especially Cd2+ and Pb2+. The adsorbent showed very high adsorption capacities of 401.7 mg/g for Cd2+ and 542.9 mg/g for Pb2+. Moreover, the adsorption equilibrium reached within only 10 min for 40 mg/L of Cd2+ and Pb2+ using 1 g/L adsorbent. Meanwhile, the removal efficiencies reached 81.0% for Pb (C0 = 3.825 mg/L), 79.3% for Cd (C0 = 6.075 mg/L), 83.4% for Cu (C0 = 9.325 mg/L), 29.8% for Zn (C0 = 188.6 mg/L), 22.3% for Mn (C0 = 17.05 mg/L), 96.2% for Cr (C0 = 0.25 mg/L) and 99.8% for Fe (C0 = 9.75 mg/L) in melting wastewater using 1 g/L adsorbent in 2 h. In particular, the concentrations of Pb, Cd and Cr decreased below 0.001 mg/L using 4 g/L adsorbent. In the fixed-bed column experiments, the treatment volume of melting wastewater reached 2900 BV (32.8 L) only producing 50 BV (565 mL) eluent. This work develops a highly practical adsorption process based on hydrogel adsorbents for the removal of heavy metals in actual wastewater.

Rapid and efficient treatment of wastewater with high-concentration heavy metals using a new type of hydrogel-based adsorption process.

In this study, a new type of double-network hydrogel sorbent was developed to remove heavy metals in wastewater. The amino-functionalized Starch/PAA hydrogel (NH2-Starch/PAA) could be conducted in a wide pH and the adsorption process could rapidly achieve the equilibrium. The adsorption capacity got to 256.4mg/g for Cd(II). Resultantly, even though Cd(II) concentration was as high as 180mg/L, the Cd(II) could be entirely removed using 1g/L sorbent. Furthermore, the desirable mechanical durability of the adsorbent allowed easy separation and reusability. In the fixed-bed column experiments, the treatment volume of the effluent with a high Cd(II) concentration of 200mg/L reached 2400BV (27.1L) after eight times cycle. The NH2-Starch/PAA overcame the deficiency of conventional sorbents that could not effectively treat the wastewater with relatively high metal concentrations. This work provides a new insight into omnidirectional enhancement of sorbents for removing high-concentration heavy metals in wastewater.

A highly efficient polyampholyte hydrogel sorbent based fixed-bed process for heavy metal removal in actual industrial effluent.

High sorption capacity, high sorption rate, and fast separation and regeneration for qualified sorbents used in removing heavy metals from wastewater are urgently needed. In this study, a polyampholyte hydrogel was well designed and prepared via a simple radical polymerization procedure. Due to the remarkable mechanical strength, the three-dimensional polyampholyte hydrogel could be fast separated, easily regenerated and highly reused. The sorption capacities were as high as 216.1 mg/g for Pb(II) and 153.8 mg/g for Cd(II) owing to the existence of the large number of active groups. The adsorption could be conducted in a wide pH range of 3-6 and the equilibrium fast reached in 30 min due to its excellent water penetration for highly accessible to metal ions. The fixed-bed column sorption results indicated that the polyampholyte hydrogel was particularly effective in removing Pb(II) and Cd(II) from actual industrial effluent to meet the regulatory requirements. The treatment volumes of actual smelting effluent using one fixed bed column were as high as 684 bed volumes (BV) (7736 mL) for Pb(II) and 200 BV (2262 mL) for Cd(II). Furthermore, the treatment volumes of actual smelting effluent using tandem three columns reached 924 BV (31,351 mL) for Pb(II) and 250 BV (8483 mL) for Cd(II), producing only 4 BV (136 mL) eluent. Compared with the traditional high density slurry (HDS) process with large amount of sludge, the proposed process would be expected to produce only a small amount of sludge. When the treatment volume was controlled below 209.3 BV (7103 mL), all metal ions in the actual industrial effluent could be effectively removed (<0.01 mg/L). This wok develops a highly practical process based on polyampholyte hydrogel sorbents for the removal of heavy metal ions from practical wastewater.

A double network gel as low cost and easy recycle adsorbent: Highly efficient removal of Cd(II) and Pb(II) pollutants from wastewater.

A high strength of polyving alcohol/polyacrylic acid double network gel (PVA/PAA gel) adsorbent was successfully prepared by a simple two-step method in this study. The gel adsorbent possessed the advantages of low cost and high adsorptivity for heavy metals in solution. The maximum uptake capacities of PVA/PAA gel were 194.99 mg/g for Pb(II) and 115.88 mg/g for Cd(II) inferred from the Langmuir model at 303 K. At the concentration levels of Pb(II)<150 mg/L and Cd(II)<100mg/L, the Pb(II) and Cd(II) could be completely adsorbed, showing a great potential of removing heavy metals from wastewater. Simultaneously, the PVA/PAA gel adsorbent exhibited an excellent reusability. Even in the fifth cycle, the removal efficiencies of both Pb(II) and Cd(II) remained nearly 100%. Significantly, the gel adsorbent displayed a satisfactory performance of removing heavy metals in actual industrial effluent. The results reveal that the double network gel can be considered as a potential candidate for practical application.

Amino siloxane oligomer-linked graphene oxide as an efficient adsorbent for removal of Pb(II) from wastewater.

A high performance sorbent, oligomer-linked graphene oxide (GO) composite, was prepared through simple cross-linking reactions between GO sheets and poly3-aminopropyltriethoxysilane (PAS) oligomers as crosslinking agents. The three-dimensional PAS oligomers prevented GO sheets from aggregation, provided foreign molecules with easier access, and introduced a large amount of amino functional groups. The morphology, structure and property of the PAS-GO composite were determined by scanning electron microscope (SEM), transmission electron microscope (TEM), Fourie transform infrared (FTIR), X-ray diffractometer (XRD), thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). The adsorption performance of PAS-GO was investigated in removing Pb(II) ions from water. Compared to 3-aminopropyltriethoxysilane functionalized GO (AS-GO) which was prepared by the direct reaction between 3-aminopropyltriethoxysilane and GO, PAS-GO exhibited much higher adsorptivity toward Pb(II) with the maximum adsorption capacity of 312.5mg/g at 303 K and furthermore the maximum adsorption capacity increased with increasing temperature. The adsorption could be conducted in a wide pH range of 4.0-7.0. Importantly, PAS-GO had a priority tendency to adsorb Pb, Cu and Fe from a mixed solution of metal ions, especially from a practical industrial effluent.