S-Scheme 2D/2D Heterojunction of ZnTiO3 Nanosheets/Bi2WO6 Nanosheets with Enhanced Photoelectrocatalytic Activity for Phenol Wastewater under Visible Light.

The pollution of phenol wastewater is becoming worse. In this paper, a 2D/2D nanosheet-like ZnTiO3/Bi2WO6 S-Scheme heterojunction was synthesized for the first time through a two-step calcination method and a hydrothermal method. In order to improve the separation efficiency of photogenerated carriers, the S-Scheme heterojunction charge-transfer path was designed and constructed, the photoelectrocatalytic effect of the applied electric field was utilized, and the photoelectric coupling catalytic degradation performance was greatly enhanced. When the applied voltage was +0.5 V, the ZnTiO3/Bi2WO6 molar ratio of 1.5:1 had highest degradation rate under visible light: the degradation rate was 93%, and the kinetic rate was 3.6 times higher than that of pure Bi2WO6. Moreover, the stability of the composite photoelectrocatalyst was excellent: the photoelectrocatalytic degradation rate of the photoelectrocatalyst remained above 90% after five cycles. In addition, through electrochemical analysis, XRD, XPS, TEM, radical trapping experiments, and valence band spectroscopy, we found that the S-scheme heterojunction was constructed between the two semiconductors, which effectively retained the redox ability of the two semiconductors. This provides new insights for the construction of a two-component direct S-scheme heterojunction as well as a feasible new solution for the treatment of phenol wastewater pollution.

Immune cells and RBCs derived from human induced pluripotent stem cells: method, progress, prospective challenges.

Blood has an important role in the healthcare system, particularly in blood transfusions and immunotherapy. However, the occurrence of outbreaks of infectious diseases worldwide and seasonal fluctuations, blood shortages are becoming a major challenge. Moreover, the narrow specificity of immune cells hinders the widespread application of immune cell therapy. To address this issue, researchers are actively developing strategies for differentiating induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) into blood cells in vitro. The establishment of iPSCs from terminally differentiated cells such as fibroblasts and blood cells is a straightforward process. However, there is need for further refinement of the protocols for differentiating iPSCs into immune cells and red blood cells to ensure their clinical applicability. This review aims to provide a comprehensive overview of the strategies and challenges facing the generation of iPSC-derived immune cells and red blood cells.

Genome-wide CRISPR/Cas9 screen identifies host factors important for porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome virus replication.

Porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome (PRRS), a viral infection caused by PRRS virus (PRRSV) can result in severe reproductive failure, and respiratory disease in the pigs thus causing enormous economic losses to the global swine industry. Although the cellular receptors for PRRSV have been identified, but mechanisms underlying PPRSV replication remain obscure. Here, we have performed a genome-scale CRISPR/Cas9 knockout screen in the pig kidney cells with PRRSV. Several genes were found to be highly enriched post-PRRSV selection, just like KxDL Motif Containing 1(KXD1), Proteasome 26S Subunit, Non-ATPase 3 (PSMD3) and Galectin 2 (LGALS2) and soon on. Importantly, we have identified that loss of KXD1 resulted in the restricted autophagy and inhibited replication of PRRSV. Therefore, our study demonstrates that CRISPR/Cas9 system can be effectively used for the screening of pig factors responsible for PRRSV replication.

Quercetin as an antiviral agent inhibits the Pseudorabies virus in vitro and in vivo.

Pseudorabies virus (PRV) accounts for a critical swine disease incurring economic losses worldwide. Several PRV vaccines are commercially available but these vaccines are effective against only certain prevalent PRV strains in China. To prevent PRV-induced latent infection and decrease the pathogenicity, novel anti-PRV drugs are required to prevent PRV infection. Natural products show exceptional structural diversity representing an important source for developing novel therapeutic agents. Quercetin is a flavonoid with anti-oxidant, anti-cancer, anti-bacterial and anti-viral activities. This study involved quercetin for studying the anti-PRV function in vitro and in vivo. Quercetin was found to significantly decrease the PRV virulent strain HNX at a half-maximal inhibitory concentration (IC50) of 2.618 µM and selectivity index 229. This anti-PRV activity of quercetin was found to be dose-dependent. Furthermore, quercetin also inhibited a wide the infections by a spectrum of PRV strains like HNX, Ea, Bartha and Fa strain. These virucidal effects of quercetin suggest the interaction between these molecules and viral particles, and quercetin is responsible for inhibiting the adsorption of PRV infections. The silico assays suggesting that quercetin might interact with the gD-protein on the surface of the PRV important for viral infection. Additional, the quercetin plantar injection protected the mice from the lethal challenge, decreasing the PRV-infected mice's brain viral loads and mortality. These results provides a anti-PRV strategy and contribute to drug discovery and development.

Cytotoxic lignans from Cryptocarya impressinervia.

Chemical investigation of the twigs of Cryptocarya impressinervia yielded 23 known compounds including 8 lignans, 3 phenylpropionates, 1 xanthone, 3 flavonoids, 1 phenylpropanoid, 1 substitued phenol, 1 triterpenoid, 3 sterols and 2 aliphatic compounds. All the compounds was isolated from C. impressinervia for the first time. 9,9'-O-Di-feruloyl-(-)-secoisolariciresinol (1) displayed significant cytotoxic activities on five human cancer cell lines (HL-60, SMMC-7721, A-549, MCF-7 and SW-480), with IC50 values of 3.58, 4.55, 6.39, 5.09 and 4.80 µM, respectively. Rhusemialin A (2) showed significant activity against HL-60 with IC50 of 3.69 µM. Dihydrosinapyl ferulate (3) displayed moderate cytotoxic activities against five tested human cancer cell lines. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first report on the constituents of C. impressinervia and cytotoxic activities of compounds 1-3 on the tested cancer cell lines.

Exploring the potential therapeutic effect of traditional Chinese medicine on coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) through a combination of data mining and network pharmacology analysis.

INTRODUCTION: Historically traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) has been used as treatment during epidemics. During the recent COVID-19 pandemic patients evidence suggests that the use of TCM has provided health benefits and has been successfully used to control the spread of the disease in China. The aim of this study was to systematically explore the TCM formulae which have been used for the prevention and treatment of pneumonia or 'pestilence' to investigate their compatibility with the Chinese materia medica (CMM) and understand their potential mechanisms in the treatment of COVID-19. METHODS: Frequency analysis was performed to identify high-frequency CMM and CMM groups. Association rules analysis was applied to investigate the compatibility law of CMMs and generate the commonly used CMM groups. RESULTS: A total of 173 prescriptions were collected. The frequency analysis showed that seven out of ten high-frequency CMMs overlapped with Lianhua Qingwen Capsules (LHQWC), and five high-frequency pair-CMMs and four triple-CMMs were included in LHQWC, respectively. Then three groups of CMM were generated from association rules analysis, one of which is Ma Xing Shi Gan Decoction (MXSGD). The results of the protein-protein interaction network and enrichment analysis showed that the potential therapeutic mechanisms of the generated prescriptions were involved in the anti-inflammatory, anti-viral, and neuroprotective effects. CONCLUSION: This study showed the importance of systematic research on TCM prescriptions and provided candidate CMM groups that have the potential to treat COVID-19. In vitro and in vivo experiments should be conducted to validate these network pharmacology results, which can provide more information for the development of potential antiviral drugs from TCM prescriptions. The combination of TCM treatment and modern medical approaches will benefit patients with COVID-19 and help to overcome the current epidemic.

Porcine antiviral activity is increased by CRISPRa-SAM system.

Clustered Regularly Interspaced Short Palindromic Repeat activation-synergistic activation mediator system (CRISPRa-SAM) has been efficiently used to up-regulate the targeted genes in human and mouse. But it is not known whether the CRISPRa-SAM system can be used against porcine disease because its two important transcriptional activation domains (P65 and heat shock transcription factor 1 (HSF1)) are from mouse and human, respectively. Pig is one of the most important meat sources, porcine viral infectious diseases cause massive economic losses to the swine industry and threaten the public health. We aimed to investigate whether the CRISPRa-SAM system could increase porcine antiviral activity by mediating two pig-specific target genes (Mx2 and ß1,4 N-acetylgalactosaminyltransferase (B4galnt2)). First, we constructed PK-15 and IPEC-J2 cell lines expressing nuclease-deficient Cas9 (dCas9)-vp64 and MS2-P65-HSF1 stably. Next, in these two cell models, we activated Mx2 and B4galnt2 expression through CRISPRa-SAM system. Antiviral activity to PRV or H9N2 was improved in PK-15 cells where Mx2 or B4galnt2 was activated. Altogether, our results demonstrated the potential of CRISPRa-SAM system as a powerful tool for activating pig genes and improving porcine antiviral activity.

An antibody that confers plant disease resistance targets a membrane-bound glyoxal oxidase in Fusarium.

Plant germplasm resources with natural resistance against globally important toxigenic Fusarium are inadequate. CWP2, a Fusarium genus-specific antibody, confers durable resistance to different Fusarium pathogens that infect cereals and other crops, producing mycotoxins. However, the nature of the CWP2 target is not known. Thus, investigation of the gene coding for the CWP2 antibody target will likely provide critical insights into the mechanism underlying the resistance mediated by this disease-resistance antibody. Immunoblots and mass spectrometry analysis of two-dimensional electrophoresis gels containing cell wall proteins from Fusarium graminearum (Fg) revealed that a glyoxal oxidase (GLX) is the CWP2 antigen. Cellular localization studies showed that GLX is localized to the plasma membrane. This GLX efficiently catalyzes hydrogen peroxide production; this enzymatic activity was specifically inhibited by the CWP2 antibody. GLX-deletion strains of Fg, F. verticillioides (Fv) and F. oxysporum had significantly reduced virulence on plants. The GLX-deletion Fg and Fv strains had markedly reduced mycotoxin accumulation, and the expression of key genes in mycotoxin metabolism was downregulated. This study reveals a single gene-encoded and highly conserved cellular surface antigen that is specifically recognized by the disease-resistance antibody CWP2 and regulates both virulence and mycotoxin biosynthesis in Fusarium species.

A new ent-kaurane diterpenoid from Ixora amplexicaulis.

A new ent-kaurane diterpenoid, 6α,16α-dihyroxy-ent-kaurane (1), was isolated from the stems of Ixora amplexicaulis, together with (24R)-6ß-hydroxy-24-ethyl-cholest-4-en-3-one (2), 7ß-hydroxysitosterol (3), maslinic acid (4), 3,3'-bis(3,4-dihydro-4-hydroxy-6-methoxy-2H-1-benzopyran) (5) and protocatechuric acid (6). Their structures were established by extensive spectroscopic analysis, including 2D NMR techniques. Compounds 2-5 were isolated from the genus Ixora for the first time and 6 obtained originally from I. amplexicaulis.

Isolation of a new lycodine alkaloid from Lycopodium japonicum.

A new lycodine alkaloid, N-methylhydroxypropyllycodine (1), was isolated from the club moss Lycopodium japonicum Thunb, together with five known compounds, N-methyllycodine (2), huperzinine (3), ß-obscurine (4), α-obscurine (5) and des-N-methyl-α-obscurine (6). Their structures were elucidated by spectroscopic analyses, including 2D NMR techniques.

Horsfiequinones A-F, dimeric diarylpropanoids from Horsfieldia tetratepala.

A new diarylpropanoid, horsfiequinone A (1), and five new dimeric diarylpropanoids with 1,4-p-benzoquinone residue, horsfiequinones B-F (2-6), along with a known compound, combrequinone B (7), were isolated from Horsfieldia tetratepala. Their structures were elucidated by means of spectroscopic analysis. Horsfiequinones B-F (2-6), isolated as enantiomer mixtures with unequal proportions, were verified by analysis on a chiral OD-H HPLC column. Cytotoxicity evaluation against five human tumor lines showed selective inhibitory effects on HL-60 for several compounds tested with IC50 values ranging from 3.18 ± 0.67 to 6.61 ± 0.08 µM.

1-(4-Chloro-phen-yl)-3-(morpholin-4-yl)urea.

In the title mol-ecule, C(11)H(14)ClN(3)O(2), the morpholine ring has a chair conformation. In the crystal, pairs of mol-ecules are linked into inversion dimers by N-H⋯O hydrogen bonds.

Direct electrodeposition of gold nanotube arrays of rough and porous wall by cyclic voltammetry and its applications of simultaneous determination of ascorbic acid and uric acid.

Gold nanotube arrays of rough and porous wall has been synthesized by direct electrodeposition with cyclic voltammetry utilizing anodic aluminum oxide template (AAO) and polycarbonate membrane (PC) during short time (only 3 min and 2 min, respectively). The mechanism of the direct electrodeposition of gold nanotube arrays by cyclic voltammetry (CV) has been discussed. The morphological characterizations of the gold nanotube arrays have been investigated by scanning electron microscopy (SEM). A simultaneous determination of ascorbic acid (AA) and uric acid (UA) by differential pulse voltammetry (DPV) was constructed by attaching gold nanotube arrays (using AAO) onto the surface of a glassy carbon electrode (GCE). The electrochemical behavior of AA and UA at this modified electrode has been studied by CV and differential pulse voltammetry (DPV). The sensor offers an excellent response for AA and UA and the linear response range for AA and UA were 1.02×10(-7)-5.23×10(-4) mol L(-1) and 1.43×10(-7)-4.64×10(-4) mol L(-1), the detection limits were 1.12×10(-8) mol L(-1) and 2.24×10(-8) mol L(-1), respectively. This sensor shows good regeneration, stability and selectivity and has been used for the determination of AA and UA in real human urine and serum samples with satisfied results.

(E)-N'-(2-Fluoro-benzyl-idene)furan-2-carbohydrazide.

The title compound, C(12)H(9)FN(2)O(2), was prepared by the reaction of 2-fluoro-benzaldehyde and furan-2-carbohydrazide. The furan ring is disordered over two sets of sites with refined occupancies of 0.60 (3):0.40 (3). The major and minor components of the furan ring make dihedral angles of 51.9 (6) and 38.0 (10)°, respectively, with the benzene ring. In the crystal, mol-ecules are linked via bifurcated N-H⋯O(N) hydrogen bonds into chains along [001].

N'-[1-(2-Hy-droxy-phen-yl)ethyl-idene]thio-phene-2-carbohydrazide.

The title compound, C(13)H(12)N(2)O(2)S, was prepared by the reaction of 1-(2-hy-droxy-phen-yl)ethanone and thio-phene-2-carbohydrazide. The dihedral angle between the benzene and thio-phene rings is 10.07 (17)°. An intra-molecular O-H⋯N hydrogen bond may influence the mol-ecular conformation. In the crystal, mol-ecules are linked by N-H⋯O hydrogen bonds into chains along [010].

N'-Benzyl-idene-thio-phene-2-carbohydrazide.

In the title compound, C(12)H(10)N(2)OS, the dihedral angle between the phenyl and thio-phene rings is 10.2 (3)°. In the crystal, inversion dimers linked by pairs of N-H⋯O hydrogen bonds generate R(2) (2)(8) loops.

Ethyl 3-benzyl-idenecarbazate.

In the title compound, C(10)H(12)N(2)O(2), the dihedral angle between the mean planes of the aromatic ring and the side chain (r.m.s. deviation = 0.035 Å) is 18.23 (13)°. In the crystal, mol-ecules are linked by N-H⋯O hydrogen bonds, generating C(4) amide chains propagating in [010].

N'-(4-Chloro-benzyl-idene)furan-2-carbohydrazide monohydrate.

In the title compound, C(12)H(9)ClN(2)O(2)·H(2)O, the dihedral angle between the aromatic rings is 13.9 (2)° and an intra-molecular N-H⋯O hydrogen bond occurs. In the crystal structure, the components are linked by N-H⋯O, O-H⋯O and C-H⋯O hydrogen bonds.

N'-(4-Bromo-benzyl-idene)thio-phene-2-carbohydrazide.

In the title compound, C(12)H(9)BrN(2)OS, the dihedral angle between the aromatic rings is 10.0 (2)°. In the crystal structure, inversion dimers linked by pairs of N-H⋯O hydrogen bonds occur, generating R(2) (2)(8) loops. Weak aromatic π-π stacking [centroid-centroid separations = 3.825 (3) and 3.866 (3) Å] also occurs.

N'-(4-Chloro-benzyl-idene)thio-phene-2-carbohydrazide.

In the title compound, C(12)H(9)ClN(2)OS, the dihedral angle between the aromatic rings is 9.78 (11)°. In the crystal structure, inversion dimers linked by pairs of N-H⋯O hydrogen bonds occur, generating R(2) (2)(8) loops. Weak aromatic π-π stacking [centroid-centroid separations = 3.7210 (15) and 3.8706 (15) Å] also occurs.