Chicken heterophils extracellular traps act as early effectors against cyclopiazonic acid dependent upon NADPH oxidase, ROS and glycolysis.

Cyclopiazonic acid (CPA) is a secondary metabolite produced by Aspergillus and Penicillium, which is present in contaminated crops and food, causing severe toxicity to humans and animals. Heterophil extracellular traps (HETs) are a novel host innate immune mechanism of chicken heterophils against pathogen infection. However, whether CPA can cause immunotoxicity of heterophils on HETs release remains unclear. Here, we attempt to detect the effects of CPA on HETs release, and further investigate the molecular mechanisms underlying these processes. We exposed heterophils to 2.5, 5, 10 µM CPA for 90 min. The results showed that CPA induced the release of HETs in heterophils, consisting of DNA-modified citrullinated histone 3 and elastase. The quantitative analysis of HETs content was positively correlated with CPA concentration. CPA also promoted reactive oxygen species production and phosphorylation of ERK1/2 and p38. In addition, CPA-triggered HETs formation was reduced by NADPH oxidase, ERK1/2, and p38 signaling pathway and glycolysis inhibitors, indicating that CPA-induced HETs were related to the production of ROS dependent on NADPH oxidase, ERK1/2, and p38 signaling pathways, as well as glycolysis. Our study describes the underlying mechanism of CPA-induced HETs release, which may provide a further understanding of the immunotoxicology of CPA poisoning.

Bongkrekic acid induced neutrophil extracellular traps via p38, ERK, PAD4, and P2X1-mediated signaling.

Bongkrekic acid (BKA) produced by pseudomonas cocovenenans is a deadly toxin, and is mainly found in spoiled or fermented foods. However, less is known on its immunotoxicity. Neutrophil extracellular traps (NETs) are a novel effector mechanism of neutrophils against invading pathogens, but excessive NETs also contribute to tissue damage. This study aimed to investigate NET formation triggered by BKA in murine neutrophils, and describe its characteristics and potential mechanisms. Our results showed that BKA triggered NET formation via co-localization of DNA and histone or MPO by immunostaining. Moreover, BKA-triggered NET formation was dose- and time-dependent via NET quantification based on Picogreen-derived fluorescence intensities. Furthermore, BKA increased ROS production in neutrophils. Pharmacological inhibition indicated that BKA-triggered NET formation was associated with ROS-p38 and -ERK signaling pathways, but independent on NADPH oxidase. Besides, PAD4 and P2X1 receptor also mediated BKA-triggered NET formation. To our knowledge, all these findings provide for the first time an initial understanding of BKA on innate immunity, which might be helpful for further investigation on BKA immunotoxicity.

Low-temperature organic phase change material microcapsules for asphalt pavement: preparation, characterisation and application.

Low-temperature phase change material (PCM) is a material that stores additional heat at elevated temperatures and releases energy when the temperature is below the limit. A way to solve the low-temperature disaster of asphalt pavement is desired to be developed. In this article, a two-component organic low-temperature PCM was encapsulated by melamine-urea-formaldehyde resin and finally reinforced with polypropylene. The reinforced PCM microcapsules were mixed with 70# SBS (Styrene-Butadiene-Styrene) modified asphalt in SMA-10 (Stone Matrix Asphalt-10) to form aggregates. The results showed that after adding 6.0% (w/w) reinforced PCM microcapsules, there was a significant delay compared to a blank sample with a maximum temperature difference of 1.8 °C when the temperature dropped to 0 °C, which proved that this method has a good potential in resisting low-temperature disasters on asphalt pavement and deserves further improvement.

Effects of ceiling phase gradients on the acoustic environment on roadside balconies.

The screening effect of a roadside balcony deteriorates considerably due to sound reflection from its ceiling. Nonetheless, this drawback can be eliminated by artificially steering the reflected sound away from the building facade, which is achieved by introducing impedance inhomogeneity to the ceiling surface. This paper presents an elaborated investigation on the effect of the phase gradient of a ceiling surface on screening exterior noise, theoretically and numerically. By balancing its sound-steering capability and performance fluctuation level, such a balcony ceiling may have the potential to be widely used on roadside buildings.

Influence of alkalizers on dissolution properties of telmisartan in solid dispersions prepared by cogrinding.

The amorphous solid dispersions of telmisartan salts were prepared by cogrinding, in presence of alkalizers and polyvinylpyrrolidone (PVPk30). Five alkalizers in this study were MgO, Na2CO3, K2CO3, NaHCO3 and meglumine. In soft mode using a roll mill, the drug could not form salt with MgO or NaHCO3, whereas partial drug had been transformed into salt with carbonates or meglumine. Under cogrinding, the organic base meglumine was easier to react with telmisartan than other two carbonates. For getting good dissolution performance, the drug had to be transformed into salt completely. A high intensity oscillating mill was applied for producing telmisartan meglumine salt. Multi-instrumental characterizations attested the formation of amorphous salt by high mechanical process, involving dissolution test, fourier transform infrared spectroscopy and powder X-ray diffractometry. It was evident that solid dispersions of telmisartan meglumine salt significantly increased the drug dissolution rate in intestinal fluid.

Homogenate extraction of gardenia yellow pigment from Gardenia Jasminoides Ellis fruit using response surface methodology.

Homogenate extraction technology was developed for extraction of gardenia yellow pigment from Gardenia jasminoides Ellis fruit. The operating parameters affecting the color value of gardenia yellow pigment were studied on the basis of a Box-Behnken design and response surface methodology. Results showed that the optimum extraction conditions were as follows: extraction time 41 s, ethanol concentration 50 %, ratio of liquid to material 15:1 (mL:g) and particle size 1.7 mm. Under the optimum condition, the experimental color value was 52.37 g(-1), which was in keeping with the predicted one. Compared with the heat extraction method, the color value of gardenia yellow pigment of homogenate extraction was higher and the extraction time was shorter. Homogenate extraction method is an ideal means for extraction of gardenia yellow pigment from Gardenia jasminoides Ellis fruit.

Triboelectric Nanogenerator-Enabled Digital Twins in Civil Engineering Infrastructure 4.0: A Comprehensive Review.

The emergence of digital twins has ushered in a new era in civil engineering with a focus on achieving sustainable energy supply, real-time sensing, and rapid warning systems. These key development goals mean the arrival of Civil Engineering 4.0.The advent of triboelectric nanogenerators (TENGs) demonstrates the feasibility of energy harvesting and self-powered sensing. This review aims to provide a comprehensive analysis of the fundamental elements comprising civil infrastructure, encompassing various structures such as buildings, pavements, rail tracks, bridges, tunnels, and ports. First, an elaboration is provided on smart engineering structures with digital twins. Following that, the paper examines the impact of using TENG-enabled strategies on smart civil infrastructure through the integration of materials and structures. The various infrastructures provided by TENGs have been analyzed to identify the key research interest. These areas encompass a wide range of civil infrastructure characteristics, including safety, efficiency, energy conservation, and other related themes. The challenges and future perspectives of TENG-enabled smart civil infrastructure are briefly discussed in the final section. In conclusion, it is conceivable that in the near future, there will be a proliferation of smart civil infrastructure accompanied by sustainable and comprehensive smart services.

AI-Assisted Self-Powered Vehicle-Road Integrated Electronics for Intelligent Transportation Collaborative Perception.

Collaborative perception between a vehicle and the road has the potential to enhance the limited perception capability of autonomous driving technologies. With this background, self-powered vehicle-road integrated electronics (SVRIE) with a multilevel fractal structure is designed to play a dual role, including a SVRIE device integrated into vehicle tires and a SVRIE array embedded into a road surface. The pressure sensing capability and anti-crosstalk performance of the SVRIE array are characterized separately to validate the feasibility of applying the SVRIE in a cooperative vehicle-infrastructure system. It is demonstrated that the SVRIE based on the multi-layered fractal structure exhibits maximum performance in collaborative sensing and interaction between vehicles and road information, such as vehicle motion, road surface condition, and tire life cycle health monitoring. Traditional data analysis methods are often of questionable accuracy. Therefore, a convolutional neural network is used to classify the vehicle and road conditions with accuracy of at least 88.3%. The transfer learning model is constructed to enhance the road surface identification capabilities with 100% accuracy. The accuracies of the vehicle tire motion recognition and tire health monitoring are 97% and 99%, respectively. This work provides new ideas for collaborative perception between vehicles and roadsides.

Efficient removal of per/polyfluoroalkyl substances from water using recyclable chitosan-coated covalent organic frameworks: Experimental and theoretical methods.

Covalent organic frameworks (COFs) demonstrate remarkable potential for adsorbing per/polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS). Nevertheless, the challenge of recycling powdered COFs hampers their practical application in water treatment. In this research, a quaternary amine COF with inherent positive surface charge was synthesised to adsorb perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) via electrostatic interactions. The COF was then combined with chitosan (CS) through a simple dissolution-evaporation process, resulting in a composite gel material termed COF@CS. The findings indicated that the adsorption capacity of COF@CS significantly surpassed that of the original COF and CS. According to the Langmuir model, COF@CS achieved a maximum PFOA capacity of 2.8 mmol g-1 at pH 5. Furthermore, the adsorption rate increased significantly to 6.2 mmol g-1 h-1, compared to 5.9 mmol g-1 h-1 for COF and 3.4 mmol g-1 h-1 for CS. Notably, COF@CS exhibited excellent removal efficacy for ten other types of PFAS. Moreover, COF@CS could be successfully regenerated using a mixture of 70% ethanol and 1 wt% NaCl, and it exhibited stable reusability for up to five cycles. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) characterisation, and theoretical calculations revealed that the quaternary amine functional group in COF served as the primary adsorption site in the composite gel material, while the protonated amino group on CS enhanced PFOA adsorption through electrostatic interaction. This study highlights the significant practical potential of COF@CS in the removal of PFAS from aqueous solution and environmental remediation.

Improvement in solubility and bioavailability of puerarin by mechanochemical preparation.

An efficient and solvent-free procedure was developed to improve the solubility and bioavailability of the poorly water-soluble drug puerarin by mechanochemical technology. The stable inclusion complex of puerarin and 2-hydroxypropyl-ß-cyclodextrin (HPCD) was prepared by a ball mill under the following conditions: equimolar ratio of puerarin to HPCD; rotational speed of 250 rpm; milling time of 90 min; steel balls of 22 mm diameter. The solid complex was characterized by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), powder X-ray diffractometry (XRD), and fourier transformation-infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR). Mechanochemical action could result in enhanced molecular encapsulation, homogeneous distribution and amorphization of the drug. In comparison to puerarin, a 1.64-fold increase in absolute bioavailability was obtained. The solubility of the inclusion complex was 25.33-fold higher and the drug release amount reached 79.44% at 15 min, 2.76-fold higher.

Dissolution properties and physical characterization of telmisartan-chitosan solid dispersions prepared by mechanochemical activation.

Solid dispersion systems of telmisartan (a poorly water-soluble antihypertension drug) with biopolymer carrier chitosan have been investigated in this study. The mechanism of solubilization of chitosan for drug has been studied. In addition, the influence of several factors was carefully examined, including the preparation methods, the drug/carrier weight ratios, and the milling time. Drug dissolution and physical characterization of different binary systems were studied by in vitro dissolution test, particle size distribution, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, differential scanning calorimetry, powder X-ray diffractometry, and scanning electron microscopy. The results presented that the weak basic property of chitosan appeared as the main driving force for the drug dissolution enhancement. Other effects such as decreased drug crystallinity and size played a positive contributory role. Among the preparation methods, cogrinding was the best method showing strong drug amorphization, reduced particle size, and enhanced dissolution. The drug dissolution markedly improved with increasing the amount of chitosan in solid mixtures. As a result, a significant effect of chitosan increasing telmisartan dissolution has been demonstrated, and cogrinding in a roll ball mill was the best way to prepare solid dispersions, which had high degree of uniformity in drug content and had a practical application in manufacturing.

Chemical Constituents, Bioactivities, and Pharmacological Mechanisms of Dendrobium officinale: A Review of the Past Decade.

Dendrobium officinale, a plant in the Orchidaceae family, has been used in traditional Chinese medicine for thousands of years. Sweet and slightly cold in nature, it can invigorate the stomach, promote fluid production, nourish Yin, and dissipate heat. Over the past decade, more than 60 compounds have been derived from D. officinale, including flavonoids, bibenzyl, and phenanthrene. Various studies have explored the underlying pharmacological mechanisms of these compounds, which have shown antitumor, hypoglycemic, hypertensive, gastrointestinal-regulatory, visceral organ protection, antiaging, and neurorestorative effects. This paper presents a systematic review of the structural classification, biological activity, and pharmacological mechanisms of different chemical components obtained from D. officinale over the past decade. This review aims to provide a reference for future study and establish a foundation for clinical applications. Furthermore, this review identifies potential shortcomings in current research as well as potential directions and methodologies in future plant research.

A Natural Gradient Biological-Enabled Multimodal Triboelectric Nanogenerator for Driving Safety Monitoring.

A key element to ensuring driving safety is to provide a sufficient braking distance. Inspired by the nature triply periodic minimal surface (TPMS), a gradient and multimodal triboelectric nanogenerator (GM-TENG) is proposed with high sensitivity and excellent multimodal monitoring. The gradient TPMS structure exhibits the multi-stage stress-strain properties of typical porous metamaterials. Significantly, the multimodal monitoring capability depends on the implicit function of the defined level constant c, which directly contributes to the multimodal driving safety monitoring. The mechanical and electrical responsive behavior of the GM-TENG is analyzed to identify the applied speed, load, and working mode. In addition, optimized peak open-circuit voltage (Voc) is demonstrated for self-awareness of the braking condition. The braking distance factor (L) is conceived to construct the self-aware equation of the friction coefficient based on the integration of Voc with respect to time. Importantly, R-squared up to 94.29 % can be obtained, which improves self-aware accuracy and real-time capabilities. This natural structure and self-aware device provide an effective strategy to improve driving safety, which contributes to the improvement of road safety and presents self-powered sensing with potential applications in an intelligent transportation system.

Preparation of pazopanib-fumarate disodium glycyrrhizinate nanocrystalline micelles by liquid-assisted ball milling.

Pazopanib (PZ) is a multikinase inhibitor, which is mainly used in the treatment of soft tissue sarcoma and advanced renal cancer. However, because of its water insolubility, oral bioavailability is poor. At the same time, photo lability and high dose oral administration lead to severe hepatotoxicity, which is limited in clinical application. In this paper, the novel pazopanib-fumarate disodium glycyrrhizinate nanocrystalline micelles are successfully prepared by liquid-assisted ball milling. The prepared cocrystals and nanocrystalline micelle structures are systematically characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) and Fourier Transform Infrared Spectrometer (FTIR) analysis. In vitro solubility and dissolution experiments show that the solubility and dissolution of nanocrystalline micelles are significantly improved under different simulated physiological conditions. The accelerated stabilization experiments show that the nanocrystalline micelles have good physical and chemical stability and showed excellent stability in water (Zeta potential was 62.39 mV). In addition, the in vivo bioavailability of nanocrystalline micelles is 3 times higher than that of PZ, and the therapeutic threshold (> 20 µg/mL) is up to 30 h. This new strategy provides a feasible solution to the undesirable properties of PZ.

The release of FB1-induced heterophil extracellular traps in chicken is dependent on autophagy and glycolysis.

Fumonisin B1 (FB1), a worldwide contaminating mycotoxin produced by Fusarium, poses a great threat to the poultry industry. It was reported that extracellular traps could be induced by FB1 efficiently in chickens. However, the relevance of autophagy and glycolysis in FB1-triggered heterophil extracellular trap (HET) formation is unclear. In this study, immunostaining revealed that FB1-induced HETs structures were composed of DNA coated with histones H3, and elastase, and that heterophils underwent LC3B-related autophagosome formation assembly driven by FB1. Western blotting showed that FB1 downregulated the phosphorylated phosphoinositide 3-kinase3-kinase (PI3K)/protein kinase B (AKT)/mechanistic target of rapamycin complex 1 (mTORC1) axis and raised the AMP-activated kinase α (AMPKα) activation protein. Furthermore, rapamycin- and 3-Methyladenine (3-MA)-treatments modulated FB1-triggered HET formation according to the pharmacological analysis. Further studies on energy metabolism showed that glucose/lactate transport and glycolysis inhibitors abated FB1-induced HETs. These results showed that FB1-induced HET formation might interact with the autophagy process and relied on glucose/monocarboxylic acid transporter 1 (MCT1) and glycolysis, reflecting chicken's early innate immune responses against FB1 intake.

Selective separation of magnolol using molecularly imprinted membranes.

Molecularly imprinted membranes (MIMs) for selective separation of magnolol were prepared by thermal polymerization using magnolol as the template, ethylene glycol dimethacrylate (EGDMA) as the cross-linker, 2,2-azobisisobutyronitrile (AIBN) as the initiator, organic solvent as the porogen, methacrylamide (MAM) and acrylic acid (AA) as the functional monomers and cellulose acetate as the agglutinant. Commercial filter paper was used as the supporting material. The effects of different porogens and the ratio of functional monomers on the binding and recognition capacity of MIMs were investigated, and the morphology of the membranes was examined by scanning electron microscopy (SEM). The results showed that the MIMs have the highest selectivity to magnolol when the ratio of MAM/AA was 1:4 and tetrahydrofuran (THF) with dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO) was used as the porogen. The morphology of the imprinted membranes after template extracting is much rougher with big cavities than that of the non-imprinted membranes (NIMs) and the imprinted membranes before template extracting. The MIMs can selectively separate the magnolol.

Azilsartan-nicotinamide cocrystal: Preparation, characterization and in vitro / vivo evaluation.

Azilsartan (AZL) is an angiotensin II receptor antagonist, which is mainly used for the treatment of hypertension. AZL has the advantages of high selectivity, hypotensive effect, protection of cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases. In order to improve the water solubility of AZL and its bioavailability, AZL -nicotinamide (NA) cocrystal was prepared by mechanical ball milling, and the effect of ball milling conditions on cocrystal preparation were studied. AZL-NA cocrystal was identified and characterized by powder X-ray diffraction, differential scanning calorimetry, thermogravimetric analysis, scanning electron microscopy and Fourier transform infrared spectrometry. The results showed that AZL-NA cocrystal with the molar ratio of 1:2 was successfully prepared. And the optimum ball milling condition was milling speed of 300 rpm, milling time of 50 min, the solvent was ethanol/acetonitrile (1:1, v/v), and the solvent dosage (η) was 0.8 µL/mg. The results of solubility tests showed that the solubility of AZL in the cocrystal was 3.39 times higher than the pure drug at 24 h. And the results of vitro dissolution tests showed that the cumulative dissolution of AZL in 2 h was about 10%. While distilled water, pH 1.2 and pH 4.5 acid or buffered solutions and pH 6.8 buffer phosphate salt solution was used as the dissolution medium, the cumulative dissolution of AZL in cocrystal reached 50%, 35%, 55% and 90%, respectively, showing obvious improvement of dissolution. In addition, the accelerated stability tests showed that the AZL-NA cocrystal had good chemical stability. And the pharmacokinetic results showed that AZL-NA cocrystal could significantly improve the bioavailability of AZL.

A new operation for gallstones: Choledochoscopic gallbladder-preserving cholecystolithotomy, a retrospective study of 3,511 cases.

BACKGROUND: Due to the influence of traditional Chinese culture, many cholelithiasis patients refuse to undergo cholecystectomy. This has prompted surgeons to consider a new treatment option for gallstones, which preserves the gallbladder, termed as choledochoscopic gallbladder-preserving cholecystolithotomy. In this study, we reviewed the clinical outcomes of 23 years of single-center application of choledochoscopic gallbladder-preserving cholecystolithotomy. METHODS: A total of 5,451 patients with chronic cholelithiasis were selected from 1992 to 2011 as per the inclusion criteria for the choledochoscopic gallbladder-preserving cholecystolithotomy study, and clinicopathological and follow-up data were collected from 4,340 patients who underwent successful choledochoscopic gallbladder-preserving cholecystolithotomy. The endpoints of the follow-up were recurrence of stones, loss to follow-up, patient death, removal of the gallbladder for other reasons, or end of follow-up in December 2015. RESULTS: All 4,340 cases underwent choledochoscopic gallbladder-preserving cholecystolithotomy with a mean procedure time of 79.6 ± 35.4 minutes, among which 3,511 (80.9%) received at least 1 follow-up. The recurrence rate of gallstones gradually increased with increasing follow-up duration, with a recurrence rate of 0.83% within 1 year after surgery and a maximal cumulative recurrence rate of 7.94% at 23 years. The 5-year cumulative recurrence rate of gallstones in the age group ≤20 years was 16.80%, which was significantly higher than those of other age groups, and the 5-year recurrence rate in the single gallstone group was 2.87%, which was significantly lower than that in the multiple gallstone group. Age and number of gallstones were independent risk factors for gallstone recurrence after choledochoscopic gallbladder-preserving cholecystolithotomy. CONCLUSION: The recurrence rate of gallstones after choledochoscopic gallbladder-preserving cholecystolithotomy is low, and most patients with recurrence are asymptomatic or have only mild symptoms. Age and number of gallstones were independent risk factors. Choledochoscopic gallbladder-preserving cholecystolithotomy is a safe and effective surgical option for gallstone removal in patients who do not wish to undergo cholecystectomy.

Fumonisin B1 induces chicken heterophil extracellular traps mediated by PAD4 enzyme and P2 × 1 receptor.

Fumonisin B1 (FB1) is a common mycotoxin contamination in agricultural commodities being considered as a significant risk to human and livestock health, while the mechanism of FB1 immunotoxicity are less understood, especially in chicken. Given that extracellular traps as a novel defense mechanism of leukocytes play an important role against foreign matters, in this study we aimed to investigate the effects of FB1 on chicken heterophil extracellular traps (HETs) formation. Our result showed that FB1 induced HETs release in chicken heterophils observed via immunostaining, and it was concentration-dependent during 10 to 40 µM. Moreover, in 40 µM FB1-exposed chicken heterophils, reactive oxygen species (ROS) level was increased, while catalase (CAT), superoxide dismutase (SOD), and glutathione peroxidase (GSH-Px) activity and glutathione (GSH) content were decreased. Simultaneously, FB1 (40 µM) activated ERK and p38 MAPK signaling pathways via increasing the phosphorylation level of ERK and p38 proteins. However, pretreatment of SB202190, U0126, and diphenyleneiodonium chloride (DPI) did not change FB1-triggered ROS production and HETs formation, suggesting FB1-induced HETs was a nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide phosphate (NADPH) oxidase, p38, and extracellular regulated protein kinases (ERK) signaling pathways-independent process. Inhibition of peptidyl arginine deiminase 4 (PAD4) enzyme and P2 × 1 receptor showed their vital role in 40 µM FB1-triggered HETs. This study reported for the first time that 40 µM FB1 induced the release of HETs in heterophils, and it was related to ROS production, PAD4, and P2 × 1, but was independent of NADPH oxidase, p38 and ERK signaling pathways, which might provide a whole novel perspective of perceiving and understanding the role of FB1 in immunotoxicity.

Histamine triggers the formation of neutrophil extracellular traps via NADPH oxidase, ERK and p38 pathways.

Histamine plays a central role in various allergic diseases, such as allergic asthma and allergic rhinitis. Neutrophil extracellular traps (NETs) formation is a novel effector mechanism of neutrophils to defend against various stimuli. In this present study, we aimed to investigate the role of histamine on bovine NET formation, and examined its preliminary molecular mechanisms. Cell Counting Kit-8 (CCK8) and Lactate dehydrogenase assays showed that histamine had no significant influence on PMNs (polymorphonuclear leukocytes) viability. Confocal microscopy analyses identified NET structures by co-localizing the main components of NETs, and NET quantification revealed that histamine-triggered NETs were released in a dose-dependent manner. Furthermore, we found reactive oxygen species (ROS) production, phosphorylated extracellular signal-regulated kinase (ERK) and p38 proteins were significantly elevated in histamine-challenged PMNs. By applying functional inhibitors of nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide phosphate-oxidase (NADPH oxidase), ERK and p38, histamine-triggered NETs were markedly reduced, indicating their importance in histamine-triggered NET formation. Our findings described histamine-triggered NET formation, and revealed its potential molecular mechanisms via NADPH oxidase, ERK and p38 pathways. This is the first study to depict histamine-triggered NET formation, which could provide a new insight into histamine-related diseases.