High-throughput sorting of nanoparticles with light-patterned dielectrophoresis force.

We present a size-based sorting method for nanoparticles in microfluidics with the aid of light-patterned dielectrophoresis (DEP) force. In a microfluidic channel, we have succeeded in manipulating a random distribution of particles into a single stream with the DEP force as well as the hydrodynamic force, and more strikingly, the trajectory of particles is found to be size-dependent, implicating that we can precisely separate nanoparticles based on their sizes even if they are identical in mass. We have numerically predicted the behavior of sorting nanoparticles, emphasizing on the size, velocity and electrical permittivity, so as to know their influences on the effective sorting, particularly in terms of high throughput. Our work confirms that what we believe to be the novel manipulation of nanoparticles features its flexibility as well as high throughput.

Water-Recyclable Chitosan-Based Ion-Imprinted Thermoresponsive Hydrogel for Rare Earth Metal Ions Accumulation.

The demand for rare earth metal increases rapidly in the modern high-tech industry and therefore the accumulation of rare earth metal ions from an aqueous environment becomes a significant concern worldwide. In this paper, a water-recyclable chitosan-based La3+-imprinted thermoresponsive hydrogel (CLIT) was prepared to accumulate La3+ from solution. The CLIT was characterized by DSC, FITR, Raman spectroscopy, XPS, and SEM, which revealed obvious reversible thermosensitivity and imprinted sites of La3+ ions. An adsorption capacity of 112.21 mg/g to La3+ ions was achieved on CLIT under its optimum adsorption conditions (pH 5, 50 °C, 60 min). The adsorption could be well illustrated by second-order kinetics and Freundlich isotherm models. The La3+-adsorbed CLIT could be recycled only by rinsing with 10 °C cold water, with a desorption rate of 96.72%. After ten cycles of adsorption-desorption, CLIT retained good adsorption capability. In the solution containing six ions, the adsorption coefficients kLa3+/Mn+ of CLIT were 2.04-3.51 times that of non-imprinted hydrogel, with kLa3+/Y3+, kLa3+/Gd3+, kLa3+/Al3+, kLa3+/Fe3+ and kLa3+/Cu2+ being 1.67, 2.04, 3.15, 2.72 and 4.84, respectively.

Combined Effect of the Essential Oil and Collagen Film on the Quality of Pacific Mackerel (Pneumatophorus japonicus) Fillet During Cold Storage.

Essential oils (EOs) and collagen have received recent attention in the seafood industry due to their abilities of antibacterial and seafood preservation individually. However, to the authors' best knowledge, very few publications address the issue of the combined effect of EOs and collagen on seafood preservation. Pacific mackerel is one of the most economically valuable fish species in China and easy to deteriorate during storage. Therefore, present study investigated the effect of combined EOs (cinnamon, oregano, and clove) and collagen on the quality of Pacific mackerel during cold storage. A suite of microbiological, physical, and chemical properties that are indicative of quality was measured. From the results, mackerel fillets treated with an EO-collagen film had a smaller increase in microbial counts compared with control. Furthermore, total volatile basic nitrogen (TVB-N), thiobarbituric acid related substance, and pH of mackerel fillet were lower when treated with an EO-collagen film and somewhat lower when treated with collagen alone. According to texture measurements of muscle, samples treated with EO-collagen film began to deteriorate in 8 d, versus only 4 d for control samples. EOs likely contributed to antibacterial and antioxidative activity, and the collagen film isolated muscle from air, which in turn reduced oxidation and retained the quality. Consequently, combination of EOs and collagen film efficiently extends shelf-life of Pacific mackerel during storage.

From Diabetic Nephropathy to End-Stage Renal Disease: The Effect of Chemokines on the Immune System.

Background: Diabetic nephropathy (DN) is a major cause of end-stage renal disease (ESRD), and there is growing evidence to support the role of immunity in the progression of DN to ESRD. Chemokines and chemokine receptors (CCRs) can recruit immune cells to sites of inflammation or injury. Currently, no studies have reported the effect of CCRs on the immune environment during the progression of DN to ESRD. Methods: Differentially expressed genes (DEGs) from the GEO database were identified in DN patients versus ESRD patients. GO and KEGG enrichment analyses were performed using DEGs. A protein-protein interaction (PPI) network was constructed to identify hub CCRs. Differentially expressed immune cells were screened by immune infiltration analysis, and the correlation between immune cells and hub CCRs was also calculated. Result: In this study, a total of 181 DEGs were identified. Enrichment analysis showed that chemokines, cytokines, and inflammation-related pathways were significantly enriched. Combining the PPI network and CCRs, four hub CCRs (CXCL2, CXCL8, CXCL10, and CCL20) were identified. These hub CCRs showed an upregulation trend in DN patients and a downregulation trend in ESRD patients. Immune infiltration analysis identified a variety of immune cells that underwent significant changes during disease progression. Among them, CD56bright natural killer cell, effector memory CD8 T cell, memory B cell, monocyte, regulatory T cell, and T follicular helper cell were significantly associated with all hub CCR correlation. Conclusion: The effect of CCRs on the immune environment may contribute to the progression of DN to ESRD.

Electrospinning membranes with Au@carbon dots: Low toxicity and efficient antibacterial photothermal therapy.

As bacterial infections continue to pose a significant challenge to healthcare globally, new therapeutic strategies, interventions, and complementary approaches that address both infection prevention and treatment are needed. As one such strategy, photothermal therapy (PTT) as a non-chemotherapeutic approach is considered a safe and potentially efficient strategy to combat bacterial infections, particularly for antibiotic-resistant pathogens given that PTT operates via a temperature-dependent process against which the development of bacterial resistance is unlikely. Here, we prepared Au@CDs composite nanoparticles (Au@CD) comprised of gold nanoparticles (AuNPs) and carbon dots (N,S-CDs), and investigated their use as a photothermal agent in PTT. The presence of the CDs as surface decorations conferred improved photothermal conversion efficiency, photostability, and biocompatibility to the Au@CD when compared to the parent AuNPs. To investigate if the Au@CD could serve as a PTT wound dressing and accelerate tissue repair, they were embedded within a PVA membrane via electrospinning. The resultant Au@CD membrane exhibited excellent biocompatibility and photothermal antimicrobial activity. In vitro photothermal antibacterial inactivation studies confirmed their efficacy against S. aureus and E. coli (99 + % inactivation of both pathogens under NIR irradiation). Moreover, in vivo studies employing Kunming male mice with S. aureus-infected wounds on their backs were chosen as a trauma model, with the Au@CD membranes serving as wound dressings. The results showed that a local temperature increased up to 50 °C upon NIR irradiation could effectively eradicate bacteria at the wound site, reduce the risk of bacterial infection, suppress inflammation as well as improve collagen deposition and angiogenesis, all of which together facilitated wound closure and resulted in a better therapeutic effect than the controls. Taken together, this work confirms that NIR-irradiated Au@CD-based membranes and related materials are promising photothermal antimicrobial platforms for wound dressings and related healthcare applications.

MiR-365a-3p-Mediated Regulation of HELLS/GLUT1 Axis Suppresses Aerobic Glycolysis and Gastric Cancer Growth.

Gastric cancer (GC) is a common and invasive malignancy, which lacks effective treatment and is the third main reason of cancer death. Metabolic reprogramming is one of the main reasons that GC is difficult to treat in various environments. Particularly, abnormal glycolytic activity is the most common way of metabolism reprogramming in cancer cells. Numerous studies have shown that microRNAs play important roles in reprogramming glucose metabolism. Here, we found a microRNA-miR-365a-3p, was significantly downregulated in GC according to bioinformatics analysis. Low expression of miR-365a-3p correlated with poor prognosis of GC patients. Overexpression of miR-365a-3p in GC cells significantly inhibited cell proliferation by inducing cell cycle arrest at G1 phase. Notably, miR-365a-3p induced downregulation of HELLS through binding to its 3' untranslated region (UTR). Additionally, we found that miR-365a-3p suppressed aerobic glycolysis by inhibiting HELLS/GLUT1 axis. Lastly, we shown that overexpression of miR-365a-3p significantly inhibited tumor growth in nude mice. Conversely, Reconstituted the expression of HELLS rescued the suppressive effects of miR-365a-3p. Our data collectively indicated that miR-365a-3p functioned as a tumor suppressor in GC through downregulating HELLS. Therefore, targeting of the novel miR-365a-3p/HELLS axis could be a potentially effective therapeutic approach for GC.

The Effect of Berberine on Metabolic Profiles in Type 2 Diabetic Patients: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Randomized Controlled Trials.

OBJECTIVE: Rhizoma Coptidis is an herb that has been frequently used in many traditional formulas for the treatment of diabetic mellitus (DM) over thousands of years. Berberine, the main active component of Rhizoma Coptidis, has been demonstrated to have the potential effect of hypoglycemia. To determine the potential advantages of berberine for diabetic care, we conducted this systematic review and meta-analysis to examine the efficacy and safety of berberine in the treatment of patients with type 2 DM. METHODS: Eight databases including PubMed, Embase, Web of Science, the Cochrane library, China National Knowledge Infrastructure (CNKI), Chinese Biomedical Database (SinoMed), Wanfang Database, and Chinese VIP Information was searched for randomized controlled trials (RCTs) reporting clinical data regarding the use of berberine for the treatment of DM. Publication qualities were also considered to augment the credibility of the evidence. Glycemic metabolisms were the main factors studied, including glycosylated hemoglobin (HbA1c), fasting plasm glucose (FPG), and 2-hour postprandial blood glucose (2hPG). Insulin resistance was estimated by fasting blood insulin (FINS), homeostasis model assessment-insulin resistance (HOMA-IR), and body mass index (BMI). Lipid profiles were also assessed, including triglyceride (TG), total cholesterol (TC), low-density lipoprotein (LDL), and high-density lipoprotein (HDL), along with inflammation factors such as C-reactive protein (CRP), interleukin-6 (IL-6), and tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α). Serum creatinine (Scr), blood urea nitrogen (BUN), and adverse events were applied to evaluate the safety of berberine. RESULTS: Forty-six trials were assessed. Analysis of berberine applied alone or with standard diabetic therapies versus the control group revealed significant reductions in HbA1c (MD = -0.73; 95% CI (-0.97, -0.51)), FPG (MD = -0.86, 95% CI (-1.10, -0.62)), and 2hPG (MD = -1.26, 95% CI (-1.64, -0.89)). Improved insulin resistance was assessed by lowering FINS (MD = -2.05, 95% CI (-2.62, -1.48)), HOMA-IR (MD = -0.71, 95% CI (-1.03, -0.39)), and BMI (MD = -1.07, 95% CI (-1.76, -0.37)). Lipid metabolisms were also ameliorated via the reduction of TG (MD = -0.5, 95% CI (-0.61, -0.39)), TC (MD = 0.64, 95% CI (-0.78, -0.49)), and LDL (MD = 0.86, 95% CI (-1.06, -0.65)) and the upregulation of HDL (MD = 0.17, 95% CI (0.09, 0.25)). Additionally, berberine improved the inflammation factor. CONCLUSION: There is strong evidence supporting the clinical efficacy and safety of berberine in the treatment of DM, especially as an adjunctive therapy. In the future, this may be used to guide targeted clinical use of berberine and the development of medications seeking to treat patients with T2DM and dyslipidemia.

Rad18 mediates specific mutational signatures and shapes the genomic landscape of carcinogen-induced tumors in vivo.

The E3 ubiquitin ligase Rad18 promotes a damage-tolerant and error-prone mode of DNA replication termed trans-lesion synthesis that is pathologically activated in cancer. However, the impact of vertebrate Rad18 on cancer genomes is not known. To determine how Rad18 affects mutagenesis in vivo, we have developed and implemented a novel computational pipeline to analyze genomes of carcinogen (7, 12-Dimethylbenz[a]anthracene, DMBA)-induced skin tumors from Rad18+/+ and Rad18- / - mice. We show that Rad18 mediates specific mutational signatures characterized by high levels of A(T)>T(A) single nucleotide variations (SNVs). In Rad18- /- tumors, an alternative mutation pattern arises, which is characterized by increased numbers of deletions >4 bp. Comparison with annotated human mutational signatures shows that COSMIC signature 22 predominates in Rad18+/+ tumors whereas Rad18- / - tumors are characterized by increased contribution of COSMIC signature 3 (a hallmark of BRCA-mutant tumors). Analysis of The Cancer Genome Atlas shows that RAD18 expression is strongly associated with high SNV burdens, suggesting RAD18 also promotes mutagenesis in human cancers. Taken together, our results show Rad18 promotes mutagenesis in vivo, modulates DNA repair pathway choice in neoplastic cells, and mediates specific mutational signatures that are present in human tumors.