Experimental demonstration of multi-parameter sensing based on polarized interference of polarization-maintaining few-mode fibers.

Polarization-maintaining few-mode fibers (PM-FMFs) have found applications in sensors with attractive features that traditional single-mode fibers do not possess. We propose a measurement method for multi-parameter sensing based on PM-FMFs. This method is mainly based on the polarized interference effect of PM-FMF. We experimentally demonstrate the principle of the simultaneous sensing of temperature, strain and transverse force. The sensor has been verified by three groups of multi-parameter measurement experiments showing that the changes of multi-parameter derived from the wavelength shift of the polarized interference spectrum are consistent with the multi-parameter changes set in the experiments. The proposed PM-FMF based sensor has a temperature sensitivity of 0.3 nm/°C, a strain sensitivity of 0.01 nm/µÎµ and a transverse force sensitivity of 0.0065 nm/(N/m).

Preparation of C3N5 nanosheets with enhanced performance in photocatalytic methylene blue (MB) degradation and H2-evolution from water splitting.

Ultrathin C3N5 nanosheets with enhanced photocatalytic methylene blue (MB) degradation and H2-evolution performance were prepared from thermal treatment of 3-amino-1,2,4-triazole (3-AT) and NH4Cl followed with a protonate procedure. The characterization results revealed that the protonating process could contribute to the exfoliation of C3N5 with large surface area, the effective charge transfer capability and the modified band structure. The as-prepared C3N5 nanosheets exhibited enhanced properties in photocatalytic reactions such as MB photodegradation and H2-evolution from water splitting. This study offered a feasible route to prepare highly-efficient two-dimensional photocatalyst, which could be applied potentially for implementation in wide range of energy generation and environmental applications.

Simultaneous Temperature and Strain Measurements Using Polarization-Maintaining Few-Mode Bragg Gratings.

Simultaneous measurement of temperature and strain was demonstrated using a polarization-maintaining few-mode Bragg grating (PM-FMF-FBG) based on the wavelength and phase modulation of the even L P 11 mode. The wavelength shift sensitivity and the interrogated phase sensitivity of the temperature and strain were measured to be 10 pm·°C-1 and 0.73 pm·µÎµ-1 and -3.2 × 10-2 rad·°C-1 and 4 × 10-4 rad·µÎµ-1, respectively, with a discrimination efficiency of 98%. The polarization interference led to selective polarization excitation of the reflection spectra, and the calculated phase sensitivity agreed with the experimental results.

Fusion with pep-1, a cell-penetrating peptide, enhances the transmembrane ability of human epidermal growth factor.

Administration of macromolecule compositions in medicine and cosmetics always exhibited low bioavailability due to the limitation of transmembrane transport. Here, human epidermal growth factor (hEGF) was fused with glutathione S-transferase (GST) and Pep-1, the first commercial cell-penetrating peptide, in Escherichia coli. The fusion protein was firstly purified with the affinity chromatography, and then the GST tag was released by TEV protease. Final purification was achieved by the ion exchange chromatography. The biological activities and the transmembrane ability of the obtained products were determined using scratch wound-healing assay, MTT analysis, and immunofluorescence assay. The results showed that both rhEGF and Pep-1-fused hEGF were soluble expressed in E. coli. The fusion of Pep-1 could markedly increase the transmembrane ability of EGF, whereas it did not interfere with the growth-stimulating and migration-promoting functions of hEGF on fibroblasts. This research provided a novel strategy for the transmembrane transport of protein-derived cosmetics or drugs.

Cloning and analysis of bile salt hydrolase genes from Lactobacillus plantarum CGMCC No. 8198.

Genes coding for bile salt hydrolase of Lactobacillus plantarum CGMCC 8198, a novel probiotic strain isolated from silage, were identified, analyzed and cloned. L. plantarum strongly resisted the inhibitory effects of bile salts and also decreased serum cholesterol levels by 20% in mice with hypercholesterolemia. Using RT-PCR analysis, bsh2, bsh3 and bsh4 were upregulated by bile salts in a dose-dependent manner. All three bsh genes had high similarity with those of other Lactobacillus strains. All three recombinant BSHs had high activities for the hydrolysis of glycodeoxycholic acids and taurodeoxycholic acids.

Modified bovine serum albumin as an effective charge-reversal platform for simultaneously improving the transfection efficiency and biocompatibility of polyplexes.

The charge-reversal strategy is usually employed in gene delivery to facilitate the endosomal escape of gene carriers and the release of the payload into cytoplasm. However, most of the charge-reversal materials are far from perfect biocompatible materials due to the cytotoxicity of themselves or their hydrolyzed products. In this study, an excellent charge-reversal material named modified bovine serum albumin (mBSA) was prepared. The charge reversal of biocompatible mBSA is a physical process and can instantly occur, which was confirmed by zeta potential, size detection and morphological studies. The introduction of mBSA can not only reduce the zeta potential of binary complexes (pDNA-PEI) but also increase the nuclease resistance ability of the pDNA-PEI binary complexes. In addition, cell viabilities tested by MTT assay and gene transfection assay demonstrated that mBSA can reduce the cytotoxicity of pDNA-PEI polyplexes and improve their gene transfection efficiency (serum free and 10% FBS medium) both in 293T and HepG2 cells at the same time. The experimental results of cell internalization and intracellular distribution of pDNA-PEI-mBSA ternary complexes confirmed that the improvement of transfection efficiency originated from the enhancement of endosomal escape of polyplexes. Therefore, mBSA has been proven to be a perfect charge-reversal platform to simultaneously improve the transfection efficiency and biocompatibility of polyplexes.

Biosafe nanoscale pharmaceutical adjuvant materials.

Thanks to developments in the field of nanotechnology over the past decades, more and more biosafe nanoscale materials have become available for use as pharmaceutical adjuvants in medical research. Nanomaterials possess unique properties which could be employed to develop drug carriers with longer circulation time, higher loading capacity, better stability in physiological conditions, controlled drug release, and targeted drug delivery. In this review article, we will review recent progress in the application of representative organic, inorganic and hybrid biosafe nanoscale materials in pharmaceutical research, especially focusing on nanomaterial-based novel drug delivery systems. In addition, we briefly discuss the advantages and notable functions that make these nanomaterials suitable for the design of new medicines; the biosafety of each material discussed in this article is also highlighted to provide a comprehensive understanding of their adjuvant attributes.