Hydrogen Bond-Induced Flexible and Twisted Self-Assembly of Functionalized Carbon Dots with Customized-Color Circularly Polarized Luminescence.

Circularly polarized luminescence (CPL) is widely applied in optical data storage, quantum computing and backlights in three-dimensional (3D) displays. Carbon dots (CDs) exhibit competitive optical properties, in addition to excellent resistance to photo- and chemical-bleaching after carbonization. Combining the superior optical performance with polarization peculiarities through hierarchical structure engineering is imperative for the development of CDs. Here, oriented assembly was driven by hydrophobic interactions of aromatic ligands, which participated in the surface-ligand post-modification process on ground-state chiral carbon core. Furthermore, the residual chiral amides on CDs formed multi-hydrogen bonds during gradual aggregation, causing the assembled materials to form asymmetric bending structure. Superficial ligands interfered with optical dynamics of exciton radiation transition and promoted the excited state of the assembled materials to achieve a circularly polarized signal. The linkage ligands successfully overcame the frequent phenomenon of aggregation-induced quenching and contributed further to the formation of self-supporting films by assembly and facilitated chiral optical expression. The full-color and white CPL were manipulated by simply regulating the functional groups on the ligands. Finally, based on the stable chiral powder phosphors, large chiral flexible films and multicolor chiral light-emitting diodes were constructed which provide feasible materials and technical support for flexible 3D displays.

Blockade of endothelin receptors mitigates SARS-CoV-2-induced osteoarthritis.

Joint pain and osteoarthritis can occur as coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) sequelae after infection. However, little is known about the damage to articular cartilage. Here we illustrate knee joint damage after wild-type, Delta and Omicron variants of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection in vivo. Rapid joint injury with cystic lesions at the osteochondral junction was observed in two patients with post-COVID osteoarthritis and recapitulated in a golden Syrian hamster model. SARS-CoV-2-activated endothelin-1 signalling increased vascular permeability and caused viral spike proteins leakage into the subchondral bone. Osteoclast activation, chondrocyte dropout and cyst formation were confirmed histologically. The US Food and Drug Administration-approved endothelin receptor antagonist, macitentan, mitigated cystic lesions and preserved chondrocyte number in the acute phase of viral infection in hamsters. Delayed macitentan treatment at post-acute infection phase alleviated chondrocyte senescence and restored subchondral bone loss. It is worth noting that it could also attenuate viral spike-induced joint pain. Our work suggests endothelin receptor blockade as a novel therapeutic strategy for post-COVID arthritis.

Two-Step Chirality Transfer to Twisted Assemblies: Synergistic Interplay of Chiral and Aggregation Interactions.

Chirality plays a pivotal role in both the origin of life and the self-assembly of materials. However, the governing principles behind chirality transfer in hierarchical self-assembly across multiple length scales remain elusive. Here, we propose a concise and versatile simulation strategy using the patchy particle chain model to investigate the self-assembly of rods interacting through chiral and aggregation interactions. We reveal that chiral interaction possessing an entropic nature, amplifies the fluctuations and twists in the alignment of rods, while aggregation interaction serves as a foundational platform for aggregation and assembly. When both interactions exhibit moderate absolute and relative values, their synergistic interplay facilitates the chirality transfer from rods to assemblies, resulting in the formation of chiral mesoscale ordered structures. Furthermore, we observe a two-step chirality transfer process by monitoring the formation kinetics of the twisted assemblies. This work not only provides a comprehensive insight into chirality transfer mechanisms, but also introduces a versatile mesoscale simulation framework for exploring the role of chirality in hierarchical self-assembly.

Structure-Activity Relationship Studies Leading to the Discovery of Highly Water-Soluble and Biocompatible Acyclic Cucurbit[n]uril FY-3451 as a Universal Antagonist That Rapidly Reverses Neuromuscular Blocking Agents In Vivo.

The development of a reversal agent that can rapidly reverse clinically used nondepolarizing neuromuscular blocking agents (NMBAs) has long been a challenge. Here, we report the synthesis of a series of highly water-soluble acyclic cucurbit[n]urils (acCBs). Systematic structure-activity relationship studies reveal that introducing two propylidene units on the peripheral benzene rings not only remarkably improves the activity of the corresponding derivative acCB6 (FY 3451) in reversing the neuromuscular block of rocuronium, cisatracurium, vecuronium, and pancuronium, the four clinically used NMBAs, through stable inclusion, but also allows for high water-solubility as well as a maximum tolerated dose (2000 mg/kg on rats). In vivo experiments with rats show that, at the identical dose of 25 mg/kg, for rocuronium, vecuronium, and pancuronium, acCB6 can achieve a recovery time shorter than that of sugammadex for rocuronium and, at the dose of 100 mg/kg, realize comparably rapid reversal for cisatracurium.

Fine-Tuning 2D Heterogeneous Channels for Charge-Lock Enhanced Lithium Separation from Brine.

The extraction of lithium (Li) from complex brines presents significant challenges due to the interference of competing ions, particularly magnesium (Mg2⁺), which complicates the selective separation process. Herein, a strategy is introduced employing charge-lock enhanced 2D heterogeneous channels for the rapid and selective uptake of Li⁺. This approach integrates porous ZnFe2O4/ZnO nanosheets into Ag+-modulated sub-nanometer interlayer channels, forming channels optimized for Li⁺ extraction. The novelty lies in the charge-lock mechanism, which selectively captures Mg2⁺ ions, thereby facilitating the effective separation of Li from Mg. This mechanism is driven by a charge transfer during the formation of ZnFe2O4/ZnO, rendering O atoms in Fe-O bonds more negatively charged. These negative charges strongly interact with the high charge density of Mg2⁺ ions, enabling the charge-locking mechanism and the targeted capture of Mg2⁺. Optimization with Ag⁺ further improves interlayer spacing, increasing ion transport rates and addressing the swelling issue typical of 2D membranes. The resultant membrane showcases high water flux (44.37 L m⁻2 h⁻¹ bar⁻¹) and an impressive 99.8% rejection of Mg2⁺ in real brine conditions, achieving a Li⁺/Mg2⁺ selectivity of 59.3, surpassing existing brine separation membranes. Additionally, this membrane demonstrates superior cyclic stability, highlighting its high potential for industrial applications.

Supramolecular Channels Assembled within Intercellular Gaps.

Tubular structures exist broadly in biological systems and exhibit important functions including mediating cellular communications. The construction of artificial analogues in living cells would provide a new strategy for chemotherapy. In this report, a kind of supramolecular channel has been constructed within intercellular gaps by mimicking the assembly process and structure of natural gap junctional channels, which consist of hydrophobic tubular modules located in the adjacent cell membranes and hydrophilic modules within the extracellular space. The assembly of the channels was driven by electrostatic interactions. The channels could inhibit tumor cell invasion by preventing cell migration.

Dye-doped cellulose nanocrystals as novel dusting powders for visualizing latent fingerprints.

Powder-dusting method based on the visual contrast between the background surface and powder-covered ridges of a fingerprint is widely used to develop the invisible latent fingerprints (LFPs) left at crime scenes. Recently, the development of nano-sized powders with excellent optical performances has been extensively explored. In this work, we employed environmentally friendly and low-toxicity cellulose nanocrystals as the novel support. Using dye-doped cellulose nanocrystals as novel dusting powders, two dyes (phenylfluorone and curcumin) were adsorbed on the cellulose nanocrystals by a simple batch adsorption method. The dye-doped cellulose nanocrystals (namely, phenylfluorone-doped cellulose nanocrystals (PDCN) and curcumin-doped cellulose nanocrystals (CDCN)) containing 2% of the loaded mass of both the dyes with bright green fluorescence were developed to visualize LFPs on the surfaces of various substrates (such as glass slide, printing paper, orange plastic card, tile, stainless steel, compact disc, red plastic packing, copper foil and aluminum foil). Images of the LFPs can been obtained by both the dye-doped cellulose nanocrystals with sufficient affinity to the ridges of LFPs. High-quality ridge details with features at the second and third level can be detected by CDCN, whereas PDCN only display the secondary-level features of ridge details. Compared with PDCN, CDCN illustrate higher sensitivity, higher selectivity, and better contrast, especially for detecting fresh and non-fresh LFPs on porous and non-porous substrates, and has the potential for practical use in forensic science.

Phase-activity relationship of MnO2 nanomaterials in periodate oxidation for organic pollutant degradation.

Manganese dioxide (MnO2), renowned for its abundant natural crystal phases, emerges as a leading catalyst candidate for the degradation of pollutants. The relationship between its crystal phase and catalytic activity, particularly for periodate activation, has remained both ambiguous and contentious. This study delineates the influence of various synthetic MnO2 phase structures on their capabilities in catalyzing periodate-assisted pollutant oxidation. Five distinct MnO2 phase structures (α-, ß-, γ-, δ-, and ε-MnO2) were prepared and evaluated to activate periodate and degrade pollutants, following the sequence: α-MnO2 > γ-MnO2 > ß-MnO2 > ε-MnO2 > δ-MnO2. Through quenching experiments, electron paramagnetic resonance tests, and in situ electrochemical studies, we found an electron transfer-mediated process drive pollutant degradation, facilitated by a highly reactive metastable intermediate complex (MnO2/PI*). Quantitative structure-activity relationship analysis further indicated that degradation efficiency is strongly associated with both the crystal phase and the Mn (IV) content, highlighting it as a key active site. Moreover, the α-MnO2 phase demonstrated exceptional recycling stability, enabling an effective pollutant removal in a continuous flow packed-bed reactor for 168 h. Thus, α-MnO2/PI proved highly effective in mineralizing organic pollutants and reducing their toxicities, highlighting its significant potential for environmental remediation.

Bispillar[5]arene-Based Slide-Ring Polyrotaxanation Enables Enhanced Toughness, Recyclability, Impact, and Puncture Resistance of Polyisoprene Elastomers.

A series of slide-ring polyrotaxanes (SRPs) have been constructed by the solvent-free blending of a ditopic pillar[5]arene (DP5A) and polyisoprene (PIP) after thermal annealing. Solid-state 13C NMR experiments supported the fact that the pillar[5]arene rings of DP5A were threaded by PIP chains to afford physically interlocked networks. Tensile tests revealed that 1% of DP5A can improve the elongation at break from 50 to 239%, the tensile modulus from 2.1 to 3.9 MPa, and the toughness from 0.35 to 4.5 MJ/m3. Impact and puncture resistance experiments show that the DP5A-doped materials exhibit remarkable enhancement of protective and impalement-resistant performance. The samples can be also recycled repeatedly due to their physical crosslinking nature. The important stress delocalization effects have been attributed to the pulley effect of DP5A in the SRP materials, which represents a supramolecular approach for improving the performance of PIP elastomers.

Green fabrication of modified lignin/zeolite/chitosan-based composite membranes for preservation of perishable foods.

Chitosan, as a kind of naturally occurring green and degradable material for the preservation of perishable foods, was investigated in this study with the objective of enhancing its preservation performances. Herein, lignin was modified using the solvent fractionation method (modified lignin, ML, including ML1-ML3), while natural clinoptilolite zeolite was modified using the alkali modification method (modified clinoptilolite zeolite, MCZ, including MCZ1-MCZ5). After optimizing the conditions, it was discovered that incorporating both ML3 and MCZ3 into pure chitosan-based membranes might be conducive to fabricate chitosan-based composite membranes for the preservation of perishable foods. As-prepared composite membranes possessed better visible light transmittance, antioxidant activity, and carbon dioxide/oxygen selectivity, resulting in improved preservation effects on the model perishable foods such as bananas, cherry tomatoes, and cheeses. These findings might indicate promising applications for chitosan-based composite membranes with modified lignin and zeolite in the field of eco-friendly degradable materials for the preservation of perishable foods.

First isolation, identification, and pathogenicity evaluation of an EV-G6 strain in China.

Enterovirus G (EV-G) belongs to the Picornaviridae family and infects porcine populations worldwide. A total of 20 EV-G genotypes (EV-G1 to EV-G20) have been identified. In this study, we isolated and characterized an EV-G strain, named EV-G/YN29/2022, from the feces of diarrheic pigs. This was the first EV-G6 strain isolated in China. Comparison of the whole genome nucleotide and corresponding amino acid sequences showed that the isolate was more closely related to those of the EV-G6 genotype than other genotypes, with the complete genome sequence similarity ranging from 83.7% (Iba46442) to 84.4% (PEV-B-KOR), and corresponding amino acid homology ranged from 96% (Iba46442) to 96.8% (PEV-B-KOR). Similarly, the VP1 gene and corresponding amino acid sequences of EV-G/YN29/2022 were highly similar to those of the EV-G6 genotype (>82.9% and >94.3%, respectively). Thus, the isolated strain was classified as EV-G6 genotype. This was the first EV-G6 strain isolated in China. Pathogenicity analyses revealed that EV-G/YN29/2022 infection caused mild diarrhea, typical skin lesions, and weight reduction. The strain was mainly distributed to the intestinal tissue but was also found in the brain, mesenteric lymph nodes, spleen, and liver. Our results can be used as a reference to further elucidate the epidemiology, evolution, and pathogenicity of EV-G.

Spatial immune landscapes of SARS-CoV-2 gastrointestinal infection: macrophages contribute to local tissue inflammation and gastrointestinal symptoms.

Background: In some patients, persistent gastrointestinal symptoms like abdominal pain, nausea, and diarrhea occur as part of long COVID-19 syndrome following acute respiratory symptoms caused by SARS-CoV-2. However, the characteristics of immune cells in the gastrointestinal tract of COVID-19 patients and their association with these symptoms remain unclear. Methodology: Data were collected from 95 COVID-19 patients. Among this cohort, 11 patients who exhibited gastrointestinal symptoms and underwent gastroscopy were selected. Using imaging mass cytometry, the gastrointestinal tissues of these patients were thoroughly analyzed to identify immune cell subgroups and investigate their spatial distribution. Results: Significant acute inflammatory responses were found in the gastrointestinal tissues, particularly in the duodenum, of COVID-19 patients. These alterations included an increase in the levels of CD68+ macrophages and CD3+CD4+ T-cells, which was more pronounced in tissues with nucleocapsid protein (NP). The amount of CD68+ macrophages positively correlates with the number of CD3+CD4+ T-cells (R = 0.783, p < 0.001), additionally, spatial neighborhood analysis uncovered decreased interactions between CD68+ macrophages and multiple immune cells were noted in NP-positive tissues. Furthermore, weighted gene coexpression network analysis was employed to extract gene signatures related to clinical features and immune responses from the RNA-seq data derived from gastrointestinal tissues from COVID-19 patients, and we validated that the MEgreen module shown positive correlation with clinical parameter (i.e., Total bilirubin, ALT, AST) and macrophages (R = 0.84, p = 0.001), but negatively correlated with CD4+ T cells (R = -0.62, p = 0.004). By contrast, the MEblue module was inversely associated with macrophages and positively related with CD4+ T cells. Gene function enrichment analyses revealed that the MEgreen module is closely associated with biological processes such as immune response activation, signal transduction, and chemotaxis regulation, indicating its role in the gastrointestinal inflammatory response. Conclusion: The findings of this study highlight the role of specific immune cell groups in the gastrointestinal inflammatory response in COVID-19 patients. Gene coexpression network analysis further emphasized the importance of the gene modules in gastrointestinal immune responses, providing potential molecular targets for the treatment of COVID-19-related gastrointestinal symptoms.

Epistatic interaction has the reverse effects with its constitutive quantitative trait loci.

Epistasis is one of important genetic components for a quantitative trait in plant. Eshed and Zamir found negative epistatic interactions of quantitative trait loci in Tomato first. We detected that positive (negative) QTLs generated mostly negative (positive) epistatic interactions on heading date in rice, and then proposed the hypothese that QTL epistasis plays a role of homeostasis in one of our recent papers. In order to further provide additional evidence, the effects of QTLs and their epistatic effects on two quantitative traits of plant height (ph) and thousand kernel weight (tkw) were analyzed in this study. The same regularity was verified again. We detected that positive ph QTLs and negative tkw QTLs always generated reverse epistatic effects, respectively. Moreover, high-order epistatic effects were estimated on these two traits. The sum of all epistatic effects would partially neutralize the additive of constitutive QTL effects. This feature of epistsis would be the mechanism for bionts to maintain homeostasis while the obstacle for human to achieve the pyramiding breeding objectives. More evidences are still being collected to support our assumption.

Research on Traditional Chinese Medicine: Domain Knowledge Graph Completion and Quality Evaluation.

BACKGROUND: Knowledge graphs (KGs) can integrate domain knowledge into a traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) intelligent syndrome differentiation model. However, the quality of current KGs in the TCM domain varies greatly, related to the lack of knowledge graph completion (KGC) and evaluation methods. OBJECTIVE: This study aims to investigate KGC and evaluation methods tailored for TCM domain knowledge. METHODS: In the KGC phase, according to the characteristics of TCM domain knowledge, we proposed a 3-step "entity-ontology-path" completion approach. This approach uses path reasoning, ontology rule reasoning, and association rules. In the KGC quality evaluation phase, we proposed a 3-dimensional evaluation framework that encompasses completeness, accuracy, and usability, using quantitative metrics such as complex network analysis, ontology reasoning, and graph representation. Furthermore, we compared the impact of different graph representation models on KG usability. RESULTS: In the KGC phase, 52, 107, 27, and 479 triples were added by outlier analysis, rule-based reasoning, association rules, and path-based reasoning, respectively. In addition, rule-based reasoning identified 14 contradictory triples. In the KGC quality evaluation phase, in terms of completeness, KG had higher density and lower sparsity after completion, and there were no contradictory rules within the KG. In terms of accuracy, KG after completion was more consistent with prior knowledge. In terms of usability, the mean reciprocal ranking, mean rank, and hit rate of the first N tail entities predicted by the model (Hits@N) of the TransE, RotatE, DistMult, and ComplEx graph representation models all showed improvement after KGC. Among them, the RotatE model achieved the best representation. CONCLUSIONS: The 3-step completion approach can effectively improve the completeness, accuracy, and availability of KGs, and the 3-dimensional evaluation framework can be used for comprehensive KGC evaluation. In the TCM field, the RotatE model performed better at KG representation.

Relative kinetic stability of defect patterns in two-dimensional nematic liquid crystals with rectangular confinement.

Guiding and dynamically modulating topological defects are critical challenges in defect engineering of liquid crystals. Here, we employ molecular dynamics simulations to investigate the transition dynamics and relative kinetic stability of defect patterns in two-dimensional nematic Gay-Berne liquid crystals confined within rectangular geometries. We observe the formation of various defect patterns including long-axis, diagonal, X-shaped, composite, and bend configurations under different confinement conditions. The competition between boundary effects and the uniformity of nematic orientation induces the continuous realignment of liquid crystal molecules, facilitating the spatially continuous transformation of defect patterns over time. This transition involves changes in both defect types and their locations, typically initiating from defect regions. Furthermore, we demonstrate that the relative stability of these defect patterns can be effectively controlled by adjusting confinement parameters and external field conditions. Our findings provide fundamental insights into the transition kinetics of defect patterns in confined nematic liquid crystals, thereby enhancing our ability to manipulate topological defects for advanced applications.

Corrigendum to: B2M is a Biomarker Associated With Immune Infiltration In High Altitude Pulmonary Edema.

The funding details have been incorporated upon author's request in the funding section of this article titled "B2M is a Biomarker Associated With Immune Infiltration In High Altitude Pulmonary Edema ," 2024, 27(1), 168-185 [1]. Details of the error and a correction are provided here. Original: This work was supported by grants from the Chongqing Natural Science Gene General Project (No. YWRYPYG). Corrected: This work was supported by General Project of Chongqing Natural Science Foundation cstc2020jcyj-msxmX0227. We regret the error and apologize to the readers. The original article can be found online at www.eurekaselect.com/article/131669.

Accurate construction of monolayer, bilayer, sandwich bilayer, four-layer, multi-layer and chiral bilayer 2D pillararene-type supramolecular networks.

The accurate construction of mono-, bi- and multi-layer networks has been an important challenge, especially for bi- and multi-layer networks. Monolayer, bilayer, sandwich bilayer, four-layer, and multi-layer two-dimensional pillararene-type metal-organic coordination networks have been constructed from functionalized pillar[5]arene and pillar[6]arene by utilizing the coordination interaction of cobalt and copper ions and combining with temperature control and guest induction. These two-dimensional coordination networks exhibit the excellent plasticity of pillararenes and structural variety, which are characterized by X-ray single crystal diffraction and PXRD, confirming that pillararenes units can function as excellent tunable scaffolds for structural regulation. Two-dimensional chiral double-layer structure products are also constructed from R- and S-pillar[6]arene, which are obtained by high-performance liquid chromatography. Atomic force microscopic imaging confirms the thicknesses of these networks. Moreover, these networks also exhibit high iodine adsorption capacity in aqueous environments at ambient temperature. The monolayer, bilayer, sandwich bilayer, four-layer and multi-layer structures of the pillararene-type networks represent a new facile supramolecular self-assembly strategy and platform for designing more mono-, bi- and multi-layer two-dimensional nanomaterials and chiral two-dimensional double-layer structures provide a new method for the construction of more two-dimensional chiral polymers.

Urine Metabolites Changes in Acute Myocardial Infarction Rats via Metabolomic Analysis.

OBJECTIVES: To screen biomarkers for forensic identification of acute myocardial infarction (AMI) by non-targeted metabolomic studies on changes of urine metabolites in rats with AMI. METHODS: The rat models of the sham surgery group, AMI group and hyperlipidemia + acute myocardial infarction (HAMI) group were established. Ultra-high performance liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry (UPLC-MS) was used to analyze the changes of urine metabolic spectrometry in AMI rats. Principal component analysis, partial least squares-discriminant analysis, and orthogonal partial least squares-discriminant analysis were used to screen differential metabolites. The MetaboAnalyst database was used to analyze the metabolic pathway enrichment and access the predictive ability of differential metabolites. RESULTS: A total of 40 and 61 differential metabolites associated with AMI and HAMI were screened, respectively. Among them, 22 metabolites were common in both rat models. These small metabolites were mainly concentrated in the niacin and nicotinamide metabolic pathways. Within the 95% confidence interval, the area under the curve (AUC) values of receiver operator characteristic curve for N8-acetylspermidine, 3-methylhistamine, and thymine were greater than 0.95. CONCLUSIONS: N8-acetylspermidine, 3-methylhistamine, and thymine can be used as potential biomarkers for AMI diagnosis, and abnormal metabolism in niacin and nicotinamide may be the main causes of AMI. This study can provide reference for the mechanism and causes of AMI identification.

An adult with hemorrhagic varicella co-infects with cytomegalovirus: a case report.

BACKGROUND: Hemorrhagic varicella (HV) is a particular form of chicken pox.,with high mortality in adults. This form of the disease is rare, to date, approximately 4 cases have been reported. Occasional cases of HV have been documented in adults with hematologic disorders or other diseases. While there is one reported case of simultaneous reactivation of cytomegalovirus in an adult with chickenpox, there is a lack of information regarding changes in liver function indicators for such patients. This is unfortunate, as CMV reactivation can further exacerbate liver failure and increase mortality. In this report, we present a case of hemorrhagic varicella reactivation with cytomegalovirus and provide some relevant discussions. CASE PRESENTATION: We present the case of a 25-year-old male with HV, who had a history of nephrotic syndrome generally controlled with orally administered prednisone at a dosage of 50 mg per day for two months. The patient arrived at the emergency room with complaints of abdominal pain and the presence of hemorrhagic vesicles on his body for the past 3 days. Despite medical evaluation, a clear diagnosis was not immediately determined. Upon admission, the leukocyte count was recorded as 20.96 × 109/L on the first day, leading to the initiation of broad-spectrum antibiotic treatment. Despite the general interpretation that a positive IgG and a negative IgM indicate a previous infection, the patient's extraordinarily elevated IgG levels, coupled with a markedly increased CMV DNA quantification, prompted us to suspect a reactivation of the CMV virus. In light of these findings, we opted for the intravenous administration of ganciclovir as part of the treatment strategy. Unfortunately,,the patient succumbed to rapidly worsening symptoms and passed away. Within one week of the patient's demise, chickenpox gradually developed in the medical staff who had been in contact with him. In such instances, we speculate that the patient's diagnosis should be classified as a rare case of hemorrhagic varicella. CONCLUSION: Swift identification and timely administration of suitable treatment for adult HV are imperative to enhance prognosis.