DROEG: a method for cancer drug response prediction based on omics and essential genes integration.

Predicting therapeutic responses in cancer patients is a major challenge in the field of precision medicine due to high inter- and intra-tumor heterogeneity. Most drug response models need to be improved in terms of accuracy, and there is limited research to assess therapeutic responses of particular tumor types. Here, we developed a novel method DROEG (Drug Response based on Omics and Essential Genes) for prediction of drug response in tumor cell lines by integrating genomic, transcriptomic and methylomic data along with CRISPR essential genes, and revealed that the incorporation of tumor proliferation essential genes can improve drug sensitivity prediction. Concisely, DROEG integrates literature-based and statistics-based methods to select features and uses Support Vector Regression for model construction. We demonstrate that DROEG outperforms most state-of-the-art algorithms by both qualitative (prediction accuracy for drug-sensitive/resistant) and quantitative (Pearson correlation coefficient between the predicted and actual IC50) evaluation in Genomics of Drug Sensitivity in Cancer and Cancer Cell Line Encyclopedia datasets. In addition, DROEG is further applied to the pan-gastrointestinal tumor with high prevalence and mortality as a case study at both cell line and clinical levels to evaluate the model efficacy and discover potential prognostic biomarkers in Cisplatin and Epirubicin treatment. Interestingly, the CRISPR essential gene information is found to be the most important contributor to enhance the accuracy of the DROEG model. To our knowledge, this is the first study to integrate essential genes with multi-omics data to improve cancer drug response prediction and provide insights into personalized precision treatment.

Novel low-cost Fenton-like layered Fe-titanate catalyst: preparation, characterization and application for degradation of organic colorants.

Novel low-cost layered Fe-titanate catalyst for photo-Fenton degradation of organic contaminants was successfully developed by ion exchange of Fe(3+) with Na(+) layered nano Na-titanates which was prepared by alkali hydrothermal method. The as prepared materials were characterized by powder X-ray diffraction analysis (XRD), field emission scanning electron microscopy (FESEM) and energy-dispersive X-ray spectrometer (EDX). The catalytic activity of the Fe-titanate catalyst was evaluated by the decolorization of three different dyes (rhodamine 6G (R6G), methyl blue (MB), and methyl orange (MO)) under UV irradiation at room temperature. Effect of several important factors such as Fe loading in the catalyst, initial solution pH, catalyst dosage, H2O2 amount, and reaction time was systematically studied. It was found that the decolorization was very efficient for all three dyes. The efficiency reached 98% for R6G, 98.5% for MB, and 97% for MO, respectively, under optimal conditions. The oxidation process was quick, and only 15 min is needed for all three dyes. Moreover, the Fe-titanate catalyst could be used in a wider and near neutral pH range compared with classic Fenton systems which need to be operated at around pH 3.0. Kinetic analysis results showed that the oxidation kinetics was accurately represented by pseudo-first-order model. More importantly, the catalyst was very stable and could be reused for at least four cycles when operated under near neutral pH. The Fe leaching from the catalyst measured was almost negligible, which not only demonstrated the stability of the catalyst, but also avoided the formation of secondary Fe pollution. Therefore, the reported Fe-titanates are promising nanomaterials which can be used as Fenton like catalyst for the degradation of organic contaminant in wastewater.

The morphology-dependent photocatalysis for rhodamine B degradation over Bi2WO6 hierarchical nanostructure.

In this paper, the nanostructured Bi2WO6 with different hierarchical morphologies was synthesized via a warmly hydrothermal route. The structure and morphology of the as-prepared Bi2WO6 products were characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), field emission scanning electron microscope (FE-SEM), UV-vis absorption spectroscopy (UV-Vis) and N2-sorption analysis. The photocatalytic efficiency of Bi2WO6 was investigated by photodegradation of rhodamine B (RhB) under visible-light irradiation. The present work demonstrated that Bi2WO6 with four different hierarchical structures was effective visible-light-driven photocatalytic functional material for environmental purification. Moreover, the nest-like Bi2WO6 exhibited superior photocatalytic effects on rhodamine B degradation compared with other three Bi2WO6 morphologies. The excellent catalytic effect of the nest-like Bi2WO6 was attributed to its unique structural property and large surface area. The relationship between morphology and photocatalytic performance was discussed in detail. The photocatalytic mechanism for the degradation of RhB was also investigated, which revealed the important role of morphology in improving the photocatalyitc activities of Bi2WO6.

Adsorption behavior of Cu(II) onto titanate nanofibers prepared by alkali treatment.

Novel low-cost adsorbents of titanate nanofibers with formula Na(x)H(2-x)Ti(3)O(7) · nH(2)O have been prepared by alkali treatment for Cu(II) removal from aqueous solutions. The nanofibers have structures in which three edge-shared TiO(6) octahedras join at the corners to form stepped, zigzag Ti(3)O(7)(2-) layers. The sodium cations located between the layers are exchangeable. The results of batch adsorption experiments suggest that the nanofibers with high sodium content can be effective adsorbents for Cu(II) removal. Effects of several important factors such as Na amount in adsorbents, pH, temperature, contact time and initial concentration are systematically studied. Results show that the adsorption is highly pH-dependent and the removal is almost complete (99.8%) for initial concentration under 100mg/l at pH 4. Equilibrium adsorption follows Langmuir isotherms well and the maximum Cu(II) uptake calculated is 167.224 mg/g. The adsorption kinetics can be explained by pseudo-second-order model well and the time needed for equilibrium is 180 min. Thermodynamic study indicates that the adsorption is spontaneous and endothermic. Desorption of Cu(II) from adsorbents using EDTA-2Na solutions exhibits a high efficiency and the adsorbents can be used repeatedly. These results demonstrate that the titanate nanofibers are readily prepared, enabling promising applications for the removal of Cu(II) from aqueous solutions.

Bis{1-[4-(benz-yloxy)phen-yl]-4,4,4-tri-fluoro-butane-1,3-dionato(1-)}dipyri-dine-cobalt(II).

In the title compound, [Co(C(17)H(12)F(3)O(3))(2)(C(5)H(5)N)(2)], the Co(II) ion is situated on a twofold rotation axis, coordinated by four O atoms from two 1-[4-(benz-yloxy)phen-yl]-4,4,4-trifluoro-butane-1,3-dionate(1-) (L) ligands and two N atoms from two pyridine ligands in a distorted octa-hedral geometry. The two pyridine rings form a dihedral angle of 84.63 (7)°. The two benzene rings in L are twisted at 58.83 (5)°. Weak inter-molecular C-H⋯F hydrogen bonds consolidate the crystal packing.