Stability and Assembly Mechanisms of Butterfly Communities across Environmental Gradients of a Subtropical Mountain.

Mountain ecosystems harbor evolutionarily unique and exceptionally rich biodiversity, particularly in insects. In this study, we characterized the diversity, community stability, and assembly mechanisms of butterflies on a subtropical mountain in the Chebaling National Nature Reserve, Guangdong Province, China, using grid-based monitoring across the entire region for two years. The results showed that species richness, abundance, and Faith's phylogenetic diversity decreased with increasing elevation; taxonomic diversity played a considerable role in mediating the effects of environmental changes on stability. Moreover, our results showed that stochastic processes are dominant in governing the assembly of butterfly communities across all elevational gradients, with habitats at an elevation of 416-580 m subjected to the strongest stochastic processes, whereas heterogeneous selection processes displayed stronger effects on the assembly of butterfly communities at 744-908 m, 580-744 m, and 908-1072 m, with abiotic factors inferred as the main driving forces. In addition, significant differences were detected between the barcode tree and the placement tree for the calculated ß-NTI values at 416-580 m. Overall, this study provides new insights into the effects of environmental change on the stability and assembly of butterflies in Chebaling, which will be beneficial for biodiversity conservation and policy development.

Alectinib continuation beyond progression in ALK-positive non-small cell lung cancer with alectinib-refractory.

Background: Alectinib, a next-generation anaplastic lymphoma kinase tyrosine kinase inhibitor (ALK-TKI), has demonstrated noteworthy efficacy in the treatment of non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). Unfortunately, 53.3% of untreated patients receiving first-line treatment with alectinib developed resistance to alectinib. However, despite the widespread use of alectinib, studies on the efficacy and safety of continuing alectinib with other necessary therapies after progression of alectinib and possible population of benefit are still limited. Methods: This retrospective cohort study included fifteen patients with ALK-positive NSCLC from nine institutions in China who experienced disease progression after first- or second-line treatment and continued to receive alectinib treatment between 2019 and 2022. This study aimed to evaluate the median progression-free survival (mPFS), objective response rate (ORR), median overall survival (mOS), and adverse events (AEs) of continuing alectinib combined with other therapies after the emergence of drug resistance. Results: Among fifteen patients eligible for this study, all patients started continuing treatment with alectinib after oligoprogression or central nervous system (CNS) progression. The mPFS for the whole cohort receiving continuing alectinib with other necessary therapies was 8 months [95% confidence interval (CI): 4 to not applicable (NA)], with an ORR of 46.7%. The mOS was not reached. During continuing alectinib treatment, only one patient experienced grade 2 elevation of aspartate aminotransferase (AST) and serum glutamic-oxaloacetic transaminase (SGOT). Conclusions: The continuation of alectinib treatment combined with other necessary therapies demonstrates favorable response and safety in patients with ALK-positive NSCLC who experienced oligoprogression or CNS progression following alectinib in first- or second-line therapy. Instead of immediately switching to another ALK-TKI, continuing alectinib combined with other necessary therapies may offer greater survival benefits to the patients.

Polymerization Based on Modified ß-Cyclodextrin Achieves Efficient Phosphorescence Energy Transfer for Anti-Counterfeiting.

Supramolecular polymerization can not only activate guest phosphorescence, but also promote phosphorescence Förster resonance energy transfer and induce effective delayed fluorescence. Herein, the solid supramolecular assemblies of ternary copolymers based on acrylamide, modified ß-cyclodextrin (CD), and carbazole (CZ) are reported. After doping with polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) and dyes, a NIR luminescence supramolecular composite with a lifetime of 1.07 s, an energy transfer efficiency of up to 97.4% is achieved through tandem phosphorescence energy transfer. The ternary copolymers can realize macrocyclic enrichment of dyes in comparison to CZ and acrylamide copolymers without CD, which can facilitate energy transfer between triplet and singlet with a high donor-acceptor ratio. Additionally, the flexible polymeric films exhibit regulable lifetime, tunable luminescence color, and repeatable switchable afterglow by adjusting the excitation wavelength, donor-acceptor ratio, and wet/dry stimuli. The luminescence materials are successfully applied to information encryption and anti-counterfeiting.

The role of TRIM family in metabolic associated fatty liver disease.

Metabolic associated fatty liver disease (MAFLD) ranks among the most prevalent chronic liver conditions globally. At present, the mechanism of MAFLD has not been fully elucidated. Tripartite motif (TRIM) protein is a kind of protein with E3 ubiquitin ligase activity, which participates in highly diversified cell activities and processes. It not only plays an important role in innate immunity, but also participates in liver steatosis, insulin resistance and other processes. In this review, we focused on the role of TRIM family in metabolic associated fatty liver disease. We also introduced the structure and functions of TRIM proteins. We summarized the TRIM family's regulation involved in the occurrence and development of metabolic associated fatty liver disease, as well as insulin resistance. We deeply discussed the potential of TRIM proteins as targets for the treatment of metabolic associated fatty liver disease.

Conformationally confined three-armed supramolecular folding for boosting near-infrared biological imaging.

Herein, a triphenylamine derivative (TP-3PY) possessing 4-(4-bromophenyl)pyridine (PY) as an electron-accepting group and tris[p-(4-pyridylvinyl)phenyl]amine (TPA) with large two-photon absorption cross-sections as an electron-donating group was obtained, and showed intense absorption in the visible light region (λmax = 509 nm) and weak near-infrared (NIR) fluorescence emission at 750 nm. After complexation with cucurbit[8]uril (CB[8]), TP-3PY showed bright NIR fluorescence emission at 727 nm and phosphorescence emission at 800 nm. When the supramolecular assembly (TP-3PY⊂CB[8]) further interacted with dodecyl-modified sulfonatocalix[4]arene (SC4AD), the fluorescence and phosphorescence emissions were further enhanced at 710 and 734 nm, respectively. However, only the fluorescence emission of TP-3PY was enhanced in the presence of cucurbit[7]uril (CB[7]) and SC4AD. More interestingly, the photoluminescence of TP-3PY⊂CB[8]@SC4AD and TP-3PY⊂CB[7]@SC4AD assemblies could be excited by both visible (510 nm) and NIR light (930 nm). Finally, these ternary supramolecular assemblies with bright NIR light emission were applied to lysosome imaging of tumor cells and real-time biological imaging of mice.

Morpholine-modified permethyl ß-cyclodextrin supramolecular nanoparticles for precise dual-targeted imaging.

Possessing dual-targeted agents toward the lysosome and cancer cells, a ternary supramolecular assembly was constructed by a morpholine-modified permethyl ß-cyclodextrin, sulfonated porphyrin, and folic acid-modified chitosan via multivalent interactions. As compared with free porphyrin, the obtained ternary supramolecular assembly showed promoted photodynamic effect and achieved dual-targeted precise imaging in cancer cells.

An in situ protonation-activated supramolecular self-assembly for selective suppression of tumor growth.

An in situ supramolecular self-assembly in the subcellular organelles could provide a new strategy to treat diseases. Herein, we report a protonation-activated in situ supramolecular self-assembly system in the lysosomes, which could destabilize the lysosome membrane, resulting in the selective suppression of cancer cells. In this system, pyridyl-functionalized tetraphenylethylene (TPE-Py) was protonated in the lysosomes of A549 lung cancer cells to form octahedron-like structures with cucurbit[8]uril (CB[8]), which impaired the integrity of the lysosome membrane, resulting in selective suppression of cancer cells. Moreover, its anticancer efficiency was also systematically evaluated in vivo, triggering the apoptosis of tumor tissues with ignorable effects on normal organs. Overall, the protonation-activated self-assembly in the lysosomes based on the host-guest complexation would provide a method for novel anti-cancer systems.

A meta-analysis on the relationship between posttraumatic growth and resilience in people with breast cancer.

AIM: To quantitatively synthesize the correlation between posttraumatic growth and resilience among breast cancer patients and explore the potential moderators affecting the relation. DESIGN: A meta-analysis of cross-sectional studies. METHODS: This meta-analysis followed the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Review and Meta-Analyses 2020 guidelines. This meta-analysis was carried out by searching Chinese and English databases of China National Knowledge Infrastructure, WANFANG DATA, Chongqing VIP Information Co., Ltd., PubMed, Embase, Web of Science, and PsycINFO from inception to February 25, 2022. Pooled Pearson's correlation coefficients between posttraumatic growth and resilience was calculated by the Stata software (version 17.0) using the random effects model. RESULTS: Seventeen studies including 4156 breast cancer patients were identified. A high positive correlation was found between posttraumatic growth and resilience (r = 0.448, 95% CI: 0.370-0.519, p < 0.001), and region and publication type significantly moderated the relation.

Enhanced molecular binding affinity toward aromatic dications by anthracene-derived crown ethers in water.

The pursuit of high molecular binding affinity using conventional crown ethers in water remains a challenging task in the field of supramolecular chemistry and may hold great promise in the creation of advanced biocompatible nanoconstructs. In this work, the molecular binding strength toward a series of structurally relevant cationic guests has been greatly enhanced by tetrasulfonated 1,5-dianthracenyl-42-crown-10 and as investigated by means of 1H NMR, UV-vis, and fluorescence spectroscopy, the host-guest association constants can reach up to 108 M-1 order of magnitude in aqueous solution. X-ray crystal diffraction analysis further demonstrates that the aromatic dication can be tightly encapsulated in the ring of anthracene-derived crown ether via multiple π-stacking and electrostatic interactions. Meanwhile, the obtained association constants are remarkably higher than the ones in the cases of the known benzene- and naphthalene-derived sulfonated crown ethers, substantiating that the appropriate extension of π-conjugation in the molecular skeleton of crown ether is a feasible method in attaining a highly affiliative host-guest complex. Taken together, our results indicate that the anthracene-based sulfonated crown ether can be developed as a new family of water-soluble macrocyclic receptors in the fabrication of functional nanoarchitectures.

Supramolecular Dual Polypeptides Induced Tubulin Aggregation for Synergistic Cancer Theranostics.

The advent of macrocycle-based supramolecular chemistry can offer powerful strategies for regulating vital bioactivities in living systems and bring about emerging technology in biomedical science. Herein, we construct a supra-biomacromolecular nanosystem involving microtubules, cell-permeable porphyrins, and antimitotic peptide-decorated permethyl-ß-cyclodextrins for promoting cell apoptosis in a cooperative manner. Through specific polypeptide-tubulin recognition, cyclodextrin moieties are capable of anchoring to the tubulin surface and providing abundant hydrophobic microenvironments to accommodate the photosensitive porphyrins. Consequently, spherical tubulin aggregates are formed, and reactive oxygen species can be efficiently generated via the host-guest complexation. The combined usage of complexation-promoted photodynamic efficacy and tubulin aggregation gives more serious cell apoptosis under light irradiation in vitro and in vivo. To be envisioned, this supramolecularly enhanced photodynamic performance together with controlled aggregation of natural biomacromolecules may be developed as an innovative approach to improve the therapeutic potency against many diseases.

A tunable full-color lanthanide noncovalent polymer based on cucurbituril-mediated supramolecular dimerization.

The construction of lanthanide multicolor luminescent materials with tunable photoluminescence properties has been developed as one of the increasingly significant topics and shown inventive applications in miscellaneous fields. However, fabricating such materials based on synergistically assembly-induced emission rather than simple blending of different fluorescent dyes together still remains a challenge. Herein, we report a europium-based noncovalent polymer with tunable full-color emission, which is constructed from the 2,6-pyridinedicarboxylic acid-bearing bromophenylpyridinium salt. This rationally designed bifunctional component can concurrently serve as a guest molecule and a chelating ligand to associate with cucurbit[8]uril and europium ions, thus leading to the formation of a trichromatic (red-green-blue, RGB) photoluminescent polypseudorotaxane-type noncovalent polymer in aqueous solution. Meanwhile, the full-color emission enclosed within the RGB color triangle could be readily produced by simply tuning the molar ratio of cucurbit[8]uril and europium ions. The lanthanide supramolecular polymer featuring tricolor emission, long lifetime, high photoluminescence efficiency and low cytotoxicity could be further applied in multicolor imaging in a cellular environment. These results provide a new and feasible strategy for the construction of full-color single lanthanide self-assembled nanoconstructs.

Conformationally Confined Emissive Cationic Macrocycle with Photocontrolled Organelle-Specific Translocation.

The optimization of molecular conformation and aggregation modes is of great significance in creation of new luminescent materials for biochemical research and medical diagnostics. Herein, a highly emissive macrocycle (1) is reported, which is constructed by the cyclization reaction of triphenylamine with benzyl bromide and exhibits very distinctive photophysical performance both in aqueous solution and the solid state. Structural analysis reveals that the 1 can form self-interpenetrated complex and emit bright yellow fluorescence in the crystal lattice. The distorted yet symmetrical structure can endow 1 with unique two-photon absorption property upon excitation by near-infrared light. Also, 1 can be utilized as an efficient photosensitizer to produce singlet oxygen (1 O2 ) both in inanimate milieu and under cellular environment. More intriguingly, due to the strong association of 1 with negatively charged biomacromolecules, organelle-specific migration is achieved from lysosome to nucleus during the 1 O2 -induced cell apoptosis process. To be envisaged, this conformationally confined cationic macrocycle with photocontrolled lysosome-to-nucleus translocation may provide a feasible approach for in situ identifying different biospecies and monitoring physiological events at subcellular level.

Boosting the Kinetics and Stability of Zn Anodes in Aqueous Electrolytes with Supramolecular Cyclodextrin Additives.

The hydrophobic internal cavity and hydrophilic external surface of cyclodextrins (CDs) render promising electrochemical applications. Here, we report a comparative and mechanistic study on the use of CD molecules (α-, ß-, and γ-CD) as electrolyte additives for rechargeable Zn batteries. The addition of α-CD in aqueous ZnSO4 solution reduces nucleation overpotential and activation energy of Zn plating and suppresses H2 generation. Computational, spectroscopic, and electrochemical studies reveal that α-CD preferentially adsorbs in parallel on the Zn surface via secondary hydroxyl groups, suppressing water-induced side reactions of hydrogen evolution and hydroxide sulfate formation. Additionally, the hydrophilic exterior surface of α-CD with intense electron density simultaneously facilitates Zn2+ deposition and alleviates Zn dendrite formation. A formulated 3 M ZnSO4 + 10 mM α-CD electrolyte enables homogenous Zn plating/stripping (average Coulombic efficiency ∼ 99.90%) at 1 mA cm-2 in Zn|Cu cells and a considerable capacity retention of 84.20% after 800 cycles in Zn|V2O5 full batteries. This study provides insight into the use of supramolecular macrocycles to modulate and enhance the interface stability and kinetics of metallic anodes for aqueous battery chemistry.

Erratum: circRNA Mediates Silica-Induced Macrophage Activation Via HECTD1/ZC3H12A-Dependent Ubiquitination: Erratum.

[This corrects the article DOI: 10.7150/thno.21648.].

Cyclodextrin-Confined Supramolecular Lanthanide Photoswitch.

The utilization of azobenzene-based photoisomerization cannot only control the morphology of supramolecular assemblies, but can also regulate many biological processes. However, the design of azobenzene-involved nanoconstructs with switchable photoluminescence remains challenging because of the light-quenching ability of azobenzene. Herein, an azobenzene-derived multicomponent nanosystem is reported and its function as a supramolecular lanthanide photoswitch is explored. The metal chelation between lanthanide ions (Ln3+  = Eu3+ and Tb3+ ) and 2,6-pyridinedicarboxylic acid is utilized as the light-emitting center but its inherent fluorescence emission is completely suppressed via the disordered motion of the adjoining azophenyl unit. Interestingly, the hydrophobic cavity of α-cyclodextrin can provide a confined microenvironment to immobilize the molecular conformation of trans-azobenzene, thus leading to the recovery of characteristic lanthanide luminescence both in aqueous solution and the hydrogel state. Also, the luminescence can be reversibly turned off when the cis-azobenzene is expelled from the cavity of α-cyclodextrin upon alternating light irradiation. This mutual cooperation arising from host-guest complexation and metal-ligand coordination confers the desired photoswitchable luminescence abilities on the commonly used azobenzenes, which may hold great promise in the creation of more advanced light-responsive smart materials.

Cyclodextrin-Activated Porphyrin Photosensitization for Boosting Self-Cleavable Drug Release.

Supramolecular prodrugs that combine the merits of stimuli-responsiveness and targeting ability in a controllable manner have shown appealing prospects in disease diagnostics and therapeutics. Herein, we report that a new theranostic agent with the host-guest-binding-activated photosensitization has been fabricated by a binary supramolecular assembly consisting of the permethyl-ß-cyclodextrin-grafted hyaluronic acid and a combretastatin A-4-appended porphyrin derivative. Illuminated by a red-light source, the production efficiency of singlet oxygen (1O2) pronouncedly increases by ∼60-fold once the porphyrin core is encapsulated by cyclodextrins. Consequently, the cell-selective fluorescence emission is dramatically enhanced, the microtubule-targeted drug is rapidly and completely released, and the 1O2-involved combinational treatment is simultaneously achieved both in vitro and in vivo. To be envisaged, this complexation-boosted light-activatable photosensitizing prodrug delivery system with improved photophysical performance and remarkable phototheranostic outcomes will make a significant contribution to the creation of more advanced stimulus-based biomaterials.

Dual-responsive drug release and fluorescence imaging based on disulfide-pillar[4]arene aggregate in cancer cells.

The construction of multistimuli-responsive nanoaggregate has become one of the increasingly significant research topics in supramolecular chemistry. We herein reported the pH- and glutathione dual-responsive supramolecular assemblies fabricated by the disulfide-containing pillar[4]arene and tetraphenylethylene derivatives possessing different alkyl chains in length. Morphological characterization experiments showed the binary supramolecular assemblies formed well-defined nanoparticles, which could facilitate their endocytosis in cells. More remarkably, due to the compact nanostructures and the existence of acidifiable carboxyl group and bioreducible disulfide linkage in pillar[4]arene, the obtained nanoaggregates presented high drug-loading efficiency and sustained drug release behaviors, as well as the targeted fluorescence imaging ability in cancer cells. Thus, it can be envisioned that such microenvironment-adaptable supramolecular nanoassemblies featuring dual stimuli-responsiveness and fluorescence-imaging abilities may be developed as more appealing nanosystems for the therapy of refractory disease.

Induced Near-Infrared Emission and Controlled Photooxidation based on Sulfonated Crown Ether in Water.

Regulation of physio-chemical properties and reaction activities via noncovalent methodology has become one of increasingly significant topics in supramolecular chemistry and showed inventive applications in miscellaneous fields. Herein, we demonstrate that sulfonated crown ether can form very stable host-guest complexes with a series of push-pull-type photosensitizers, eventually leading to the dramatic fluorescence enhancement in visible and near-infrared regions. Meanwhile, severe suppression in singlet oxygen (1 O2 ) production is found, mainly due to the higher energy barriers between the excited single and triple states upon host-guest complexation. Moreover, such complexation-induced tuneable 1 O2 generation systems has been utilized in adjusting the photochemical oxidation reactions of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (anthracene) and sulfides ((methylthio)benzene) in water. This supramolecularly controlled photooxidation based on the selective molecular binding of crown ether with photosensitizers may provide a feasible and applicable strategy for monitoring and modulating many photocatalysis processes in aqueous phase.

Spatio-Temporal Evolutionary Patterns of the Pieridae Butterflies (Lepidoptera: Papilionoidea) Inferred from Mitogenomic Data.

Pieridae is one of the largest and almost cosmopolitan groups of butterflies, which plays an important role in natural ecosystems; however, to date, its phylogeny and evolutionary history have not been fully resolved. In this study, we obtained the complete or nearly complete mitochondrial genomes of 100 pierid taxa (six newly sequenced, sixty extracted from the whole-genome data, and thirty-four directly available from GenBank). At the same time, for the first time, we conducted comparative mitogenomic and phylogenetic analyses based on these mitogenomic data, to further clarify their spatio-temporal evolutionary patterns. Comparative mitogenomic analysis showed that, except for cox2, the GC content of each of the 13 protein-coding genes (PCGs) in the rapidly diverging subfamily Pierinae was higher than in its sister group Coliadinae. Moreover, the dN/dS values of nine genes (atp6, atp8, cox1, cox3, cob, nad1, nad3, nad5, and nad6) in Pierinae were also relatively higher than those in its sister group, Coliadinae. Phylogenetic analysis showed that all the resultant phylogenetic trees were generally in agreement with those of previous studies. The Pierinae family contained six clades in total with the relationship of (Leptosiaini + (((Nepheroniini + Arthocharidini) + Teracolini) + (Pierini + Elodini))). The Pieridae originated in the Palearctic region approximately 72.3 million years ago in the late Cretaceous, and the subfamily Pierinae diverged from this family around 57.9 million years ago in the Oriental region, shortly after the K-Pg mass extinction event; in addition, the spatio-temporal evolutionary patterns of Pierinae were closely correlated with geological events and environmental changes, as well as the host plant coevolutionary scenario in Earth's history. However, some incongruencies were observed between our results and those of previous studies in terms of shallow phylogenies for a few taxa, and should be further investigated.

Flexible Fiber Membrane Based on Carbon Nanotube and Polyurethane with High Thermal Conductivity.

The development of high thermally conductive polymer composites with low filler content remains challenging in the field of thermal interface materials (TIMs). Herein, we fabricated a series of flexible fiber membranes (TMMFM) with high thermally conductive based on thermoplastic polyurethane (TPU) and acidified multiwalled carbon nanotubes (a-MWCNTs) via electrospinning and ultrasonic anchoring method. The SEM and TEM results demonstrated that the a-MWCNTs aligned along the fiber orientation in the membrane and anchored on the membrane surface strongly, which can establish the heat conduction path both in the horizontal and vertical directions. With the incorporation of 10 wt% a-MWCNTs, the horizontal direction (λ∥) and vertical direction (λ⊥) thermal conductivity value of TMMFM-5 was 3.60 W/mK and 1.79 W/mK, respectively, being 18 times and 10 times higher compared to pure TPU fiber membranes. Furthermore, the TMMFM maintained favorable flexibility of the TPU matrix because the small amount of a-MWCNTs only slightly hinders the mobility of the TPU molecular chain. The performance of the obtained TMMFM unveils their potential as a promising choice of flexible TIMs.