This study develops a novel type of electrospun nanofiber membranes (ENMs) with high permeability and robust superhydrophobicity for membrane distillation (MD) process by mimicking the unique unitary microstructures of ramee leaves. The superhydrophobic ENMs were fabricated by the eletrospinning of poly(vinyl alcohol) (PVA), followed by chemical cross-linking with glutaraldehyde and surface modification via low surface energy fluoroalkylsilane (FAS). The resultant FAS grafted PVA (F-PVA) nanofiber membranes were endowed with self-cleaning properties with water contact angles of 158° and sliding angles of 4° via the modification process, while retaining their high porosities and interconnected open structures. For the first time, the robust superhydrophobicity of the ENMs for MD was confirmed by testing the F-PVA nanofiber membranes under violent ultrasonic treatment and harsh chemical conditions. Furthermore, vacuum membrane distillation experiments illustrated that the F-PVA membranes presented a high and stable permeate flux of 25.2 kg/m2 h, 70% higher than those of the commercial PTFE membranes, with satisfied permeate conductivity (<5 μm/cm) during a continuous test of 16 h (3.5 wt % NaCl as the feed solution, and feed temperature and permeate pressure were set as 333 K and 9 kPa, respectively), suggesting their great potentials in myriad MD processes such as high salinity water desalination and volatile organiccompounds removal.

Schematic representation of the synthesis of biomolecule-assisted metal nanoclusters for biological sensing applications.

No abstract

Malic enzymes catalyze the reversible oxidative decarboxylation of L-malate using NAD(P)(+) as a cofactor. NADP-dependent malic enzyme (MaeB) from Escherichia coli MG1655 was expressed and purified as a fusion protein. The molecular weight of MaeB was about 83 kDa, as determined by SDS-PAGE. The recombinant MaeB showed a maximum activity at pH 7.8 and 46°C. MaeB activity was dependent on the presence of Mn(2+) but was strongly inhibited by Zn(2+). In order to understand the physiological roles, recombinant E. coli strains (icd (NADP)/ΔmaeB and icd (NAD)/ΔmaeB) containing NADP-dependent isocitrate dehydrogenase (IDH), or engineered NAD-dependent IDH with the deletion of the maeB gene, were constructed using homologous recombination. During growth on acetate, icd (NAD)/ΔmaeB grew poorly, having a growth rate only 60% that of the wild-type strain (icd (NADP)). Furthermore, icd (NADP)/ΔmaeB exhibited a 2-fold greater adaptability to acetate than icd (NAD)/ΔmaeB, which may be explained by more NADPH production for biosynthesis in icd (NADP)/ΔmaeB due to its NADP-dependent IDH. These results indicated that MaeB was important for NADPH production for bacterial growth on acetate. We also observed that MaeB activity was significantly enhanced (7.83-fold) in icd (NAD), which was about 3-fold higher than that in icd (NADP), when switching from glucose to acetate. The marked increase of MaeB activity was probably induced by the shortage of NADPH in icd (NAD). Evidently, MaeB contributed to the NADPH generation needed for bacterial growth on two carbon compounds.

No abstract

Fluorescent detection of glutathione (GSH) in the living system has attracted much attention, but current fluorescent probes are usually exposed to the exterior environment, leading to photobleaching and premature leakage and subsequently limiting the sensitivity and photostability. Herein, luminescent metal–organic frameworks [Ru­(bpy)3 2+ encapsulated in UiO-66] coated with manganese dioxide nanosheets [MnO2 NS@Ru­(bpy)3 2+–UiO-66] were prepared by an in situ growth method and further explored to construct a GSH-switched fluorescent sensing platform. Because of the splendid fluorescence quenching ability, special probe leakage blocking role and distinguished recognition of the MnO2 NS, and the improved fluorescence of Ru­(bpy)3 2+ by UiO-66, a low background, highly sensitive and selective detection of GSH with a low limit of detection as 0.28 μM was realized. At the same time, the preparation of MnO2 NS@Ru­(bpy)3 2+–UiO-66 nanocomposites is simple and less toxic, and there was no notable loss of cell survivability after being exposed to MnO2 NS@Ru­(bpy)3 2+–UiO-66 below the concentrations of 120 μg mL–1 for 24 h. Consequently, the results coming from this effort suggest that the new sensing platform will have a great potential in the detection of GSH in living cells.

This study is designed to compare the efficacy and safety of traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) with western medicine (WM) in the management of rheumatoid arthritis (RA). This is a 24-week, randomized, multicenter, single-blind study comparing TCM with WM (as used in China) carried out between June 2002 and December 2004 in nine research centers in China, involving 489 patients. Patients were randomized to receive TCM (n = 247), MTX and SSZ (n = 242). MTX was started at a dose of 5 mg to a final dose of 7.5-15 mg weekly. The maintenance dose was 2.5-7.5 mg weekly. The starting dose of SSZ was 0.25 g bid, increasing by 0.25 g a day once a week to a final dose of 0.5-1 g qid. The maintenance dose was 0.5 g tid to qid. Primary end point was the proportion of patients with response according to the American College of Rheumatology 20 % improvement criteria (ACR20) at weeks 24. At 24 weeks, ACR20 responses were 53.0 % in TCM group and 66.5 % in WM group, (P < 0.001) at 24 weeks. ACR 50 responses were 31.6 % of TCM group and 42.6 % in WM group, (P = 0.01). ACR70 responses were 12.6 % in TCM group and 17.4 % in WM group, (P = 0.14). Side effects were observed more frequently in WM group. In this study, ACR20, ACR50 responses at 24 weeks were significantly better in the WM treated group, by intention to treat (ITT) and per protocol analysis. The ACR 70 response showed no significant difference between the two groups. TCM, while effective in treating RA, appears to be less effective than WM in controlling symptoms, but TCM is associated with fewer side effects.

Melanoma is an extremely aggressive malignant skin tumor with a high mortality. Various long noncoding RNAs (lncRNAs) have been reported to be associated with the oncogenesis of melanoma. The purposes of this study were to investigate the potential role of lncRNA PVT1 in melanoma progression and to explore its possible mechanisms. A total of 35 patients who were diagnosed with malignant melanoma were enrolled in this study. Expression of PVT1 was significantly upregulated in melanoma tissue and was associated with a poor prognosis. Loss-of-function experiments showed that PVT1 knockdown markedly suppressed the proliferation activity, induced cell cycle arrest at the G0/G1 phase, and enhanced the apoptosis of melanoma cell lines. Bioinformatics analysis and dual-luciferase reporter assay revealed that PVT1 directly bound to miR-26b, which had been verified to be a tumor suppressor in melanoma. Moreover, further functional rescue experiments revealed that PVT1 knockdown could observably reverse the tumor-promoting role of the miR-26b inhibitor. Overall, our study demonstrates the oncogenic role of PVT1 as a miR-26b sponge, possibly providing a novel therapeutic target for melanoma.