Two-dimensional membranes attract extensive interest due to the anomalous transport phenomena; however, the ion separation performance is below the theoretical prediction. The stabilization of d-spacing is a key step for enhancing ion selectivity. Here, we demonstrate a strategy for stabilizing the Ti 3 C 2 T x laminar architecture by alginate hydrogel pillars. After pillared by Ca-alginate, the nanochannel diameters are effectively fixed at 7.4 ± 0.2 Å, and the membrane presents a permeation cutoff and an outstanding sieving property towards valent cations. When applied for acid recovery, the outstanding H + /Fe 2+ selectivity makes the membrane a promising substitution for traditional ion-exchange membranes. Moreover, the ultrathin Mn-alginate pillared membrane with identical d-spacing exhibits 100% Na 2 SO 4 rejection with high water permeance, which is superior to the state-of-the-art nanofiltration membranes. Building on these findings, we demonstrate an efficient method to tune the ion selectivity and introduce a new perspective for energy-and environment-related applications.

SET oncoprotein is an endogenous inhibitor of protein phosphatase 2A (PP2A), and SET-mediated PP2A inhibition is an important regulatory mechanism for promoting cancer initiation and progression of several types of human leukemia disease. However, its potential relevance in solid tumors as non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) remains mostly unknown. In this study, we showed that SET was evidently overexpressed in human NSCLC cell lines and NSCLC tissues. Clinicopathologic analysis showed that SET expression was significantly correlated with clinical stage (p < 0.001), and lymph node metastasis (p < 0.05). Kaplan-Meier analysis revealed that patients with high SET expression had poorer overall survival rates than those with low SET expression. Moreover, knockdown of SET in NSCLC cells resulted in attenuated proliferative and invasive abilities. The biological effect of SET on proliferation and invasion was mediated by the inhibition of the PP2A, which in turn, activation of AKT and ERK, increased the expression of cyclin D1 and MMP9, and decreased the expression of p27. Furthermore, we observed that restoration of PP2A using SET antagonist FTY720 impaired proliferative and invasive potential in vitro, as well as inhibited tumor growth in vivo of NSCLC cells. Taken together, SET oncoprotein plays an important role in NSCLC progression, which could serve as a potential prognosis marker and a novel therapeutic target for NSCLC patients.

The temperature dependence of the photocatalytic activity of Bi 2 WO 6 was studied and the results showed that a higher reaction temperature can facilitate the photocatalytic process. On the other hand, it is well-known that the excitation of localized plasmon polaritons at well-defined wavelengths on the surface of silver (Ag) nanoparticles causes a tremendous thermal effect. Thus, it is expected that the photocatalytic activity of Bi 2 WO 6 would be enhanced if it was coupled with the thermal effect induced by surface plasmon resonance (SPR) of Ag. Herein, this idea is realized. The measured photocatalytic activity under simulated solar light, monitored by the decomposition of phenol, demonstrated that Ag loading could significantly enhance the photocatalytic activity of Bi 2 WO 6 . The enhanced photoactivity can be ascribed to the synergistic effect brought by electronic effect of Ag nanoparticles and thermal effect induced by SPR. This work provides some insights into the rational design and development of high-performance photocatalysts.

Background: The emergence and spread of HIV-1 drug resistance may compromise HIV control globally. In response to HIV/AIDS epidemic, China launched national HIV/AIDS treatment program in 2003, and started to accumulate drug resistance data since 2001. In this study we aimed to assess the level, trend and distribution of HIV-1 drug resistance during a period of 17 years from 2001 to 2017, and to characterize crucial drug resistance mutations. Methods: We systematically reviewed 4737 studies published between January 1, 2001 and March 31, 2019 in PubMed, Embase, China National Knowledge Infrastructure (CNKI), WanFang Database, Web of Science, conference abstracts from the Chinese Medical Association and the Chinese AIDS Academic Conferences, and selected 170 studies that met our study criteria. To assess the prevalence of drug resistance in whole country or a local region, we performed pooled analyses of raw data. The transformed proportions were pooled using the inverse variance fixed effects methods or the DerSimonian-Laired random effects methods. The temporal trend of transmitted drug resistance (TDR) was determined using generalized additive model implemented in the Mgcv version 1.8 package. HIV-1 genotypic resistance was analyzed using the Stanford HIVdb algorithm. Findings: We assembled 218 datasets from 170 selected studies (129 in Chinese and 41 in English), covering 21,451 ART-naïve and 30,475 ART-treated individuals with HIV-1 infection. The pooled prevalence of TDR was 3.0% (95%CI: 2.8À3.2), including 0.7% (95%CI: 0.4À1.0), 1.4% (95%CI: 1.3À1.6) and 0.5% (95%CI: 0.4À0.6) for nucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitor (NRTI), non-NRTI (NNRTI) and protease inhibitor (PI) resistance, respectively. The acquired drug resistance (ADR) prevalence was 44.7% (95%CI: 39.3À50.2), including 31.4% (95%CI: 28.2À34.6), 39.5% (95%CI: 35.6À43.5) and 1.0% (95%CI: 0.8À1.2) for NRTI, NNRTI and PI resistance, respectively. TDR and ADR prevalence had characteristic regional patterns. The worst prevalence of drug resistance occurred in Central China, and higher ADR prevalence occurred in South China than North China. TDR in whole country has risen since 2012, and this rise was driven mainly by NNRTI resistance. One NRTI-associated (M184V/I) and three NNRTI-associated (K103N/S, Y181C/I and G190A/S) mutations had high percentages in ART-naïve and ARTtreated individuals, and these mutations conferred high-level resistance to 3TC, EFV and/or NVP. Interpretation: These findings suggest that the current available first-line ART regimens containing 3TC and/ or EFV or NVP need to be revised. In addition, scale-up of multiple viral load measurements per year and drug resistance testing prior to ART initiation are recommended. Furthermore, implementation of pre-treatment education and counseling to improve patient adherence to ART is encouraged.

No abstract

No abstract

Aberrant mechanical properties and immunosuppression are the two key factors that limit the antitumor efficacy of T cell immune checkpoint blockade inhibitors, e.g., programmed cell death‐1 antibody (PD‐1 Ab), against solid tumors in the clinic. This study leverages hyperbaric oxygen (HBO) for the first time to address these two issues and reports the PD‐1‐Ab‐mediated immune responses against various stroma‐rich solid malignancies. The results demonstrate that HBO promoted PD‐1 Ab delivery and T cells infiltration into tumor parenchyma by depleting the extracellular matrix's main components, such as collagen and fibronectin. Furthermore, HBO disrupts hypoxia‐mediated immunosuppression and helps PD‐1 Ab trigger robust cytotoxic T lymphocytes and long‐lasting immunological memory to inhibit tumor relapses. Such enhanced immune responses are effective in solid tumors from rodents and the cancer cells from hepatocellular carcinoma patients. The results illustrate that HBO bolsters antitumor efficacy of PD‐1 Ab, and the HBO–PD‐1 Ab combination is a promising stroma‐rich solid tumors’ treatment in the clinic.

BackgroundAntimicrobial activity of tigecycline and comparator agents was assessedin vitroagainst 27857 isolates source from blood samples collected between 2012 and 2016 as part of the Tigecycline Evaluation and Surveillance Trial (TEST).MethodsThe broth microdilution methods was used to determine  minimum inhibitory concentrations (MIC) of blood-borne isolates according to guildlines of the Clinical and Laboratory Standards Institute (CLSI). Antimicrobial susceptibility breakpoints from CLSI guidelines were used as standards to determine susceptibility against comparator agents, whereas tigecycline breakpoints were provided by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA).ResultsMore than 91% Enterobacteriaceae isolates, belonging to Escherichia coli, Klebsiella pneumoniae, Enterobacter cloacaeandSerratia marcescens, were susceptible to amikacin, meropenem, and tigecycline. Meropenem resistance was observed in 8% ofK.pneumoniae isolates worldwide. Extended-spectrum β-lactamase (ESBL) was produced in 15.9 and 20.9%E.coli and K.pneumoniaeisolates, respectively. MIC90 of tigecycline against Acinetobacter baumannii was 2 μg/ml.  The highest proportion of susceptible A.baumanniiisolates was 70.8% for minocycline. Among P.aeruginose  isolates worldwide, 71.1–94.9% were susceptible to six antibiotics. Almost all Staphylococcus aureusisolates were susceptible to linezolid(100%), vancomycin(100%), and tigecycline (99.9%). The proportion of methicillin-resistant S.aureus (MRSA) was 33.0% among S.aureusisolates worldwide; it was highest in Asia with 46.6%, followed by North America and Latin America with 37.7 and 34.2%, respectively. Vancomycin-resistant (VR) isolates represented 1.4% ofEnterococcus faecalis (VR.E.faecalis) and 27.6% of Enterococcus faecium(VR.E.faecium). Highest percentages of VR.E.faeciumwere found in North America and Latin America, with 61.6 and 58.1% of the isolates, respectively. Production of penicillin-resistant Streptococcus pneumoniae(PRSP) represented 9.0% of S. pneumoniae isolates worldwide; the PRSP proportion was 25.8% in Asia, 13.0% in Africa, and 11.8% in Latin America.ConclusionsIn our study, tigecycline was the only antibiotic that was active against over 90% of all major blood-borne pathogens. A global comparison revealed that antimicrobial resistance was higher in Africa, Asia and Latin America than in Europe and North America.