Novel recyclable deep eutectic solvent boost biomass pretreatment for enzymatic hydrolysis

Deep eutectic solvent (DES) with protonic acid shows the great potential for biomass valorization. However, the acid corrosion and recycling are still severe challenges in biorefinery. Herein, a novel DES by coordinating FeCl₃ in choline chloride/glycerol DES was designed for effective and recyclable pretreatment. As compared to DESs with FeCl₂, ZnCl₂, AlCl₃ and CuCl₂, DES with FeCl₃ approvingly retained most of cellulose in pretreated Hybrid Pennisetum (95.2%). Meanwhile, the cellulose saccharification significantly increased to 99.5%, which was six-fold higher than that of raw biomass. The excellent pretreatment performance was mainly attributed to the high removal of lignin (78.88 wt%) and hemicelluloses (93.63 wt%) under the synergistic effect of Lewis acid and proper hydrogen-bond interaction of DES with FeCl₃. Furthermore, almost all cellulose still can be converted into glucose after five recycling process. Overall, the process demonstrated designed pretreatment was great potential for the low-cost biorefinery and boost the biofuel development.

Controllable reduction of graphene oxide by electron-beam irradiation

The oxygen content of graphene oxide (GO) is directly related to its physical and chemical properties, such as hydrophilicity, suspension stability, adsorption, and ion-sieving ability of GO membranes. Here, a series of reduced GO (rGO) with C/O atomic ratios from 1.6 to 4.8 were prepared conveniently by electron-beam irradiation (EBI) with irradiation-dose control. Moreover, a single oxygen-containing group, i.e., epoxy or carbonyl, could be retained mainly in the rGO. The interlayer spacing of rGO could be changed from 9.6 Å to 7.4 Å through control of the oxygen content. The prepared rGO exhibited an excellent adsorption effect on Pb(ii) ions, and the max adsorption capacity reached 194.76 mg g⁻¹ for rGO with a low irradiation dose (5 kGy), which showed that the ratio of oxygen-containing groups is important for improving the adsorption of rGO in aqueous solution. These results indicated that highly efficient, environmentally friendly, and advanced EBI technology has good potential prospects for use in the large-scale production of rGO with precise control of the oxygen content.

The oxygen content of graphene oxide (GO) is directly related to its physical and chemical properties, such as hydrophilicity, suspension stability, adsorption, and ion-sieving ability of GO membranes.

[The bacteriologic features of recurrent acute rhinosinusitis]

Objective:To investigate the bacteriologic characteristics of recurrent acute rhinosinusitis(RAR).Method:Twenty-nine patients (29 with RAR) from outpatient clinic in our hospital between June 2010 and May 2016 were enrolled in the study. Specimens of the middle meatus or olfactory cleft area using the sinus endoscopy through were transported to the laboratory for bacterial culture.Result:Twenty-five specimens out of 29 were bacterial culture positive (culture positive rate was 86.2%).A total of 32 isolates (25 aerobic or facultative and 7 anaerobic) were recovered from the 29 cases of RAR. The predominant aerobic or facultative bacteria were Streptococcus pneumoniae, Haemophilus influenzae, Moraxella catarrhalis, and Staphylococcus aureus. The predominant anaerobic bacteria were Bacteroides fragilis and Propionibacterium. Antibiotic susceptibility tests showed that the resistance rate of these aerobic or facultative bacteria to Macrolides (Erythromycin and Azithromycin) and quinolones (Levofloxacin) was 88% and 92%, respectively. Similarly, the resistance rate of bacteria to β-lactamase antibiotics (penicillin, ampicillin, and cefazolin) was also greater than 90% (100%, 92%, and 92%, respectively). But the drug resistance of these bacteria to the thirdgeneration cephalosporin combined with beta lactamase inhibitors (Cefoperazone/sulbactam) was 20%. Among the 7 strains of anaerobic bacteria, 6 strains were sensitive to ornidazole.Conclusion:The major pathogens of RAR are the aerobic and facultative bacteria Streptococcus pneumoniae, Haemophilus influenzae, Moraxella catarrhalis, and Staphylococcus aureus, most of which are resistant to commonly used antibiotics.

TGF-β1 and Serpine 1 expression changes in traumatic deep vein thrombosis

The objective of this study was to investigate the expression changes of transforming growth factor β1 (TGF-β1) and Serpine 1 in rats with traumatic deep vein thrombosis (DVT). In total, 60 male Sprague Dawley rats were divided into model (N = 50) and control groups (Group A, N = 10). From the model group, 10 rats were randomly selected after modeling as the pre-thrombosis group (Group B, N = 10), and the remaining 40 rats in the model group were divided into the thrombosis (Group C) and no thrombosis groups (Group D) depending on whether DVT was apparent at 25 h after modeling. All rats were dissected and the total RNAs of the femoral veins were extracted. TGF-β1 and Serpine 1 expression was detected by microarray and polymerase chain reaction (PCR) analyses, and the related signal pathways were analyzed using bioinformatic analysis. Of the 40 rats, DVT was evident in 23, yielding an incidence rate of 57.50%. TGF-β1 and Serpine 1 expression increased significantly at 2.5 h after modeling, while DVT began to form at 25 h after modeling. Both PCR and microarray analysis showed that TGF-β1 and Serpine 1 expression levels were significantly higher in the thrombosis group than in the other groups (P < 0.05). Bioinformatic analysis indicated that TGF-β1 was an upstream regulatory gene of Serpine 1 and could induce Serpine 1 overexpression. Together, these results suggested that TGF-β1 and Serpine 1 overexpression might play an important role in DVT formation and have predictive values.

The expression of non-clustered protocadherins in adult rat hippocampal formation and the connecting brain regions

Non-clustered protocadherins (PCDHs) are calcium-dependent adhesion molecules which have attracted attention for their possible roles in the neuronal circuit formation during development and their implications in the neurological disorders such as autism and mental retardation. Previously, we found that a subset of the non-clustered PCDHs exhibited circuit-dependent expression patterns in thalamo-cortical connections in early postnatal rat brain, but such patterns disappeared in adulthood. In this study, we identified that the non-clustered PCDHs showed differential expression patterns along the septotemporal axis in the subregions of adult hippocampus and dentate gyrus with topographical preferences. The expressions of PCDH1, PCDH9, PCDH10 and PCDH20 showed septal preferences, whereas the expressions of PCDH8, PCDH11, PCDH17 and PCDH19 showed temporal preferences, suggesting that they play roles in the formation/maintenance of intrahippocampal circuits. PCDHs also exhibited the region-specific expression patterns in the areas connected to hippocampal formation such as entorhinal cortex, lateral septum, and basolateral amygdaloid complex. Furthermore, the expression levels of three PCDHs (PCDH8, PCDH19 and PCDH20) were regulated by the electroconvulsive shock stimulation of the brain in the adult hippocampus and dentate gyrus. These results suggest that non-clustered PCDHs are involved in the maintenance and plasticity of adult hippocampal circuitry.

Simultaneous measurement of dopamine and ascorbate at their physiological levels using voltammetric microprobe based on overoxidized poly(1,2-phenylenediamine)-coated carbon fiber

Overoxidized poly-(1,2-phenylenediamine) (OPPD)-coated carbon fiber microelectrodes (CFMEs) exhibit, in combination with square-wave voltammetry (SWV) detection mode, the attractive ability to simultaneously measure low nM dopamine (DA) and mM ascorbate (AA) in a pH 7.4 medium. The PPD polymer film is electrodeposited onto a carbon fiber at a constant potential of 0.8 V versus Ag/AgCl using a solution containing sodium dodecylsulfate as the dopant. After overoxidation using cyclic voltammetry (CV) in the potential range from 0 to 2.2 V at a scan rate of 10 V/s, the resulting OPPD-CFME displays a high SWV current response to cationic DA at approximately 0.2 V and has a favorably low response to anionic AA at approximately 0.0 V vs Ag/AgCl. The preparation of the new OPPD-sensing film has been carefully studied and optimized. The OPPD properties and behavior were characterized using CV and SWV under various conditions and are discussed with respect to DA and AA detection. The linear calibration range for DA in the presence of 0.3 mM AA is 50 nM to 10 microM, with a correlation coefficient of 0.998 and a detection limit of 10 nM using 45-s accumulation. The detection limit for DA in the absence of AA was estimated to be 2 nM (S/N = 3). The linear range for AA in the presence of 100 nM DA is 0.2-2 mM, with a correlation coefficient of 0.999 and a detection limit of 80 microM. The reproducibilities of SWV measurements at OPPD-CFCMEs are 1.6% and 2.5% for 100 nM DA and 0.3 mM AA, respectively. Potential interfering agents, such as 3,4-dihydroxyphenylacetic acid, uric acid, oxalate, human serum proteins, and glucose, at their physiologically relevant or higher concentrations did not have any effect. These favorable features offer great promise for in vitro and in vivo application of the proposed OPPD-coated microprobe.