Enhancing Stability of Tannic Acid-Fe^III Nanofiltration Membrane for Water Treatment: Intercoordination by Metal–Organic Framework

Tannic acid (TA)-FeIII nanofiltration (NF) membrane has been demonstrated to possess more favorable removal of trace organic contaminants (TrOCs) over the conventional polyamide NF membrane. However, the drawback of acid instability severely hinders the practical application of TA-FeIII NF membrane in the treatment of (weak) acidic wastewater containing TrOCs (e.g., pharmaceutical wastewater, surface water, and drinking water). Herein, we introduced the MIL-101(Cr) nanoparticle, a kind of metal–organic framework (MOF), into the TA-FeIII selective layer to enhance the membrane acid stability. The acid-tolerance parameter of MIL-101(Cr)-stabilized TA-FeIII membrane (TA-FeIII-MOF membrane, 12,000 ppm/s–1) was two orders of magnitude larger than that of the TA-FeIII membrane (50 ppm/s–1), and the TA-FeIII-MOF membrane can withstand acid treatment at pH = 4 for more than 30 days. Meanwhile, the TA-FeIII-MOF membrane displayed increased water permeance from 9.5 to 12.7 L/(m2·h·bar) after the MOF addition, without compromising the selectivity. The enhanced acid stability for the TA-FeIII-MOF membrane was ascribed to an intercoordination mechanism, where FeIII centers (from TA-FeIII complex) coordinated with −COOH groups (from terephthalic acid of MOF) and CrIII centers (from MOF) coordinated with −OH groups (from TA of TA-FeIII complex), which was verified by the density functional theory calculation. This study highlights a new approach for the development of a TA-FeIII-based NF membrane with markedly enhanced acid stability, which is important for its real application in wastewater treatment and water reuse

Preparation of TiO₂ Nanofibrous Membranes with Hierarchical Porosity for Efficient Photocatalytic Degradation

In order to solve the complex spinneret and unstable structure of multifludic electrospinning and side-by-side electrospinning, TiO₂ nanofibers with hierarchical porosity were fabricated via microemulsion electrospinning, which can be realized just by single-spinneret electrospinning. The morphology, crystal, and specific surface area of the TiO₂ nanofibers were investigated by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), X-ray diffraction (XRD), and physisorption analyzer. The photocatalytic activities of TiO₂ nanofibers calcined at 500, 700, and 900 °C were examined. The experimental results indicated that TiO₂ nanofibers were hollow, and the wall of nanofibers possessed abundant mesopores. The specific surface area of TiO₂ nanofibers calcined at 500 °C was approximately 41.4 m²/g, which was favorable for increasing the photocatalytic reaction sites and the separation efficiency of electron–holes. The photocatalytic results demonstrated that compared with solid TiO₂ nanofibers, the photocatalytic activities of the TiO₂ nanofibers prepared via microemulsion electrospinning were significantly enhanced. Particularly, the TiO₂ nanofibers calcined at 500 °C could decompose methyl blue (MB) solution completely within 70 min. The results verified that microemulsion electrospinning was indeed a simple, versatile, and convenient method to prepare porous inorganic nanofibers for various applications

Video1_A comparative retrospective analysis: myocutaneous flap versus skin flap in V-Y medial epicanthal fold reconstruction.mp4

ObjectivesTo evaluate the comparation of myocutaneous flap vs. skin flap in V-Y medial epicanthal fold reconstruction.MethodsThe study, conducted from April 2017 to June 2022, involved two groups: group A, comprising 21 patients who underwent medial epicanthal fold restoration surgery using the V-Y advancement method with a skin flap, and group B, comprising 83 patients who underwent the same procedure, while with a myocutaneous flap for orbicularis oculi ring reconstruction. Intercanthal distances were measured preoperatively, recorded during preoperative and postoperative reviews, and assessed through a 4-point Likert satisfaction questionnaire.ResultsA total of 104 patients were followed up for 6 months postoperatively. In group A, preoperative intercanthal distances ranged from 28.7 mm to 38.2 mm, increasing to 30.2 mm–40.6 mm postoperatively, with a mean increase of 3.0 mm (P ConclusionThe myocutaneous flap V-Y procedure, employing the principle of orbicularis oculi ring reconstruction, achieves more stable postoperative results than the flap-only V-Y procedure. Consequently, it can be regarded as the preferred surgical technique.</p

Silence of ST6GAL1 gene enhances the chemosensitivity of K562/ADR cell both in vitro and in vivo.

<p>(A) ST6GAL1 transcript was decreased apparently in K562/ADR cells by shRNA treatment. (B) After shRNA transfection, distinct reduction of ST6Gal 1 was observed at protein levels by western blotting analysis. (C) Cell chemosensitivity was assessed by cytotoxicity assays. The reported values are the IC₅₀ (Mean ± SD) of three independent experiments. IC₅₀ represents the drug concentration producing 50% decrease of cell growth. *P<0.05 vs K562/ADR-control shRNA cells. (D) When exposed to adriamycin, the tumor volume of nude mice bearing K562/ADR-ST6GAL1 shRNA-1 xenograft was significantly diminished (*P<0.05). (E) Down-regulation of ST6GAL1 was also shown by IHC staining in xenograft tumors derived from K562/ADR-ST6GAL1 shRNA-1 cells (400×). (F) Flow cytometry analysis showed a lower expression of ST6GAL1 in K562/ADR cells with ST6GAL1 transfection. The data are means ± SD of 3 independent assays (*P<0.05).</p

Clinicopathologic characteristics of the leukemia patients.

<p>Clinicopathologic characteristics of the leukemia patients.</p

The differential expression of ST6GAL1 and ST6GAL2 between MDR and chemosensitive patients.

<p>P<0.05 vs. patients without MDR.</p

Overexpression of ST6GAL1 gene enhances the chemoresistance of K562 cells both in vitro and in vivo.

<p>After transfection, ST6GAL1 mRNA (A) and protein (B) were increased notably in K562 cells by real time PCR and western blot. (C) Cell chemosensitivity was assessed by cytotoxicity assays. The reported values are the IC₅₀ (Mean ± SD) of three independent experiments. IC₅₀ represents the drug concentration producing 50% decrease of cell growth. *P<0.05 vs K562/mock cells. (D) An increase of mean tumor in mice group with K562/ST6GAL1 was observed, as compared with that in K562 group and K562/mock group. Within K562/ST6GAL1 group, an increase of tumor growth was found in group without ADR, compared with that with ADR (*P<0.05). (E) Up-regulation of ST6GAL1 was also shown by IHC staining in xenograft tumors derived from K562/ST6GAL1 cells (400×). (F) Increased expression of ST6GAL1 was detected by flow cytometry analysis in K562/ST6GAL1 cells. The data are means ± SD of 3 independent assays (*P<0.05).</p

Study of golden pompano (<i>Trachinotus ovatus</i>) freshness forecasting method by utilising Vis/NIR spectroscopy combined with electronic nose

<p>Golden pompano (<i>Trachinotus ovatus</i>) quality forecasting method utilising Vis/NIR spectroscopy combined with electronic nose (EN) was investigated in this article. Responses of Vis/NIR spectroscopy and EN to pompanos stored at 4°C were measured for 6 days. Physical/chemical indexes including texture, total volatile basic nitrogen, pH, total viable counts, and human sensory evaluation were synchronously examined as quality references. Chemometric methods including principal component analysis (PCA) and stochastic resonance (SR) were employed for spectroscopic and EN data analysis. Physicochemical examination demonstrated that fish quality decreased rapidly during storage. PCA qualitatively classified freshness degree of pompano samples, while SR signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) spectrum using SNR maximum quantitatively characterised quality for all samples. Golden pompano quality predictive models were developed based on spectroscopy, EN, and spectroscopy combined with EN, respectively. Results demonstrated that the model developed based on spectroscopy combined with EN presented a forecasting accuracy of 93.3%.</p

Differential expression of ST6GAL1 and ST6GAL2 in four pairs of leukemia cell lines.

<p>(A) The mRNA levels of ST6GAL1 and ST6GAL2 analyzed by real-time PCR. Four ADR cells expressed higher levels of ST6GAL1 mRNA than their parental cell types (*P<0.05). No significant changes of ST6GAL2 were observed. (B) Western blotting analysis of ST6GalI and ST6GalII at protein levels. GAPDH served as a control. Data are the means ± SD of triplicate determinants.</p

PI3K/Akt inhibition changes the chemosensitivity of K562/ADR cells both in vitro and in vivo.

<p>(A) The K562/ADR cells were pretreated LY294002 or Akt siRNA. Expressions of PI3K/Akt signaling molecules were then examined by western blot analysis. LY294002 or Akt siRNA treatment also alleviated chemoresistance of K562/ADR cells, revealed by <i>in vitro</i> (B) and <i>in vivo</i> (C). (D) Down-regulation of PI3K/Akt signaling molecules was also shown by IHC staining in xenograft tumors derived from LY294002 or Akt siRNA treatment cells (400×). (E) Flow cytometry analysis showed that inhibition of PI3K/Akt pathway resulted in reduced levels of P-gp and MRP1. The data are means ± SD of 3 independent assays. ^*P<0.05 vs DMSO treatment cells; ^#P<0.05 vs control siRNA treatment cells.</p