Nanomechanical Signatures of Extracellular Vesicles from Hematologic Cancer Patients Unraveled by Atomic Force Microscopy for Liquid Biopsy

Cells release extracellular vesicles (EVs) as the carriers for intercellular communications to regulate life activities. Particularly, it is increasingly apparent that mechanical forces play an essential role in biological systems. The nanomechanical properties of EVs and their dynamics in cancer development are still not fully understood. Herein, with the use of atomic force microscopy (AFM), the nanomechanical signatures of EVs from the liquid biopsies of hematologic cancer patients were unraveled. Single native EVs were probed by AFM under aqueous conditions. The elastic and viscous properties of EVs were measured and visualized to correlate EV mechanics with EV geometry. Experimental results remarkably reveal the significant differences in EV mechanics among multiple myeloma patients, lymphoma patients, and healthy volunteers. The study unveils the unique nanomechanical signatures of EVs in hematologic cancers, which will benefit the studies of liquid biopsies for cancer diagnosis and prognosis with translational significance

³¹P NMR Chemical Shifts of Solvents and Products Impurities in Biomass Pretreatments

The identification of chemical impurities is crucial in elucidating the structures of biorefinery products using nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopic analysis. In the current biorefinery platform, contaminants derived from pretreatment solvents and decomposition byproducts may lead to misassignment of the NMR spectra of biorefinery products (e.g, lignin and bio-oils). Therefore, we investigated 54 commonly reported compounds including alcohols, carbohydrates, organic acids, aromatics, aldehydes, and ionic liquids associated with biomass pretreatment using ³¹P NMR. The chemical shifts of these chemicals after derivatizing with 2-chloro-4,4,5,5-tetramethyl-1,3,2-dioxaphospholane (TMDP) were provided. The ³¹P NMR signals of these derivatives could serve as valuable and informative spectral data in characterizing lignocellulose-based compounds

Method To Characterize Acid–Base Behavior of Biochar: Site Modeling and Theoretical Simulation

Acid–base properties exert important influences on biochar’s practical application as a soil amendment or contaminant sorbent. In this paper, a model with independent acidic/basic sites coexisting on a biochar surface is proposed to account for the acid–base behavior of biochar derived from two invasive species (Spartina alterniflora and water hyacinth). Modeling results show that a three-site model with two acidic sites and one basic site can reflect the acid–base behavior of biochar, increasing pyrolysis temperature results in the change in concentration (basic sites increase successively, while acidic sites decrease first and then increase) and strength (individual site dependent) of acidic and basic sites. Both the concentration and strength of the sites play important roles in the acid–base behavior of biochar. Theoretical simulations based on modeling results demonstrate that both surface net and local charge should be considered when electrostatic interaction is responsible for the biochar’s environmental behavior. The site modeling procedure proposed in this study constructs a bridge between macroscopic pH and microscopic sites and is useful to describe the acid–base behavior of biomass and biomass-derived biochar

A schematic representation of an example trial of the working memory (WM) task in our experiment.

<p>Each trial included a symbol of “+” as a prompt (0.5 seconds); and a WM encoding task including the same emotional type of four pictures (10 seconds), followed by a WM maintenance task (5 seconds); and then a picture probe and a position probe to ask the subjects to judge by pressing the buttons, followed by a 2-second rest.</p

Analysis of mood-congruent memory.

<p>(a) Analysis of picture working memory of mood-congruent memory; (b) analysis of picture position working memory of mood-congruent memory. *, P < 0.05; Error bars represent the standard error of the mean (SEM); n.s. represents a non-significant difference.</p

Pharmacokinetics of drugs in adult living donor liver transplant patients: regulatory factors and observations based on studies in animals and humans

<p><b><i>Introduction:</i></b> Limited information is available on the pharmacokinetics of drugs in the donors and recipients following adult living donor liver transplantation (LDLT). Given that both the donors and recipients receive multiple drug therapies, it is important to assess the pharmacokinetics of drugs used in these patients.</p> <p><b><i>Areas covered</i></b>: Pathophysiological changes that occur post-surgery and regulatory factors that may influence pharmacokinetics of drugs, especially hepatic drug metabolism and transport in both LDLT donors and the recipients are discussed. Pharmacokinetic data in animals with partial hepatectomy are presented. Clinical pharmacokinetic data of certain drugs in LDLT recipients are further reviewed.</p> <p><b><i>Expert opinion</i></b>: It takes up to six months for the liver volume to return to normal after LDLT surgery. In the LDLT recipients, drug exposure generally is higher with lower clearance during early period post-transplant; lower initial dosages of immunosuppressants are used than deceased donor liver transplant recipients during the first six months post-transplantation. In animals, the activities of hepatic drug metabolizing enzymes and transporters are known to be altered differentially during liver regeneration. Future studies on the actual hepatic function with reference to drug metabolism, drug transport, and biliary secretion in both LDLT donors and recipients are required.</p

Characterization and Catalytic Transfer Hydrogenolysis of Deep Eutectic Solvent Extracted Sorghum Lignin to Phenolic Compounds

Deep eutectic solvent (DES) is intrinsically cheaper than many ionic liquids (ILs) due to low precursor cost, simple synthesis, and improved recyclability. Meanwhile, DES can be as effective as ILs toward dissolving lignin from plant materials. However, the lignin depolymerization mechanism in DES, the structural and chemical properties of DES-extracted lignin (DES-EL), and the possible valorization pathways of DES-EL toward value-added products were not well understood. This study aims to characterize the lignin streams from DES (1:2 choline chloride:lactic acid) treated sorghum and further upgrade the extracted lignin to phenolic compounds. As revealed by HSQC, ¹³C, and ³¹P NMR analysis, DES cleaved nearly all ether linkages in native lignin, resulting in significant size reduction. We further catalytically upgraded DES-EL to phenolic compounds via catalytic transfer hydrogenolysis in the presence of isopropyl alcohol. Among the three tested catalysts (Ru/C, Pd/C, and Pt/C), Ru/C proved the most effective in deconstructing DES-EL, with oil, char, and gas yields of 36.3, 46.4, 17.3 wt %, respectively. Major lignin monomeric products in the oil were phenol, 4-ethylphenol, 4-ethyl-2-methoxyphenol, 2-methoxy-4-propylphenol, and 4-hydroxy-benzenepropanoic acid. This study provides a mechanistic understanding of lignin depolymerization in DES and demonstrates a possible way to catalytic upgrading of DES-EL to low molecular weight phenolic compounds

Comparison of the accuracy and response time of picture working memory between groups.

<p>(a) The accuracy of picture working memory; (b) the response time of picture working memory. Error bars represent the standard error of the mean (SEM).</p

Comparison of the accuracy and response time of working memory for picture position between the groups.

<p>(a) The accuracy of picture position working memory; (b) the response time of picture position working memory. *, <i>p</i> < 0.05; Error bars represent the standard error of the mean (SEM).</p

MOESM1 of A structured understanding of cellobiohydrolase I binding to poplar lignin fractions after dilute acid pretreatment

Additional file 1: Figure S1. 2D-HSQC spectra and the main structures of the isolated lignins: (A) β-aryl-ether units (β-O-4); (B) phenylcoumarane; (C) resinols; (G) guaiacyl units; (S) syringyl units; (S’) oxidized syringyl units bearing a carbonyl at Cα; (PB) p-Hydroxybenzoate units. Condensed lignin was assigned from Sun et al. [8]