In vitro and in vivo antiseptic activities of caffeoylquinic acid

Purpose: To evaluate the antiseptic effect of caffeoylquinic acid (CA) in in vivo and in vitro models.Methods: In vivo sepsis was produced in rats via cecal ligation and puncture (CLP) method. Four groups of rats were used: control group, untreated CLP group, and two CA groups treated with caffeoylquinic acid (50 and 100 mg/kg, p.o.) for 30 days before the induction of sepsis. Following the induction of sepsis, histological assessment of lung tissue was carried out using hematoxylin and eosin, and isolectin B4 staining. In addition, in vitro tests were performed on RAW264.7 cells in which inflammation and oxidative stress were induced by lipopolysaccharide (LPS).Results: Treatment with CA significantly (p < 0.05) enhanced the survival of lung cells, relative to the CLP group. Lung histopathology revealed that pretreatment with CA did not attenuate the increased infiltration of macrophages in the alveoli. Results from in vitro studies showed that CA attenuated LPS-induced nitric oxide (NO) levels, but had no significant effect on the level of LPS-induced pro-inflammatory cytokines in RAW264.7 cells (p < 0.05).Conclusion: These results reveal that CA attenuates NO and TNF-α levels in LPS-stimulated macrophages, thereby decreasing inflammation-associated sepsis. Thus, CA may have beneficial effects on lung injury as a result of its antioxidant and anti-inflammatory activities.Keywords: Caffeoylquinic acid, Sepsis, Oxidative stress, Cytokines, Cecalligation, Punctur

Shadow of a disformal Kerr black hole in quadratic degenerate higher-order scalar–tensor theories

We have studied the shadow of a disformal Kerr black hole with an extra deformation parameter, which belongs to non-stealth rotating solutions in quadratic degenerate higher-order scalar–tensor (DHOST) theory. Our result show that the size of the shadow increases with the deformation parameter for the black hole with arbitrary spin parameter. However, the effect of the deformation parameter on the shadow shape depends heavily on the spin parameter of black hole and the sign of the deformation parameter. The change of the shadow shape becomes more distinct for the black hole with the more quickly rotation and the more negative deformation parameter. Especially, for the near-extreme black hole with negative deformation parameter, there exist a “pedicel”-like structure appeared in the shadow, which increases with the absolute value of deformation parameter. The eyebrow-like shadow and the self-similar fractal structures also appear in the shadow for the disformal Kerr black hole in DHOST theory. These features in the black hole shadow originating from the scalar field could help us to understand the non-stealth disformal Kerr black hole and quadratic DHOST theory

Suitability evaluation of the exploitation and utilization of marine sand resources for construction: Taking the east exit of Qiongzhou Strait as an example

With the rapid development of economy, there is a huge demand for sand and gravel, and the development of marine sand has become a current hot spot. The east exit of Qiongzhou Strait is rich in marine sand resources, and its resource potential is in the billions of square meters. This paper evaluates the suitability of exploitation and utilization of marine sand in the east exit of Qiongzhou Strait.Six indicators of mud content, sand content, grain size, sea sand thickness, water depth and offshore distance are considered.The collected data are analyzed using analytic hierarchy process, where in the weights of considered indicators are calculated and superimposed based on constructed judgment matrix and ArcGIS spatial analysis. Furthermore, the study area are divided into five grades of exploitation suitability. It is found that the marine sand in the shoal area has the best exploitation suitability because of its large scale, good quality, shallow water depth and little influence on mining environment.In addition, this paper analyses the influence of different indicators on the suitability of marine sand exploitation. In the shoal area, the thickness and sand content contribute greatly. In near shore bay, environmental impact is the main factor. In the deep trough area, the water depth becomes the main restrictive condition for marine sand exploitation. Finally, this paper establishes a marine sand exploitation and utilization suitability evaluation system based on key factors of natural property of resources, technical conditions of exploitation, ecological environment impact and administrative management

Bottom-Gate Approach for All Basic Logic Gates Implementation by a Single-Type IGZO-Based MOS Transistor with Reduced Footprint

Logic functions are the key backbone in electronic circuits for computing applications. Complementary metal-oxide-semiconductor (CMOS) logic gates, with both n-type and p-type channel transistors, have been to date the dominant building blocks of logic circuitry as they carry obvious advantages over other technologies. Important physical limits are however starting to arise, as the transistor-processing technology has begun to meet scaling-down difficulties. To address this issue, there is the crucial need for a next-generation electronics era based on new concepts and designs. In this respect, a single-type channel multigate MOS transistor (SMG-MOS) is introduced holding the two important aspects of processing adaptability and low static dissipation of CMOS. Furthermore, the SMG-MOS approach strongly reduces the footprint down to 40% or even less area needed for current CMOS logic function in the same processing technology node. Logic NAND, NOT, AND, NOR, and OR gates, which typically require a large number of CMOS transistors, can be realized by a single SMG-MOS transistor. Two functional examples of SMG-MOS are reported here with their analysis based both on simulations and experiments. The results strongly suggest that SMG-MOS can represent a facile approach to scale down complex integrated circuits, enabling design flexibility and production rates ramp-up

Active-oxygenating hollow Prussian blue nanosystems loaded with biomacromolecules for photodynamic/photothermal therapy of cancer and alleviating hypoxic tumors

Such is the hypoxia in solid tumor that Ⅱ-type photodynamic therapy (PDT) has not yet achieved significantly satisfactory consequences. Despite the rapid advancement in nanotechnology-based PDT for alleviating the hypoxic tumor microenvironment, several challenges persist. These include inefficient passive oxygen-supply mechanisms, low stability of oxygen-delivery nanosystems, and the complexity of their modification processes. To address these issues, we developed integrative nanoformulations (HHI NPs) by sequentially inserting biomacromolecule hemoglobin (Hb) and IR783 (photosensitizer) into hollow mesoporous Prussian blue (HPB NPs) through a straightforward and gentle diffusion method. Intriguingly, the resulting hybrid nanocomposites based on hollow mesoporous structure provided stability of biomacromolecule Hb, ensuring active and efficient oxygen delivery. In these nanosystems, HHI NPs equipped with high oxygen-carrying Hb efficiently generated reactive oxygen species over HepG2 cells cultured in hypoxic condition under NIR irradiation. Additionally, HPB NPs served not only as nanocarriers but also as photothermal agents exhibiting excellent photothermal conversion effects. which were beneficial for photothermal therapy (PTT) of cancer. HHI NPs co-loaded with Hb and IR783 not only actively relieved the hypoxic TME through the stable protection of the hollow structure from HPB NPs, but also achieve the significant synergistic therapy by combining PDT and PTT for tumor treatment