Morphological Redescription and SSU rDNA-based Phylogeny of Two Freshwater Ciliates, Uronema nigricans and Lembadion lucens (Ciliophora, Oligohymenophorea), with Discussion on the Taxonomic Status of Uronemita sinensis

Liu, Mingjian, Li, Lifang, Qu, Zhishuai, Luo, Xiaotian, Al-Farraj, Saleh A., Lin, Xiaofeng, Hu, Xiaozhong (2017): Morphological Redescription and SSU rDNA-based Phylogeny of Two Freshwater Ciliates, Uronema nigricans and Lembadion lucens (Ciliophora, Oligohymenophorea), with Discussion on the Taxonomic Status of Uronemita sinensis. Acta Protozoologica 56 (1): 17-37, DOI: 10.4467/16890027AP.17.003.6967, URL: https://www.mendeley.com/catalogue/cb3bc4f7-739f-32f8-92cd-7da31a838cb6

Confinement of carbon dots localizing to the ultrathin layered double hydroxides toward simultaneous triple-mode bioimaging and photothermal therapy

It is a great challenge to develop multifunctional nanocarriers for cancer diagnosis and therapy. Herein, versatile CDs/ICG-uLDHs nanovehicles for triple-modal fluorescence/photoacoustic/two-photon bioimaging and effective photothermal therapy were prepared via a facile self-assembly of red emission carbon dots (CDs), indocyanine green (ICG) with the ultrathin layered double hydroxides (uLDHs). Due to the J-aggregates of ICG constructed in the self-assembly process, CDs/ICG-uLDHs was able to stabilize the photothermal agent ICG and enhanced its photothermal efficiency. Furthermore, the unique confinement effect of uLDHs has extended the fluorescence lifetime of CDs in favor of bioimaging. Considering the excellent in vitro and in vivo phototherapeutics and multimodal imaging effects, this work provides a promising platform for the construction of multifunctional theranostic nanocarrier system for the cancer treatment

Morphology and SSU rDNA sequences of four cyrtophorian ciliates from China, with description of a new species (Protista, Ciliophora, Phyllopharyngea)

Wang, Congcong, Qu, Zhishuai, Hu, Xiaozhong (2019): Morphology and SSU rDNA sequences of four cyrtophorian ciliates from China, with description of a new species (Protista, Ciliophora, Phyllopharyngea). Zootaxa 4664 (2): 206-220, DOI: https://doi.org/10.11646/zootaxa.4664.2.

FYB2 Is a Potential Prognostic Biomarker for Hepatocellular Carcinoma

FYB2 (also known as C1orf168 or ARAP) is an adaptor protein involved in T-cell receptor (TCR)-mediated T-cell activation and adhesion. However, the correlation of FYB2 with prognosis and cancer needs further investigation. In this study, we analyzed the expression levels of FYB2 in hepatocellular carcinoma (LIHC) tumor tissues and correlated it with the pathological stages, survival outcomes, and tumor grades. We found that the expression of FYB2 was significantly downregulated in LIHC. Low FYB2 level leading to weak survival outcomes is linked with advanced tumor grades and elevated pathological stages. Cox regression analysis showed that FYB2 and AJCC-M stages can be used as independent prognostic factors for LIHC. GSEA analysis revealed that FYB2 would be notably correlated with the cellular metabolism-related pathways and particularly involved in the regulation of cancer-related pathways. Single-cell transcriptome analysis revealed that FYB2-positive cells were mainly distributed in hepatocytes, and compared with other cells, the upregulated genes of these cells were mainly enriched in metabolism-related functions. The results of the spatial transcriptome revealed that the expression of FYB2 in the adjacent area was higher than in the tumor area. These results showed that FYB2 is likely to be a new prognostic biomarker in LIHC and would help provide individual treatment decisions for LIHC patients

The complete chloroplast genome sequence of Polygonum chinense L.

Polygonum chinense is a traditional natural plant pharmaceutical with antimicrobial, antioxidant, and antidiarrheal effects and mainly distributed in China and Southeast Asian countries. The complete chloroplast sequence of P. chinense has been determined in this study. The cpDNA was 158,981 bp in length, containing a pair of inverted repeats of 30,872 bp each separated by a large and small single-copy region of 84,347 and 12,890 bp, respectively. The genome contained 86 protein-coding genes, eight rRNA genes, and 37 tRNA genes. The overall GC content of the chloroplast genome was 38%. Phylogenetic tree demonstrated that P. chinense closely related to Rheum palmatum and Rheum wittrockii

Nano self-assemblies based on cholate grafted poly-L-lysine enhanced the solubility of sterol-like drugs

The physicochemical compatibility between amphiphilic polymers and hydrophobic drugs has been recognized as an important issue for improving the drug solubilisation in polymeric micelle formulations. In this work, poly-L-lysine (PLL) grafted by cholate pendants as the only hydrophobic moiety were synthesized in order to facilitate the solubilisation of sterol drugs. Results showed that micelles formed by cholate grafted PLL encapsulated significantly higher level of prednisolone and estradiol than palmitoylated PLL micelles, whereas the solubilisation capacity of non-sterol drug (griseofulvin) is inefficient for both polymers. This suggests that higher drug-polymer incorporation can be achieved by the inclusion of hydrophobic moieties with similar architecture as the drugs, i.e. 'drug-like' functional groups, which will be useful for the future design of colloidal systems for the encapsulation of specific drug.Peer reviewe

Historical Review of Studies on Cyrtophorian Ciliates (Ciliophora, Cyrtophoria) from China

The subclass Cyrtophoria are a group of morphologically specialized ciliates which mainly inhabit soil, freshwater, brackish water, and marine environments. In this study, we revise more than 50 publications on the taxonomy, phylogeny, and ecology of cyrtophorian ciliates in China since the first publication in 1925, most of which were carried out in coastal areas. The research history can be divided into three periods: the early stage, the Tibet stage, and the molecular stage. To date, 103 morpho-species (147 isolates) have been formally recorded in China, with ciliature patterns described for 82 of them. A species checklist and an illustrated identification key to the genera are provided. A total of 100 small subunit rDNA sequences have been obtained for 74 taxonomic hits (lowest taxonomic rank to species or genus). These sequences are used for the study of molecular phylogeny. Based on these morphological data and molecular phylogeny analyses, we synthesize the understanding of the phylogeny of cyrtophorian ciliates. We hypothesize that the key evolutionary event of cyrtophorian ciliates lies in the separation of the stomatogenesis zone (postoral kineties) from the left kineties, namely, the formation of an independent “sexual organelle”. We, furthermore, briefly summarize the ecological features of cyrtophorian ciliates and provide a comprehensive bibliography of related research from China. Finally, we give an outlook on the future research directions of these taxa

Highly sensitive AIE-based mechanoresponsive luminescent polymer coatings for surface pressure imaging

Herein, we report on a facile methodology for the development of aggregation induced emission (AIE)-based mechanoresponsive luminescent (MRL) polymer coatings with the characteristics of high sensitivity and high reversibility in 2D surface pressure imaging. Amorphous nitro-functionalized tetraphenyethylene was embedded into an elastomer substrate to prevent the crystallization of the dye and meanwhile to allow the conformational variation in response to the gradual deformation and relaxation of the polymer network. The strategy endows strain-mediated fluorescence enhancement and fast recovery of the material in compressive force loading-unloading cycles. The relationship between pressure and fluorescence intensity of the AIE-based MRL coatings was calibrated which showed adjustable sensitivity within kilopascal (kPa) to megapascal (MPa) range, according to the mechanical property of the polymer matrix. The coatings were capable for the detection of surface pressure distribution through non-contact optical observation technique in both static and dynamic processes. The high sensitivity realized the utility of AIE-based materials in the field of hydrodynamics and probably for other applications in industry

Construction of bi-layer biluminophore fast-responding pressure sensitive coating for non-contact unsteady aerodynamic testing

Herein we report on a biluminophore fast-responding pressure sensitive coating with a bi-layer structure prepared by a non-sensitive reference base paint and subsequently a classic polymer-ceramic pressure sensitive paint (PSP). The coating procedure is fully sprayable and allows the separation of the two luminophores in each layer to prevent their interference that may affect the pressure responsibility. The major advance is the use of solgel process of tetraethoxysilane (TEOS) and methyltriethoxysilane (MTES) to make the bottom reference layer which ensures the spreading and affinity of the top PSP, composed of a room-temperature vulcanizing silicone rubber (RTV), so that very thin PSP layer, i.e. less than 5 mu m was achieved. Besides, silane-functionalized carbon dots (CDs) was selected as the reference probe, for it could be well-incorporated with the TEOS/MTES matrix, and gained high loading level and hence strong luminescence of the basecoat to overcome the attenuation effect of the top PSP layer. The resultant biluminophore bi-layer fast-responding PSP (denoted as Fast bi-PSP) showed two completed separated emissions with lambda(max) at 430 and 600 nm for the incorporated CDs and the oxygen sensitive ruthenium complex dye, which enables the utility of intensity ratio from blue and red luminescence for the measurement of surface pressure by following Stern-Volmer relationship. Using a shock tube, the response time of the Fast bi-PSP coating was determined to be 0.4-0.6 ms according to the chemical composition. The ability of the coating for monitoring the dynamic evolution of full-field surface pressure was demonstrated on sample plates at attack angles of 0 degrees and 5 degrees. Our work suggests a facile but efficient way for the future design of self-referenced photoluminescent non-contact surface pressure sensing systems