Latest ArticlesWastewater management and energy/resource recycling have been extensively investigated via photo(electro)catalysis. Although both operation processes are driven effectively by the same interfacial charge, each system is practiced separately since they require very different reaction conditions. In this review, we showcase the recent advancements in photo(electro)catalytic process that enables the wastewater treatment and simultaneous energy/resource recovery (WT-ERR). Various literatures based on photo(electro)catalysis for wastewater treatment coupled with CO2 conversion, H2 production and heavy metal recovery are summarized. Besides, the fundamentals of photo(electro)catalysis and the influencing factors in such synergistic process are also presented. The essential feature of the catalysis lies in effectively utilizing hole oxidation for pollutant degradation and electron reduction for energy/resource recovery. Although in its infancy, the reviewed technology provides new avenue for developing next-generation wastewater treatment process. Moreover, we expect that this review can stimulate intensive researches to rationally design photo(electro)catalytic systems for environmental remediation accompanied with energy and resource recovery.
Colorectal cancer (CRC) is a lethal malignancy with a high mortality rate due to its low immunogenicity, the strong immunosuppressive milieu and poor drug permeability. To overcome these obstacles, a cascade synergistic nanosystem (denoted as R837/ICG@Lip) was developed via self-assembly of heater indocyanine green (ICG) and toll-like receptor-7 agonist imiquimod (R837) into thermosensitive liposome for simultaneous induction of immunogenic cell death (ICD) and reversing of suppressive tumor microenvironment. The obtained nanoparticles exhibited NIR-triggered drug release, good photothermal conversion efficiency and phototoxicity towards CT26 colorectal cancer cells. In vivo results reveal that the R837/ICG@Lip could be effectively accumulated in CT26 subcutaneous tumors and the draining lymph nodes. More importantly, R837/ICG@Lip-mediated low-temperature photothermal therapy triggers ICD, promotes the maturation of host dendritic cells (DCs), and subsequently amplifies adaptive antitumor T-cell responses, resulting in 'Cold to Hot' transition. Besides directly affecting immune cells, the secretion of some immune-related cytokines further indirectly boosted anti-cancer immunity. After combining with the indoleamine 2, 3-dioxygenase (IDO) inhibitor, the systemic antitumor immune response was further augmented, achieving best tumor inhibition effects. Thus, low-temperature mediated photoimmunotherapy targeting multiple antitumor immune pathways boost synergistic antitumor immunity of tolerance tumors.
Binding of non-activated alkyl halides (2–20) in water-soluble cavitand (1) through supramolecular forces is here reported, with emphasis on the role of size and polarizability of the halogen atom in the formation of intramolecular C-H hydrogen bonds in confined spaces. Rare reverse affinity in water (RI < RBr < RCl) is surprisingly observed for the more water-soluble short alkyl halides in dynamic open-ended containers. Competitive bindings and theoretical calculations confirm the unusual selectivity and the presence of C-H hydrogen bonds in non-activated systems for the first time, pointing out the importance and effect of subtle forces on molecular recognition in confined spaces.
The expression of β-lactamase, particularly metallo-β-lactamase (MBL) in bacteria has caused significant resistance to clinically important β-lactam antibiotics, including life-saving carbapenems. Antimicrobial peptides (AMPs) have emerged as promising therapeutic agents to combat antibiotic resistance. However, the cytotoxic AMPs has been one of the major concerns for their applications in clinical practice. Herein, we report a novel cephalosporin-caged AMP, which shows significantly reduced cytotoxicity, hemolytic activity, and antibacterial activity but turns highly active against bacteria upon specific hydrolysis by the antimicrobial resistance-causative β-lactamase. Further investigations demonstrate this β-lactamase-activatable AMP selectively inactivates resistant bacterial pathogens over susceptible bacteria. This strategy should be applicable to other AMPs as a potential solution for the treatment of infectious diseases caused by β-lactamase-expressing pathogenic bacteria.
Pillar[5]arene–modified amphiphilic peptides with varying numbers of guanidiniocarbonylpyrrol (GCP) moieties have been successfully synthesized, which can self-assemble to multivalent cationic superstructures in aqueous solutions. These assembled peptides can condense DNA into various compact multimolecular aggregates to achieve successful intracellular DNA delivery and demonstrate great potential for gene transfection. Transfection efficiencies of the self-assembled superstructures have been evaluated in vitro with HeLa and HEK 293T cells. We demonstrate that GCP moiety could enhance the cell transfection ability, owing to its excellent binding towards cytomembrane. It was also found that subtle structure difference in peptides 2 and 3 could result in distinct transfection efficacy, which makes it possible to gain an in-depth understanding of their structure-activity relationship. This work presents a good example of rational structural design in achieving effective gene transfection vectors.
LiMn2O4 (LMO) is the substance of choice for small and medium-sized energy storage materials in daily life. In this work, Li3InCl6 (LIC) is prepared on the surface of LiMn2O4 by hydrothermal method using InCl3 and LiCl as raw materials. This method stabilizes the LMO crystal structure by uniformly coating the LIC on the LMO surface and effectively maintains the morphology of LMO crystals during the cycling process. SEM and EDS analysis confirm the morphology and homogeneity of the synthesized material LIC on the LMO surface. The prepared material is put into a battery, and the charge-discharge test is carried out at 0.5 C and 1 C. The results show that the LIC surface-modified samples exhibit more than 6% higher cycling performance than the unmodified samples after long cycling.
It is highly desired to accurately and selectively detect and image intracellular L-lysine and pH in biological systems because they could act as the biomarkers in certain abnormal conditions and may give us a warning of the occurrence of diseases. It has been attracted more focuses to design new ratiometric fluorescent probe for monitoring L-lysine and pH to improve detection accuracy. Carbonized polymer dots (CPDs), which possess carbon/polymer hybrid structure rather than pure carbon structure and constitute of a carbon core and large amounts of functional groups/polymer chains on the surface, rise up as a new type of fluorescent nanomaterials and especially display many advantages for bioanalysis. In this study, o-phenylenediamine (o-PD) and poly(styrene-co-maleic anhydride) (PSMA) are used as the precursors to synthesize the desired CPDs through one-step hydrothermal amide method. The prepared CPDs display two well-resolved fluorescence emission bands, i.e., a very weak emission centered at 470 nm in blue region and a strong emission centered at 558 nm in yellow region. It is found that the two emissions are both responsive to L-lysine based on the surface passivation mechanism, whereas, only the yellow emission is responsive to pH due to the protonation/deprotonation process of the amino groups. Based on the different responsive behaviors, ratiometric detection and imaging of L-lysine and pH are achieved. The prepared ratiometric CPDs probe is successfully applied for L-lysine and pH sensing and imaging at two emission channels in live cell and zebrafish with satisfactory results.
Hepatotoxicity is a serious problem faced by clinical drugs, and long-term administration or overdose may lead to liver failure and even death of patients. Therefore, developing a reliable detection method for the early diagnosis and therapy of drug-induced liver injury (DILI) has significant meaning. Near-infrared fluorescence (NIRF) and photoacoustic (PA) dual-modality tomography probes can be used for imaging with high sensitivity and high-resolution of disease-related markers in deep tissues. Here, we developed a novel Cys-activated NIRF and PA dual-modality imaging probe (CDR) for early diagnosis of DILI, for the first time. The organic molecular probe CDR could respond rapidly to Cys, resulting in the absorption peak red-shifted from 560 nm to 725 nm, which also leads to the activation of the PA725 signal and NIRF765 signal. In addition, the new probe CDR could be used for NIRF/PA imaging of exogenous and endogenous Cys level in live cells and mice. More importantly, CDR has also been successfully used for in situ detection of Cys in early DILI mice and evaluate the therapeutic effect of NAC. Therefore, the CDR might become a powerful tool to research the physiological effect of Cys and evaluate the degree of DILI.
Nanomedicines have shown great promise in cancer therapy, but are challenged by limited drug loading, safety concerns of drug carriers, and complexity of function integration. Recently, carrier-free nanomedicines produced by supramolecular assembly of small-molecule therapeutic functionalities and their conjugates were proposed to address these issues. These nanomedicines achieve very high drug loading, enhanced tumor accumulation and improved therapeutic efficiency, and avoid carrier-related safety problems. In this review article, the applications of these nanomedicines in chemotherapy, photodynamic therapy, photothermal therapy as well as combination therapies will be reviewed. The concept of nanomedicine design and mechanism of supramolecular assembly will be discussed. Finally, future perspectives of carrier-free supramolecular nanomedicines for cancer therapy will be highlighted.
With increasing attention to personalized healthcare, miniaturized and easily implementable devices are desired for point-of-care testing (POCT). Herein, hydrophilic patterns were designed on freestanding TiO2 nanotube arrays (TiNTs) as nanoreactors for a naked-eye colorimetric assay. With a high aspect ratio, TiNTs can provide a long observation length combined with a limited volume. Moreover, by combining the photocatalytic property of TiO2 and spatiotemporal controllability of light, hydrophilic nanoreactors were fabricated with minimal volume, and thus the indicator and analyte are limited in a confined void by the hydrophobic surroundings, thus allowing a higher sensitivity for sensing. We believe the proposed sensing platform could provide a promising strategy in developing POCT devices for routine health monitoring.
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