Exploration (Beijing, China)最新文献

A multi-functional stent coating that combines a dopamine-copper base with therapeutic biomolecule modification, including nitric oxide (NO) precursor L-arginine, endothelial glycocalyx heparin, and endothelial cell catcher vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF), has been developed. This coating enables procedural vascular repair, suppresses inflammation, promotes rapid re-endothelialization, effectively prevents thrombosis and restenosis.

We present a novel conductive structural color hydrogel, in which highly charged elastic nanoparticles are elaborately used as structural color building blocks to enhance interfacial compatibility between the hydrogel network and nanoparticles, thereby enabling effective energy dissipation. The obtained hydrogel can achieve excellent mechanical robustness, self-adhesiveness, self-healing properties, as well as synchronous electronic and visual signal monitoring.

Electrochemical CO₂ reduction reaction (CO₂RR) has received great attention to solve CO₂- induced global warming and carbon neutrality. It is essential to enhance the electrochemical CO₂RR selectivity, activity, and long-term stability for sustainable manufacturing of specific chemicals via CO₂RR. To produce multi-carbon (C₂₊) chemicals, Cu-based heterogeneous catalysts have been developed in terms of defect engineering, morphological design, and facet control. Despite the substantial efforts for the design of efficient Cu-based heterogeneous catalysts, there exist inevitable structural changes of catalysts with continuous dissolution and redeposition during CO₂RR. This reconstruction modifies the as-synthesized catalysts into an unpredictable structure and leads to changes in active site. Here, we review the reconstruction of Cu-based catalysts during CO₂RR, which occurs via continuous dissolution and redeposition process. This includes fundamental principles of reconstruction and the effect of microenvironment on reconstruction during CO₂RR. We offer research progress about the reconstruction of Cu-based electrocatalysts, analysis methodologies to track the reconstruction, and the insight to improve the activity, selectivity, and stability of CO₂RR. We provide perspective to understand and harness the reconstruction for the development of efficient CO₂RR catalysts.

Celastrol (CEL) is a natural pentacyclic triterpenoid demonstrating significant therapeutic properties against various diseases. However, the ambiguity of target information poses a significant challenge in transitioning CEL from a traditional remedy to a modern pharmaceutical agent. Recently, the emerging target discovery approaches of natural products have broadened extensive avenues for uncovering comprehensive target information of CEL and promoting its drug development. Herein, diverse target discovery strategies are overviewed for the pharmacological and toxicological studies of CEL, including chemical proteomics, protein microarray, degradation-based protein profiling, proteome-wide label-free approaches, network pharmacology, target-based drug screening, multi-omics analysis, and hypothesis-driven target confirmation. Dozens of CEL targets have been identified, which significantly suggests that CEL functions as a multi-target therapeutic agent. Further network interaction analysis and frequency analysis of collected targets reveal that PRDXs, HMGB1, HSP90, STAT3, and PKM2 may serve as key targets for CEL. Additionally, this review highlights the positive role of target discovery in facilitating CEL-based combination therapy and drug delivery, which is essential for further advancing the clinical applications of CEL. Efforts in CEL target identification not only aid in unraveling the scientific underpinnings of its multiple pharmacological effects but also offer crucial insights for further drug development of CEL-based drugs.

Atomic layer deposition (ALD) technique has emerged as a fascinating tool for the design and synthesis of heterogeneous catalysts with atomic precision for energy conversion, generation, and storage applications. Here, we demonstrate the importance of the ALD for catalyst design by citing recently reported works, in particular, the emphasis has been given to the surface/interface engineering of catalysts for improving their catalytic efficiency in energy applications. To get insight into the reaction mechanism, the ALD-based routes for catalyst synthesis may revolutionize the field of sustainable energy conversion and storage. Moreover, the synthesis of supported nanoparticles with controlled shape and size has attracted great attention in catalysis owing to their unique properties. By taking advantage of the ALD, it is possible to synthesize catalysts at the atomic scale, particularly, site-selective ALD provides tremendous opportunities in catalytic efficiency and selectivity studies. Moreover, this review illustrates diverse heterogeneous catalysts with their limitations for energy-related applications and how the ALD technique can facilitate overcoming them. Finally, we deliberate the advancement in the ALD technique on heterogeneous catalyst design, and interface engineering of catalysts, and outline future perspectives of this technology in catalysis.

In recent years, lignin has attracted substantial attention from researchers because of its diverse sources, low cost, and renewability. The effective functionalization and enhanced value-added utilization of lignin have successfully addressed the challenges associated with biomass resource waste, low utilization rate, high material cost, and underwhelming performance in energy, environmental protection, and medical applications. The emergence of lignin carbon quantum dots (LCQDs) has opened new avenues for the development and utilization of lignin by offering exciting opportunities for their applications. LCQDs possess unique characteristics such as fluorescence properties, size effect, surface effect, and interface effects, which are promising for applications in many fields. This paper provides a comprehensive overview of the structure and applications of lignin with a specific focus on the preparation method of LCQDs as well as their various applications in drug delivery systems, electrode material fabrication, and antibacterial agent development. Furthermore, this study offers valuable insights into the prospects of LCQDs and aims to contribute to their functional development. Finally, the challenges associated with leveraging the fluorescence properties of LCQDs are discussed, along with potential directions for future research.

Neuromodulation is crucial for advancing neuroscience and treating neurological disorders. However, traditional methods using rigid electrodes have been limited by large stimulating currents, low precision, and the risk of tissue damage. In this work, we developed a biocompatible ultraflexible electrode array that allows for both neural recording of spike firings and low-threshold, high-precision stimulation for neuromodulation. Specifically, mouse turning behavior can be effectively induced with approximately five microamperes of stimulating current, which is significantly lower than that required by conventional rigid electrodes. The array's densely packed microelectrodes enable highly selective stimulation, allowing precise targeting of specific brain areas critical for turning behavior. This low-current, targeted stimulation approach helps maintain the health of both neurons and electrodes, as evidenced by stable neural recordings after extended stimulations. Systematic validations have confirmed the durability and biocompatibility of the electrodes. Moreover, we extended the flexible electrode array to a brain-to-brain interface system that allows human brain signals to directly control mouse behavior. Using advanced decoding methods, a single individual can issue eight commands to simultaneously control the behaviors of two mice. This study underscores the effectiveness of the flexible electrode array in neuromodulation, opening new avenues for interspecies communication and potential neuromodulation applications.

The C─H bond is the most abundant chemical bond in organic compounds. Therefore, the development of the more direct methods for C─H bond cleavage and the elucidation of their mechanisms will provide an important theoretical basis for achieving more efficient C─H functionalization and target molecule construction. In this study, the catalyst-free photon-induced direct homolysis of C_sp3─H bonds at room temperature was discovered for the first time. The applicable substrate scope of this phenomenon is very wide, expanding from the initial benzyl compounds to aliphatic alcohols, alkanes, olefins, polymers containing benzyl hydrogens, and even gaseous methane. Experiments and calculations have demonstrated that this process involves rapid vibrational relaxation on the femtosecond time scale, leading to the formation of hydrogen radical and carbon radical. Importantly, the direct homolysis of C_sp3─H bonds is independent of the presence of oxidants, highlighting its spontaneous nature. Additionally, the cleaved hydrogen radical exhibits diverse reactivity, including coupling reactions to produce hydrogen gas (H₂), reduction of oxygen to generate hydrogen peroxide (H₂O₂), and reduction of carbon dioxide to formic acid (HCOOH). Notably, in the field of H₂O₂ production, the absence of a catalyst allows for the bypassing of inherent drawbacks associated with photocatalysts, thereby presenting significant potential for practical application. Furthermore, the cleaved carbon radicals display enhanced reactivity, providing excellent opportunities for direct functionalization, thereby enabling efficient C─H bond activation and molecular construction. Overall, this significant discovery offers a valuable new strategy for the production of bulk chemicals, organic synthesis, low-carbon and hydrogen energy industries, as well as environmental treatment.

An extracellular acidic environment and an intracellular mildly alkaline environment induced by carbonic anhydrase 9 (CA9) play a critical role in self-renewal, invasion, migration, and drug resistance of cancer stem cells (CSCs) within hypoxic solid tumors. Here, we report an antitumor strategy leveraging hyperbaric oxygen therapy (HBO) to regulate tumor pH and boost hydroxyethyl starch-doxorubicin-copper nanoparticles (HHD-Cu NPs) against CSCs. HBO overcomes tumor hypoxia, downregulates pH-regulatory proteins such as CA9, and leads to intracellular accumulation of acidic metabolites. As a result, HBO promotes intracellular acidification of both tumor cells and CSCs, triggering efficient doxorubicin release and the potent copper-mediated chemical dynamic effect of subsequently administered dual-acid-responsive HHD-Cu NPs. The combination of HBO with HHD-Cu NPs not only eliminates tumor cells but also inhibits CSCs, altogether leading to potent tumor inhibition. This study explores a new function of clinical-widely used HBO and establishes a novel combination therapy for treating CSCs abundant hypoxic solid tumors.

There is currently a pressing issue of antimicrobial resistance, with numerous pathogenic superbugs continually emerging, posing significant threats to both human health and the economy. However, the development of new antibiotics has not kept up in pace with the development of microbial resistance, necessitating the exploration of more effective approaches to combat microbes. Synthetic biology offers a novel paradigm by employing selective screening and assembling diverse biological components to redesign biological systems that can specifically target and eliminate microbes. In particular, engineering living therapeutics enables the detection and precise eradication of pathogenic microorganisms in a controlled means. This review provides an overview of recent advancements in engineering living therapeutics using synthetic biology for antibacterial treatment. It focuses on modifying bacteriophages, microbes, and mammalian cells through engineering approaches for antibacterial therapy. The advantages of each approach are delineated along with potential challenges they may encounter. Finally, a prospective outlook is presented highlighting the potential impact and future prospects of this innovative antimicrobial strategy.