Modification Process Research Articles

Use of carbon black as a modifier for petroleum bitumen

The problem of recycling worn-out tires and recycling of solid carbon-containing residue from the pyrolysis of tires is considered. The possibility of processing carbon black from the pyrolysis of tires into a high-quality concentrate, which can serve as a raw material for modifying petroleum bitumen, has been shown. The nature of the interactions occurring between the components of carbon black and the matrix of petroleum road bitumens has been studied. The chemical interaction of carbon black with the bitumen matrix through unsaturated C=C bonds has been proven. The introduction of carbon black as a modifying additive leads to a significant change in the physical, mechanical and rheological properties of the resulting bitumen binder systems. Based on spectrometric studies, an assessment is made of the structural changes occurring in the original and modified bitumen during the production of modified bitumen binders. It has been established that with such modification, diffusion of aromatic hydrocarbons occurs from the bitumen component into the modifier particles. During the modification process, six-membered cyclic aromatic compounds are formed in the bitumen part, the composition of paraffin-naphthenic hydrocarbons changes, and sulfur compounds are formed that “transfer” from the modifier particles to the bitumen. Thus, in this study, the phenomenon of mutual diffusion between bitumen and CBWT modifier was confirmed using IR spectroscopy.

Combined experimental and grand canonical Monte Carlo simulation study of CO2 capture in nitrogen and sulfur co-doped biochar derived from biowaste: Cost analysis, kinetics, and equilibrium

Nitrogen (N) and sulfur (S) co-doped biochar was produced from an agricultural waste. Heat treatment was combined with the use of dopants including thiourea, CO2, and air. The results show that the modified N and S co-doped biochar with the use of CO2 gas agent at 1123 K for 2 hr in the modification process, had the highest CO2 adsorption capacity of 4.36 and 3.05 mmol/g at 273 and 298 K at 1 bar among others in literature even it had lower surface area or pore volume. This is due to the containing of N and S on the solid surface and superior pore size of 1.0 nm. Moreover, the modified biochar had superior kinetics and CO2/N2 selectivity and was more economical than its unmodified biochar. To support experimental observation and better understand individual characteristics of functionalized carbons, a grand canonical Monte Carlo simulation was carried out to systematically illustrate the effect of N and S functional groups, pore size and pore volume on CO2 adsorption. The surface chemistry was the minor factor and played the key role in CO2 adsorption capacity at low pressures until it became saturated by adsorbate molecules at 0.3 bar. S was stronger than N for enhanced CO2 adsorption capacity. Whereas the pore size was the major factor in both low and moderate pressures (< 23 bar). The optimum pore size was found in a range of 0.66⎼4.0 nm which was pressure-dependent. The pore volume became the main factor at higher pressures (> 23 bar).

Octadecylamine modified gelatin-based biodegradable packaging film with good water repellency and improved moisture service reliability

Industrial gelatin is a good candidate for fabricating biodegradable packaging film, but the strong hydrophilicity of gelatin-based film lowers its moisture service reliability. Herein, we demonstrated a low surface energy water repellency surface design combined with covalent cross-linking for decreasing the water absorption and improving the moisture service reliability. Biodegradable octadecylamine (ODA) was chosen as the low surface energy providing material to fabricate the water repellency surface through a dehydration condensation reaction between the amine groups of ODA and gelatin chains via tetra-hydroxymethyl phosphonium chloride (THPC) in an aqueous phase. THPC also was employed as the cross-linking agent to form covalent bonding between the gelatin chains. The results determined that ODA modification and covalent cross-linking endowed the gelatin-based film with good water repellency and improved moisture service reliability. But high dose of ODA would result in phase separation and mechanical strength loss of the fabricated film. Additionally, ODA modification did not change the biodegradability of gelatin-based film, all the modified films were completely biodegradable in natural soil. Considering the sustainable modification process and abundant raw materials, the proposed strategy facilitates the effective utilization of low value industrial gelatin and provides a facile way for gelatin-based film as biodegradable packaging film.

A green bulk modification for imparting a green VIPS membrane with antifouling properties

BackgroundMembrane preparation and membrane modification processes have long involved the use of toxic solvents. The present work proposes to only use envrionmentally-friendly solvents for both the fabrication and the surface modification of hydrophobic microfiltration membranes. In addition, coating processes for membrane modification are essentially surface modification processes. However, spray-coating may be a suitable method for both surface and bulk modification. MethodsAfter dissolving poly(vinylidene fluoride) in dimethylsulfoxide, membranes were formed by the vapor-induced phase separation process, and then modified using an aqeous solution of an amphiphilic copolymer containing poly(ethylene glycol) methyl ether methacrylate units. Then, a variety of physicochemical techniques were employed to characterize the membrane structure and prove the effectiveness of the surface/bulk modification. Antifouling tests in static and dynamic conditions were conducted. Significant findingsIt is possible to reduce the water contact angle of the top surface of the membrane from 135° to 0° and that of the bottom surface from 126° to 0° within <10 s, indicating successful hydrophilization of the membrane on the one hand, and top-to-bottom modification, despite solely exposing the top surface to the spray, on the other hand. This conclusion was confirmed by deidcated surface chemistry analyses. Besides, the membranes maintained their original highly porous and symmetric structure with light effects on surface porosity and pore size following the spray-coating process. The drasting improvement of hydrophilicity resulted in effective mitigation of fibrinogen adsorption (reduced by 85 %) and Escherichia coli adhesion (reduced by 86 %). Fouling during cyclic filtration involving a bacterial suspension was also effectively reduced with a flux recovery ratio of 53 % (against 37 % for a commercial hydrophilic membrane) and an irreversible flux decline ratio of 47 % (against 63 % for a commercial hydrophilic membrane) in the conditions of the test.

METTL14/IGF2BP2-mediated m6A modification of STEAP1 aggravates acute lung injury induced by sepsis.

Acute lung injury (ALI) is a severe complication of sepsis, characterized by inflammation, edema, and injury to alveolar cells, leading to high mortality rates. Septic ALI is a complex disease involving multiple factors and signaling pathways. STEAP family member 1 (STEAP1) has been reported to be upregulated in a sepsis-induced ALI model. However, the role of STEAP1 in the regulation of septic ALI is not yet fully understood. The study stimulated human pulmonary microvascular endothelial cells (HPMECs) using lipopolysaccharides (LPS) to establish an in vitro ALI model. The study used quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR) to measure mRNA expression, and western blotting assay or immunohistochemistry (IHC) assay to analyze protein expression. Cell counting kit-8 (CCK-8) assay was performed to assess cell viability. Flow cytometry was conducted to analyze cell apoptosis. Tube formation assay was used to analyze the tube formation rate of human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVECs). Enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays (ELISAs) were used to measure the levels of interleukin-1beta (IL-1β) and tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-α). The levels of Fe2+ and reactive oxygen species (ROS) were determined using colorimetric and fluorometric assays, respectively. The glutathione (GSH) level was also determined using a colorimetric assay. m6A RNA immunoprecipitation assay, dual-luciferase reporter assay, and RNA immunoprecipitation assay were performed to identify the association of STEAP1 with methyltransferase 14, N6-adenosine-methyltransferase non-catalytic subunit (METTL14) and insulin like growth factor 2 mRNA binding protein 2 (IGF2BP2). The transcript half-life of STEAP1 was analyzed by actinomycin D assay. Finally, a rat model of polymicrobial sepsis was established to analyze the effects of STEAP1 knockdown on lung injury in vivo. We found that the mRNA expression levels of STEAP1 and METTL14 were upregulated in the blood of ALI patients induced by sepsis compared to healthy volunteers. LPS treatment increased the protein levels of STEAP1 and METTL14 in HPMECs. STEAP1 depletion attenuated LPS-induced promoting effects on HPMECs' apoptosis, inflammatory response, and ferroptosis, as well as LPS-induced inhibitory effect on tube formation. We also found that METTL14 and IGF2BP2 stabilized STEAP1 mRNA expression through the m6A methylation modification process. Moreover, METTL14 silencing attenuated LPS-induced effects by decreasing STEAP1 expression in HPMECs, and STEAP1 silencing ameliorated cecal ligation and puncture-induced lung injury of mice. METTL14/IGF2BP2-mediated m6A modification of STEAP1 aggravated ALI induced by sepsis. These findings suggest potential therapeutic targets for the treatment of this disease.

One-step electrosynthesis of Cu-Hemin MOFs/CNTs for the dual determinationof glyphosate.

Asimple and efficient dual-signal electrochemical sensor was designed for glyphosate (GLYP) determinationbased on the one-step electro-synthesized Cu-Hemin MOFs/CNTs nanocrystals. Cu-Hemin MOFs/CNTs were directly modified on the electrode through electrodeposition, avoiding complicated synthesis and modification processes. The incorporation of CNTs greatly boosted the conductivity of Cu-Hemin MOFs and the sensitivity of the electrochemical sensor. Cu active sites in Cu-Hemin MOFs were converted to CuCl, allowing the specific detection of GLYP with the turn of CuCl into non-electroactive Cu-GLYP. Meanwhile, GLYP showed highly effective inhibition effect on the inherent peroxidase-like activity of Cu-Hemin MOFs, therefore generating the second electrochemical signal with Cu-Hemin MOFs-catalyzed o-phenylenediamine (o-PD) + H2O2 system. The Cu-Hemin MOFs/CNTs based sensor with two electrochemical signals showed good linearities of 1.0 × 10-10M - 3.0 × 10-6M and 1.0 × 10-10M - 5.0 × 10-5M, with detection limits of 5.17 × 10-12M and 6.81 × 10-12M for the CuCl signal based assay and nanozyme catalyzed o-PD + H2O2 procedure, respectively. This simple and robust dual-signal sensor with excellent selectivity, accuracy, and stability allowed GLYP quantification in real samples, highlighting the potential application of this approach for food and environmental monitoring.

Dual-control of incubation effect for efficiently fabricating surface structures in fused silica

Abstract Fused silica with surface structures has potential applications in microfluidic, aerospace and other fields. To fabricate structures with high dimensional accuracy and surface quality is of paramount importance. However, it is indeed a challenge to strike a balance between accuracy and efficiency at the same time. Here, a temporally shaped femtosecond laser Bessel-beam-assisted etching method with dual-control of incubation effect is proposed to achieve this balance. Instead of layer-by-layer ablation continuously with Gaussian pulses, silica is modified discretely by double pulse Bessel beam with one single layer. During the modification process, incubation effect is dual-controlled in single shot process and spatial scanning process to generate even modified region efficiently. Then, the modified region is etched to form designed structures such as microholes, grooves, etc. The proposed method exhibits high efficiency for fabrication of surface structures in fused silica.

Novel biomass-derived corrosion inhibitor based on maleic and succinic acid for mild steel in HCl solution

Developing a sustainable and environmentally friendly inhibitor remains an essential and challenging goal for corrosion control. Here, aminoamide molecules were synthesized from maleic and succinic acids and applied as a novel biomass-derived corrosion inhibitor for mild steel in an HCl solution. The modification process of these molecules can increase their anticorrosive capacity, a fact verified in gravimetric tests, where inhibitors (1) and (2) achieved inhibition efficiency of ∼90 % (2 h immersion and 1 × 10–3 mol L–1). XPS spectra, apparent activation energy increase with inhibitor addition, adsorption Gibbs free energy of the inhibitors, and theoretical calculations show that the adsorption of the inhibitors on the metal surface is physical. This work provides a viable alternative to using a novel biomass-derived corrosion inhibitor.

A parametric study on chemical activator selection and soaking procedure development for barium incorporation in concurrent activated and surface modified palm kernel shell derived activated carbon

The concurrent activation and surface modification (CAM) process is an integrated process used to synthesise palm kernel shell derived activated carbon (PKSdAC) in this study. CAM involves chemical activation and surface modification via metal impregnation in one process. This study investigated the usage of different acids as chemical activators and different soaking procedures for impregnating barium (Ba) in CAM-PKSdAC. It shows that chemical impregnation of PKS using 10% sulphuric acid (H2SO4) mass loading via two soaking steps can impregnate a high Ba amount of 0.86–2.98 wt. % in CAM-PKSdAC, compared to one soaking step. The two soaking steps procedure reduced the overage formation of BaSO4 from sealing the pores of PKS. Comparing HCl and H2SO4, at 30% acid mass loading, the impregnation of PKS with H2SO4 produced a higher impregnated Ba amount in CAM-PKSdAC. BaSO4 generated from the reaction between H2SO4 on the PKS surface with BaCl2 solution causes a reduction reaction at high temperatures. BaSO4 reacted with a carbon-reducing agent and is reduced to barium sulphide (BaS), impregnating Ba on CAM-PKSdAC. In conclusion, H2SO4 was found to be the suitable chemical activator with two soaking steps for the CAM process.

UBR1 is a prognostic biomarker and therapeutic target associated with immune cell infiltration in gastric cancer.

Ubiquitination is a targeted protein modification process mediated by intracellular molecules. UBR1 encodes a protein that binds to unstable N-terminal residues of substrate proteins and contributes to the formation of substrate-linked polyubiquitin chains. However, the function and cellular pathways of UBR1 in tumors have received inadequate attention. This study aimed to investigate the potential of UBR1 as a prognostic biomarker and immunotherapy target for stomach adenocarcinoma (STAD) as well as its biological function and molecular mechanism in relation to the disease. Differential expression and pan-cancer gene set enrichment analysis (GSEA) were conducted using The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA), Gene Expression Omnibus (GEO), and Genotype-Tissue Expression (GTEx) datasets. The Human Protein Atlas (HPA) database was utilized to identify UBR1-enriched pathways in AGS cells and to compare immunohistochemical differences between cancerous and adjacent non-cancerous tissues in gastric cancer. Quantitative Polymerase Chain Reaction (QPCR) and Western blot (WB) analyses were employed to validate these findings in both cancerous and adjacent non-cancerous tissues of gastric cancer. UBR1 expression in GES-1 and four gastric cancer cell lines was assessed using QPCR and WB. Kaplan-Meier curves, univariate and multivariate Cox regression analyses, and receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve analyses were performed to evaluate the prognostic and diagnostic roles of UBR1. Additionally, the correlation between UBR1 expression and clinical parameters was analyzed using TCGA and GEO databases. UBR1 mutation data were obtained from the cBioPortal database. The mutation landscape, mutation-associated genes, protein structure, tumor mutation burden (TMB), and microsatellite instability (MSI) correlations were analyzed and illustrated. The biological functions of UBR1 were investigated using Gene Ontology (GO) and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) enrichment analyses. The correlation between UBR1 and immune infiltration was assessed using TIMER and EPIC computational methods. Protein expression levels of UBR1 in gastric cancer cell lines were determined by immunohistochemistry (IHC) and WB analysis. Quantitative real-time PCR (qRT-PCR) was employed to analyze mRNA expression. Immunoprecipitation (IP) assays were conducted to detect protein-protein interactions between UBR1 and PDL1, while cellular immunofluorescence was used to observe the co-localization of these proteins. Cell proliferation was evaluated using CCK8 and colony formation assays. Cell migration was assessed using Transwell and wound healing assays. Finally, apoptosis was analyzed using flow cytometry, and WB was used to detect changes in apoptotic proteins and NF-κB P65 pathway proteins. UBR1 was upregulated in 28 cancer types, including STAD, and its overexpression was validated in gastric cancer cell lines and tissues. UBR1 expression was associated with advanced pathological characteristics. High UBR1 expression was linked to poor prognostic outcomes, including overall survival (OS), progression-free interval (PFI), disease-specific survival (DSS), as well as responses to surgery, chemotherapy, and HER2 expression. UBR1 expression showed significant correlations with clinical parameters such as age, gender, TNM stage, pathological stage, tumor resection, and anti-reflux therapy. Amplifications and deletions were the most frequent genetic alterations associated with UBR1. According to KEGG and GSEA analyses, UBR1 was significantly associated with several cancer pathways, oxidative phosphorylation, and the TNF-NFκB pathway. UBR1 also exhibited a significant correlation with immune cell infiltration and immunotherapy, including a direct interaction with PDL1. Knockdown of UBR1 inhibited the proliferation, migration, and invasion of STAD cells and promoted apoptosis. UBR1 is overexpressed in STAD, promoting its progression and positively correlating with immune cell infiltration and immunotherapeutic responses. Therefore, UBR1 could be a promising biomarker for the prognosis and immunotherapy of STAD.

Modified Sepiolite Nanoclays in Advanced Composites for Engineering Applications.

Clay-polymer nanocomposites (CPNs) containing a small weight fraction of nanoclay are known to display enhanced mechanical and thermal properties compared to neat polymers. However, the preparation and application of such nanocomposites remain challenging owing to the difficulties in dispersing nanoclays in polymer matrices. This study focuses on two surfactant-modified organophilic sepiolite clays to demonstrate the simplicity of the modification process, as well as on the use of a benzoxazine monomer (i.e., a CPN matrix precursor) itself as the modifier. Our in-house modified bespoke sepiolites achieve much better dispersion in a benzoxazine matrix, compared to the pristine clay, revealing their potential for applications as nanoenhancers for advanced composites.

M6a Methylation: A New Avenue for Control of the Development of Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus and its Complications.

The rapidly emerging prevalence of type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) and its associated complications have formed an increasingly serious threat to human life and health. Therefore, there is an urgent requirement to investigate the pathogenesis of T2DM and its complications, which will be conducive to discovering effective drugs for prevention and treatment. N6-methyladenosine (m6A) methylation is the most abundant and prevalent epigenetic modification of mRNA in mammals. m6A methylation is a dynamically reversible epigenetic transcriptome modification process that is jointly regulated by methyltransferases, demethylases and methylated reading proteins, which control the fate of target mRNAs through influencing splicing, translation and decay. Recent studies have revealed that m6A methylation plays an important role in β cellular function, insulin sensitivity and glycolipid metabolism. In this review, we summarized the current roles of m6A methylation in T2DM and T2DM-related complications such as diabetes nephropathy (DN), diabetes cardiovascular disease (DCD) and diabetes retinopathy (DR). Additionally, we sought the potential mechanism of m6A in T2DM and related complications, which may provide a rationale and strategy for potential therapeutic targeting of T2DM and its complications.

Investigation into the role of Si and SiC phases in RB-SiC ceramics surface modified ultra-precision grinding

RB-SiC ceramic has greater specific stiffness and thermal stability as space optical materials in the field of deep space exploration. To ultra-precision grinding advanced manufacturing technology drawbacks, a fabrication of highly shape accuracy and surface quality and surface modification assisted processing at room temperature. The RB-SiC ceramics are modified by plasma torches to produce compounds with lower hardness values, an exceptional surface quality (Sa surface roughness of [0.481, 0.959]), and has excellent thermal and chemical stability after surface modification process via 100 °C plasma torch at room temperature environment, which makes it an ideal suitable for the deep space exploration conditions such as space optical materials. In addition, oxygen(O2) plasma surface modification and finite element simulation force-heat conduction of RB-SiC ceramic hard-brittle materials surface grinding force were compared with advanced manufacturing experiments of the precision grinding, revealing the formation mechanism and influence mechanism of surface micro-morphology during micro-cutting of precision grinding finish surface. The advanced manufacturing precision grinding difficulties of RB-SiC ceramic oxygen plasma torch reducing subsurface damage and removing space optical hard-brittle materials via ultra-precision grinding process of resin-funded corundum grinding wheel were solved. Subsurface damage (SSD) was effectively inhibited and its formation mechanism model.

Impact of Aging Time on the Morphological, Mechanical, and Tribological Behavior of Al-6.6Si-0.2Mg-0.2La Hypoeutectic Alloy

Abstract The present work aimed to examine the influence of Lanthanum (La) on the morphological, mechanical, and tribological characteristics of Al-6.6Si-0.2Mg alloy. The alloy specimens were exposed to an aging process at 180°C for 8h and 12h. The morphological transformation due to La addition was analysed with an emphasis on altering primary and eutectic silicon morphology, grain refinement, and intermetallic phase distribution. The experimental investigations were carried out using scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDS) whereas the hardness and wear characteristics were analyzed by performing Vickers microhardness and pin-on-disc tests. The obtained results demonstrated that lanthanum inclusion causes significant microstructure refinement, resulting in enhancing the microhardness by up to 60 %, proliferating the tensile characteristics by 70%, and aiding in improving the tribological characteristics of the Al-Si-Mg alloy. The results provide a clearer understanding of the alloy modification process and offer valuable insights for enhancing the performance of Al-Si-Mg aluminium alloys in automotive and aerospace applications.

Plasma/Ozone Induced PolyNaSS Graft-Polymerization onto PEEK Biomaterial for Bio-integrated Orthopedic Implants

Owing to its superior bulk mechanical properties, poly (ether ether ketone) (PEEK) has gained popularity over the past 15 years as a metal substitute in biomedical implants. Low surface energy is a fundamental issue with PEEK implants. This low surface energy caused by a moderately hydrophobic surface may be able to inhibit cellular adherence and result in the development of an inflammatory response, which may result in cell necrosis and apoptosis. In this work, plasma and ozone treatments have been utilized to surface activate PEEK and graft ionic bioactive polymer polyNaSS (poly (sodium styrene sulfonate)) successfully on the surface to promote cellular attachment and biomineralization. The main goal of our research has been to find a stable green process for surface modification of PEEK by plasma/ozone approaches to increase PolyNaSS grafting efficiency and biomineralization. To further the field of bioactive orthopedic and dental implant technology, this research attempts to address a significant constraint of PEEK implants while preserving their favorable mechanical properties.

Self-Initiated Nano-Micelles Mediated Covalent Modification of mRNA for Labeling and Treatment of Tumors.

As a promising gene therapy strategy, controllable small molecule-mRNA covalent modification in tumor cells could be initiated by singlet oxygen (1O2) to complete the modification process. However, in vivo generation of 1O2 is usually dependent on excitation of external light, and the limited light penetration of tissues greatly interferes the development of deep tumor photo therapy. Here, we constructed a tumor-targeting nano-micelle for the spontaneous intracellular generation of 1O2 without the need for external light, and inducing a high level of covalent modification of mRNA in tumor cells. Luminol and Ce6 were chemically bonded to produce 1O2 by chemiluminescence resonance energy transfer (CRET) triggered by high levels of hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) in the tumor microenvironment (TME). The sufficient 1O2 oxidized the loaded furan to highly reactive dicarbonyl moiety, which underwent cycloaddition reaction with adenine (A), cytosine (C) or guanine (G) on the mRNA for interfering with the tumor cell protein expression, thereby inhibiting tumor progression. In vitro and in vivo experiments demonstrated that this self-initiated gene therapy nano-micelle could induce covalent modification of mRNA by 1O2 without external light, and the process could be monitored in real time by fluorescence imaging, which provided an effective strategy for RNA-based tumor gene therapy.

Mechano-chemical, high-consistency activation of kraft pulp in deep eutectic solvent of choline chloride and urea

Deep eutectic solvents (DESs) offer an appealing green medium for the activation of cellulose fibres to promote their swelling, reactivity, hydrolysis, disintegration, and solubility for further processing. Typically, DES treatments are carried out below 5 wt% consistency even though a higher solids content could enhance the fibre activation and reduce the solvent consumption. In this work, a high-consistency (HC) mechano-chemical activation of bleached softwood kraft pulp was elucidated using a simultaneous fibre treatment with DES of choline chloride-urea and a sigma-type kneader or a twin-screw extruder at a solids content of 15–35 wt% and 30 wt%, respectively. Both HC treatments efficiently triggered fibre swelling, which was indicated by an increase in the fibre width, and loosened the cell wall structure which was indicated by an increase in the mesopore volume. Mechano-chemical HC processing generated fibre fines and external fibrillation, while the molecular-level structural alteration or changes in chemical composition were minor; the intrinsic viscosity and the crystallinity of the pulp remained at their initial level and only a small amount of xylan was dissolved. Overall, HC treatment in a twin-screw extruder caused notably more severe morphological changes in the fibres than batch treatment in a sigma-type kneader. Thus, the mechano-chemical HC treatment with DES provides an industrially relevant technology for cellulose modification and opens possibilities to enhance heterogeneous cellulose modification processes in which the highly available surface area of pulp is a key parameter.

Methodological Approaches for Increasing the Retroviral Transduction Efficiency of Primary NK Cells.

The growing attention to NK cells for cancer cell therapy is associated with the need to establish highly efficient protocols for their genetic modification, particularly by retroviral transduction. In this work, we have optimized several stages of the retroviral-based modification process, and determined the distribution of the amino acid transporter ASCT2 between NK cell subsets. Retroviral particles were produced using the Phoenix Ampho cell line transfected with the calcium phosphate method . We used RD114-based retroviral transduction for lymphocyte cell lines and primary NK cells. We have determined the optimal time to collect the RD114-pseudotyped viral supernatants resulting in the titer of viral particles required for efficient NK cell modification to be between 48 and 72 hours. Retroviral modification by retronectin-based method did not alter NK cell functional activity and cell survival. We identified differences in the Multiplicity of Infection (MOI) among cell lines that were partially associated with the ASCT2 surface expression. Cells with higher ASCT2 levels were more susceptible to transduction with RD114-pseudotyped viral particles. Higher ASCT2 expression levels were revealed in activated CD57+ and KIR2DL2DL3+ NK cells compared to their negative counterparts. Our findings provide a more nuanced understanding of NK cell transduction, offering valuable insights for improving therapeutic applications involving NK cell modification.

Preparation of aqueous silane‐graphene oxide co‐modified cellulose fibers/natural rubber composites via flash extrusion dispersion process

AbstractCellulose fibers were modified via aqueous silane‐graphene oxide (GO) coordination by flash drying and extrusion dispersion process. The adsorption of GO reduced the polarity of the cellulose fiber surface and attenuated the agglomeration effect between the cellulose fibers, thus facilitating the dispersion of fibers in the rubber matrix. Adding aqueous 3‐aminopropylsilane oligomer (8150) incorporated active sites on the surface of cellulose fibers, thereby improving the interfacial binding properties of cellulose nano fibers (CNFs) and natural rubber (NR). After blending the modified CNFs with NR latex, high‐temperature flocculation was performed using an atomised flash device. Finally, CNF/NR was pre‐dispersed through a twin‐screw extruder, after which a CNF/NR masterbatch with excellent performance was prepared. Experimental results revealed that composites prepared using GO‐8150 via the flash drying‐twin‐screw dispersion process exhibited excellent dispersion characteristics, processing properties, mechanical properties, rolling resistance, wear resistance, and heat generation properties. Compared with traditional dry mixing, the composites prepared by flash drying‐twin‐screw dispersion process showed a 16.95% increase in tensile strength, 16.07% increase in 300% constant elongation, 19.01% reduction in abrasion consumption, 42.26% reduction in rolling resistance, and a reduction in the Payne effect. This study offers an efficient and environmentally friendly method for the high‐value utilization of natural fibers and the preparation of NR composites with excellent properties, while providing a green and nonpolluting modification process with no acidic liquid discharge.Highlights GO‐8150 reduces the polarity of the fibers and promotes dispersion. The flash extrusion dispersion process achieves green flocculation. 42% lower rolling resistance for rubber composites.

Novel flexible magnetoelastic biosensor based on PDMS/FeSiB/QD composite film for the detection of African swine fever virus P72 protein.

African swine fever (ASF) is a highly contagious and severe hemorrhagic disease caused by the African swine fever virus (ASFV). The continuous spread of ASFV affects the safety of the global meat supply; therefore, the establishment of sensitive and specific detection methods for ASFV has become an important hot spot in food safety. Herein, we developed a flexible magnetoelastic (ME) biosensor based on PDMS/FeSiB/QDs composite films for the detection of ASFV P72 protein. Based on the high luminescence performance of CsPbBr3 quantum dots and the excellent magnetoelastic effect of FeSiB, flexible ME biosensors convert stress signals generated by antibody-antigen-specific binding into optical and electromagnetic signals. The nanostructures covalently linked by quantum dots and PDMS provide biomodification sites for ASFV P72 antibodies, simplifying the functionalization modification process compared to the case of conventional biosensors. The deformation of the PDMS film is amplified, and the conversion of surface stress signals to electrical signals is enhanced by exposing the biosensor to a uniform magnetic field. The experimental results proved that the flexible ME biosensor has a wide linear range of 10 ng mL-1-100 μg mL-1, and the detection limit is as low as 0.079 ng mL-1. Moreover, the flexible ME biosensor also shows good stability, sensitivity and specificity, confirming the potential for early disease screening.