Band gap narrowing of TiO_2 by compensated codoping for enhanced photocatalytic activity

In this study, we have performed first-principles screened exchanged hybrid density function theory with the HSE06 function calculations of the C-Mo, C-W, N-Nb and N-Ta codoped anatase TiO2 systems to investigate the effect of codoping on the electronic structure of TiO2. The calculated results demonstrate that （W（s）＋C（s）） codoped TiO2 narrows the band gap significantly, and have little influence on the position of conduction band edges, therefore, enhances the efficiency of the photocatalytic hydrogen generation from water and the photodegradation of organic pollutants. Moreover, the proper oxygen pressure and temperature are two key factors during synthesis which should be carefully under control so that the desired （W（s）＋C（s）） codoped TiO2 can be obtained.

Formation and Development of a Mountain-induced Secondary Center inside Typhoon Morakot(2009)

The structural evolution of Typhoon Morakot（2009） during its passage across Taiwan was investigated with the WRF model. When Morakot approached eastern Taiwan, the low-level center was gradually filled by the Central Mountain Range（CMR）, while the outer wind had flowed around the northern tip of the CMR and met the southwesterly monsoon to result in a strong confluent flow over the southern Taiwan Strait. When the confluent flow was blocked by the southern CMR, a secondary center（SC） without a warm core formed over southwestern Taiwan. During the northward movement of the SC along the west slope of the CMR, the warm air produced within the wake flow over the northwestern CMR was continuously advected into the SC, contributing to the generation of a warm core inside the SC. Consequently, a well-defined SC with a warm core, closed circulation and almost symmetric structure was produced over central western Taiwan, and then it coupled with Morakot＇s mid-level center after crossing the CMR to reestablish a new and vertically stacked typhoon. Therefore, the SC inside Morakot was initially generated by a dynamic interaction among the TC＇s cyclonic wind, southwesterly wind and orographic effects of the CMR, while the thermodynamic process associated with the downslope adiabatic warming effect documented by previous studies supported its development to be a well-defined SC. In summary, the evolution of the SC in this study is not in contradiction with previous studies, but just a complement, especially in the initial formation stage.

Transcriptome of hepatopancreas in kuruma shrimp Marsupenaeus japonicus under low-salinity stress

The kuruma shrimp Marsupenaeus japonicus is one of the most commercially important shrimp species in the world.Low salinity would aff ect the penetration and immunity,and even led to its death of the shrimp.However,little is known about the molecular mechanism of the effect.Therefore,hepatopancreas of M.japonicus reared under low-salinity stress for 6,12,24,48,and 96 h was analyzed and the results were compared with that of the control group using transcriptomics.After removing reads containing adapters,88890960-1051300444 clean reads were generated from 10 libraries in the control group and experimental group.Compared with the control group,811,589,1095,745,and 875 diff erentially expressed genes were obtained in the five treatment groups.The N50 and N90 lengths of the transcripts were 1746 bp and 436 bp,respectively.The top 20 gene ontology terms and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes pathways associated with the diff erentially expressed genes were related mainly to osmotic regulation(ion exchange,lipid metabolism and carbohydrate metabolism),immune regulation(cellular and humoral immunity),chitin metabolism,and related functions.The diff erential expression patterns of nine randomly selected genes were confi rmed by quantitative real-time PCR.This is the fi rst report of osmotic regulation-related genes that are diff erentially expressed under low-salinity stress in the hepatopancreas of M.japonicus.Furthermore,we found that M.japonicus initiated its own immune regulation under low-salinity stress.These results will help elucidating the mechanism of osmotic regulation and immune responses in this shrimp species.

Recent selection and introgression facilitated high-altitude adaptation in cattle

During the past 3000 years,cattle on the Qinghai-Xizang Plateau have developed adaptive phenotypes under the selective pressure of hypoxia,ultraviolet(UV)radiation,and extreme cold.The genetic mechanism underlying this rapid adaptation is not yet well understood.Here,we present whole-genome resequencing data for 258 cattle from 32 cattle breeds/populations,including 89 Tibetan cattle representing eight populations distributed at altitudes ranging from 3400 m to 4300 m.Our genomic analysis revealed that Tibetan cattle exhibited a continuous phylogeographic cline from the East Asian taurine to the South Asian indicine ancestries.We found that recently selected genes in Tibetan cattle were related to body size(HMGA2 and NCAPG)and energy expenditure(DUOXA2).We identified signals of sympatric introgression from yak into Tibetan cattle at different altitudes,covering 0.64%–3.26%of their genomes,which included introgressed genes responsible for hypoxia response(EGLN1),cold adaptation(LRP11),DNA damage repair(LATS1),and UV radiation resistance(GNPAT).We observed that introgressed yak alleles were associated with noncoding variants,including those in present EGLN1.In Tibetan cattle,three yak introgressed SNPs in the EGLN1 promoter region reduced the expression of EGLN1,suggesting that these genomic variants enhance hypoxia tolerance.Taken together,our results indicated complex adaptation processes in Tibetan cattle,where recently selected genes and introgressed yak alleles jointly facilitated rapid adaptation to high-altitude environments.

A strategy for enhanced tumor targeting of photodynamic therapy based on Escherichia coli-driven drug delivery system

Escherichia coli(E. coli) DH5α has been recognized as a non-pathogenic bacterial strain with tumor colonization ability. However, whether such a bacteria-driven drug-delivery system can improve the targeting of tumor therapy or not remains essentially untouched. Herein, a series of zinc phthalocyanine(ZnPc) photosensitizers with different numbers of charges were prepared and their electrostatic adhesion properties on E. coli were investigated via measuring their fluorescence intensities by flow cytometer. Among these ZnPc photosensitizers investigated, the ZnPc conjugate with four positive charges(named ZnPc-IR710) exhibited the highest loading capacity and the best fluorescence imaging performance of E. coli. With the help of E. coli, E. coli@ZnPcIR710 presented a significantly enhanced cytotoxicity on human breast cancer MCF-7 cells compared with ZnPc-IR710(survival rate of tumor cells was 39% vs. 57% at a concentration of 50 nmol L-1). Moreover, in vivo study showed that E. coli@ZnPc-IR710 remarkably inhibited the tumor growth and resulted in a complete tumor growth suppress in subcutaneous mouse 4T1 breast tumor model. These results demonstrated the great promise of bacterial-guided photodynamic therapy(PDT) in the treatment of solid tumors, and provide a unique strategy to enhance the antitumor efficacy of PDT by utilizing bacterial vectors in tumors.

Microbial bioavailability of dissolved organic nitrogen(DON) in the sediments of Lake Shankou,Northeastern China

Dissolved organic nitrogen（DON）extracted from Lake Shankou sediments using KCl was isolated into hydrophobic and hydrophilic fractions.The bioavailabilities of the hydrophobic and hydrophilic fractions to three types of bacterial communities collected from sediments,activated sludge and compost products were examined.The DON recoveries obtained by DAX-8 and cation exchange resins treatment were 96.17% ± 1.58% and 98.14% ±0% for the samples obtained from N4 and N14 stations,respectively.After 25 days of incubation at 25℃,most DON（59% to 96%）was degraded.Hydrophilic DON exhibited a higher reduction rate than hydrophobic DON during the growth phase.Untreated wastewater from Changshuihe town was the main degradable DON source to station N4,and 93% of hydrophilic DON and 80% of hydrophobic DON were degraded.Station N14 received a large amount of refractory DON from forest soils and exhibited DON degradation rates of 82% and 71% for the hydrophilic and hydrophobic fractions,respectively.Amino acid contents and fluorescence intensities were also analyzed.Approximately 27% to 74% of amino acids were taken up by day 5,and their concentration gradually increased in the following days due to the decomposition of dissolved proteins.Parallel factor analysis resulted in identification of tryptophan-like proteins,tyrosine-like proteins and FA-like substances.During the growth phase,40%–51% of the tryptophan-like proteins were taken up by bacteria,and the accumulation of tyrosine-like proteins was attributed to the release of biotic substances.The concentration of the FA-like substances decreased due to microbial decomposition.

Innovative method of culturing bdelloid rotifers for the application of wastewater biological treatment

This study aims to establish a simple and efficient method for the mass culture of bdelloid rotifers,which is the basis for the application of bdelloid rotifers as biological manipulators to improve wastewater biological treatment performance.A common bdelloid rotifer,Habrotrocha sp.,in a wastewater biological treatment system was selected as the culture target.Rotifers fed on flour could reproduce faster than those fed traditional food such as Chlorella vulgaris or mixed bacteria.As a rotifer food,flour has the advantages of simple preparation,effortless preservation,and low cost compared to live Chlorella vulgaris or mixed bacteria,so it is more suitable for the mass culture of rotifers.The optimal rotifer culture conditions using flour as food were also studied.According to the experimental results,the recommended rotifer culture conditions arc a flour particle size of 1 a flour concentration of 6×10^(6) cell/mL,a temperature of 28℃,a pH level of 6.5 and salinity of 100-500 mg/L.In addition,the sludge volume index in the sequencing batch reactor(SBR)with the addition of cultured rotifers was 59.9 mL/g at the end of operation and decreased by 18.2%compared to SBR without rotifer,which indicates that the cultured rotifers still retained the ftinction of helping to improve sludge settling.This function may be related to the rotifer's role in inhibiting bacteria from producing loosely bound extracellular polymeric substances in the SBR.

An Activatable Near-Infrared Molecular Chemiluminescence Probe for Visualization of NQO1 Activity In Vivo

Chemiluminescence(CL)is a promising tool for diagnostics and sensing due to its inherent excitation light-free.However,most CL probes emit exclusively visible light with limited penetration depth,hindering their broad application for in vivo deep tissue imaging.This work reports an activated unimolecular CL probe(CL-P)that emits light in the near-infrared(NIR)region allowing a superior real-time visualization and detection of NAD(P)H quinone oxidoreductase 1(NQO1)in vivo.The NQO1-specific trimethyl-locked quinone is a lock for masking the NQO1 trigger site,and it was conjugated on the NIR Schaap's dioxetane chemiluminophore,achieving not only a subtle signal-to-noise ratio even at a depth of 15 mm in the chicken breast tissues,but also sensitively detecting the positive expression of NQO1 in A549 cells.CL-P has been successfully used for visualizing the aberrantly expressed NQO1 in subcutaneous xenograft A549 tumors.To our knowledge,this is the first work reporting the detection of NQO1 activity in the NIR region by unimolecular CL mode.Overall,the NQO1-activated visualization platform provides a guideline to transform a unimolecular CL sensor into a licensed imaging agent for the in vivo detection of enzyme-related diseases.

Algal uptake of dissolved organic nitrogen in wastewater treatment plants

The algal uptake of dissolved organic nitrogen （DON） in the anaerobic-anoxic-oxic （A20） process was investigated in this study. Anaerobic, aerobic and effluent DON samples from two wastewater treatment plants （WWTPs） were separated into hydrophilic and hydrophobic fractions using a DAX-8 resin coupled with an anion exchange resin and a nanofiltration （NF） pretreatment Hydrophilic DON accounted for 66.66%-88.74% of the entire DON for the two plants evaluated. After a 1S-day incubation, 16.95%-91.75% DON was bioavailable for algal growth, and untreated samples exhibited higher DON bioavailability, with 52.83% DON average uptake rates, compared with the hydrophilic and hydrophobic fractions （45.53% and 44.40%, respectively） because the pretreatment caused the inorganic salt to be resistant to algae. Anaerobic untreated samples, hydrophilic fractions and hydrophobic fractions showed higher DON reduction rates and higher biomass accumulation compared with the other DON fractions due to the decomposition of resistant organics by anaerobic and anoxic bacteria. DON in aerobic and effluent samples of plant A was more bioavailable than that of plant B with usages of 27.49%-55.26% DON. DON bioavailability in the anaerobic-anoxic-oxic process decreased in the following order： anaerobic 〉 effluent 〉 aerobic. The DON contents were reduced after anaerobic treatment in the two plants. The EEM-PARAFAC model identified three DON components, including two humic acid-like substances and one protein-like substance in plant A and two protein-like substances and one humic acid-like substance in plant B.

A Highly Selective and Turn-on Fluorescent Probe for Fe^(3+) Ion Based on Perylene Tetracarboxylic Diimide

We have demonstrated a turn-on fluorescent sensor 6 for detection of Fe^(3+) based on photo-induced electron transfer(PET)mechanism.The probe comprises a perylene tetracarboxylic diimide(PDI)fluorophore and two bis((1,2,3-triazol-4-yl)methyl)amine(DTA)moieties as the metal ion receptors.It exhibits high selectivity toward Fe^(3+) over various other metal ions in CH_(3)CN/H_(2)O(1∶1,V/V).The binding stoichiometry for 6-Fe^(3+) complexes has been determined to be 1∶2 by a Job plot of fluorescence.The association constant between 6 and Fe^(3+) was estimated to be 1.04×10^(10)(mol/L)^(−2) by Benesi-Hildebrand equation.

Erlotinib Analogue-substituted Zinc（Ⅱ） Phthalocyanines for Small Molecular Target-based Photodynamic Cancer Therapy

＂Smart＂ targeted photosensitizer conjugated with small molecule target-based anticancer drug which has a sim- ple chemical structure and high stability, is a new promising targeted therapeutic strategy. We herein extended this strategy and reported a novel series of zinc（II） phthalocyanine-erlotinib analogue conjugates with different periph- eral substituted positions and lengths of the linker. Having erlotinib analogue as the targeting moiety, all conjugates exhibited high specificity and potent affinity to HepG2 cancer cells and kept high photodynamic activity （ICs0 = 3.7 -- 16.7 nmol/L）. Structure-activity relationships of these conjugates were assessed by investigating their photophys- ical/photochemical properties, targeting intracellular uptake and in vitro phototoxicity. The results suggested that a-substituted conjugates showed slightly higher photodynamic activity than ,8-substituted ones. In conclusion, we have developed a series of promising anticancer agents with high tumor selectivity and anticancer activity for targeted photodynamic therapy.