Remediation of oily soil using acidic sophorolipids micro-emulsion

A sophorolipids(SLs)micro-emulsion in Winsor type Ⅰ form was used for crude oil contaminated soil washing treatment.The micro-emulsion shows higher oil removal rate than SLs aqueous solution and diesel oil.The type Ⅰ micro-emulsion with w(SLs)=6%,w(NaCl)=1%,w(diesel)=13.36% gave a high oil removal rate of 95.6% and the eluate remained in type Ⅰ state.The recovered oil showed lower viscosity,mainly caused by the entering of diesel from the micro-emulsion phase into the oil phase and the lower removal rate of the heavier components,such as the resin and asphaltene.The initial heavily saline-alkaline soil changed into mildly saline-alkaline state after washing treatment,favoring the germination and growth of plants,with ryegrass showing better germination and growth effect than alfalfa.The ryegrass showed good phytoremediation effect on the contaminated soil after SLs micro-emulsion washing.The combination process of SL micro-emulsion washing and ryegrass phytoremediation is prospective for oily soil treatment.

A novel miRNA negatively regulates resistance to Glomerella leaf spot by suppressing expression of an NBS gene in apple

Glomerella leaf spot(GLS)of apple(Malus×domestica Borkh.),caused by Glomerella cingulata,is an emerging fungal epidemic threatening the apple industry.Little is known about the molecular mechanism underlying resistance to this devastating fungus.In this study,high-throughput sequencing technology was used to identify microRNAs(miRNAs)involved in GLS resistance in apple.We focused on miRNAs that target genes related to disease and found that expression of a novel miRNA,Md-miRln20,was higher in susceptible apple varieties than in resistant ones.Furthermore,its target gene Md-TN1-GLS exhibited the opposite expression pattern,which suggested that the expression levels of Md-miRln20 and its target gene are closely related to apple resistance to GLS.Furthermore,downregulation of MdmiRln20 in susceptible apple leaves resulted in upregulation of Md-TN1-GLS and reduced the disease incidence.Conversely,overexpression of Md-miRln20 in resistant apple leaves suppressed Md-TN1-GLS expression,with increased disease incidence.We demonstrated that Md-miRln20 negatively regulates resistance to GLS by suppressing Md-TN1-GLS expression and showed,for the first time,a crucial role for miRNA in response to GLS in apple.

Water-resistant conductive organogels with sensation and actuation functions for artificial neuro-sensory muscular systems

The development of functional flexible conductive materials can significantly contribute to the improvement of intelligent human–computer integration.However,it is a challenge to endow human–machine interface with perception and response actuation simultaneously.Herein,a customizable and multifunctional electronic conductive organogel is proposed by combining conductive carbon nanotube(CNT)clusters and flexible adhesive organogels.The conductive CNT cluster layers generated on the surface of organogels equip the resulting organogel-based conductors with considerable quasi-superhydrophobicity and increase their potential applicability as highly sensitive stress and strain sensors.In particular,this quasi-superhydrophobicity is insensitive to tensile strain.Based on customizable conductive networks and entropy-driven organogel actuation,the conductive organogels can sense various strain and stress signals and imitate natural organisms with muscle actuation and neurofeedback.This strategy for preparing electronic conductors can enhance the rational design of soft robotics and artificial intelligence devices,facilitating further progress of human-like intelligent systems.