Noninvasive prenatal paternity testing by maternal plasma DNA sequencing in twin pregnancies

SNPs, combined with massively parallel sequencing technology, have proven applicability in noninvasive prenatal paternity testing (NIPPT) for singleton pregnancies in our previous research, using circulating cell-free DNA in maternal plasma. However, the feasibility of NIPPT in twin pregnancies has remained uncertain. As a pilot study, we developed a practical method to noninvasively determine the paternity of twin pregnancies by maternal plasma DNA sequencing based on a massively parallel sequencing platform. Blood samples were collected from 15 pregnant women (twin pregnancies at 9–18 weeks of gestation). Parental DNA and maternal plasma cell-free DNA were analyzed with custom-designed probes covering 5226 polymorphic SNP loci. A mathematical model for data interpretation was established, including the zygosity determination and paternity index calculations. Each plasma sample was independently tested against the alleged father and 90 unrelated males. As a result, the zygosity in each twin case was correctly determined, prior to paternity analysis. Further, the correct biological father was successfully identified, and the paternity of all 90 unrelated males was excluded in each case. Our study demonstrates that NIPPT can be performed for twin pregnancies. This finding may contribute to development in NIPPT and diagnosis of certain genetic diseases.     

C−C Bond Formation in Syngas Conversion over Zinc Sites Grafted on ZSM‐5 Zeolite

Despite significant progress achieved in Fischer–Tropsch synthesis (FTS) technology, control of product selectivity remains a challenge in syngas conversion. Herein, we demonstrate that Zn²⁺‐ion exchanged ZSM‐5 zeolite steers syngas conversion selectively to ethane with its selectivity reaching as high as 86 % among hydrocarbons (excluding CO₂) at 20 % CO conversion. NMR spectroscopy, X‐ray absorption spectroscopy, and X‐ray fluorescence indicate that this is likely attributed to the highly dispersed Zn sites grafted on ZSM‐5. Quasi‐in‐situ solid‐state NMR, obtained by quenching the reaction in liquid N₂, detects C₂ species such as acetyl (‐COCH₃) bonding with an oxygen, ethyl (‐CH₂CH₃) bonding with a Zn site, and epoxyethane molecules adsorbing on a Zn site and a Brønsted acid site of the catalyst, respectively. These species could provide insight into C?C bond formation during ethane formation. Interestingly, this selective reaction pathway toward ethane appears to be general because a series of other Zn²⁺‐ion exchanged aluminosilicate zeolites with different topologies (for example, SSZ‐13, MCM‐22, and ZSM‐12) all give ethane predominantly. By contrast, a physical mixture of ZnO‐ZSM‐5 favors formation of hydrocarbons beyond C₃₊. These results provide an important guide for tuning the product selectivity in syngas conversion.     

Rapid screening of amitraz and its metabolite residues in honey using a quick,easy, cheap,effective, rugged,and safe extraction method coupled with UHPLC and Q Exactive

A method for determining amitraz and 2,4‐dimethylaniline in honey was established by using ultra‐high‐performance liquid chromatoghaphy and Q Exactive after applying quick, easy, cheap, effective, rugged, and safe extracting process. A suitable extraction method was designed to extract the amitraz and 2,4‐dimethylaniline after a suitable amount of honey samples was dissolved. A Thermo Syncronis C₁₈ column (100 × 2.1 mm, 1.7 μm) was used for chromatographic separation of the samples. Then the two compounds were quantitatively analyzed via a program of Q Exactive. The linearity of amitraz and 2,4‐dimethylaniline was good in the concentration range of 0.5–100 μg/L, and the correlation coefficient R² was >0.99. The average recovery and relative standard deviation of each component were 81.3–90.0% and 5.1–7.2%. The 24‐ and 48‐h test results showed that the sample needed to be tested within 24 h. The limit of detection was 0.1 μg/kg for amitraz and 2,4‐dimethylaniline, whereas for both the limit of quantitation was 0.3 μg/kg.     

Microfluidic chip electrophoresis for biochemical analysis

Microfluidic chip electrophoresis has been widely employed for separation of various biochemical species owing to its advantages of low sample consumption, low cost, fast analysis, high throughput, and integration capability. In this article, we reviewed the development of four different modes of microfluidics‐based electrophoresis technologies including capillary electrophoresis, gel electrophoresis, dielectrophoresis, and field (electric) flow fractionation. Coupling detection schemes on microfluidic electrophoresis platform were also reviewed such as optical, electrochemical, and mass spectrometry method. We further discussed the innovative applications of microfluidic electrophoresis for biomacromolecules (nucleic acids and proteins), biochemical small molecules (amino acids, metabolites, ions, etc.), and bioparticles (cells and pathogens) analysis. The future direction of microfluidic chip electrophoresis was predicted.     

SiO2交联剂交联MMA聚合制备PMMA/SiO2纳米复合材料

用SiO2交联剂(SiO2HPA)交联甲基丙烯酸甲酯(MMA)自由基聚合制备PMMA SiO2纳米复合材料。采用两步法将可聚合乙烯基单体以化学键的形式键接到SiO2表面合成SiO2交联剂,首先利用过量的甲苯2,4二异氰酸酯(TDI)对SiO2纳米粒子表面进行化学修饰合成出表面带有高反应活性NCO基团的功能化SiO2粒子(SiO2TDI),SiO2TDI与丙烯酸羟丙酯(HPA)反应合成SiO2交联剂。系统研究了MMA单体与SiO2交联剂投料比及聚合时间对聚合反应的影响。此外,利用红外光谱(FT IR)、DSC、TGA、可见光光谱仪等实验手段对纳米复合材料进行了表征分析。结果表明,纳米SiO2粒子在复合材料中起着物理交联点和化学交联点作用,复合材料玻璃化转变温度(Tg)明显地高于其纯PMMA的玻璃化转变温度,随着纳米SiO2粒子含量的增加,复合材料玻璃化温度升高,而透明度明显降低。     

对正负一级能量之比测量光栅参量方法的改进

提出利用同一波长的入射光在双面入射时两个能量之比的比值对光栅的参量进行测量,进一步提高准确度。首先从理论上比较正弦面形光栅在单一面入射及双面入射时各种衍射效率对光栅表面粗糙度的敏感程度;然后模拟测量出该正弦面型光栅在双面入射情况下的光栅参量;最后成功反演出体积相位全息光栅的三个参量,其测量结果为0.080μm,1.452μm,20.5μm准确度比单一入射面情况(0.080μm,1.451μm,20.1μm)时要高。同时该法继承了原来方法的无损伤、操作简便、可重复、易推广、成本低等优点。     

Light Intensity and Photoperiod Affect Growth and Nutritional Quality of Brassica Microgreens

We explored the effects of different light intensities and photoperiods on the growth, nutritional quality and antioxidant properties of two Brassicaceae microgreens (cabbage Brassica oleracea L. and Chinese kale Brassica alboglabra Bailey). There were two experiments: (1) four photosynthetic photon flux densities (PPFD) of 30, 50, 70 or 90 μmoL·m⁻²·s⁻¹ with red:blue:green = 1:1:1 light-emitting diodes (LEDs); (2) five photoperiods of 12, 14, 16, 18 or 20 h·d⁻¹. With the increase of light intensity, the hypocotyl length of cabbage and Chinese kale microgreens shortened. PPFD of 90 μmol·m⁻²·s⁻¹ was beneficial to improve the nutritional quality of cabbage microgreens, which had higher contents of chlorophyll, carotenoids, soluble sugar, soluble protein and vitamin C, as well as increased antioxidant capacity. The optimal PPFD for Chinese kale microgreens was 70 μmol·m⁻²·s⁻¹. Increasing light intensity could increase the antioxidant capacity of cabbage and Chinese kale microgreens, while not significantly affecting glucosinolate (GS) content. The dry and fresh weight of cabbage and Chinese kale microgreens were maximized with a 14-h·d⁻¹ photoperiod. The chlorophyll, carotenoid and soluble protein content in cabbage and Chinese kale microgreens were highest for a 16-h·d⁻¹ photoperiod. The lowest total GS content was found in cabbage microgreens under a 12-h·d⁻¹ photoperiod and in Chinese kale microgreens under 16-h·d⁻¹ photoperiod. In conclusion, the photoperiod of 14~16 h·d⁻¹, and 90 μmol·m⁻²·s⁻¹ and 70 μmol·m⁻²·s⁻¹ PPFD for cabbage and Chinese kale microgreens, respectively, were optimal for cultivation.     

Thermal Conductance of Graphene-Titanium Interface: A Molecular Simulation

Titanium is a commonly used material in aviation, aerospace, and military applications, due to the outstanding mechanical properties of titanium and its alloys. However, its relatively low thermal conductivity restricts its extended usage. The use of graphene as a filler shows great potential for the enhancement of thermal conductivity in titanium-based metal-matrix composites (MMCs). We used classical molecular dynamics (MD) simulation methods to explore the thermal conductance at the titanium–graphene (Ti/Gr) interface for its thermal boundary conductance, which plays an important role in the thermal properties of Ti-based MMCs. The effects of system size, layer number, temperature, and strain were considered. The results show that the thermal boundary conductance (TBC) decreases with an increasing layer number and reaches a plateau at n = 5. TBC falls under tensile strain and, in turn, it grows with compressive strain. The variation of TBC is explained qualitatively by the interfacial atomic vibration coupling factor. Our findings also provide insights into ways to optimize future thermal management based on Ti-based MMCs materials.     

Side-by-side comparison of disposable microchips with commercial capillary cartridges for application in capillary isoelectric focusing with whole column imaging detection

Simple-structured, well-functioned disposable poly(dimethylsiloxane) (PDMS) microchips were developed for capillary isoelectric focusing with whole column imaging detection (CIEF-WCID). Side-by-side comparison of the developed microchips with well-established commercial capillary cartridges demonstrated that the disposable microchips have comparable performance as well as advantages such as absence of lens effect and possibility of high-aspect-ratio accompanied with a dramatic reduction in cost.