Time‐Dependent Photodynamic Therapy for Multiple Targets: A Highly Efficient AIE‐Active Photosensitizer for Selective Bacterial Elimination and Cancer Cell Ablation

Pathogen infections and cancer are two major human health problems. Herein, we report the synthesis of an organic salt photosensitizer (PS), called 4TPA‐BQ, by a one‐step reaction. 4TPA‐BQ presents aggregation‐induced emission features. Owing to the aggregation‐induced reactive oxygen species generated and a sufficiently small ΔE_ST, 4TPA‐BQ shows a satisfactorily high ¹O₂ generation efficiency of 97.8 %. In vitro and in vivo experiments confirmed that 4TPA‐BQ exhibited potent photodynamic antibacterial performance against ampicillin‐resistant Escherichia coli with good biocompatibility in a short time (15 minutes). When the incubation duration persisted long enough (12 hours), cancer cells were ablated efficiently, leaving normal cells essentially unaffected. This is the first reported time‐dependent fluorescence‐guided photodynamic therapy in one individual PS, which achieves ordered and multiple targeting simply by varying the external conditions. 4TPA‐BQ reveals new design principles for the implementation of efficient PSs in clinical applications.     

Effect of CO2 adsorbents on the Ni-based dual-function materials for CO2 capturing and in situ methanation

The present work studied the effect of different carbon dioxide (CO₂) adsorbents on Ni-based dual-function materials (DFMs) for the development of carbon capture and on-site utilization in a reactor at isothermal condition. The DFMs containing Ni functioning as a methanation catalyst with various CO₂ adsorbents (i.e., CaO, MgO, K₂CO₃, or Na₂CO₃) were prepared on γ-Al₂O₃ through sequential impregnation. The result indicated that Ni-Na₂CO₃/γ-Al₂O₃ had the highest methanation capacity (i.e., 0.1783 mmol/g) and efficiency (i.e., 71.09%) in the CO₂ adsorption–methanation test. The CO₂ uptake and the subsequent methanation capacity of the Ni-Na₂CO₃/γ-Al₂O₃ increased to more than 24 times and more than 17 times, respectively, compared to Ni/γ-Al₂O₃. The high methanation capacity was correlated to its highest amount of weak basic sites, substantial CO₂ capture capacity and capture/release efficiency, and reactivity to H₂ at a lower temperature, supported by CO₂-TPD, TGA analyses for adsorption or adsorption–desorption at the isothermal condition, and H₂-TPRea, respectively. A continuous cyclic CO₂ adsorption–methanation was performed by using the Ni-Na₂CO₃/γ-Al₂O₃ and Ni-CaO/γ-Al₂O₃, showing that the CO₂ adsorption capacity was stabilized from third cycle onward, whereas the methanation capacity was stabilized at all cycles, indicating the high stability of the DFMs for both CO₂ adsorption and subsequent methanation. This work demonstrated successful synthesis of the Ni-based, low-cost, and stable DFMs with the ability to produce methane via the direct capture of CO₂.     

Chemometric analysis of gas chromatographic data—investigation of enological parameters of a bag‐in‐box white wine as affected by storage time and temperature

In this study, a bag‐in‐box white wine was stored at 22, 35, and 45 °C for up to 48 days to produce a series of samples that exhibited different enological parameters (absorbance at 420 nm, free SO₂, total SO₂, total phenol, and total aldehyde). Wine samples were extracted with dichloromethane and analyzed using gas chromatography (GC) to generate volatile fingerprints. Principal component analysis (PCA) score plots of the first three principal components showed grouping trends that were influenced by storage time and temperature. PCA loading plots revealed that changes in chemical profiles were different for wines held at different storage temperatures. Storage time could be predicted accurately by partial least squares (PLS) regression of the GC data. Coefficients of determination (R²) were >0.99, and the standard error of prediction values were 0.4, 0.5, and 1.9 days over the test period of 15, 30, and 48 days, respectively. Using the same GC data with PLS analyses, the enological parameters could be accurately predicted from GC fingerprints, except for the predictions of SO₂ in a wine stored at 22 °C and total phenol in a wine stored at 45 °C. Copyright © 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Phase diagram of SrO-InO1.5-CoOx and a new compound Sr3In0.9Co1.1O6

Sr₃In_0.9Co_1.1O₆, isostructural to Ca₃Co₂O₆, is revealed by the study of the phase relations in the system SrO-InO_1.5-CoO_x (1000 °C). The structure of Sr₃In_0.9Co_1.1O₆ is refined by the combination of powder X-ray and neutron diffraction. Sr₃In_0.9Co_1.1O₆ crystallizes in a trigonal lattice with the cell parameters a=b=9.59438(3) Å, c=11.02172(4) Å with the space group R-3c. Its structure possesses 1D (In/Co)O₃ chains running along the c-axis constructed by alternating face-sharing CoO₆ octahedra and (In_0.9Co_0.1)O₆ trigonal prisms. The co-occupation of In³⁺ and Co³⁺ at the trigonal prismatic site is evidenced by elementary analysis and determined by the structure refinement. Sr₃In_0.9Co_1.1O₆ is paramagnetic, and the susceptibility is consistent with the occupation of Co³⁺ at 10% of the trigonal prismatic positions in a high spin state (HS, S=2). The HS Co³⁺ is well separated by diamagnetic CoO₆ octahedra and InO₆ trigonal prisms and shows a g factor of 2.0 in the magnetic measurements.     

Elucidation of Gram-Positive Bacterial Iron(III) Reduction for Kaolinite Clay Refinement

Recently, microbial-based iron reduction has been considered as a viable alternative to typical chemical-based treatments. The iron reduction is an important process in kaolin refining, where iron-bearing impurities in kaolin clay affects the whiteness, refractory properties, and its commercial value. In recent years, Gram-negative bacteria has been in the center stage of iron reduction research, whereas little is known about the potential use of Gram-positive bacteria to refine kaolin clay. In this study, we investigated the ferric reducing capabilities of five microbes by manipulating the microbial growth conditions. Out of the five, we discovered that Bacillus cereus and Staphylococcus aureus outperformed the other microbes under nitrogen-rich media. Through the biochemical changes and the microbial behavior, we mapped the hypothetical pathway leading to the iron reduction cellular properties, and found that the iron reduction properties of these Gram-positive bacteria rely heavily on the media composition. The media composition results in increased basification of the media that is a prerequisite for the cellular reduction of ferric ions. Further, these changes impact the formation of biofilm, suggesting that the cellular interaction for the iron(III)oxide reduction is not solely reliant on the formation of biofilms. This article reveals the potential development of Gram-positive microbes in facilitating the microbial-based removal of metal contaminants from clays or ores. Further studies to elucidate the corresponding pathways would be crucial for the further development of the field.     

Synthesis of (R)-mellein by a partially reducing iterative polyketide synthase

Mellein and the related 3,4-dihydroisocoumarins are a family of natural products with interesting biological properties. The mechanisms of dihydroisocoumarin biosynthesis remain largely speculative today. Here we report the synthesis of mellein by a partially reducing iterative polyketide synthase (PR-PKS) as a pentaketide product. Remarkably, despite the head-to-tail homology shared with several fungal and bacterial PR-PKSs, the mellein synthase exhibits a distinct keto reduction pattern in the synthesis of the pentaketide. We present evidence to show that the ketoreductase (KR) domain alone is able to recognize and differentiate the polyketide intermediates, which provides a mechanistic explanation for the programmed keto reduction in these PR-PKSs.     

Raman investigations of rare‐earth arsenate single crystals

Polarized Raman spectroscopy was used to investigate the room‐temperature phonon characteristics of a series of rare‐earth arsenate (REAsO₄, RE = Sm, Eu, Gd, Tb, Dy, Ho, Tm, Yb, and Lu) single crystals. The Raman data were interpreted in a systematic manner based on the known tetragonal zircon structure of these compounds, and assignments and correlations were made for the observed bands. We found that the wavenumbers of the internal modes of the AsO₄ tetrahedron increased with increasing atomic number. This increase seems to be correlated to the contraction of the RE–O bond length. For three out of four lattice wavenumbers observed, this tendency was not nearly so marked as in the case of the internal mode wavenumber. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Nonlinear refractive index of RECOB (RE = Gd and La) crystals

The Z-scan technique is employed to obtain the nonlinear refractive index (n ₂) of the Ca₄REO(BO₃)₃ (RECOB, where RE = Gd and La) single crystals using 30 fs laser pulses centered at 780 nm for the two orthogonal orientations determined by the optical axes (X and Z) relative to the direction of propagation of the laser beam (k//Y// crystallographic b-axis). The large values of n ₂ indicate that both GdCOB and LaCOB are potential hosts for Yb:RECOB lasers operating in the Kerr-lens mode locking (KLM) regime.     

Anomalously soft dynamics of water in a nanotube: a revelation of nanoscale confinement

Quasi-one-dimensional water encapsulated inside single-walled carbon nanotubes, here referred to as nanotube water, was studied by neutron scattering. The results reveal an anomalously soft dynamics characterized by pliable hydrogen bonds, anharmonic intermolecular potentials, and large-amplitude motions in nanotube water. Molecular dynamics simulations consistently describe the observed phenomena and propose the structure of nanotube water, which comprises a square-ice sheet wrapped into a cylinder inside the carbon nanotube and interior molecules in a chainlike configuration.     

In-line ultrasonic monitoring of semi-solid magnesium die casting process

Ultrasonic velocity and attenuation measurements in AZ91D magnesium (Mg) alloy with dendritic, rosette and globular microstructures were performed at elevated temperatures using a non-contact laser-ultrasonic technique. It was found that the ultrasonic velocity in the globular microstructure and the ultrasonic attenuation in the dendritic microstructure are the highest among the three microstructures. An ultrasonic clad steel buffer rod sensor embedded in the die has been used to monitor the semi-solid die casting process in-line for the AZ91D Mg alloy. This probe monitored the completion of the die filling, the release of the pressure, the opening of the die, part detachment, solidification of the part, the averaged temperature of the die and the part.