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In embedding systems, protein–polysaccharide complexes can be utilized as wall materials to improve the bioavailability and activity of bioactive substances during delivery. This study used the antisolvent precipitation method to manufacture gliadin from highland barley distillers’ grains (HBDGG)–chitosan (Cs) nanoparticles. Using a variety of characterization techniques, the microstructure and interaction mechanism of HBDGG-Cs nanoparticles were examined, and their stability was assessed. In comparison to HBDGG, the results indicated that the addition of Cs enhanced the intensity of UV absorption and reduced the intensity of fluorescence. The content of α-helix dropped, while β-sheet, β-turn, and irregularly coiled content rose in the complexes. Hydrogen bonding, hydrophobic interactions, and electrostatic interactions were the primary forces that formed the nanoparticles. The contact force between HBDGG and Cs enhanced the stability of the nanoparticles. The particle size, polydispersity index (PDI), and zeta potential were 526.10 ± 11.78 nm, 0.20 ± 0.06, and 51.31 ± 0.66 mV, respectively, at a mass ratio of 1:1 between HBDGG and Cs. The nanoparticles exhibited good ionic, acid-base, and storage stability in addition to being widely distributed. This work offers a theoretical foundation for employing HBDGG-Cs nanoparticles to deliver bioactive components in food as well as a novel method for the comprehensive usage of HBDGG and Cs.

The integration of modern technology and architectural design in intelligent buildings has led to advancements in functionality and user experience. These developments have also contributed to the pursuit of environmental sustainability, energy conservation, and emission reduction through the implementation of advanced technological systems. Guided by the concept of green and low-carbon, intelligent building design emphasizes the full utilization of renewable energy while utilizing advanced algorithms to optimize energy scheduling in intelligent buildings, achieving green, low-carbon, energy-saving, and emission-reduction goals. Therefore, based on the concept of green and low-carbon, this study optimizes the renewable energy system, lighting control system, elevator control system, and air conditioning control system of intelligent buildings. The experimental findings, utilizing a paradigmatic intelligent office building in Shanghai as a case study, demonstrated that the solar wind complementary power generation system of the building attained an annual power generation of 609,380 kWh. This amount satisfied 60% of the building's electricity requirement, thereby signifying a substantial breakthrough in conventional building energy supply methodologies. The lighting system adopted intelligent time lighting dual-mode control, reducing energy consumption by 10.1%. The optimization of the elevator group control algorithm could achieve an average monthly power saving of 6100 kWh. The air conditioning system reduced energy consumption by 7238 kWh/month through a load forecasting model. The results showed that the intelligent building energy optimization system established in the study, through multi-system algorithm linkage, improved overall energy efficiency by 23% compared to traditional solutions. This method provides a reusable technical paradigm for smart city emission reduction.

Background Studies on the relationship between insulin resistance (IR) surrogates and long-term all-cause mortality in patients with coronary heart disease (CHD) and hypertension are lacking. This study aimed to explore the relationship between different IR surrogates and all-cause mortality and identify valuable predictors of survival status in this population. Methods The data came from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES 2001–2018) and National Death Index (NDI). Multivariate Cox regression and restricted cubic splines (RCS) were performed to evaluate the relationship between homeostatic model assessment of IR (HOMA-IR), triglyceride glucose index (TyG index), triglyceride glucose-body mass index (TyG-BMI index) and all-cause mortality. The recursive algorithm was conducted to calculate inflection points when segmenting effects were found. Then, segmented Kaplan–Meier analysis, LogRank tests, and multivariable Cox regression were carried out. Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) and calibration curves were drawn to evaluate the differentiation and accuracy of IR surrogates in predicting the all-cause mortality. Stratified analysis and interaction tests were conducted according to age, gender, diabetes, cancer, hypoglycemic and lipid-lowering drug use. Results 1126 participants were included in the study. During the median follow-up of 76 months, 455 participants died. RCS showed that HOMA-IR had a segmented effect on all-cause mortality. 3.59 was a statistically significant inflection point. When the HOMA-IR was less than 3.59, it was negatively associated with all-cause mortality [HR = 0.87,95%CI (0.78, 0.97)]. Conversely, when the HOMA-IR was greater than 3.59, it was positively associated with all-cause mortality [HR = 1.03,95%CI (1.00, 1.05)]. ROC and calibration curves indicated that HOMA-IR was a reliable predictor of survival status (area under curve = 0,812). No interactions between HOMA-IR and stratified variables were found. Conclusion The relationship between HOMA-IR and all-cause mortality was U-shaped in patients with CHD and hypertension. HOMA-IR was a reliable predictor of all-cause mortality in this population.

Background Studies have shown that poor sleep could result in many unpleasant consequences and is prevalent in nurses. Considering the fact of high stress, overwhelming workload and many night shifts in the emergency department in China, this study aimed to evaluate the current status of emergency nurses’ sleep quality in public hospitals in Shandong, China and explored its influencing factors. Methods A self-administered questionnaire incorporating the Job Content Questionnaire and Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI) was conducted among 4856 emergency nurses in five randomly selected city emergency command systems in Shandong, China. The association of potential influencing factors, including occupational, psychosocial and individual factors, with poor sleep (PSQI> 5) was quantified by multivariate logistic regression analysis. Results The average PSQI score of 4730 emergency nurses in public hospitals was 8.2 ± 3.9, including 3114 (65.8%) subjects with PSQI > 5 and 2905 (61.4%) > 8; these figures were found highest for 337 emergency nurses in 14 tertiary hospitals with 11.8 ± 4.3, 257 (76.3%) and 232 (68.8%), followed by 1044 emergency nurses in 43 secondary hospitals with 9.5 ± 3.9, 725 (69.4%) and 675 (64.7%) and 3349 emergency nurses in 167 primary hospitals with 7.4 ± 3.5, 2132 (63.7%) and 1998 (59.7%). The following factors were associated with poor sleep: hospital level (tertiary vs. primary, secondary vs. primary), female sex, less of exercise, long work hours per week, many patients in the charge of at night, high monthly night shift frequency (4–6 vs. never, ≥7 vs. never) and high occupational stress. Conclusions The sleep quality of emergency nurses in public hospitals in China was poor, especially in tertiary hospitals. Many factors as listed above, especially occupational stress, night shift taking and workload at night, should be considered when improving emergency nurses’ sleep quality.

Spinal cord injury (SCI) is a serious traumatic disease of the central nervous system, which can give rise to the loss of motor and sensory function. Due to its complex pathological mechanism, the treatment of this disease still faces a huge challenge. Hydrogels with good biocompatibility and biodegradability can well imitate the extracellular matrix in the microenvironment of spinal cord. Hydrogels have been regarded as promising SCI repair material in recent years and continuous studies have confirmed that hydrogel-based therapy can effectively eliminate inflammation and promote spinal cord repair and regeneration to improve SCI. In this review, hydrogel-based multimodal therapeutic strategies to repair SCI are provided, and a combination of hydrogel scaffolds and other therapeutic modalities are discussed, with particular emphasis on the repair mechanism of SCI.

Developing efficient noble-metal-free surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) substrates and unveiling the underlying mechanism is crucial for ultrasensitive molecular sensing. Herein, we report a facile synthesis of mixed-dimensional heterostructures via oxygen plasma treatments of two-dimensional (2D) materials. As a proof-of-concept, 1D/2D WO 3- x /WSe 2 heterostructures with good controllability and reproducibility are synthesized, in which 1D WO 3-x nanowire patterns are laterally arranged along the three-fold symmetric directions of 2D WSe 2 . The WO 3-x /WSe 2 heterostructures exhibited high molecular sensitivity, with a limit of detection of 5 × 10 −18  M and an enhancement factor of 5.0 × 10 11 for methylene blue molecules, even in mixed solutions. We associate the ultrasensitive performance to the efficient charge transfer induced by the unique structures of 1D WO 3-x nanowires and the effective interlayer coupling of the heterostructures. We observed a charge transfer timescale of around 1.0 picosecond via ultrafast transient spectroscopy. Our work provides an alternative strategy for the synthesis of 1D nanostructures from 2D materials and offers insights on the role of ultrafast charge transfer mechanisms in plasmon-free SERS-based molecular sensing. 2D materials are promising substrates for surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS)-based molecular sensing, but their performance is usually inferior to their plasmonic counterparts. Here, the authors report the synthesis of 1D/2D WO 3-x /WSe 2 heterostructures, showing high molecular sensitivity associated to ultrafast charge transfer timescales of ~1 ps.

Epidermal growth factor receptor-tyrosine kinase inhibitors (EGFR-TKIs) have achieved satisfactory clinical effects in the therapy of non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC), but acquired resistance limits their clinical application. NRF2 has been shown to enhance the resistance to apoptosis induced by radiotherapy and some chemotherapy. In this study, we investigated the role of NRF2 in resistance to EGFR-TKIs. We showed that NRF2 protein levels were markedly increased in a panel of EGFR-TKI-resistant NSCLC cell lines due to slow degradation of NRF2 protein. NRF2 knockdown overcame the resistance to EGFR-TKIs in HCC827ER and HCC827GR cells. Furthermore, we demonstrated that NRF2 imparted EGFR-TKIs resistance in HCC827 cells via upregulation of GPX4 and SOD2, and suppression of GPX4 and SOD2 reversed resistance to EGFR-TKIs. Thus, we conclude that targeting NRF2-GPX4/SOD2 pathway is a potential strategy for overcoming resistance to EGFR-TKIs.

Crown pears exhibit high susceptibility to rot and rapid deterioration, resulting in quality degradation and fruit softening. Edible coatings serve as an effective preservation technology to extend their shelf life. In this study, a composite coating solution was formulated using vitamin C (Vc), glycerol, ethanol, and gliadin derived from highland barley distillers’ grains. The coating formulation was optimized via single-factor experiments and Box–Behnken response surface methodology, with crown pears’ weight loss as the evaluation metric. The optimal composition comprised 19.86 mg/mL gliadin, 1.47% (v/v) glycerol, 2.49% (w/v) Vc, and 80.20% (v/v) ethanol, achieving a minimized weight loss of (3.30 ± 0.01)%. Treated pears coated with this optimized formulation were stored for 28 days. Preservation efficacy was evaluated through measurements of weight loss, decay rate, total number of colonies, firmness, titratable acid content, and polyphenol oxidase activity. Compared to the uncoated control group, the composite coating treatment significantly mitigated the decline in firmness, weight loss, and titratable acid content of crown pears. Furthermore, it effectively suppressed the increase in polyphenol oxidase (PPO) activity, decay rate, and total number of colonies, thereby extending the shelf life of the fruit.

HighlightsS-doped CuO nanorod arrays (S-CuO/CF) constructed by sulfur leaching and oxidative remodeling strategy require only 1.23 and 1.33 V versus hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) to provide glycerol oxidation currents of 100 and 500 mA cm−2.S-CuO/CF shows satisfactory performance (at 100 mA cm−2, Vcell = 1.37 V) assembled as the anode in asymmetric coupled electrolytic cell of glycerol oxidation reaction and HER.The study identifies the key factors involved in the GOR reaction pathway, which include the C–C bond breaking and lattice oxygen deintercalation steps.Glycerol (electrochemical) oxidation reaction (GOR) producing organic small molecule acid and coupling with hydrogen evolution reaction is a critical aspect of ensuring balanced glycerol capacity and promoting hydrogen generation on a large scale. However, the development of highly efficient and selective non-noble metal-based GOR electrocatalysts is still a key problem. Here, an S-doped CuO nanorod array catalyst (S-CuO/CF) constructed by sulfur leaching and oxidative remodeling is used to drive GOR at low potentials: It requires potentials of only 1.23 and 1.33 V versus RHE to provide currents of 100 and 500 mA cm−2, respectively. Moreover, it shows satisfactory comprehensive performance (at 100 mA cm−2, Vcell = 1.37 V) when assembled as the anode in asymmetric coupled electrolytic cell. Furthermore, we propose a detailed cycle reaction pathway (in alkaline environment) of S-doped CuO surface promoting GOR to produce formic acid and glycolic acid. Among them, the C–C bond breaking and lattice oxygen deintercalation steps frequently involved in the reaction pathway are the key factors to determine the catalytic performance and product selectivity. This research provides valuable guidance for the development of transition metal-based electrocatalysts for GOR and valuable insights into the glycerol oxidation cycle reaction pathway.

Disruptions of circadian rhythms and sleep cycles are common among neurodegenerative diseases and can occur at multiple levels. Accumulating evidence reveals a bidirectional relationship between disruptions of circadian rhythms and sleep cycles and neurodegenerative diseases. Circadian disruption and sleep disorders aggravate neurodegeneration and neurodegenerative diseases can in turn disrupt circadian rhythms and sleep. Importantly, circadian disruption and various sleep disorders can increase the risk of neurodegenerative diseases. Thus, harnessing the circadian biology findings from preclinical and translational research in neurodegenerative diseases is of importance for reducing risk of neurodegeneration and improving symptoms and quality of life of individuals with neurodegenerative disorders via approaches that normalize circadian in the context of precision medicine. In this review, we discuss the implications of circadian disruption and sleep disorders in neurodegenerative diseases by summarizing evidence from both human and animal studies, focusing on the bidirectional links of sleep and circadian rhythms with prevalent forms of neurodegeneration. These findings provide valuable insights into the pathogenesis of neurodegenerative diseases and suggest a promising role of circadian-based interventions.