Explore the vast range of titles available.

Therapeutic mAbs must not only bind to their target but must also be free from “developability issues” such as poor stability or high levels of aggregation. While small-molecule drug discovery benefits from Lipinski’s rule of five to guide the selection of molecules with appropriate biophysical properties, there is currently no in silico analog for antibody design. Here, we model the variable domain structures of a large set of post-phase-I clinical-stage antibody therapeutics (CSTs) and calculate in silico metrics to estimate their typical properties. In each case, we contextualize the CST distribution against a snapshot of the human antibody gene repertoire. We describe guideline values for five metrics thought to be implicated in poor developability: the total length of the complementarity-determining regions (CDRs), the extent and magnitude of surface hydrophobicity, positive charge and negative charge in the CDRs, and asymmetry in the net heavy- and light-chain surface charges. The guideline cutoffs for each property were derived from the values seen in CSTs, and a flagging system is proposed to identify nonconforming candidates. On two mAb drug discovery sets, we were able to selectively highlight sequences with developability issues. We make available the Therapeutic Antibody Profiler (TAP), a computational tool that builds downloadable homology models of variable domain sequences, tests them against our five developability guidelines, and reports potential sequence liabilities and canonical forms. TAP is freely available at opig.stats.ox.ac.uk/webapps/sabdab-sabpred/TAP.php.

A method for preparing superhydrophobic polytetrafluoroethylene materials by micro- and nanoimprinting is discussed. Surfaces with superhydrophobic properties were prepared by designing and imprinting micro- and nano-structures on polytetrafluoroethylene materials. The experiments on weather resistance and durability revealed that the microstructure of screens of different mesh sizes was processed onto the surface of PTFE material by micro-nano thermal imprinting to make it hydrophobic and oleophobic, and retained the original excellent properties of corrosion resistance and low surface attachment, etc. The material processed by the new method has a wide range of application prospects in various fields.

Hydrophobic soil has been proposed to be adopted as an infiltration barrier for geostructures because a water-entry value needs to be reached to wet hydrophobic soil. The Washburn equation was initially proposed to estimate the capillary height of hydrophilic soil (contact angles lower than 90 degrees), thus it is doubtful that whether one can use it for hydrophobic soil (contact angles larger than 90 degrees) without modification. Current studies show poor estimations of water-entry value by adopting the Washburn equation. This paper aims to conduct a review on the affecting factors of water-entry value for hydrophobic soil. Data from the literature are collected, reinterpreted and analysed with reference to existing theories. At the end of this review, research gaps which may be worth investigating are given.

The problem of droplets impacting rough wall has always been a hot spot in the engineering field. In this paper, the single-component multiphase lattice Boltzmann method is used to construct the wall microstructure, and the dynamic behavior characteristics of droplets impacting rough walls are simulated. The results show that the final state of a droplet impacting rectangular microstructure shows that the hydrophilic surface is more hydrophilic and the hydrophobic surface is more hydrophobic, and compared with the smooth surface, the microstructure surface hinders the rebound of the droplet, and the application of microstructure on the wall can promote the spreading of a droplet on the wall.

Piezoelectric nanogenerators (PENGs) are promising for harvesting renewable and abundant mechanical energy with high efficiency. Up to now, published research studies have mainly focused on increasing the sensitivity and output of PENGs. The technical challenges in relation to practicability, comfort, and antibacterial performance, which are critically important for wearable applications, have not been well addressed. To overcome the limitations, we developed an all-nanofiber PENG (ANF-PENG) with a sandwich structure, in which the middle poly(vinylidene fluoride-co-hexafluoropropylene (P(VDF-HFP))/ZnO electrospun nanofibers serve as the piezoelectric layer, and the above and below electrostatic direct-writing P(VDF-HFP)/ZnO nanofiber membranes with a 110 nm Ag layer on one side that was plated by vacuum coating technique serve as the electrode layer. As the ANF-PENG only has 91 µm thick and does not need further encapsulating, it has a high air permeability of 24.97 mm/s. ZnO nanoparticles in ANF-PENG not only improve the piezoelectric output, but also have antibacterial function (over 98%). The multifunctional ANF-PENG demonstrates good sensitivity to human motion and can harvest mechanical energy, indicating great potential applications in flexible self-powered electronic wearables and body health monitoring.

Biogranulation is a promising technology for efficient wastewater treatment. This study introduces a spring-shaped fixed mixer to accelerate the biogranulation process by improving sludge characteristics. The aim is to determine the optimal diameter for the mixer that enhances sludge aggregation, surface hydrophobicity, and biomass profile. Spring-shaped mixers with diameters of 1 cm, 3 cm, and 5 cm were tested in a sequence batch reactor. The 1 cm and 3 cm mixers improved surface hydrophobicity by 5%, reaching 79% and 77%, respectively. Additionally, the 1 cm mixer significantly boosted sludge aggregation from 35% to 55%. Although the 5 cm mixer showed the most substantial change in the biomass profile, increasing the MLVSS/MLSS ratio from 0.81 to 0.95, the 1 cm mixer achieved the highest value at 0.98. Smaller diameters enhanced overall sludge characteristics due to increased turbulence and mixing efficiency.

The biofilm matrix can be considered to be a shared space for the encased microbial cells, comprising a wide variety of extracellular polymeric substances (EPS), such as polysaccharides, proteins, amyloids, lipids and extracellular DNA (eDNA), as well as membrane vesicles and humic-like microbially derived refractory substances. EPS are dynamic in space and time and their components interact in complex ways, fulfilling various functions: to stabilize the matrix, acquire nutrients, retain and protect eDNA or exoenzymes, or offer sorption sites for ions and hydrophobic substances. The retention of exoenzymes effectively renders the biofilm matrix an external digestion system influencing the global turnover of biopolymers, considering the ubiquitous relevance of biofilms. Physico-chemical and biological interactions and environmental conditions enable biofilm systems to morph into films, microcolonies and macrocolonies, films, ridges, ripples, columns, pellicles, bubbles, mushrooms and suspended aggregates — in response to the very diverse conditions confronting a particular biofilm community. Assembly and dynamics of the matrix are mostly coordinated by secondary messengers, signalling molecules or small RNAs, in both medically relevant and environmental biofilms. Fully deciphering how bacteria provide structure to the matrix, and thus facilitate and benefit from extracellular reactions, remains the challenge for future biofilm research.In this Review, Flemming et al. revisit our understanding of the biofilm matrix, focusing on the diversity of the extracellular polymeric substance components and novel aspects of mechanisms and consequences of their functional interactions.

Large amount of oily wastewater discharged from domestic sources and industrial has caused lots of pollution to our surrounding. Thus, searching effective and eco‐friendly ways for separation of stabilized oil/water emulsions is urgent and highly desirable. Among various methods, membrane with special wettability is an ideal choice for the efficient treatment of oil/water emulsions owing to its low energy consumption and cost. However, it remains a great challenge to develop super‐wettable membranes using green and inexpensive materials to realize durability, easy fabrication and scale‐up. To address this issue, a highly flexible, durable, robust, and super‐hydrophobic polydivinylbenzene (PDVB)‐wood membrane with hydrophobic‐nanopores is developed by the surface coating of cross‐linked PDVB on the porous wood. The as‐produced PDVB‐wood membrane shows excellent flexibility, durability, chemical resistance and possesses above 99.98% separation efficiency for surfactant‐stabilized water‐in‐oil emulsions. Furthermore, the PDVB‐wood membrane also performs excellent recyclability with separation efficiency up to 99.98% after 20 separation cycles. The synergistic effect of the super‐hydrophobicity and nanopores contributes to the high separation performance. With its excellent durability, easy scale up, easy fabrication, inexpensive, and green regeneration, we envision that this functional biomass‐derived membrane could be used as a substitute for filter membrane in environmental restoration. Wood nanotechnologies are developed to manipulate and functionalize the nanostructure of bulk wood resulting in a highly flexible, durable, and superhydrophobic polydivinylbenzene (PDVB)‐wood membrane with hydrophobic nanopores caused by molecular cross‐linking. This flexible PDVB‐wood membrane possesses fast and efficient separation effect of stabilized oil/water emulsions that is comparable to previous membranes, and could be potentially applied in environmental remediation.

Facile and efficient radiative daytime cooling technology is still a huge challenge. In this paper, we proposed an eco-friendly, facile, efficient superhydrophobic radiative daytime cooling film composed of polydimethylsiloxane, nano TiO 2 , and nano SiO 2 . This radiative daytime cooling film could have about 15°C cooling of Al sheet, 9°C cooling for the building model on a sunny summer day, and 8°C cooling for the building model on a cloudy summer day, respectively. This method is promising to be used in building cooling fields.