Utilization of ground eggshell waste as an adsorbent for the removal of dyes from aqueous solution

The adsorption of cationic basic blue 9 and anionic acid orange 51 from aqueous solution onto the calcified eggshell (ES) and its ground eggshell powder (ESP) was carried out by varying the process parameters such as agitation speed, initial dye concentration, adsorbent mass and temperature. The adsorption potential for basic blue 9 onto ESP is far lower than that for acid orange 51, mainly due to the ionic interaction between the acid dye with the sulfonate groups and the positively charged sites on the surface of ESP. The adsorption capacity of acid orange 51 onto ES is significantly smaller than that onto ESP, which is in line with their pore properties (i.e., 1 vs. 21 m(2)/g). The experimental results showed that the adsorption process can be well described with a simple model, the pseudo-second-order model. According to the equilibrium adsorption capacity from the fitting of pseudo-second order reaction model, it was further found that the Freundlich model yields a somewhat better fit than the Langmuir model in the adsorption of acid orange 51 onto ESP. In addition, an increase in adsorption temperature from 15 to 45 degrees C significantly enhances the adsorption capacity of acid orange 51 onto ESP, revealing that the adsorption should be an endothermic or chemisorption process. From the results, it is feasible to utilize the ground eggshell waste as an effective adsorbent for removal of anionic dye from aqueous solution.     

Endothelial S1pr1 regulates pressure overload‐induced cardiac remodelling through AKT‐eNOS pathway

Cardiac vascular microenvironment is crucial for cardiac remodelling during the process of heart failure. Sphingosine 1‐phosphate (S1P) tightly regulates vascular homeostasis via its receptor, S1pr1. We therefore hypothesize that endothelial S1pr1 might be involved in pathological cardiac remodelling. In this study, heart failure was induced by transverse aortic constriction (TAC) operation. S1pr1 expression is significantly increased in microvascular endothelial cells (ECs) of post‐TAC hearts. Endothelial‐specific deletion of S1pr1 significantly aggravated cardiac dysfunction and deteriorated cardiac hypertrophy and fibrosis in myocardium. In vitro experiments demonstrated that S1P/S1pr1 praxis activated AKT/eNOS signalling pathway, leading to more production of nitric oxide (NO), which is an essential cardiac protective factor. Inhibition of AKT/eNOS pathway reversed the inhibitory effect of EC‐S1pr1‐overexpression on angiotensin II (AngII)‐induced cardiomyocyte (CM) hypertrophy, as well as on TGF‐β‐mediated cardiac fibroblast proliferation and transformation towards myofibroblasts. Finally, pharmacological activation of S1pr1 ameliorated TAC‐induced cardiac hypertrophy and fibrosis, leading to an improvement in cardiac function. Together, our results suggest that EC‐S1pr1 might prevent the development of pressure overload‐induced heart failure via AKT/eNOS pathway, and thus pharmacological activation of S1pr1 or EC‐targeting S1pr1‐AKT‐eNOS pathway could provide a future novel therapy to improve cardiac function during heart failure development.     

Structure-activity relationships and docking studies of synthetic 2-arylindole derivatives determined with aromatase and quinone reductase 1

In our ongoing effort of discovering anticancer and chemopreventive agents, a series of 2-arylindole derivatives were synthesized and evaluated toward aromatase and quinone reductase 1 (QR1). Biological evaluation revealed that several compounds (e.g., 2d, IC₅₀?=?1.61?μM; 21, IC₅₀?=?3.05?μM; and 27, IC₅₀?=?3.34?μM) showed aromatase inhibitory activity with half maximal inhibitory concentration (IC₅₀) values in the low micromolar concentrations. With regard to the QR1 induction activity, 11 exhibited the highest QR1 induction ratio (IR) with a low concentration to double activity (CD) value (IR?=?8.34, CD?=?2.75?μM), while 7 showed the most potent CD value of 1.12?μM. A dual acting compound 24 showed aromatase inhibition (IC₅₀?=?9.00?μM) as well as QR1 induction (CD?=?5.76?μM) activities. Computational docking studies using CDOCKER (Discovery Studio 3.5) provided insight in regard to the potential binding modes of 2-arylindoles within the aromatase active site. Predominantly, the 2-arylindoles preferred binding with the 2-aryl group toward a small hydrophobic pocket within the active site. The C-5 electron withdrawing group on indole was predicted to have an important role and formed a hydrogen bond with Ser478 (OH). Alternatively, meta-pyridyl analogs may orient with the pyridyl 3′-nitrogen coordinating with the heme group.     

Hx, a novel fluorescent, minor groove and sequence specific recognition element: design, synthesis, and DNA binding properties of p-anisylbenzimidazole-imidazole/pyrrole-containing polyamides

With the aim of incorporating a recognition element that acts as a fluorescent probe upon binding to DNA, three novel pyrrole (P) and imidazole (I)-containing polyamides were synthesized. The compounds contain a p-anisylbenzimidazolecarboxamido (Hx) moiety attached to a PP, IP, or PI unit, giving compounds HxPP (2), HxIP (3), and HxPI (4), respectively. These fluorescent hybrids were tested against their complementary nonfluorescent, non-formamido tetraamide counterparts, namely, PPPP (5), PPIP (6), and PPPI (7) (cognate sequences 5'-AAATTT-3', 5'-ATCGAT-3', and 5'-ACATGT-3', respectively). The binding affinities for both series of polyamides for their cognate and noncognate sequences were ascertained by surface plasmon resonance (SPR) studies, which revealed that the Hx-containing polyamides gave binding constants in the 10(6) M(-1) range while little binding was observed for the noncognates. The binding data were further compared to the corresponding and previously reported formamido-triamides f-PPP (8), f-PIP (9), and f-PPI (10). DNase I footprinting studies provided additional evidence that the Hx moiety behaved similarly to two consecutive pyrroles (PP found in 5-7), which also behaved like a formamido-pyrrole (f-P) unit found in distamycin and many formamido-triamides, including 8-10. The biophysical characterization of polyamides 2-7 on their binding to the abovementioned DNA sequences was determined using thermal melts (ΔT(M)), circular dichroism (CD), and isothermal titration calorimetry (ITC) studies. Density functional calculations (B3LYP) provided a theoretical framework that explains the similarity between PP and Hx on the basis of molecular electrostatic surfaces and dipole moments. Furthermore, emission studies on polyamides 2 and 3 showed that upon excitation at 322 nm binding to their respective cognate sequences resulted in an increase in fluorescence at 370 nm. These low molecular weight polyamides show promise for use as probes for monitoring DNA recognition processes in cells.     

Low Hemoglobin Level Is Associated with the Development of Delirium after Hepatectomy for Hepatocellular Carcinoma Patients

Background

Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is one of the most common malignant tumors worldwide and liver resection is the only potential curative treatment option for those patients. Postoperative complications specific to elderly surgical patients such as delirium will be increasingly relevant in the coming decades. Herein, we aimed to investigate the risk factors for postoperative delirium in patients who have received hepatectomy for HCC.

Methods

This is a single medical center observational study and the study subjects comprised 401 individuals who underwent liver resection for hepatocellular carcinoma during January 2009 to October 2013. Multivariate analysis was used to examine whether preoperative, intra-operative, or postoperative variables were associated with the development of delirium.

Results

Of the 401 patients who underwent hepatectomy, 34 developed postoperative delirium (8.4%). In the majority of those patients, symptoms and signs of the syndrome occurred on postoperative day 2 and the mean duration of symptoms was 3.61 ± 3.71 days. Multivariate analysis revealed that advanced age (>71 years) [odds ratio (OR) = 1.133, 95% confidence interval (CI): 1.071–1.200, p<0.001], prolonged operative time (>190 minutes) (OR = 1.009, 95% CI: 1.000–1.017, p = 0.038), a decreased postoperative hemoglobin level (< 10.16 g/dL) (OR = 0.777, 95% CI: 0.613–0.983, p = 0.036), and history of hypnotic drug use (OR = 3.074, 95% CI: 1.045–9.039, p = 0.041) were independent risk factors for the development of postoperative delirium after hepatectomy.

Conclusions

Although the mechanism of postoperative delirium is not well understood, numbers of studies have shown that patients with postoperative delirium tend to have prolonged hospital stay, worse postoperative outcome and an increased risk of short- and long-term mortality. In this study, we found that advanced age, prolonged operative time, postoperative low hemoglobin level and history of hypnotic drug use are independent risk factors for postoperative delirium.     

Molecular epidemiology of adenovirus type 8 (Ad 8) in Taiwan: four subtypes recovered during the period of 1980-1981 from patients with epidemic keratoconjunctivitis

Adenovirus type 8 (Ad 8) has been the major and important causative agent of epidemic keratoconjunctivitis (EKC). By enzymatic cleavage analysis with five endonucleases, PstI, HindIII, BamHI, SalI and SstI, 27 out of 149 Ad 8 isolates recovered from patients with EKC during the period from July, 1980 to July, 1981 in Kaohsiung, Taiwan, were studied. By cleavage patterns, 27 Ad 8 isolates in Kaohsiung were classified into four subtypes which were found to be different from the subtypes (Ad 8A, Ad 8B) prevalent in Sapporo (1).     

Impacts of ISCO Persulfate,Peroxide and Permanganate Oxidants on Soils: Soil Oxidant Demand and Soil Properties

The consumption of in-situ chemical oxidation (ISCO) oxidant by soil oxidizable matter (OM), termed the soil oxidant demand (SOD), is an essential factor when designing treatments for successful remediation at an ISCO site. This study aims to assess the impact of different oxidants on SOD and the soil itself, using the Taguchi experimental design. Five oxidation systems, including persulfate (PS), hydrogen peroxide (HP), permanganate (PM), Fe²⁺ activated PS and Fe²⁺ activated HP, and four factors including oxidant concentration, activator concentration, reaction time, and pH were investigated. The results of the Taguchi analysis in this study show that oxidant concentration had the greatest effect on the SOD. Other factors also affected the SOD and the optimum conditions for achieving a lower SOD were determined using the Taguchi design method. Additionally, original and oxidized soils were analyzed using a scanning electron microscope equipped with an X-ray energy dispersive spectrometer to determine the surface morphology and chemical composition of the samples. Variations in soil organic carbon levels and total soil bacterial counts were recorded and the speciation of soil minerals (Fe, Mn, Cu, and Zn) was analyzed.