ROS-Mediated Anti-Tumor Effect of Coptidis Rhizoma against Human Hepatocellular Carcinoma Hep3B Cells and Xenografts

Coptidis Rhizoma is the dried rhizome from the Coptis chinensis Franch. that has been shown to have a number of beneficial pharmacological properties including antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, and anti-cancer effects. However, the anti-cancer effects of Coptidis Rhizoma on hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) remain unclear. In this study, we investigated the anti-cancer properties of Coptidis Rhizoma ethanol extract (CR) in HCC Hep3B cells and in a xenograft mouse model. Our results showed that the CR significantly inhibited cell growth and induced apoptosis in Hep3B cells through increased expression of Bcl-2 associated x-protein (Bax) and cleavage of poly-ADP ribose polymerase (PARP), reduced expression of Bcl-2, and activated caspases. CR also increased the generation of intracellular reactive oxygen species (ROS), which caused a loss of mitochondrial membrane potential (MMP, ΔΨm) and activation of the mitochondria-mediated intrinsic apoptosis pathway. Moreover, N-acetylcysteine (NAC), a ROS inhibitor, markedly blocked the effects of CR on apoptotic pathways. CR also induced the expression of light chain 3 (LC3)-I/II, a key autophagy regulator, whereas CR-mediated autophagy was significantly suppressed by NAC. In addition, pre-treatment with NAC perfectly attenuated the inhibition of cell invasion and migration of CR-stimulated Hep3B cells. Furthermore, oral administration of CR suppressed Hep3B tumor growth in xenograft mice without toxicity, alterations to body weight, or changes in hematological and biochemical profiles. Taken together, our findings suggest that CR has anti-tumor effects that result from ROS generation, and may be a potential pharmacological intervention for HCC.     

Hepatitis B Virus-Like Particle: Targeted Delivery of Plasmid Expressing Short Hairpin RNA for Silencing the Bcl-2 Gene in Cervical Cancer Cells

Gene therapy research has advanced to clinical trials, but it is hampered by unstable nucleic acids packaged inside carriers and there is a lack of specificity towards targeted sites in the body. This study aims to address gene therapy limitations by encapsidating a plasmid synthesizing a short hairpin RNA (shRNA) that targets the anti-apoptotic Bcl-2 gene using truncated hepatitis B core antigen (tHBcAg) virus-like particle (VLP). A shRNA sequence targeting anti-apoptotic Bcl-2 was synthesized and cloned into the pSilencer 2.0-U6 vector. The recombinant plasmid, namely PshRNA, was encapsidated inside tHBcAg VLP and conjugated with folic acid (FA) to produce FA-tHBcAg-PshRNA VLP. Electron microscopy revealed that the FA-tHBcAg-PshRNA VLP has an icosahedral structure that is similar to the unmodified tHBcAg VLP. Delivery of FA-tHBcAg-PshRNA VLP into HeLa cells overexpressing the folate receptor significantly downregulated the expression of anti-apoptotic Bcl-2 at 48 and 72 h post-transfection. The 3-(4, 5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2, 5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide (MTT) assay demonstrated that the cells’ viability was significantly reduced from 89.46% at 24 h to 64.52% and 60.63%, respectively, at 48 and 72 h post-transfection. As a conclusion, tHBcAg VLP can be used as a carrier for a receptor-mediated targeted delivery of a therapeutic plasmid encoding shRNA for gene silencing in cancer cells.     

Computer‐aided design methodology for linearity enhancement of multiwatt GaN HEMT amplifiers using multiple parallel devices

This article presents a design methodology for linearizing GaN HEMT amplifiers based on splitting a large FET into multiple parallel FETs with same total gate periphery and by biasing them individually. By varying the biases, the magnitude and the phase of the IMD3 components at the output of FET changes. A detailed simulation methodology using commercial microwave CAD software is presented. Simulation results show that by biasing one device in Class AB and other(s) in deep Class AB mode, IMD3 components of parallel FETs can be made out of phase to each other leading to cancellation and improvement in linearity. Three prototype circuits were simulated using (a) a single 5 mm FET (1 × 5 mm), (b) two parallel 2.5 mm FETs (2 × 2.5 mm), and (c) four parallel 1.25 mm FETs (4 × 1.25 mm), for a total gate periphery of 5 mm, over the frequency range of 0.8 to 1.0 GHz. IMD3 improvement up to 20 dBc was achieved with the 4 × 1.25 mm circuit when the FET biases were optimized. Measurement results show improvement in linearity up to 20 dBc for 4 × 1.25 mm circuit. The proposed method improves linearity without a substantial penalty on the power consumption and is straightforward to implement.     

Simultaneous determination of synthetic food additives in kimchi by liquid chromatography-electrospray tandem mass spectrometry

Food Science and Biotechnology - A new analytical method was developed for the simultaneous determination of seven food additives (Ponceau 4R, Allura Red AC, Amaranth, 4-hydroxymethyl benzoic acid,...     

A Polyallylamine Anchored Amine‐Rich Laser‐Ablated Graphene Platform for Facile and Highly Selective Electrochemical IgG Biomarker Detection

Current immunosensors have an insufficient number of binding sites for the recognition of biomolecules, which leads to false positive or negative results. In this research, a facile, cost‐effective, disposable, and highly selective electrochemical immunosensing platform is developed based on cationic polyelectrolyte polyallylamine (PAAMI) anchored laser‐ablated graphene (LAG). Here, for the first time, PAAMI is introduced to stabilize LAG flakes, while retaining the intrinsic thermal and electronic properties of the substrate by noncovalent π–π interaction and electrostatic physical absorption. The sensing platform offers a suitable number of anchoring sites for the immobilized antibodies by providing ? NH₂ functional groups. The proper grafting of PAAMI is confirmed through X‐ray photoelectron spectroscopy and Raman spectroscopy. The immunosensing platform is applied to detect immunoglobulin (IgG) biomarkers as a proof of concept. Under optimized conditions, the sensing platform exhibits a linear range of 0.012–15 and 15–352 ng mL^?1 with a limit of detection of 6 pg mL^?1 for IgG detection with high selectivity. Based on the analysis, the developed immunosensing platform can be used for point‐of‐care detection of IgG in clinical diagnostic centers. Furthermore, the developed strategy is well suited for the detection of other cancer biomarkers after immobilizing the relevant antibodies.     

Fame in the sciences: a culturomics approach

Scientometrics - Although scientists, like many other professionals, aspire to fame and recognition, research in the emergent field of fame and celebrity has as yet neglected to explore their fame...     

Scanning Probe Lithography Patterning of Monolayer Semiconductors and Application in Quantifying Edge Recombination

Scanning probe lithography is used to directly pattern monolayer transition metal dichalcogenides (TMDs) without the use of a sacrificial resist. Using an atomic‐force microscope, a negatively biased tip is brought close to the TMD surface. By inducing a water bridge between the tip and the TMD surface, controllable oxidation is achieved at the sub‐100 nm resolution. The oxidized flake is then submerged into water for selective oxide removal which leads to controllable patterning. In addition, by changing the oxidation time, thickness tunable patterning of multilayer TMDs is demonstrated. This resist‐less process results in exposed edges, overcoming a barrier in traditional resist‐based lithography and dry etch where polymeric byproduct layers are often formed at the edges. By patterning monolayers into geometric patterns of different dimensions and measuring the effective carrier lifetime, the non‐radiative recombination velocity due to edge defects is extracted. Using this patterning technique, it is shown that selenide TMDs exhibit lower edge recombination velocity as compared to sulfide TMDs. The utility of scanning probe lithography towards understanding material‐dependent edge recombination losses without significantly normalizing edge behaviors due to heavy defect generation, while allowing for eventual exploration of edge passivation schemes is highlighted, which is of profound interest for nanoscale electronics and optoelectronics.