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Graphical abstract Abstract Neuroblastoma accounts for 8–10% of malignancies in infants and children. It is urgent to develop an appropriate theranostic agent for effective diagnosis and therapy of neuroblastoma. Herein, we constructed RVG peptide and IRDye800-conjugated bovine serum albumin-coated triangular gadolinium oxide nanoplates (RVG&IRDye800-Gd 2 O 3 TNs) as a targeting MRI agent for the diagnosis of neuroblastoma preoperation and a fluorescence imaging agent for the guidance of the precise excision of the neuroblastoma in surgery. RVG&IRDye800-Gd 2 O 3 TNs have uniform edge length. The RVG&IRDye800-Gd 2 O 3 TNs show remarkably enhanced affinity to both mouse- and human-derived neuroblastoma cells compared with IRDye800-Gd 2 O 3 TNs (3.07-fold and 3.02-fold, respectively). Because of the increased accumulation in tumor cells, RVG&IRDye800-Gd 2 O 3 TNs exhibit signals threefold to fivefold higher than the surrounding normal tissues, which is propitious to the diagnosis of neuroblastoma preoperation and provides real-time visual guidance of the precise excision of the neuroblastoma. Most importantly, with the guidance of the fluorescence imaging agent, the survival rate increased from 0% to 80% 42 days after surgery compared with that in conventional surgery. These findings indicated that the RVG peptide combined with IRDye800-Gd 2 O 3 TNs has the potential to improve the diagnosis and treatment of patients with neuroblastoma. Statement of significance In this study, we prepared RVG peptide and IRDye800-conjugated bovine serum albumin-coated triangular gadolinium oxide nanoplates (RVG&IRDye800-Gd 2 O 3 TNs) as a targeting MRI agent for the diagnosis of neuroblastoma preoperation and a fluorescence imaging agent for the guidance of the precise excision of the neuroblastoma during surgery. Neuroblastoma was accurately located by MRI imaging, and the tumor margin could be real-time monitored through near-infrared fluorescence imaging. The RVG&IRDye800-Gd 2 O 3 TNs exhibit signals threefold to fivefold higher than those in the surrounding normal tissues, which is propitious to the diagnosis of the neuroblastoma preoperation and provides real-time visual guidance of the precise excision of the neuroblastoma. With the guidance of the fluorescence imaging agent in surgery, the survival rate increased from 0% to 80% 42 days after surgery compared with that in conventional surgery. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Dissipation of carbendazim in pickled cowpea was studied. • Half-life of carbendazim in pickled cowpea is less than 15 d. • Seven types of transformation products were detected using UPLC-HRMS/MS. • The main reactions in the pickled cowpea were identified as demethylation, hydroxylation and amination. • The biological toxicity and ecotoxicological information of the pickled cowpeas were evaluated. Carbendazim, a systemic fungicide, is one of the most commonly detected pesticides in cowpeas. Pickled cowpea is a fermented vegetable product with unique flavor favored in China. The dissipation and degradation of carbendazim were investigated in the pickled process. The degradation rate constant of carbendazim in pickled cowpeas was 0.9945 and the half-life of the carbendazim was 14.06 ± 0.82 d. Seven transformation products (TPs) were identified in the pickled process. Furthermore, the toxicity of some TPs show more harmful to three aquatic organisms (TP134) and rats (all the identified TPs) than carbendazim. And most of the TPs posed more development toxicity and mutagenicity than carbendazim. 4 out of 7 TPs were discovered in the real pickled cowpea samples. These results shed light on the degradation and biotransformation of the carbendazim in the pickled process, to better understand the potential health risk of pickled food and evaluate the environmental pollution. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: A nanotheranostic agent has been readily fabricated by encapsulating tantalum oxide (TaOx) nanoparticles (NPs) into polypyrrole (PPy) NPs via a facile one-step chemical oxidation polymerization for bimodal imaging guided photothermal ablation of tumor. It was proved that the obtained composite nanoparticles (TaOx@PPy NPs) with an average diameter around 45 nm could operate as an efficient bimodal contrast agent to simultaneously enhance X-ray CT and photoacoustic (PA) imaging greatly in vivo. Systemically administered TaOx@PPy NPs could passively accumulate at the tumor site during the blood circulation, which was proved by both CT and PA imaging. In addition, the in vivo therapeutic examinations showed that TaOx@PPy NPs exhibited significant photothermal cytotoxicity under near infrared laser irradiation. The tumor growth inhibition was evaluated to be 66.5% for intravenously injection and 100% for intratumoral injection, respectively. This versatile agent can be developed as a smart and promising nanoplatform that integrates multiple capabilities for both accurate diagnosing and precise locating of cancerous tissue, as well as effective photoablation of tumor. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: Theranostic microcapsules were successfully fabricated by introducing gold nanoparticles into poly(lactic acid) microcapsules through a double-microemulsion method, followed by depositing graphene oxide onto the microcapsule surface via electrostatic layer-by-layer self-assembly technique. It was proved that the obtained microcapsules could serve as a contrast agent to simultaneously enhance US imaging and X-ray CT imaging greatly both in vitro and in vivo. In addition, the in vivo therapeutic examinations showed that the microcapsule was an effective agent for photothermal therapy of cancer. The near-infrared laser light ablated the tumor completely within 9 days in the presence of the microcapsules and the tumor growth inhibition was 83.8%. The combination of real-time ultrasound with 3-D computed tomography through a single microcapsule agent is very helpful for accurately interpreting the obtained images, identifying the size and location of the tumor, as well as guiding and monitoring the photothermal therapy. Simultaneously, the effectiveness of photothermal therapy could be evaluated by the combined US and CT imaging enhanced by the microcapsule agent. Such a versatile microcapsule system might bring opportunities to the next generation of multimodal imaging guided cancer therapy. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: Liposomal nanohybrid cerasomes display a remarkable ability to maintain their size and retain encapsulated doxorubicin (DOX) over a period of 90days under storage conditions in solution compared with liposomes and liposils. Cerasomes retained 92.1±2.9% of the drug payload after 90days storage, much more than liposomes (35.2±2.5%) and liposils (53.2±5.5%). Under physiologically relevant conditions cerasomes exhibit a low initial burst in the first 5h and subsequent sustained release of DOX over the next 150h. Moreover, the magnitude of the initial burst and the rate of sustained release of DOX from cerasomes can be modulated by incorporating dipalmitoylphosphatidylglycerol (DPPG) in the cerasome structure and altering the ratios of the cerasome-forming lipid and phospholipids. Consequently, a wide range of release profiles can be achieved by altering the vesicle composition. Finally, human ovarian cancer cells are effectively killed by DOX released from cerasomes. Together these results suggest that cerasomes may be a promising drug delivery system for the long-term storage and controllable sustained release of the anticancer drug DOX. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract Pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) is one of the deadliest human malignancies with poor patient outcomes often resulting from delayed diagnosis. Therefore, early diagnosis can lead to a better prognosis and improved outcomes. In this study, we have developed a novel conjugate complex of plectin/integrin-targeted bispecific molecular probe, termed Gd-Cy7-PTP/RGD, to be used for magnetic resonance/near-infrared imaging (MRI/NIRF) of pancreatic cancer in vivo. This bispecific molecular probe comprises four parts: Gd(III) for MRI, cyanine 7 (Cy7) for NIRF, the peptide PTP for binding to plectin-1 specifically overexpressed on the surface of PDAC cells, and the peptide RGD for targeting integrin widely expressed on pancreatic duct epithelial cells and angiogenesis. Remarkably, the combination of PTP and RGD greatly increased the targeting efficiency in vitro and in vivo compared to that of either single peptide. Moreover, such bispecific molecular probes target pancreatic neoplasms and angiogenesis simultaneously, producing a “multi-level” targeting effect confirmed by immunofluorescence testing in vitro and in vivo. Under the guidance of MRI/NIRF dual-modality imaging, NIRF-guided delineation of surgical margins during operations was successfully achieved in orthotopic pancreatic cancer. This study promotes further exploration of bispecific molecular probes for clinical application. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

SM5-1 is a humanized mouse monoclonal antibody, targeting an over-expressed membrane protein of approximately 230 kDa in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). SM5-1 can be used for target therapy in hepatocellular carinoma due to its ability of inhibiting cell growth and inducing apoptosis. However, the tumor inhibition efficacy of SM5-1 in HCC cancer treatment remains low. In this study, we synthesized SM5-1-conjugated gold nanoparticles (Au-SM5-1 NPs) and investigated their anticancer efficacy in HCC both in vitro and in vivo . The tumor inhibition rates of Au-SM5-1 NPs for subcutaneous tumor mice were 40.10% ± 4.34%, 31.37% ± 5.12%, and 30.63% ± 4.87% on day 12, 18, and 24 post-treatment as determined by bioluminescent intensity. In addition, we investigated the antitumor efficacy of Au-SM5-1 NPs in orthotopic HCC tumor models. The results showed that the inhibition rates of Au-SM5-1 NPs can reach up to 39.64% ± 4.87% on day 31 post-treatment determined by the bioluminescent intensity of the abdomen in tumor-bearing mice. Furthermore, three-dimensional reconstruction results of the orthotopic tumor revealed that Au-SM5-1 NPs significantly inhibited tumor growth compared with SM5-1 alone. Our results suggested that the developed Au-SM5-1 NPs has great potential as an antibody-based nano-drug for HCC therapy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: SM5-1 is a humanized mouse antibody which has a high binding specificity for a membrane protein of about 230 kDa overexpressed in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), melanoma and breast cancer. In this study, SM5-1-conjugated poly d, l (lactide-coglycolide) (PLA) PLA containing Cy7 (PLA-Cy7-SM5-1) was prepared to study the targeting specificity of the bioconjugate to HCC-LM3-fLuc cell. Then, SM5-1-conjugated PLA containing 5-fluorouracil (5-FU) (PLA-5FU-SM5-1) and PLA containing 5-FU (PLA-5FU) were prepared for treatment of subcutaneous HCC-LM3-fLuc tumor mice. The results showed that PLA-5FU-SM5-1, PLA-5FU and 5-FU induced a 45.07%, 23.56% and 19.05% tumor growth inhibition rate, respectively, on day 31 post-treatment as determined by bioluminescent intensity. In addition, in order to evaluate the antitumor efficacy of PLA-5FU-SM5-1, HCC-LM3-fLuc cells were injected into the liver to establish the experimental orthotopic liver tumor models. The experiments showed that PLA-5FU-SM5-1, PLA-5FU and 5-FU induced a 53.24%, 31.00%, and 18.11% tumor growth inhibition rate, respectively, on day 31 post-treatment determined by the bioluminescent intensity of the abdomen in tumor-bearing mice. Furthermore, we have calculated the three-dimensional location of the liver cancer in mice using a multilevel adaptive finite element algorithm based on bioluminescent intensity decay calibration. The reconstruction results demonstrated that PLA-5FU-SM5-1 inhibited the tumor rapid progression, which were consistent with the results of subcutaneous tumor mice experiments and in vitro cell experiment results. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

[Display omitted] • A recombinant full-length isotope-labelled tropomyosin was expressed with high purity and isotope labeling ratio. • An absolute LC-MS/MS quantification assay was developed for shrimp tropomyosin in complex food matrices. • The limits of quantification for tropomyosin were 1–10 μg/g. • This method was successfully applied to the accurate quantification of tropomyosin in real samples. The carryover of trace allergens in complex food matrices poses challenges for detection techniques. Here, we demonstrate an accurate UPLC-MS/MS quantification assay for the shrimp allergen tropomyosin with a full-length isotope-labelled recombinant tropomyosin (TM-I) internal standard in complex food matrices. The TM-I, expressed based on the SILAC technique, exhibited a high isotope labelling ratio (>99%), purity, and alignment with the natural sequence. This method determined the tropomyosin ranging from 0.2 to 100 ng/mL. Mean recoveries ranged from 89 to 116%, with intra- and inter-day RSDs below 12%, for three signature peptides across three types of commercially processed food matrices. The limits of quantitation were 1 μg/g in pop food and sauce, and 10 μg/g in surimi product, respectively. This study supports the use of recombinant full-length isotope-labelled proteins rather than stable-isotope labelling peptides as internal standards to achieve more accurate quantitation of food allergens as the digestion error is corrected. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

[Display omitted] • Efficient recoveries of 565 chemical hazards were achieved via Fe 3 O 4 @poly(MAAM- co -EGDMA). • Fe 3 O 4 @poly(MAAM- co -EGDMA) was fabricated with MAAM and EGDMA through simple bulk polymerization. • The thickness of the polymer shell can be controlled by tuning the proportion of the MAAM/EDGMA. • Fe 3 O 4 @poly(MAAM- co -EGDMA) featured promising lipids adsorption in animal and vegetable oils. • The adsorption mechanisms for FFAs and TGs are electrostatic interaction and hydrogen bonding. Nontargeted analysis for chemical hazards is highly desirable in controlling food safety to ensure human health. As the dominating interference in fat-rich foodstuffs, lipids removal is a great challenge in sample pretreatment. Herein, diverse lipids from both animal and vegetable oils are effectively removed and 565 chemical hazards with various physicochemical properties are used for method validation. These benefits are from the designed magnetic amino-rich hyper-crosslinked core–shell polymeric composites (Fe 3 O 4 @poly(MAAM- co -EGDMA)) and the application of an auto extraction system. Among them, the amino groups are the key factors for lipid removal. Theoretical calculations, isothermal titration calorimetry (ITC), and functional monomer replacement demonstrated that the mechanisms to universally capture free fatty acids (FFAs) and triglycerides (TGs) are electrostatic interaction and supplemented by hydrogen bonding. Overall, this work highlights the great application potentials of polymeric adsorbents as sample pretreatment materials for nontargeted analysis in food safety. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]