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The treatment of Colorectal cancer (CRC) is extremely complex and survival rates vary depending on the stage of the disease at the time of diagnosis. Neoadjuvant chemoradiotherapy (NACRT), is the conventional treatment for locally advanced rectal cancer (LARC); however, the resistance to chemoradiotherapy in LARC is difficult to predict. In this study, clinical data of 126 LARC patients were collected and analyzed, and relevant validation was performed using GEO database and in vitro and in vivo experiments, including Western blotting and Real-time quantitative PCR, immunohistochemistry, immunofluorescence, clonogenic cell survival assays, and nude-mouse xenograft models. In patients with LARC who were treated with neoadjuvant radiotherapy (NART), higher ZNF281 expression in malignant tissue was associated with a poorer prognosis and lesser degree of tumor regression. Cell and mouse experiments have shown that ZNF281 reduces the damage caused by X-rays to CRC cells and tumors grown in mice. We found that the expression of ZNF281 predicted the radiation response of CRC cells and suggested the prognosis of patients with LARC who received neoadjuvant radiation therapy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In order to construct interconnected three-dimensional ion transport structures within anion exchange membranes (AEMs), we proposed the idea of preparing AEMs by filling the aerogel three-dimensional network skeleton by in-situ polymerization. First, quaternized branched polyethyleneimine (QBPEI) with a large number of quaternary ammonium groups was cross-linked with cellulose to construct an aerogel with a three-dimensional network. Then, poly(4-vinylbenzyl chloride) (PVBC) was filled into the aerogel network through in-situ polymerization. Finally, dense AEMs with internal three-dimensional ion transport networks were prepared by hot pressing PVBC/QBPEI@cellulose. The prepared AEMs have low ion exchange capacity (IEC) values and high ionic conductivities, with the membrane with the best overall performance (IEC value of 1.58 meq./g) having a maximum hydroxide conductivity of 38.88 mS/cm at 80 °C. In addition, the optimized membrane has good chemical and dimensional stability, and the maximum power density of the fuel cell assembled based on it is 46.32 mW/cm2. Although the performance of the prepared composite membranes needs to be further improved due to the preparation process, the design idea in this work provides a feasible solution for the construction of continuous ion fast transport channels in AEMs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A series of anion exchange membranes (AEMs) with regionally dense ion clusters are prepared by crosslinking quaternized polysulfone (QPSU) with quaternized branched polyethyleneimine (QBPEI). For the as-prepared QPSU/QBPEI AEMs, the hydrophilic QBPEI forms locally aggregated ion clusters in the QPSU matrix, which can promote the formation of an obvious microphase separation structure in the membrane. The QPSU/QBPEI-3 AEM with an ion exchange capacity of 1.88 meq/g exhibits the best performance, achieving a reasonably high ionic conductivity of 66.14 mS/cm at 80 °C and showing good oxidation stability and alkali resistance. Finally, the maximum power density of a single H 2 /O 2 fuel cell with QPSU/QBPEI-3 AEM reaches 75.34 mW/cm2 at 80 °C. The above results indicate that QBPEI with a dendritic structure and abundant anionic conductive groups has a good application prospect in the preparation of AEMs with locally aggregated ion clusters and microphase separation structures. [Display omitted] • A series of AEMs with locally aggregated ion clusters were successfully prepared by a simple route. • QBPEI with a dendritic structure was introduced as ion-conducting moiety and crosslinking agent. • The optimal AEM showed an ionic conductivity of up to 66.14 mS/cm at a low IEC of 1.88 meq./g. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background. The increasing incidence and mortality of colorectal cancer (CRC) urgently requires updated biomarkers. The ABC transporter family is a widespread family of membrane-bound proteins involved in the transportation of substrates associated with ATP hydrolysis, including metabolites, amino acids, peptides and proteins, sterols and lipids, organic and inorganic ions, sugars, metals, and drugs. They play an important role in the maintenance of homeostasis in the body. Purpose. This study aims to search for new markers in the ABC transporter gene family for diagnostic and prognostic purposes through data mining of The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) and GEO (Gene Expression Omnibus) datasets. Methods. A total of 980 samples, including 684 CRC patients and 296 controls from five different datasets, were included for analysis. The construction of the PPI (protein-protein interaction) network and pathway analysis were performed in STRING database and DAVID (database for annotation, visualization, and integrated discovery), respectively. In addition, GSEA (gene set enrichment analysis) and WGCNA (weighted gene co-expression network analysis) were also used for functional analysis. Results. After several rounds of screening and validation, only the ABCB5 gene was retained among the 49 genes. Conclusions. The results demonstrated that ABCA5 expression is reduced in CRC and patients with high ABCA5 expression have better OS, which can provide guidance for better management and treatment of CRC in the future. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Anion exchange membrane (AEM) is essential for the development of alkaline anion exchange membrane fuel cells, and its performance largely depends on its internal microstructure. Herein, to improve the performance of AEM, quaternized branched polyethyleneimine modified nitrogen‐doped graphene quantum dots (QBPEI@N‐GQDs) are introduced to quaternized polysulfone (QPSU) polymer matrix to prepare a series of QPSU/QBPEI@N‐GQDs (QQ‐n‐N‐GQDs) composite AEMs. Due to the uniform distribution of hydrophilic QBPEI@N‐GQDs, an obvious hydrophilic/hydrophobic microphase separation structure is formed inside the QQ‐n‐N‐GQDs composite AEMs. Compared with the pristine QPSU AEM, the QQ‐0.7%‐N‐GQDs AEM shows slightly higher water uptake (WU) and swelling ratio (SR), as well as much higher ionic conductivity (76.18 mS cm−1 at 80 °C for QQ‐0.7%‐N‐GQDs AEM versus 46.14 mS cm−1 at 80 °C for pristine QPSU AEM) and better maximum power density of single fuel cell (85.2 mW cm−2 for QQ‐0.7%‐N‐GQDs AEM versus 46.3 mW cm−2 for QPSU AEM). Moreover, the chemical stability of QQ‐n‐N‐GQDs composite AEMs has not been significantly adversely affected by the introduction of QBPEI@N‐GQDs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Anion exchange membranes (AEMs) are one of the core components of AEM fuel cells. A series of poly(vinyl alcohol)/polyquaternium‐10 (PVA/PQ‐10) AEMs with semi‐interpenetrating networks (s‐IPNs) are prepared by a simple solution‐casting method using glutaraldehyde (GA) as a cross‐linking agent. Subsequently, the prepared PVA/PQ‐10 cross‐linked membranes are characterized by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, scanning electron microscopy, thermogravimetric analysis, mechanical analysis, water uptake and swelling ratio tests, ion exchange capacity (IEC) tests, ionic conductivity measurements, and oxidative/alkaline stability tests. The effects of the mass ratio of PVA and PQ‐10 and the amount of cross‐linking agent GA on the performance of the PVA/PQ‐10 cross‐linked membranes are systematically explored. The results show that the cross‐linked PVA/PQ‐10 AEMs have high IEC and low water uptake and swelling ratio, and its maximum ionic conductivity can reach 79.37 mS cm–1 at 80 °C. In addition, the PVA/PQ‐10 cross‐linked membrane has good oxidative and alkaline stability under optimal preparation conditions. These results may provide valuable insights toward more effective scheme designs and new, simple preparation methods for AEMs with s‐IPN structures. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Simple Summary: Dietary energy and protein play important roles in rumen fermentation. However, the impacts of dietary energy and protein on the relationships between rumen bacterial composition and ruminal metabolites were not extensively studied. In this study, we investigated the rumen fermentation status in response to different energy and protein levels, which was vital for the rumen health and resulted in the potential positive effects on the host health and production. Thereby, quantitative polymerase chain reaction analysis and 16S rRNA gene sequencing showed that the bacterial richness was significantly reduced, and the rumen bacterial composition was significantly altered with the increasing levels of dietary energy and protein. Metabolomics analysis revealed that the dominant differential metabolites were amino acids, peptides, and analogs. Moreover, high-energy and high-protein diets could enhance the ruminal antioxidative capacity by increasing the concentration of some metabolites. Correlation analysis implied that high energy and protein levels could enhance the catechol concentration by Prevotella_1 and Ruminococcus_2. This study can help to improve the dietary energy and protein use efficiency in goats. This study was conducted to investigate the impacts of dietary energy and protein on rumen bacterial composition and ruminal metabolites. A total of 12 ruminal samples were collected from Shaanbei white cashmere goats which were divided into two groups, including high-energy and high-protein (Group H; crude protein, CP: 9.37% in dry matter; metabolic energy, ME: 9.24 MJ/kg) and control (Group C; CP: 8.73%; ME: 8.60 MJ/kg) groups. Thereby, 16S rRNA gene sequencing and a quantitative polymerase chain reaction were performed to identify the rumen bacterial community. Metabolomics analysis was done to investigate the rumen metabolites and the related metabolic pathways in Groups C and H. The high-energy and high-protein diets increased the relative abundance of phylum Bacteroidetes and genera Prevotella_1 and Succiniclasticum, while decreasing the number of Proteobacteria (p < 0.05). The dominant differential metabolites were amino acids, peptides, and analogs. Tyrosine metabolism played an important role among the nine main metabolic pathways. Correlation analysis revealed that both Prevotella_1 (r = 0.608, p < 0.05) and Ruminococcus_2 (r = 0.613, p < 0.05) showed a positive correlation with catechol. Our findings revealed that the diets with high energy and protein levels in Group H significantly altered the composition of ruminal bacteria and metabolites, which can help to improve the dietary energy and protein use efficiency in goats. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]