Search

Typha angustifolia L. (TA) pollen has been utilized as a traditional Chinese medicine for treating various internal and external traumas. Moreover, bioactive compounds possess diverse pharmacological activities. This study aims to evaluate the antiviral properties of TA based on its ability to generate bioenergy, capable of inhibiting viruses. TA pollens were extracted using water and ethanol solvents. These extracts were utilized to identify the phytochemical contents and correlate with the antioxidant activity via 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) and ferric reducing antioxidant power (FRAP) assays. HPLC analysis was conducted to identify its electron-shuttling compositions. The bioenergy-generating characteristics were determined via microbial fuel cells. The water extract (TA-W) showed higher antioxidant activity due to a higher phenolic and flavonoid content compared to the ethanol extract (TA-E). Quercetin-3-O-(2G-α-L-rhamnosyl)-rutinoside, quercetin-3-O-neohesperidoside, and quercetin are the electron shuttles (ES) identified out of the 11 compounds. TA obtained a 1.39 ± 0.10 amplification factor of power generation that indicates potential bioenergy-generating and associated antiviral characteristic properties. The findings may provide a foundation for developing antiviral medications specifically designed to target virus-related diseases, while minimizing the risk of drug toxicity and reducing the costs of drug development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Typha angustifolia L. (TA) pollen has been utilized as a traditional Chinese medicine for treating various internal and external traumas. Moreover, bioactive compounds possess diverse pharmacological activities. This study aims to evaluate the antiviral properties of TA based on its ability to generate bioenergy, capable of inhibiting viruses. TA pollens were extracted using water and ethanol solvents. These extracts were utilized to identify the phytochemical contents and correlate with the antioxidant activity via 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) and ferric reducing antioxidant power (FRAP) assays. HPLC analysis was conducted to identify its electron-shuttling compositions. The bioenergy-generating characteristics were determined via microbial fuel cells. The water extract (TA-W) showed higher antioxidant activity due to a higher phenolic and flavonoid content compared to the ethanol extract (TA-E). Quercetin-3-O-(2G-α-L-rhamnosyl)-rutinoside, quercetin-3-O-neohesperidoside, and quercetin are the electron shuttles (ES) identified out of the 11 compounds. TA obtained a 1.39 ± 0.10 amplification factor of power generation that indicates potential bioenergy-generating and associated antiviral characteristic properties. The findings may provide a foundation for developing antiviral medications specifically designed to target virus-related diseases, while minimizing the risk of drug toxicity and reducing the costs of drug development.

Expert Systems are interactive and reliable computer-based decisionmaking systems that use both facts and heuristics for solving complex decision-making problems. Generally, the cyclic voltammetry (CV) experiments are executed a random number of times (cycles) to get a stable production of power. However, presently there are not many algorithms or models for predicting the power generation stable criteria in microbial fuel cells. For stability analysis of Medicinal herbs' CV profiles, an expert system driven by the augmented K-means clustering algorithm is proposed. Our approach requires a dataset that contains voltage-current relationships from CV experiments on the related subjects (plants/herbs). This new approach uses feature engineering and augmented K-means clustering techniques to determine the cycle number beyond which the CV curve stabilizes. We obtain an excellent estimate of the required CV cycles for getting a stable Voltage versus Current curve in this approach. Moreover, this expert system would reduce the time needed and the money spent on running additional and superfluous CV experiments cycles. Thus, it would streamline the process of Bacterial Fuel Cells production using the CV of medicinal herbs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

[Display omitted] • A simultaneous bioelectricity generation and complete DNRA strain was isolated. • Genome and q-PCR analysis explain the mechanism of DNRA and outward EET pathway. • The presence of NH 4 + significantly enhances output voltage and the DNRA performance. • Bioelectricity promotes the up-regulated expression of NarG and NirB related to DNRA. • The bacterial community of cathode biofilms was affected by the bioelectricity. The synchronous bioelectricity generation and dissimilatory nitrate reduction to ammonium (DNRA) pathway in Klebsiella variicola C1 was investigated. The presence of bioelectricity facilitated cell growth on the anodic biofilms, consequently enhancing the nitrate removal efficiency decreasing total nitrogen levels and causing a negligible accumulation of NO 2 – in the supernatant. Genomic analysis revealed that K. variicola C1 possessed a complete DNRA pathway and largely annotated electron shuttles. The up-regulated expression of genes narG and nirB , encoding nitrite oxidoreductase and nitrite reductase respectively, was closely associated with increased extracellular electron transfer (EET). High-throughput sequencing analysis was employed to investigate the impact of bioelectricity on microbial community composition within cathodic biofilms. Results indicated that Halomonas , Marinobacter and Prolixibacteraceae were enriched at the cathode electrodes. In conclusion, the integration of a DNRA strain with MFC facilitated the efficient removal of wastewater containing high concentrations of NO 3 – and enabled the environmentally friendly recovery of NH 4 +. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract For renewable and sustainable bioenergy utilization with cost-effectiveness, electron-shuttles (ESs) (or redox mediators (RMs)) act as electrochemical “catalysts” to enhance rates of redox reactions, catalytically accelerating electron transport efficiency for abiotic and biotic electrochemical reactions. ESs are popularly used in cellular respiratory systems, metabolisms in organisms, and widely applied to support global lives. Apparently, they are applicable to increase power-generating capabilities for energy utilization and/or fuel storage (i.e., dye-sensitized solar cell, batteries, and microbial fuel cells (MFCs)). This first-attempt review specifically deciphers the chemical structure association with characteristics of ESs, and discloses redox-mediating potentials of polyphenolics-abundant ESs via MFC modules. Moreover, to effectively convert electron-shuttling capabilities from non-sustainable antioxidant activities, environmental conditions to induce electrochemical mediation apparently play critical roles of great significance for bioenergy stimulation. For example, pH levels would significantly affect electrochemical potentials to be exhibited (e.g., alkaline pHs are electrochemically favorable for expression of such electron-shuttling characteristics). Regarding chemical structure effect, chemicals with ortho- and para-dihydroxyl substituents-bearing aromatics own convertible characteristics of non-renewable antioxidants and electrochemically catalytic ESs; however, ES capabilities of meta-dihydroxyl substituents can be evidently repressed due to lack of resonance effect in the structure for intermediate radical(s) during redox reaction. Moreover, this review provides conclusive remarks to elucidate the promising feasibility to identify whether such characteristics are non-renewable antioxidants or reversible ESs from natural polyphenols via cyclic voltammetry and MFC evaluation. Evidently, considering sustainable development, such electrochemically convertible polyphenolic species in plant extracts can be reversibly expressed for bioenergy-stimulating capabilities in MFCs under electrochemically favorable conditions.

• Τen herbal extracts were subjected to cyclic voltammetry for 100 times. • The Houttuynia cordata extract (HCE) possessed the highest CV area. • The supplement of HCE in MFC was found to have a PD value of 33.70 mW/m2. • Τhe CV areas were positively correlated to the PD ratios in the MFC tests. This first-attempt study revealed electrochemically promising strategy to provide optimal herbal species of supplementation as electron shuttling stimulator to microbial fuel cells (MFCs). First, cyclic voltammetry (CV) was used to screen the feasible electron shuttle (ES) materials after serial testing of 100 cycles. The results indicated that Houttuynia cordata extract (HCE) possessed the highest CV area of closed-loop profile (i.e., the most appropriate ES). Alternanthera paronychioides exhibited a symmetrical peak in the oxidation and reduction profiles. All of the herb extracts were subjected to the Shewanella sp. WLP72-inoculated double-chamber MFC to compare their power density (PD) ratios. The optimal supplement of HCE in MFC was found to have a PD value of 33.70 mW/m2, which was 2.67-fold higher than the blank control. It indicated that HCE could express the highest electrochemical characteristics as a potential ES. In addition, the CV areas were positively correlated to the PD ratios in the MFC tests. However, there were no correlations between CV areas to their total polyphenol contents (TPCs) and 2,2-Diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) free radical scavenging activity. This study showed that HCE contains polyphenolic compounds (e.g., kaempferol, chlorogenic acid, and quercitrin), indicating that HCE possesses highly promising ES characteristics for bioenergy extraction. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Unveil dual role of epinephrine (EP) and dopamine (DA) as neurotransmitters and electron shuttles. • Uncover bioelectrochemical stimulation of EP and DA for power generation in microbial fuel cells. • Decipher more significant electrochemical characteristics of EP and DA than vitamin B 2 , vitamin C and gallic acid. This first-attempt study provided novel electrochemical exploration via microbial fuel cells (MFCs), suggesting why catecholamine hormone-neurotransmitters epinephrine (EP) and dopamine (DA) could effectively trigger acute stress responses for humans. According to bioelectrochemical engineering, EP and DA are ortho-diphydroxyl (o -diOH) substituent(s)-bearing electron shuttles (ESs) that could effectively mediate electron-transfer capabilities for bioenergy extraction. This study quantitatively compared redox-mediating characteristics of EP and DA with other antioxidants and ESs, suggesting possible mechanisms of bioenergy-driven responses to organisms. Although some electrochemical activities of EP and DA were characterized in medical literature, this work clarified that EP and DA were also electrochemically favorable ESs for efficient bioenergy extraction. Compared to vitamin B 2 (VB), vitamin C (VC) and gallic acid (GA), quantitative evaluation upon bioenergy-stimulating capabilities of EP and DA were clearly revealed via MFC modules. Apparently, both EP and DA as ESs significantly exhibited stable and reversible redox potential peaks in cyclic voltammetry. Evidently, power density performances of MFCs supplemented with EP and DA considerably increased ca. 127–385%, suggesting that DA and EP would be the most appropriate ESs to effectively stimulate electron-mediating capabilities in multicellular organisms. It was also suspected that highly efficient power-stimulating capabilities of DA and EP could be strongly associated with their electrochemically-steered disease-curative and life-threatening capabilities to humans. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Highlights • Unveil extraction of electron shuttles (ESs) from medicinal herb for MFC uses. • Disclose electrochemical criteria to switch flavonoid antioxidants to be ESs. • Suggest chemical structure and toxicity potency as keystone factors of ESs. Abstract Prior studies mentioned that extracts of polyphenolics-abundant edible flora might provide compositions of reversible electron shuttles for bioenergy extraction; however, detailed mysteries behind such phenomena still remained open to be explored. This first-attempt study selected a medicinal herb Scutellaria baicalensis Georgi and its main flavonoid ingredients to quantitatively decipher their electron-mediating activities for bioenergy applications. The main ingredients with strong shuttling activities (e.g. , baicalin, baicalein and wogonin) were chemical structure-associated to disclose electrochemical and bioenergetics characteristics for comparative analysis. Evidently, baicalin owned the most promising electron shuttling capabilities. Although extract of flavonoids-rich S. baicalensis Georgi also showed promising redox-mediating characteristics, typical ingredient-baicalein still exhibited high biotoxicity to bacterial CO 2 respirometric production, thereby resisting fully expression of electron transfer capabilities. Supplementation of baicalin and extract of S. baicalensis Georgi to microbial fuel cells (MFCs) was conducted to quantify such stimulating capabilities of bioelectricity generation. That is, with toxicity attenuation, processed flavonoids-rich medicinal herbs were possibly electroactive for bioenergy extraction due to favorable electron-shuttling activities. Graphical abstract Image, graphical abstract [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• First study to electrochemically decipher potential mechanism of anti-COVID-19 TCM formulae. • Jing Guan Fang owns bioenergy-stimulating and electron-shuttling characteristics as well as anti-inflammatory activity. • S. baicalensis and baicalin are the "main-effect" herb and major compound of JGF. • Reversible catalysis of electron shuttles (i.e., flavonoids) enhances anti-disease and anti-inflammatory efficacy. • Electron-shuttling characteristics are strongly associated with therapeutic potential. Jing Guan Fang (JGF) is an anti-COVID-19 Chinese Medicine decoction comprised of five medicinal herbs to possess anti-inflammatory and antiviral properties for treatment. This study aims to electrochemically decipher the anti-coronavirus activity of JGF and show that microbial fuel cells may serve as a platform for screening efficacious herbal medicines and providing scientific bases for the mechanism of action (MOA) of TCMs. Electrochemical techniques (e.g., cyclic voltammetry) and MFCs were adopted as the bioenergy-based platforms to assess the bioenergy-stimulating characteristics of JGF. Phytochemical analysis correlated polyphenolic and flavonoid content with antioxidant activity and bioenergy-stimulating properties. Network pharmacology on the active compounds was employed to identify anti-inflammatory and anti-COVID-19 protein targets, and molecular docking validated in silico results. This first-attempt results show that JGF possesses significant reversible bioenergy-stimulation (amplification 2.02 ± 0.04) properties suggesting that its antiviral efficacy is both bioenergy-steered and electron mediated. Major flavonoids and flavone glycosides identified by HPLC (e.g., baicalein and baicalin, respectively) possess electron-shuttling (ES) characteristics that allow herbal medicines to treat COVID-19 via (1) reversible scavenging of ROS to lessen inflammation; (2) inhibition of viral proteins; and (3) targeting of immunomodulatory pathways to stimulate the immune response according to network pharmacology. [Display omitted] [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Highlights: [•] The phzM overexpression strain showed higher electrochemical activity. [•] Overexpressing phzM decreased the charge transfer resistance of MFC. [•] The electron shuttle (pyocyanin) concentration increased upon phzM overexpression. [•] Genetic modification is efficient to improve the electricity power output of MFC. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In microbial fuel cells and electrolysis cells (MXCs), anode-respiring bacteria (ARB) oxidize organic substrates to produce electrical current. In order to develop an electrical current, ARB must transfer electrons to a solid anode through extracellular electron transfer (EET). ARB use various EET mechanisms to transfer electrons to the anode, including direct contact through outer-membrane proteins, diffusion of soluble electron shuttles, and electron transport through solid components of the extracellular biofilm matrix. In this review, we perform a novel kinetic analysis of each EET mechanism by analyzing the results available in the literature. Our goal is to evaluate how well each EET mechanism can produce a high current density (>10 A m−2) without a large anode potential loss (less than a few hundred millivolts), which are feasibility goals of MXCs. Direct contact of ARB to the anode cannot achieve high current densities due to the limited number of cells that can come in direct contact with the anode. Slow diffusive flux of electron shuttles at commonly observed concentrations limits current generation and results in high potential losses, as has been observed experimentally. Only electron transport through a solid conductive matrix can explain observations of high current densities and low anode potential losses. Thus, a study of the biological components that create a solid conductive matrix is of critical importance for understanding the function of ARB. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Electrode materials capable of increasing the electricigens loading and accelerating the extracellular electron transfer (EET) are urgently required for microbial electrocatalytic technologies. In this work, a monolithic electrode (MDC800AM) based on three-dimensional (3D) interconnected N-doped carbon microtubes (NCMTs) derived from nanostructured polyaniline (PANI)-coated cotton fibers is prepared by a facile and scalable method. The PANI-coating layer and subsequent manganese (Mn)-catalyzed graphitization is helpful in doping the surface with nitrogen atoms and improving its graphitization degree, which contributes significantly to the hydrophilicity, biocompatibility and electronic conductivity of the electrode. Because of the hollow structure and large inner diameter of NCMTs, the MDC800AM is able to buffer the electrolyte facilitating well-localized electron shuttles (ES) within the electrode region as well as increase the surface area for electricigens to inhabit. Based on these advantages, the as-prepared MDC800AM exhibits enhanced microbial electrocatalytic activity and stability such as to outperform its counterpart made up of solid carbon fibers. This work not only provides a monolithic electrode manifesting greatly accelerated activity toward microbial electrocatalysis, but also a proof-of-concept demonstration of boosting the microbial fuel cell (MFC) performance via localized high ES concentration. • A electrode consisting of nanostructured N-doped carbon microtubes was obtained. • It increased surface area for bacteria to live and localized electron shuttles in it. • It exhibited greater power density and stability than that made of solid fibers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Unveil the promising feasibility to use the richest gallotannins- gallnut as ES. • Disclose remarkable power-stimulating capabilities of Galla chinensis to MFCs. • Explore electrochemical strategies to extract maximal ES contents for bioelectricity generation. This first-attempt study revealed the feasibility assessment that medicinal herbs with abundant hydrolysable tannin (i.e., Galla chinensis (gallnut)) were highly promising to maximize bioenergy extraction. The cyclic voltammetric profiles of both gallnut and tannic acid (TA) showed significant redox potential peaks for comparison. Moreover, higher extraction temperature at 85 °C could enhance the hydrolysis efficiency of tannin contents and possibly further resulting in higher yields of gallic acid (GA). The power density analysis of microbial fuel cells (MFCs) indicated that the supplementation of gallnut water extract (GWE) could significantly stimulate the power generation of MFCs. This might be resulted from the sufficient hydrolysis of GWE into GA as electron shuttles (ESs) for power stimulation. Compared with other herbal extract, GWE owned not only the most abundant content of antioxidants, but also the best stimulation capability on power generation (e.g., 67.77 mW m−2 at 1000 mg L−1 GWE) for bioenergy/biorefinery applications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]