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Understanding the genetic basis of neuro-related proteins is essential for dissecting the molecular basis of human behavioral traits and the disease etiology of neuropsychiatric disorders. Here, the SCALLOP Consortium conducted a genome-wide association meta-analysis of over 12,500 individuals for 184 neuro-related proteins in human plasma. The analysis identified 117 cis-regulatory protein quantitative trait loci (cis-pQTL) and 166 trans-pQTL. The mapped pQTL capture on average 50% of each protein's heritability. Mendelian randomization analyses revealed multiple proteins showing potential causal effects on neuro-related traits such as sleeping, smoking, feelings, alcohol intake, mental health, and psychiatric disorders. Integrating with established drug information, we validated 13 out of 13 matched combinations of protein targets and diseases or side effects with available drugs, while suggesting hundreds of re-purposing and new therapeutic targets. This consortium effort provides a large-scale proteogenomic resource for biomedical research on human behaviors and other neuro-related phenotypes.

Understanding the genetic basis of neuro-related proteins is essential for dissecting the disease etiology of neuropsychiatric disorders and other complex traits and diseases. Here, the SCALLOP Consortium conducted a genome-wide association meta-analysis of over 12,500 individuals for 184 neuro-related proteins in human plasma. The analysis identified 117 cis-regulatory protein quantitative trait loci (cis-pQTL) and 166 trans-pQTL. The mapped pQTL capture on average 50% of each protein’s heritability. Mendelian randomization analyses revealed multiple proteins showing potential causal effects on neuro-related traits as well as complex diseases such as hypertension, high cholesterol, immune-related disorders, and psychiatric disorders. Integrating with established drug information, we validated 13 combinations of protein targets and diseases or side effects with available drugs, while suggesting hundreds of re-purposing and new therapeutic targets for diseases and comorbidities. This consortium effort provides a large-scale proteogenomic resource for biomedical research.

The mechanism for protein stabilization or destabilization has long been an open quest. In the present study, we have studied the interactions between amino acids and guanidinium (Gdm+)/ammonium (NH4+) ions by using low field nuclear magnetic resonance (LF-NMR), where Gdm+ and NH4+ are denaturant and stabilizer for proteins, respectively. It shows that Gdm+ favors to bind to the thiol group or the hydroxyl group on the side chain but weakly interacts with the α-carboxyl group. In contrast, NH4+ prefers to bind to the α-carboxyl group but slightly interacts with the thiol group or the hydroxyl group on the side chain of amino acids. 1HNMR reveals the hydrogen bonding between NH4+ and the α-carboxyl group, which is not involved in the interactions between Gdm+ and cysteine. Our study demonstrates that the strong interactions between the denaturant and the sulfur atom or the disulfide bond promote the direct binding of the denaturant toward proteins, leading to the destabilization.

There is an enormous demand for blood transfusions in daily clinical practices since blood products, especially red blood cells (RBCs), can significantly improve survival. However, donor-derived RBCs have important limitations as a result of their insufficient availability, the need for typing and cross-matching, short shelf-life or risk of pathogenic contamination. Thus, as a result of the unique oxygen-transport ability of hemoglobin (Hb), Hb-based oxygen carriers (HBOCs) have attracted a lot of attention for the development of RBC surrogates able to provide tissue oxygenation. Here, we highlight the progress in the development of HBOCs, focusing on different examples that have undergone exhaustive pre-clinical and clinical evaluation. In addition, we also provide a comprehensive review of very recent and innovative examples to aid in the development of the next generation of blood substitutes.

Biomolecular hydration is fundamental to biological functions. Using phase-resolved chiral sum-frequency generation spectroscopy (SFG), we probe molecular architectures and interactions of water molecules around a self-assembling antiparallel β-sheet protein. We find that the phase of the chiroptical response from the O-H stretching vibrational modes of water flips with the absolute chirality of the (l-) or (d-) antiparallel β-sheet. Therefore, we can conclude that the (d-) antiparallel β-sheet organizes water solvent into a chiral supermolecular structure with opposite handedness relative to that of the (l-) antiparallel β-sheet. We use molecular dynamics to characterize the chiral water superstructure at atomic resolution. The results show that the macroscopic chirality of antiparallel β-sheets breaks the symmetry of assemblies of surrounding water molecules. We also calculate the chiral SFG response of water surrounding (l-) and (d-) LK(7)β to confirm the presence of chiral water structures. Our results offer a different perspective as well as introduce experimental and computational methodologies for elucidating hydration of biomacromolecules. The findings imply potentially important but largely unexplored roles of water solvent in chiral selectivity of biomolecular interactions and the molecular origins of homochirality in the biological world.

Transfusion of donor red blood cells (RBCs) is a crucial and widely employed clinical procedure. However, important constraints of blood transfusions include the limited availability of blood, the need for typing and cross-matching due to the RBC membrane antigens, the limited storage lifetime, or the risk for disease transmission. Hence, a lot of effort has been devoted to develop RBC substitutes, which are free from the limitations of donor blood. Despite the potential, the creation of hemoglobin (Hb)-based oxygen carriers is still facing important challenges. To allow for proper tissue oxygenation, it is essential to develop carriers with high Hb loading since Hb comprises about 96% of the RBCs' dry weight. In this work, nanoparticles (NPs) fully made of Hb are prepared by the desolvation precipitation method. Several parameters are screened (i.e., Hb concentration, desolvation ratio, time, and sonication intensity) to finally obtain Hb-NPs with a diameter of ∼568 nm and a polydispersity index (PDI) of 0.2. A polydopamine (PDA) coating is adsorbed to prevent the disintegration of the resulting Hb/PDA-NPs. Due to the antioxidant character of PDA, the Hb/PDA-NPs are able to deplete two harmful reactive oxygen species, namely, the superoxide radical anion and hydrogen peroxide. Such antioxidant protection also translates into minimizing the oxidation of the entrapped Hb to nonfunctional methemoglobin (metHb). This is a crucial aspect since metHb conversion also results in inflammatory reactions and dysregulated vascular tone. Finally, yet importantly, the reported Hb/PDA-NPs are also both hemo- and biocompatible and preserve the reversible oxygen-binding and releasing properties of Hb.

BACKGROUND: Despite novel improvements in the diagnosis and treatment of infective endocarditis (IE), there has been no significant improvement in the survival rate of IE, which indicates that many details still need to be optimized in the preoperative assessment. We sought to evaluate preoperative serum albumin as a biomarker for predicting early mortality after IE surgery. METHODS: Between October 2013 and June 2019, patients with a definite diagnosis of IE were enrolled in this study. Patients’ albumin levels at admission were used as the preoperative albumin levels. Restricted cubic spline and multivariate logistic regression analyses were performed to evaluate the relationship between albumin and early mortality. Receiver operating characteristic curve analyses were performed to assess the role of albumin in predicting early mortality and compare the predictive capacity of traditional models with models that included albumin. RESULTS: Of the 276 IE patients, 20 (7.2%) died in hospital or within 30 days of surgery. Hypoalbuminemia (an albumin level

Background: To provide prognostic multivariate models for severe complications prediction after heart valvular surgery, such as low cardiac output syndrome (LOCS), acute kidney injury requiring hemodialysis (AKI-rH) and multiple organ dysfunction syndrome (MODS).Methods: We developed multivariate logistic regression models to predict the severe complications after heart valvular surgery using 930 patients collected retrospectively from the first affiliated hospital of Sun Yat-Sen University from January 2014 to December 2015. The validation was conducted using a retrospective dataset of 713 patients from the same hospital from January 2016 to March 2017. We considered two kinds of prognostic models: the PRF models which were built by using the preoperative risk factors only, and the PIRF models which were built by using both of the preoperative and intraoperative risk factors. The Least absolute shrinkage selector operator was used for developing the models. We assessed and compared the discriminative abilities for both of the PRF and PIRF models via the receiver operating characteristic curve. Results: Compared with the PRF models, the PIRF modes selected additional intraoperative factors, such as auxiliary cardiopulmonary bypass time and combined tricuspid valve replacement. The area under the curves (AUCs) of the PRF models for predicting LOCS, AKI-rH and MODS are 0.565 (0.466, 0.664), 0.688 (0.62, 0.757) and 0.657 (0.563, 0.751), respectively. As a comparison, the AUCs of the PIRF models for predicting LOCS, AKI-rH and MODS are 0.821 (0.747, 0.896), 0.78 (0.717, 0.843) and 0.774 (0.7, 0.847), respectively. Conclusions: Adding the intraoperative factors can increase the predictive power of the prognostic models for severe complications prediction after heart valvular surgery.

Background To provide multivariable prognostic models for severe complications prediction after heart valve surgery, including low cardiac output syndrome (LCOS), acute kidney injury requiring hemodialysis (AKI-rH) and multiple organ dysfunction syndrome (MODS). Methods We developed multivariate logistic regression models to predict severe complications after heart valve surgery using 930 patients collected retrospectively from the first affiliated hospital of Sun Yat-Sen University from January 2014 to December 2015. The validation was conducted using a retrospective dataset of 713 patients from the same hospital from January 2016 to March 2017. We considered two kinds of prognostic models: the PRF models which were built by using the preoperative risk factors only, and the PIRF models which were built by using both of the preoperative and intraoperative risk factors. The least absolute shrinkage selector operator was used for developing the models. We assessed and compared the discriminative abilities for both of the PRF and PIRF models via the receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve. Results Compared with the PRF models, the PIRF modes selected additional intraoperative factors, such as auxiliary cardiopulmonary bypass time and combined tricuspid valve replacement. Area under the ROC curves (AUCs) of PRF models for predicting LCOS, AKI-rH and MODS are 0.565 (0.466, 0.664), 0.688 (0.62, 0.757) and 0.657 (0.563, 0.751), respectively. As a comparison, the AUCs of the PIRF models for predicting LOCS, AKI-rH and MODS are 0.821 (0.747, 0.896), 0.78 (0.717, 0.843) and 0.774 (0.7, 0.847), respectively. Conclusions Adding the intraoperative factors can increase the predictive power of the prognostic models for severe complications prediction after heart valve surgery.

Background This study aimed to investigate the prognostic value of glucose variability (GV) in predicting postoperative major adverse events (MAEs) in patients with infective endocarditis (IE) who underwent surgical treatment. Methods This retrospective observational study included a total of 381 consecutive patients who underwent surgical treatment in our institution from October 2007 to August 2019. The MAEs included all-cause death, stroke, myocardial infarction, acute heart failure, IE recurrence, acute renal failure and sepsis. Postoperative GV in the first 24 hours was measured by the mean 24-hour glucose, standard deviation, coefficient of variation (CV) and mean amplitude of glycemic excursions. Univariate and multivariate logistic regression analyses were performed to identify the independent association of GV with MAEs. Results Of the 381 patients, 79 (20.7%) developed MAEs. The 30-day mortality of the overall study cohort was 5.23%. The multivariate logistic regression analysis indicated that 24-hour GV, measured as the CV [odds ratio (OR) =1.49, 95% CI, 1.23-3.57, P=0.012], was significantly associated with MAEs in IE patients. For every 10% increase in 24-hour CV, there was a 49% increase in the risk of MAEs. Furthermore, compared to patients in the low tertile of GV, patients in the top tertile of 24-hour GV had a higher 30-day mortality and an increased incidence of heart failure and hemodialysis as well as longer ventilation support. Conclusions The results of this retrospective investigation demonstrated that increased GV measured by CV is an independent predictor of postoperative MAEs in patients undergoing surgical treatment for IE.

BACKGROUND: The pathogenesis of atrial fibrillation (AF) remains unclear. Vascular endothelial growth factors (VEGFs) can stimulate fibrosis within the atrium and ventricle. We hypothesized that there is a relationship between the serum VEGFs/soluble vascular endothelial growth factor receptor (sVEGFRs) levels and AF in patients with valvular heart disease (VHD). This provides a new paradigm for studying AF. METHODS: The plasma levels of VEGF-A, VEGF-C, sVEGFR-1 and sVEGFR-2 were detected by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). A total of 100 people, consisting of AF patients (long-standing, persistent AF; n=49), sinus rhythm (SR) patients (n=31) and healthy controls (n=20), were included in this study. RESULTS: The plasma levels of VEGF-A were significantly higher in AF patients compared to healthy control (P

Owing to the convenient and visual advantages, dye mapping agents are the most popular lymph tracing agents in the current clinic practices. However, limit tissue penetration always leads to hardly detect deeper lymph nodes (LNs), such as regional lymph nodes (RLNs). Therefore, exploring multimodal nanotheranostic agents for diagnosis and treatment of metastatic LNs are desired. In this study, polydopamine-encapsulated gadolinium-loaded multi-walled carbon nanotube (MWCNT-Gd@PDA) were strategically designed for dual-modality mapping guided photothermal therapy (PTT) by positive signal of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) as well as deep black of the nanomaterials providing visual information. PDA, with excellent biocompatibility and biodegradability, can be easily deposited on many kinds of inorganic and organic materials to prepare functional materials. In order to prevent gadolinium ion escaping from the MWCNT, PDA shell was coated on the surface of MWCNT-Gd. Thus, the prepared MWCNT-Gd@PDA nanomaterials were lack of inherent biological toxicity. More importantly, under the guidance of dual-modality mapping, we demonstrated that primary tumors and RLNs could be simultaneously and effectively ablated by near-infrared irradiation to acquire the radical photothermal dissection. The results showed that our nanosystem possessed the precise spatial-temporal selectivity in comparison with conventional surgery and T2-MRI guided PTT.

It is known that urea can induce protein denaturation that can be inhibited by osmolytes. Yet, experimental explorations on this mechanism at the molecular level are still lacking. We have investigated the resistance of betaine to the urea-induced denaturation of lysozyme in aqueous solutions using low-field NMR. Our study demonstrates that urea molecules directly interact with lysozyme, leading to denaturation. However, betaine molecules interacting with urea more strongly than lysozyme can pull the bound urea molecules from lysozyme so that the protein is protected from denaturation. The number of urea molecules bound to a betaine molecule is given under different conditions. Proton NMR spectroscopy (1H-NMR) and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy reveal that the interaction between betaine and urea is through hydrogen bonding.

Our previous study revealed that miR‑148a, a cyclic adenosine monophosphate‑response element binding protein‑modulated microRNA that promotes adipocyte differentiation by inhibiting Wnt1, is a biomarker of obesity in human subjects and a mouse model. The present study investigated the expression of miR‑148a in human adipose tissue‑derived mesenchymal stem cells (hMSCs‑Ad) in response to inflammatory cytokines and adipokines to clarify its underlying mechanism. miR‑148a expression was detected using reverse transcription‑quantitative polymerase chain reaction analysis and its promoter activity was detected with a luciferase assay. miR‑148a expression levels decreased when differentiated hMSCs‑Ad were exposed to inflammatory cytokines or adipokines, which suggested that miR‑148a may be important in adipocyte metabolism and inflammation. Furthermore, the promoter activity of miR‑148a decreased following treatment of cells with inflammatory cytokines or adipokines. The results of the present study indicated a novel role of miR‑148a in adipocyte inflammation; therefore, miR‑148a may be involved in obesity complications via its own underlying transcriptional mechanism.

Carbonaceous dots (CDs) are superior nanomaterials owing to their promising luminescence properties and good biocompatibility. However, most CDs have relatively short excitation/emission, which restrict their application in bioimaging. In this study, a simple one-step procedure was developed for synthesis of melanin-originated CDs (MNPs). The MNPs showed two long red shift emissions at 570 nm and 645 nm with broad absorptions from 200 nm to 400 nm and 500 nm to 700 nm, suggesting the great potential of MNPs in bioimaging. Besides, several experiments indicated that MNPs possessed good serum stability and well blood compatibility. In vitro, MNPs could be taken up by C6 cell in a concentration- and time-dependent manner with endosomes involved. In conclusion, MNPs were prepared using a simple one-step method with unique optical and good biological properties and could be used for bioimaging.

This study discusses the unbalanced development of Chinese inter-provincial high-grade highway from 1997 to 2013. It does so from the viewpoint of the inter-provincial Gini coefficient based on per capita mileage of high-grade highway, which is decomposed according to such dimensions as the increment of the Gini coefficient, the Gini coefficient of different types of high-grade highway, and the Gini coefficient between and within inland and coastal areas. The Gini coefficient of China’s per capita mileage of inter-provincial high-grade highway shows a declining trend year by year. According to the results from the decomposition of the contribution rate of different types of high-grade highway, the unbalanced development of inter-provincial high-grade highway is caused mainly by that of first- and second-grade highway. According to the results from the decomposition related to the increment of the Gini coefficient of China’s per capita mileage of inter-provincial high-grade highway, the decrease of the Gini coefficient from 1997 to 2013 was mainly the result of balanced distribution of high-grade highway among regions in China. According to the results from the decomposition of the Gini coefficient between and within inland and coastal areas, the unbalanced development of inter-provincial high-grade highway in China from 1997 to 2013 was caused mainly by the unbalanced development of inter-provincial high-grade highway in inland areas. Therefore, the authors argue that the government should pay more attention to protecting the environment and providing a suitable scale of highway network, which could promote long-term sustainable development.

Although development of nanomedicines has been a promising direction in tumor treatment, the therapeutic outcome of current nanomedicines is unsatisfying, partly because of the poor retention and penetration in tumors. Recently, a kind of tumor microenvironment sensitive size shrinkable nanoparticles (DOX-AuNPs-GNPs) has been developed by our lab, which could enhance the tumor penetration and retention depending on the size shrinking. However, the further enhancement is still restricted by dense collagen network in tumors. Thus in this study, we combined DOX-AuNPs-GNPs with losartan to deplete tumor collagen (constituted up to 90% of extracellular matrix) to further improve tumor penetration. In vitro, DOX-AuNPs-GNPs can shrink from over 117.8 nm to less than 50.0 nm and release DOX-AuNPs under the triggering of tumor overexpressed matrix metalloproteinases-2 (MMP-2). In vivo, pretreatment with losartan significantly decrease the collagen level and improve the tumor penetration. In combination, losartan combined with DOX-AuNPs-GNPs showed the best drug delivery efficiency, striking penetration efficiency and best 4T1 breast tumor inhibition effect. In conclusion, this study provided a promising synergetic strategy to improve the tumor treatment efficiency of nanomedicines. Statement of significance We have developed a dual strategy for deep tumor penetration through combining size shrinkable DOX-AuNPs-GNPs with depleting tumor collagen by losartan. Additionally, we demonstrate therapeutic efficacy in breast tumor bearing mouse model. DOX-AuNPs-GNPs co-administration with losartan is a novel and highly attractive strategy for anti-tumor drug delivery with the potential for broad applications in clinic.

Fluorescent carbonaceous nanospheres (CDs) have gained significant attention because of their promising applications, especially in biology and medicine, due to their unique properties. However, the application of CDs in the noninvasive imaging of diseased tissues has been restricted by the poor targeting efficiency of CDs. In this study, CDs were prepared from sucrose and glutamic acid with a particle size of 122.5 nm. Due to quantum confinement in the nanoparticles, CDs exhibited emission from 450 to 600 nm upon excitation at approximately 400 nm. This feature made it possible to use the CDs for low-background bioimaging of deep diseased tissues. RGD, a ligand that can target α(v)β3, which is highly expressed on most tumor and neovascular cells, was decorated onto the CDs after PEGylation. The product, RGD-PEG-CDs, possessed low cytotoxicity, as determined by MTT assay. In vitro, RGD-PEG-CDs targeted U87 (a human brain glioma cell line) cells with a higher cellular uptake intensity than CDs and PEGylated CDs (PEG-CDs), and endosomes were involved in the uptake procedure. The internalization of RGD-PEG-CDs, PEG-CDs and CDs all were primarily mediated by macropinocytosis and a clathrin-mediated pathway, which were energy-dependent. Additionally, the uptake of RGD-PEG-CDs could be significantly inhibited by free RGD, indicating that the uptake was mediated by the receptor of RGD. In vivo, RGD-PEG-CDs accumulated in U87 glioma at high intensity, at values that were 1.67- and 1.64-fold higher than those of PEG-CDs and CDs. Furthermore, RGD-PEG-CDs exhibited good colocalization with neovasculature. In conclusion, RGD-PEG-CDs could be successfully used for noninvasive U87 glioma imaging.

Glioma is still hard to be treated due to their complex microenvironment. In this study, a gold nanoparticle-based delivery system was developed. The system, An-PEG-DOX-AuNPs, was loaded with doxorubicin (DOX) through hydrazone, an acid-responsive linker, and was functionalized with angiopep-2, a specific ligand of low density lipoprotein receptor-related protein-1 (LRP1), which could mediate the system to penetrate blood brain barrier and target to glioma cells. The particle size of An-PEG-DOX-AuNPs was 39.9 nm with a zeta potential of -19.3 mV, while the DOX loading capacity was 9.7%. In vitro, the release of DOX from DOX-AuNPs was pH-dependent. At lower pH values, especially 5.0 and 6.0, release of DOX was much quicker than that at pH 6.8 and 7.4. After coating with PEG, the acid-responsive release of DOX from PEG-DOX-AuNPs was almost the same as that from DOX-AuNPs. Cellular uptake study showed obviously higher intensity of intracellular An-PEG-DOX-AuNPs compared with PEG-DOX-AuNPs. In vivo, An-PEG-DOX-AuNPs could distribute into glioma at a higher intensity than that of PEG-DOX-AuNPs and free DOX. Correspondingly, glioma-bearing mice treated with An-PEG-DOX-AuNPs displayed the longest median survival time, which was 2.89-fold longer than that of saline. In conclusion, An-PEG-DOX-AuNPs could specifically deliver and release DOX in glioma and significantly expand the median survival time of glioma-bearing mice.

Fluorescent carbonaceous dots (CDs) have attracted much attention due to their unique properties. However, their application in non-invasive imaging of diseased tissues was restricted by the short excitation/emission wavelength and the poor targeting efficiency of CDs. In this study, CDs were prepared from sucrose and glutamic acid with a particle size of 57.5 nm. An obvious emission could be observed at 600 nm to 700 nm when excited at around 500 nm. This property enabled CDs with a capacity for deep tissue imaging with low background adsorption. RGD, a ligand which could target most tumor and neovasculature cells, was anchored onto CDs after PEGylation. The product, RGD–PEG–CDs could accumulate in MCF-7/ADR xenografts at high intensity, which was 1.65-fold higher than that of PEG–CDs. Furthermore, RGD–PEG–CDs showed good colocalization with neovasculature. Thus, RGD–PEG–CDs could be used for non-invasive MCF-7/ADR tumor imaging. CDs functionalized with other ligands may also be used as a non-invasive probe for many kinds of tumor imaging.

Targeting delivery and deep penetration have been attracting tremendous attention in triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) theranostics. Herein, we reported a novel multistage system (G-AuNPs-DOX-RRGD) with an active targeting effect and size-changeable property to inhibit tumor growth and metastasis in 4T1 xenograft bearing mice. The system was constructed through fabricating small-size gold nanoparticles (AuNPs) onto matrix metalloproteinase-2 (MMP-2) degradable gelatin nanoparticles (GNPs). Doxorubicin (DOX) was tethered onto AuNPs via a pH sensitive hydrazone bond, and RRGD, a tandem peptide of RGD and octarginine, was surface-decorated onto the system to improve its tumor targeting efficiency. In vitro, the G-AuNPs-DOX-RRGD could shrink from 185.9 nm to 71.2 nm after 24 h incubation with MMP-2 and the DOX was released in a pH-dependent manner. Tumor spheroid penetration and collagen diffusion demonstrated G-AuNPs-DOX-RRGD possessed best penetrating efficiency. In vivo, the G-AuNPs-DOX-RRGD actively targeted to the 4T1 tumor and then penetrated through the interstitial matrix, resulted in enhanced accumulation in the deep tumor region. Therefore, the G-AuNPs-DOX-RRGD could approach excellent anti-tumor capacity owing to the synergistic effect of RRGD and the size-changeable property.

Angiopep-2 modified and doxorubicin loaded carbonaceous nanodots (AN-PEG-DOX-CDs) were synthesized for glioma cell targeting, delivery and redox-responsive release of doxorubicin. Our results provided the possibility of using CDs to construct smart drug delivery systems.

Fluorescent carbonaceous nanodots (CDs) are suitable for biomedical applications owing to their excellent photoluminescence properties. However, their toxicity has not been sufficiently evaluated. In this study, we demonstrated that both CDs and PEGylated CDs (PEG-CDs) displayed low cytotoxicity to several cell lines with a concentration as high as 1 mg mL−1, and that autophagy might be involved in the cytotoxicity. In vivo, continuous administration of CDs or PEG-CDs showed no significant alteration on the hematology, blood biochemistry indexes and cell morphology of the main organs. In a zebrafish embryo model, CDs led to a considerably higher mortality and abnormality frequency than PEG-CDs, which demonstrated that PEGylation could decrease the toxicity of CDs. In conclusion, CDs displayed low systemic toxicity but considerable developmental toxicity, and PEGylation could reduce the toxicity, while autophagy may be involved in the toxic mechanisms of the CDs and PEG-CDs. Thus, our studies were exceedingly encouraging and provided some possibility for the clinical application of CDs, while developmental toxicity should be paid much more attention when evaluating the toxicity of nanomaterials.

Objective: To review the research progression of Chinese medicines for anti-human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) and their natural active ingredients at home and abroad so as to provide references for pharmaceutical research and clinical medication. Methods: Abundant representative literatures at home and abroad were classified to introduce the anti-HIV monomers, compounds and natural active ingredients of Chinese medicines. Results: The researches on anti-HIV natural medicines have obtained great achievements, in which medicines with anti-virus and immunity-improving functions have had rapid progression and new-types for anti-virus also have had dramatic development. Conclusion: The progression of anti-HIV Chinese medicines and their active ingredients has favorable prospect.

Fluorescent carbon nanoparticles (CNP) have gained much attention due to their unique fluorescent properties and safety. In this study, we evaluated the potential application of CNP and PEGylated CNP (PEG-CNP) in noninvasive heart imaging. CNP was prepared by hydrothermal treatment of silk. The particle size and zeta potential of CNP were 121.8 nm and -3.7 mV, respectively, which did not change significantly after PEGylation with a PEG density of 4.43 ± 0.02 μg/mg CNP. FTIR and XPS showed that CNP possessed several functional groups, such as -COOH, -OH, and NH2, which could be utilized for PEGylation and other modifications. CNP displayed strong blue fluorescence after excitation at the wavelength of 375 nm. PEG-CNP displayed better serum stability compared to CNP. The hemolysis rate of PEG-CNP was lower than that of CNP, suggesting PEGylation could enhance the hemocompatibility of CNP. Both CNP and PEG-CNP showed higher uptake capacity by H9c2 cells (a heart cell line) than that by human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVEC), suggesting the particles tend to be selectively taken up by heart cells. Both CNP and PEG-CNP were proven to be taken up through endosome-mediated pathway, and the colocalization of nanoparticles with mitochondria was also observed. In vivo results demonstrated that CNP could target heart with much higher fluorescent intensity than liver and spleen. Although PEGylation could decrease the distribution in heart, it remained high for PEG-CNP. In conclusion, CNP could be used for heart imaging, and moreover, PEGylation could improve the stability and biocompatibility of CNP.

Despite the great achievements that nanomedicines have obtained so far, deep penetration of nanomedicines into tumors is still a major challenge in tumor treatment. The enhanced permeability and retention (EPR) effect was the main theoretical foundation for using nanomedicines to treat solid tumor. However, the antitumor efficiency is modest because the tumor is heterogeneous, with dense collagen matrix, abnormal tumor vasculature, and lymphatic system. Nanomedicines could only passively accumulate near leaky site of tumor vessels, and they cannot reach the deep region of tumor. To enhance further the tumor penetration efficiency, we developed a novel strategy of coadministering cell-homing penetration peptide iRGD with size-shrinkable and tumor-microenvironment-responsive multistage system (DOX-AuNPs-GNPs) to overcome these barriers. First, iRGD could specifically increase the permeability of tumor vascular and tumor tissue, leading to more DOX-AuNPs-GNPs leaking out from tumor vasculature. Second, the multistage system passively accumulated in tumor tissue and shrank from 131.1 to 46.6 nm to reach the deep region of tumor. In vitro, coadministering iRGD with DOX-AuNPs-GNPs showed higher cellular uptake and apoptosis ratio. In vivo, coadministering iRGD with DOX-AuNPs-GNPs presented higher penetration and accumulation in tumor than giving DOX-AuNPs-GNPs alone, leading to the best antitumor efficiency in 4T1 tumor-bearing mouse model.

Fluorescent carbonaceous nanospheres (CDs) have gained significant attention because of their promising applications, especially in biology and medicine, due to their unique properties. However, the application of CDs in the noninvasive imaging of diseased tissues has been restricted by the poor targeting efficiency of CDs. In this study, CDs were prepared from sucrose and glutamic acid with a particle size of 122.5 nm. Due to quantum confinement in the nanoparticles, CDs exhibited emission from 450 to 600 nm upon excitation at approximately 400 nm. This feature made it possible to use the CDs for low-background bioimaging of deep diseased tissues. RGD, a ligand that can target α(v)β3, which is highly expressed on most tumor and neovascular cells, was decorated onto the CDs after PEGylation. The product, RGD-PEG-CDs, possessed low cytotoxicity, as determined by MTT assay. In vitro, RGD-PEG-CDs targeted U87 (a human brain glioma cell line) cells with a higher cellular uptake intensity than CDs and PEGylated CDs (PEG-CDs), and endosomes were involved in the uptake procedure. The internalization of RGD-PEG-CDs, PEG-CDs and CDs all were primarily mediated by macropinocytosis and a clathrin-mediated pathway, which were energy-dependent. Additionally, the uptake of RGD-PEG-CDs could be significantly inhibited by free RGD, indicating that the uptake was mediated by the receptor of RGD. In vivo, RGD-PEG-CDs accumulated in U87 glioma at high intensity, at values that were 1.67- and 1.64-fold higher than those of PEG-CDs and CDs. Furthermore, RGD-PEG-CDs exhibited good colocalization with neovasculature. In conclusion, RGD-PEG-CDs could be successfully used for noninvasive U87 glioma imaging.

Carbonaceous dots (CDs), which have been used for diagnosis, drug delivery and gene delivery, are accumulated in heart at high concentrations. To improve their biocompatibility, polyethylene glycol-modified CDs (PEG-CDs) were prepared. In this study we compared the cardiac toxicity of CDs and PEG-CDs in mouse and zebrafish models.Mice were intravenously treated with CDs (size: 4.9 nm, 5 mg·kg(-1)·d(-1)) or PEG-CDs (size: 8.3 nm, 5 mg·kg(-1)·d(-1)) for 21 d. Their blood biochemistry indices, ECG, and histological examination were examined for evaluation of cardiac toxicity. CDs or PEG-CDs was added in incubator of cmlc2 transgenic Zebrafish embryos at 6 hpf, and the shape and size of embryos' hearts were observed at 48 hpf using a fluorescent microscope. Furthermore, whole-mount in situ hybridization was used to examine the expression of early cardiac marker gene (clml2) at 48 hpf.Administration of CDs or PEG-CDs in mice caused mild, but statistically insignificant reduction in serum creatine kinase (CK) and lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) levels detected at 7 d, which were returned to the respective control levels at 21 d. Neither CDs nor PEG-CDs caused significant changes in the morphology of heart cells. Administration of CDs, but not PEG-CDs, in mice caused marked increase of heart rate. Both CDs and PEG-CDs did not affect other ECG parameters. In the zebrafish embryos, addition of CDs (20 μg/mL) caused heart development delay, whereas addition of CDs (80 μg/mL) led to heart malformation. In contrast, PEG-CDs caused considerably small changes in heart development, which was consistent with the results from the in situ hybridization experiments.CDs causes greater cardiac toxicity, especially regarding heart development. Polyethylene glycol modification can attenuate the cardiac toxicity of CDs.