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Langmuir : the ACS Journal of Surfaces... Jun 2024Plasmonic metal oxides are promising photocatalysts for the artificial photosynthesis of green ammonia due to localized surface plasmon resonance (LSPR) enhanced...
Plasmonic metal oxides are promising photocatalysts for the artificial photosynthesis of green ammonia due to localized surface plasmon resonance (LSPR) enhanced photoconversion and rich surface oxygen vacancies improved chemisorption and activation of dinitrogen molecules. However, these oxygen vacancies are unstable during the photocatalytic process and could be oxidized by photogenerated holes, leading to the vanishing of the LSPR. Here, we fabricated antimony-doped molybdenum trioxide nanosheets with stable plasmonic absorption extending into the near-infrared (NIR) range, even after harsh treatment in oxidative atmospheric conditions at high temperatures. For undoped plasmonic MoO nanosheets, the LSPR originates from the abundant oxygen vacancies that vanish after heat treatment at high temperatures in air, leading to the disappearance of the LSPR absorption. Sb doping does not significantly increase the concentration of oxygen vacancies while donating more free electrons because Sb can keep a lower oxidation state. Heat treatment diminished the oxygen vacancies while not affecting the low oxidation state of Sb. As a result, heat-treated Sb-doped MoO nanosheets still show strong LSPR absorption in the NIR range. Both experimental results and theoretical calculations demonstrated that add-on states close to the Fermi level are formed due to the Sb doping and high concentration of oxygen vacancies. The prepared samples were used for photocatalytic nitrogen reduction and showed an LSPR-dependent photocatalytic performance. The present work has provided an effective strategy to stabilize the LSPR of plasmonic semiconductor photocatalysts.
PubMed: 38875214
DOI: 10.1021/acs.langmuir.4c01135 -
Chemistry (Weinheim An Der Bergstrasse,... Jun 2024Boron subphthalocyanines with chloride and fluoride axial ligands and three antimony complexes chelated by corroles that differ in size and electron-richness were...
Boron subphthalocyanines with chloride and fluoride axial ligands and three antimony complexes chelated by corroles that differ in size and electron-richness were examined as electrocatalysts for reduction of protons to hydrogen. Experiment- and computation-based investigations revealed that all redox events are ligand-centered and that the meso-C of the corroles and the peripheral N atoms of the subphthalocyanines are the largely preferred proton-binding sites.
PubMed: 38869100
DOI: 10.1002/chem.202402145 -
Dalton Transactions (Cambridge, England... Jun 2024We report on the synthesis, structure and reactivity of [{NCN}Sb(CH-Bu-3,5-O-4)] (3), an organoantimony(III)-oxyaryl species obtained upon C-H bond activation in a...
We report on the synthesis, structure and reactivity of [{NCN}Sb(CH-Bu-3,5-O-4)] (3), an organoantimony(III)-oxyaryl species obtained upon C-H bond activation in a phenolate ligand and stabilised by the monoanionic pincer {NCN}. The mechanism leading to the formation of 3 is highly sensitive to steric considerations. It was probed experimentally and by DFT calculations, and a number of intermediates and related complexes were identified. All data agree with successive heterolytic bond cleaving and bond forming processes involving charged species, rather than a pathway involving free radicals as previously exemplified with congeneric bismuth species. The nucleophilic behaviour of the oxyaryl ligand in 3, a complex that features both zwitterionic and quinoidal attributes, was illustrated in derivatisation reactions. In particular, insertion of CS in the Sb-C bond generates [{NCN}Sb(SC-CH-Bu-3,5-O-4)].
PubMed: 38868997
DOI: 10.1039/d4dt01400f -
Journal of Arthropod-borne Diseases Dec 2023Current medications especially the pentavalent antimonial compounds have been used as the first line treatment of cutaneous leishmaniasis (CL), but they have limitations...
Anti-Leishmanial Effects of a Novel Biocompatible Non-Invasive Nanofibers Containing Royal Jelly and Propolis against Iranian Strain of (MRHO/IR/75/ER): an In-Vitro Study.
BACKGROUND
Current medications especially the pentavalent antimonial compounds have been used as the first line treatment of cutaneous leishmaniasis (CL), but they have limitations due to serious side effects such as drug resistance, cardio and nephrotoxicity, and high costs. Hence, the demand to find more usable drugs is evident. Synthesis and development of natural, effective, biocompatible, and harmless compounds against is the principal priority of this study.
METHODS
By electrospinning method, a new type of nanofiber were synthesized from royal jelly and propolis with different ratios. Nanofibers were characterized by Scanning Electron Microscope (SEM), Transmission Electron Microscopy (TEM), Thermogravimetric Analysis (TGA), Contact angle, and Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR). The Half-maximal inhibitory concentration (IC), Half-maximal effective concentration (EC) and the 50% cytotoxic concentration (CC) for different concentrations of nanofibers were determined using quantitative calorimetric methods. Inductively coupled plasma-optical emission spectrometry (ICP-OES) and flow cytometry were performed as complementary tests.
RESULTS
The results showed that the proposed formulas provide a new achievement that, despite the significant killing activity on , has negligible cytotoxicity on the host cells. Royal jelly nanofibers have significantly shown the best 72 hours results (IC= 35 μg/ml and EC=16.4 μg/ml) and the least cytotoxicity.
CONCLUSION
This study presents a great challenge to introduce a new low-cost treatment method for CL, accelerate wound healing, and reduce scarring with minimal side effects and biocompatible materials. Royal jelly and propolis nanofibers significantly inhibit the growth of .
PubMed: 38868671
DOI: 10.18502/jad.v17i4.15294 -
Environmental Pollution (Barking, Essex... Jun 2024Antimony (Sb) is known for its severe and extensive toxicity, and earthworms are considered important indicator organisms in soil ecosystems. Therefore, the present...
Endocrine system, cell growth and death, and energy metabolism induced by Sb(III) exposure in earthworm (Pheretima guillemi) revealed by transcriptome and metabolome analysis.
Antimony (Sb) is known for its severe and extensive toxicity, and earthworms are considered important indicator organisms in soil ecosystems. Therefore, the present study investigated the mechanism of toxicity of the Sb at different concentrations (50, 200 mg/kg) on earthworms using biochemical indicators, pathological sections, as well as metabolomics and transcriptomics analyses. The results showed that as the exposure concentration increased, both the antioxidant system of earthworms, extent of intestinal damage, and their metabolomic characteristics were significantly enhanced. In the 50 and 200 mg/kg Sb treatment group, 30 and 177 significant differentially changed metabolites (DCMs) were identified, respectively, with the most DCMs being down- and up-regulated, respectively. Metabolomics analysis showed that the contents of dl-tryptophan, glutamic acid, glycine, isoleucine, l-methionine, involved in the protein digestion and absorption as well as aminoacyl-tRNA biosynthesis were significantly up-regulated under the 200 mg/kg treatment. At the transcriptional level, Sb mainly affected the immune system, nervous system, amino acid metabolism, endocrine system, and carbohydrate metabolism in earthworms. The integration of transcriptomic and metabolomic data indicated that high doses of Sb regulated the metabolites and genes related to the oxidative phosphorylation pathway in earthworms. Overall, these results revealed global responses beyond the scope of conventional toxicity endpoints and facilitated a more in-depth and comprehensive assessment of the toxic effects of Sb.
PubMed: 38866316
DOI: 10.1016/j.envpol.2024.124357 -
The American Journal of Tropical... Jun 2024We present the first case of mucocutaneous leishmaniasis in Algeria, diagnosed in an immunocompetent 42-year-old man exhibiting an infiltrated and ulcerated plaque...
We present the first case of mucocutaneous leishmaniasis in Algeria, diagnosed in an immunocompetent 42-year-old man exhibiting an infiltrated and ulcerated plaque leading to macrocheilitis of the entire lower lip. He was a police officer who lived in a village in Ain El Hammam (Kabylie region, known as an active focus of zoonotic visceral leishmaniasis) without any history of travel for the previous 3 years. He suffered from cutaneous lesions for 22 months due to the misdiagnosis of a skin lesion resembling other diseases such as Crohn disease or sarcoidosis. A compilation of clinical, histopathological, parasitological, and molecular examinations revealed Leishmania infantum as the etiologic agent. The patient was treated with meglumine antimoniate, which resulted in the complete disappearance of the lesion 4 months after treatment.
PubMed: 38861965
DOI: 10.4269/ajtmh.23-0634 -
Journal of Integrative Bioinformatics Jun 2024We describe a web-based tool, MakeSBML (https://sys-bio.github.io/makesbml/), that provides an installation-free application for creating, editing, and searching the...
We describe a web-based tool, MakeSBML (https://sys-bio.github.io/makesbml/), that provides an installation-free application for creating, editing, and searching the Biomodels repository for SBML-based models. MakeSBML is a client-based web application that translates models expressed in human-readable Antimony to the System Biology Markup Language (SBML) and vice-versa. Since MakeSBML is a web-based application it requires no installation on the user's part. Currently, MakeSBML is hosted on a GitHub page where the client-based design makes it trivial to move to other hosts. This model for software deployment also reduces maintenance costs since an active server is not required. The SBML modeling language is often used in systems biology research to describe complex biochemical networks and makes reproducing models much easier. However, SBML is designed to be computer-readable, not human-readable. We therefore employ the human-readable Antimony language to make it easy to create and edit SBML models.
PubMed: 38860571
DOI: 10.1515/jib-2024-0002 -
Zhongguo Xue Xi Chong Bing Fang Zhi Za... Mar 2024This case report summarizes the experience from diagnosis and treatment of a patient with repeated high fever, hepatosplenomegaly and pancytopenia. Following exclusion...
This case report summarizes the experience from diagnosis and treatment of a patient with repeated high fever, hepatosplenomegaly and pancytopenia. Following exclusion of bacterial, viral, fungal infections and hematological diseases, metagenomic next-generation sequencing of the patient's peripheral blood revealed infection, and rK39 rapid diagnostic test showed positive for anti- antibody, while microscopic examination of bone marrow smears identified amastigotes. Therefore, the case was definitively diagnosed as visceral leishmaniasis, and given anti-infective treatment with sodium antimony gluconate and hormone, hepatoprotection, elevation of white blood cell counts and personalized nursing. Then, the case was cured and discharged from hospital. Metagenomic next-generation sequencing is of great value in etiological detection of fever patients with unknown causes, which deserves widespread clinical applications.
Topics: Humans; Leishmaniasis, Visceral; High-Throughput Nucleotide Sequencing; Male; Metagenomics; Adult; Middle Aged
PubMed: 38857969
DOI: 10.16250/j.32.1374.2023212 -
ACS Applied Materials & Interfaces Jun 2024Metal halide-based broadband near-infrared (NIR) luminescent materials face problems such as complicated preparation, high cost, low photoluminescence quantum yield, and...
Metal halide-based broadband near-infrared (NIR) luminescent materials face problems such as complicated preparation, high cost, low photoluminescence quantum yield, and high excitation energy. Here, incorporating Sb and Br into (CHP)ZnCl crystals allowed for the achievement of efficient broadband near-infrared emission under 400 nm excitation while maintaining satisfactory environmental and thermal stability. The compounds exhibit a broad range of emission bands from 550 to 1050 nm, with a photoluminescence quantum yield of 93.57%. This is a groundbreaking achievement for organic-inorganic hybrid metal halide NIR luminescent materials. The near-infrared emission is suggested to originate from [SbX], as supported by the femtosecond transient absorption spectra and density-functional theory calculations. This phosphor-based NIR LEDs successfully demonstrate potential applications in night vision, medical imaging, information encryption, and anticounterfeiting.
PubMed: 38857900
DOI: 10.1021/acsami.4c04622 -
The Science of the Total Environment Sep 2024Prenatal exposures to toxic metals and trace elements have been linked to childhood neurodevelopment. However, existing evidence remains inconclusive, and further...
Prenatal exposures to toxic metals and trace elements have been linked to childhood neurodevelopment. However, existing evidence remains inconclusive, and further research is needed to investigate the mixture effects of multiple metal exposures on childhood neurodevelopment. We aimed to examine the associations between prenatal exposure to specific metals and metal mixtures and neurodevelopment in children. In this prospective cohort study, we used the multivariable linear regressions and the robust modified Poisson regressions to explore the associations of prenatal exposure to 25 specific metals with neurodevelopment among children at 3 years of age in 854 mother-child pairs from the Jiangsu Birth Cohort (JBC) Study. The Bayesian kernel machine regression (BKMR) was employed to assess the joint effects of multiple metals on neurodevelopment. Prenatal manganese (Mn) exposure was negatively associated with the risk of non-optimal cognition development of children, while vanadium (V), copper (Cu), zinc (Zn), antimony (Sb), cerium (Ce) and uranium (U) exposures were positively associated with the risk of non-optimal gross motor development. BKMR identified an interaction effect between Sb and Ce on non-optimal gross motor development. Additionally, an element risk score (ERS), representing the mixture effect of multiple metal exposures including V, Cu, Zn, Sb, Ce and U was constructed based on weights from a Poisson regression model. Children with ERS in the highest tertile had higher probability of non-optimal gross motor development (RR = 2.37, 95 % CI: 1.15, 4.86) versus those at the lowest tertile. Notably, Sb [conditional-posterior inclusion probabilities (cPIP) = 0.511] and U (cPIP = 0.386) mainly contributed to the increased risk of non-optimal gross motor development. The findings highlight the importance of paying attention to the joint effects of multiple metals on children's neurodevelopment. The ERS score may serve as an indicator of comprehensive metal exposure risk for children's neurodevelopment.
Topics: Humans; Female; Prenatal Exposure Delayed Effects; Pregnancy; Child, Preschool; Prospective Studies; Child Development; Metals; Male; Maternal Exposure; Environmental Pollutants; Birth Cohort; China
PubMed: 38857795
DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2024.173812