Given that the global winegrape planting area is 7.2 × 106 hm2, the potential for winegrape crop-mediated carbon capture and storage as an approach to reducing greenhouse gas emissions warranted further research. Herein, we employed an allometric model of various winegrape organs to assess biomass distributions, and we evaluated the carbon storage distribution characteristics associated with vineyard ecosystems in the Hongsibu District of Ningxia. We found that the total carbon storage of the Vitis vinifera 'Cabernet Sauvignon' vineyard ecosystem was 55.35 t·hm-2, of which 43.12 t·hm-2 came from the soil, while the remaining 12.23 t·hm-2 was attributable to various vine components including leaves (1.85 t·hm-2), fruit (2.16 t·hm-2), canes (1.83 t·hm-2), perennial branches (2.62 t·hm-2), and roots (3.78 t·hm-2). Together, these results suggested that vineyards can serve as an effective carbon sink, with the majority of carbon being sequestered at the soil surface. Within the grapevines themselves, most carbon was stored in perennial organs including perennial branches and roots. Allometric equations based on simple and practical biomass and biometric measurements offer a means whereby grape-growers and government entities responsible for ecological management can better understand carbon distribution patterns associated with vineyards.

Bioelectricity generation, by Shewanella oneidensis (S. oneidensis) MR-1, has become particularly alluring, thanks to its extraordinary prospects for energy production, pollution treatment, and biosynthesis. Attempts to improve its technological output by modification of S. oneidensis MR-1 remains complicated, expensive and inefficient. Herein, we report on the augmentation of S. oneidensis MR-1 with carbon dots (CDs). The CDs-fed cells show accelerated extracellular electron transfer and metabolic rate, with increased intracellular charge, higher adenosine triphosphate level, quicker substrate consumption and more abundant extracellular secretion. Meanwhile, the CDs promote cellular adhesion, electronegativity, and biofilm formation. In bioelectrical systems the CDs-fed cells increase the maximum current value, 7.34 fold, and power output, 6.46 fold. The enhancement efficacy is found to be strongly dependent on the surface charge of the CDs. This work demonstrates a simple, cost-effective and efficient route to improve bioelectricity generation of S. oneidensis MR-1, holding promise in all relevant technologies.

The natural mountain forests in northwest China are recognized as a substantial carbon pool and play an important role in local fragile ecosystems. This study used inventory data and detailed field measurements covering different forest age groups (young, middle-aged, near-mature, mature, old-growth forest), structure of forest (tree, herb, litter and soil layer) and trees (leaves, branches, trunks and root) to estimate biomass, carbon content ratio, carbon density and carbon storage in Altai forest ecosystems. The results showed that the average biomass of the Altai Mountains forest ecosystems was 126.67 t·hm-2, and the descending order of the value was tree layer (120.84 t·hm-2) > herb layer (4.22 t·hm-2) > litter layer (1.61 t·hm-2). Among the tree parts, trunks, roots, leaves and branches accounted for 50%, 22%, 16% and 12% of the total tree biomass, respectively. The average carbon content ratio was 0.49 (range: 0.41-0.52). The average carbon density of forest ecosystems was 205.72 t·hm-2, and the carbon storage of the forest ecosystems was 131.35 Tg (standard deviation: 31.01) inside study area. Soil had the highest carbon storage (65.98%), followed by tree (32.81%), herb (0.78%) and litter (0.43%) layers. Forest age has significant effect on biomass, carbon content ratio, carbon density and carbon storage. The carbon density of forest ecosystems in study area was spatially distributed higher in the south and lower in north, which is influenced by climate, topography, soil types and dominant tree species.

The present study investigated the effects of exogenous thymosin β4 (TB4) on carbon tetrachloride (CCl4)-induced acute liver injury and fibrosis in rodent animals. Results showed that both in mice and rats CCl4 rendered significant increases in serum alanine aminotransferase and aspartate aminotransferase, hepatic malondialdehyde formation, decreases in antioxidants including superoxide dismutase and glutathione, and up-regulated expressions of transforming growth factor-β1, α-smooth muscle actin, tumor necrosis factor-α and interleukin-1β in the liver tissues. Hydroxyproline contents in the rat livers were increased by CCl4. Histopathological examinations indicated that CCl4 induced extensive necrosis in mice livers and pseudo-lobule formations, collagen deposition in rats livers. However, all these changes in mice and rats were significantly attenuated by exogenous TB4 treatment. Furthermore, up-regulations of nuclear factor-κB p65 protein expression by CCl4 treatment in mice and rats livers were also remarkably reduced by exogenous TB4 administration. Taken together, findings in this study suggested that exogenous TB4 might prevent CCl4-induced acute liver injury and subsequent fibrosis through alleviating oxidative stress and inflammation.

With the continuous development of carbon-based materials, a variety of new materials have emerged one after another. Carbon Quantum Dots (CQDs) have succeeded in standing out from the crowd of new materials due to their better optical properties in biomedicine, ion detection, anti-counterfeiting materials and photocatalysis. In recent years, through the continuous exploration of CQDs, research scholars have found that the organic substances or heavy metals contained in traditional ones can cause irreversible harm to people and the environment. Therefore, the application of traditional CQDs in future studies will be gradually limited. Among various new materials, biomass raw materials have the merits of good biocompatibility, lower toxicity and green and environmental protection, which largely overcome the defects of traditional materials and have attracted many scholars to focus on the research and development of various biomass CQDs. This paper summarises the optical properties, fluorescence mechanisms, synthetic methods, functionalisation modulation of biomass CQDs and their relevant research progress in the fields of ion detection, bioimaging, biomedicine, biosensing, solar cells, anti-counterfeit materials, photocatalysis and capacitors. Finally, the paper concludes with some discussion of the challenges and prospects of this exciting and promising field of application.

Microbial dysbiosis is a potential mediator of air pollution-induced adverse outcomes. However, a systemic comparison of the lung and gut microbiome alterations and lung-gut axis following air pollution exposure is scant. In this study, we exposed male C57BL/6J mice to inhaled air, CB (10 mg/m3), O3 (2 ppm) or CB + O3 mixture for 3 h/day for either one day or four consecutive days and were euthanized 24 h post last exposure. The lung and gut microbiome were quantified by 16 s sequencing.

Transition metal single-atom catalysts (SACs) are of immense interest, but how exactly they are evolved upon pyrolysis of the corresponding precursors remains unclear as transition metal ions in the complex precursor undergo a series of morphological changes accompanied with changes in oxidation state as a result of the interactions with the carbon support. Herein, the authors record the complete evolution process of Co SAC during the pyrolysis a Co/Zn-containing zeolitic imidazolate framework. Aberration-corrected environmental TEM coupled with in-situ EELS is used for direct visualization of the evolution process at 200-1000 °C. Dissolution of carbon into the nanoparticles of Co is found to be key to modulating the wetting behavior of nanoparticles on the carbon support; melting of Co nanoparticles and their motion within the zeolitic architecture leads to the etching of the framework structure, yielding porous C/N support onto which Co-single atoms reside. This uniquely structured Co SAC is found to be effective for the oxidation of a series of aromatic alkanes to produce selective ketones among other possible products. The carbon dissolution and melting/sublimation-driven structural dynamics of transition metal revealed here will expand the methodology in synthesizing SACs and other high-temperature processes.

Introduction: Rheumatoid arthritis is an autoimmune disease characterized by chronic joint inflammation. Methotrexate is one of the most effective drugs for rheumatoid arthritis, but the adverse reactions caused by oral methotrexate greatly limit its clinical application. Transdermal drug delivery system is an ideal alternative to oral methotrexate by absorbing drugs into the human body through the skin. However, methotrexate in the existing methotrexate microneedles is mostly used alone, and there are few reports of combined use with other anti-inflammatory drugs. Methods: In this study, glycyrrhizic acid was first modified onto carbon dots, and then methotrexate was loaded to construct a nano-drug delivery system with fluorescence and dual anti-inflammatory effects. Then hyaluronic acid was combined with nano-drug delivery system to prepare biodegradable soluble microneedles for transdermal drug delivery of rheumatoid arthritis. The prepared nano-drug delivery system was characterized by transmission electron microscopy, fluorescence spectroscopy, laser nanoparticle size analyzer, ultraviolet-visible absorption spectroscopy, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, differential scanning calorimeter and nuclear magnetic resonance spectrometer. The results showed that glycyrrhizic acid and methotrexate were successfully loaded on carbon dots, and the drug loading of methotrexate was 49.09%. The inflammatory cell model was constructed by lipopolysaccharide-induced RAW264.7 cells. In vitro cell experiments were used to explore the inhibitory effect of the constructed nano-drug delivery system on the secretion of inflammatory factors by macrophages and the cell imaging ability. The drug loading, skin penetration ability, in vitro transdermal delivery and in vivo dissolution characteristics of the prepared microneedles were investigated. The rat model of rheumatoid arthritis was induced by Freund's complete adjuvant. Results: The results of in vivo animal experiments showed that the soluble microneedles of the nano drug delivery system designed and prepared in this study could significantly inhibit the secretion of pro-inflammatory cytokines and had a significant therapeutic effect on arthritis. Discussion: The prepared glycyrrhizic acid-carbon dots-methotrexate soluble microneedle provides a feasible solution for the treatment of Rheumatoid arthritis.

In 2016, the Yangtze River Protection Strategy was proposed and a series of measures were applied to restore the health and function of the Yangtze River ecosystem. However, the impact of these measures on the carbon (C) sink capacity of the Yangtze River estuary wetlands has not been exhaustively studied. In this work, the effects of these measures on the C sink capacity of Yangtze River estuary wetlands were examined through the long-term monitoring of C fluxes, soil respiration, plant growth and water quality. The C flux of the Yangtze River estuary wetlands has become increasingly negative after the implementation of these measures, mainly owing to reduction in soil CO2 emission. The decrease in the chemical fertilizer release and returning farmland to wetland had led to the improvement of water quality in the estuary area, which further reduced soil heterotrophic microbial activity, and ultimately decreasing soil CO2 emissions of estuary wetlands.

Electrocatalytic water splitting is one of the most efficient ways of producing green hydrogen energy. The design of stable, active, and efficient electrocatalysts plays a crucial role in water splitting for achieving efficient energy conversion from electrical to hydrogen energy, aimed at solving the lingering energy crisis. In this work, CNT composites modified with CoP-V4P3 composites (CoVO-10-CNT-450P) were formed by carbonising a pencil-like precursor (Co3V2O8-H2O) and growing carbon nanotubes in situ, followed by in situ phosphorylation on the carbon nanotubes. In the HER electrocatalytic process, an overpotential of only 124 mV was exhibited at a current density of 10 mA cm-2. In addition, as an OER catalyst, a low overpotential of 280 mV was attained at a current density of 10 mA cm-2. Moreover, there was no noticeable change in the performance of the catalyst over a 90 h test in a continuous total water splitting experiment. The unique electronic structure and hollow carbon nanotube structure of CoVO-10-CNT-450P effectively increased the catalytic active sites, while also significantly improving the electrocatalytic activity. This work provides theoretical guidance for the design and synthetic route of high-performance non-precious metal electrocatalysts, and actively promotes the commercial application of electrochemical water splitting.

Chromium is a harmful contaminant showing mutagenicity and carcinogenicity. Therefore, detection of chromium requires the development of low-cost and high-sensitivity sensors. Herein, blue-fluorescent carbon quantum dots were synthesized by one-step hydrothermal method from alkali-soluble Poria cocos polysaccharide, which is green source, cheap and easy to obtain, and has no pharmacological activity due to low water solubility. These carbon quantum dots exhibit good fluorescence stability, water solubility, anti-interference and low cytotoxicity, and can be specifically combined with the detection of Cr(VI) to form a non-fluorescent complex that causes fluorescence quenching, so they can be used as a label-free nanosensor. High-sensitivity detection of Cr(VI) was achieved through internal filtering and static quenching effects. The fluorescence quenching degree of carbon dots fluorescent probe showed a good linear relationship with Cr(VI) concentration in the range of 1-100 μM. The linear equation was F 0/F = 0.9942 + 0.01472 [Cr(VI)] (R 2 = 0.9922), and the detection limit can be as low as 0.25 μM (S/N = 3), which has been successfully applied to Cr(VI) detection in actual water samples herein.

Carbon-supported nanoparticles are indispensable to enabling new energy technologies such as metal-air batteries and catalytic water splitting. However, achieving ultrasmall and high-density nanoparticles (optimal catalysts) faces fundamental challenges of their strong tendency toward coarsening and agglomeration. Herein, we report a general and efficient synthesis of high-density and ultrasmall nanoparticles uniformly dispersed on two-dimensional porous carbon. This is achieved through direct carbothermal shock pyrolysis of metal-ligand precursors in just ~100 ms, the fastest among reported syntheses. Our results show that the in situ metal-ligand coordination (e.g., N → Co2+) and local ordering during millisecond-scale pyrolysis play a crucial role in kinetically dominated fabrication and stabilization of high-density nanoparticles on two-dimensional porous carbon films. The as-obtained samples exhibit excellent activity and stability as bifunctional catalysts in oxygen redox reactions. Considering the huge flexibility in coordinated precursors design, diversified single and multielement nanoparticles (M = Fe, Co, Ni, Cu, Cr, Mn, Ag, etc) were generally fabricated, even in systems well beyond traditional crystalline coordination chemistry. Our method allows for the transient and general synthesis of well-dispersed nanoparticles with great simplicity and versatility for various application schemes.

Single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWNT) are poorly soluble in water, so their applications are limited. Therefore, aqueous solutions of SWNT, designed by noncovalent functionalization and without toxicity, are required for biomedical applications.

Accumulating data demonstrated that hepatic endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress was involved in the pathogenesis of liver fibrosis. Long-term chronic hepatocyte death contributed to liver fibrosis initiation and progression. Previous researches reported that ER stress sensor inositol-requiring enzyme 1 alpha (IRE1α) was first activated in the process of liver fibrosis. STF-083010 was an IRE1α RNase specific inhibitor. This study aimed to explore the effects of STF-083010 on carbon tetrachloride (CCl4)-induced liver injury and subsequent liver fibrosis. Mice were intraperitoneally (i.p.) injected with CCl4 (0.15 ml/kg) for 8 weeks. In STF-083010+CCl4 group, mice were injected with STF-083010 (30 mg/kg, i.p.), twice a week, beginning from the 6th week after CCl4 injection. CCl4 treatment markedly enhanced the levels of serum ALT, TBIL, DBIL and TBA, and STF-083010 had obviously extenuated CCl4-induced exaltation of ALT, DBIL, and TBA levels. CCl4-induced hepatic hydroxyproline and collagen I, major indicators of liver fibrosis, were alleviated by STF-083010. Additionally, CCl4-induced α-smooth muscle actin, a marker for hepatic stellate cells activation, was obviously attenuated in STF-083010-treated mice. Moreover, CCl4-induced upregulation of inflammatory cytokines was suppressed by STF-083010. Mechanistic exploration found that hepatic miR-122 was downregulated in CCl4-treated mice. Hepatic MCP1, CTGF, P4HA1, Col1α1, and Mmp9, target genes of miR-122, were upregulated in CCl4-treated mice. Interestingly, STF-083010 reversed CCl4-induced hepatic miR-122 downregulation. Correspondingly, STF-083010 inhibited CCl4-induced upregulation of miR-122 target genes. This study provides partial evidence that STF-083010 alleviated CCl4-induced liver injury and thus protected against liver fibrosis associated with hepatic miR-122.

Carbon nanotubes (CNTs) have shown great potential in both photothermal therapy and drug delivery. In this study, a CNT derivative, hyaluronic acid-derivatized CNTs (HA-CNTs) with high aqueous solubility, neutral pH, and tumor-targeting activity, were synthesized and characterized, and then a new photodynamic therapy agent, hematoporphyrin monomethyl ether (HMME), was adsorbed onto the functionalized CNTs to develop HMME-HA-CNTs. Tumor growth inhibition was investigated both in vivo and in vitro by a combination of photothermal therapy and photodynamic therapy using HMME-HA-CNTs. The ability of HMME-HA-CNT nanoparticles to combine local specific photodynamic therapy with external near-infrared photothermal therapy significantly improved the therapeutic efficacy of cancer treatment. Compared with photodynamic therapy or photothermal therapy alone, the combined treatment demonstrated a synergistic effect, resulting in higher therapeutic efficacy without obvious toxic effects to normal organs. Overall, it was demonstrated that HMME-HA-CNTs could be successfully applied to photodynamic therapy and photothermal therapy simultaneously in future tumor therapy.

Tissue inhibitor of metalloproteinase 1 (TIMP-1), which is thought to be produced mainly by activated hepatic stellate cells and Kupffer cells in the liver, plays a pivotal role in matrix remodeling during liver injury and repair; while the effect of TIMP-1 on hepatocellular damage remains obscure.

Bradykinin-related peptides (BRPs) are one of the most extensively studied frog secretions-derived peptide families identified from many amphibian species. The diverse primary structures of BRPs have been proven essential for providing valuable information in understanding basic mechanisms associated with drug modification. Here, we isolated, identified and characterized a dodeca-BRP (RAP-L1, T6-BK), with primary structure RAPLPPGFTPFR, from the skin secretions of Chinese large odorous frogs, Odorrana livida. This novel peptide exhibited a dose-dependent contractile property on rat bladder and rat ileum, and increased the contraction frequency on rat uterus ex vivo smooth muscle preparations; it also showed vasorelaxant activity on rat tail artery smooth muscle. In addition, the analogue RAP-L1, T6, L8-BK completely abolished these effects on selected rat smooth muscle tissues, whilst it showed inhibition effect on bradykinin-induced rat tail artery relaxation. By using canonical antagonist for bradykinin B1 or B2 type receptors, we found that RAP-L1, T6-BK -induced relaxation of the arterial smooth muscle was very likely to be modulated by B2 receptors. The analogue RAP-L1, T6, L8-BK further enhanced the bradykinin inhibitory activity only under the condition of co-administration with HOE140 on rat tail artery, suggesting a synergistic inhibition mechanism by which targeting B2 type receptors.

Tryptophyllins are a diverse family of amphibian peptides originally found in extracts of phyllomedusine frog skin by chemical means. Their biological activities remain obscure. Here we describe the isolation and preliminary pharmacological characterization of a novel type 2 tryptophyllin, named AcT-2, from the skin secretion of the red-eyed leaf frog, Agalychnis callidryas. The peptide was initially identified during smooth muscle pharmacological screening of skin secretion HPLC fractions and the unique primary structure--GMRPPWF-NH2--was established by both Edman degradation and electrospray MS/MS fragmentation sequencing. A. cDNA encoding the biosynthetic precursor of AcT-2 was successfully cloned from a skin secretion-derived cDNA library by means of RACE PCR and this contained an open-reading frame consisting of 62 amino acid residues with a single AcT-2 encoding sequence located towards the C-terminus. A synthetic replicate of AcT-2 was found to relax arterial smooth muscle (EC50 = 5.1 nM) and to contract rat urinary bladder smooth muscle (EC50 = 9.3 μ M). The peptide could also inhibit the growth of the microorganisms, Staphylococcus aureus, (MIC = 256 mg/L) Escherichia coli (MIC = 512 mg/L), and Candida albicans (128 mg/L). AcT-2 is thus the first amphibian skin tryptophyllin found to possess both myotropic and antimicrobial activities.

The skin secretions of Neotropical phyllomedusine leaf frogs have proven to be a rich source of biologically active peptides, including antimicrobials. The major families of antimicrobial peptides (AMPs) reported are the dermaseptins and phylloseptins and the minor families are the dermatoxins, phylloxins, plasticins, distinctins, and medusins. Here, we report a novel AMP of 10 amino acid residues (LRPAILVRIKamide), named balteatide, from the skin secretion of wild Peruvian purple-sided leaf frogs, Phyllomedusa baltea. Balteatide was found to exhibit a 90% sequence identity with sauvatide, a potent myotropic peptide from the skin secretion of Phyllomedusa sauvagei. However, despite both peptides exhibiting only a single amino acid difference (I/T at position 9), sauvatide is devoid of antimicrobial activity and balteatide is devoid of myotropic activity. Balteatide was found to have differential activity against the Gram-positive bacterium, Staphylococcus aureus; the Gram-negative bacterium, Escherichia coli; and the yeast, Candida albicans, and unusual for phyllomedusine frog skin AMPs, was most potent (MIC 32 mg/L) against the yeast. Balteatide was also devoid of haemolytic activity up to concentrations of 512 mg/L. Phyllomedusine frog skin secretions thus continue to provide novel AMPs, some of which may provide templates for the rational design of new classes of anti-infective therapeutics.

Bombesin-related peptides are a family of peptides whose prototype was discovered in amphibian skin and which exhibit a wide range of biological activities. Since the initial isolation of bombesin from Bombina bombina skin, diverse forms of bombesin-related peptides have been found in the skins across Anura. In this study, a novel bombesin-related peptide of the ranatensin subfamily, named ranatensin-HL, was structurally-characterised from the skin secretion of the broad-folded frog, Hylarana latouchii, through combination of molecular cloning and mass spectrometric methodologies. It is composed of 13 amino acid residues, pGlu-RAGNQWAIGHFM-NH₂, and resembles an N-terminally extended form of Xenopus neuromedin B. Ranatensin-HL and its C-terminal decapeptide (ranatensin-HL-10) were chemically synthesised and subjected to in vitro smooth muscle assays in which they were found to display moderate stimulatory effects on rat urinary bladder and uterus smooth muscles with EC50 values in the range of 1-10 nM. The prepro-ranatensin-HL was highly homological to a bombesin-like peptide from Rana catesbeiana at both nucleotide and amino acid levels, which might provide a clue for the taxonomic classification of ranid frogs in the future.