Substance dependency

Various substances within the aqueous humor (AH) can directly or indirectly impact intraocular tissues associated with intraocular pressure (IOP), a critical factor in glaucoma development. This study aims to investigate individual changes in these AH substances and the interactions among altered components through a multi-omics approach. LC/MS analysis was conducted on AH samples from patients with exfoliation syndrome (XFS, n = 5), exfoliation glaucoma (XFG, n = 4), primary open-angle glaucoma (POAG, n = 11), and cataracts (control group, n = 7)...

Schizophyllan is a triple helical β-1,3-D -glucan, and shows the cooperative order-disorder transition in the aqueous solution at the triple helix state. In this paper, the solvent stabilizing effects of two carboxylic acids, acetic acid and citric acid, on the cooperative order-disorder transition of aqueous schizophyllan solution were investigated from DSC and SEC-MALS measurements. The transition temperature (Tr ) was shifted to higher temperature with increasing the molar fraction of carboxylic acid in the mixture (x)...

The current technique to assess glove resistance to chemicals for worker protection relies on challenging a flat, 2.54 cm diameter glove piece at or near room temperature. This does not simulate a donned whole glove near the skin temperature subjected to work activity forces. Four different types of disposable nonpowdered unlined/unsupported nitrile gloves in triplicate were measured for thickness, porosity, and for the acrylonitrile content ( A ) of the challenge and collection sides. Limonene permeation at 35 °C through a whole glove on a clenching and nonclenching dextrous robot hand and with the standard ASTM F739 technique were facilitated by taking samples from the collection sides for GC-MS analysis...

Hydrogel-based wearable sensors eventually experience dehydration, which negatively impacts their function, leading to decreased sensitivity. Monitoring the real-time water retention rate and sensing performance of wearable flexible sensors without dismantling them remains a significant difficulty. In this study, we develop and produce a molecule having aggregation-induced emission (AIE) properties in an aqueous environment, which can combine with anionic guar gum (GG) and acrylic acid (AAc) to create an AIE hydrogel...

Per- and poly-fluoroalkyl substances (PFASs) are contaminants of emerging concern, yet the understanding of factors that control their leaching and release from contaminated soils remains limited. This study aimed to investigate the impact of dissolved organic carbon (DOC) on the release of PFASs-specifically, perfluorohexane sulfonate (PFHxS), perfluorooctane sulfonate (PFOS), and perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA)-from soils contaminated by aqueous film forming foam (AFFF)-. Batch aqueous leaching experiments were conducted on AFFF-contaminated soils under alkaline solution conditions (pH 9...

BACKGROUND: Recovery capital (RC) refers to the resources individuals use to support substance use disorder (SUD) recovery. Individuals with SUD who are involved with the criminal justice system often have limited RC. Drug treatment courts (DTCs), including traditional drug treatment courts (tDTCs) and opioid intervention courts (OICs), can link clients to important sources of RC in the short-term, but few studies have assessed RC longitudinally. METHODS: The current study analyzed five waves of data from a one-year longitudinal study on substance use and RC collected from clients of tDTCs and OICs (n=165, 52% male, 75% non-Hispanic White, Age=21-67 years)...

BACKGROUND: Health and human rights organizations have endorsed drug decriminalization to promote public health-oriented approaches to substance use. In the US, policymakers have begun to pursue this via prosecutorial discretion-or the decision by a prosecutor to decline criminal charges for drug possession in their jurisdiction. This study characterizes drivers of adoption, policy design and implementation processes, and barriers to impact and sustainability of this approach to inform evolving policy efforts promoting the health of people who use drugs (PWUD)...

BACKGROUND: 'Social smoking' typically occurs predominantly or exclusively in the presence of others who are smoking. Relatively little is known about changes in the prevalence of 'social smoking identity' over time and its association with other smoking-related correlates. METHODS: Data were from the Smoking Toolkit Study, a nationally-representative cross-sectional survey in England. Participants were 26,774 adults who currently smoked or had quit in the past year, surveyed between February-2014 and April-2021...

Because hydroxypropyl cellulose (HpC) is a popular polymeric material that forms a liquid crystalline phase in solutions with various kinds of solvents, including water, it is commonly thought that HpC has a typical rod-like structure in solution. In this study, the structures of commercial HpC samples in aqueous solution with average molar substitution numbers (MS) ranging from 3.6 to 3.9 and weight-average molar masses ( M w ) ranging from 36 to 740 kg mol-1 were investigated in detail. We first used multiple techniques, including standard static and dynamic light scattering (SLS and DLS), neutron and X-ray scattering experiments, and viscometric measurements, to obtain clear evidence of rod-like structures quantitatively...

Core-shell tecto dendrimers (CSTDs) with excellent physicochemical properties and good tumor penetration and gene transfection efficiency have been demonstrated to have the potential to replace high-generation dendrimers in biomedical applications. However, their characterization and related biological properties of CSTDs for enhanced tumor penetration and gene delivery still lack in-depth investigation. Herein, we attempted to design three types of dual-responsive CSTDs for thorough physicochemical characterization and investigation of their tumor penetration and gene delivery efficiency...

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To explore the active substances exerting anti-tumour effect in lemon essential oil and the molecular mechanism inhibiting the proliferation of head and neck cancer cells SCC15 and CAL33, 3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide assay(MTT) was utilized to identify the active component inhibiting the proliferation of head and neck cancer cells, namely citral. The IC_(50) of citral inhibiting the proliferation of head and neck cancer cells and normal cells were also determined. In addition, a 5-ethynyl-2'-deoxyuridine(EdU) staining assay was used to detect the effect of citral on the proliferation rate of head and neck cancer cells, and a colony formation assay was used to detect the effect of citral on tumor sphere formation of head and neck cancer cells in vitro...

The targeted elimination of radio- or chemotherapy-induced senescent cells by so-called senolytic substances represents a promising approach to reduce tumor relapse as well as therapeutic side effects such as fibrosis. We screened an in-house library of 178 substances derived from marine sponges, endophytic fungi, and higher plants, and determined their senolytic activities towards DNA damage-induced senescent HCT116 colon carcinoma cells. The Pan-PI3K-inhibitor wortmannin and its clinical derivative, PX-866, were identified to act as senolytics...

CONTEXT: In this work, we explore the potential of 2D materials, particularly graphene and its derivatives, for eco-friendly electricity generation and air pollution reduction. Leveraging the significant surface area of graphene nanomaterials, the susceptibility of these graphene-based nanostructures to hazardous substances and their applicability in clean solar cell (SSC) devices were systematically investigated using density functional theory (DFT), as implemented within Gaussian 5...

3-Hydroxymethylbutyrate (HMB) is a five-carbon branch-chain hydroxy acid currently used as a dietary supplement to treat sarcopenia and exercise training. However, its current production relies on conventional chemical processes which require toxic substances and are generally non-sustainable. While bio-based syntheses of HMB have been developed, they are dependent on biotransformation of its direct precursors which are generally costly. Therefore, in this work, we developed a synthetic de novo HMB biosynthetic pathway that enables HMB production from renewable resources...

The silk glands are the specialized tissue where silk protein synthesis, secretion, and conformational transitions take place, with pH playing a critical role in both silk protein synthesis and fiber formation. In the present study, we have identified erythrocyte carbonic anhydrase (BmeryCA) belonging to the α-CA class in the silk gland, which is a Zn2+ dependent metalloenzyme capable of efficiently and reversibly catalyzing the hydrated reaction of CO2 to HCO3 - , thus participating in the regulation of acid-base balance...

Fibroin is a structural protein derived from silk cocoons, which may be used in a variety of biomedical applications due to its high biocompatibility and controllable material properties. Conversely, fibroin solution is inherently unstable in solution, which limits its potential utility. Fibroin hydrolysates possess enhanced aqueous solubility and stability, with known anti-inflammatory bioactivity. Here, silk-derived protein (SDP) was produced through controlled time, temperature, and pressure conditions to generate a novel and reproducible hydrolysate population...

This study focuses on the identification and characterization of a glycoprotein from Sargassum fusiforme (Harvey) Setchell (SFGP), as well as investigating its potential anti-inflammatory properties both in vitro and in vivo, along with the underlying mechanism. SDS-PAGE analysis revealed a prominent band with a molecular weight of <10 kDa, consisting of 58.39 % protein and 41.61 % carbohydrates, which was confirmed through glycoprotein staining and Coomassie blue staining. Various analytical techniques, including high-resolution mass spectrometry (HRMS), FTIR, amino acid analysis, and UV-visible spectrometry, provided evidence for the presence of monosaccharides (such as d-glucose and mannose) and 17 amino acids linked by an O-glycopeptide bond...

Microplastics pollution threatens to marine organisms, particularly bivalves that actively ingest and accumulate microplastics of certain sizes, potentially disrupting intestinal homeostasis. This study investigated the microplastic abundance in wild and farmed mussels around Singapore, and examined the size-dependent effects of nano- to micro-scale polystyrene (0.5 µm/5 µm/50 µm) on the mussel intestinal microbiome in the laboratory. The field investigation revealed higher microplastic abundance in farmed mussels compared to wild ones...

Intelligent onsite accurate monitoring ethyl carbamate (EC, a group 2 A carcinogen) in environment is of great significance to safeguard environmental health and public safety. Herein, we reported an intelligent dual-modal point-of-care (POC) assay based on the bimetallic Mn and Ce co-doped oxidase-like fluorescence carbon dots (Ce&MnCDs) nanozyme-driven competitive effect. In brief, the oxidase-like activity of Ce&MnCDs was inhibited by thiocholine (TCh, originating from the hydrolysis of acetylcholinesterase (AChE) to acetylthiocholine (ATCh)), preventing the oxidation of o-phenylenediamine (OPD) to 2,3-diaminophenothiazine (DAP)...