Neoagarooligosaccharide Protects against Hepatic Fibrosis via Inhibition of TGF-β/Smad Signaling Pathway

Hepatic fibrosis occurs when liver tissue becomes scarred from repetitive liver injury and inflammatory responses; it can progress to cirrhosis and eventually to hepatocellular carcinoma. Previously, we reported that neoagarooligosaccharides (NAOs), produced by the hydrolysis of agar by β-agarases, have hepatoprotective effects against acetaminophen overdose-induced acute liver injury. However, the effect of NAOs on chronic liver injury, including hepatic fibrosis, has not yet been elucidated. Therefore, we examined whether NAOs protect against fibrogenesis in vitro and in vivo. NAOs ameliorated PAI-1, α-SMA, CTGF and fibronectin protein expression and decreased mRNA levels of fibrogenic genes in TGF-β-treated LX-2 cells. Furthermore, downstream of TGF-β, the Smad signaling pathway was inhibited by NAOs in LX-2 cells. Treatment with NAOs diminished the severity of hepatic injury, as evidenced by reduction in serum alanine aminotransferase and aspartate aminotransferase levels, in carbon tetrachloride (CCl₄)-induced liver fibrosis mouse models. Moreover, NAOs markedly blocked histopathological changes and collagen accumulation, as shown by H&E and Sirius red staining, respectively. Finally, NAOs antagonized the CCl₄-induced upregulation of the protein and mRNA levels of fibrogenic genes in the liver. In conclusion, our findings suggest that NAOs may be a promising candidate for the prevention and treatment of chronic liver injury via inhibition of the TGF-β/Smad signaling pathway.     

Nanogrooved carbon microtubes for wet three‐dimensional printing of conductive composite structures

Recent advances in three‐dimensional (3D) printing have enabled the fabrication of interesting structures which are not achievable using traditional fabrication approaches. The 3D printing of carbon microtube composite inks allows fabrication of conductive structures for practical applications in soft robotics and tissue engineering. However, it is challenging to achieve 3D printed structures from solution‐based composite inks, which requires an additional process to solidify the ink. Here, we introduce a wet 3D printing technique which uses a coagulation bath to fabricate carbon microtube composite structures. We show that through a facile nanogrooving approach which introduces cavitation and channels on carbon microtubes, enhanced interfacial interactions with a chitosan polymer matrix are achieved. Consequently, the mechanical properties of the 3D printed composites improve when nanogrooved carbon microtubes are used, compared to untreated microtubes. We show that by carefully controlling the coagulation bath, extrusion pressure, printing distance and printed line distance, we can 3D print composite lattices which are composed of well‐defined and separated printed lines. The conductive composite 3D structures with highly customised design presented in this work provide a suitable platform for applications ranging from soft robotics to smart tissue engineering scaffolds. © 2019 Society of Chemical Industry     

Fire safe,sustainable loose furnishing

The aim of this exploratory study has been to investigate the fire properties and environmental aspects of different upholstery material combinations, mainly for domestic applications. An analysis of the sustainability and circularity of selected textiles, along with lifecycle assessment, is used to qualitatively evaluate materials from an environmental perspective. The cone calorimeter was the primary tool used to screen 20 different material combinations from a fire performance perspective. It was found that textile covers of conventional fibres such as wool, cotton and polyester, can be improved by blending them with fire resistant speciality fibres. A new three‐dimensional web structure has been examined as an alternative padding material, showing preliminary promising fire properties with regard to ignition time, heat release rates and smoke production.     

Tactile colour pictogram to improve artwork appreciation of people with visual impairments

A recent development in tactile technology enables an improvement in the appreciation of the visual arts for people with visual impairment (PVI). The tactile sense, in conjunction with, or a possibly as an alternative to, the auditory sense, would allow PVIs to approach artwork in a more self‐driven and engaging way that would be difficult to achieve with just an auditory stimulus. Tactile colour pictograms (TCPs), which are raised geometric patterns, are ideographic characters that are designed to enable PVIs to identify colours and interpret information by touch. In this article, three TCPs are introduced to code colours in the Munsell colour system. Each colour pattern consists of a basic cell size of 10 mm × 10 mm to represent the patterns consistently in terms of regular shape. Each TCP consists of basic geometric patterns that are combined to create primary, secondary, and tertiary colour pictograms of shapes indicating colour hue, intensity and lightness. Each TCP represents 29 colours including six hues; they were then further expanded to represent 53 colours. Two of them did not increase the cell size, the other increased the cell size 1.5 times for some colours, such as yellow‐orange, yellow, blue, and blue‐purple. Our proposed TCPs use a slightly larger cell size compared to most tactile patterns currently used to indicate colour, but code for more colours. With user experience and identification tests, conducted with 23 visually impaired adults, the effectiveness of the TCPs suggests that they were helpful for the participants.     

Continuous Flow Fabrication of Block Copolymer–Grafted Silica Micro‐Particles in Environmentally Friendly Water/Ethanol Media

Polymer‐grafted inorganic particles (PGIPs) are attractive building blocks for numerous chemical and material applications. Surface‐initiated controlled radical polymerization (SI‐CRP) is the most feasible method to fabricate PGIPs. However, a conventional in‐batch reaction still suffers from several disadvantages, including time‐consuming purification processes, low grafting efficiency, and possible gelation problems. Herein, a facile method is demonstrated to synthesize block copolymer–grafted inorganic particles, that is, poly(poly(ethylene glycol) methyl ether methacrylate) (PPEGMEMA)‐b‐poly(N‐isopropylacrylamide) (PNIPAM)–grafted silica micro‐particles using continuous flow chemistry in an environmentally friendly aqueous media. Immobilizing the chain transfer agent and subsequent SI‐CRP can be accomplished sequentially in a continuous flow system, avoiding multi‐step purification processes in between. The chain length (MW) of the grafted polymers is tunable by adjusting the flow time or monomer concentration, and the narrower molar mass dispersity (Р< 1.4) of the grafted polymers reveals the uniform polymer chains on the particles. Moreover, compared with the in‐batch reaction at the same condition, the continuous system also suppresses possible gelation problems.     

Quality enhancement of the abundant under‐valued crustacean,lobster krill (Munida spp.), during its chilled storage

Lobster krill (Munida genus) represents an under‐valued crustacean frequently caught on European fishing banks. In this work, its sensory, microbiological and biochemical qualities were evaluated during chilled storage. Additionally, the effects of a prestorage antimelanosic treatment consisting of soaking in sodium metabisulphite (SMB) solutions at two different concentrations (0.25% and 0.75%) were also studied. SMB prestorage treatment provided lobster specimens that still exhibited acceptable sensory quality after 10 days of storage, while control specimens were unacceptable at that time. SMB treatment also resulted in a significant (P < 0.05) inhibition of microbial growth, mainly of Enterobacteriaceae, psychrotrophes and proteolytic bacteria. Low lipid oxidation levels were observed for all batches; however, a significantly higher (P < 0.05) retention of polyunsaturated fatty acids was found in SMB‐treated lobster, especially in the 0.75% SMB batch. The results presented here open the way to the potential commercialisation of currently under‐utilised lobster krill as a chilled product.