SBA-15 Templated Mesoporous Graphitic C3N4 for Remarkably Enhanced Photocatalytic Degradation of Organic Pollutants under Visible Light

Hongjin Liu,Haining Wu,Jun Lv,Guangqing Xu,Xing Chen,Xinyi Zhang,Yucheng Wu 성균관대학교(자연과학캠퍼스) 성균나노과학기술원 2019 NANO Vol.14 No.11

Organic pollutants in water have been threatening public and environmental health. Developing efficient and sustainable photocatalysts working for degradation of organic pollutants under visible light becomes a big challenge. In this paper, high-efficiency visible light driven catalyst ordered mesoporous graphite nitride carbon (mpg-C3N4) was prepared by using SBA-15 as template and dicyandiamide (C2H4N4) as precursor. The specific surface area of mpg-C3N4 can be increased remarkably as compared to that of the bulk graphite nitrite carbon (g-C3N4) by adjusting the ratio of SBA-15 to dicyandiamide. Photocatalytic performance of mpg-C3N4 were evaluated systematically by degradation of Rhodamine B (RhB), malachite green (MG) and tetracycline hydrochloride (TC) under visible light irradiation. The results showed that the mpg-C3N4 (1 : 0.5) has the highest photocatalytic activity and stability and the degradation rate is for RhB, MG and TC are all more than seven times that of bulk g-C3N4. After five recycling runs, the mpg-C3N4 (1 : 0.5) remains high photocatalytic activities for the degradation of MG (94%) and TC (81%), respectively. Additionally, radical trapping experiments certified that the main active species are ·O2 - and h+, while the role of ·OH is irrelevant in the reaction processes. This work provides a promising pathway to prepare metal-free photocatalyst for degradation of organic pollutants under visible light irradiation.

Enhanced Visible-Light Photocatalytic Degradation of Antibiotics by MoS2-Modified U-g-C3N4/T-g-C3N4 Isotypic Heterojunction

Hongjin Liu,Yu Wang,Jun Lv,Guangqing Xu,Xinyi Zhang,Yucheng Wu 성균관대학교(자연과학캠퍼스) 성균나노과학기술원 2019 NANO Vol.14 No.9

Based on U-g-C3N4 (U-gCN) and T-g-C3N4 (T-gCN) prepared with urea and thiourea as raw materials, respectively, a visible-light-driven MoS2-modified U-gCN/T-gCN/MoS2 (UTM) ternary heterojunction photocatalyst was successfully prepared using a sonication and bathing method. The photocatalytic activity of as-prepared photocatalyst was evaluated through the degradation of tetracycline hydrochloride (TC) and Rhodamine B (RhB) under the visible light irradiation. The UTM ternary heterojunction showed remarkably enhanced photocatalytic activity. For the degradation of TC and RhB, the degradation rates of 93.9% and 99.9% have been achieved after being irradiated under visible light for 2 h and 1 h, respectively. The enhanced photocatalytic performance can be ascribed to the role of loaded MoS2 cocatalyst and the well-formed interfaces between U-gCN and T-gCN, which not only enhance the light absorption, but also accelerate the separation and transfer of photogenerated electron–hole pairs. Furthermore, UTM ternary heterojunction has excellent recyclability and chemical stability. The photo-degradation rates of 89.9% and 96.78% of TC and RhB have been obtained, respectively, after being reused for five times. Sacrificial agent tests demonstrate that ·O2 - is the major reactive species in the photocatalytic reaction system.

Sponge City Strategies and Practices in Weihai, China

Hongjin Liu and Luojia Dai 부산대학교 한국민족문화연구소 2017 Localities Vol.7 No.-

The "sponge city" strategy is China’s version of what is called "Low Impact Development" (LID) as called in the West. It considers a city as an ecosystem to enhance local safety and overall developments. However, its principle is more systematic compared to the 2D concepts of “development” or “infrastructure” in the LID model. Such a systematic philosophy is rooted in China’s ideological background. Weihai, a city on the eastern coastline of Shandong Province, has made innovative contributions to sponge city strategy, such as cultural tourism and region merging to compete for governmental funding. We examine Weihai’s local resources and its outline for sponge city construction, especially its specific contributions to the sponge city strategy in policy and practice.

Sponge City Strategies and Practices in Weihai, China

Hongjin Liu,Luojia Dai 부산대학교 한국민족문화연구소 2017 Localities Vol.7 No.-

The “sponge city” strategy is China’s version of what is called “Low Impact Development” (LID) as called in the West. It considers a city as an ecosystem to enhance local safety and overall developments. However, its principle is more systematic compared to the 2D concepts of “development” or “infrastructure” in the LID model. Such a systematic philosophy is rooted in China’s ideological background. Weihai, a city on the eastern coastline of Shandong Province, has made innovative contributions to sponge city strategy, such as cultural tourism and region merging to compete for governmental funding. We examine Weihai’s local resources and its outline for sponge city construction, especially its specific contributions to the sponge city strategy in policy and practice.

Blocking TBK1 alleviated radiation-induced pulmonary fibrosis and epithelial-mesenchymal transition through Akt-Erk inactivation

Hongjin Qu,Lei Liu,Zhe Liu,Hongran Qin,Zebin Liao,Penglin Xia,Yanyong Yang,Bailong Li,Fu Gao,Jianming Cai 생화학분자생물학회 2019 Experimental and molecular medicine Vol.51 No.-

As a common serious complication of thoracic radiotherapy, radiation-induced pulmonary fibrosis (RIPF) severely limits radiation therapy approaches. Epithelial–mesenchymal transition (EMT) is a direct contributor to the fibroblast pool during fibrogenesis, and prevention of EMT is considered an effective strategy to inhibit tissue fibrosis. Our previous study revealed that TANK-binding kinase 1 (TBK1) regulates EMT in lung cancer cells. In the present study, we aimed to investigate the therapeutic potential of targeting TBK1 to prevent RIPF and EMT progression. We found radiationinduced EMT and pulmonary fibrosis in normal alveolar epithelial cells and lung tissues. TBK1 knockdown or inhibition significantly reversed EMT in vivo and in vitro and attenuated pulmonary fibrosis and collagen deposition. Moreover, we observed that TBK1 was elevated in a time- and dose-dependent manner by radiation. Meanwhile, radiation also induced time- and dose-dependent activation of AKT and ERK, each of whose inhibitors suppressed radiation-induced EMT. Intriguingly, silencing of TBK1 with shRNA also blocked the radiation-induced activation of AKT and ERK signaling. The ERK inhibitor did not obviously affect the expression of TBK1 or phosphorylated AKT, while AKT inhibition suppressed activation of ERK without changing the expression of TBK1. Finally, we found that a TBK1 inhibitor inhibited inflammatory cytokine expression in a RIPF model and Amlexanox protected normal cells and mice from ionizing radiation. In conclusion, our results indicate that the TBK1–AKT–ERK signaling pathway regulates radiation-induced EMT in normal alveolar epithelial cells, suggesting that TBK1 is a potential target for pulmonary fibrosis prevention during cancer radiotherapy

Enhanced Visible-Light Photocatalytic Remediation of Tetracycline Hydrochloride by Nanostructured BiOI Homojunctions

Mengzhu Qiao,Hongjin Liu,Jun Lv,Guangqing Xu,Xinyi Zhang,Xia Shu,Yucheng Wu 성균관대학교(자연과학캠퍼스) 성균나노과학기술원 2019 NANO Vol.14 No.9

The BiOI homojunctions were constructed between BiOI nanosheets and BiOI nanoflowers, which were prepared with a facile ultrasound-assisted solvothermal method. BiOI nanosheets were uniformly distributed on BiOI nanoflowers surface. The homojunction structure constructed between nanosheets and nanoflowers efficiently speeds up the transfer and separation of photo-induced charge carriers, which is beneficial to promote the photocatalytic activity. Compared with single BiOI, BiOI homojunctions exhibit remarkably improved photocatalytic degradation activity for tetracycline hydrochloride (TC); photodegradation rate of 69.43% for TC has been reached after being irradiated under visible light for 1 h. Deeper analyses of photocatalytic degradation mechanism of TC have been conducted; the results identify that ·O2 - and h+ play important roles during the TC degradation reaction.

Characterization of the bacterial microbiota across the different intestinal segments of the Qinghai semi-fine wool sheep on the Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau

Wang Xungang,Hu Linyong,Liu Hongjin,Xu Tianwei,Zhao Na,Zhang Xiaoling,Geng Yuanyue,Kang Shengping,Xu Shixiao 아세아·태평양축산학회 2021 Animal Bioscience Vol.34 No.12

Objective: The intestinal microbiota enhances nutrient absorption in the host and thus promotes heath. Qinghai semi-fine wool sheep is an important livestock raised in the Qinghai- Tibetan Plateau; however, little is known about the bacterial microbiota of its intestinal tract. The aim of this study was to detect the microbial characterization in the intestinal tract of the Qinghai semi-fine wool sheep. Methods: The bacterial profiles of the six different intestinal segments (duodenum, jejunum, ileum, cecum, colon and rectum) of Qinghai semi-fine wool sheep were studied using 16S rRNA V3-V4 hypervariable amplicon sequencing. Results: A total of 2,623,323 effective sequences were obtained, and 441 OTUs shared all six intestinal segments. The bacterial diversity was significantly different among the different intestinal segments, and the large intestine exhibited higher bacterial diversity than the small intestine. Firmicutes, Bacteroidetes, and Patescibacteria were the dominant phyla in these bacterial communities. Additionally, at the genus level, Prevotella_1, Candidatus_ Saccharimonas, and Ruminococcaceae_UCG-005 were the most predominant genus in duodenal segment, jejunal and ileal segments, and cecal, colonic, and rectal segments, respectively. We predicted that the microbial functions and the relative abundance of the genes involved in carbohydrate metabolism were overrepresented in the intestinal segments of Qinghai semi-fine wool sheep. Conclusion: The bacterial communities and functions differed among different intestinal segments. Our study is the first to provide insights into the composition and biological functions of the intestinal microbiota of Qinghai semi-fine wool sheep. Our results also provide useful information for the nutritional regulation and production development in Qinghai semi-fine wool sheep. Objective: The intestinal microbiota enhances nutrient absorption in the host and thus promotes heath. Qinghai semi-fine wool sheep is an important livestock raised in the Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau; however, little is known about the bacterial microbiota of its intestinal tract. The aim of this study was to detect the microbial characterization in the intestinal tract of the Qinghai semi-fine wool sheep.Methods: The bacterial profiles of the six different intestinal segments (duodenum, jejunum, ileum, cecum, colon and rectum) of Qinghai semi-fine wool sheep were studied using 16S rRNA V3-V4 hypervariable amplicon sequencing.Results: A total of 2,623,323 effective sequences were obtained, and 441 OTUs shared all six intestinal segments. The bacterial diversity was significantly different among the different intestinal segments, and the large intestine exhibited higher bacterial diversity than the small intestine. Firmicutes, Bacteroidetes, and Patescibacteria were the dominant phyla in these bacterial communities. Additionally, at the genus level, Prevotella_1, Candidatus_ Saccharimonas, and Ruminococcaceae_UCG-005 were the most predominant genus in duodenal segment, jejunal and ileal segments, and cecal, colonic, and rectal segments, respectively. We predicted that the microbial functions and the relative abundance of the genes involved in carbohydrate metabolism were overrepresented in the intestinal segments of Qinghai semi-fine wool sheep.Conclusion: The bacterial communities and functions differed among different intestinal segments. Our study is the first to provide insights into the composition and biological functions of the intestinal microbiota of Qinghai semi-fine wool sheep. Our results also provide useful information for the nutritional regulation and production development in Qinghai semi-fine wool sheep.

Complete chloroplast genome sequence and phylogenetic analysis of Rhododendron molle G. Don, an endangered Ericaceae species located on Dabie Mountains (central China)

Xu Bilin,Li Zhiliang,Liu Yan,Zhang Wanjing,Yu Jiaojun,Dong Hongjin,Zhang Jialiang,Wang Shuzhen 한국식물생명공학회 2023 Plant biotechnology reports Vol.17 No.2

Rhododendron molle G. Don, an endemic species of the Ericaceae family, possesses valuable medicinal and horticultural values. In this research, R. molle cp genome proved to be a typical quadripartite structure with the length of 200,878 bp. In particular, the lengths of large single-copy region (LSC), small single-copy region (SSC), and inverted repeat regions (IR) were 198,019 bp, 629 bp, and 1117 bp, respectively. Among the 149 unique genes, 97 were protein-coding genes, 44 were tRNA genes, and 8 were rRNA genes, respectively. Leucine was the most representative amino acid (10.663%), while Cysteine was the lowest representative (1.178%). A set of 30 codons showed obvious codon usage bias, while 29 were A/U-ending codons. Six gene regions showed high levels of nucleotide diversity (Pi > 0.02). Totally, 273 SSRs were identified. Maximum-likelihood (ML) phylogenetic analysis revealed that R. molle was relatively closed to the R. pulchrum and R. delavayi. High similarity was detected among Ericaceae species, and the coding regions were more conserved than the non-coding regions. Expansion and contraction detected in IR region could be the main length variation in R. molle and related Ericaceae species. This research will supply rich genetic resource for R. molle and related species of Ericaceae.