Heavy metal redistribution mechanism assisted magnetic separation for highly-efficient removal of lead and cadmium from human blood

Fabrication of 2D nanosheet sorbents through metastable emulsion droplets and subsequent two-step grafting polymerization for efficient blood lead removal in vitro

Hemoperfusion is a powerful and yet simple method for lead poisoning treatment, but creation of safe and effective sorbents with excellent selectivity remains a real challenge. To address this, we here construct 2D nanosheet sorbents (BM-SH) through metastable emulsion droplets and subsequent two-step grafting polymerization for efficient blood lead removal in vitro. Metastable emulsion droplets endow typical nanosized sheet-like structure (thickness of 30 nm) and relatively round shape. The consecutive two grafting processes using hydroxyethyl methacrylate (HEMA) and L-cysteine monomer (D-SH) provide BM-SH with a high density of accessible binding sites towards lead ions (Pb²⁺). A high adsorption capacity of 390.5 mg g^-1 and quick capture 97.35 % of Pb²⁺ within initial 10 min are obtained, surpassing most of the reported sorbents for lead removal. Besides, adsorption distribution coefficient (K_d) of BM-SH among four coexisting metal ions achieved 7792 mL g^-1, showing outstanding selectivity toward Pb²⁺. Importantly, a possible adsorption mechanism is recognized as coordination with carboxyl, sulfydryl and imino groups from L-cysteine, and mercapto ligand as the key chelating agent may be the reason for high Pb²⁺ affinity. And what's more, BM-SH displays good hemocompatibility and high efficiency of blood lead removal rate (above 86 % in vitro).

Natural polyphenol-based nanoengineering of collagen-constructed hemoperfusion adsorbent for the excretion of heavy metals

Designing a hemoperfusion adsorbent for the excretion therapy of toxic heavy metals still remains a great challenge due to the biosafety risks of non-biological materials and the desired highly efficient removal capacity. Herein, inspired from the homeostasis mechanism of plants, natural polyphenols are integrated with collagen matrix to construct a polyphenol-functionalized collagen-based artificial liver (PAL) for heavy metals excretion and free radicals scavenging therapy. PAL presents high adsorption capacities for Cu²⁺, Pb²⁺, and UO₂²⁺ ions, up to 76.98 μmol g^-1, 106.70 μmol g^-1, and 252.48 μmol g^-1, respectively. Remarkably, PAL possesses a high binding affinity for UO₂²⁺, Pb²⁺, and Cu²⁺ ions even in the complex serum environment with the presence of biologically-relevant ions (e.g., Mg²⁺, Ca²⁺ ions). Low hemolysis ratio (1.77%), high cell viability (> 85%), high plasma recalcification time (17.4 min), and low protein adsorption (1.02 μmol g^-1) indicate outstanding biocompatibility of this material. This natural polyphenol/collagen-based fully bio-derived hemoperfusion adsorbent provides a novel and potentially applicable strategy for constructing a hemoperfusion adsorbent for heavy metal ions excretion therapy with efficiency and biosafety.

Enhanced photocatalytic hydrogen production activity of Janus Cu1.94S-ZnS spherical nanoheterostructures

Photocatalytic hydrogen evolution is one of the most promising approaches for efficient solar energy conversion. The light-harvesting ability and interfacial structure of heterostructured catalysts regulate the processes of photon injection and transfer, which further determines their photocatalytic performances. Here, we report a Janus Cu_1.94S-ZnS nano-heterostructured photocatalyst synthesized using a facile stoichiometrically limited cation exchange reaction. Djurleite Cu_1.94S and wurtzite ZnS share the anion skeleton, and the lattice mismatch between immiscible domains is ∼1.7%. Attributing to the high-quality interfacial structure, Janus Cu_1.94S-ZnS nanoheterostructures (NHs) show an enhanced photocatalytic hydrogen evolution rate of up to 0.918 mmol h^-1 g^-1 under full-spectrum irradiation, which is ∼38-fold and 17-fold more than those of sole Cu_1.94S and ZnS nanocrystals (NCs), respectively. The results indicate that cation exchange reaction is an efficient approach to construct well-ordered interfaces in hybrid photocatalysts, and it also demonstrates that reducing lattice mismatch and interfacial defects in hybrid photocatalysts is essential for enhancing their solar energy conversion performance.

TMPyP-bound guanosine-borate supramolecular hydrogel as smart hemoperfusion device with real-time visualized/electrochemical bi-modal monitoring for selective blood lead elimination

Blood lead poisoning is a universal and severe health problem that greatly threatens human health in various industries. Elimination of blood lead relying on chelating agents and combination with hemoperfusion adsorbents has achieved considerable progress, but it is still suffering from the compromised selectivity of adsorbents as well as in absence of real time monitoring during treatment. Herein, we proposed a selective blood lead adsorbent integrated with real-time visualized/electrochemical bi-modal monitoring based on TMPyP-bound guanosine-borate (GB) supramolecular hydrogel as potential smart hemoperfusion device. The GB hydrogel possessed stability in physiological environment, self-healing ability resistant to fluid shear, blood compatibility, selective adsorption of lead ions superior to conventional adsorbents, anti-fouling performance to blood components and renewability. Benefiting from binding with TMPyP and the intrinsic conductivity, GB hydrogel was endowed with the ability to qualitatively diagnose the presence of blood lead via simple color change and quantitatively reflect the amount of adsorbed lead from blood accurately through electrochemical technique. This work puts forward an integrated treatment/monitoring hemoperfusion device with high selectivity, simple fabrication and low-cost, providing a paradigm for next generation design of intelligent, monitorable theranostic hemopurification system, which is also an extensible platform for the other research fields such as environmental monitoring and remediation.

Magnetic mesoporous silica/ε-polylysine nanomotor-based removers of blood Pb2

The removal of excessive blood lead ions (Pb2+) is very important to human health, but current effective removal technology is still lacking because of the complex existence state of Pb2+ in blood, which can be attributed to the fact that most of the blood Pb2+ is combined with haemoglobin (Hb) located in red blood cells (RBCs). Here, a new type of magnetic mesoporous silica/ε-polylysine nanomotor-based remover (MMS/P NR) with abundant chelation sites was designed, synthesized and used to remove Pb2+ from blood. The magnetic core can make the nanocomposites become nanomotors with autonomous movement under an external variable magnetic field, which can effectively improve the contact probability between the MMS/P NRs and Pb2+-contaminated Hb in RBCs. The amino rich ε-polylysine (ε-PL) was used as the co-template of mesoporous silica. Mesoporous channels can provide a confinement effect for Pb2+-contaminated Hb to stabilize the captured blood Pb2+. The movement behavior of the MMS/P NRs in and out of RBCs and the capture mechanism of Pb2+ in the blood were studied. The results indicate that the MMS/P NRs we propose have good blood compatibility, low cytotoxicity, magnetic properties, autonomous movement ability and recyclability under the condition of an external magnetic field. Moreover, compared with the experimental conditions without an external variable magnetic field (0.01485 mg g-1), the MMS/P NRs show a higher blood Pb2+ removal ability under the condition of an external variable magnetic field (0.05525 mg g-1). The design strategy of this remover based on nanomotor technology has great potential in the future medical treatment of heavy metal poisoning.

Performance and microbial community of simultaneous removal of NO3--N, Cd2+ and Ca2+ in MBBR

A moving-bed biofilm reactor (MBBR) containing immobilized Acinetobacter sp.CN86 was operated to investigate the simultaneous denitrification, bio-mineralization and cadmium removal performance. Effects of hydraulic residence time (HRT) (4 h, 6 h and 8 h), pH (6.0, 7.0 and 8.0) and influent Cd²⁺ concentrations (10 mg/L, 30 mg/L and 50 mg/L) were assessed on the simultaneous removal of nitrate, Cd²⁺ and Ca²⁺. Results indicate that the highest pollutant removal efficiency (98.33% (1.866 mg/L·h) for NO₃^--N; 99.36% (1.242 mg/L·h) for Cd²⁺; 68.80% (15.480 mg/L·h) for Ca²⁺) was achieved under the conditions of a hydraulic residence time of 8 h, pH of 7.0 and initial Cd²⁺ concentration of 10 mg/L. Analyses of microbial distribution and community structures showed that Acinetobacter sp.CN86 was the main contributor (occupy 15.3% at the species level) to the effective removal of multiple pollutants in the MBBR. In addition, the main gas and precipitation components in the biofilm reactor were identified by gas chromatography, scanning electron microscope, and X-ray diffraction analyses.