Chemical investigation of the roots of Echinacea angustifolia, E. purpurea, and E. pallida yielded two new alkamides, identified by analysis of spectroscopic data and comparison with reported alkamides. The new compounds were dodeca-2Z,4E,10Z-trien-8-ynoic acid isobutylamide (1) from E. angustifolia and dodeca-2Z,4E-diene-8,10-diynoic acid isobutylamide (2) from E. purpurea and E. pallida. These two components, as well as previously identified alkamides, exerted inhibition on LPS-mediated activation of a murine macrophage line, RAW264.7. These data suggest that these alkamides may have anti-inflammatory activity. The cytotoxicity of these alkamides using MTT assays was also investigated.

Silver/polyaniline composite nanotubes have been successfully synthesized via a self-assembly process assisted by excess ammonium persulfate and silver nitrate as oxidant without using any acid molecule reagent or hard template. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM), energy-dispersive X-ray spectra (EDX), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR), X-ray diffraction (XRD), ultraviolet−visible absorption spectra (UV−vis), and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) were performed to characterize the resulting polyaniline samples. SEM and TEM images indicate that the as-obtained polyaniline composite entirely consists of uniform nanotubes in high yield with a diameter of about 100 nm. The TEM image shows that the average size of the dispersed silver nanoparticles decorated on the surface of the silver/polyaniline composite nanotubes is about 10 nm. A tentative mechanism is proposed in detail to elucidate the formation of the tubular nanostructures in such system. The composite nanotubes are immobilized on the surface of an indium tin oxide and applied to construct a sensor, which exhibits higher electrocatalytic activity toward reduction of dopamine than pure polyaniline. Furthermore, the high surface area, small diameter, and porous nature of the silver/polyaniline composite nanotubes and introduction of the silver nanoparticles give significantly better performance in both gas sensitivity and time response.

More than 90% of lung cancers are caused by cigarette smoke and air pollution, with polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) as key carcinogens. In Xuanwei City of Yunnan Province, the lung cancer incidence is among the highest in China, attributed to smoky coal combustion-generated PAH pollution. Here, we screened for abnormal inflammatory factors in non-small cell lung cancers (NSCLCs) from Xuanwei and control regions (CR) where smoky coal was not used, and found that a chemokine CXCL13 was overexpressed in 63/70 (90%) of Xuanwei NSCLCs and 44/71 (62%) of smoker and 27/60 (45%) of non-smoker CR patients. CXCL13 overexpression was associated with the region Xuanwei and cigarette smoke. The key carcinogen benzo(a)pyrene (BaP) induced CXCL13 production in lung epithelial cells and in mice prior to development of detectable lung cancer. Deficiency in Cxcl13 or its receptor, Cxcr5, significantly attenuated BaP-induced lung cancer in mice, demonstrating CXCL13’s critical role in PAH-induced lung carcinogenesis.DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.7554/eLife.09419.001

A route for producing polyaniline nanotubes using the inner eggshell membrane as a template is demonstrated. Because the template substitutes the inner eggshell membrane with the outer eggshell membrane in the same reaction process, the resulting morphology of polyaniline correspondingly changes. A series of experimental results indicate that the pore size of the template plays a key role in the formation of the polyaniline nanotubes. By imaging the template before, during, and after the polymerization, a possible formation condition and process of polyaniline nanotubes is proposed. Meanwhile, fiber mats imitating an eggshell membrane—electrospun poly(vinyl alcohol) (PVA) fiber mats—are successfully used as a template for synthesizing polyaniline nanotubes in the same polymerization process. Using the PVA fiber mats as the template for different pore size and using an electrospinning method for different hours, respectively, the resulting morphology of the polyaniline correspondingly changes. When the pore size of PVA fiber mats is similar to that of the inner eggshell membrane, polyaniline (PANI) nanotubes can be obtained. The high surface areas, small diameter, and porous nature of the PANI nanotubes give significantly better performance in both gas sensitivity and time response. The gas-responses to trimethylamine, ammonia, and hydrazine are examined at room temperature. Compared with polyaniline prepared without a template, the polyaniline nanotubes prepared using the imitating template show higher selectivity and quicker response to trimethylamine gas. Meanwhile, the reversible circulation response change of polyaniline nanotubes has a reasonable reproducibility and has more potential applications in the area of sensor development.

Different morphologies of α-Fe2O3 crystals including snowflake-like, paired microplates, dumbbell, column, and spindle microstructures have been prepared though a hydrothermal reaction in K3[Fe(CN)6] solution with different pH values at 140 °C. The influences of the experimental conditions, such as pH value and reaction time on the morphologies of the as-prepared α-Fe2O3 crystals, have been studied. The morphologies and structures of the α-Fe2O3 crystals have been characterized by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), and X-ray diffraction (XRD). Selected-area electron diffraction confirms that the snowflake-like microstructure and paired microplates grow along the [001] direction, respectively. A possible growth process of α-Fe2O3 crystals with varied morphologies from sixfold snowflake-like to the column-like microstructure has been proposed. Additionally, magnetic investigations show that the α-Fe2O3 crystals with column-like microstructures exhibit a weakly ferromagnetic property at room temperature.