Layered double hydroxides (LDHs) are very promising but still far from satisfactory for catalyzing the electrochemical oxygen evolution reaction (OER) in water electrolysis. Herein, it was found that ...the catalytic performance of iron–nickel LDHs for OER can be largely boosted by a facile and controllable fluoridation approach at low temperatures. Temperature dependence of the crystal structure and surface chemical state was observed for the simple fluoridation of the iron–nickel LDH. However, no significant surface roughness and electrochemical active surface area increases were found, which was probably owing to the structure change from nanosheets to nanorods. Significant improvements in the performance, including the catalytic activity, stability, efficiency, and kinetics, were found compared with the pristine iron–nickel LDH. Specifically, iron–nickel fluoride obtained at 250 °C afforded the lowest overpotential of 225 mV (no iR correction) to drive 10 mA cm−2 loaded on an inert glassy carbon electrode with a small Tafel slope of 79 mV dec−1, outperforming the noble‐metal IrO2 catalyst and most of the similar Fe–Ni based catalysts. The performance improvement could be mainly attributed to the phase‐structure transfer from metal−O bonding in the FeNi‐LDHs to metal−F bonding after fluoridation, which means it is easier to form the real active sites of Fe‐doped high‐valence Ni‐(oxy)hydroxide over the iron–nickel fluoride surface.
Boosted by fluorination: The temperature dependence of the crystal structure and surface chemical state for simple fluoridation of an iron–nickel layered double hydroxide (LDH) is demonstrated for the electrochemical oxygen evolution reaction. The improved performance can be mainly attributed to the phase‐structure transfer from metal−O bonding in the FeNi‐LDHs to metal−F bonding after fluoridation.
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BFBNIB, FZAB, GIS, IJS, KILJ, NLZOH, NUK, OILJ, SBCE, SBMB, UL, UM, UPUK
Abstract
The Kagome superconductors AV
3
Sb
5
(A = K, Rb, Cs) have received enormous attention due to their nontrivial topological electronic structure, anomalous physical properties and ...superconductivity. Unconventional charge density wave (CDW) has been detected in AV
3
Sb
5
. High-precision electronic structure determination is essential to understand its origin. Here we unveil electronic nature of the CDW phase in our high-resolution angle-resolved photoemission measurements on KV
3
Sb
5
. We have observed CDW-induced Fermi surface reconstruction and the associated band folding. The CDW-induced band splitting and the associated gap opening have been revealed at the boundary of the pristine and reconstructed Brillouin zones. The Fermi surface- and momentum-dependent CDW gap is measured and the strongly anisotropic CDW gap is observed for all the V-derived Fermi surface. In particular, we have observed signatures of the electron-phonon coupling in KV
3
Sb
5
. These results provide key insights in understanding the nature of the CDW state and its interplay with superconductivity in AV
3
Sb
5
superconductors.
Abstract
Analogous to DNA methylation and histone modification, RNA modification, as another epigenetic layer, plays an important role in many diseases, especially in tumours. As the most common form ...of RNA modification, m
6
A methylation has attracted increasing research interest in recent years. m
6
A is catalysed by RNA methyltransferases METTL3, METTL14 and WTAP (writers), m
6
A is removed by the demethylases FTO and ALKBH5 (erasers) and interacts with m6A-binding proteins, such as YT521-B homology (YTH) domain-containing proteins. This article reviews recent studies on methylation modification of m
6
A in gastrointestinal tract cancers.
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DOBA, IZUM, KILJ, NUK, PILJ, PNG, SAZU, SIK, UILJ, UKNU, UL, UM, UPUK
Males are generally more susceptible to impaired glucose metabolism and type 2 diabetes (T2D) than females. However, the underlying mechanisms remain to be determined. Here, we revealed that gut ...microbiome depletion abolished sexual dimorphism in glucose metabolism. The transfer of male donor microbiota into antibiotics-treated female mice led the recipients to be more insulin resistant. Depleting androgen via castration changed the gut microbiome of male mice to be more similar to that of females and improved glucose metabolism, while reintroducing dihydrotestosterone (DHT) reversed these alterations. More importantly, the effects of androgen on glucose metabolism were largely abolished when the gut microbiome was depleted. Next, we demonstrated that androgen modulated circulating glutamine and glutamine/glutamate (Gln/Glu) ratio partially depending on the gut microbiome, and glutamine supplementation increases insulin sensitivity in vitro. Our study identifies the effects of androgen in deteriorating glucose homeostasis partially by modulating the gut microbiome and circulating glutamine and Gln/Glu ratio, thereby contributing to the difference in glucose metabolism between the two sexes.
The family Limacodidae belongs to the superfamily Zygaenoidea, which includes 1672 species commonly referred to as slug moths. Limacodidae larvae are major pests for many economically important plant ...species and can cause human dermatitis. At present, the structure of the mitochondrial genome (mitogenome), phylogenetic position, and adaptive evolution of slug moths are poorly understood. Herein, the mitogenomes of Parasa lepida, Phlossa conjuncta, Thosea sinensis, and Setora sinensis were sequenced and compared with other available mitogenome sequences to better characterize the mitogenomic diversity and evolution of this moth family. The mitogenomes of P. lepida, P. conjuncta, T. sinensis, and S. sinensis were confirmed to be circular in structure with lengths of 15,575 bp, 15,553 bp, 15,535 bp, and 15,529 bp, respectively. The Limacodidae mitogenomes exhibited similar nucleotide composition, codon usage, RNA structure, and control region patterns, indicating the conservation of the mitogenome in the family Limacodidae. A sliding window, Ka/Ks, and genetic distance analyses revealed that the atp8 and nad6 genes exhibited the highest levels of variability and the most rapid evolutionary rates among the 13 protein‐coding genes (PCGs) encoded in these Limacodidae mitogenomes, suggesting that they may offer value as candidate DNA markers. The phylogenetic analysis recovered the overall relationship as Tortricoidea + (Sesiidae + (Zygaenoidea + (Cossoidea/+Choreutoidea + (others))). Within Zygaenoidea, Limacodidae was recovered as monophyletic, and the phylogenetic relationships were recovered as (Phaudidae + Zyganidae) + Limacodidae in all six phylogenetic trees. The analysis indicated that P. lepida, P. conjuncta, T. sinensis, and S. sinensis are members of the Limacodidae.
In this study, we sequenced the mitochondrial genomes of Parasa lepida, Phlossa conjuncta, Thosea sinensis, and Setora sinensis, and performed the first comparative genomic analyses of Limacodidae. The use of the ATT start codon by the cox1 gene in P. lepida is the first documented use of this start codon in Limacodidae mitogenomes. Within Zygaenoidea, Limacodidae was recovered as monophyletic, and the phylogenetic relationships were recovered as (Phaudidae + Zyganidae) + Limacodidae in all six phylogenetic trees.
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FZAB, GIS, IJS, KILJ, NLZOH, NUK, OILJ, SBCE, SBMB, UL, UM, UPUK
Cardiac fibrosis after myocardial infarction (MI) has been identified as an important factor in the deterioration of heart function. Previous studies have demonstrated that miR-21 plays an important ...role in various pathophysiological processes in the heart. However, the role of miR-21 in fibrosis regulation after MI remains unclear.
To induce cardiac infarction, the left anterior descending coronary artery was permanently ligated of mice. First, we explored the expression of miR-21 in the infarcted zone in mice model of MI via RT-qPCR. Next, we examined the effects of TGF-β1 on miR-21 expression in cardiac fibroblasts (CFs). Then, CFs were infected with miR-21 mimics or miR-21 inhibitors to investigate the effects of miR-21 on the process of CFs activation in vitro. Further, bioinformatics analysis and luciferase reporter assay were performed to identify and validate the target gene of miR-21. At last, in-vivo study was done to confirm MiR-21 regulated myocardial fibrosis after MI in mice.
MiR-21 was up-regulated in the infarcted zone after MI in vivo. TGF-β1 treatment increased miR-21 expression in CFs. Overexpression of miR-21 promoted the effects of TGF-β1-induced activation of CFs, evidenced by increased expression of Col-1, α-SMA and F-actin, whereas inhibition of miR-21 attenuated the process of fibrosis. Bioinformatics, Western blot analysis and luciferase reporter assay demonstrated that Smad7 is a direct target of miR-21. In addition, in-vivo study revealed that MiR-21 regulated myocardial fibrosis after MI in mice.
These findings suggested that miR-21 has a critical role in CF activation and cardiac fibrosis after MI through via TGF-β/Smad7 signaling pathway. Thus, miR-21 promises to be a potential therapy in treatment of cardiac fibrosis after MI.
The Clausius‐Clapeyron relationship holds that the atmospheric water vapor content enhances with warming temperatures, suggesting intensifications of precipitable water and also altering runoff ...generation. Drought conditions are determined by variations in water fluxes such as precipitation and runoff, which tightly connect with temperature scaling characteristics. However, whether and how water fluxes' scaling with temperatures may affect the evolution of droughts under climate change has not yet been systematically investigated. This study develops a cascade modeling chain consisting of the climate model ensemble, bias correction technique, and hydrological models to investigate the precipitation and runoff scaling relationships with warming temperatures under the current (1961–2005) and future periods (2011–2055 and 2056–2100), as well as their implications on future drought changes across 151 catchments in China. The results show that (1) precipitation (runoff) scaling relationships with temperatures are stable during different time periods; (2) return level analysis indicates drought risks are projected to become (1–10 times) more severe across central and southern catchments, where the precipitation (runoff) strengthens with rising temperatures up to a peak point and then decline in a hotter environment. The northeastern and western catchments, where a monotonic increasing scaling type dominated, are accompanied by drought mitigations for two future periods; (3) future changes in hydrological droughts relative to the baseline are (1–5 times) larger than those in meteorological droughts. These results imply that changes in future drought risks are highly dependent on the present precipitation (runoff)‐temperature relationships, suggesting a meaningful implication of scaling types for future drought prediction.
Plain Language Summary
Drought hazards are determined by variations in water fluxes such as precipitation and runoff. Global climate warming has altered these terrestrial hydrological processes and subsequently changed drought conditions. Characterizing the responses of precipitation and runoff to warming climates and investigating their implications on future drought changes are important for drought early warning and prediction. Here we show that monthly precipitation and runoff either exhibit a monotonic increasing or the peak‐like structure (in which precipitation and runoff increase with warming temperatures up to a peak point and decline thereafter) with temperatures. The increasing relationship typically suggests future drought mitigation, while the hook structure type, which prevails in central and southern catchments in China, implies increasing drought risks. Our findings facilitate a better understanding of drought changes under climate change and provide a scientific basis for drought adaptation to climate change.
Key Points
Monthly precipitation and runoff typically exhibit a monotonic increasing or hook structure with temperature scaling in China
The hook structures typically imply future intensifying drought hazards, whereas the increasing scaling types infer drought mitigations
Future changes in hydrological droughts relative to the historical baseline are larger than those in meteorological droughts
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FZAB, GIS, IJS, KILJ, NLZOH, NUK, OILJ, SBCE, SBMB, UL, UM, UPUK
Next generation cosmic microwave background (CMB) polarization telescope will use large arrays of receiver with nearly 100 000 transition edge sensor (TES) detectors and receiving antennas. Such ...large TES and antenna array is a big challenge for the fabrication of TES and antennas. A 35‐layers silicon‐platelet corrugated horn for 70–110 GHz is designed and fabricated based on the micro electro mechanical system (MEMS) technology. Compared with the traditional corrugated horn, the last layer of the 35‐layers silicon‐platelet is designed with no corrugation to increase the beam symmetry. A parametric HFSS model of the horn was established to evaluate the performance of the horn and effect of fabrication process. The measured S11 and cross‐polarization of the fabricated prototype horn are both below −20 dB while the sidelobe at 70 and 90 GHz is below −20 dB. The beam symmetry of the horn is good in 70–110 GHz band. The measured gain is greater than 15 dBi. These results show that the performance of the designed horn meets the requirement of CMB experiment.
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FZAB, GIS, IJS, IZUM, KILJ, NLZOH, NUK, OILJ, PILJ, PNG, SAZU, SBCE, SBMB, UL, UM, UPUK
NOTCH signaling is associated with tumorigenesis, mutagenesis, and immune tolerance in non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC), indicating its association with the clinical benefit of immune checkpoint ...inhibitors (ICI). We hypothesized that
mutation in NSCLC might be a robust predictor of immunotherapeutic efficacy.
Multiple-dimensional data including genomic, transcriptomic, and clinical data from cohorts of NSCLC internal and public cohorts involving immunotherapeutic patients were analyzed. Polymorphism Phenotyping v2 (PolyPhen-2) system was performed to determine deleterious
mutation (del-
). Further investigation on molecular mechanism was performed in The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) data via CIBERSORT and gene set enrichment analysis.
Our 3DMed cohort (
= 58) and other four cohorts (Rizvi, POPLAR/OAK, Van Allen, and MSKCC;
= 1,499) uncovered marked correlation between
mutation and better ICI outcomes in
population, including objective response rate (2.20-fold,
= 0.001), progression-free survival HR, 0.61; 95% confidence interval (CI), 0.46-0.81;
= 0.001, and overall survival (HR, 0.56; 95% CI, 0.32-0.96;
= 0.035). Del-
exhibited better predictive function than non-deleterious
mutation, potentially via greater transcription of genes related to DNA damage response and immune activation. Del-
was not linked with prognosis in TCGA cohorts and chemotherapeutic response, but was independently associated with immunotherapeutic benefit, delineating the predictive, but not prognostic, utility of del-
.
This work distinguishes del-
as a potential predictor to favorable ICI response in NSCLC, highlighting the importance of genomic profiling in immunotherapy. More importantly, our results unravel a possibility of personalized combination immunotherapy as adding NOTCH inhibitor to ICI regimen in NSCLC, for the optimization of ICI treatment in clinical practice.
Nickel‐based materials are a type of cost‐effective catalyst for urea oxidation. Herein, we first reported nanostructured Ni2P−C as an efficient catalyst for urea electrooxidation. The Ni2P−C ...catalyst was prepared by a facile hydrothermal method and the structure and morphology were further characterized by X‐ray diffraction (XRD) and transmission electron microscope (TEM). The hexagonal crystal structure for Ni2P was indicated by the characteristic peaks in the XRD patterns, and lattice fringes of Ni2P were clearly observed in the high‐resolution TEM images. The catalytic ability for urea electrooxidation was studied by cyclic voltammetry and chronoamperometry techniques. It was found that the current density at 0.5 V was ca. 70.4 mA cm−2, about 2.7 times higher than that of the referenced commercial nickel oxide catalyst. A good catalytic stability for urea oxidation was also obtained. A diffusion‐controlled process was observed for urea oxidation on Ni2P catalyst while the active sites arising from Ni(II) ion oxidation was following a surface‐redox‐reaction‐controlled process. Kinetics studies by impedance spectroscopy and Tafel slope analysis displayed improved charge‐transfer kinetics towards urea electrooxidation. The results demonstrated that Ni2P would have potential applications for catalytic urea oxidation.
Cheap and cheerful: Nanostructured Ni2P−C was demonstrated as an efficient catalyst for urea electrooxidation. The material exhibited an excellent catalytic ability and was found to display improved charge‐transfer kinetics towards urea electrooxidation.
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FZAB, GIS, IJS, KILJ, NLZOH, NUK, OILJ, SBCE, SBMB, UL, UM, UPUK
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