Potassium‐based dual ion batteries (K‐DIBs) with potassium cation (K+) intercalation graphitic anodes have been investigated for their potential in large‐scale energy storage applications owing to ...their merits of low cost and environmental friendly. Nonetheless, graphite anodes are plagued by volume expansion from the large K+ ions and the co‐intercalation of solvent molecules during the charging. Accordingly, organic materials stand out for the flexible adjustable structures and abundant active sites, which can accommodate cations by multiple functional groups without structural collapse. However, K‐DIBs based on organic anodes have rarely been investigated. Herein, 3D porous dipotassium terephthalate nanosheets are synthesized via a freeze‐dry method as the K‐DIB anode, which can reversibly store K+ ions at a fast rate with a high specific capacity and robust stability due to the sufficient redox active sites and diffusion pathways of K+ ions in the 3D porous structure. Consequently, a novel K‐DIB configuration combining this fast kinetics organic anode and environmental friendly expanded graphite (EG) cathode is constructed (pK2TP//EG), which exhibits a high specific capacity (68 mAh g‐1 at 2 C), good rate performance up to 20 C, and long cycling life with a capacity retention ~100% after 2000 cycles, which is the best performance observed among reported K‐DIBs.
A novel potassium‐based dual‐ion battery configuration combining a 3D porous dipotassium terephthalate nanosheets anode and environment friendly expanded graphite cathode is constructed, which exhibits good rate performance up to 20 C, and a long cycling life with a capacity retention ≈100% after 2000 cycles.
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BFBNIB, FZAB, GIS, IJS, KILJ, NLZOH, NUK, OILJ, SAZU, SBCE, SBMB, UL, UM, UPUK
The in vitro antibacterial activity and mechanism of action of two kinds of acid-soluble chitosan and one water-soluble chitosan against apricot fruit rot pathogen
Burkholderia seminalis was examined ...in this study. Results showed that water-soluble chitosan displayed limited antibacterial activity at four tested concentrations. However, two kinds of acid-soluble chitosan solution at 2.0
mg/mL had strong antibacterial activity against
B. seminalis although weak antibacterial activity was observed at a concentration lower than 1
mg/mL. The antibacterial activity of acid-soluble chitosan may be due to membrane disruption, cell lysis, abnormal osmotic pressure, and additional chitosan coating around the bacteria based on integrity of cell membranes test, out membrane permeability assays and transmission electron microscopy observation. In addition, biofilm biomass were markedly reduced after treating with two kinds of acid-soluble chitosan at concentrations of 2.0 and 1.0
mg/mL for 3 and 12
h, indicating the importance of biofilm formation in the antibacterial mechanism of chitosan. Overall, the results clearly indicated that two kinds of acid-soluble chitosan had a potential to control the contamination of apricot fruits caused by
B. seminalis.
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GEOZS, IJS, IMTLJ, KILJ, KISLJ, NUK, OILJ, PNG, SAZU, SBCE, SBJE, UL, UM, UPCLJ, UPUK
Impurity doping not only provides a fundamental approach to impart unique electronic, magnetic and optical properties to target nanomaterials, but also has critical influence on nucleation and growth ...of many functional nanocrystals. In the current study, Y
3+
and Sc
3+
were adopted to tune the shape, size, and upconversion luminescence properties of Na
3
ScF
6
:Yb/Er and NaYF
4
:Yb/Er samples, respectively. When Y
3+
doping concentration was lower than 10 mol%, the size and shape of Na
3
ScF
6
:Yb/Er (18/2) nanoparticles gradually changed from ~ 18 nm rhombus to 36 nm spheres. Subsequently, the co-existence of Na
3
ScF
6
:Yb/Er and NaYF
4
:Yb/Er nanoparticles was observed during 20 mol%–50 mol% Y
3+
doping, and finally NaYF
4
:Yb/Er nanoparticles became the only product at > 60 mol% Y
3+
doping where the role of Sc
3+
turned into dopant and the size of nanocrystals decreased from ~ 30 to 20 nm gradually. Both Y
3+
and Sc
3+
ions doping could enhance the upconversion luminescence intensity of Na
3
ScF
6
:Yb/Er and NaYF
4
:Yb/Er samples, for which possible mechanism was proposed from the perspective of crystal structure. Finally, the upconversion luminescence details were disclosed.
Graphical abstract
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EMUNI, FIS, FZAB, GEOZS, GIS, IJS, IMTLJ, KILJ, KISLJ, MFDPS, NLZOH, NUK, OILJ, PNG, SAZU, SBCE, SBJE, SBMB, SBNM, UKNU, UL, UM, UPUK, VKSCE, ZAGLJ
An enantioselective sulfenylation/semipinacol rearrangement of 1,1‐disubstituted and trisubstituted allylic alcohols was accomplished with a chiral Lewis base and a chiral Brønsted acid as ...cocatalysts, generating various β‐arylthio ketones bearing an all‐carbon quaternary center in moderate to excellent yields and excellent enantioselectivities. These chiral arylthio ketone products are common intermediates with many applications, for example, in the design of new chiral catalysts/ligands and the total synthesis of natural products. Computational studies (DFT calculations) were carried out to explain the enantioselectivity and the role of the chiral Brønsted acid. Additionally, the synthetic utility of this method was exemplified by an enantioselective total synthesis of (−)‐herbertene and a one‐pot synthesis of a chiral sulfoxide and sulfone.
An enantioselective sulfenylation/semipinacol rearrangement of 1,1‐disubstituted and trisubstituted allylic alcohols was accomplished by chiral Lewis base/chiral Brønsted acid co‐catalysis. Various β‐arylthio ketones bearing all‐carbon quaternary centers were generated in moderate to excellent yields and excellent enantioselectivities.
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BFBNIB, FZAB, GIS, IJS, KILJ, NLZOH, NUK, OILJ, SAZU, SBCE, SBMB, UL, UM, UPUK
The domesticated silkworm, Bombyx mori, is the model insect for the order Lepidoptera, has economically important values, and has gained some representative behavioral characteristics compared to its ...wild ancestor. The genome of B. mori has been fully sequenced while function analysis of BmChi-h and BmSuc1 genes revealed that horizontal gene transfer (HGT) maybe bestow a clear selective advantage to B. mori. However, the role of HGT in the evolutionary history of B. mori is largely unexplored. In this study, we compare the whole genome of B. mori with those of 382 prokaryotic and eukaryotic species to investigate the potential HGTs.
Ten candidate HGT events were defined in B. mori by comprehensive sequence analysis using Maximum Likelihood and Bayesian method combining with EST checking. Phylogenetic analysis of the candidate HGT genes suggested that one HGT was plant-to- B. mori transfer while nine were bacteria-to- B. mori transfer. Furthermore, functional analysis based on expression, coexpression and related literature searching revealed that several HGT candidate genes have added important characters, such as resistance to pathogen, to B. mori.
Results from this study clearly demonstrated that HGTs play an important role in the evolution of B. mori although the number of HGT events in B. mori is in general smaller than those of microbes and other insects. In particular, interdomain HGTs in B. mori may give rise to functional, persistent, and possibly evolutionarily significant new genes.
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DOBA, IZUM, KILJ, NUK, PILJ, PNG, SAZU, SIK, UILJ, UKNU, UL, UM, UPUK
As one of candidate theories in the construction of regular black holes, Einstein's gravity coupled with nonlinear electrodynamics has been a topic of great concerns. Owing to the coupling between ...Einstein's gravity and nonlinear electromagnetic fields, we need to reconsider the first law of thermodynamics, which will lead to a new thermodynamic phase space. In such a phase space, the equation of state accurately describes the complete phase transition process of regular black holes. The Maxwell equal area law strictly holds when the phase transition occurs, and the entropy obeys the Bekenstein-Hawking area formula, which is compatible with the situation in Einstein's gravity.
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GEOZS, IJS, IMTLJ, KILJ, KISLJ, NLZOH, NUK, OILJ, PNG, SAZU, SBCE, SBJE, UILJ, UL, UM, UPCLJ, UPUK, ZAGLJ, ZRSKP
Two‐dimensional (2D) heterostructured materials, combining the collective advantages of individual building blocks and synergistic properties, have spurred great interest as a new paradigm in ...materials science. The family of 2D transition‐metal carbides and nitrides, MXenes, has emerged as an attractive platform to construct functional materials with enhanced performance for diverse applications. Here, we synthesized 2D MoS2‐on‐MXene heterostructures through in situ sulfidation of Mo2TiC2Tx MXene. The computational results show that MoS2‐on‐MXene heterostructures have metallic properties. Moreover, the presence of MXene leads to enhanced Li and Li2S adsorption during the intercalation and conversion reactions. These characteristics render the as‐prepared MoS2‐on‐MXene heterostructures stable Li‐ion storage performance. This work paves the way to use MXene to construct 2D heterostructures for energy storage applications.
MoS2‐on‐MXene heterostructures were obtained by an in situ sulfidation of Mo2TiC2Tx MXene, which deliver improved Coulombic efficiency and cycling performance for the Li‐ion battery. A computational study shows that the strong Li and Li2S adsorption on 2D heterostructures leads to a stable Li‐ion storage performance.
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BFBNIB, FZAB, GIS, IJS, KILJ, NLZOH, NUK, OILJ, SAZU, SBCE, SBMB, UL, UM, UPUK
The traditional Chinese medicine bufalin, extracted from toad's skin, has been demonstrated to exert anticancer activities in various kinds of human cancers. The mechanisms of action lie in its ...capacity to induce apoptosis, or termed type I programmed cell death (PCD). However, type II PCD, or autophagy, participates in cancer proliferation, progression, and relapse, as well. Recent studies on autophagy seem to be controversial because of the dual roles of autophagy in cancer survival and death. In good agreement with previous studies, we found that 100 nM bufalin induced extensive HepG2 cell apoptosis. However, we also noticed bufalin triggered autophagy and enhanced Beclin-1 expression, LC3-I to LC3-II conversion, as well as decreased p62 expression and mTOR signaling activation in HepG2 cells. Blockage of autophagy by selective inhibitor 3-MA decreased apoptotic ratio in bufalin-treated HepG2 cells, suggesting a proapoptotic role of bufalin-induced autophagy. Furthermore, we investigated the underlying mechanisms of bufalin-induced autophagy. Bufalin treatment dose-dependently promoted AMPK phosphorylation while AMPK inhibition by compound C significantly attenuated bufalin-induced autophagy. Taken together, we report for the first time that bufalin induces HepG2 cells PCD, especially for autophagy, and the mechanism of action is, at least in part, AMPK-mTOR dependent.
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IZUM, KILJ, NUK, PILJ, PNG, SAZU, UL, UM, UPUK
Multi-elemental alloy nanoparticles (MEA-NPs) hold great promise for catalyst discovery in a virtually unlimited compositional space. However, rational and controllable synthesize of these ...intrinsically complex structures remains a challenge. Here, we report the computationally aided, entropy-driven design and synthesis of highly efficient and durable catalyst MEA-NPs. The computational strategy includes prescreening of millions of compositions, prediction of alloy formation by density functional theory calculations, and examination of structural stability by a hybrid Monte Carlo and molecular dynamics method. Selected compositions can be efficiently and rapidly synthesized at high temperature (e.g., 1500 K, 0.5 s) with excellent thermal stability. We applied these MEA-NPs for catalytic NH
decomposition and observed outstanding performance due to the synergistic effect of multi-elemental mixing, their small size, and the alloy phase. We anticipate that the computationally aided rational design and rapid synthesis of MEA-NPs are broadly applicable for various catalytic reactions and will accelerate material discovery.
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