This study presents newly developed yellow‐colored organic electro‐optic crystals to provide high terahertz (THz) wave generation efficiency. Compared with currently existing red‐ or orange‐colored ...electro‐optic crystals, which are used for most benchmark organic THz sources, yellow‐colored crystals have additional superior advantages for THz wave generation, e.g., higher transparency in the visible wavelength range with accompanying different phase‐matching possibilities. The new yellow‐colored crystals consist of a highly nonlinear optical 4‐(4‐hydroxystyryl)‐1‐methylpyridinium (OHP) cation, with a relatively short wavelength of maximal absorption at 390 nm in solution, and various halogen‐substituted benzenesulfonate anions, with strong secondary‐bonding ability. OHP 4‐chlorobenzenesulfonate (OHP‐CBS) crystals exhibit large off‐resonant macroscopic optical nonlinearity and high transparency, with a cut‐off wavelength for solid‐state absorption near 490 nm. OHP‐CBS crystals provide excellent THz wave generation characteristics based on optical rectification. A 0.53 mm thick OHP‐CBS crystal delivers ≈27 times higher optical‐to‐THz conversion efficiency and a much broader spectrum bandwidth compared with the standard 1.0 mm thick ZnTe at 1300 nm pumping. Particularly, compared with a benchmark organic quinolinium crystal with a similar thickness of 0.55 mm, OHP‐CBS crystals exhibit 1.7 times higher optical‐to‐THz conversion efficiency, and show a significantly different THz spectral shape.
Yellow‐colored electro‐optic salt crystals possessing large macroscopic optical nonlinearity with wide transparency exhibit excellent THz wave generation characteristics with significantly different THz spectral shapes compared with red‐ or orange‐colored benchmark organic electro‐optic crystals.
Monocyte infiltration into the subintimal space and its intracellular lipid accumulation are the most prominent features of atherosclerosis. To understand the pathophysiology of atherosclerotic ...disease, we need to understand the characteristics of lipid-laden foamy macrophages in the subintimal space during atherosclerosis.
We sought to examine the transcriptomic profiles of foamy and nonfoamy macrophages isolated from atherosclerotic intima.
Single-cell RNA sequencing analysis of CD45
leukocytes from murine atherosclerotic aorta revealed that there are macrophage subpopulations with distinct differentially expressed genes involved in various functional pathways. To specifically characterize the intimal foamy macrophages of plaque, we developed a lipid staining-based flow cytometric method for analyzing the lipid-laden foam cells of atherosclerotic aortas. We used the fluorescent lipid probe BODIPY493/503 and assessed side-scattered light as an indication of cellular granularity. BODIPY
SSC
foamy macrophages were found residing in intima and expressing CD11c. Foamy macrophage accumulation determined by flow cytometry was positively correlated with the severity of atherosclerosis. Bulk RNA sequencing analysis showed that compared with nonfoamy macrophages, foamy macrophages expressed few inflammatory genes but many lipid-processing genes. Intimal nonfoamy macrophages formed the major population expressing IL (interleukin)-1β and many other inflammatory transcripts in atherosclerotic aorta.
RNA sequencing analysis of intimal macrophages from atherosclerotic aorta revealed that lipid-loaded plaque macrophages are not likely the plaque macrophages that drive lesional inflammation.
Circular RNA (circRNA) is a closed, single-stranded transcript widely detected in eukaryotes. Recent studies indicate that the levels of circRNAs change with age in various tissues in multiple ...species, ranging from nematodes to mammals. Here we discuss the functional roles of circRNAs in animal aging and longevity. We review studies regarding the differential expression of circRNAs that contributes to cellular senescence and the pathogenesis of aging-associated diseases. We explore the features of aging-associated circRNAs by discussing their potential as biomarkers of aging, tissue specificity, physiological roles, action mechanisms, and evolutionarily conserved characteristics. Our review provides insights into current progress in circRNA research and their significant functions in the aging process.
Circular RNAs (circRNAs) are closed and cyclic RNAs that are widely expressed in eukaryotes and have multiple functions, including interacting with proteins, sponging miRNAs, encoding proteins, and regulating gene expression via binding promoters.The expression patterns and stability of circRNAs have emerged as promising candidate biomarkers of aging and age-associated diseases.The levels of circRNAs generally increase with age in various species and may play roles in aging and cellular senescence.Specifically, ciRS-7/circCDR1as and circSfl are associated with Alzheimer’s disease and fruit fly longevity, respectively.It will be important to identify functional circRNAs to elucidate the underlying mechanisms regarding their roles in aging and/or age-related diseases.
Spin-orbit torques arising from the spin-orbit coupling of non-magnetic heavy metals allow electrical switching of perpendicular magnetization. However, the switching is not purely electrical in ...laterally homogeneous structures. An extra in-plane magnetic field is indeed required to achieve deterministic switching, and this is detrimental for device applications. On the other hand, if antiferromagnets can generate spin-orbit torques, they may enable all-electrical deterministic switching because the desired magnetic field may be replaced by their exchange bias. Here we report sizeable spin-orbit torques in IrMn/CoFeB/MgO structures. The antiferromagnetic IrMn layer also supplies an in-plane exchange bias field, which enables all-electrical deterministic switching of perpendicular magnetization without any assistance from an external magnetic field. Together with sizeable spin-orbit torques, these features make antiferromagnets a promising candidate for future spintronic devices. We also show that the signs of the spin-orbit torques in various IrMn-based structures cannot be explained by existing theories and thus significant theoretical progress is required.
Background
Activated eosinophils release extracellular traps (EETs), which contribute to airway inflammation in severe asthma (SA). However, the role of EETs in innate immunity has not yet been ...completely determined. The present study aimed to demonstrate the mechanism of airway inflammation in SA mediated by EETs.
Methods
Peripheral counts of EET+ eosinophils and type 2 innate lymphoid cells (ILC2s) were evaluated in patients with SA (n = 13), nonsevere asthma (NSA, n = 17), and healthy control subjects (HC, n = 8). To confirm the effect of EETs, airway hyperresponsiveness (AHR) and adapted/innate immune responses were assessed in mice. Furthermore, the effects of anti‐IL‐33/TSLP antibody were tested.
Results
The numbers of EET+ eosinophils and ILC2s were significantly elevated in SA, with a positive correlation between these two cells (r = .539, P < .001). When mice were injected with EETs, we observed significant increases in epithelium‐derived cytokines (IL‐1α, IL‐1β, CXCL‐1, CCL24, IL‐33, and TSLP) and eosinophil/neutrophil count in bronchoalveolar lavage fluid (BALF) as well as an increased proportion of IL‐5‐ or IL‐13‐producing ILC2s in the lungs. When Rag1−/− mice receiving ILC2s were treated with EETs, increased AHR and IL‐5/IL‐13 levels in BALF were noted, which were effectively suppressed by anti‐IL‐33 or anti‐TSLP antibody.
Conclusion
EETs could enhance innate and type 2 immune responses in SA, in which epithelium‐targeting biologics (anti‐IL‐33/TSLP antibody) may have a potential benefit.
The numbers of EET+ eosinophils and type 2 innate lymphoid cells (ILC2s) are significantly elevated in severe asthma. EETs treatment in mice induces significant increase of epithelium‐derived cytokines (IL‐1α, IL‐1β, CXCL‐1, CCL24, IL‐33, and TSLP) and eosinophil/neutrophil count in bronchoalveolar lavage fluid. EETs activate IL‐5 or IL‐13‐producing ILC2s through stimulating airway epithelium.Abbreviations: EETs, Eosinophil extracellular traps; TSLP, Thymic stromal lymphopoietin
Abstract
A star’s rotation rate is difficult to estimate without surface inhomogeneities such as dark or bright spots. This paper presents asteroseismic results to determine the rotation rates of
δ
...Sct-type pulsating primary stars in two eclipsing binary systems, AB Cas and OO Dra. After removing the binarity-induced light variations from archival TESS data and carefully examining the combination frequencies, we identified 12 independent frequencies for AB Cas and 11 frequencies for OO Dra, with amplitudes higher than ∼0.3 mmag, as
δ
Sct-type pulsation frequencies excited in each primary star. The theoretical frequencies for seismic analysis were obtained by fully considering rotation effects. Grid fitting for various stellar properties, such as mass, radius, metallicity, and rotation rate, yielded the best solutions for which the theoretical frequencies and stellar parameters agreed well with the observations. The rotation rate of the AB Cas primary was tightly constrained to 0.81 ± 0.01 day
−1
(
f
rot
/
f
orb
=
1.11
−
0.02
+
0.01
), which is slightly faster than the synchronized rotation. In contrast, the rotation rate of 0.63 ± 0.01 day
−1
for the OO Dra primary is lower than the synchronous value of approximately 0.81 day
−1
. Subsynchronous rotation is uncommon in short-period binaries, and its physical mechanism is not yet well understood. Our results show that asteroseismology can be used to measure the rotation rate of fast-rotating
δ
Sct stars precisely and thus provide a valuable constraint on rotation–orbit synchronization in close binary systems.
Gram-negative bacteria actively secrete outer membrane vesicles, spherical nano-meter-sized proteolipids enriched with outer membrane proteins, to the surroundings. Outer membrane vesicles have ...gained wide interests as non-living complex vaccines or delivery vehicles. However, no study has used outer membrane vesicles in treating cancer thus far. Here we investigate the potential of bacterial outer membrane vesicles as therapeutic agents to treat cancer via immunotherapy. Our results show remarkable capability of bacterial outer membrane vesicles to effectively induce long-term antitumor immune responses that can fully eradicate established tumors without notable adverse effects. Moreover, systematically administered bacterial outer membrane vesicles specifically target and accumulate in the tumor tissue, and subsequently induce the production of antitumor cytokines CXCL10 and interferon-γ. This antitumor effect is interferon-γ dependent, as interferon-γ-deficient mice could not induce such outer membrane vesicle-mediated immune response. Together, our results herein demonstrate the potential of bacterial outer membrane vesicles as effective immunotherapeutic agent that can treat various cancers without apparent adverse effects.Bacterial outer membrane vesicles (OMVs) contain immunogens but no study has yet examined their potential in treating cancer. Here, the authors demonstrate that OMVs can suppress established tumours and prevent tumour metastasis by an interferon-γ mediated antitumor response.
A design strategy is proposed for electron‐transporting materials (ETMs) with homochiral asymmetric‐shaped groups for highly efficient non‐fullerene perovskite solar cells (PSCs). The electron ...transporting N,N′‐bis(R)‐1‐phenylethylnaphthalene‐1,4,5,8‐tetracarboxylic diimide (NDI‐PhE) consists of two asymmetric‐shaped chiral (R)‐1‐phenylethyl (PhE) groups that act as solubilizing groups by reducing molecular symmetry and increasing the free volume. NDI‐PhE exhibits excellent film‐forming ability with high solubility in various organic solvents about two times higher solubility than the widely used fullerene‐based phenyl‐C61‐butyric acid methyl ester (PCBM) in o‐dichlorobenzene. NDI‐PhE ETM‐based inverted PSCs exhibit very high power conversion efficiencies (PCE) of up to 20.5 % with an average PCE of 18.74±0.95 %, which are higher than those of PCBM ETM‐based PSCs. The high PCE of NDI‐PhE ETM‐based PSCs may be attributed to good film‐forming abilities and to three‐dimensional isotropic electron transporting capabilities. Therefore, introducing homochiral asymmetric‐shaped groups onto charge‐transporting materials is a good strategy for achieving high device performance.
Turn up the power: Homochiral asymmetric‐shaped electron‐transporting materials (ETMs) exhibit excellent film‐forming ability with high solubility in various organic solvents. The homochiral ETM‐based inverted perovskite solar cells exhibit very high power conversion efficiencies (PCE) up to 20.5 % and very high reproducibility with an average PCE of 18.74±0.95 %.
The two oxidation states of ceria nanoparticles, Ce3+ and Ce4+, play a pivotal role in scavenging reactive oxygen species (ROS). In particular, Ce3+ is largely responsible for removing O2− and .OH ...that are associated with inflammatory response and cell death. The synthesis is reported of 2 nm ceria–zirconia nanoparticles (CZ NPs) that possess a higher Ce3+/Ce4+ ratio and faster conversion from Ce4+ to Ce3+ than those exhibited by ceria nanoparticles. The obtained Ce0.7Zr0.3O2 (7CZ) NPs greatly improve ROS scavenging performance, thus regulating inflammatory cells in a very low dose. Moreover, 7CZ NPs are demonstrated to be effective in reducing mortality and systemic inflammation in two representative sepsis models. These findings suggest that 7CZ NPs have the potential as a therapeutic nanomedicine for treating ROS‐related inflammatory diseases.
An optimized ROS scavenging agent: 2 nm‐sized ceria–zirconia nanoparticles (CZ NPs) with increased Ce3+ ratios outperform ceria NPs as scavengers of reactive oxygen species (ROS). The composition‐tuned 7CZ (Ce0.7Zr0.3O2) NPs are superior in reducing inflammation in vitro and decrease the mortality in sepsis in vivo.
Although polycrystalline hexagonal boron nitride (PC-hBN) has been realized, defects and grain boundaries still cause charge scatterings and trap sites, impeding high-performance electronics. Here, ...we report a method of synthesizing wafer-scale single-crystalline hBN (SC-hBN) monolayer films by chemical vapor deposition. The limited solubility of boron (B) and nitrogen (N) atoms in liquid gold promotes high diffusion of adatoms on the surface of liquid at high temperature to provoke the circular hBN grains. These further evolve into closely packed unimodal grains by means of self-collimation of B and N edges inherited by electrostatic interaction between grains, eventually forming an SC-hBN film on a wafer scale. This SC-hBN film also allows for the synthesis of wafer-scale graphene/hBN heterostructure and single-crystalline tungsten disulfide.
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