Liver sinusoidal endothelial cells (LSECs) critically regulate liver homeostasis and diseases through angiocrine factors. Notch is critical in endothelial cells (ECs). In the current study, Notch ...signaling was activated by inducible EC‐specific expression of the Notch intracellular domain (NIC). We found that endothelial Notch activation damaged liver homeostasis. Notch activation resulted in decreased fenestration and increased basement membrane, and a gene expression profile with decreased LSEC‐associated genes and increased continuous EC‐associated genes, suggesting LSEC dedifferentiation. Consistently, endothelial Notch activation enhanced hepatic fibrosis (HF) induced by CCl4. Notch activation attenuated endothelial nitric oxide synthase (eNOS)/soluble guanylate cyclase (sGC) signaling, and activation of sGC by 3‐(5′‐hydroxymethyl‐2′‐furyl)‐1‐benzylindazole (YC‐1) reversed the dedifferentiation phenotype. In addition, Notch activation subverted the hepatocyte‐supporting angiocrine profile of LSECs by down‐regulating critical hepatocyte mitogens, including Wnt2a, Wnt9b, and hepatocyte growth factor (HGF). This led to compromised hepatocyte proliferation under both quiescent and regenerating conditions. Whereas expression of Wnt2a and Wnt9b was dependent on eNOS‐sGC signaling, HGF expression was not rescued by the sGC activator, suggesting heterogeneous mechanisms of LSECs to maintain hepatocyte homeostasis. Conclusion: Endothelial Notch activation results in LSEC dedifferentiation and accelerated liver fibrogenesis through eNOS‐sGC signaling, and alters the angiocrine profile of LSECs to compromise hepatocyte proliferation and liver regeneration (LR). (Hepatology 2018).
Multiferroics refer to materials with two or more ferroic orders in one phase within a specific temperature range, including ferroelectricity, ferroelasticity, and ferromagnetism which have been ...widely used in sensors, actuators, and memory devices. Among them, hybrid perovskites exhibiting multiferroicity are generally limited to low dimensions (0D–2D). Designing 3D lead‐free perovskite multiferroics remains a challenge due to Goldschmidt's tolerance factor limitation. Here, a multiferroic perovskite (R‐3AP)RbBr3 (1; 3AP = 3‐ammoniopyrrolidinium) is successfully synthesized by introducing homochirality to the 3D ferroelectric (Rac‐3AP)RbBr3, achieving both ferroelasticity and ferroelectricity. Compound 1 undergoes a structure phase transition at 401 K belonging to Aizu notation 432F2(s), which has 12 ferroelectric equivalent polarization directions and 6 polar axes. Furthermore, 1 exhibits reversible second harmonic generation switching effects. Moreover, while the temperature varies, the reversible and rapid changes of ferroelastic domains in 1 are observed using a polarizing microscope, indicating that it is a ferroelastic material. This work provides a practical method for designing and synthesizing molecule‐based multiferroics.
The work reports a 3D perovskite multiferroics (R‐3AP)RbBr3 (1) based on the 3D rubidium‐based ferroelectric (Rac‐3AP)RbBr3 by using the homochirality strategy. Compound 1 exhibits 432F2(s) ferroelectric–ferroelastic phase transition at 401 K. In addition, 1 exhibits a second harmonic generation (SHG) switch and multi‐axis ferroelectricity with a saturation polarization (Ps) value of 1.21 µC·cm−2.
Despite advantages of arsenic trioxide (ATO) in oncological practice, its clinical applications have been hampered by severe cardiotoxicity. The general mechanism of ATO‐induced cardiotoxicity has ...been attributed to its damage to mitochondria, resulting in cardiac remodeling. Honokiol (HKL) is a naturally occurring compound derived from Magnolia bark. Previous studies have demonstrated that HKL exerts cardio‐protective effects on ischemia/reperfusion (I/R) or chemical‐induced cardiotoxicity by counteracting the toxic effects on mitochondria. The present study was conducted to investigate whether HKL pretreatment protects against ATO‐induced cardiac oxidative damage and cell death. For the in vitro study, we evaluated the effects of ATO and/or Honokiol on reactive oxygen species (ROS) production and apoptosis induction in primary cultured cardiomyocytes; for the in vivo study, BALB/c mice were administrated with ATO and/or HKL for a period of 4 weeks, myocardial apoptosis, cardiac function, and cardiac remodeling (cardiac hypertrophy and cardiac fibrosis) were assessed at the end of administration. Our results demonstrated Honokiol pretreatment alleviated the ATO‐induced boost in ROS concentration and the following apoptosis induction in primary cultured cardiomyocytes. In the mouse model, Honokiol pretreatment ameliorated ATO‐induced myocardial apoptosis, cardiac dysfunction, and cardiac remodeling. Collectively, these results indicated that Honokiol provide a protection against ATO‐induced cardiotoxicity by reducing mitochondrial damage. In addition, given that Honokiol has shown considerable suppressive effects on leukemia cells, our data also imply that ATO and Honokiol combination may possibly be a superior avenue in leukemia therapy.
In this work, we evaluated protective role of Honokiol, an active compound purified from the bark of Magnolia Officinalis, on cardiotoxicity induced by arsenic trioxide (ATO) treatment. The present study conducted has shown that Honokiol pretreatment protects against ATO‐induced cardiac oxidative stress and cell death.
This study investigated the trophic transfer of four common toxic metals (Cd, Cr, Cu and Hg) in the food web and assessed their potential ecological risks in Laizhou Bay, a spawning area for fishery ...populations in the Bohai Sea, North China. Based on the predation relations of 43 species that were representatives of the main trophic levels (TLs), a simplified food web was constructed using stomach content analysis and stable nitrogen isotope ratio (δ15N) analysis. Using copepods as the baseline species (TL = 2.00), the TLs of the organisms ranged from 1.96 (Polychaeta) to 4.47 (Japanese flounder) and showed the following ranking order: predatory pelagic or demersal fish > medium demersal fish > crustacean, cephalopod, small pelagic or demersal fish > zooplankton and Polychaeta. The metals showed different trophic transfer behaviors in the food web. Hg and Cr tended to be efficiently biomagnified between TLs, along the main food chains and in the food web. Cu biodiluted significantly with increasing TLs, while Cd showed no biomagnification or biodilution trends in the food web. At low or moderate levels of Cd and Hg, potential ecological risks were detected in the water and sediments at only a few sites, indicating their overall low ecological risks in the environment. The metals in the important fishery species (four top predatory fish, two cephalopods and eight crustaceans) were below the permissible limits, except for Cd in octopus and paddle crab, which reached or exceeded the most restrictive criteria. Based on the provisional tolerable weekly intake (PTWI) criteria, the safe weekly human consumption levels by humans of the predatory fish, cephalopods and crustaceans were species-specific (0.20–4.44 kg) and should be cautiously assessed.
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•A food web in LZB fishery ecosystem was built based on trophic relations.•Hg and Cr were clearly biomagnified in the food chains or food web.•Cu biodiluted and Cd showed no clear trend along LZB food web.•Metals showed low ecological or health risks in environment or fishery species.•Cd exhibited health risk to human from consuming octopus and crabs.
Present mobile devices, transportation tools, and renewable energy technologies are more dependent on newly developed battery chemistries than ever before. Intrinsic properties, such as safety, high ...energy density, and cheapness, are the main objectives of rechargeable batteries that have driven their overall technological progress over the past several decades. Unfortunately, it is extremely hard to achieve all these merits simultaneously at present. Alternatively, exploration of the most suitable batteries to meet the specific requirements of an individual application tends to be a more reasonable and easier choice now and in the near future. Based on this concept, here, a range of promising alternatives to lithium–sulfur batteries that are constructed with non‐Li metal anodes (e.g., Na, K, Mg, Ca, and Al) and sulfur cathodes are discussed. The systems governed by these new chemistries offer high versatility in meeting the specific requirements of various applications, which is directly linked with the broad choice in battery chemistries, materials, and systems. Herein, the operating principles, materials, and remaining issues for each targeted battery characteristics are comprehensively reviewed. By doing so, it is hoped that their design strategies are illustrated and light is shed on the future exploration of new metal–sulfur batteries and advanced materials.
The high versatility of Li‐free metal–sulfur batteries provides abundant opportunities to obtain unique battery characteristics. By carefully selecting suitable metal anodes and cathodes, the constructed batteries can be endowed with one or more desirable features for various applications, including high energy density, good cycling stability, low cost, and/or excellent safety, to satisfy a wide range of current and future applications.
Kinetically stable and long‐lived intermediates are crucial in monitoring the progress and understanding of supramolecular self‐assembly of diverse aggregated structures with collective functions. ...Herein, the complex dynamics of an atomically precise CuI nanocluster Cu8(tBuC6H4S)8(PPh3)4 (Cu8a) is systematically investigated. Remarkably, by monitoring the aggregation‐induced emission (AIE) and electron microscopy of the kinetically stable intermediates in real time, the directed self‐assembly (DSA) process of Cu8a is deduced. The polymorphism and different emission properties of Cu NCs aggregates were successfully captured, allowing the structure–optical property relationship to be established. More importantly, the utilization of a mathematical “permutation and combination” ideology by introducing a heterogeneous luminescent agent of a carbon dot (CD) to Cu8a aggregates enriches the “visualization” fluorescence window, which offers great potential in real time application for optical sensing of materials.
Within the scheme of aggregation‐induced emission (AIE), optical‐engineering was performed for real‐time monitoring of the self‐assembly process of Cu8a with various kinetic long‐lived intermediates, leading to a structure–property relationship being established.
Construction of vertical heterostructures by stacking two‐dimensional (2D) layered materials via chemical bonds can be an effective strategy to explore advanced solar‐energy‐conversion systems. ...However, it remains a great challenge to fabricate such heterostructures based on conversional oxide‐based compounds, as they either do not possess a 2D layered structure or are not suitable for epitaxial growth due to large lattice mismatch. Here, a vertical heterostructure of bismuth oxyhalide semiconductors fabricated through a heteroepitaxial anion exchange method is reported. Monolayer Bi2WO6 is epitaxially grown on the exposed surface of BiOI to inhibit photocorrosion and introduce active sites. Theoretical and experimental results reveal that electrons generated under visible‐light irradiation can directly transfer to surface coordinatively unsaturated (CUS) Bi atoms, which contribute to the adsorption and activation of reactant molecules. As a result, the Bi2WO6/BiOI vertical heterostructures exhibit significantly enhanced visible‐light‐driven NO oxidation activity compared with BiOI and Bi2WO6.
It remains a great challenge to fabricate 2D vertical photocatalytic heterostructures. In this work, a one‐step surface anion exchange strategy for production of scalable and controllable 2D vertical heterostructures (BiOX/Bi2TMO6 (X: Cl, Br, and I; TM: W and Mo)) by using conventional photocatalysts is explored. These constructed heterostructures exhibit efficient activity for elimination of NO and organics under visible‐light irradiation.
This study investigated the tissue- and species-specific bioaccumulation of heavy metals (Cr, Cu, Hg, Zn, As, Cd, and Pb) in three benthic bivalves (the ark shell, Scapharca subcrenata; the surf ...clam, Mactra veneriformis; and the Manila clam, Ruditapes philippinarum) collected from the coast of Laizhou Bay in the Bohai Sea. The results demonstrated that the visceral masses of the bivalves tended to accumulate heavy metals more efficiently than their muscles. The capacities of the bivalves to bioaccumulate metals followed a similar order: Cd>Hg>Zn=As>Cu>Cr=Pb. The conditions of metal contamination in the bivalves tended to be worse along the eastern coast than in other regions. Overall, the Manila clam was more severely contaminated by heavy metals than the surf clam and ark shell. Judging by the hazard quotients (HQ) of the metals in the muscles of the bivalves, the greatest hazard risk to human health comes primarily from As.
•Visceral masses in bivalves accumulate metals more efficiently than muscles.•Manila clam was more contaminated by metals than surf clam and ark shell.•Cd showed the highest capacity to accumulate in bivalves among all metals.•Metal pollution in bivalves along the eastern coast was worse than other regions.•As exhibited the greatest hazard risk to human health from consuming bivalves.
A novel Al-based metal–organic gel (Al-MOG), as a stable and controllable drug carrier, is assembled from bridging l -tartaric and Al 3+ ions using a simple solvothermal method. The reaction ...temperature and the ratio of metal ions and ligands are vital for the formation of the gel. Transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and N 2 adsorption measurements demonstrate the porous structure of Al-MOG, which exhibits Brunauer–Emmett–Teller (BET) surface area of 427.9 m 2 g −1 . The coordination between Al 3+ and l -tartaric acid as well as non-covalent interactions could play a vital role in the formation of Al-MOG. Considering its large BET and excellent biocompatibility derived from low toxicity of the metal ions and the natural acid ligand, we further investigate the behaviors of Al-MOG for the controlled release of methyl salicylate (MS), an antimicrobial drug. The results of drug loading experiments show that the largest drug loading amount of MS reaches 31.8 wt%, whereas the release time of MS is over 600 min. In addition, the mouldability of Al-MOG further demonstrates its promising potential to act as a drug carrier.
Electrochemical nitrogen reduction reaction (NRR) over nonprecious‐metal and single‐atom catalysts has received increasing attention as a sustainable strategy to synthesize ammonia. However, the ...atomic‐scale regulation of such active sites for NRR catalysis remains challenging because of the large distance between them, which significantly weakens their cooperation. Herein, the utilization of regular surface cavities with unique microenvironment on graphitic carbon nitride as “subnano reactors” to precisely confine multiple Fe and Cu atoms for NRR electrocatalysis is reported. The synergy of Fe and Cu atoms in such confined subnano space provides significantly enhanced NRR performance, with nearly doubles ammonia yield and 54%‐increased Faradic efficiency up to 34%, comparing with the single‐metal counterparts. First principle simulation reveals this synergistic effect originates from the unique Fe–Cu coordination, which effectively modifies the N2 absorption, improves electron transfer, and offers extra redox couples for NRR. This work thus provides new strategies of manipulating catalysts active centers at the sub‐nanometer scale.
The utilization of regular surface cavities with a unique microenvironment on graphitic carbon nitride as “subnano reactors” can precisely confine multiple Fe and Cu atoms for nitrogen reduction reaction (NRR) electrocatalysis. The synergy of the Fe and Cu atoms in such confined subnano space provides significantly enhanced NRR performance, in terms of much increased ammonia yield and faradic efficiency.
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