Emerging rechargeable sodium‐ion storage systems—sodium‐ion and room‐temperature sodium–sulfur (RT‐NaS) batteries—are gaining extensive research interest as low‐cost options for large‐scale ...energy‐storage applications. Owing to their abundance, easy accessibility, and unique physical and chemical properties, sulfur‐based materials, in particular metal sulfides (MSx) and elemental sulfur (S), are currently regarded as promising electrode candidates for Na‐storage technologies with high capacity and excellent redox reversibility based on multielectron conversion reactions. Here, we present current understanding of Na‐storage mechanisms of the S‐based electrode materials. Recent progress and strategies for improving electronic conductivity and tolerating volume variations of the MSx anodes in Na‐ion batteries are reviewed. In addition, current advances on S cathodes in RT‐NaS batteries are presented. We outline a novel emerging concept of integrating MSx electrocatalysts into conventional carbonaceous matrices as effective polarized S hosts in RT‐NaS batteries as well. This comprehensive progress report could provide guidance for research toward the development of S‐based materials for the future Na‐storage techniques.
Sulfur‐based electrode materials are currently regarded as promising candidates for sodium‐storage technologies, especially for sodium‐ion (Na‐ion) and room‐temperature sodium–sulfur (RT‐NaS) batteries. In this Minireview on the progress of electrodes based on metal sulfides and elemental sulfur, material design and performance enhancement are highlighted and sodium‐storage mechanisms for both battery systems are discussed.
Lithium metal based anode with hierarchical structure to enable high rate capability, volume change accommodation, and dendritic suppression is highly desirable for all-solid-state lithium metal ...battery. However, the fabrication of hierarchical lithium metal based anode is challenging due to the volatility of lithium. Here, we report that natural diatomite can act as an excellent template for constructing hierarchical silicon-lithium based hybrid anode for high performance all-solid-state lithium metal battery. This hybrid anode exhibits stable lithium stripping/plating performance over 1000 h with average overpotential lower than 100 mV without any short circuit. Moreover, all-solid-state full cell using this lithium metal composite anode to couple with lithium iron phosphate cathode shows excellent cycling stability (0.04% capacity decay rate for 500 cycles at 0.5C) and high rate capability (65 mAh g
at 5C). The present natural diatomite derived hybrid anode could further promote the fabrication of high performance all-solid-state lithium batteries from sustainable natural resources.
The commercial ceramic nanoparticle coated microporous polyolefin separators used in lithium batteries are still vulnerable under external impact, which may cause short circuits and consequently ...severe safety threats, because the protective ceramic nanoparticle coating layers on the separators are intrinsically brittle. Here, a nacre‐inspired coating on the separator to improve the impact tolerance of lithium batteries is reported. Instead of a random structured ceramic nanoparticle layer, ion‐conductive porous multilayers consisting of highly oriented aragonite platelets are coated on the separator. The nacre‐inspired coating can sustain external impact by turning the violent localized stress into lower and more uniform stress due to the platelet sliding. A lithium‐metal pouch cell using the aragonite platelet coated separator exhibits good cycling stability under external shock, which is in sharp contrast to the fast short circuit of a lithium‐metal pouch cell using a commercial ceramic nanoparticle coated separator.
A nacre‐inspired coating is fabricated to improve the impact tolerance of the separator in a lithium battery via efficient energy dissipation. Remarkably, the pouch cell using the nacre‐inspired porous aragonite platelet coated separator performs with much lower instantaneous open‐circuit voltage change and faster voltage recovery than the cell using the commercial ceramic nanoparticle coated separator under external impaction.
Based on first-principles calculations, we systematically investigate the electronic and optical properties of van der Waals (vdW) heterostructures composed of graphene-like gallium nitride (g-GaN) ...and transition metal dichalcogenides (TMDs). The investigated vdW heterostructures (g-GaN/MoS2, g-GaN/WS2, g-GaN/MoSe2, and g-GaN/WSe2) are all semiconductors with direct bandgap. In particular, both the g-GaN/MoS2 and g-GaN/WS2 vdW heterostructures possess type-II band alignment, which will facilitate the separation of photogenerated carriers, and enhance their lifetime. Furthermore, band edge positions of these two heterostructures satisfied both water oxidation and reduction energy requirements, suggesting the potential in photocatalysts for water splitting. In addition, both g-GaN/MoS2 and g-GaN/WS2 vdW heterostructures exhibit a high electron mobility, which ensure that the redox reactions for water splitting will be effectively proceeded. More importantly, they show significant absorption peaks in the visible light region, leading to highly efficient utilization of the solar energy. These fascinating properties render the g-GaN/MoS2 and g-GaN/WS2 vdW heterostructures high-efficiency photocatalysts for water splitting.
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•Many g-GaN/TMD vdW heterostructures are direct-bandgap semiconductors.•Both g-GaN/MoS2 and g-GaN/WS2 form type-II heterostructure.•g-GaN/MoS2 and g-GaN/WS2 satisfy both water oxidation and reduction potential levels.•Both g-GaN/MoSe2 and g-GaN/WSe2 vdW heterostructures have type-I band alignment.
Background
Long noncoding RNA HOX transcript antisense RNA (lncRNA HOTAIR) is overexpressed in many types of human cancers and is correlated with clinical stage and lymph node metastasis in oral ...squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC). Autophagy, an important mechanism of self‐protection, plays vital roles in adapting to hypoxia, tolerating external stimulation, and inducing chemotherapy resistance in OSCC cells. This study aims to investigate the effect of HOTAIR on autophagy, apoptosis, and invasion of OSCC cells.
Methods
HOTAIR expression in OSCC cells was knocked down by small RNA interference. Transmission electron microscope, Western blot, and flow cytometry assay were used to detect the level of autophagy and apoptosis. OSCC cells were medicated with cisplatin, and median lethal dose (LD50) was performed to evaluate the effect on chemosensitivity of HOTAIR.
Results
After HOTAIR silence, autophagy was inhibited with the downregulated expression of MAP1LC3B (microtubule‐associated protein 1 light chain 3B), beclin1, and autophagy‐related gene (ATG) 3 and ATG7. The expressions of mTOR increased. Proliferation, migration, and invasion of OSCC cells were suppressed. Furthermore, apoptosis rate was enhanced, and the sensitivity to cisplatin was promoted when compared with the negative control group.
Conclusion
HOTAIR acts as an oncogene in OSCC cells, and HOTAIR silence may be a potential therapeutic target for OSCC.
Background and Aim
Chinese herbal medicine (CHM), as well as Western medicine (WM), is an important cause of drug‐induced liver injury (DILI). However, the differences between CHM and WM as agents ...implicated in liver injury have rarely been reported.
Methods
Overall, 1985 (2.05%) DILI cases were retrospectively collected from the 96 857 patients hospitalized because of liver dysfunction in the 302 Military Hospital between January 2009 and January 2014.
Results
In all the enrolled patients with DILI, CHM was implicated in 563 cases (28.4%), while 870 cases (43.8%) were caused by WM and the remaining patients (27.8%) by the combination of WM and CHM. Polygonum multiflorum was the major implicated CHM. Compared with WM, the cases caused by CHM showed more female (51 vs 71%, P < 0.001) and positive rechallenge (6.1 vs 8.9%, P = 0.046), a much greater proportion of hepatocellular injury (62.2 vs 88.5%, P < 0.001), and a higher mortality (2.8 vs 4.8%, P = 0.042); however, no differences in the rates of chronic DILI and ALF were found (12.9 vs 12.4%, P = 0.807; 7.6 vs 7.6%, P = 0.971). Based on Roussel Uclaf Causality Assessment Method, 75.6% of cases caused by CHM were classified as probable and only 16.6% as highly probable, significantly different from WM (38.4 and 60.3%, all P < 0.001).
Conclusions
The causal relationship between CHM and liver injury is much complex, and the clinical characteristics of DILI caused by CHM differ from those caused by WM.
Superior fast charging is a desirable capability of lithium‐ion batteries, which can make electric vehicles a strong competition to traditional fuel vehicles. However, the slow transport of solvated ...lithium ions in liquid electrolytes is a limiting factor. Here, a LixCu6Sn5 intermetallic network is reported to address this issue. Based on electrochemical analysis and X‐ray photoelectron spectroscopy mapping, it is demonstrated that the reported intermetallic network can form a high‐speed solid‐state lithium transport matrix throughout the electrode, which largely reduces the lithium‐ion‐concentration polarization effect in the graphite anode. Employing this design, superior fast‐charging graphite/lithium cobalt oxide full cells are fabricated and tested under strict electrode conditions. At the charging rate of 6 C, the fabricated full cells show a capacity of 145 mAh g−1 with an extraordinary capacity retention of 96.6%. In addition, the full cell also exhibits good electrochemical stability at a high charging rate of 2 C over 100 cycles (96.0% of capacity retention) in comparison to traditional graphite‐anode‐based cells (86.1% of capacity retention). This work presents a new strategy for fast‐charging lithium‐ion batteries on the basis of high‐speed solid‐state lithium transport in intermetallic alloy hosts.
A high‐speed solid‐state lithium‐transport matrix throughout the electrode is built up by a LixCu6Sn5 intermetallic network, which largely reduces the polarization effect in the graphite anode and realizes superior fast‐charging graphite/lithium cobalt oxide full cells under strict electrode conditions (areal capacity >3 mAh cm−2, porosity < 35%).
Collapsing gully erosion is a specific form of soil erosion types in the hilly granitic region of tropical and subtropical South China, and can result in extremely rapid water and soil loss. ...Knowledge of the soil physical and chemical properties of farmland influenced by collapsing gully erosion is important in understanding the development of soil quality. This study was conducted at the Wuli Watershed of the Tongcheng County, south of Hubei Province, China. The aim is to investigate soil physical and chemical properties of three soil layers （0-20, 20-40 and 40-60 cm） for two farmland types （paddy field and upland field） in three regions influenced by collapsing gully erosion. The three regions are described as follows： strongly influenced region （SIR）, weakly influenced region （WIR） and non-influenced region （NIR）. The results show that collapsing gully erosion significantly increased the soil gravel and sand content in paddy and upland fields, especially the surface soil in the SIR and WIR. In the 0-20 cm layer of the paddy field, the highest gravel content （250.94 g kg-1） was in the SIR and the lowest （78.67 g kg-1） was in the NIR, but in the upland filed, the surface soil （0-20 cm） of the SIR and the 40-60 cm soil layer for the NIR had the highest （177.13 g kg-1） and the lowest （59.96 g kg-1） values of gravel content, respectively. The distribution of gravel and sand decreased with depth in the three influenced regions, but silt and clay showed the inverse change. In the paddy field, the average of sand content decreased from 58.6 （in the SIR） to 49.0% （in the NIR）, but the silt content was in a reverse order, increasing from 27.9 to 36.9%, and the average of the clay content of three regions showed no significant variation （P〈0.05）. But in the upland filed, the sand, silt and clay fluctuated in the NIR and the WIR. Soils in the paddy and upland field were highly acidic （pH〈5.2） in the SIR and WIR; moreover lower nutrient contents （soil organic matter （SOM）, total N and available N, P, K） existed in the SIR. In the 0-20 cm soil layer of the paddy field, compared with the NIR and the WIR, collapsing gully erosion caused a very sharp decrease in the SOM and total N of the SIR （5.23 and 0.56 g kg-1, respectively）. But in the surface soil （0-20 cm） of the upland field, the highest SOM, total N, available N, available P and available K occurred in the NIR, and the lowest ones were in the SIR. Compared with the NIR, the cation exchange capacity （CEC） in the SIR and WIR was found to be relatively lower. These results suggest that collapsing gully erosion seriously affect the soil physical and chemical properties of farmland, lead to coarse particles accumulation in the field and decrease pH and nutrient levels.
Diabetes is a major global public health problem driven by a high prevalence of metabolic risk factors.
To describe the differences of metabolic risk factors of type 2 diabetes, as well as glycemic ...control and complicated diabetic complications between rural and urban Uygur residents in Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region of China.
This comparative cross-sectional study, conducted among 2879 urban and 918 rural participants in Xinjiang, China, assessed the metabolic risk factors of diabetes and related complications differences between urban and rural settlements.
Compared to rural areas, urban participants had higher education level and more average income, little physical activity, less triglycerides and higher HDL-c (p < 0.05 respectively). Differences in metabolic risk factors by urban/rural residence included overweight or obesity, triglycerides (≥1.71mmol/l), HDL-c (< 1.04 mmol/l), alcohol intake, and physical inactivity (p < 0.01 respectively). There was significant difference regarding the prevalence of HbA1c >8% (48.1% versus 54.5%, p = 0.019) between rural and urban diabetic participants. No significant difference in the prevalence of type 2 diabetic complications between urban and rural participants (74.9% versus 72.2%; p = 0.263) was detected. Compared to rural participants, the most prevalent modifiable risk factors associated with diabetic complications in urban participants were obesity (BMI ≥ 28 Kg/m2), HDL-c (< 1.04 mmol/l), physical inactivity and irregular eating habits (p = 0.035, p = 0.001, p < 0.001, and p = 0.013, respectively).
Urban settlers were significantly more likely to have metabolic risk factors highlighting the need for public health efforts to improve health outcomes for these vulnerable populations. Diabetes related complications risk factors were prevalent amongst rural and urban diabetes settlers.
Celotno besedilo
Dostopno za:
DOBA, IZUM, KILJ, NUK, PILJ, PNG, SAZU, SIK, UILJ, UKNU, UL, UM, UPUK
Based on the crystal structure data of Re2O3 (Re = Ho, Er, Tm) ceramics prepared by the solid‐phase reaction method, the theoretical infrared spectra were calculated via the first‐principles method ...and were first used to investigate the intrinsic influence of microwave dielectric properties. In addition, the phonon spectra, density of states, and electron localization function (ELF) were also calculated to analyze the dynamic stability and bonding properties. Based on the simple damped harmonic oscillator model, the resonant frequency of Re2O3 (Re = Ho, Er, Tm) ceramics in infrared spectrum varied in accordance with the ELF values because the restoring force constant of the elastic term was determined by the bonding properties. The intensity of the resonant peak was determined by the effective charge and decreased as the ELF increased. The full width at half maximum (FWHM) was dominated by the damping coefficient and had no obvious relationship with bond properties. For microwave dielectric properties, the dielectric constant of Re2O3 (Re = Ho, Er, Tm) ceramics was in accordance with the characteristic peak intensity of the theoretical infrared spectra, and the quality factor (Q × ƒ) was mainly determined by FWHM, corresponding to the damping in lattice vibration.
The theoretical infrared spectra (IR) of Re2O3 (Re = Ho, Er, Tm) ceramics had been calculated and analyzed using the simple damped harmonic oscillator model. The relationship between lattice vibration and bonding properties was discussed in detail using IR, DOS, and ELF. And microwave dielectric properties have been investigated using theoretical infrared spectra for the first time.
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