In this work, we have successfully prepared sandwich-like structured N-doped porous carbon@graphene composites (N-PC@G) derived from sandwich-like structured zeolitic imidazolate framework@graphene ...oxide (ZIF-8@GO). ZIF-8@GO was obtained by in situ controllable growth of ZIF-8 nanocrystals on both surfaces of graphene oxide (GO) sheets with different contents. Experimental results demonstrate that N-PC@G-0.02 (representing GO amount of 0.02 g in reaction precursors) obtained at 900 °C possesses high surface area (1094.3 m2 g−1), bimodal-pore structure (micropores and mesopores) and high graphitization degree, exhibiting great potential as a bifunctional electrocatalyst for both ORR and OER. Compared to commercial Pt/C catalyst, the N-PC@G-0.02 shows superior electrocatalytic activity with onset and half-wave potentials of 1.01 V and 0.80 V (vs. RHE), respectively, better durability and high resistance to methanol crossover effect toward ORR in alkaline media. Also, the metal-free N-PC@G-0.02 also exhibits high electrocatalytic activity of OER, comparable to commercial RuO2 catalyst. The superior ORR and OER performance could be due to a synergistic effect between ZIF-8 derived porous carbon and graphene with regard to structure and composition of N-PC@G-0.02 with high surface area, porous structure, and suitable N doping level and type, boosting the catalytic active sites, mass transport and electron transfer.
Spinal cord injury (SCI), resulting in para- and tetraplegia caused by the partial or complete disruption of descending motor and ascending sensory neurons, represents a complex neurological ...condition that remains incurable. Following SCI, numerous obstacles comprising of the loss of neural tissue (neurons, astrocytes, and oligodendrocytes), formation of a cavity, inflammation, loss of neuronal circuitry and function must be overcome. Given the multifaceted primary and secondary injury events that occur with SCI treatment options are likely to require combinatorial therapies. While several methods have been explored, only the intersection of two, cell transplantation and biomaterial implantation, will be addressed in detail here. Owing to the constant advance of cell culture technologies, cell-based transplantation has come to the forefront of SCI treatment in order to replace/protect damaged tissue and provide physical as well as trophic support for axonal regrowth. Biomaterial scaffolds provide cells with a protected environment from the surrounding lesion, in addition to bridging extensive damage and providing physical and directional support for axonal regrowth. Moreover, in this combinatorial approach cell transplantation improves scaffold integration and therefore regenerative growth potential. Here, we review the advances in combinatorial therapies of Schwann cells (SCs), astrocytes, olfactory ensheathing cells (OECs), mesenchymal stem cells, as well as neural stem and progenitor cells (NSPCs) with various biomaterial scaffolds.
Electrocatalysts with high catalytic activity and stability play a key role in promising renewable energy technologies, such as fuel cells and metal-air batteries. Here, we report the synthesis of ...Fe/Fe203 nanoparticles anchored on Fe-N-doped carbon nanosheets （Fe/Fe2Og@Fe-N-C） using shrimp shell-derived N-doped carbon nanodots as carbon and nitrogen sources in the presence of FeCI3 by a simple pyrolysis approach. Fe/Fe203@Fe-N-C obtained at a pyrolysis temperature of 1,000 ℃ （Fe/Fe2OB@Fe-N-C-1000） possessed a mesoporous structure and high surface area of 747.3 m2-g-1. As an electrocatalyst, Fe/Fe203@Fe-N-C-1000 exhibited bifunctional electrocatalytic activities toward the oxygen reduction reaction （ORR） and oxygen evolution reaction （OER） in alkaline media, com- parable to that of commercial Pt/C for ORR and RuO2 for OER, respectively. The Zn-air battery test demonstrated that Fe/Fe2OB@Fe-N-C-1000 had a superior rechargeable performance and cycling stability as an air cathode material with an open drcuit voltage of 1.47 V （vs. Ag/AgCl） and a power density of 193 mW.cm-2 at a current density of 220 mA-cm-2. These performances were better than other commercial catalysts with an open circuit voltage of 1.36 V and a power density of 173 mW-cm^-2 at a current density of 220 mA.cm-2 （a mixture of commercial Pt/C and RuO2 with a mass ratio of 1：1 was used for the rechargeable Zn-air battery measurements）. This work will be helpful to design and develop low-cost and abundant bifunctional oxygen electrocatalysts for future metal-air batteries.
Abstract Traumatic brain injury (TBI) initiates inflammatory responses that result in an enduring cascade of secondary neuronal loss and behavioural impairment. Toll-like receptor 4 (TLR4), ...predominantly expressed by microglia, recognizes damage-associated molecular patterns (DAMPs) and regulates inflammatory processes. Interestingly, the switch of microglial M1/M2 phenotypes after TBI is highly important regarding damage and restoration of neurological function. Therefore, we investigated the role and mechanisms of the TLR4 signalling pathway in regulating microglial M1/M2 phenotypes. Using a controlled cortical impact (CCI) model, we found that TLR4 knockout (KO) mice exhibited decreased infarct volumes and improved outcomes in behavioural tests. In addition, mice lacking TLR4 had higher expression of M2 phenotype biomarkers but lower expression of M1 phenotype biomarkers. Compared with microglia derived from wild-type (WT) mice, increased expression of M2 phenotype biomarkers and decreased expression of M1 phenotype biomarkers were also noted in primary cultures of microglia from TLR4 KO mice. In TLR4 KO mice, the expression levels of downstream signalling molecules of TLR4, such as active Rac-1 and phospho-AKT, were higher, while MyD88 and phospho-NF-κB p65 expression levels were lower than in WT mice. Our results demonstrate that the absence of TLR4 induces microglial polarization toward the M2 phenotype and promotes microglial migration and, in turn, alleviates the development of neuroinflammation, which indicates potential neuroprotective effects in the TBI mouse model. Furthermore, up-regulation of IL-4 expression in TLR4 KO mice could contribute to anti-inflammatory functions and promote microglial polarization toward the M2 phenotype, which might be mediated by active Rac-1 expression. Taken together, TLR4 deficiency contributes to regulating microglia to switch to the M2 phenotype, which ameliorates neurological impairment after TBI.
Spinal cord injury (SCI) disrupts nerve pathways and affects sensory, motor, and autonomic function. There is currently no effective treatment for SCI. SCI occurs within three temporal periods: ...acute, subacute, and chronic. In each period there are different alterations in the cells, inflammatory factors, and signaling pathways within the spinal cord. Many biomaterials have been investigated in the treatment of SCI, including hydrogels and fiber scaffolds, and some progress has been made in the treatment of SCI using multiple materials. However, there are limitations when using individual biomaterials in SCI treatment, and these limitations can be significantly improved by combining treatments with stem cells. In order to better understand SCI and to investigate new strategies for its treatment, several combination therapies that include materials combined with cells, drugs, cytokines, etc. are summarized in the current review.
Two dimensional (2D) materials-based plasmon-free surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) is an emerging field in nondestructive analysis. However, impeded by the low density of state (DOS), an ...inferior detection sensitivity is frequently encountered due to the low enhancement factor of most 2D materials. Metallic transition-metal dichalcogenides (TMDs) could be ideal plasmon-free SERS substrates because of their abundant DOS near the Fermi level. However, the absence of controllable synthesis of metallic 2D TMDs has hindered their study as SERS substrates. Here, we realize controllable synthesis of ultrathin metallic 2D niobium disulfide (NbS2) (<2.5 nm) with large domain size (>160 μm). We have explored the SERS performance of as-obtained NbS2, which shows a detection limit down to 10–14 mol·L–1. The enhancement mechanism was studied in depth by density functional theory, which suggested a strong correlation between the SERS performance and DOS near the Fermi level. NbS2 features the most abundant DOS and strongest binding energy with probe molecules as compared with other 2D materials such as graphene, 1T-phase MoS2, and 2H-phase MoS2. The large DOS increases the intermolecular charge transfer probability and thus induces prominent Raman enhancement. To extend the results to practical applications, the resulting NbS2-based plasmon-free SERS substrates were applied for distinguishing different types of red wines.
Postoperative delirium is common after extensive surgery. This study aimed to collate and synthesize published literature on risk factors for delirium in patients with head and neck cancer surgery.
...Three databases were searched (MEDLINE, Embase, and Cochrane Library) between January 1987 and July 2016. The Newcastle Ottawa Scale (NOS) was adopted to evaluate the study quality. Pooled odds ratios or mean differences for individual risk factors were estimated using the Mantel-Haenszel and inverse-variance methods.
They provided a total of 1940 patients (286 with delirium and 1654 without), and predominantly included patients undergoing head and neck cancer surgery. The incidence of postoperative delirium ranged from 11.50% to 36.11%. Ten statistically significant risk factors were identified in pooled analysis. Old age, age >70 years, male sex, duration of surgery, history of hypertension, blood transfusions, tracheotomy, American Society of Anesthesiologists physical status grade at least III, flap reconstruction and neck dissection were more likely to sustain delirium after head and neck cancer surgery.
Delirium is common in patients undergoing major head neck cancer surgery. Several risk factors were consistently associated with postoperative delirium. These factors help to highlight patients at risk of developing delirium and are suitable for preventive action.
The micro/nano-structured porous Fe–Ni binary oxides with high specific surface area have been synthesized based on co-precipitation and subsequent calcination, and demonstrated to be a highly ...efficient arsenic adsorbent with strong selectivity. Display omitted
A simple method is presented to synthesize micro/nano-structured Fe–Ni binary oxides based on co-precipitation and subsequent calcination. It has been found that the Fe–Ni binary oxides are composed of the porous microsized aggregates built with nanoparticles. When the atomic ratio of Fe to Ni is 2 to 1 the binary oxide is the micro-scaled aggregates consisting of the ultrafine NiFe2O4 nanoparticles with 3–6nm in size, and shows porous structure with pore diameter of 3nm and a specific surface area of 245m2g−1. Such material is of abundant surface functional groups and has exhibited high adsorption performance to As(III) and As(V). The kinetic adsorption can be described by pseudo-second order model and the isothermal adsorption is subject to Langmuir model. The maximum adsorption capacity on such Fe–Ni porous binary oxide is up to 168.6mgg−1 and 90.1mgg−1 for As(III) and As(V), respectively, which are much higher than the arsenic adsorption capacity for most commercial adsorbents. Such enhanced adsorption ability for this material is mainly attributed to its porous structure and high specific surface area as well as the abundant surface functional groups. Further experiments have revealed that the influence of the anions such as sulfate, carbonate, and phosphate, which commonly co-exist in water, on the arsenic adsorption is insignificant, exhibiting strong adsorption selectivity to arsenic. This micro/nano-structured porous Fe–Ni binary oxide is hence of good practicability to be used as a highly efficient adsorbent for arsenic removal from the real arsenic-contaminated waters.
The existence of lymphatic vessels or similar clearance systems in the central nervous system (CNS) that transport nutrients and remove cellular waste is a neuroscientific question of great ...significance. As the brain is the most metabolically active organ in the body, there is likely to be a potential correlation between its clearance system and the pathological state of the CNS. Until recently the successive discoveries of the glymphatic system and the meningeal lymphatics solved this puzzle. This article reviews the basic anatomy and physiology of the glymphatic system. Imaging techniques to visualize the function of the glymphatic system mainly including post-contrast imaging techniques, indirect lymphatic assessment by detecting increased perivascular space, and diffusion tensor image analysis along the perivascular space (DTI-ALPS) are discussed. The pathological link between glymphatic system dysfunction and neurological disorders is the key point, focusing on the enlarged perivascular space (EPVS) and the index of diffusivity along the perivascular space (ALPS index), which may represent the activity of the glymphatic system as possible clinical neuroimaging biomarkers of neurological disorders.
Graphical Abstract
The pathological link between glymphatic system dysfunction and neurological disorders is the key point, focusing on the enlarged perivascular space (EPVS) and the index for of diffusivity along the perivascular space (ALPS index), which may represent the activity of the glymphatic system as possible clinical neuroimaging biomarkers of neurological disorders
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