NiFe-based (oxy)hydroxides are the benchmark catalysts for the oxygen evolution reaction (OER) in alkaline medium, however, it is still challenging to control their structures and compositions. ...Herein, molybdates (NiFe(MoO
)
) are applied as unique precursors to synthesize ultrafine Mo modified NiFeO
H
(oxy)hydroxide nanosheet arrays. The electrochemical activation process enables the molybdate ions (MoO
) in the precursors gradually dissolve, and at the same time, hydroxide ions (OH
) in the electrolyte diffuse into the precursor and react with Ni
and Fe
ions in confined space to produce ultrafine NiFeO
H
(oxy)hydroxides nanosheets (<10 nm), which are densely arranged into microporous arrays and maintain the rod-like morphology of the precursor. Such dense ultrafine nanosheet arrays produce rich edge planes on the surface of NiFeO
H
(oxy)hydroxides to expose more active sites. More importantly, the capillary phenomenon of microporous structures and hydrophilic hydroxyl groups induce the superhydrophilicity and the rough surface produces the superaerophobic characteristic for bubbles. With these advantages, the optimized catalyst exhibits excellent performance for OER, with a small overpotential of 182 mV at 10 mA cm
and long-term stability (200 h) at 200 mA cm
. Theoretical calculations show that the modification of Mo enhances the electron delocalization and optimizes the adsorption of intermediates.
NiFe‐layered double hydroxide (NiFe‐LDH) is the benchmark catalyst for the oxygen evolution reaction (OER) in alkaline medium, however, it is still challenging to improve its activity and stability. ...Herein, NiFe‐LDH macroporous array electrodes are demonstrated to significantly enhance the activity and stability for oxygen evolution reaction. The electrodes are fabricated by the chemical and electrochemical corrosion process of Ni foam induced by ferric nitrate, hydrochloric acid and oxygen. By optimizing the amount of iron salt and acid and selecting the appropriate reaction temperature and time, the NiFe‐LDH electrodes only need the overpotential of 180 mV and 248 mV to reach the current density of 10 mA cm−2 and 500 mA cm−2, respectively, and remain highly stable for 1000 h at 500 mA cm−2. The unique macroporous array not only significantly increases the active area of NiFe‐LDH catalyst, but also creates a stable nanostructure that avoids severe reconstruction.
NiFe‐LDH macroporous arrays are prepared by a controllable corrosion strategy. The unique macroporous array not only increases the active area, but also creates a stable nanostructure. The catalysts only need 180 mV and 248 mV to reach 10 mA cm−2 and 500 mA cm−2 for OER, respectively, and remain highly stable for 1000 h at 500 mA cm−2.
Background and Aims
About 20% of patients receiving nucleos(t)ide analogues treatment experienced low‐level viraemia (LLV), which is associated with progression of liver fibrosis and high risk of ...hepatocellular carcinoma. We aimed to evaluate the effectiveness and safety of switching from entecavir (ETV) to tenofovir alafenamide fumarate (TAF) in ETV‐treated patients with LLV.
Methods
In this prospective study, ETV‐treated patients with LLV, presented to our hospital from December 2018 to October 2019, were enrolled. Switching to TAF or continuing ETV was given. The primary effectiveness endpoint was complete virological response (CVR) at 24 weeks, and the safety endpoint was the first occurrence of any clinical adverse event during the treatment.
Results
Totally, 211 patients were recruited and propensity score matching (PSM) generated 75 patients in either TAF or ETV group. After PSM, baseline characteristics were balanced in two groups. After 24‐week treatment, the CVR and ALT normalization in TAF group were 62.7% and 47.6%, which were higher than 9.3% and 10.5% in ETV group (OR 16.4, 95% CI 6.6‐40.0, P < .001) respectively. Subgroup analysis showed that switching to TAF achieved favours CVR regardless of the status of sex, age, CHB family history, HBV DNA, HBeAg and cirrhosis, whereas alcohol consumption and diabetes mellitus might compromise the CVR of switching to TAF. Both therapies were well tolerated and had satisfying renal safety.
Conclusions
For ETV‐treated patients with LLV, switching to TAF is safe enough and superior compared with continuing ETV monotherapy regarding both virological and biochemical benefits.
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•A novel HT-qPCR chip to quantify the abundances of targeted VFGs in the environment.•96 VFGs from representative pathogenic bacteria are targeted by 120 primer pairs.•69 VFGs were ...detected when applying the VFG-Chip to a wastewater treatment system.
As zoonotic pathogens are threatening public health globally, the virulence factor genes (VFGs) they carry underlie latent risk in the environment. However, profiling VFGs in the environment is still in its infancy due to lack of efficient and reliable quantification tools. Here, we developed a novel high-throughput qPCR (HT-qPCR) chip, termed as VFG-Chip, to comprehensively quantify the abundances of targeted VFGs in the environment. A total of 96 VFGs from four bacterial pathogens including Klebsiella pneumoniae, Acinetobacter baumannii, Escherichia coli, and Salmonella enterica were targeted by 120 primer pairs, which were involved in encoding five types of virulence factors (VFs) like toxin, adherence, secretion system, immune evasion/invasion, and iron uptake. The specificity of VFG-Chip was both verified computationally and experimentally, with high identity of amplicon sequencing and melting curves analysis proving its robust capability. The VFG-Chip also displayed high sensitivity (by plasmid serial dilution test) and amplification efficiency averaging 97.7%. We successfully applied the VFG-Chip to profile the distribution of VFGs along a wastewater treatment system with 69 VFGs detected in total. Overall, the VFG-Chip provides a robust tool for comprehensively quantifying VFGs in the environment, and thus provides novel information in assessing the health risks of zoonotic pathogens in the environment.
•Y2O3 diffusion-reinforced IN718 superalloy was fabricated by selective laser melting (SLM).•Superalloy obtained high densities and uniform distribution of Y2O3 in the matrix with proper powder ...mixing and laser processing techniques.•The hardness and strength of the SLM-processed oxide dispersion reinforced superalloy were improved compared to the IN718 alloy under other processes.•The mechanisms of the laser processing process and oxide particles on the evolution of microstructure and strengthening effect are elucidated.
Selective Laser Melting (SLM) is a uniquely advantageous method to prepare Oxide Dispersion Strengthened (ODS) superalloys. In this paper, IN718 powder and 1 wt% Y2O3 powder were mixed by ball milling as raw materials, and the samples were prepared by SLM at different laser scanning speeds in order to investigate the densification, microstructure and mechanical properties of SLM-ODS superalloys under different laser energy densities. The results showed that when the laser energy density was 356 J/m, the density of the alloy could reach 99.66%. With the increase of laser energy density, the microstructure of alloy was transformed from cellular dendrites to columnar dendrites, and the hardness and strength of the materials were improved in varying degrees. Y2O3 was uniformly dispersed in the matrix, and the hardness and strength of the alloy were improved compared with SLM-IN718 due to its dispersion strengthening and fine grain strengthening. When the energy density was 300 J/m, the yield strength and tensile strength of the material reached the highest, 850.14 MPa and 1099.58 MPa respectively, due to the precipitation of metal carbides. At 650 °C, the tensile strength of the alloy was 100 MPa higher than that of SLM-IN718 due to the strength sag resistance effect of the dispersed oxide.
Sulfide-based solid-state electrolytes (SSEs) matched with alloy anodes are considered as promising candidates for application in all-solid-state batteries (ASSBs) to overcome the bottlenecks of the ...lithium (Li) anode. However, an understanding of the dynamic electrochemical processes on alloy anode in SSE is still elusive. Herein, in situ atomic force microscopy gives insights into the block-formation and stack-accumulation behaviors of Li precipitation on an Li electrode, uncovering the morphological evolution of nanoscale Li deposition/dissolution in ASSBs. Furthermore, two-dimensional Li–indium (In) alloy lamellae and the homogeneous solid electrolyte interphase (SEI) shell on the In electrode reveal the precipitation mechanism microscopically regulated by the alloy anode. The flexible and wrinkle-structure SEI shell further enables the electrode protection and inner Li accommodation upon cycles, elucidating the functional influences of SEI shell on the cycling behaviors. Such on-site tracking of the morphological evolution and dynamic mechanism provide an in-depth understanding and thus benefit the optimizations of alloy-based ASSBs.
This study aimed to investigate the role and underlying mechanism of exosomes secreted by oxidized low-density lipoprotein (oxLDL)-stimulated macrophages in the progression of atherosclerosis (AS).
...Exosomes from peripheral blood of AS patients or oxLDL-treated macrophages were co-cultured with human neutrophils. Neutrophil extracellular traps (NETs) were detected by immunofluorescence staining. The levels of inflammatory cytokines were quantified by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). The expression levels of miR-146a and superoxide dismutase 2 (SOD2) were determined by quantitative real-time PCR (qRT-PCR) and western blot. The generation of intracellular reactive oxygen species (ROS) was observed by using dichlorofluorescin diacetate (DCFH-DA). ApoE-deficient mice were fed with high-fat diet (HFD) to induce AS. Atherosclerotic plaques were evaluated by Oil red O (ORO) and hematoxylin-eosin (HE) staining.
Our results showed that miRNA-146a was enriched in serum-derived exosomes of AS patients and oxLDL-treated macrophage THP-1-derived exosomes. Importantly, exosomal miR-146a secreted by oxLDL-treated macrophages promoted ROS and NETs release via targeting SOD2. In addition, intravenous administration of oxLDL-treated THP-1 cells-derived exosomes into AS mice significantly deteriorated AS in vivo.
Our findings indicate that exosomal miR-146a derived from oxLDL-treated macrophages promotes NETs formation via inducing oxidative stress, which might provide a novel scientific basis for the understanding of AS progression.
As a prodromal stage of dementia, significant emphasis has been placed on the identification of modifiable risks of mild cognitive impairment (MCI). Research has indicated a correlation between ...exposure to air pollution and cognitive function in older adults. However, few studies have examined such an association among the MCI population inChina.
We aimed to explore the association between air pollution exposure and MCI risk from the Hubei Memory and Aging Cohort Study.
We measured four pollutants from 2015 to 2018, 3 years before the cognitive assessment of the participants. Logistic regression models were employed to calculate odds ratios (ORs) to assess the relationship between air pollutants and MCI risk.
Among 4,205 older participants, the adjusted ORs of MCI risk for the highest quartile of PM2.5, PM10, O3, and SO2 were 1.90 (1.39, 2.62), 1.77 (1.28, 2.47), 0.56 (0.42, 0.75), and 1.18 (0.87, 1.61) respectively, compared with the lowest quartile. Stratified analyses indicated that such associations were found in both males and females, but were more significant in older participants.
Our findings are consistent with the growing evidence suggesting that air pollution increases the risk of mild cognitive decline, which has considerable guiding significance for early intervention of dementia in the older population. Further studies in other populations and broader geographical areas are warranted to validate these findings.
In the present study, 2D Co(II) coordination polymers (CP‐1), which integrate terminal CoBrn (CoBr2 and CoBr3) sites immobilized on the framework, are synthesized at the gram level. As a special ...heterogeneous catalyst, CP‐1 shows regioselectivity (β:α>99:1) and stereoselectivity (only E configuration) in the hydroboration of alkynes. The hydroboration reaction conditions are mild and cover a broad substrate range (31 examples). In addition, the heterogeneous catalyst can be recycled for at least five times.
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