Reactome is a manually curated pathway annotation database for unveiling high-order biological pathways from high-throughput data.
ReactomePA
is an R/Bioconductor package providing enrichment ...analyses, including hypergeometric test and gene set enrichment analyses. A functional analysis can be applied to the genomic coordination obtained from a sequencing experiment to analyze the functional significance of genomic loci including
cis
-regulatory elements and non-coding regions. Comparison among different experiments is also supported. Moreover,
ReactomePA
provides several visualization functions to produce highly customizable, publication-quality figures. The source code and documents of
ReactomePA
are freely available through Bioconductor (
http://www.bioconductor.org/packages/ReactomePA
).
ReactomePA
is an R package providing functional analyses at the gene and sequence levels, with several visualization functions provided.
Global warming, environmental pollution, and an energy shortage in the current fossil fuel society may cause a severe ecological crisis. Storage and conversion of renewable, dispersive and ...non-perennial energy from the sun, wind, geothermal sources, water, or biomass could be a promising option to relieve this crisis. Carbon materials could be the most versatile platform materials applied in the field of modern energy storage and conversion. Conventional carbon materials produced from coal and petrochemical products are usually energy intensive or involve harsh synthetic conditions. It is highly desired to develop effective methods to produce carbon materials from renewable resources that have high performance and limited environmental impacts. In this regard, biochar, a bio-carbon with abundant surface functional groups and easily tuned porosity produced from biomass, may be a promising candidate as a sustainable carbon material. Recent studies have demonstrated that biochar-based materials show great application potential in energy storage and conversion because of their easily tuned surface chemistry and porosity. In this review, recent advances in the applications of biochar-based materials in various energy storage and conversion fields, including hydrogen storage and production, oxygen electrocatalysts, emerging fuel cell technology, supercapacitors, and lithium/sodium ion batteries, are summarized, highlighting the mechanisms and open questions in current energy applications. Finally, contemporary challenges and perspectives on how biochar-based materials will develop and, in particular, the fields in which the use of biochar-based materials could be expanded are discussed throughout the review. This review demonstrates significant potential for energy applications of biochar-based materials, and it is expected to inspire new discoveries to promote practical applications of biochar-based materials in more energy storage and conversion fields.
Biochar, a bio-carbon with abundant surface functional groups and easily tuned porosity produced from biomass, shows great application potential in energy storage and conversion. In this review, recent advances in the applications of biochar-based materials in various energy storage and conversion fields are summarized, highlighting the mechanisms and open questions in current energy applications.
A look at how biochar is formed in the biomass pyrolysis process is offered. Research points toward a biochear-based sustainable platform carbon material.
Natural egg white tis widely used as an ingredient in nutritional foods and for food processing. Due to its characteristic foaming, emulsification, adhesion, and gelation, and its heat setting, ...biocompatibility, and low cost, research into the application and development of egg white in biomaterials, especially medical biomaterials, have been receiving attention. The composition and characteristics of egg white protein, and the physical mixing and chemically cross-linking of egg white with other materials used to make degradable packaging films, bioceramics, bioplastics, biomimetic films, hydrogels, 3D scaffolds, bone regeneration, biopatterning, biosensors, and so forth, are reviewed in detail in this report. The novel egg white-based biomaterials in various forms and applications could be constructed mostly through physical treatments such as ultrasonic wave, ultraviolet, laser and other radiation or high-temperature calcination. Furthermore, the application and prospects for the use of egg white in biomaterials is also discussed.
Glycitein is an isoflavone that reportedly inhibits the proliferation of human breast cancer and prostate cancer cells. However, its anti-cancer molecular mechanisms in human gastric cancer remain to ...be defined. This study evaluated the antitumor effects of glycitein on human gastric cancer cells and investigated the underlying mechanisms. We used MTT assay, flow cytometry and western blotting to investigate its molecular mechanisms with focus on reactive oxygen species (ROS) production. Our results showed that glycitein had significant cytotoxic effects on human gastric cancer cells. Glycitein markedly decreased mitochondrial transmembrane potential (ΔΨm) and increased AGS cells mitochondrial-related apoptosis, and caused G0/G1 cell cycle arrest by regulating cycle-related protein. Mechanistically, accompanying ROS, glycitein can activate mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) and inhibited the signal transducer and activator of transcription 3 (STAT3) and nuclear factor-kappaB (NF-κB) signaling pathways. Furthermore, the MAPK signaling pathway regulated the expression levels of STAT3 and NF-κB upon treatment with MAPK inhibitor and N-acetyl-L-cysteine (NAC). These findings suggested that glycitein induced AGS cell apoptosis and G0/G1 phase cell cycle arrest via ROS-related MAPK/STAT3/NF-κB signaling pathways. Thus, glycitein has the potential to a novel targeted therapeutic agent for human gastric cancer.
The Hindu Kush Himalayan (HKH hereafter) region is characterized by mountainous environments and a variety of regional climatic conditions. High-altitude regions in the HKH have the recent warming ...amplifications, especially during the global warming hiatus period. The rapid warming cause solid state water (snow, ice, glacier, and permafrost) to shrink, leading to increase in meltwater and there have been found more frequent incidences of flash floods, landslides, livestock diseases, and other disasters in the HKH region. Increasing awareness of climate change over the HKH region is reached a consensus. Meanwhile, the HKH region is often referred to as the water towers of Asia as many highaltitude regions store its water in the form of snow and/or glacier, feeding ten major large rivers in Asia. Therefore, the impacts of climate change on water availability in these river basins have huge influences on the livelihood of large number of population, especially in downstream regions. However, the scarcity of basic hydro-meteorological observations particularly in high-altitude regions of HKH limits rigorous analysis of climate change. Most studies used reanalysis data and/or model-reconstructed products to explore the spatial and temporal characteristics of hydro-meteorological processes, especially for extreme events. In this study, we review recent climate change in the HKH region, and the scientific challenges and research recommendations are suggested for this high-altitude area.
The design and synthesis of advanced semiconductors is crucial for the full utilization of solar energy. Herein, colloidal selective‐epitaxial hybrid of tripartite semiconducting sulfides ...CuInS2Cd(In)SMoS2 heteronanostructures (HNs) via lateral‐ and vertical‐epitaxial growths, followed by cation exchange reactions, are reported. The lateral‐epitaxial CuInS2 and Cd(In)S enable effective visible to near‐infrared (NIR) solar spectrum absorption, and the vertical‐epitaxial ultrathin MoS2 offer sufficient edge sulfur sites for the hydrogen evolution reaction (HER). Furthermore, the integrated structures exhibit unique epitaxial‐staggered type II band alignments for continuous charge separation. They achieve the H2 evolution rate up to 8 mmol h−1 g−1, which is ≈35 times higher than bare CdS and show no deactivation after long‐term cycling, representing one of the most efficient and robust noble‐metal‐free photocatalysts. This design principle and transformation protocol open a new way for creating all‐in‐one multifunctional catalysts in a predictable manner.
A wet‐chemical strategy for the selective‐epitaxial hybrid of unique tripartite semiconducting sulfide heteronanostructures CuInS2Cd(In)SMoS2 is reported. The stepwise integrated structures demonstrate superior solar‐to‐hydrogen conversion performance due to the enhanced capabilities for solar absorption and charge separation, together with sufficient catalytically active sites.
Recent years have witnessed the rise of graphene and its applications in various electronic devices. Specifically, featuring excellent flexibility, transparency, conductivity, and mechanical ...robustness, graphene has emerged as a versatile material for flexible electronics. In the past decade, facilitated by various laser processing technologies, including the laser‐treatment‐induced photoreduction of graphene oxides, flexible patterning, hierarchical structuring, heteroatom doping, controllable thinning, etching, and shock of graphene, along with laser‐induced graphene on polyimide, graphene has found broad applications in a wide range of electronic devices, such as power generators, supercapacitors, optoelectronic devices, sensors, and actuators. Here, the recent advancements in the laser fabrication of graphene‐based flexible electronic devices are comprehensively summarized. The various laser fabrication technologies that have been employed for the preparation, processing, and modification of graphene and its derivatives are reviewed. A thorough overview of typical laser‐enabled flexible electronic devices that are based on various graphene sources is presented. With the rapid progress that has been made in the research on graphene preparation methodologies and laser micronanofabrication technologies, graphene‐based electronics may soon undergo fast development.
Recent advancements in the laser fabrication of graphene‐based flexible electronic devices are comprehensively reviewed. Various laser processing technologies that enable preparation, processing, and modification of graphene and its derivatives are summarized. An overview of typical laser‐fabricated flexible electronic devices based on graphene‐related materials is presented.
Human activities release large amounts of anthropogenic pollutants into the air, and thereby produce substantial secondary organic aerosol (SOA). Aromatic hydrocarbons (AHs) that mainly emitted from ...coal combustion, transportation, solvent use and biofuel/biomass burning, are a major class of anthropogenic SOA precursors. At present, there are few field studies focusing on AH-derived SOA (SOAA) on a continental scale, especially in polluted regions of the world. In this study, a one-year concurrent observation of the SOAA tracer, 2,3-dihydroxy-4-oxopentanoic acid (C5H8O5, DHOPA) was carried out at 12 sites across six regions of China for the first time. The annual averages of DHOPA among the 12 sites ranged from 1.23 to 8.83 ng m–3 with a mean of 3.48 ± 1.96 ng m–3. At all observation sites, the concentrations of DHOPA from fall to spring were significantly higher than those in summertime, and positive correlations were observed between DHOPA and the biomass burning tracer (levoglucosan). This indicated that such a nationwide increase of SOAA during the cold period was highly associated with the enhancement of biomass burning emission. In the northern China, the highest levels of DHOPA were observed in the coldest months during winter, probably due to the enhancement of biofuel and coal consumption for household heating. In the southern China, the highest levels of DHOPA were mostly observed in fall and spring, which were associated with the enhancement of open biomass burning. The apparent increases of DHOPA and levoglucosan levels during the cold period and the negative correlations of visibility with DHOPA and levoglucosan imply that the reduction of SOAA amount and biomass burning emission is an efficient way to reduce haze pollution during fall to winter in China.
A majority of global secondary organic aerosol (SOA) comes from terpenoids. In this study, we carried out a 1 year nationwide observation of pinenes (α‐ and β‐pinene) and SOA tracers from ...monoterpenes (SOAM) and β‐caryophyllene (SOAC) over China for the first time. SOAM and SOAC tracers ranged from 9.80 to 49.0 ng m−3 and 1.72 to 7.72 ng m−3, respectively, with high levels in southern China. Pinenes ranged from 34 to 102 parts per trillion by volume, with α‐pinene dominant over β‐pinene. SOAM tracers were correlated between paired sites, suggesting a regional impact of SOAM, while pinenes were uncorrelated between sites due to their rapid oxidation. High levels of SOAM tracers were observed in spring and summer. However, at the Hailun site in Northeast China, SOAM tracers increased during winter. The positive correlation between SOAM tracers and the biomass burning (BB) tracer levoglucosan during winter at Hailun indicated that the unexpected increase of SOAM was associated with BB. The SOAC tracer, β‐caryophyllenic acid, increased during winter and was positively correlated with levoglucosan, suggesting substantial contributions from BB to SOAC production in wintertime. Together with SOA tracers from isoprene, these tracers were applied to estimate biogenic secondary organic carbon (BSOC) from isoprene, monoterpenes, and β‐caryophyllene. The annual average BSOC was 0.91 ± 0.41 μgC m−3,with the majority from monoterpenes and the highest level in Southwest China. BSOC was elevated from April to September and was lowest in January and February. BSOC composition dramatically changed from a monoterpene majority in fall‐spring to an isoprene majority in summer.
Key Points
The first nationwide measurements of BSOA tracers showed high concentrations in southern China
Unexpected increases of SOA from monoterpenes and β‐caryophyllene during winter were correlated with biomass burning
BSOC composition dramatically changed from a monoterpene majority in fall‐spring to an isoprene majority in summer
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