Magnesium‐ion batteries (MIB) have gradually attracted attention owing to their high theoretical capacity, high safety, and low cost. A bimetallic metal–organic framework self‐sacrificing template ...and a co‐assembly strategy are used to prepare a high‐performance, stable cycling NiSe2‐CoSe2@TiVCTx (NCSe@TiVC) heterostructure MIB cathode that can be used as a flexible integrated unit to power future self‐powered systems. Benefiting from the synergistic effect of TiVCTx MXene and NCSe, the NCSe@TiVC heterostructure electrode has a discharge‐specific capacity of 136 mAh g−1 at 0.05 A g−1 and high cycling stability of over 500 cycles; the assembled pouch‐cell device as flexible integrated unit exhibits good practicability. The magnesium ion storage mechanism is also validated using quantitative kinetic analysis, ex situ XRD, and XPS techniques. Density functional theory analysis indicates the most stable Mg‐atom adsorption sites in the heterostructure. This study broadens the possibilities for applying the TiVCTx MXene heterostructure to energy storage materials and future self‐powered flexible systems.
The 3D porous spherical structured NCSe/TiVC is built via a self‐sacrificing template co‐assembly strategy, in which the TiVCTx MXene exhibits the synergistic effect of enhancing the reaction kinetics. NCSe@TiVC‐MIB cathode can be used as a flexible integrated unit to power future self‐powered systems. This study broadens the possibilities for applying the TiVCTx MXene to energy storage materials and future self‐powered flexible systems.
Pectin lyases are a group of enzymes that are thought to contribute to many biological processes, such as the degradation of pectin. However, until this study, no comprehensive study incorporating ...phylogeny, chromosomal location, gene duplication, gene organization, functional divergence, adaptive evolution, expression profiling and functional networks has been reported for Arabidopsis. Sixty-seven pectin lyase genes have been identified, and most of them possess signal sequences targeting the secretory pathway. Phylogenetic analyses identified five gene groups with considerable conservation among groups. Pectin lyase genes were non-randomly distributed across chromosomes and clustering was evident. Functional divergence and adaptive evolution analyses suggested that purifying selection was the main force driving pectin lyase evolution, although some critical sites responsible for functional divergence might be the consequence of positive selection. A stigma- and receptacle-specific expression promoter was identified, and it had increased expression in response to wounding. Two hundred and eighty-eight interactions were identified by functional network analyses, and most of these were involved in cellular metabolism, cellular transport and localization, and stimulus responses. This investigation contributes to an improved understanding of the complexity of the Arabidopsis pectin lyase gene family.
The vacuolar iron transporter (VIT) proteins are involved in the storage and transport of iron. However, the evolution of this gene family in plants is unknown. In this study, I first identified 114
...genes in 14 plant species and classified these genes into seven groups by phylogenetic analysis. Conserved gene organization and motif distribution implied conserved function in each group. I also found that tandem duplication, segmental duplication and transposition contributed to the expansion of this gene family. Additionally, several positive selection sites were identified. Divergent expression patterns of soybean
genes were further investigated in different development stages and under iron stress. Functional network analysis exhibited 211 physical or functional interactions. The results will provide the basis for further functional studies of the
genes in plants.
Impossible voltage plateau regulation for the cathode materials with fixed active elemental center is a pressing issue hindering the development of Na‐superionic‐conductor (NASICON)‐type ...Na3V2(PO4)2F3 (NVPF) cathodes in sodium‐ion batteries (SIBs). Herein, a high‐entropy substitution strategy, to alter the detailed crystal structure of NVPF without changing the central active V atom, is pioneeringly utilized, achieving simultaneous electronic conductivity enhancement and diffusion barrier reduction for Na+, according to theoretical calculations. The as‐prepared carbon‐free high‐entropy Na3V1.9(Ca,Mg,Al,Cr,Mn)0.1(PO4)2F3 (HE‐NVPF) cathode can deliver higher mean voltage of 3.81 V and more advantageous energy density up to 445.5 Wh kg−1, which is attributed by the diverse transition‐metal elemental substitution in high‐entropy crystalline. More importantly, high‐entropy introduction can help realize disordered rearrangement of Na+ at Na(2) active sites, thereby to refrain from unfavorable discharging behaviors at low‐voltage region, further lifting up the mean working voltage to realize a full Na‐ion storage at the high voltage plateau. Coupling with a hard carbon (HC) anode, HE‐NVPF//HC SIB full cells can deliver high specific energy density of 326.8 Wh kg−1 at 5 C with the power density of 2178.9 W kg−1. This route means the unlikely potential regulation in NASICON‐type crystal with unchangeable active center becomes possible, inspiring new ideas on elevating the mean working voltage for SIB cathodes.
A high‐entropy effect is delicately introduced into fluorophosphate cathode for sodium‐ion batteries by in situ partial substitution of active V central atom, preparing a high‐entropy carbon‐free Na3V1.9(Ca,Mg,Al,Cr,Mn)0.1(PO4)2F3 cathode, suppressing the occurrence of detrimental phase transition process in the low‐voltage region, and further lifting up the mean working voltage of pristine Na3V2(PO4)2F3, enhancing sodium storage behavior, rate capability, and cycle performance.
Hydrogel is a type of versatile platform with various biomedical applications after rational structure and functional design that leverages on material engineering to modulate its physicochemical ...properties (e.g., stiffness, pore size, viscoelasticity, microarchitecture, degradability, ligand presentation, stimulus-responsive properties, etc.) and influence cell signaling cascades and fate. In the past few decades, a plethora of pioneering studies have been implemented to explore the cell-hydrogel matrix interactions and figure out the underlying mechanisms, paving the way to the lab-to-clinic translation of hydrogel-based therapies. In this review, we first introduced the physicochemical properties of hydrogels and their fabrication approaches concisely. Subsequently, the comprehensive description and deep discussion were elucidated, wherein the influences of different hydrogels properties on cell behaviors and cellular signaling events were highlighted. These behaviors or events included integrin clustering, focal adhesion (FA) complex accumulation and activation, cytoskeleton rearrangement, protein cyto-nuclei shuttling and activation (e.g., Yes-associated protein (YAP), catenin, etc.), cellular compartment reorganization, gene expression, and further cell biology modulation (e.g., spreading, migration, proliferation, lineage commitment, etc.). Based on them, current in vitro and in vivo hydrogel applications that mainly covered diseases models, various cell delivery protocols for tissue regeneration and disease therapy, smart drug carrier, bioimaging, biosensor, and conductive wearable/implantable biodevices, etc. were further summarized and discussed. More significantly, the clinical translation potential and trials of hydrogels were presented, accompanied with which the remaining challenges and future perspectives in this field were emphasized. Collectively, the comprehensive and deep insights in this review will shed light on the design principles of new biomedical hydrogels to understand and modulate cellular processes, which are available for providing significant indications for future hydrogel design and serving for a broad range of biomedical applications.
Transferrin is an important iron-binding glycosylated protein and plays key roles in iron-binding and immune response. Here, a 2037-bp open reading frame was obtained from our previous transcriptome ...sequencing data of Amur stickleback, which encoded a 679 amino acid putative transferrin protein harbored obvious N-lobe and C-lobe domains. The tissue-specific expression pattern showed that the transcript was detected in a variety of tissues, with the highest signal in liver. Moreover,
pathogen stimulation can increase the expression level of this transcript, implying important immune properties for organisms. Next, N-lobes and C-lobes were obtained from 45 fish species. The phylogenetic tree showed that N-lobes and C-lobes were in two different evolutionary branches, and they had different motif composition. Functional divergence indicated a higher evolutionary rate or site-specific alteration among the N-lobe and C-lobe groups.
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value of C-lobe group was relatively higher than that of N-lobe group, indicating a faster change rate of C-lobe sequences in evolution. Moreover, some sites experiencing positive selection were also found, which may be involved in the iron- or anion-binding, pathogen resistance and diversification of transferrin protein. Differential iron-binding activity was also detected between N-lobe and C-lobe of Amur stickleback transferrin protein with Chrome Azurol S assay. Compared with the C-lobe, the N-lobe showed stronger growth inhibitory activity of
, implying their potential antibacterial properties. This study will give a reference for subsequent research of transferrin proteins.
The rapid developments of the Internet of Things (IoT) and portable electronic devices have created a growing demand for flexible electrochemical energy storage (EES) devices. Nevertheless, these ...flexible devices suffer from poor flexibility, low energy density, and poor dynamic stability of power output during deformation, limiting their practical applications. Carbon nanofibers (CNFs) with high conductivity, good flexibility, and large‐scale preparation are regarded as promising electrodes for flexible EES devices. Based on the issues of current flexible EES devices, this review presents various strategies from the design of CNFs‐based electrodes to the fabrication of devices and overviews their applications in various flexible metal ion/air batteries (Li/Na/K‐ion batteries, Li‐S batteries, metal–air batteries, and other novel secondary batteries) and supercapacitors. Finally, the remaining challenges and perspectives on the CNFs‐based flexible EES devices are proposed to provide guidance for the researchers concentrating on high‐performance flexible EES devices.
Flexible electrochemical energy storage (EES) devices is currently a research hotspot in the field of energy storage. This review indicates the existing issues of flexible EES devices and proposes various effective solution strategies from CNFs‐based electrodes to devices and the corresponding development in flexible EES devices, aiming to provide important guidance for designing high‐performance flexible EES devices.
Perovskite photovoltaics are strong potential candidates to drive low‐power off‐grid electronics for indoor applications. Compared with rigid devices, flexible perovskite devices can provide a more ...suitable surface for indoor small electronic devices, enabling them have a broader indoor application prospect. However, the mechanical stability of flexible perovskite photovoltaics is an urgent issue solved. Herein, a kind of 3D crosslinking agent named borax is selected to carry out grain boundary penetration treatment on perovskite film to realize full‐dimensional stress release. This strategy improves the mechanical and phase stabilities of perovskite films subjected to external forces or large temperature changes. The fabricated perovskite photovoltaics deliver a champion power conversion efficiency (PCE) of 21.63% under AM 1.5G illumination, which is the highest one to date. The merit of low trap states under weak light makes the devices present a superior indoor PCE of 31.85% under 1062 lux (LED, 2956 K), which is currently the best flexible perovskite indoor photovoltaic device. This work provides a full‐dimensional grain boundary stress release strategy for highly stable flexible perovskite indoor photovoltaics.
A grain boundary stress release strategy is proposed for high‐stability flexible perovskite indoor photovoltaics by the grain boundary penetration with borax 3D stretchable molecules. The full‐dimensional grain boundary stress release enables the flexible perovskite photovoltaics deliver a champion power conversion efficiency (PCE) of 21.63% under AM 1.5G illumination and an indoor PCE of 31.85% under 1062 lux.
A 3D transient fully coupled thermomechanical model was built to study the distortion and residual stress in electron beam additive manufactured Ti-6Al-4V build plates. Single layer, 6-layer and ...11-layer build plates were investigated using both simulation and experiments to ensure the accuracy of the model and provide confidence in using simulations for process optimization. The model was validated by comparing the predicted residual elastic strains against measured values obtained by neutron diffraction for the 11-layer build plate. The longitudinal component of strain, parallel to the beam trace, is the most significant component. A double-peak tensile strain distribution was found in the cross-section of the substrate. The plate distortion was also measured for comparison with the model simulations. The simulated distortion and residual strains are in good agreement with the experimental results. The effect of preheat on the distortion and the residual stress distribution was then studied using the validated model. The modeling results show that preheating at least twice is an effective way to reduce both distortion and residual stresses.