In overcoming the Li+ desolvation barrier for low‐temperature battery operation, a weakly‐solvated electrolyte based on carboxylate solvent has shown promises. In case of an organic‐anion‐enriched ...primary solvation sheath (PSS), we found that the electrolyte tends to form a highly swollen, unstable solid electrolyte interphase (SEI) that shows a high permeability to the electrolyte components, accounting for quickly declined electrochemical performance of graphite‐based anode. Here we proposed a facile strategy to tune the swelling property of SEI by introducing an inorganic anion switch into the PSS, via LiDFP co‐solute method. By forming a low‐swelling, Li3PO4‐rich SEI, the electrolyte‐consuming parasitic reactions and solvent co‐intercalation at graphite‐electrolyte interface are suppressed, which contributes to efficient Li+ transport, reversible Li+ (de)intercalation and stable structural evolution of graphite anode in high‐energy Li‐ion batteries at a low temperature of −20 °C.
Inclusion of difluorophosphate anion in the primary solvation sheath of a weakly‐solvated electrolyte helps to switch the swelling properties of solid electrolyte interphase (SEI) on a graphite (Gr) composite anode. By forming a low‐swelling, Li3PO4‐enriched SEI, reversible Li+ (de)intercalation was enabled at a stable Gr‐electrolyte interface, contributing to improved low‐temperature electrochemical performance of a Li‐ion battery.
Metastasis causes the vast majority of colorectal carcinoma (CRC)-related deaths. However, little is known about the specific traits and underlying mechanisms of metastasis-initiating cells in ...primary CRC. And whether or not circular RNAs (circRNAs) take part in this particular event remain not adequately stated yet.
A screening method based on Transwell assay was first applied to build CRC subgroups with different metastatic potential. High throughput RNA sequencing was used to find out novel metastatic drivers in CRC metastasis-initiating step. A series of in vitro and in vivo assays were further applied to elucidate the functions and underlying molecular mechanisms of circRNAs in CRC metastasis.
A circRNA consisting of exon 8-11 of LONP2, termed as circLONP2, was upregulated in metastasis-initiating CRC subgroups. Aberrant higher expression of circLONP2 was observed in primary CRC tissues with established metastasis, and along the invasive margin in metastatic site. High expression of circLONP2 predicted unfavorable overall survival. Functional studies revealed that circLONP2 could enhance the invasiveness of CRC cells in vitro, and targeting circLONP2 through anti-sense oligonucleotide (ASO) dramatically reduced the penetrance of metastasis to foreign organs in vivo. Mechanically, circLONP2 directly interacted with and promoted the processing of primary microRNA-17 (pri-miR-17), through recruiting DiGeorge syndrome critical region gene 8 (DGCR8) and Drosha complex in DDX1-dependent manner. Meanwhile, upregulated mature miR-17-5p could be assembled into exosomes and internalized by neighboring cells to enhance their aggressiveness.
Our data indicate that circLONP2 acts as key metastasis-initiating molecule during CRC progression through modulating the intracellular maturation and intercellular transfer of miR-17, resulting in dissemination of metastasis-initiating ability in primary site and acceleration of metastasis formation in foreign organs. circLONP2 could serve as an effective prognostic predictor and/or novel anti-metastasis therapeutic target in CRC treatment.
This study aimed to compare the shot characteristics amongst different match periods in table tennis matches. For the shot characteristics of position, type, placement and efficacy, 13 men’s singles ...matches comprising 72 sets from a round of 16 to the final in the 2019 World Table Tennis Championships were selected for notational analysis. Kruskal–Wallis and Mann–Whitney tests were conducted to quantify the differences in various categories of each variable amongst the initial, intermediate and ending match periods. There are no significant differences in each distribution between initial and intermediate periods. From intermediate to ending periods, significant decreases were found in chop type (
p
< 0.01) and middle long placement (
p
< 0.01), whereas a significant increase was found in backhand half placement (
p
< 0.05). By comparing the initial and ending periods, significant decreases were found in middle backhand turn position (
p
< 0.05), middle long placement (
p
< 0.01), chop (
p
< 0.01), and poor shots (
p
< 0.05). Therefore, shot characteristics in table tennis matches are match period related, and the main differences existed between the beginning and the ending period. From initial to ending period, the frequency of applying the middle long placements is decreasing. At the end of every set, the players adopted a safe stroke position, performed offensive stroke types and deployed flexible stroke placement. Results suggested that coaches can establish different scenarios on the basis of varying match periods for players’ training.
To investigate the effect of repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) on phantom limb pain (PLP) in amputees, and to compare the therapeutic effect with that of mirror therapy (MT).
The ...study was designed as a randomized controlled trial. The evaluators were blinded, while the subjects and the therapists were unblinded. Subjects were randomly assigned to either the rTMS group or the MT group with a computer-generated random number table. From June 2018 to December 2020, from out of 45 amputee patients screened for the study, 30 who met the inclusion criteria were recruited for the study. All patients were recruited from the Rehabilitation Medicine Center, West China Hospital, Sichuan University. In the end, 4 patients withdrew from the study and 26 patients (12 in the rTMS group and 14 in the MT group) completed the prescribed treatment and evaluation. The rTMS group was given rTMS (1 Hz, 15 min, 5 d/week) for 2 weeks in addition to conventional rehabilitation therapy, while the MT group received M
ANXA2 (Annexin A2) is a pleiotropic calcium-dependent phospholipid binding protein that is abnormally expressed in various cancers. We previously found that ANXA2 is upregulated in esophageal ...squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC). This study was designed to investigate the functional significance of ANXA2 dysregulation and underlying mechanism in ESCC.
Proliferation, migration, invasion and metastasis assay were performed to examine the functional roles of ANXA2 in ESCC cells in vitro and in vivo. Real-time RT-PCR, immunoblotting, ChIP, reporter assay, confocal-immunofluorescence staining, co-immunoprecipitation and ubiquitination assay were used to explore the molecular mechanism underlying the actions of deregulated ANXA2 in ESCC cells.
Overexpression of ANXA2 promoted ESCC cells migration and invasion in vitro and metastasis in vivo through activation of the MYC-HIF1A-VEGF cascade. Notably, ANXA2 phosphorylation at Tyr23 by SRC led to its translocation into the nucleus and enhanced the metastatic potential of ESCC cells. Phosphorylated ANXA2 (Tyr23) interacted with MYC and inhibited ubiquitin-dependent proteasomal degradation of MYC protein. Accumulated MYC directly potentiated HIF1A transcription and then activated VEGF expression. Correlation between these molecules were also found in ESCC tissues. Moreover, dasatinib in combination with bevacizumab or ANXA2-siRNA produced potent inhibitory effects on the growth of ESCC xenograft tumors in vivo.
This study provides evidence that highly expressed p-ANXA2 (Tyr23) contributes to ESCC progression by promoting migration, invasion and metastasis, and suggests that targeting the SRC-ANXA2-MYC-HIF1A-MYC axis may be an efficient strategy for ESCC treatment.
Nematic order often breaks the tetragonal symmetry of iron-based superconductors. It arises from regular structural transition or electronic instability in the normal phase. Here, we report the ...observation of a nematic superconducting state, by measuring the angular dependence of the in-plane and out-of-plane magnetoresistivity of Ba
K
Fe
As
single crystals. We find large twofold oscillations in the vicinity of the superconducting transition, when the direction of applied magnetic field is rotated within the basal plane. To avoid the influences from sample geometry or current flow direction, the sample was designed as Corbino-shape for in-plane and mesa-shape for out-of-plane measurements. Theoretical analysis shows that the nematic superconductivity arises from the weak mixture of the quasi-degenerate s-wave and d-wave components of the superconducting condensate, most probably induced by a weak anisotropy of stresses inherent to single crystals.
Feeding preference is critical for insect adaptation and survival. However, little is known regarding the determination of insect feeding preference, and the genetic basis is poorly understood. As a ...model lepidopteran insect with economic importance, the domesticated silkworm, Bombyx mori, is a well-known monophagous insect that predominantly feeds on fresh mulberry leaves. This species-specific feeding preference provides an excellent model for investigation of host-plant selection of insects, although the molecular mechanism underlying this phenomenon remains unknown. Here, we describe the gene GR66, which encodes a putative bitter gustatory receptor (GR) that is responsible for the mulberry-specific feeding preference of B. mori. With the aid of a transposon-based, clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats (CRISPR)/CRISPR-associated protein-9 nuclease (Cas9) system, the GR66 locus was genetically mutated, and homozygous mutant silkworm strains with truncated gustatory receptor 66 (GR66) proteins were established. GR66 mutant larvae acquired new feeding activity, exhibiting the ability to feed on a number of plant species in addition to mulberry leaves, including fresh fruits and grain seeds that are not normally consumed by wild-type (WT) silkworms. Furthermore, a feeding choice assay revealed that the mutant larvae lost their specificity for mulberry. Overall, our findings provide the first genetic and phenotypic evidences that a single bitter GR is a major factor affecting the insect feeding preference.
•A thermodynamic equilibrium calculation was carried out.•Effects of three types of sulfurs on Pb distribution were investigated.•The mechanism for three types of sulfurs acting on Pb partitioning ...were proposed.•Lead partitioning and species in bottom ash and fly ash were identified.
Experiments in a tubular furnace reactor and thermodynamic equilibrium calculations were conducted to investigate the impact of sulfur compounds on the migration of lead (Pb) during sludge incineration. Representative samples of typical sludge with and without the addition of sulfur compounds were combusted at 850°C, and the partitioning of Pb in the solid phase (bottom ash) and gas phase (fly ash and flue gas) was quantified. The results indicate that three types of sulfur compounds (S, Na2S and Na2SO4) added to the sludge could facilitate the volatilization of Pb in the gas phase (fly ash and flue gas) into metal sulfates displacing its sulfides and some of its oxides. The effect of promoting Pb volatilization by adding Na2SO4 and Na2S was superior to that of the addition of S. In bottom ash, different metallic sulfides were found in the forms of lead sulfide, aluminosilicate minerals, and polymetallic-sulfides, which were minimally volatilized. The chemical equilibrium calculations indicated that sulfur stabilizes Pb in the form of PbSO4(s) at low temperatures (<1000K). The equilibrium calculation prediction also suggested that SiO2, CaO, TiO2, and Al2O3 containing materials function as condensed phase solids in the temperature range of 800–1100K as sorbents to stabilize Pb. However, in the presence of sulfur or chlorine or the co-existence of sulfur and chlorine, these sorbents were inactive. The effect of sulfur on Pb partitioning in the sludge incineration process mainly depended on the gas phase reaction, the surface reaction, the volatilization of products, and the concentration of Si, Ca and Al-containing compounds in the sludge. These findings provide useful information for understanding the partitioning behavior of Pb, facilitating the development of strategies to control the volatilization of Pb during sludge incineration.
Developing light‐harvesting materials with broad spectral response is of fundamental importance in full‐spectrum solar energy conversion. We found that, when a series of earth‐abundant metal (Cu, Co, ...Ni and Fe) salts are dissolved in coordinating solvents uniformly dispersed nanodots (NDs) are formed rather than fully dissolving as molecular species. The previously unrecognized formation of this condensed state is ascribed to spontaneous aggregation of molecular transition‐metal‐complexes (TMCs) via weak intermolecular interactions, which results in redshifted and broadened absorption into the NIR region (200–1100 nm). Typical photoredox reactions, such as carbonylation and oxidative dehydrogenation, well demonstrate the feasibility of efficient utilization of NIR light (λ>780 nm) by TMCs NDs. Our finding provides a conceptually new strategy for extending the absorption towards low energy photons in solar energy harvesting and conversion via photoredox transformations.
Aggregation of transition metal complexes (TMCs) into nanodots generates redshifted and broadened absorption covering the visible and the near‐infrared (NIR) region compared with the individual molecular complexes. The TMC nanodots demonstrate excellent performance for the carbonylation reaction under solar‐light illumination.
The objective of the proposed human-machine cooperation (HMC) workstation is to both rapidly detect calcium-based fish bones in masses of minced fish floss and visually guide operators in approaching ...and removing the detected fish bones by hand based on the detection of fingernails or plastic-based gloves. Because vibration is a separation mechanism that can prevent absorption or scattering in thick fish floss for UV fluorescence detection, the design of the HMC workstation included a vibration unit together with an optical box and display screens. The system was tested with commonly used fish (swordfish, salmon, tuna, and cod) representing various cooking conditions (raw meat, steam-cooked meat, and fish floss), their bones, and contaminating materials such as derived from gloves made of various types of plastic (polyvinylchloride, emulsion, and rubber) commonly used in the removal of fish bones. These aspects were each investigated using the spectrum analyzer and the optical box to obtain and analyze the fluorescence spectra and images. The filter was mounted on a charge-coupled device, and its transmission-wavelength window was based on the characteristic band for fish bones observed in the spectra. Gray-level AI algorithm was utilized to generate white marker rectangles. The vibration unit supports two mechanisms of air and downstream separation to improve the imaging screening of fish bones inside the considerable flow of fish floss. Notably, under 310 nm ultraviolet B (UVB) excitation, the fluorescence peaks of the raw fillets, steam-cooked meat, and fish floss were observed at for bands at longer wavelengths (500-600 nm), whereas those of the calcium and plastic materials occurred in shorter wavelength bands (400-500 nm). Perfect accuracy of 100% was achieved with the detection of 20 fish bones in 2 kg of fish floss, and the long test time of around 10-12 min results from the manual removal of these fish bones.
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