Solid-state batteries potentially offer increased lithium-ion battery energy density and safety as required for large-scale production of electrical vehicles. One of the key challenges toward ...high-performance solid-state batteries is the large impedance posed by the electrode-electrolyte interface. However, direct assessment of the lithium-ion transport across realistic electrode-electrolyte interfaces is tedious. Here we report two-dimensional lithium-ion exchange NMR accessing the spontaneous lithium-ion transport, providing insight on the influence of electrode preparation and battery cycling on the lithium-ion transport over the interface between an argyrodite solid-electrolyte and a sulfide electrode. Interfacial conductivity is shown to depend strongly on the preparation method and demonstrated to drop dramatically after a few electrochemical (dis)charge cycles due to both losses in interfacial contact and increased diffusional barriers. The reported exchange NMR facilitates non-invasive and selective measurement of lithium-ion interfacial transport, providing insight that can guide the electrolyte-electrode interface design for future all-solid-state batteries.
Interpatient variability in the pharmacokinetics (PK) of sunitinib is high. Single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in PK candidate genes have been associated with the efficacy and toxicity of ...sunitinib, but whether these SNPs truly affect the PK of sunitinib remains to be elucidated. This multicenter study involving 114 patients investigated whether these SNPs and haplotypes in genes encoding metabolizing enzymes or efflux transporters are associated with the clearance of sunitinib and its active metabolite SU12662. SNPs were tested as covariates in a population PK model. From univariate analysis, we found that the SNPs in CYP3A4, CYP3A5, and ABCB1 were associated with the clearance of both sunitinib and SU12662. In multivariate analysis, CYP3A4*22 was found to be eliminated last with an effect size of −22.5% on clearance. Observed effect sizes are below the interindividual variability in clearance and are therefore too limited to directly guide individual dosing of sunitinib.
Clinical Pharmacology & Therapeutics (2014); 96 1, 81–89. doi:10.1038/clpt.2014.47
Bariatric surgery continues to be remarkably efficient in treating obesity and type 2 diabetes mellitus and a debate has started whether it should remain the last resort only or also be used for the ...prevention of metabolic diseases. Intense research efforts in humans and rodent models are underway to identify the critical mechanisms underlying the beneficial effects with a view towards non‐surgical treatment options. This non‐systematic review summarizes and interprets some of this literature, with an emphasis on changes in the controls of appetite. Contrary to earlier views, surgery‐induced reduction of energy intake and subsequent weight loss appear to be the main drivers for rapid improvements of glycaemic control. The mechanisms responsible for suppression of appetite, particularly in the face of the large weight loss, are not well understood. Although a number of changes in food choice, taste functions, hedonic evaluation, motivation and self‐control have been documented in both humans and rodents after surgery, their importance and relative contribution to diminished appetite has not yet been demonstrated. Furthermore, none of the major candidate mechanisms postulated in mediating surgery‐induced changes from the gut and other organs to the brain, such as gut hormones and sensory neuronal pathways, have been confirmed yet. Future research efforts should focus on interventional rather than descriptive approaches in both humans and rodent models.
Abstract
Soft-elasticity in monodomain liquid crystal elastomers (LCEs) is promising for impact-absorbing applications where strain energy is ideally absorbed at constant stress. Conventionally, ...compressive and impact studies on LCEs have not been performed given the notorious difficulty synthesizing sufficiently large monodomain devices. Here, we use direct-ink writing 3D printing to fabricate bulk (>cm
3
) monodomain LCE devices and study their compressive soft-elasticity over 8 decades of strain rate. At quasi-static rates, the monodomain soft-elastic LCE dissipated 45% of strain energy while comparator materials dissipated less than 20%. At strain rates up to 3000 s
−1
, our soft-elastic monodomain LCE consistently performed closest to an ideal-impact absorber. Drop testing reveals soft-elasticity as a likely mechanism for effectively reducing the severity of impacts – with soft elastic LCEs offering a Gadd Severity Index 40% lower than a comparable isotropic elastomer. Lastly, we demonstrate tailoring deformation and buckling behavior in monodomain LCEs via the printed director orientation.
The Positive Matrix Factorization (PMF) receptor model and the Observation Based Model (OBM) were combined to analyze volatile organic compound (VOC) data collected at a suburban site (WQS) in the ...PRD region. The purposes are to estimate the VOC source apportionment and investigate the contributions of these sources and species of these sources to the O3 formation in PRD. Ten VOC sources were identified. We further applied the PMF-extracted concentrations of these 10 sources into the OBM and found "solvent usage 1", "diesel vehicular emissions" and "biomass/biofuel burning" contributed most to the O3 formation at WQS. Among these three sources, higher Relative Incremental Reactivity (RIR)-weighted values of ethene, toluene and m/p-xylene indicated that they were mainly responsible for local O3 formation in the region. Sensitivity analysis revealed that the sources of "diesel vehicular emissions", "biomass/biofuel burning" and "solvent usage 1" had low uncertainties whereas "gasoline evaporation" showed the highest uncertainty.
► Ten sources of VOCs were identified by the PMF receptor model in the PRD region. ► In terms of mass percentage, solvent was the largest contributor, followed by vehicle emissions. ► Solvent, diesel vehicles and biomass/biofuel burning were the top three VOC contributors to O3 formation. ► Among these three sources, ethene, toluene and m/p-xylene were responsible for O3 formation. ► Biomass/biofuel burning had low uncertainty whereas gasoline evaporation showed high uncertainty.
Solvent usage, diesel vehicular emissions and biomass/biofuel burning were the major contributors to the photochemical O3 formation in the PRD region.
Background
The prevalence of atopic diseases has increased rapidly in recent decades globally. The administration of probiotics to reduce gastrointestinal inflammation has been popular, but its role ...in the prevention or treatment of allergic disease remains controversial. This study evaluated the effectiveness of prenatal and postnatal probiotics in the prevention of early childhood and maternal allergic diseases.
Methods
In a prospective, double‐blind, placebo‐controlled clinical trial, pregnant women with atopic diseases determined by history, total immunoglobulin (Ig)E > 100 kU/L, and/or positive specific IgE were assigned to receive either probiotics (Lactobacillus GG; ATCC 53103; 1 × 1010 colony‐forming units daily) or placebo from the second trimester of pregnancy. Both of clinical evaluation performed by questionnaires concerning any allergic symptoms and plasma total IgE, and allergen‐specific IgE were obtained in high‐risk parents and children at 0, 6, 18, and 36 months of age. The primary and secondary outcomes were the point and cumulative prevalence of sensitization and developing of allergic diseases, and improvement of maternal allergic symptom score and plasma immune parameters before and after intervention, respectively.
Results
In total, 191 pregnant women (LGG group, n = 95; control group, n = 96) were enrolled. No significant effects of prenatal and postnatal probiotics supplementation on sensitization, development of allergic diseases, and maternal IgE levels between placebo and LGG groups. Symptoms of maternal allergic scores improved significantly in the LGG group (P = 0.002). Maternal allergic diseases improvement was more prominent in pregnant women with IgE > 100 kU/L (P = 0.01) and significantly associated with higher interleukin‐12p70 levels (P = 0.013).
Conclusions
LGG administration beginning at the second trimester of pregnancy reduced the severity of maternal allergic disease through increment of Th1 response, but not the incidence of childhood allergic sensitization or allergic diseases (ClinicalTrials.govnumber, IDNCT00325273).
The high Li-ion conductivity of the argyrodite Li6PS5Cl makes it a promising solid electrolyte candidate for all-solid-state Li-ion batteries. For future application, it is essential to identify ...facile synthesis procedures and to relate the synthesis conditions to the solid electrolyte material performance. Here, a simple optimized synthesis route is investigated that avoids intensive ball milling by direct annealing of the mixed precursors at 550 °C for 10 h, resulting in argyrodite Li6PS5Cl with a high Li-ion conductivity of up to 4.96 × 10–3 S cm–1 at 26.2 °C. Both the temperature-dependent alternating current impedance conductivities and solid-state NMR spin–lattice relaxation rates demonstrate that the Li6PS5Cl prepared under these conditions results in a higher conductivity and Li-ion mobility compared to materials prepared by the traditional mechanical milling route. The origin of the improved conductivity appears to be a combination of the optimal local Cl structure and its homogeneous distribution in the material. All-solid-state cells consisting of an 80Li2S–20LiI cathode, the optimized Li6PS5Cl electrolyte, and an In anode showed a relatively good electrochemical performance with an initial discharge capacity of 662.6 mAh g–1 when a current density of 0.13 mA cm–2 was used, corresponding to a C-rate of approximately C/20. On direct comparison with a solid-state battery using a solid electrolyte prepared by the mechanical milling route, the battery made with the new material exhibits a higher initial discharge capacity and Coulombic efficiency at a higher current density with better cycling stability. Nevertheless, the cycling stability is limited by the electrolyte stability, which is a major concern for these types of solid-state batteries.
A novel approach is proposed to demonstrate the two-photon Breit-Wheeler process by using collimated and wide-bandwidth γ-ray pulses driven by 10-PW lasers. Theoretical calculations suggest that more ...than 3.2×10^{8} electron-positron pairs with a divergence angle of 7° can be created per shot, and the signal-to-noise ratio is higher than 10^{3}. The positron signal, which is roughly 100 times higher than the detection limit, can be measured by using the existing spectrometers. This approach, which could demonstrate the e^{-}e^{+} pair creation process from two photons, would provide important tests for two-photon physics and other fundamental physical theories.
This study was designed to examine the prospective relations of perceived racial discrimination with allostatic load (AL), along with a possible buffer of the association. A sample of 331 African ...Americans in the rural South provided assessments of perceived discrimination from ages 16 to 18 years. When youth were 18 years, caregivers reported parental emotional support and youth assessed peer emotional support. AL and potential confounder variables were assessed when youth were 20. Latent growth mixture modeling identified two perceived discrimination classes: high and stable, and low and increasing. Adolescents in the high and stable class evinced heightened AL even with confounder variables controlled. The racial discrimination to AL link was not significant for young adults who received high emotional support.
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