A Generalized Polymer Precursor Ink Design for 3D Printing of Functional Metal Oxides.

Three-dimensional-structured metal oxides have myriad applications for optoelectronic devices. Comparing to conventional lithography-based manufacturing methods which face significant challenges for 3D device architectures, additive manufacturing approaches such as direct ink writing offer convenient, on-demand manufacturing of 3D oxides with high resolutions down to sub-micrometer scales. However, the lack of a universal ink design strategy greatly limits the choices of printable oxides. Here, a universal, facile synthetic strategy is developed for direct ink writable polymer precursor inks based on metal-polymer coordination effect. Specifically, polyethyleneimine functionalized by ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid is employed as the polymer matrix for adsorbing targeted metal ions. Next, glucose is introduced as a crosslinker for endowing the polymer precursor inks with a thermosetting property required for 3D printing via the Maillard reaction. For demonstrations, binary (i.e., ZnO, CuO, In2O3, Ga2O3, TiO2, and Y2O3) and ternary metal oxides (i.e., BaTiO3 and SrTiO3) are printed into 3D architectures with sub-micrometer resolution by extruding the inks through ultrafine nozzles. Upon thermal crosslinking and pyrolysis, the 3D microarchitectures with woodpile geometries exhibit strong light-matter coupling in the mid-infrared region. The design strategy for printable inks opens a new pathway toward 3D-printed optoelectronic devices based on functional oxides.

Protective Effect of l-Theanine on Cyclophosphamide-Induced Testicular Toxicity in Mice.

l-Theanine is the most abundant free amino acid present in tea. Several tea components have been studied for their impact on male fertility, but little is known about the effects of l-theanine. Cyclophosphamide (CP) is an antineoplastic and immunosuppressive agent that reduces fertility in males. In the present study, we evaluated the effect of l-theanine on CP-induced testicular toxicity in male mice. A single dosage of 50 mg/kg saline or CP was administered intraperitoneally over the course of 5 days. Mice were administered l-theanine (80 mg/kg) or saline by gavage for 30 days. Animals were euthanized 24 h after the last l-theanine administration, and the testes were removed for histopathological and transmission electron microscopy analysis. Histological evaluation and transmission electron microscopy showed that administration of l-theanine alleviated CP-induced damage to the testicles, including spermatogonial cells, epithelial cells, seminiferous tubules, and basement membrane. An integrated proteomics and metabolomics investigation of testes revealed that l-theanine therapy substantially affected the quantity of 719 proteins (395 upregulated and 324 downregulated) and 196 metabolites (75 upregulated and 111 downregulated). The top three enriched Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) pathways for these proteins and metabolites were purine metabolism, choline metabolism in cancer, and arachidonic acid metabolism. This is the first study to reveal the protective effect of l-theanine on CP-induced testicular toxicity. l-Theanine could be a potential natural active substance for resistance to the testis toxicity induced by CP.

[Effects of organic manure on soil nutrient content: A review]. / æœ‰æœºç±»è‚¥æ–™å¯¹åœŸå£¤å »åˆ†å«é‡çš„å½±å“.

To be green and sustainable are essential requirements for modern agriculture in China, with fertilizer input being one of the keys. Developing and extending organic fertilizer has become a basic national policy for agricultural production in China for its eco-friendly and advantages in fertile farmland nurture. Organic fertilizer has wide source and variety. The conditions for agricultural production are also largely different. We analyzed the status of organic fertilizer products and stan-dards, physical and chemical properties differences, differences of carbon and nitrogen mineralization characteristics and their influencing factors. Meanwhile, we reviewed the effects of application of organic fertilizer on basic soil fertility of cultivated land. Due to the differences in source and production process, different organic fertilizers differ in the four main internal factors (the content of organic carbon fractions, total N, active nitrogen and C/N) affecting carbon and nitrogen mineralization characteristics, including mineralization rates and the amount of available nitrogen release. With the influence of external conditions such as edatope, different organic fertilizers vary in nutrient supply characteristics. Overall, organic fertilizer significantly increases soil organic matter content, especially for labile organic matter content and carbon management index (CMI). Moreover, soil contents of nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium are expanded. As a result, nutrient loss caused by crop growth is reduced, with positive consequences on soil quality. The application of organic fertilizer on fertile farmland nurture, the theoretical study of organic fertilizer, and the development of safe and efficient organic fertilizer products should be strengthened in the future, promoting the efficient recycling of organic fertilizer resources which could be an important agricultural resource.

Genetic variant in the promoter region of microRNA­137 reduces the warfarin maintenance dose in patients with atrial fibrillation.

A substantial body of research has confirmed that Vitamin K epoxide reductase complex subunit 1 (VKORC1) plays a role in contributing to the high interpatient variability in the warfarin maintenance dose. The aim of the present study was to examine the impact of SNPs of miR­137 on the warfarin maintenance dose. Computational analysis and luciferase assay were used to search the targets of miR­137, and luciferase assay was also used to confirm the effect of the polymorphisms on the transcription of the promoter. The regulatory relationship between miR­137 and VKORC1 was detected using real­time PCR. We then performed statistical analysis to find the warfarin maintenance dose in the different groups. A total of 155 subjects were enrolled in our research, and the characteristics of the patients were collected. Using computational analysis, we identified that miR­137 binds to the VKORC1 3'untranslated region (3'UTR) and regulates the expression of VKORC1. This hypothesis was confirmed by luciferase reporter assay as miR­137 significantly reduced the VKORC1 3'UTR luciferase activity, while the luciferase activity of mutant VKORC1 3'UTR was similar to the scramble control. According to the result of the luciferase reporter assay, we found that miR­137 SNP with the presence of the A allele apparently reduced the luciferase activity. Using real­time PCR, we revealed that miR­137 negatively regulated the expression of VKORC1 in a concentration­dependent manner in liver cells. Furthermore, no difference was noted regarding the warfarin maintenance dose between the different age or gender groups, and furthermore AC + AA carriers showed a markedly higher warfarin maintenance dose than CC carriers. These findings collectively provide support that VKORC1 is a direct target of miR­137 and the miR­137 rs2660304 polymorphism is associated with warfarin maintenance dose in patients with atrial fibrillation. The rs2660304 polymorphism is a potential biomarker for predicting the clinical efficacy of warfarin in these patients.

Low expression of PRMT5 in peripheral blood may serve as a potential independent risk factor in assessments of the risk of stable CAD and AMI.

BACKGROUND: Protein arginine methyltransferases (PRMTs) can catalyse the methylation of arginine and participate in many important cellular reaction processes. The purpose of this research is to determine whether the expression levels of the PRMT5 gene in peripheral blood can be used as a biomarker for predicting the risk of Acute Myocardial Infarction (AMI). METHODS: In this research, peripheral blood was collected from 91 patients with AMI and 87 patients with stable coronary artery disease (CAD). Real-time fluorescent quantitative PCR was performed to measure the expression levels of the PRMT5 gene at the mRNA level, and a western blot analysis was performed to measure the expression levels of the PRMT5 gene at the protein level. RESULTS: The results indicate that at both the RNA and protein levels, the expression levels of the PRMT5 gene in peripheral blood from patients with AMI are significantly lower than those in peripheral blood from patients with stable CAD (Z = - 4.813, P = 0.000). The low expression of the PRMT5 gene is relevant to the Gensini score of the coronary artery (rs = - 0.205, P = 0.015) but is irrelevant to the serum level of blood lipids, level of cardiac troponin (rs = - 0.125, P = 0.413) and time intervals of occurrence (rs = - 0.146, P = 0.211). Patients who have a low PRMT5 expression in the peripheral blood are 5.472 times more likely to suffer from AMI than other patients. CONCLUSION: Compared to stable CAD patients, AMI patients have a lower expression of the PRMT5 gene in their peripheral blood. Patients who have low PRMT5 gene expression in the peripheral blood are more likely to suffer from AMI than those with stable CAD. A low expression of the PRMT5 gene serves as an independent risk factor for the occurrence of AMI.

Micrometer-Sized Porous Fe2 N/C Bulk for High-Areal-Capacity and Stable Lithium Storage.

High-capacity anodes of lithium-ion batteries generally suffer from poor electrical conductivity, large volume variation, and low tap density caused by prepared nanostructures, which make it an obstacle to achieve both high-areal capacity and stable cycling performance for practical applications. Herein, micrometer-sized porous Fe2 N/C bulk is prepared to tackle the aforementioned issues, and thus realize both high-areal capacity and stable cycling performance at high mass loading. The porous structure in Fe2 N/C bulk is beneficial to alleviate the volumetric change. In addition, the N-doped carbon conducting networks with high electrical conductivity provide a fast charge transfer pathway. Meanwhile, the micrometer-sized Fe2 N/C bulk exhibits a higher tap density than that of commercial graphite powder (1.03 g cm-3 ), which facilitates the preparation of thinner electrode at high mass loadings. As a result, a high-areal capacity of above 4.2 mA h cm-2 at 0.45 mA cm-2 is obtained at a high mass loading of 7.0 mg cm-2 for LIBs, which still maintains at 2.59 mA h cm-2 after 200 cycles with a capacity retention of 98.8% at 0.89 mA cm-2 .

Anti-hypertrophy effect of atorvastatin on myocardium depends on AMPK activation-induced miR-143-3p suppression via Foxo1.

Left ventricular hypertrophy (LVH) is a pathological characteristic shared by distinct heart disorders. Atorvastatin is employed as a lipid lowering agent and its heart protection effect has been recently reported as well. Thus, the current study attempted to validate the anti-hypertrophy effect of atorvastatin as well as the associated mechanism. Hypertrophic feature was induced in rats using transverse aortic constriction (TAC) method and in cardiomyocytes using angiotensin II (Ang II). Then the animals and cells were treated with atorvastatin and the effect on cardiac weight and structure as well as cell viability, surface area, and apoptosis was assessed. The mechanism associated with the anti-hypertrophy effect of atorvastatin was further explored by focusing on the AMPK/Foxo1/miR-143-3p axis. The results showed that the administration of atorvastatin significantly suppressed TAC-induced heart weight increase and attenuated cardiac structure deteriorations in rats. In in vitro assays, atorvastatin increased cell viability, and reduced cell surface area and apoptosis in Ang II-treated H9c2 cells. At molecular level, atorvastatin activated AMPK, which further promoted Foxo1 activation and suppressed miR-143-3p level. The key role of AMPK during atorvastatin treatment was further validated by subjecting Ang II-treated H9c2 cells to co-incubation of atorvastatin and Compound C, which blocked the pro-survival and anti-hypertrophy effect of atorvastatin on H9c2 cells. The findings outlined in the current study confirmed the anti-hypertrophy effect of atorvastatin and provided a preliminary explanation on the mechanism associated with the treatment: the protective effect of atorvastatin on myocardium against hypertrophy depended on miR-143-3p inhibition via AMPK and Foxo1 activation.

Nonhierarchical Heterostructured Fe2 O3 /Mn2 O3 Porous Hollow Spheres for Enhanced Lithium Storage.

High capacity transition-metal oxides play significant roles as battery anodes benefiting from their tunable redox chemistry, low cost, and environmental friendliness. However, the application of these conversion-type electrodes is hampered by inherent large volume variation and poor kinetics. Here, a binary metal oxide prototype, denoted as nonhierarchical heterostructured Fe2 O3 /Mn2 O3 porous hollow spheres, is proposed through a one-pot self-assembly method. Beyond conventional heteromaterial, Fe2 O3 /Mn2 O3 based on the interface of (104)Fe2O3 and (222)Mn2O3 exhibits the nonhierarchical configuration, where nanosized building blocks are integrated into microsized spheres, leading to the enhanced structural stability and boosted reaction kinetics. With this design, the Fe2 O3 /Mn2 O3 anode shows a high reversible capacity of 1075 mA h g-1 at 0.5 A g-1 , an outstanding rate capability of 638 mA h g-1 at 8 A g-1 , and an excellent cyclability with a capacity retention of 89.3% after 600 cycles.

High expression of long chain acyl-coenzyme A synthetase 1 in peripheral blood may be a molecular marker for assessing the risk of acute myocardial infarction.

The current study aimed to investigate whether the increased expression of long chain acyl-coenzymeA synthetase 1 (ACSL1) in peripheral blood leukocytes (PBL) may be a molecular marker for the genetic evaluation of acute myocardial infarction (AMI). The mechanism of action of ACSL1 in the pathogenesis of AMI was also investigated. A total of 75 patients with AMI and 70 individuals without coronary heart disease were selected to participate in the present study. The demographic and clinical information of the enrolled subjects was recorded. Reverse transcription quantitative polymerase chain reaction and western blot analysis were applied to measure the expression of ACSL1 at the mRNA and protein levels. It was demonstrated that the expression of ACSL1 mRNA and protein in PBL was increased in patients with AMI compared with controls. Logistic regression analysis indicated that ACSL1 expression in PBL was an independent risk factor of AMI. There was a significant positive association between the level of ACSL1 expression and the degree of atherosclerosis in the coronary artery. Furthermore, patients with AMI exhibited an increased risk of atherosclerosis due to increased fasting blood glucose, total cholesterol, triglyceride and lipoprotein levels and decreased high-density lipoprotein levels, compared with controls. Therefore, the current study demonstrated that ACSL1 expression was increased in the PBLs of patients with AMI. The elevated expression of ACSL1 acts an independent risk factor of AMI and may act as a potential biomarker when determining the risk of AMI.

In situ/operando characterization techniques for rechargeable lithium-sulfur batteries: a review.

Rechargeable lithium-sulfur (Li-S) batteries have recently attracted global research interest due to their high theoretical specific capacity and energy density. To improve the performance and cycling stability of Li-S batteries, a clear understanding of the electrochemical reaction process and the degradation mechanisms of the sulfur redox chemistry are extremely important. In the past few decades, various advanced in situ/operando characterization tools have emerged, which have facilitated the understanding of the degradation mechanisms and the further development of high-performance Li-S batteries. In this review, we have summarized recent significant advances in in situ/operando characterization techniques for Li-S batteries. In particular, because of the existence of the soluble polysulfide species during the charge/discharge process, many creative ideas have been introduced into in situ/operando characterization of the electrochemical process in Li-S batteries.

Activation of Sodium Storage Sites in Prussian Blue Analogues via Surface Etching.

Sodium-ion battery technologies are known to suffer from kinetic problems associated with the solid-state diffusion of Na+ in intercalation electrodes, which results in suppressed specific capacity and degraded rate performance. Here, a controllable selective etching approach is developed for the synthesis of Prussian blue analogue (PBA) with enhanced sodium storage activity. On the basis of time-dependent experiments, a defect-induced morphological evolution mechanism from nanocube to nanoflower structure is proposed. Through in situ X-ray diffraction measurement and computational analysis, this unique structure is revealed to provide higher Na+ diffusion dynamics and negligible volume change during the sodiation/desodiation processes. As a sodium ion battery cathode, the PBA exhibits a discharge capacity of 90 mA h g-1, which is in good agreement with the complete low spin FeLS(C) redox reaction. It also demonstrates an outstanding rate capability of 71.0 mA h g-1 at 44.4 C, as well as an unprecedented cycling reversibility over 5000 times.

NOX2 Antisense Attenuates Hypoxia-Induced Oxidative Stress and Apoptosis in Cardiomyocyte.

Heart ischemia is a hypoxia related disease. NOX2 and HIF-1α proteins were increased in cardiomyocytes after acute myocardial infarction. However, the relationship of the hypoxia-induced HIF-1α. NOX2-derived oxidative stress and apoptosis in cardiomyocyte remains unclear. In the current study, we use NOX2 antisense strategy to investigate the role of NOX2 in hypoxia-induced oxidative stress and apoptosis in rat cardiomyocytes. Here, we show that transduction of ADV-NOX2-AS induces potent silencing of NOX2 in cardiomyocytes, and resulting in attenuation of hypoxia-induced oxidative stress and apoptosis. This study indicates the potential of antisense-based therapies and validates NOX2 as a potent therapeutic candidate for heart ischemia.