Artificially Layered CoSe2 Nanosheets by a Dual-Templating Strategy for High-Performance Lithium-Sulfur Batteries.

Owing to the attractive merits of layered transition metal dichalcogenides (LTMDs) with van der Waals interactions, it is significant to modulate electronic structures and endow them with fascinating physiochemical properties by converting a nonlayered metal dichalcogenide into an atomic layered one. Herein, a dual-templating strategy is designed to prepare artificially layered CoSe2 nanosheets on carbon fiber cloth (L-CoSe2/CFC). It is found that not only the nanosheet morphology but also the layered structure is well inherited from the precursor of layered Co(OH)2 nanosheets through a wet-solution ion-exchange approach. The as-prepared L-CoSe2/CFC serves as an efficient multifunctional interlayer to solve the challenges of "shuttling effect" and slow multistep reaction kinetics in lithium-sulfur batteries (LSBs), thus dramatically improving their electrochemical performance. Benefiting from the L-CoSe2 nanosheets with large interlayer spacing, strong chemical adsorption, and superior catalytic activity, L-CoSe2/CFC promotes the anchoring of lithium polysulfides (LiPSs) and their catalytic conversion. Consequently, the L-CoSe2/CFC cell yields a large reversible capacity of 1584 mAh g-1 at 0.2C and a high rate capability of 987 mAh g-1 at 4C. A high areal capacity of 4.38 mAh cm-2 after 100 cycles at 0.2C is achieved for the high-S-loading LSB (4.6 mg cm-2) using the L-CoSe2/CFC interlayer.

Nanoscale engineering and Mo-doping of 2D ultrathin ReS2 nanosheets for remarkable electrocatalytic hydrogen generation.

Two-dimensional (2D) lamellar ReS2 nanosheets are considered a promising electrocatalyst for the hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) but suffer from poor intrinsic conductivity and catalytically inert basal planes. In this work, sub 50 nm hierarchical Mo-doped ReS2 nanospheres consisting of numerous few-layered and defect-rich nanosheets are designed and synthesized as robust and efficient HER catalysts. On the one hand, the small size of the hierarchical structure, the disordered basal planes and the expanded interlayer endow the nanosheets with plentiful defects, thereby resulting in abundant exposed active sites. On the other hand, Mo-doping offers the nanosheets with some electronic benefits of unsaturated electrons, improved intrinsic conductivity, and optimized hydrogen adsorption free energy (ΔGH) of the basal planes. Owing to the synergistic effects, the 10%Mo-ReS2 catalyst exhibits an optimized catalytic activity with striking kinetic metrics of a small Tafel slope of 62 mV dec-1, a low overpotential of 81 mV at 10 mA cm-2, and a long operation stability of 50 h, and its performance is among the best of ReS2-based catalysts. This work provides a new approach for gaining the structural and electronic benefits of ReS2 catalysts by combinational nanoscale engineering and heteroatom doping.

Interferon-inducible protein 205 (p205) plays a role in adipogenic differentiation of mouse adipose-derived stem cells.

The role of p205 in the regulation of cell growth and differentiation remains poorly understood. This study aimed to determine whether p205 is involved in adipogenesis of mouse adipose-derived stem cells (mASCs). p205 was largely induced in mASCs under adipogenesis in vitro. The mRNA and protein levels of p205 reached a maximum at day 4, and decreased at days 6 and 8. p205 localized almost exclusively in the nucleus of undifferentiated cells, but also translocated to the cytoplasm in intermediately and terminally differentiated cells. Although p205 suppression impaired mASC adipogenesis, its overexpression did not enhance the differentiation process. p205 co-localized with, and bound directly to, C/EBPß and C/EBPα at day 4. Knockdown of p205 lowered the amount of p205 interacting with C/EBPß or C/EBPα, further downregulating the transcription activities of C/EBPα and PPARγ. This suggests the importance of these transcription factors in the role of p205 in mASC adipogenesis.

Role of interferon-inducible protein 202 (p202) in the regulation of adipogenesis in mouse adipose-derived stem cells.

The interferon-inducible protein 202 (p202) has emerged as a key regulator of cell proliferation and differentiation. To explore the role of p202 in adipocyte differentiation, p202 mRNA and protein levels in differentiating mouse adipose-derived stem cells (mASCs) were examined, and were found to continuously increase during mASC adipogenesis. The nuclear and cytoplasmic distribution of p202 in the differentiation process was also determined. In addition, suppression and overexpression of p202 impaired and enhanced the differentiation process, respectively. Further, results of co-immunoprecipitation and co-immunofluorescence showed the interaction and intracellular co-localization of p202 with C/EBPß, C/EBPα, and PPARγ at intermediate and/or late differentiation stages. Knockdown of p202 interfered with the elevated expression of C/EBPß, C/EBPα, and PPARγ. In conclusion, the temporal and spatial profiles of p202 and the observed manner in which p202 affected the expression of these transcription factors provided evidence that p202 plays a role during mASC adipogenesis.