The Influence of Piriformospora indica Colonization on the Root Development and Growth of Cerasus humilis Cuttings.

Numerous studies have shown that the endophytic fungus Piriformospora indica has a broad range of promoting effects on root development and plant growth in host plants. However, there are currently no reports on the application of this fungus on Cerasus humilis. This study first compared the colonization ability of P. indica on 11 C. humilis varieties and found that the colonization rate of this fungus on these varieties ranged from 90% to 100%, with the colonization rate of the varieties '09-01' and 'Nongda 7' being as high as 100%. Subsequently, the effect of P. indica on root development and plant growth of C. humilis was investigated using cuttings of '09-01' and 'Nongda 7' as materials. P. indica colonization was found to increase the biomass of '09-01' and 'Nongda 7' plants; root activity, POD enzymes, and chlorophyll content were also significantly increased. In addition, indole-3-acetic acid (IAA) content in the roots of C. humilis plants increased after colonization, while jasmonic acid (JA) and 1-aminocyclopropane-1-car- boxylic acid (ACC) content decreased. In conclusion, it has been demonstrated that P. indica can promote the growth of C. humilis plants by accelerating biomass accumulation, promoting rooting, and enhancing the production of photosynthetic pigments, as well as regulating hormone synthesis.

SDACS: Blockchain-Based Secure and Dynamic Access Control Scheme for Internet of Things.

With the rapid growth of the Internet of Things (IoT), massive terminal devices are connected to the network, generating a large amount of IoT data. The reliable sharing of IoT data is crucial for fields such as smart home and healthcare, as it promotes the intelligence of the IoT and provides faster problem solutions. Traditional data sharing schemes usually rely on a trusted centralized server to achieve each attempted access from users to data, which faces serious challenges of a single point of failure, low reliability, and an opaque access process in current IoT environments. To address these disadvantages, we propose a secure and dynamic access control scheme for the IoT, named SDACS, which enables data owners to achieve decentralized and fine-grained access control in an auditable and reliable way. For access control, attribute-based control (ABAC), Hyperledger Fabric, and interplanetary file system (IPFS) were used, with four kinds of access control contracts deployed on blockchain to coordinate and implement access policies. Additionally, a lightweight, certificateless authentication protocol was proposed to minimize the disclosure of identity information and ensure the double-layer protection of data through secure off-chain identity authentication and message transmission. The experimental and theoretical analysis demonstrated that our scheme can maintain high throughput while achieving high security and stability in IoT data security sharing scenarios.

A novel "on-off-on" electrochemiluminescence strategy based on RNA cleavage propelled signal amplification and resonance energy transfer for Pb2+ detection.

BACKGROUND: Lead (Pb) is one of the most toxic heavy-metal pollutants. Additionally, lead ions (Pb2+) can accumulate in the human body through the food chain, causing irreversible damage through organ damage and system disorders. In the past few years, the detection of Pb2+ has mainly relied on instrumental methods such as atomic absorption spectroscopy (AAS) and inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS). Nonetheless, these techniques are complicated in terms of equipment and procedures, along with being time-intensive and expensive in terms of detection. These drawbacks have limited their wide application. Hence, there is a pressing need to develop detection techniques for Pb2+ that are not only cost-efficient but also highly sensitive and specific. RESULTS: A novel "on-off-on" electrochemiluminescence (ECL) sensor for detecting Pb2+ was developed based on the resonance energy transfer (RET) effect between AuNPs and boron nitride quantum dots (BN QDs) and the recognition of Pb2+ by DNAzyme along with the cleavage reaction of the substrate chain. Poly(6-carboxyindole)/stannic sulfide (P6ICA/SnS2) nanocomposite was employed as a co-reaction accelerator to consequently facilitate the production of intermediate SO4•-. This effective enhancement of the reaction led to an improved ECL intensity of BN QDs and enabled the sensor platform to exhibit a higher original ECL response. Benefiting from the combination of the DNAzyme signal amplification strategy with the "on-off-on" design, the ECL sensor showed satisfactory selectivity, good stability, and high sensitivity. This ECL sensor exhibited a linear detection range (LDR) of 10-12-10-5 M and a limit of detection (LOD) of 2.6 × 10-13 M. SIGNIFICANCE: In the present work, an "on-off-on" ECL sensor is constructed based on RET effect for ultrasensitive detection of Pb2+. P6ICA/SnS2 was investigated as the co-reaction accelerator in this sensor. Moreover, this ECL sensor exhibited excellent analytical capability for detecting Pb2+ in actual water samples, providing a method for detecting other heavy metal ions as well.

Regulating the d-band electrons of the Fe-N-C single-atom catalyst for high-efficiency CO2 electroreduction by electron-donating S-doping.

Developing highly efficient electrocatalysts is crucially significant for the application of advanced energy conversion. The Fe-N-C single-atom catalyst is promising for CO2 electroreduction reaction (CO2RR) but suffers from insufficient intrinsic activity and inferior conductivity, which could be addressed by redistributing the electron density via heteroatom doping. Herein, we synthesized S-doped Fe-N-C (Fe-SN-C) as an advanced electrocatalyst for CO2RR using a simple trapping-pyrolysis strategy. Density functional theory calculations and experimental results indicate that S doping increases the d-band electrons and conductivity of Fe-SN-C by electron donating, and thus boosts *CO desorption during the CO2RR process and suppresses the competing hydrogen evolution reaction. Consequently, Fe-SN-C exhibits the maximum CO faradaic efficiency of 93% at -0.5 V and the highest partial current density of 10.1 mA cm-2 at -0.8 V for 2e- CO2RR. This finding provides a feasible and controllable method to achieve advanced electrocatalysts for efficient energy conversion.

Linking land degradation and restoration to ecosystem services balance by identifying landscape drivers: insights from the globally largest loess deposit area.

Land degradation is one of the most serious environmental challenges that profoundly affects ecosystem services (ESs), which further threaten ecosystem sustainability. However, few studies have been committed to sufficiently explore the relationship between land degradation neutrality (LDN) and the ES balance of supply and demand sides, as well as their spatial disparities and determinants. To fill the knowledge gaps, this study quantifies land dynamics and ES balance through biophysical models and an expert knowledge matrix, respectively, and explores the spatial determinants through an integrated regression method. From 1990 to 2018, the ecosystem restoration projects in the Loess Plateau substantially reduced soil loss and maintained ES surplus patterns for the entire regional scale, except for individual urban agglomerations, which suffered from ES deficits. Spatial panel models and geographically and temporally weighted regression revealed that the ES balance and soil loss were concurrently determined by socioeconomic indicators, landscape composition, and structure. In addition, the spatial determinants presented remarkable regional heterogeneities and spillover effects depending on individual environmental and socioeconomic conditions, which should be taken into account in landscape monitoring, simulation, forecasting, and planning. Therefore, ecosystem restoration and landscape management should not solely depend on individual indicators in local units, but also rely on integrated frameworks and coordinated collaborations from cross-border areas that appropriately link LDN and ES balance maintenance targets by considering common critical determinants and their external effects. This study enriches the understanding of ecosystem evolution and sustaining ES balance. The findings are expected to further support policy formulations and implementations to address land degradation challenges and enhance ecosystem sustainability.

The Composite-Template Method to Construct Hierarchical Carbon Nanocages for Supercapacitors with Ultrahigh Energy and Power Densities.

3D hierarchical carbon nanocages (hCNC) are becoming new platforms for advanced energy storage and conversion due to their unique structural characteristics, especially the combination of multiscale pore structure with high conductivity of sp2 carbon frameworks, which can promote the mass/charge synergetic transfer in various electrochemical processes. Herein, the MgO@ZnO composite-template method is developed to construct hCNC and nitrogen-doped hCNC (hNCNC), which integrates the advantages of the in situ MgO template method and ZnO self-sacrificing template method. The hierarchical MgO template provides the scaffold for depositing carbon nanocages, while the self-sacrificing ZnO template helps create abundant micropores while promoting the graphitization degree, so that the microstructures of the products are effectively regulated. The optimized hCNC and hNCNC have an increased specific surface area and conductivity, which can further boost the mass/charge synergetic transfer. As the electrode materials of supercapacitors, the optimal hCNC(hNCNC) exhibits a high specific capacitance of 281(348) F g-1 in KOH and 276(297) F g-1 in EMIMBF4 electrolytes at 1 A g-1 . The ultrahigh energy and power densities are realized, accompanied by a high-rate capability and long cycling stability. The record-high energy densities of 141.8-71.4 Wh kg-1 are achieved in EMIMBF4 at power densities of 10.0-250.4 kW kg-1 .

Tunable Synthesis of Hierarchical Yolk/Double-Shelled SiOx @TiO2 @C Nanospheres for High-Performance Lithium-Ion Batteries.

Invited for the cover of this issue is Qinghua Gong, Guowei Zhou, and co-workers at Qilu University of Technology. The dial represents the etching time of SiOx yolk in NaOH solution and the brightness of the Chinese red lantern represents the electrochemical performance of the composites. Read the full text of the article at 10.1002/chem.202003246.

Tunable Synthesis of Hierarchical Yolk/Double-Shelled SiOx @TiO2 @C Nanospheres for High-Performance Lithium-Ion Batteries.

This work reports the preparation of unique hierarchical yolk/double-shelled SiOx @TiO2 @C nanospheres with different voids by a facile sol-gel method combined with carbon coating. In the preparation process, SiOx nanosphere is used as a hard template. Etch time of SiOx yolk affects the morphology and electrochemical performance of SiOx @TiO2 @C. With the increase in etch time, the yolk/double-shelled SiOx @TiO2 @C with 15 and 30 nm voids and the TiO2 @C hollow nanospheres are obtained. The yolk/double-shelled SiOx @TiO2 @C nanospheres exhibit remarkable lithium-ion battery performance as anodes, including high lithium storage capacity, outstanding rate capability, good reversibility, and stable long-term cycle life. The unique structure can accommodate the large volume change of the SiOx yolk, provide a unique buffering space for the discharge/charge processes, improve the structural stability of the electrode material during repeated Li+ intercalation/deintercalation processes, and enhance the cycling stability. The SiOx @TiO2 @C with 30 nm void space exhibits a high discharge specific capacity of ≈1195.4 mA h g-1 at the current density of 0.1 A g-1 after 300 cycles and ≈701.1 mA h g-1 at 1 A g-1 for over 800 cycles. These results suggest that the proposed particle architecture is promising and may have potential applications in improving various high performance anode materials.

Preparations of NiFe2O4 Yolk-Shell@C Nanospheres and Their Performances as Anode Materials for Lithium-Ion Batteries.

At present, lithium-ion batteries (LIBs) have received widespread attention as substantial energy storage devices; thus, their electrochemical performances must be continuously researched and improved. In this paper, we demonstrate a simple self-template solvothermal method combined with annealing for the synthesis of NiFe2O4 yolk-shell (NFO-YS) and NiFe2O4 solid (NFO-S) nanospheres by controlling the heating rate and coating them with a carbon layer on the surface via high-temperature carbonization of resorcinol and formaldehyde resin. Among them, NFO-YS@C has an obvious yolk-shell structure, with a core-shell spacing of about 60 nm, and the thicknesses of the NiFe2O4 shell and carbon shell are approximately 15 and 30 nm, respectively. The yolk-shell structure can alleviate volume changes and shorten the ion/electron diffusion path, while the carbon shell can improve conductivity. Therefore, NFO-YS@C nanospheres as the anode materials of LIBs show a high initial capacity of 1087.1 mA h g-1 at 100 mA g-1, and the capacity of NFO-YS@C nanospheres impressively remains at 1023.5 mA h g-1 after 200 cycles at 200 mA g-1. The electrochemical performance of NFO-YS@C is significantly beyond NFO-S@C, which proves that the carbon coating and yolk-shell structure have good stability and excellent electron transport ability.

Spherical Bi2WO6/Bi2S3/MoS2 n-p Heterojunction with Excellent Visible-Light Photocatalytic Reduction Cr(VI) Activity.

Exploiting excellent photocatalytic activity and stable heterostructure composites are of critical importance for environmental sustainability. The spherical Bi2WO6/Bi2S3/MoS2 n-p heterojunction is first prepared via an in situ hydrothermal method using Bi2WO6, Na2MoO4·2H2O, and CH4N2S, in which the intermediate phase Bi2S3 is formed due to chemical coupling interaction of Bi2WO6 and CH4N2S. Scanning electron microscopy indicates that the compactness of the sample can be easily adjusted by changing the contents of S and Mo sources in the solution. The results of ultraviolet-visible (UV-vis) diffuse reflectance spectra, photoluminescence, transient photocurrent response, and electrochemical impedance spectra indicate that the formation of heterojunctions contributes to enhancing visible-light utilization and promoting photogenerated carrier separation and transfer. The composite material is used as a catalyst for the visible light photocatalytic reduction of Cr(VI). Remarkably, the optimal Bi2WO6/Bi2S3/MoS2 n-p heterojunction achieves the greatest Cr(VI) reduction rate of 100% within 75 min (λ > 420 nm, pH = 2); this rate is considerably better than the Cr(VI) reduction rate of pure Bi2WO6. The recycling experiment also reveals that the photocatalytic performance of the n-p heterojunction toward Cr(VI) is still maintained at 80% after three cycles, indicating that the n-p heterojunction has excellent structural stability. The capture experiment proves that the main active species in the system are electrons. The reasonable mechanism of Bi2WO6/Bi2S3/MoS2 photocatalytic reduction Cr(VI) is proposed. Our work provides new research ideas for the design of ternary heterojunction composites and new strategies for the development of photocatalysts for wastewater treatment.

Synthesis and Electrochemical Energy Storage Applications of Micro/Nanostructured Spherical Materials.

Micro/nanostructured spherical materials have been widely explored for electrochemical energy storage due to their exceptional properties, which have also been summarized based on electrode type and material composition. The increased complexity of spherical structures has increased the feasibility of modulating their properties, thereby improving their performance compared with simple spherical structures. This paper comprehensively reviews the synthesis and electrochemical energy storage applications of micro/nanostructured spherical materials. After a brief classification, the concepts and syntheses of micro/nanostructured spherical materials are described in detail, which include hollow, core-shelled, yolk-shelled, double-shelled, and multi-shelled spheres. We then introduce strategies classified into hard-, soft-, and self-templating methods for synthesis of these spherical structures, and also include the concepts of synthetic methodologies. Thereafter, we discuss their applications as electrode materials for lithium-ion batteries and supercapacitors, and sulfur hosts for lithium-sulfur batteries. The superiority of multi-shelled hollow micro/nanospheres for electrochemical energy storage applications is particularly summarized. Subsequently, we conclude this review by presenting the challenges, development, highlights, and future directions of the micro/nanostructured spherical materials for electrochemical energy storage.

Tremella-like NiO microspheres embedded with fish-scale-like polypyrrole for high-performance asymmetric supercapacitor.

Tremella-like NiO microspheres embedded with fish-scale-like polypyrrole (PPy) were synthesized by polymerizing pyrrole (Py) onto uniform NiO nanosheets. PPy has a fish-scale-like appearance with a thickness of approximately 10 nm, and is connected to the NiO nanosheet surface. NiO/PPy microspheres (diameter of ∼4 µm) were applied as the electrode material in a supercapacitor. The NiO/PPy-6 obtained under a NiO : Py molar ratio of 6 shows a high specific capacitance of 3648.6 F g-1 at 3 A g-1 and good rate capability (1783 F g-1 at a high current density of 30 A g-1). An asymmetric supercapacitor (ASC) was fabricated using NiO/PPy-6 and activated carbon (AC) as the positive electrode and the negative electrode, respectively. NiO/PPy-6//AC can achieve a high specific capacitance of 937.5 F g-1 at 3 A g-1 and a high energy density of 333.3 W h kg-1 at a power density of 2399.99 W kg-1. The excellent supercapacitor performance is assigned to the combined contribution of both components and the unique heterostructure in NiO/PPy-6.

UFGT: The Key Enzyme Associated with the Petals Variegation in Japanese Apricot.

Japanese apricot (Prunus mume Sieb.et Zucc.) is an important ornamental plant in China. One of the traits of petals color variegation is attractive, but its formation mechanism is unclear. In our study, RNA-seq technology was employed to characterize the transcriptome response to the mutation of "Fuban Tiaozhi" associated with petals variegation in Japanese apricot. As a result, 4,579,040 (white-flowered, WF) and 7,269,883 (red-flowered, RF) reads were mapped to P. persica genes, while 5,006,676 (WF) and 7,907,436 (RF) were mapped to P. persica genomes. There were 960 differentially expressed genes (DEGs) identified. Gene ontology analysis showed that these genes involved in 37 functional groups including 19 biological processes, 10 cellular components and eight molecular functions. Pathway enrichment annotation demonstrated that highly ranked genes were associated with flavonoid biosynthesis, anthocyanin biosynthesis, anthocyanins transports, plant hormone signal transduction, and transcriptional factors. The expression patterns part of them were validated by qRT-PCR. We found that UDP-glucose: flavonoid 3-O-glucosyltransferase (UFGT) gene showed differential expression pattern. The UFGT enzyme activities in RF had a significantly higher than that of WF and lower in the initial stage and increased when the red appeared in the petals, which is identical to the accumulation of anthocyanins. And we also validated the SNPs, leading to the nonsynonymous mutations, in the UFGT by Sanger sequencing which may affect the enzyme activity. In summary, our results provide molecular candidates for better understanding the mechanisms of the variegation in Japanese Apricot.

Residents' Waste Separation Behaviors at the Source: Using SEM with the Theory of Planned Behavior in Guangzhou, China.

Understanding the factors that affect residents' waste separation behaviors helps in constructing effective environmental campaigns for a community. Using the theory of planned behavior (TPB), this study examines factors associated with waste separation behaviors by analyzing responses to questionnaires distributed in Guangzhou, China. Data drawn from 208 of 1000-field questionnaires were used to assess socio-demographic factors and the TPB constructs (i.e., attitudes, subjective norms, perceived behavioral control, intentions, and situational factors). The questionnaire data revealed that attitudes, subjective norms, perceived behavioral control, intentions, and situational factors significantly predicted household waste behaviors in Guangzhou, China. Through a structural equation modeling analysis, we concluded that campaigns targeting moral obligations may be particularly effective for increasing the participation rate in waste separation behaviors.

An R124C mutation in TGFBI caused lattice corneal dystrophy type I with a variable phenotype in three Chinese families.

PURPOSE: A genetic and clinical study of three unrelated Chinese pedigrees with a variable phenotype of lattice corneal dystrophy type I (LCD I). METHODS: The eyes of the patients were examined by slit lamp microscopy, and other clinical records were also collected. Genomic DNA was extracted from peripheral leukocytes of the affected patients and their family members. Exons of the transforming growth factor beta induced TGFBI gene were amplified by polymerase chain reaction and directly sequenced to verify the mutation. Fifty healthy volunteers were analyzed as normal controls. RESULTS: Variable atypical clinical features of LCD I were found by slit lamp microscopy in these three Chinese pedigrees. A heterozygous single base-pair transition from C to T (C417T), leading to amino acid substitution (R124C) in the encoded TGFBI protein, was detected in all of the affected patients. No mutation was found in unaffected family members and 50 normal controls. CONCLUSIONS: Clinical features of Chinese patients with the same R124C mutation are quite variable even within the same family. Molecular genetic analysis of TGFBI can offer a rapid, accurate diagnosis of patients with atypical corneal dystrophies.