Alkalized MXene/carbon nanotube composite for stable Na metal anodes.

Ti3C2 MXenes are emerging 2D materials and have attracted increasing attention in sodium metal anode fabrication because of their high conductivity, multifunctional groups and excellent mechanical performances. However, the severe self-restacking of Ti3C2 MXenes is not conducive to dispersing Na+ and limits the function of regulating sodium deposition. Herein, an alkalized MXene/carbon nanotube (CNT) composite (named A-M-C) is introduced to regulate Na deposition behavior, which consists of Na3Ti5O12 microspheres, Ti3C2 MXene nanosheets and CNTs. Ti3C2 MXene nanosheets with large interlayer spaces and "sodiophilic" functional groups can provide abundant active sites for uniform nucleation and deposition of Na. Plenty of nanosheets are grown on the surface of the microsphere, thereby reducing the local current density, which can guide initial Na nucleation and promote Na dendrite-free growth. Furthermore, CNTs increase the electrical conductivity of the composite and achieve fast Na+ transport, improving the cycling stability of Na metal batteries. As a result, at a capacity of 1 mA h cm-2, the A-M-C electrode achieves a high average coulombic efficiency (CE) of 99.9% after 300 cycles at 2 mA cm-2. The symmetric cells of A-M-C/Na provide a long cycling life of more than 1400 h at 1 mA cm-2 with a minimal overpotential of 19 mV at an areal capacity of 1 mA h cm-2. The A-M-C/Na//NVP@C full cell presents a high coulombic efficiency of 98% with 100 mA g-1 in the first cycle. The strategy in this work provides new insights into fabricating novel MXene-based anode materials for dendrite-free sodium deposition.

Research Trends of Acupuncture Therapy on Chronic Pelvic Pain Syndrome from 2000 to 2022: A Bibliometric Analysis.

Background: Acupuncture is considered an important means of analgesic, which has been widely used in chronic pelvic pain syndrome (CPPS) management and treatment in recent years, published a large number of related documents. However, the relevant literature in this field has not been summarized and quantitatively analyzed. Therefore, this study aims to analyze the hotspots and predicting future research trends of acupuncture on pelvic pain syndrome. Methods: Search for the relevant publications of the web of science database from 2000 to 2022 about the treatment of acupuncture on chronic pelvic pain syndrome. The Citespace software and VosViewer software are used to analyze the visualization of the countries, institutions, authors, keywords and references and references in the literature. Results: A total of 173 publications were included. The annual number of essays gradually showed an overall growth trend over time. Medicine magazine is the most published journal in this field. J UROLOGY and Acupunct Med are the most cited journals and the most influential magazines; The most active and influential country is China, and the most produced institutions are Beijing University of Chinese Medicine; The most produced authors are Liu Zhishun. The most cited and most influential authors are Nickel JC and Armour M; keywords and cited reference analysis show that the quality of life, mechanism research, alternative medicine and electro-acupuncture will be the scientific hotspot of acupuncture treatment for chronic pelvic pain syndrome. Conclusion: This study shows that acupuncture on CPPS is increasingly valued and recognized. The future research hotspots will focus on the effects and mechanisms. In the future, more high-quality animal basic research will be required to explore the exact mechanism of acupuncture on CPPS. In addition, different parameters of acupuncture such as electric-acupuncture, stimulating frequency, duration and strength are also the focus of future research. More clinical trials are required to verify its safety and effectiveness.

Influence of Bushen Tiaochong Cycle Therapy on Th1/Th2 Deviation, Sex Hormone Level, and Pregnancy Outcome of Alloimmune Recurrent Spontaneous Abortion.

OBJECTIVE: To analyze the influence of Bushen Tiaochong cycle therapy on Th1/Th2 deviation, sex hormone level, and pregnancy outcome of alloimmune recurrent spontaneous abortion (RSA). METHODS: From August 2018 to April 2020, 130 patients with alloimmune RSA who met the inclusion criteria were randomly divided into the control group (n = 65) and the study group (n = 65). The former received lymphocyte immunotherapy (LIT), and the latter received Bushen Tiaochong cycle therapy on the basis of LIT. The treatment ended at 12 w of pregnancy. The total score of traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) syndromes, Th1 cytokine (IL-2), Th2 cytokine (IL-10), and related hormones (chorionic gonadotropin (hCG) and progesterone (P)) were compared between the two groups before and after treatment. The positive rate of blocking antibody (BA), pregnancy success rate, and preterm birth rate were counted. RESULT: After treatment, the total score of TCM syndromes, IL-2 level, and Th1/Th2 ratio in the two groups decreased significantly, while the levels of IL-10, hCG, and P increased significantly, and the study group improved significantly compared with the control group (P < 0.05). The positive rate of BA and pregnancy success rate in the study group were higher than those in the control group (P < 0.05). There was no significant difference in the preterm birth rate between the two groups (P > 0.05). CONCLUSION: On the basis of routine western medicine treatment, a combined application of Bushen Tiaochong cycle therapy can significantly improve the Th1/Th2 deviation, serum sex hormone level, and pregnancy outcome in patients with alloimmune RSA.

Impact of dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA) supplementation on testosterone concentrations and BMI in elderly women: A meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials.

BACKGROUND: Despite the fact that numerous clinical studies have evaluated the positive effects of dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA) supplementation on testosterone concentrations and on the body mass index (BMI), more evidence is needed to certify that DHEA is a BMI-reducing agent in the elderly. This meta-analysis aims to clarify the various incompatible results and investigate the impact of DHEA supplementation on serum testosterone levels and lean body mass in elderly women. METHODS: Four scientific databases (EMBASE, PubMed/MEDLINE, Scopus and Web of Science) were searched from inception until 20 August 2020 for trials comparing DHEA with placebo. Results were presented as weighted mean differences (WMDs) and 95 % confidence intervals (CIs) based on the random effects model (DerSimonian-Laird approach). RESULTS: Nine arms with 793 subjects reported testosterone as an outcome measure. The overall results demonstrated that testosterone levels increased significantly after DHEA administration in elderly women (WMD: 17.52 ng/dL, 95 % CI: 6.61, 28.43, P = 0.002). In addition, DHEA administration significantly decreased the BMI (WMD:-0.39 kg/m2, I2 = 0.0 %). CONCLUSION: The results of the current meta-analysis support the use of DHEA supplementation for increasing testosterone concentrations in elderly women.

Multivariate analysis of TOF-SIMS spectra of monolayers on scribed silicon.

Static time-of-flight secondary ion mass spectrometry (TOF-SIMS) was performed on monolayers on scribed silicon (Si(scr)) derived from 1-alkenes, 1-alkynes, 1-holoalkanes, aldehydes, and acid chlorides. To rapidly determine the variation in the data without introducing user bias, a multivariate analysis was performed. First, principal components analysis (PCA) was done on data obtained from silicon scribed with homologous series of aldehydes and acid chlorides. For this study, the positive ion spectra, the negative ion spectra, and the concatentated (linked) positive and negative ion spectra were preprocessed by normalization, mean centering, and autoscaling. The mean centered data consistently showed the best correlations between the scores on PC1 and the number of carbon atoms in the adsorbate. These correlations were not as strong for the normalized and autoscaled data. After reviewing these methods, it was concluded that mean centering is the best preprocessing method for TOF-SIMS spectra of monolayers on Si(scr). A PCA analysis of all of the positive ion spectra revealed a good correlation between the number of carbon atoms in all of the adsorbates and the scores on PC1. PCA of all of the negative ion spectra and the concatenated positive and negative ion spectra showed a correlation based on the number of carbon atoms in the adsorbate and the class of the adsorbate. These results imply that the positive ion spectra are most sensitive to monolayer thickness, while the negative ion spectra are sensitive to the nature of the substrate-monolayer interface and the monolayer thickness. Loadings show an inverse relationship between (inorganic) fragments that are expected from the substrate and (organic) fragments expected from the monolayer. Multivariate peak intensity ratios were derived. It is also suggested that PCA can be used to detect outlier surfaces. Partial least squares showed a strong correlation between the number of carbon atoms in the adsorbate and the number it predicted.