Diagnostic accuracy of hysterosalpingo-foam sonography for assessment of fallopian tube patency in infertile women.

RESEARCH QUESTION: What is the diagnostic accuracy of hysterosalpingo-foam sonography (HyFoSy), using two-dimensional ultrasound in tubal patency assessment in infertile women compared with laparoscopy with dye chromotubation? DESIGN: This prospective study was conducted at My Duc Hospital, Vietnam. Infertile women aged 18 years or older, who were scheduled for laparoscopy, were included. Visual Analogue Scale (VAS) score for perception of pain during HyFoSy was used. Laparoscopy was carried out on the same day. Clinicians undertaking laparoscopy were blinded to HyFoSy results. Sensitivity, specificity, negative and positive predictive value, and 95% confidence intervals were calculated. A sample size of 455 women (n = 910 fallopian tubes) was needed to demonstrate a fluctuation hypothesis, not exceeding 6%, for sensitivity and specificity (power 0.80, two-sided alpha 5%, loss to follow-up 5%). RESULTS: Between 2019 and 2022, 455 participants were recruited. Hysterosalpingo-foam sonography was unsuccessfully carried out in six participants. Two withdrew their consent. Data analysis was conducted on the remaining 447 participants (n = 868 fallopian tubes). The sensitivity and specificity of hysterosalpingo-foam sonography compared with laparoscopy were 0.75 (95% CI 0.71 to 0.79) and 0.70 (95% CI 0.65 to 0.74), respectively. Hysterosalpingo-foam sonography gave a positive predictive value of 0.76 (95% CI 0.73 to 0.80) and negative predictive value of 0.68 (95% CI 0.64 to 0.73). A total of 42.8% of women reported a VAS score of no pain. No adverse event was reported. CONCLUSION: Compared with laparoscopy with dye chromotubation, two-dimensional HyFoSy is a well-tolerated, reliable technique for assessing tubal patency.

Blunt esophageal injury in the setting of multitrauma: A case report.

Blunt esophageal injury is an unusual organ injury that has unclear clinical symptoms due to the overlap of thoracoabdominal trauma in the setting of multiple traumas. The treatment options vary depending on the patient's clinical symptoms, the extent of esophageal damage, and the time from the onset of damage to diagnosis. This article presents a case of a young male patient receiving emergency treatment after a traffic accident. Esophageal perforation was diagnosed through chest computed tomography with contrast injection and oral contrast. The article focuses on imaging characteristics and suggestive signs of blunt esophageal injury in the setting of multitrauma.

Molecular epidemiology and risk factors associated with BK and JC polyomavirus urinary shedding after kidney allograft.

Polyomaviruses BK (BKPyV) and JC (JCPyV), belonging to the Polyomaviridae, are responsible for human pathologies. In kidney transplant recipients, BKPyV replication can lead to irreversible nephron damage whereas JCPyV replication remains asymptomatic. Concomitant replication is rare and potential competition between the infections has been described. The aim of this retrospective case-control study was to describe the molecular epidemiology and risk factors associated with BKPyV and JCPyV replication in a cohort of kidney transplant recipients. In total, 655 urine samples from 460 patients were tested for BKPyV and JCPyV DNA. Positive samples were submitted to strain genotyping. Demographic and clinical characteristics were also compared. Isolated JCPyV and BKPyV was found in 16.5% and 23.3% of patients, respectively; co-replication was rare (3.9%). BKPyV strains Ib-2, Ib-1, and IVc-2 were the most prevalent. JCPyV strains mostly belonged to genotypes 4 and 1B. During follow-up, JCPyV shedding significantly reduced the risk of BKPyV DNAuria, with an odds ratio of 0.57 (95% confidence interval: 0.35-0.99), and was associated with better prognosis than BKPyV replication, based on the estimated glomerular filtration rate. Molecular epidemiology of BKPyV and JCPyV strains in our region was similar to previous studies. This study suggests that JCPyV is benign and appears to limit damaging BKPyV replication. JCPyV DNAuria screening could thus be a useful strategy to predict BKPyV-related outcomes.

Polythiophene-wrapped Chitosan Nanofibrils with a Bouligand Structure toward Electrochemical Macroscopic Membranes.

Exploring structural biomimicry is a great opportunity to replicate hierarchical frameworks inspired by nature in advanced functional materials for boosting new applications. In this work, we present the biomimetic integration of polythiophene into chitosan nanofibrils in a twisted Bouligand structure to afford free-standing macroscopic composite membranes with electrochemical functionality. By considering the integrity of the Bouligand structure in crab shells, we can produce large, free-standing chitosan nanofibril membranes with iridescent colors and flexible toughness. These unique structured features lead the chitosan membranes to host functional additives to mimic hierarchically layered composites. We used the iridescent chitosan nanofibrils as a photonic platform to investigate the host-guest combination between thiophene and chitosan through oxidative polymerization to fabricate homogeneous polythiophene-wrapped chitosan composites. This biomimetic incorporation fully retains the twisted Bouligand organization of nanofibrils in the polymerized assemblies, thus giving rise to free-standing macroscopic electrochemical membranes. Our further experiments are the modification of the biomimetic polythiophene-wrapped chitosan composites on a glassy carbon electrode to design a three-electrode system for simultaneous electrochemical detection of uric acid, xanthine, hypoxanthine, and caffeine at trace concentrations.

Characterization of the Zinc Uptake Repressor (Zur) from Acinetobacter baumannii.

Bacterial cells tightly regulate the intracellular concentrations of essential transition metal ions by deploying a panel of metal-regulated transcriptional repressors and activators that bind to operator-promoter regions upstream of regulated genes. Like other zinc uptake regulator (Zur) proteins, Acinetobacter baumannii Zur represses transcription of its regulon when ZnII is replete and binds more weakly to DNA when ZnII is limiting. Previous studies established that Zur proteins are homodimeric and harbor at least two metal sites per protomer or four per dimer. CdII X-ray absorption spectroscopy (XAS) of the Cd2Zn2 AbZur metalloderivative with CdII bound to the allosteric sites reveals a S(N/O)3 first coordination shell. Site-directed mutagenesis suggests that H89 and C100 from the N-terminal DNA binding domain and H107 and E122 from the C-terminal dimerization domain comprise the regulatory metal site. KZn for this allosteric site is 6.0 (±2.2) × 1012 M-1 with a functional "division of labor" among the four metal ligands. N-terminal domain ligands H89 and C100 contribute far more to KZn than H107 and E122, while C100S AbZur uniquely fails to bind to DNA tightly as measured by an in vitro transcription assay. The heterotropic allosteric coupling free energy, ΔGc, is negative, consistent with a higher KZn for the AbZur-DNA complex and defining a bioavailable ZnII set-point of ≈6 × 10-14 M. Small-angle X-ray scattering (SAXS) experiments reveal that only the wild-type Zn homodimer undergoes allosteric switching, while the C100S AbZur fails to switch. These data collectively suggest that switching to a high affinity DNA-binding conformation involves a rotation/translation of one protomer relative to the other in a way that is dependent on the integrity of C100. We place these findings in the context of other Zur proteins and Fur family repressors more broadly.

The genomes of Hercules beetles reveal putative adaptive loci and distinct demographic histories in pristine North American forests.

Beetles, despite their remarkable biodiversity and a long history of research, remain lacking in reference genomes annotated with structural variations in loci of adaptive significance. We sequenced and assembled high-quality chromosome-level genomes of four Hercules beetles which exhibit divergence in male horn size and shape and body colouration. The four Hercules beetle genomes were assembled to 11 pseudo-chromosomes, where the three genomes assembled using Nanopore data (Dynastes grantii, D. hyllus and D. tityus) were mapped to the genome assembled using PacBio + Hi-C data (D. maya). We demonstrated a striking similarity in genome structure among the four species. This conservative genome structure may be attributed to our use of the D. maya assembly as the reference; however, it is worth noting that such a conservative genome structure is a recurring phenomenon among scarab beetles. We further identified homologues of nine and three candidate-gene families that may be associated with the evolution of horn structure and body colouration respectively. Structural variations in Scr and Ebony2 were detected and discussed for their putative impacts on generating morphological diversity in beetles. We also reconstructed the demographic histories of the four Hercules beetles using heterozygosity information from the diploid genomes. We found that the demographic histories of the beetles closely recapitulated historical changes in suitable forest habitats driven by climate shifts.

Helicobacter pylori Eradication Rate Using Stool Antigen Test in Vietnamese Children: A Prospective Multicenter Study.

Objectives: This study assessed the diagnostic value of a monoclonal immunoassay stool antigen test (HpSA) for Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori) infection and the eradication outcomes. Methods: Children undergoing digestive endoscopy at 2 Children's Hospitals in Ho Chi Minh City were recruited. Treatment was offered to H. pylori-infected children. Stool samples were collected on the same day as the endoscopy procedure and after 6 weeks post-treatment for HpSA. Diagnostic value and optimal cutoff of HpSA were assessed using biopsy-based tests as the gold standard. Eradication was defined as a negative HpSA post-treatment. Ethical approval was obtained, and informed consent was signed by the participants. Results: In total, 394 patients participated in the study. The most common symptoms were epigastric pain (74.6%) and vomiting (37.3%). H. pylori status was positive in 78% of patients (306/394), doubtful in 10.1%, and negative in 12.2%. HpSA was positive in 73.2% (142/194). Excluding doubtful infections, the sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value (PPV), negative predictive value (NPV), and accuracy of HpSA were 87.4%, 95.2%, 99.2%, 51.3%, and 88.4%, respectively. The optimal cutoff value of 0.148 provided similar accuracy to the recommended cutoff. The eradication rate was 56.1% in per-protocol analysis and 27.9% in intention-to-treat analysis. Treatment success was higher in boys, but lower among malnourished children and those infected with cagA+ strains. Conclusions: The HpSA is reliable for identifying H. pylori infection in epidemiological studies and assessing eradication outcomes. The low eradication rate highlights the need for an appropriate intervention strategy in Vietnamese children.

Image-Based Ship Detection Using Deep Variational Information Bottleneck.

Image-based ship detection is a critical function in maritime security. However, lacking high-quality training datasets makes it challenging to train a robust supervision deep learning model. Conventional methods use data augmentation to increase training samples. This approach is not robust because the data augmentation may not present a complex background or occlusion well. This paper proposes to use an information bottleneck and a reparameterization trick to address the challenge. The information bottleneck learns features that focus only on the object and eliminate all backgrounds. It helps to avoid background variance. In addition, the reparameterization introduces uncertainty during the training phase. It helps to learn more robust detectors. Comprehensive experiments show that the proposed method outperforms conventional methods on Seaship datasets, especially when the number of training samples is small. In addition, this paper discusses how to integrate the information bottleneck and the reparameterization into well-known object detection frameworks efficiently.

Childhood Acute Poisoning at Haiphong Children's Hospital: A 10-Year Retrospective Study.

Introduction: Children are most often harmed by acute poisoning, which may cause disability or even death. This demonstrates the critical necessity for epidemiologic studies specific to each nation and area since they aid in developing plans for the prevention of acute poisoning. There are no data or outdated data on acute poisoning in children in Vietnam. This research would partly fill this existing gap and compare the trend with other places across the globe. Methods: A retrospective study was conducted in the 10-year period from 2012 to 2021 in Haiphong Children's Hospital, Vietnam. Results: There were 771 children hospitalized due to acute poisoning. Children in the 1-5-year-old group accounted for the highest rate, at 506 (65.6%). The mean age was 4.5 ± 4.1 years old. The male-to-female ratio was 1.2/1. Nonpharmaceutical chemicals were the most common agent in 331 cases (42.9%), including cleaning products 63 (19.0%), rat poison 60 (18.1%), and petrol 42 (12.7%). Medications were the second most common agent in 290 cases (37.6%), mostly paracetamol 60 (20.7%) and sedatives 40 (13.8%). There were 633 (82.1%) children exposed to poisons unintentionally. Conclusion: Children between the ages of 1 and 5 are more likely to be exposed to harmful substances. The most common agents were nonpharmaceutical chemicals followed by pharmaceuticals. Most incidents were inadvertent. Finally, our research may provide insights that public health authorities might use to plan practical actions.

SPAG17 mediates nuclear translocation of protamines during spermiogenesis.

Protamines (PRM1 and PRM2) are small, arginine-rich, nuclear proteins that replace histones in the final stages of spermiogenesis, ensuring chromatin compaction and nuclear remodeling. Defects in protamination lead to increased DNA fragmentation and reduced male fertility. Since efficient sperm production requires the translocation of protamines from the cytoplasm to the nucleus, we investigated whether SPAG17, a protein crucial for intracellular protein trafficking during spermiogenesis, participates in protamine transport. Initially, we assessed the protein-protein interaction between SPAG17 and protamines using proximity ligation assays, revealing a significant interaction originating in the cytoplasm and persisting within the nucleus. Subsequently, immunoprecipitation and mass spectrometry (IP/MS) assays validated this initial observation. Sperm and spermatids from Spag17 knockout mice exhibited abnormal protamination, as revealed by chromomycin A3 staining, suggesting defects in protamine content. However, no differences were observed in the expression of Prm1 and Prm2 mRNA or in protein levels between testes of wild-type and Spag17 knockout mice. Conversely, immunofluorescence studies conducted on isolated mouse spermatids unveiled reduced nuclear/cytoplasm ratios of protamines in Spag17 knockout spermatids compared to wild-type controls, implying transport defects of protamines into the spermatid nucleus. In alignment with these findings, in vitro experiments involving somatic cells, including mouse embryonic fibroblasts, exhibited compromised nuclear translocation of PRM1 and PRM2 in the absence of SPAG17. Collectively, our results present compelling evidence that SPAG17 facilitates the transport of protamines from the cytoplasm to the nucleus.

In situ magnesiothermic reduction synthesis of a Ge@C composite for high-performance lithium-ion batterie anodes.

Metallothermic, especially magnesiothermic, solid-state reactions have been widely applied to synthesize various materials. However, further investigations regarding the use of this method for composite syntheses are needed because of the high reactivity of magnesium. Herein, we report an in situ magnesiothermic reduction to synthesize a composite of Ge@C as an anode material for lithium-ion batteries. The obtained electrode delivered a specific capacity of 454.2 mAh·g-1 after 200 cycles at a specific current of 1000 mA·g-1. The stable electrochemical performance and good rate performance of the electrode (432.3 mAh·g-1 at a specific current of 5000 mA·g-1) are attributed to the enhancement in distribution and chemical contact between Ge nanoparticles and the biomass-based carbon matrix. A comparison with other synthesis routes has been conducted to demonstrate the effectiveness of contact formation during in situ synthesis.

Multivalent Molecular Tweezers Disrupt the Essential NDC80 Interaction with Microtubules.

Binding of microtubule filaments by the conserved Ndc80 protein is required for kinetochore-microtubule attachments in cells and the successful distribution of the genetic material during cell division. The reversible inhibition of microtubule binding is an important aspect of the physiological error correction process. Small molecule inhibitors of protein-protein interactions involving Ndc80 are therefore highly desirable, both for mechanistic studies of chromosome segregation and also for their potential therapeutic value. Here, we report on a novel strategy to develop rationally designed inhibitors of the Ndc80 Calponin-homology domain using Supramolecular Chemistry. With a multiple-click approach, lysine-specific molecular tweezers were assembled to form covalently fused dimers to pentamers with a different overall size and preorganization/stiffness. We identified two dimers and a trimer as efficient Ndc80 CH-domain binders and have shown that they disrupt the interaction between Ndc80 and microtubules at low micromolar concentrations without affecting microtubule dynamics. NMR spectroscopy allowed us to identify the biologically important lysine residues 160 and 204 as preferred tweezer interaction sites. Enhanced sampling molecular dynamics simulations provided a rationale for the binding mode of multivalent tweezers and the role of pre-organization and secondary interactions in targeting multiple lysine residues across a protein surface.

Genetic Assessment of Fertile F1 Hybrids between Two Hercules Beetles, Dynastes maya Hardy and D. grantii Horn (Scarabaeidae).

Although hybridization may complicate taxonomic practices, it can be common between animal species. Animal hybridization not only can help with generating phenotypic and species diversity in nature, but also with understanding the genetic and genomic basis of phenotypic evolution in the laboratory. We assessed the genetic composition of captive bred F1 hybrids between two Hercules beetle species using mitochondrial CO1 and nuclear loci from a double-digest restriction-site associated DNA sequencing (ddRADseq) library. We showed that the F1 hybrids were genetically clustered with samples from the maternal species, D. grantii, based on CO1 data. Nuclear genome data, on the other hand, clearly showed that the F1 individuals were genetically intermediate between D. maya, the paternal species, and D. grantii, based on a principal component analysis. Our results also revealed that sampling design may have a major impact on the inferred genetic structure and hybrid individuals using ddRADseq data sets. We discuss the importance and potential from studying the genomics of this hybrid progeny in terms of understanding the origin and maintenance of both intraspecific and interspecific phenotypic divergence and convergence.

The global COVID-19 vaccine surplus: tackling expiring stockpiles.

BACKGROUND: A global surplus of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) vaccines exists as a result of difficulties in aligning the demand and supply for vaccine manufacturing and delivery. World leaders have accelerated vaccine development, approval, production and distribution as a pragmatic approach to addressing the immediate public health challenges of the first two and a half years of the pandemic. MAIN BODY: The currently predominant, highly transmissible Omicron variant of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 has brought us closer to the threshold required to achieve herd immunity by greatly increasing rates of natural infection. Paradoxically, in parallel with rising vaccination levels in industrialized nations, this indirectly reduces the need for mass vaccine campaigns. Principal concerns that contribute to low vaccination rates which persist in several other countries, particularly of the Global South, are vaccine hesitancy and unequal access to vaccination. Social uncertainty fueled by fake news, misinformation, unfounded lay opinions and conspiracy theories has inevitably led to an erosion of public trust in vaccination. CONCLUSION: To address the current mismatch between supply and demand of COVID-19 vaccines, there should be a focus on three principles: decelerating vaccine production, increasing distribution across communities, and optimizing cost-effectiveness of distribution logistics. Slowing down and switching from large-scale production to effectively 'made to order' is a feasible option, which should be commensurate with management capacity. Transparent and evidence-based data should be widely and freely disseminated to the public through multimedia channels to mitigate miscommunication and conspiracy theories. Use of soon-to-expire stockpiles should be prioritized not only to enhance booster dose rollouts in adults but to expand immunization campaigns to children (especially those aged 5-11 years), subject to national approval. Future research should ideally aim to develop vaccines that only require basic, affordable storage and maintenance procedures as opposed to sophisticated and expensive protocols.

The association between clinical, subclinical features and autoantibody profile in Vietnamese dermatomyositis patients.

There is still a lack of research in Vietnam on the autoantibody profile of dermatomyositis (DM) and its association with clinical and subclinical characteristics. Therefore, we conducted this study to investigate clinical and subclinical correlations with autoantibodies in DM patients. 72 DM patients at Vietnam National Hospital of Dermatology and Venereology (NHDV) from March 2019 to September 2021 were included in this cross-sectional study. Clinical manifestations and laboratory test results of the patients were obtained at the time of visit. Of these, 63 patients were tested for the presence of autoantibodies using an Immunoblot assay. Our findings show that the average age of patients was 41.7 years. The female-male ratio was 1.7:1. The most common skin and muscle manifestations were myalgia (79.2%), heliotrope rash (62.5%), shawl sign (61.1%), Gottron's sign (59.7%), muscle weakness (59.7%), Gottron's papule (52.8%), periungual telangiectasia (41.7%), V-sign (38.9%), poikiloderma (26.4%), periungual fissures (20.8%), Raynaud's phenomenon (15.3%). Among the 63 patients tested for autoantibodies, myositis-specific antibodies (MSAs) were found in 71.4% of the serum samples, and myositis-associated antibodies (MAAs) in 36.5%. Anti-TIF1γ antibody accounted for the highest percentage (28.6%), followed by anti-Ro52 (22.2%), anti-synthetase (17.5%), anti-Mi-2 and anti-MDA5 (both 14.3%). Anti-synthetase antibodies (ARS-Abs) showed a significant association with arthralgia, fever, and Raynaud's phenomenon, while anti-TIF1γ antibodies showed a strong association with V-sign and poikiloderma (p<0.05). Clinical features in dermatomyositis are heterogeneous. Our study results show some associations between clinical features and autoantibodies in patients with DM. The analysis of DM-related autoantibodies is clinically useful, will be essential for the approaches to diagnosis, and management of DM patients.

Disrupting Sc-uORFs of a transcription factor bZIP1 using CRISPR/Cas9 enhances sugar and amino acid contents in tomato (Solanum lycopersicum).

MAIN CONCLUSION: Induced mutations in the SC-uORF of the tomato transcription factor gene SlbZIP1 by the CRISPR/Cas9 system led to the high accumulation of sugar and amino acid contents in tomato fruits. Tomato (Solanum lycopersicum) is one of the most popular and consumed vegetable crops in the world. Among important traits for tomato improvement such as yield, biotic and abiotic resistances, appearance, post-harvest shelf life and fruit quality, the last one seems to face more challenges because of its genetic and biochemical complexities. In this study, a dual-gRNAs CRISPR/Cas9 system was developed to induce targeted mutations in uORF regions of the SlbZIP1, a gene involved in the sucrose-induced repression of translation (SIRT) mechanism. Different induced mutations in the SlbZIP1-uORF region were identified at the T0 generation, stably transferred to the offspring, and no mutation was found at potential off-target sites. The induced mutations in the SlbZIP1-uORF region affected the transcription of SlbZIP1 and related genes in sugar and amino acid biosynthesis. Fruit component analysis showed significant increases in soluble solid, sugar and total amino acid contents in all SlbZIP1-uORF mutant lines. The accumulation of sour-tasting amino acids, including aspartic and glutamic acids, raised from 77 to 144%, while the accumulation of sweet-tasting amino acids such as alanine, glycine, proline, serine, and threonine increased from 14 to 107% in the mutant plants. Importantly, the potential SlbZIP1-uORF mutant lines with desirable fruit traits and no impaired effect on plant phenotype, growth and development were identified under the growth chamber condition. Our result indicates the potential utility of the CRISPR/Cas9 system for fruit quality improvement in tomato and other important crops.

Development of Vang Danh anthracite as a cost-effective anode for sodium-ion batteries through a heat-treatment process.

This study focuses on the effects of the chemical process and heating time at 900 °C on pristine anthracite coal (provided by Vang Danh coal, Quang Ninh province, Vietnam) and explores its structure and electrochemical performance when used as an anode in Na-ion batteries. After chemical treatment with NaOH and H2SO4, the impurity content in the raw material decreased significantly (e.g., ash content dropped from 4.4% to 0.9%, etc.). The interspacing between the graphene layers in the anthracite structure also increased after the heat treatment. Besides, on extending the heating time, the anthracite structure became more disordered than the samples heated for shorter times. Therefore, the intercalation ability of Na+ ions in the anthracite structure increased, and the sample heated at 900 °C for 6 hours exhibited the highest reversible capacity of up to 160 mA h g-1 with adequate capacity retention after 100 cycles at C/10 rate.

Ionic Compatibilization of Polymers.

The small specific entropy of mixing of high molecular weight polymers implies that most blends of dissimilar polymers are immiscible with poor physical properties. Historically, a wide range of compatibilization strategies have been pursued, including the addition of copolymers or emulsifiers or installing complementary reactive groups that can promote the in situ formation of block or graft copolymers during blending operations. Typically, such reactive blending exploits reversible or irreversible covalent or hydrogen bonds to produce the desired copolymer, but there are other options. Here, we argue that ionic bonds and electrostatic correlations represent an underutilized tool for polymer compatibilization and in tailoring materials for applications ranging from sustainable polymer alloys to organic electronics and solid polymer electrolytes. The theoretical basis for ionic compatibilization is surveyed and placed in the context of existing experimental literature and emerging classes of functional polymer materials. We conclude with a perspective on how electrostatic interactions might be exploited in plastic waste upcycling.

Photocontrolled Energy Storage in Azobispyrazoles with Exceptionally Large Light Penetration Depths.

Azobispyrazole, 4pzMe-5pzH, derivatives with small terminal substituents (Me, Et, i-Pr, and n-Pr) are reported to undergo facile reversible photoswitching in condensed phases at room temperature, exhibiting unprecedentedly large effective light penetration depths (1400 µm of UV at 365 nm and 1400 µm of visible light at 530 nm). These small photoswitches exhibit crystal-to-liquid phase transitions upon UV irradiation, which increases the overall energy storage density of this material beyond 300 J/g that is similar to the specific energy of commercial Na-ion batteries. The impact of heteroarene design, the presence of ortho methyl substituents, and the terminal functional groups is explored for both condensed-phase switching and energy storage. The design principles elucidated in this work will help to develop a wide variety of molecular solar thermal energy storage materials that operate in condensed phases.