Co-Sensitization Effects of Indoline and Carbazole Dyes in Solar Cells and Their Neutral-Anion Equilibrium in Solution.

Co-sensitization of two or more light-absorbing compounds on a TiO surface has recently become one of the most successful strategies in the development of dye-sensitized solar cells (DSSCs). The specific structure of the dyes for DSSCs implies that they can partly exist in anionic forms in popular solvents used for sensitization. Our study concerns the above two issues being analyzed in detail using the example of the popular carbazole (MK2) and indoline (D205) dyes, studied by stationary absorption and emission, femtosecond transient absorption (in complete cells and in the solutions), current-voltage measurements, DFT and TD-DFT theoretical calculations.

Role of feather reed grass () in phytoremediation of urban soils.

Samples of soil and aerial mass of were obtained from an urban area adjacent to a street. The sampled material was analyzed to determine the content of Fe, Mn, Zn, Cu, Pb, Cd, Ni, Cr and Co, in addition to which soil was analyzed for the content of total organic carbon (TOC), salinity (EC) and reaction (pH). Based on the results, the enrichment factor (EF) and biological accumulation coefficient (BAC) of heavy metals as well as correlations between the analyzed characteristics were calculated.

Mapping intracellular pH in tumors using amide and guanidyl CEST-MRI at 9.4 T.

Purpose: In principle, non-invasive mapping of the intracellular pH (pH ) in vivo is possible using endogenous chemical exchange saturation transfer (CEST)-MRI of the amide and guanidyl signals. However, the application for cancer imaging is still impeded, as current state-of-the-art approaches do not allow for simultaneous compensation of concomitant effects that vary within tumors. In this study, we present a novel method for absolute pH mapping using endogenous CEST-MRI, which simultaneously compensates for concentration changes, superimposing CEST signals, magnetization transfer contrast, and spillover dilution.

RSPO2 inhibits BMP signaling to promote self-renewal in acute myeloid leukemia.

Acute myeloid leukemia (AML) is a rapidly progressing cancer, for which chemotherapy remains standard treatment and additional therapeutic targets are requisite. Here, we show that AML cells secrete the stem cell growth factor R-spondin 2 (RSPO2) to promote their self-renewal and prevent cell differentiation. Although RSPO2 is a well-known WNT agonist, we reveal that it maintains AML self-renewal WNT independently, by inhibiting BMP receptor signaling.

R-spondins are BMP receptor antagonists in Xenopus early embryonic development.

BMP signaling plays key roles in development, stem cells, adult tissue homeostasis, and disease. How BMP receptors are extracellularly modulated and in which physiological context, is therefore of prime importance. R-spondins (RSPOs) are a small family of secreted proteins that co-activate WNT signaling and function as potent stem cell effectors and oncogenes.