Piezoelectric materials are indispensable in electromechanical actuators, which require a large electrostrain with a fast and precise response. By designing a chemopiezoelectric effect, we developed an approach to achieve a high electrostrain of 1.9% under -3 kV mm, at 1 Hz, corresponding to an effective piezoelectric coefficient of >6,300 pm V at room temperature in lead-free potassium sodium niobate piezoceramics.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFRechargeable zinc-air batteries (ZABs) are considered among the most promising power sources for portable electronic devices and electric vehicles due to their high energy density, environmental friendliness, and low production costs. However, a major challenge hindering their commercialization is the issue of gas evolution during operation. The electrochemical reactions at both the zinc electrode (hydrogen evolution reaction, HER) and the air electrode (oxygen evolution reaction, OER) result in the formation of gas bubbles.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFThe RNA N-adenosine methylation, resulting in N-methyl adenosine (m6A), is one of the most important post-transcriptional modification events in the eukaryotic transcriptome, which is dynamically regulated by methyltransferases (writers), recognition proteins (readers) and demethylases (erasers). Human has five m6A readers namely YTHDC1, YTHDC2, YTHDF1, YTHDF2 and YTHDF3 that specifically recognize and bind to the methylated m6A residue of RNA through their YT521-B homology (YTH) domains, which have been involved in the pathogenesis of diabetes mellitus and its diverse complications such as diabetic nephropathy. Instead of the native N-methylation, we herein attempted to explore the molecular effect of various non-native N-substitutions on adenosine (A) binding behavior to YTH domains.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFDPP4 inhibitors could treat T2DM. Low-cost and accessible egg yolk protein (EYP) has the potential to produce highly bioactive peptides. Therefore, this study was to explore the novel DPP4 inhibitory peptide in EYP.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFSci Bull (Beijing)
February 2025
Current strategies to enhance Zn reversibility in aqueous Zn batteries (AZBs) primarily focus on inducing planar deposition. However, electrodissolution, as the initial operational step in AZBs, significantly affects deposition behavior and reversibility, yet it is surprisingly overlooked. Herein, the crucial electrodissolution behavior of Zn electrodes and its impact on irreversibility are comprehensively elucidated.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFThe inherent deficiency of phospholipids in limits its nutritional value as live prey for marine fish larvae. In our previous study, we optimized a phospholipid enrichment method by incubating nauplii with 10 g of soybean lecithin per m of seawater for 12 h, significantly enhancing their phospholipid content. : The present study evaluated the impact of this enrichment on yellow drum () larvae, focusing on growth performance, intestinal morphology, body composition, weaning success, and desiccation stress resistance.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: Nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH) has recently garnered increased attention due to immune infiltration. However, the role of membrane-associated protein 17 (MAP17) in NASH remains unclear, which prompted this study to explore its relationship with immune infiltration and its regulatory mechanisms.
Methods: We employed weighted correlation network analysis (WGCNA) to construct a gene co-expression network aimed at identifying key genes associated with NASH progression.
Lithium-ion batteries (LIBs) with silicon/graphite composite (Si/C) anodes are still facing the challenge of unsatisfactory calendar life, and the specific impact of Si on this issue is largely unknown. Herein, the calendar aging behaviors are quantified across scales and explored in a top-down manner. Batteries with 10 wt % Si/C anodes suffer a 4-fold decrease in the overall lifetime and a 4-5-fold increase in irreversible anode loss.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFGestational Weight Gain (GWG) modulates pregnancy outcomes and long-term offspring metabolic health. The 2009 Institute of Medicine (IOM) GWG recommendations have largely been validated in Caucasian and mono-ethnic East Asian cohorts. Asians are at higher metabolic risk at a lower body mass index (BMI), and this has prompted the World Health Organization (WHO) to identify lower BMI cut-offs for risk evaluation amongst Asians.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFN₂O is a typical by-product in the NH-SCR process, which requires urgent resolution due to its negative economic and environmental impacts. This study investigates in detail the mechanism of NO generation on the surface of the Mn-Ce/TiO catalyst (Mn-Ce/TiO-ZS) with anatase {001} facets preferentially exposed. The deep oxidation of NH and *NH capture of NO via O were proved to be the dominant NO generation pathways.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFPiezoelectricity, a fundamental property of perovskite ferroelectrics, endows the materials at the heart of electromechanical systems spanning from macro to micro/nano scales. Defect engineering strategies, particularly involving heterovalent trace impurities and derived vacancies, hold great potential for adjusting piezoelectric performance. Despite the prevalent use of defect engineering for modification, a comprehensive understanding of the specific features that positively impact material properties is still lacking, this knowledge gap impedes the advancement of a universally applicable defect selection and design strategy.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFPhyllanthi Fructus (PF) is a tropical fruit with the potential to effectively reduce postprandial blood glucose. However, the lack of quantitative evaluation methods and comprehensive understanding of hypoglycemic active compounds has hindered the development and application of functional foods and dietary supplements derived from PF. In this study, based on the "mass reaction parallel line method", with acarbose as the control and PF extract as the test material, a biological evaluation method for PF hypoglycemic activity based on α-glucosidase inhibition was established for the first time.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFThe practical capacity of lithium-oxygen batteries falls short of their ultra-high theoretical value. Unfortunately, the fundamental understanding and enhanced design remain lacking, as the issue is complicated by the coupling processes between LiO nucleation, growth, and multi-species transport. Herein, we redefine the relationship between the microscale LiO behaviors and the macroscopic electrochemical performance, emphasizing the importance of the inherent modulating ability of Li ions through a synergy of visualization techniques and cross-scale quantification.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFHyperlipidemia is a common cause of acute pancreatitis (AP), often leading to more severe clinical symptoms. The mortality factor 4-like protein 1 (MORF4L1, also called MRG15) plays a crucial role in regulating lipid metabolism. Therefore, this study aimed to explore the mechanism of MRG15 in hyperlipidemic acute pancreatitis (HAP).
View Article and Find Full Text PDFPurpose: To study the effect of corneal white-to-white diameter on Pentacam Scheimpflug cornea tomography and Corvis ST corneal visualization Scheimpflug technology parameters in myopic eyes.
Methods: In this retrospective cross-sectional study, 190 eyes of 190 Chinese myopic patients (spherical equivalent range: -1.25 D to -11.
Polygonati Rhizoma, a Chinese medicine often used in the clinic, can irritate the tongue and throat, so it must be processed before use. Polygonati Rhizoma contains a variety of chemical components, with saponins being one of the main active ingredients. Saponins can be highly irritating to human mocous membranes and have toxicity.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFTunable metasurfaces offer a promising avenue for dynamically modulating terahertz waves. Phase-change materials are crucial in this dynamic modulation, enabling precise and reversible control over the electromagnetic properties of the metasurfaces. In this study, we designed and experimentally fabricated a tunable lattice-induced transparent metasurface.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFVan Gogh-like 2 (Vangl2), a core planar cell polarity component, plays an important role in polarized cellular and tissue morphology induction, growth development, and cancer. However, its role in regulating inflammatory responses remains elusive. Here, we report that Vangl2 is upregulated in patients with sepsis and identify Vangl2 as a negative regulator of The nuclear factor-kappaB (NF-κB) signaling by regulating the protein stability and activation of the core transcription component p65.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFTraditional Chinese medicine (TCM) is considered to be one of the most comprehensive and influential form of traditional medicine. It plays an important role in clinical treatment and adjuvant therapy for cancer. However, the complex composition of TCM presents challenges to the comprehensive and systematic understanding of its antitumor mechanisms, which hinders further development of TCM with antitumor effects.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFConsiderable attention has been paid to the preparation of single-atom solid base catalysts (SASBCs) owing to their high activity and maximized utilization of basic sites. At present, the reported fabrication methods of SASBCs, such as two-step reduction strategy and sublimation capture strategy, require high temperature. Such a high activation temperature is easy to cause the sublimation loss of alkali or alkaline earth metal atoms and destructive to the support structure.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFSi provides an effective approach to achieving high-energy batteries owing to its high energy density and abundance. However, the poor stability of Si requires buffering with graphite particles when used as anodes. Currently, commercial lithium-ion batteries with Si/graphite composite anodes can provide a high energy density and are expected to replace traditional graphite-based batteries.
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