Publications by authors named "Wenkai Zhu"

Ultraviolet light detection is essential for environmental monitoring, hazard alerting, and optical communication. Here, a vertical UV photodetector is proposed and demonstrated by stacking the freestanding GaN-film on the 2D GaSe flake. Benefits from the vertical heterostructure and built-in electric field, the photodetector exhibits excellent photoresponse properties, including a high responsivity of 1.

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Lipid droplets (LDs), serving as the convergence point of energy metabolism and multiple signaling pathways, have garnered increasing attention in recent years. Different cell types within the central nervous system (CNS) can regulate energy metabolism to generate or degrade LDs in response to diverse pathological stimuli. This article provides a comprehensive review on the composition of LDs in CNS, their generation and degradation processes, their interaction mechanisms with mitochondria, the distribution among different cell types, and the roles played by these cells-particularly microglia and astrocytes-in various prevalent neurological disorders.

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Article Synopsis
  • Fluorine-19 NMR spectroscopy is a useful method for analyzing protein structure and interactions, particularly through the use of trifluoromethyl (tfm) groups, which offer better sensitivity than single fluorine atoms.
  • Researchers successfully incorporated trifluoromethyl-methionine (tfmM) into the protein Cyclophilin A (CypA) using cell-free synthesis, overcoming the challenges posed by traditional biosynthetic methods.
  • The tfmM CypA retains its functionality by binding to HIV-1 capsid protein and the inhibitor Cyclosporine A, while providing critical structural insights through 19F isotope shifts and relaxation enhancements, indicating its potential for expanding 19F NMR applications.
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  • - F electron-nuclear double resonance (ENDOR) is shown to be effective for measuring distances in biomolecules (0.7-2 nm) that traditional methods struggle with, using various spin labels.
  • - The study compares different spin labels, such as nitroxide, trityl radicals, Gd(III) chelates, and Cu(II) nitrilotriacetic acid chelates, using GB1 and ubiquitin proteins, revealing Gd(III) chelates yield the best signal-to-noise ratio.
  • - Findings indicate that the new trityl label, OXMA, has a long phase memory time but a longer tether limits its distance measurement capabilities; Gd(III) labels provide the most
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  • The study introduces an innovative immobilized functional enzyme (IFE) designed to improve efficiency and stability in various applications, overcoming challenges faced by traditional carriers that diminish enzyme activity.
  • It focuses on a carbon-based bifunctional heterogeneous enzyme (MIP-AMWCNTs@lipase) specifically created to detect and remove di(2-ethylhexyl)phthalate (DEHP), a widely used plasticizer, achieving a 94.2% removal rate.
  • The research also proposes a new kinetic model for better understanding enzyme reactions, enhancing its significance for biomaterials and environmental science.
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Obtaining atomic-level information on components in the cell is a major focus in structural biology. Elucidating specific structural and dynamic features of proteins and their interactions in the cellular context is crucial for understanding cellular processes. We introduce F dynamic nuclear polarization (DNP) combined with fast magic-angle-spinning (MAS) nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy as a powerful technique to study proteins in mammalian cells.

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Atomic chalcogen vacancy is the most commonly observed defect category in two dimensional (2D) transition-metal dichalcogenides, which can be detrimental to the intrinsic properties and device performance. Here a low-defect density, high-uniform, wafer-scale single crystal epitaxial technology by in situ oxygen-incorporated "growth-repair" strategy is reported. For the first time, the oxygen-repairing efficiency on MoS monolayers at atomic scale is quantitatively evaluated.

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Global warming is a crisis that humanity must face together. With greenhouse gases (GHGs) as the main factor causing global warming, the adoption of relevant processes to eliminate them is essential. With the advantages of high specific surface area, large pore volume, and tunable synthesis, metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) have attracted much attention in GHG storage, adsorption, separation, and catalysis.

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The chemical/physical properties and reliable performance of nanoporous materials are strongly influenced by the particle size and corresponding distribution. Among many types of MOFs, ZIF-8, is still widely used and many studies have been conducted to control the particle size and uniformity of ZIF-8 using surfactants and organic solvents. However, the use of surfactants and organic solvents process is expensive and may cause environmental pollution.

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Fluorine electron-nuclear double resonance (F ENDOR) has recently emerged as a valuable tool in structural biology for distance determination between F atoms and a paramagnetic center, either intrinsic or conjugated to a biomolecule via spin labeling. Such measurements allow access to distances too short to be measured by double electron-electron resonance (DEER). To further extend the accessible distance range, we exploit the high-spin properties of Gd(III) and focus on transitions other than the central transition (|-1/2⟩ ↔ |+1/2⟩), that become more populated at high magnetic fields and low temperatures.

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This study aimed to elucidate the roles of cilia- and flagella-associated protein 61 (CFAP61) in male infertility and its underlying mechanisms. CFAP61 expression levels in the testicular tissues of male patients with infertility were determined using quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction, immunohistochemical assay, and western blotting. Moreover, the specific roles of CFAP61 in male infertility were evaluated using cell counting kit-8, 5-ethynyl-2'-deoxyuridine, flow cytometry, and enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays.

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Nanocellulose-based aerogels have been considered as one of the ideal candidates for CO capture in practical applications owing to their lightweight and porous properties. Additionally, various adsorbents with amine groups have been widely used as effective CO capture and storage strategies. Herein, amino-functionalized aerogels were prepared by sol-gel and freeze-drying methods using two typical nanocelluloses (cellulose nanofibrils (CNFs) and cellulose nanocrystals (CNCs)) as substrates.

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The emerging wide varieties of the van der Waals (vdW) magnets with atomically thin and smooth interfaces hold great promise for next-generation spintronic devices. However, due to the lower Curie temperature of the vdW ferromagnets than room temperature, electrically manipulating its magnetization at room temperature has not been realized. In this work, it is demonstrated that the perpendicular magnetization of the vdW ferromagnet Fe GaTe can be effectively switched at room temperature in the Fe GaTe /Pt bilayer by spin-orbit torques (SOTs) with a relatively low current density of 1.

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The United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) acknowledges that global cooperation is paramount to mitigate climate change and further warming. The global community is committed to renewable energy and natural materials to tackle this challenge for all humankind. The widespread use of natural materials is embraced as one such action to reach net-zero carbon emissions.

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Magnetic tunnel junctions (MTJs) with conventional bulk ferromagnets separated by a nonmagnetic insulating layer are key building blocks in spintronics for magnetic sensors and memory. A radically different approach of using atomically-thin van der Waals (vdW) materials in MTJs is expected to boost their figure of merit, the tunneling magnetoresistance (TMR), while relaxing the lattice-matching requirements from the epitaxial growth and supporting high-quality integration of dissimilar materials with atomically-sharp interfaces. We report TMR up to 192% at 10 K in all-vdW FeGeTe/GaSe/FeGeTe MTJs.

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The prospective applications of chitosan-based hydrogels (CBHs), a category of biocompatible and biodegradable materials, in biomedical disciplines such as tissue engineering, wound healing, drug delivery, and biosensing have garnered great interest. The synthesis and characterization processes used to create CBHs play a significant role in determining their characteristics and effectiveness. The qualities of CBHs might be greatly influenced by tailoring the manufacturing method to get certain traits, including porosity, swelling, mechanical strength, and bioactivity.

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GaN-based photodetectors are strongly desirable in many advanced fields, such as space communication, environmental monitoring, . However, the slow photo-response speed in currently reported high-sensitivity GaN-based photodetectors still hinders their applications. Here, we demonstrate a high-sensitivity and fast-speed UV photodetector based on asymmetric Au/nanoporous-GaN/graphene vertical junctions.

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The energy crisis has arisen as the most pressing concern and top priority for policymakers, with buildings accounting for over 40% of global energy consumption. Currently, single-function envelopes cannot satisfy energy efficiency for next-generation buildings. Designing buildings with high mechanical robustness, thermal insulation properties, and more functionalities has attracted worldwide attention.

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Polymers with broad infrared emission and negligible solar absorption have been identified as promising radiative cooling materials to offer a sustainable and energy-saving venue. Although practical applications desire color for visual appearance, the current coloration strategies of polymer-based radiative cooling materials are constrained by material, cost, and scalability. Here, we demonstrate a universally applicable coloration strategy for polymer-based radiative cooling materials by nanoimprinting.

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Article Synopsis
  • Kidney, bladder, and prostate cancers are key urologic tumors that pose significant health risks.
  • Circular RNAs (CircRNAs) are stable non-coding RNAs gaining attention for their various biological roles, including acting as microRNA sponges and regulators of gene expression.
  • Abnormal circRNA expression is linked to the progression of these tumors, highlighting their potential as biomarkers for diagnosis and therapy in urologic cancers, though further research is needed.
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Studies of protein structure and dynamics are usually carried out in dilute buffer solutions, conditions that differ significantly from the crowded environment in the cell. The double electron-electron resonance (DEER) technique can track proteins' conformations in the cell by providing distance distributions between two attached spin labels. This technique, however, cannot access distances below 1.

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As a porous biomass sustainable material, cellulose aerogel has attracted significant attention due to its unique properties in various applications. However, its mechanical stability and hydrophobicity are huge obstacles hindering practical applications. In this work, nano-lignin quantitative doping cellulose nanofiber aerogel was successfully fabricated via liquid nitrogen freeze drying combing vacuum oven drying.

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