Enhancement and mechanism of mechanical properties and functionalities of polyacrylamide/polyacrylic acid hydrogels by 1D and 2D nanocarbon.

Highly flexible hydrogels are widely used in fields such as agriculture, drug delivery, and tissue engineering. However, the simultaneous integration of excellent mechanical properties, swelling properties, and high electrical conductivity into a hydrogel is still a great challenge. This work introduces 1D tubular multi-walled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs) and 2D layered graphene oxide (GO) into polyacrylamide/poly-acrylic acid (PAM/PAA) hydrogels.

Nondisassembly Repair of Degraded LiFePO Cells via Lithium Restoration from the Solid Electrolyte Interphase.

The disposal of degraded batteries will be a severe challenge with the expanding market demand for lithium iron phosphate (LiFePO or LFP) batteries. However, due to a lack of economic and technical viability, conventional metal extraction and material regeneration are hindered from practical application. Herein, we propose a nondisassembly repair strategy for degraded cells through a lithium restoration method based on deep discharge, which can elevate the anodic potential to result in the selective oxidative decomposition and thinning of the solid electrolyte interphase (SEI) on the graphite anode.

Erythrocyte-Leveraged Oncolytic Virotherapy (ELeOVt): Oncolytic Virus Assembly on Erythrocyte Surface to Combat Pulmonary Metastasis and Alleviate Side Effects.

Despite being a new promising tool for cancer therapy, intravenous delivery of oncolytic viruses (OVs) is greatly limited by poor tumor targeting, rapid clearance in the blood, severe organ toxicity, and cytokine release syndrome. Herein, a simple and efficient strategy of erythrocyte-leveraged oncolytic virotherapy (ELeOVt) is reported, which for the first time assembled OVs on the surface of erythrocytes with up to near 100% efficiency and allowed targeted delivery of OVs to the lung after intravenous injection to achieve excellent treatment of pulmonary metastases while greatly improving the biocompatibility of OVs as a drug. Polyethyleneimine (PEI) as a bridge to assemble OVs on erythrocytes also played an important role in promoting the transfection of OVs.

Enabling Highly-Reversible Aqueous Zn-Ion Batteries via 4-Hydroxybenzoic Acid Sodium Salt Electrolyte Additive.

Due to the intrinsic safety and cost effectiveness, aqueous Zn-ion batteries (AZIBs) are considered a promising candidate for future energy storage systems. However, the widespread implementation of AZIBs faces significant obstacles due to various undesirable side reactions, including hydrogen evolution reaction (HER), corrosion, and uncontrolled dendrite growth at the anodes. Here, 4-hydroxybenzoic acid sodium salt (PHB) is employed in the ZnSO electrolyte to enable highly-reversible zinc anodes.

Novel spiro[pyrrolidine-2,3'-quinoline]-2'-one derivatives containing piperazine fragment as potential chitin synthase inhibitors and antifungal agents: Design, synthesis and biological evaluation.

A series of spiro[pyrrolidine-2,3'-quinoline]-2'-one derivatives were designed and synthesized for the discovery of novel antifungal drugs. The bioactivities of all derivatives were screened by evaluating their inhibitory effects against chitin synthase (CHS) and antimicrobial activities in vitro. Enzyme inhibition experiments showed that all the synthesized compounds inhibited the chitin synthase.

Improvement of resistance to rice blast and bacterial leaf streak by CRISPR/Cas9-mediated mutagenesis of and in rice ( L.).

Rice ( L.) is a staple food in many countries around the world, particularly in China. The production of rice is seriously affected by the bacterial leaf streak and rice blast, which can reduce rice yield or even cause it to fail to be harvested.

Improving Rice Leaf Shape Using CRISPR/Cas9-Mediated Genome Editing of and Characterizing Its Regulatory Network Involved in Leaf Rolling through Transcriptome Analysis.

Leaf rolling is a crucial agronomic trait to consider in rice ( L.) breeding as it keeps the leaves upright, reducing interleaf shading and improving photosynthetic efficiency. The () gene plays a key role in regulating leaf rolling, as it encodes a glycosylphosphatidylinositol-anchored protein located on the plasma membrane.

Design, synthesis and biological evaluation of novel spiro-quinazolinone derivatives as chitin synthase inhibitors and antifungal agents.

A series of spiro-quinazolinone scaffolds were constructed based on the bioactivity of quinazolinone and the inherent feature of spirocycle to design novel chitin synthase inhibitors that possess mode of action different from that of the currently used antifungal agents. Among them, the spiro[thiophen-quinazolin]-one derivatives containing α, β-unsaturated carbonyl fragments had shown inhibitory activities against chitin synthase and antifungal activities. The enzymatic experiments showed that among the sixteen compounds, compounds 12d, 12g, 12j, 12l and 12m exhibited inhibitions against chitin synthase with IC values of 116.

Pillar strategy enhanced ion transport and structural stability toward ultra-stable KVPOF cathode for practical potassium-ion batteries.

KVPOF (KVPF) is a promising cathode material for potassium-ion batteries (PIBs) because of its high operating voltage, high energy density, and excellent thermal stability. Nevertheless, the low kinetics and large volume change have been the major hurdles causing irreversible structural damage, high inner resistance, and poor cycle stability. Herein, a pillar strategy of Cs doping in KVPOF is introduced to reduce the energy barrier for ion diffusion and volume change during potassiation/depotassiation, which significantly enhances the K diffusion coefficient and stabilizes the crystal structure of the material.

Isolated Metalloid Tellurium Atomic Cluster on Nitrogen-Doped Carbon Nanosheet for High-Capacity Rechargeable Lithium-CO Battery.

Rechargeable Li-CO battery represents a sustainable technology by virtue of CO recyclability and energy storage capability. Unfortunately, the sluggish mass transport and electron transfer in bulky high-crystalline discharge product of Li CO , severely hinder its practical capacity and rechargeability. Herein, a heterostructure of isolated metalloid Te atomic cluster anchored on N-doped carbon nanosheets is designed (Te @NCNS) as a metal-free cathode for Li-CO battery.

Quasi-Solid-State Ion-Conducting Arrays Composite Electrolytes with Fast Ion Transport Vertical-Aligned Interfaces for All-Weather Practical Lithium-Metal Batteries.

The rapid improvement in the gel polymer electrolytes (GPEs) with high ionic conductivity brought it closer to practical applications in solid-state Li-metal batteries. The combination of solvent and polymer enables quasi-liquid fast ion transport in the GPEs. However, different ion transport capacity between solvent and polymer will cause local nonuniform Li distribution, leading to severe dendrite growth.

Spiro[benzoxazine-piperidin]-one derivatives as chitin synthase inhibitors and antifungal agents: Design, synthesis and biological evaluation.

Four series of spiro[benzoxazine-piperidin]-one derivatives were designed and synthesized. Their inhibition percentages against chitin synthase and antifungal activities were evaluated. Based on the preliminary biological assays, the series of derivatives containing α, β-unsaturated carbonyl fragment which had moderate to excellent CHS inhibitory activity and antifungal activity were further researched.

Design, synthesis, and biological evaluation of novel spiro[pyrrolidine-2,3'-quinolin]-2'-one derivatives as potential chitin synthase inhibitors and antifungal agents.

A series of novel spiro-quinolinone derivatives were designed and synthesized and their structures were confirmed by spectroscopic methods. The enzymatic experiments showed that all the seventeen synthesized compounds had inhibition potency against chitin synthase, among them five compounds had excellent inhibition potency that equal to that of polyoxin B. The Kinetic parameters of enzymatic assays indicated that these compounds were non-competitive inhibitors of chitin synthase.

Design, synthesis and biological evaluation of novel diazaspirodecanone derivatives containing piperidine-4-carboxamide as chitin synthase inhibitors and antifungal agents.

A series of novel 2-oxo-(1-oxo-2,8-diazaspiro[4.5]decane-8-yl)ethylpiperidine carboxamide derivatives were designed, synthesized and characterized by H NMR, C NMR and HRMS spectroscopy. All eighteen newly prepared compounds were evaluated for their inhibition against chitin synthase (CHS) and antifungal activities in vitro.

Advanced nitrogen and phosphorus removal by combining endogenous denitrification and denitrifying dephosphatation in constructed wetlands.

To achieve high-efficiency nutrient removal in constructed wetlands (CWs), a novel simultaneous nitrogen and phosphorus removal (SNPR) process was developed by combining nitrification, endogenous denitrification, and denitrifying phosphorus removal. In SNPR process, denitrifying glycogen-accumulating organisms (DGAOs) and denitrifying polyphosphate-accumulating organisms (DPAOs) utilized NO-N(NO-N or NO-N) as electron acceptor and poly-beta-hydroxy-alkanoates (PHAs) as carbon sources for endogenous denitrification and denitrifying phosphorus removal processes. Results from 217 days of operation showed that a high-level of nitrogen removal efficiency of 83.

Current-Density Regulating Lithium Metal Directional Deposition for Long Cycle-Life Li Metal Batteries.

Uncontrolled dendrite formation in the high energy density of lithium (Li) metal batteries (LMBs) may pose serious safety risks. While numerous studies have attempted to protect separators, these proposed methods fail to effectively inhibit upward dendrite growth that punctures through the separator. Here, we introduce a novel "orientated-growth" strategy that transfers the main depositional interface to the anode/current collector interface from the anode/separator interface.

Promoting Bifunctional Water Splitting by Modification of the Electronic Structure at the Interface of NiFe Layered Double Hydroxide and Ag.

Electrochemical water splitting is a promising method for the renewable production of high-purity hydrogen via the hydrogen evolution reaction (HER). Ni-Fe layered double hydroxides (Ni-Fe LDHs) are highly efficient materials for mediating the oxygen evolution reaction (OER), a half-reaction for water splitting at the anode, but LDHs typically display poor HER performance. Here, we report the preparation of self-organized Ag@NiFe layered double hydroxide core-shell electrodes on Ni foam (Ag@NiFe/NF) prepared by galvanic etching for mediating both the HER and OER (bifunctional water-splitting electrocatalysis).

Fluorine Dissolution-Induced Capacity Degradation for Fluorophosphate-Based Cathode Materials.

NaV(PO)F has been considered as a promising cathode material for sodium-ion batteries due to its high operating voltage and structural stability. However, the issues about poor cycling performance and lack of understanding for the capacity degradation mechanism are the major hurdle for practical application. Herein, we meticulously analyzed the evolution of the morphology, crystal structure, and bonding states of the cathode material during the cycling process.

Iron Selenide Microcapsules as Universal Conversion-Typed Anodes for Alkali Metal-Ion Batteries.

Rechargeable alkali metal-ion batteries (AMIBs) are receiving significant attention owing to their high energy density and low weight. The performance of AMIBs is highly dependent on the electrode materials. It is, therefore, quite crucial to explore suitable electrode materials that can fulfil the future requirements of AMIBs.

Blowing Iron Chalcogenides into Two-Dimensional Flaky Hybrids with Superior Cyclability and Rate Capability for Potassium-Ion Batteries.

Chalcogenide-based anodes are receiving increasing attention for rechargeable potassium-ion batteries (PIBs) due to their high theoretical capacities. However, they usually exhibit poor electrochemical performance due to poor structural stability, low conductivity, and severe electrolyte decomposition on the reactive surface. Herein, a method analogous to "blowing bubbles with gum" is used to confine FeS and FeSe in N-doped carbon for PIB anodes with ultrahigh cyclic stability and enhanced rate capability (over 5000 cycles at 2 A g).

Ionic liquid assisted electrochemical coating zinc nanoparticles on carbon cloth as lithium dendrite suppressing host.

The application of lithium metal anode with high specific capacity and energy density is limited by the volume expansion and pulverization caused by dendrite growth during cycle process. We propose a composite lithium anode by immersing molten lithium on the flexible three-dimensional (3D) carbon cloth scaffold with the zinc nanoparticles. The lithiophilic zinc nanoparticles layer of framework is synthesized by fast and easy electrochemical deposition from ionic liquid avoiding high temperature, high pressure and toxic reagent.

Understanding the Dual-Phase Synergy Mechanism in MnO-MnO Catalyst for Efficient Li-CO Batteries.

Rechargeable Li-CO batteries have been receiving intense interest because of their high theoretical energy density and environmentally friendly CO fixation ability. However, due to the sluggish CO reduction/evolution reaction (CRR/CER) kinetics, the current Li-CO batteries still suffer from severe polarization and poor cycling stability. Herein, we designed and in situ synthesized sea urchinlike MnO-MnO nanocomposite and explored the synergistic effect between MnO and MnO during charge-discharge process in Li-CO batteries.

High loading cotton cellulose-based aerogel self-standing electrode for Li-S batteries.

Lithium-sulfur (Li-S) batteries have attracted considerable attention due to their high energy density (2600 Wh kg). However, its commercialization is hindered seriously by the low loading and utilization rate of sulfur cathodes. Herein, we designed the cellulose-based graphene carbon composite aerogel (CCA) self-standing electrode to enhance the performance of Li-S batteries.

Design, synthesis and biological evaluation of novel 3,4-dihydro-2(1H)-quinolinone derivatives as potential chitin synthase inhibitors and antifungal agents.

A series of 3,4-dihydro-2(1H)-quinolinone derivatives contained butenediamide fragment were designed and synthesized. Their inhibition potency against chitin synthase and antimicrobial activities were screened in vitro. The enzymatic assays showed that all the synthesized compounds had inhibition potency against chitin synthase at concentration of 300 μg/mL.

3D ordered mesoporous TiO@CMK-3 nanostructure for sodium-ion batteries with long-term and high-rate performance.

Sodium ion battery is abundant in resources and costs low, making it very competitive in the large-scale energy storage devices. The anatase TiO electrode material with insertion/extraction mechanism shows stable cycling performance, which is more in line with the technical requirements of large-scale energy storage batteries. To improve the electrical conductivity and stability of the TiO electrode materials, we have synthesized anatase TiO and CMK-3 composite.