Challenges and Prospects of Low-Temperature Rechargeable Batteries: Electrolytes, Interfaces, and Electrodes.

Rechargeable batteries have been indispensable for various portable devices, electric vehicles, and energy storage stations. The operation of rechargeable batteries at low temperatures has been challenging due to increasing electrolyte viscosity and rising electrode resistance, which lead to sluggish ion transfer and large voltage hysteresis. Advanced electrolyte design and feasible electrode engineering to achieve desirable performance at low temperatures are crucial for the practical application of rechargeable batteries.

An "all-in-one" treatment and imaging nanoplatform for breast cancer with photothermal nanoparticles.

Drug delivery systems based on nanoparticles still face challenges of low efficacy and an inability to track treatment effects in tumor therapy due to biological barriers. This limitation hinders clinicians' ability to determine treatment effects and proper drug dosages, thus, ultimately impeding the further application and transformation of nanoplatforms. To address this challenge, an all-in-one nanoplatform for therapy and imaging is proposed.

Precision targeting of CuET overload to disrupt mitochondrial unfolded protein response by integrated liposome.

Mitochondria in breast cancer play a critical role in survival and adaptation to dynamic environments. Thus, targeting mitochondria emerges as a promising therapeutic strategy for breast cancer. However, the adaptive unfolded protein response in mitochondria (UPR) due to mitochondrial unspecific distribution might contribute to diminished therapeutic outcomes.

Recycling Bonded Nd-Fe-B Magnet Wastes by Chemical Reaction and Its Mechanism.

The difficulty of short-process bonded Nd-Fe-B magnet waste recycling lies in the effective removal of the cured polymer matrix while protecting the magnetic powder. In this study, the polymer matrix in bonded Nd-Fe-B magnet waste was destroyed using sodium hydroxide ethanol solution, and the effect of the recycling process on the magnetic powders was studied. The nonmagnetic polymer matrix was removed, while the magnetic phase was not destroyed.

Type IV pili are involved in phenotypes associated with pathogenesis.

is a Gram-positive, spore-forming, rod-shaped, obligate anaerobe that is the leading cause of antibiotic-associated diarrhea. Type IV pili (T4P) are elongated appendages on the surface of that are polymerized from many pilin proteins. T4P play an important role in adherence and particularly in its persistence in the host intestine.

Artificial Intelligence for Early Detection of Chest Nodules in X-ray Images.

Early detection increases overall survival among patients with lung cancer. This study formulated a machine learning method that processes chest X-rays (CXRs) to detect lung cancer early. After we preprocessed our dataset using monochrome and brightness correction, we used different kinds of preprocessing methods to enhance image contrast and then used U-net to perform lung segmentation.

Epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition proceeds through directional destabilization of multidimensional attractor.

How a cell changes from one stable phenotype to another one is a fundamental problem in developmental and cell biology. Mathematically, a stable phenotype corresponds to a stable attractor in a generally multi-dimensional state space, which needs to be destabilized so the cell relaxes to a new attractor. Two basic mechanisms for destabilizing a stable fixed point, pitchfork and saddle-node bifurcations, have been extensively studied theoretically; however, direct experimental investigation at the single-cell level remains scarce.

Interactions and structural properties of zein/ferulic acid: The effect of calcium chloride.

Zein is potential in encapsulating and delivering polyphenols in food industry. Our study investigated the interaction mechanisms and structural changes of the interaction between ferulic acid (FA) and zein under different CaCl concentrations. Addition of CaCl resulted in amino acids micro-environment and structural changes of zein and zein/FA complex, which was dependent on different CaCl concentrations.

Combined effects of quercetin and sodium chloride concentrations on wheat gliadin structure and physicochemical properties.

Background: Polyphenols may interact with protein via covalent bonds and non-covalent interactions, improving the structures and functional properties of the protein. The cross-linking between the polyphenol and protein is susceptible to salt (sodium chloride, NaCl) concentrations. Our study investigated the combined effects of quercetin (Q) and NaCl concentrations on wheat gliadin (G) structure and physicochemical properties.

Interaction between wheat gliadin and quercetin under different pH conditions analyzed by multi-spectroscopy methods.

Polyphenols have been known to have significant binding affinity for proteins, and the specific condition (such as pH) could affect the degree of binding, the formation of covalent bond, and non-covalent interaction. In this study, characteristics of binding quercetin (Q) to wheat gliadin (G) which is a strong food allergen, were studied from pH 2.0 to pH 9.

Antioxidant and Antiproliferative Activities of Modified Polysaccharides Originally Isolated from Morchella Angusticepes Peck.

Polysaccharides extracted from Morchella angusticepes Peck (PMEP) were chemically modified to obtain sulfated, carboxymethylated, and acetyled derivatives. Results showed that the acetyled derivatives with the degree of substitution (0.40 ± 0.

Acetylation of polysaccharide from Morchella angusticeps peck enhances its immune activation and anti-inflammatory activities in macrophage RAW264.7 cells.

Morchella angusticeps Peck has been recognized as a resource of nutraceuticals and drug discovery. Three acetylated polysaccharides (Ac-PMEP) with appropriate degree of substitution were obtained from Morchella angusticeps Peck, chemically characterized, and cultured with macrophage RAW264.7 cells to evaluate their immune activation and anti-inflammatory activities.

Protective effects of Coreopsis tinctoria flowers phenolic extract against D-galactosamine/lipopolysaccharide -induced acute liver injury by up-regulation of Nrf2, PPARα, and PPARγ.

Coreopsis tinctoria flowers, a well-known medicinal and edible plant, have been reported to possess antioxidant and anti-inflammatory activities. However, its protective effects and underlying mechanisms on liver injury remain unclear. The aim of this study was to investigate the underlying mechanisms by which Coreopsis tinctoria flowers phenolic extract (CTP) alleviated D-galactosamine and lipopolysaccharide (D-GalN/LPS) induced acute liver injury in mice.

Distinct DNA binding sites contribute to the TCF transcriptional switch in C. elegans and Drosophila.

Regulation of gene expression by signaling pathways often occurs through a transcriptional switch, where the transcription factor responsible for signal-dependent gene activation represses the same targets in the absence of signaling. T-cell factors (TCFs) are transcription factors in the Wnt/ß-catenin pathway, which control numerous cell fate specification events in metazoans. The TCF transcriptional switch is mediated by many co-regulators that contribute to repression or activation of Wnt target genes.

A gain-of-function mutation in the ROC1 gene alters plant architecture in Arabidopsis.

Plant architecture is an important agronomic trait and is useful for identification of plant species. The molecular basis of plant architecture, however, is largely unknown. Forward genetics was used to identify an Arabidopsis mutant with altered plant architecture.