Enhancing the Intrinsic Activity and Stability of Perovskite Cobaltite at Elevated Temperature Through Surface Stress.

Perovskite-based oxides attract great attention as catalysts for energy and environmental devices. Nanostructure engineering is demonstrated as an effective approach for improving the catalytic activity of the materials. The mechanism for the enhancement, nevertheless, is still not fully understood.

Progress of Exsolved Metal Nanoparticles on Oxides as High Performance (Electro)Catalysts for the Conversion of Small Molecules.

Utilizing electricity and heat from renewable energy to convert small molecules into value-added chemicals through electro/thermal catalytic processes has enormous socioeconomic and environmental benefits. However, the lack of catalysts with high activity, good long-term stability, and low cost strongly inhibits the practical implementation of these processes. Oxides with exsolved metal nanoparticles have recently been emerging as promising catalysts with outstanding activity and stability for the conversion of small molecules, which provides new possibilities for application of the processes.

Corticosteroid therapy in critically ill patients with COVID-19: a multicenter, retrospective study.

Background: Corticoid therapy has been recommended in the treatment of critically ill patients with COVID-19, yet its efficacy is currently still under evaluation. We investigated the effect of corticosteroid treatment on 90-day mortality and SARS-CoV-2 RNA clearance in severe patients with COVID-19.

Methods: 294 critically ill patients with COVID-19 were recruited between December 30, 2019 and February 19, 2020.

Thermo-responsive imprinted hydrogel with switchable sialic acid recognition for selective cancer cell isolation from blood.

In this work, a sialic acid (SA)-imprinted thermo-responsive hydrogel layer was prepared for selective capture and release of cancer cells. The SA-imprinting process was performed at 37 °C using thermo-responsive functional monomer, thus generating switchable SA-recognition sites with potent SA binding at 37 °C and weak binding at a lower temperature (e.g.

Construction of Multifunctional Nanoarchitectures in One Step on a Composite Fuel Catalyst through In Situ Exsolution of LaSrFeNiNbO.

Multifunctional nanoarchitecture (MNA) on catalysts has attracted great attention because of its capability to improve the performance, durability, and resistance to unwanted side reactions. Such structures, however, are conventionally prepared by deposition methods, which inherently suffer from costly and time-consuming drawbacks. Here, we report a simple one-step process to successfully construct a novel MNA with core-shell nanoparticles anchored at the heterointerface of dual-phase oxide substrates through a phase transition and in situ exsolution of perovskite LaSrFeNiNbO (LSFNNb0.

Clinical course and outcome of 107 patients infected with the novel coronavirus, SARS-CoV-2, discharged from two hospitals in Wuhan, China.

Background: In December 2019, coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) outbreak was reported from Wuhan, China. Information on the clinical course and prognosis of COVID-19 was not thoroughly described. We described the clinical courses and prognosis in COVID-19 patients.

Poly(vinylene carbonate)-Based Composite Polymer Electrolyte with Enhanced Interfacial Stability To Realize High-Performance Room-Temperature Solid-State Sodium Batteries.

Solid-state rechargeable batteries using polymer electrolytes have been considered, which can avoid safety issues and enhance energy density. However, commercial application of the polymer electrolyte solid-state battery is still significantly limited by the low room-temperature ionic conductivity, poor mechanical properties, and weak interfacial compatibility between the electrolyte and electrode, especially for the room-temperature solid-state rechargeable battery. In this work, a poly(vinylene carbonate)-based composite polymer electrolyte (PVC-CPE) is reported for the first time to realize room-temperature solid-state sodium batteries with high performances.

A self-assembled dual-phase composite as a precursor of high-performance anodes for intermediate temperature solid oxide fuel cells.

A durable high-performance anode with a unique microstructure of a hetero-structured surface layer and exsolved Fe-Cu bimetal nano-fibers is fabricated from a self-assembled dual-phase precursor consisting of a single perovskite (SP) and a Ruddlesden-Popper (RP) layered perovskite component. This work opens up new opportunities to fabricate high-performance anodes for IT-SOFCs.

Lithium sulfonate-grafted poly(vinylidenefluoride-hexafluoro propylene) ionomer as binder for lithium-ion batteries.

Lithium sulfonate-grafted poly(vinylidenefluoride-hexafluoro propylene) P(VDF-HFP) ionomers are synthesized through covalent attachment of taurine and used as binder for the LiFePO cathode of lithium-ion batteries(LIBs). The incorporation of the ionomer binders will add ionic conducting channels inside the electrodes, and prevent electrolyte depletion during rapid charge-discharge processes. It leads to an improved performance of LIBs using the ionomer binders including cycling stability and rate capability compared to that of LIBs using non-ionic binders (PVDF and PVDF-HFP).

Vagal Modulation of the Inflammatory Response in Sepsis.

The vagus nerve can sense peripheral inflammation and transmit action potentials from the periphery to the brainstem. Vagal afferent signaling is integrated in the brainstem, and efferent vagus nerves carry outbound signals that terminate in spleen and other organs. Stimulation of efferent vagus nerve leads to the release of acetylcholine in these organs.

The 798 Art District: Multi-scalar drivers of land use succession and industrial restructuring in Beijing.

Since the post-1980 economic reforms, Chinese cities, in particular large cites, have experienced far reaching industrial restructuring and spatial transformation. A decentralization of manufacturing industries from urban centres was accompanied by the rise of service and creative industry districts on previous industrial sites. This article explores the interconnections of global forces, state-market relationships, land use policies, art markets, the Chinese system of governance, and other trans-local factors in transforming Beijing from an industrial city to a service and creative industries-oriented global metropolis, by examining the rise and transformation of Beijing 798 Art District.

Novel Nano-composites SDC-LiNaSO as Functional Layer for ITSOFC.

As an ionic conductive functional layer of intermediate temperature solid oxide fuel cells (ITSOFC), samarium-doped ceria (SDC)-LiNaSO nano-composites were synthesized by a sol-gel method and their properties were investigated. It was found that the content of LiNaSO strongly affected the crystal phase, defect concentration, and conductivity of the composites. When the content of LiNaSO was 20 wt%, the highest conductivity of the composite was found to be, respectively, 0.

Internal and external carotid artery embolism following facial injection of autologous fat.

Autologous fat injection is a common aesthetic procedure for soft-tissue augmentation of the face. Although this procedure is generally regarded as safe, several patients have experienced acute visual loss or cerebral infarction after these injections. We describe a case of internal and external carotid artery fat embolism that occurred following injection of autologous fat into the face.

Advances in sepsis-associated liver dysfunction.

Recent studies have revealed liver dysfunction as an early event in sepsis. Sepsis-associated liver dysfunction is mainly resulted from systemic or microcirculatory disturbances, spillovers of bacteria and endotoxin (lipopolysaccharide, LPS), and subsequent activation of inflammatory cytokines as well as mediators. Three main cell types of the liver which contribute to the hepatic response in sepsis are Kupffer cells (KCs), hepatocytes and liver sinusoidal endothelial cells (LSECs).

Advances in the management of acute liver failure.

Acute liver failure (ALF) is an uncommon but dramatic clinical syndrome characterized by hepatic encephalopathy and a bleeding tendency due to abrupt loss of liver function caused by massive or submassive liver necrosis in a patient with a previously healthy liver. The causes of ALF encompass a wide variety of toxic, viral, metabolic, vascular and autoimmune insults to the liver, and identifying the correct cause can be difficult or even impossible. Many patients with ALF develop a cascade of serious complications involving almost every organ system, and death is mostly due to multi-organ failure, hemorrhage, infection, and intracranial hypertension.

Predicting lymph node status in patients with early gastric carcinoma using double contrast-enhanced ultrasonography.

Introduction: Double contrast-enhanced ultrasonography (DCUS) is a new method we used in predicting lymph node metastasis (LNM) in patients with early gastric cancer.

Material And Methods: Seventy-six patients with early gastric cancer diagnosed by gastroscope and confirmed by pathology after operation were examined using DCUS preoperatively. Group N1 included 15 patients with LNM and group N0 61 patients without LNM.

An anti-transferrin receptor antibody enhanced the growth inhibitory effects of chemotherapeutic drugs on human glioma cells.

Transferrin receptor (TfR) has been used as a target for antibody-based therapy of cancer. Anti-TfR antibody together with chemotherapeutic drugs has potential for cancer therapy. In this study, we investigated the in vitro anti-tumor effects of the anti-TfR monoclonal antibody (mAb), 7579, alone or in combination with Nimustine, a chemotherapeutic drug, on the gliomas cell lines U251 and U87MG.

Stimulation of α7 nicotinic acetylcholine receptor by nicotine increases suppressive capacity of naturally occurring CD4+CD25+ regulatory T cells in mice in vitro.

α7 Nicotinic acetylcholine receptor (α7 nAChR) has been found in several non-neuronal cells and is described as an important regulator of cellular function. Naturally occurring CD4(+)CD25(+) regulatory T cells (Tregs) are essential for the active suppression of autoimmunity. The present study investigated whether naturally occurring Tregs expressed α7 nAChR and investigated the functionary role of this receptor in controlling suppressive activity of these cells.

Voltammetric characterization on the hydrophobic interaction in polysaccharide hydrogels.

Cyclic voltammetric (CV) investigations on the properties of microdomains in polysaccharide hydrogels, methyl cellulose (MC) and kappa-carrageenan (CAR), coated on glassy carbon electrodes were reported in which methylene blue (MB), tris(1,10-phenanthroline)cobalt(III) (Co(phen)3(3+/2+)) cations, and ferricyanide/ferrocyanide (Fe(CN)6(3-/4-)) anions were used as electroactive probes. Information on the patterns and strength of intermolecular interactions in these polysaccharide hydrogels can be inferred from the net shift of normal potentials (E degrees'), the change of peak currents (ip), the ratio of binding constants (K(red)/K(ox)) for reduced and oxidized forms of bound species, and the apparent diffusion coefficients (D(app)) of probe in hydrogels. The transition of hydrophobic interaction in MC hydrogel with temperature was manifested by the CV method, which is in agreement with the evolution of the storage modulus (G') during gelation.

Comparison of curdlan and its carboxymethylated derivative by means of Rheology, DSC, and AFM.

Curdlan was carboxymethylated in an aqueous alkaline medium using monochloroacetic acid as the etherifying agent. The structure of carboxymethylated curdlan (CMc) was analyzed by FT-IR and NMR spectroscopy, which revealed that the carboxymethyl group was introduced mainly at the C-6 position as well as at the C-2 and C-4 positions. Furthermore, CMc was compared with the native curdlan by using rheology and DSC methods.