116 research outputs found

    Enhanced Catalytic Mechanism of Twin-Structured BiVO<sub>4</sub>

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    Twin engineering is an efficient strategy to improve the photocatalytic activity of semiconductors (e.g., BiVO4). A systematic study that combines theory and experiments is conducted to reveal the underlying enhanced catalytic mechanism of twin-structured BiVO4. The key characteristic of twinned structures is the partial strain introduced by twin boundaries. Lattice distortion introduced by the twin boundaries leads to charge redistribution and built-in electronic fields between the twin boundaries and the bulk. The generated homojunctions possess a staggered band alignment structure, and their band offsets are increased by the Fermi-level pinning effect. The series of homojunctions in twinned structures is beneficial for facilitating charge separation. Additionally, lattice distortion around twin boundaries leads to the broken geometric symmetry of metal–oxygen polyhedrons in twinned crystals. The adsorption energies of adsorbates decrease significantly, resulting in reduction of the overpotential. The reduced overpotential favors acceleration of the oxygen evolution reaction on twinned structures

    Strong Adhesion of Graphene Oxide Coating on Polymer Separation Membranes

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    Graphene oxide (GO) has been demonstrated as the most promising candidate for surface modification of polymer separation membranes for durable filtration applications. However, the adhesion between GO coating and polymer substrate, as the most essential issue for reliable applications, has been little explored. Herein, we developed a facile high-pressure assisted deposition method to physically anchor GO sheets on microfiltration (MF) and reverse osmosis (RO) membranes, and established a tape test procedure for assessing the adhesion of GO coating to polymer substrates based on the ASTM D3359. Through regulating the GO sources and coating process, we demonstrated that the adhesion depends sensitively on the GO flake size and deposition pressure, whereas the adhesion level dramatically improved from 0B to 5B, with decrease in the lateral size of GO and increase in the coating deposition pressure. The strong GO coatings showed evidently higher water flux than that of weak counterparts. The underlying mechanism was further analyzed and verified. Nanosize of GO and high deposition pressure favor the formation of the conformal morphologies of GO coatings on both MF and RO membranes, which allow strong interfacial van der Waals interaction because of the large contact areas and result in the strong GO coatings on membranes. These results potentially open up a versatile pathway to develop the strong graphene-based coatings on separation membranes

    Image_2_Network meta-analysis of comparative efficacy of animal-assisted therapy vs. pet-robot therapy in the management of dementia.JPEG

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    ObjectiveThis network meta-analysis aimed to compare and rank the efficacy of animal-assisted therapy (AAT) and pet-robotic therapy (PRT) in the management of dementia.MethodsRelevant studies were identified by searching PubMed, EMBASE, the Cochrane Library, SCOPUS, and Web of Science (WoS) until October 13, 2022. Traditional meta-analysis was first conducted based on the random-effects model, then random network meta-analysis was conducted to determine the relative efficacy and rank probability of AAT and PRT.ResultsNineteen randomized controlled trials (RCTs) were included in this network meta-analysis. Network meta-analysis revealed that PRT marginally benefited agitation alleviation compared with control (standard mean difference [SMD]: −0.37, 95% confidence interval [95%CI]: −0.72 to −0.01) although both AAT and PRT did not improve cognitive function, reduce depression, and improve Quality of Life (QoL). The SUCRA probabilities indicated that PRT ranked better than AAT in agitation, cognitive function, and QoL, although there were no differences between the two therapies.ConclusionThe present network meta-analysis reveals that PRT may help alleviate agitated behaviors in people with dementia. However, future studies are warranted to establish evidence of the effectiveness of PRT and further evaluate the differences between different robot types in managing dementia.</p

    Table_1_NR2F1-AS1 Promotes Pancreatic Ductal Adenocarcinoma Progression Through Competing Endogenous RNA Regulatory Network Constructed by Sponging miRNA-146a-5p/miRNA-877-5p.XLSX

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    The role of NR2F1-AS1 in pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) remains unknown. Therefore, we aimed to investigate the biological mechanism of NR2F1-AS1 in PDAC. The expression of NR2F1-AS1 was measured by using microarray data and real-time PCR. The effects of NR2F1-AS1 knockdown on proliferation, cell cycle progression, invasion in vitro and tumorigenesis in vivo were investigated. The mechanism of competitive endogenous RNAs was determined from bioinformatics analyses and validated by a dual-luciferase reporter gene assay. Potential target mRNAs from TargetScan 7.2 were selected for subsequent bioinformatics analysis. Key target mRNAs were further identified by screening hub genes and coexpressed protein-coding genes (CEGs) of NR2F1-AS1. NR2F1-AS1 was highly expressed in PDAC, and the overexpression of NR2F1-AS1 was associated with overall survival and disease-free survival. The knockdown of NR2F1-AS1 impaired PDAC cell proliferation, migration, invasion and tumorigenesis. NR2F1-AS1 competitively sponged miR-146a-5p and miR-877-5p, and low expression of the two miRNAs was associated with a poor prognosis. An integrative expression and survival analysis of the hub genes and CEGs demonstrated that the NR2F1-AS1–miR-146a-5p/miR-877-5p–GALNT10/ZNF532/SLC39A1/PGK1/LCO3A1/NRP2/LPCAT2/PSMA4 and CLTC ceRNA networks were linked to the prognosis of PDAC. In conclusion, NR2F1-AS1 overexpression was significantly associated with poor prognosis. NR2F1-AS1 functions as an endogenous RNA to construct a novel ceRNA network by competitively binding to miR-146a-5p/miR-877-5p, which may contribute to PDAC pathogenesis and could represent a promising diagnostic biomarker or potential novel therapeutic target in PDAC.</p

    Image_4_Network meta-analysis of comparative efficacy of animal-assisted therapy vs. pet-robot therapy in the management of dementia.JPEG

    No full text
    ObjectiveThis network meta-analysis aimed to compare and rank the efficacy of animal-assisted therapy (AAT) and pet-robotic therapy (PRT) in the management of dementia.MethodsRelevant studies were identified by searching PubMed, EMBASE, the Cochrane Library, SCOPUS, and Web of Science (WoS) until October 13, 2022. Traditional meta-analysis was first conducted based on the random-effects model, then random network meta-analysis was conducted to determine the relative efficacy and rank probability of AAT and PRT.ResultsNineteen randomized controlled trials (RCTs) were included in this network meta-analysis. Network meta-analysis revealed that PRT marginally benefited agitation alleviation compared with control (standard mean difference [SMD]: −0.37, 95% confidence interval [95%CI]: −0.72 to −0.01) although both AAT and PRT did not improve cognitive function, reduce depression, and improve Quality of Life (QoL). The SUCRA probabilities indicated that PRT ranked better than AAT in agitation, cognitive function, and QoL, although there were no differences between the two therapies.ConclusionThe present network meta-analysis reveals that PRT may help alleviate agitated behaviors in people with dementia. However, future studies are warranted to establish evidence of the effectiveness of PRT and further evaluate the differences between different robot types in managing dementia.</p

    Image_1_Network meta-analysis of comparative efficacy of animal-assisted therapy vs. pet-robot therapy in the management of dementia.JPEG

    No full text
    ObjectiveThis network meta-analysis aimed to compare and rank the efficacy of animal-assisted therapy (AAT) and pet-robotic therapy (PRT) in the management of dementia.MethodsRelevant studies were identified by searching PubMed, EMBASE, the Cochrane Library, SCOPUS, and Web of Science (WoS) until October 13, 2022. Traditional meta-analysis was first conducted based on the random-effects model, then random network meta-analysis was conducted to determine the relative efficacy and rank probability of AAT and PRT.ResultsNineteen randomized controlled trials (RCTs) were included in this network meta-analysis. Network meta-analysis revealed that PRT marginally benefited agitation alleviation compared with control (standard mean difference [SMD]: −0.37, 95% confidence interval [95%CI]: −0.72 to −0.01) although both AAT and PRT did not improve cognitive function, reduce depression, and improve Quality of Life (QoL). The SUCRA probabilities indicated that PRT ranked better than AAT in agitation, cognitive function, and QoL, although there were no differences between the two therapies.ConclusionThe present network meta-analysis reveals that PRT may help alleviate agitated behaviors in people with dementia. However, future studies are warranted to establish evidence of the effectiveness of PRT and further evaluate the differences between different robot types in managing dementia.</p

    Table_7_NR2F1-AS1 Promotes Pancreatic Ductal Adenocarcinoma Progression Through Competing Endogenous RNA Regulatory Network Constructed by Sponging miRNA-146a-5p/miRNA-877-5p.XLSX

    No full text
    The role of NR2F1-AS1 in pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) remains unknown. Therefore, we aimed to investigate the biological mechanism of NR2F1-AS1 in PDAC. The expression of NR2F1-AS1 was measured by using microarray data and real-time PCR. The effects of NR2F1-AS1 knockdown on proliferation, cell cycle progression, invasion in vitro and tumorigenesis in vivo were investigated. The mechanism of competitive endogenous RNAs was determined from bioinformatics analyses and validated by a dual-luciferase reporter gene assay. Potential target mRNAs from TargetScan 7.2 were selected for subsequent bioinformatics analysis. Key target mRNAs were further identified by screening hub genes and coexpressed protein-coding genes (CEGs) of NR2F1-AS1. NR2F1-AS1 was highly expressed in PDAC, and the overexpression of NR2F1-AS1 was associated with overall survival and disease-free survival. The knockdown of NR2F1-AS1 impaired PDAC cell proliferation, migration, invasion and tumorigenesis. NR2F1-AS1 competitively sponged miR-146a-5p and miR-877-5p, and low expression of the two miRNAs was associated with a poor prognosis. An integrative expression and survival analysis of the hub genes and CEGs demonstrated that the NR2F1-AS1–miR-146a-5p/miR-877-5p–GALNT10/ZNF532/SLC39A1/PGK1/LCO3A1/NRP2/LPCAT2/PSMA4 and CLTC ceRNA networks were linked to the prognosis of PDAC. In conclusion, NR2F1-AS1 overexpression was significantly associated with poor prognosis. NR2F1-AS1 functions as an endogenous RNA to construct a novel ceRNA network by competitively binding to miR-146a-5p/miR-877-5p, which may contribute to PDAC pathogenesis and could represent a promising diagnostic biomarker or potential novel therapeutic target in PDAC.</p

    Table_1_Network meta-analysis of comparative efficacy of animal-assisted therapy vs. pet-robot therapy in the management of dementia.DOCX

    No full text
    ObjectiveThis network meta-analysis aimed to compare and rank the efficacy of animal-assisted therapy (AAT) and pet-robotic therapy (PRT) in the management of dementia.MethodsRelevant studies were identified by searching PubMed, EMBASE, the Cochrane Library, SCOPUS, and Web of Science (WoS) until October 13, 2022. Traditional meta-analysis was first conducted based on the random-effects model, then random network meta-analysis was conducted to determine the relative efficacy and rank probability of AAT and PRT.ResultsNineteen randomized controlled trials (RCTs) were included in this network meta-analysis. Network meta-analysis revealed that PRT marginally benefited agitation alleviation compared with control (standard mean difference [SMD]: −0.37, 95% confidence interval [95%CI]: −0.72 to −0.01) although both AAT and PRT did not improve cognitive function, reduce depression, and improve Quality of Life (QoL). The SUCRA probabilities indicated that PRT ranked better than AAT in agitation, cognitive function, and QoL, although there were no differences between the two therapies.ConclusionThe present network meta-analysis reveals that PRT may help alleviate agitated behaviors in people with dementia. However, future studies are warranted to establish evidence of the effectiveness of PRT and further evaluate the differences between different robot types in managing dementia.</p
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