Fabrication and enhanced electrochemical performances of Mo03/graphene composite as anode material for lithium-ion batteries

Molybdenum trioxide (Mo0#)/graphene composite were prepared by integrating Mo03 and graphene in dimethylformamide (DMF). The morphology and structure of the materials were characterized by X-ray diffraction, field emission scanning electron microscopy and transmission electron microscopy. The electrochemical properties of Mo03/graphene composite with different ratios were studied as anode materials for lithium-ion batteries using galavanostatic charge-discharge and cyclic voltammetry. We observed that the Mo03/graphene anode with a weight ratio of 1:1 (Mo03 graphene) exhibits a high lithium storage capacity of 967 mA h g-1 at the current density of 500 mA g-1, satisfactory cycling stability and good rate capability

Effects of surface tension on the size-dependent ferroelectric characteristics of free-standing BaTiO3 nano-thin films

Intrinsic surface tension of nanoscale ferroelectric thin film tends to induce tensile stress in its surface layer, whereas the other portion of the film is subjected to compression to maintain mechanical balance. A continuum-based phase-field model accounting for such surface effect has been set up to investigate the evolution of domain structure and thickness-dependent ferroelectric properties of free-standing BaTiO 3 nano-thin films. It was observed that both remnant polarization and coercive field decrease with a decrease of film thickness and increase of surface tension, and that, for film thickness ranging from 10-20 nm, both properties decreased sharply at the surface strain 2-3ε 0 (ε 0 being the spontaneous strain). Further decrease in film thickness or increase in surface tension could result in loss of ferroelectricity. Such a critical state for the ferroelectric-to-paraelectric transition has also been established for the range of film thickness 4-20 nm. © 2011 American Institute of Physics.published_or_final_versio

A comparative investigation on the effects of nitrogen-doping into graphene on enhancing the electrochemical performance of SnO<inf>2</inf>/graphene for sodium-ion batteries

© 2015 The Royal Society of Chemistry. SnO2/nitrogen-doped graphene nanohybrids have been synthesized by an in situ hydrothermal method, during which the formation of SnO2 nanocrystals and nitrogen doping of graphene occur simultaneously. The as-prepared SnO2/nitrogen-doped graphene nanohybrids exhibit enhanced electrochemical performance for sodium-ion batteries compared to SnO2/graphene nanocomposites. A systematic comparison between SnO2/nitrogen-doped graphene nanohybrids and the SnO2/graphene counterpart as anode materials for sodium-ion batteries has been conducted. The comparison is in a reasonable framework, where SnO2/nitrogen-doped graphene nanohybrids and the SnO2/graphene counterpart have the same SnO2 ratio, similar SnO2 crystallinity and particle size, close surface area and pore size. The results clearly manifest that the improved electron transfer efficiency of SnO2/nitrogen-doped graphene due to nitrogen-doping plays a more important role than the increased electro-active sites within graphene network in enhancing the electro-activity of SnO2/nitrogen-doped graphene nanohybrids compared to the SnO2/graphene counterpart. In contrast to the previous reports which often ascribe the enhanced electro-activity of nitrogen-doped graphene based composites to two nitrogen-doping effects (improving the electron transfer efficiency and increasing electro-active sites within graphene networks) in one single declaration, this work is expected to provide more specific information for understanding the effects of nitrogen-doping into graphene on improving the electrochemical performance of graphene based composites

Isolated radial head dislocation, a rare and easily missed injury in the presence of major distracting injuries: a case report

High velocity accidents can lead to major injuries – long bone fractures, abdominal trauma, pelvic fractures and chest injuries. These injuries can act as distracting factors during the initial assessment of a polytrauma patient and innocuous but significant smaller injuries can be missed. We present a rare case of isolated anterolateral radial head dislocation in a polytrauma patient

Forehead EEG in Support of Future Feasible Personal Healthcare Solutions: Sleep Management, Headache Prevention, and Depression Treatment

© 2013 IEEE. There are current limitations in the recording technologies for measuring EEG activity in clinical and experimental applications. Acquisition systems involving wet electrodes are time-consuming and uncomfortable for the user. Furthermore, dehydration of the gel affects the quality of the acquired data and reliability of long-term monitoring. As a result, dry electrodes may be used to facilitate the transition from neuroscience research or clinical practice to real-life applications. EEG signals can be easily obtained using dry electrodes on the forehead, which provides extensive information concerning various cognitive dysfunctions and disorders. This paper presents the usefulness of the forehead EEG with advanced sensing technology and signal processing algorithms to support people with healthcare needs, such as monitoring sleep, predicting headaches, and treating depression. The proposed system for evaluating sleep quality is capable of identifying five sleep stages to track nightly sleep patterns. Additionally, people with episodic migraines can be notified of an imminent migraine headache hours in advance through monitoring forehead EEG dynamics. The depression treatment screening system can predict the efficacy of rapid antidepressant agents. It is evident that frontal EEG activity is critically involved in sleep management, headache prevention, and depression treatment. The use of dry electrodes on the forehead allows for easy and rapid monitoring on an everyday basis. The advances in EEG recording and analysis ensure a promising future in support of personal healthcare solutions

Small inhibitor of Bcl-2, HA14-1, selectively enhanced the apoptotic effect of cisplatin by modulating Bcl-2 family members in MDA-MB-231 breast cancer cells

Inhibition or downregulation of Bcl-2 represents a new therapeutic approach to by-pass chemoresistance in cancer cells. Therefore, we explored the potential of this approach in breast cancer cells. Cisplatin and paclitaxel induced apoptosis in a dose-dependent manner in MCF-7 (drug-sensitive) and MDA-MB-231 (drug-insensitive) cells. Furthermore, when we transiently silenced Bcl-2, both cisplatin and paclitaxel induced apoptosis more than parental cells. Dose dependent induction of apoptosis by drugs was enhanced by the pre-treatment of these cells with HA14-1, a Bcl-2 inhibitor. Although the effect of cisplatin was significant on both cell lines, the effect of paclitaxel was much less potent only in MDA-MB-231 cells. To further understand the distinct role of drugs in MDA-MB-231 cells pretreated with HA14-1, caspases and Bcl-2 family proteins were studied. The apoptotic effect of cisplatin with or without HA14-1 pre-treatment is shown to be caspase-dependent. Among pro-apoptotic Bcl-2 proteins, Bax and Puma were found to be up-regulated whereas Bcl-2 and Bcl-x(L) were down-regulated when cells were pretreated with HA14-1 followed by paclitaxel or cisplatin. Enforced Bcl-2 expression in MDA-MB-231 cells abrogated the sensitizing effect of HA14-1 in cisplatin induced apoptosis. These results suggest that the potentiating effect of HA14-1 is drug and cell type specific and may not only depend on the inhibition of Bcl-2. Importantly, alteration of other pro-apoptotic or anti-apoptotic Bcl-2 family members may dictate the apoptotic response when HA14-1 is combined with chemotherapeutic drugs

The Ets dominant repressor En/Erm enhances intestinal epithelial tumorigenesis in ApcMin mice

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Ets transcription factors have been widely implicated in the control of tumorigenesis, with most studies suggesting tumor-promoting roles. However, few studies have examined Ets tumorigenesis-modifying functions <it>in vivo </it>using model genetic systems.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>Using mice expressing a previously characterized Ets dominant repressor transgene in the intestinal epithelium (Villin-En/Erm), we examined the consequences of blocking endogenous Ets-mediated transcriptional activation on tumorigenesis in the Apc^Minmodel of intestinal carcinoma.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>En/Erm expression in the intestine, at levels not associated with overt crypt-villus dysmorphogenesis, results in a marked increase in tumor number in Apc^Minanimals. Moreover, when examined histologically, tumors from En/Erm-expressing animals show a trend toward greater stromal invasiveness. Detailed analysis of crypt-villus homeostasis in these En/Erm transgenic animals suggests increased epithelial turnover as one possible mechanism for the enhanced tumorigenesis.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>Our findings provide <it>in vivo </it>evidence for a tumor-restricting function of endogenous Ets factors in the intestinal epithelium.</p

Pulmonary Nodule Classification Based on Heterogeneous Features Learning

IEEE Pulmonary cancer is one of the most dangerous cancers with a high incidence and mortality. An early accurate diagnosis and treatment of pulmonary cancer can observably increase the survival rates, where computer-aided diagnosis systems can largely improve the efficiency of radiologists. In this paper, we propose a deep automated lung nodule diagnosis system based on three-dimensional convolutional neural network (3D-CNN) and support vector machine (SVM) with multiple kernel learning (MKL) algorithms. The system not only explores the computed tomography (CT) scans, but also the clinical information of patients like age, smoking history and cancer history. To extract deeper image features, a 34-layers 3D Residual Network (3D-ResNet) is employed. Heterogeneous features including the extracted image features and the clinical data are learned with MKL. The experimental results prove the effectiveness of the proposed image feature extractor and the combination of heterogeneous features in the task of lung nodule diagnosis

A Hypomorphic Lsd1 Allele Results in Heart Development Defects in Mice

Article Authors Metrics Comments Related Content Abstract Introduction Results Discussion Materials and Methods Supporting Information Acknowledgments Author Contributions References Reader Comments (0) Media Coverage (0) Figures Abstract Lysine-specific demethylase 1 (Lsd1/Aof2/Kdm1a), the first enzyme with specific lysine demethylase activity to be described, demethylates histone and non-histone proteins and is essential for mouse embryogenesis. Lsd1 interacts with numerous proteins through several different domains, most notably the tower domain, an extended helical structure that protrudes from the core of the protein. While there is evidence that Lsd1-interacting proteins regulate the activity and specificity of Lsd1, the significance and roles of such interactions in developmental processes remain largely unknown. Here we describe a hypomorphic Lsd1 allele that contains two point mutations in the tower domain, resulting in a protein with reduced interaction with known binding partners and decreased enzymatic activity. Mice homozygous for this allele die perinatally due to heart defects, with the majority of animals suffering from ventricular septal defects. Molecular analyses revealed hyperphosphorylation of E-cadherin in the hearts of mutant animals. These results identify a previously unknown role for Lsd1 in heart development, perhaps partly through the control of E-cadherin phosphorylation

Anyons in a weakly interacting system

We describe a theoretical proposal for a system whose excitations are anyons with the exchange phase pi/4 and charge -e/2, but, remarkably, can be built by filling a set of single-particle states of essentially noninteracting electrons. The system consists of an artificially structured type-II superconducting film adjacent to a 2D electron gas in the integer quantum Hall regime with unit filling fraction. The proposal rests on the observation that a vacancy in an otherwise periodic vortex lattice in the superconductor creates a bound state in the 2DEG with total charge -e/2. A composite of this fractionally charged hole and the missing flux due to the vacancy behaves as an anyon. The proposed setup allows for manipulation of these anyons and could prove useful in various schemes for fault-tolerant topological quantum computation.Comment: 7 pages with 3 figures. For related work and info visit http://www.physics.ubc.ca/~fran