First freshwater coralline alga and the role of local features in a major biome transition

Coralline red algae are significant components of sea bottom and up to now considered as exclusively marine species. Here we presentthe first coralline alga from a freshwater environment, found in theCetina River (Adriatic Sea watershed).The alga is fully adapted to freshwater, as attested by reproductive structures, sporelings, and an inability to survive brackish conditions. Morphological and molecular phylogenetic analyses revealthe species belongs to Pneophyllum and is described as P. cetinaensis sp. nov.The marine-freshwatertransition most probably occurred during the last glaciation. The brackish-water ancestor was preadapted to osmotic stress and rapid changes in water salinity and temperature.The particular characteristics ofthe karst Cetina River, such as hard water enriched with dissolved calcium carbonate and a pH similarto the marine environment, favoured colonization ofthe river by a marine species.The upstream advance and dispersal is facilitated by exceptionally pronounced zoochory by freshwater gastropods. Pneophyllum cetinaensis defies the paradigm of Corallinales as an exclusively marine group

Efficient and Stable Blue- and Red-Emitting Perovskite Nanocrystals through Defect Engineering: PbX2 Purification

Current efforts to reduce the density of structural defects such as surface passivation, doping, and modified synthetic protocols have allowed us to grow high-quality perovskite nanocrystals (PNCs). However, the role of the purity of the precursors involved during the PNC synthesis to hinder the emergence of defects has not been widely explored. In this work, we analyzed the use of different crystallization processes of PbX2 (X = Cl– or I–) to purify the chemicals and produce highly luminescent and stable CsPbCl3–xBrx and CsPbI3 PNCs. The use of a hydrothermal (Hyd) process to improve the quality of the as-prepared PbCl2 provides blue-emitting PNCs with efficient ligand surface passivation, a maximum photoluminescence quantum yield (PLQY) of ∼ 88%, and improved photocatalytic activity to oxidize benzyl alcohol, yielding 40%. Then, the hot recrystallization of PbI2 prior to Hyd treatment led to the formation of red-emissive PNCs with a PLQY of up to 100%, long-term stability around 4 months under ambient air, and a relative humidity of 50–60%. Thus, CsPbI3 light-emitting diodes were fabricated to provide a maximum external quantum efficiency of up to 13.6%. We claim that the improvement of the PbX2 crystallinity offers a suitable stoichiometry in the PNC structure, reducing nonradiative carrier traps and so maximizing the radiative recombination dynamics. This contribution gives an insight into how the manipulation of the PbX2 precursor is a profitable and potential alternative to synthesize PNCs with improved photophysical features by making use of defect engineering

Fully Inkjet-Printed Green-Emitting PEDOT:PSS/NiO/Colloidal CsPbBr3/SnO2 Perovskite Light-Emitting Diode on Rigid and Flexible Substrates

After establishing themselves as promising active materials in the field of solar cells, halide perovskites are currently being explored for fabrication of low-cost, easily processable, and highly efficient light-emitting diodes (LEDs). Despite this, the highest efficiencies reported for perovskite-based LEDs (PeLEDs) are achieved through spin coating or vacuum evaporation deposition techniques, which are not adequate, in most of the cases, for an industrial-scale production. Additionally, the long-term stability is still a big handicap, even though all inorganic perovskites, such as CsPbBr3, are found to be more stable to external variables. In this context, herein, the fabrication of fully inkjet-printed (IJP) CsPbBr3-based PeLEDs in ambient conditions, on rigid and flexible substrates, on a proof-of-concept basis, with the successful incorporation of NiO and SnO2 as hole- and electron-selective contacts, respectively, is reported. Despite the moderate luminance (324 cd m−2) value obtained, this result paves the way toward the development of upscalable fabrication of PeLEDs based on deposition techniques with controlled spatial resolution.The authors wish to thank the financial support from the European Commission via FET Open Grant (862656, DROP-IT), MINECO (Spain) for grant PID2019-105658RB-I00 (PRITES project), Ministry of Science and Innovation of Spain under Project STABLE (PID2019-107314RB-I00), and Generalitat Valenciana via Prometeo Grant Q-Devices (Prometeo/2018/098)

Echinostoma caproni (Trematoda): differential in vivo mucin expression and glycosylation in high- and low-compatible hosts

Enhanced mucus production and release appears to be a common mechanism for the clearance of intestinal helminths, and this expulsion is normally mediated by Th2-type immune responses. To investigate the factors determining the expulsion of intestinal helminths, we have analysed in vivo expression of mucin genes at the site of infection in two host species displaying different compatibility with Echinostoma caproni (Trematoda). Surprisingly, a general down-regulation on mucin mRNA expression was detected in low-compatible hosts (rats) coinciding with the development of Th2/Th17 responses and the early rejection of the worms from the intestinal lumen. This suggests the existence of a mechanism by which the parasites can modulate the mucus barrier to favour their survival. In highly compatible hosts (mice), some mucin genes were found to be up-regulated throughout the infection, probably, to protect the intestinal epithelium against the infection-induced inflammation developed in this host species. Moreover, infection-induced changes on mucin glycans were also studied by lectin histochemistry. Similar alterations were detected in the ileum of infected mice and rats, except with SNA lectin, indicating that sylated mucins might play an important role in determining the evolution of the infection in each host species