Charged Polymer-Coated Separators by Atmospheric Plasma-Induced Grafting for Lithium-Ion Batteries

A simple and fast method of atmospheric plasma-induced grafting was applied over a polyethylene membrane to enhance its performance as a separator for lithium-ion batteries. The process of grafting has formed a thin, durable, and uniform layer on the surface of the porous membrane. The charges of grafted polymers affected the performance of batteries in many ways besides the change of hydrophilicity. Negative charges in polymers improve the capacity retention of batteries and the uniformity of the SEI layer. On the other hand, the electrostatic attraction between different charges contributed to small increases of thermal stability and mechanical strength of separators. Polyampholyte was grafted by using the mixtures of monomers, and the composition of the grafted layer was optimized. The formation of stable uniform SEI layers and the marked improvement in capacity retention were observed in the full cell tests of the lithium battery with the polyampholyte-grafted separators when the polyampholyte has a negative net charge

Mutation frequency at the major codons including antiviral resistance and SVR-related codons in the sequenced NS5B region.

<p>a. ‘Diverse’ indicates the mutation type of the coexistence with the wild type in a quasispecies distribution of a subject. Otherwise, ‘Conserved’ indicates the presence of only mutation types alone without the wild type in a quasispecies distribution of a subject.</p><p>b. C316/Q464 and N316/E464 were found in an exclusive manner. All the 33 subclones with the C316/Q464 type were found in patients with advanced liver disease, but not in Cs.</p

Comparison of mutation rates between the CD4+ and CD8+ T cell epitope regions.

<p>a. P-values were determined by a comparison of mutation rates of inside and outside of the CD8+ T cell epitopes.</p><p>b. P-values (<0.001) were obtained by a comparison of the mutation rates of outside of the CD4+ T cell epitopes as well as inside the CD8+ T cell epitopes.</p

Comparison of mutation rates in four SVR-related codons (309, 333, 338 and 355) in the NS5B region between 15 Korean consensus sequence and patients from other countries.

<p>a. P-values were determined by a comparison with the mutation rate from 15 Korean consensus sequences.</p><p>b. Statistically significant after a Bonferroni post hoc analysis (p<0.05).</p

Comparison of the frequencies of d_N and d_S of the NS5B regions between 15 Korean patients consensus sequence and patients from other countries.

<p>a. China: 15, Japan: 15, Switzerland: 15 and the United States: 15.</p><p>b. p = 0.002;</p><p>c: p = 0.078;</p><p>d: p<0.001.</p

Distribution and frequencies of the amino acid mutations in the NS5B AA 308–471 regions.

<p>The blue-shaded regions are the known MHC class I restricted regions and the red-lined regions are regions expected to be Korean-specific CD4+ epitope-binding regions. The region between the dotted lines is a mutational hotspot. The arrow indicates amino acid substitution related to IFN/RBV and other agents in HCV and the asterisks denote the novel mutations found in this study. The letters C and D indicate ‘conserved’ and ‘diverse’ in the subclones, respectively.</p

Comparison of the mutation rates in NS5B regions according to the clinical status of liver disease.

<p>a. Statistically significant after a Bonferroni post hoc analysis (p<0.05).</p

Phylogenic tree of 492bp of the GT-1b NS5B region.

<p>Genetic distances were estimated using the Kimura two-parameter matrix and the phylogenetic tree was constructed using the neighbor-joining method. The percentages indicated at the nodes represent bootstrap levels supported by 1,000 re-sampled data sets. Bootstrap values of <70% are not shown.</p

Improved Cycling Performance of Lithium–Oxygen Cells by Use of a Lithium Electrode Protected with Conductive Polymer and Aluminum Fluoride

Lithium–oxygen batteries have attracted great attention for advanced energy storage systems because of their high specific energy. The enhancement of the interfacial stability of lithium negative electrodes is one of the many technical challenges toward high safety and long life lithium–oxygen batteries due to their high reactivity toward organic electrolytes and the lithium dendrite growth during the repeated cycling. Herein, we demonstrate that the protective layer comprising conductive polymer and AlF₃ particles on lithium metal stabilized the lithium electrode by effectively reducing the reductive decomposition of the liquid electrolyte and suppressing the growth of lithium dendrite. As a result, the cycling performance of a lithium–oxygen cell assembled with a surface-modified lithium electrode was remarkably improved as compared to a cell with a pristine lithium electrode

Naturally Occurring Mutations in Large Surface Genes Related to Occult Infection of Hepatitis B Virus Genotype C

<div><p>Molecular mechanisms related to occult hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection, particularly those based on genotype C infection, have rarely been determined thus far in the ongoing efforts to determine infection mechanisms. Therefore, we aim to elucidate the mutation patterns in the surface open reading frame (S ORF) underlying occult infections of HBV genotype C in the present study. Nested PCRs were applied to 624 HBV surface antigen (HBsAg) negative Korean subjects. Cloning and sequencing of the S ORF gene was applied to 41 occult cases and 40 control chronic carriers. Forty-one (6.6%) of the 624 Korean adults with HBsAg-negative serostatus were found to be positive for DNA according to nested PCR tests. Mutation frequencies in the three regions labeled here as preS1, preS2, and S were significantly higher in the occult subjects compared to the carriers in all cases. A total of two types of deletions, preS1 deletions in the start codon and preS2 deletions as well as nine types of point mutations were significantly implicated in the occult infection cases. Mutations within the “a” determinant region in HBsAg were found more frequently in the occult subjects than in the carriers. Mutations leading to premature termination of S ORF were found in 16 occult subjects (39.0%) but only in one subject from among the carriers (2.5%). In conclusion, our data suggest that preS deletions, the premature termination of S ORF, and “a” determinant mutations are associated with occult infections of HBV genotype C among a HBsAg-negative population. The novel mutation patterns related to occult infection introduced in the present study can help to broaden our understanding of HBV occult infections.</p> </div