Self‐Sacrificial Template‐Directed Synthesis of Metal–Organic Framework‐Derived Porous Carbon for Energy‐Storage Devices

Metal–organic framework (MOF)‐derived carbon materials exhibit large surface areas, but dominant micropore characteristics and uncontrollable dimensions. Herein, we propose a self‐sacrificial template‐directed synthesis method to engineer the porous structure and dimensions of MOF‐derived carbon materials. A porous zinc oxide (ZnO) nanosheet solid is selected as the self‐sacrificial template and two‐dimensional (2D) nanostructure‐directing agent to prepare 2D ZIF‐8‐derived carbon nanosheets (ZCNs). The as‐prepared ZCN materials exhibit a large surface area with hierarchical porosity. These intriguing features render ZCN materials advanced electrode materials for electrochemical energy‐storage devices, demonstrating large ion‐accessible surface area and high ion‐/electron‐transport rates. This self‐sacrificial template‐directed synthesis method offers new avenues for rational engineering of the porous structure and dimensions of MOF‐derived porous carbon materials, thus exploiting their full potential for electrochemical energy‐storage devices.On the surface: A self‐sacrificial template‐directed synthesis method is proposed to engineer the porosity and dimensions of MOF‐derived carbon materials. By using a porous nanosheet solid as the self‐sacrificial template and two‐dimensional (2D) nanostructure‐directing agent, 2D ZIF‐8‐derived carbon nanosheets are prepared, which exhibit a large ion‐accessible surface area and rapid ion transport as the electrode materials for electrochemical energy‐storage devices.Peer Reviewedhttps://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/137193/1/celc201500536-sup-0001-misc_information.pdfhttps://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/137193/2/celc201500536.pdfhttps://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/137193/3/celc201500536_am.pd

Identification of SNPs and Candidate Genes Associated With Salt Tolerance at the Seedling Stage in Cotton (Gossypium hirsutum L.)

Salt tolerance in cotton is highly imperative for improvement in the response to decreasing farmland and soil salinization. However, little is known about the genetic basis underlying salt tolerance in cotton, especially the seedling stage. In this study, we evaluated two salt-tolerance-related traits of a natural population comprising 713 upland cotton (Gossypium hirsutum L.) accessions worldwide at the seedling stage and performed a genome-wide association study (GWAS) to identify marker-trait associations under salt stress using the Illumina Infinium CottonSNP63K array. A total of 23 single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) that represented seven genomic regions on chromosomes A01, A10, D02, D08, D09, D10, and D11 were significantly associated with the two salt-tolerance-related traits, relative survival rate (RSR) and salt tolerance level (STL). Of these, the two SNPs i46598Gh and i47388Gh on D09 were simultaneously associated with the two traits. Based on all loci, we screened 280 possible candidate genes showing different expression levels under salt stress. Most of these genes were involved in transcription factors, transporters and enzymes and were previously reported as being involved in plant salt tolerance, such as NAC, MYB, NXH, WD40, CDPK, LEA, and CIPK. We further validated six putative candidate genes by qRT-PCR and found a differential expression level between salt-tolerant and salt-sensitive varieties. Our findings provide valuable information for enhancing the understanding of complicated mechanisms of salt tolerance in G. hirsutum seedlings and cotton salt tolerance breeding by molecular marker-assisted selection

Identification of a cellular senescence-related-lncRNA (SRlncRNA) signature to predict the overall survival of glioma patients and the tumor immune microenvironment

Background: Gliomas are brain tumors that arise from glial cells, and they are the most common primary intracranial tumors with a poor prognosis. Cellular senescence plays a critical role in cancer, especially in glioma. In this study, we constructed a senescence-related lncRNA (SRlncRNA) signature to assess the prognosis of glioma.Methods: The Cancer Genome Atlas was used to collect SRlncRNA transcriptome profiles and clinical data about glioma. Patients were randomized to training, testing, and whole cohorts. LASSO and Cox regression analyses were employed to construct the SRlncRNA signature, and Kaplan–Meier (K-M) analysis was performed to determine each cohort’s survival. Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves were applied to verify the accuracy of this signature. Gene set enrichment analysis was used to visualize functional enrichment (GSEA). The CIBERSORT algorithm, ESTIMATE and TIMER databases were utilized to evaluate the differences in the infiltration of 22 types of immune cells and their association with the signature. RT–qPCR and IHC were used to identify the consistency of the signature in tumor tissue.Results: An SRlncRNA signature consisting of six long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) was constructed, and patients were divided into high-risk and low-risk groups by the median of their riskscore. The KM analysis showed that the high-risk group had worse overall survival, and the ROC curve confirmed that the riskscore had more accurate predictive power. A multivariate Cox analysis and its scatter plot with clinical characteristics confirmed the riskscore as an independent risk factor for overall survival. GSEA showed that the GO and KEGG pathways were mainly enriched in the immune response to tumor cells, p53 signaling pathway, mTOR signaling pathway, and Wnt signaling pathway. Further validation also yielded significant differences in the risk signature in terms of immune cell infiltration, which may be closely related to prognostic differences, and qRT–PCR and IHC confirmed the consistency of the expression differences in the major lncRNAs with those in the prediction model.Conclusion Our findings indicated that the SRlncRNA signature might be used as a predictive biomarker and that there is a link between it and immune infiltration. This discovery is consistent with the present categorization system and may open new avenues for research and personalized therapy

Genome sequence of the cultivated cotton <i>Gossypium arboreum</i>

The complex allotetraploid nature of the cotton genome (AADD; 2n = 52) makes genetic, genomic and functional analyses extremely challenging. Here we sequenced and assembled the Gossypium arboreum (AA; 2n = 26) genome, a putative contributor of the A subgenome. A total of 193.6 Gb of clean sequence covering the genome by 112.6-fold was obtained by paired-end sequencing. We further anchored and oriented 90.4% of the assembly on 13 pseudochromosomes and found that 68.5% of the genome is occupied by repetitive DNA sequences. We predicted 41,330 protein-coding genes in G. arboreum. Two whole-genome duplications were shared by G. arboreum and Gossypium raimondii before speciation. Insertions of long terminal repeats in the past 5 million years are responsible for the twofold difference in the sizes of these genomes. Comparative transcriptome studies showed the key role of the nucleotide binding site (NBS)-encoding gene family in resistance to Verticillium dahliae and the involvement of ethylene in the development of cotton fiber cells.Genetics &amp; HereditySCI(E)[email protected]; [email protected]; [email protected]

A Thin Multifunctional Coating On A Separator Improves The Cyclability And Safety Of Lithium Sulfur Batteries

Lithium-sulfur batteries are one of the most promising next-generation batteries due to their high theoretical specific capacity, but are impeded by the low utilization of insulating sulfur, unstable morphology of the lithium metal anode, and transport of soluble polysulfides. Here, by coating a layer of nano titanium dioxide and carbon black onto a commercial polypropylene separator, we demonstrate a new composite separator that can confine the polysulfides on the cathode side, forming a catholyte chamber, and at the same time block the dendritic lithium on the anode side. Lithium-sulfur batteries using this separator show a high initial capacity of 1206 mA h g-1 and a low capacity decay rate of 0.1% per cycle at 0.5C. Analyses reveal the electrocatalytic effect and the excellent dendrite-blocking capability of the ∼7 m thick coating

The fate and toxicity of Pb-based perovskite nanoparticles on soil bacterial community: Impacts of pH, humic acid, and divalent cations.

Environmental Biolog