Prediction of high-Tc superconductivity in ternary lanthanum borohydrides

The study of superconductivity in compressed hydrides is of great interest due to measurements of high critical temperatures (Tc) in the vicinity of room temperature, beginning with the observations of LaH10 at 170-190 GPa. However, the pressures required for synthesis of these high Tc superconducting hydrides currently remain extremely high. Here we show the investigation of crystal structures and superconductivity in the La-B-H system under pressure with particle-swarm intelligence structure searches methods in combination with first-principles calculations. Structures with six stoichiometries, LaBH, LaBH3, LaBH4, LaBH6, LaBH7 and LaBH8, were predicted to become stable under pressure. Remarkably, the hydrogen atoms in LaBH8 were found to bond with B atoms in a manner that is similar to that in H3S. Lattice dynamics calculations indicate that LaBH7 and LaBH8 become dynamically stable at pressures as low as 109.2 and 48.3 GPa, respectively. Moreover, the two phases were predicted to be superconducting with a critical temperature (Tc) of 93 K and 156 K at 110 GPa and 55 GPa, respectively. Our results provide guidance for future experiments targeting new hydride superconductors with both low synthesis pressures and high Tc.Comment: 16 pages, 5 figures

Phase transitions of alkaline-earth metal sulfides under pressure

We have systematically explored the crystal structures of alkaline-earth metal sulfides under pressure by using a swarm-intelligence structural prediction method. At low pressures we successfully reproduced their known structures and phase transition sequences. Under high pressure, MgS is predicted to transform from B28 to a β-NbP-type structure at 262 GPa. CaS and SrS present the same phase transition sequence, from B2 to a β-NbP-type structure, while BaS is predicted to transform to a Imma structure. The Imma structure is actually similar to the β-NbP-type structure, as it can be seen as a modulated distortion of the latter structure. The absence of any imaginary phonon mode for the predicted structures suggests that they are dynamically stable. The calculated electronic band structures and density of states reveal that all the predicted phases are metallic, except that MgS is a semiconductor. Subsequent electron-phonon coupling calculations suggest that Imma BaS is a superconductor with a low Tc of 1.32 K, while β-NbP MgS, CaS and SrS are not superconductors. The current study provides a comprehensive analysis of phase transitions for alkaline-earth metal sulfides up to 300 GPa and might stimulate experimental studies in the future.The work was supported by National Natural Science Foundation of China (91963115, 52022089), the PhD Foundation by Yanshan University (B970), Science and Technology Project of Hebei Education Department (Grant No. QN2021136). A.B. acknowledges financial support from the Spanish Ministry of Science and Innovation (PID2019-105488GB-I00).Peer reviewe

Efficacy of chimeric antigen receptor T cell therapy and autologous stem cell transplant in relapsed or refractory diffuse large B-cell lymphoma: A systematic review

BackgroundWe aimed to compare the efficacy of chimeric antigen receptor T (CAR-T) cell therapy with that of autologous stem cell transplantation (auto-HSCT) in relapsed/refractory diffuse large B cell lymphoma (R/R DLBCL).Research design and methodsWe searched eligible publications up to January 31st, 2022, in PubMed, Cochrane Library, Springer, and Scopus. A total of 16 publications with 3484 patients were independently evaluated and analyzed using STATA SE software.ResultsPatients who underwent CAR-T cell therapy showed a better overall response rate (ORR) and partial response (PR) than those treated with auto-HSCT (CAR-T vs. auto-HSCT, ORR: 80% vs. 73%, HR:0.90,95%CI:0.76-1.07,P = 0.001; PR: 20% vs. 14%, HR:0.65,95%CI:0.62-0.68,P = 0.034). No significant difference was observed in 6-month overall survival (OS) (CAR-T vs. auto-HSCT, six-month OS: 81% vs. 84%, HR:1.23,95%CI:0.63-2.38, P = 0.299), while auto-HSCT showed a favorable 1 and 2-year OS (CAR-T vs. auto-HSCT, one-year OS: 64% vs. 73%, HR:2.42,95%CI:2.27-2.79, P < 0.001; two-year OS: 54% vs. 68%, HR:1.81,95%CI:1.78-1.97, P < 0.001). Auto-HSCT also had advantages in progression-free survival (PFS) (CAR-T vs. auto-HSCT, six-month PFS: 53% vs. 76%, HR:2.81,95%CI:2.53-3.11,P < 0.001; one-year PFS: 46% vs. 61%, HR:1.84,95%CI:1.72-1.97,P < 0.001; two-year PFS: 42% vs. 54%, HR:1.62,95%CI:1.53-1.71, P < 0.001). Subgroup analysis by age, prior lines of therapy, and ECOG scores was performed to compare the efficacy of both treatment modalities.ConclusionAlthough CAR-T cell therapy showed a beneficial ORR, auto-HSCT exhibited a better long-term treatment superiority in R/R DLBCL patients. Survival outcomes were consistent across different subgroups

Identification of microtubule-associated biomarkers in diffuse large B-cell lymphoma and prognosis prediction

Background: Diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL) is a genetically heterogeneous disease with a complicated prognosis. Even though various prognostic evaluations have been applied currently, they usually only use the clinical factors that overlook the molecular underlying DLBCL progression. Therefore, more accurate prognostic assessment needs further exploration. In the present study, we constructed a novel prognostic model based on microtubule associated genes (MAGs).Methods: A total of 33 normal controls and 1360 DLBCL samples containing gene-expression from the Gene Expression Omnibus (GEO) database were included. Subsequently, the univariate Cox, the least absolute shrinkage and selection operator (LASSO), and multivariate Cox regression analysis were used to select the best prognosis related genes into the MAGs model. To validate the model, Kaplan-Meier curve, and nomogram were analyzed.Results: A risk score model based on fourteen candidate MAGs (CCDC78, CD300LG, CTAG2, DYNLL2, MAPKAPK2, MREG, NME8, PGK2, RALBP1, SIGLEC1, SLC1A1, SLC39A12, TMEM63A, and WRAP73) was established. The K-M curve presented that the high-risk patients had a significantly inferior overall survival (OS) time compared to low-risk patients in training and validation datasets. Furthermore, knocking-out TMEM63A, a key gene belonging to the MAGs model, inhibited cell proliferation noticeably.Conclusion: The novel MAGs prognostic model has a well predictive capability, which may as a supplement for the current assessments. Furthermore, candidate TMEM63A gene has therapeutic target potentially in DLBCL

Modification and Characterization of Fe3O4 Nanoparticles for Use in Adsorption of Alkaloids

Magnetite (Fe3O4) is a ferromagnetic iron oxide of both Fe(II) and Fe(III), prepared by FeCl2 and FeCl3. XRD was used for the confirmation of Fe3O4. Via the modification of Tetraethyl orthosilicate (TEOS), (3-Aminopropyl)trimethoxysilane (APTMS), and Alginate (AA), Fe3O4@SiO2, Fe3O4@SiO2-NH2, and Fe3O4@SiO2-NH2-AA nanoparticles could be obtained, and IR and SEM were used for the characterizations. Alkaloid adsorption experiments exhibited that, as for Palmatine and Berberine, the most adsorption could be obtained at pH 8 when the adsorption time was 6 min. The adsorption percentage of Palmatine was 22.2%, and the adsorption percentage of Berberine was 23.6% at pH 8. Considering the effect of adsorption time on liquid phase system, the adsorption conditions of 8 min has been chosen when pH 7 was used. The adsorption percentage of Palmatine was 8.67%, and the adsorption percentage of Berberine was 7.25%. Considering the above conditions, pH 8 and the adsorption time of 8min could be chosen for further uses

Prediction of superconductivity in pressure-induced new silicon boride phases

The crystal structures and properties of boron-silicon (B-Si) compounds under pressure have been systematically explored using particle swarm optimization structure prediction method in combination with first-principles calculations. Three new stoichiometries, B2Si, BSi, and BSi2, are predicted to be stable gradually under pressure, where increasing pressure favors the formation of silicon rich B-Si compounds. In the boron-rich compounds, the network of boron atoms changes from B12 icosahedron in the ambient phases to the similar buckled graphenelike layers in the high-pressure phases, which crystalize in the same P¯3m1 symmetry but with different numbers of boron layers between adjacent silicon layers. Phonon calculations show that these structures might be retained to ambient conditions as metastable phases. Further electron-phonon coupling calculations indicate that the high-pressure phases of boron-rich compounds might superconduct at 1 atm, with the highest Tc value of 21 K from the Allen-Dynes equation in P¯3m1 B2Si, which is much higher than the one observed in boron doped diamond-type silicon. Moreover, further fully anisotropic Migdal-Eliashberg calculations indicate that B2Si is a two-gap anisotropic superconductor and the estimated Tc might reach up to 30 K at 1 atm. On the silicon-rich side, BSi2 is predicted to be stable in the CuAl2-type structure. Our current results significantly enrich the phase diagram of the B-Si system and will stimulate further experimental study.The work was supported by Fostering Program of Major Research Plan of NSFC (91963115), National Key R & D Program of China (2018YFA0703400), National Natural Science Foundation of China (No. 51732010, 11674176, 11874224), Funding Program for Recruited Oversea Scholars of Hebei Province (Grant No. CL201729), and the Ph.D. Foundation by Yanshan University (Grant No. B970). A.B. acknowledges financial support from the Spanish Ministry of Economy and Competitiveness (Grant No. FIS2016-76617-P) and the Department of Education, Universities and Research of the Basque Government and the University of the Basque Country (Grant No. IT756-13).Peer reviewe

Comparison of the Effects of High Pressure Processing, Pasteurization and High Temperature Short Time on the Physicochemical Attributes, Nutritional Quality, Aroma Profile and Sensory Characteristics of Passion Fruit Purée

The study investigated the effects of high-pressure processing (HPP) (600 MPa/5 min), pasteurization (PT) (85 °C/30 s), and high-temperature short time (HTST) (110 °C/8.6 s) on physicochemical parameters (sugar, acid, pH, TSS), sensory-related attributes (color, aroma compounds), antioxidants (phenolics, vitamin C, carotenoids, antioxidant capacity), and sensory attributes of yellow passion fruit purée (PFP). Compared to the PT and HTST, HPP obtained the PFP with better color, sugar, and organic acid profiles. Although PT was equally effective preservation of antioxidants and antioxidant capacity of PFP compared to HPP, high temperature inevitable resulted in the greater degradation of the aroma profile. The amounts of esters, alcohols, and hydrocarbon in PFP were significantly increased by 11.3%, 21.3%, and 30.0% after HPP, respectively. All samples were evaluated by a panel comprising 30 panelists according to standard QDA (quantitative descriptive analysis) procedure, and the result showed that HPP-treated PFP was rated the highest overall intensity score with 7.06 for its sensory attributes, followed by control (6.96), HTST (6.17), and PT (6.16). Thus, HPP is a suitable alternative technology for achieving the good sensory quality of PFP without compromising their nutritional properties

Potential high- Tc superconductivity in CaYH12 under pressure

The high-pressure phases and superconductivity of CaYH12 have been explored by using a particle swarm optimization structure prediction methodology in combination with first-principles calculations. Our results show that CaYH12 becomes stable with a cubic Fd3m structure above 170 GPa, where metal atoms form body-centered-cubic (bcc) lattices and hydrogens occupy all the tetrahedral interstices of these bcc lattices, completing sodalitelike cages. The electron-phonon coupling calculations indicate that the Fd3m structure is a potential high-temperature superconductor, with a calculated Tc of 258 K at 200 GPa. Our current study provides a possibility for searching new high-Tc superconductors in ternary hydrides.The work was supported by National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grants No. 11604290 and No. 51732010), the Science Foundation for the Youth Topnotch Talent from Universities of Hebei Province (Grant No. BJ2017023), Funding Program for Recruited Oversea Scholars of Hebei Province (CL201729), and the Ph.D. Foundation by Yanshan University (Grant No. B970). A.B. acknowledges financial support from the Spanish Ministry of Economy and Competitiveness (FIS2016-76617-P) and the Department of Education, Universities and Research of the Basque Government and the University of the Basque Country (IT756-13)