Magnetic surface on nonmagnetic bulk of electride Hf2S

Recent experiment reported the self-passivated electride Hf2S with excellent stability and continuous electrocatalytic ability [S. H. Kang et al., Sci. Adv. 6, eaba7416 (2020)]. Starting from its 2H-type layered structure, we have studied the electronic, magnetic, and transport properties of the electride Hf2S in the monolayer and multilayer forms by combining first-principles electronic structure calculations and Kubo formula approach. Our calculations indicate that these thin films of Hf2S electride are both dynamically and thermodynamically stable. Astonishingly, the calculations further show that the outmost Hf atoms and the surface electron gas of the Hf2S multilayers are spin polarized, while the inner Hf atoms and the electron gas in the interlayer regions remain nonmagnetic. Due to the magnetic surface, the multilayer Hf2S exhibits many unusual transport properties such as the surface anomalous Hall effect and the electric-field-induced layer Hall effect. Our theoretical predictions on Hf2S call for future experimental verification.Comment: 5 pages, 5 figures, 34 reference

Cell transcriptomic atlas of the non-human primate Macaca fascicularis.

Studying tissue composition and function in non-human primates (NHPs) is crucial to understand the nature of our own species. Here we present a large-scale cell transcriptomic atlas that encompasses over 1 million cells from 45 tissues of the adult NHP Macaca fascicularis. This dataset provides a vast annotated resource to study a species phylogenetically close to humans. To demonstrate the utility of the atlas, we have reconstructed the cell-cell interaction networks that drive Wnt signalling across the body, mapped the distribution of receptors and co-receptors for viruses causing human infectious diseases, and intersected our data with human genetic disease orthologues to establish potential clinical associations. Our M. fascicularis cell atlas constitutes an essential reference for future studies in humans and NHPs.We thank W. Liu and L. Xu from the Huazhen Laboratory Animal Breeding Centre for helping in the collection of monkey tissues, D. Zhu and H. Li from the Bioland Laboratory (Guangzhou Regenerative Medicine and Health Guangdong Laboratory) for technical help, G. Guo and H. Sun from Zhejiang University for providing HCL and MCA gene expression data matrices, G. Dong and C. Liu from BGI Research, and X. Zhang, P. Li and C. Qi from the Guangzhou Institutes of Biomedicine and Health for experimental advice or providing reagents. This work was supported by the Shenzhen Basic Research Project for Excellent Young Scholars (RCYX20200714114644191), Shenzhen Key Laboratory of Single-Cell Omics (ZDSYS20190902093613831), Shenzhen Bay Laboratory (SZBL2019062801012) and Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Genome Read and Write (2017B030301011). In addition, L.L. was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (31900466), Y. Hou was supported by the Natural Science Foundation of Guangdong Province (2018A030313379) and M.A.E. was supported by a Changbai Mountain Scholar award (419020201252), the Strategic Priority Research Program of the Chinese Academy of Sciences (XDA16030502), a Chinese Academy of Sciences–Japan Society for the Promotion of Science joint research project (GJHZ2093), the National Natural Science Foundation of China (92068106, U20A2015) and the Guangdong Basic and Applied Basic Research Foundation (2021B1515120075). M.L. was supported by the National Key Research and Development Program of China (2021YFC2600200).S

Damage Mode Analysis of Steel Box Structures Subjected to Internal Blast Loading

Steel box structures widely exist in vehicles, ships, and buildings, and internal explosions are one of the primary ways to destroy such targets. In this study, a rapid prediction method for the damage degree evaluation of steel box structures subjected to internal blast loads was proposed. First, the main influencing factors were identified through dimensionless analysis. Next, numerical simulations were conducted to further investigate the key influencing factors and different damage modes that were classified according to their characteristics. The non-dimensional Din* for damage analysis applicable to the internal explosions and the equations describing the deformation of the wall plate were proposed, followed by a comparative study of the damage features of anisotropic box structures with different structural dimensions. The influence of the coupling relationship between structural dimensions and blast loads on the damage modes was analyzed and three competing mechanisms of material failure were studied to analyze and classify the mode of breach expansion. Finally, a large number of experiments were analyzed to verify the analysis method

Genetic polymorphisms and plasma levels of BCL11A contribute to the development of laryngeal squamous cell carcinoma.

OBJECTIVE:We investigated the association between B-cell lymphoma/leukaemia 11A (BCL11A) rs11886868 and rs4671393 polymorphism, plasma BCL11A concentration, and the hazard of developing laryngeal squamous cell carcinoma (LSCC). PARTICIPANTS AND METHOD:In this research, 330 LSCC patients, 310 healthy controls, and 155 vocal leukoplakia patients were genotyped for the BCL11A (rs11886868 C/T and rs4671393 A/G) genotypes by pyrosequencing; the BCL11A concentration was measured using ELISA. RESULTS:LSCC Patients had a notably higher occurrence of CT at rs11886868 (OR = 2.64, P = 0.025) than the control group; they also had higher GG at rs4671393 (OR = 2.53, P = 0.018). Advanced (III and IV) stage LSCC patients had a notably greater frequency of CT at rs11886868 than those with initial (I and II) stage LSCC (OR = 2.71, P = 0.044 vs. OR = 2.58, P = 0.051). Additionally, there was a 1.59 fold increase in susceptibility for initial stage LSCC related to the G allele (AG/GG) at rs4671393 (P = 0.005); while for patients of advanced stage LSCC the OR was 1.73 (P = 0.002). Moreover, the OR of lymph node metastasis patients at rs4671393 G alleles was 2.41 (P < 0.01); it was 1.38 (P = 0.035) in patients without lymph metastasis. Patients with high incidences of the rs4671393 variation genotype had high plasma BCL11A levels. CONCLUSIONS:BCL11A rs11886868 and rs4671393 genotype variations and correspondingly high BCL11A plasma levels are related to LSCC, besides, differences in plasma levels and genotype distribution may be related to lymph node metastasis status and the stage of LSCC

Assembly of Functional Co(II) Metal–Organic Frameworks through a Mixed Ligand Strategy: Structure and Photocatalytic Degradation Properties

Four Co(II)-based metal–organic frameworks (MOFs) were constructed by a mixed ligand strategy under solvothermal conditions. The controllable modification of the bridging groups in the secondary building units was realized by changing the anions in MOFs 1–3. The MOF 4 with 3D framework structure was obtained by regulating the solvent ratio following the synthesis process of MOF 3. Furthermore, the MOFs 1–4 exhibited efficient photocatalytic activity for the degradation of malachite green (MG) dye without any photosensitizer or cocatalyst under a low-energy light source, the decolorization ratio of MG all reached more than 96.0% within 60 min, and maximal degradation was obtained to be 99.4% (MOF 4). The recycling experiments showed that the degradation rate of MG was still higher than 91% after 10 cycles. In the MOF 4 as representation, the photocatalytic process was explored systematically. The possible mechanism of catalytic degradation was discussed, which proved the existence of efficient oxidation active factors (•O2–, •OH, and h+). The possible intermediates and degradation pathways were investigated based on high-performance liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry. Additionally, MOFs 1–4 also exhibited excellent photocatalytic activity for the degradation of methylene blue, methyl violet, rhodamine B, and basic red 9

Two conserved oligomer interfaces of NSP7 and NSP8 underpin the dynamic assembly of SARS-CoV-2 RdRP.

Replication of the ∼30 kb-long coronavirus genome is mediated by a complex of non-structural proteins (NSP), in which NSP7 and NSP8 play a critical role in regulating the RNA-dependent RNA polymerase (RdRP) activity of NSP12. The assembly of NSP7, NSP8 and NSP12 proteins is highly dynamic in solution, yet the underlying mechanism remains elusive. We report the crystal structure of the complex between NSP7 and NSP8 of SARS-CoV-2, revealing a 2:2 heterotetrameric form. Formation of the NSP7-NSP8 complex is mediated by two distinct oligomer interfaces, with interface I responsible for heterodimeric NSP7-NSP8 assembly, and interface II mediating the heterotetrameric interaction between the two NSP7-NSP8 dimers. Structure-guided mutagenesis, combined with biochemical and enzymatic assays, further reveals a structural coupling between the two oligomer interfaces, as well as the importance of these interfaces for the RdRP activity of the NSP7-NSP8-NSP12 complex. Finally, we identify an NSP7 mutation that differentially affects the stability of the NSP7-NSP8 and NSP7-NSP8-NSP12 complexes leading to a selective impairment of the RdRP activity. Together, this study provides deep insights into the structure and mechanism for the dynamic assembly of NSP7 and NSP8 in regulating the replication of the SARS-CoV-2 genome, with important implications for antiviral drug development

Two conserved oligomer interfaces of NSP7 and NSP8 underpin the dynamic assembly of SARS-CoV-2 RdRP.

Replication of the ∼30 kb-long coronavirus genome is mediated by a complex of non-structural proteins (NSP), in which NSP7 and NSP8 play a critical role in regulating the RNA-dependent RNA polymerase (RdRP) activity of NSP12. The assembly of NSP7, NSP8 and NSP12 proteins is highly dynamic in solution, yet the underlying mechanism remains elusive. We report the crystal structure of the complex between NSP7 and NSP8 of SARS-CoV-2, revealing a 2:2 heterotetrameric form. Formation of the NSP7-NSP8 complex is mediated by two distinct oligomer interfaces, with interface I responsible for heterodimeric NSP7-NSP8 assembly, and interface II mediating the heterotetrameric interaction between the two NSP7-NSP8 dimers. Structure-guided mutagenesis, combined with biochemical and enzymatic assays, further reveals a structural coupling between the two oligomer interfaces, as well as the importance of these interfaces for the RdRP activity of the NSP7-NSP8-NSP12 complex. Finally, we identify an NSP7 mutation that differentially affects the stability of the NSP7-NSP8 and NSP7-NSP8-NSP12 complexes leading to a selective impairment of the RdRP activity. Together, this study provides deep insights into the structure and mechanism for the dynamic assembly of NSP7 and NSP8 in regulating the replication of the SARS-CoV-2 genome, with important implications for antiviral drug development