Simultaneous copper incorporation in core/shell-structured eco-friendly quantum dots for high-efficiency photoelectrochemical hydrogen evolution

The rational design of elemental incorporation in colloidal eco-friendly core/shell quantum dots (QDs) holds the potential to synergistically tailor their electronic band structure and carrier kinetics for applications in forthcoming “green” and high-efficiency solar energy conversion. Herein, we have conducted simultaneous Cu incorporation in both the core and shell regions of environment-benign AgInSe (AISe)/ZnSe core/shell QDs to realize high-efficiency solar-driven photoelectrochemical (PEC) hydrogen evolution. It is verified that Cu incorporation in AISe core enables an upward shift in the position of the band edge relative to the ZnSe shell, which promoted the electron delocalization and extended the lifetime of exciton. Simultaneously, Cu incorporation in the ZnSe shell further results in the trapping of photoinduced holes from AISe core, leading to a decelerated recombination of carriers. The prepared Cu-AISe/ZnSe:Cu QDs with optimized optoelectronic properties have been successfully employed to fabricate QDs-PEC devices, delivering a maximum photocurrent density of 9.1 mA cm−2 under standard AM 1.5 G illumination (100 mW cm−2). Our findings indicate that synchronous elemental incorporation in eco-friendly core/shell QDs is a promising strategy to achieve future high-performance solar-to-hydrogen conversion systems

Early human albumin administration is associated with reduced mortality in septic shock patients with acute respiratory distress syndrome: A retrospective study from the MIMIC-III database

Background: Sepsis-induced acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) was associated with higher mortality. It is unclear whether albumin supplementation early in the course of ARDS can affect the prognostic outcomes of septic shock (SS) patients with ARDS.Methods: The MIMIC-III database was employed to identify SS patients with ARDS. The effect of early application (<24 h after ICU admission) of human albumin on 28-day mortality in SS patients with ARDS was explored. The propensity score matching was used to minimize the bias between the non-albumin and early albumin treatment groups.Results: The analysis for all eligible patients who received human albumin showed significantly lower 28-hospital mortality rates than the non-albumin group (37% versus 47%, p = 0.018). After propensity matching, the difference between the two groups also significantly (34.8% versus 48.1%, p = 0.031). Moreover, we found that the relationship between albumin use and reduced 28-day mortality was inconsistent across SOFA score subgroups (Pinteraction = 0.004, non-adjustment for multiple testing).Conclusion: Early human albumin administration in SS patients with ARDS was independently associated with a reduction of 28-day mortality. Furthermore, the benefit of human albumin treatment appeared to be more pronounced in patients with a SOFA score of ≤ 10

Thiophene Disubstituted Benzothiadiazole Derivatives: An Effective Planarization Strategy Toward Deep-Red to Near-Infrared (NIR) Organic Light-Emitting Diodes

As one of the three primary colors that are indispensable in full-color displays, the development of red emitters is far behind the blue and green ones. Here, three novel orange-yellow to near-infrared (NIR) emitters based on 5,6-difluorobenzo[c][1,2,5]thiadiazole (BTDF) namely BTDF-TPA, BTDF-TTPA, and BTDF-TtTPA were designed and synthesized. Density functional theory analysis and photophysical characterization reveal that these three materials possess hybridized local and charge-transfer (HLCT) state feature and a feasible reverse intersystem crossing (RISC) from the high-lying triplet state to the singlet state may conduce to an exciton utilization exceeding the limit of 25% of traditional fluorescence materials under electrical excitation. The insertion of thiophene with small steric hindrance as π-bridge between the electron-donating (D) moiety triphenylamine (TPA) and the electron-accepting (A) moiety BTDF not only results in a remarkable 67 nm red-shift of the emission peak but also brings about a large overlap of frontier molecular orbitals to guarantee high radiative transition rate that is of great significance to obtain high photoluminescence quantum yield (PLQY) in the “energy-gap law” dominated long-wavelength emission region. Consequently, an attractive high maximum external quantum efficiency (EQE) of 5.75% was achieved for the doped devices based on these thiophene π-bridged emitters, giving a deep-red emission with small efficiency roll-off. Remarkably, NIR emission could be obtained for the non-doped devices, achieving an excellent maximum EQE of 1.44% and Commission Internationale de l'Éclairage (CIE) coordinates of (0.71, 0.29). These results are among the highest efficiencies in the reported deep-red to NIR fluorescent OLEDs and offer a new π-bridge design strategy in D-π-A and D-π-A-π-D red emitter design

SIRT1 mediated gastric cancer progression under glucose deprivation through the FoxO1-Rab7-autophagy axis

PurposeSilent mating type information regulator 2 homolog 1 (SIRT1) and autophagy have a two-way action (promoting cell death or survival) on the progression and treatment of gastric cancer (GC) under different conditions or environments. This study aimed to investigate the effects and underlying mechanism of SIRT1 on autophagy and the malignant biological behavior of GC cells under conditions of glucose deprivation (GD).Materials and methodsHuman immortalized gastric mucosal cell GES-1 and GC cell lines SGC-7901, BGC-823, MKN-45 and MKN-28 were utilized. A sugar-free or low-sugar (glucose concentration, 2.5 mmol/L) DMEM medium was used to simulate GD. Additionally, CCK8, colony formation, scratches, transwell, siRNA interference, mRFP-GFP-LC3 adenovirus infection, flow cytometry and western blot assays were performed to investigate the role of SIRT1 in autophagy and malignant biological behaviors (proliferation, migration, invasion, apoptosis and cell cycle) of GC under GD and the underlying mechanism.ResultsSGC-7901 cells had the longest tolerance time to GD culture conditions, which had the highest expression of SIRT1 protein and the level of basal autophagy. With the extension of GD time, the autophagy activity in SGC-7901 cells also increased. Under GD conditions, we found a close relationship between SIRT1, FoxO1 and Rab7 in SGC-7901 cells. SIRT1 regulated the activity of FoxO1 and upregulated the expression of Rab7 through deacetylation, which ultimately affected autophagy in GC cells. In addition, changing the expression of FoxO1 provided feedback on the expression of SIRT1 in the cell. Reducing SIRT1, FoxO1 or Rab7 expression significantly inhibited the autophagy levels of GC cells under GD conditions, decreased the tolerance of GC cells to GD, enhanced the inhibition of GD in GC cell proliferation, migration and invasion and increased apoptosis induced by GD.ConclusionThe SIRT1-FoxO1-Rab7 pathway is crucial for the autophagy and malignant biological behaviors of GC cells under GD conditions, which could be a new target for the treatment of GC

Non−-prompt D0\mathrm{D}^0 production in heavy−-ion collisions with ALICE

The Quark$-$Gluon Plasma (QGP) is a new matter state composited by deconfined quarks and gluons which exist at extremely high temperature and energy density. This formation of matter, predicted by Quantum Chromodynamics (QCD) in the Standard Model, shows great importance as a phenomenon to test QCD theories with its phase transitions, where the properties of matter can be investigated in ultra$-$relativistic heavy$-$ion collision experiments. At the Large Hadron Collider (LHC), the produced experiments data of heavy ion collisions create possibility for QGP researches, with phenomena such as jet quenching, where high transverse momentum partons undergo energy loss interacting with de$-$confined medium via elastic processes or induced gluon radiations, and collective motions, where the expansion of bulk matter exhibits different patterns such as isotropic and anisotropic components which are physically driven by pressure gradients. Heavy quarks, are powerful probes of QGP due to their shorter formation timescale, and they are to mostly go through the full evolution of the collision system in space$-$time. $\\$ In this thesis, the measurements of non$-$prompt $\mathrm{D}^{0}$ production in pp collisions at $\sqrt{s}=5.02~\mathrm{TeV}$ and in Pb$-$Pb collisions at $\sqrt{{s_\mathrm{NN}}}=5.02~\mathrm{TeV}$ with ALICE detectors are reported. The measurements of non$-$prompt $\mathrm{D}^{0}$, which are produced in beauty$-$hadron decays, can provide valuable information in beauty sector. The measurement of production in pp collisions is important to test perturbative QCD calculations, and provide a reference for Pb$-$Pb collisions. While in latter, the non$-$prompt $\mathrm{D}^{0}$ measurement can help to study the microscopic beauty$-$medium interactions. At high $p_{\mathrm{T}}$, it allows to investigate the colour charge and mass dependence of in$-$medium energy loss. At low $p_{\mathrm{T}}$, the participation of system collective expansion and diffusion process for beauty quarks can be investigated. $\\$ In pp collisions, the $p_{\mathrm{T}}$$-$differential production cross section of non$-$prompt $\mathrm{D}^{0}$ is measured at midrapidity ($|y|<0.5$). The $\mathrm{D}^{0}$ meson candidates are reconstructed via the hadronic decay channel $\mathrm{D}^{0}\rightarrow\mathrm{K^{-}\pi^{+}}$. Then specific selections based on Boosted Decision Trees (BDT), a machine learning model trained with pseudo$-$data from Monte Carlo simulations and background sample in data, are applied to the candidates. The application of BDT reduces the combinatorial background, and also to enhance the non--prompt fraction of $\mathrm{D}^{0}$ from around 30$\%$ to 90$\%$ in signals. Afterwards, the signals are extracted via the invariant$-$mass analysis, and the non$-$prompt fractions are estimated with a data$-$driven minimizing$-$$\chi^2$ approach. The measured $p_{\mathrm{T}}$$-$differential cross section is within the transverse momentum range $1 \lt p_{\mathrm{T}} \lt 24~\mathrm{GeV}/c$. With an extrapolating method, the $p_{\mathrm{T}}$$-$integrated cross section is estimated at high precision. The results are well described by perturbative QCD (pQCD) calculations. The results are in good agreement with central prediction with FONLL calculated beauty hadron cross section and PYTHIA8 decay kinematics, while another prediction with GM$-$VFNS with two different transition approaches from beauty to non$-$prompt meson underestimated the measurement. Moreover, the total $\mathrm{b\bar{b}}$ production cross section is also determined from the measurements together with non$-$prompt $\mathrm{D}^{0}$, $\mathrm{D}^{+}$, and $\mathrm{D^+_s}$ mesons, which is compatible with previous measurements of di--electron production at the same centre$-$of$-$mass energy as well as the cross section predicted by pQCD calculations such as FONLL and NNLO. The measured production in pp collisions also provide a reference for the same measurement in heavy$-$ion collisions. $\\$ While in Pb$-$Pb collisions, a similar measurement is performed at same per$-$nucleon$-$pair centre$-$of$-$mass energy. The nuclear modification factor ($R_{\mathrm{AA}}$) of non$-$prompt $\mathrm{D}^{0}$ was measured for the first time down to $p_{\mathrm{T}}=1~\mathrm{GeV}/c$ in $0-10\%$ and $30-50\%$ centrality classes. A suppression in $R_{\mathrm{AA}}$ of factor about 3 (2) is observed for $p_\mathrm{T}\gt5~\mathrm{GeV}/c$ in $0-10\%$ ($30-50\%$) centrality, while at lower $p_{\mathrm{T}}$, $R_{\mathrm{AA}}$ increases with decreasing $p_{\mathrm{T}}$, and compatible with unity in $1 \lt p_{\mathrm{T}} \lt 3~\mathrm{GeV}/c$. The data are described by models that include both collisional and radiative processes in calculating beauty$-$quark energy loss in QGP, and quark recombination in addition to fragmentation as hadronization mechanism. The $R_{\mathrm{AA}}$ ratios of non$-$prompt to prompt $\mathrm{D}^{0}$$-$meson are reported significantly larger than unity at intermediate $p_{\mathrm{T}}$ in $0-10\%$ centrality, as predicted by transportation models in which the energy loss for beauty quarks are less than charm quarks due to their larger mass. $\\

10th International Conference on Hard and Electromagnetic Probes of High-Energy Nuclear Collisions

In hadronic collisions, beauty quarks are produced in hard scattering processes with large momentum transfer. Their production provides a very important test of perturbative QCD calculations in pp collisions. In heavy-ion collisions, the measurement of beauty hadron production is a unique tool to investigate the properties of the Quark-Gluon Plasma. In particular, beauty quarks, being four times heavier than charm quarks, can be utilized to study the in-medium mass dependent energy loss. In addition, measurements in p-Pb collisions are crucial to investigate the effects of cold nuclear matter on their production. With the ALICE detector, beauty quarks are studied by measuring electrons and non-prompt D mesons coming from beauty hadron decays at mid-rapidity. Finally, a more direct access to the initial parton kinematics is obtained by measuring beauty-tagged jets. They can provide further constraints for energy loss models adding information on how the radiated energy is dissipated. In this contribution, the latest measurements of beauty production using beauty-decay electrons, non-prompt D-mesons and beauty-tagged jets in pp collisions at $\sqrt{s}$ = 5.02 TeV, and their comparison to pQCD calculations will be presented. New measurements of beauty-tagged jet production down to low $p_{\rm T}$ in p-Pb collisions at $\sqrt{s_{\rm NN}}$ = 5.02 TeV will be discussed. The latest results on the centrality dependence of $R_{\rm AA}$ of beauty-decay electrons and non-prompt D mesons in Pb-Pb collisions at $\sqrt{s_{\rm NN}}$ = 5.02 TeV compared to different theoretical models will be presented

Soil Microbial Community and Soil Abiotic Factors Are Linked to Microorganisms’ C:N:P Stoichiometry in <i>Larix</i> Plantations

Ecological stoichiometry is an essential tool to understand carbon (C), nitrogen (N), and phosphorus (P) cycles and nutrient limitations. Plantations are usually managed to maintain specific age structures, but the impact of such management on microbial biomass and stoichiometric ratios remains unclear. We compared the stand ages of four Larix principis-rupprechtti Mayr. Plantations that were 15 years old, (young plantation, Lar15), 24 years old, (middle aged plantation, Lar24), 40 years old, (near-mature plantation, Lar40), and 50 years old, (mature plantation, Lar50), respectively, to determine the main factors that drive differences in the C:N:P stoichiometry of microorganisms. We demonstrated that the temperature, moisture, and nutrient concentrations in surface soil increased significantly with forest age. The stoichiometric ratios of elements in soil and microorganisms reached their maxima in the Lar40 and Lar50 plantations. Additionally, forest stand ages had a great influence on the biomass of microbial communities. Moreover, soil microbial community and soil abiotic factors are closely related to soil microorganisms’ C:N:P stoichiometric ratios. Specifically, changes in the microbial biomass C:N (MBC:MBN) were primarily correlated with bacteria, Gram-positive bacteria (G+), temperature, NH4+-N, and moisture in soil. Shifts in G+, actinobacteria, soil temperature, and total phosphorus were primarily associated with variation in microbial biomass C:P (MBC:MBP). Alterations in microbial biomass N:P (MBN:MBP) were correlated with bacteria, NH4+-N, water content, Gram-negative bacteria, and soil temperature. Overall, these results suggest that microbial elemental stoichiometric ratios could be affected by stand age and emphasize the importance of microbial communities and soil abiotic factors in shifting this dynamic change process

Autochthonous Bioaugmentation-Modified Bacterial Diversity of Phenanthrene Degraders in PAH-Contaminated Wastewater as Revealed by DNA-Stable Isotope Probing

To reveal the mechanisms of autochthonous bioaugmentation (ABA) in wastewater contaminated with polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAYIs), DNA-stable-isotope probing (SIP) was used in the present study with the addition of an autochthonous microorganism Acinetobacter tandoii LJ-5. We found LJ-5 inoculum produced a significant increase in phenanthrene (PHE) mineralization, but LJ-5 surprisingly did not participate in indigenous PHE degradation from the SIP results. The improvement of PHE biodegradation was not explained by the engagement of LJ-5 but attributed to the remarkably altered diversity of PHE degraders. Of the major PHE degraders present in ambient wastewater (Rhodoplanes sp., Mycobacterium sp., Xanthomonadaceae sp. and Enterobacteriaceae sp.), only Mycobacterium sp. and Enterobacteriaceae sp. remained functional in the presence of strain LJ-5, but five new taxa Bacillus, Paenibacillus, Ammoniphilus, Sporosarcina, and Hyphomicrobium were favored. Rhodoplanes, Ammoniphilus, Sporosarcina, and Hyphomicrobium were directly linked to, for the first time, indigenous PHE biodegradation. Sequences of functional PAH-RFID genes from heavy fractions further proved the change in PHE degraders by identifying distinct PAH-ring hydroxylating dioxygenases between ambient degradation and ABA. Our findings indicate a new mechanism of ABA, provide new insights into the diversity of PHE-degrading communities, and suggest ABA as a promising in situ bioremediation strategy for PAH-contaminated wastewater

Soil Element Stoichiometry Drives Bacterial Community Composition Following Thinning in A Larix Plantation in the Subalpine Regions of Northern China

It is well established that forest thinning alters aboveground plant community composition and soil resource availability. However, how it regulates the composition and diversity of belowground microbial communities remains unclear. To quantify the effects of thinning on soil bacterial groups and the underlying mechanisms of these effects, this research was conducted in a Larix principis-rupprechtii Mayr. plantation with various thinning intensities, including a control (0% tree removal), a low-intensity treatment (15% tree removal), a medium-intensity treatment (35% tree removal), and a high-intensity treatment (50% tree removal). Compared to the control, the medium and high intensity thinning treatments significantly improved soil moisture, nutrient concentrations (including soil total carbon, nitrogen, phosphorus, and ammonium nitrogen), microbial biomass, and elemental stoichiometry ratios. The abundance and diversity of bacterial communities peaked in the medium-intensity treatment. Thinning also had strong effects on dominant bacterial groups at the phylum level. For instance, Bacteroidetes and Nitrospirae were significantly increased in the medium-intensity treatment (MIT), while the Gemmatimonadetes were significantly decreased in the low-intensity treatment (LIT). Combining Spearman correlation analysis and redundancy analysis demonstrated that thinning could facilitate the assembly of unique bacterial communities, and these shifts in microorganisms could probably be attributed to corresponding changes in soil resource stoichiometry. In conclusion, this study provides novel evidence that rational thinning could promote belowground bacterial community diversity and that elemental stoichiometry is an important indicator in shaping forest soil bacterial communities

Transcranial direct current stimulation suggests a causal role of the medial prefrontal cortex in learning social hierarchy

Abstract Social hierarchies can be inferred through observational learning of social relationships between individuals. Yet, little is known about the causal role of specific brain regions in learning hierarchies. Here, using transcranial direct current stimulation, we show a causal role of the medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC) in learning social versus non-social hierarchies. In a Training phase, participants acquired knowledge about social and non-social hierarchies by trial and error. During a Test phase, they were presented with two items from hierarchies that were never encountered together, requiring them to make transitive inferences. Anodal stimulation over mPFC impaired social compared with non-social hierarchy learning, and this modulation was influenced by the relative social rank of the members (higher or lower status). Anodal stimulation also impaired transitive inference making, but only during early blocks before learning was established. Together, these findings demonstrate a causal role of the mPFC in learning social ranks by observation