The Importance of Political Institutions on the Economic Development of China (1992—2004): Why the Present Political Institutions of China Require Fundamental Change

This research investigates the relationship between political institutions and economic development and highlights the impact of political institutions on the economic development in China from 1992 to 2004 by discussing the reasons why the present political institutions in China require change. It is argued that political institutions could influence economic progress if the effect and role of political institutions - both positive and negative – is recognised. Two case studies are employed as examples of how the absence of appropriate political institutions affects the positive performance of the economy and how this is associated with China‘s history and the way in which economic reforms have been conducted. It is concluded that under the political monopoly of the single party, economic progress and development will be blocked and hijacked by the authorities and interest groups in China. Since its reform and opening up to the outside world, China‘s economy has so far seen an enormous growth, but these achievements are impressive merely in the short-term, and give a false impression of the economy‘s development. The free market economy system requires political reform but the Chinese Communist Party monopolizes all social resources and engages only in economic reform without political reform. This is what could be termed the “curse of the latecomer”: the long-term interests of the nation have been sacrificed and this may result in many hidden risks or even the failure of long-term development. This research identifies the major factors affecting the development of a country‘s society and economy. Political science theories about property rights and the State, and Institutional Change of New Institutional Economics are used to explain and support the standpoint of this thesis. Two case studies will be used in order to show how these theories are occurring in practice, which are the incidents concerning Yang Rong and Sun Dawu. The former will prove that it is necessary for property rights to be specified and enforced, and it is harmful to economic development when the government uses its political power to intervene in the economy. The latter case study will illustrate that the unfair monopoly and interventionist behaviour of government and a relatively defective legal system are not apt in facilitating the performance of China‘s economy. The conclusions of this study stress that institutions are the determinant of economic performance and that institutional changes are likely to occur when the existing institutions fail to satisfy people‘s demands. Such a development appears essential for China to progress further

Highly-Efficient Gating of Solid-State Nanochannels by DNA Supersandwich Structure Containing ATP Aptamers: A Nanofluidic IMPLICATION Logic Device

Integrating biological components into artificial devices establishes an interface to understand and imitate the superior functionalities of the living systems. One challenge in developing biohybrid nanosystems mimicking the gating function of the biological ion channels is to enhance the gating efficiency of the man-made systems. Herein, we demonstrate a DNA supersandwich and ATP gated nanofluidic device that exhibits high ON–OFF ratios (up to 10⁶) and a perfect electric seal at its closed state (∼GΩ). The ON–OFF ratio is distinctly higher than existing chemically modified nanofluidic gating systems. The gigaohm seal is comparable with that required in ion channel electrophysiological recording and some lipid bilayer-coated nanopore sensors. The gating function is implemented by self-assembling DNA supersandwich structures into solid-state nanochannels (open-to-closed) and their disassembly through ATP–DNA binding interactions (closed-to-open). On the basis of the reversible and all-or-none electrochemical switching properties, we further achieve the IMPLICATION logic operations within the nanofluidic structures. The present biohybrid nanofluidic device translates molecular events into electrical signals and indicates a built-in signal amplification mechanism for future nanofluidic biosensing and modular DNA computing on solid-state substrates

Micrometer-Scale Ion Current Rectification at Polyelectrolyte Brush-Modified Micropipets

Here we report for the first time that ion current rectification (ICR) can be observed at the micrometer scale in symmetric electrolyte solution with polyimidazolium brush (PimB)-modified micropipets, which we call micrometer-scale ion current rectification (MICR). To qualitatively understand MICR, a three-layer model including a charged layer, an electrical double layer, and a bulk layer is proposed, which could also be extended to understanding ICR at the nanoscale. Based on this model, we propose that when charges in the charged layer are comparable with those in the bulk layer, ICR would occur regardless of whether the electrical double layers are overlapped. Finite element simulations based on the solution of Poisson and Nernst–Planck equations and in situ confocal laser scanning microscopy results qualitatively validate the experimental observations and the proposed three-layer model. Moreover, possible factors influencing MICR, including the length of PimB, electrolyte concentration, and the radius of the pipet, are investigated and discussed. This study successfully extends ICR to the micrometer scale and thus opens a new door to the development of ICR-based devices by taking advantage of ease-in-manipulation and designable surface chemistry of micropipets

Micrometer-Scale Ion Current Rectification at Polyelectrolyte Brush-Modified Micropipets

Here we report for the first time that ion current rectification (ICR) can be observed at the micrometer scale in symmetric electrolyte solution with polyimidazolium brush (PimB)-modified micropipets, which we call micrometer-scale ion current rectification (MICR). To qualitatively understand MICR, a three-layer model including a charged layer, an electrical double layer, and a bulk layer is proposed, which could also be extended to understanding ICR at the nanoscale. Based on this model, we propose that when charges in the charged layer are comparable with those in the bulk layer, ICR would occur regardless of whether the electrical double layers are overlapped. Finite element simulations based on the solution of Poisson and Nernst–Planck equations and in situ confocal laser scanning microscopy results qualitatively validate the experimental observations and the proposed three-layer model. Moreover, possible factors influencing MICR, including the length of PimB, electrolyte concentration, and the radius of the pipet, are investigated and discussed. This study successfully extends ICR to the micrometer scale and thus opens a new door to the development of ICR-based devices by taking advantage of ease-in-manipulation and designable surface chemistry of micropipets

Micrometer-Scale Ion Current Rectification at Polyelectrolyte Brush-Modified Micropipets

Here we report for the first time that ion current rectification (ICR) can be observed at the micrometer scale in symmetric electrolyte solution with polyimidazolium brush (PimB)-modified micropipets, which we call micrometer-scale ion current rectification (MICR). To qualitatively understand MICR, a three-layer model including a charged layer, an electrical double layer, and a bulk layer is proposed, which could also be extended to understanding ICR at the nanoscale. Based on this model, we propose that when charges in the charged layer are comparable with those in the bulk layer, ICR would occur regardless of whether the electrical double layers are overlapped. Finite element simulations based on the solution of Poisson and Nernst–Planck equations and in situ confocal laser scanning microscopy results qualitatively validate the experimental observations and the proposed three-layer model. Moreover, possible factors influencing MICR, including the length of PimB, electrolyte concentration, and the radius of the pipet, are investigated and discussed. This study successfully extends ICR to the micrometer scale and thus opens a new door to the development of ICR-based devices by taking advantage of ease-in-manipulation and designable surface chemistry of micropipets

On the Origin of Ionic Rectification in DNA-Stuffed Nanopores: The Breaking and Retrieving Symmetry

The discovery of ionic current rectification (ICR) phenomena in synthetic nanofluidic systems elicits broad interest from interdisciplinary fields of chemistry, physics, materials science, and nanotechnology; and thus, boosts their applications in, for example, chemical sensing, fluidic pumping, and energy related aspects. So far, it is generally accepted that the ICR effect stems from the broken symmetry either in the nanofluidic structures, or in the environmental conditions. Although this empirical regularity is supported by numerous experimental and theoretical results, great challenge still remains to precisely figure out the correlation between the asymmetric ion transport properties and the degree of symmetry breaking. An appropriate and quantified measure is therefore highly demanded. Herein, taking DNA-stuffed nanopores as a model system, we systematically investigate the evolution of dynamic ICR in between two symmetric states. The fully stuffed and fully opened nanopores are symmetric; therefore, they exhibit linear ion transport behaviors. Once the stuffed DNA superstructures are asymmetrically removed from one end of the nanopore via aptamer-target interaction, the nanofluidic system becomes asymmetric and starts to rectify ionic current. The peak of ICR is found right before the breakthrough of the stuffed DNA forest. After that, the nanofluidic system gradually retrieves symmetry, and becomes non-rectified. Theoretical results by both the coarse-grained Poisson-Nernst–Planck model and the 1D statistic model excellently support the experimental observations, and further establish a quantified correlation between the ICR effect and the degree of asymmetry for different molecular filling configurations. Based on the ICR properties, we develop a proof-of-concept demonstration for sensing ATP, termed the ATP balance. These findings help to clarify the origin of ICR, and show implications to other asymmetric transport phenomena for future innovative nanofluidic devices and materials

Graphdiyne-Promoted Highly Efficient Photocatalytic Activity of Graphdiyne/Silver Phosphate Pickering Emulsion Under Visible-Light Irradiation

As a new kind of two-dimensional carbon allotrope, graphdiyne (GDY) consists of sp- and sp²-hybridized carbon atoms and has recently been used for developing highly efficient photocatalytic systems because of its unique properties. In this study, we find that GDY can form a Pickering emulsion with silver phosphate (Ag₃PO₄) nanoparticles that exhibits largely enhanced photocatalytic activity in the visible-light region. In this system, Ag₃PO₄ acts as a photocatalytically active semiconductor with GDY as the hydrophobic nanostructure. Photocatalytic activity of the Ag₃PO₄/GDY-based Pickering emulsion toward the photodegradation of methylene blue (MB) and photooxidation of water is investigated under visible-light irradiation. Compared to previous Ag₃PO₄/CNT- or Ag₃PO₄/graphene-based Pickering emulsions, the Ag₃PO₄/GDY-based emulsion efficiently catalyzes MB degradation with a higher apparent rate constant <i>k</i> being ∼0.477 min^–1, while for water oxidation its photocatalytic activity is also improved by 1.89 and 1.75 times, respectively. Such an enhancement in the photocatalytic activity is mainly ascribed to the capability of GDY in acting as an acceptor of the photogenerated electrons from Ag₃PO₄ nanoparticles and in facilitating the hole transportation as well as in reducing Ag⁺ to Ag⁰. This study demonstrates that GDY is a new candidate with a promising future in developing photocatalytic systems with high efficiency for real applications

Design, Synthesis, and Anti-Osteoporotic Characterization of Arginine <i>N</i>‑Glycosylated Teriparatide Analogs via the Silver-catalyzed Solid-Phase Glycosylation Strategy

In spite of effective antiosteoporosis potency, teriparatide, a bone-building agent approved by the FDA (Food and Drug Administration), was proven to exhibit various side effects. In our previous work, we developed a universal strategy for synthesizing arginine N-glycosylated peptides termed silver-promoted solid-phase glycosylation (SSG) strategy. However, it is unknown whether the SSG strategy can be applied in the peptide drug design. Herein, we first reported the optimization of teriparatide via SSG strategy. Using Arg20 and/or Arg25 as the modifying positions, three series of arginine N-glycosylated teriparatide analogs were successfully synthesized, of which the introduced sugar groups included glucose, galactose, mannose, rhamnose, ribose, 2-acetamino-2-deoxy-glucose, xylose, lactose, and maltose. Among the 27 arginine N-glycosylated derivatives, Arg20-xylose and Arg25-maltose teriparatide analogs, termed PTH-1g and PTH-2i, respectively, indicated enhanced serum stability and significantly improved antiosteoporotic activities in vitro and in vivo compared with the native counterpart. They may serve as effective therapeutic candidates for treating osteoporosis

Zinc as a New Dopant for NiO_<i>x</i>‑Based Planar Perovskite Solar Cells with Stable Efficiency near 20%

Organic–inorganic lead halide perovskite solar cells are potential alternatives to commercial silicon solar cells because of their attractive photon conversion efficiency and general material costs, except for the widely adopted organic hole-transporting polymers, which are currently expensive and have low conductivity. Inorganic hole-transporting layers (HTLs) have recently garnered attention due to their excellent stability and relatively effective cost. Nickel oxide (NiO_<i>x</i>) is a typical p-type oxide semiconductor with a deep valence band (VB) and is expected to be used as HTL. Unfortunately, the charge extraction efficiency has been hindered by its poor conductivity, resulting in lower efficiency when compared with organic HTL-based devices. Here, we report a new solution-processed doping strategy for NiO_<i>x</i> with zinc dopant to improve its conductivity for perovskite solar cells. The NiO_<i>x</i>:Zn HTL showed high transparency and significantly enhanced electrical conductivity in comparison with the pristine NiO_<i>x</i>. Our best NiO_<i>x</i>:Zn-based P-i-N planar device showed an efficiency of 19.6% with negligible hysteresis, which is comparable with the reported planar solar cell with an organic HTL. Moreover, the NiO_<i>x</i>:Zn-based perovskite device displayed distinguished stability in ambient conditions. This paper demonstrated important progress toward high-efficiency planar perovskite devices with low-cost inorganic HTLs

Ion-Selective Micropipette Sensor for In Vivo Monitoring of Sodium Ion with Crown Ether-Encapsulated Metal–Organic Framework Subnanopores

In vivo sensing of the dynamics of ions with high selectivity is essential for gaining molecular insights into numerous physiological and pathological processes. In this work, we report an ion-selective micropipette sensor (ISMS) through the integration of functional crown ether-encapsulated metal–organic frameworks (MOFs) synthesized in situ within the micropipette tip. The ISMS features distinctive sodium ion (Na+) conduction and high selectivity toward Na+ sensing. The selectivity is attributed to the synergistic effects of subnanoconfined space and the specific coordination of 18-crown-6 toward potassium ions (K+), which largely increase the steric hindrance and transport resistance for K+ to pass through the ISMS. Furthermore, the ISMS exhibits high stability and sensitivity, facilitating real-time monitoring of Na+ dynamics in the living rat brain during spreading of the depression events process. In light of the diversity of crown ethers and MOFs, we believe this study paves the way for a nanofluidic platform for in vivo sensing and neuromorphic electrochemical sensing