Development of highly efficient, renewable and durable alginate composite aerogels for oil/water separation

Supplementary Movie S1 is available online at https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0257897220302206?via%3Dihub#ac0005:~:text=Download%20all-,Supplementary%20Movie%20S1,-Supplemtantary%20information%20for .Supplementary information is available online at https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0257897220302206?via%3Dihub#ec0010 .To valorize the naturally abundant biomass, bio-composites made of biomass and functional nano-materials have attracted a great deal of attention. By incorporating alginate with TiO2/RGO nanocomposites, TiO2/RGO/Alginate composite (TRGA) aerogels are fabricated via a facile freeze-drying method. TiO2/RGO nanocomposites can effectively improve the surface roughness and mechanical performance of alginate-based matrix, and provide the aerogels with light-driven self-cleaning ability. Without further chemical modification, the as-fabricated TRGA aerogel shows: i) collective underwater superoleophobicity (θoil > 150° for various oils), ii) effective oil/water separation performance (9.76 L·m−2·s−1 water permeate flux and 99.96% separation efficiency) and iii) excellent light-induced recyclability. With light-driven self-cleaning ability, the continuously deteriorated separation performance of aerogel can be easily renewed, and maintain an effective oil/water separation performance even after 120 cycles. Benefiting from its facile fabrication and excellent properties, the developed aerogel can be a promising candidate for practical oil/water separation in marine oil spill clean-up applications.This work is financially supported by the Program for New Century Excellent Talents in Fujian Province University (NCETFJ); Natural Science Foundation of Fujian Province (No. 2016J01207); Youth Education and Scientific of Fujian Province (No. JAT170154); and Outstanding Youth Fund of Fujian Agriculture and Forestry University (No. XJQ201419, CXZX2017292)

食管癌原發灶與淋巴結轉移灶細胞染色體變化特征的比較

BACKGROUND & OBJECTIVE: Local lymph node and blood metastasis could occur at early stage of esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC), which may be the key factors of its recurrence and poor prognosis. However, the mechanism of ESCC metastasis is unclear. This study was to analyze the genetic changes in primary lesion and lymph node metastases of ESCC, to screen for and locate ESCC metastasis-related genes. METHODS: Genomic alterations in 15 pairs of primary lesions and matched metastatic lymph nodes of ESCC were analyzed by comparative genomic hybridization (CGH). RESULTS: In the 15 pairs of tissues, the most common chromosomal alterations were the gains of 3q, 8q, 6p, 20p, 5p, 18p, 2p, 2q and 1q, and the losses of 10p, 10q, 17p, 18q, 4p and 13q. Of these changes, the most significant finding was the gain of 6p with a frequency of 47% in metastatic lymph nodes and 13% in primary lesions, and the gain of 20p with a frequency of 73% in metastatic lymph nodes and 33% in primary lesions. The second interesting finding was the loss of 10p with a frequency of 53% in metastatic lymph nodes and 13% in primary lesions, and the loss of 10q with a frequency of 47% in metastatic lymph nodes and 13% in primary lesions. CONCLUSION: The gains of 6p and 20p and the losses of 10p and 10q are common genomic alterations in primary lesion and lymph node metastases of ESCC, which may code ESCC metastasis-related genes.背景與目的:食管癌早期可發生局部淋巴或血行轉移,這是導致復發和預后差的主要原因。但是,食管癌轉移發生的分子機制尚不清楚。本研究旨在分析食管癌原發灶和淋巴結轉移灶腫瘤細胞染色體變化的特征,尋找或定位與食管癌轉移相關基因,加深對其轉移機制的了解。方法:應用比較基因組雜交技術(comparativegenomichybridization,CGH)分析15例食管癌患者原發灶和其對應的淋巴結轉移灶的染色體基因組改變。結果:最常見染色體DNA拷貝數增加的部位是3q,8q,6p,20p,5p,18p,2p,2q,1q;常見的染色體DNA拷貝數丟失的部位是10p,10q,17p,18q,4p,13q。其中,最有意義的發現是6p增加(原發灶:2/15,13%,轉移灶:7/15,47%),20p增加(原發灶:5/15,33.3%,轉移灶:11/15,73.3%)。第二個發現是10p丟失(原發灶:2/15,13.3%,轉移灶:8/15,53%),10q丟失(原發灶:2/15,13.3%,轉移灶:7/15,46.6%)。結論:食管癌原發灶和淋巴結轉移灶細胞染色體基因組改變最顯著的部位是6p,20p的增加和10p,10q的丟失;這些部位可能存在與食管癌細胞淋巴結轉移相關的基因。link_to_subscribed_fulltex

Disparities and risks of sexually transmissible infections among men who have sex with men in China: a meta-analysis and data synthesis.

BACKGROUND: Sexually transmitted infections (STIs), including Hepatitis B and C virus, are emerging public health risks in China, especially among men who have sex with men (MSM). This study aims to assess the magnitude and risks of STIs among Chinese MSM. METHODS: Chinese and English peer-reviewed articles were searched in five electronic databases from January 2000 to February 2013. Pooled prevalence estimates for each STI infection were calculated using meta-analysis. Infection risks of STIs in MSM, HIV-positive MSM and male sex workers (MSW) were obtained. This review followed the PRISMA guidelines and was registered in PROSPERO. RESULTS: Eighty-eight articles (11 in English and 77 in Chinese) investigating 35,203 MSM in 28 provinces were included in this review. The prevalence levels of STIs among MSM were 6.3% (95% CI: 3.5-11.0%) for chlamydia, 1.5% (0.7-2.9%) for genital wart, 1.9% (1.3-2.7%) for gonorrhoea, 8.9% (7.8-10.2%) for hepatitis B (HBV), 1.2% (1.0-1.6%) for hepatitis C (HCV), 66.3% (57.4-74.1%) for human papillomavirus (HPV), 10.6% (6.2-17.6%) for herpes simplex virus (HSV-2) and 4.3% (3.2-5.8%) for Ureaplasma urealyticum. HIV-positive MSM have consistently higher odds of all these infections than the broader MSM population. As a subgroup of MSM, MSW were 2.5 (1.4-4.7), 5.7 (2.7-12.3), and 2.2 (1.4-3.7) times more likely to be infected with chlamydia, gonorrhoea and HCV than the broader MSM population, respectively. CONCLUSION: Prevalence levels of STIs among MSW were significantly higher than the broader MSM population. Co-infection of HIV and STIs were prevalent among Chinese MSM. Integration of HIV and STIs healthcare and surveillance systems is essential in providing effective HIV/STIs preventive measures and treatments. TRIAL REGISTRATION: PROSPERO NO: CRD42013003721

Reliability characteristics and conduction mechanisms in resistive switching memory devices using ZnO thin films

In this work, bipolar resistive switching characteristics were demonstrated in the Pt/ZnO/Pt structure. Reliability tests show that ac cycling endurance level above 106 can be achieved. However, significant window closure takes place after about 102 dc cycles. Data retention characteristic exhibits no observed degradation after 168 h. Read durability shows stable resistance states after 106 read times. The current transportation in ZnO films is dominated by the hopping conduction and the ohmic conduction in high-resistance and low-resistance states, respectively. Therefore, the electrical parameters of trap energy level, trap spacing, Fermi level, electron mobility, and effective density of states in conduction band in ZnO were identified

Altered Neurocircuitry in the Dopamine Transporter Knockout Mouse Brain

The plasma membrane transporters for the monoamine neurotransmitters dopamine, serotonin, and norepinephrine modulate the dynamics of these monoamine neurotransmitters. Thus, activity of these transporters has significant consequences for monoamine activity throughout the brain and for a number of neurological and psychiatric disorders. Gene knockout (KO) mice that reduce or eliminate expression of each of these monoamine transporters have provided a wealth of new information about the function of these proteins at molecular, physiological and behavioral levels. In the present work we use the unique properties of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) to probe the effects of altered dopaminergic dynamics on meso-scale neuronal circuitry and overall brain morphology, since changes at these levels of organization might help to account for some of the extensive pharmacological and behavioral differences observed in dopamine transporter (DAT) KO mice. Despite the smaller size of these animals, voxel-wise statistical comparison of high resolution structural MR images indicated little morphological change as a consequence of DAT KO. Likewise, proton magnetic resonance spectra recorded in the striatum indicated no significant changes in detectable metabolite concentrations between DAT KO and wild-type (WT) mice. In contrast, alterations in the circuitry from the prefrontal cortex to the mesocortical limbic system, an important brain component intimately tied to function of mesolimbic/mesocortical dopamine reward pathways, were revealed by manganese-enhanced MRI (MEMRI). Analysis of co-registered MEMRI images taken over the 26 hours after introduction of Mn^(2+) into the prefrontal cortex indicated that DAT KO mice have a truncated Mn^(2+) distribution within this circuitry with little accumulation beyond the thalamus or contralateral to the injection site. By contrast, WT littermates exhibit Mn^(2+) transport into more posterior midbrain nuclei and contralateral mesolimbic structures at 26 hr post-injection. Thus, DAT KO mice appear, at this level of anatomic resolution, to have preserved cortico-striatal-thalamic connectivity but diminished robustness of reward-modulating circuitry distal to the thalamus. This is in contradistinction to the state of this circuitry in serotonin transporter KO mice where we observed more robust connectivity in more posterior brain regions using methods identical to those employed here

Observation of a ppb mass threshoud enhancement in \psi^\prime\to\pi^+\pi^-J/\psi(J/\psi\to\gamma p\bar{p}) decay

The decay channel $\psi^\prime\to\pi^+\pi^-J/\psi(J/\psi\to\gamma p\bar{p})$ is studied using a sample of $1.06\times 10^8$ $\psi^\prime$ events collected by the BESIII experiment at BEPCII. A strong enhancement at threshold is observed in the $p\bar{p}$ invariant mass spectrum. The enhancement can be fit with an $S$-wave Breit-Wigner resonance function with a resulting peak mass of $M=1861^{+6}_{-13} {\rm (stat)}^{+7}_{-26} {\rm (syst)} {\rm MeV/}c^2$ and a narrow width that is $\Gamma<38 {\rm MeV/}c^2$ at the 90% confidence level. These results are consistent with published BESII results. These mass and width values do not match with those of any known meson resonance.Comment: 5 pages, 3 figures, submitted to Chinese Physics

Studying the Underlying Event in Drell-Yan and High Transverse Momentum Jet Production at the Tevatron

We study the underlying event in proton-antiproton collisions by examining the behavior of charged particles (transverse momentum pT > 0.5 GeV/c, pseudorapidity |\eta| < 1) produced in association with large transverse momentum jets (~2.2 fb-1) or with Drell-Yan lepton-pairs (~2.7 fb-1) in the Z-boson mass region (70 < M(pair) < 110 GeV/c2) as measured by CDF at 1.96 TeV center-of-mass energy. We use the direction of the lepton-pair (in Drell-Yan production) or the leading jet (in high-pT jet production) in each event to define three regions of \eta-\phi space; toward, away, and transverse, where \phi is the azimuthal scattering angle. For Drell-Yan production (excluding the leptons) both the toward and transverse regions are very sensitive to the underlying event. In high-pT jet production the transverse region is very sensitive to the underlying event and is separated into a MAX and MIN transverse region, which helps separate the hard component (initial and final-state radiation) from the beam-beam remnant and multiple parton interaction components of the scattering. The data are corrected to the particle level to remove detector effects and are then compared with several QCD Monte-Carlo models. The goal of this analysis is to provide data that can be used to test and improve the QCD Monte-Carlo models of the underlying event that are used to simulate hadron-hadron collisions.Comment: Submitted to Phys.Rev.

Measurement of the W+W−W^+W^- Production Cross Section and Search for Anomalous WWγWW\gamma and WWZWWZ Couplings in ppˉp \bar p Collisions at s=1.96\sqrt{s} = 1.96 TeV

This Letter describes the current most precise measurement of the $W$ boson pair production cross section and most sensitive test of anomalous $WW\gamma$ and $WWZ$ couplings in $p \bar p$ collisions at a center-of-mass energy of 1.96 TeV. The $WW$ candidates are reconstructed from decays containing two charged leptons and two neutrinos, where the charged leptons are either electrons or muons. Using data collected by the CDF II detector from 3.6 fb$^{-1}$ of integrated luminosity, a total of 654 candidate events are observed with an expected background contribution of $320 \pm 47$ events. The measured total cross section is $\sigma (p \bar p \to W^+ W^- + X) = 12.1 \pm 0.9 \textrm{(stat)} ^{+1.6}_{-1.4} \textrm{(syst)}$ pb, which is in good agreement with the standard model prediction. The same data sample is used to place constraints on anomalous $WW\gamma$ and $WWZ$ couplings.Comment: submitted to Phys. Rev. Let

Crosstalk between Spinal Astrocytes and Neurons in Nerve Injury-Induced Neuropathic Pain

Emerging research implicates the participation of spinal dorsal horn (SDH) neurons and astrocytes in nerve injury-induced neuropathic pain. However, the crosstalk between spinal astrocytes and neurons in neuropathic pain is not clear. Using a lumbar 5 (L5) spinal nerve ligation (SNL) pain model, we testified our hypothesis that SDH neurons and astrocytes reciprocally regulate each other to maintain the persistent neuropathic pain states. Glial fibrillary acidic protein (GFAP) was used as the astrocytic specific marker and Fos, protein of the protooncogene c-fos, was used as a marker for activated neurons. SNL induced a significant mechanical allodynia as well as activated SDH neurons indicated by the Fos expression at the early phase and activated astrocytes with the increased expression of GFAP during the late phase of pain, respectively. Intrathecal administration of c-fos antisense oligodeoxynucleotides (ASO) or astroglial toxin L-α-aminoadipate (L-AA) reversed the mechanical allodynia, respectively. Immunofluorescent histochemistry revealed that intrathecal administration of c-fos ASO significantly suppressed activation of not only neurons but also astrocytes induced by SNL. Meanwhile, L-AA shortened the duration of neuronal activation by SNL. Our data offers evidence that neuronal and astrocytic activations are closely related with the maintenance of neuropathic pain through a reciprocal “crosstalk”. The current study suggests that neuronal and non-neuronal elements should be taken integrally into consideration for nociceptive transmission, and that the intervention of such interaction may offer some novel pain therapeutic strategies