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The excessive accumulation of nitrogen pollutants (mainly nitrate, nitrite, ammonia nitrogen, hydrazine, and urea) in water bodies seriously disrupts the natural nitrogen cycle and poses a significant threat to human life and health. Electrolysis is considered a promising method to degrade these nitrogenous pollutants in sewage, with the advantages of high efficiency, wide generality, easy operability, retrievability, and environmental friendliness. For particular energy devices, including metal-nitrate batteries, direct fuel cells, and hybrid water electrolyzers, the realization of energy valorization from sewage purification processes (e.g., valuable chemical generation, electricity output, and hydrogen production) becomes feasible. Despite the progress in the research on pollutant electrodegradation, the development of electrocatalysts with high activity, stability, and selectivity for pollutant removal, coupled with corresponding energy devices, remains a challenge. This review comprehensively provides advanced insights into the electrodegradation processes of nitrogenous pollutants and relevant energy valorization strategies, focusing on the reaction mechanisms, activity descriptors, electrocatalyst design, and actuated electrodes and operation parameters of tailored energy conversion devices. A feasibility analysis of electrodegradation on real wastewater samples from the perspective of pollutant concentration, pollutant accumulation, and electrolyte effects is provided. Challenges and prospects for the future development of electrodegradation systems are also discussed in detail to bridge the gap between experimental trials and commercial applications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The utilization of hydrazine in aiding water electrolysis presents a promising avenue for achieving highly efficient hydrogen production through energy conversion. Herein, bifunctional electrocatalyst of urchin‐like iron, nickle‐codoped cobalt phosphide supported on Ni foam (FeNi‐CoP/NF) is reported. Benefitting from the combined electronic structure and lattice strain engineering by Fe and Ni‐ codoping, the hydrazine‐assisted seawater electrolysis assembled with FeNi‐CoP/NF as both electrodes can achieve an industrial‐level current density of 1.5 A cm−2 at a record‐setting voltage of 163 mV at 70 °C and sustain stable operation for hundreds of hours in seawater environment. The existence of a potential coincidence region lends credibility to the feasibility of implementing self‐activated hydrazine‐assisted seawater electrolysis. Based on theoretical calculations, the separate and synergistic effects of electronic structure and lattice strain engineering are investigated and an integrated illustration of these two strategies on enhancing hydrogen evolution and hydrazine oxidation activity is provided. Moreover, an innovative multi‐powered hydrogen generation system featuring a direct hydrazine fuel cell, rechargeable Zn‐hydrazine battery, and hydrazine‐assisted seawater electrolysis is proposed, underscoring the unique advantages of hydrazine oxidation reaction and its prospective contribution to electrochemical energy conversion technologies powered by sustainable sources. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The development and utilization of electrochemical energy conversion and storage devices can maximize intermittent renewable energy and balance environmental issues. Aqueous metal‐redox bicatalyst batteries, incorporating value‐added electro‐reduction reactions during discharge process at the cathode, are considered a particularly attractive alternative for simultaneous electricity generation and valuable chemical production. In this review, for the first time, a holistic and subtle description of value‐added metal‐redox bicatalyst batteries is made, focusing on recent efforts to optimize the energy conversion/chemical production‐involved cathodic discharging reactions, including CO2 reduction reaction (CO2RR), nitrogen reduction reaction (NRR), nitric oxide reduction reaction (NORR), nitrate reduction reaction (NO3−RR), nitrite reduction reaction (NO2−RR), hydrogen evolution reaction (HER), and acetylene reduction reaction (ARR). A macroscopic understanding of design principles in terms of anodes, cathodes, and reaction parameters is provided. Some mechanism explorations, feasibility analyses, technoeconomic assessments, device combinations, and associated comparisons are involved to deepen the understanding of different systems and evaluate their application prospects. Perspectives on and opportunities for future research directions are also outlined. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The association between bleeding and subsequent major adverse cardiac and cerebrovascular events (MACCE) remains poorly characterized. We aimed to evaluate the impact of hemorrhagic events in patients with atrial fibrillation (AF) and acute coronary syndrome (ACS) or undergoing percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI). A total of 1877 consecutive patients with AF and ACS or undergoing PCI were prospectively recruited. The primary endpoint was MACCE, including all-cause death, myocardial infarction, ischemic stroke, systemic embolism or ischemia-driven revascularization during follow-up. Post-discharge bleeding was graded according to TIMI criteria. Associations between bleeding and subsequent MACCE were examined using time-dependent multivariate Cox regression after adjusting for baseline covariates and the time from bleeding. During a median follow-up of 34.2 months, 341 (18.2 %) had TIMI major or minor bleeding events, of whom 86 (25.2 %) also experienced MACCE. The risk of MACCE was significantly higher in patients with bleeding than those without (8.85 % versus 6.99 % per patient-year; HR, 1.568, 95 % CI, 1.232–1.994). In patients who had both bleeding and MACCE, 65.1 % (56 of 86) bleeding events occurred first. Temporal gradients in MACCE risk after major bleeding was highest within 30 days (HR adj , 23.877; 95 % CI, 12.810–44.506) and remained significant beyond 1 year (HR adj , 3.640; 95 % CI, 1.278–10.366). Minor bleeding was associated with increased risk of MACCE within 1 year. In patients with AF and ACS or PCI, major and minor bleeding were associated with subsequent MACCE with time-dependency. Our findings may aid in better defining net clinical benefit of optimal antithrombotic therapy. • Patients experiencing post-discharge bleeding were more likely to develop major adverse cardiac and cerebrovascular events. • The temporal gradients in MACCE risk after bleeding were highest in the first 30 days and then decreased. • The impact of TIMI major bleeding persisted beyond one year, while minor bleeding did not. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Highlights: Ultrathin P and Fe co-doped NiSe2 nanosheets supported on modified Ni foam are synthesized, which shows desirable bifunctional electrocatalytic hydrogen evolution reaction (HER)/hydrazine oxidation reaction (HzOR) performance in hydrazine-assisted water electrolysis and Zn-Hz battery. The coexistence of P and Fe heteroatoms induces an accelerated "2 + 2" reaction mechanism with a two-step HER process and a two-step HzOR step. Hydrazine-assisted water electrolysis is a promising energy conversion technology for highly efficient hydrogen production. Rational design of bifunctional electrocatalysts, which can simultaneously accelerate hydrogen evolution reaction (HER)/hydrazine oxidation reaction (HzOR) kinetics, is the key step. Herein, we demonstrate the development of ultrathin P/Fe co-doped NiSe2 nanosheets supported on modified Ni foam (P/Fe-NiSe2) synthesized through a facile electrodeposition process and subsequent heat treatment. Based on electrochemical measurements, characterizations, and density functional theory calculations, a favorable "2 + 2" reaction mechanism with a two-step HER process and a two-step HzOR step was fully proved and the specific effect of P doping on HzOR kinetics was investigated. P/Fe-NiSe2 thus yields an impressive electrocatalytic performance, delivering a high current density of 100 mA cm−2 with potentials of − 168 and 200 mV for HER and HzOR, respectively. Additionally, P/Fe-NiSe2 can work efficiently for hydrazine-assisted water electrolysis and Zn-Hydrazine (Zn-Hz) battery, making it promising for practical application. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• The 279th residue of CgAK is important for relieving inhibition by L-lysine. • CgAKA279D shows the high degree of desensitization for L-lysine. • CgAKA279D benefits to increase the efficiency of L-lysine production. Aspartate kinase (AK) is the key rate-limiting enzyme for producing aspartate-family amino acids, but it is inhibited by products. In this study, a desensitizing CgAK variant was created and was used to increase L-lysine production in Corynebacterium glutamicum. To do this, different CgAK variants from different L-lysine producing strains were investigated through sequence alignment and functional analysis indicating that the 279th residue in CgAK plays important roles in relieving the inhibition by L-threonine and L-lysine, thus affecting the biosynthesis of L-lysine. Subsequently, the amino acid residue at 279th site was mutated by site-saturation mutagenesis and indicated that CgAKA279D showed the higher degree of desensitization of inhibition by L-lysine and L-lysine plus L-threonine than that of the other CgAK variants because replacement of the Ala at 279th site by Asp in CgAK reduces the interactions between inhibitors and CgAK. The results of L-lysine fermentation in fed-batch fermentation showed that the resultant strain LYS-279D with overexpression of CgAKA279D produced 172.3 g/L of L-lysine with a productivity of 2.39 g/(L·h) and the glucose conversion efficiency (α) of 47.74 %, which were higher than that of strain LYS-279T (i.e., 153.4 g/L, 2.13 g/(L·h) and 41.44 %, respectivley). These findings provide a reference for constructing a desensitizing CgAK variant with high enzyme activity and reconfirm that CgAK is key enzyme for L-lysine production. [Display omitted] [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Water electrolysis, driven by renewable energy resources, is a promising energy conversion technology that has gained intensive interest in recent years. However, conventional water electrolysis faces a number of challenges, including large thermodynamic potential gaps, valueless anodic products, explosive hydrogen/oxygen mixtures, reactive oxygen species, and limited pure water. Hybrid water electrolysis, appending different electrolytes in the anode compartment to circumvent the above‐mentioned challenges in conventional water electrolysis, is a particularly attractive alternative. In this review, for the first time, a holistic and subtle description of hybrid water electrolysis is provided, focusing on the design of high‐activity/selectivity/stability anodic electrocatalysts for the electrochemical oxidation of various chemicals, such as alcohol, aldehyde, amine, urea and hydrazine, or the oxygen evolution reaction in seawater electrolytes. Comprehensive judging criteria for anodic oxidation reactions, electrocatalysts, and reaction parameters in hybrid water electrolysis are discussed. Some technoeconomic assessments, feasibility analyses, mechanism explorations, and correlation comparisons are involved. Finally, perspectives on and opportunities for future research directions in hybrid water electrolysis systems are outlined. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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A proton-transporting pathway is crucial to the conduction mechanism in fuel cells and biological systems. Here, we report a novel 5-fold interpenetrated three-dimensional (3D) hydrogen-bonded quadruplex framework, which exhibits an ultrahigh single-crystal proton conductivity of 1.2(1) × 10−2 S cm−1 at 95 °C and 98% relative humidity, benefitting from the spiral H3O+/H2O chains in 1D pore channels studded with COOH/COO− groups. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: There is a paucity of real-world data regarding the clinical impact of dual antiplatelet therapy (DAPT) interruption (temporary or permanent) among patients at high ischemic risk. The aim of this study was to assess the risk of cardiovascular events after interruption of DAPT in high-risk PCI population.Methods: This study used data from the Fuwai PCI registry, a large, prospective cohort of consecutive patients who underwent PCI. We assessed 3,931 patients with at least 1 high ischemic risk criteria of stent-related recurrent ischemic events proposed in the 2017 ESC guidelines for focused update on DAPT who were free of major cardiac events in the first 12 months. The primary ischemic endpoint was 30-month major adverse cardiac and cerebrovascular events, and the key safety endpoints were BARC class 2, 3, or 5 bleeding and net adverse clinical events.Results: DAPT interruption within 12 months occurred in 1,122 patients (28.5%), most of which were due to bleeding events or patients' noncompliance to treatment. A multivariate Cox regression model, propensity score (PS) matching, and inverse probability of treatment weighting (IPTW) based on the propensity score demonstrated that DAPT interruption significantly increased the risk of primary ischemic endpoint compared with prolonged DAPT (3.9% vs. 2.2%; Cox-adjusted hazard ratio (HR): 1.840; 95% confidence interval (CI): 1.247 to 2.716; PS matching-HR: 2.049 [1.236-3.399]; IPTW-adjusted HR: 1.843 [1.250-2.717]). This difference was driven mainly by all-cause death (1.8% vs. 0.7%) and MI (1.3% vs. 0.5%). Furthermore, the rate of net adverse clinical events (4.9% vs. 3.2%; Cox-adjusted HR: 1.581 [1.128-2.216]; PS matching-HR: 1.639 [1.075-2.499]; IPTW-adjusted HR: 1.554 [1.110-2.177]) was also higher in patients with DAPT interruption (≤12 months), whereas no significant differences between groups were observed in terms of BARC 2, 3, or 5 bleeding. These findings were consistent across various stent-driven high-ischemic risk subsets with respect to the primary ischemic endpoints, with a greater magnitude of harm among patients with diffuse multivessel diabetic coronary artery disease.Conclusions: In patients undergoing high-risk PCI, interruption of DAPT in the first 12 months occurred infrequently and was associated with a significantly higher adjusted risk of major adverse cardiovascular events and net adverse clinical events. 2017 ESC stent-driven high ischemic risk criteria may help clinicians to discriminate patient selection in the use of long-term DAPT when the ischemic risk certainly overcomes the bleeding one. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Al-doped Ni 2 P nanoflowers exhibit excellent HER, HzOR and hydrazine-assisted water splitting activity. • Al induced electron redistribution and intermediate energy optimization contribute to the enhanced activity. • An integrated system consisting of Zn-hydrazine battery and hydrazine-assisted water splitting driven by sustainable solar energy is proposed. Hydrazine-assisted water electrolysis emerges as a promising strategy to replace conventional device for effective hydrogen generation. Limited to the great difference of intermediate adsorption energy for hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) and hydrazine oxidation reaction (HzOR), the design and fabrication of bifunctional catalysts is still a knotty challenge in industrial conditions. Herein, Al-doped Ni 2 P nanoflower architecture grown in-situ on nickel foam (Al-Ni 2 P/NF) is fabricated through the combination of hydrothermal process and subsequent phosphorization treatment. Ascribed to the redistribution of electron state and optimization of reaction intermediate energy induced by Al, Al-Ni 2 P/NF expresses distinguished bifunctional catalytic performance with ultralow potentials of −205 and 300 mV at 500 mA cm−2 for HER and HzOR, respectively. When integrated into hydrazine-assisted water splitting as both the anode and cathode, only 0.717 V is required to reach a large current density of 500 mA cm−2. Specially, a novel integrated system driven entirely by sustainable solar energy is proposed, generating energy-saving hydrogen and purify hydrazine-containing sewage simultaneously. This work provides an attracting and practical path for accelerating the development of hydrogen economy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The benefits and harms of dual antiplatelet therapy (DAPT) continuation with aspirin and clopidogrel beyond 1 year after percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) with drug-eluting stent (DES) implantation for high ischemic or bleeding risk patients remain unclear. All consecutive patients undergoing PCI were prospectively included in the Fuwai PCI Registry from January 2013 to December 2013. We evaluated 7521 patients who were at high risk for thrombotic or hemorrhagic complications and were events free at 1 year after the index procedure. "TWILIGHT-like" patients with high risk of bleeding or ischemic events were defined by clinical and angiographic criteria. The primary ischemic outcome was major adverse cardiac and cerebrovascular events [MACCE] (a composite of all-cause death, myocardial infarction, or stroke). Median follow-up duration was 2.4 years. The risk of MACCE was significantly lower in DAPT>1-year group (n = 5252) than DAPT≤1-year group (n = 2269) (1.5% vs. 3.8%; hazard ratio [HR]: 0.37; 95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.27–0.50; P <.001). This difference was largely driven by a lower risk of all-cause death. In contrast, the risk of Bleeding Academic Research Consortium (BARC) type 2, 3 or 5 bleeding was statistically similar between the two groups (1.0% vs. 1.1%; HR: 0.80; 95% CI: 0.50–1.28; P =.346). Results were consistent after multivariable regression and propensity-score matching. Prolonged DAPT beyond 1 year after DES implantation resulted in a significantly lower rate of atherothrombotic events, including a mortality benefit, with no higher risk of clinically relevant bleeding in "TWILIGHT-like" patients who were at high-risk for ischemic or bleeding events. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The housing mortgage policy for farmers helps to exert the 'economic attribute of property rights' of farmers' land assets and alleviate the financing difficulties faced by farmers due to the lack of desirable collateral. For farmers who stay in cities, this policy can not only effectively utilize the domicile of the homestead land, but also ease the credit constraints they face in starting businesses. However, the financing effect of this policy on the influence of different entrepreneurial farmers still lacks quantitative analysis currently. Based on the CMDS data in 2017, this paper comprehensively used multiple Logit, Propensity Score Matching (PSM) and Quantile Regression (QR) methods to conduct a deep theoretical analysis and a quantitative study on the impact of homestead mortgage financing on rural households' off-site entrepreneurship. This paper found that: (1) Compared with non-pilot areas, farmers in pilot areas had a higher possibility for choosing entrepreneurship, in which the possibility of opportunistic entrepreneurship was higher than that of subsistence entrepreneurship. (2) The average monthly income of households in the pilot areas was 926.6 yuan higher than that in the non-pilot areas. The average monthly income of rural households with homesteads in the pilot areas was 348.74 yuan higher than that of rural households without homesteads in the pilot areas. (3) With the expansion of homestead areas, the influence of the unit area of homestead on the income of entrepreneurial farmers showed a trend of decreasing first and rising next. (4) From the perspective of geography, the value of homestead per unit area from east to west presented a U-shaped change trend of decreasing first and increasing next. Through further investigation and theoretical deduction, it was found that early credit assessment and credit investigation were important safeguard measures for financial institutions to reduce operational risks. According to the research, homestead mortgage loan could significantly promote the entrepreneurship of farmers. Reasonable evaluation and hedging mechanism could help reduce social risks, and the improvement of insurance and supporting policies for the entrepreneurship of farmers could help reduce the risks. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background/aim: The relation between complex percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI), high bleeding risk (HBR), and adverse events after coronary artery implantation of drug-eluting stents has been incompletely characterized. This study sought to investigate the ischemic and bleeding events after complex PCI including stratification according to HBR estimated by PARIS bleeding risk score.Methods: Between January 2013 and December 2013, 10,167 consecutive patients undergoing PCI were prospectively enrolled in Fuwai PCI Registry. Complex PCI was defined when having at least one of the following characteristics: 3 vessels treated, ≥3 stents implanted, ≥3 lesions treated, bifurcation with 2 stents implanted, total stent length >60 mm, treatment of chronic total occlusion, unprotected left main PCI, in-stent restenosis target lesion, and severely calcified lesion. The primary ischemic endpoint was major adverse cardiovascular events (MACE) (composite of cardiac death, myocardial infarction, definite/probable stent thrombosis, and target lesion revascularization), and primary bleeding endpoint was Bleeding Academic Research Consortium (BARC) type 2, 3, or 5 bleeding.Results: The median duration of follow-up was 29 months. In adjusted Cox regression analysis, patients having complex PCI procedures experienced higher risks of MACE (hazard ratio (HR): 1.63, 95% confidence interval (CI): 1.38-1.92; P < 0.001), compared with noncomplex PCI. In contrast, the risk of clinically relevant bleeding was statistically similar between the 2 groups (HR: 0.86 [0.66-1.11]; P = 0.238). There was no statistical interaction between HBR (PARIS bleeding score ≥8 or <8) and complex PCI in regard to MACE (adjusted Pinteraction = 0.388) and clinically relevant bleeding (adjusted Pinteraction = 0.279).Conclusions: Patients who had undergone complex PCI resulted in substantially more ischemic events, without an increase in clinically relevant bleeding risk, and these associations did not seem to be modified by HBR status. More intensified antiplatelet therapy may be beneficial for patients with complex percutaneous coronary revascularization procedures. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Isoquercetin and D-allulose have diverse applications and significant value in antioxidant, antibacterial, antiviral, and lipid metabolism. Isoquercetin can be synthesized from quercetin, while D-allulose is converted from D-fructose. However, their production scale and overall quality are relatively low, leading to high production costs. In this study, we have devised a cost-effective one-pot method for biosynthesizing isoquercetin and D-allulose using a whole-cell biocatalyst derived from quercetin and sucrose. To achieve this, the optimized isoquercetin synthase and D-allulose-3-epimerase were initially identified through isofunctional gene screening. In order to reduce the cost of uridine diphosphate glucose (UDPG) during isoquercetin synthesis and ensure a continuous supply of UDPG, sucrose synthase is introduced to enable the self-circulation of UDPG. At the same time, the inclusion of sucrose permease was utilized to successfully facilitate the catalytic production of D-allulose in whole cells. Finally, the recombinant strain BL21/UGT-SUS+DAE-SUP, which overexpresses Mi F3GTMUT, Gm SUS, Ec SUP, and DAEase, was obtained. This strain co-produced 41±2.4 mg/L of isoquercetin and 5.7±0.8 g/L of D-allulose using 120 mg/L of quercetin and 20 g/L of sucrose as substrates for 5 h after optimization. This is the first green synthesis method that can simultaneously produce flavonoid compounds and rare sugars. These findings provide valuable insights and potential for future industrial production, as well as practical applications in factories. • Simultaneous production of isoquercitrin and allulose using a single strain of recombinant E.coli. • Whole-cell catalysis as a green and efficient method with future industrial prospects. • Constructed self-recycling of UDPG(uridine diphosphate glucose) cofactors to reduce UDPG costs. • Whole-cell catalysis of sucrose by introduction of sucrose permease. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Melatonin (MT) has been implicated in the plant response to phosphorus (P) stress; however, the precise molecular mechanisms involved remain unclear. This study investigated whether MT controls internal P distribution and root cell wall P remobilization in rice. Rice was treated with varying MT and P levels and analyzed using biochemical and molecular techniques to study phosphorus utilization. The results demonstrated that low P levels lead to a rapid increase in endogenous MT levels in rice roots. Furthermore, the exogenous application of MT significantly improved rice tolerance to P deficiency, as evidenced by the increased biomass and reduced proportion of roots to shoots under P‐deficient conditions. MT application also mitigated the decrease in P content regardless in both the roots and shoots. Mechanistically, MT accelerated the reutilization of P, particularly in the root pectin fraction, leading to increased soluble P liberation. In addition, MT enhanced the expression of OsPT8, a gene involved in root‐to‐shoot P translocation. Furthermore, we observed that MT induced the production of nitric oxide (NO) in P‐deficient rice roots and that the mitigating effect of MT on P deficiency was compromised in the presence of the NO inhibitor, c‐PTIO, implying that NO is involved in the MT‐facilitated mitigation of P deficiency in rice. Overall, our findings highlight the potential of MT as a promising strategy for enhancing rice tolerance to P deficiency and improving P use efficiency in agricultural practices. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Anhedonia is defined as deficits in experiencing everyday life pleasure. Empirical studies suggest that anhedonia and working memory (WM) share overlapping neural substrates. Although WM training has been shown to alleviate anhedonia in individuals with social anhedonia, it is not clear whether WM training may also improve anhedonia in individuals with subsyndromal depression. This study examined the potential effect of WM training on improving anhedonia in college students with subsyndromal depression. Fifty college students were recruited and classified as the depressive (19 students) and non‐depressive (31 students) groups according to their scores on the Beck Depression Inventory. They then took part in a 20‐session dual n‐back WM training. All participants were requested to complete a set of measures capturing experiential pleasure and WM capacity both before and after the training. We found significant improvement in WM performance and self‐reported measures of experiential pleasure in both groups. However, only the depressive group showed significant improvement in a computer‐based task capturing motivation. These preliminary findings suggest that WM training may be able to alleviate anhedonia in individuals with subsyndromal depressive symptoms. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We report vertical GaN-on-GaN PIN diodes with a record high figure-of-merit (V BR 2/ R on) of 29.7 GW/cm2 on free-standing GaN wafer using a complementary metal-oxide-semiconductor (CMOS) compatible contact materials. Due to the low substrate resistivity, low contact resistance, and high quality of GaN drift layer, a low on-state resistance R on of 0.31 mΩ cm2 is obtained. With integrating of the metal filed plate structure in the vertical device, the peak electrical field along the GaN mesa edge can be significantly reduced, thus leading to a high breakdown voltage V BR of 3.04 kV. The vertical GaN-on-GaN PIN diodes in this work show turn-on voltage V on of ∼3.4 V, on/off current ratio of ∼1.3 × 107, and ideal factor n of ∼2.2. According to the reverse switching measurement, the reverse recovery time T rr (reverse recovery charge Q rr) is 22.8 ns (4.8 nC) and 24.0 ns (5.4 nC), respectively, under a testing temperature of 300 K and 500 K. • Vertical GaN-on-GaN PIN diodes with V BR of 3.04 V was demonstrated. • Free-standing GaN wafer grown by ammonothermal method enables low resistivity substrate.. • Field plate structure reducing the peak electrical field. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Photoacoustic imaging, which can provide the maximum intensity contrast in tissue depth imaging without ionizing radiation, will be a promising imaging trend for tumor detection. In this paper, a column diffusion fiber was employed to carry a pulsed laser for irradiating stomach directly through esophagus based on the characteristics of gastric tissue structure. A long focused ultrasonic transducer was placed outside the body to detect photoacoustic signals of gastric tissue. Phantom and in vitro experiments of submucosal gastric tumors were carried out to check the sensitivity of scanning photoacoustic tomography system, including the lateral and longitudinal resolution of the system, sensitivity of different absorption coefficient in imaging, capability of transversal detection, and probability of longitudinal detection. The results demonstrate that our innovative technique can improve the parameters of imaging. The lateral resolution reaches 2.09 mm. Then a depth of 5.5 mm with a longitudinal accuracy of 0.36 mm below gastric mucosa of early gastric cancer (EGC) has been achieved. In addition, the optimal absorption coefficient differences among absorbers of system are 3.3–3.9 times. Results indicate that our photoacoustic imaging (PAI) system, is based on a long focusing transducer, can provide a potential application for detecting submucosal EGC without obvious symptoms. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The hot deformation behavior and microstructure evolution of a recently developed 2Cr12Ni4Mo3VNbN martensitic stainless steel are examined through hot compression tests conducted within the temperature range of 900–1200 °C and the strain rate range of 0.01–10 s−1. The constitutive equation and processing maps corresponding to hot deformation are established. The activation energy for hot deformation of 2Cr12Ni4Mo3VNbN steel is determined to be ≈457491.77 J mol−1. Simultaneously, the microstructure evolution during hot deformation is studied. Based on the processing maps and microstructure evolution analysis, it is concluded that the optimal windows for hot processing are within the temperature range of 1106–1150 °C and the strain rate range of 0.01–2.7 s−1, as well as at 1200 °C within the strain rate range of 1–2.7 s−1, exhibiting a power dissipation efficiency of 0.32. As the temperature increases and the strain rate decreases, the degree of dynamic recrystallization escalates. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

[Display omitted] • Interfacial heterogeneous Ni(OH) 2 /Ni 2 P microstructures are constructed on nickel foam. • Ni(OH) 2 /Ni 2 P/NF exhibits excellent HER, HzOR and hydrazine-assisted water splitting activity. • The heterogeneous interfaces contribute to the enhanced activity. • An innovative intermittent hydrazine-assisted water splitting electrolysis system is proposed. Hydrazine oxidation reaction (HzOR) has been proposed to replace the sluggish oxygen evolution reaction (OER) for energy-saving hydrogen generation. However, the rational design of bifunctional electrocatalysts that can simultaneously accelerate HER/HzOR kinetics and the source of the hydrazine chemical substrate are still challenging. Herein, interfacial heterogeneous nickel hydroxide/nickel phosphide microstructures are in-situ grown on nickel foam (Ni(OH) 2 /Ni 2 P/NF) via a combined electrodeposition-phosphorization-electrodeposition strategy. After Ni(OH) 2 modification, a charge redistribution is triggered between Ni(OH) 2 and Ni 2 P, reducing the charge-transfer resistance and optimizing the adsorption energy of reaction intermediates. Ni(OH) 2 /Ni 2 P/NF thus yields an impressive bifunctional electrocatalytic activity for HER and HzOR with potentials of −72 and −14 mV at 10 mA cm−2, respectively. When using Ni(OH) 2 /Ni 2 P/NF as both electrodes, decreased cell voltage of 0.357 V is required to drive a current density of 100 mA cm−2 in 0.5 M hydrazine-containing alkaline electrolyte. Furthermore, an intermittent hydrazine-assisted water electrolysis system is proposed to make the combination of hydrazine sewage purification and energy-saving hydrogen production realistic. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Using solar cell (or photovoltaic cell) for visible light communication (VLC) is attractive. Apart from acting as a VLC receiver (Rx), the solar cell can provide energy harvesting. This can be used in self-powered smart devices, particularly in the emerging “Internet of Things (IoT)” networks. Here, we propose and demonstrate for the first time using pre-distortion pulse-amplitude-modulation (PAM)-4 signal and parallel resistance circuit to enhance the transmission performance of solar cell Rx based VLC. Pre-distortion is a simple non-adaptive equalization technique that can significantly mitigate the slow charging and discharging of the solar cell. The equivalent circuit model of the solar cell and the operation of using parallel resistance to increase the bandwidth of the solar cell are discussed. By using the proposed schemes, the experimental results show that the data rate of the solar cell Rx based VLC can increase from 20 kbit/s to 1.25 Mbit/s (about 60 times) with the bit error-rate (BER) satisfying the 7% forward error correction (FEC) limit. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

High-entropy alloys (HEAs) comprising five or more elements in near-equiatomic proportions have attracted ever increasing attention for their distinctive properties, such as exceptional strength, corrosion resistance, high hardness, and excellent ductility. The presence of multiple adjacent elements in HEAs provides unique opportunities for novel and adaptable active sites. By carefully selecting the element configuration and composition, these active sites can be optimized for specific purposes. Recently, HEAs have been shown to exhibit remarkable performance in electrocatalytic reactions. Further activity improvement of HEAs is necessary to determine their active sites, investigate the interactions between constituent elements, and understand the reaction mechanisms. Accordingly, a comprehensive review is imperative to capture the advancements in this burgeoning field. In this review, we provide a detailed account of the recent advances in synthetic methods, design principles, and characterization technologies for HEA-based electrocatalysts. Moreover, we discuss the diverse applications of HEAs in electrocatalytic energy conversion reactions, including the hydrogen evolution reaction, hydrogen oxidation reaction, oxygen reduction reaction, oxygen evolution reaction, carbon dioxide reduction reaction, nitrogen reduction reaction, and alcohol oxidation reaction. By comprehensively covering these topics, we aim to elucidate the intricacies of active sites, constituent element interactions, and reaction mechanisms associated with HEAs. Finally, we underscore the imminent challenges and emphasize the significance of both experimental and theoretical perspectives, as well as the potential applications of HEAs in catalysis. We anticipate that this review will encourage further exploration and development of HEAs in electrochemistry-related applications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Colorectal Cancer (CRC) is becoming a major threat to people’s life in China. Screening methods adopted by many other countries as effective counter-cancer methods have not been explicitly explored for people there. Thus, we present a Markov model with detailed precancerous adenoma states and then evaluate various screening strategies in this paper. Different from current researches, our model considers the population’s heterogeneous risk of developing adenomas and observation-based screening strategies. Furthermore, we also give a new cost-effectiveness metric. After calibrating, the model is simulated using the Monte Carlo method. Numerical results show that there are threshold values of compliance rates below which strategy with every ten-year colonoscopy becomes the most cost-effective method; otherwise, an observation-based screening strategy is the most cost-effective. We also find that strategy with single colonoscopy for adenoma-free individuals and every three-year colonoscopy for those with adenoma is recommended when the observation-based strategy is not considered. Our findings give an explicit and complete instruction in CRC screening protocol in average-risk Chinese. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Circumventing Challenges: Design of Anodic Electrocatalysts for Hybrid Water Electrolysis Systems (Adv. Keywords: electrode engineering; high-efficient hydrogen production; hybrid water electrolysis; seawater; small molecule oxidation EN electrode engineering high-efficient hydrogen production hybrid water electrolysis seawater small molecule oxidation 1 1 1 01/31/23 20230127 NES 230127 B Hybrid Water Electrolysis b In article number 2203568, Zhong-Yong Yuan and co-workers show that with the help of seawater-, alcohol-, aldehyde-, urea-, amine- and hydrazine-assisted strategies, hybrid water electrolysis systems can break and circumvent the existing challenges in conventional water electrolysis, reducing cost and obtaining value-added products. Electrode engineering, high-efficient hydrogen production, hybrid water electrolysis, seawater, small molecule oxidation. [Extracted from the article]

In contrast to the thermodynamically unfavorable anodic oxygen evolution reaction, the electrocatalytic urea oxidation reaction (UOR) presents a more favorable thermodynamic potential. However, the practical application of UOR has been hindered by sluggish kinetics. In this study, hierarchical porous nanosheet arrays featuring abundant Ni‐WO3 heterointerfaces on nickel foam (Ni‐WO3/NF) is introduced as a monolith electrode, demonstrating exceptional activity and stability toward UOR. The Ni‐WO3/NF catalyst exhibits unprecedentedly rapid UOR kinetics (200 mA cm−2 at 1.384 V vs. RHE) and a high turnover frequency (0.456 s−1), surpassing most previously reported Ni‐based catalysts, with negligible activity decay observed during a durability test lasting 150 h. Ex situ X‐ray photoelectron spectroscopy and density functional theory calculations elucidate that the WO3 interface significantly modulates the local charge distribution of Ni species, facilitating the generation of Ni3+ with optimal affinity for interacting with urea molecules and CO2 intermediates at heterointerfaces during UOR. This mechanism accelerates the interfacial electrocatalytic kinetics. Additionally, in situ Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy provides deep insights into the substantial contribution of interfacial Ni‐WO3 sites to UOR electrocatalysis, unraveling the underlying molecular‐level mechanisms. Finally, the study explores the application of a direct urea fuel cell to inspire future practical implementations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The purpose of this paper is to investigate the feasibility of using a similarity coefficient map (SCM) in improving the morphological evaluation of T2* weighted (T2* W) magnatic resonance imaging (MRI) for renal cancer. Simulation studies and in vivo 12-echo T2* W experiments for renal cancers were performed for this purpose. The results of the first simulation study suggest that an SCM can reveal small structures which are hard to distinguish from the background tissue in T2* W images and the corresponding T2* map. The capability of improving the morphological evaluation is likely due to the improvement in the signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) and the carrier-to-noise ratio (CNR) by using the SCM technique. Compared with T2* W images, an SCM can improve the SNR by a factor ranging from 1.87 to 2.47. Compared with T2* maps, an SCM can improve the SNR by a factor ranging from 3.85 to 33.31. Compared with T2* W images, an SCM can improve the CNR by a factor ranging from 2.09 to 2.43. Compared with T2* maps, an SCM can improve the CNR by a factor ranging from 1.94 to 8.14. For a given noise level, the improvements of the SNR and the CNR depend mainly on the original SNRs and CNRs in T2* W images, respectively. In vivo experiments confirmed the results of the first simulation study. The results of the second simulation study suggest that more echoes are used to generate the SCM, and higher SNRs and CNRs can be achieved in SCMs. In conclusion, an SCM can provide improved morphological evaluation of T2* W MR images for renal cancer by unveiling fine structures which are ambiguous or invisible in the corresponding T2* WMR images and T2* maps. Furthermore, in practical applications, for a fixed total sampling time, one should increase the number of echoes as much as possible to achieve SCMs with better SNRs and CNRs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Sisal-like porous MoO 2 nanosheet arrays grown on Ni foam are synthesized by a facile process. • The MoO 2 /NF exhibits exceptional activity and durability for both NRR and OER. • A remarkable ammonia production performance is achieved in two-electrode full N 2 electrolysis. • The valence state of Mo species plays a key role in promoting NRR activity. Developing efficient electrocatalysts for direct N 2 electrolysis that includes two key reactions of oxygen evolution reaction (OER) at the anode and nitrogen reduction reaction (NRR) at the cathode is an appealing yet challenging task. Herein, Ni foam (NF) supported sisal-like porous MoO 2 nanosheet array (MoO 2 /NF) was synthesized through a facile hydrothermal and subsequent annealing process. It is shown that in the NRR process the Mo4+ in MoO 2 /NF is more favorable in an associative mechanism of NRR than Mo6+ in MoO 3 /NF, thus yielding an impressive ammonia electrosynthesis activity (NH 3 yield rate: 9.56 μg h−1 cm−2; Faradaic efficiency: 5.14%) in 0.1 M KOH. Moreover, the sisal-like porous nanosheet array structure not only provides a high surface area for abundant accessible active sites, but also limits the coalescence of gas bubbles, enabling active sites better exposed to nitrogen by removing the small gas bubbles rapidly. The MoO 2 /NF also shows excellent performance for the OER in 0.1 M KOH, exhibiting a small overpotential of 340 mV to realize a current density of 10 mA cm−2. In two-electrode full N 2 electrolysis, a remarkable ammonia production performance with an ammonia yield of 5.73 μg h−1 cm−2, an FE of 15.8%, and good long-term stability for at least 24 h is obtained. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The slow reaction kinetics of oxygen electrode is the bottleneck restricting the development of rechargeable Zn-air batteries (ZABs). In order to further improve the energy conversion efficiency of ZABs, a novel urea-assisted ZAB system was proposed by replacing oxygen evolution reaction (OER) with urea oxidation reaction (UOR) with lower theoretical thermodynamic potential. Inspired by nature's ingenious structure-function, a "leaf-branch" CoNi@NCNTs-LDH/CC binary-site electrocatalyst was designed for the above system, where spatially separated branches and leaves serve as the main active sites for ORR and UOR, respectively. A build-in electric field from CoNi-LDH to CoNi@NCNTs is formed at the interface of the composite, which plays a command effect, effectively triggering the accumulation of O 2 and urea reactants around the CoNi and LDH sites, respectively, and thus improving the efficiency of both ORR and UOR reactions. Based on that, a conceptual urea-assisted rechargeable ZAB is demonstrated to have significantly decreased charging voltage, higher energy conversion efficiency (74.6 %) compared with the conventional ZAB, as well as high urea elimination rates. Considering the urea-assisted ZAB with high energy conversion efficiency and wastewater treatment versatility as an energy transfer station applied in a high value-added agricultural system, uninterrupted hydrogen production and wastewater treatment of agricultural wastewater can be simultaneously achieved using sustainable energy sources. [Display omitted] • A novel urea-assisted rechargeable ZAB system is innovatively proposed. • Through biomimetic design, a "leaf-branch" binary-site electrocatalyst is prepared. • CoNi@NCNTs-LDH/CC exhibits excellent ORR and UOR bifunctional activity. • The built-in electric field regulates the adsorption of reactants at different sites. • Hydrogen production and wastewater treatment of agricultural wastewater can be realized simultaneously. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To reveal the bonding effect of alloying elements in high entropy alloys and the source of structural stability of alloys, an as-cast Al 0 · 5 CrCuFeMnTi high entropy alloy was synthesized by arc melting under argon protection. The results show that the as-cast alloy is composed of a hexagonal close-packed (HCP) and a body-centered cubic (BCC) structure, and there is a distinct phase interface with a disordered arrangement of atoms between the dendritic (DR) and interdendritic (ID) regions. The calibrated (002), (110), and (112) crystal faces determined through high-resolution transmission electron microscopy confirm that DR phase has the HCP structure, while the ID phase forms solid solutions with the BCC structure by calibrated (110), (01-1), and (12-1) crystal faces. The results from first principles calculations show that the structural stability of the alloy is improved by the strong covalent bonding between Fe and Al, Cr, Fe, Ti atoms in the DR region, and between Al and Cu, Mn atoms in the ID region. The calculated results of solid solution parameters show that the atomic size difference and the mixing enthalpy of this alloy satisfy the criteria for stable solid solutions. • Strong covalent bond bonding between Fe and Al, Cr, Fe, Ti atoms is the main source of structural stability of DR phase. • Structural stability of the ID phase is mainly due to the strong covalent bond between Al and Cu, Mn atoms. • The reduced mixing enthalpy balances the increased lattice distortion, resulting in instability of the crystal structure. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) has become a valuable resource as a remote sensing technique. In the past decade, the use of reflected GNSS signals for sensing the Earth, also known as GNSS reflectometry (GNSS-R), has grown rapidly. On the other hand, with the continuous development of GNSS, multi-frequency multi-modulation signals have been used to enhance not only positioning performance, but also remote sensing applications. It is known that for some constellations, navigation satellites broadcast signals employing BPSK (binary phase-shift keying) modulation and BOC (binary offset carrier) modulation at the same frequency band. This paper proposes a new GNSS-R measurement, called a composite delay-Doppler map (cDDM), by utilizing the received reflected GNSS signals with different modulation techniques for the purpose of retrieving wind speed. The GNSS-R receiver can receive BPSK and BOC signals simultaneously at the same frequency band (e.g., GPS III L1 C/A and L1C or QZSS L1 C/A and L1C) and process the signals to generate GNSS-R measurements. Exploration of the observable features extracted from the composite DDM and the wind speed retrieval algorithm are also provided. The simulation verifies the proposed method under a configuration that is specified for the orbital and instrument specification of the upcoming TRITON mission. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The use of reflected Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) signals has shown to be effective for some remote sensing applications. In a GNSS Reflectometry (GNSS-R) system, a set of delay-Doppler maps (DDMs) related to scattered GNSS signals is formed and serves as a measurement of ocean wind speed and roughness. The design of the DDM receiver involves a trade-off between computation/communication complexity and the effectiveness of data retrieval. A fine-resolution DDM reveals more information in data retrieval while consuming more resources in terms of onboard processing and downlinking. As a result, existing missions typically use a compressed or low-resolution DDM as a data product, and a high-resolution DDM is processed for special purposes such as calibration. In this paper, a deep learning, super resolution algorithm is developed to construct a high-resolution DDM based on a low-resolution DDM. This may potentially enhance the data retrieval results with no impact on the instrument design. The proposed method is applied to process the DDM products disseminated by the Cyclone GNSS (CYGNSS) and the effectiveness of wind speed retrieval is demonstrated. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Suitable electrocatalysts for industrial water splitting can veritably promote practical hydrogen applications. Guided by density functional theory calculations, the interface-rich Ni 2 P-NiSe 2 nanoparticles anchored on amorphous MoO x nanorods on nickel foam (Ni 2 P-NiSe 2 /MoO x /NF) are fabricated. Ni 2 P-NiSe 2 /MoO x /NF exhibits exceptional HER performance with overpotentials of 23 and 263 mV at 10 and 500 mA cm−2, outperforming most reported non-Pt based electrocatalysts reported hitherto. Remarkably, the excellent oxygen evolution activity (241 mV at 10 mA cm−2) of Ni 2 P-NiSe 2 /MoO x /NF further realizes the full electrolyzer requiring the voltage of 1.63 V at 50 mA cm−2 with robust stability (1000 h at 20 mA cm−2) in 1.0 M KOH. At industrial conditions (30% KOH, 65 °C), only 2.02 V is required to reach 1000 mA cm−2 with satisfying durability (200 h at 200 mA cm−2). When deployed in anion exchange membrane water electrolyzer, the catalyst achieves 1.3 A cm−2 at 2.7 V, associated with the prolonged stability. [Display omitted] • Electronic structure and localized charge density at Ni 2 P-NiSe 2 heterointerface are optimized when coupling with MoO 2. • Optimized heterointerfaces facilitated water/hydrogen adsorption and reduced energy barrier for water dissociation. • Fabricated Ni 2 P-NiSe 2 /MoO x /NF exhibited exceptional HER and OER performance under industrial conditions. • AEM water electrolyzer with Ni 2 P-NiSe 2 /MoO x /NF showed larger current density and prolonged stability. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A duodenal barrier treatment implanted in gastrointestinal (GI) tract prevents the direct contact of food with the duodenal wall, which helps control the plasma glucose by manipulating the intestinal hormone and insulin secretion. Duodenal barrier material design has to withstand the stress of enterogastric peristalsis and be degradable to avoid damaging the intestinal tissue during its removal when the treatment finished. Most of the biodegradable polymer based implanted materials in the digestive tract were failed to withstand the erosion by gastric acid and intestinal juice. In this regards, composites from polybutylene succinate (PBS) shows weaker stability while used in digestive track, but it could improve towards less prone to sticking to the intestinal wall in the digestive tract through reduce the incidences of infection and inflammation while mixed with poly(vinylidene fluoride) (PVDF). Moreover, addition of nanosized additives like montmorillonite to polymer nanocomposites can offer versatile mechanical stability and sustainable degradation. Therefore, in this study, a polymer nanocomposite with degradability and high mechanical properties was prepared by blending (PVDF with biodegradable PBS and organic montmorillonite (OMMT). The nanocomposite with 3 wt% OMMT (PVDF90/PBS10/OMMT3wt%) exhibited the highest tensile strength of 62.61 MPa, which exceeds the tensile strength required for application to soft tissues (46.5 MPa) due to uniform distribution of OMMT. The result showed that the PBS films degraded much faster than the nanocomposite film did in the duodenum and stomach. The rates of weight loss of the nanocomposite in stomach and duodenum were 1.88% and 0.88%, respectively, which indicated that the degradation rate of the nanocomposite film is faster in the stomach than in the duodenum. The nanocomposite maintained a high tensile strength of 60.85 MPa after one month of implantation. Moreover, histological examination revealed mild inflammation of tissue and negligible adverse effects. The in vivo degradation test suggests that the PVDF/PBS/OMMT nanocomposite prepared in this study have the potential for application as a biodegradable duodenal barrier. • The poly(vinylidene fluoride) (PVDF)/poly(butylene succinate) (PBS)/organic montmorillonite (OMMT) nanocomposite film has been prepared. • The biodegradation of composited film has been studied in the stomach and duodenum. • The nanocomposite file exhibited less degradation and maintained the mechanical strength in GI tract. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The effect of AlGaN back-barrier on AlGaN/GaN high electron mobility transistors (HEMTs) using free-standing GaN wafer has been investigated in this work. With the introducing back-barrier structure, the leakage path underneath the buffer (native nitrogen-vacancies and GaO x compounds of the HVPE-grown free-standing GaN surface) layer can be suppressed by lift-up the conduction band. As compared with AlGaN/GaN HEMTs on SiC wafer, AlGaN/GaN HEMTs on free-standing GaN wafer show enhanced drain current (700 mA/mm), improved transconductance (143 mS/mm), less current collapse (12%), higher current gain cut-off frequency (13 GHz), and maximum stable gain cut-off frequency (24 GHz), which is attributed to the higher epi quality layer on free-standing GaN wafer. • The first GaN on GaN HEMT with back barrier design was demonstrated. • The lattice matched substrate/epilayer showed a low thermal boundary phenomenon. • The pulse and LFN measurements indicated that the traps beneath the buffer were reduced. • A better heterostructure was observed by reciprocal space maps for GaN on GaN HEMT. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Accurate dosimetry of a specific brain region in rats exposed to an electromagnetic field (EMF) is essential for studies focusing on dose-effect relationship of the region. However, only dosimetry of whole brain or whole body were evaluated in most of previous studies. In this study, a numerical voxel rat model with 10 segmented brain regions was constructed. Then, the effects of frequency, incidence direction, and E-polarization direction of plane wave EMF on brain region averaged specific absorption rate (BRSAR) of rats were investigated. At last, the reliability of using whole-body averaged SAR (WBDSAR) and whole-brain averaged SAR (WBRSAR) as estimations of BRSAR were also evaluated. Our results demonstrated that the BRSAR depended on the frequency, incidence direction, and E-polarization direction of the EMF. Besides, the largest deviation could be up to 13.1 dB between BRSAR and WBDSAR and 9.59 dB between BRSAR and WBRSAR. The results suggested that to establish an accurate dose-effect relationship, the variance of the BRSAR induced by alteration of frequency, incidence direction, and E-polarization direction of EMF should be avoided or carefully evaluated. Furthermore, the use of WBDSAR and WBRSAR as estimations of BRSAR should be restricted to certain conditions such that the deviations are not too large. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Monocyte to high-density lipoprotein cholesterol ratio (MHR) is a recently emerged measure of inflammation and oxidative stress and has been used to predict multiple cardiovascular abnormalities, but data relative to ischemic stroke are lacking. The goal of this study was to estimate the associations of MHR and prevalent ischemic stroke among a large cohort of general Chinese population. Method: The study analyzed 8148 individuals (mean age: 54.1 years; 45.7% males) enrolled in a cross-sectional population-based Northeast China Rural Cardiovascular Health Study (NCRCHS). We identified 194 patients admitted from January and August 2013 with ischemic stroke. Results: After adjustment for age, sex, and potential confounders, each standard deviation (SD) increment of MHR was predictive to a greater odd of ischemic stroke (odds ratio, 1.276; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.082–1.504), with subjects in the highest quartile of MHR levels having a 1.6-fold higher risk of prevalent ischemic stroke (95% CI, 1.045–2.524) as compared with those in the lowest quartile. Moreover, smoothing curve showed a linear positive pattern of this association. The area under the curve (AUC) significantly increased (P = 0.042) to 0.808 (95% CI, 0.779–0.837) when the combined MHR was added to the baseline logistic regression model with ischemic stroke risk factors. Also, MHR (0.004) significantly improved integrated discrimination improvement when added to the baseline model. Conclusions: The present study demonstrated for the first time a linear relation between MHR levels and the odds of ischemic stroke in a large community-based population. The MHR, a marker of high atherosclerotic burden, demonstrated incremental predictive value over traditional clinical risk factors, thus providing clinical utility in risk stratification in subjects presenting with ischemic stroke. These findings had implications for strategies aimed at lowering MHR to prevent adverse cardiovascular and cerebrovascular outcomes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective To analyse the trend of COPD patients' inpatient costs and its influencing factors in the context of the reform of DRG, and to provide reference for the reasonable control of COPD inpatient costs. Methods ITSA were used to analyse the trend of COPD patients' inpatient costs in a tertiary general hospital from 2018 to 2022, and univariate analysis, stepwise regression analysis and RFM were used to analyse the factors influencing the inpatient costs and the degree of significance of COPD patients' inpatient costs after the official operation of the DRG. Results The results of ITSA showed that the overall inpatient costs of COPD patients decreased significantly and by an average of 1.82% per month during the DRG operation stage; the integrated medical service fee, drug fee, and consumable fee all showed a decreasing trend during the DRG operation stage, by an average of 1.06%, 1.67%, and 4. 98% per month, respectively, but the proportion of the integrated medical service fee increased compared with that before the DRG reform by 7.18%; The stepwise regression results showed that the number of hospital days (β = 0.584), admission status (β = 0.294), whether surgery (β = 0.125), whether traditional Chinese medicine (β = 0.084), and drug share ratio (β = 0.099) had a statistically significant impact on COPD hospitalisation costs (P < 0.05); and the results of the Random Forest model analysis showed that hospital days, admission status, drug share ratio were the most important factors influencing COPD hospitalisation costs, status, and medication ratio were the key factors affecting COPD hospitalisation costs. Conclusion DRG can effectively promote medical institutions to strengthen cost management and reduce the economic burden of disease. Hospitals should further reduce the cost of COPD and the economic burden of patients by reducing the number of inpatient days, strengthening the management of critically ill patients, and promoting the rational use of drugs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The recent advances about the modification strategies of transition metal nitride-based electrocatalysts for effective electrocatalysis are reviewed. The theory–structure–activity relationships are deeply discussed, and their diverse practical applications are also explicated. [Display omitted] • TMN-based composites for various electrochemical reactions are elucidated. • Strategies for designing and optimizing TMN-based materials are reviewed in detail. • The underlying correlations among mechanism structure and activity are explicated. • Advances of TMN-based catalysts for energy-related applications are manifested. • Remaining challenges and perspectives in this fields are also proposed. Various energy-related electrocatalytic processes have aroused a great deal of attention for the sake of ecofriendly and sustainable energy conversion and storage techniques. Nevertheless, the sluggish kinetics with multistep electron transfer of these electrocatalytic conversion processes seriously hinder further application. Due to the abundant resources, favorable electronic structure, remarkable catalytic activity and good corrosion resistance, transition metal nitride (TMN)-based materials have demonstrated substantial forward-looking potential to be efficient and stable electrocatalysts. In this review, focused on TMN-based materials, the up-to-date advances in energy-related electrocatalysis are systemically discussed. The insights into the critical role of N in TMN-based materials on electrocatalytic processes are provided. The effective strategies for performance enhancement, ranging from active sites to electrochemical interfaces, and the corresponding catalytic behavior are expounded in order to establish the theory-structure–function relationship. Moreover, the practical energy-related applications in water splitting, metal-air batteries, fuel cells and artificial nitrogen fixation are described. Lastly, the scientific challenges, possible opportunities and future perspective of TMN-based electrocatalytic materials are proposed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Small-aroma chicken with a high protein content, is widely distributed in the mountainous area of Yunnan-Guizhou Plateau, China. In this work, three novel ACE-inhibitory peptides, Leu-Thr-Glu-Lys-Val-Val-Phe (LTQKVVF), Leu-Asp-Asp-His-Phe-Leu (LDDHFL), and Val-Pro-Gly-Pro-Glu-Pro-Lys-Pro (VPGPEPKP), were prepared from the Small-Aroma Chicken breast. The purification and identification protocol employed comprised ion-exchange chromatography, gel filtration chromatography, reverse phase-high performance liquid chromatography (RP-HPLC), and nano liquid chromatography-electrospray ionization–tandem mass (Nano-LC-ESI–MS/MS). Compared with VPGPEPKP and VPGPEPKP, LTQKVVF displayed noticeable ACE inhibitory activity, with IC 50 values of 189.34 μM. What's more, the Lineweaver-Burk plots revealed peptides LTQKVVF and LDDHFL acted as the mixed-competitive inhibitor while VPGPEPKP inhibited ACE in a manner similar to uncompetitive inhibition. The binding free energies of LTQKVVF, LDDHFL, and VPGPEPKP for ACE were −8.1 kcal/mol, −8.6 kcal/mol, and −9.6 kcal/mol, respectively. The strong inhibition of ACE by VPGPEPKP may be attributed to the interaction of hydrogen bonds, alkyl, and pi-alkyl, which formed by crucial residues of ACE. [Display omitted] • Three novel peptides were characterized from small-aroma chicken. • The peptides exhibited inhibition activity on angiotensin converting enzyme (ACE). • Lineweaver Burk plots was used to identify the inhibition mode of peptides. • The interactions between peptides and ACE were simulated by molecular docking. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Modulating electronic asymmetricity of catalysts is a novel option to regulate the electrocatalytic performance. Nevertheless, the efficient regulation of asymmetric degree of heterostructured catalysts at the atomic level still remains challenging. Herein, Ru nanoclusters (NCs, average particle size of ∼ 1.3 nm) were anchored on carbon materials doped by controllable N functional groups to optimize the electronic asymmetricity toward efficient hydrogen evolution reaction (HER). The electronic interaction between Ru and N species, and hence, the asymmetric electronic distribution of Ru NCs is subjectively manipulated by precisely tailoring the type of N dopants, especially pyrrolic-N, of carbon substrates. As a result, the pyrrolic-N dominated Ru-based heterostructures exhibit excellent HER activity compared to most of the current Ru-based electrocatalysts in basic media. Multiple spectroscopy experiments and density functional theory simulations demonstrate that the asymmetric distribution of surface electron of Ru-based heterostructures not only accelerates H 2 O adsorption and dissociation at interfacial Ru sites with positive charge but also facilitates the adsorption behavior of hydrogen on surface Ru sites with negative charge, thereby simultaneously optimizing the elementary steps in basic HER process. The present findings would provide some crucial understanding in manipulating the local electronic asymmetricity toward reasonable design and fabrication of advanced catalysts and beyond. [Display omitted] • Ru nanoclusters supported on N-doped carbon exhibits high performance for HER. • Electronic asymmetricity of Ru nanoclusters is manipulated by tailoring the type of N dopants. • Electronic asymmetry of Ru nanoclusters facilitates the formation of different active sites towards basic HER. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

“Triple negative breast cancer” (TNBC) is associated with a higher rate and earlier time of recurrence and worse prognosis after recurrence. In this study, we aimed to examine the crosstalk between fibroblasts and TNBC cells. The fibroblasts were isolated from TNBC patients’ tissue in tumor burden zones, distal normal zones and interface zones. The fibroblasts were indicated as cancer-associated fibroblasts (CAFs), normal zone fibroblasts (NFs) and interface zone fibroblasts (INFs). Our study found that INFs grew significantly faster than NFs and CAFs in vitro. The epithelial BT20 cells cultured with the conditioned medium of INFs (INFs-CM) and CAFs (CAFs-CM) showed more spindle-like shape and cell scattering than cultured with the conditioned medium of NFs (NFs-CM). These results indicated that factors secreted by INFs-CM or CAFs-CM could induce the epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) phenotype in BT20 cells. Using an in vitro co-culture model, INFs or CAFs induced EMT and promoted cancer cell migration in BT20 cells. Interestingly, we found that emodin inhibited INFs-CM or CAFs-CM-induced EMT programming and phenotype in BT20 cells. Previous studies reported that CAFs and INFs-secreted TGF-β promoted human breast cancer cell proliferation, here; our results indicated that TGF-β initiated EMT in BT20 cells. Pretreatment with emodin significantly suppressed the TGF-β-induced EMT and cell migration in BT20 cells. These results suggest that emodin may be used as a novel agent for the treatment of TNBC. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]