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We investigate the finite size effects of a three-dimensional second-order topological insulator with fourfold rotational symmetry and time-reversal symmetry. Starting from the effective Hamiltonian of the three-dimensional second-order topological insulator, we derive the effective Hamiltonian of four two-dimensional gapped surface states by perturbative methods. Then, the sign alternation of the mass term of the effective Hamiltonian on the adjacent surface leads to the hinge state. In addition, we obtain the effective Hamiltonian and its wave function of one-dimensional gapless hinge states with semi-infinite boundary conditions based on the effective Hamiltonian of two-dimensional surface states. In particular, we find that the hinge states on the two sides of the same surface can couple to produce a finite energy gap. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Highlights: A novel cascade strategy is proposed to construct Pd-NiCo2O4 electrocatalyst. First time discovery that Ni incorporation together with Pd loading is able to balance the competitive adsorption of OH– and 5-hydroxymethylfurfural. Pd–NiCo2O4 promotes both the indirect and direct synergistic oxidation process. Pd–NiCo2O4 catalyst exhibits extraordinary current density and excellent Faradaic Efficiency at a low potential. Electrocatalytic 5-hydroxymethylfurfural oxidation reaction (HMFOR) provides a promising strategy to convert biomass derivative to high-value-added chemicals. Herein, a cascade strategy is proposed to construct Pd–NiCo2O4 electrocatalyst by Pd loading on Ni-doped Co3O4 and for highly active and stable synergistic HMF oxidation. An elevated current density of 800 mA cm–2 can be achieved at 1.5 V, and both Faradaic efficiency and yield of 2,5-furandicarboxylic acid remained close to 100% over 10 consecutive electrolysis. Experimental and theoretical results unveil that the introduction of Pd atoms can modulate the local electronic structure of Ni/Co, which not only balances the competitive adsorption of HMF and OH– species, but also promote the active Ni3+ species formation, inducing high indirect oxidation activity. We have also discovered that Ni incorporation facilitates the Co2+ pre-oxidation and electrophilic OH* generation to contribute direct oxidation process. This work provides a new approach to design advanced electrocatalyst for biomass upgrading. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The RAS/mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) signaling cascade is commonly dysregulated in human malignancies by processes driven by RAS or RAF oncogenes. Among the members of the RAF kinase family, CRAF plays an important role in the RAS-MAPK signaling pathway, as well as in the progression of cancer. Recent research has provided evidence implicating the role of CRAF in the physiological regulation and the resistance to BRAF inhibitors through MAPK-dependent and MAPK-independent mechanisms. Nevertheless, the effectiveness of solely targeting CRAF kinase activity remains controversial. Moreover, the kinase-independent function of CRAF may be essential for lung cancers with KRAS mutations. It is imperative to develop strategies to enhance efficacy and minimize toxicity in tumors driven by RAS or RAF oncogenes. The review investigates CRAF alterations observed in cancers and unravels the distinct roles of CRAF in cancers propelled by diverse oncogenes. This review also seeks to summarize CRAF-interacting proteins and delineate CRAF's regulation across various cancer hallmarks. Additionally, we discuss recent advances in pan-RAF inhibitors and their combination with other therapeutic approaches to improve treatment outcomes and minimize adverse effects in patients with RAF/RAS-mutant tumors. By providing a comprehensive understanding of the multifaceted role of CRAF in cancers and highlighting the latest developments in RAF inhibitor therapies, we endeavor to identify synergistic targets and elucidate resistance pathways, setting the stage for more robust and safer combination strategies for cancer treatment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aims: Thyroidectomy is frequently associated with substantial postoperative pain. Esketamine, an N‐methyl‐d‐aspartate receptor antagonist, has been demonstrated to be effective in multiple analgesia scenarios. We hypothesized that intraoperative administration of esketamine may reduce perioperative opioid consumption and postoperative pain in patients undergoing thyroidectomy. Methods: Sixty patients undergoing thyroidectomy were randomly assigned to two groups. Patients in the esketamine group received a pre‐incisional intravenous bolus of esketamine (0.5 mg kg−1) followed by a continuous infusion of 0.24 mg kg−1 h−1 until the beginning of wound closure. Patients in the placebo group received 0.9% NaCl (bolus and infusion). The primary outcome was perioperative sufentanil consumption. The postoperative pain, sleep quality and adverse events during the first postoperative 24 h were also evaluated. Results: Patients in the esketamine group consumed significantly less sufentanil than those in the saline group (24.6 ± 3.1 μg vs. 33.7 ± 5.1 μg, mean difference, 9.1; 95% confidence interval [CI], 6.9–11.3, P <.001). Postoperative pain scores were significantly lower in the esketamine group than those in the saline group during the first 24 h postoperatively (P <.05). Patients receiving esketamine experienced higher sleep quality than those in the saline group during surgical night (P =.043). There were no significant differences in adverse events between the two groups. Conclusions: Intraoperative administration of esketamine reduces perioperative sufentanil consumption and postoperative pain without increasing psychotomimetic side effects in patients undergoing thyroidectomy. The development of combined anaesthesia regimens, including esketamine, may foster strategies for pain management during thyroidectomy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Hydrogen‐based energy systems (HESs) have shown great potential to promote the process of decarbonization. Conventional studies mainly focus on the sizing and operation of HESs in a determined static situation, and the dynamic planning model of HESs considering large‐scale uncertain scenarios of future developments should be considered. This paper proposes a multi‐stage stochastic programming (MSP) long‐term planning model to find the optimal sequential planning results of the grid‐connected HES. The planning model considers the long‐term uncertainties of the investment cost decrease and the load increase. Additionally, the short‐term uncertainties of renewable energies are also considered to obtain robust results in each stage. The improved stochastic dual dynamic integer programming (SDDIP) is then employed to solve the MSP long‐term planning model with consideration of the realized uncertainties. Specifically, the sequential planning order is developed to improve the efficiency of the SDDIP. Numerical case studies are constructed to show the convergence process of the improved SDDIP and the planning results of the HES. Moreover, the improved SDDIP shows greater efficiency compared with the traditional SDDIP and the method which solves the model directly. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Although molecular targets such as HER2, TP53 and PIK3CA have been widely studied in esophageal cancer, few of them were successfully applied for clinical treatment. Therefore, it is urgent to discover novel actionable targets and inhibitors. Eukaryotic translational elongation factor 2 (eEF2) is reported to be highly expressed in various cancers. However, its contribution to the maintenance and progression of cancer has not been fully clarified. Methods: In the present study, we utilized tissue array to evaluate eEF2 protein expression and clinical significance in esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC). Next, we performed knockdown, overexpression, RNA-binding protein immunoprecipitation (RIP) sequence, and nascent protein synthesis assays to explore the molecular function of eEF2. Furthermore, we utilized compound screening, Surface Plasmon Resonance (SPR), Isothermal Titration Calorimetry (ITC) assay, cell proliferation and Patient derived xenograft (PDX) mouse model assays to discover an eEF2 inhibitor and assess its effects on ESCC growth. Results: We found that eEF2 were highly expressed in ESCC and negatively associated with the prognosis of ESCC patients. Knocking down of eEF2 suppressed the cell proliferation and colony formation of ESCC. eEF2 bond with the mRNA of Topoisomerase II (TOP1) and Topoisomerase II (TOP2) and enhanced the protein biosynthesis of TOP1 and TOP2. We also identified Toosendanin was a novel inhibitor of eEF2 and Toosendanin inhibited the growth of ESCC in vitro and in vivo. Conclusions: Our findings show that Toosendanin treatment suppresses ESCC growth through targeting eEF2 and regulating downstream TOP1 and TOP2 biosynthesis. eEF2 could be supplied as a potential therapeutic target in the further clinical studies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Activating peroxymonosulfate (PMS) by transition metal oxides has been widely applied to degrade organic pollutant. However, the synergistic effect of transition metal (TM)-O covalency and anion defects on PMS activation never been unveiled. In this work, a multiple spinel nanomicrosphere CoxMn1–xFe2O4 with oxygen vacancies (OVs) was synthesized to degrade antibiotics norfloxacin by activating PMS. Experimental and theoretical analysis showed that tunable Mn–O covalency by regulating the content of Co dopant was favorable to electron transfer, boosting PMS activation. Meanwhile, the introduction of OVs could further improve the activity of CoxMn1–xFe2O4. Consequently, CMF-OVs-0.5 with optimized Mn–O covalency and OVs contents exhibited the best catalytic activity. Moreover, the synergistic effect of Mn–O covalency and OVs was systematically investigated by being combined with various in/ex situ characterization. This work provides an insight on modulating the physicochemical property of TM oxides by cooperatively adjusting TM-O covalency and OVs to enhance PMS activation for degradation of norfloxacin. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Summary: Melilotus species are used as green manure and rotation crops worldwide and contain abundant pharmacologically active coumarins. However, there is a paucity of information on its genome and coumarin production and function. Here, we reported a chromosome‐scale assembly of Melilotus albus genome with 1.04 Gb in eight chromosomes, containing 71.42% repetitive elements. Long terminal repeat retrotransposon bursts coincided with declining of population sizes during the Quaternary glaciation. Resequencing of 94 accessions enabled insights into genetic diversity, population structure, and introgression. Melilotus officinalis had relatively larger genetic diversity than that of M. albus. The introgression existed between M. officinalis group and M. albus group, and gene flows was from M. albus to M. officinalis. Selection sweep analysis identified candidate genes associated with flower colour and coumarin biosynthesis. Combining genomics, BSA, transcriptomics, metabolomics, and biochemistry, we identified a β‐glucosidase (BGLU) gene cluster contributing to coumarin biosynthesis. MaBGLU1 function was verified by overexpression in M. albus, heterologous expression in Escherichia coli, and substrate feeding, revealing its role in scopoletin (coumarin derivative) production and showing that nonsynonymous variation drives BGLU enzyme activity divergence in Melilotus. Our work will accelerate the understanding of biologically active coumarins and their biosynthetic pathways, and contribute to genomics‐enabled Melilotus breeding. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The application of carbon-based materials as electrocatalysts for electrochemical dechlorination of chlorinated volatile organic compounds (Cl-VOCs) has stirring extensive concern. However, the relationship between morphology and activity toward carbon-based materials is often overlooked by researchers. Herein, a unique three-dimensional (3D) sea-urchin-like carbon nanosphere containing a hollow interior self-assembled from 1D carbon nanorods (SS-CNRs) has been successfully fabricated. It can be achieved through morphology-preserved thermal conversion of a 3D metal–organic framework (MOF) superstructure, which possesses an identical sea-urchin-like nanostructure consisting of 1D MOF nanorods (SS-MOFNRs). The as-prepared SS-CNRs can be utilized as an efficient cathode catalyst for electrocatalytic dechlorination of 1,2-dichloroethane (1,2-DCA) to selectively produce highly valuable ethylene. Benefiting from the peculiar sea-urchin-like morphology and the void-confinement effect induced by the hollow structure, the SS-CNRs are endowed with an abundant electrode–electrolyte contact area to accelerate the electron transfer. As a result, the as-synthesized catalyst exhibits outstanding electrocatalytic dechlorination performance of 1,2-DCA with high ethylene yield, selectivity, reusability, and stability, where the Faradaic efficiency of ethylene is up to 55% at −2.75 V (vs SCE). This work provides a promising prospect for the rational morphological engineering of carbon-based nanometer materials and the effective transformation of Cl-VOCs to value-added ethylene in a friendlier manner. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: One of the major challenges in precision medicine is accurate prediction of individual patient's response to drugs. A great number of computational methods have been developed to predict compounds activity using genomic profiles or chemical structures, but more exploration is yet to be done to combine genetic mutation, gene expression, and cheminformatics in one machine learning model. Results: We presented here a novel deep-learning model that integrates gene expression, genetic mutation, and chemical structure of compounds in a multi-task convolutional architecture. We applied our model to the Genomics of Drug Sensitivity in Cancer (GDSC) and Cancer Cell Line Encyclopedia (CCLE) datasets. We selected relevant cancer-related genes based on oncology genetics database and L1000 landmark genes, and used their expression and mutations as genomic features in model training. We obtain the cheminformatics features for compounds from PubChem or ChEMBL. Our finding is that combining gene expression, genetic mutation, and cheminformatics features greatly enhances the predictive performance. Conclusion: We implemented an extended Graph Neural Network for molecular graphs and Convolutional Neural Network for gene features. With the employment of multi-tasking and self-attention functions to monitor the similarity between compounds, our model outperforms recently published methods using the same training and testing datasets. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Calcium carbonate (CaCO3)-based nanoadsorbents have gained widespread attention due to their superiority in removing toxic heavy metal ions. Considering that the inherent structure of the material determines its performance, it is important to fully understand the effect of different crystals of CaCO3 on the removal of heavy metals. On the other hand, the difficult separation of nanoadsorbents during in situ remediation may cause the potential risk of secondary pollution by the remaining adsorbents. Herein, the magnetic calcium carbonate adsorbents with nanostructure (MCCR-X, X represent the annealing temperature) were fabricated with a tunable crystal structure of CaCO3 by adjusting the annealing temperature. Results from batch experiments revealed the crystal structure (CaCO3)-dependent adsorption performance of MCCRs toward Pb-(II) and Cd-(II). MCCR-350 with an aragonite phase showed the outstanding adsorption toward both Pb-(II) and Cd-(II) with maximum adsorption capacity of 1179 and 821 mg/g, and MCCR-RAW with a vaterite/aragonite phase also has similar adsorption properties. However, MCCR-550 with the calcite phase displayed a superhigh adsorption toward Pb-(II) only but very weak adsorption toward Cd-(II) with a capacity of 1350 and 30 mg/g in the initial concentration of 300 mg/g. The findings indicated that the efficiently tunable removal of the heavy metal ion Pb-(II) or Cd-(II) by MCCRs can be realized by regulating the crystal phase of CaCO3. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy technology (XPS) was employed to clarify the possible mechanism of the crystal phase of CaCO3-dependent adsorption ability for Pb-(II)/Cd-(II) removal by MCCRs. This work provides an understanding of the crystal-structure-related adsorption properties of CaCO3 and also gives guidance for designing a CaCO3-based adsorbent for removal/recovery of heavy metal ions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Esophageal cancer, a leading cause of cancer death worldwide, is associated with abnormal activation of the AKT signaling pathway. Xanthohumol, a prenylated flavonoid tested in clinical trials, is reported to exert anti‐diabetes, anti‐inflammation and anticancer activities. However, the mechanisms underlying its chemopreventive or chemotherapeutic effects remain elusive. In the present study, we found that xanthohumol directly targeted AKT1/2 in esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC). Xanthohumol significantly inhibited the AKT kinase activity in an ATP competitive manner, which was confirmed in binding and computational docking models. KYSE70, 450 and 510 ESCC cell lines highly express AKT and knockdown of AKT1/2 suppressed proliferation of these cells. Treatment with xanthohumol inhibited ESCC cell growth and induced apoptosis and cell cycle arrest at the G1 phase. Xanthohumol also decreased expression of cyclin D1 and increased the levels of cleaved caspase‐3, ‐7 and ‐PARP as well as Bax, Bims and cytochrome c in ESCC cells by downregulating AKT signaling targets, including glycogen synthase kinase 3 beta (GSK3β), mammalian target of rapamycin, and ribosomal protein S6 (S6K). Furthermore, xanthohumol decreased tumor volume and weight in patient‐derived xenografts (PDXs) that highly expressed AKT, but had no effect on PDXs that exhibited low expression of AKT in vivo. Kinase array results showed that xanthohumol treatment decreased phosphorylated p27 expression in both ESCC cell lines and PDX models. Taken together, our data suggest that the inhibition of ESCC tumor growth with xanthohumol is caused by targeting AKT. These results provide good evidence for translation toward clinical trials with xanthohumol. What's new? Esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC) is among the most common and deadliest forms of esophageal malignancy. Chemotherapy remains the mainstay of treatment, even though many ESCC patients experience disease progression despite therapy. Here, the authors investigated a novel agent for ESCC, the prenylated flavonoid xanthohumol. In ESCC cells, xanthohumol was found to directly target AKT kinase, inhibiting AKT activity, suppressing cell proliferation, and inducing apoptosis. In a patient‐derived xenograft mouse model, xanthohumol reduced tumor volume specifically in high AKT‐expressing tumors, with little effect on low AKT tumors. The data suggest that AKT targeting is a promising therapeutic strategy in ESCC. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Roxarsone, one of feed add drugs containing arsenic, has been most widely used in poultry and swine industry. Roxarsone discharged into the environment has caused serious pollution problem. Herein, a reusable functional material for selective recognition and adsorption of roxarsone and its derivatives were designed and synthesized. The interaction mechanism is based on acid‐base interaction and surface molecular imprinting. Dual functionalized core‐shell structure with silica gel as the core was prepared to use as carrier for surface molecularly imprinted polymers. Surface molecularly imprinted polymers for roxarsone was successfully designed and synthesized using 3‐aminopropyltriethoxysilane and methyl acryloyloxypropyltriethoxy silane as functional monomers, Ethylene glycol dimethacrylate as crosslinker, Azobisisobutyronitrile as initiator, acetonitrile as solvent. Binding study showed that the recognition selectivity for roxarsone and its derivatives can be significantly improved (3.5‐4 folds) with molecular imprinting. Moreover, the prepared functional material for selective recognition and adsorption of Roxarsone was reusable for multiple times without significant decreasing their adsorption capacities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Hierarchical nitrogen-doped porous carbons (HNPCs) with tunable pore structures and ultrahigh specific surface areas were designed and prepared from sustainable biomass precursor cellulose carbamate via simultaneous carbonization and activation by a facile one-pot approach. The as-synthesized HNPCs exhibited an ultrahigh specific surface area (3700 m2 g−1), a high pore volume (3.60 cm3 g−1) and a high level of nitrogen-doping (7.7%). The HNPCs were structurally tunable in terms of their pore structure and morphology by adjusting the calcination temperature. In three-electrode systems, the electrode made of HNPCs prepared at 900 °C (HNPCs-900) showed a high specific capacitance of 339 F g−1 in 6 M KOH aqueous electrolyte and 282 F g−1 in 1 M H2SO4 electrolyte at a current density of 0.5 A g−1. An outstanding rate capability (∼73% retention at a current density of 20 A g−1) and excellent cycling stability (∼95% retention after 5000 galvanostatic charge–discharge cycles at a current density of 5 A g−1) in KOH electrolyte were achieved. In two-electrode systems, the electrode made of HNPCs-900 exhibited a high specific capacitance of 289 F g−1 at 0.5 A g−1 and good rate capacity (∼72% retention at a current density of 20 A g−1) as well as cycling stability (∼92% retention at 2 A g−1) after 5000 cycles. Furthermore, the HNPCs-900 showed an unprecedented adsorption capacity for methylene blue (1551 mg g−1) which was among the few highest ever reported for dye removal. The HNPCs could be used as functional materials for energy storage and waste water treatment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Highly sensitive humidity sensing has been realized from a Cd-doped ZnO nanowire (NW) nanogenerator (NG) as a self-powered/active gas sensor. The piezoelectric output of the device acts not only as a power source, but also as a response signal to the relative humidity (RH) in the environment. The response of Cd–ZnO (1 : 10) NWs reached up to 85.7 upon exposure to 70% relative humidity, much higher than that of undoped ZnO NWs. Cd dopant can increase the number of oxygen vacancies in the NWs, resulting in more adsorption sites on the surface of the NWs. Upon exposure to a humid environment, a large amount of water molecules can displace the adsorbed oxygen ions on the surface of Cd–ZnO NWs. This procedure can influence the carrier density in Cd–ZnO NWs and vary the screening effect on the piezoelectric output. Our study can stimulate a research trend on exploring composite materials for piezo-gas sensing. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Room-temperature self-powered ethanol sensing has been realized from ZnO nanowire (NW) arrays by combining their piezoelectric, photoelectric and gas sensing characteristics. Under the assistance of UV illumination, the piezoelectric output of ZnO NWs acts not only as a power source, but also as a response signal to ethanol gas at room temperature. Upon exposure to 700 ppm ethanol at room temperature under 67.5 mW cm−2 UV illumination, the piezoelectric output voltage of ZnO NWs (under 34 N compressive forces) decreases from 0.80 V (in air) to 0.12 V and the response is up to 85. The room-temperature reaction between the UV-induced chemisorbed oxygen ions and ethanol molecules increases the carrier density in ZnO NWs, resulting in a strong piezoelectric screening effect and very low piezoelectric output. Our study can stimulate a research trend on designing new gas sensors and investigating new gas sensing mechanisms. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A flexible piezo-driven active H2S sensor has been fabricated from CdS nanorod arrays. By coupling the piezoelectric and gas sensing properties of CdS nanorods, the piezoelectric output generated by CdS nanorod arrays acts not only as a power source, but also as a response signal to H2S. Under externally applied compressive force, the piezoelectric output of CdS nanorod arrays is very sensitive to H2S. Upon exposure to 600 ppm H2S, the piezoelectric output of the device decreased from 0.32 V (in air) to 0.12 V. Such a flexible device can be driven by the tiny mechanical energy in our living environment, such as human finger pinching. Our research can stimulate a research trend on designing new material systems and device structures for high-performance piezo-driven active gas sensors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The DNA-binding with one zinc finger (Dof) family of plant-specific transcription factors has a variety of important functions in gene transcriptional regulation, development, and stress responses. However, the structure and expression patterns of Dof family have not been identified in Cleistogenes songorica, which is an important xerophytic and perennial gramineous grass in desert grassland. In this study, 50 Dof genes were identified in C. songorica and could be classified into four groups. According to genome-wide analysis, 46 of 50 Dof genes were located on 20 chromosomes, and the gene structure and conserved protein motif of these proteins were analyzed. In addition, phylogenetic analysis of Dof genes in C. songorica, Arabidopsis thaliana, Oryza sativa, and Brachypodium distachyon estimated the evolutionary relationships, and these genes were grouped into seven clusters. Moreover, the expression profiles of these Dof genes in C. songorica were analyzed in response to high/low temperature, salinity, and ABA treatments. These results will provide valuable information for future studies on gene classification, cloning, and functional characterization of this family in C. songorica. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: As global warming continues, heat stress (HS) is becoming an increasingly significant factor limiting plant growth and reproduction, especially for cool-season grass species. The objective of this study was to determine the transcriptional regulatory network of Cleistogenes songorica under HS via transcriptome profiling, identify of gene families and comparative analysis across major Poaceae species. Results: Physiological analysis revealed significantly decreased leaf relative water content (RWC) but increased proline (Pro) content in C. songorica under 24 h of HS. Transcriptome profiling indicated that 16,028 and 14,645 genes were differentially expressed in the shoots and roots of C. songorica under HS, respectively. Two subgenomes of C. songorica provide equal contribution under HS on the basis of the distribution and expression of differentially expressed genes (DEGs). Furthermore, 216 DEGs were identified as key evolutionarily conserved genes involved in the response to HS in C. songorica via comparative analysis with genes of four Poaceae species; these genes were involved in the 'response to heat' and 'heat acclimation'. Notably, most of the conserved DEGs belonged to the heat-shock protein (HSP) superfamily. Similar results were also obtained from co-expression analysis. Interestingly, hub-genes of co-expression analysis were found to overlap with conserved genes, especially heat-shock protein (HSP). In C. songorica, 84 HSP and 32 heat-shock transcription factor (HSF) genes were identified in the allotetraploid C. songorica genome, and might have undergone purifying selection during evolutionary history based on syntenic and phylogenetic analysis. By analysing the expression patterns of the CsHSPs and CsHSFs, we found that the transcript abundance of 72.7% of the CsHSP genes and of 62.5% of the CsHSF genes changed under heat stress in both the shoots and roots. Finally, a core regulatory network of HS was constructed on the basis of the CsHSP, CsHSF and other responsive genes in C. songorica. Conclusions: Regulatory network and key genes were comprehensively analysed and identified in C. songorica under HS. This study improves our knowledge of thermotolerance mechanisms in native grasses, and also provides candidate genes for potential applications in the genetic improvement of grasses. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Polymerization mother liquid (PML) is one of the main sources of wastewater in the chlor-alkali industry. The effective degradation of the PML produced in PVC polymerization using three or five ozone reactors in tandem was designed with a focus on improving the ozonation efficiency. The ozonation efficiency of the tandem reactors for the degradation of PML, along with the effect of ozone concentration, the number of reactors utilized in series, and the reaction time on the chemical oxygen demand (COD) removal were investigated in detail. The results showed that the COD removal increased as the ozone concentration was increased from 10.6 to 60 mg·L−1, achieving 66.4% COD removal at ozone concentration of 80.6 mg·L−1. However, when the ozone concentration was increased from 60 mg·L−1 to 80 mg·L−1, the COD removal only increased very little. The COD decreased with increasing ozone concentration. During the initial degradation period, the degradation rate was the highest at both low and high ozone concentrations. The degradation rate decreased with reaction time. The rate at a low ozone concentration decreased more significantly than at high ozone concentration. Although high ozone concentration is desirable for COD removal and degradation rate, the utilization efficiency of ozone decreased with increasing ozone concentration. The ozone utilization efficiency of the five-reactor device was three times higher than that of three tandem reactors, demonstrating that ozonation utilization efficiency can be improved by increasing the number of tandem reactors. Ozonation in tandem reactors is a promising approach for PML treatment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Solution polymerization synthesized alt-resistant superabsorbent poly (acrylic acid-acrylamide/fly ash) composites. The mass ratio of acrylic acid (AA) to acrylamide (AM), the concentration of crosslinker, the neutralization degree (ND) of AA, and the polymerization temperature were investigated by single-factor method. Optimized conditions for the synthesis of poly (acrylic acid-acrylamide/fly ash) (PAA-AM/FA) are, as following: m (AA)/m (AM) is 1.5, the content of crosslinker N, N-methylenebisacrylamide. (MBA) is 0.7%, neutralization degree of AA is 70%, polymerization temperature is 70 °C, and fly ash (FA) content is 50%. The prepared PAA-AM/FA demonstrated superior water absorption performance. The absorption capacities of PAA-AM/FA for pure water and 0.9% NaCl solution were found to be 976 g·g−1 and 81 g·g−1, respectively. Furthermore, PAA-AM/FA was found to have excellent adsorption capacity (148 mg·g−1) for Rhodamine B in water. Fourier Transform-Infrared Spectroscopy (FT-IR), Thermogravimetric Analysis (TGA), and Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) characterized the prepared materials. Results showed that fly ash was incorporated into the macromolecular polymer matrix and played a key role in improving the performance of the polymer composites. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Room-temperature, high H2S sensing has been realized from a CuO/ZnO nanoarray self-powered, active gas sensor. The piezoelectric output of CuO/ZnO nanoarrays can act not only as the power source of the device, but also as the H2S sensing signal at room temperature. Upon exposure to 800 ppm H2S at room temperature, the piezoelectric output of the device greatly decreased from 0.738 V (in air) to 0.101 V. The sensitivity increased to 629.8, much higher than bare ZnO nanoarrays. As the device was exposed to H2S, a CuO/ZnO PN-junction was converted into a CuS/ZnO Ohmic contact, which greatly increased the electron density in the nanowire and enhanced the screen effect on the piezoelectric output. Our results can stimulate a research trend on designing new composite piezoelectric material for high-performance self-powered active gas sensors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]