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Atherosclerotic plaques form in the inner layer of arteries triggering heart attacks and strokes. Although T cells have been detected in atherosclerosis, tolerance dysfunction as a disease driver remains unexplored. Here we examine tolerance checkpoints in atherosclerotic plaques, artery tertiary lymphoid organs and lymph nodes in mice burdened by advanced atherosclerosis, via single-cell RNA sequencing paired with T cell antigen receptor sequencing. Complex patterns of deteriorating peripheral T cell tolerance were observed being most pronounced in plaques followed by artery tertiary lymphoid organs, lymph nodes and blood. Affected checkpoints included clonal expansion of CD4+, CD8+ and regulatory T cells; aberrant tolerance-regulating transcripts of clonally expanded T cells; T cell exhaustion; Treg–TH17 T cell conversion; and dysfunctional antigen presentation. Moreover, single-cell RNA-sequencing profiles of human plaques revealed that the CD8+ T cell tolerance dysfunction observed in mouse plaques was shared in human coronary and carotid artery plaques. Thus, our data support the concept of atherosclerosis as a bona fide T cell autoimmune disease targeting the arterial wall.

As coal mining is extended from shallow to deep areas along the western coalfield, it is of great significance to study weakly cemented sandstone at different depths for underground mining engineering. Sandstones from depths of 101.5, 203.2, 317.3, 406.9, 509.9 and 589.8 m at the Buertai Coal Mine were collected. The characteristic strength, acoustic emission (AE), and energy evolution of sandstone during uniaxial compression tests were analyzed. The results show that the intermediate frequency (125–275 kHz) of shallow rock mainly occurs in the postpeak stage, while deep rock occurs in the prepeak stage. The initiation strength and damage strength of the sandstone at different depths range from 0.23 to 0.50 and 0.63 to 0.84 of peak strength (σc), respectively, decrease exponentially and are a power function with depth. The precursor strength ranges from 0.88σc to 0.99σc, increases with depth before reaching a depth of 300 m, and tends to stabilize after 300 m. The ratio of the initiation strength to the damage strength (k) ranges from 0.25 to 0.62 and decreases exponentially with depth. The failure modes of sandstone at different depths are tension-dominated mixed tensile-shear failure. Shear failure mainly occurs at the unstable crack propagation stage. The count of the shear failure bands before the peak strength increases gradually, and increases first and then decreases after the peak strength with burial depth. The cumulative input energy, released elastic energy and dissipated energy increase with depth. The elastic release rate ranges from 0.46 × 10–3 to 198.57 × 10–3 J/(cm3 s) and increases exponentially with depth.

Ammonia is a significant pollutant in the livestock houses and the atmospheric environment, and excessive ammonia would harm the health of livestock and breeders. Previous studies have shown that ammonia exposure could damage the tissue structure of the nervous system, but the molecular mechanism of ammonia-induced hypothalamus damage was still unclear. The purpose of this study was to determine the role of excessive ammonia in abnormal autophagy of pig hypothalamus and whether selenomethionine would have a mitigating effect on ammonia toxicity. Twenty-four 18-week pigs were randomly divided into four groups: the control group (C group), the selenium group (Se group), the ammonia + selenium group (A + Se group), and the ammonia group (A group). In our study, the expression levels of NF-κB, IL-1β, iNOS, TNF-α, IKK-α, p-IKK-α, Nrf2, ATG5, ATG 10, ATG 12, LC3 I/II, HSP60, HSP70, and HSP90 were increased after ammonia exposure; meanwhile, IFN-γ, IKB-α, p-IKB-α, Keap1, P62, mTOR, AKT, p-AKT, PI3K, SQSTM, and Beclin1 showed decreasing trends. The results indicated that excessive ammonia inhalation inhibited the AKT/mTOR pathway to acclerated autophagy through oxidative stress-mediated inflammation in the porcine hypothalamus. L-selenomethionine could alleviate hypothalamus injury induced by ammonia exposure.

Ternary composite ZnO/ZnS/ZnSe nanosheets (NSs) with diverse proportions of three modules successfully manufactured by a plain two-step solvothermal way with the comparison to ZnO/ZnS and ZnO/ZnSe NSs. ZnO/ZnS/ZnSe NSs have the alike geometrical morphology with the ZnO/ZnS and ZnO/ZnSe NSs. The UV–Vis diffuse reflectance spectra (DRS) result reveals that ternary composites can assimilate more quantum photons which are helpful to the photocatalytic reaction. The photocurrent density of ternary composite structures is higher in the photocurrent response of all samples under simulated solar light illumination. Compared with ZnO/ZnS or ZnO/ZnSe binary composite NSs, ZnO/ZnS/ZnSe ternary composite NSs prove a prominent photodegradation property for degradation of rhodamine B (RhB) aqueous solution under simulated sunlight illumination. The project mechanism was confirmed by radical trapping experiments and a superoxide radical anion formation assay. ZnO/ZnS/ZnSe NSs with a molar ratio of S/Se (0.97) display the most outstanding photocatalytic activity and well photocatalytic stability.

By increasing the charging voltage, a cell specific energy of >400 W h kg−1 is achievable with LiNi0.8Mn0.1Co0.1O2 in Li metal batteries. However, stable cycling of high-nickel cathodes at ultra-high voltages is extremely challenging. Here we report that a rationally designed sulfonamide-based electrolyte enables stable cycling of commercial LiNi0.8Co0.1Mn0.1O2 with a cut-off voltage up to 4.7 V in Li metal batteries. In contrast to commercial carbonate electrolytes, the electrolyte not only suppresses side reactions, stress-corrosion cracking, transition-metal dissolution and impedance growth on the cathode side, but also enables highly reversible Li metal stripping and plating leading to a compact morphology and low pulverization. Our lithium-metal battery delivers a specific capacity >230 mA h g−1 and an average Coulombic efficiency >99.65% over 100 cycles. Even under harsh testing conditions, the 4.7 V lithium-metal battery can retain >88% capacity for 90 cycles, advancing practical lithium-metal batteries. Charging at high voltages in principle makes batteries energy dense, but this is often achieved at the cost of the cycling stability. Here the authors design a sulfonamide-based electrolyte to enable a Li metal battery with a state-of-the-art cathode at an ultra-high voltage of 4.7 V while maintaining cyclability.

Patterning graphene with a spatially periodic potential provides a powerful means to modify its electronic properties1–3. In particular, in twisted bilayers, coupling to the resulting moire superlattice yields an isolated flat band that hosts correlated many-body phases4,5. However, both the symmetry and strength of the effective moire potential are constrained by the constituent crystals, limiting its tunability. Here, we have exploited the technique of dielectric patterning6 to subject graphene to a one-dimensional electrostatic superlattice (SL)1. We observed the emergence of multiple Dirac cones and found evidence that with increasing SL potential the main and satellite Dirac cones are sequentially flattened in the direction parallel to the SL basis vector, behaviour resulting from the interaction between the one-dimensional SL electric potential and the massless Dirac fermions hosted by graphene. Our results demonstrate the ability to induce tunable anisotropy in high-mobility two-dimensional materials, a long-desired property for novel electronic and optical applications7,8. Moreover, these findings offer a new approach to engineering flat energy bands where electron interactions can lead to emergent properties9. Dielectric patterning allows tunable anisotropy in high-mobility one-dimensional graphene electrostatic superlattices.

We examine the relation between borrowing firms’ corporate political transparency and the cost of debt. Using a sample of S&P 500 firms over the 2012–2016 period, we document a significant negative association between firms’ corporate political transparency and their cost of debt. We also find that the negative association is more pronounced when the borrowing firms are in less unionized industries and have younger executives (CEOs or board of directors). Our results are robust to a variety of sensitivity tests.

Solid-state electrolyte as a crucial component in all-solid-state batteries should have high Li-ion conductivity and good stability in air. Recently, a new solid Li-ion conductor LiTa2PO8 (LTPO) with theoretical and experimental Li-ion conductivities of 35.3 and 0.25 mS/cm has been reported. Herein, we systematically investigate the ionic conductivity and chemical stability of the LTPO electrolytes sintered by conventional sintering (CS) and hot-pressing sintering (HP) methods. The effects of Li sources, sintering temperature, and the dwelling time are concerned. LTPO pellets using CH3COOLi·2H2O as the Li source sintered by CS method have a room-temperature Li-ion conductivity of 1.86 × 10–4 S/cm with an activation energy of 0.36 eV. A conductivity of 3.12 × 10–4 S/cm with an activation energy of 0.32 eV is achieved by further HP sintering. Moreover, LTPO shows excellent chemical stabilities in air, aqueous solution, and organic solvent and shows a stable cycling performance in the symmetric Li/Li cells and the all-solid-state Li/LiFePO4 batteries with the separation of a thin PEO membrane.

This paper provides alternative methodology to reproduce the smoldering of a 2-mm dia biomass stick in reduced gravity by utilizing a reduced-pressure approach. Since smoldering has been known as an initial process of fire hazard, a deep understanding of its characteristics is an important task to improve fire safety strategy in space. The aim of the present work is to examine the possibility to reproduce the smoldering in microgravity by utilizing the low pressure. The smoldering behavior and the temperature profile inside the specimen are studied experimentally for both vertical and horizontal orientations to modify the gravity effect. The considered range of pressure is 1.0 kPa to 100 kPa and adopted oxygen concentration are 0.23 and 0.38 in mass fraction. It is found that the identical smoldering rates for both orientations using small-scale specimen for all pressure conditions studied. However, the measured thermal structure shows the slight difference depending on the sample orientation, especially when the pressure is applied above 80 kPa. The difference in thermal structure is less-pronounced when less than 80 kPa pressure is employed. The simple analysis confirms that the smoldering temperature becomes lower when the total pressure is reduced through the reduction of surface oxidative reaction rate. Therefore, combination of (1) applying small-scale specimen together with low pressure technique to suppress the contribution of buoyancy-induced transport and (2) adopting higher oxygen environment to compensate the reduction of heat release at low pressure could be one of methodologies to mimic the smoldering of reduced gravity environment.

Seed production can be improved if genetic selection is applied to key reproductive traits when a substantial amount additive genetic variation is present that can be exploited in a selective breeding program. Despite the commercial importance of reproductive traits to the seed production sector currently, few quantitative genetic studies have been conducted to address these traits in farmed penaeid shrimp culture lines. Here, we investigated genetic parameters for a number of key reproductive traits that directly impact nauplii production in Pacific white shrimp (P. vannamei) hatcheries in China. Our objectives were to determine the additive genetic variance associated with reproductive traits, and to anticipate any potential impacts on reproductive performance when selecting for increased body weight by assessing genetic correlations between post-spawning body weight and specific female reproductive traits. Data were collected on 595 females from 78 full-sib families over 30 days, with a total of 1,113 spawning events recorded. Traits studied included: body weight after spawning (WAS), number of eggs per spawn (NE), number of nauplii per spawn (NN), egg hatching rate per spawn (HR), number of eggs produced relative to female weight (g) (FE), and spawn frequency over 30 days (SF). Estimated heritability was high for WAS (h2 = 0.64 ± 0.10) and moderate for NE (0.26 ± 0.07), NN (0.18 ± 0.06), and SF (0.15 ± 0.06), respectively. In contrast, h2 for HR (0.04 ± 0.03) and FE (0.05 ± 0.04) were low. The genetic correlations between growth trait (WAS) with NE, NN and SF were 0.93 ± 0.10, 0.84 ± 0.10, and 0.57 ± 0.18, respectively. While the genetic correlation between WAS and HR was low (0.02 ± 0.33), a negative genetic correlation was found between WAS and FE (−0.50 ± 0.27). Overall, we concluded that it is possible to improve the key female reproductive traits (i.e. NE, NN, and SF) in cultured white shrimp lines via genetic selection, but not for HR or FE. The genetic relationship between the growth trait and reproductive traits predicts that selection on fast growth would increase the production in the seed sector, with little or no compromise on the eggs quality.

The frequent occurrence of polycarpy is the most serious problem directly compromising sweet cherry productivity in warm regions of the world. MADS-box genes play an important role in regulating the pistil development; however, limited evidence is available for understanding the regulatory mechanisms of MADS-box genes underlying multi-pistil formation in sweet cherry. In our study, we found that the multi-pistil occurred more frequently in the warm region of Shanghai than the cool region of Dalian. Particularly, the multi-pistil rate of ‘Tieton’ reaches 80–90%, which is much higher than that of ‘Lapins’ with 20–30% in Shanghai. PaAG, PaTM6, and PaMADS3/4/5/12 were found to be sensitive to different natural temperatures related to the formation of multiple pistils according to the quantitative real-time PCR assay. Moreover, the heat shock element in the promoter of PaMADS12 was identified. Using the GUS histochemical assay, we found that the expression level of the β-glucuronidase in the transgenic N. benthamiana leaves containing the GUS reporter gene driven by the PaMADS12 promoter was much higher at 35 °C than that at 25 °C. This suggested that PaMADS12 is a heat-induced transcription factor functioning in multi-pistil formation. Together, these results indicated that heat induced the expression of PaMADS12, and PaAG, PaTM6, and PaMADS3/4/5/12 were important components of the regulatory network controlling multi-pistil formation in sweet cherry.

Organic carbon-coated LiNi0.5Mn0.3Co0.2O2 materials are prepared by mixing 2 or 5% starch or bagasse evenly with the synthesized LiNi0.5Mn0.3Co0.2O2 material and calcining for 10 h at 750 °C. The microstructures and electrochemical performance are investigated by X-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy, carbon/sulfur analysis, transmission electron microscopy and electrochemical testing. The results indicate that the organic carbon coated on the surface of LiNi0.5Mn0.3Co0.2O2 material does not change the surface morphology and crystal structure, but greatly improves the conductivity, rate and cycle performance of the LiNi0.5Mn0.3Co0.2O2 cathode in a Li-ion battery. The initial discharge capacity of the synthesized LiNi0.5Mn0.3Co0.2O2 material is 147.8 mAh g−1, which increases to 152.4 and 153.3 mAh g−1 for 2% starch and bagasse, respectively. After 100 cycles, the capacity retention rates are 70.7% (uncoated), 83.3% (coated with 2% starch), 90.1% (coated with 2% bagasse), 83.1% (coated with 5% starch) and 91.1% (coated with 5% bagasse). The influence of the percentage of coated carbon and its dispersion uniformity on the performance of the battery is analyzed. A small coating capacity and uniform carbon film can achieve better performance. Rational organic carbon coating technology is an effective way to improve the electrochemical performance of LiNi1−x−y Mn x Co y O2-based material.

In this paper, field effect transistors (FET) based on different kinds of non-graphene materials are introduced, which are MoS2, WSe2 and black phosphorus (BP). Those devices have their unique features in fabrication process compared with conventional FETs. Among them, MoS2 FET shows better electrical characteristics by applying a SiO2 protective layer; WSe2 FET is fabricated based on a new low pressure chemical vapor deposition (LPCVD) method; BP FET acquires high on/off ratio and high hole mobility by using a simple dry transfer method. Those novel non-graphene materials inspire new design and fabrication process of basic logic device.

Lithium metal, the ideal anode material for rechargeable batteries, suffers from the inherent limitations of sensitivity to the humid atmosphere and dendrite growth. Herein, low-cost fabrication of a metallic-lithium anode that is stable in air and plated dendrite-free from an organic-liquid electrolyte solves four key problems that have plagued the development of large-scale Li-ion batteries for storage of electric power. Replacing the low-capacity carbon anode with a safe, dendrite-free lithium anode provides a fast charge while reducing the cost of fabrication of a lithium battery, and increasing the cycle life of a rechargeable cell by eliminating the liquid-electrolyte ethylene-carbonate additive used to form a solid-electrolyte interphase passivation layer on the anode that is unstable during cycling. This solution is accomplished by formation of a hydrophobic solid-electrolyte interphase on a metallic-lithium anode that allows for handling of the treated lithium anode membrane in a standard dry room during cell fabrication., The lithium metal is a promising anode material for batteries; however, the growth of dendrite and its instability against moisture are two technical challenges. Here the authors address both issues by introducing a bifunctional layer consisting of hydrophobic graphite fluoride and lithium fluoride.

P2-type Na0.67Ni0.33Ti0.67O2 is explored as a titanium-based anode material for sodium ion batteries. The as-prepared Na0.67Ni0.33Ti0.67O2 delivers a reversible capacity of 129.2 mAh g−1 at 0.05 C with smooth charge–discharge curves. A simple carbon-coating technique was used to improve the electronic conductivity of Na0.67Ni0.33Ti0.67O2 particles. The carbon-coated Na0.67Ni0.33Ti0.67O2 delivers a higher reversible capacity of 163.7 mAh g−1 and exhibits better rate capability than the as-prepared Na0.67Ni0.33Ti0.67O2.

Spinel LiMn2O4 is regarded as one of the cathode active materials for rechargeable lithium-ion batteries with the most potential. K+-ion modified LiMn2O4 samples are synthesized by solid-state reaction. The SEM analysis shows that the modified samples exhibit uniform particle size distribution and much better crystallinity. The modified sample K1 exhibits ionic diffusion coefficient of 1.43 × 10-10 cm-2 s-1 and 2.04 × 10-10 cm-2 s-1, which is much higher than that of the un-modified spinel LiMn2O4 sample. The electrochemical measurements show that K+-ion modification could effectively reduce the charge transfer resistance, improve the capacity retention and rate capacity of the spinel materials.

The aim of this study is to evaluate the efficacy and safety of one-shot versus gradual dilation technique for tract creation in percutaneous nephrolithotomy (PCNL). A systematic research of Pubmed, Embase and the Cochrane Library was performed to identify all relevant studies. The quality of the included trials was assessed and the data were extracted independently by two reviewers. The Cochrane Collaboration’s Review Manager (RevMan) 5.0.2 software was used for statistical analysis. Four randomized controlled trials were included in analysis involving 346 patients in total. Of these patients 174 were in the one-shot group and 172 in the gradual group. Our meta-analysis showed that there were no significant differences in successful dilation rate [risk ratio (RR): 0.96; 95 % confidence interval (CI): 0.92–1.00, p = 0.05], transfusion rate (RR: 0.62; 95 % CI: 0.20–1.96; p = 0.42), and hemoglobin decrease [mean difference (MD): −0.34; 95 % CI: from −0.67 to −0.00; p = 0.05] between one-shot dilation and gradual dilation. One-shot dilation had significant shorter access time (MD: −1.03; 95 % CI: from −1.57 to −0.49; p = 0.0002) and X-ray exposure time (MD: −42.71; 95 % CI: from −45.05 to −40.37; p

To investigate the potential application of microcrystal cellulose (MCC) and cellulose whisker (CW) in the electrospun vascular tissue scaffolds, cellulose acetate (CA) and cellulose composite scaffolds containing MCC and CW were electrospun from CA solutions and deacetylation. Structure and morphology of MCC, CW and the fibrous composite scaffolds were investigated using FT-IR, SEM, TEM and AFM. The wettability of the scaffolds was evaluated by water contact angle analysis. The effect of MCC and CW on the biocompatibility of the scaffolds for vascular smooth muscle cells (VSMC) was assayed by MTT test, fluorescent imaging and SEM. The biocomposite scaffolds displayed multi-scaled structure and morphology. The scaffolds containing MCC and CW simultaneously exhibited significantly higher cell viability compared to those with only MCC or CW and no filler. Cell viability and morphology within the scaffolds become better with increasing content of MCC and CW. The composite scaffolds with both micro- and nano-scale organization could mimic the native extracellular matrix more closely, and further produce synergistic enhancement on VSMC viability, adhesion and proliferation. This study provides the potential applications of renewable cellulose-based particulates in biomedical field.

The heat shock protein 70 (Hsp70) family is widely expressed in eukaryotic cells as the major chaperone protein. In this study, the full-length complementary DNA (cDNA) of a novel inducible cytosolic Hsp70 family member (FcHsp70) was cloned from Fenneropenaeus chinensis. FcHsp70 full-length cDNA consists of 2,511 bp with a 1,890-bp open reading frame encoding 629 amino acids. Three Hsp70 protein family signatures, IDLGTTYS, IIDLGGGTFDVSIL, and IVLVGGSTRIPKVQK, were found in the predicted FcHsp70 amino acid sequence. Phylogenetic analysis showed that FcHsp70 was categorized together with the inducible HSP70s reported in other crustaceans. Compared to the previously identified cognate Hsp70 (FcHsc70) in F. chinensis, the expression of FcHsp70 showed quite different expression profiles when the shrimp were subjected to different stresses including heat shock and heavy metal treatments. Under heat shock treatment, the expression of FcHsp70 showed much higher up-regulation than FcHsc70. Copper treatment also induced higher up-regulation of FcHsp70 than FcHsc70. Cadmium treatment did not induce the expression of FcHsp70, but caused down-regulation of FcHsc70. The different expression profiles of FcHsp70 and FcHsc70 in shrimp may indicate their different reactions to different stresses. Therefore, Hsp70 or Hsc70 could be developed as a biomarker to indicate different stresses in shrimp.

The life of impregnated Ba-W cathodes with a new construction have been evaluated using an accelerated life test at three different temperatures (1170°C,1130°C,1090°C) and constant current density (2A/cm2). According to the relationship of life with operating temperatures, an accelerated equation has been set up. The cathode life at normal operating temperature is deducted based on the accelerated equation. The results show that life of the novel cathode exceeds 190,000 hour at a current density of 2A/cm2.

Growth rate of the Kuruma prawn, Marsupenaeus japonicus is an important economic trait, with larger animals commanding higher market prices. To identify gene markers associated with growth, a genetic map of a full-sib F(2) intercross family of M. japonicus has previously been generated and quantitative trait loci (QTL) influencing weight, total length, and carapace length were identified. In this study, amplified fragment length polymorphism (AFLP) markers associated with the major QTL region, contributing 16% to phenotypic variation, were characterized. Flanking sequence has been obtained and allelic variants responsible for segregation patterns of these markers have been identified. The genomic sequence surrounding the AFLP band 7.21a, residing under the QTL peak, contains a gene sequence homologous to the elongation of very long chain fatty acids-like (ELOVL) protein family. A full-length mRNA (ELOVL-MJ) encoding this protein was isolated from M. japonicus, representing both the first ELOVL gene in crustacea and the first candidate gene identified via QTL studies in crustacea.

A new type of dispenser cathode with dual-layer (Os-W/Re) is developed. The cathode coated with Os-W/Re shows better emission performance than the cathode coated with Os-W alloy. X-ray Photoelectron Spectroscopy (XPS) spectra demonstrate that ternary alloy coating (Os-W-Re) formed on the surface of the cathode with dual-layer (Os-W/Re) after full activation is the major reason why it has better emission than the cathode with Os-W alloy. The surface of each variety of the cathode is characterized with Scanning Electron Microscope (SEM) before and after activation: the emitting surface of the cathode with Os-W alloy after ageing appeared non-adherence (flaking) in localized areas, which is one of the reasons for non-uniform emission. However, the surface of the cathode with dual-layer (Os-W/Re) does not present film peeling under the same conditions. Thus it ensures better emission uniformity and functional reliability for the dispenser cathode.