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Porous strontium ferrite foams with a huge coercivity up to 23.35 kOe were prepared by ultrafast in situ annealing using an auto-combustion strategy. This method is feasible for the ultrafast synthesis of a wide range of other oxide foams.

Novel gamma-phase Ni–Co oxyhydroxides nanoplate networks with cationic vacancy defects and crystalline–amorphous interfaces achieve ultrahigh mass/areal/volumetric energy-density flexible all-solid-state asymmetric supercapacitor.

The cause for at least 50% of recurrent miscarriages is unclear, which is defined as unexplained recurrent miscarriages. The B7-H1 (PD-L1), a molecule of the B7 family, promotes tumor development by modulating immune evasion, and recent researchers have also attached importance to the role of B7-H3, another molecule of B7 family, in tumor. Based on the similarity between growth and immune response in tumors and pregnancy, we first explored the role of B7-H3 in unexplained recurrent miscarriages. We found reduced levels of B7-H3 in the villus tissue of unexplained recurrent miscarriage patients, and it was mainly expressed on the cell membrane of extravillous trophoblasts. Further, the HTR-8/SVneo and JEG-3 cells were selected to explore the role of B7-H3 in proliferation, apoptosis, tube formation, migration, and invasion. We found that B7-H3 regulated trophoblast migration and invasion via RhoA/ROCK2 signaling pathway. Inflammatory cytokines were detected through enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay after co-culturing with decidual natural killer cells and B7-H3-knockout JEG-3. Results showed that B7-H3 inhibited IL-8 and IP-10 secretion from the decidual natural killer cells. In a CBA/J × DBA/2 abortion-prone mice model, treatment with B7-H3-Fc protein successfully reduced the rate of embryo resorption. In conclusion, our results revealed a possible mechanism by which decreased B7-H3 on trophoblasts of unexplained recurrent miscarriages inhibited trophoblast migration and invasion and increased IL-8 and IP-10 secretion from the decidual natural killer cells. Furthermore, B7-H3 may be a promising new therapeutic target in unexplained recurrent miscarriage patients.

Dendritic cells (DCs), as the most powerful antigen-presenting cells, play a key role in the adaptive immune response, while the defective function of DC is an important factor in immune tolerance to hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection. Hepatitis B virus core antigen (HBcAg) is a highly antigenic protein that can induce a strong antigen-specific immune response against HBV. In this study, we first constructed the ubiquitinated HBcAg gene (UbHBcAg), and then utilized a recombinant lentiviral vector UbHBcAg (LV-UbHBcAg) to explore the role of them in DC autophagy and function. Meanwhile, the effects of autophagy on DC functional activation were further analyzed. Finally, we investigated the underlying mechanism of autophagy induced by LV-UbHBcAg. Results showed that LV-UbHBcAg could promote autophagic progression in DCs, and the upregulated autophagy can further enhance DC functional maturation. In addition, p62 may serve as an important role in autophagy degradation. More importantly, the PI3K/Akt/mTOR signaling pathway was involved in the process of autophagy induced by LV-UbHBcAg. These findings suggest that LV-UbHBcAg can activate DC function by inducing autophagy, which may represent a promising strategy to treat chronic HBV infection.

Green technology innovation is an important guarantee for my country to achieve high-quality development in the new era. Taking the 2010-2018 Chinese provincial panel data as a sample, the spatial error model and the panel threshold model are used to study the impact of environmental regulation and government support on green technology innovation. The results show that: the green technology innovation in each province has certain spatial agglomeration characteristics, there is a knowledge spillover effect, the environmental regulation area has a positive impact on green technology innovation, and the government support has no significant impact; environmental regulation and government support have a threshold effect on green technology innovation. , the impact of the two on green technology innovation has a marginal diminishing effect; compared with environmental regulation, government R&D support can promote internal green technology innovation activities.

SummaryBackgroundLittle is known about the association between household solid fuel use and sarcopenia risk. Using a nationally representative survey, we investigated the association between solid fuel used for heating and cooking and sarcopenia risk among middle-aged and older Chinese adults.MethodsWe leveraged two waves of data from the China Health and Retirement Longitudinal Study (CHARLS); 12,723 participants aged ≥ 45 years from 28 provinces across China were enrolled in 2011. Sarcopenia status was classified according to the Asian Working Group for Sarcopenia 2019 criteria. A total of 3,110 participants without sarcopenia were recruited at baseline and were followed up until 2013. Primary fuel types and durations used for heating and cooking were assessed using a validated questionnaire. Multinomial logistic regression explored the cross-sectional and longitudinal associations between solid fuel use and different stages of sarcopenia.FindingsThe prevalence of possible sarcopenia and sarcopenia were 34·8% and 5·7%, respectively. Compared with clean fuel users, those using solid fuel for both heating and cooking had significantly higher risks of possible sarcopenia (odds ratio, [OR] 1·72, 95%CI: 1·54-1·91) and sarcopenia (OR 1·74, 1·31-2·31). During the two-year follow-up, 569 participants (18·3%) developed with possible sarcopenia and 86 (2·8%) had sarcopenia. In the longitudinal analyses, solid fuel use was positively associated with the risk of possible sarcopenia (OR 1·75, 1·32-2·31), and the association was higher in individuals with a longer duration of solid fuel use. However, no significant association was observed with the incidence of sarcopenia. Older adults, with less physical activity might have a higher risk of sarcopenia when exposed to solid fuel.InterpretationHousehold solid fuel is associated with a higher risk of sarcopenia among middle-aged and older Chinese adults. These findings provide novel evidence for prioritizing public health policies to promote healthy aging by reducing solid fuel use.FundingNational Natural Science Foundation of ChinaResearch in contextEvidence before this studyWe searched PubMed, Google Scholar, and the China National Knowledge Infrastructure for studies published in English and Chinese up to February 1, 2023. We used the search terms (“sarcopenia”) AND (“solid fuel” OR “biomass fuel” OR “coal” OR “air pollution”) and found a recent study that explored the cross-sectional relationship between ambient air pollution and sarcopenia risk in the UK. However, no large population-based study has investigated the effects of household solid fuel use on sarcopenia.Added value of this studyOur study showed for the first time that household solid fuel use is associated with a higher risk of sarcopenia among middle-aged and older Chinese adults. Our findings provide important prospective evidence linking solid fuels to an increased risk of sarcopenia. Reducing solid fuel use can be beneficial in preventing sarcopenia and promoting healthy aging in older adults. To our knowledge, this study is the largest nationwide cross-sectional and longitudinal study to date investigating the association between household fuel types and duration of solid fuel use with different stages of sarcopenia.Implications of all the available evidenceOur findings underscore the importance of improving access to clean fuels to reduce the risk of sarcopenia associated with cooking and heating fuel use. This study extends the knowledge that prioritizes public health policies to mitigate the adverse effects of solid fuel use on sarcopenia and provides implications for further mechanistic research.

Cr(VI)-based compounds pollution have attracted global concern due to serious harm to humans and environment. Hence, it is crucial to exploit an effective technique to eliminate Cr(VI) in water. Herein, we in-situ grown BiOI on graphitic carbon nitride to prepare the BiOI/g-C3N4 (BCN) direct Z-scheme heterojunction by solid phase engineering method at room temperature. Experimental result shown the photocatalytic activity of pure BiOI were obviously enhanced by constructing Z-scheme BCN heterostructure, and BCN-3 heterostructure exhibited the optimal photocatalytic degradation of RhB with 98% yield for 2.5 h and reduction of Cr(VI) with more than 99% yield for 1.5 h at pH = 2. Stability test shows BCN-3 still kept more than 98% reduction efficiency after 6 cycles. In addition, we also studied the reduction mechanism that shown the ·O2− radicals essentially helped to reduce the Cr(VI) in aqueous solution under illumination, verified the direct Z-scheme charge transfer path by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) and the free radical trapping experiment. The work open a new way for rationally designing photocatalyst heterostructure to reduce Cr(VI) to Cr(III).

The differentiation of embryonic stem cells (ESCs) into germ cells

The SPC/700 °C/3-based all-solid-state symmetric supercapacitor exhibits a high specific capacitance as well as excellent long-term cycling stability.

Polymeric carbon nitride (PCN) is an emerging metal-free photocatalyst with high stability but is plagued by low photocatalytic efficiency due to the rapid charge carrier recombination behavior.

Phase change materials (PCMs) have been applied widely in various energy savings, storage, and efficiency applications, including building and construction, building systems, aerospace, and biological engineering. In order to solve the shortcomings of poor thermal stability and easy leakage of PCMs, a strong adsorbent expanded perlite-aerogel (AEP) composite matrix was prepared and its key thermal properties and effects on PCMs examined. Particularly, when it adsorbed capric-stearic acid, a binary PCM, it reached the level of 200 %. The rate of mass loss after heating could still be less than 1.0 %, indicating that the AEP composite matrix designed here had strong material and thermal stabilities. Various mass ratios of composite components were also tested and compared, and the optimal setting for the best adsorption rate was subsequently determined in this work. Because of these excellent characteristics, this newly designed AEP composite matrix can be used as an appropriate carrier for PCMs for energy savings and efficiency purposes in the building and construction field.

CeO2 and Sc2O3 co-stabilized ZrO2 ceramics have attracted much attention as potential thermal barrier coatings (TBCs) materials for applications above 1300 °C. In this study, a series of Sc0.04CexZr0.96-xO1.98 (SCZ, x = 0.08, 0.10, 0.12, 0.16) ceramic materials were synthesized with the solid-state method and their phase stability, microstructures and thermo-physical properties were systemically investigated by x-ray diffraction (XRD), Raman spectra, field emission scanning electron microscopy (SEM), thermal dilatometer, laser flash apparatus (LFA), and Vickers hardness tester. The results showed that Sc0.04Ce0.12Zr0.84O1.98 (4S12CZ) and Sc0.04Ce0.16Zr0.80O1.98 (4S16CZ) ceramic materials still maintained stable tetragonal phase structure after 100 h high temperature treatment at 1500 °C. SCZ had a high thermal expansion coefficient (TEC), low thermal conductivity, and high fracture toughness. The TEC of the ceramics increased with CeO2 addition because lattice energy reduced with increasing substitution of Zr4+ by bigger Ce4+ while thermal conductivity decreased due to the increase of lattice distortion. Compared with 4S12CZ, 4S16CZ exhibited a higher fracture toughness of 6.48 ± 0.04 MPa m1/2 and showed the better anti-sintering property. Besides, the thermal conductivity, TEC and thermal cycling lifetime of 4S16CZ were optimal. The comprehensive performance of 4S16CZ suggested it could be explored as a promising TBC material for high-temperature application.

Dermal papilla cells (DPCs) are the key dermal component of the hair follicle that directly regulates hair follicle development, growth and regeneration. Successfully isolated and cultured DPCs from Small-tail Han sheep could provide a good model for the study of hair follicle development mechanism in vitro. DPCs were isolated using enzyme digestion and dissecting microscope from Small-tail Han sheep. Adherent cells were identified by cell characteristics, particular gene expression, differentiation capability to adipocyte and osteoblast using specific differentiation mediums. Additionally, flow cytometry was used to detect the cell cycle of DPCs. Cells originating from the dermal papilla showed the morphological appearance of mesenchymal cells (fibroblast-like cells). Purified DPCs were positive for α-SMA (α smooth muscle actin) and vimentin; in addition to their strong proliferation abilities in vitro, these DPCs can be differentiated into adipocyte and osteoblasts lineage under appropriate culture condition. DPCs were successfully isolated and subcultured from Small-tail Han sheep, which exhibited progenitor cell features and multiple differentiation potency. It provides a material for studying the molecular mechanism of hair follicle development and hair cycle, which will promote wool production in the future.

The sufficient interface contact in the composite absorbing material is beneficial to increase the dielectric loss and promote the microwave absorption performance. In this paper, the composite nanoparticles (NPs), Fe3O4 covered with ultra-thin carbon layer (Fe3O4/C), were synthesized by simple high temperature solution-phase and subsequent high-temperature steam carbonization methods. Small size Fe3O4/C composite NPs have large heterogeneous interfaces, which can control the polarization loss of composite NPs through the method of interface regulation and achieve high microwave absorption performance. The strongest reflection loss of the composite NPs with an average particle size of 52 nm can reach −58.5 dB at 14.88 GHz with a thickness of 2 mm, and the corresponding effective absorption (RL ≤ -10 dB) bandwidth (EAB) is 5.63 GHz (12.37–18 GHz). In particular, the high-efficiency absorption (RL ≤ -20 dB) bandwidth of Fe3O4/C can reach 15.44 GHz (2–17.44 GHz) with a thickness of 1.7–10 mm. The current method for controlling polarization loss provide a meaningful reference for future microwave absorption research.

The hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) of molybdenum disulfide (MoS2) is limited in alkaline and acid solution because the active sites are on the finite edge with extended basal plane remaining inert. Herein, we activated the interfacial S sites by coupling with Ru nanoparticles on the inert basal plane of MoS2 nanosheets. The density functional theory (DFT) calculation and experimental results show that the interfacial S electronic structure was modulated. And the results of ΔGH* demonstrate that the adsorption of H on the MoS2 was also optimized. With the advantage of interfacial S sites activation, the Ru-MoS2 needs only overpotential of 110 and 98 mV to achieve 10 mA·cm−2 in both 0.5 M H2SO4 and 1 M KOH solution, respectively. This strategy paves a new way for activating the basal plane of other transition metal sulfide electrocatalysts for improving the HER performance.