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Exposure to addictive substances impairs flexible decision making. Cognitive flexibility is mediated by striatal cholinergic interneurons (CINs). However, how chronic alcohol drinking alters cognitive flexibility through CINs remains unclear. Here, we report that chronic alcohol consumption and withdrawal impaired reversal of instrumental learning. Chronic alcohol consumption and withdrawal also caused a long-lasting (21 days) reduction of excitatory thalamic inputs onto CINs and reduced pause responses of CINs in the dorsomedial striatum (DMS). CINs are known to inhibit glutamatergic transmission in dopamine D1 receptor-expressing medium spiny neurons (D1-MSNs) but facilitate this transmission in D2-MSNs, which may contribute to flexible behavior. We discovered that chronic alcohol drinking impaired CIN-mediated inhibition in D1-MSNs and facilitation in D2-MSNs. Importantly, in vivo optogenetic induction of long-term potentiation of thalamostriatal transmission in DMS CINs rescued alcohol-induced reversal learning deficits. These results demonstrate that chronic alcohol drinking reduces thalamic excitation of DMS CINs, compromising their regulation of glutamatergic transmission in MSNs, which may contribute to alcohol-induced impairment of cognitive flexibility. These findings provide a neural mechanism underlying inflexible drinking in alcohol use disorder. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Niobates are promising all-climate Li + -storage anode material due to their fast charge transport, large specific capacities, and resistance to electrolyte reaction. However, their moderate unit-cell-volume expansion (generally 5%-10%) during Li + storage causes unsatisfactory long-term cyclability. Here, "zero-strain" NiNb 2 O 6 fibers are explored as a new anode material with comprehensively good electrochemical properties. During Li + storage, the expansion of electrochemical inactive NiO 6 octahedra almost fully offsets the shrinkage of active NbO 6 octahedra through reversible O movement. Such superior volume-accommodation capability of the NiO 6 layers guarantees the "zero-strain" behavior of NiNb 2 O 6 in a broad temperature range (0.53%//0.51%//0.74% at 25// - 10//60 °C), leading to the excellent cyclability of the NiNb 2 O 6 fibers (92.8%//99.2% // 91.1% capacity retention after 1000//2000//1000 cycles at 10C and 25// - 10//60 °C). This NiNb 2 O 6 material further exhibits a large reversible capacity (300//184//318 mAh g -1 at 0.1C and 25// - 10//60 °C) and outstanding rate performance (10 to 0.5C capacity percentage of 64.3%//50.0%//65.4% at 25// - 10//60 °C). Therefore, the NiNb 2 O 6 fibers are especially suitable for large-capacity, fast-charging, long-life, and all-climate lithium-ion batteries., (© 2024. The Author(s).)

A stable solid electrolyte interphase (SEI) layer is crucial for lithium metal anode (LMA) to survive in long-term cycling. However, chaotic structures and chemical inhomogeneity of natural SEI make LMA suffering from exasperating dendrite growth and severe electrode pulverization, which hinder the practical application of LMAs. Here, we design a catalyst-derived artificial SEI layer with an ordered polyamide-lithium hydroxide (PA-LiOH) bi-phase structure to modulate ion transport and enable dendrite-free Li deposition. The PA-LiOH layer can substantially suppress the volume changes of LMA during Li plating/stripping cycles, as well as alleviate the parasitic reactions between LMA and electrolyte. The optimized LMAs demonstrate excellent stability in Li plating/stripping cycles for over 1000 hours at an ultra-high current density of 20 mA cm -2 in Li||Li symmetric cells. A high coulombic efficiency up to 99.2 % in Li half cells in additive-free electrolytes is achieved even after 500 cycles at a current density of 1 mA cm -2 with a capacity of 1 mAh cm -2 ., (© 2023 The Authors. Angewandte Chemie International Edition published by Wiley-VCH GmbH.)

Nonflammable electrolytes are critical for the safe operation of high-voltage lithium-ion batteries (LIBs). Although organic phosphates are effective flame retardants, their poor electrochemical stability with a graphite (Gr) anode and Ni-rich cathodes would lead to the deterioration of electrode materials and fast capacity decay. Herein, we develop a safe and high-performance electrolyte formulation for high-voltage (4.6 V-class) LIBs using flame-retarding ethoxy(pentafluoro) cyclotriphosphazene (PFPN) as a non-solvating diluent for the high-concentration carbonate-ether hybrid electrolyte. In contrast to conventional nonflammable additives with restricted dosage, the high level of PFPN (69% mass ratio in our electrolyte design) could significantly increase the electrolyte flash point and protect the favored anion-rich inner solvation sheath because of its non-solvating feature, thus preventing solvent co-intercalation and structural damage to the Gr anode. The nonflammable electrolyte could also form a stable LiF-rich cathode electrolyte interphase (CEI), which enables superior electrochemical performances of Gr‖LiNi 0.8 Mn 0.1 Co 0.1 O 2 (NMC811) full cells at high voltages (∼82.0% capacity retention after 1000 cycles at 4.5 V; 89.8% after 300 cycles at 4.6 V) and high temperatures (50 °C). This work sheds light on the electrolyte design and interphase engineering for developing practical safe high-energy-density LIBs., Competing Interests: There are no conflicts to declare., (This journal is © The Royal Society of Chemistry.)

Purpose: To compare the efficacy and safety between endoscopic submucosal dissection (ESD) and conventional surgical treatment in the treatment of colorectal cancer (CRC) and the precancerous lesions., Methods: A retrospective analysis was performed on the clinical data of 65 patients with CRC or precancerous lesions (ESD group) and another 65 patients receiving surgical treatment at the same period (Surgery group). The surgical indicators, incidence of complications, and quality of life score were compared between the two groups, and the survival and tumor progression were followed up and recorded., Results: The rate of en bloc tumor resection was 89.2% (58/65) and 100% (65/65) and the rate of tumor curative resection was 92.3% (60/65) and 100% (65/65) in ESD group and Surgery group. Moreover, ESD group had markedly shorter operation time and mean hospital stay. After treatment, ESD group had higher scores of emotional functioning, fatigue, constipation, and diarrhea symptoms and general quality of life on the European Organization for Research and Treatment of Cancer quality of life questionnaire Core 30 (EORTC QLQ-C30) than Surgery group. The follow-up results showed no statistically significant difference in the 5-year recurrence rate between ESD group and Surgery group (7.7% vs. 0%, p=0.208)., Conclusion: ESD and surgery have similar long-term clinical efficacy in treating early CRC and precancerous lesions, but ESD is more minimally invasive and safer, and is superior in accelerating postoperative recovery and improving the overall survival of patients.

The posterior dorsomedial striatum (pDMS) is mainly composed of medium spiny neurons (MSNs) expressing either dopamine D1 receptors (D1Rs) or D2Rs. Activation of these two MSN types produces opposing effects on addictive behaviors. However, it remains unclear whether pDMS D1-MSNs or D2-MSNs receive afferent inputs from different brain regions or whether the extrastriatal afferents express distinct dopamine receptors. To assess whether these afferents also contained D1Rs or D2Rs, we generated double transgenic mice, in which D1R-expressing and D2R-expressing neurons were fluorescently labeled. We used rabies virus-mediated retrograde tracing in these mice to perform whole-brain mapping of direct inputs to D1-MSNs or D2-MSNs in the pDMS. We found that D1-MSNs preferentially received inputs from the secondary motor, secondary visual, and cingulate cortices, whereas D2-MSNs received inputs from the primary motor and primary sensory cortices, and the thalamus. We also discovered that the bed nucleus of the stria terminalis (BNST) and the central nucleus of the amygdala (CeA) contained abundant D2R-expressing, but few D1R-expressing, neurons in a triple transgenic mouse model. Remarkably, although limited D1R or D2R expression was observed in extrastriatal neurons that projected to D1-MSNs or D2-MSNs, we found that cortical structures preferentially contained D1R-expressing neurons that projected to D1-MSNs or D2-MSNs, while the thalamus, substantia nigra pars compacta (SNc), and BNST had more D2R-expressing cells that projected to D2-MSNs. Taken together, these findings provide a foundation for future understanding of the pDMS circuit and its role in action selection and reward-based behaviors., (Copyright © 2021 Lu et al.)

Platelet-derived growth factor-D (PDGF-D) plays a crucial role in the progression of several cancers. However, its role in colorectal cancer (CRC) remains unclear. Our study showed that PDGF-D was highly expressed in CRC tissues and was positively associated with the clinicopathological features. Down-regulation of PDGF-D inhibited the tumor growth, migration and angiogenesis of SW480 cells in vitro and in vivo. Whereas up-regulation of PDGF-D promoted the malignant behaviors of HCT116 cells. Moreover, PDGF-D up-regulated the expression of Notch1 and Twist1 in CRC cells. In addition, PDGF-D expression promoted Epithelial to mesenchymal transition (EMT), which was accompanied with decreased E-cadherin and increased Vimentin expression. Consistently, PDGF-D, Notch1, and Twist1 are obviously up-regulated in transforming growth factor-beta 1 (TGF-β1) treated HCT116 cells. Since Notch1 and Twist1 play an important role in EMT and tumor progression, we examined whether there is a correlation between Notch1 and Twist1 in EMT status. Our results showed that up-regulation of Notch1 was able to rescue the effects of PDGF-D down-regulation on Twist1 expression in SW480 cells, whereas down-regulation of Notch1 reduced Twist1 expression in HCT116 cells. Furthermore, we found that Twist1 promoted EMT and aggressiveness of CRC cells. These results suggest that PDGF-D promotes tumor growth and aggressiveness of CRC, moreover, down-regulation of PDGF-D inactivates Notch1/Twist1 axis, which could reverse EMT and prevent CRC progression.

Pyridineselenolate forms stable homoleptic coordination compounds of Sn(II), Sn(IV), and Pb(II). The complexes can be prepared either by metathesis or by insertion of the metal into the Se-Se bond of dipyridyl diselenide, and they are soluble in coordinating solvents such as pyridine. Isolation of the Pb(II) complex from both Pb(0) and Pb(IV) starting materials indicates that the pyridineselenolate ligand cannot stabilize Pb(IV). The compounds all sublime intact and decompose at elevated temperatures: the divalent complexes give MSe (M = Sn, Pb), while the Sn(IV) compound delivers SnSe(2). In order to isolate a crystalline Pb compound, the 3-trimethylsilyl-2-pyridineselenolate ligand was prepared. Attachment of the Me(3)Si functional group increases compound solubility, and leads to the isolation of crystalline Pb(3-Me(3)Si-2-SeNC(5)H(4))(2). The structure of [Sn(2-SeNC(5)H(4))(2)](2) (1) was determined by single-crystal X-ray diffraction and shown to be a dimer, with one chelating pyridineselenolate per Sn(II) and a pair of pyridineselenolates that asymmetrically span the two metal centers to form an eight membered (-Sn-Se-C-N-Sn-Se-C-N-) ring, with weak Sn-Se interactions connecting the dimeric units. Crystal data for 1 (Mo Kalpha, 298(2) K): orthorhombic space group Pbca, a = 8.214(1) Å, b = 21.181(3) Å, c = 14.628(2) Å.