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Baculoviruses are highly evolved parasites that genetically reprogram the developing phenotype of their host insect to produce a vessel for virus replication and dispersal. Here we show that larvae of Helicoverpa armigera infected with HearNPV accumulate glucose in the midgut, which reduces food consumption and alters the dynamics of pathways governing metabolism and immunity. We used transcriptomics to demonstrate the role of the insulin signalling pathway in regulating the HearNPV infection process. Dietary restriction decreased mortality of infected larvae and reduced viral replication prior to death, whereas dietary supplementation with glucose produced the opposite effects. The expression of most tricarboxylic acid cycle (TCA) and energy metabolism‐related genes was reduced in infected larvae, whereas the expression of immunity‐, glycolysis‐ and insulin‐related genes was enhanced. Treatment of infected larvae with insulin increased their survival, reduced viral replication and inhibited climbing behaviour compared to a control treatment with DMSO, whereas RNAi suppression of the insulin receptor gene produced the opposite effects. Inhibition of glycolysis with dichloroacetate (DCA) promoted viral replication and accelerated larval death, but inhibition of the TCA cycle with 2‐deoxyglucose (2‐DG) did not, although both diminished climbing behaviour. This work demonstrates that successful baculovirus infections hinge on metabolic reprogramming of the host and concurrent suppression of immune responses in the larval midgut, with the insulin signalling pathway mediating a trade‐off between glucose metabolism and virus resistance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The electron-deficient effect of Pd in the Pd17Se15 catalyst effectively weakens the adsorption of CO poisoning species and enhances the electrocatalytic performance of alcohol electrooxidation in an alkaline medium. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Ru/Ni3N–Ni catalyst was found to be efficient as a novel bi-functional catalyst for the hydrogen and oxygen evolution reactions in water splitting. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: A linear ultrasonic motor using lead-free piezoelectric ceramics equipped with quadrate plate transducers has been developed. Four lead free piezoelectric plates driving elements formed a multi-driving-end, producing a large thrust and output velocity. The design of the stator enables two operating modes with coincident frequency. A microscopic view suggests that the material particles at the top of four projections move in ellipses and drive the slider alternately via frictional forces to realize linear motion. The fabrication and characterization of the lead-free piezoelectric ceramics achieving the drive of stator were given in the context. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: The quaternary piezoelectric ceramics of Pb(Mg1/3Ta2/3)O3–Pb(Mn1/3Sb2/3)O3–Pb(Zr0.52Ti0.48)O3 (PMgT–PMnS–PZT) were synthesized with a conventional method. The phase, microstructure, ferroelectric, dielectric and piezoelectric properties were studied in terms of PMgT content. The results indicate that all ceramics have a pure perovskite phase of tetragonal symmetry while the c/a ratio increases with PMgT content. The PMgT substitution also promotes the densification of the ceramics without significant grain growth when no more than 5mol.%. The spontaneous polarization P s increases consistently as revealed by the enhanced tetragonality, whereas the coercive field E c , which is affected by the internal dipolar field, reaches a minimum at 3mol.%. When no more than 5mol.% PMgT is introduced, both the soft and hard properties can be improved simultaneously. However, further introduction of PMgT in place of PMnS induces a rapid decrease in Q m and increase in tan δ. The 0.05PMgT–0.05PMnS–0.9PZT ceramics have the optimal overall performance: , tanδ =0.3%, d 33 =227 pC/N, k p =0.55, Q m =1830. The ceramics are promising candidates for high power resonant actuator applications. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

The electron-deficient effect of Pd in the Pd 17 Se 15 catalyst effectively weakens the adsorption of CO poisoning species and enhances the electrocatalytic performance of alcohol electrooxidation in an alkaline medium.

Ru-Based catalysts are significant in the green hydrogen generation via the electrochemical water-splitting reaction. Herein, it is found that the increased crystallinity of cubic RuSe 2 nanoparticles anchored over carbon nanotubes (RuSe 2 /CNTs) could largely increase the hydrogen generation performance both in acidic and alkaline electrolytes. The freshly prepared RuSe 2 /CNTs with low crystallinity had a very low catalytic performance for the HER, while the catalytic ability could be largely boosted by facile thermal annealing at 650 °C in an N 2 atmosphere, resulting from the increased crystallinity and electronic effect. The crystal structure enhancement of the RuSe 2 nanoparticles was well supported by the X-ray diffraction technique and the lattice fringes in the high-resolution transmission electron microscopy images. As a result, the catalyst exhibited largely improved catalytic performance compared to the freshly prepared RuSe 2 /CNTs; specifically, the overpotentials of 48 and 64 mV were required to drive 10 mA cm -2 in alkaline and acidic media when loaded on a glassy carbon electrode, much less than those of 109 and 120 mV for the freshly prepared RuSe 2 /CNTs; the catalytic performance in the alkaline electrolyte was even close to that of the commercial Pt/C catalyst. Correspondingly, the improved catalytic stability, catalytic kinetics, charge transfer ability and catalytic efficiency of the active sites were also observed. The current work shows an effective approach and important understanding for catalytic performance enhancement via increased crystallinity by facile thermal annealing.

A CBr 4 mediated [4 + 1] dehydrocyclization was developed for the synthesis of imidazo[1,5-a]heterocycles from pyridin-2-ylmethanamines and aldehydes. This method was highly practical with the advantages of wide substrate scope, functional group tolerance, and mild reaction conditions., Competing Interests: The authors declare no competing financial interest., (© 2021 The Authors. Published by American Chemical Society.)

The Ru/Ni3N-Ni catalyst was found to be efficient as a novel bi-functional catalyst for the hydrogen and oxygen evolution reactions in water splitting.