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Compared with commercial polyolefin membranes, electrospun polymeric membranes have the advantages of higher porosity and better electrolyte wettability, but their poor mechanical performance limits their industrial use as battery separators. In this work, a layer-to-layer electrospinning is used for fabrication of PVdF@PMMA membranes, in which fibers in adjacent layers are arranged at a certain angle (0[degrees], 30[degrees], 60[degrees], 90[degrees]). The as-electrospun membranes are further hot-pressed to boost their mechanical strength. Various techniques are employed to evaluate the membranes, such as scanning electron microscopy, differential scanning calorimetry, contact angle measurement, electrochemical impedance spectroscopy, and linear sweep voltammetry. The results show that polymethyl methacrylate partially melts during the hot-pressing treatment, causing adjacent fibers in the membranes to bridge. The obtained membranes show different tensile strength values with the various angles between fibers. When the angle is 30[degrees], the tensile strength can reach 22.09 MPa and higher porosity (74.68%), greater liquid electrolyte absorption (612.36%) than that of commercial polyolefin membrane are harvested. The lithium-ion cell assembly with the membrane separator exhibits a discharge capacity reaching 142 mAh [g.sup.-1] and an excellent capacity retention of 90.7%. This present study provides an innovative and promising approach for the fabrication of high-performance battery separator by electrospinning. Highlights * PVdF@PMMA membranes are prepared by a layer-to-layer electrospinning. * In the membranes, fiber orientation in adjacent layers is kept at a certain angle. * Hot-pressing further boosts mechanical performance of the membranes. * Membranes with different angle of fibers show various mechanical strengths. KEYWORDS coaxial electrospinning, hot-pressing, lithium-ion battery separator, mechanical reinforcement, 1 | INTRODUCTION Lithium-ion batteries (LIBs) find extensive applications in diverse sectors, particularly the electronics domain, owing to their remarkable attributes encompassing high-energy density, prolonged lifespan, and good for environmental [...]

Background: Long QT syndrome (LQTS) is characterized by prolonged QT interval in electrocardiogram (ECG), which is highly associated with sudden cardiac death (malignant arrhythmia). The purpose of this study was to explore the clinical and genetic characteristics of LQTS in children. Materials and Methods: Whole-exome sequencing and Sanger sequencing were performed in 18 probands with prolonged QT interval on the surface ECG. The pathogenicity of the detected variants was evaluated. Results: 44.4% (8/18) of patients were diagnosed with LQTS in the QT prolongation cohort, among which five variants in KCNQ1 and three in SCN5A were detected. Syncope was the primary manifestation. The mean QTc for variant-positive patients was 522 ± 36 ms and that for patients with negative results was 481 ± 15 ms. High probability (7/11, 63.6%) of LQTS presented among the patients with high Schwartz score (Schwartz score ≥3.5). Partial variant carrier parents had no symptoms but prolonged QTc on ECG. Besides, a case masquerading as epilepsy was reported. Conclusions: For a rapid and accurate diagnosis of LQTS, genetic testing should be combined with assessment of clinical information and ECG. Moreover, routine ECG examination is proposed in seizure patients to avoid misdiagnosis. Two novel variants in SCN5A were detected and the variant spectrum of which was expanded. Besides, we discuss incomplete penetrance and phenotypic heterogeneity of LQTS and suggest focusing on the variant carriers with no obvious symptoms. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Mutations in the CNOT1 gene lead to an incurable rare neurological disorder mainly manifested as a clinical spectrum of intellectual disability, developmental delay, seizures, and behavioral problems. In this study, we investigated a classical splice site variant of CNOT1 (c.1343+1G>T) associated with neurodevelopmental disorders, which was a master regulator, orchestrating gene expression, RNA deadenylation, and protein ubiquitination. To link CNOT1 dysfunction with the neurodevelopmental phenotype observed in a patient, in vitro minigene assay was used to verify the effect of CNOT1 gene splice site variant c.1343+1G>T on mRNA splicing. We also explored the impact of transient transfection introducing modified U1 snRNA on correcting the splicing variant. Through minigene expression in mammalian cells, we demonstrated that the variant induced complete exon 12 skipping, which explained the patient's clinical condition and provided additional genetic diagnosis evidence for the clinical significance of the variant. Moreover, we confirmed that the aberrant splice pattern could be partially corrected by the modified U1 snRNA at the mRNA level, which provided strong evidence for the therapeutic potential of modified U1 snRNA in neutralizing the hazardous effect of incorrect splicing patterns. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An iron-promoted method for the construction of pyrrolo[1,2-a]quinoxaline derivatives has been developed. Ferric chloride served as a promoter and as a Lewis acid in the reaction. Solvents provided the corresponding carbon sources simultaneously. The majority of solvents with terminal methyl groups, including ethers, amines and dimethyl sulfoxide, were reactive in the synthesis of quinoxaline derivatives at a certain yield via C–H(sp3) amination/C–O or C–N (C–S) cleavage. This method was applicable to a wide range of pyrrolo[1,2-a]quinoxaline and indolo[1,2-a]quinazoline substrates. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

With the application and development of high-throughput sequencing technology in life and health sciences, massive multi-omics data brings the problem of efficient management and utilization. Database development and biocuration are the prerequisites for the reuse of these big data. Here, relying on China National GeneBank (CNGB), we present CNGB Sequence Archive (CNSA) for archiving omics data, including raw sequencing data and its further analyzed results which are organized into six objects, namely Project, Sample, Experiment, Run, Assembly and Variation at present. Moreover, CNSA has created a correlation model of living samples, sample information and analytical data on some projects. Both living samples and analytical data are directly correlated with the sample information. From either one, information or data of the other two can be obtained, so that all data can be traced throughout the life cycle from the living sample to the sample information to the analytical data. Complying with the data standards commonly used in the life sciences, CNSA is committed to building a comprehensive and curated data repository for storing, managing and sharing of omics data. We will continue to improve the data standards and provide free access to open-data resources for worldwide scientific communities to support academic research and the bio-industry. Database URL: https://db. cngb.org/cnsa /. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, shape-controlled synthesis of well-defined truncated edge polyhedral Cu2O architectures, including truncated edge cubic and truncated edge octahedral Cu2O crystals with three pairs of {100} facets, four pairs of {111} facets, and six pairs of {110} facets, and {100} etched truncated edge cubic Cu2O crystals, were achieved via a facile template-free complex-precursor aqueous solution route. The growth process and mechanism of Cu2O crystals are discussed in detail. The appearance of various morphologies can be attributed to the selective oxidative etching and preferential growth on different facets of Cu2O crystals. The figure shows high magnification field-emission scanning electron microscope images of single Cu2O microcrystals with a typical truncated edge cubic-shape and their {100} facets-etched form, which were synthesized at different reaction times. This shape evolution process can be attributed to the selective etching on different crystal facets of Cu2O along with the reaction time increase. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

ATP6V1B2 encodes the subunit of the vacuolar H+‐ATPase, which is an enzyme responsible for the acidification of intracellular organelles and essential for cell signaling and neurotransmitter release. The aim of the study is to identify the correlation between ATP6V1B2 and epilepsy. Trio‐exome sequencing was performed. Reverse Transcription‐PCR and Quantitative real‐time PCR analyses were carried out to determine whether this variant leads to nonsense‐mediated mRNA decay (NMD). Drosophila models with knocked‐down homologous genes of ATP6V1B2 were generated to study the causal relationship between the ATP6V1B2 and the phenotype of epilepsy. We described a 5‐year‐old male with a novel variant c.1163delT(p.Tyr389IlefsTer13) in ATP6V1B2, who presented with epilepsy. The expression level of the premature termination codon (PTC) transcript was normal in the patient, which indicated that NMD evasion existed in the PTC transcript. We generated an animal model using Drosophila to study the knock down effects of Vha55, which is the ATP6V1B2 ortholog in fly. The Vha55 knockdown flies show seizure‐like behaviors and climbing defects. This study expands the variation spectrum of the ATP6V1B2 gene. Cross‐species animal model demonstrates the causal relationship between ATP6V1B2 defect and epilepsy, and shed new insights into the disease mechanism caused by ATP6V1B2 LOF variants. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

With the application and development of high-throughput sequencing technology in life and health sciences, massive multi-omics data brings the problem of efficient management and utilization. Database development and biocuration are the prerequisites for the reuse of these big data. Here, relying on China National GeneBank (CNGB), we present CNGB Sequence Archive (CNSA) for archiving omics data, including raw sequencing data and its further analyzed results which are organized into six objects, namely Project, Sample, Experiment, Run, Assembly and Variation at present. Moreover, CNSA has created a correlation model of living samples, sample information and analytical data on some projects. Both living samples and analytical data are directly correlated with the sample information. From either one, information or data of the other two can be obtained, so that all data can be traced throughout the life cycle from the living sample to the sample information to the analytical data. Complying with the data standards commonly used in the life sciences, CNSA is committed to building a comprehensive and curated data repository for storing, managing and sharing of omics data. We will continue to improve the data standards and provide free access to open-data resources for worldwide scientific communities to support academic research and the bio-industry. Database URL: https://db.cngb.org/cnsa/., (© The Author(s) 2020. Published by Oxford University Press.)