Tailoring Electrolyte Distributions to Enable High-performance Li3 PS4 -based All-solid-state Batteries under Different Operating Temperatures.

Li3 PS4 shows great potential as solid electrolyte for all-solid-state lithium batteries (ASSLBs) due to its high Li-ion conductivity and excellent mechanical properties. However, its poor interfacial stability with bare high-nickel active materials in the cathode mixture inhibits the energy density and electrochemical performances of the corresponding LiNi0.6 Mn0.2 Co0.2 O2 /Li3 PS4 /Li-In battery. The Li3 InCl6 electrolyte with good electrochemical/chemical stability with bare LiNi0.6 Mn0.2 Co0.2 O2 (NCM622), which acts both as a Li-ion additive in the cathode mixture and as an isolation layer to isolate the direct contact between the sulfide electrolytes and active materials, providing superior solid/solid interface stabilities in the assembled battery. XPS and TEM results confirm that this strategy can mitigate the side reactions between the bare NCM622 and Li3 PS4 electrolytes. In-situ EIS and DRT results prove that this grading utilization of different solid electrolytes can greatly alleviate the poor electrochemical stability between those two materials, yielding smaller interfacial resistances. The corresponding battery delivers high discharge capacities at various C-rates under different operating temperatures. It delivers a much higher initial discharge capacity of 187.7 mAh g-1 (vs. 92.5 mAh g-1 ) at 0.1 C with a coulombic efficiency of 87.6% (vs. 71.1%) at room temperature. Moreover, this battery can even show highly reversible capacity with excellent cyclability when the operating temperature lowers to 0 and -20 °C. This work provides a hierarchical utilization strategy to fabricate sulfide electrolytes-based ASSLBs with high energy density and superior cycling performance combined with highly-oxidation cathode materials.

Coenzyme Q10 Suppresses TNF-α-Induced Inflammatory Reaction In Vitro and Attenuates Severity of Dermatitis in Mice.

Anti-oxidant coenzyme Q10 (Co-Q10) is commonly used in clinic. Recently, Co-Q10 was reported to antagonize TNF-α-induced inflammation and play a protective role in various inflammatory conditions. However, its role in dermatitis is unknown. Herein, RAW264.7 macrophage cell line was cultured with stimulation of TNF-α, and administration of Co-Q10 alleviated TNF-α-mediated inflammatory reaction in vitro. Furthermore, oxazolone-induced dermatitis mice model was established, and treatment of Co-Q10 markedly attenuated dermatitis phenotype in this mice model. Moreover, the protective role of Co-Q10 in vitro and in dermatitis was probably due to its repression on NF-κB signaling. Collectively, Co-Q10 may represent a potential molecular target for prevention and treatment of inflammatory skin diseases.

Rebamipide suppresses TNF-α mediated inflammation in vitro and attenuates the severity of dermatitis in mice.

Rebamipide is a routine drug for the treatment of gastritis in a clinical setting. Recently, it has been shown to protect against various inflammatory diseases, and has provided a potential therapy for these diseases. However, whether rebamipide has a role in dermatitis remains to be elucidated. Here, we found that rebamipide alleviated the inflammatory reaction induced by tumor necrosis factor-α in RAW264.7, a stable macrophage cell line. Furthermore, rebamipide treatment repressed activation of nuclear factor-kappaB signaling, a well-established inflammatory signaling pathway. Moreover, an oxazolone-induced dermatitis mouse model was established to investigate the role of rebamipide in vivo. PBS control group exhibited typical skin inflammation, whereas treatment with rebamipide remarkably attenuated a dermatitis phenotype in this mouse model. The protective role of rebamipide in dermatitis in vivo was probably due to its inhibition of nuclear factor-kappaB signaling. Collectively, rebamipide may represent a promising molecular target for the prevention and treatment of inflammatory skin diseases.

Polymerized PolyHEMA photonic crystals: pH and ethanol sensor materials.

The surface of monodisperse silica particles synthesized using the Stober process were coated with a thin layer of polystyrene. Surface charge groups were attached by a grafting polymerization of styrene sulfonate. The resulting highly charged monodisperse silica particles self-assemble into crystalline colloidal arrays (CCA) in deionized water. We polymerized hydroxyethyl methacrylate (HEMA) around the CCA to form a HEMA-polymerized crystalline colloidal array (PCCA). Hydrofluoric acid was utilized to etch out the silica particles to produce a three-dimensional periodic array of voids in the HEMA PCCA. The diffraction from the embedded CCA sensitively monitors the concentration of ethanol in water because the HEMA PCCA shows a large volume dependence on ethanol due to a decreased Flory-Huggins mixing parameter. Between pure water and 40% ethanol the diffraction shifts across the entire visible spectral region. We accurately modeled the dependence of the diffraction wavelength on ethanol concentration using Flory theory. We also fabricated a PCCA (which responds to pH changes in both low and high ionic strength solutions) by utilizing a second polymerization to incorporate carboxyl groups into the HEMA PCCA. We were also able to model the pH dependence of diffraction of the HEMA PCCA by using Flory theory. An unusual feature of the pH response is a hysteresis in response to titration to higher and lower pH. This hysteresis results from the formation of a Donnan potential at high pH which shifts the ionic equilibrium. The kinetics of equilibration is very slow due to the ultralow diffusion constant of protons in the carboxylated PCCA as predicted earlier by the Tanaka group.

Impact of epistasis and QTL x environment interaction on the accumulation of seed mass of soybean (Glycine max L. Merr.).

The accumulation of seed mass in soybean is affected by both genotype and environment. The aim of the present study was to measure additive, epistatic and quantitative trait locus (QTL) x environment (QE) interaction effects of QTLs on the development of 100-seed weight in a population of 143 F5 derived recombinant inbred lines (RILs) developed from the cross between the soybean cultivars 'Charleston' and 'Dong Nong 594'. Broad-sense heritability of 100-seed weight from 30 days (30D) to 80D stages was 0.58, 0.52, 0.62, 0.60, 0.66 and 0.57, respectively. A total of 17 QTLs with conditional additive (a) effect and/or conditional additive x environment interaction (ae) effect at specific stages were identified in ten linkage groups by conditional mapping. Of them, only 4 QTLs had significant a effect or ae effect at different stages of seed development. Among QTLs with significant a effect, five acted positively and six acted negatively on seed development. A total of 35 epistatic pairwise QTLs of 100-seed weight were identified by conditional mapping at different developmental stages. Five pairs of QTL showed the additive x additive epistatic (aa) effect and 16 QTLs showed the aa x environment interaction (aae) effect at the different developmental stages. QTLs with aa effect as well with their environmental interaction effect appeared to vary at different developmental stages. Overall, the results indicated that 100-seed weight in soybean is under developmental, genetic and environmental control.

[Community of activated sludge based on different targeted sequence of 16S rDNA by denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis].

In order to realize effect of different sets of universal primers on the analysis of microbial community of activated sludge based on targeted sequence of 16S rDNA and employ effectively denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis (DGGE), activated sludge were obtained from the continuous stirred tank reactor (CSTR), 16S rDNA fragments were amplified with there primer sets (341f/534r, 968f/1401r and 341f/926r), and the diversity and dynamics of microbial communities were investigated by DGGE. The results indicated that community diversity and dynamics was obviously different based different sets of universal primers by DGGE. Separated patterns of the targeted sequence of primer 341f/534r and 968f/1401r were better than of 341f/926r. The similarity of communities between S2 and S3 was high in the DGGE profiles with primer 341f/534r and 341f/926r, the similarity of communities between S1 and S2 was high in the DGGE profiles with primer 968f/1 401r, it demonstrated that the similarity and dynamics of communities was different each other based different sets of universal primers. In the DGGE profiles, bands and diversity from primer 341f/534r were most, bands and diversity from primer 341f/926r were least. Thereby, while activated sludge was analyzed by DGGE, primers 341f/534r and 968f/1401r were more effective than 341f/926r.

Study on homoeologous chromosome pairing and translocation induced by 5A/5R X 6A/6R wheat-rye substitution lines.

This article aims to study the homoeologous chromosome pairing and translocation induced by 5A/5R x 6A/6R wheat-rye substitution lines. To clarify the mechanism of homoeologous chromosome pairing and create wheat-rye translocation lines, two wheat-rye substitution lines, 5A/5R and 6A/6R were crossed. The chromosome behavior of pollen mother cells (PMCs) in meiosis was investigated in hybrid F1. Homoeologous chromosome pairing between wheat and rye occurred in 22.91% of PMC. Wheat-rye translocation lines were identified via C-banding and in situ hybridization (GISH) in hybrid F2 and later generations. In F2 generation, translocations happened in 9 of 45 plants, reached to 20%. These translocation lines were generated from homoeologous chromosome pairing, or mis-division and reconstruction of univalent chromosomes.

Synthesis and utilization of monodisperse hollow polymeric particles in photonic crystals.

We developed a process to fabricate 150-700 nm monodisperse polymer particles with 100-500 nm hollow cores. These hollow particles were fabricated via dispersion polymerization to synthesize a polymer shell around monodisperse SiO(2) particles. The SiO(2) cores were then removed by HF etching to produce monodisperse hollow polymeric particle shells. The hollow core size and the polymer shell thickness, can be easily varied over significant size ranges. These hollow polymeric particles are sufficiently monodisperse that upon centrifugation from ethanol they form well-ordered close-packed colloidal crystals that diffract light. After the surfaces are functionalized with sulfonates, these particles self-assemble into crystalline colloidal arrays in deionized water. This synthetic method can also be used to create monodisperse particles with complex and unusual morphologies. For example, we synthesized hollow particles containing two concentric-independent, spherical polymer shells, and hollow silica particles which contain a central spherical silica core. In addition, these hollow spheres can be used as template microreactors. For example, we were able to fabricate monodisperse polymer spheres containing high concentrations of magnetic nanospheres formed by direct precipitation within the hollow cores.

[Study on chromosomes aberration in wheat-rye disomics addition lines induced by the gametocidal chromosome 2C].

In the present study,Chinese Spring-Imperial (1 R-7R) wheat-rye disomic addition lines were hybridized with Chinese Spring-2C (derived from Aegilops cylindrica) disomic addition lines. The F1 hybrids were examined by mitotic and meiotic analysis. There were observed abnormal chromosome configurations. A total of 430 F2 plants were obtained by self-pollination. Chromosomes aberrations, such as translocation, deletions, isobrachial and dicentromere chromosomes, are identified in F2 individual plants by C-banding combined with fluorescent in situ hybridization (FISH). Additionally, chromosome spontaneous substitutions such as 2C substituting for wheat chromosomes 2A, 2B and 2D were also observed. The rule and frequency of chromosome aberration in F2 are the following: 22 out of 430 F2 plants (5.11%) were found involving aberration rye chromosomes. Among them, 10 plants were identified as wheat-rye chromosome translocation lines comprising 2.3%. Rye chromosome deletions comprised 12 of them (2.79%). 3 isobrachial aberrations were detected (about 0.7%), too. Most of the translocation lines are with wheat centromere, only one of them is with rye centromere. Rye chromosome aberrations occurred unevenly among homoeologous groups. There were 5 in 1R, 3 in 2R, 1 in 3R, 3 in 4R, 6 in 5R and 4 in 6R. The majority of the translocation lines are terminal translocation. 54 out of the total 430 progenies are wheat deletions,and 27 are distributed in the A group, 20 in the B group and 7 in the D group respectively. Finally,we discussed the possible cause for the uneven chromosome aberration among homoeologous groups in wheat and rye as well as the effect characteristics of 2C on wheat and rye chromosome.

[Inducing chromosome translocation and deletions by Chinese Spring-Agilops 2C disomic addition x Chinese Spring-Elytriga 5E disomic addition].

Crossing between two disomic addition lines, Chinese Spring-E. elongata and Chinese Sping with two gametocidal chromosomes 2C (from Ae. cylindric), was carried out to investigate the function of gametocidal chromosome. After scrutinizing the meiosis of pollen mother cells (PMCs) in F1 hybrids, several results were concluded: (1) In seven of the crossing combinations, the number of univalents exceeded the expected and some trivalents and tetravalents appeared also in MI; lagging, breakage and bridge of chromosomes were observed in anaphase and telophase; considerable micronuclei formed in telophase and tetrads. These were mainly caused by the gametocidal chromosome 2C. (2) Chromosomes 6E and 7E were more susceptible to the effect of the gametocidal chromosome 2C. (3) The gametocidal chromosome 2C functioned in prophase viz. the period of forming synaptonemal complex. Four F1 lines, 5-14, 5-37, 5-67 and 5-71, were identified to be T5ES 4AST5EL 2BS, T5EL 3AS, T5ES 5BS translocation respectively by using C-banding and genome in situ hybrydization(GISH) analysis. Deletion was detected in line 5-17 (short arm of chromosome 2A), 5-27(6B), 5-18(4B and 5B), 5-72(4A) and 5-4(4B) by C-banding analysis. The statistic data showed that gametocidal chromosome could induce translocation with a high frequency of 5% and reacted on group B more efficiently than on groups A and D since translocation involving chromosome 4A, 2B, 3A, 5B and deletion involving chromosome 6B, 5B, 4B, 4A 2A according to Endo's work.

Mesoscopic monodisperse ferromagnetic colloids enable magnetically controlled photonic crystals.

We report here the first synthesis of mesoscopic, monodisperse particles which contain nanoscopic inclusions of ferromagnetic cobalt ferrites. These monodisperse ferromagnetic composite particles readily self-assemble into magnetically responsive photonic crystals that efficiently Bragg diffract incident light. Magnetic fields can be used to control the photonic crystal orientation and, thus, the diffracted wavelength. We demonstrate the use of these ferromagnetic particles to fabricate magneto-optical diffracting fluids and magnetically switchable diffracting mirrors.