Comparison between R2'-based and R2*-based χ-separation methods: A clinical evaluation in individuals with multiple sclerosis.

Susceptibility source separation, or χ-separation, estimates diamagnetic (χdia) and paramagnetic susceptibility (χpara) signals in the brain using local field and R2' (= R2* - R2) maps. Recently proposed R2*-based χ-separation methods allow for χ-separation using only multi-echo gradient echo (ME-GRE) data, eliminating the need for additional data acquisition for R2 mapping. Although this approach reduces scan time and enhances clinical utility, the impact of missing R2 information remains a subject of exploration. In this study, we evaluate the viability of two previously proposed R2*-based χ-separation methods as alternatives to their R2'-based counterparts: model-based R2*-χ-separation versus χ-separation and deep learning-based χ-sepnet-R2* versus χ-sepnet-R2'. Their performances are assessed in individuals with multiple sclerosis (MS), comparing them with their corresponding R2'-based counterparts (i.e., R2*-χ-separation vs. χ-separation and χ-sepnet-R2* vs. χ-sepnet-R2'). The evaluations encompass qualitative visual assessments by experienced neuroradiologists and quantitative analyses, including region of interest analyses and linear regression analyses. Qualitatively, R2*-χ-separation tends to report higher χpara and χdia values compared with χ-separation, leading to less distinct lesion contrasts, while χ-sepnet-R2* closely aligns with χ-sepnet-R2'. Quantitative analysis reveals a robust correlation between both R2*-based methods and their R2'-based counterparts (r ≥ 0.88). Specifically, in the whole-brain voxels, χ-sepnet-R2* exhibits higher correlation and better linearity than R2*-χ-separation (χdia/χpara from R2*-χ-separation: r = 0.88/0.90, slope = 0.79/0.86; χdia/χpara from χ-sepnet-R2*: r = 0.90/0.92, slope = 0.99/0.97). In MS lesions, both R2*-based methods display comparable correlation and linearity (χdia/χpara from R2*-χ-separation: r = 0.90/0.91, slope = 0.98/0.91; χdia/χpara from χ-sepnet-R2*: r = 0.88/0.88, slope = 0.91/0.95). Notably, χ-sepnet-R2* demonstrates negligible offsets, whereas R2*-χ-separation exhibits relatively large offsets (0.02 ppm in the whole brain and 0.01 ppm in the MS lesions), potentially indicating the false presence of myelin or iron in MS lesions. Overall, both R2*-based χ-separation methods demonstrated their viability as alternatives to their R2'-based counterparts. χ-sepnet-R2* showed better alignment with its R2'-based counterpart with minimal susceptibility offsets, compared with R2*-χ-separation that reported higher χpara and χdia values compared with R2'-based χ-separation.

An Importance-Performance Analysis of Korean Middle School Students' Health Management Awareness during the Post-COVID-19 Era Depending on Sex.

This study aimed to conduct importance-performance analyses (IPAs) based on Korean middle school students' health management awareness during the post-coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) era. Data were collected from 867 Korean middle school students (13-15 years old) via online and offline surveys between May and June 2023. Frequency analysis, reliability analysis, IPA based on the entire student group, and IPA depending on sex were carried out with the collected data, which revealed the following. First, regardless of sex, the IPA results indicated that four factors of mental health were located in the third quadrant, with one factor of the same variable in the fourth quadrant. The three factors of disease management were located in the third quadrant. Regarding physical activity, two factors were located in the first quadrant, one in the second quadrant, and one in the third quadrant. Regarding sleep management, two factors were located in the second quadrant, one in the third quadrant, and one in the first quadrant. Regarding eating management, two factors were located in the third quadrant and one in the fourth quadrant. Regarding the social distancing variable, all four factors were located in the third quadrant. Regarding hygiene management, two factors were located in the first quadrant, one in the third quadrant, and one in the fourth quadrant. Furthermore, the IPA results indicated sex differences in regular sports and vigorous movement activities associated with physical activity. Additionally, a sex difference was observed in regular diet associated with eating management. This study proposed possible measures for encouraging middle school students to recognize the importance of health and increase their health-related performance during the COVID-19 endemic phase.

S-LIGHT: Synthetic Dataset for the Separation of Diffuse and Specular Reflection Images.

Several studies in computer vision have examined specular removal, which is crucial for object detection and recognition. This research has traditionally been divided into two tasks: specular highlight removal, which focuses on removing specular highlights on object surfaces, and reflection removal, which deals with specular reflections occurring on glass surfaces. In reality, however, both types of specular effects often coexist, making it a fundamental challenge that has not been adequately addressed. Recognizing the necessity of integrating specular components handled in both tasks, we constructed a specular-light (S-Light) DB for training single-image-based deep learning models. Moreover, considering the absence of benchmark datasets for quantitative evaluation, the multi-scale normalized cross correlation (MS-NCC) metric, which considers the correlation between specular and diffuse components, was introduced to assess the learning outcomes.

Mesoporous Gold: Substrate-Dependent Growth Dynamics, Strain Accumulation, and Electrocatalytic Activity for Biosensing.

Understanding the growth of mesoporous crystalline materials, such as mesoporous metals, on different substrates can provide valuable insights into the crystal growth dynamics and the redox reactions that influence their electrochemical sensing performance. Herein, it is demonstrated how the amorphous nature of the glass substrate can suppress the typical <111> oriented growth in mesoporous Au (mAu) films. The suppressed <111> growth is manifested as an accumulation of strain, leading to the generation of abundant surface defects, which are beneficial for enhancing the electrochemical activity. The fine structuring attained enables dramatically accelerated diffusion and enhances the electrochemical sensing performance for disease-specific biomolecules. As a proof-of-concept, the as-fabricated glass-grown mAu film demonstrates high sensitivity in electrochemical detection of SARS-CoV-2-specific RNA with a limit of detection (LoD) as low as 1 attomolar (aM).

Mesenchymal glioma stem cells trigger vasectasia-distinct neovascularization process stimulated by extracellular vesicles carrying EGFR.

Targeting neovascularization in glioblastoma (GBM) is hampered by poor understanding of the underlying mechanisms and unclear linkages to tumour molecular landscapes. Here we report that different molecular subtypes of human glioma stem cells (GSC) trigger distinct endothelial responses involving either angiogenic or circumferential vascular growth (vasectasia). The latter process is selectively triggered by mesenchymal (but not proneural) GSCs and is mediated by a subset of extracellular vesicles (EVs) able to transfer EGFR/EGFRvIII transcript to endothelial cells. Inhibition of the expression and phosphorylation of EGFR in endothelial cells, either pharmacologically (Dacomitinib) or genetically (gene editing), abolishes their EV responses in vitro and disrupts vasectasia in vivo. Therapeutic inhibition of EGFR markedly extends anticancer effects of VEGF blockade in mice, coupled with abrogation of vasectasia and prolonged survival. Thus, vasectasia driven by intercellular transfer of oncogenic EGFR may represent a new therapeutic target in a subset of GBMs.

Trace level detection of melamine and cyanuric acid extracted from pet liquid food (milk) using a SERS Au nanogap substrate.

This study reported an application of Au nanogap substrates for surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) measurements to quantitatively analyze melamine and its derivative products at trace levels in pet liquid food (milk) combined with a waveband selection approach, namely variable importance in projection (VIP). Six different concentrations of melamine, cyanuric acid, and melamine combined with cyanuric acid were created, and SERS spectra were acquired from 550 to 1620cm-1. Detection was possible up to 200 pM for melamine-contaminated samples, and 400 pM concentration detection for other two groups. The VIP-PLSR models obtained correlation coefficient (R2) values of 0.997, 0.985, and 0.981, with root mean square error of prediction (RMSEP) values of 18.492 pM, 19.777 pM, and 15.124 pM for prediction datasets. Additionally, partial least square discriminant analysis (PLS-DA) was used to classify both pure and different concentrations of spiked samples. The results showed that the maximum classification accuracy for melamine was 100%, for cyanuric acid it was 96%, and for melamine coupled with cyanuric acid it was 95%. The results obtained clearly demonstrated that the Au nanogap substrate offers low-concentration, rapid, and efficient detection of hazardous additive chemicals in pet consuming liquid food.

Association of HNMT gene polymorphisms with carnosine content in red-brown Korean native chickens.

Objective: Carnosine and anserine affect the meat flavor. The contents of carnosine and anserine in meat are affected by genetic and environmental factors. This study aimed to discover the single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in the HNMT and HNMT-like genes and to associate them with the content of carnosine and anserine in Korean native chicken-red brown line (KNC-R ). Methods: This study used a total of 384 birds (males, n=192; females, n=192) aged 10 weeks old, for genotyping HNMT and HNMT-like genes. One synonymous SNP (rs29009298C/T) of the HNMT gene was genotyped by PCR-RFLP methods whereas four missense SNPs (rs734406537G/A; rs736514667A/G; rs15881680G/A and rs316765035T/C) of the HNMT gene, and one missense SNP rs737657949A/C of the HNMT-like gene were genotyped by PACE genotyping technology. Two-way ANOVA of the R program was used to associate HNMT genotypes with the contents of carnosine and anserine in KNC- R chickens. Results: There were significant associations (p<0.05) between the genotypes of the synonymous SNP:rs29009298C/T, missense SNP rs736514667A/G of the HNMT gene and the content of carnosine in KNC-Rs. This study also reported the sex effect on the carnosine content, where females had more content of carnosine compared to that of male KNC-R. Conclusion: Two SNPs (synonymous: rs735769522C/T) and missense: rs736514667A/G) in the HNMT gene might be used as genetic markers in the selection and breeding of chickens with better taste and high-flavored meat.

Characterisation of runs of homozygosity and inbreeding coefficients in the red-brown Korean native chickens.

Objective: The analysis of runs of homozygosity (ROH) has been applied to assess the level of inbreeding and identify selection signatures in various livestock species. The objectives of this study were to characterize the ROH pattern, estimate the rate of inbreeding, and identify signatures of selection in the red-brown Korean native chickens. Methods: The Illumina 60K SNP chip data of 651 chickens was used in the analysis. Runs of homozygosity were analysed using the PLINK v1.9 software. Inbreeding coefficients were estimated using the GCTA software and their correlations were examined. Genomic regions with high levels of ROH were explored to identify selection signatures. Results: A total of 32,176 ROH segments were detected in this study. The majority of the ROH segments were shorter than 4 Mb. The average ROH inbreeding coefficients (FROH) varied with the length of ROH segments. The means of inbreeding coefficients calculated from different methods were also variable. The correlations between different inbreeding coefficients were positive and highly variable (r = 0.18 -1). Five ROH islands harbouring important Quantitative trait loci were identified. Conclusion: This study assessed the level of inbreeding and patterns of homozygosity in Red-brown native Korean chickens. The results of this study suggest that the level of recent inbreeding is low which indicates substantial progress in the conservation of red-brown Korean native chickens. Additionally, Candidate genomic regions associated with important production traits were detected in homozygous regions.

Organic precursors for tailored synthesis of sulfur- and nitrogen-doped mesoporous carbons: a molecular design approach.

Insights into tailoring heteroatom-doped mesoporous carbon are provided for enhanced electrocatalytic properties. This study focuses on the design and synthesis of sulfur-doped mesoporous carbon using a sulfur-containing monomer with a chemical structure similar to dopamine. The resulting material achieves remarkable catalytic activity for the oxygen reduction reaction.

Safety of Biologics and Small Molecules for Inflammatory Bowel Diseases in Organ Transplant Recipients.

PURPOSE: This study aimed to evaluate the safety of biologics and small molecules for the treatment of inflammatory bowel diseases (IBD) in patients receiving antirejection therapies after organ transplants. MATERIALS AND METHODS: We reviewed the medical records of patients with IBD who received organ transplants at the Asan Medical Center between January 1989 and December 2021. We compared the parameters of patients receiving biologics or small molecules to those of patients without those therapies. RESULTS: This study included a total of 53 patients (ulcerative colitis, 41; Crohn's disease, 6; and gastrointestinal Behçet's disease, 6). Among them, 15 patients were receiving biologics or small molecules and 38 were not. During a mean follow-up of 119 months, the proportion of patients experiencing severe infections was significantly higher in those treated with biologics or small molecules than in those not treated. However, other safety outcomes (e.g., malignancies, adverse events, including organizing pneumonia or hepatic failure, and death) were not different between the two groups. Kaplan-Meier curve analysis revealed no significant difference in the safety outcome rate related to the use of biologics or small molecules. During follow-up, eight patients underwent bowel resections for IBD. The rate of bowel resection was not different between the two groups. CONCLUSION: The use of biologics or small molecules for patients with IBD who received organ transplants did not show a significant difference in safety outcomes. However, the possibility of severe infections must be considered.

Genome-wide association studies of anserine and carnosine contents in the breast meat of Korean native chickens.

Histidine-containing dipeptides (HCDs), such as anserine and carnosine, are enormously beneficial to human health and contribute to the meat flavor in chickens. Meat quality traits, including flavor, are polygenic traits with medium to high heritability. Polygenic traits can be improved through a better understanding of their genetic mechanisms. Genome-wide association studies (GWAS) constitute an effective genomic tool to identify the significant single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) and potential candidate genes related to various traits of interest in chickens. This study identified potential candidate genes influencing the anserine and carnosine contents in chicken meat through GWAS. We performed GWAS of anserine and carnosine using the Illumina chicken 60K SNP chip (Illumina Inc., San Diego, CA) in 637 Korean native chicken-red-brown line (KNC-R) birds consisting of 228 males and 409 females. The contents of anserine and carnosine in breast meat of KNC-R chickens were investigated. The mean value of the anserine and carnosine are 29.12 mM/g and 10.69 mM/g respectively. The genomic heritabilities were moderate (0.24) for anserine and high (0.43) for carnosine contents. Four and nine SNPs were significantly (P < 0.05) associated with anserine and carnosine, respectively. Based on the GWAS result, the 30.6 to 31.9 Mb region on chicken chromosome 7 was commonly associated with both anserine and carnosine. Through the functional annotation analysis, we identified HNMT and HNMT-like genes as potential candidate genes associated with both anserine and carnosine. The results presented here will contribute to the ongoing improvement of meat quality to satisfy current consumer demands, which are based on healthier, better-flavored, and higher-quality chicken meat.

Vapor phase detection of explosives by surface enhanced Raman scattering under ambient conditions with metal nanogap structures.

Non-invasive and passive detection of explosives in the vapor phase is advantageous for military, counter-terrorism, and homeland security applications. Detection of explosives using SERS has been an active research topic. However, the vapor pressures of most explosives are low at room temperature, and consequently, the vapor phase detection by SERS is highly challenging without intentionally heating explosive powder to increase the vapor pressure. In this work, we report the rapid and sensitive detection of 2,4,6-trinitrotoluene (TNT) and 2,4-dinitrotoluene (2,4-DNT) in the vapor phase, using a gold nanogap (AuNG) SERS substrate. The AuNG SERS substrate was fabricated with electron beam evaporation, rapid thermal annealing, and wet etching. SERS measurements were carried out with an incident power as low as 0.56 mW at 785 nm. To prevent the condensation effect, the TNT and 2,4-DNT powders inside the cuvette were taken out before inserting the nanogap substrate. Our SERS results demonstrate the feasibility of the non-invasive detection of vapor phase explosives under ambient conditions.

Mediating effect of lower extremity muscle on the relationship between obesity and osteoarthritis in middle-aged and elderly women in Korea: based on the 2009-2011 Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey.

OBJECTIVES: This study investigated whether the lower extremity muscle mass index (LMI) mediates the relationship between general obesity, central obesity, and knee osteoarthritis in middle-aged and elderly women in Korea. METHODS: Data of 2,843 women aged ≥50 years were collected from the Korean National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey conducted between 2009 and 2011. General obesity and central obesity were evaluated based on body mass index (BMI) and waist circumference (WC), calculated through anthropometric measurements and body composition assessments. LMI was calculated by dividing the muscle mass in both legs-measured using the dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry-by body weight. Knee osteoarthritis was defined as a Kellgren-Lawrence scale (KL) grade of ≥2 as assessed through radiographic images. RESULTS: Knee osteoarthritis prevalence, indicated by KL grades, was significantly higher in the general obesity and central obesity groups compared to the normal group, and conversely, lower with varying LMI levels. Using mediation analysis with bootstrapping and adjusting for covariates, we found that LMI mediated the relationship between BMI and KL (ß, 0.005; 95% confidence interval [CI], 0.000 to 0.010) and WC and KL grade (ß, 0.002; 95% CI, 0.001 to 0.003), explaining 4.8% and 6.7% of the total effects of BMI and WC on KL grade, respectively. CONCLUSIONS: The study suggested that LMI partially mediates the link between general obesity and/or central obesity and knee osteoarthritis, proposing that a higher proportion of lower limb muscle mass relative to body weight can alleviate the increased risk of knee osteoarthritis caused by obesity.

Cooking oil fume exposure and Lung-RADS distribution among school cafeteria workers of South Korea.

Background: Cooking oil fumes (COFs) from cooking with hot oil may contribute to the pathogenesis of lung cancer. Since 2021, occupational lung cancer for individual cafeteria workers has been recognized in South Korea. In this study, we aimed to identify the distribution of lung-imaging reporting and data system (Lung-RADS) among cafeteria workers and to determine factors related to Lung-RADS distribution. Methods: We included 203 female participants who underwent low-dose computed tomography (LDCT) screening at a university hospital and examined the following variables: age, smoking status, second-hand smoke, height, weight, and years of service, mask use, cooking time, heat source, and ventilation. We divided all participants into culinary and non-culinary workers. Binomial logistic regression was conducted to determine the risk factors on LDCT of Category ≥ 3, separately for the overall group and the culinary group. Results: In this study, Lung-RADS-positive occurred in 17 (8.4%) individuals, all of whom were culinary workers. Binary logistic regression analyses were performed and no variables were found to have a significant impact on Lung-RADS results. In the subgroup analysis, the Lung-RADS-positive, and -negative groups differed only in ventilation. Binary logistic regression showed that the adjusted odds ratio (aOR) of the Lung-RADS-positive group for inappropriate ventilation at the workplace was 14.89 (95% confidence interval [CI]: 3.296-67.231) compared to appropriate ventilation as the reference, and the aOR for electric appliances at home was 4.59 (95% CI: 1.061-19.890) using liquid fuel as the reference. Conclusions: The rate of Lung-RADS-positive was significantly higher among culinary workers who performed actual cooking tasks than among nonculinary workers. In addition, appropriate ventilation at the workplace made the LDCT results differ. More research is needed to identify factors that might influence LDCT findings among culinary workers, including those in other occupations.

Cloning and Expression Analysis of Bioluminescence Genes in Omphalotus guepiniiformis Reveal Stress-Dependent Regulation of Bioluminescence.

Bioluminescence is a type of chemiluminescence that arises from a luciferase-catalyzed oxidation reaction of luciferin. Molecular biology and comparative genomics have recently elucidated the genes involved in fungal bioluminescence and the evolutionary history of their clusters. However, most studies on fungal bioluminescence have been limited to observing the changes in light intensity under various conditions. To understand the molecular basis of bioluminescent responses in Omphalotus guepiniiformis under different environmental conditions, we cloned and sequenced the genes of hispidin synthase, hispidin-3-hydroxylase, and luciferase enzymes, which are pivotal in the fungal bioluminescence pathway. Each gene showed high sequence similarity to that of other luminous fungal species. Furthermore, we investigated their transcriptional changes in response to abiotic stresses. Wound stress enhanced the bioluminescence intensity by increasing the expression of bioluminescence pathway genes, while temperature stress suppressed the bioluminescence intensity via the non-transcriptional pathway. Our data suggested that O. guepiniiformis regulates bioluminescence to respond differentially to specific environmental stresses. To our knowledge, this is the first study on fungal bioluminescence at the gene expression level. Further studies are required to address the biological and ecological meaning of different bioluminescence responses in changing environments, and O. quepiniiformis could be a potential model species.

Identification of new major histocompatibility complex-B Haplotypes in Bangladesh native chickens.

OBJECTIVE: The major histocompatibility complex in chicken demonstrates a great range of variations within varities, breeds, populations and that can eventually influence their immuneresponses. The preset study was conducted to understand the major histocompatibility complex-B (MHC-B) variability in five major populations of Bangladesh native chicken: Aseel, Hilly, Junglefowl, Non-descript Deshi, and Naked Neck. METHODS: These five major populations of Bangladesh native chicken were analyzed with a subset of 89 single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in the high-density MHC-B SNP panel and Kompetitive Allele-Specific polymerase chain reaction genotyping was applied. To explore haplotype diversity within these populations, the results were analyzed both manually and computationally using PHASE 2.1 program. The phylogenetic investigations were also performed using MrBayes program. RESULTS: A total of 136 unique haplotypes were identified within these five Bangladesh chicken populations, and only one was shared (between Hilly and Naked Neck). Phylogenetic analysis showed no distinct haplotype clustering among the five populations, although they were shared in distinct clades; notably, the first clade lacked Naked Neck haplotypes. CONCLUSION: The present study discovered a set of unique MHC-B haplotypes in Bangladesh chickens that could possibly cause varied immune reponses. However, further investigations are required to evaluate their relationships with global chicken populations.

Effects of benzalkonium chloride as a cationic surfactant on the physicochemical properties of adlay millet starch films.

The effects of benzalkonium chloride (BC) as a cationic surfactant on the mechanical, water barrier, microstructural, and thermal properties of adlay millet starch (AS) films were investigated in this study. With increasing BC concentration, tensile strength (from 5.93 to 6.15 MPa) and elongation at break (from 41.39 to 45.48%) of AS-BC films significantly increased, whereas their moisture content, water solubility, and water vapor permeability were reduced, indicating water resistance improvement. Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy and scanning electron microscopy analysis showed that BC at concentrations below 1% did not cause noticeable changes in the microstructure of AS-BC films. In addition, the thermal stability of AS-BC films was not affected by BC, indicating good miscibility between AS and BC. Therefore, BC could improve the physicochemical properties of starch films, and AS-BC films developed in this study can be applied as novel biodegradable packaging materials in the food packaging industry. Supplementary Information: The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s10068-023-01383-1.

Major histocompatibility complex genes exhibit a potential immunological role in mixed Eimeria-infected broiler cecum analyzed using RNA sequencing.

OBJECTIVE: This study was conducted to investigate the differential expression of the major histocompatibility complex (MHC) gene region in Eimeria-infected broiler. METHODS: We profiled gene expression of Eimeria-infected and uninfected ceca of broilers sampled at 4, 7, and 21 days post-infection (dpi) using RNA sequencing. Differentially expressed genes (DEGs) between two sample groups were identified at each time point. DEGs located on chicken chromosome 16 were used for further analysis. Kyoto encyclopedia of genes and genomes (KEGG) pathway analysis was conducted for the functional annotation of DEGs. RESULTS: Fourteen significant (false discovery rate <0.1) DEGs were identified at 4 and 7 dpi and categorized into three groups: MHC-Y class I genes, MHC-B region genes, and non-MHC genes. In Eimeria-infected broilers, MHC-Y class I genes were upregulated at 4 dpi but downregulated at 7 dpi. This result implies that MHC-Y class I genes initially activated an immune response, which was then suppressed by Eimeria. Of the MHC-B region genes, the DMB1 gene was upregulated, and TAP-related genes significantly implemented antigen processing for MHC class I at 4 dpi, which was supported by KEGG pathway analysis. CONCLUSION: This study is the first to investigate MHC gene responses to coccidia infection in chickens using RNA sequencing. MHC-B and MHC-Y genes showed their immune responses in reaction to Eimeria infection. These findings are valuable for understanding chicken MHC gene function.

Top-Emitting Quantum Dot Light-Emitting Diodes: Theory, Optimization, and Application.

The superior optical properties of colloidal quantum dots (QDs) have garnered significant broad interest from academia and industry owing to their successful application in self-emitting QD-based light-emitting diodes (QLEDs). In particular, active research is being conducted on QLEDs with top-emission device architectures (TQLEDs) owing to their advantages such as easy integration with conventional backplanes, high color purity, and excellent light extraction. However, due to the complicated optical phenomena and their highly sensitive optoelectrical properties to experimental variations, TQLEDs cannot be optimized easily for practical use. This review summarizes previous studies that have investigated top-emitting device structures and discusses ways to advance the performance of TQLEDs. First, theories relevant to the optoelectrical properties of TQLEDs are introduced. Second, advancements in device optimization are presented, where the underlying theories for each are considered. Finally, multilateral strategies for TQLEDs to enable their wider application to advanced industries are discussed. This work believes that this review can provide valuable insights for realizing commercial TQLEDs applicable to a broad range of applications.

p-Phenylenediamine-Bridged Binder-Electrolyte-Unified Supramolecules for Versatile Lithium Secondary Batteries.

The binder is an essential component in determining the structural integrity and ionic conductivity of Li-ion battery electrodes. However, conventional binders are not sufficiently conductive and durable to be used with solid-state electrolytes. In this study, a novel system is proposed for a Li secondary battery that combines the electrolyte and binder into a unified structure, which is achieved by employing para-phenylenediamine (pPD) moiety to create supramolecular bridges between the parent binders. Due to a partial crosslinking effect and charge-transferring structure of pPD, the proposed strategy improves both the ionic conductivity and mechanical properties by a factor of 6.4 (achieving a conductivity of 3.73 × 10-4 S cm-1 for poly(ethylene oxide)-pPD) and 4.4 (reaching a mechanical strength of 151.4 kPa for poly(acrylic acid)-pPD) compared to those of conventional parent binders. As a result, when the supramolecules of pPD are used as a binder in a pouch cell with a lean electrolyte loading of 2 µL mAh-1 , a capacity retention of 80.2% is achieved even after 300 cycles. Furthermore, when it is utilized as a solid-state electrolyte, an average Coulombic efficiency of 99.7% and capacity retention of 98.7% are attained under operations at 50 °C without external pressure or a pre-aging process.