CEBPA facilitates LOXL2 and LOXL3 transcription to promote BCL-2 stability and thus enhances the growth and metastasis of lung carcinoma cells in vitro.

Lung carcinoma (LC) is a complicated and highly heterogeneous disease with high morbidity and mortality. Both lysyl oxidase-like (LOXL) 2 and 3 act in cancer progression. This work endeavors to illustrate the influence of LOXL2/LOXL3 on LC progression and the underlying mechanisms. LOXL family genes and CCAAT enhancer binding protein A (CEBPA) were analyzed in the TCGA database for their expression patterns in LC patients and their correlations with the patient's prognosis. CEBPA, LOXL2, and LOXL3 expression levels were determined in LC cells. Gain- and loss-of-function assays were conducted, followed by assays for cell proliferation, epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT), apoptosis, invasion, and migration. The binding of CEBPA or B cell lymphoma protein (BCL)-2 to LOXL2/LOXL3 was verified. The ubiquitination level of BCL-2 and histone acetylation level of LOXL2/LOXL3 in LC cells were analyzed. Database analyses revealed that LC patients had high CEBPA, LOXL2, and LOXL3 expression, which were related to poor prognosis. LC cells also exhibited high CEBPA, LOXL2, and LOXL3 levels. LOXL2/LOXL3 knockdown subdued EMT, proliferation, migration, and invasion while enhancing the apoptosis of LC cells. LOXL2/LOXL3 could bind to CEBPA and BCL-2. LOXL2/LOXL3 knockdown upregulated BCL-2 ubiquitination level and diminished BCL-2 expression in LC cells. CEBPA recruited Tip60 to enhance histone acetylation and transcription of LOXL2/LOXL3 in LC cells. BCL-2 overexpression abolished the impacts of LOXL2/LOXL3 knockdown on LC cells. In conclusion, CEBPA boosts LOXL2 and LOXL3 transcription to facilitate BCL-2 stability by recruiting Tip60 and thus contributes to LC cell growth and metastasis.

Atomically Dispersed CrOX on Pd Metallene for CO-Resistant Methanol Oxidation.

The effective design and construction of high-performance methanol oxidation reaction (MOR) electrocatalysts are significant for the development of direct methanol fuel cells. But the active sites of the MOR electrocatalysts are susceptible to being poisoned by CO, resulting in poor durability. Herein, we report an atomically dispersed CrOX species anchored on Pd metallene through bridging O atoms. This catalyst shows an outstanding MOR performance with 7 times higher mass activity and 100 mV lower CO electrooxidation potential than commercial Pd/C. The results of operando electrochemical Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy demonstrate the rapid removal of CO* on CrOX-Pd metallene. Theoretical calculations reveal that atomically dispersed CrOX can lower the adsorption energy of CO* on Pd sites and enhance that of OH* through the formation of a hydrogen bond, decreasing the formation energy of COOH*. This work provides a new strategy for improving MOR performance via atomically engineering oxide/metal interfaces.

Module-Level Polaritonic Thermophotovoltaic Emitters via Hierarchical Sequential Learning.

Thermophotovoltaic (TPV) generators provide continuous and high-efficiency power output by utilizing local thermal emitters to convert energy from various sources to thermal radiation matching the bandgaps of photovoltaic cells. Lack of effective guidelines for thermal emission control at high temperatures, poor thermal stability, and limited fabrication scalability are the three key challenges for the practical deployment of TPV devices. Here we develop a hierarchical sequential-learning optimization framework and experimentally realize a 6″ module-scale polaritonic thermal emitter with bandwidth-controlled thermal emission as well as excellent thermal stability at 1473 K. The 300 nm bandwidth thermal emission is realized by a complex photon polariton based on the superposition of Tamm plasmon polariton and surface plasmon polariton. We experimentally achieve a spectral efficiency of 65.6% (wavelength range of 0.4-8 µm) with statistical deviation less than 4% over the 6″ emitter, demonstrating industrial-level reliability for module-scale TPV applications.

Spatially Confined PdHx Metallenes by Tensile Strained Atomic Ru Layers for Efficient Hydrogen Evolution.

Hydride metallenes show great potential for hydrogen-related catalytic applications due to favorable electronic structures modulated by interstitial hydrogen atoms and large active surface areas of metallenes. Metallene nanostructures generally have compressive strain relative to bulk, which can affect both the stability and the catalytic behavior of hydride metallenes but in general cannot be controlled. Here, we demonstrate highly stable PdHx metallenes with a tensile strained Ru surface layer and reveal the spatial confinement effect of the Ru skin by multiple spectroscopic characterizations and molecular dynamics simulations. These PdHx@Ru metallenes with a 4.5% expanded Ru outer layer exhibit outstanding alkaline hydrogen evolution reaction activity with a low overpotential of 30 mV at 10 mA cm-2 and robust stability with negligible activity decay after 10,000 cycles, which are superior to commercial Pt/C and most reported Ru-based electrocatalysts. Control experiments and first-principles calculations reveal that the tensile strained Ru outer layer lowers the energy barrier of H2O dissociation and provides a moderate hydrogen adsorption energy.

Ion-Assisted Preparation of Bimetallic Porous Nanodendrites for Active and Stable Water Electrolysis.

Delicate electrochemical active surface area (ECSA) engineering over the exposed catalytic interface and surface topology of platinum-based nanomaterial represents an effective pathway to boost its catalytic properties toward the clean energy conversion system. Here, for the first time, the facial and universal production of dendritic Pt-based nanoalloys (Pt-Ni, Co, Fe) with highly porous feature via a novel Zn2+ -mediated solution approach is demonstrated. In the presence of Zn2+ during synthesis, the competition of different galvanic replacement reactions and consequently generated "branch-to-branch" growth mode are believed to play key roles for the in situ fabrication of such unique nanostructure. Due to the fully exposed active sites and ligand effect-induced electronic optimization, electrochemical hydrogen evolution in alkaline media on these catalysts exhibit dramatic activity enhancement, delivering a current density of 30.6 mA cm-2 at a 70 mV overpotential for the Pt3 Ni nanodendrites and over 7.4 times higher than that of commercial Pt/C. This work highlights a general and powerful ion-assisted strategy for exploiting dendritic Pt-based nanostructures with efficient activities for water electrolysis.

MiR-143-3p Increases the Radiosensitivity of Breast Cancer Cells Through FGF1.

Breast cancer is a common malignant tumor in women. At present, the main treatment for breast cancer is radiotherapy. Due to the difference in radiosensitivity between individuals or tumor cells, the effect of radiotherapy is not good. Therefore, in radiotherapy, how to use various auxiliary means to reduce the radiation resistance of tumor, Therefore, it has become an important research topic to improve the radiosensitivity of the tumor. Fibroblast growth factor-1 (FGF1) plays an important role in tumor migration. Therefore, the study of miR-143-3p increasing the radiosensitivity of breast cancer cells through FGF1 is proposed in this paper. In this study, a control group experiment was set up to study. During the experiment, the relative expression of miR-143-3p was detected by fluorescent quantitative PCR of miRNA, and the cell irradiation experiment was created to analyze the radiosensitivity of breast cancer cells by comparing their survival fraction. The results of this study showed that when the radiation dose was 0, the survival scores of the three groups were all 1. The survival fraction of the experimental group decreased from 0.26 ± 0.045 to 0.068 ± 0.008 when the dose was added to 4Gy. The survival fraction of the experimental group was always greater than that of the two control groups. The results of this study show that miR-143-3p can increase the radiosensitivity of breast cancer cells through FGF1.

Research on Distributed Energy Consensus Mechanism Based on Blockchain in Virtual Power Plant.

Virtual power plant (VPP) composed of a large number of distributed energy resources (DERs) has become a regional multienergy aggregation model to realize the large-scale integration of renewable energy generation into the grid. Due to the characteristics of centralized management, the existing energy operation mode is difficult to simply apply to distributed energy resources transactions. The decentralization, transparency, contract execution automation and traceability of blockchain technology provide a new solution to the aggregation of decentralized resources and the opacity of transactions in VPP. In this paper, the existing problems of virtual power plants are analyzed, and the virtual power plant trading model is designed, which realizes the transparent benefit distribution and message transmission of virtual power plants. The virtual power plant blockchain network based on blockchain technology in this model solves the DERs coordination problem in VPP and the security and efficiency problems in information transmission. Combined with the actual situation of virtual power plant, the blockchain network collaboration mechanism (BNCM), which is convenient to reach agreement, is designed. Compared with the traditional practical Byzantine fault tolerance (PBFT) consensus algorithm, this mechanism can make DERs reach a consensus quickly. Finally, simulation experiments on the consensus algorithm show that the algorithm can reduce the collaboration time between DERs under the premise of ensuring the same fault tolerance rate and is more suitable for VPP scenarios with a large number of DERs.

Bi-level artificial intelligence model for risk classification of acute respiratory diseases based on Chinese clinical data.

OBJECTIVE: The high incidence of respiratory diseases has dramatically increased the medical burden under the COVID-19 pandemic in the year 2020. It is of considerable significance to utilize a new generation of information technology to improve the artificial intelligence level of respiratory disease diagnosis. METHODS: Based on the semi-structured data of Chinese Electronic Medical Records (CEMRs) from the China Hospital Pharmacovigilance System, this paper proposed a bi-level artificial intelligence model for the risk classification of acute respiratory diseases. It includes two levels. The first level is a dedicated design of the "BiLSTM+Dilated Convolution+3D Attention+CRF" deep learning model that is used for Chinese Clinical Named Entity Recognition (CCNER) to extract valuable information from the unstructured data in the CEMRs. Incorporating the transfer learning and semi-supervised learning technique into the proposed deep learning model achieves higher accuracy and efficiency in the CCNER task than the popular "Bert+BiLSTM+CRF" approach. Combining the extracted entity data with other structured data in the CEMRs, the second level is a customized XGBoost to realize the risk classification of acute respiratory diseases. RESULTS: The empirical study shows that the proposed model could provide practical technical support for improving diagnostic accuracy. CONCLUSION: Our study provides a proof-of-concept for implementing a hybrid artificial intelligence-based system as a tool to aid clinicians in tackling CEMR data and enhancing the diagnostic evaluation under diagnostic uncertainty.

Atomically Dispersed MoOx on Rhodium Metallene Boosts Electrocatalyzed Alkaline Hydrogen Evolution.

Accelerating slow water dissociation kinetics is key to boosting the hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) in alkaline media. We report the synthesis of atomically dispersed MoOx species anchored on Rh metallene using a one-pot solvothermal method. The resulting structures expose the oxide-metal interfaces to the maximum extent. This leads to a MoOx -Rh catalyst with ultrahigh alkaline HER activity. We obtained a mass activity of 2.32 A mgRh -1 at an overpotential of 50 mV, which is 11.8 times higher than that of commercial Pt/C and surpasses the previously reported Rh-based electrocatalysts. First-principles calculations demonstrate that the interface between MoOx and Rh is the active center for alkaline HER. The MoOx sites preferentially adsorb and dissociate water molecules, and adjacent Rh sites adsorb the generated atomic hydrogen for efficient H2 evolution. Our findings illustrate the potential of atomic interface engineering strategies in electrocatalysis.

Rational Construction of Ruthenium-Cobalt Oxides Heterostructure in ZIFs-Derived Double-Shelled Hollow Polyhedrons for Efficient Hydrogen Evolution Reaction.

Transition metal oxides (TMOs) and their heterostructure hybrids have emerged as promising candidates for hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) electrocatalysts based on the recent technological breakthroughs and significant advances. Herein, Ru-Co oxides/Co3 O4 double-shelled hollow polyhedrons (RCO/Co3 O4 -350 DSHPs) with Ru-Co oxides as an outer shell and Co3 O4 as an inner shell by pyrolysis of core-shelled structured RuCo(OH)x @zeolitic-imidazolate-framework-67 derivate at 350 °C are constructed. The unique double-shelled hollow structure provides the large active surface area with rich exposure spaces for the penetration/diffusion of active species and the heterogeneous interface in Ru-Co oxides benefits the electron transfer, simultaneously accelerating the surface electrochemical reactions during HER process. The theory computation further indicates that the existence of heterointerface in RCO/Co3 O4 -350 DSHPs optimize the electronic configuration and further weaken the energy barrier in the HER process, promoting the catalytic activity. As a result, the obtained RCO/Co3 O4 -350 DSHPs exhibit outstanding HER performance with a low overpotential of 21 mV at 10 mA cm-2 , small Tafel slope of 67 mV dec-1 , and robust stability in 1.0 m KOH. This strategy opens new avenues for designing TMOs with the special structure in electrochemical applications.

Silencing of S-phase kinase-associated protein 2 enhances radiosensitivity of esophageal cancer cells through inhibition of PI3K/AKT signaling pathway.

We investigated the effect of S-phase kinase-associated protein 2 (SKP2) on radiosensitivity of esophageal cancer (EC) cells. Expression of SKP2, PI3K, AKT, Bcl-2 and Bax were assayed in EC. EC cells were transfected with SKP2-siRNA/IGF-1 to detect expression of SKP2, PI3K, AKT, Bcl-2 and Bax. At last, the radiosensitivity of cells in different doses of X (0, 2, 4, 6, 8 Gy) irradiation and cell apoptosis were also detected. EC cells displayed a higher positive expression rate of SKP2, elevated mRNA and protein expression of SKP2, PI3K, AKT, Bcl-2 and Bax, as well as higher extent of PI3K and AKT phosphorylation. SKP2 silencing downregulated mRNA and protein expression of PI3K, AKT and Bcl-2 but increased p27 protein expression, and inhibited the cell survival rate while promoting cell apoptosis. Taken together, silencing SKP2 can inhibit the PI3K/AKT signaling pathway, thereby increasing the radiosensitivity of EC cells.

Identifying the Activation Mechanism and Boosting Electrocatalytic Activity of Layered Perovskite Ruthenate.

SrRuO3 as a rare conductive perovskite ruthenate has attracted increasing attention for application in energy conversion. Here, the electrocatalytic activity for the hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) of thermally synthesized layered SrRuO3 is investigated and shows a considerable activation during cathodic polarization in alkaline solution. The analysis demonstrates the electrode activation is caused by the increased hydrophilicity of SrRuO3 surface, revealing the influence of the surface properties on HER performance. For further improving the catalytic activity of perovskite ruthenate, the RuO2 /SrRuO3 (RSRO) heterostructure is fabricated in situ by reducing the thermal decomposition temperature of 1000 °C for SrRuO3 to 600 °C. The appropriate lattice parameter of SrRuO3 ensures a good lattice match, which results in a strong interaction between SrRuO3 and RuO2 . Hence, the RSRO substantially outperforms the corresponding single-component oxides. In addition, the increased active sites induced by the rapid improvement of hydrophilicity of RSRO surface further highlight its structural advantage for catalytic hydrogen generation. The experimental and theoretical computation results consistently validate the positive synergistic effect among SrRuO3 and RuO2 in tuning the atomic and electronic configuration.

Cobalt Sulfide Nanowires Core Encapsulated by a N, S Codoped Graphitic Carbon Shell for Efficient Oxygen Reduction Reaction.

Exploration of economical electrocatalysts for highly efficient and stable oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) is believed to be essential for diverse future renewable energy applications. Herein, cobalt sulfide nanowire core encapsulated in a N, S codoped graphitic carbon shell (CoS NWs@NSC) is successfully fabricated via the calcination of polydopamine-coated Co(CO3 )0.5 (OH)0.11 H2 O NWs with sulfur powder under argon atmosphere. The uniform encapsulation of CoS core by N, S codoped graphitic carbon shell favors the interaction of the core-shell structure for generating stable and numerous ORR active sites homogeneously dispersed throughout the materials. Meanwhile, the wire-like CoS NWs@NSC stacks to form 3D mesoporous conductive networks, which improves the mass and charge transport capability of catalyst. Accordingly, the resultant CoS NWs@NSC electrocatalysts possess excellent ORR activity through the four-electron pathway with superior stability and methanol tolerance over the Pt/C in 0.1 m KOH. This strategy can offer inspiration for designing and fabricating novel core-shell-structured nanomaterials with active sites derived from uniform morphology as potential electrocatalysts for various vital renewable energy devices.

RKIP-Mediated NF-κB Signaling is involved in ELF-MF-mediated improvement in AD rat.

In a previous study, we reported the positive effects of extremely low frequency electromagnetic field (ELF-MF) exposure on Alzheimer's disease (AD) rats; however, the underlying mechanism remains unclear. In addition, we found that Raf-1 kinase inhibitor protein (RKIP) was downregulated by microwave exposure in the rat hippocampus. Our hypothesis was that RKIP-mediated NF-κB pathway signaling is involved in the effect of ELF-MF on the AD rat. In this study, D-galactose intraperitoneal (50 mg/kg/d for 42 d) and Aß25-35 hippocampal (5 µL/unilateral, bilateral, single-dose) injection were implemented to establish an AD rat model. Animals were exposed to 50 Hz and 400 µT ELF-MF for 60 continuous days. The spatial memory ability of the rat was then tested using the Morris water maze. Protein expression and interaction were detected by western blotting and co-immunoprecipitation for RKIP-mediated NF-κB pathway factors. The results showed that ELF-MF exposure partially improved the cognitive disorder, upregulated the levels of RKIP, TAK1, and the RKIP/TAK1 interaction, but downregulated p-IKK levels in AD rats. These results indicated that RKIP-mediated NF-κB pathway signaling plays an important role in the ELF-MF exposure-mediated improvements in the AD rat. Our study suggested that ELF-MF exposure might have a potential therapeutic value for AD. Further in depth studies are required in the future.

Neural cell apoptosis induced by microwave exposure through mitochondria-dependent caspase-3 pathway.

To determine whether microwave (MW) radiation induces neural cell apoptosis, differentiated PC12 cells and Wistar rats were exposed to 2.856 GHz for 5 min and 15 min, respectively, at an average power density of 30 mW/cm². JC-1 and TUNEL staining detected significant apoptotic events, such as the loss of mitochondria membrane potential and DNA fragmentation, respectively. Transmission electron microscopy and Hoechst staining were used to observe chromatin ultrastructure and apoptotic body formation. Annexin V-FITC/PI double staining was used to quantify the level of apoptosis. The expressions of Bax, Bcl-2, cytochrome c, cleaved caspase-3 and PARP were examined by immunoblotting or immunocytochemistry. Caspase-3 activity was measured using an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. The results showed chromatin condensation and apoptotic body formation in neural cells 6h after microwave exposure. Moreover, the mitochondria membrane potential decreased, DNA fragmentation increased, leading to an increase in the apoptotic cell percentage. Furthermore, the ratio of Bax/Bcl-2, expression of cytochrome c, cleaved caspase-3 and PARP all increased. In conclusion, microwave radiation induced neural cell apoptosis via the classical mitochondria-dependent caspase-3 pathway. This study may provide the experimental basis for further investigation of the mechanism of the neurological effects induced by microwave radiation.

Rhabdomyolysis-induced acute kidney injury under hypoxia and deprivation of food and water.

BACKGROUND: To investigate the renal pathophysiologyin rhabdomyolysis-induced acute kidney injury (AKI) in rats under hypoxia and deprivation of food and water (HDFW), thus broadening the knowledge about rhabdomyolysis-induced AKI in massive earthquake. METHODS: Male Wistar rats weighing 200-230g were randomized into control, rhabdomyolysis (R), HDFW and rhabdomyolysis in combination with HDFW (R/HDFW) group. Experimental rhabdomyolysis rat model was established through clamping hind limb muscles, HDFW model rats were kept in 10% hypoxic chamber unavailable to food and water. At 1, 3, 5, 7, 9, 11d after treatment, serum creatinine (Scr) level, renal index, renal structural changes and cell apoptosis were analyzed. RESULTS: After R, HDFW, R/HDFW treatment, the animals showed significantly higher Scr levels than the control group. Renal index in R and R/HDFW groups elevated remarkably compared with that in control and HDFW group. The results of histopathology, ultra-structure and apoptosis assay suggested that rhabdomyolysis caused renal tubular injury, HDFW treatment resulted in renal vascular dilation, tissue congestion and tubular cell damage. In addition, more severe renal lesion appeared in R/HDFW. CONCLUSIONS: We conclude that the association of experimental rhabdomyolysis with HDFW results in a different functional and histological pattern. The rhabdomyolysis-HDFW combination causes more severe renal injury.

Electrocardiographic changes after injury in a rat model of combined crush injury.

BACKGROUND: Crush injury from debris, combined with hypoxia and water and food deprivation (combined crush injury), is common in industrial accidents and events such as earthquakes and terrorist attacks. Whether electrocardiographic changes are associated with combined crush injury is unclear. METHODS: Thirty-six rats underwent electrocardiography at baseline then were randomly assigned to 6 groups of 6. Bilateral hind limbs of all rats were compressed with custom-made clips (pressure 4.5 ± 0.3 kg), and the rats were put into a hypoxic compartment (oxygen concentration 10% ± 0.1%) for 72 hours without food or water. After 72 hours, the rats were moved to a normoxic environment, where the clips were removed (decompression) and food and water were freely accessible. Electrocardiography was performed in a different group at each of days 0, 1, 3, 7, 14, and 28 after decompression. RESULTS: One rat died at 0.6 days. Among the remaining 35 rats, 28 (80%) had abnormal electrocardiographic changes: ST-segment depression (n = 25), tall-peaked T waves (n = 16), arrhythmias (n = 4), abnormal Q waves (n = 2), wide QRS complexes (n = 2) and QT prolongation (n = 1). The abnormality rates among assessed rats were 100% on days 0, 1, and 3; 83% on day 7; and 50% on days 14 and 28. CONCLUSIONS: The findings suggest that abnormal electrocardiographic changes were seen in rats after simulated combined crush injury and decompression and were slow to resolve.

Microarray analysis of altered gene expression and the role of ATF3 in HK-2 cells treated with hemin.

OBJECTIVE: To identify gene expression changes and the role of activating transcription factor 3 (ATF3) in hemin toxicity in renal tubular epithelial cells, then elucidate molecular mechanisms of hemin toxicity on renal tubular epithelial cells. METHODS: An oligo array comprising 35,035 genes was used to compare differential gene expression in hemin-treated and non-treated HK-2 cells (human renal proximal tubular epithelial cells), and the role of ATF3 in hemin toxicity was assessed using siRNA technique. RESULTS: A total of 128 mRNAs were at least twofold up-regulated and 101 mRNAs were at least twofold down-regulated after hemin treatment. Expression levels of ATF3, heat shock protein 70, c-fos, and c-jun were remarkably increased. Hemin also suppressed nuclear factor-kappa B inhibitor α, ß-2 adrenergic receptor, and interleukin-6 mRNA amounts more than twofold. We further demonstrated the protective role of ATF3 in hemin cytotoxicity. CONCLUSIONS: The data suggest that hemin caused multiple changes of gene expression in HK-2 cells, and ATF3 protects against hemin cytotoxicity.

[Changes in Ca(2+)concentration and caspase-3 expression and their relationship in Raji cells exposed to electromagnetic radiation].

OBJECTIVE: To study the effects of electromagnetic pulse (EMP), S-band high power microwave (S-HPM), and X-band high power microwave (X-HPM) on the Ca(2+) concentration and caspase-3 expression in Raji cells and the relationship between Ca(2+) concentration and caspase-3 expression, and to investigate the regulatory mechanism of electromagnetic radiation damage. METHODS: Raji cells were cultured conventionally. Some cells were irradiated by EMP, S-HPM, and X-HPM in the logarithmic growth phase for 6 hours and then collected; others received sham irradiation as a control. The Ca(2+) concentration in the cells was measured by laser scanning confocal microscope; the caspase-3 expression in the cells was evaluated by Western blot. RESULTS: Compared with the control group (Ca(2+) fluorescence intensity = 43.08 ± 2.08; caspase-3 expression level = 0.444 ± 0.13), the EMP,S-HPM, and X-HPM groups had significantly increased Ca(2+) concentrations, with Ca(2+) fluorescence intensities of 69.56 ± 1.71, 50.06 ± 1.89, and 70.68 ± 1.59, respectively (P < 0.01), and had upregulated caspase-3 expression, with expression levels of 0.964 ± 0.12, 0.586 ± 0.16, and 0.970 ± 0.07, respectively (P < 0.01). Each of the EMP and X-HPM groups had significantly higher Ca(2+) fluorescence intensity and caspase-3 expression level than the S-HPM group (P < 0.01), but there were no significant differences between the EMP and X-HPM groups. The linear regression analysis showed that the caspase-3 expression was upregulated as the Ca(2+) concentration increased, with a positive correlation between them (P < 0.01). CONCLUSION: EMP, S-HPM, and X-HPM cause damage probably by increasing the Ca(2+) concentration in cells and in turn inducing caspase-3 overexpression.

Waterwheel-inspired rotating evaporator for efficient and stable solar desalination even in saturated brine.

Solar desalination is one of the most promising technologies to address global freshwater shortages. However, traditional evaporators encounter the bottleneck of reduced evaporation rate or even failure due to salt accumulation in high-salinity water. Inspired by ancient waterwheels, we have developed an adaptively rotating evaporator that enables long-term and efficient solar desalination in brines of any concentration. The evaporator is a sulphide-loaded drum-type biochar. Our experiments and numerical simulations show that this evaporator, thanks to its low density and unique hydrophilic property, rotates periodically under the center-of-gravity shift generated by salt accumulation, achieving self-removal of salt. This allows it to maintain a high evaporation rate of 2.80 kg m-2 h-1 within 24 h even in saturated brine (26.47%), which was not achieved previously. This proof-of-concept work therefore demonstrates a concentration- and time-independent, self-rotation-induced solar evaporator.