Research Progresses of Liquid Electrolytes in Lithium-Ion Batteries.

In recent years, the rapid development of modern society is calling for advanced energy storage to meet the growing demands of energy supply and generation. As one of the most promising energy storage systems, secondary batteries are attracting much attention. The electrolyte is an important part of the secondary battery, and its composition is closely related to the electrochemical performance of the secondary batteries. Lithium-ion battery electrolyte is mainly composed of solvents, additives, and lithium salts, which are prepared according to specific proportions under certain conditions and according to the needs of characteristics. This review analyzes the advantages and current problems of the liquid electrolytes in lithium-ion batteries (LIBs) from the mechanism of action and failure mechanism, summarizes the research progress of solvents, lithium salts, and additives, analyzes the future trends and requirements of lithium-ion battery electrolytes, and points out the emerging opportunities in advanced lithium-ion battery electrolytes development.

Association of education with cholelithiasis and mediating effects of cardiometabolic factors: A Mendelian randomization study.

BACKGROUND: Education, cognition, and intelligence are associated with cholelithiasis occurrence, yet which one has a prominent effect on cholelithiasis and which cardiometabolic risk factors mediate the causal relationship remain unelucidated. AIM: To explore the causal associations between education, cognition, and intelligence and cholelithiasis, and the cardiometabolic risk factors that mediate the associations. METHODS: Applying genome-wide association study summary statistics of primarily European individuals, we utilized two-sample multivariable Mendelian randomization to estimate the independent effects of education, intelligence, and cognition on cholelithiasis and cholecystitis (FinnGen study, 37041 and 11632 patients, respectively; n = 486484 participants) and performed two-step Mendelian randomization to evaluate 21 potential mediators and their mediating effects on the relationships between each exposure and cholelithiasis. RESULTS: Inverse variance weighted Mendelian randomization results from the FinnGen consortium showed that genetically higher education, cognition, or intelligence were not independently associated with cholelithiasis and cholecystitis; when adjusted for cholelithiasis, higher education still presented an inverse effect on cholecystitis [odds ratio: 0.292 (95%CI: 0.171-0.501)], which could not be induced by cognition or intelligence. Five out of 21 cardiometabolic risk factors were perceived as mediators of the association between education and cholelithiasis, including body mass index (20.84%), body fat percentage (40.3%), waist circumference (44.4%), waist-to-hip ratio (32.9%), and time spent watching television (41.6%), while time spent watching television was also a mediator from cognition (20.4%) and intelligence to cholelithiasis (28.4%). All results were robust to sensitivity analyses. CONCLUSION: Education, cognition, and intelligence all play crucial roles in the development of cholelithiasis, and several cardiometabolic mediators have been identified for prevention of cholelithiasis due to defects in each exposure.

Differential proteomics of tobacco seedling roots at high and low potassium concentrations.

The effects of high potassium and normal potassium treatments on protein expression in roots of flue-cured tobacco plant HKDN-5 at the seedling stage were analyzed by an unlabeled protein quantification technique. The results showed that 555 proteins were differentially expressed (245 proteins were down-regulated and 310 proteins were up-regulated) in high potassium treatment compared with normal potassium treatment. Differentially expressed proteins were involved in 96 metabolic pathways (42 metabolic pathways, 21 synthetic pathways as well as catabolic pathways, including fatty acid metabolism, phenylpropane biosynthesis, ketone body synthesis and degradation, and butyric acid metabolism. Root processing of high potassium concentrations leads to increases in the synthesis of peroxidase, superoxide dismutase and acyl-coenzyme-A synthetase. Additional proteomic differences observed in tobacco roots grown in high potassium include proteins involved with genetic information processing as well as environmental sensing. Examples include RNA helicase, ABC transporters and large subunit GTPases. These up-regulated differentially expressed proteins function mainly in protein translation, ribosome structure and protein synthesis. This indicates that under high potassium treatment, root protein synthetic processes are accelerated and substance metabolism pathways are enhanced; thus, providing the material and energetic basis for root growth.

LncRNA and transcriptomic analysis of fetal membrane reveal potential targets involved in oligohydramnios.

BACKGROUND: The multiple causes of oligohydramnios make it challenging to study. Long noncoding RNAs (lncRNAs) are sets of RNAs that have been proven to function in multiple biological processes. The purpose of this study is to study expression level and possible role of lncRNAs in oligohydramnios. METHODS: In this study, total RNA was isolated from fetal membranes resected from oligohydramnios pregnant women (OP) and normal amount of amniotic fluid pregnant women (Normal). LncRNA microarray was used to analyze the differentially expressed lncRNAs and mRNAs. Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) was used to analyze the main enrichment pathways of differentially expressed mRNAs. Real-time quantitative PCR (qPCR) was used to validate the lncRNA expression level. RESULTS: LncRNA microarray analysis revealed that a total of 801 lncRNAs and 367 mRNAs were differentially expressed in OP; in these results, 638 lncRNAs and 189 mRNAs were upregulated, and 163 lncRNAs and 178 mRNAs were downregulated. Of the lncRNAs, 566 were intergenic lncRNAs, 351 were intronic antisense lncRNAs, and 300 were natural antisense lncRNAs. The differentially expressed lncRNAs were primarily located in chromosomes 2, 1, and 11. KEGG enrichment pathways revealed that the differentially expressed mRNAs were enriched in focal adhesion as well as in the signaling pathways of Ras, tumor necrosis factor (TNF), estrogen, and chemokine. The qPCR results confirmed that LINC00515 and RP11-388P9.2 were upregulated in OP. Furthermore, the constructed lncRNA-miRNA-mRNA regulatory network revealed tenascin R (TNR), cystic fibrosis transmembrane conductance regulator (CFTR), ATP-binding cassette sub-family A member 12 (ABCA12), and collagen 9A2 (COL9A2) as the candidate targets of LINC00515 and RP11-388P9.2. CONCLUSIONS: In summary, we revealed the profiles of lncRNA and mRNA in OP. These results might offer potential targets for biological prevention for pregnant women with oligohydramnios detected before delivery and provided a reliable basis for clinical biological treatment in OP.

A multifunctional lanthanide metal-organic framework supported by Keggin type polyoxometalates.

A neodymium metal-organic framework with 1D nanotubular channels incorporating Keggin type [SiWWO38](3-) has been synthesized by utilizing pyridine-2,5-dicarboxylic acid as an organic ligand. It represents an unusual polyoxometalate-templated framework with the multifunctionality of magnetism, near-infrared luminescence and the selective adsorption of Rhodamine B dye molecules.

[Placental expression of human histocompatibility antigen-G mRNA in idiopathic fetal growth restriction and its relationship with pathological changes of placenta].

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the expressions of human histocompatibility antigen-G (HLA-G) mRNA in placenta of idiopathic fetal growth restriction (IFGR) and its relationship with pathogenesis of IFGR. METHODS: In situ hybridization was used to investigate the expression level and distribution of HLA-G mRNA in placentas of 20 cases of idiopathic IFGR and 28 cases of control group. HE stain was applied to observe the pathological changes of the placenta. RESULTS: (1) The incidence of placental pathological lesions in idiopathic IFGR (75%) was notably higher than those of the control group (18%), (chi2 = 15.67, P = 0.001). (2) In situ hybridization showed the positive expression rate of HLA-G mRNA in placenta of idiopathic IFGR was 45%, that of control group was 79%, with significant difference between the two groups (chi2 = 5.75, P = 0.017). HLA-G mRNA signal mainly expressed in cytotrophoblast and syncytiotrophoblast. (3) There was negative correlation between the expression rate of HLA-G mRNA and incidence of placental pathological lesions (r = -0.638, P = 0.008). CONCLUSIONS: There is a significant decrease in the expression of HLA-G mRNA in IFGR. HLA-G may play a role in the pathogenesis of IFGR.

Molecularly imprinted copolymer membranes functionalized by phase inversion imprinting for uracil recognition and permselective binding.

Uracil (URA) was selected as a template for preparing molecularly imprinted membranes of poly(acrylonitrile-co-methylacrylic acid) [P(AN-co-MAA)] using the phase inversion technique. This study used Fourier transform infra-red (FT-IR) and (1)H nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopic studies to characterize the polymer-template interaction and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and atomic force microscopy (AFM) for morphology of the URA imprinted membrane. Resultant membranes had typical ultrafiltration structure with porous morphology and showed a permeation flux of 3.5 x 10 9-5)m(3)/(m(2)s) for 32 microM URA aqueous solution. Permselective binding to the target molecule was observed in permeation experiments with 7.9 micromol/g binding capacity of URA. Binding selectivity was discussed for URA and its analogs, dimethyluracil (DMURA) and caffeine (CAF), with 0.6 and 0.8 micromol/g binding capacity, respectively.

Stomatal development and movement: the roles of MAPK signaling.

Stomata are epidermal pores on plant surface used for gas exchange with the atmosphere. Stomatal development and movement are regulated by environmental and internal signals. Mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) cascades are universal transducers of extracellular signals among all eukaryotes. In plant, MAPK cascades regulate diverse cellular processes occurring during the whole ontogenetic plant life and ranging from normal cell proliferation to stress-inducing plant-to-environment interactions. Recent reports reveal that MAPK signaling is involved in both stomatal development and movement. This mini-review summarizes the roles of MAPK signaling in stomatal development and movement. How MAPK specificity is maintained in stomatal development and movement is also discussed.