Highly Solubilized Urea as Effective Proton Donor-Acceptors for Durable Zinc-Ion Storage Beyond Single-Anion Selection Criteria.

Urea, as one of the most sustainable organic solutes, denies the high salt consumption in commercial electrolytes with its peculiar solubility in water. The bi-mixture of urea-H2O shows the eutectic feature for increased attention in aqueous Zn-ion electrochemical energy storage (AZEES) technologies. While the state-of-the-art aqueous electrolyte recipes are still pursuing the high-concentrated salt dosage with limited urea adoption and single-anion selection category. Here, a dual-anion urea-based (DAU) electrolyte composed of dual-Zn salts and urea-H2O-induced solutions is reported, contributing to a stable electric double-layer construction and in situ organic/inorganic SEI formation. The optimized ZT2S0.5-20U electrolytes show a high initial Coulombic efficiency of 93.2% and durable Zn-ion storage ≈4000 h regarding Zn//Cu and Zn//Zn stripping/plating procedures. The assembled Zn//activated carbon full cells maintain ≈100% capacitance over 50 000 cycles at 4 A g-1 in coin cell and ≈98% capacitance over 20 000 cycles at 1 A g-1 in pouch cell setups. A 12 × 12 cm2 pouch cell assembly illustrates the practicality of AZEES devices by designing the cheap, antifreezing, and nonflammable DAU electrolyte system coupling proton donor-acceptor molecule and multi-anion selection criteria, exterminating the critical technical barriers in commercialization.

Ion correlations drive charge overscreening and heterogeneous nucleation at solid-aqueous electrolyte interfaces.

Classical electrical double layer (EDL) models are foundational to the representation of atomistic structure and reactivity at charged interfaces. An important limitation to these models is their dependence on a mean-field approximation that is strictly valid for dilute aqueous solutions. Theoretical efforts to overcome this limitation are severely impeded by the lack of visualization of the structure over a wide range of ion concentration. Here, we report the salinity-dependent evolution of EDL structure at negatively charged mica-water interfaces, revealing transition from the Langmuir-type charge compensation in dilute salt solutions to nonclassical charge overscreening in highly concentrated solutions. The EDL structure in this overcharging regime is characterized by the development of both lateral positional correlation between adsorbed ions and vertical layering of alternating cations and anions reminiscent of the structures of strongly correlated ionic liquids. These EDL ions can spontaneously grow into nanocrystalline nuclei of ionic compounds at threshold ion concentrations that are significantly lower than the bulk solubility limit. These results shed light on the impact of ion cooperativity that drives heterogeneous nonclassical behaviors of the EDL in high-salinity conditions.

Non-canonical transcriptional start sites in E. coli O157:H7 EDL933 are regulated and appear in surprisingly high numbers.

Analysis of genome wide transcription start sites (TSSs) revealed an unexpected complexity since not only canonical TSS of annotated genes are recognized by RNA polymerase. Non-canonical TSS were detected antisense to, or within, annotated genes as well new intergenic (orphan) TSS, not associated with known genes. Previously, it was hypothesized that many such signals represent noise or pervasive transcription, not associated with a biological function. Here, a modified Cappable-seq protocol allows determining the primary transcriptome of the enterohemorrhagic E. coli O157:H7 EDL933 (EHEC). We used four different growth media, both in exponential and stationary growth phase, replicated each thrice. This yielded 19,975 EHEC canonical and non-canonical TSS, which reproducibly occurring in three biological replicates. This questions the hypothesis of experimental noise or pervasive transcription. Accordingly, conserved promoter motifs were found upstream indicating proper TSSs. More than 50% of 5,567 canonical and between 32% and 47% of 10,355 non-canonical TSS were differentially expressed in different media and growth phases, providing evidence for a potential biological function also of non-canonical TSS. Thus, reproducible and environmentally regulated expression suggests that a substantial number of the non-canonical TSSs may be of unknown function rather than being the result of noise or pervasive transcription.

Vortex-assisted electroosmotic mixing of Carreau fluid in a microchannel.

Pertaining to the mixing of the non-Newtonian Carreau fluid under electrokinetic actuation inside a plane microchannel, we propose a new design of micromixer that involves inserting a two-part cylinder bearing zeta potential of the same sign but different magnitude in the upstream and downstream directions. We numerically solve the transport equations to predict the underlying mixing characteristics. We demonstrate that a substantial momentum difference between the microchannel's plane wall and cylinder leads to the development of a vortex in the flow pathway, which in turn, enhances mixing substantially. As shown, for a fluid having a highly shear-thinning nature, the vortex-assisted convection mixing strength increases with diffusivity of the candidate fluids. Moreover, it is shown that for the higher shear-thinning nature of the candidate fluid, an increase in cylinder radius enhances mixing efficiency and flow rate simultaneously, resulting in a "quick and efficient" mixing condition. Additionally, the fluid rheology significantly alters the kinetics of shear-induced binary aggregation. Our findings show that the shear-induced aggregation characteristic time sharply increases with increasing shear-thinning behavior of the fluid.

Insights into the mechanism involved by electric double layer on phosphate removal of metal-bearing environmental remediation agent: Taking tricalcium aluminate as representative.

Metal-bearing materials are known to be desirable environmental captures for phosphate removal, yet few studies focus on understanding the reaction process, especially formed a special phenomenon, i.e., electric double layer (EDL), which might influence the phosphate removal. To fill in this gap, we fabricated metal-bearing tricalcium aluminate (C3A, Ca3Al2O6) as representative, to remove phosphate and unveil the impact by electric double layer (EDL). Specifically, a preeminent removal capacity of 142.2 mg·g-1 was achieved at the initial phosphate concentration below 300 mg·L-1. Following thorough the characterizations, the process was that the released Ca2+ or Al3+ of C3A formed positive charged stern layer attracted phosphate to generate Ca or Al-precipitation. At high phosphate concentration (>300 mg·L-1), C3A exhibited inferior removal capability for phosphate (<45 mg·g-1), due to the aggregation of C3A particles with low water permeability under the EDL effect, obstructing Ca2+ and Al3+ to release for phosphate removal. In addition, the feasibility application of C3A was evaluated based on response surface methodology (RSM), highlighting its prospective phosphate treatment. This work not only provides a theoretical guidance for the application of C3A to remove phosphate, but also deepens the understand of phosphate removal mechanism by metal-bearing materials, shedding light on environmental remediation.

Anatomical variations of peroneus tertius and its clinical implications: case report with systematic literature review.

PURPOSE: Peroneus tertius (PT) or Fibularis tertius, a muscle of the anterior compartment of the leg is very distinctive to the Homo sapiens. This is because of the evolutionary acquisition of bipedal gait along with the eversion of the foot, which are unique to humans. It is considered as the fifth tendon of the extensor digitorum longus. Variations in the attachments of PT can cause stress fractures like the Jones fracture. PT has been extensively used in tendoplasty, tendon transfer and resection of the foot. The study aims to transpose the knowledge in variations of the morphology of PT from bench to bedside. METHODS: Routine dissection of a 64-year-old male cadaver revealed bilateral variations in the insertion of PT. This was documented photographically. The findings prompted a systematic literature review on the morphological variations of PT. An exhaustive search was undertaken through PubMed and Google Scholar databases to identify the published literature related to variations in the morphology of PT. Related anatomical studies of the variations in peroneus tertius were identified and a review of the literature was performed. RESULTS: Variations in the insertion of PT were observed bilaterally in the cadaver dissected by us. Statistical analysis revealed the absence of PT in 7.03% of lower limbs. 10% of studies showed accessory and duplicated PT each. Out of 20 articles reviewed, 51 lower limbs showed variation in origin, 230 lower limbs showed variations in insertion and 161 lower limbs showed other variations. CONCLUSION: PT muscle flap and tendon grafts are used in correcting the laxity of the ankle joint and foot drop. Absence of PT plays a crucial role in altering the mechanics of stress fractures of the 5th metatarsal. Thus, knowledge of the morphology of PT is crucial for plastic surgeons and orthopedic surgeons.

Analytical analysis of anisotropic thermophoresis of a charged spheroidal colloid in aqueous media for extremely thin EDL cases.

Thermophoresis of charged spheroids has been widely applied in biology and medical science. In this work, we report an analysis of the anisotropic thermophoresis of diluted spheroidal colloids in aqueous media for extremely thin EDL cases. Under the boundary layer approximation, we formulate the thermophoretic velocity, the thermophoretic force, and the thermodiffusion coefficient of a randomly dispersed spheroid. The parametric studies show that under the aforementioned conditions, the thermophoresis is anisotropic and its thermodiffusion coefficient should be considered as a vector, DT . The thermodiffusion coefficient values and directions of DT are strongly related to the aspect ratio and the angle θ between the externally applied temperature gradient and the particle's axis of revolution: The increasing aspect ratio enlarges the thermodiffusion coefficient value DT of prolate (oblate) spheroids to a constant value when θ < 60° (θ > 45°), and it reduces DT of prolate (oblate) spheroids to a constant value when θ > 60° (θ < 45°). The thermodiffusion coefficient direction of both prolate and oblate spheroids deviates slightly from -∇T∞ for a small aspect ratio, and such deviation becomes serious for a large aspect ratio.

Control of rat muscle nitrate levels after perturbation of steady state dietary nitrate intake.

The roles of nitrate and nitrite ions as nitric oxide (NO) sources in mammals, complementing NOS enzymes, have recently been the focus of much research. We previously reported that rat skeletal muscle serves as a nitrate reservoir, with the amount of stored nitrate being highly dependent on dietary nitrate availability, as well as its synthesis by NOS1 enzymes and its subsequent utilization. We showed that at conditions of increased NO need, this nitrate reservoir is used in situ to generate nitrite and NO, at least in part via the nitrate reductase activity of xanthine oxidoreductase (XOR). We now further investigate the dynamics of nitrate/nitrite fluxes in rat skeletal muscle after first increasing nitrate levels in drinking water and then returning to the original intake level. Nitrate/nitrite levels were analyzed in liver, blood and several skeletal muscle samples, and expression of proteins involved in nitrate metabolism and transport were also measured. Increased nitrate supply elevated nitrate and nitrite levels in all measured tissues. Surprisingly, after high nitrate diet termination, levels of both ions in liver and all muscle samples first declined to lower levels than the original baseline. During the course of the overall experiment there was a gradual increase of XOR expression in muscle tissue, which likely led to enhanced nitrate to nitrite reduction. We also noted differences in basal levels of nitrate in the different types of muscles. These findings suggest complex control of muscle nitrate levels, perhaps with multiple processes to preserve its intracellular levels.

EDL-COVID: Ensemble Deep Learning for COVID-19 Case Detection From Chest X-Ray Images.

Effective screening of COVID-19 cases has been becoming extremely important to mitigate and stop the quick spread of the disease during the current period of COVID-19 pandemic worldwide. In this article, we consider radiology examination of using chest X-ray images, which is among the effective screening approaches for COVID-19 case detection. Given deep learning is an effective tool and framework for image analysis, there have been lots of studies for COVID-19 case detection by training deep learning models with X-ray images. Although some of them report good prediction results, their proposed deep learning models might suffer from overfitting, high variance, and generalization errors caused by noise and a limited number of datasets. Considering ensemble learning can overcome the shortcomings of deep learning by making predictions with multiple models instead of a single model, we propose EDL-COVID, an ensemble deep learning model employing deep learning and ensemble learning. The EDL-COVID model is generated by combining multiple snapshot models of COVID-Net, which has pioneered in an open-sourced COVID-19 case detection method with deep neural network processed chest X-ray images, by employing a proposed weighted averaging ensembling method that is aware of different sensitivities of deep learning models on different classes types. Experimental results show that EDL-COVID offers promising results for COVID-19 case detection with an accuracy of 95%, better than COVID-Net of 93.3%.

Regulation of SEI Formation by Anion Receptors to Achieve Ultra-Stable Lithium-Metal Batteries.

Despite high specific capacity (3860 mAh g-1 ), the utilization of Li-metal anodes in rechargeable batteries are still hampered due to their insufficient cyclability. Herein, we report an anion-receptor-mediated carbonate electrolyte with improved performance and can ameliorate the solid electrolyte interphase (SEI) composition comparing to the blank electrolyte. It demonstrates a high average Coulombic efficiency (97.94 %) over 500 cycles in the Li/Cu cell at a capacity of 1 mAh cm-2 . Raman spectrum and molecular modelling further clarify the screening effects of the anion receptor on the Li+ -PF6 - ion coupling that results in the enhanced ion dynamics. The X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) distinguishes the disparities in the SEI components of the developed electrolyte and the blank one, which is rationalized by the molecular insights of the Li-metal/electrolyte interface. Thus, we prepare a 2.5 Ah prototype pouch cell, exhibiting a high energy density (357 Wh kg-1 ) with 90.90 % capacity retention over 50 cycles.

The effect of the finite size of ions and Debye layer overspill on the screened Coulomb interactions between charged flat plates.

Screened repulsion between uniformly charged plates with an intervening electrolyte is analyzed for strongly overlapped electrical double layers (EDL), accounting for the steric effect of ions and their expulsion from EDL edges into the surrounding solution. As a generalization of a study by Philipse et al. which does not account for these effects, an analytical expression is derived for the repulsion pressure in the limit of infinitely long plates with a zero-field assumption, which agrees closely with the corresponding numerical solution at low inter-plate separations. Our results show an augmented repulsive pressure for finite-sized ions at strong EDL overlaps. For plates with a finite lateral size, we demonstrate a further extended domain of low inter-plate gaps where the repulsion pressure increases with ion size due to a strong interplay between the steric interaction of ions and the EDL overspill phenomenon, considered earlier in a study by Ghosal & Sherwood limited to the linear Debye-Hückel regime (which cannot account for the steric effect of ions). This investigation on a simple model should enhance our understanding of the interaction between charged particles in electrophoresis, nanoscale self-assembly, active particles, and various other electrokinetic systems.

Structure and conductivity of AOT solutions in n-hexadecane-chloroform mixtures.

The structure and conductivity of AOT (sodium bis(2-ethylhexyl) sulfosuccinate) solutions (2.5 × 10-4 -2.5 × 10-1 M) in n-hexadecane-chloroform mixture at the chloroform concentration from 50 to 100 vol% were studied. The diffusion ordered spectroscopy NMR study revealed that in the indicated range, the observed hydrodynamic diameter of micelles depends only on the AOT concentration and does not depend on the chloroform content. Molar fractions of free AOT molecules and those aggregated into micelles were calculated using the Lindman's law: at concentrations above 2.5 × 10-1 М, the solutions contain mostly the micelles, whereas at concentrations below 2.5 × 10-4 M, the solutions contain AOT molecules. The transition region contains both the AOT molecules and the micelles. Conductivity measurements were used to determine free charge carriers in the bulk of solutions and their contributions to conductivity.

Investigation of Electrical Stability and Sensitivity of Electric Double Layer Gated Field-Effect Transistors (FETs) for miRNA Detection.

In this research, we developed a miRNA sensor using an electrical double layer (EDL) gated field-effect transistor (FET)-based biosensor with enhanced sensitivity and stability. We conducted an in-depth investigation of the mechanisms that give rise to fluctuations in the electrical signal, affecting the stability and sensitivity of the miRNA sensor. Firstly, surface characteristics were studied by examining the metal electrodes deposited using different metal deposition techniques. The lower surface roughness of the gold electrode improved the electrical current stability. The temperature and viscosity of the sample solution were proven to affect the electrical stability, which was attributed to reducing the effect of Brownian motion. Therefore, by controlling the test conditions, such as temperature and sample viscosity, and the surface characteristics of the metal electrodes, we can enhance the stability of the sensor. Metal electrodes deposited via sputtering and e-beam evaporator yielded the lowest signal fluctuation. When ambient temperature was reduced to 3 °C, the sensor had better noise characteristics compared to room temperature testing. Higher viscosity of samples resulted in lower signal fluctuations. Lastly, surface functionalization was demonstrated to be a critical factor in enhancing the stability and sensitivity. MiRNA sensors with higher surface ratios of immobilized DNA probes performed with higher sensitivity and stability. This study reveals methods to improve the characteristics of EDL FET biosensors to facilitate practical implementation in clinical applications.

Skeletal muscle secretion of IL-6 is muscle type specific: Ex vivo evidence.

Emerging evidence indicates that skeletal muscle possesses endocrine function to secret myokines. Interleukin 6 (IL-6) is a well-characterized myokine that is involved in regulation of metabolism and muscle function. Metabolism type and contractile dynamics vary in different muscle types. It is not clear, however, if IL-6 secretion differs in different muscle types. In this study, we first established an ex vivo approach to test the inducible muscle secretion. Freshly isolated muscles were incubated in Krebs solution at 37 °C with oxygen supply. Secreted IL-6 in the incubation media was measure using Western blot and ELISA assay. We first confirmed that the IL-6 release was inducible by treating the incubated muscle with a cytokine stimulant. We demonstrated that physiological temperature (37 °C) and O2 supply were essential for the induction of IL-6 release from the incubated muscle, suggesting it is a controlled secretion rather than a spontaneous leak. Using this approach, we found that IL-6 release was only inducible from soleus muscle but not EDL muscle. We further showed that IL-6 protein level was higher in slow oxidative muscle fibers. Moreover, we showed that EDL, although lacks of IL-6 release, surely has inducible secretory function that had different secretory pattern from soleus.

Morphological and functional analyses of skeletal muscles from an immunodeficient animal model of limb-girdle muscular dystrophy type 2E.

INTRODUCTION: Limb-girdle muscular dystrophy type 2E (LGMD2E) is caused by mutations in the ß-sarcoglycan gene, which is expressed in skeletal, cardiac, and smooth muscles. ß-Sarcoglycan-deficient (Sgcb-null) mice develop severe muscular dystrophy and cardiomyopathy with focal areas of necrosis. METHODS: In this study we performed morphological (histological and cellular characterization) and functional (isometric tetanic force and fatigue) analyses in dystrophic mice. Comparison studies were carried out in 1-month-old (clinical onset of the disease) and 7-month-old control mice (C57Bl/6J, Rag2/γc-null) and immunocompetent and immunodeficient dystrophic mice (Sgcb-null and Sgcb/Rag2/γc-null, respectively). RESULTS: We found that the lack of an immunological system resulted in an increase of calcification in striated muscles without impairing extensor digitorum longus muscle performance. Sgcb/Rag2/γc-null muscles showed a significant reduction of alkaline phosphate-positive mesoangioblasts. DISCUSSION: The immunological system counteracts skeletal muscle degeneration in the murine model of LGMD2E. Muscle Nerve, 2018.

Skeletal muscle cell contraction reduces a novel myokine, chemokine (C-X-C motif) ligand 10 (CXCL10): potential roles in exercise-regulated angiogenesis.

Accumulating evidence indicates that skeletal muscle secrets proteins referred to as myokines and that exercise contributes to their regulation. In this study, we propose that chemokine (C-X-C motif) ligand 10 (CXCL10) functions as a novel myokine. Initially, we stimulated differentiated C2C12 myotubes with or without electrical pulse stimulation (EPS) to identify novel myokines. Cytokine array analysis revealed that CXCL10 secretion was significantly reduced by EPS, which was further confirmed by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay and quantitative polymerase chain reaction analysis. Treadmill experiments in mice identified significant reduction of Cxcl10 gene expression in the soleus muscle. Additionally, contraction-dependent p38 MAPK activation appeared to be involved in this reduction. Furthermore, C2C12 conditioned medium obtained after applying EPS could induce survival of MSS31, a vascular endothelial cell model, which was partially attenuated by the addition of recombinant CXCL10. Overall, our findings suggest CXCL10 as a novel exercise-reducible myokine, to control endothelial cell viability.

Computer modelling of electro-osmotically augmented three-layered microvascular peristaltic blood flow.

A theoretical study is presented here for the electro-osmosis modulated peristaltic three-layered capillary flow of viscous fluids with different viscosities in the layers. The layers considered here are the core layer, the intermediate layer and the peripheral layer. The analysis has been carried out under a number of physical restrictions viz. Debye-Hückel linearization (i.e. wall zeta potential ≤25mV) is assumed sufficiently small, thin electric double layer limit (i.e. the peripheral layer is much thicker than the electric double layer thickness), low Reynolds number and large wavelength approximations. A non-dimensional analysis is used to linearize the boundary value problem. Fluid-fluid interfaces, peristaltic pumping characteristics, and trapping phenomenon are simulated. Present study also evaluates the responses of interface, pressure rise, time-averaged volume flow rate, maximum pressure rise, and the influence of Helmholtz-Smoluchowski velocity on the mechanical efficiency (with two different cases of the viscosity of fluids between the intermediate and the peripheral layer). Trapping phenomenon along with bolus dynamics evolution with thin EDL effects are analyzed. The findings of this study may ultimately be useful to control the microvascular flow during the fractionation of blood into plasma (in the peripheral layer), buffy coat (intermediate layer) and erythrocytes (core layer). This work may also contributes in electrophoresis, hematology, electrohydrodynamic therapy and, design and development of biomimetic electro-osmotic pumps.

Inflammatory response during slow- and fast-twitch muscle regeneration.

INTRODUCTION: Skeletal muscles are characterized by their unique ability to regenerate. Injury of a so-called fast-twitch muscle, extensor digitorum longus (EDL), results in efficient regeneration and reconstruction of the functional tissue. In contrast, slow-twitch muscle (soleus) fails to properly reconstruct and develops fibrosis. This study focuses on soleus and EDL muscle regeneration and associated inflammation. METHODS: We determined differences in the activity of neutrophils and M1 and M2 macrophages using flow cytometry and differences in the levels of proinflammatory cytokines using Western blotting and immunolocalization at different times after muscle injury. RESULTS: Soleus muscle repair is accompanied by increased and prolonged inflammation, as compared to EDL. The proinflammatory cytokine profile is different in the soleus and ED muscles. CONCLUSIONS: Muscle repair efficiency differs by muscle fiber type. The inflammatory response affects the repair efficiency of slow- and fast-twitch muscles. Muscle Nerve 55: 400-409, 2017.

Potential involvement of dietary advanced glycation end products in impairment of skeletal muscle growth and muscle contractile function in mice.

Diets enriched with advanced glycation end products (AGE) have recently been related to muscle dysfunction processes. However, it remains unclear whether long-term exposure to an AGE-enriched diet impacts physiological characteristics of skeletal muscles. Therefore, we explored the differences in skeletal muscle mass, contractile function and molecular responses between mice receiving a diet high in AGE (H-AGE) and low in AGE (L-AGE) for 16 weeks. There were no significant differences between L-AGE and H-AGE mice with regard to body weight, food intake or epididymal fat pad weight. However, extensor digitorum longus (EDL) and plantaris (PLA) muscle weights in H-AGE mice were lower compared with L-AGE mice. Higher levels of N ε -(carboxymethyl)-l-lysine, a marker for AGE, in EDL muscles of H-AGE mice were observed compared with L-AGE mice. H-AGE mice showed lower muscle strength and endurance in vivo and lower muscle force production of PLA muscle in vitro. mRNA expression levels of myogenic factors including myogenic factor 5 and myogenic differentiation in EDL muscle were lower in H-AGE mice compared with L-AGE mice. The phosphorylation status of 70-kDa ribosomal protein S6 kinase Thr389, an indicator of protein synthesis signalling, was lower in EDL muscle of H-AGE mice than that of L-AGE mice. These findings suggest that long-term exposure to an AGE-enriched diet impairs skeletal muscle growth and muscle contractile function, and that these muscle dysfunctions may be attributed to the inhibition of myogenic potential and protein synthesis.

Nephroprotective Effect of EDL Peptide at Acute Injury of Kidneys of Different Genesis.

EDL peptide produced a nephroprotective effect on experimental models gentamycin-induced nephropathy and ischemia/reperfusion kidney injury in rats. The nephroprotective effect of EDL peptide manifested in prevention of oliguria and retention azotemia, a decrease in proteinuria and sodium excretion, prevention of critical decrease in activities of antioxidant enzymes, suppression of LPO, and normalization of energy supply to kidneys cells. Our findings confirm the prospects of further studies of the nephroprotective properties of peptide EDL in various pathologies of the kidneys.