General Synthesis of Composition-Tunable High-Entropy Amorphous Oxides Toward High Efficiency Oxygen Evolution Reaction.

High-entropy materials have attracted much attention in the electrocatalysis field due to their unique structure, high chemical activity, and compositional tunability. However, the harsh and complex synthetic methods limit the application of such materials. Herein, a universal non-equilibrium liquid-phase synthesis strategy is reported to prepare high-entropy amorphous oxide nanoparticles (HEAO-NPs), and the composition of HEAO-NPs can be precisely controlled from tri- to ten-component. The non-equilibrium synthesis environment provided by an excessively strong reducing agent overcomes the difference in the reduction potentials of various metal ions, resulting in the formation of HEAO-NPs with a nearly equimolar ratio. The oxygen evolution reaction (OER) performance of HEAO-NPs is further improved by adjusting the composition and optimizing the electronic structure. The Fe16Co32Ni32Mn10Cu10BOy exhibits a smaller overpotential (only 259 mV at 10 mA cm-2) and higher stability in OER compared with commercial RuO2. The amorphous high-entropy structure with an optimized concentration of iron makes the binding energy of CoNi shift to a higher direction, promotes the generation of high-valence active intermediates, and accelerates the OER kinetic process. The HEAO-NPs have promising application potential in the field of catalysis, biology, and energy storage, and this work provides a general synthesis method for composition-controllable high-entropy materials.

NiCo2O4@SnS2nanosheets on carbon cloth as efficient bi-functional material for high performance supercapacitor and sensor applications.

Bi-functional materials provide an opportunity for the development of high-performance devices. Up till now, bi-functional performance of NiCo2O4@SnS2nanosheets is rarely investigated. In this work, NiCo2O4@SnS2nanosheets were synthesized on carbon cloth by utilizing a simple hydrothermal technique. The developed electrode (NiCo2O4@SnS2/CC) was investigated for the detection of L-Cysteine and supercapacitors applications. As a non-enzymatic sensor, the electrode proved to be highly sensitive for the detection of L-cysteine. The electrode exhibits a reproducible sensitivity of 4645.82µA mM-1cm-2in a wide linear range from 0.5 to 5 mM with a low limit of detection (0.005µM). Moreover, the electrode shows an excellent selectivity and long-time stability. The high specific surface area, enhanced kinetics, good synergy and distinct architecture of NiCo2O4@SnS2nanosheets produce a large number of active sites with substantial energy storage potential. As a supercapacitor, the electrode exhibits improve capacitance of 655.7 F g-1at a current density of 2 A g-1as compare to NiCo2O4/CC (560 F g-1). Moreover, the electrode achieves 95.3% of its preliminary capacitance after 10 000 cycles at 2 A g-1. Our results show that NiCo2O4@SnS2/CC nanosheets possess binary features could be attractive electrode material for the development of non-enzymatic biosensors as well as supercapacitors.

Enhanced Interfacial Magnetization is Responsible for the Negative Capacity Fading of Cobalt Ditelluride Anodes for Lithium Storage.

In lithium-ion batteries (LIBs), the stabilized capacities of transition metal compound anodes usually exhibit higher values than their theoretical values due to the interfacial charge storage, the formation of reversible electrolyte-derived surface layer, or interfacial magnetization. But the effectively utilizing the mechanisms to achieve novel anodes is rarely explored. Herein, a novel nanosized cobalt ditelluride (CoTe2 ) anodes with ultra-high capacity and long term stability is reported. Electrochemical tests show that the lithium storage capacity of the best sample reaches 1194.7 mA h g-1 after 150 cycles at 0.12 A g-1 , which increases by 57.8% compared to that after 20 cycles. In addition, the sample offers capacities of 546.6 and 492.1 mA h g-1 at 0.6 and 1.8 A g-1 , respectively. During cycles, CoTe2 particles (average size 20 nm) are gradually pulverized into the smaller nanoparticles (<3 nm), making the magnetization more fully due to the larger contact area of Co/Li2 Te interface, yielding an increased capacity. The negative capacity fading is observed, and verified by ex situ structural characterizations and in situ electrochemical measurements. The proposed strategy can be further extended to obtain other high-performance ferromagnetic metal based electrodes for energy storage applications.

Effect of LGR4/EGFR signaling on cell growth and cancer stem cell-like characteristics in liver cancer.

PURPOSE: Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is the most common primary liver cancer. Leucine-rich repeat containing G-protein-coupled receptors 4 (LGR4) participates in tumor progression, invasion, and metastasis. Our study aimed to investigate the effect of LGR4 with epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) in HCC cells. METHODS: We employed Hep3B and Huh7 cells to conduct our research. Comprehensive biological activities were characterized by CCK8 and transwell assay. Molecular biology techniques were used to determine the expression of proteins. Hep3B was employed to conduct subcutaneous tumor in mice. The tumor growth and the expression levels of proteins were assessed. RESULTS: LGR4 overexpression could promote the cells proliferation, migration, and invasion ability, while siLGR4 and siEGFR could inhibit cells biological activities. In addition, LGR4 overexpression promoted the expression levels of RSPO2, ß-catenin, EGFR and cancer stem cells (CSCs) markers, whereas silence of LGR4 or EGFR could diminish the expression levels of ß-catenin and CSCs markers. Furthermore, knockdown of LGR4 or EGFR also inhibited tumor growth and reduced the expression levels of RSPO2, CD133, CD44, Nanog, ß-catenin in vivo. CONCLUSION: Our data suggest that LGR4 /EGFR signaling in HCC leads to induce tumor growth, which then contributes to stem cell characteristics. It maybe a new perspective for the targeted therapy of HCC treatment.

Efficacy of immune checkpoint inhibitors in non-small cell lung cancer with NTRK family mutations.

BACKGROUND: The efficacy of immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs) in non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) patients harboring neurotrophin receptor kinase (NTRK) family mutations remains obscure. METHODS: The Zehir cohort from cBioPortal was used to analyze the mutations (MT) frequency of NTRK family in patients with NSCLC, and their correlation with clinical characteristics and patient survival. The influence of NTRK MT on ICIs efficacy was evaluated in ICIs-treated patients from Samstein cohort and further validated by use of data from OAK/POPLAR cohort. RESULTS: In the Zehir cohort, a significant difference was observed in median overall survival (mOS) between patients with NTRK MT and wild-type (WT) (mOS: 18.97 vs. 21.27 months, HR = 1.34, 95%CI 1.00-1.78; log-rank P = 0.047). In Samstein cohort, the mOS of NTRK mutant patients receiving ICIs has improved compared to WT patients (mOS: 21.00 vs. 11.00 months, log-rank P = 0.103). Notably, in subgroup analysis, ICIs significantly prolonged mOS in patients with NTRK3 MT than in WT patients (mOS: not available vs. 11.00 months, HR = 0.36, 95%CI 0.16-0.81; log-rank P = 0.009). Identical mOS between NTRK MT and WT patients receiving ICIs treatment (mOS: 13.24 vs. 13.50 months, log-rank P = 0.775) was observed in OAK/POPLAR cohort. Moreover, a similar programmed death ligand 1 (PD-L1) expression, but higher tumor mutational burden (TMB), blood TMB (bTMB) and enriched anti-tumor immunity were observed in NTRK MT compared to WT (P < 0.05). CONCLUSION: Taking high TMB or bTMB into consideration, patients with NTRK mutant NSCLC could benefit from ICIs treatment.

Tumor-infiltrating neutrophils and peripheral neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio conversely predicted the prognosis of patients with non-small cell lung cancer.

Increasing evidence indicates that neutrophil-associated prognostic markers, such as, tumor-associated neutrophils (TANs), neutrophil-to-T cell ratio (NTR) and neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (NLR), are strongly correlated with the survival of patients with non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). However, either the association or the difference in their predictive efficacies remains unknown. To this aim, we investigated the influence of intratumoural TANs and peripheral NLR on the clinical outcome of NSCLC patients using tumor tissues, peripheral blood indexes, and clinicopathological data of 133 patients diagnosed with NSCLC. Additionally, Kendall correlation analysis was performed to identify the association between TANs and NLR. Our results revealed that intratumoural TANs were effective prognostic factors for favorable overall survival (OS), but were not associated with disease-free survival (DFS) in the subgroup analysis of 84 postoperative patients and progression-free survival (PFS) in 49 non-resectable NSCLC patients. Elevated NTR also indicated favorable prognosis, with high intratumoural NTR being correlated with prolonged OS and high stromal NTR being correlated with prolonged DFS. In contrast, peripheral NLR predicted dismal OS and DFS of patients receiving curative surgery. Furthermore, neither intratumoural nor stromal TANs were found to be associated with NLR, indicating that they were independent inflammatory indexes in predicting the prognosis of NSCLC. In conclusion, we discovered that TANs and NLR independently and oppositely predicted the clinical outcome of NSCLC patients, providing new sights on the role of neutrophil in tumor biology and survival prediction.

Mesoporous NiCo2S4nanoflakes as an efficient and durable electrocatalyst for non-enzymatic detection of cholesterol.

The detection of cholesterol is very crucial in clinical diagnosis for rapid and accurate monitoring of multiple disease-biomarkers. There is a great need for construction of a highly reliable and stable electrocatalyst for the efficient detection of cholesterol. In this work, mesoporous NiCo2S4nanoflakes of enhanced electrochemical properties are prepared through a facile hydrothermal approach. The developed nanoflakes modified nickel foam electrode exhibits outstanding electrocatalytic properties for the detection of cholesterol with high selectivity. The electrode displays excellent sensitivity of 8623.6µA mM-1cm-2, in the wide linear range from 0.01 to 0.25 mM with a low detection limit of 0.01µM. In addition, NiCo2S4structure reveals good thermal stability and reproducibility over a period of 8 weeks. Moreover, the nanoflakes show good response for detection of cholesterol in real samples. Our results demonstrate the potential use of NiCo2S4as a catalyst for the development of cost-effective electrochemical sensors for medical and industrial applications.

ANK2 as a novel predictive biomarker for immune checkpoint inhibitors and its correlation with antitumor immunity in lung adenocarcinoma.

BACKGROUND: Immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs) have been shown to significantly improve the survival of patients with advanced lung adenocarcinoma (LUAD). However, only limited proportion of patients could benefit from ICIs. Novel biomarkers with strong predictability are needed for clinicians to maximize the efficacy of ICIs. Our study aimed to identify potential biomarkers predicting ICIs efficacy in LUAD. METHODS: The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) PanCancer Atlas studies in cBioportal were used to evaluate the mutation frequency of ANK2 across multiple cancers. Clinical and mutational data for LUAD from ICIs-treated cohorts (Hellmann et al. and Rizvi et al.) were collected to explore the correlation between ANK2 mutation and clinical outcomes. In addition, the relationship between ANK2 expression and clinical outcomes was analyzed using LUAD data from TCGA and Gene Expression Omnibus. Furthermore, the impact of ANK2 mutation and expression on the tumor immune microenvironment of LUAD was analyzed using TCGA and TISIDB databases. RESULTS: Patients with ANK2 mutation benefited more from ICIs. In ICIs-treated cohort, prolonged progression-free survival (PFS) (median PFS: NR (not reached) vs. 5.42 months, HR (hazard ratio) 0.31, 95% CI 0.18-0.54; P = 0.0037), improved complete response rate (17.65% vs. 1.85%, P = 0.0402), and improved objective response rate (64.71% vs. 24.07%, P = 0.0033) were observed in LUAD patients with ANK2 mutation compared to their wild-type counterparts. Regarding ANK2 expression, it was observed that ANK2 expression was decreased in LUAD (P < 0.05) and a higher level of ANK2 expression was associated with longer overall survival (HR 0.69, 95% CI 0.52-0.92; P = 0.012) in TCGA LUAD cohort. Moreover, ANK2 mutation or higher ANK2 expression correlated with enhanced antitumor immunity and "hot" tumor microenvironment in LUAD, which could be potential mechanisms that ANK2 mutation facilitated ICIs therapy and patients with higher ANK2 expression survived longer. CONCLUSION: Our findings suggest that ANK2 mutation or increased ANK2 expression may serve as a favorable biomarker for the efficacy of ICIs in patients with LUAD.

Ni and Co synergy in bimetallic nanowires for the electrochemical detection of hydrogen peroxide.

The development of a highly sensitive and selective non-enzymatic electrode catalyst for the detection of a target molecule was remained a great challenge. In this regard, bimetallic nanowires (BMNWs) are considered as promising electrode material for their fascinating physical/chemical properties superior to a single system. In this article, nickel cobalt (Ni x -Co) BMNWs with tunable stoichiometry were prepared by a template assisted electrodeposition method and their catalytic performance was investigated for the detection of hydrogen peroxide (H2O2). It has been found that Ni-Co (0.5:1) BMNWs/PC electrode exhibits superior non-enzymatic sensing ability toward H2O2 detection with a high selectivity. The electrode shows fast response within ∼3 s and an excellent reproducible sensitivity of 2211.4 µAmM-1 cm-2, which is the best compared to the individual Ni, Co, Ni-Co (0.3:1) BMNWs and previously reported electrodes. In addition, the electrode shows a linear response in the wide concentration range from 0.005 mM to 9 mM, low detection limit of 0.5 µM (S/N = 3.2) and a relatively long-term storage (50 d). Moreover, the sensor reveals excellent results for H2O2 detection in the real samples. The enhanced sensitivity of the Ni-Co (0.5:1) BMNWs based electrode may be due to the stable structure and synergy of Ni and Co. The results demonstrate that the catalytic activity of the electrode binary catalyst towards H2O2 detection can be improved by adjusting the Ni/Co ratio in BMNWs. The excellent performance of the electrode suggests that Ni-Co BMNWs are promising candidate for the construction of cost-effective electrochemical sensors for medical and industrial applications.

Oxygen vacancies boosted vanadium doped ZnO nanostructures-based voltage-switchable binary biosensor.

The development of a reliable non-enzymatic multi-analyte biosensor is remained a great challenge for biomedical and industrial applications. In this prospective, rationally designed electrode materials having voltage switchable electrocatalytic properties are highly promising. Here, we report vanadium doped ZnO engineered nanostructures (Zn1-xVxO where 0 ≤ x ≤ 0.1) which exhibit voltage switchable electrocatalytic properties for accurate measurements of glucose and hydrogen peroxide. Microstructures and chemical analysis show that the oxygen vacancies in the material can be tuned by controlling the stoichiometric ratios which play key role for voltage dependent measurements of different analytes. The developed Zn1-xVxO nanostructures exhibit outstanding sensing ability for binary analytes with a high selectivity, low detection limit, thermal stability and long-term stability. The Zn0.9V0.1O/glassy carbon (GC) electrode shows 3-fold increase in reproducible sensitivity for both glucose (655.24µA mM-1cm-2) and H2O2(13309.37µA mM-1cm-2) as compared to the pristine ZnO/GC electrode. Moreover, the electrode also shows good response for human blood serum and commercially available samples. The results demonstrate that defect engineering is a promising route for the development of cost-effective non-enzymatic multi-analyte sensors for practical applications.

After neoadjuvant chemotherapy platelet/lymphocyte ratios negatively correlate with prognosis in gastric cancer patients.

INTRODUCTION: Circulating predictors prognostic factors of neoadjuvant chemotherapy, which identify the patients who are potential possibly to benefit from it are limited at present. In this research, we aimed to compare the prognostic significance of neutrophil/lymphocyte ratio (NLR) and platelet/lymphocyte ratio (PLR) in patients with locally advance gastric carcinoma who were treated with neoadjuvant chemotherapy (NAC) followed by D2 gastrectomy. MATERIALS AND METHODS: From 2007 to 2015, 91 patients with locally advanced gastric cancer treated with NAC followed by D2 gastrectomy included in this retrospective cohort study. The correlation of clinical data, including tumor regression, response evaluation, tumor location, pathological type, systemic therapy, tumor size (cm), neural invasion, lymphatic-vascular invasion, ypTNM stage, and survival prognosis were analyzed. RESULTS: Platelet/lymphocyte ratio and neutrophil/lymphocyte ratio in gastric cancer patients were higher than in matched normal volunteers. PLR levels higher after neoadjuvant chemotherapy are associated with worse OS. Multivariate Cox proportional analysis showed that pre-neoadjuvant chemotherapy PLR was an independent prognostic factor. CONCLUSIONS: Pre-neoadjuvant chemotherapy PLR may be a feasible biomarker for survival prognosis in patients with locally advanced gastric cancer. PLR and NLR were reduced after neoadjuvant chemotherapy. After neoadjuvant chemotherapy, PLR level was negatively correlated with survival prognosis.

Overexpression of Class III ß-tubulin, Sox2, and nuclear Survivin is predictive of taxane resistance in patients with stage III ovarian epithelial cancer.

BACKGROUND: Class III ß-tubulin, Sox2, and Survivin play important roles in tumor survival and proliferation. However, the association of these three factors with clinicopathological characteristics, chemoresistance, and survival in patients with ovarian cancer remains controversial. METHODS: We investigated the predictive value and correlation among the expression levels of Class III ß-tubulin, Sox2, and Survivin in 110 patients with stage III ovarian epithelial cancer, including 58 patients who received taxane-based chemotherapy and 52 patients who received non-taxane-based chemotherapy. Expression of these three factors was immunohistochemically examined in 110 ovarian tumor tissues obtained from patients before chemotherapy. RESULTS: The positive expression rates for Class III ß-tubulin, Sox2, and Survivin in ovarian tumor tissues were 59.09 %, 61.82 % and 52.73 %, respectively. The expression of nuclear Survivin and Class III ß-tubulin was consistent with that of Sox2 (p = 0.005 and 0.020, respectively). Positive expression of Class III ß-tubulin, Sox2, and nuclear Survivin was significantly associated with chemoresistance to taxane-based chemotherapy (p = 0.006, 0.007, and 0.009, respectively), but not to non-taxane-based chemotherapy. Additionally, overexpression of Class III ß-tubulin, Sox2, and nuclear Survivin predicted poor progression-free survival in patients receiving taxane-based chemotherapy (p = 0.032, 0.005, and 0.004, respectively). CONCLUSIONS: These findings suggest that overexpression of Class III ß-tubulin, Sox2, and nuclear Survivin might be predictive of taxane resistance and poor progression-free survival in patients with stage III ovarian epithelial cancer. Expression of these three factors may show positive correlations in these patients.

Assembly of multicomponent nanoframes via the synergistic actions of graphene oxide space confinement effect and oriented cation exchange.

Multicomponent nanoframes (NFs) with a hollow structural character have shown the potential to be applied in many fields. Here we report a novel strategy to synthesize Zn x Cd1-x S NFs via the synergistic actions of the graphene oxide (GO) confinement effect and oriented cation exchange. The obtained samples have been systematically characterized by x-ray diffractometry (XRD), field-emission scanning electron microscopy (SEM), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), x-ray photospectroscopy (XPS) and Raman spectrometry. The results show that the two dimensional space confinement effect induced by GO and the oriented cation exchange reaction are responsible for the formation of the multicomponent NFs. The high photoelectrochemical activity and the low cost of the starting materials will make the multicomponent NFs applicable in photoelectronic and photoelectrocatalytic fields.

Knockdown of GPR137 by RNAi inhibits pancreatic cancer cell growth and induces apoptosis.

G-protein-coupled receptors (GPCRs), the largest family of cell-surface molecules involved in a number of biological and pathological processes, have recently emerged as key players in carcinogenesis and cancer progression. Orphan G protein-coupled receptors (oGPCRs) are a group of proteins lacking endogenous ligands. GPR137, one of the novel oGPCR genes, was discovered by homology screening. However, the biological role of GPR137 in cancers has not yet been discussed and is of great therapeutic interest. In this study, we knocked down GPR137 via a lentivirus system in two human pancreatic cancer cell lines BXPC-3 and PANC-1. Knockdown of GPR137 strongly inhibited cell proliferation and colony formation. Flow cytometry showed that cell cycle was arrested in the sub-G1 phase and apoptotic cells were significantly increased after GPR137 knockdown. Western blotting confirmed that GPR137 silencing induced apoptosis due to cleavage of PARP (poly ADP-ribose polymerase) and upregulation of caspase 3. Furthermore, lentivirus-mediated overexpression of GPR137 promoted the proliferation of PANC-1 cells, suggesting GPR137 as a potential oncogene in pancreatic cancer cells. Taken together, our results prove the importance of GPR137 as a crucial regulator in controlling cancer cell growth and apoptosis.

[Clinical features and treatment outcome of multiple primary lung cancer patients with different imaging performance].

OBJECTIVE: To analyze the clinical characteristics and follow up record of patients with synchronous multiple lung cancers (SMLC). METHODS: The medical records of 1 868 lung cancer patients who underwent surgical treatments From January 2007 to December 2014 were reviewed, in which 103 patients were diagnosed SMLC by Martini and American College of Chest Physicians modified guideline. The average age was 60.5 years, including 34 male and 69 female patients. According to consolidation/tumor ratio (CTR) on thin-section computed tomography, 103 cases were classified into three groups: group A (multiple ground-glass opacities, CTR ≤ 50%), group B (with one solid dominant nodules, CTR > 50%), group C (with two solid dominant nodules). The surgical procedure was determined according to CT findings and respiratory function. The Kaplan-Meier method was used to analyze the duration of recurrence-free survival (RFS) and over-all survival (OS), and differences were assessed using the Log-rank test. Multivariate analysis using the Cox proportional hazards models was used to assess the potential independent effects on RFS or OS. RESULTS: There were 38 patients in group A (36.9%), 40 patients in group B (38.8%) and 25 patients (24.3%) in group C. More female (73.7% vs. 48.0%, χ² = 4.291, P = 0.038), less smoker (21.1% vs. 44.0%, 2 = 3.770, P = 0.052), younger (56.2 years old vs. 65.9 years old, t = -4.172, P = 0.000) and less tumor size (1.24 cm vs. 2.31 cm, t = -4.573, P = 0.000) patients in group A than in group C. The 3, 5-year RFS were 80.3% and 64.9% for all patients, respectively. The 3, 5-year OS were 87.3% and 68.6% for all patients, respectively. The 3, 5-year RFS were 100% and 100% in group A, 77.7% and 51.8% in group B, 59.6% and 44.7% in group C (P = 0.029). No significance were found in OS between the three groups (P = 0.214). Multivariate Cox analysis demonstrated that size of dominant nodule larger than 2 cm (HR = 4.475, 95% CI: 1.138 to 17.604, P = 0.032) is associated with poor prognosis, whereas postoperative chemotherapy did not affect RFS. CONCLUSIONS: Multifocal ground-glass opacities and multiple solid lung cancers are different in nature. RFS of patients with SMLC is strongly affected tumor size. Surgical resection is effective and should be performed specifically to patients.

Regulation of Th1/Th2 polarization by tissue inhibitor of metalloproteinase-3 via modulating dendritic cells.

Tissue inhibitor of metalloproteinase-3 (TIMP-3) is one of a family of proteins inhibiting matrix metalloproteinases, which has also been identified as a mediator for checking inflammation. Meanwhile, it is well known that inflammation causes the activation of the immune response. However, it is not clear whether TIMP-3 plays a role in the immune system. In the present study, we demonstrated a novel function of TIMP-3 in Th1/Th2 polarization through its influence on the antigen-presenting cells. First, TIMP-3 was found strikingly up-regulated by IL-4 during the differentiation of human dendritic cells via the p38MAPK pathway. Second, the expression of costimulatory molecule-CD86 was repressed by TIMP-3. Besides, the induction of IL-12 in matured dendritic cells was significantly inhibited in a PI3K-dependent manner. Furthermore, dendritic cells matured in the presence of TIMP-3 could stimulate allogeneic naive T helper (Th) cells to display a prominent Th2 polarization. Importantly, in an autoimmune disorder-primary immune thrombocytopenia, TIMP-3 showed a statistically positive correlation with IL-4 and platelet count, but a negative correlation with IFN-γ in patient blood samples. Collectively, these in vitro and in vivo data clearly suggested a novel role of TIMP-3 in Th1/Th2 balance in humans.

Spontaneous redox reaction-mediated interfacial charge transfer in titanium dioxide/graphene oxide nanoanodes for rapid and durable lithium storage.

Titanium dioxide (TiO2) anodes show significant advantages in ion storage owing to their low cost, abundant sources, and small volume change during cycling. However, their intrinsic low electronic conductivity and sluggish ion diffusion coefficient restrict the application of TiO2 anodes, especially at high current densities. The construction of a covalently-bonded interface in TiO2-based composite anodes is an effective approach to solve these issues. Covalent bonds are usually formed in situ during materials synthesis processes, such as high-energy ball milling, solvothermal reactions, plasma-assisted thermal treatment, and addition of a linking agent for covalent coupling. In this study, we demonstrate that a spontaneous redox reaction between defective TiO2 powder and an oxidative graphene oxide (GO) substate can be used to form interfacial covalent bonds in composites. Different structural characterization techniques confirmed the formation of interfacial covalent bonds. Electrochemical measurements on an optimized sample showed that a specific capacity of 281.3 mA h g-1 after 200 cycles can be achieved at a current density of 1 C (1 C = 168 mA g-1). Even at a high rate of 50 C, the electrode maintained a reversible capacity of 97.0 mA h g-1. The good lithium storage performance of the electrode is a result of the uniquely designed composite electrodes with strong interfacial chemical bonds.

Hypoxia differently regulates the proportion of ALDHhi cells in lung squamous carcinoma H520 and adenocarcinoma A549 cells via the Wnt/ß-catenin pathway.

BACKGROUND: Cancer stem cells (CSCs) are a specific subpopulation of cancer cells with the ability of self-renewal, infinite proliferation, multidifferentiation and tumorigenicity, and play critical roles in cancer progression and treatment resistance. CSCs are tightly regulated by the tumor microenvironment, such as hypoxia; however, how hypoxia regulates CSCs in non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) remains unclear. METHODS: The proportion of ALDHhi cells was examined using the Aldefluor assay. Tankyrase inhibitor XAV939 and siRNA were used to inhibit ß-catenin while pcDNA3-ß-catenin (S33Y) plasmid enhanced the expression of ß-catenin. Western blot was administered for protein detection. The mRNA expression was measured by quantitative real-time PCR. RESULTS: We found that hypoxia led to an increase in the proportion of ALDHhi cells in lung squamous carcinoma (LUSC) H520 cells, while causing a decrease in the ALDHhi cell proportion in lung adenocarcinoma (LUAD) A549 cells. Similarly, ß-catenin expression was upregulated in H520 cells but downregulated in A549 cells upon exposure to hypoxia. Mechanically, the proportion of ALDHhi cells in both cell lines was decreased by ß-catenin inhibitor or siRNA knockdown, whereas increased after ß-catenin overexpression. Furthermore, hypoxia treatment suppressed E-cadherin expression in H520 cells and enhanced N-cadherin and ß-catenin expression, while this effect was completely opposite in A549 cells. CONCLUSION: The hypoxia-EMT-ß-catenin axis functions as an important regulator for the proportion of CSCs in NSCLC and could potentially be explored as therapeutic targets in the future.

Mesoporous Co3O4@CdS nanorods as anode for high-performance lithium ion batteries with improved lithium storage capacity and cycle life.

Transition metal oxides based anodes are facing crucial problems of capacity fading at long cycles and high rates due to electrode degradations. In this prospective, an effective strategy is employed to develop advanced electrode materials for lithium-ion batteries (LIBs). In the present work, a mesoporous Co3O4@CdS hybrid sructure is developed and investigated as anode for LiBs. The hybrid structure owning porous nature and large specific surface area, provides an opportunity to boost the lithium storage capabilities of Co3O4 nanorods. The Co3O4@CdS electrode delivers an initial discharge capacity of 1292 mA h g-1 at 0.1C and a very stable reversible capacity of 760 mA h g-1 over 200 cycles with a capacity retention rate of 92.7%. In addition, the electrode exhibits excellent cyclic stability even after 800 cycles and good rate performance as compared to previously reported electrodes. Moreover, density functional theory (DFT) and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) confirm the enhanced kinetics of the Co3O4@CdS electrode. The efficient performance of the electrode may be due to the increased surface reactivity, abundant active sites/interfaces for rapid Li+ ion diffusion and the synergy between Co3O4 and CdS NPs. This work demonstrates that Co3O4@CdS hybrid structures have great potential for high performance batteries.

Anatomical variation of sympathetic ganglia in R4+R5 sympathicotomy for primary palmar axillary hyperhidrosis.

Background: R4+R5 sympathicotomy is one of the standard surgical treatments for primary palmar axillary hyperhidrosis (PAH), but the reported outcomes vary. Anatomical variation of sympathetic ganglia is hypothesized to be a cause for this phenomenon. The sympathetic ganglia could be visualized via near-infrared (NIR) fluorescent thoracoscopy, we utilize this novel technique to observe the anatomical variation of sympathetic ganglia T3 and T4 and investigate its relationship with surgical outcomes. Methods: This is a prospective multi-center cohort study. All patients received intravenous indocyanine green (ICG) infusion 24 hours preoperatively. Anatomical variation of sympathetic ganglia T3 and T4 was observed via fluorescent thoracoscopy. Standard R4+R5 sympathicotomy was performed regardless of anatomical variation. Patients were followed up for the therapeutic outcome. Results: One hundred and sixty-two patients in total were enrolled in this study and 134 patients with bilateral clearly visualized thoracic sympathetic ganglia (TSG) were included. The success rate of fluorescent imaging of thoracic sympathetic ganglion was 82.7%. The T3 ganglion was shifted downward on 32 sides (11.9%) and no upward-shifted ganglion was identified. The T4 ganglion was shifted downward on 52 sides (19.4%) and no upward-shifted ganglion was identified. All patients underwent R4+R5 sympathicotomy and no perioperative death or severe complication occurred. The total improvement rates on palmar sweating at short-term and long-term follow-up were 98.1% and 95.1%, respectively. There were significant differences between T3 normal and T3 variation subgroups both in short-term (P=0.049) and long-term (P=0.032) follow-ups. The total improvement rates on axillary sweating at short-term and long-term follow-ups were 97.0% and 89.6%, respectively. No significant difference was found between T4 normal and T4 variation subgroups both in short-term and long-term follow-ups. No significant difference was found between normal and variation subgroups on the degree of compensatory hyperhidrosis (CH). Conclusions: NIR fluorescent thoracoscopy provides clear identification of anatomical variations of sympathetic ganglia during R4+R5 sympathicotomy. The improvement of palmar sweating was significantly affected by anatomical variation of T3 sympathetic ganglia.