The role of NLRP6 in the development and progression of neurological diseases.

The nervous system possesses the remarkable ability to undergo changes in order to store information; however, it is also susceptible to damage caused by invading pathogens or neurodegenerative processes. As a member of nucleotide-binding oligomerization domain-like receptor (NLR) family, the NLRP6 inflammasome serves as a cytoplasmic innate immune sensor responsible for detecting microbe-associated molecular patterns. Upon activation, NLRP6 can recruit the adapter protein apoptosis-associated speck-like protein (ASC) and the inflammatory factors caspase-1 or caspase-11. Consequently, inflammasomes are formed, facilitating the maturation and secretion of pro-inflammatory cytokines such as inflammatory factors-18 (IL-18) and inflammatory factors-1ß (IL-1ß). Precise regulation of NLRP6 is crucial for maintaining tissue homeostasis, as dysregulated inflammasome activation can contribute to the development of various diseases. Furthermore, NLRP6 may also play a role in the regulation of extraintestinal diseases. In cells of the brain, such as astrocytes and neurons, NLRP6 inflammasome are also present. Here, the assembly and subsequent activation of caspase-1 mediated by NLRP6 contribute to disease progression. This review aims to discuss the structure and function of NLRP6, explain clearly the mechanisms that induce and activate NLRP6, and explore its role within the central and peripheral nervous system.

Comparative efficacy of non-invasive brain stimulation for post-stroke cognitive impairment: a network meta-analysis.

BACKGROUND: Non-invasive brain stimulation (NIBS) is a burgeoning approach with the potential to significantly enhance cognition and functional abilities in individuals who have undergone a stroke. However, the current evidence lacks robust comparisons and rankings of various NIBS methods concerning the specific stimulation sites and parameters used. To address this knowledge gap, this systematic review and meta-analysis seek to offer conclusive evidence on the efficacy and safety of NIBS in treating post-stroke cognitive impairment. METHODS: A systematic review of randomized control trials (RCT) was performed using Bayesian network meta-analysis. We searched RCT in the following databases until June 2022: Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials (CENTRAL), PUBMED, and EMBASE. We compared any active NIBS to control in terms of improving cognition function and activities of daily living (ADL) capacity following stroke. RESULTS: After reviewing 1577 retrieved citations, a total of 26 RCTs were included. High-frequency (HF)-repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) (mean difference 2.25 [95% credible interval 0.77, 3.66]) was identified as a recommended approach for alleviating the global severity of cognition. Dual-rTMS (27.61 [25.66, 29.57]) emerged as a favorable technique for enhancing ADL function. In terms of stimulation targets, the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex exhibited a higher ranking in relation to the global severity of cognition. CONCLUSIONS: Among various NIBS techniques, HF-rTMS stands out as the most promising intervention for enhancing cognitive function. Meanwhile, Dual-rTMS is highly recommended for improving ADL capacity.

Ultra-High Proportion of Grain Boundaries in Zinc Metal Anode Spontaneously Inhibiting Dendrites Growth.

Aqueous Zn-ion batteries are an attractive electrochemical energy storage solution for their budget and safe properties. However, dendrites and uncontrolled side reactions in anodes detract the cycle life and energy density of the batteries. Grain boundaries in metals are generally considered as the source of the above problems but we present a diverse result. This study introduces an ultra-high proportion of grain boundaries on zinc electrodes through femtosecond laser bombardment to enhance stability of zinc metal/electrolyte interface. The ultra-high proportion of grain boundaries promotes the homogenization of zinc growth potential, to achieve uniform nucleation and growth, thereby suppressing dendrite formation. Additionally, the abundant active sites mitigate the side reactions during the electrochemical process. Consequently, the 15 µm Fs-Zn||MnO2 pouch cell achieves an energy density of 249.4 Wh kg-1 and operates for over 60 cycles at a depth-of-discharge of 23 %. The recognition of the favorable influence exerted by UP-GBs paves a new way for other metal batteries.

Brassinosteroid-mediated reactive oxygen species are essential for tapetum degradation and pollen fertility in tomato.

Phytohormone brassinosteroids (BRs) are essential for plant growth and development, but the mechanisms of BR-mediated pollen development remain largely unknown. In this study, we show that pollen viability, pollen germination and seed number decreased in the BR-deficient mutant d^im , which has a lesion in the BR biosynthetic gene DWARF (DWF), and in the bzr1 mutant, which is deficient in BR signaling regulator BRASSINAZOLE RESISTANT 1 (BZR1), compared with those in wild-type plants, whereas plants overexpressing DWF or BZR1 exhibited the opposite effects. Loss or gain of function in the DWF or BZR1 genes altered the timing of reactive oxygen species (ROS) production and programmed cell death (PCD) in tapetal cells, resulting in delayed or premature tapetal degeneration, respectively. Further analysis revealed that BZR1 could directly bind to the promoter of RESPIRATORY BURST OXIDASE HOMOLOG 1 (RBOH1), and that RBOH1-mediated ROS promote pollen and seed development by triggering PCD and tapetal cell degradation. In contrast, the suppression of RBOH1 compromised BR signaling-mediated ROS production and pollen development. These findings provide strong evidence that BZR1-dependent ROS production plays a critical role in the BR-mediated regulation of tapetal cell degeneration and pollen development in Solanum lycopersicum (tomato) plants.

Brassinosteroids Act as a Positive Regulator of Photoprotection in Response to Chilling Stress.

Photoprotection is an important strategy adopted by plants to avoid photoinhibition under stress conditions. However, the way in which photoprotection is regulated is not fully understood. Here, we demonstrate that tomato (Solanum lycopersicum) mutants of brassinosteroid (BR) biosynthesis (dwf) and related signaling through BRASSINAZOLE-RESISTANT1 (bzr1) are more sensitive to (PSII and PSI photoinhibition, with decreased cyclic electron flow around PSI and lower nonphotochemical quenching, accumulation of PSII subunit S (PsbS), violaxanthin deepoxidase (VDE) activity, and D1 protein abundance. Chilling induced the accumulation of active BRs and activated BZR1, which directly activates the transcription of RESPIRATORY BURST OXIDASE HOMOLOG1 (RBOH1) and hydrogen peroxide production in the apoplast. While apoplastic hydrogen peroxide is essential for the induction of PROTON GRADIENT REGULATION5 (PGR5)-dependent cyclic electron flow, PGR5 participates in the regulation of chilling- and BR-dependent induction of nonphotochemical quenching, accumulation of D1, VDE, and PsbS proteins, transcription of genes involved in redox signaling, hormone signaling, and activity of several antioxidant enzymes. Mutations in BZR1 and PGR5 or suppressed transcription of RBOH1 compromised chilling- and BR-induced photoprotection, resulting in increased sensitivity to photoinhibition. These results demonstrate that BRs act as a positive regulator of photoprotection in a redox-PGR5-dependent manner in response to chilling stress in tomato.

Superior Hydrogen Evolution Reaction Performance in 2H-MoS2 to that of 1T Phase.

In the hydrogen evolution reaction (HER), energy-level matching is a prerequisite for excellent electrocatalytic activity. Conventional strategies such as chemical doping and the incorporation of defects underscore the complicated process of controlling the doping species and the defect concentration, which obstructs the understanding of the function of band structure in HER catalysis. Accordingly, 2H-MoS2 and 1T-MoS2 are used to create electrocatalytic nanodevices to address the function of band structure in HER catalysis. Interestingly, it is found that the 2H-MoS2 with modulated Fermi level under the application of a vertical electric field exhibits excellent electrocatalytic activity (as evidenced by an overpotential of 74 mV at 10 mA cm-2 and a Tafel slope of 99 mV per decade), which is superior to 1T-MoS2 . This unexpected excellent HER performance is ascribed to the fact that electrons are injected into the conduction band under the condition of back-gate voltage, which leads to the increased Fermi level of 2H-MoS2 and a shorter Debye screen length. Hence, the required energy to drive electrons from the electrocatalyst surface to reactant will decrease, which activates the 2H-MoS2 thermodynamically.

Highly Durable Na2V6O16·1.63H2O Nanowire Cathode for Aqueous Zinc-Ion Battery.

Rechargeable aqueous zinc-ion batteries are highly desirable for grid-scale applications due to their low cost and high safety; however, the poor cycling stability hinders their widespread application. Herein, a highly durable zinc-ion battery system with a Na2V6O16·1.63H2O nanowire cathode and an aqueous Zn(CF3SO3)2 electrolyte has been developed. The Na2V6O16·1.63H2O nanowires deliver a high specific capacity of 352 mAh g-1 at 50 mA g-1 and exhibit a capacity retention of 90% over 6000 cycles at 5000 mA g-1, which represents the best cycling performance compared with all previous reports. In contrast, the NaV3O8 nanowires maintain only 17% of the initial capacity after 4000 cycles at 5000 mA g-1. A single-nanowire-based zinc-ion battery is assembled, which reveals the intrinsic Zn2+ storage mechanism at nanoscale. The remarkable electrochemical performance especially the long-term cycling stability makes Na2V6O16·1.63H2O a promising cathode for a low-cost and safe aqueous zinc-ion battery.

Graphene Scroll-Coated α-MnO2 Nanowires as High-Performance Cathode Materials for Aqueous Zn-Ion Battery.

The development of manganese dioxide as the cathode for aqueous Zn-ion battery (ZIB) is limited by the rapid capacity fading and material dissolution. Here, a highly reversible aqueous ZIB using graphene scroll-coated α-MnO2 as the cathode is proposed. The graphene scroll is uniformly coated on the MnO2 nanowire with an average width of 5 nm, which increases the electrical conductivity of the MnO2 nanowire and relieves the dissolution of the cathode material during cycling. An energy density of 406.6 Wh kg-1 (382.2 mA h g-1 ) at 0.3 A g-1 can be reached, which is the highest specific energy value among all the cathode materials for aqueous Zn-ion battery so far, and good long-term cycling stability with 94% capacity retention after 3000 cycles at 3 A g-1 are achieved. Meanwhile, a two-step intercalation mechanism that Zn ions first insert into the layers and then the tunnels of MnO2 framework is proved by in situ X-ray diffraction, galvanostatic intermittent titration technique, and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy characterizations. The graphene scroll-coated metallic oxide strategy can also bring intensive interests for other energy storage systems.

Activation of Sodium Storage Sites in Prussian Blue Analogues via Surface Etching.

Sodium-ion battery technologies are known to suffer from kinetic problems associated with the solid-state diffusion of Na+ in intercalation electrodes, which results in suppressed specific capacity and degraded rate performance. Here, a controllable selective etching approach is developed for the synthesis of Prussian blue analogue (PBA) with enhanced sodium storage activity. On the basis of time-dependent experiments, a defect-induced morphological evolution mechanism from nanocube to nanoflower structure is proposed. Through in situ X-ray diffraction measurement and computational analysis, this unique structure is revealed to provide higher Na+ diffusion dynamics and negligible volume change during the sodiation/desodiation processes. As a sodium ion battery cathode, the PBA exhibits a discharge capacity of 90 mA h g-1, which is in good agreement with the complete low spin FeLS(C) redox reaction. It also demonstrates an outstanding rate capability of 71.0 mA h g-1 at 44.4 C, as well as an unprecedented cycling reversibility over 5000 times.

Field-Effect Tuned Adsorption Dynamics of VSe2 Nanosheets for Enhanced Hydrogen Evolution Reaction.

Transition metal dichalcogenides, such as MoS2 and VSe2 have emerged as promising catalysts for the hydrogen evolution reaction (HER). Substantial work has been devoted to optimizing the catalytic performance by constructing materials with specific phases and morphologies. However, the optimization of adsorption/desorption process in HER is rare. Herein, we concentrate on tuning the dynamics of the adsorption process in HER by applying a back gate voltage to the pristine VSe2 nanosheet. The back gate voltage induces the redistribution of the ions at the electrolyte-VSe2 nanosheet interface, which realizes the enhanced electron transport process and facilitates the rate-limiting step (discharge process) under HER conditions. A considerable low onset overpotential of 70 mV is achieved in VSe2 nanosheets without any chemical treatment. Such unexpected improvement is attributed to the field tuned adsorption-dynamics of VSe2 nanosheet, which is demonstrated by the greatly optimized charge transfer resistance (from 1.03 to 0.15 MΩ) and time constant of the adsorption process (from 2.5 × 10-3 to 5.0 × 10-4 s). Our results demonstrate enhanced catalysis performance in the VSe2 nanosheet by tuning the adsorption dynamics with a back gate, which provides new directions for improving the catalytic activity of non-noble materials.

Melatonin Alleviates High Temperature-Induced Pollen Abortion in Solanum lycopersicum.

Melatonin is a pleiotropic signal molecule that plays critical roles in regulating plant growth and development, as well as providing physiological protections against various environmental stresses. Nonetheless, the mechanisms for melatonin-mediated pollen thermotolerance remain largely unknown. In this study, we report that irrigation treatment with melatonin (20 µM) effectively ameliorated high temperature-induced inactivation of pollen and inhibition of pollen germination in tomato (Solanum lycopersicum) plants. Melatonin alleviated reactive oxygen species production in tomato anthers under high temperature by the up-regulation of the transcription and activities of several antioxidant enzymes. Transmission electron micrograph results showed that high temperature-induced pollen abortion is associated with a premature degeneration of the tapetum cells and the formation of defective pollen grains with degenerated nuclei at the early uninuclear microspore stage, whilst melatonin protected degradation of organelles by enhancing the expression of heat shock protein genes to refold unfolded proteins and the expression of autophagy-related genes and formation of autophagosomes to degrade denatured proteins. These findings suggest a novel function of melatonin to protect pollen activity under high temperature and support the potential effects of melatonin on reproductive development of plants.

High-Performance Aqueous Zinc-Ion Battery Based on Layered H2 V3 O8 Nanowire Cathode.

Rechargeable aqueous zinc-ion batteries have offered an alternative for large-scale energy storage owing to their low cost and material abundance. However, developing suitable cathode materials with excellent performance remains great challenges, resulting from the high polarization of zinc ion. In this work, an aqueous zinc-ion battery is designed and constructed based on H2 V3 O8 nanowire cathode, Zn(CF3 SO3 )2 aqueous electrolyte, and zinc anode, which exhibits the capacity of 423.8 mA h g-1 at 0.1 A g-1 , and excellent cycling stability with a capacity retention of 94.3% over 1000 cycles. The remarkable electrochemical performance is attributed to the layered structure of H2 V3 O8 with large interlayer spacing, which enables the intercalation/de-intercalation of zinc ions with a slight change of the structure. The results demonstrate that exploration of the materials with large interlayer spacing is an effective strategy for improving electrochemical stability of electrodes for aqueous Zn ion batteries.

Carbon-MEMS-Based Alternating Stacked MoS2 @rGO-CNT Micro-Supercapacitor with High Capacitance and Energy Density.

A novel process to fabricate a carbon-microelectromechanical-system-based alternating stacked MoS2 @rGO-carbon-nanotube (CNT) micro-supercapacitor (MSC) is reported. The MSC is fabricated by successively repeated spin-coating of MoS2 @rGO/photoresist and CNT/photoresist composites twice, followed by photoetching, developing, and pyrolysis. MoS2 @rGO and CNTs are embedded in the carbon microelectrodes, which cooperatively enhance the performance of the MSC. The fabricated MSC exhibits a high areal capacitance of 13.7 mF cm-2 and an energy density of 1.9 µWh cm-2 (5.6 mWh cm-3 ), which exceed many reported carbon- and MoS2 -based MSCs. The MSC also retains 68% of capacitance at a current density of 2 mA cm-2 (5.9 A cm-3 ) and an outstanding cycling performance (96.6% after 10 000 cycles, at a scan rate of 1 V s-1 ). Compared with other MSCs, the MSC in this study is fabricated by a low-cost and facile process, and it achieves an excellent and stable electrochemical performance. This approach could be highly promising for applications in integration of micro/nanostructures into microdevices/systems.

Phosphorus Enhanced Intermolecular Interactions of SnO2 and Graphene as an Ultrastable Lithium Battery Anode.

SnO2 suffers from fast capacity fading in lithium-ion batteries due to large volume expansion as well as unstable solid electrolyte interphase. Herein, the design and synthesis of phosphorus bridging SnO2 and graphene through covalent bonding are demonstrated to achieve a robust structure. In this unique structure, the phosphorus is able to covalently "bridge" graphene and tin oxide nanocrystal through PC and SnOP bonding, respectively, and act as a buffer layer to keep the structure stable during charging-discharging. As a result, when applied as a lithium battery anode, SnO2 @P@GO shows very stable performance and retains 95% of 2nd capacity onward after 700 cycles. Such unique structural design opens up new avenues for the rational design of other high-capacity materials for lithium battery, and as a proof-of-concept, creates new opportunities in the synthesis of advanced functional materials for high-performance energy storage devices.

Single-Nanowire Electrochemical Probe Detection for Internally Optimized Mechanism of Porous Graphene in Electrochemical Devices.

Graphene has been widely used to enhance the performance of energy storage devices due to its high conductivity, large surface area, and excellent mechanical flexibility. However, it is still unclear how graphene influences the electrochemical performance and reaction mechanisms of electrode materials. The single-nanowire electrochemical probe is an effective tool to explore the intrinsic mechanisms of the electrochemical reactions in situ. Here, pure MnO2 nanowires, reduced graphene oxide/MnO2 wire-in-scroll nanowires, and porous graphene oxide/MnO2 wire-in-scroll nanowires are employed to investigate the capacitance, ion diffusion coefficient, and charge storage mechanisms in single-nanowire electrochemical devices. The porous graphene oxide/MnO2 wire-in-scroll nanowire delivers an areal capacitance of 104 nF/µm(2), which is 4.0 and 2.8 times as high as those of reduced graphene oxide/MnO2 wire-in-scroll nanowire and MnO2 nanowire, respectively, at a scan rate of 20 mV/s. It is demonstrated that the reduced graphene oxide wrapping around the MnO2 nanowire greatly increases the electronic conductivity of the active materials, but decreases the ion diffusion coefficient because of the shielding effect of graphene. By creating pores in the graphene, the ion diffusion coefficient is recovered without degradation of the electron transport rate, which significantly improves the capacitance. Such single-nanowire electrochemical probes, which can detect electrochemical processes and behavior in situ, can also be fabricated with other active materials for energy storage and other applications in related fields.

SnO2 Quantum Dots@Graphene Oxide as a High-Rate and Long-Life Anode Material for Lithium-Ion Batteries.

Tin-based electrode s offer high theoretical capacities in lithium ion batteries, but further commercialization is strongly hindered by the poor cycling stability. An in situ reduction method is developed to synthesize SnO2 quantum dots@graphene oxide. This approach is achieved by the oxidation of Sn(2+) and the reduction of the graphene oxide. At 2 A g(-1), a capacity retention of 86% is obtained even after 2000 cycles.

Flexible additive free H2V3O8 nanowire membrane as cathode for sodium ion batteries.

Sodium ion batteries (SIBs) have emerged as a potential candidate to succeed lithium ion batteries (LIBs), because of the abundant sodium resources on earth. Layered vanadium oxides are regarded as the promising candidates for SIBs because of their large interlayer spacing, high theoretical specific capacity, abundant sources and low cost. In this paper, a vanadium oxide hydrate (H2V3O8) nanowire membrane is presented as a flexible cathode for SIBs without addition of any other additives (binders or conductive compounds). Such a freestanding flexible membrane exhibits a high specific capacity of 168 mA h g(-1) at 10 mA g(-1), and its high capacity is maintained well after 100 cycles. It is found that the capacitive charge storage accounts for a relatively large proportion of the total capacity, whereas the crystal structure of H2V3O8 is highly reversible during the sodiation/desodiation processes. This research demonstrates that the H2V3O8 nanowire is an exceptional candidate for SIBs.

In Situ Investigation of Li and Na Ion Transport with Single Nanowire Electrochemical Devices.

In the past decades, Li ion batteries are widely considered to be the most promising rechargeable batteries for the rapid development of mobile devices and electric vehicles. There arouses great interest in Na ion batteries, especially in the field of static grid storage due to their much lower production cost compared with Li ion batteries. However, the fundamental mechanism of Li and Na ion transport in nanoscale electrodes of batteries has been rarely experimentally explored. This insight can guide the development and optimization of high-performance electrode materials. In this work, single nanowire devices with multicontacts are designed to obtain detailed information during the electrochemical reactions. This unique platform is employed to in situ investigate and compare the transport properties of Li and Na ions at a single nanowire level. To give different confinement for ions and electrons during the electrochemical processes, two different configurations of nanowire electrode are proposed; one is to fully immerse the nanowire in the electrolyte, and the other is by using photoresist to cover the nanowire with only one end exposed. For both configurations, the conductivity of nanowire decreases after intercalation/deintercalation for both Li and Na ions, indicating that they share the similar electrochemical reaction mechanisms in layered electrodes. However, the conductivity degradation and structure destruction for Na ions is more severe than those of Li ions during the electrochemical processes, which mainly results from the much larger volume of Na ions and greater energy barrier encountered by the limited layered spaces. Moreover, the battery performances of coin cells are compared to further confirm this conclusion. The present work provides a unique platform for in situ electrochemical and electrical probing, which will push the fundamental and practical research of nanowire electrode materials for energy storage applications.

Manganese oxide/carbon yolk-shell nanorod anodes for high capacity lithium batteries.

Transition metal oxides have attracted much interest for their high energy density in lithium batteries. However, the fast capacity fading and the low power density still limit their practical implementation. In order to overcome these challenges, one-dimensional yolk-shell nanorods have been successfully constructed using manganese oxide as an example through a facile two-step sol-gel coating method. Dopamine and tetraethoxysilane are used as precursors to obtain uniform polymer coating and silica layer followed by converting into carbon shell and hollow space, respectively. As anode material for lithium batteries, the manganese oxide/carbon yolk-shell nanorod electrode has a reversible capacity of 660 mAh/g for initial cycle at 100 mA/g and exhibits excellent cyclability with a capacity of 634 mAh/g after 900 cycles at a current density of 500 mA/g. An enhanced capacity is observed during the long-term cycling process, which may be attributed to the structural integrity, the stability of solid electrolyte interphase layer, and the electrochemical actuation of the yolk-shell nanorod structure. The results demonstrate that the manganese oxide is well utilized with the one-dimensional yolk-shell structure, which represents an efficient way to realize excellent performance for practical applications.