The Impact of Various Organic Phosphorus Carriers on the Uptake and Use Efficiency in Barley.

Organic phosphorus (OP) is an essential component of the soil P cycle, which contributes to barley nutrition after its mineralization into inorganic phosphorus (Pi). However, the dynamics of OP utilization in the barley rhizosphere remain unclear. In this study, phytin was screened out from six OP carriers, which could reflect the difference in OP utilization between a P-inefficient genotype Baudin and a P-efficient genotype CN4027. The phosphorus utilization efficiency (PUE), root morphological traits, and expression of genes associated with P utilization were assessed under P deficiency or phytin treatments. P deficiency resulted in a greater root surface area and thicker roots. In barley fed with phytin as a P carrier, the APase activities of CN4027 were 2-3-fold lower than those of Baudin, while the phytase activities of CN4027 were 2-3-fold higher than those of Baudin. The PUE in CN4027 was mainly enhanced by activating phytase to improve the root absorption and utilization of Pi resulting from OP mineralization, while the PUE in Baudin was mainly enhanced by activating APase to improve the shoot reuse capacity. A phosphate transporter gene HvPHT1;8 regulated P transport from the roots to the shoots, while a purple acid phosphatase (PAP) family gene HvPAPhy_b contributed to the reuse of P in barley.

Closed-loop recycling of spent lithium-ion batteries based on selective sulfidation: An unconventional approach.

The facile recycling of spent lithium-ion batteries (LIBs) has attracted considerable attention because of its great importance to environmental protection and resource utilization. A novel process is developed for cyclic utilization of spent LiNixCoyMnzO2 (NCM) batteries. The spent NCM was converted into water-soluble Li2CO3, acid-dissolved MnO, and nickel-cobalt sulfides through selective sulfidation, based on roasting condition optimization and thermodynamic calculation. More than 98 % of lithium is extracted preferentially from calcined NCM through water leaching, and over 99 % of manganese is extracted selectively from water leaching residue with H2SO4 solution of 0.4 mol/L in the absence of additional reductant. The nickel and cobalt sulfides were concentrated into the leaching residue without metal impurities. The obtained Li2CO3, MnSO4, and nickel-cobalt sulfides can be regenerated as new NCM, showing good electrochemical performance, and its discharge capacity is 169.8 mAh/g at 0.2C. After 100 cycles at 0.2C, the discharge specific capacity can still be maintained at 143.24 mAh/g, and its capacity retention ratio is as high as 92  %. An environmental assessment and economic evaluation indicate that the process is an economical and eco-friendly approach for green recycling of spent LIBs.

Biochemical and transcriptomic responses of buckwheat to polyethylene microplastics.

The ubiquity of microplastic is widely recognized as pollution. Microplastic can affect the growth performances of plants. Buckwheat is a potential model crop to investigate plant responses to hazardous materials. Still, little is known about the response of buckwheat to microplastics. Thus, this study investigated the effect and uptake of polyethylene (PE) in buckwheat plant growth by monitoring the morphological and photosynthetic merits, antioxidant systems and transcriptome analysis of gene expression. Results confirmed that the impacts of PE on buckwheat growth were dose-dependent, while the highest concentration (80 mg/L) exposure elicited significantly negative responses of buckwheat. PE can invade buckwheat roots and locate in the vascular tissues. PE exposure disturbed the processes of carbon fixation and the synthesis of ATP from ADP + Pi in buckwheat leaves. The promotion of photosynthesis under PE exposure could generate extra energy for buckwheat leaves to activate antioxidant systems by increasing the antioxidant enzyme activities at an expense of morphological merits under microplastic stresses. Further in-depth study is warranted about figuring out the interactions between microplastics and biochemical responses (i.e., photosynthesis and antioxidant systems), which have great implications for deciphering the defense mechanism of buckwheat to microplastic stresses.

Serum Intestinal Metabolites are Raised in Patients with Psoriasis and Metabolic Syndrome.

Purpose: Psoriasis is an immune-mediated chronic inflammatory disease. Metabolic syndrome (MetS) is characterized by central obesity, hypertension, dyslipidemia, diabetes and insulin resistance (IR). Increasing evidence indicates that psoriasis is associated with MetS. This study aimed to explore some metabolite indexes which could evaluate the severity or predict the risk of psoriasis patients associated with MetS. Patients and methods: It was a case-control study conducted in Beijing Hospital of Traditional Chinese Medicine. Sixty healthy volunteers (HC), 100 patients with psoriasis (Ps), 100 patients with MetS (MetS) and 80 patients with both psoriasis and MetS (Ps+MetS) were entered between January 2016 and December 2018. Blood samples were taken after at least 12 hours fasting and the contents of trimethylamine N-oxide (TMAO), carnitine, choline and betaine in serum were measured by Liquid Chromatography Mass Spectrometry (LC-MS/MS). Besides, the serum levels of low-density lipoprotein (LDL), high-density lipoprotein (HDL), cholesterol (CHO), triglyceride (TG), blood glucose (BG), creatinine (Cr), urea nitrogen (BUN), uric acid (UA) were determined. Results: The non-healthy groups had different degrees of dyslipidemia, Ps-MetS> Ps >MetS. Compared with HC, the Ps had a higher level of TG; The MetS had the lowest level of HDL; The Ps+Mets had the highest level of TG and CHO. The Ps and Ps+MetS both had high level of UA, but there was no difference between the two groups. As for intestinal metabolites, the Ps had significant differences in TMAO, carnitine, and betaine in comparison with HC. The MetS had the highest level of TMAO. There was positive correlation between PASI and TMAO and betaine. Conclusions: TMAO and betaine could serve as indexes reflecting the severity of psoriasis. TG, CHO, LDL and UA could serve as risk factors of MetS in psoriatic patients.

Two new photoactive metal-organic compounds for degradation of methylene blue and treatment in ophthalmic local anesthesia.

Two new metal-organic compounds, namely [Cu(CrO4)(4,4'-bipy)(H2O)]·n(H2O) (1) together with [Mn(Cr2O7)(bpp)2]n (2) (4,4'-bipy is 4,4'-bipyridine and bpp is 1,3-bis(4-pyridyl)propane), were hydrothermally generated, which were characterized structurally through a series of characterization techniques. Moreover, compounds 1 and 2 have 2.95 eV and 3.02 eV of narrow optical band gap values, and possess outstanding photocatalytic effects for the methylene blue degradation under irradiation of visible light. The application of above compounds in the ophthalmic local anesthesia was examined and the specific mechanism was tested. First of all, the acetylcholine content in the synaptic cleft was measured with enzyme linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) assay after treated with the CPs. The acetylcholine receptor relative expression on nerve cells was subsequently measured via real time reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) under the treatment of compounds. In the end, the complexes' toxicity was evaluated by Cell Counting Kit-8 (CCK-8) detection.