Effects of tislelizumab on health-related quality of life in patients with recurrent or metastatic nasopharyngeal cancer.

BACKGROUND: This study evaluated health-related quality of life (HRQoL) in the RATIONALE-309 (NCT03924986) intent-to-treat (ITT) population and in a subgroup of patients with liver metastases. METHODS: Patients were randomized 1:1 to tislelizumab + chemotherapy or placebo + chemotherapy. As the secondary endpoint, HRQoL was evaluated using seven selected scores from the EORTC QLQ-C30 and QLQ Head and Neck Cancer module (QLQ-H&N35). RESULTS: Of 263 randomized patients in the ITT population (tislelizumab + chemotherapy n = 131, placebo + chemotherapy n = 132), 43% had liver metastases (tislelizumab + chemotherapy n = 56; placebo + chemotherapy n = 57). No differences in change in selected scores on the QLQ-C30 from baseline to cycle 4 or cycle 8 were observed for the ITT or liver metastases subgroup. No differences in selected QLQ-H&N35 scores were observed between the arms from baseline to cycle 4. In the ITT population and the liver metastases subgroup, a greater reduction from baseline to cycle 8 was observed in the tislelizumab + chemotherapy arm than the placebo + chemotherapy arm in QLQ-H&N35 pain score. At cycle 8 in the liver metastases subgroup, the tislelizumab + chemotherapy arm experienced greater improvement in the QLQ-H&N35 senses problems score than the placebo + chemotherapy arm. Differences in time to deterioration between arms were not observed. CONCLUSIONS: The current findings, along with improved survival and favorable safety, suggests that tislelizumab + chemotherapy represents a potential first-line treatment for recurrent or metastatic nasopharyngeal cancer.

The Global Environmental Impacts of China's Accession to the WTO: A 20-Year Review.

Robust empirical assessments of the long-term cumulative global effects of free trade and economic globalization on the environment are limited. This account fills this gap by constructing a dynamic computable general equilibrium model to estimate the environmental effects of a milestone in the recent history of trade liberalization: China's 20-year World Trade Organization (WTO) accession. The modeling shows that China's accession could have resulted in an increase in the global cumulative greenhouse gases (GHGs), sulfur dioxide (SO2), and nitrogen oxide (NOx) emissions by roughly 14,000 Mt CO2-eq, 64 Mt, and 46 Mt, respectively. The global production scale effect contributed to most of these estimated increases. The regional total output composition effect also caused higher emissions. Meanwhile, the sectoral output composition effect helped reduce total emissions to a limited extent. Fortunately, a package of emission abatement measures led to a decrease in emission factors and a drop in the global cumulative emissions of GHGs, SO2, and NOx. The findings suggest that to enjoy the free trade and economic globalization benefits and minimize the induced emission increases, it is vitally important to systemically reduce emissions across the entire economy and nurture a low-carbon trade regime.

Discovery of Selective and Potent ATR Degrader for Exploration its Kinase-Independent Functions in Acute Myeloid Leukemia Cells.

ATR has emerged as a promising target for anti-cancer drug development. Several potent ATR inhibitors are currently undergoing various stages of clinical trials, but none have yet received FDA approval due to unclear regulatory mechanisms. In this study, we discovered a potent and selective ATR degrader. Its kinase-independent regulatory functions in acute myeloid leukemia (AML) cells were elucidated using this proteolysis-targeting chimera (PROTAC) molecule as a probe. The ATR degrader, 8 i, exhibited significantly different cellular phenotypes compared to the ATR kinase inhibitor 1. Mechanistic studies revealed that ATR deletion led to breakdown in the nuclear envelope, causing genome instability and extensive DNA damage. This would increase the expression of p53 and triggered immediately p53-mediated apoptosis signaling pathway, which was earlier and more effective than ATR kinase inhibition. Based on these findings, the in vivo anti-proliferative effects of ATR degrader 8 i were assessed using xenograft models. The degrader significantly inhibited the growth of AML cells in vivo, unlike the ATR inhibitor. These results suggest that the marked anti-AML activity is regulated by the kinase-independent functions of the ATR protein. Consequently, developing potent and selective ATR degraders could be a promising strategy for treating AML.

Multi-Functional Spirobifluorene Phosphonate Based Exciplex Interface Enables Voc Reaching 95% of Theoretical Limit for Perovskite Solar Cells.

Metal halide perovskite solar cells (PSCs) show significant advancements in power conversion efficiency (PCE). However, the open-circuit voltage (VOC) of PSCs is limited by interfacial factors such as defect-induced recombination, energy band mismatch, and non-intimate interface contact. Here, an exciplex interface is first developed based on the strategically designed and synthesized two spirobifluorene phosphonate molecules to mitigate VOC loss in PSCs. The exciplex interface constructed by the intimate contact between the multi-functional molecules and hole transport layer takes the roles to promote the hole extraction by donor-acceptor interaction, passivate coordination-unsaturated Pb2+ defects by equipped phosphonate groups, and optimize the energy level alignment. As a result, a record VOC of 1.26 V with a perovskite bandgap of 1.61 eV is achieved, representing over 95% of theoretical limit. This advancement leads to an increase in PCE from 21.29% to 24.12% and improved stability. The exciplex interface paves the way for addressing the long-standing challenge of VOC loss and promotes the wider application of PSCs.

High-Performance Blue Perovskite Light-Emitting Diodes Enabled by Synergistic Effect of Additives.

While quasi-two-dimensional (quasi-2D) perovskites have good properties of cascade energy transfer, high exciton binding energy, and high quantum efficiency, which will benefit high-efficiency blue PeLEDs, inefficient domain distribution management and unbalanced carrier transport impede device performance improvement. Herein, (2-(9H-carbazol-9-yl)ethyl)phosphonic acid (2PACz) and methyl 2-aminopyridine-4-carboxylate (MAC) were simultaneously introduced to a blue quasi-2D perovskite film. Relying on the synergistic effect of 2PACz and MAC, it not only modulates the phase distribution inhibiting the n = 2 phase but also greatly improves the electrical property of the quasi-2D perovskite film. As a result, the as-modified blue quasi-2D PeLED demonstrated an external quantum efficiency (EQE) of 17.08% and a luminance of 10142 cd m-2. This study exemplifies the synergistic effect among dual additives and offers a new effective additive strategy modulating phase distribution and building balanced carrier transport, which paves the way for the fabrication of highly efficient blue PeLEDs.

Sonodynamic Therapy of NRP2 Monoclonal Antibody-Guided MOFs@COF Targeted Disruption of Mitochondrial and Endoplasmic Reticulum Homeostasis to Induce Autophagy-Dependent Ferroptosis.

The lethality and chemotherapy resistance of pancreatic cancer necessitates the urgent development of innovative strategies to improve patient outcomes. To address this issue, we designed a novel drug delivery system named GDMCN2,which uses iron-based metal organic framework (Fe-MOF) nanocages encased in a covalent organic framework (COF) and modified with the pancreatic cancer-specific antibody, NRP2. After being targeted into tumor cells, GDMCN2 gradually release the sonosensitizer sinoporphyrin sodium (DVDMS) and chemotherapeutic gemcitabine (GEM) and simultaneously generated reactive oxygen species (ROS) under ultrasound (US) irradiation. This system can overcome gemcitabine resistance in pancreatic cancer and reduce its toxicity to non-targeted cells and tissues. In a mechanistic cascade, the release of ROS activates the mitochondrial transition pore (MPTP), leading to the release of Ca2+ and induction of endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress. Therefore, microtubule-associated protein 1A/1B-light chain 3 (LC3) is activated, promoting lysosomal autophagy. This process also induces autophagy-dependent ferroptosis, aided by the upregulation of Nuclear Receptor Coactivator 4 (NCOA4). This mechanism increases the sensitivity of pancreatic cancer cells to chemotherapeutic drugs and increases mitochondrial and DNA damage. The findings demonstrate the potential of GDMCN2 nanocages as a new avenue for the development of cancer therapeutics.

Metal-Organic Frameworks/Graphdiyne/Copper Foam Composite Membranes for Catalytic Applications.

Graphdiyne (GDY) with a three-dimensional network structure was synthesized on a copper foam (CF) via an in situ Glaser-Hay coupling reaction. A metal-organic framework/GDY composite membrane was designed and synthesized for the first time. CF serves as a template and catalyst for the directed polymerization of GDY membranes. The catalytic activities of HKUST-1/GDY/CF membrane in wet peroxide oxidation of phenol, oxidation of benzyl alcohol, and ring opening of epoxide were studied. The composite membrane has the advantages of appropriateness for continuous operation, simple use process, easy recycling, high catalytic efficiency, etc. It was found that the incorporation of GDY can facilitate electron transfer and effectively improve the catalytic activity of HKUST-1 in membrane catalysis.

Design and discovery of new selective and potent VEGF receptor 2 tyrosine kinase inhibitors.

A series of novel substituted 4-anilinoquinazolines and their related compounds were designed and prepared by 3D modeling as potential inhibitors of VEGFR-2. Evaluation of VEGFR inhibitory activities suggested that compound I10 was a more potent (IC50 = 0.11 nM) VEGFR-2 inhibitor than most of the listed drugs. Kinase panel assays demonstrated that compound I10 was the selective VEGFR-2 inhibitor. The prediction of 3D modeling unveiled a unique binding mode of this lead compound to VEGFR-2. Compound I10 exhibited remarkable anti-angiogenesis and anti-proliferation in HUVEC at low nanomolar concentrations. PK studies indicated that the lead compound possessed adequate oral bioavailability in various species. In vivo subcutaneous tumor model demonstrated that oral administration of I10 demonstrated potent efficacy in inhibiting tumor growth and angiogenesis. All these results suggested compound I10 is a potential drug candidate for cancer treatment.

Tislelizumab plus chemotherapy as first-line treatment for recurrent or metastatic nasopharyngeal cancer: A multicenter phase 3 trial (RATIONALE-309).

Checkpoint inhibitors are effective in recurrent/metastatic nasopharyngeal cancer (R/M NPC). RATIONALE-309 (NCT03924986) randomized 263 treatment-naive R/M NPC patients to tislelizumab or placebo every 3 weeks (Q3W), plus chemotherapy (Q3W for 4-6 cycles). At interim analysis, progression-free survival (PFS) was significantly longer with tislelizumab-chemotherapy versus placebo-chemotherapy (hazard ratio: 0.52; 95% confidence interval: 0.38, 0.73; p < 0.0001). PFS benefit for tislelizumab-chemotherapy versus placebo-chemotherapy was observed regardless of programmed death-ligand 1 expression. PFS after next line of treatment and overall survival showed favorable trends for tislelizumab-chemotherapy versus placebo-chemotherapy. The safety profile was similar between arms. Gene expression profiling (GEP) identified immunologically "hot" tumors, and showed an activated dendritic cell (DC) signature was associated with tislelizumab-chemotherapy PFS benefit. Our results support that tislelizumab-chemotherapy should be considered as first-line treatment for R/M NPC, and GEP and activated DC signature results may help identify patients who might benefit most from immunochemotherapy treatment. VIDEO ABSTRACT.

Direct detection and identification of periprosthetic joint infection pathogens by metagenomic next-generation sequencing.

This study assessed the application of metagenomic next-generation sequencing in pathogen detection of periprosthetic joint infections. A total of 95 cases who previously had undergone hip and knee replacement undergoing revision from January 2018 to January 2021 were included in this study. Specimens of synovial fluid and deep-tissue were collected for culture and metagenomic next-generation sequencing, and patients were retrospectively categorized as infected or aseptic using the Musculoskeletal Infection Society criteria after revision surgery. The sensitivity, specificity, positive and negative predictive values were compared. A total of 36 cases had positive culture results and 59 cases had positive metagenomic next-generation sequencing results. Culture was positive in 34 infected cases (58.6%) and 2 aseptic cases (5.4%). Metagenomic next-generation sequencing was positive in 55 infected cases (94.8%) and 4 aseptic cases (10.8%). Five cases diagnosed with infection had other potential pathogens detected by metagenomic next-generation sequencing. Among the 24 culture-negative periprosthetic joint infections, metagenomic next-generation sequencing was able to identify potential pathogens in 21 cases (87.5%). From sampling to reporting, the average time needed for culture was 5.2 (95% CI 3.1-7.3) days, while that for metagenomic next-generation sequencing was 1.3 (95% CI 0.9-1.7) days. Metagenomic next-generation sequencing is more advantageous in pathogen detection of periprosthetic joint infection after total joint replacement, especially in patients with multiple infections or negative culture results.

Impact of the emergency response to COVID-19 on air quality and its policy implications: Evidence from 290 cities in China.

The emergency response to the COVID-19 pandemic had an extreme exogenous impact on society and the economy. This paper aims to explore the impacts of the national emergency response and the subsequent emergency response termination on air quality and its policy implications through regression discontinuity design (RDD) estimation by employing panel data on daily air quality from January 1, 2019, to July 31, 2020, for 290 cities in China. The empirical results showed that the emergency response resulted in a significant decrease in most of the major pollutant concentrations within a short time frame, and the average air quality index (AQI) decreased by approximately 11.0%. The concentrations of PM2.5, PM10, SO2, NO2, and CO decreased by approximately 18.8%, 13.1%, 13.5%, 11.1% and 6.7%, respectively, while the O3 concentration did not change significantly. Further causal analysis found that mandatory traffic restrictions and the shutdown of industries were two important factors that contributed greatly to air quality improvement. Moreover, since the process of returning to normal daily activities and promoting the economy were gradual, the results showed that air pollution did not rebound immediately after the government called for the "resumption of production and work" and announced the "termination of the emergency response". Our findings suggest that to achieve a substantial and sustainable improvement in air quality, it is necessary to continuously implement strict emission control routines and take co-control measures for various VOCs precursors of ozone.

Discovery of novel and bioavailable histone deacetylases and cyclin-dependent kinases dual inhibitor to impair the stemness of leukemia cells.

Acute myeloid leukemia (AML) has been confirmed as one of the most lethal heterogeneous clonal diseases. In addition to being essential for the development and progression of leukemia, leukemic stem cells (LSCs), a subpopulation of leukemia cells with stem cell characteristics, are also primarily responsible for the development of leukemia relapse and drug resistance. Elimination of stemness and induction of AML cell differentiation would become a promising and effective therapeutic strategy. In the present study, a novel class of HDACs/CDKs dual inhibitors was prepared and optimized. An active compound 33a has been identified, which exhibited potent and selective inhibition of CDK9, CDK12, CDK13, HDAC1, HDAC2 and HDAC3 at low nanomolar concentrations and significantly induced differentiation of leukemic stem-like cells and inhibited AML proliferation. Furthermore, the lead compound has relatively adequate oral bioavailability, suggesting that it might be used as a novel strategy to reduce the burden of LSCs and improve the prognosis for AML.

The association between hemoglobin at admission and mortality of older patients with hip fracture: a mean 3-year follow-up cohort study.

BACKGROUND: Hip fracture patients often have a large drop in hemoglobin (Hgb) concentration that is associated with the initial trauma. However, there is no study of a correlation between Hgb concentration at admission and short-term mortality. Thus, we evaluated a possible linear and nonlinear association between Hgb and mortalityfor older patients with hip fracture. METHODS: Consecutive older patients who had hip fractures were screened between January 2015 and September 2019. Demographic and clinical characteristics were collected. Linear and nonlinear multivariate Cox regression models were used to identify association between Hgb at admission and mortality. All analyses were performed with EmpowerStats and R software. RESULTS: Two thousand five hundred eighty-nine patients were included in the study. There were 849 men and 1740 women. The mean age was 79.6 ± 6.8 years. The mean follow-up was 39.0 months. Nine hundred seven (35.0%) patients died for all-cause reasons. The mean Hgb at admission was 11.07 ± 1.95 g/dL. Linear multivariate Cox regression models showed Hgb at admission was associated with mortality ([Hazard Ratio] HR 0.91, 95% CI 0.87-0.95, P < 0.0001) after adjusting for confounding factors. However, the linear association was unstable, and nonlinearity was found between Hgb at admission and mortality. The Hgb concentration of 9.8 g/dL was an inflection point. A Hgb at admission < 9.8 g/dL was associated with mortality (HR 0.81, 95% CI 0.74-0.89, P < 0.0001), whereas > 9.8 g/dL was not a risk factor for mortality (HR 0.98, 95% CI 0.92-1.04, P = 0.4730). CONCLUSIONS: The Hgb concentration at admission was nonlinearly associated with mortality of older patients with hip fracture, and Hgb at admission < 9.8 g/dL was a risk predictor of 3-year mortality. RESEARCH REGISTRATION: ChiCTR2200057323.

Engineering of Hole Transporting Interface by Incorporating the Atomic-Precision Ag6 Nanoclusters for High-Efficiency Blue Perovskite Light-Emitting Diodes.

Properties of the underlying hole transport layer (HTL) play a crucial role in determining the optoelectronic performance of perovskite light-emitting devices (PeLEDs). However, endowing the current HTL system with a deep highest occupied molecular orbital (HOMO) level concurrent with high hole mobility is still a big challenge, in particular being an open constraint toward high-efficiency blue PeLEDs. In this regard, employing the poly(9-vinylcarbazole) as a model, we perform efficient incorporation of the atomic-precision metal nanoclusters (NCs), [Ag6PL6, PL = (S)-4-phenylthiazolidine-2-thione], to achieve significant tailoring in both HOMO energy level and hole mobility. As a result, the as-modified PeLEDs exhibit an external quantum efficiency (EQE) of 14.29% at 488 nm. The presented study exemplifies the success of metal NC involved HTL engineering and offers a simple yet effective additive strategy to settle the blue PeLED HTL dilemma, which paves the way for the fabrication of highly efficient blue PeLEDs.

Epidemiological characteristics of community-acquired pneumonia and effects from the COVID-19 pandemic in Shenzhen of China.

OBJECTIVE: This study aimed to observe the impact of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic on the incidence of non-COVID-19 community-acquired pneumonia (CAP) in Shenzhen of China, offering new ideas for evaluating the effects of non-pharmaceutical interventions. METHODS: A retrospective analysis was conducted of inpatients with pneumonia from 2017 to 2021. Epidemiological characteristics of CAP and effects from the COVID-19 pandemic were analyzed by the basic characteristics, time distribution, etiology and disease burden. RESULTS: There were a total of 5746 CAP inpatient cases included from 2017 to 2021. The number of CAP hospitalizations decreased during the pandemic from 2020 to 2021, with seasonal variations of being higher in spring and winter and lower in summer and autumn, whereas it was prevalent throughout the year prior to the pandemic. The children group decreased significantly during the pandemic, with a 15% decrease in the share of CAP inpatients. The detection rates of bacteria and mycoplasma decreased in CAP patients, while the detection rate of the virus increased, and the number of moderate and severe cases reduced more than that of the mild. CONCLUSION: Non-pharmaceutical interventions from COVID-19 have led to a decrease in the number of CAP inpatients, especially for children, with a specific seasonal prevalence in spring and winter, when the prevention interventions should be strengthened further for adults during the pandemic.

High-Performance Perovskite Light-Emitting Diodes Enabled by Passivating Defect and Constructing Dual Energy-Transfer Pathway through Functional Perovskite Nanocrystals.

Quasi-2D perovskites have emerged as a promising luminescent material for perovskite light-emitting diodes (Pe-LEDs). However, efficiency and stability are still obstacles to practical application due to numerous defects and inefficient energy transfer of perovskite films. Herein, functional phenethylammonium bromine-modified CsPbBr3 nanocrystals (PEA-CsPbBr3 NCs) are first introduced as multifunctional additive to simultaneously improve abovementioned problems. PEA-CsPbBr3 NCs not only serve as heteronuclear seeds and trigger growth, thus greatly reducing leakage current, but also deliver Cs+ and Br- to passivate the intrinsic defects inside film. More importantly, the PEA-CsPbBr3 construct a new carrier-transfer pathway from the small-n phase of the quasi-2D perovskite to the PEA-CsPbBr3 , which not only accelerates the energy-transfer process but also promotes radiation recombination of carriers due to stronger quantum confinement effect. Afterward, the poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene):polystyrene sulfonate/poly[9,9-dioctylfluoreneco-N-[4-(3-methylpropyl)]diphenylamine]:black phosphorus quantum dot double hole-transport layer is successfully constructed to enhance its carrier-injection and charge-transport abilities. Consequently, a champion external quantum efficiency of 25.32% and maximal brightness of 128 842 cd m-2 are achieved, which is the record efficiency of the quasi-2D Pe-LED with pure green emission at 530 nm. Moreover, an impressive 174 min lifetime is obtained at T50 , which is about five times longer than the control device.

Dairy Trade Helps to Alleviate Global Carbon Emission Pressure.

Global dairy production, consumption, and trade are growing rapidly, driven by population and per capita income growth and increasing health concerns mainly from developing countries, which has aroused concerns about the related carbon emission (mostly in the form of methane) increase. If all of the dairy products consumed were produced locally/domestically in the developing countries/economies (a counterfactual scenario), the carbon emissions in 2018 would be 28 Mt CO2-equiv higher than its status quo (a factual scenario). The present study indicates that unlike in many global trade cases in which carbon leakages are from developed to developing countries, global dairy trade is characterized by net embodied carbon flows from developed to developing countries/economies due to the fact that there is an overwhelming one-way-flow of dairy products from developed to developing countries/economies. The differences in the carbon emission factors between the developed and developing countries/economies provide an opportunity that global dairy trade and production specialization can help to reduce carbon emissions from increasing dairy product demand, and the total reduction potential is estimated to be about 414 Mt CO2-equiv from 2018 to 2030. Free trade agreements such as the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership will incentivize larger carbon emission reduction benefits through promoting dairy trade.

CBX8 Together with SET Facilitates Ovarian Carcinoma Growth and Metastasis by Suppressing the Transcription of SUSD2.

Polycomb group proteins are often dysregulated in cancer, leading to disruption of epigenetic landscapes and acquisition of cancer hallmarks. Chromobox 8 (CBX8) is a core component of canonical polycomb repressive complex 1; however, its role in transcriptional regulation and in ovarian carcinoma progression has not been extensively investigated. In this study, we find that CBX8 is upregulated in ovarian cancer. Overexpression and knockdown approaches show that CBX8 facilitates the growth and migration of CAOV3, A2780, and SKOV3 cells in vitro. Consistently, depletion of CBX8 suppresses the growth and metastasis of ovarian carcinoma in vivo. Mechanistically, RNA-sequencing assays together with functional rescue experiments identify a tumor suppressor, SUSD2, as the functional target of CBX8 in ovarian carcinoma cells. Significantly, FLAG affinity coupled with mass spectrometry discovers that CBX8 interacts with a subunit of inhibitor of acetyltransferases (INHAT), SET, which also promotes the growth and migration of A2780 cells. CBX8 and SET cobind to the promoter of SUSD2 to establish H2AK119ub1 and prevent the acetylation of histone H3, resulting in transcriptional suppression of SUSD2. IMPLICATIONS: Our study uncovers a novel mechanism CBX8 explores to execute gene repression, and provides new therapeutic targets for ovarian carcinoma.

Narrowband Near-Infrared Photodetectors Based on Perovskite Waveguide Devices.

Organic-inorganic perovskites have attracted great interest for developing wavelength-selective photodetectors. Currently, the spectral response range of narrowband photodetectors is mainly concentrated within the visible light region, lacking near-infrared photodetectors. Here, we present perovskite narrowband near-infrared photodetectors achieved by transverse propagation of light in perovskite waveguide devices for the first time. The response spectra of photodetectors are continuously tuned from 750 to 1000 nm by changing the perovskite component and the position of the incident light with the full width at half-maximum of 25-80 nm. The theoretical and experimental results reveal that the typical perovskite photodetectors serve as an optical waveguide to confine and propagate the light, in which the long wavelength light propagates a longer distance; oppositely, the short wavelength light with the higher loss in devices fails to produce a photoresponse, owing to the wavelength dependent absorption of perovskite. This provides a new concept for designing narrowband photodetectors and will simulate new applications.

Halide anions engineered ionic liquids passivation layer for highly stable inverted perovskite solar cells.

Long-term stability remains a great challenge for metal halide perovskite solar cells (PSCs). The utilization of ionic liquids (ILs) is a promising strategy to solve the stability problem. However, few studies have focused on controlling the halide anions of ILs, in which different organic cations can modulate the melting point of ILs and film crystal growth. Here, ILs with a 1-ethyl-3-methylimidazolium (EMIM+) cation and different halide anions (X = Cl, Br, and I) are employed in inverted PSCs. The results show that EMIMX can form a 1D passivation layer by the in situ growth technique and influence the surface morphology of the perovskite film. These EMIMX-treated layers simultaneously suppress the surface defects and nonradiative energy losses and improve the hydrophobic properties. As a result, a power conversion efficiency (PCE) of 20.0% is obtained for the EMIMBr-modified PSCs compared to 18.06% for the control device. Moreover, the unencapsulated devices maintain more than 90% of their initial PCE over 3000 h under ambient air, which is among the best long-term stabilities reported for NiOx-based inverted PSCs. It also retains 74.2% and 49.5% of the initial PCE value after aging under harsher conditions, such as an 85 ± 5% relative humidity (RH) environment and at 85 °C for 48 h, respectively.