High-Voltage Long-Cycling All-Solid-State Lithium Batteries with High-Valent-Element-Doped Halide Electrolytes.

All-solid-state batteries (ASSBs) have garnered considerable attention as promising candidates for next-generation energy storage systems due to their potentially simultaneously enhanced safety capacities and improved energy densities. However, the solid future still calls for materials with high ionic conductivity, electrochemical stability, and favorable interfacial compatibility. In this study, we present a series of halide solid-state electrolytes (SSEs) utilizing a doping strategy with highly valent elements, demonstrating an outstanding combination of enhanced ionic conductivity and oxidation stability. Among these, Li2.6In0.8Ta0.2Cl6 emerges as the standout performer, displaying a superionic conductivity of up to 4.47 mS cm-1 at 30 °C, along with a low activation energy barrier of 0.321 eV for Li+ migration. Additionally, it showcases an extensive oxidation onset of up to 5.13 V (vs Li+/Li), enabling high-voltage ASSBs with promising cycling performance. Particularly noteworthy are the ASSBs employing LiCoO2 cathode materials, which exhibit an extended cyclability of over 1400 cycles, with 70% capacity retention under 4.6 V (vs Li+/Li), and a capacity of up to 135 mA h g-1 at a 4 C rate, with the loading of active materials at 7.52 mg cm-2. This study demonstrates a feasible approach to designing desirable SSEs for energy-dense, highly stable ASSBs.

Hybrid nanoflower-based electrochemical lateral flow immunoassay for Escherichia coli O157 detection.

An electrochemical biosensor has been developed for detection of Escherichia coli O157 by integrating lateral flow with screen-printed electrodes. The screen-printed electrodes were attached under the lateral flow detection line, and organic-inorganic nanoflowers prepared from E. coli O157-specific antibodies as an organic component were attached to the lateral flow detection line. In the presence of E. coli O157, an organic-inorganic nanoflower-E. coli O157-antimicrobial peptide-labelled ferrocene sandwich structure is formed on the lateral flow detection line. Differential pulse voltammetry is applied using a smartphone-based device to monitor ferrocene on the detection line. The resulting electrochemical biosensor could specifically detect E. coli O157 with a limit of detection of 25 colony-forming units mL-1. Through substitution of antibodies of organic components in organic-inorganic nanoflowers, biosensors have great potential for the detection of other pathogens in biomedical research and clinical diagnosis.

Advances and prospects in deuterium metabolic imaging (DMI): a systematic review of in vivo studies.

BACKGROUND: Deuterium metabolic imaging (DMI) has emerged as a promising non-invasive technique for studying metabolism in vivo. This review aims to summarize the current developments and discuss the futures in DMI technique in vivo. METHODS: A systematic literature review was conducted based on the PRISMA 2020 statement by two authors. Specific technical details and potential applications of DMI in vivo were summarized, including strategies of deuterated metabolites detection, deuterium-labeled tracers and corresponding metabolic pathways in vivo, potential clinical applications, routes of tracer administration, quantitative evaluations of metabolisms, and spatial resolution. RESULTS: Of the 2,248 articles initially retrieved, 34 were finally included, highlighting 2 strategies for detecting deuterated metabolites: direct and indirect DMI. Various deuterated tracers (e.g., [6,6'-2H2]glucose, [2,2,2'-2H3]acetate) were utilized in DMI to detect and quantify different metabolic pathways such as glycolysis, tricarboxylic acid cycle, and fatty acid oxidation. The quantifications (e.g., lactate level, lactate/glutamine and glutamate ratio) hold promise for diagnosing malignancies and assessing early anti-tumor treatment responses. Tracers can be administered orally, intravenously, or intraperitoneally, either through bolus administration or continuous infusion. For metabolic quantification, both serial time point methods (including kinetic analysis and calculation of area under the curves) and single time point quantifications are viable. However, insufficient spatial resolution remains a major challenge in DMI (e.g., 3.3-mL spatial resolution with 10-min acquisition at 3 T). CONCLUSIONS: Enhancing spatial resolution can facilitate the clinical translation of DMI. Furthermore, optimizing tracer synthesis, administration protocols, and quantification methodologies will further enhance their clinical applicability. RELEVANCE STATEMENT: Deuterium metabolic imaging, a promising non-invasive technique, is systematically discussed in this review for its current progression, limitations, and future directions in studying in vivo energetic metabolism, displaying a relevant clinical potential. KEY POINTS: • Deuterium metabolic imaging (DMI) shows promise for studying in vivo energetic metabolism. • This review explores DMI's current state, limits, and future research directions comprehensively. • The clinical translation of DMI is mainly impeded by limitations in spatial resolution.

Expression of Toll-like receptors in the cerebellum during pathogenesis of prion disease.

Prion diseases, such as scrapie, entail the accumulation of disease-specific prion protein (PrPSc) within the brain. Toll-like receptors (TLRs) are crucial components of the pattern recognition system. They recognize pathogen-associated molecular patterns (PAMPs) and play a central role in orchestrating host innate immune responses. The expression levels of Toll-like receptors (TLRs) in the central nervous system (CNS) were not well-defined. To establish a model of prion diseases in BALB/C mice, the 22L strain was employed. The features of the 22L strain were analyzed, and the cerebellum exhibited severe pathological changes. TLR1-13 levels in the cerebellum were measured using quantitative polymerase chain reaction (qPCR) at time points of 60, 90, 120, and the final end point (145 days post-infection). During the pathogenesis, the expression levels of Toll-like receptors (TLRs) 1, 2, 7, 8, and 9 increased in a time-dependent manner. This trend mirrored the expression patterns of PrPSc (the pathological isoform of the prion protein) and glial fibrillary acidic protein. Notably, at the end point, TLR1-13 levels were significantly elevated. Protein level of TLR7 and TLR9 showed increasing at the end point of the 22L-infected mice. A deeper understanding of the increased Toll-like receptors (TLRs) in prion diseases could shed light on their role in initiating immune responses at various stages during pathogenesis. This insight is particularly relevant when considering TLRs as potential therapeutic targets for prion diseases.

Prognosis stratification of cancer patients treated with immune checkpoint inhibitors through lung immune prognostic index: a meta-analysis and systematic review.

BACKGROUND: Although numerous studies have reported the prognostic value of the lung immune prognostic index (LIPI) in non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) patients treated with immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs), the prognostic value of the LIPI in a pancancer setting remains unclear. METHODS: A comprehensive search was conducted until July 2023 across the PubMed, Embase, Web of Science, and Cochrane Library databases to identify relevant studies evaluating the prognostic value of the LIPI in cancer patients treated with ICIs. The outcomes were overall survival (OS), progression-free survival (PFS), objective response rate (ORR), and disease control rate (DCR). We described and compared the pooled outcomes by stratifying the patients based on different groupings of LIPI (good vs. intermediate [0 vs. 1], good vs. poor [0 vs. 2], and good vs. intermediate / poor [0 vs. 1 + 2]). RESULTS: A total of 9959 patients in 35 studies were included. A higher score of LIPI was associated with impaired OS. The pooled HRs were 1.69 (95% CI: 1.55-1.85, p < 0.001; 0 vs. 1), 3.03 (95% CI: 2.53-3.63, p < 0.001; 0 vs. 2), and 2.38 (95% CI: 1.97-2.88, p < 0.001; 0 vs. 1 + 2). A higher LIPI score was associated with shorter PFS. The pooled HRs were 1.41 (95% CI: 1.31-1.52, p < 0.001; 0 vs. 1), 2.23 (95% CI: 1.87-2.66, p < 0.001; 0 vs. 2), and 1.65 (95% CI: 1.46-1.86, p < 0.001; 0 vs. 1 + 2). Similarly, a higher LIPI score was associated with a lower ORR. The pooled ORs were 0.63 (95% CI: 0.54-0.75, p < 0.001; 0 vs. 1) and 0.38 (95% CI: 0.29-0.50, p < 0.001; 0 vs. 2). A higher LIPI score was associated with a lower DCR. The pooled ORs were 0.47 (95% CI: 0.35-0.61, p < 0.001; 0 vs. 1) and 0.19 (95% CI: 0.12-0.30, p < 0.001; 0 vs. 2). CONCLUSION: In patients with NSCLC or other solid tumours, the lung immune prognostic index could robustly stratify the clinical outcomes into three groups among the patients who receive ICIs. LIPI is a low-cost, simple, accessible, and accurate prognostic tool in a pancancer setting and it may contribute to the evaluation of risk stratification in patients treated with ICIs.

A sensitive fluorescence biosensor based on ligation-transcription and CRISPR/Cas13a-assisted cascade amplification strategies to detect the H1N1 virus.

We propose a sensitive H1N1 virus fluorescence biosensor based on ligation-transcription and CRISPR/Cas13a-assisted cascade amplification strategies. Products are generated via the hybridization of single-stranded DNA (ssDNA) probes containing T7 promoter and crRNA templates to a target RNA sequence using SplintR ligase. This generates large crRNA quantities in the presence of T7 RNA polymerase. At such crRNA quantities, ternary Cas13a, crRNA, and activator complexes are successfully constructed and activate Cas13a to enhance fluorescence signal outputs. The biosensor sensitively and specifically monitored H1N1 viral RNA levels down to 3.23 pM and showed good linearity when H1N1 RNA concentrations were 100 pM-1 µM. Biosensor specificity was also excellent. Importantly, our biosensor may be used to detect other viral RNAs by altering the sequences of the two probe junctions, with potential applications for the clinical diagnosis of viruses and other biomedical studies.

Fluorescence biosensor to detect microRNAs via integrating DNA hairpins transition mediated strand displacement amplification with primer exchange reaction.

Herein, we constructed a fluorescence biosensor for the ultra-sensitive analysis of microRNAs (miRNAs) by combining DNA hairpins transition triggered strand displacement amplification (DHT-SDA) with primer exchange reaction (PER). Target miRNA initiated DHT-SDA to facilitate the generation of multiple single-stranded DNA (ssDNA) as PER primer, which was extended into a long ssDNA. The biosensor is successfully utilized in detecting miRNAs with high sensitivity (limit of detection for miRNA-21 was 58 fM) and a good linear relationship between 100 nM and 100 fM. By simply changing the DNA hairpin sequence, the constructed biosensor can be extended to analyze another miRNAs. Moreover, the biosensor has the feasibility of detecting miRNAs in real samples with satisfactory accuracy and reliability. Therefore, the fluorescent biosensor has great application potential in clinical diagnosis.

Self-assembled hydrated copper coordination compounds as ionic conductors for room temperature solid-state batteries.

As the core component of solid-state batteries, neither current inorganic solid-state electrolytes nor solid polymer electrolytes can simultaneously possess satisfactory ionic conductivity, electrode compatibility and processability. By incorporating efficient Li+ diffusion channels found in inorganic solid-state electrolytes and polar functional groups present in solid polymer electrolytes, it is conceivable to design inorganic-organic hybrid solid-state electrolytes to achieve true fusion and synergy in performance. Herein, we demonstrate that traditional metal coordination compounds can serve as exceptional Li+ ion conductors at room temperature through rational structural design. Specifically, we synthesize copper maleate hydrate nanoflakes via bottom-up self-assembly featuring highly-ordered 1D channels that are interconnected by Cu2+/Cu+ nodes and maleic acid ligands, alongside rich COO- groups and structural water within the channels. Benefiting from the combination of ion-hopping and coupling-dissociation mechanisms, Li+ ions can preferably transport through these channels rapidly. Thus, the Li+-implanted copper maleate hydrate solid-state electrolytes shows remarkable ionic conductivity (1.17 × 10-4 S cm-1 at room temperature), high Li+ transference number (0.77), and a 4.7 V-wide operating window. More impressively, Li+-implanted copper maleate hydrate solid-state electrolytes are demonstrated to have exceptional compatibility with both cathode and Li anode, enabling long-term stability of more than 800 cycles. This work brings new insight on exploring superior room-temperature ionic conductors based on metal coordination compounds.

Mesoporous carbon spheres with programmable interiors as efficient nanoreactors for H2O2 electrosynthesis.

The nanoreactor holds great promise as it emulates the natural processes of living organisms to facilitate chemical reactions, offering immense potential in catalytic energy conversion owing to its unique structural functionality. Here, we propose the utilization of precisely engineered carbon spheres as building blocks, integrating micromechanics and controllable synthesis to explore their catalytic functionalities in two-electron oxygen reduction reactions. After conducting rigorous experiments and simulations, we present compelling evidence for the enhanced mass transfer and microenvironment modulation effects offered by these mesoporous hollow carbon spheres, particularly when possessing a suitably sized hollow architecture. Impressively, the pivotal achievement lies in the successful screening of a potent, selective, and durable two-electron oxygen reduction reaction catalyst for the direct synthesis of medical-grade hydrogen peroxide disinfectant. Serving as an exemplary demonstration of nanoreactor engineering in catalyst screening, this work highlights the immense potential of various well-designed carbon-based nanoreactors in extensive applications.

Ablation alone is noninferior to radiotherapy plus ablation in the patients with early-stage hepatocellular carcinoma: a population-based study.

Recently, the efficacy of two low-invasive treatments, ablation, and radiotherapy, has been fully compared for the patients with the early-stage hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). However, the comparison between radiotherapy plus ablation and ablation alone has been less frequently reported. Data from the Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results (SEER) database were searched for early-stage HCC patients treated with ablation plus radiotherapy or ablation alone. The outcome measures were overall survival (OS) and cancer-specific survival (CSS). The propensity score matching (PSM) was used to reduce selection bias. We included 240 and 6619 patients in the radiotherapy plus ablation group and ablation group before the PSM. After PSM, 240 pairs of patients were included. The median OS (mOS) and median CSS (mCSS) of patients receiving ablation alone were longer than that of receiving radiotherapy plus ablation (mOS: 47 vs. 34 months, P = 0.019; mCSS: 77 vs. 40 months, P = 0.018, after PSM) before and after PSM. The multivariate analysis indicated that radiotherapy plus ablation independent risk factor for OS and CSS before PSM, but the significance disappeared after PSM. The detailed subgroup analyses indicated ablation alone brought more benefit in very early-stage HCC and older patients. In addition, we found different types of radiotherapy might lead to different outcomes when combined with ablation. In conclusion, ablation alone is noninferior to radiotherapy plus ablation in patients with early-stage HCC. The additional radiation prior to ablation may bring survival benefits in the patients with higher tumor stage. However, due to the risk of selection bias in that study, the results should be interpreted cautiously.

Nanoengineering of Porous 2D Structures with Tunable Fluid Transport Behavior for Exceptional H2O2 Electrosynthesis.

Precision nanoengineering of porous two-dimensional structures has emerged as a promising avenue for finely tuning catalytic reactions. However, understanding the pore-structure-dependent catalytic performance remains challenging, given the lack of comprehensive guidelines, appropriate material models, and precise synthesis strategies. Here, we propose the optimization of two-dimensional carbon materials through the utilization of mesopores with 5-10 nm diameter to facilitate fluid acceleration, guided by finite element simulations. As proof of concept, the optimized mesoporous carbon nanosheet sample exhibited exceptional electrocatalytic performance, demonstrating high selectivity (>95%) and a notable diffusion-limiting disk current density of -3.1 mA cm-2 for H2O2 production. Impressively, the electrolysis process in the flow cell achieved a production rate of 14.39 mol gcatalyst-1 h-1 to yield a medical-grade disinfectant-worthy H2O2 solution. Our pore engineering research focuses on modulating oxygen reduction reaction activity and selectivity by affecting local fluid transport behavior, providing insights into the mesoscale catalytic mechanism.

Application and development of Deuterium Metabolic Imaging in tumor glucose metabolism: visualization of different metabolic pathways.

Cancer metabolism has emerged as a pivotal area of research recently. The ability to visualize and comprehend the metabolic processes of cancer holds immense clinical value, particularly in the diagnosis of malignant tumors and the assessment of treatment responses. Deuterium Metabolic Imaging (DMI), as a robust, simple, and versatile MR spectroscopic imaging tool, demonstrates promise in tumor diagnosis and treatment efficacy assessment. This review explored the latest developments and applications of DMI in oncology across various tumor metabolic axes, with a specific emphasis on its potential for clinical translation. DMI offers invaluable insights into tumor biology, treatment responses, and prognostic outcomes. Notably, DMI can identify early responses to immunotherapy, a prominent area of current research interest. In conclusion, DMI harbors the potential to evolve into a convenient and efficient imaging technique in clinical practice, thereby advancing precision medicine and improving the diagnosis and evaluation of cancer treatments.

A gadoxetic-acid enhancement flux analysis of small liver nodules (≤2 cm) in patients at high risk of hepatocellular carcinoma.

PURPOSE: To discriminate between benignities and hepatocellular carcinomas (HCCs) in patients at high risk of HCC using a novel enhancement flux analysis for gadoxetic-acid enhanced MRI. METHOD: This study retrospectively collected 181 liver nodules in 156 patients at high risk of HCC who underwent gadoxetic acid-enhanced MRI examinations with following surgical resection from 1st August 2017 to 31st December 2021 as the training set; another 42 liver nodules in 36 patients were prospectively collected from 1st January 2022 to 1st October 2022 as the test set. The time-intensity curves (TICs) of liver nodules were formed with consecutive time points: 0 s, 20 s, 1 min, 2 min, 5 min, 10 min, 15 min, and 20 min since contrast injection. A novel enhancement flux analysis was applied by using a biexponential function fitting to distinguish benignities and HCC. Besides, previously published models including maximum enhancement ratio (ERmax), percentage signal ratio (PSR), and ERmax+PSR were compared. The areas under the receiver operating characteristic curves (AUCs) were compared among these methods. RESULTS: The novel enhancement flux analysis showed the highest AUCs in the training set (0.897, 95%CI: 0.833-0.960) and the test set (0.859, 95%CI: 0.747-0.970) among all models. The AUCs of PSR, ERmax and ERmax+PSR were 0.801 (95%CI: 0.710-0.891), 0.620 (95%CI: 0.510-0.729), and 0.799 (95%CI: 0.709-0.889) in the training set, and were 0.701 (95%CI: 0.539-0.863), 0.529 (95%CI: 0.342-0.717), and 0.708 (95%CI: 0.549-0.867) in the test set. CONCLUSIONS: The biexponential flux analysis for gadoxetic-acid enhanced MRI presents a better potential in accurate diagnosis of small HCC nodules.

Self-Assembly Monolayer Inspired Stable Artificial Solid Electrolyte Interphase Design for Next-Generation Lithium Metal Batteries.

Lithium metal is widely regarded as the "ultimate" anode for energy-dense Li batteries, but its high reactivity and delicate interface make it prone to dendrite formation, limiting its practical use. Inspired by self-assembled monolayers on metal surfaces, we propose a facile yet effective strategy to stabilize Li metal anodes by creating an artificial solid electrolyte interphase (SEI). Our method involves dip-coating Li metal in MPDMS to create an SEI layer that is rich in inorganic components, allowing uniform Li plating/stripping under a low overpotential over 500 cycles in carbonate electrolytes. In comparison, pristine Li metal shows a rapid increase in overpotential after merely 300 cycles, leading to failure soon after. Molecular dynamics simulations demonstrate that this uniform artificial SEI suppresses Li dendrite formation. We further demonstrated its enhanced stability pairing with LiFePO4 and LiNi1-x-yCoxMnyO2 cathodes, highlighting the proposed strategy as a promising solution for practical Li metal batteries.

Ultrafast materials synthesis and manufacturing techniques for emerging energy and environmental applications.

Energy and environmental issues have attracted increasing attention globally, where sustainability and low-carbon emissions are seriously considered and widely accepted by government officials. In response to this situation, the development of renewable energy and environmental technologies is urgently needed to complement the usage of traditional fossil fuels. While a big part of advancement in these technologies relies on materials innovations, new materials discovery is limited by sluggish conventional materials synthesis methods, greatly hindering the advancement of related technologies. To address this issue, this review introduces and comprehensively summarizes emerging ultrafast materials synthesis methods that could synthesize materials in times as short as nanoseconds, significantly improving research efficiency. We discuss the unique advantages of these methods, followed by how they benefit individual applications for renewable energy and the environment. We also highlight the scalability of ultrafast manufacturing towards their potential industrial utilization. Finally, we provide our perspectives on challenges and opportunities for the future development of ultrafast synthesis and manufacturing technologies. We anticipate that fertile opportunities exist not only for energy and the environment but also for many other applications.

The impact of digital finance on pollutants emission: evidence from chinese cities.

This paper investigates whether emerging digital finance can reduce environmental pollution in China based on data from 273 of China's prefecture-level cities spanning the period from 2010 to 2017. The dynamic spatial econometric models (DSDM) find a significant negative association between digital finance and pollutants emissions, and the impacts vary among regions and urban development stages. The impact mechanism test proves that digital finance reduces pollutants emissions through technological innovation, structural adjustment, and capital allocation effects. In addition, we explore the different dimensions of digital finance and find that the depth of use has a more practical effect on reducing emissions. Further analyses based on the threshold model show an inverted N-shaped nexus between digital finance and emissions. The threshold effect also exists in terms of the traditional financial level. Our study proves that emerging digital finance crucially affects its potential benefits to environment and provides an empirical basis for policy-makers to accelerate the digitalization of financial markets, particularly paying attention to its emission-reduction effects.

Ultrasensitive detection of microRNAs based on click chemistry-terminal deoxynucleotidyl transferase combined with CRISPR/Cas12a.

The specificity and sensitivity of microRNA (miRNA) detection play a vital role in the early diagnosis of cancer and the treatment of various diseases. Here, we constructed a fluorescent biosensor based on click chemistry-terminal deoxynucleotidyl transferase (ccTdT) combined with the clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats (CRISPR)/CRISPR-associated (Cas)12a cascade amplification system to achieve ultrasensitive miRNA-21 detection. Target miRNA-21 was employed as a template for click chemistry ligation of two nucleic acid probes, the product of which can be combined with magnetic microbeads (MBs). Then the 3'-end of the ligated nucleic acid and complementary strand miRNA-21 was extended by TdT. The extended poly-T tails activated the trans-cleavage ability of CRISPR/Cas12a, cleaving the reporter gene to generate the fluorescent signal. The proposed biosensor has a wide linear detection range, from 1 pM to 105 pM, with detection limits as low as 88 fM under optimal experimental conditions. Hence, this fluorescent biosensor enables simple, sensitive detection of miRNAs and offers a promising analytical platform for clinical diagnostics and biomedical research.

Focus on the Dynamics of Neutrophil-to-Lymphocyte Ratio in Cancer Patients Treated with Immune Checkpoint Inhibitors: A Meta-Analysis and Systematic Review.

Background: A number of studies have reported an association between the dynamics of neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (NLR) and clinical efficacy in patients treated with immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs), but there is still a lack of a meta-analysis or systematic review. Methods: PubMed, Embase, Web of Science, and the Cochrane Library were searched until September 2022 for studies reporting on the association between the change in NLR after ICI treatment and clinical outcomes. Outcome measures of interest included: change in NLR before and after treatment, overall survival (OS), progression-free survival (PFS), and objective response rate (ORR). Results: A total of 4154 patients in 38 studies were included. The pooled percentage of patients with increased NLR was 49.7% (95CI%: 43.7−55.8%). Six studies discussing the change in NLR in patients with different tumor responses all showed that the NLR level in patients without response to immunotherapy may increase after ICI treatment. The upward trend in NLR was associated with shorter OS (pooled HR: 2.05, 95%CI: 1.79−2.35, p < 0.001) and PFS (pooled HR: 1.89, 95%CI: 1.66−2.14, p < 0.001) and higher ORR (pooled OR: 0.27, 95%CI: 0.19−0.39, p < 0.001), and downward trend in NLR was associated with longer OS (pooled HR: 0.49, 95%CI: 0.42−0.58, p < 0.001) and PFS (pooled HR: 0.55, 95%CI: 0.48−0.63, p < 0.001) and lower ORR (pooled OR: 3.26, 95%CI: 1.92−5.53, p < 0.001). In addition, post-treatment high NLR was associated with more impaired survival than baseline high NLR (pooled HR of baseline high NLR: 1.82, 95%CI: 1.52−2.18; pooled HR of post-treatment high NLR: 2.93, 95%CI: 2.26−3.81), but the NLR at different time points may have a similar predictive effect on PFS (pooled HR of baseline high NLR: 1.68, 95%CI: 1.44−1.97; pooled HR of post-treatment high NLR: 2.00, 95%CI: 1.54−2.59). Conclusions: The NLR level of tumor patients after ICI treatment is stable overall, but the NLR level in patients without response to immunotherapy may increase after ICI treatment. Patients with an upward trend in NLR after ICI treatment were associated with worse clinical outcomes; meanwhile, the downward trend in NLR was associated with better clinical outcomes. Post-treatment high NLR was associated with more impaired survival than baseline high NLR.

Click Chemistry Actuated Exponential Amplification Reaction Assisted CRISPR-Cas12a for the Electrochemical Detection of MicroRNAs.

MicroRNAs (miRNAs) play a very important role in biological processes and are used as biomarkers for the detection of a variety of diseases, including neurodegenerative diseases, chronic cardiovascular diseases, and cancers. A sensitive point-of-care (POC) method is crucial for detecting miRNAs. Herein, CRISPR-Cas12a combined with the click chemistry actuated exponential amplification reaction was introduced into an electrochemical biosensor for detecting miRNA-21. The target miRNA-21 initiated the click chemistry-exponential amplification reaction in the electrochemical biosensor to produce numerous nucleic acid fragments, which could stimulate the trans-cleavage ability of CRISPR-Cas12a to cleave hairpin DNA electrochemical reporters immobilized on the electrode surface. Under optimal conditions, the minimum detection limit for this electrochemical biosensor was as low as 1 fM. Thus, the proposed electrochemical biosensor allows sensitive and efficient miRNA detection and could be a potential analysis tool for POC test and field molecular diagnostics.

Unraveling Atomic-Scale Origins of Selective Ionic Transport Pathways and Sodium-Ion Storage Mechanism in Bi2 S3 Anodes.

It is a major challenge to achieve a high-performance anode for sodium-ion batteries (SIBs) with high specific capacity, high rate capability, and cycling stability. Bismuth sulfide, which features a high theoretical specific capacity, tailorable morphology, and low cost, has been considered as a promising anode for SIBs. Nevertheless, due to a lack of direct atomistic observation, the detailed understanding of fundamental intercalation behavior and Bi2 S3 's (de)sodiation mechanisms remains unclear. Here, by employing in situ high-resolution transmission electron microscopy, consecutive electron diffraction coupled with theoretical calculations, it is not only for the first time identified that Bi2 S3 exhibits specific ionic transport pathways preferred to diffuse along the (110) direction instead of the (200) plane, but also tracks their real-time phase transformations (de)sodiation involving multi-step crystallographic tuning. The finite-element analysis further disclosed multi-reaction induced deformation and the relevant stress evolution originating from the combined effect of the mechanical and electrochemical interaction. These discoveries not only deepen the understanding of fundamental science about the microscopic reaction mechanism of metal chalcogenide anodes but also provide important implications for performance optimization.