Specific knockout of Notch2 in Treg cells significantly inhibits the growth and proliferation of head and neck squamous cell carcinoma in mice.

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the effect of Notch2 gene knockout in Treg cells on head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC) in mice. METHODS: A mouse model of HNSCC was constructed. Flow cytometry and immunofluorescence were used to examine the numbers of related immune cells and programmed cell death in tumor cells in the spleen and tumor microenvironment of mice. Western blotting was used to measure the expression of related proteins in tumor tissues. RESULTS: The tumor volume of regulatory T (Treg) cell-specific Notch2-knockout mice (experimental group) was significantly smaller than that of control mice (control group) (P < 0.05). Compared with those in the control group, the number of Treg cells and the expression of Ki67 in Treg cells in the spleen and tumor tissue were significantly decreased in the experimental group, while the numbers of CD45+ hematopoietic cells, CD4+ T cells, CD8+ T cells, T helper 1 (Th1) cells, CD11b+ cells (macrophages), and CD11b+CD11c+ cells (dendritic cells) and the expression of Ki67 in CD4+ T cells and CD8+ T cells were significantly increased (P < 0.05). There was no significant difference in the number of Th2 cells between the two groups (P > 0.05). Immunofluorescence analysis showed that the numbers of CD4+ T cells and CD8+ T cells in the tumor tissue in the experimental group were significantly higher than those in the control group (P < 0.05). Compared with that in the control group, programmed cell death in the experimental group was significantly increased (P < 0.05). Moreover, the expression levels of NLRP3, Caspase-1 and GSDMD in the tumor tissues of the experimental group were higher than those in the control group (P < 0.01), while the expression levels of BCL2, Bax, ATG5, LC3 and p62 were not significantly different (P > 0.05). CONCLUSIONS: Specific knockout of the Notch2 gene in Treg cells significantly decreases the function of Treg cells, inhibits the growth of HNSCC and improves the immune microenvironment in mice, thus effectively treating HNSCC.

The relationship of social isolation and sleep in older adults: evidence from cross-sectional and longitudinal studies.

OBJECTIVES: This study aimed to explore the relationship between social isolation and sleep in later life and the role of loneliness in this relationship. METHODS: In Study 1, we conducted a cross-sectional analysis of the correlation between social isolation and sleep in community-dwelling older adults (N = 108). This relationship was assessed using subjective and objective measures. Moreover, we examined the mediating role of loneliness cross-sectionally (Study 1) and longitudinally (Study 2). Longitudinal study was based on three waves of data from the National Scale Life, Health, and Aging Project (N = 1, 554). RESULTS: The results showed that social isolation was robustly associated with sleep in the general population of older adults. Specifically, subjective social isolation was associated with subjective sleep, and objective social isolation was associated with objective sleep. The results of the longitudinal study showed that loneliness mediated the reciprocal link between social isolation and sleep across time after controlling for autoregressive effects and basic demographics. CONCLUSIONS: These findings address the gap in the literature on the link between social isolation and sleep in older adults, extending the understanding of improvement in older adults' social networks, sleep quality, and psychological well-being.

A Melt-Quenched Luminescent Glass of an Organic-Inorganic Manganese Halide as a Large-Area Scintillator for Radiation Detection.

Glass is a group of materials with appealing qualities, including simplicity in fabrication, durability, and high transparency, and they play a crucial role in the optics field. In this paper, a new organic-inorganic metal halide luminescent glass exhibiting >78 % transmittance at 506-800 nm range together with a high photoluminescence quantum yield (PLQY) of 28.5 % is reported through a low-temperature melt-quenching approach of pre-synthesized (HTPP)2 MnBr4 (HTPP=hexyltriphenylphosphonium) single crystal. Temperature-dependent X-ray diffraction, polarizing microscopy, and molecular dynamics simulations were combined to investigate the glass-crystal interconversion process, revealing the disordered nature of the glassy state. Benefiting from the transparent nature, (HTPP)2 MnBr4 glass yields an outstanding spatial resolution of 10 lp mm-1 for X-ray imaging. The superb optical properties and facility of large-scale fabrication distinguish the organic-inorganic metal halide glass as a highly promising class of materials for optical devices.

China's integration in the Asia-Pacific regional economic cooperation.

China is actively deepening integration into economic cooperation in the Asia-Pacific region. The Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (RCEP) has come into force and China is one of its members. Furthermore, China is applying to join the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP). This study uses the Global Trade Analysis Project (GTAP) model to measure the impact of the RCEP and CPTPP on Gross Domestic Production (GDP), import, export, terms of trade, and social welfare of major economies under various scenarios, as well as the competitive effects and complementarity of the RCEP and CPTPP. We found that the CPTPP with China's accession and the RCEP will complement and strengthen each other and that the members of the two agreements can obtain substantial benefits. If China and the United States join the CPTPP, China's import growth rate will be higher than its exports. This would transmit growth to other nations and help bridge the trade gap between China and the United States.

Large-Area Laminar TEA2MnI4 Single-Crystal Scintillator for X-ray Imaging with Impressive High Resolution.

Current X-ray imaging scintillators are dominated by inorganic scintillators grown through a high-temperature process. Exploring new types of scintillators with mild growth conditions, high light yields, and eco-friendly chemical compositions is essential and challenging. Herein, the zero-dimensional large-area laminar organic-inorganic hybrid metal halide TEA2MnI4 (TEA = tetraethylammonium) single crystal with dimensions of 50 mm × 60 mm × 0.82 mm is grown via a local-heating solvent evaporation method. Compared with its Cl- and Br-based counterparts, the incorporation of the iodine component enhances the X-ray attenuation ability and significantly accelerates the decay of the photoluminescence of TEA2MnI4. Interestingly, the prepared TEA2MnI4 exhibits a high transmittance of >90% over the range of 515-765 nm and exhibits a high light yield of 26288 photons/MeV, which provides the prerequisite for high-resolution X-ray imaging. The TEA2MnI4 single-crystal scintillator displays an astonishing spatial resolution exceeding 25 line pairs per millimeter, which provides a design concept for a Mn-I-based single crystal for high-performance scintillator applications.

Zero-Dimensional Zn-Based Halides with Ultra-Long Room-Temperature Phosphorescence for Time-Resolved Anti-Counterfeiting.

Though fluorescence-tag-based anti-counterfeiting technology has distinguished itself with cost-effective features and huge information loading capacity, the clonable decryption process of spatial-resolved anti-counterfeiting cannot meet the requirements for high-security-level anti-counterfeiting. Herein, we demonstrate a spatial-time-dual-resolved anti-counterfeiting system based on new organic-inorganic hybrid halides BAPPZn2 (Cly Br1-y )8 (BAPP=1,4-bis(3-ammoniopropyl)piperazinium, y=0-1) with ultra-long room-temperature phosphorescence (RTP). Remarkably, the afterglow lifetime can be facilely tuned by regulating the halide-induced heavy-atom effect and can be identified by the naked eyes or with the help of a simple machine vision system. Therefore, the short-lived unicolor fluorescence and lasting-time-tunable RTP provide the prerequisites for unicolor-time-resolved anti-counterfeiting, which lowers the decryption-device requirements and further provides the design strategy of advanced portable anti-counterfeiting technology.

Water-Molecule-Induced Emission Transformation of Zero-Dimension Antimony-Based Metal Halide.

Low-dimensional organic-inorganic metal halides have recently emerged as a class of promising luminescent materials. However, the intrinsic toxicity of lead would strongly hamper future application. Herein, we synthesized a new type of lead-free zero-dimensional (0D) antimony-based organic-inorganic metal halide single crystals, (PPZ)2SbCl7·5H2O (PPZ = 1-phenylpiperazine), which features a broadband emission at 720 nm. Ultrafast transient absorption and temperature-dependent photoluminescence (PL) spectra are combined to investigate the PL mechanism, revealing that self-trapped exciton recombination was involved. Furthermore, it is interesting that (PPZ)2SbCl7·5H2O material shows reversible PL emission transformation between red light (720 nm) and yellow light (590 nm) as water molecules are inserted or removed from the lattice. Such reversible emission transformation phenomenon renders the (PPZ)2SbCl7·5H2O as a potential low-cost water sensing material.

Indium-antimony-halide single crystals for high-efficiency white-light emission and anti-counterfeiting.

Although single-source white emissive perovskite has emerged as a class of encouraging light-emitting material, the synthesis of lead-free halide perovskite materials with high luminous efficiency is still challenging. Here, we report a series of zero-dimensional indium-antimony (In/Sb) alloyed halide single crystals, BAPPIn2-2x Sb2x Cl10 (BAPP = C10H28N4, x = 0 to 1), with tunable emission. In BAPPIn1.996Sb0.004Cl10, bright yellow emission with near 100% photoluminescence quantum yield (PLQY) is yielded when it was excited at 320 nm, which turns into bright white-light emission with a PLQY of 44.0% when excited at 365 nm. Combined spectroscopy and theoretical studies reveal that the BAPP4+-associated blue emission and inorganic polyhedron-afforded orange emission function as a perfect pair of complementary colors affording white light in BAPPIn1.996Sb0.004Cl10 Moreover, the interesting afterglow behavior, together with excitation-dependent emission property, makes BAPPIn2-2x Sb2x Cl10 as high-performance anti-counterfeiting/information storage materials.

Ultrasensitive Wearable Strain Sensors of 3D Printing Tough and Conductive Hydrogels.

In this study, tough and conductive hydrogels were printed by 3D printing method. The combination of thermo-responsive agar and ionic-responsive alginate can highly improve the shape fidelity. With addition of agar, ink viscosity was enhanced, further improving its rheological characteristics for a precise printing. After printing, the printed construct was cured via free radical polymerization, and alginate was crosslinked by calcium ions. Most importantly, with calcium crosslinking of alginate, mechanical properties of 3D printed hydrogels are greatly improved. Furthermore, these 3D printed hydrogels can serve as ionic conductors, because hydrogels contain large amounts of water that dissolve excess calcium ions. A wearable resistive strain sensor that can quickly and precisely detect human motions like finger bending was fabricated by a 3D printed hydrogel film. These results demonstrate that the conductive, transparent, and stretchable hydrogels are promising candidates as soft wearable electronics for healthcare, robotics and entertainment.

Thermal-Recoverable Tough Hydrogels Enhanced by Porphyrin Decorated Graphene Oxide.

Artificial tissue materials usually suffer properties and structure loss over time. As a usual strategy, a new substitution is required to replace the worn one to maintain the functions. Although several approaches have been developed to restore the mechanical properties of hydrogels, they require direct heating or touching, which cannot be processed within the body. In this manuscript, a photothermal method was developed to restore the mechanical properties of the tough hydrogels by using near infrared (NIR) laser irradiation. By adding the porphyrin decorated graphene oxide (PGO) as the nanoreinforcer and photothermal agent into carrageenan/polyacrylamide double network hydrogels (PDN), the compressive strength of the PDN was greatly improved by 104%. Under a short time of NIR laser irradiation, the PGO effectively converts light energy to thermal energy to heat the PDN hydrogels. The damaged carrageenan network was rebuilt, and a 90% compressive strength recovery was achieved. The PGO not only significantly improves the mechanical performance of PDN, but also restores the compressive property of PDN via a photothermal method. These tough hydrogels with superior photothermal recovery may work as promising substitutes for load-bearing tissues.

Intrinsic Self-Trapped Emission in 0D Lead-Free (C4 H14 N2 )2 In2 Br10 Single Crystal.

Low-dimensional lead halide perovskite materials recently have drawn much attention owing to the intriguing broadband emissions; however, the toxicity of lead will hinder their future development. Now, a lead-free (C4 H14 N2 )2 In2 Br10 single crystal with a unique zero-dimensional (0D) structure constituted by [InBr6 ]3- octahedral and [InBr4 ]- tetrahedral units is described. The single crystal exhibits broadband photoluminescence (PL) that spans almost the whole visible spectrum with a lifetime of 3.2 µs. Computational and experimental studies unveil that an excited-state structural distortion in [InBr6 ]3- octahedral units enables the formation of intrinsic self-trapped excitons (STEs) and thus contributing the broad emission. Furthermore, femtosecond transient absorption (fs-TA) measurement reveals that the ultrafast STEs formation together with an efficient intersystem crossing has made a significant contribution to the long-lived and broad STE-based emission behavior.

Stable Bimetal-MOF Ultrathin Nanosheets for Pseudocapacitors with Enhanced Performance.

Exploring high-performance metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) for pseudocapacitors is quite meaningful for energy storage. Herein a bimetal NiCo-MOF with ultrathin thickness was prepared via a simple hydrothermal method, which shows excellent electrochemical performance with specific capacitances of 1945.83 and 1700.40 F/g at current densities of 0.5 and 1 A/g, respectively, while maintaining good stability. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy and X-ray absorption near-edge spectroscopy spectra unravel that the strong coupling between Ni and Co species enhances the valence state of Ni2+ in the ultrathin nanosheets, which facilitates the charge transfer during the electrochemical reaction and results in greatly improved pseudocapacitive reactivity. This work provides guidance on the promising prospect of MOF materials for pseudocapacitor applications.

A Water-Stable Terbium(III)-Organic Framework as a Chemosensor for Inorganic Ions, Nitro-Containing Compounds and Antibiotics in Aqueous Solutions.

Effective detection of organic/inorganic pollutants, such as antibiotics, nitro-compounds, excessive Fe3+ and MnO4 - , is crucial for human health and environmental protection. Here, a new terbium(III)-organic framework, namely [Tb(TATAB)(H2 O)]⋅2H2 O (Tb-MOF, H3 TATAB=4,4',4''-s-triazine-1,3,5-triyltri-m-aminobenzoic acid), was assembled and characterized. The Tb-MOF exhibits a water-stable 3D bnn framework. Due to the existence of competitive absorption, Tb-MOF has a high selectivity for detecting Fe3+ , MnO4 - , 4-nirophenol and nitroimidazole (ronidazole, metronidazole, dimetridazole, ornidazole) in aqueous through luminescent quenching. The results suggest that Tb-MOF is a simple and reliable reagent with multiple sensor responses in practical applications. To the best of our knowledge, this work represents the first TbIII -based MOF as an efficient fluorescent sensor for detecting metal ions, inorganic anions, nitro-compounds, and antibiotics simultaneously.

In situ synthesis of a Fe3S4/MIL-53(Fe) hybrid catalyst for an efficient electrocatalytic hydrogen evolution reaction.

The development of efficient MOF-based electrocatalysts with good stability to produce hydrogen is a great challenge in the field of sustainable energy conversion. Herein, we introduced a controlled in-situ sulfurization strategy to generate a highly active and stable hybrid catalyst containing good conductive Fe3S4 ultrasmall nanosheets attached on the surface of 3D MIL-53(Fe) for the hydrogen evolution reaction in acidic solutions.

Integration of Semiconductor Oxide and a Microporous (3,10)-Connected Co6-Based Metal-Organic Framework for Enhanced Oxygen Evolution Reaction.

Developing high-efficiency and cost-effective electrocatalytic oxygen evolution reaction (OER) catalysts would determine the future distributions of energy conversion technologies. Metal-organic frameworks (MOFs), with unsaturated active metal sites, functionalized organic linkers, and large surface areas, are emerging heterogeneous electrocatalysts for the water oxidation process. Herein, we report an oxygen-evolving microporous (3,10)-connected Co6-based MOF (denoted as CTGU-14) for the electrocatalytic OER. Moreover, the integration of Co-MOF and SnO2, SnO2 (15%) & CTGU-14 composite attains remarkable electrochemical OER performance with a small Tafel slope of 68 mV·dec-1, a positive overpotential of 388 mV at 10 mA·cm-2, and overall durability in an alkali medium. The superior OER activities might be ascribed to more convenient electron transfer from the SnO2 additive to the electrode medium, effective surface area and unsaturated active cobalt centers, and more beneficial delivery for hydroxy radicals in the microporous Co-MOF skeleton in the process of the OER.

A Highly Red-Emissive Lead-Free Indium-Based Perovskite Single Crystal for Sensitive Water Detection.

Low-dimensional luminescent lead halide perovskites have attracted tremendous attention for their fascinating optoelectronic properties, while the toxicity of lead is still considered a drawback. Herein, we report a novel lead-free zero-dimensional (0D) indium-based perovskite (Cs2 InBr5 ⋅H2 O) single crystal that is red-luminescent with a high photoluminescence quantum yield (PLQY) of 33 %. Experimental and computational studies reveal that the strong PL emission might originate from self-trapping excitons (STEs) that result from an excited-state structural deformation. More importantly, the in situ transformation between hydrated Cs2 InBr5 ⋅H2 O and the dehydrated form is accompanied with a switchable dual emission, which enables it to act as a PL water-sensor in humidity detection or the detection of traces of water in organic solvents.

[A 2013-based Atmospheric Ammonia Emission Inventory and Its Characteristic of Spatial Distribution in Henan Province].

Based on the best available activity data at a city level from top down and bottom up methods, a 2013-based emission inventory of NH3 was established for the Henan Province using an emission factors method. The 3 km×3 km spatial gridded distribution was carried out by using GIS technology. The results showed that the total amount of atmospheric NH3 emission in Henan Province in 2013 was 1035.3 kt, and the average emission intensity reached levels of 6.4 t/km2. Livestock and nitrogen fertilizer applications were the top two emission sources, accounting for 52.71% and 31.53% of the total emissions, respectively. Beef, laying hen, and goats were the main contributors in the livestock category, accounting for 34.98%, 16.63%, and 14.02% of the total emissions, respectively. There were different characteristics between emission source contributions and emission intensities in each city. Nanyang, Zhoukou, Shangqiu, and Zhumadian were the prefecture-level cities with large emissions, accounting for 11.53%, 9.84%, 9.62%, and 9.57% of the total amount in Henan Province, respectively. The NH3 emission intensities of Puyang and Louhe were larger than those of other cities, reaching up to 10.7 t·km-2 and 10.2 t·km-2, respectively. The spatial distribution revealed that emissions in the middle eastern region were relatively higher; whereas, the western region emissions were relatively low. The areas with high emissions were concentrated in the plains and densely populated areas.

Metal-Organic Framework-Derived Co3ZnC/Co Embedded in Nitrogen-Doped Carbon Nanotube-Grafted Carbon Polyhedra as a High-Performance Electrocatalyst for Water Splitting.

The development of efficient, low-cost, and stable electrocatalysts for overall water splitting is of great significance for energy conversion. Transition-metal carbides (TMCs) with high catalytic activity and low cost have attracted great interests. Nevertheless, utilizing an efficient catalyst for overall water splitting is still a challenging issue for TMCs. Herein, we report the synthesis of a high-performance electrocatalyst comprising Co3ZnC and Co nanoparticles embedded in a nitrogen-doped carbon nanotube-grafted carbon polyhedral (Co3ZnC/Co-NCCP) by the pyrolysis of bimetallic zeolitic imidazolate frameworks in a reductive atmosphere of Ar/H2. The Co3ZnC/Co-NCCP exhibits remarkable electrochemical activity in catalyzing both the oxygen evolution reaction and hydrogen evolution reaction, in terms of low overpotential and excellent stability. Furthermore, the Co3ZnC/Co-NCCP catalyst leads to a highly performed overall water splitting in the 1 M KOH electrolyte, delivering a current density of 10 mA cm-2 at a low applied external potential of 1.65 V and shows good stability without obvious deactivation after 10 h operation. The present strategy opens a new avenue to the design of efficient electrocatalysts in electrochemical applications.

Suppressing Shuttle Effect Using Janus Cation Exchange Membrane for High-Performance Lithium-Sulfur Battery Separator.

Suppressing the shuttle effect of polysulfide ions to obtain high durability and good electrochemical performance is of great concern in the field of lithium-sulfur batteries. To address this issue, a Janus membrane consisting of an ultrathin dense layer and a robust microporous layer is fabricated using cation exchange resin. Different from the composite membranes made from polyolefin membranes, the multiple layers of the Janus membrane in this study are synchronously generated by one step, getting rid of the additional complex coating processes. Excellent overall performance is obtained by the cooperation of multiple factors. The excellent ionic selectivity of cation exchange resin renders a great suppression of the shuttle effect, endowing the lithium-sulfur battery with high Coulombic efficiency of 92.0-99.0% (LiNO3-free electrolyte). The ultrathin property of a dense layer renders a low ionic resistance, resulting in 60% higher discharge capacity over the entire C-rates (versus the control sample with Celgard 2400 membrane). The robust macroporous layer supports the ultrathin layer to achieve a free-standing property, ensuring the usability of the Janus membrane.

Self-Supported Hierarchical FeCoNi-LTH/NiCo2O4/CC Electrodes with Enhanced Bifunctional Performance for Efficient Overall Water Splitting.

The development of advanced earth-abundant electrocatalysts for hydrogen production is highly desirable. In this paper, we report the design and synthesis of a novel and highly efficient electrode of NiCo2O4 nanoneedles decorated with FeCoNi layered ternary hydroxides supported on carbon cloth (FeCoNi-LTH/NiCo2O4/CC) by a facile and efficient two-step approach. It exhibits superior bifunctional catalytic activities for the oxygen evolution reaction (OER) and hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) in alkaline media, due to the special structure and strong synergies. The FeCoNi-LTH/NiCo2O4/CC obtains an onset overpotential of 240 mV and an overpotential of 302 mV at the current density of 50 mA cm-2 for OER, which is superior to RuO2. It also efficiently catalyzes HER with onset overpotential of 96 mV and overpotential of 151 mV to achieve a current density of 20 mA cm-2. Serving as both cathode and anode in a two-electrode water splitting system, FeCoNi-LTH/NiCo2O4/CC only requires an overpotential of 1.65 V at current density of 50 mA cm-2. The cell exhibits outstanding stability as well, indicating that FeCoNi-LTH/NiCo2O4/CC is a befitting material to be utilized as effective bifunctional catalysts for overall water splitting.