Manipulating the Spin State of Co Sites in Metal-Organic Frameworks for Boosting CO2 Photoreduction.

Photocatalytic CO2 reduction holds great potential for alleviating global energy and environmental issues, where the electronic structure of the catalytic center plays a crucial role. However, the spin state, a key descriptor of electronic properties, is largely overlooked. Herein, we present a simple strategy to regulate the spin states of catalytic Co centers by changing their coordination environment by exchanging the Co species into a stable Zn-based metal-organic framework (MOF) to afford Co-OAc, Co-Br, and Co-CN for CO2 photoreduction. Experimental and DFT calculation results suggest that the distinct spin states of the Co sites give rise to different charge separation abilities and energy barriers for CO2 adsorption/activation in photocatalysis. Consequently, the optimized Co-OAc with the highest spin-state Co sites presents an excellent photocatalytic CO2 activity of 2325.7 µmol·g-1·h-1 and selectivity of 99.1% to CO, which are among the best in all reported MOF photocatalysts, in the absence of a noble metal and additional photosensitizer. This work underlines the potential of MOFs as an ideal platform for spin-state manipulation toward improved photocatalysis.

Effect of Aggregation Structure on Capacitive Energy Storage in Conducting Polymer Films.

Conducting polymers (CPs), a significant class of electrochemical capacitor electrode materials, exhibit exceptional capacitive energy storage performance in aqueous electrolytes. Current research primarily concentrates on enhancing the electrical conductivity and capacitive performance of CPs via molecular design and structural control. However, the absence of a comprehensive understanding of the impact of molecular chain spatial order on ion/electron transport and capacitive performance impedes the development and optimization of advanced electrode materials. Here, a solvent treatment strategy is employed to modulate the molecular chain spatial order of PEDOT : PSS films. The results of electrochemical performance tests and Grazing Incidence Wide Angle X-ray Scattering (GIWAXS) show that Poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene) : poly(styrenesulfonic acid) (PEDOT : PSS) films with both face-on and edge-on orientations exhibit exceptional electronic conductivity and ion diffusion efficiency, with capacitive performance 1.33 times higher than that of PEDOT : PSS films with only edge-on orientation. Consequently, molecular chain orientations conducive to charge transport not only enhance inter-chain coupling, but also effectively reduce ion transport resistance, enabling efficient capacitive energy storage. This research provides novel insights for the design and development of higher performance CPs-based electrode materials.

High-temperature superconductivities and crucial factors influencing the stability of LaThH12 under moderate pressures.

The recent discovery of high-temperature superconductivity in compressed hydrides has reignited the long-standing quest for room-temperature superconductors. However, the synthesis of superconducting hydrides under moderate pressure and the identification of crucial factors that affect their stability remain challenges. Here, we predicted the ternary clathrate phases of LaThH12 with potential superconductivity under high pressures and specifically proposed a novel R3̄c-LaThH12 phase exhibiting a remarkable Tc of 54.95 K at only 30 GPa to address these confusions. Our first-principles studies show that the high-Tc value of Pm3̄m and Cmmm-LaThH12 phases was induced by the strong electron-phonon coupling driven by the synergy of the electron-phonon matrix element and phonon softening caused by Fermi surface nesting. Importantly, we demonstrate the dual effects of enhanced ionic bonding and expanded orbital hybridization between Th-6f and H-sp3 orbitals during depressurization are primary factors governing the dynamic stability of R3̄c-LaThH12 at low pressures. Our findings offer crucial insights into the underlying mechanisms governing low-pressure stability and provide guidance for experimental efforts aimed at realizing hydrogen-based superconductors with both low synthesis pressures and high-Tc.

First-principles study of high-pressure structural phase transition and superconductivity of YBeH8.

The theory-led prediction of LaBeH8, which has a high superconducting critical temperature (Tc) above liquid nitrogen under a pressure level below 1 Mbar, has been experimentally confirmed. YBeH8, which has a structural configuration similar to that of LaBeH8, has also been predicted to be a high-temperature superconductor at high pressure. In this study, we focus on the structural phase transition and superconductivity of YBeH8 under pressure by using first-principles calculations. Except for the known face-centered cubic phase of Fm3̄m, we found a monoclinic phase with P1̄ symmetry. Moreover, the P1̄ phase transforms to the Fm3̄m phase at ∼200 GPa with zero-point energy corrections. Interestingly, the P1̄ phase undergoes a complex electronic phase transition from semiconductor to metal and then to superconducting states with a low Tc of 40 K at 200 GPa. The Fm3̄m phase exhibits a high Tc of 201 K at 200 GPa, and its Tc does not change significantly with pressure. When we combine the method using two coupling constants, λopt and λac, with first-principles calculations, λopt is mainly supplied by the Be-H alloy backbone, which accounts for about 85% of total λ and makes the greatest contribution to the high Tc. These insights not only contribute to a deeper understanding of the superconducting behavior of this ternary hydride but may also guide the experimental synthesis of hydrogen-rich compounds.

Oxide-Derived Bismuth as an Efficient Catalyst for Electrochemical Reduction of Flue Gas.

Post-combustion flue gas (mainly containing 5-40% CO2 balanced by N2 ) accounts for about 60% global CO2 emission. Rational conversion of flue gas into value-added chemicals is still a formidable challenge. Herein, this work reports a ß-Bi2 O3 -derived bismuth (OD-Bi) catalyst with surface coordinated oxygen for efficient electroreduction of pure CO2 , N2, and flue gas. During pure CO2 electroreduction, the maximum Faradaic efficiency (FE) of formate reaches 98.0% and stays above 90% in a broad potential of 600 mV with a long-term stability of 50 h. Additionally, OD-Bi achieves an ammonia (NH3 ) FE of 18.53% and yield rate of 11.5 µg h-1 mgcat -1 in pure N2 atmosphere. Noticeably, in simulated flue gas (15% CO2 balanced by N2 with trace impurities), a maximum formate FE of 97.3% is delivered within a flow cell, meanwhile above 90% formate FEs are obtained in a wide potential range of 700 mV. In-situ Raman combined with theory calculations reveals that the surface coordinated oxygen species in OD-Bi can drastically activate CO2 and N2 molecules by selectively favors the adsorption of *OCHO and *NNH intermediates, respectively. This work provides a surface oxygen modulation strategy to develop efficient bismuth-based electrocatalysts for directly reducing commercially relevant flue gas into valuable chemicals.

Pressure-induced high-temperature superconductivity in ternary Y-Zr-H compounds.

Compressed hydrogen-rich compounds have received extensive attention as appealing contenders for superconductors. Here, we found several stable hydrides YZrH6, YZrH8, YZr3H16 and YZrH18, and a series of metastable clathrate hexahydrides in the systematic investigation of Y-Zr-H ternary hydrides under pressure. Electron-phonon coupling calculations indicate that they all exhibit high temperature superconductivity and perform better than the binary Zr-H system. YZrH6 can maintain dynamic stability down to ambient pressure and keep a critical temperature (Tc) of 16 K. The stable YZrH18 and metastable Y3ZrH24 with high hydrogen content exhibit high Tc of 156 K and 185 K at 200 GPa, respectively. Further analysis shows that the phonon modes associated with H atoms contribute significantly to the electron-phonon coupling. The hydrogen content and the stoichiometric ratio of Y and Zr closely affect the density of states at the Fermi level, thereby affecting the superconductivity. Our work presents an important step toward understanding the superconductivity and stability of transition metal ternary hydrides.

Phase diagrams and superconductivity of ternary Ca-Al-H compounds under high pressure.

The search for high-temperature superconductors in hydrides under high pressure has always been a research hotspot. Hydrogen-based superconductors offer an avenue to achieve the long-sought goal of superconductivity at room temperature. Here we systematically explored the high-pressure phase diagram, electronic properties, lattice dynamics and superconductivity of the ternary Ca-Al-H system using ab initio methods. At 80 GPa, CaAlH5 transforms from Cmcm to P21/m phase. Both of Cmcm-CaAlH5 and Pnnm-CaAl2H8 are semiconductors. At 200 GPa, P4/mmm-CaAlH7 and a metastable compound Immm-Ca2AlH12 were found. Furthermore, P4/mmm-CaAlH7 shows obvious softening of the high frequency vibration modes, which improves the strength of electron-phonon coupling. Therefore, a superconducting transition temperature Tc of 71 K is generated in P4/mmm-CaAlH7 at 50 GPa. In addition, the thermodynamic metastable Immm-Ca2AlH12 exhibits a superconducting transition temperature of 118 K at 250 GPa. These results are very useful for the experimental searching of new high-Tc superconductors in ternary hydrides. Our work may provide an opportunity to search for high Tc superconductors at lower pressure.

TSPAN8 alleviates high glucose-induced apoptosis and autophagy via targeting mTORC2.

TSPAN8 mediates signal transduction from extracellular cues and regulates cell development, activation, growth, and motility. However, whether TSPAN8 is involved in the progression of diabetic nephropathy (DN) remains unclear. This study aimed to explore the potential functional roles of TSPAN8 in regulating autophagy and apoptosis of HK-2 cells induced by high glucose (HG). RT-PCR and western blot analysis (WB) were employed to detect TSPAN8 levels in the blood samples of DN patients as well as in HG-induced HK-2 cells. Cell proliferation of HK-2 cells was examined by CCK-8 assay, and apoptosis was analyzed by flow cytometry. The functional role of TSPAN8 was evaluated by the transfection of TSPAN8 expression plasmid. Results showed that TSPAN8 level was significantly reduced in the blood samples of DN patients and HG-induced HK-2 cell lines. TSPAN8 overexpression rescued HG-induced apoptosis in HK-2 cells. TSPAN8 could form a complex with Rictor and mTORC2. TSPAN8 overexpression suppressed HG-induced autophagy in HK-2 cells, which was dependent on mTOR activity. In conclusion, the present study showed that TSPAN8 mitigates HG-induced autophagy and apoptosis in HK-2 cells, which may serve as candidate target for DN treatment.

Pressure Induced Clathrate Hydrogen-Rich Superconductors KH20 and KH30.

Hydrogen-rich compounds have long been considered as one of the hotspot materials for achieving room-temperature superconductivity. We systematically investigate the high-pressure phase diagram of the K-H system and identified two unreported clathrate extreme superhydrides KH20 and KH30, hosting high superconducting transition temperatures (Tc) of 283 and 243 K at 500 GPa, respectively. The extremely high hydrogen content significantly increases H-derived electronic density of states at the Fermi level, constituting the main contributor to participate in electron-phonon coupling thus producing high-Tc. The large electron localizations in the interstitial region of the metal lattice under high pressure effectively assist the dissociation of hydrogen molecular units, forming unique H36 cages. These results offer key insights into the stability and potential high-Tc superconductivity of compressed extreme superhydrides and will further stimulate related research.

Exploring Eye Movement Biometrics in Real-World Activities: A Case Study of Wayfinding.

Eye movement biometrics can enable continuous verification for highly secure environments such as financial transactions and defense establishments, as well as a more personalized and tailored experience in gaze-based human-computer interactions. However, there are numerous challenges to recognizing people in real environments using eye movements, such as implicity and stimulus independence. In the instance of wayfinding, this research intends to investigate implicit and stimulus-independent eye movement biometrics in real-world situations. We collected 39 subjects' eye movement data from real-world wayfinding experiments and derived five sets of eye movement features (the basic statistical, pupillary response, fixation density, fixation semantic and saccade encoding features). We adopted a random forest and performed biometric recognition for both identification and verification scenarios. The best accuracy we obtained in the identification scenario was 78% (equal error rate, EER = 6.3%) with the 10-fold classification and 64% (EER = 12.1%) with the leave-one-route-out classification. The best accuracy we achieved in the verification scenario was 89% (EER = 9.1%). Additionally, we tested performance across the 5 feature sets and 20 time window sizes. The results showed that the verification accuracy was insensitive to the increase in the time window size. These findings are the first indication of the viability of performing implicit and stimulus-independent biometric recognition in real-world settings using wearable eye tracking.

Glycogen synthase kinase-3ß promotes radiation-induced lung fibrosis by regulating ß-catenin/lin28 signaling network to determine type II alveolar stem cell transdifferentiation state.

The role of type II alveolar epithelial stem cells (AEC II) for alveolar repair in radiation-induced lung fibrosis (RILF) remains largely unknown, mainly because of AEC II phenotype's spontaneous change in vitro. Cell differentiation status is determined by Lin28 and let-7 miRNAs in see-saw-pattern. Lin28, a repressor of let-7 and a stem cell marker, is activated by ß-catenin. The expression of ß-catenin is regulated by GSK-3ß/TGF-ß1 signaling. To understand the true role of AEC II in RILF, we freshly isolated primary AEC II directly from thoracically irradiated lungs. We then explored the expressions of cell phenotype markers and differentiation regulators in these isolated AEC II to analyze the correlation between GSK-3ß/TGF-ß1/ß-catenin signaling pathway, lin28/let-7 balance, and AEC II phenotypes at different injury phases following irradiation. Results showed that isolated single primary cells displayed AEC II ultrastructural features and proSP-C positive. The gene expressions of prosp-c (an AEC II biomarker) and hopx (an AEC I marker) significantly increased in isolated AEC II during injury repair phase (P < .001 and P < .05) but decreased at end-stage of injury, while mesenchymal markers increased in both isolated AEC II and irradiated lungs. mRNA levels of gsk-3ß, tgf-ß1, and ß-catenin increased in all irradiated AEC II, but more pronounced in the second half of injury phase (P < .05-P < .001). Similarly, the expression of lin28 was also significantly elevated in isolated AEC II at the late phase (P < .05-P < .001). Four let-7 miRNAs were significantly upregulated in all irradiated AEC II groups (P < .05-P < .001). The time-dependent and highly consistent uptrends for four lin28/let-7 ratios in sorted AEC II contrasted to downtrends in irradiated lungs. In conclusion, RILF occurred when GSK-3ß/TGF-ß1 signaling increased ß-catenin levels, which led to the augmentation of AEC II population by elevated lin28/let-7 ratio and the transcription of profibrotic cytokines and factors, thereby inducing AEC II to undergo transdifferentiation into mesenchymal cells.

Tumor sites and microscopic indicators are independent prognosis predictors of gastrointestinal stromal tumors.

Gastrointestinal stromal tumors (GISTs) are the most common among gastrointestinal mesenchymal tumors, but its prognosis has not been accurately predicted by the current risk stratification guidelines, National Institutes of Health classification. In this study, we evaluated the predictive factors for GIST prognosis in a retrospective analysis of 332 patients. The data collected included tumor sites, including the esophagus, stomach, duodenum, small intestine, and extragastrointestinal sites; tumor size; microscopic indicators for malignant tumor behavior, such as the number of dividing cells, cell necrosis, atypical morphology, and invasion into the muscular or mucous layer; and previously established immunohistochemical indicators, CD117, CD34, and discovered on GIST-1 (DOG-1). No single occurrence of any microscopic indicators correlated with the prognosis of GIST; however, the total number of microscopic indicators was a significant prognostic factor of GIST (P < 0.001). Regarding the tumor sites, the order of prognostic risk (from the lowest to the highest) was as follows: the esophagus, stomach, duodenum, small intestine, extragastrointestinal sites, and colorectum. The association between tumor sites and prognosis was significant (P < 0.001). On the other hand, the expression of CD117 or CD34 was not associated with the risk of GIST. Importantly, 91% of the patients (302/332) showed the expression of DOG-1, and the lack of DOG-1 expression was associated with poor prognosis (P < 0.05). In conclusion, both tumor sites and total number of microscopic indicators are independent risk factors associated with the prognosis of GIST. The lack of DOG-1 expression may be predictive of malignant outcome.

Gut Microbiome Changes in Anorexia Nervosa: A Comprehensive Review.

Anorexia nervosa (AN) remains a challenging condition in psychiatric management and its pathogenesis is not yet fully understood. An imbalance in the gut microbiota composition may contribute to its pathophysiology. This review aims to explore the link between the human gut microbiota and AN (objective 1) or refeeding syndrome in AN (objective 2). The online databases MEDLINE and PsycINFO were searched for relevant studies. A total of 14 studies met the inclusion and exclusion criteria and only answered objective 1. A total of 476 AN patients, 554 healthy-weight (HC) controls, and 0 patients with other psychiatric disorders were included. Compared to HC, there were consistently reduced abundances of Faecalibacterium prausnitzii and Roseburia inulinivorans, and increased Methanobrevibacter smithii, in AN patients. Changes in alpha diversity were inconsistent, while beta diversity increased in four of six studies. Our model suggests that an imbalance in gut microbiota composition leads to reduced short-chain fatty acids, contributing to a proinflammatory state in AN, which is also common in other psychiatric comorbidities. Microbial changes may also contribute to the semistarvation state through endocrine changes and altered energy utilization.

Superconducting ternary hydrides: progress and challenges.

Since the discovery of the high-temperature superconductors H3S and LaH10 under high pressure, compressed hydrides have received extensive attention as promising candidates for room-temperature superconductors. As a result of current high-pressure theoretical and experimental studies, it is now known that almost all the binary hydrides with a high superconducting transition temperature (T c) require extremely high pressure to remain stable, hindering any practical application. In order to further lower the stable pressure and improve superconductivity, researchers have started exploring ternary hydrides and had many achievements in recent years. Here, we discuss recent progress in ternary hydrides, aiming to deepen the understanding of the key factors regulating the structural stability and superconductivity of ternary hydrides, such as structural motifs, bonding features, electronic structures, electron-phonon coupling, etc. Furthermore, the current issues and challenges of superconducting ternary hydrides are presented, together with the prospects and opportunities for future research.

Structural phase transition and potential superconductivity initiated by pressure-driven in 1T-CrSe2.

The exploration of the superconducting properties of antiferromagnetic parent compounds containing transition metals under pressure provides a unique idea for finding and designing superconducting materials with better performance. In this paper, the close relationship between the possible superconductivity and structure phase transition of the typical van der Waals layered material 1T-CrSe2 induced by pressure is studied by means of electrical transport and X-ray diffraction for the first time. We introduce the possibility of pressure-induced superconductivity at 20 GPa, with a critical Tc of approximately at 4 K. The superconductivity persists up to the highest measured pressure of 70 GPa, with a maximum Tc ~ 5 K at 24 GPa. We observed a structure phase transition from P-3m1 to C2/m space group in the range of 9.4-11.7 GPa. The results show that the structural phase transition leads to the metallization of 1T-CrSe2, and the further pressure effect makes the superconductivity appear in the new structure. The material undergoes a transition from a two-dimensional layered structure to a three-dimensional structure under pressure. This is the first time that possible superconductivity has been observed in 1T-CrSe2.

Validating cognitive screening in young people with first-episode psychosis: The CogScreen protocol.

AIM: Cognitive impairments are a core feature of first-episode psychosis (FEP) and one of the strongest predictors of long-term psychosocial functioning. Cognition should be assessed and treated as part of routine clinical care for FEP. Cognitive screening offers the opportunity to rapidly identify and triage those in most need of cognitive support. However, there are currently no validated screening measures for young people with FEP. CogScreen is a hybrid effectiveness-implementation study which aims to evaluate the classification accuracy (relative to a neuropsychological assessment as a reference standard), test-retest reliability and acceptability of two cognitive screening tools in young people with FEP. METHODS: Participants will be 350 young people (aged 12-25) attending primary and specialist FEP treatment centres in three large metropolitan cities (Adelaide, Sydney, and Melbourne) in Australia. All participants will complete a cross-sectional assessment over two sessions including two cognitive screening tools (Screen for Cognitive Impairment in Psychiatry and Montreal Cognitive Assessment), a comprehensive neuropsychological assessment battery, psychiatric and neurodevelopmental assessments, and other supplementary clinical measures. To determine the test-retest reliability of the cognitive screening tools, a subset of 120 participants will repeat the screening measures two weeks later. RESULTS: The protocol, rationale, and hypotheses for CogScreen are presented. CONCLUSIONS: CogScreen will provide empirical evidence for the validity and reliability of two cognitive screening tools when compared to a comprehensive neuropsychological assessment. The screening measures may later be incorporated into clinical practice to assist with rapid identification and treatment of cognitive deficits commonly experienced by young people with FEP.

Angiotensin II type 2 receptor correlates with therapeutic effects of losartan in rats with adjuvant-induced arthritis.

The angiotensin II type 1 receptor (AT1R) blocker losartan ameliorates rheumatoid arthritis (RA) in an experimental model. In RA, AT2R mainly opposes AT1R, but the mechanism by which this occurs still remains obscure. In the present study, we investigated the role of AT2R in the treatment of rats with adjuvant-induced arthritis (AIA) by losartan. Adjuvant-induced arthritis rats were treated with losartan (5, 10 and 15 mg/kg) and methotrexate (MTX; 0.5 mg/kg) in vivo from day 14 to day 28. Arthritis was evaluated by the arthritis index and histological examination. Angiotensin II, tumour necrosis factor-α, and VEGF levels were examined by ELISA. The expression of AT1R and AT2R was detected by western blot and immunohistochemistry analysis. After stimulation with interleukin-1ß in vitro, the effects of the AT2R agonist CGP42112 (10(-8) -10(-5)  M) on the chemotaxis of monocytes induced by 10% foetal calf serum (FCS) were analysed by using Transwell assay. Subsequently, the therapeutic effects of CGP42112 (5, 10 and 20 µg/kg) were evaluated in vivo by intra-articular injection in AIA rats. After treatment with losartan, the down-regulation of AT1R expression and up-regulation of AT2R expression in the spleen and synovium of AIA rats correlated positively with reduction in the polyarthritis index. Treatment with CGP42112 inhibited the chemotaxis of AIA monocytes in vitro, possibly because of the up-regulation of AT2R expression. Intra-articular injection with CGP42112 (10 and 20 µg/kg) ameliorated the arthritis index and histological signs of arthritis. In summary, the present study strongly suggests that the up-regulation of AT2R might be an additional mechanism by which losartan exerts its therapeutic effects in AIA rats.

Wave interference network with a wave function for traffic sign recognition.

In this paper, we successfully combine convolution with a wave function to build an effective and efficient classifier for traffic signs, named the wave interference network (WiNet). In the WiNet, the feature map extracted by the convolutional filters is refined into many entities from an input image. Each entity is represented as a wave. We utilize Euler's formula to unfold the wave function. Based on the wave-like information representation, the model modulates the relationship between the entities and the fixed weights of convolution adaptively. Experiment results on the Chinese Traffic Sign Recognition Database (CTSRD) and the German Traffic Sign Recognition Benchmark (GTSRB) demonstrate that the performance of the presented model is better than some other models, such as ResMLP, ResNet50, PVT and ViT in the following aspects: 1) WiNet obtains the best accuracy rate with 99.80% on the CTSRD and recognizes all images exactly on the GTSRB; 2) WiNet gains better robustness on the dataset with different noises compared with other models; 3) WiNet has a good generalization on different datasets.

Erratum: [Corrigendum] Cross regulation of signaling pathways in gastrointestinal stromal tumor.

[This corrects the article DOI: 10.3892/ol.2018.9494.].

Downregulation of ß-Catenin Contributes to type II Alveolar Epithelial Stem Cell Resistance to Epithelial-Mesenchymal Transition by Lowing Lin28/let-7 Ratios in Fibrosis-Resistant Mice after Thoracic Irradiation.

Transdifferentiation of type II alveolar cells (AECII) is a major cause for radiation-induced lung fibrosis (RILF). Cell differentiation phenotype is determined by Lin28 (undifferentiated marker) and let-7 (differentiated marker) in a see-saw-pattern. Therefore, differentiation phenotype can be extrapolated based on Lin28/let-7 ratio. Lin28 is activated by ß-catenin. To the best of our knowledge this study was the first to use the single primary AECII freshly isolated from irradiated lungs of fibrosis-resistant C3H/HeNHsd strain to further confirm RILF mechanism by comparing its differences in AECII phenotype status/state and cell differentiation regulators to fibrosis-prone C57BL/6j mice. Results showed that radiation pneumonitis and fibrotic lesions were seen in C3H/HeNHsd and C57BL/6j mouse strains, respectively. mRNAs of E-cadherin, EpCAM, HOPX and proSP-C (epithelial phenotype biomarkers) were significantly downregulated in single primary AECII isolated from irradiated lungs of both strains. Unlike C57BL/6j, α-SMA and Vimentin (mesenchymal phenotype biomarkers) were not upregulated in single AECII from irradiated C3H/HeNHsd. Profibrotic molecules, TGF-ß1 mRNA was upregulated and ß-catenin was significantly downregulated in AECII after irradiation (both P < 0.01). In contrast, transcriptions for GSK-3ß, TGF-ß1 and ß-catenin were enhanced in isolated single AECII from irradiated C57BL/6j (P < 0.01-P < 0.001). The Lin28/let-7 ratios were much lower in single primary AECII from C3H/HeNHsd after irradiation vs. C57BL/6j. In conclusion, AECII from irradiated C3H/HeNHsd did not undergo epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) and lower ratios of Lin28/let-7 contributed to AECII relatively higher differentiated status, leading to increased susceptibility to radiation stress and a failure in transdifferentiation in the absence of ß-catenin. Reducing ß-catenin expression and the ratios of Lin28/let-7 may be a promising strategy to prevent radiation fibrosis.