Multiscale CO2 Electrocatalysis to C2+ Products: Reaction Mechanisms, Catalyst Design, and Device Fabrication.

Electrosynthesis of value-added chemicals, directly from CO2, could foster achievement of carbon neutral through an alternative electrical approach to the energy-intensive thermochemical industry for carbon utilization. Progress in this area, based on electrogeneration of multicarbon products through CO2 electroreduction, however, lags far behind that for C1 products. Reaction routes are complicated and kinetics are slow with scale up to the high levels required for commercialization, posing significant problems. In this review, we identify and summarize state-of-art progress in multicarbon synthesis with a multiscale perspective and discuss current hurdles to be resolved for multicarbon generation from CO2 reduction including atomistic mechanisms, nanoscale electrocatalysts, microscale electrodes, and macroscale electrolyzers with guidelines for future research. The review ends with a cross-scale perspective that links discrepancies between different approaches with extensions to performance and stability issues that arise from extensions to an industrial environment.

Hydrogen Isotope Separation Using Graphene-Based Membranes in Liquid Water.

Hydrogen isotope separation has been effectively achieved electrochemically by passage of gaseous H2/D2 through graphene/Nafion composite membranes. Nevertheless, deuteron nearly does not exist in the form of gaseous D2 in nature but as liquid water. Thus, it is a more feasible way to separate and enrich deuterium from water. Herein, we have successfully transferred monolayer graphene to a rigid and porous polymer substrate, PITEM (polyimide track-etched membrane), which could avoid the swelling problem of the Nafion substrate as well as keep the integrity of graphene. Meanwhile, defects in the large area of CVD graphene could be successfully repaired by interfacial polymerization resulting in a high separation factor. Moreover, a new model was proposed for the proton transport mechanism through monolayer graphene based on the kinetic isotope effect (KIE). In this model, graphene plays a significant role in the H/D separation process by completely breaking the O-H/O-D bond, which can maximize the KIE, leading to increased H/D separation performance. This work suggests a promising application for using monolayer graphene in the industry and proposes a pronounced understanding of proton transport in graphene.

Analysis of serum calcium change trajectories and prognostic factors in patients with acute type A aortic dissection.

OBJECTIVES: This study aimed to analyze the correlation between serum calcium changes and short-term prognosis of patients with acute type A aortic dissection. METHODS: Patients who underwent acute type A aortic dissection surgery at Fujian Heart Medical Center between June 2019 and June 2021 were retrospectively analyzed. RESULTS: A total of 383 patients were enrolled. According to the changing track of serum calcium in patients after acute type A aortic dissection, three potential category tracks were determined: high-level (n = 85), medium-level (n = 259), and continuous low-level groups (n = 39). Using the medium-level group as the control, regression analysis showed that poor prognosis risk was increased in the group with continuous low serum calcium (odds ratio = 2.454, P < 0.05) and in the group with continuous low serum calcium > 48 h (odds ratio = 3.595, P < 0.05). Age (odds ratio = 1.063, P < 0.001), body mass index (odds ratio = 1.138, P < 0.05), hypertension (odds ratio = 3.697, P < 0.05), and the highest lactic acid within 72 h after surgery(odds ratio = 1.093, P < 0.05) were independent risk factors for poor prognosis after aortic dissection. CONCLUSION: Continuous low serum calcium was an independent predictor of poor prognosis in patients with acute type A aortic dissection.

TG/HDL-C ratio predicts in-hospital mortality in patients with acute type A aortic dissection.

BACKGROUND: In recent years, abnormalities in serum lipids and lipoproteins have been shown to be associated with cardiovascular disease risk. However, their prognostic value for acute type A aortic dissection is unclear. This study analyzed the correlation between triglyceride/high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (TG/HDL-C) ratio and in-hospital mortality in patients with AAAD, and aimed to investigate the clinical significance of preoperative blood lipids and lipoproteins on the prognosis of acute type A aortic dissection. METHODS: A total of 361 patients who underwent type A aortic dissection surgery in Fujian Cardiac Medical Center from June 2018 to March 2020 were retrospectively collected. According to the baseline TG/HDL-C ratio, the patients were divided into 3 groups according to the tertile method, the low TG/HDL-C ratio T1 group (< 1.18) and the middle TG/HDL-C ratio T2 group (1.18-1.70). T3 group with high TG/HDL-C ratio (> 1.70). Kaplan-Meier was used for survival analysis, and Cox proportional hazards regression model was used to analyze the factors affecting the prognosis of patients. The receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve was used for the diagnostic efficacy. RESULTS: Among the 361 patients in this study, the mean age was 52.4 ± 11.3 years, 73 (20.2%) were female, and 82 (22.7%) died in hospital. Kaplan-Meier curve showed that with the increase of TG/HDL-C ratio, the risk of in-hospital death gradually increased (P < 0.001). Multivariate Cox regression analysis showed that age (HR = 1.031), body mass index (HR = 1.052), hypertension (HR = 3.491), white blood cells (HR = 1.073), TG/HDL-C ratio (HR = 1.604), MODS (HR = 1.652) was positively correlated with in-hospital mortality (P < 0.05). After adjusting for age, sex, and other risk factors, a significant association was found between the TG/HDL-C ratio and in-hospital mortality for acute type A aortic dissection (HR = 1.472, 95% CI, 1.354-3.451, P = 0.019). CONCLUSION: Patients with type A aortic dissection have obvious abnormal blood lipid metabolism, and serum TG/HDL-C levels are positively correlated with in-hospital mortality in patients with AAAD.

Diagnosis of lung squamous cell carcinoma based on metagenomic Next-Generation Sequencing.

BACKGROUND: The clinical treatment of patients suspected of pulmonary infections often rely on empirical antibiotics. However, preliminary diagnoses were based on clinical manifestations and conventional microbiological tests, which could later be proved wrong. In this case, we presented a patient whose initial diagnosis was lung abscess, but antibiotic treatments had no effect, and metagenomic Next-Generation Sequencing (mNGS) indicated presence of neoplasm. CASE PRESENTATION: A 62-year-old female was diagnosed with lung abscess at three different health facilities. However, mNGS of bronchoalveolar lavage fluid did not support pulmonary infections. Rather, the copy number variation analysis using host DNA sequences suggested neoplasm. Using H&E staining and immunohistochemistry of lung biopsy, the patient was eventually diagnosed with lung squamous cell carcinoma. CONCLUSIONS: mNGS not only detects pathogens and helps diagnose infectious diseases, but also has potential in detecting neoplasm via host chromosomal copy number analysis. This might be beneficial for febrile patients with unknown or complex etiology, especially when infectious diseases were initially suspected but empirical antibiotic regimen failed.

Self-Supported Porous Carbon Nanofibers Decorated with Single Ni Atoms for Efficient CO2 Electroreduction.

Single-atom catalysts within M-N-C structures are efficient for electrochemical CO2 reduction. However, most of them are powdered and require a coating process to load on the electrode. Herein, we developed a facile approach to the synthesis of large-scale self-supported porous carbon nanofiber electrodes directly decorated with atomically dispersed nickel active sites using facile electrospinning, where poly(methyl methacrylate) was employed to tune well the distributions of pores located in carbon nanofibers. The above self-supported carbon nanofibers were applied as a gas diffusion electrode to achieve 94.3% CO Faraday efficiency and 170 mA cm-2 current density, which can be attributed to the effects of rich mesoporous structures favorable for adsorption and mass transfer of CO2 and single nickel catalysts effectively converting CO2 to CO. This work provides an efficient strategy to fabricate self-supported electrodes and may accelerate the progress toward industrial applications of single-atom catalysts in the field of CO2 electroreduction.

The blood glucose-potassium ratio at admission predicts in-hospital mortality in patients with acute type A aortic dissection.

Acute type A aortic dissection (ATAAD) is a serious cardiovascular emergency with high risk and mortality after surgery. Recent studies have shown that serum glucose-potassium ratio (GPR) is associated with the prognosis of cerebrovascular diseases. The purpose of this study was to investigate the relationship between GPR and in-hospital mortality in patients with ATAAD. From June 2019 to August 2021, we retrospectively analyzed the clinical data of 272 patients who underwent ATAAD surgery. According to the median value of GPR (1.74), the patients were divided into two groups. Univariate and multivariate logistic regression analysis were used to determine the risk factors of in-hospital mortality after ATAAD. In-hospital death was significantly more common in the high GPR group (> 1.74) (24.4% vs 13.9%; P = 0.027). The incidence of renal dysfunction in the low GPR group was significantly higher than that in the high GPR group (26.3% vs 14.8%: P = 0.019). After controlling for potential confounding variables and adjusting for multivariate logistic regression analysis, the results showed a high GPR (> 1.74) (AOR 4.70, 95% confidence interval (CI) 2.13-10.40; P = < 0.001), lactic acid (AOR 1.14, 95% CI 1.03-1.26; P = 0.009), smokers (AOR 2.45, 95% CI 1.18-15.07; P = 0.039), mechanical ventilation (AOR 9.47, 95% CI 4.00-22.38; P = < 0.001) was independent risk factor for in-hospital mortality in ATAAD patients, albumin (AOR 0.90, 95% CI 0.83-0.98; P = 0.014) was a protective factor for in-hospital prognosis. High GPR is a good predictor of in-hospital mortality after ATAAD surgery.

Constructing Long-Range Transfer Pathways with Ordered Acid-Base Pairs for Highly Enhanced Proton Conduction.

Acid-base pairs hold great superiority in creating proton defects and facilitating proton transfer with less or no water. However, the existing acid-base complexes fail in assembling into ordered acid-base pairs and thus cannot always take full advantage of the acid-base synergetic effect. Herein, polymer quantum dots with inherent ordered acid-base pairs are utilized and anchored on dopamine-coated graphene oxide, thus forming into long-range conducting pathways. The resultant building blocks ( nPGO) are integrated in a sulfonated poly(ether ether ketone) matrix to fabricate composite membranes. The constructed long-range transfer highways with ordered acid-base pairs impart to the composite membrane significantly enhanced proton conduction ability. Under the hydrated state, the composite membrane attains 91% increase over the control membrane in conductivity, and the single-cell fuel based on the membrane achieves 71% promotion in maximum power density. Under anhydrous conditions, more striking augment in conduction is observed for the composite membrane, reaching 7.14 mS cm-1, almost 10 times of the control membrane value (0.78 mS cm-1). Remarkably, such anhydrous proton conduction performance is even comparable to that of the composite membrane impregnated with ionic liquids, which is hard to realize with conventional fillers. Collectively, these results endow composite membranes great potential for applications in hydrogen-based fuel cells, sensors, and catalysis.

Confirming the Effects of Qinghuayin against Chronic Atrophic Gastritis and a Preliminary Observation of the Involved Inflammatory Signaling Pathways: An In Vivo Study.

BACKGROUND: Qinghuayin (QHY) is a Chinese formula that is widely used in the treatment of chronic atrophic gastritis (CAG). This study was planned with the following objectives: (1) confirming the efficacy of QHY in a rat model of CAG and (2) performing a preliminary observation of the changes in several inflammatory signaling pathways potentially involved in the QHY mechanisms. METHODS: A total of 33 rats were used in this study; they were divided into the control (n = 12) and model (n = 21) groups. QHY was administrated to both the groups. We assessed the pathological manifestations and the serum tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF-α) level as markers of efficacy. We also performed a preliminary observation of the changes in the protein and messenger ribonucleic acid (mRNA) expression of toll-like receptors 4 (TLR4), MyD88, NF-κB, and COX-2. RESULTS: The pathological changes induced in the rats by the establishment of the CAG models were recovered by low and high doses of QHY. Their serum TNF-α level also reduced following low- and high-dose QHY treatment. Protein and mRNA expressions of TLR4, MyD88, NF-κB, and COX-2 were upregulated by the establishment of CAG models and downregulated by the administration of low- and high-dose QHY. CONCLUSIONS: Our data confirm the efficacy of QHY as an adjuvant therapy, based on the theories in traditional Chinese medicine. The preliminary observations indicate that the downregulation of the enhanced inflammatory signaling pathways might be crucial QHY mechanisms that need further verification.