A membrane-based seawater electrolyser for hydrogen generation.

Electrochemical saline water electrolysis using renewable energy as input is a highly desirable and sustainable method for the mass production of green hydrogen1-7; however, its practical viability is seriously challenged by insufficient durability because of the electrode side reactions and corrosion issues arising from the complex components of seawater. Although catalyst engineering using polyanion coatings to suppress corrosion by chloride ions or creating highly selective electrocatalysts has been extensively exploited with modest success, it is still far from satisfactory for practical applications8-14. Indirect seawater splitting by using a pre-desalination process can avoid side-reaction and corrosion problems15-21, but it requires additional energy input, making it economically less attractive. In addition, the independent bulky desalination system makes seawater electrolysis systems less flexible in terms of size. Here we propose a direct seawater electrolysis method for hydrogen production that radically addresses the side-reaction and corrosion problems. A demonstration system was stably operated at a current density of 250 milliamperes per square centimetre for over 3,200 hours under practical application conditions without failure. This strategy realizes efficient, size-flexible and scalable direct seawater electrolysis in a way similar to freshwater splitting without a notable increase in operation cost, and has high potential for practical application. Importantly, this configuration and mechanism promises further applications in simultaneous water-based effluent treatment and resource recovery and hydrogen generation in one step.

Transcription factor CsMADS3 coordinately regulates chlorophyll and carotenoid pools in Citrus hesperidium.

Citrus, 1 of the largest fruit crops with global economic and nutritional importance, contains fruit known as hesperidium with unique morphological types. Citrus fruit ripening is accompanied by chlorophyll degradation and carotenoid biosynthesis, which are indispensably linked to color formation and the external appearance of citrus fruits. However, the transcriptional coordination of these metabolites during citrus fruit ripening remains unknown. Here, we identified the MADS-box transcription factor CsMADS3 in Citrus hesperidium that coordinates chlorophyll and carotenoid pools during fruit ripening. CsMADS3 is a nucleus-localized transcriptional activator, and its expression is induced during fruit development and coloration. Overexpression of CsMADS3 in citrus calli, tomato (Solanum lycopersicum), and citrus fruits enhanced carotenoid biosynthesis and upregulated carotenogenic genes while accelerating chlorophyll degradation and upregulating chlorophyll degradation genes. Conversely, the interference of CsMADS3 expression in citrus calli and fruits inhibited carotenoid biosynthesis and chlorophyll degradation and downregulated the transcription of related genes. Further assays confirmed that CsMADS3 directly binds and activates the promoters of phytoene synthase 1 (CsPSY1) and chromoplast-specific lycopene ß-cyclase (CsLCYb2), 2 key genes in the carotenoid biosynthetic pathway, and STAY-GREEN (CsSGR), a critical chlorophyll degradation gene, which explained the expression alterations of CsPSY1, CsLCYb2, and CsSGR in the above transgenic lines. These findings reveal the transcriptional coordination of chlorophyll and carotenoid pools in the unique hesperidium of Citrus and may contribute to citrus crop improvement.

Small signaling peptides mediate plant adaptions to abiotic environmental stress.

MAIN CONCLUSION: Peptide-receptor complexes activate distinct downstream regulatory networks to mediate plant adaptions to abiotic environmental stress. Plants are constantly exposed to various adverse environmental factors; thus they must adjust their growth accordingly. Plants recruit small secretory peptides to adapt to these detrimental environments. These small peptides, which are perceived by their corresponding receptors and/or co-receptors, act as local- or long-distance mobile signaling molecules to establish cell-to-cell regulatory networks, resulting in optimal cellular and physiological outputs. In this review, we highlight recent advances on the regulatory role of small peptides in plant abiotic responses and nutrients signaling.

Equilibrium approach towards water resource management and pollution control in coal chemical industrial park.

In this study, an integrated water and waste load allocation model is proposed to assist decision makers in better understanding the trade-offs between economic growth, resource utilization, and environmental protection of coal chemical industries which characteristically have high water consumption and pollution. In the decision framework, decision makers in a same park, each of whom have different goals and preferences, work together to seek a collective benefit. Similar to a Stackelberg-Nash game, the proposed approach illuminates the decision making interrelationships and involves in the conflict coordination between the park authority and the individual coal chemical company stockholders. In the proposed method, to response to climate change and other uncertainties, a risk assessment tool, Conditional Value-at-Risk (CVaR) and uncertainties through reflecting parameters and coefficients using probability and fuzzy set theory are integrated in the modeling process. Then a case study from Yuheng coal chemical park is presented to demonstrate the practicality and efficiency of the optimization model. To reasonable search the potential consequences of different responses to water and waste load allocation strategies, a number of scenario results considering environmental uncertainty and decision maker' attitudes are examined to explore the tradeoffs between economic development and environmental protection and decision makers' objectives. The results are helpful for decision/police makers to adjust current strategies adapting for current changes. Based on the scenario analyses and discussion, some propositions and operational policies are given and sensitive adaptation strategies are presented to support the efficient, balanced and sustainable development of coal chemical industrial parks.

[The Research Advancement and Conception of the Deep-underground Medicine].

The 21th century is the century of exploring and utilizing the underground space. In the future, more and more people will spend more and more time living or/and working in the underground space. However,we know little about the effect on the health of human caused by the underground environment. Herein,we systematically put forward the strategic conception of the deep-underground medicine,in order to reveal relative effects and mechanism of the potential factors in the deep underground space on human's physiological and psychological healthy,and to work out the corresponding countermeasures. The original deep-underground medicine includes the following items. ①To model different depth of underground environment according to various parameters (such as temperature,radiation,air pressure, rock,microorganism), and to explore their quantitative character and effects on human health and mechanism. ② To study the psychological change, maintenance of homeostasis and biothythm of organism in the deep underground space. ③ To learn the association between psychological healthy of human and the depth, structure, physical environment and working time of underground space. ④ To investigate the effect of different terrane and lithology on healthy of human and to deliberate their contribution on organism growth. ⑤ To research the character and their mechanism of growth,metabolism,exchange of energy,response of growth, aging and adaptation of cells living in deep underground space. ⑥ To explore the physiological feature,growth of microbiome and it's interaction with host in the deep underground space. ⑦ To develop deep-underground simulation space, the biologically medical technology and equipments. As a research basis,a deep-underground medical lab under a rock thickness of about 1 470 m has been built,which aims to operate the research of the effect on living organism caused by different depth of underground environment.

Antiviral activity of Carbenoxolone disodium against dengue virus infection.

As one of the most important mosquito-borne viral diseases, dengue infection is now becoming a global concern due to its rapid spread and rise in incidence. Currently, there is no approved vaccine or effective antiviral drug for dengue virus (DENV) infection. Glycyrrhetinic acid (GNa) and its related derivatives have been reported to inhibit a broad spectrum of viruses. However, it is unknown whether Carbenoxolone disodium (CBX), one of the GNa derivatives, affects DENV infection. Here, we found that the production of infectious DENV particles was significantly decreased by CBX treatment in DENV-permissive cells, while the viral RNA and viral protein synthesis were not affected. Moreover, results from time-of-addition study showed that the inhibitory effect of CBX on DENV was exhibited by targeting the virus itself, not the host cells. Directly incubating DENV with CBX resulted in a remarkable reduction of virus titer and virus infectivity. Furthermore, DENV RNA from progeny virions in the supernatants was significantly decreased by CBX treatment in a dose-dependent manner. Taken together, these data indicate that the antiviral activity of CBX against DENV may be mainly due to a virucidal effect exerted by the compound itself. Our work, for the first time, demonstrates that CBX has antiviral activity against DENV infection, providing useful information for development of potential therapeutic interventions against dengue. J. Med. Virol. 89:571-581, 2017. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

miR-146a Inhibits dengue-virus-induced autophagy by targeting TRAF6.

During dengue virus (DENV) infection, the virus manipulates different cellular pathways to assure productive replication, including autophagy. However, it remains unclear how this autophagic process is regulated. Here, we have demonstrated a novel role for the microRNA miR-146a in negatively regulating the cellular autophagic pathway in DENV-infected A549 cells and THP-1 cells. Overexpression of miR-146a significantly blocked DENV2-induced autophagy, and LNA-mediated inhibition of miR-146a counteracted these effects. Moreover, co-overexpression of TRAF6, a target of miR-146a, significantly reversed the inhibitory effect of miR-146a on autophagy. Notably, treatment with recombinant IFN-ß fully restored the autophagic activity in TRAF6-silenced cells. Furthermore, our data showed that, in DENV2-infected A549 cells, autophagy promoted a pro-inflammatory response to significantly increase TNF-α and IL-6 production. Taken together, our results define a novel role for miR-146a as a negative regulator of DENV-induced autophagy and identify TRAF6 as a key target of this microRNA in modulating the DENV-autophagy interaction.

Riesz Riemann-Liouville difference on discrete domains.

A Riesz difference is defined by the use of the Riemann-Liouville differences on time scales. Then the definition is considered for discrete fractional modelling. A lattice fractional equation method is proposed among which the space variable is defined on discrete domains. Finite memory effects are introduced into the lattice system and the numerical formulae are given. Adomian decomposition method is adopted to solve the fractional partial difference equations numerically.

Parent-adolescent discrepancies in educational expectations, relationship quality, and study engagement: a multi-informant study using response surface analysis.

Whether parental educational expectations for adolescents serve as a source of motivation or stress depends on the extent to which adolescents hold expectations for themselves. Previous research on the discrepancies between parental and adolescent educational expectations and their impact on learning engagement has been limited by traditional statistical tests, and lacking an examination of the internal mediating mechanism of parent-child relational quality from both parental and adolescent perspectives. This cross-sectional study, utilizing a multi-informant design, examined the association between discrepancies in parents' and adolescents' reports of expectations, and adolescents' study engagement, as well as the mediating role of parent-child relational qualities perceived by both parties. The sample for this study consisted of 455 adolescents and their parents from 10 classes in a junior high school in Wuhan, Hubei Province, China. The adolescents had an average age of 12.8 years, and 51.6% of them were boys. Both parents and adolescents reported on their expectations and perceived relational quality, while adolescents also filled out questionnaires assessing their learning engagement. Data were analyzed using polynomial regressions with response surface analysis. The results revealed that when adolescents reported high expectations, regardless of whether their parents reported high or low expectations, adolescents reported satisfied relationships and high learning engagement. In contrast, parents reported satisfied relationships when both parties reported high expectations, or when parents reported higher expectations than adolescents. Lastly, the association between discrepancies in expectations and learning engagement was significantly mediated by adolescent-reported relationships but not parent-reported ones. These findings highlight the importance of considering multiple perspectives when studying the association between expectations and adolescent study engagement. This research advances our comprehension of the dynamics between parent-adolescent educational expectation discrepancies and adolescent learning engagement, offering insights for more nuanced and effective parenting strategies tailored to foster optimal educational outcomes.

In-situ direct seawater electrolysis using floating platform in ocean with uncontrollable wave motion.

Direct hydrogen production from inexhaustible seawater using abundant offshore wind power offers a promising pathway for achieving a sustainable energy industry and fuel economy. Various direct seawater electrolysis methods have been demonstrated to be effective at the laboratory scale. However, larger-scale in situ demonstrations that are completely free of corrosion and side reactions in fluctuating oceans are lacking. Here, fluctuating conditions of the ocean were considered for the first time, and seawater electrolysis in wave motion environment was achieved. We present the successful scaling of a floating seawater electrolysis system that employed wind power in Xinghua Bay and the integration of a 1.2 Nm3 h-1-scale pilot system. Stable electrolysis operation was achieved for over 240 h with an electrolytic energy consumption of 5 kWh Nm-3 H2 and a high purity (>99.9%) of hydrogen under fluctuating ocean conditions (0~0.9 m wave height, 0~15 m s-1 wind speed), which is comparable to that during onshore water electrolysis. The concentration of impurity ions in the electrolyte was low and stable over a long period of time under complex and changing scenarios. We identified the technological challenges and performances of the key system components and examined the future outlook for this emerging technology.

Drawing as a strategy for children to learn ancient Chinese poetry.

Drawing is regarded as a promising strategy for children's learning, which has greatly been supported by research using science texts as learning materials. To shed light on the benefit of drawing on children's text-based learning in humanities, two classes of 86 grade 5 children were required to learn an ancient Chinese poem in an actual classroom setting, either by drawing a visual picture illustrating the poem or by reading repeatedly at their own pace as usual. Data analyses were conducted using (generalized) linear mixed-effects models. The results indicated that children who were allowed to generate a drawing during learning showed better learning performance of the entire poem than children who were allowed to read repeatedly regarding the delayed posttest rather than the immediate posttest. Besides, children in the drawing group reported a higher level of learning motivation than those in the reading group. We argue that the generative drawing effect can be tentatively extended to ancient Chinese poetry education.

Progress in biological and medical research in the deep underground: an update.

As the growing population of individuals residing or working in deep underground spaces for prolonged periods, it has become imperative to understand the influence of factors in the deep underground environment (DUGE) on living systems. Heping Xie has conceptualized the concept of deep underground medicine to identify factors in the DUGE that can have either detrimental or beneficial effects on human health. Over the past few years, an increasing number of studies have explored the molecular mechanisms that underlie the biological impacts of factors in the DUGE on model organisms and humans. Here, we present a summary of the present landscape of biological and medical research conducted in deep underground laboratories and propose promising avenues for future investigations in this field. Most research demonstrates that low background radiation can trigger a stress response and affect the growth, organelles, oxidative stress, defense capacity, and metabolism of cells. Studies show that residing and/or working in the DUGE has detrimental effects on human health. Employees working in deep mines suffer from intense discomfort caused by high temperature and humidity, which increase with depth, and experience fatigue and sleep disturbance. The negative impacts of the DUGE on human health may be induced by changes in the metabolism of specific amino acids; however, the cellular pathways remain to be elucidated. Biological and medical research must continue in deep underground laboratories and mines to guarantee the safe probing of uncharted depths as humans utilize the deep underground space.

Observation of Curative Effect of Lung Recruitment in Patients with Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome after Cardiopulmonary Bypass Surgery.

Recruitment maneuver (RM) has become a routine supplementary maneuver for clinical rescue of severe ARDS with low tidal volume/pressure-limited mechanical ventilation. Recruitment of patients with ARDS mechanical ventilation can improve the lung compliance, promote the opening of collapsed alveoli, improve the ratio of ventilation to blood flow, reduce dead space, reduce shunt flow, and improve oxygenation function. In this paper, the patients were divided into lung recruitment group and conventional treatment group by the random number permutation table method. When the patient's percutaneous oxygen saturation is less than or equal to 88%, the partial pressure of oxygen in the arterial blood gas is less than or equal to 55 mmHg, or the ventilator tube is disconnected during sputum suction or other accidents, a CPAP × 60 - second lung recruitment maneuver is required. Then adjust the ventilator parameters in the same way. In the process of lung recruitment, the changes in invasive continuous arterial blood pressure will also be observed. If the blood pressure dropped to ≤90/60 mmHg, one recruitment maneuver was terminated in advance. And both groups of patients used the Dräger- or PB840-imported multifunctional ventilator. The treatment of primary disease and predisposing factors, fluid management strategies, antibiotics and glucocorticoids, nutrition, and metabolic support in the two groups of patients in the study were the same. The PaO2/FiO2 value improved by 51% 10 minutes after recruitment, and the median increased from 111 (IQR, 73-265) before recruitment to 170 (IQR, 102-340) (P < 0.01), the improvement of PaO2/FiO2 at 4 hours after recruitment and 12 hours after recruitment was 78% (P < 0.05) and 39% (P < 0.01), respectively, and the median PaO2/FiO2 at 4 hours after recruitment was 198 (IQR, 116-256). The median PaO2/FiO2 became 155 (IQR, 127-235) 12 hours after recruitment. Recruitment can reduce the accumulation of neutrophils in lung tissue, reduce the release of inflammatory factors, reduce pulmonary edema, and reduce pathological damage.

Transcriptome analysis of well-differentiated laryngeal squamous cell carcinoma cells in below-background environment.

Background: Preliminary research has shown an inhibited growth rate of well-differentiated laryngeal squamous cell carcinoma cells (FD-LSC-1) in below-background radiation (BBR), but how the cells respond to this environmental stress and the potential mechanisms are yet unknown. The current study aimed to reveal the molecular differences in cells grown under BBR conditions and normal radiation at the transcriptional level. Methods: The expression profiles between FD-LSC-1 cells grown in a deep underground laboratory and above ground laboratory collected on day 4 were investigated by whole-transcriptome analysis, including messenger RNAs (mRNAs), long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs), circular RNAs (circRNAs), and microRNAs (miRNAs). Functional analyses of Gene Ontology (GO) and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) pathway enrichment were then implemented for differentially expressed (DE) mRNAs and target genes of lncRNAs and circRNAs. Co-expression levels and the Bayesian network of DE genes were subsequently constructed, and the reliability of expression patterns were validated by quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (PCR). Results: The study identified a total of 671 mRNAs, 286 lncRNAs, 489 circRNAs, and 6 miRNAs as significantly expressed in response to the environmental stress. The GO annotations regarding the biological processes category were mainly biological regulation, metabolic process, response to stimulus, cell cycle, and modification process. The KEGG enrichment analysis indicated that TGF-ß and Hippo signaling played a crucial role in the transcriptional regulation of FD-LSC-1 cell growth under background radiation. Further network construction suggested that the enriched KEGG pathways affected this process by regulating cell proliferation-related genes including SMAD, SMAD7, CDH1, EGR1, and BMP2. Conclusions: Below-background radiation can lead to transcriptional changes in FD-LSC-1 cells cultured in the deep underground. The inhibitory growth effect is associated with multiple biological processes as well as canonical pathways of proliferation.

Whole Transcriptome Analysis Revealed a Stress Response to Deep Underground Environment Conditions in Chinese Hamster V79 Lung Fibroblast Cells.

Background: Prior studies have shown that the proliferation of V79 lung fibroblast cells could be inhibited by low background radiation (LBR) in deep underground laboratory (DUGL). In the current study, we revealed further molecular changes by performing whole transcriptome analysis on the expression profiles of long non-coding RNA (lncRNA), messenger RNA (mRNA), circular RNA (circRNA) and microRNA (miRNA) in V79 cells cultured for two days in a DUGL. Methods: Whole transcriptome analysis including lncRNA, mRNAs, circ RNA and miRNA was performed in V79 cells cultured for two days in DUGL and above ground laboratory (AGL), respectively. The differentially expressed (DE) lncRNA, mRNA, circRNA, and miRNA in V79 cells were identified by the comparison between DUGL and AGL groups. Quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction(qRT-PCR)was conducted to verify the selected RNA sequencings. Then, Gene Ontology (GO) and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) pathway was analyzed for the DE mRNAs which enabled to predict target genes of lncRNA and host genes of circRNA. Results: With |log2(Fold-change)| ≥ 1.0 and p < 0.05, a total of 1257 mRNAs (353 mRNAs up-regulated, 904 mRNAs down-regulated), 866 lncRNAs (145 lncRNAs up-regulated, 721 lncRNAs down-regulated), and 474 circRNAs (247 circRNAs up-regulated, 227 circRNAs down-regulated) were significantly altered between the two groups. There was no significant difference in miRNA between the two groups. The altered RNA profiles were mainly discovered in lncRNAs, mRNAs and circRNAs. DE RNAs were involved in many pathways including ECM-RI, PI3K-Akt signaling, RNA transport and the cell cycle under the LBR stress of the deep underground environment. Conclusion: Taken together, these results suggest that the LBR in the DUGL could induce transcriptional repression, thus reducing metabolic process and reprogramming the overall gene expression profile in V79 cells.

(GeTe)1-x(AgSnSe2)x: Strong Atomic Disorder-Induced High Thermoelectric Performance near the Ioffe-Regel Limit.

In thermoelectrics, the material's performance stems from a delicate tradeoff between atomic order and disorder. Generally, dopants and thus atomic disorder are indispensable for optimizing the carrier concentration and scatter short-wavelength heat-carrying phonons. However, the strong disorder has been perceived as detrimental to the semiconductor's electrical conductivity owing to the deteriorated carrier mobility. Here, we report the sustainable role of strong atomic disorder in suppressing the detrimental phase transition and enhancing the thermoelectric performance in GeTe. We found that AgSnSe2 and Sb co-alloying eliminates the unfavorable phase transition due to the high configurational entropy and achieve the cubic Ge1-x-ySbyTe1-x(AgSnSe2)x solid solutions with cationic and anionic site disorder. Though AgSnSe2 substitution drives the carrier mean free path toward the Ioffe-Regel limit and minimizes the carrier mobility, the increased carrier concentration could render a decent electrical conductivity, affording enough phase room for further performance optimization. Given the lowermost carrier mean free path, further Sb alloying on Ge sites was implemented to progressively optimize the carrier concentration and enhance the density-of-state effective mass, thereby substantially enhancing the Seebeck coefficient. In addition, the high density of nanoscale strain clusters induced by strong atomic disorders significantly restrains the lattice thermal conductivity. As a result, a state-of-the-art zT ≈ 1.54 at 773 K was attained in cubic Ge0.58Sb0.22Te0.8(AgSnSe2)0.2. These results demonstrate that the strong atomic disorder at the high entropy scale is a previously underheeded but promising approach in thermoelectric material research, especially for the numerous low carrier mobility materials.

Medium Entropy-Enabled High Performance Cubic GeTe Thermoelectrics.

The configurational entropy is an emerging descriptor in the functional materials genome. In thermoelectric materials, the configurational entropy helps tune the delicate trade-off between carrier mobility and lattice thermal conductivity, as well as the structural phase transition, if any. Taking GeTe as an example, low-entropy GeTe generally have high carrier mobility and distinguished zT > 2, but the rhombohedral-cubic phase transition restricts the applications. In contrast, despite cubic structure and ultralow lattice thermal conductivity, the degraded carrier mobility leads to a low zT in high-entropy GeTe. Herein, medium-entropy alloying is implemented to suppress the phase transition and achieve the cubic GeTe with ultralow lattice thermal conductivity yet decent carrier mobility. In addition, co-alloying of (Mn, Pb, Sb, Cd) facilitates multivalence bands convergence and band flattening, thereby yielding good Seebeck coefficients and compensating for decreased carrier mobility. For the first time, a state-of-the-art zT of 2.1 at 873 K and average zT ave of 1.3 between 300 and 873 K are attained in cubic phased Ge0.63Mn0.15Pb0.1Sb0.06Cd0.06Te. Moreover, a record-high Vickers hardness of 270 is attained. These results not only promote GeTe materials for practical applications, but also present a breakthrough in the burgeoning field of entropy engineering.

Effect of the mobile phone-related background on inhibitory control of problematic mobile phone use: An event-related potentials study.

The present study aims to provide electrophysiological evidence for deficient inhibitory control in problematic mobile phone use and to investigate whether reduced inhibition is more pronounced during exposure to a mobile phone related background cue. A screen scale of smartphone addiction was completed by 227 college students, and finally an experimental group and a control group consisting of 20 problematic mobile phone users and 19 controls were included in the study. Event-related potentials were recorded during a backgrounded Go/NoGo task performed by those two groups, in which either a frequent Go signal (letter "M") or a rare NoGo signal (letter "W") was superimposed on three different background cues: neutral, mobile phone application-related and mobile phone using-related pictures. Results showed that problematic mobile phone users performed more commission errors than controls following mobile phone application background. Furthermore, problematic mobile phone users displayed a weaker NoGo P3 amplitude than controls on the mobile phone application background. The result might suggest that there is no general impairment of inhibitory control in problematic mobile phone use. The deficient inhibitory control on behavioral and psychophysiological level appeared merely in the mobile phone-related background. Such deficient stimuli-specific inhibitory control appears at the late stage of inhibitory control. Prevention programs should be designed to curtail exposure to the mobile phone-related stimulus and enhance cognitive control of potential problematic mobile phone users.

Yin Yang Gong Ji pill is an ancient formula with antitumor activity against hepatoma cells.

ETHNOPHARMACOLOGICAL RELEVANCE: Yin Yang Gong Ji pill (YYGJ) is a formula that was used in the Ming Dynasty. This study investigated the effects of YYGJ on HepG2 and MHCC97H hepatoma cells. MATERIAL AND METHODS: The effects of YYGJ drug-containing rat serum (YYGJ serum) on cell proliferation and the cell cycle were investigated by a tetrazolium dye-based MTS assay and flow cytometry. Apoptosis was assayed by TUNEL and flow cytometry. E-cadherin, vimentin, c-Myc, Smad4, and MMP2 expression were assayed by real-time quantitative PCR and Western blot assays. The effects on cell invasiveness and migration were evaluated by wound healing and transwell assays. The antitumor activity of 10% YYGJ serum was compared to that of blank control, 10% rat serum control and 5-fluorouracil(FU). RESULTS: HepG2 and MHCC97H cell proliferation was inhibited by YYGJ serum in a time- and concentration-dependent manner. Cells accumulated in G0/G1 and apoptosis was increased in both cell lines by 10% YYGJ serum. The effects of apoptosis in 10% YYGJ serum were weaker than those in response to 5-FU. E-cadherin and Smad4 expression were upregulated by 10% YYGJ serum, but c-Myc, vimentin and MMP2 expression were downregulated in both hepatoma cell lines. The protein expression of Smad4 in HepG2, and mRNA expression of MMP2 and E-cadherin in both cell lines had no difference between 10% YYGJ serum and 5-FU treated groups. Cell invasion and migration were decreased by 10%YYGJ serum while cell cytotoxicity was shown in 5-FU treated group. CONCLUSIONS: YYGJ drug-containing serum inhibited HepG2 and MHCC97H cell proliferation, induced apoptosis, and regulated the expression of tumor-related genes and proteins. It reduced tumor cell invasion and migration. Further study to investigate the antitumor activity of YYGJ is warranted.

Recent Progress of Two-Dimensional Thermoelectric Materials.

Thermoelectric generators have attracted a wide research interest owing to their ability to directly convert heat into electrical power. Moreover, the thermoelectric properties of traditional inorganic and organic materials have been significantly improved over the past few decades. Among these compounds, layered two-dimensional (2D) materials, such as graphene, black phosphorus, transition metal dichalcogenides, IVA-VIA compounds, and MXenes, have generated a large research attention as a group of potentially high-performance thermoelectric materials. Due to their unique electronic, mechanical, thermal, and optoelectronic properties, thermoelectric devices based on such materials can be applied in a variety of applications. Herein, a comprehensive review on the development of 2D materials for thermoelectric applications, as well as theoretical simulations and experimental preparation, is presented. In addition, nanodevice and new applications of 2D thermoelectric materials are also introduced. At last, current challenges are discussed and several prospects in this field are proposed.