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As intercalation-type anode materials for Li-ion batteries (LIBs), the commercially used graphite and Li4Ti5O12 exhibit good cycling and rate properties, but their theoretical specific capacities are too low to meet the ever-growing demands of high-energy applications such as electric vehicles. Therefore, the development of new intercalation-type anode materials with larger capacity is very desirable. Herein, we design and synthesize novel 3 D hierarchical porous V2O3@C micro/nanostructures consisting of crumpled nanosheets, through self-reduction under annealing from the structurally similar VO2 (B)@C precursors without the addition of any other reducing reagent or gas. Excitingly, it is found for the first time through ex situ XRD technology that V2O3 is a new, promising intercalation-type anode material for LIBs with a high capacity. V2O3@C micro/nanostructures can deliver a large capacity of 732 mAh g−1 without capacity loss at 100 mA g−1 even after 136 cycles, as well as exhibiting excellent cycling and rate performances. The application of V2O3 for Na-ion batteries (NIBs) is elaborated for the first time, and excitingly, it is found that V2O3@C micro/nanostructures may be promising anode materials for NIBs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An increasing number of proteins are found to contain a knot in their polypeptide chain. Although some studies have looked into the folding mechanism of knotted proteins, why and how these complex topologies form are still far from being fully answered. Moreover, no experimental information about how the knot moves during the protein-folding process is available. Herein, by combining single-molecule fluorescence resonance energy transfer (smFRET) experiments with molecular dynamics (MD) simulations, we performed a detailed study to characterize the knot in the denatured state of TrmD, a knotted tRNA (guanosine-1) methyltransferase from Escherichia coli, as a model system. We found that the knot still existed in the unfolded state of TrmD, consistent with the results for two other knotted proteins, YibK and YbeA. More interestingly, both smFRET experiments and MD simulations revealed that the knot slid towards the C-terminal during the unfolding process, which could be explained by the relatively strong interactions between the β-sheet core at the N terminal of the native knot region. The size of the knot in the unfolded state is not larger than that in the native state. In addition, the knot slid in a 'downhill' mode with simultaneous chain collapse in the denatured state. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Pon de relay: A convenient and efficient synthesis of alkene ‐ functionalized furans from cyclopropenes, which proceeds through an isomerization/olefination cascade sequence under copper – palladium relay catalysis, has been developed (see scheme). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]