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Background: Previous studies have shown an association between gut microbiota and cardiovascular diseases (CVDs). However, the underlying causal relationship remains unclear. This study aims to elucidate the causal relationship between gut microbiota and CVDs and to explore the pathogenic role of gut microbiota in CVDs. Methods: In this two-sample Mendelian randomization study, we used genetic instruments from publicly available genome-wide association studies, including single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) associated with gut microbiota (n = 14,306) and CVDs (n = 2,207,591). We employed multiple statistical analysis methods, including inverse variance weighting, MR Egger, weighted median, MR pleiotropic residuals and outliers, and the leave-one-out method, to estimate the causal relationship between gut microbiota and CVDs. Additionally, we conducted multiple analyses to assess horizontal pleiotropy and heterogeneity. Results: GWAS summary data were available from a pooled sample of 2,221,897 adult and adolescent participants. Our findings indicated that specific gut microbiota had either protective or detrimental effects on CVDs. Notably, Howardella (OR = 0.955, 95% CI: 0.913–0.999, P =.05), Intestinibacter (OR = 0.908, 95% CI:0.831–0.993, P =.03), Lachnospiraceae (NK4A136 group) (OR = 0.904, 95% CI:0.841–0.973, P =.007), Turicibacter (OR = 0.904, 95% CI: 0.838–0.976, P =.01), Holdemania (OR, 0.898; 95% CI: 0.810–0.995, P =.04) and Odoribacter (OR, 0.835; 95% CI: 0.710–0.993, P =.04) exhibited a protective causal effect on atrial fibrillation, while other microbiota had adverse causal effects. Similar effects were observed with respect to coronary artery disease, myocardial infarction, ischemic stroke, and hypertension. Furthermore, reversed Mendelian randomization analyses revealed that atrial fibrillation and ischemic stroke had causal effects on certain gut microbiotas. Conclusion: Our study underscored the importance of gut microbiota in the context of CVDs and lent support to the hypothesis that increasing the abundance of probiotics or decreasing the abundance of harmful bacterial populations may offer protection against specific CVDs. Nevertheless, further research is essential to translate these findings into clinical practice. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

For achieving a uniform and stable suspension of CeO2 nanoparticles in aqueous medium, Al3+ was doped into the lattice of CeO2 by hydrothermal treatment. Although the doping will increase the probability of adhesion of primary particles with the size of 7 nm, it can effectively prevent the agglomeration between CeO2 particles, greatly improve the dispersion uniformity and suspension stability of particles, greatly narrow the particle size distribution of secondary particles, and make the degree of particle agglomeration controllable. Meantime, the UV absorption property of the product was improved and the absorption peak was red shifted after Al3+ doping. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Target synthesis of hydrocarbons from abundant biomass is highly desired for sustainable aviation fuels (SAFs) to meet the need for both net zero carbon emission and air pollution control. However, precise hydrodeoxygenation (PHDO) of bio-based furan compounds and cyclic ethers to isomerically pure alkanes remains a challenge in heterogenous catalysis, which usually requires delicate control of the distribution of acid and metal catalytic sites in nanoconfined space. Here we show that a nanoporous acidic metal–organic framework (MOF), namely MIL-101-SO3H, enables one-pot PHDO reactions from furan-derivative oxygenates to solely single-component alkanes by just mechanical mixing with commercial Pd/C towards highly efficient and highly selective hydrocarbon production. The superior performance of such tandem catalysts can be attributed to the preferential adsorption of oxygenate precursors and expulsion of deoxygenated intermediates benefiting from Lewis acid sites embedded in the MOF. The strong Brønsted acidity of MIL-101-SO3H is contributed by both the –SO3H groups and the adsorbed H2O, which makes it a water-tolerant solid acid for durable PHDO processes. The simplicity of mechanical mixing of different heterogenous catalysts allows the modulation of the tandem catalysis system for optimization of the ultimate catalytic performance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Sodium-ion batteries capable of operating at rate and temperature extremes are highly desirable, but elusive due to the dynamics and thermodynamics limitations. Herein, a strategy of electrode-electrolyte interfacial chemistry modulation is proposed. The commercial hard carbon demonstrates superior rate performance with 212 mAh g -1 at an ultra-high current density of 5 A g -1 in the electrolyte with weak ion solvation/desolvation, which is much higher than those in common electrolytes (nearly no capacity in carbonate-based electrolytes). Even at -20 °C, a high capacity of 175 mAh g -1 (74 % of its room-temperature capacity) can be maintained at 2 A g -1 . Such an electrode retains 90 % of its initial capacity after 1000 cycles. As proven, weak ion solvation/desolvation of tetrahydrofuran greatly facilitates fast-ion diffusion at the SEI/electrolyte interface and homogeneous SEI with well-distributed NaF and organic components ensures fast Na + diffusion through the SEI layer and a stable interface., (© 2022 Wiley-VCH GmbH.)

With 8-(methyltosylaminoethynyl)-1-naphthyl (MTAEN) glycoside as donors, a novel and efficient glycosylation protocol has been established. The MTAEN glycosylation protocol exhibits the merits of shelf-stable donors, mild catalytic promotion conditions, considerably extended substrate scope encompassing both free alcohols, silylated alcohols, nucleobases, primary amides, and C -type nucleophile acceptors, and applicability to various one-pot strategies for highly efficient synthesis of oligosaccharides, such as orthogonal one-pot, single-catalyst one-pot, and acceptor reactivity-controlled one-pot strategies.

With the continuous development of China's society and economy, the breadth and depth of cultivated land resources development and utilization have been continuously expanded, while the production efficiency and scale of cultivated land gradually have been improved. There were rapidly increases of carbon emission induced from cultivated land management, such as the agricultural inputs and energy consumptions. Taking carbon emission from cultivated land utilization in Northeast China as the research object, we determined the carbon emission accounting framework system according to the life cycle method. Based on estimation results of carbon emissions from 1979 to 2015 in Northeast China, the driver factor system affecting agricultural carbon emissions was constructed using logarithmic mean Divisia index model and the influence mechanism of cultivated land carbon emissions in Northeast China was deeply explored. The results showed that total carbon emission from cultivated land utilization in 2015 was 21.9% higher than that in 1979 and carbon emission intensity in 2015 was 1.54 t·hm -2 lower than that in 1979. Soil management and agricultural inputs were the main sources of carbon emissions from cultivated land accounting for 83.6% of the total carbon emissions. The increases of land productivity and science and technology fund allocation rate were found to be the driving factors of carbon emission from cultivated land utilization. On the contrary, the reduction of input/output ratio, cultivated land area per capita and intensity of science and technology investment decreased carbon emission from cultivated land utilization.