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Abstract Rational design of highly active, economical and stable electrocatalysts for hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) is still a great challenge for future applications. Herein, we use a 2D metal-organic framework array as the reactive template and precursor, to fabricate a hybrid nanosheet array of nitrogen-rich CoS 2 @nitrogen-doped carbon on Ti foil substrate (N–CoS 2 @NC/Ti) through a simple thermal treatment in the presence of thiourea. Owing to the prominent synergistic effect of the coupling between CoS 2 and NC, a high content of Co-N x species as well as unique nanoarray architectures, the as-synthesized N–CoS 2 @NC/Ti electrode exhibits remarkable activity and robust durability for HER under both acidic and alkaline conditions, which is obviously superior to the CoS 2 @NC/Ti. Graphical abstract Image 1 Highlights • A novel 2D Co-MOFs was used to fabricate N–CoS 2 @NC flake arrays. • The N–CoS 2 @NC/Ti has a high content of Co-Nx species. • Outstanding HER performance was achieved in acidic and alkaline medium. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Developing highly active and low-cost electrocatalysts with superior durability is attractive but challenging for energy-saving electrolytic hydrogen generation via water electrolysis. Herein, a novel metal-organic framework (MOF)-based growth-etching-phosphorization strategy is reported to construct hierarchical porous CoP nanostructure arrays on nickel foam substrate (HP-CoP NA/NF) for overall water splitting (OWP). Interconnected 2D cobalt-based MOF are fabricated via an aqueous solution reaction at room temperature, and then solid MOFs are uniformly converted into porous CoP arrays with hierarchical 3D configuration through a Co 2+ −etching process with subsequent phosphorization treatment. This unique array architecture is beneficial for providing highly exposed active sites, shortening ion diffusion path and promoting gas release during the electrochemical reactions. Resultantly, this MOFs-derived CoP catalyst exhibits an outstanding electrocatalytic activity in catalyzing not only hydrogen and oxygen evolution reactions with the low overpotentials of 70 and 258 mV at 10 mA cm −2 , respectively, but also some other small molecules electro-oxidation reactions, especially for urea oxidation reaction. Furthermore, the two-electrode electrolyzer comprising bifunctional HP-CoP NA/NF electrode delivers a current density of 10 mA cm −2  at an ultralow cell voltage of 1.38 V in the presence of urea, which is 180 mV smaller than that of pure water splitting. This work introduces a reference for the development of MOF-derived hierarchical nanostructured catalysts for energy-saving water splitting. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Replacement of oxygen evolution (OER) by the more readily oxidized urea is considered to be a promising strategy for electrocatalytic water-splitting. In this work, we report a Fe O P film on nickel foam (Fe O P/NF) via atomic layer deposition (ALD) of iron oxide and a subsequent phosphonation process, which acts as a superior bifunctional electrocatalyst for both urea evolution reaction (UOR) and hydrogen evolution reaction (HER). Benefiting from the synergetic effects, the Fe O P/NF exhibits a low potential of 1.34 V (vs. RHE) at 10 mA cm −2 and a low Tafel slope of 57.2 mV dec −1 for UOR. Combined with the high HER activity of Fe O P/NF, the urea-based overall water splitting can be performed with an low voltage of 1.43 V to deliver 10 mA cm −2 in 1.0 M KOH with 0.5 M urea, which is 200 mV lower than that for pure water splitting. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Ethnopharmacological relevance: Wu-Chu-Yu is a well-known herbal drug used for hypertension. Rutaecarpine and evodiamine are main bioactive components of the medicine. Materials and methods: A sensitive and specific HPLC method was developed to analyze rutaecarpine (Rut) and evodiamine (Evo) in rat whole blood. The pharmacokinetics of Rut and Evo after oral administration of Wu-Chu-Yu extracts with different purities to rats was compared to evaluate the effect of purity of Wu-Chu-Yu extracts on the absorption of Rut and Evo. Male Sprague–Dawley rats were given Wu-Chu-Yu extracts with different purities (high, medium and low) approximately the same doses of equivalent to Rut (40mg/kg) and Evo (31mg/kg). The contents of Rut and Evo were 45 and 35%, 28 and 21%, 9 and 7% in high, medium and low purity extracts, respectively. At different time points (0.25, 0.5, 0.75, 1, 1.5, 2, 2.5, 3 and 4h) after administration, the concentrations of Rut and Evo in rat whole blood were determined by HPLC, and main pharmacokinetic parameters were calculated. Results: The results indicated that the absorption of Rut and Evo in Wu-Chu-Yu extracts was improved when compared with the pure Rut and Evo and there were significant differences among different groups. Conclusions: The bioavailability of Rut and Evo was increased along with the increasing of purity (16%–80%) in Wu-Chu-Yu extracts. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

The designing of high adsorption capacity and selective porous materials to adsorb gallium (Ga) is essential for developing breakthrough Ga separation and purify methods based on resin adsorption to replace traditionally used extraction, chemical precipitation, and electrochemical method. Here, an advanced porous resin with the 2-ethylhexylphosphonic acid mono-2-ethylhexyl ester (P507) and tributyl phosphate (TBP) attached to the silica-based materials (SiO 2 –P) has been prepared, which are synthesized by vacuum impregnation followed by drying. At low concentration sulfuric acid solution (PH = 3.3), the synthetic adsorbent that simultaneously exhibits excellent Ga adsorption capacity and high separation ability (excellent adsorption capacity with 64.2 mg/g, and super-high separation ability with the K d is over 1600). Adsorption and mechanism studies of Ga (III), using the above P507-TBP/SiO 2 –P resin, were carried out. IR, XPS, and BET, TG analysis were applied to confirm the resin were successful adsorb Ga (III) and the conversion of polymer to resin, respectively. More importantly, the P507-TBP/SiO 2 –P adsorbent can also be extended to the design of other silica-based materials for the challenging separate and purify other rare precious metals ions, indicating a very appealing application prospect. Image 1 • A silica-based adsorbent P507-TBP/SiO 2 –P was prepared through a two-step method. • P507-TBP/SiO 2 –P exhibits excellent adsorption capacity and high separation ability. • P507-TBP/SiO 2 –P can be designing of other adsorbents to separate rare metals ions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract CGRP, known as the most potent vasodilator substance, plays an important role in hypertension initiation and development. TRPV1 and TRPA1 are critical in promoting the synthesis and release of CGRP, thereby regulating the cardiovascular tone. Rutaecarpine exhibits potent vasodilator and hypertensive effects by stimulating CGRP synthesis and release via activation of TRPV1. And NO has been shown to react with H 2 S in vivo to form HNO, thereby activating HNO-TRPA1-CGRP pathway. Inspired by combination therapy, 11 rutaecarpine-furoxan hybrids were designed, synthesized and evaluated. The results demonstrated that most hybrids exerted comparable or improved vasodilator activities. Among which, 13a is the most potent both ex vivo (EC 50 = 13.1 nM) and in vivo. Mechanistic studies revealed that the vasodilator and anti-hypertensive effects of the hybrids might involve the promotion of CGRP release via dual activation of TRPV1 and TRPA1. This work suggests that dual-targeted hybrids might be an effective and promising approach to discover and develop novel anti-hypertensive drugs. Graphical abstract A series of rutaecarpine-NO donor hybrids were designed, synthesized and evaluated. Among which, 13a exhibited significantly improved vasodilator activity, which is probably effected via synergistically activating TRPV1 and TRPA1 to promoting the release of CGRP. Image 1 Highlights • Regulating the release of CGRP represents a new approach for anti-hypertensive drug discovery. • Hybridization strategy by dually targeting TRPV1 and TRPA1 was applied. • Rutaecarpine and furoxan-type NO donors are promising active phamacophores. • 13a exhibited significantly improved ex-vivo (EC 50 = 13.1 nM) and in-vivo activity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

With the proposed concept of energy blockchain, peer-to-peer (P2P) energy trading between prosumers is regarded as a potential way for future power market development. However, existing P2P energy trading often has problems such as low trading efficiency and significant communication losses. This paper presents an energy trading strategy in the blockchain environment to solve the problems of P2P energy trading. First, the type of market is determined based on energy supply and demand. Then, a Stackelberg game is used to establish a two-layer model of the leader (upper) and follower (lower) to determine the price. In addition, we propose an energy trading method based on feasible regions. The trading strategy considers the supply and demand of the market, provides an accurate energy transfer signal, and can help energy blockchain achieve better "self-sufficiency". A case study proves the effectiveness of the strategy. Compared with the existing methods, the strategy proposed in this paper considers the market type and can promote the coordination and complementation of energy in the microgrid, and improve trading efficiency and reduce communication loss without sacrificing privacy. This study demonstrates that P2P power trading has brought benefits to prosumers, has promoted the development of the energy market, and has shown the massive potential of energy blockchain. • A P2P energy trading model and a consensus algorithm in the blockchain are proposed. • An interactive pricing-and-matching P2P energy trading strategy is proposed. • A novel P2P energy trading pricing model based on game theory is proposed. • A P2P energy trading matching method based on the feasible region is proposed. • Results show that the strategy proposed in this paper can optimize the microgrid. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The senescence and dysfunction of vascular endothelial cells are important features of diabetic vascular disease. High mobility group box-1(HMGB1) may be involved in vascular injury in response to high glucose. Glycyrrhizin (GL) is an HMGB1 inhibitor that significantly reduces HMGB1. However, the relationship between HMGB1 and vascular ageing in diabetes is not clear, the protective mechanism of GL against vascular injury in type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) is unclear too. This study aims to examine the role of HMGB1 in vascular endothelial cell senescence and the protective effects of GL on vascular aging in high fat diet/streptozotocin (HFD/STZ) induce type 2 diabetic rats.After induction of diabetes, GL (150 mg/kg/d) was treated by gavage for 4 weeks. Results showed that compared with the Control group, the serum level of HMGB1 was increased in rats with type 2 diabetes, while the expression of HMGB1 mRNA and protein in the thoracic aorta was upregulated, with a decrease in endothelium-dependent vasodilation function and an increase in aging degree in the thoracic aorta. However, the above indicators were significantly improved after GL treatment. In HUVECs, we found that treated with HMGB1 (50, 100 and 200 ng/ml) for 48 h induced cells senescence and GL (50, 100 mg/L) significantly inhibited high-glucose-induced endothelial cell senescence, meanwhile GL (50, 100 mg/L) significantly inhibited the high-glucose-induced HMGB1 release and upregulated p53 expression. In conclusion, GL as an HMGB1 inhibitor, attenuates endothelium-dependent relaxation impairment and vascular ageing in an animal model of diabetes and high-glucose-induced endothelial cell senescence. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Rutaecarpine is the major alkaloid component of Wu-Chu-Yu, a well known Chinese herbal drug. It has been reported that rutaecarpine causes the vasodilator, hypotensive effects by stimulation of CGRP synthesis and release via activation of TRPV1. In present study, 23 rutaecarpine analogues were designed and synthesized. Then, the vasodilator effects of theses compounds were screened by rat aortic ring experiment. The result showed that the 14-N atom of rutaecarpine might be the key site for the activity. The 5-carbonyl might make lower contribution to the effect. And simple substitute in indole-ring or quinazoline-ring would not enhance the vasodilator effect unless in proper position with proper group. One of these compounds, 10-methylrutaecarpine, exhibited similar effect with rutaecarpine. Further functional experiments showed its vasodilator and hypotensive effect were related to the stimulation of CGRP release via activation of TRPV1. The vasodilator effects of these compounds were evaluated and the structure–activity relationship was elucidated for the first time. The results suggested a new direction of valuable TRPV1 agonist as anti-hypertensive drugs. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

• A novel extraction regime for Sc involves sulfation roasting and water leaching. • The (NH 4) 2 SO 4 can selectively react with some components in bauxite residue. • Above 90% Sc was extracted with low concentration of impurities in the leachate. Bauxite residue, as an important source of scandium, is an alkaline industrial waste generated during the Bayer process for alumina production. A novel method for selective extraction of scandium from bauxite residue was proposed by ammonium sulfate roasting and water leaching. During the roasting process, ammonium sulfate could selectively react with Sc, Al and Fe in the bauxite residue to produce respective metal ammonium sulfates, and then which were completely decomposed to their respective metal sulfates at 550 °C. The sulfates of iron (III) and aluminum were decomposed to their respective metal oxides at about 700 °C, whereas the scandium sulfate remained stable. In the leaching process, the scandium sulfate could be selectively leached with water from roasted residues while other elements mainly remained in the leaching residue. The extraction efficiency of scandium reached above 90% under the optimum conditions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background A recent meta-analysis by the Early Breast Cancer Trialists’ Collaborative Group found significant improvements achieved by postmastectomy radiotherapy (PMRT) for patients with breast cancer with 1 to 3 positive nodes (pN1−3). It is unclear whether PMRT is cost-effective for subgroups of patients with positive nodes. Objective To determine the cost-effectiveness of PMRT for subgroups of patients with breast cancer with positive nodes. Methods A semi-Markov model was constructed to estimate the expected lifetime costs, life expectancy, and quality-adjusted life-years for patients receiving or not receiving radiation therapy. Clinical and health utilities data were from meta-analyses by the Early Breast Cancer Trialists’ Collaborative Group or randomized clinical trials. Costs were estimated from the perspective of the Chinese society. One-way and probabilistic sensitivity analyses were performed. Findings The incremental cost-effective ratio was estimated as $7984, $4043, $3572, and $19,021 per quality-adjusted life-year for patients with positive nodes (pN+), patients with pN1−3, patients with pN1−3 who received systemic therapy, and patients with >4 positive nodes (pN4+), respectively. According to World Health Organization recommendations, these incremental cost-effective ratios were judged as cost-effective. However, the results of one-way sensitivity analyses suggested that the results were highly sensitive to the relative effectiveness of PMRT (rate ratio). Implications We determined that the results were highly sensitive to the rate ratio. However, the addition of PMRT for patients with pN1-3 in China has a reasonable chance to be cost-effective and may be judged as an efficient deployment of limited health resource, and the risk and uncertainty of PMRT are relatively greater for patients with pN4+. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]