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The rational and oriented design of a proper electrode structure is crucial for the realization of desirable properties. Herein, we report the design and synthesis of freestanding hybrid films that feature desirable one-dimensional (1D) structure and favorable electrochemical properties for Li-ions batteries (LIBs). Briefly, by offering a water-steam originated from the real-time thermal decomposition reactions during the carbonization to etch the nanofibers in-situ, the hierarchical porosity and N, P co-doping are simultaneously introduced into carbon nanofibers skeleton. The synergistic effect of these two defects engineering expose more active sites, which can provide a substantial pseudocapacitance to boost the lithium storage performance. In addition, the in-situ coating structure formed by electrospinning process is also helpful to alleviate the volume expansion of Fe3O4. Therefore, the prepared hybrid films display the excellent results by delivering an areal capacity of 1.0 mAh cm-2 at 2 mA cm-2 after 200 cycles in the half-cell. Meanwhile, a practical coin-type full-cell also delivers an areal capacity of 0.62 mAh cm-2 at 0.5 mA cm-2 after 100 cycles. This work paves the way to constructing rational electrode materials with controllable defect engineering for energy-related applications.

Design and fabrication of flexible free-standing electrode is crucial in the rapid advances of durable/flexible electronic devices. Herein, a unique functional electrode made of hierarchical MoS2 nanosheets anchored on electrospun poly (vinylidene difluoride) based fibrous membrane, has been developed through a facile hydrothermal method. When assessed as membrane electrodes in lithium-ion batteries, the as-prepared anodes exhibit a high capacity (854 mA h g−1 at 0.5 A g−1 and 513 mA h g−1 after 200 cycles at 2 A g−1), excellent rate capability, and long cycling life durability (332 mA h g−1 at 5 A g−1 after 1000 cycles). Grafting MoS2 nanosheets onto 3D electrospun framework not only shortens the Li+ diffusion path and increases their valid and accostable active surface area, but also invests it with flexible feature. Full membrane cells containing LiNi0.5Co0.3Mn0.2O2 cathode also gain excellent capacity performance, distinctive cycling tolerance and a high capacity preservation of 92% after 250 cycles even in the 90° bending position, which are among those of the so far reported best-performing flexible lithium-ion batteries. This research offers a promising avenue for the exploitation of high-powered flexible lithium-ion batteries and other rechargeable batteries.

Osteolytic lesion (OL) and bone damage are common complications in multiple myeloma (MM). This study aimed to analyze the occurrence of OL in MM patient groups of different ages and genders.We performed a retrospective study of 762 MM patients admitted to West China Hospital from 2009 to 2014 to investigate the association between OL occurrence with patients' ages and genders. The presence or absence of OL was confirmed by X-ray, computed tomography (CT) or magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) examination. We also downloaded MM patients' published gene expression profiles and performed microarray-based analyses to identify differentially regulated genes and signaling pathways. Finally, we examined target gene expressions in MM bone marrow (BM) biopsies through immunohistochemistry (IHC).We calculated the frequency of OL in female and male MM patients with different age cut-offs. From West China Hospital data, we found that in young female MM patients aged under 55, the frequency of OL was 16.67%, significantly lower than the frequencies in other groups of patients (young males: 34.38%; old males: 31.04%; old females: 29.24%; p .05). The same was true in another independent MM cohort. Microarray-based analyses showed that Microtubule Associated Serine/Threonine Kinase Family Member 4 (MAST4), an estrogen-responsive gene, expression was up-regulated in MM patients without OL and in young female MM patients (p .05). The expression of MAST4 in MM BM was confirmed by IHC. The perspective of cell signaling network suggested that MAST4 might interact with phosphatase and tensin homolog (PTEN) and control the expression of a panel of osteoclast-regulatory cytokines, such as TNFSF11 and CCL2.Young female (55 years) MM patients have significantly lower OL frequency than other groups. MAST4 gene expression is thought to be associated with this phenomenon.

N6-methyladenosine (m6A) on mRNA plays critical roles in various cellular processes. However, the landscape and dynamics of m6A modification in hematopoietic system remain unknown. Here, we delineate a comprehensive m6A landscape across hematopoietic hierarchy and uncover that IGF2BP2 is required for preserving the function of hematopoietic stem cells (HSCs). Our data reveal a cell-type-specific m6A landscape in hematopoiesis. m6A modifications arise mostly in the early stage of hematopoiesis and prefer to play distinct roles for determining mRNA fates in HSCs and committed progenitors. Mechanistically, increased m6A-IGF2BP2 expression controls transcriptional state and maintenance of HSCs. IGF2BP2 deficiency induces quiescence loss and impairs HSC function. Moreover, IGF2BP2 loss increases mitochondrial activity of HSCs by accelerating Bmi1 mRNA decay, leading to de-repression of mitochondria-related genes. Collectively, our results present a fascinating portrait of m6A modification of hematopoietic hierarchy and reveal a key role of IGF2BP2 in maintaining HSC function by restraining mitochondrial activity.

The aberrant expression or mutation of CFTR has been shown to be involved in several tumors, but how mutations or dysfunction of CFTR may increase the risk of malignancies in various tissues remains unclear. Here, we report the interaction between CFTR and HDAC2, and its involvement in the development of Ph+ leukemia. We first detected the physical interaction and co-localization of CFTR and HDAC2 in Ph+ leukemia cell lines. And treatment with CFTRinh-172, a CFTR inhibitor, reduced the expression of HDAC2 protein in K562 and SUP-B15 cells, which could be partially recovered by MG132, a proteasome inhibitor. Additionally, high expression levels of HDAC2 protein were observed in CFTR cDNA transfected HEK-293 and Ba/F3 cells. Next, we found that HDAC2 bound in the promoter region of the PTEN gene, and treatment with HDAC2 inhibitor or CFTRinh-172 resulted in an increase in PTEN mRNA and protein levels and a decrease in PDK1 and mTOR (downstream signaling of PTEN) activity. Finally, the MTT assay revealed that CFTRinh-172 could strengthen the anti-proliferation effect of HDAC2 inhibitor on Ph+ leukemia cells. Altogether, this study provides strong evidence that high-expression CFTR plays an important role in the development of Ph+ leukemia through the HDAC2-mediated PTEN pathway.

Recently, Fe3O4/carbon (Fe3O4/C) composites have been widely studied as anode materials for lithium-ion batteries (LIBs) to improve the electrochemical performance of Fe3O4. However, electrochemical performances of these composites are still restricted because of the low theoretical specific capacity (372 mA h g−1) of graphite materials. Herein, we have described a simple method for preparing Fe3O4/carbon nanofiber aerogel (Fe3O4/CNFA) via crosslinking 2,2,6,6-tetramethylpiperidinyl-1-oxyl (TEMPO)-oxidized cellulose nanofibrils (TOCN-Na) by Fe3+ followed by pyrolysis. Special 3-Dimension (3D) net-like Fe3O4/CNFA was successfully fabricated with hierarchical porosity and Fe3O4 nanoparticles loaded on the carbon nanofibers, which dramatically improved the transportation and storage of lithium-ion, as well as restrained the agglomeration and severe volume expansion of Fe3O4 during lithium insertion. Thus, the composite delivered an extraordinarily high reversible capacity of 1635 mA h g−1 over 100 cycles at 1 A g−1 and a great rate performance of 1025 mA h g−1 at 4 A g−1.

Carbon based electrode materials, such as carbon nanotubes (CNTs) and graphene, exhibit an excellent potential for supercapacitor electrodes. Morphology control is an effective approach to create the abundant ion paths and highly porous structures of carbon materials. In this study, solvent-free CNTs fluid (CNTF) and graphene oxide (GO) were used to establish a facile fabrication of porous three-dimensional (3D) CNTs/graphene hybrid porous structures using a one-step self-assembly hydrothermal method. CNTF is hydrophilic and can form a homogeneous CNTF/GO aqueous solution. Moreover, CNTF acts as a cross-linker and spacer to connect adjacent graphene sheets and prevent the restacking of graphene. The unique 3D CNTF/RGO composite electrode exhibits a high specific capacitance of up to 412.8 F/g at a current density of 1 A/g; further, it displays a specific capacitance of 137.3 F/g even at a high discharge rate of 10 A/g. The specific capacitance remains at 89.6% of the initial value after 10,000 charging/discharging cycles. This solvent-free fluid technique has been achieved with the direct self-assembly of 3D CNTs/graphene materials in water and can be utilized in broad applications that are potentially feasible for other 3D carbon materials.

A novel self-assembled porous network of carbon nanotubes (CNTs) attached to molybdenum disulfide (MoS2) nanosheets is prepared via a one-step atmospheric pressure chemical vapor deposition (APCVD) method. The conventional APCVD method cannot be used to uniformly deposit three-dimensional (3D) structures. Instead, an alternative method is used to overcome the disadvantage of conventional APCVD, whereby molybdenum oxide (MoO3) is decomposed by a molybdate ion (MoO42−) using in situ sulfuration. The synergy between the highly conductive CNT network and the layered MoS2 nanosheets contributes to the formation of high-efficiency ion/electron channels and improves the electrode durability and stability. The as-prepared C-MoS2/CNT composite exhibits both high rate stability and long-term capacity in lithium-ion batteries (LIBs). The C-MoS2/CNT electrode has a much higher initial discharge capacity of 1430 mAh g−1 at 100 mA g−1 and an impressive rate capability (885 mAh g−1 at 4000 mA g−1). Moreover, the C-MoS2/CNT composite also exhibits a long cycle life of 1260 mAh g−1 after 200 cycles at 500 mA g−1 and 1066 mAh g−1 at 1000 mA g−1 after 250 cycles. The mechanism and design strategy presented in this work may provide ideas for the development of other electrode materials.