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A new alluaudite-type Na2VFe2(PO4)3 with carbon composite has been prepared for the first time via a simple sol-gel method using citric acid as an assistant agent and carbon source. The crystal structure and morphology of Na2VFe2(PO4)3/C composite are well characterized by X-ray diffraction, scan electron microscope, and energy-dispersive X-ray analysis. The experimental results show that a three-dimensional [VFe2(PO3)3]2− framework in this alluaudite structure provides two types of tunnels to enable the sodium-ion transporting which contributes to the electrochemical performance. When evaluated as a cathode for sodium-ion batteries, Na2VFe2(PO4)3/C composite delivers the first specific charge capacity of 66.7 mAh g−1 and discharge capacity of 65.8 mAh g−1 at 5 mA g−1 current density. After 100 cycles, the charge capacity (~52.2 mAh g−1at 5 mA g−1) shows a good capacity retention (~78%) compared to the first cycle. Cyclic voltammetric profiles confirm the activated multi-electron reactions including the Fe2+/Fe3+, V2+/V3+, and V3+/V4+ redox couples. Furthermore, the diffusion coefficient of sodium-ion (D Na +) in this structure is also calculated based on the result of electrochemical impedance spectroscopy.

Hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) and free radicals cause oxidative stress, which induces cellular injuries, metabolic dysfunction, and even cell death in various clinical abnormalities. Fullerene (C60) is critical for scavenging oxygen free radicals originated from cell metabolism, and reduced glutathione (GSH) is another important endogenous antioxidant. In this study, a novel water-soluble reduced glutathione fullerene derivative (C60-GSH) was successfully synthesized, and its beneficial roles in protecting against H2O2-induced oxidative stress and apoptosis in cultured HEK 293T cells were investigated. Fourier Transform infrared spectroscopy and (1)H nuclear magnetic resonance were used to confirm the chemical structure of C60-GSH. Our results demonstrated that C60-GSH prevented the reactive oxygen species (ROS)-mediated cell damage. Additionally, C60-GSH pretreatment significantly attenuated H2O2-induced superoxide dismutase (SOD) consumption and malondialdehyde (MDA) elevation. Furthermore, C60-GSH inhibited intracellular calcium mobilization, and subsequent cell apoptosis via bcl-2/bax-caspase-3 signaling pathway induced by H2O2 stimulation in HEK 293T cells. Importantly, these protective effects of C60-GSH were superior to those of GSH. In conclusion, these results suggested that C60-GSH has potential to protect against H2O2-induced cell apoptosis by scavenging free radicals and maintaining intracellular calcium homeostasis without evident toxicity.

Overexploitation of rare earth mine has caused serious desertification and various environmental issues, and ecological restoration of a mining area is an important concern in China. In this study, experiments involving dry grass landfilling, chicken manure broadcasting, and plant cultivation were carried out to reclaim a rare earth mine area located in Heping County, Guangdong Province, China. The prime focus was to improve soil quality in terms of nutrients, microbial community, enzyme activity, and physicochemical properties so as to reclaim the land. After 2 years of restoration, an increase of organic matter (OM), available potassium (K), available phosphorus (P) levels, and acid phosphatase (ACP) activity and a reduction of the available nitrogen (N) level and urease (URE) activity in soil were achieved compared to the original mined land. The nutrients and enzyme activities in soil with 5 years of restoration were close to or surpass those in the unexploited land as control. The bulk density, total porosity, water holding capacity, pH, and electrical conductivity (EC) of soil were improved, and the number of cultivable microorganisms and the bacterial diversity in soil were greatly increased with time during ecological restoration, especially for surface soil. Furthermore, the artificial vegetation stably grew at the restored mining sites. The results indicated that organic amendments and phytoremediation could ecologically restore the rare earth mining sites and the mined land could finally be planted as farmland.

The soil bacterial diversity is one of the most important indicators to evaluate the effect of phytoremediation. In this study, the technologies of Sequence-Related Amplified Polymorphism (SRAP) and 16S rRNA gene sequence analysis were used to evaluate the soil bacterial diversity after phytoremediation in a barren rare earth mined area. The results showed that the plant density was remarkably increased after the phytoremediation. The SRAP analysis suggested that the soil bacterial diversity declined dramatically after mining, while increased significantly in second and third year of the phytoremediation. A total of eight bacterial genera were identified by using 16S rRNA gene sequence analysis, with Arthrobacter and Bacillus as the dominant species before the mining, and Brevibacillus as the dominant species after the mining and during the first year of the phytoremediation. The Bacillus, which was a dominant type of bacteria before the mining, disappeared after mining and appeared again in the second and third years of the phytoremediation, other bacterial genera present. Principal component analysis and 16S rRNA gene analysis revealed a new bacterial type after phytoremediation that was not existed in the original mined area. The results of the present study indicated that the soil bacterial richness and genetic diversity significantly increased after the phytoremediation in the mined site.

This study investigated the ability of millimeter-wave (MMW) to promote the differentiation of bone marrow stromal cells (BMSCs) into cells with a neural phenotype. The BMSCs were primarily cultured. At passage 3, the cells were induced by beta-mercaptoethanol (BME) in combination with MMW or BME alone. The expressions of nucleostemin (NS) and neuron-specific enolase (NSE) were detected by immunofluorescent staining and Western blotting respectively to identify the differentiation. The untreated BMSCs predominately expressed NS. After induced by BME and MMW, the BMSCs exhibited a dramatic decrease in NS expression and increase in NSE expression. The differentiation rate of the cells treated with BME and MMW in combination was significantly higher than that of the cells treated with BME alone (P0.05). It was concluded that MMW exposure enhanced the inducing effect of BME on the differentiation of BMSCs into cells with a neural phenotype.

To detect the expression of GAS7 in osteosarcoma and discuss its significance. Immunohistochemistry SABC method was applied to detect GAS7 expression in specimens of 54 osteosarcoma and 15 osteochondroma cases. The positive expression rate of GAS7 was 74.7% (40/54) in the group of osteosarcoma and 0% (0/15) in the group of osteochondroma. There was a significant difference in the comparison of GAS expression in these two groups (P 0.05). The hyper-expression of GAS7 may play an important role in the initiation and development of human osteosarcoma.