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Charge-transfer (CT) complexes of 4,4′-bis(9H-carbazol-9-yl)-1,1′-biphenyl (CBP) and three acceptors emitted cyan, green, and orange fluorescence, and lower LUMO energy levels of the acceptors prom...

The Japanese government has announced a commitment to net-zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050. It envisages an important role for hydrogen in the nation’s future energy economy. This paper explores the possibility that a significant source for this hydrogen could be produced by electrolysis fueled by power generated from offshore wind in China. Hydrogen could be delivered to Japan either as liquid, or bound to a chemical carrier such as toluene, or as a component of ammonia. The paper presents an analysis of factors determining the ultimate cost for this hydrogen, including expenses for production, storage, conversion, transport, and treatment at the destination. It concludes that the Chinese source could be delivered at a volume and cost consistent with Japan’s idealized future projections., Hydrogen is regarded as important to Japan’s clean energy transition. Here the authors consider the production of hydrogen by electrolysis fueled by offshore wind power in China, and the potential for delivery to Japan as part of Japan’s transition.

Summary China, the largest global CO2 emitter, recently announced ambitious targets for carbon neutrality by 2060. Its technical and economic feasibility is unclear given severe renewable integration barriers. Here, we developed a cross-sector, high-resolution assessment model to quantify optimal energy structures on provincial bases for different years. Hourly power system simulations for all provinces for a full year are incorporated on the basis of comprehensive grid data to quantify the renewable balancing costs. Results indicate that the conventional strategy of employing local wind, solar, and storage to realize 80% renewable penetration by 2050 would incur a formidable decarbonization cost of $27/ton despite lower levelized costs for renewables. Coordinated deployment of renewables, ultra-high-voltage transmissions, storages, Power-to-gas and slow-charging electric vehicles can reduce this carbon abatement cost to as low as $−25/ton. Were remaining emissions removed by carbon capture and sequestration technologies, achieving carbon neutrality could be not only feasible but also cost-competitive post 2050.

Acrylamide has been reported as an important dietary risk factor from carbohydrate-rich processing food. However, systemic biological effects on the serum metabolomics induced by acrylamide have poorly been understood. In the present study, we evaluated the metabolic profiles in a rat serum after exposure to acrylamide using ultrahigh-performance liquid chromatography combined with quadrupole-orbitrap high-resolution mass spectrometry. The serum biochemical parameters of the treated and control groups were also determined using an automatic biochemical analyzer. Compared with the control group, 10 metabolites were significantly upregulated, including citric acid, d-(-)-fructose, gluconic acid, l-ascorbic acid 2-sulfate, 2-hydroxycinnamic acid, valine, l-phenylalanine, prolylleucine, succinic acid, and cholic acid, while 5 metabolites were significantly downregulated, including 3-hydroxybutyric acid, 4-oxoproline, 2,6-xylidine, 4-phenyl-3-buten-2-one, and N-ethyl-N-methylcathinone in the serum of 4-week-old rats exposed to acrylamide in the high-dose group (all P < 0.05). Importantly, acrylamide exposure affected metabolites mainly involved in the citrate cycle, valine, leucine, and isoleucine biosyntheses, phenylalanine, tyrosine and tryptophan biosyntheses, and pyruvate metabolism. These results suggested that exposure to acrylamide in rats exhibited marked systemic metabolic changes and affected the cardiovascular system. This study will provide a theoretical basis for exploring the toxic mechanism and will contribute to the diagnosis and prevention of acrylamide-induced cardiovascular toxicity.

Guest molecules may endow porous materials with new or enhanced properties as well as functions. Here, a porous hydrogen-bonded organic framework (HOF) constructed from a three-armed triphenylamine derivative is used to investigate how guests regulate photoluminescence and trigger force-stimuli response. It was found that guest solvents in pores might regulate HOF's luminescence. Interestingly, acetic acid as a guest endowed HOF materials with longer emission wavelengths and triggered the responses to mechanical force stimuli. Under shear force, an obvious blueshift in emission spectra was observed because of the loss of free guests and the conversion of π-stacking model. Further blue-shifted emission appeared while the bound guests were completely removed by heating. Mechanofluorochromic HOF materials could be regenerated through recrystallization and adsorbing guest. Conversely, HOFs with other guests and activated HOFs only resulted in a slight change in their fluorescence behaviors after force stimuli.

Recent years have witnessed the emergence of liquid gating technologies that employ liquids as structural materials to provide dynamic gating control. Such technologies have attracted considerable attention globally owing their antifouling, energy-saving, reversible, and reconfigurable characteristics. This study considers a new perspective to discuss advancements in liquid gating technologies, including the concept, mechanisms, development, designs, and emerging applications. Moreover, recommendations are provided for the selection of the gating liquid and porous matrix, preparation processes, technical parameters, and theoretical modelling to guide related research. Emerging applications of liquid gating technologies, such as microscale flow control, multiphase separation, chemical detection, and biomedical catheters, are reported. Finally, the challenges currently faced by these technologies are discussed and potential directions for further research are explored to promote the use of these technologies in future applications.

Novel spherical polymer nanoparticles were synthesized by hyperbranched polyethylenimine (hPEI) and 6-hydroxy-2-naphthaldehyde (HNA) via Schiff base reaction (one-pot reaction), which had great advantages in water solubility and green synthesis. Meanwhile, probe PEI-HNA could quickly detect Cu2+ in the range of 0–60 μM in 30 s with the detection limit of 243 nM. The fluorescence of PEI-HNA-Cu2+ could be recovered by the addition of S2− in 50 s with the detection limit of 227 nM. Based on the excellent optical properties, PEI-HNA has been used in the bioimaging of living cells with excellent cell penetrability and low toxicity. More importantly, PEI-HNA has been doped into filter paper, hydrogel, and nanofibrous film to prepare solid-phase sensors, displaying rapid response and excellent sensitivity. Moreover, the low-cost and simple preparation of these sensors offers great potential and possibilities for industrialization, which could help accelerate the development of sensors in environmental and biological fields.

Cu-exchanged MAZ zeolite-catalyzed methane partial oxidation has been proved to have a relatively higher methanol yield in previous experiments, which needs to be further improved. Here, the doping...

Hydrogen bond-induced π-stacking conversion was used to achieve an enhanced force-stimuli response of 9,10-bis(2-(pyridin-4-yl)vinyl)anthracene (BP4VA). In BP4VA crystals, the molecules adopted a J...

Herein, we report a mild dearomative [5+2]/[2+2] cycloaddition of 1H-indoles with ortho-(trimethylsilyl)aryl triflates. The unique [5+2] cycloaddition enables the synthesis of a series of dibenzo[b,e]azepine derivatives in moderate to good yields. Increasing the steric hindrance at the C2-position of 1H-indoles leads to the [2+2] cycloaddition. Mechanistic investigations support that the reaction of 1H-indoles with arynes undergoes a [2+2] cycloaddition step, followed by a ring expansion to the [5+2] cycloaddition product.

Electrochemical N2 reduction to NH3 is an emerging energy technology, attracting much attention due to its features of mild reaction conditions and being non-polluting. In this work, we demonstrate that a well-defined cobalt tetraphenylporphyrin (CoTPP) molecule as a model catalyst exhibits good electrocatalytic nitrogen reduction activity in 0.1 M HCl electrolyte with an ammonia yield of 15.18 ± 0.78 μg h−1 mg−1cat. calculated by the indophenol blue method and a Faraday efficiency (FE) of 11.43 ± 0.74%. The catalyst also has satisfactory electrolytic stability and recycling test reusability. The activity displayed by the porphyrin molecular catalysts is attributed to the full exposure of the metal–N4 sites. To trace the source of ammonia, an isotope labeling experiment (15N2 as the feed gas) is used to calculate the ammonia yield via1H nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR), which is close to that of the indophenol blue method. In addition, we replace the central metal to prepare CuTPP and MnTPP, and they also show electrocatalytic nitrogen reduction reaction (NRR) ability. This work proves the feasibility and versatility of using metalloporphyrin molecules as model electrocatalysts for NRR and offers a new strategy for the further development of molecular NRR catalysts.

A four-armed divinylanthracene derivative was designed and synthesized to construct multifunctional porous self-assemblies. It could form stable supramolecular gels, and its fluorescence gradually increased during gelation, exhibiting aggregation-induced emission enhancement. SEM, TEM, BET and molecular simulation suggested that gelators stacked to form one-dimensional porous nanoribbons by multiple hydrogen bonds. The xerogel film might change the fluorescence from green to yellow under force stimuli because of the enhanced π-stacking and recover its fluorescence after solvent annealing. Moreover, fluorescent films acting as sensing materials were applied in the quantitative detection of gaseous nitrobenzene and the detection limit reached 1.5 ppb. The sensing film was not sensitive to the gases of common organic solvents. More interestingly, the solids composed of porous nanoribbons might efficiently capture iodine in aqueous and gaseous states, and could be recycled many times.

Exploring economic, scalable, and highly efficient carbon materials for the oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) is of great significance to a variety of renewable energy conversion and storage technologies. Herein, we directly convert soya peptone as a carbon precursor to a series of mesoporous nanocarbon-based materials for the ORR via a one-step pyrolysis process combined with the help of ZnCl2 as an activator. Benefiting from the effective chemical activation effect during carbonization, the optimal electrocatalysts possess mesoporous structures and high surface area (>1000 m2 g−1) which favor fast mass transport, electron transfer, and exposure of abundant active sites. Remarkably, the electrocatalysts show a comparable ORR catalytic performance, excellent stability, and superior methanol tolerance, comparable to the commercial Pt/C catalyst. Thus, soya peptone biomass derived carbon materials are surely helpful for providing a new space to develop ORR electrocatalysts.

The visible-light-promoted cascade cyclization of 2-haloaryl isothiocyanates and isocyanides to access benzo[d]imidazo[5,1-b]thiazoles has been realized efficiently under metal- and photocatalyst-free conditions. The reaction mechanism was explored by several preliminary experiments involving reactive intermediate, free radical inhibitors, and corresponding photoelectric spectra. This protocol possesses some advantages over the previous methods such as readily available and inexpensive substrates, metal catalyst-free, step and atom economy, and mild reaction conditions.

A highly dispersed NiMoP phosphide catalyst with an average particle size of 9.1 nm and a carbon content of 53.5 wt% was firstly synthesized by a carbothermal route using glucose as a carbon source. The current NiMoP catalyst can show higher catalytic activity and stability compared to the one prepared by a traditional H2 reduction route.

Two C3-symmetric triphenylamine derivatives with three terminal cyano units as electron acceptors were prepared to investigate the effect of the spacer group on their photophysical properties and responses towards force. Their electronic transitions were carefully studied by electrochemistry, solvent-dependent spectroscopy and quantum chemical calculations. The results suggested that introducing a double bond between the donor and acceptor results in the longer absorption and emission wavelengths of TPAVCN owing to elevated HOMO and lowered LUMO energy levels and induces a larger excited state dipole moment because of the extended conjugated length. In polar solvents, both TPACN and TPAVCN possessed a longer emission wavelength. Theoretical calculations suggested that bathochromic shifts in emission bands could be ascribed to the large polar excited states owing to the light excitation-induced intramolecular charge transfer. Moreover, TPAVCN had a larger charge transfer length and average degree of the spatial extension of hole and electron distribution because of its longer molecular length. In crystals, TPAVCN had a longer emission wavelength relative to that of TPACN. Moreover, both compounds could reversibly change their fluorescence under force and solvent annealing stimuli, and their mechanochromic properties were regulated by spacer groups. TPACN changed its fluorescence from blue to cyan with a spectral shift of 12 nm after grinding, but a large spectral shift of 30 nm, and an obvious fluorescent color change from green to yellow were observed while grinding pristine TPAVCN solids.

Diabetes is characterized by pancreas dysfunction and is commonly associated with obesity. Hypoglycemic agents capable of improving β-cell function and reducing body weight therefore are gaining increasing interest. Though glucagon-like peptide 1 receptor (GLP-1R)/cholecystokinin 2 receptor (CCK-2R) dual agonist ZP3022 potently increases β-cell mass and improves glycemic control in diabetic db/db mice, the in vivo half-life (t1/2) is short, and its body weight reducing activity is limited. Here, we report the discovery of a series of novel GLP-1R/CCK-2R dual agonists. Starting from Xenopus GLP-1, dual cysteine mutation was conducted followed by covalent side chain stapling and albumin binder incorporation, resulting in a stabilized secondary structure, increased agonist potency, and improved stability. Further C-terminal conjugation of gastrin-6 generated GLP-1R/CCK-2R dual agonists, among which 6a and 6b showed higher stability and hypoglycemic activity than liraglutide and ZP3022. Desirably, 6a and 6b exhibited prominent metabolic benefits in diet-induced obesity mice without causing nausea responses and exerted considerable effects on β-cell restoration in db/db mice. These preclinical studies suggest the potential role of GLP-1R/CCK-2R dual agonists as effective agents for treating diabetes and related metabolic disorders.

In order to sustainably transform N2 to ammonia (NRR) using electrocatalysts under mild ambient condition, it is urgent to design and develop non-nobel metal nanocatalysts that are inexpensive and suitable for mass-production. Herein, a calcium metalate catalyst CaCoOx with oxygen vacancies was synthesized and used as an electrocatalyst for NRR for the first time, whose morphology can be controlled by the calcination temperature and the heating rate. Under the optimal conditions, the CaCoOx catalyst achieved the yield of nitrogen conversion to ammonia of 16.25 µg·h−1·mgcat−1 at the potential of −0.3 V relative to the reversible hydrogen electrode (RHE) with a Faraday efficiency of 20.51%. The electrocatalyst showed good stability even after 12 times recyclability under environmental conditions and neutral electrolyte. Later, the electrocatalytic nitrogen reduction performance of CaFeOx, CaNiOx, CaCuOx was investigated. These earth-rich transition metals also exhibited certain NRR electrocatalytic capabilities, which provided a door for further development of inexpensive and easily available transition metal as nitrogen reduction electrocatalysts.

Graphene oxide (GO) alters zero bandgap of graphene to achieve photoluminescence (PL), while the low quantum yield (generally: PLQY

Oily wastewater, often containing heavy metal ions, is a common source of water pollution. In this study, a modified-MOF-loaded polyacrylonitrile membrane was designed and prepared via solvothermal reaction and electrospinning to simultaneously separate oil-in-water emulsions and adsorb heavy metal ions. The membrane shows superhydrophilicity and superoleophilicity in air and underwater superoleophobicity, which enables the membrane to efficiently separate various oil-in-water emulsions. The strong adsorption capacity of MOF-808 allows this membrane to adsorb heavy metal ions at various concentrations in a short time. The separation efficiency reached 99.97%, and the highest removal efficiency of heavy metal ions reached 97.7%. Additionally, the membrane demonstrated excellent recyclability and corrosion resistance. Overall, the membrane is highly efficient in treating wastewater, and it has great potential for practical applications.

Polyphenolic antioxidants may effectively reduce acrylamide contents in processed foods. However, few studies focused on their detoxification effects via estimating the profile change of internal exposure biomarkers. Here we showed the protective effect of a water-soluble flavone-C-glycoside-rich antioxidant from bamboo leaves (AOB-w) against acrylamide-induced toxicity in college students. The participants were randomly assigned to either the AOB-w or control group and served potato chips, corresponding to 12.6 μg per kg·bw of dietary exposure to acrylamide, followed by capsules containing 350 mg AOB-w or equivalent placebo. The kinetics of acrylamide, glycidamide, and mercapturic acid metabolites was profiled, and their hemoglobin adducts were measured. The toxicokinetic study showed that AOB-w promoted the excretion of acrylamide and shortened the distribution but prolonged the excretion of N-acetyl-S-(2-carbamoylethyl)-l-cysteine (AAMA) and N-acetyl-S-(2-carbamoyl-2-hydroxyethyl)-l-cysteine. The intervention with AOB-w reduced the peak concentration and area under curve of AAMA by 42.1% and 49.8%, respectively. Besides, AOB-w gender-dependently altered the toxicokinetic profile and reduced the amount of a human-specific urinary biomarker, N-acetyl-S-(2-carbamoylethyl)-l-cysteine-sulfoxide in women. AOB-w accelerated the metabolism of hemoglobin adducts of acrylamide and glycidamide in blood of women. Compared with the baseline levels on the beginning day, we observed a significant enhancement of hemoglobin adducts on the 10th day after serving them potato chips, showing 54.5% and 20.9% higher levels of the hemoglobin adducts of acrylamide and glycidamide, respectively, which thus indicated a lower level of glycidamide-to-acrylamide ratio in blood of participants. Overall AOB-w could effectively reduce the internal exposure to acrylamide in college students, which provides advanced insights into protective functions of natural antioxidants against in vivo toxicity of chemical contaminants from diet.

In this article, accurate physical and SPICE model of wafer-level monolayer molybdenum disulfide (MoS2) device are developed to guide the devices and circuits design, which is the foundation of high-performance analog chip design. Moreover, the proposed model considers the non-ideality of thin films and the influence of Schottky contact with higher accuracy. The mean percentage error (MPE) of the physical model simulation and measurement results is 4.49%. Based on the SPICE model implemented in this article, the amplifier circuit and current amplifying circuits are implemented to verify the manufacturing process and accuracy of the device models, which shows the MoS2 is potential material to realize industrial applications. The MPE of the SPICE model simulation and measurement results is within 7.00% which can be utilized for our analog circuit design.

U3Si2C2 is expected to be a new nuclear fuel as a ternary compound of uranium, silicon and carbon. However, the relevant research on U3Si2C2 under accident conditions is rarely reported. Hence it is necessary to explore the service behavior of the potential U-Si-C ternary nuclear fuel in extreme environments. In this work, the structural characteristics, electronic behaviors and mechanical properties of U3Si2C2, such as stable crystalline structures, density of states, charge distributions, electron localization function, electronic thermal conductivity and elastic modulus under extreme high pressure are calculated by density functional theory. The calculation results show that the lattice volume sharply increases when the external stress reached 9.8 GPa. Ionic and metallic nature coexist as to the bonding characteristics of U3Si2C2, and the ionic takes the dominant position in bonding. The toughness of U3Si2C2 is predicted to be better compared to U3Si2. Our theoretical investigation may help with the application of U3Si2C2-based fuel and the design of ternary uranium fuels.

Layered molybdenum disulfide (MoS 2 ) is one of the representative two-dimensional (2D) semiconductors, offering a tantalizing prospect in the application of nanoelectronic devices and circuits. Here abnormal electrical and optoelectrical characteristics in transferred multilayer MoS 2 transistors are observed and discussed. Such phenomena can be explained by the MoS 2 intrinsic defects and the trapped charge impurities at the MoS 2 -dielectric and MoS 2 -MoS 2 interfaces, as well as its charge screening effect. Our findings highlight the significance of controlling the dielectric interface and the material quality of 2D semiconductors, which are critical for the reliability of future 2D nanoelectronic devices.

Hydrogen can play a key role in facilitating the transition to a future deeply decarbonized energy system and can help accommodate higher penetrations of renewables in the power system. Arguments to justify this conclusion are supported by an analysis based on realworld data from China’s Western Inner Mongolia (WIM). The economic feasibility and decarbonization potential of renewable-based hydrogen production are discussed through an integrated power-hydrogen-emission analytical framework. The framework combines a high-resolution wind resource analysis with hourly simulation for the operation of power systems and hydrogen production considering technical and economic specifications on selection of three different types of electrolyzers and two operating modes. The results indicate that using wind power to produce hydrogen could provide a cost-competitive alternative (

International audience; Cholesterol esterification proteins Sterol-O acyltransferases (SOAT) 1 and 2 are emerging prognostic markers in many cancers. These enzymes utilise fatty acids conjugated to coenzyme A to esterify cholesterol. Cholesterol esterification is tightly regulated and enables formation of lipid droplets that act as storage organelles for lipid soluble vitamins and minerals, and as cholesterol reservoirs. In cancer, this provides rapid access to cholesterol to maintain continual synthesis of the plasma membrane. In this systematic review and meta-analysis, we summarise the current depth of understanding of the role of this metabolic pathway in pan-cancer development. A systematic search of PubMed, Scopus, Web of Science, and Cochrane Library for preclinical studies identified eight studies where cholesteryl ester concentrations were compared between tumour and adjacent-normal tissue, and 24 studies where cholesterol esterification was blocked by pharmacological or genetic approaches. Tumour tissue had a significantly greater concentration of cholesteryl esters than non-tumour tissue (p < 0.0001). Pharmacological or genetic inhibition of SOAT was associated with significantly smaller tumours of all types (p ≤ 0.002). SOAT inhibition increased tumour apoptosis (p = 0.007), CD8 + lymphocyte infiltration and cytotoxicity (p ≤ 0.05), and reduced proliferation (p = 0.0003) and metastasis (p < 0.0001). Significant risk of publication bias was found and may have contributed to a 32% overestimation of the meta-analysed effect size. Avasimibe, the most frequently used SOAT inhibitor, was effective at doses equivalent to those previously reported to be safe and tolerable in humans. This work indicates that SOAT inhibition should be explored in clinical trials as an adjunct to existing anti-neoplastic agents.

Novel peptidic glucagon receptor (GCGR) and glucagon-like peptide 1 receptor (GLP-1R) dual agonists are reported to have increased efficacy over GLP-1R monoagonists for the treatment of diabetes and obesity. We identified a novel Xenopus GLP-1-based dual GLP-1R/GCGR agonist (xGLP/GCG-13) designed with a proper activity ratio favoring the GLP-1R versus the GCGR. However, the clinical utility of xGLP/GCG-13 is limited by its short in vivo half-life. Starting from xGLP/GCG-13, dual Cys mutation was performed, followed by covalent side-chain stapling and serum albumin binder incorporation, resulting in a stabilized secondary structure, enhanced agonist potency at GLP-1R and GCGR, and improved stability. The lead peptide 2c (stapled xGLP/GCG-13 analogue with a palmitic acid albumin binder) exhibits balanced GLP-1R and GCGR activations and potent, long-lasting effects on in vivo glucose control. 2c was further explored pharmacologically in diet-induced obesity and db/db rodent models. Chronic administration of 2c potently induced body weight loss and hypoglycemic effects, improved glucose tolerance, increased energy expenditure, and normalized lipid metabolism and adiposity in relevant animal models. These results indicated that 2c has potential for development as a novel antidiabetic and/or antiobesity drug. Furthermore, we propose that the incorporation of a proper serum protein-binding motif into a di-Cys staple is an effective method for improving the stabilities and bioactivities of peptides. This approach is likely applicable to other therapeutic peptides, such as glucose-dependent insulin-tropic peptide receptor (GIPR) and GLP-1R dual agonists or GLP-1R/GCGR/GIPR triagonists.

Hydrazine borane (N2H4BH3, 15.4 wt%) and hydrous hydrazine (N2H4·H2O, 8 wt%) are promising chemical hydrogen storage materials that have attracted much attention in recent years due to their high gravimetric hydrogen capacities. The selective and rapid catalytic dehydrogenation of N2H4BH3 and N2H4·H2O is the key to the potential use of the abovementioned materials in hydrogen applications. In this study, a series of Rh-MoOx nanoparticles (NPs) with various metal compositions have been successfully prepared via a simple one-step chemical reduction approach in the absence of a surfactant/support at room temperature. The obtained surfactant/support-free Rh-MoOx NPs exhibit good dispersibility and small particle size. Among all of the as-prepared Rh-MoOx NPs, the optimized Rh-MoOx catalysts with a molar ratio of 1:1 show the highest catalytic properties with 100% H2 selectivity for hydrogen evolution from aqueous N2H4BH3 and N2H4·H2O solutions at 323 K under alkaline conditions. The turnover frequency (TOF) values of Rh0.5(MoOx)0.5 NPs are 2000 and 750 h−1 for hydrogen evolution from N2H4BH3 and N2H4·H2O, respectively, which are among the highest values ever reported for Rh-based catalysts. The superior catalytic performances could be attributed to the small particles size, low crystallinity, modified electronic structure, and strong basic sites of Rh NPs induced by the MoOx dopant. The highly rapid and selective Rh-MoOx catalyst may further encourage the deployment and application of N2H4BH3 and N2H4·H2O as safe and convenient sources of hydrogen for fuel cells.

Purpose Taking full advantage of positron emission tomography (PET) technology, fluorine-18-labelled radiotracers targeting norepinephrine transporter (NET) have potential applications in the diagnosis and assessment of cardiac sympathetic nerve conditions as well as the delineation of neuroendocrine tumours. However, to date, none have been used clinically. Drawbacks of currently reported radiotracers include suboptimal kinetics and challenging radiolabelling procedures. Procedures We developed a novel fluorine-18-labelled radiotracer targeting NET, AF78, with efficient one-step radiolabelling based on the phenethylguanidine structure. Radiosynthesis of AF78 was undertaken, followed by validation in cell uptake studies, autoradiography, and in vivo imaging in rats. Results [18F]AF78 was successfully synthesized with 27.9 ± 3.1 % radiochemical yield, > 97 % radiochemical purity and > 53.8 GBq/mmol molar activity. Cell uptake studies demonstrated essentially identical affinity for NET as norepinephrine and meta-iodobenzylgaunidine. Both ex vivo autoradiography and in vivo imaging in rats showed homogeneous and specific cardiac uptake. Conclusions The new PET radiotracer [18F]AF78 demonstrated high affinity for NET and favourable biodistribution in rats. A structure-activity relationship between radiotracer structures and affinity for NET was revealed, which may serve as the basis for the further design of NET targeting radiotracers with favourable features. Electronic supplementary material The online version of this article (10.1007/s11307-019-01407-5) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

Good separation performance NaY zeolite membrane was successfully prepared on the tubular mullite support by fluoride-containing precursor synthesis gel. The fluoride source had a great influence on NaY zeolite membrane growth and separation performance for EtOH/ETBE mixture, the NaF containing precursor gel was benefit for preparing high Si/Al ratio, fine reproduction quality and long-term stable NaY zeolite membrane. Solid state 19F MAS NMR characterization results indicated that the fluorine existed in the channel of NaY zeolite crystals. Both flux and separation factor of the NaY zeolite membrane were greatly depended on the separation temperature and composition of EtOH/ETBE mixtures. The NaY zeolite membrane presented eminent long-term stability for separating 20 wt% EtOH/ETBE mixture at 60 °C, even if the test time was prolonged to 80 h, the flux and separation factor were kept 1.30 kg m−2 h−1 and 1100.

Wastewater pollution has always been a major environmental problem worldwide. Furthermore, in light of the frequent oil spills that have occurred in recent years, the treatment of oily wastewater is particularly important. Herein, a MnMoO4-coated copper mesh was synthesized via a facile two-step hydrothermal route for application in the separation of oil-in-water emulsions. The mesh showed exceptional wettability and separation efficiency (more than 99.9% for toluene-in-water emulsions). In addition, the mesh possessed excellent photocatalytic activity toward the photodegradation of organic dyes in emulsions. The findings also demonstrated the durability and stability of the mesh, as evidenced by the sustained high separation efficiency that they displayed after abrasion or corrosion. Taken together, the findings indicate that the mesh prepared herein has great potential for application in oily wastewater treatment.

The design and preparation of highly efficient and durable electrocatalysts for the oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) and the oxygen evolution reaction (OER) is essential due to their applications in many green energy conversion devices, such as fuel cells and rechargeable metal–air batteries. Herein, we report a Co/Co9S8 composite catalyst, which is coupled with reduced graphene oxide (rGO) and multi-walled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs) via a combined hydrothermal reaction with a calcination method. Benefiting from the unique porous scaffold structures and synergistic interactions between rGO/MWCNT and Co/Co9S8, the electrocatalyst (Co/Co9S8/rGO/MWCNT-800) exhibits high electrochemical activity for the ORR, showing a four-electron oxygen reduction pathway with an onset potential of 0.946 V (vs. RHE) in alkaline medium. Meanwhile, the electrocatalyst shows high electrochemical stability, excellent selectivity and methanol tolerance over the commercial Pt/C. It also exhibits good overall oxygen electrode activity (ΔE = EOER,10 − EORR,1/2 of 890 mV). The present work highlights a potential general strategy for developing carbon-based transition metal sulfide nanocomposites as cathodes with better performance in the ORR/OER.

HKUST-1, a kind of metal-organic framework (MOF) composed by Cu2+ and trimesic acid, loaded on reduced graphene oxide and multi-walled carbon nanotubes nanocomposite [HKUST-1 @ (RGO-MWCNT)] was successfully synthesized by a facile and simple route. Then, a highly sensitive non-enzymatic salvianic acid A (SAA) electrochemical sensor was fabricated by modifying HKUST-1 @ (RGO-MWCNT) on a glassy carbon electrode, taking full advantage of the synergistic effect between the redox catalytic capacity of Cu2+ and the electrical conductivity of carbon materials. The sensor showed a low limit of detection of 0.081 μM, limit of quantitation of 0.27 μM, high sensitivity of 509.6 μA/mM and a good relationship between reduction peak current and concentration of SAA from 2 to 4600 μM. Meanwhile, the sensor had the advantages of repeatability and stability. Finally, it was used to detect SAA in real samples with noteworthy electroanalytical performance. In short, the sensor has considerable potential for the electroanalysis of SAA. Moreover, the study provides a promising composite of MOF and carbon materials with potential application in the analysis of effective components of herbaceous medicinal plants.

Reversible lysine methylation is essential for regulating histones and emerges to critically regulate non-histone proteins as well. Here we show that the master transcription factor OCT4 in pluripotent stem cells (PSCs) was methylated at multiple lysine residues. LSD1 that is highly expressed in PSCs can directly interact with and demethylate OCT4 at lysine 222 (K222) in the flexible linker region. Reduced LSD1 activity led to the methylation of OCT4-K222 that diminished the differentiation potential of PSCs while facilitating proteasome-independent degradation of OCT4 proteins. Furthermore, site-specifically replacing K222 with phenylalanine to mimic the constitutively methylated lysine promoted the ‘locked-in’ mode engagement of the OCT4 PORE-homodimers that tightly bind to and block the transcription of multiple PORE-motif-containing target genes regulating cell fate determination and cell junction organization, and thereby reducing the pluripotency of PSCs. Thus, LSD1-mediated demethylation of OCT4 plays a crucial role in restricting the ‘locked-in’ mode binding of OCT4 PORE-homodimers to the PORE-motif-containing genes and thereby maintaining their transcription to safeguard the pluripotency of PSCs.

Two representative DNA adducts from acrylamide exposure, N7-(2-carbamoyl-2-hydroxyethyl) guanine (N7-GA-Gua) and N3-(2-carbamoyl-2-hydroxyethyl) adenine (N3-GA-Ade), are important long-term exposure biomarkers for evaluating genotoxicity of acrylamide. Catechins as natural antioxidants present in tea possess multiple health benefits, and may also have the potential to protect against acrylamide-induced DNA damage. The current study developed an ultra-high performance liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry (UHPLC-MS/MS) method for simultaneous analysis of N7-GA-Gua and N3-GA-Ade in tissues and urine. The validated UHPLC-MS/MS method showed high sensitivity, with limit of detection and limit of quantification ranging 0.2-0.8 and 0.5-1.5 ng/mL, respectively, and achieved qualified precision (RSD14.0%) and spiking recovery (87.2%-110.0%) with elution within 6 min, which was suitable for the analysis of the two DNA adducts in different matrices. The levels of N7-GA-Gua and N3-GA-Ade ranged 0.9-11.9 and 0.6-3.5 μg/g creatinine in human urine samples, respectively. To investigate the interventional effects of catechins on the two DNA adducts from acrylamide exposure, rats were supplemented with three types of catechins (tea polyphenols, epigallocatechin gallate, and epicatechin) 30 min before administration with acrylamide. Our results showed that catechins effectively inhibited the formation of DNA adducts from acrylamide exposure in both urine and tissues of rats. Among three catechins, epicatechin performed the best inhibitory effect. The current study provided evidence for the chemo-preventive effect of catechins, indicating that dietary supplement of catechins may contribute to health protection against exposure to acrylamide.