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Liquid and gel electrolytes based on common commercial and recently commercialized salts for application in lithium-ion (Li-ion) batteries are presented herein. Various solvent mixtures and electrolytes based on them are presented. Selected organic carbonates' mixtures are chosen as the base for these electrolytes. LiTDI (lithium 4,5-dicyano-2-(trifluoromethyl)-imidazolide) and LiPF6 (lithium hexafluorophosphate) are chosen to compare the behavior and the electrochemical properties of the investigated systems. The limited optimizations of electrolytes are presented for LiTDI salt. Results for LiPF6 electrolytes are presented as a benchmark. The detailed comparison of lithium transference numbers is presented. All liquid electrolytes present quite high values of conductivity at room temperature and in some cases reach above 6 mS cm−1 for LiTDI solutions. The base for gel electrolytes is PVdF-HFP co-polymer (poly(vinylidene difluoride-co-hexafluoropropylene)). The conductivity of gel electrolytes exceeds 1 mS cm−1 in case of the LiTDI system. All presented electrolytes show relatively high stability vs. Li/Li+, up to 4.7 V in both liquid and gel systems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

It is well known that mercury that enters the atmosphere is a serious threat to the natural environment. From the available literature, it can be stated that fossil fuels are among the main carriers of this fuel. The question arises whether it is the right approach. While the enrichment of bituminous coal produces limited amounts of mercury, they are being released into the atmosphere as a result of the combustion of coal. The situation is similar in the case of biomass, which releases large amounts of mercury into the atmosphere when subjected to the combustion process. While bituminous coal is the carrier of mercury, the application of currently known technology, rational production and the use of fossil fuels make it possible to maximally minimize mercury emissions into the atmosphere. This study evaluated the mercury content in the ashes resulting from the combustion of bituminous coal subjected to the enrichment process. The samples were collected from ten mines located in the Polish part of the Upper Silesian Coal Basin (USCB). In total, thirty coal samples and thirty products of the combustion process were examined. All sixty samples were subjected to physicochemical analysis, including: moisture content, ash content, sulfur content, carbon content, and Gross Calorific Value.

Biomass is one of the oldest and most widely used renewable energy sources. The biomass is the whole organic matter of vegetable or animal origin which is biodegradable. Biomass includes leftovers from agricultural production, forestry residues, and industrial and municipal waste. The use of biomass in the power industry has become a standard and takes place in Poland and other European countries. This paper discusses the correlation of mercury content in different biomass types used in the power industry and in products of biomass combustion. Different biomass types, which are currently burned in a commercial power plant in Poland, were discussed. A photographic documentation of different biomass types, such as straw briquettes, wood briquettes, pellets from energy crops (sunflower husk and wood husk), wood pellets, wood chips, and agro-biomass (seeds) was carried out. The presented paper discusses the results obtained for 15 biomass samples. Five selected biomass samples were burned in controlled conditions in the laboratory at the University of Silesia. The ash resulting from the combustion of five biomass samples was tested for mercury content. A total of twenty biomass samples and its combustion products were tested. Based on the obtained results, it was found that any supply of biomass, regardless of its type, is characterized by variable mercury content in dry matter. In the case of e.g. wood chips, the spread of results reaches 235.1 μm/kg (in dry matter). Meanwhile, the highest mercury content, 472.4 μm/kg (in dry matter) was recorded in the biomass of straw, wood pellets, and pellets from energy crops (sunflower husk). In the case of combustion products of five selected biomass types, a three or four fold increase in the mercury content has been observed.

Multiple sclerosis is a progressive disease of the central nervous system that inevitably concludes with permanent disability. Despite a significant in immunotherapy, there is an increase in the number of patients requiring full-time care and assistance in performing basic everyday tasks. Specific symptoms of the disease are caused by damage in almost every functional systems of the central nervous system. The consequences of psychological, cognitive and psychosocial nature cause amajor decrease in the quality of life. Palliative care is reservedmostly for oncological patients, rarely involving other groups of patients.Multiple sclerosis patients also require such care, but inmost of the cases it is unavailable in the Polish scale of things. Thus there is a need for providing support for the patientswith themost serious disability,who are forced to rely only on symptomatic treatment and are deprived of therapy that modifies the course of the disease. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The application of a new generation of sequencing techniques has revealed that most of the genome has already been transcribed. However, only a small part of the genome codes proteins. The rest of the genome "dark matter" belongs to divergent groups of non-coding RNA (ncRNA), that is not translated into proteins. There are two groups of ncRNAs, which include small and long non-coding RNAs (sncRNA and lncRNA respectively). Over the last decade, there has been an increased interest in lncRNAs and their interaction with cellular components. In this review, we presented the newest information about the human lncRNA interactome. The term lncRNA interactome refers to cellular biomolecules, such as nucleic acids, proteins, and peptides that interact with lncRNA. The lncRNA interactome was characterized in the last decade, however, understanding what role the biomolecules associated with lncRNA play and the nature of these interactions will allow us to better understand lncRNA's biological functions in the cell. We also describe a set of methods currently used for the detection of lncRNA interactome components and the analysis of their interactions. We think that such a holistic and integrated analysis of the lncRNA interactome will help to better understand its potential role in the development of organisms and cancers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Chromosomal translocations in non-Hodgkin lymphoma (NHL) result in activation of oncogenes by placing them under the regulation of immunoglobulin heavy chain (IGH) super-enhancers. Aberrant expression of translocated oncogenes induced by enhancer activity can contribute to lymphomagenesis. The role of the IGH enhancers in normal B-cell development is well established, but knowledge regarding the precise mechanisms of their involvement in control of the translocated oncogenes is limited. The goal of this project was to define the critical regions in the IGH regulatory elements and identify enhancer RNAs (eRNA). We designed a sgRNA library densely covering the IGH enhancers and performed tiling CRISPR interference screens in three NHL cell lines. This revealed three regions crucial for NHL cell growth. With chromatin-enriched RNA-Seq we showed transcription from the core enhancer regions and subsequently validated expression of the eRNAs in a panel of NHL cell lines and tissue samples. Inhibition of the essential IGH enhancer regions decreased expression of eRNAs and translocated oncogenes in several NHL cell lines. The observed expression and growth patterns were consistent with the breakpoints in the IGH locus. Moreover, targeting the Eμ enhancer resulted in loss of B-cell receptor expression. In a Burkitt lymphoma cell line, MYC overexpression partially rescued the phenotype induced by IGH enhancer inhibition. Our results indicated the most critical regions in the IGH enhancers and provided new insights into the current understanding of the role of IGH enhancers in B-cell NHL. As such, this study forms a basis for development of potential therapeutic approaches.

Recently, a number of ribosome-associated non-coding RNAs (rancRNAs) have been discovered in all three domains of life. In our previous studies, we have described several types of rancRNAs in Saccharomyces cerevisiae, derived from many cellular RNAs, including mRNAs, rRNAs, tRNAs and snoRNAs. Here, we present the evidence that the tRNA fragments from simple eukaryotic organism S. cerevisiae directly bind to the ribosomes. Interestingly, rancRNA-tRFs in yeast are derived from both, 5'- and 3'-part of the tRNAs and both types of tRFs associate with the ribosomes in vitro The location of tRFs within the ribosomes is distinct from classical A- and P-tRNA binding sites. Moreover, 3'-tRFs bind to the distinct site than 5'-tRFs. These interactions are stress dependent and as a consequence, provoke regulation of protein biosynthesis. We observe strong correlation between tRF binding to the ribosomes and inhibition of protein biosynthesis in particular environmental conditions. These results implicate the existence of an ancient and conserved mechanism of translation regulation with the involvement of ribosome-associating tRNA-derived fragments., (© FEMS 2016.)

Multiple sclerosis (MS) is a progressive, inflammatory demyelinating disease of the central nervous system, with an unknown aetiology. The pathogenesis of MS is mainly related with the autoimmune process, environmental factors and genetic predispositions. In recentyears, hypovitaminosis D has been considered as an independent factor increasing the risk of multiple sclerosis. Hypovitaminosis D is defined as a condition in which the concentration of 25(OH)D in serum is lower than 75 nmol/l (30 ng/ml). Numerous studies have documented the relation between the occurrence of MS, its course and activity, and vitamin D concentration dependent on sunlight and dietary intake. Conclusions from research on the effectiveness of supplementation have also been presented. They indicate the necessity of using higher doses of calcitriol. Most authors consider a preventive dose of 4000 IU daily as safe and well-tolerated by people living in low-insolation latitudes. It has been pointed out that vitamin D supplementation is indicated and effective only in cases of actual deficiency. The low risk and low cost of vitamin D supplementation, as well as patients' positive attitude towards it, makes it a promising strategy for decreasing the incidence and alleviating the signs and symptoms of multiple sclerosis.

Non-coding RNAs (ncRNAs) play regulatory roles at all stages of the genetic information transmission from DNA to proteins. The ncRNA-mediated mechanisms leading to specific expression or silencing of particular genes seem to be of special importance. In addition to well-known and well-understood functions of RNAs, we recently discover new and nonobvious aspects and possibilities of regulating cellular processes. One example is the processing of various RNAs, the mechanism of formation of short non-coding RNAs from existing functional RNAs. Both: the sources of these short RNAs and the functions performed by them are diverse. Their presence greatly enriches the possibilities of gene expression regulation, as it turns out, at all stages.

Multiple sclerosis (MS) is a progressive demyelinating-inflammatory disease of the central nervous system, probably of autoimmune etiology. Characteristic qualities include multifocal demyelination, which result in varied clinical pictures of the disease. MS must be differentiated from chronic or recurring diseases, as well as from those with multifocal neurological manifestations and multifocal lesions revealed in a MR scan. Particular signs may precede the development of the full-blown MS, but they may be initial manifestations of autoimmune disease such as systemic lupus, antiphospholipid syndrome, Behçet's disease or Sjögren's syndrome as well. Diagnosis is easier in the later stages due to appearance of characteristic manifestations, absent in the course of MS. Nevertheless, the mildly symptomatic nature of those diseases may lead to misdiagnosis, putting the patient at risk of an expensive and inefficient treatment, which may only exacerbate the symptoms. In many cases a long-term follow-up is necessary to confirm the diagnosis.

Cachexia has long been recognized as serious complication of chronic illness. Cardiac cachexia is a syndrome of generalised wasting which carries a poor prognosis of the chronic heart disease. Characteristic features of cachexia include the activation of the immune system associated with raised plasma concentriations of tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF(alpha) and other plasma cytokines. Another crucial issue is muscle wasting through the ubiquitin proteasome pathway. The prevention or attenuation of disease related skeletal muscle degeneration has been a common goal in the treatment of cardiac cachexia.