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Background: Osteoarthritis (OA) is a prevalent and disabling disease that affects a significant proportion of the global population. Urine-derived stem cells (USCs) have shown great prospects in the treatment of OA, but there is no study that has compared them with traditional stem cells. Purpose: This study aimed to compare the therapeutic efficacy and mechanisms of USCs and adipose-derived stem cells (ADSCs) for OA treatment. Study Design: Controlled laboratory study. Methods: We compared the biological properties of USCs and ADSCs using CCK-8, colony formation, EdU, adhesion, and apoptosis assays. We evaluated the protective effects of USCs and ADSCs on IL-1β–treated OA chondrocytes by chemical staining, immunofluorescence, and Western blotting. We assessed the effects of USCs and ADSCs on chondrocyte autophagy by transmission electron microscopy, immunofluorescence, and Western blotting. We also compared the therapeutic efficacy of intra-articular injections of USCs and ADSCs by gross, histological, micro–computed tomography, and immunohistochemical analyses in an OA rat model induced by anterior cruciate ligament transection. Results: USCs showed higher proliferation, colony formation, DNA synthesis, adhesion, and anti-apoptotic abilities than ADSCs. Both USCs and ADSCs increased the expression of cartilage-specific proteins and decreased the expression of matrix degradation–related proteins and inflammatory factors in OA chondrocytes. USCs had a greater advantage in suppressing MMP-13 and inflammatory factors than ADSCs. Both USCs and ADSCs enhanced autophagy in OA chondrocytes, with USCs being more effective than ADSCs. The autophagy inhibitor 3-MA reduced the enhanced autophagy and protective effects of USCs and ADSCs on OA chondrocytes. Conclusion: To our knowledge, this is the first study to explore the efficacy of USCs in the treatment of knee OA and to compare them with ADSCs. Considering the superior properties of USCs in terms of noninvasive acquisition, a high cost-benefit ratio, and low ethical concerns, our study suggests that they may be a more promising therapeutic option than ADSCs for OA treatment under rigorous regulatory pathways. Clinical Relevance: USCs may be a superior cell source for stem cells to treat knee OA, and this study strengthens the evidence for the application of USCs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Chronic migraine is closely related to the dysregulation of neurochemical substances in the brain, with metabolic imbalance being one of the proposed causes of chronic migraine. This study aims to evaluate the metabolic changes between energy metabolism and excitatory and inhibitory neurotransmitters in key brain regions of mice with chronic migraine-like state and to uncover the dysfunctional pathways of migraine. Methods: A chronic migraine-like state mouse model was established by repeated administration of nitroglycerin (NTG). We used von Frey filaments to assess the mechanical thresholds of the hind paw and periorbital in wild-type and familial hemiplegic migraine type 2 mice. After the experiments, tissue was collected from five brain regions: the somatosensory cortex (SSP), hippocampus, thalamus (TH), hypothalamus, and the spinal trigeminal nucleus caudalis (TNC). Proton magnetic resonance spectroscopy (1H-MRS) was employed to study the changes in brain metabolites associated with migraine, aiming to explore the mechanisms underlying metabolic imbalance in chronic migraine-like state. Results: In NTG-induced chronic migraine-like state model, we observed a significant reduction in energy metabolism during central sensitization, an increase in excitatory neurotransmitters such as glutamate, and a tendency for inhibitory neurotransmitters like GABA to decrease. The TNC and thalamus were the most affected regions. Furthermore, the consistency of N-acetylaspartate levels highlighted the importance of the TNC-TH-SSP pathway in the ascending nociceptive transmission of migraine. Conclusion: Abnormal energy metabolism and neurotransmitter imbalance in the brain region of NTG-induced chronic migraine-like state model are crucial mechanisms contributing to the chronicity of migraine. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Owing to the low redox potential (−3.040 V vs. SHE) and high theoretical specific capacity (3860 mA h g−1), lithium metal is regarded as the 'holy grail" anode for energy storage systems. However, traditional porous polypropylene (PP) separators cause inhomogeneous flux of lithium ions, leading to lithium dendrites and unstable byproducts (known as "dead lithium"). In the work, a composite coating consisting of lithium ion conductor Li1+xAlxTi2−x(PO4)3 (LATP) and polymer polyvinylidene fluoride–hexafluoropropylene (PVDF–HFP) is proposed. The conductive LATP nanoparticles regulate the lithium ion flux and induce homogeneous lithium metal deposition. The flexible PVDF–HFP/LATP coating layer reduces the energy barrier for Li deposition and enables fast kinetics at the interface. As a result, stable and high rate performance lithium metal batteries are achieved. With an areal capacity of 1 mA h cm−2, Li‖‖Li symmetric batteries cycled steadily with very low overpotentials for over 850 h at a current density of 1 mA cm−2, and at the 520th cycle, the battery with a modified separator exhibited a capacity of 156 mA h g−1 (capacity retention of 88.6%). In the rate test, the modified batteries exhibited a capacity of 145.9 mA h g−1 at a high rate of 4C, which suggests that the modified separator results in uniform and dendrite-free Li deposition and stripping as well as fast kinetics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

NASICON-type Na3.5V1.5Mn0.5(PO4)3 (NVMP) has been developed as a promising cathode material for sodium-ion batteries (SIBs). However, low-cost, environmentally friendly industrialization of NVMP is still limited. In this study, a nitrogen-doped carbon coated NVMP cathode material with enhanced conductivity as well as excellent rate performance was obtained by the suspensoid quick-drying method. Due to the advantage of the suspensoid quick-drying method, the mass prepared cathode material has fewer impurities, a more complete crystal structure, a more uniform carbon coating effect and better processing performance, which is conducive to improving the electrochemical performance and processability of the cathode, enhancing the cycling life and the energy density of the battery. Consequently, the electrochemical results show that compared with NVMP-2 obtained by the solid-state method, the as-prepared NVMP-1 cathode (more than 3 kg) exhibits an excellent rate performance of 80.2 mA h g−1 at 50C and an impressive capacity retention of 77.8% after 8000 cycles at 10C. DFT computations indicated that substituting V3+ with Mn2+ can enhance the crystal structure stability and electron conductivity. In addition, the assembled pouch cells display excellent low-temperature performance and cycling performance along with superior safety, which are much better than those of lithium-ion batteries (LIBs), suggesting that the NASICON-based pouch cells lay a foundation for the large-scale application of sodium-ion batteries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]