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Carbon dots (CDs) are a burgeoning star of luminescent carbon‐based nanomaterials with emerging interest for various applications. Luminescence from the sp2‐conjugated domains in the carbon cores is considered to be the intrinsic bandgap emission of CDs, whereas the relationship between them remains poorly understood. Simultaneously, the solvent relaxation of water molecules will quench the fluorescence of CDs, thus, obtaining strong luminescence from CDs aqueous solutions remains a great challenge. Herein, a facile one‐step spatial‐confined cross‐condensation method that uses a heat‐induced self‐foaming process in ambient pressure has been developed to synthesize highly luminescent CDs with unprecedented photoluminescence quantum yield (PLQY) over 97.2% in water. The unique precursor‐derived cross‐arranged perylene skeleton in the cores hinders π–π stacking, while the hydrophobicity of the conjugated units mitigates solvent relaxation by water molecules, resulting in near‐unity PLQY in aqueous solutions, enabling this to demonstrate the first optically pumped green lasing emission in the CDs aqueous solution. Moreover, a biomaterial‐based white light emitting diode is fabricated using the CDs‐stained silks as a fluorescence conversion cover to realize a high luminous efficiency of 60.7 lm W−1 with CIE color coordinate of (0.33, 0.35). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T cell therapy shows promise in treating malignant tumors. However, the use of human epidermal growth factor receptor-2 (HER2) CAR-T cells carries the risk of severe toxicity, including cytokine release syndrome, due to their "on-target off-tumor" recognition of HER2. Enhancing the quality and functionality of HER2 CARs could greatly improve the therapeutic potential of CAR-T cells. In this study, we developed a novel anti-HER2 monoclonal antibody, Ab8, which targets domain III of HER2, distinct from the domain IV recognition of trastuzumab. Although two anti-HER2 mAbs induced similar levels of antibody-dependent cellular cytotoxicity, trastuzumab-based CAR-T cells exhibited potent antitumor activity against HER2-positive cancer cells. In conclusion, our findings provide scientific evidence that antibody recognition of the membrane-proximal domain promotes the anti-tumor response of HER2-specific CAR-T cells. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To solve the high heat dissipation problem of lithium ion battery, the air‐cooled heat dissipation with fins is adopted for the thermal management. Heat dissipation characteristics of two types of air inlets and outlets (single air inlet and outlet, and double air inlet and outlet) and two types of surfaces (smooth and fin structure) were simulated and compared. When the air inlet and outlet are single inlet and single outlet, compared with smooth battery packs, finned construction packs can increase the Nusselt number by 24.9%. When the air inlet and outlet are double inlet and double outlet, compared with smooth battery packs, finned construction packs can increase the Nusselt number by 13.3%. The double‐air inlet and outlet battery pack can significantly reduce the average temperature of the battery pack compared with the single‐air inlet and outlet battery pack. Compared with the single‐inlet and single‐outlet solar smooth battery pack, it can increase the Nu by 131.6%, and the comprehensive performance index can reach 1.66. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper proposes a method of identifying damage to bridge structures based on the principles of displacement influence line and wavelet packet transform. Three damage identification indicators were constructed, including the deviation of displacement influence line (DDIL), the deviation curvature of displacement influence line (DCDIL), and the relative energy rate of wavelet packet energy spectrum (RES). Taking a continuous beam bridge as an example, a finite element model is established to analyze the differences in using three indicators to locate the structural damage position, and to explore the effects of factors such as damage degree, damage location, dynamic response type, and bidirectional traffic on the identification effect. Next, the Zhengzhou Taohuayu Yellow River Bridge is taken as a practical case for verification analysis, and the anti-interference ability and sensitivity of the RES damage indicator are discussed under the interference of noise factors. The results demonstrate that the three identification indicators have excellent performance in identifying bridge structure damage. Compared to the DDIL, the DCDIL shows a more obvious mutation at the damage location, while the RES curve improves the problem of poor identification effect at locations far from the midspan of the bridge by requiring response information from multiple points of the bridge. The RES curve, which was constructed using displacement as the input parameter, exhibits the best comprehensive identification effect. Additionally, it maintains its robustness even when subjected to the interference of bidirectional traffic and noise. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Ferroptosis, an iron‐dependent cell death characterized by lethal lipid peroxidation, is involved in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) pathogenesis. Therefore, ferroptosis inhibition represents an attractive strategy for COPD therapy. Herein, we identified natural flavonoid scutellarein as a potent ferroptosis inhibitor for the first time, and characterized its underlying mechanisms for inhibition of ferroptosis and COPD. In vitro, the anti‐ferroptotic activity of scutellarein was investigated through CCK8, real‐time quantitative polymerase chain reaction (RT‐qPCR), Western blotting, flow cytometry, and transmission electron microscope (TEM). In vivo, COPD was induced by lipopolysaccharide (LPS)/cigarette smoke (CS) and assessed by changes in histopathological, inflammatory, and ferroptotic markers. The mechanisms were investigated by RNA‐sequencing (RNA‐seq), electrospray ionization mass spectra (ESI‐MS), local surface plasmon resonance (LSPR), drug affinity responsive target stability (DARTS), cellular thermal shift assay (CETSA), and molecular dynamics. Our results showed that scutellarein significantly inhibited Ras‐selective lethal small molecule (RSL)‐3‐induced ferroptosis and mitochondria injury in BEAS‐2B cells, and ameliorated LPS/CS‐induced COPD in mice. Furthermore, scutellarein also repressed RSL‐3‐ or LPS/CS‐induced lipid peroxidation, GPX4 down‐regulation, and overactivation of Nrf2/HO‐1 and JNK/p38 pathways. Mechanistically, scutellarein inhibited RSL‐3‐ or LPS/CS‐induced Fe2+ elevation through directly chelating Fe2+. Moreover, scutellarein bound to the lipid peroxidizing enzyme arachidonate 15‐lipoxygenase (ALOX15), which resulted in an unstable state of the catalysis‐related Fe2+ chelating cluster. Additionally, ALOX15 overexpression partially abolished scutellarein‐mediated anti‐ferroptotic activity. Our findings revealed that scutellarein alleviated COPD by inhibiting ferroptosis via directly chelating Fe2+ and interacting with ALOX15, and also highlighted scutellarein as a candidate for the treatment of COPD and other ferroptosis‐related diseases. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The dried stem bark of Berberis vernae C.K.Schneid., known as "Xiao-bo-pi" in Chinese, is a representative anti-diabetic herb in traditional Tibetan medical system. However, its anti-diabetic mechanisms and active components remain unclear. In this study, 1H NMR-based metabolomics, biochemistry assay, molecular docking, and network analysis were integrated to evaluate the anti-diabetic effects of B. vernae extract on type 2 diabetic rats, and to explore its active components and underlying mechanisms. Diabetes was induced by high-fat diet and streptozotocin. After 30 days of treatment, B. vernae extract significantly decreased the serum levels of fasting blood glucose, insulin, insulin resistance index, glycated serum protein, TNF-α, IL-1β, and IL-6, whereas significantly increased the serum levels of insulin sensitivity index in type 2 diabetic rats. A total of 28 endogenous metabolites were identified by 1H NMR-based metabolomics, of which 9 metabolites that were changed by diabetes were significantly reversed by B. vernae extract. The constructed compound-protein-metabolite-disease (CPMD) interaction network revealed the correlation between chemical constituents, target proteins, differential metabolites, and type 2 diabetes. Ferulic acid 4- O - β -D-glucopyranoside, bufotenidine, jatrorrhizine, and berberine showed good hit rates for both the 30 disease-related proteins and 14 differential metabolites-related proteins, indicating that these four compounds might be the active ingredients of B. vernae against type 2 diabetes. Moreover, pathway analysis revealed that the anti-diabetic mechanisms of B. vernae might be related to its regulation of several metabolic pathways (e.g., butanoate metabolism) and disease-related signal pathways (e.g., adipocytokine signaling pathway). In summary, B. vernae exerts a significant anti-diabetic effect and has potential as a drug candidate for the treatment of type 2 diabetes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Amorphous SiO2 nanowires with diameters of 20–200nm and lengths of several micrometers were selectively grown，at 1100°C under ambient pressure，on the ultra-thin Au film coated silicon wafers，which were characterized by scanning electron microscope, Fourier transform infrared spectroscope, and high resolution transmission electron microscope. Using X-ray energy dispersion spectroscope equipped on the high resolution transmission electron microscope, the investigation was carried out on the micro-region chemical composition of the as-grown amorphous SiO2 nanowire. The growth mechanism has been discussed, and it has been believed to be extended vapor-liquid-solid process. The SiO2 layer, as the result indicates, can prevent the formation of Si–Au alloy from Si–Au interface. This work also discusses the photoluminescence emission from SiOx centers at room temperature, it is found that by changing the oxygen, the photoluminescence intensity can be adjusted. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: This paper focuses on a new but much simple approach in synthesizing cubic spinel-structure ZnGa2O4 nanowires through the reaction of β-Ga2O3 nanowires templates and ZnO vapor at high temperature. Characterization has been achieved by means of X-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy and transmission electron microscopy. The length of as-synthesized ZnGa2O4 nanowires is scaled over 10 μm and the diameter is 80 nm respectively. It has been noticed that the concentration of ZnO vapor plays an important role for synthesizing ZnGa2O4 nanowires. And with different concentration of ZnO vapor, the very nanowires could be compounded in the form of β-Ga2O3:ZnGa2O4, ZnGa2O4 and ZnO:ZnGa2O4. The corresponding photoluminescence emission bands centered at 460 nm, 405 nm and 381 nm have also been observed. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

The dried stem bark of Berberis vernae C.K.Schneid., known as "Xiao-bo-pi" in Chinese, is a representative anti-diabetic herb in traditional Tibetan medical system. However, its anti-diabetic mechanisms and active components remain unclear. In this study, 1 H NMR-based metabolomics, biochemistry assay, molecular docking, and network analysis were integrated to evaluate the anti-diabetic effects of B. vernae extract on type 2 diabetic rats, and to explore its active components and underlying mechanisms. Diabetes was induced by high-fat diet and streptozotocin. After 30 days of treatment, B. vernae extract significantly decreased the serum levels of fasting blood glucose, insulin, insulin resistance index, glycated serum protein, TNF-α, IL-1β, and IL-6, whereas significantly increased the serum levels of insulin sensitivity index in type 2 diabetic rats. A total of 28 endogenous metabolites were identified by 1 H NMR-based metabolomics, of which 9 metabolites that were changed by diabetes were significantly reversed by B. vernae extract. The constructed compound-protein-metabolite-disease (CPMD) interaction network revealed the correlation between chemical constituents, target proteins, differential metabolites, and type 2 diabetes. Ferulic acid 4- O - β -D-glucopyranoside, bufotenidine, jatrorrhizine, and berberine showed good hit rates for both the 30 disease-related proteins and 14 differential metabolites-related proteins, indicating that these four compounds might be the active ingredients of B. vernae against type 2 diabetes. Moreover, pathway analysis revealed that the anti-diabetic mechanisms of B. vernae might be related to its regulation of several metabolic pathways (e.g., butanoate metabolism) and disease-related signal pathways (e.g., adipocytokine signaling pathway). In summary, B. vernae exerts a significant anti-diabetic effect and has potential as a drug candidate for the treatment of type 2 diabetes., (Copyright © 2020 Li, Zhao, Zhang, Du, Xu, Xu, Zhang, Kuang, Lai, Fan and Zhang.)