Constructing Perovskite Phase to Enhance the Electrochemical Performance of a Cobalt-Free, Ultrahigh-Ni Cathode.

Developing cobalt-free, ultrahigh-Ni cathode materials holds great significance for the sustainable advancement of lithium-ion batteries. However, ultrahigh-Ni cathodes without cobalt often suffer from severe Li/Ni mixing, which leads to poor Li diffusion kinetics and structural instability. Although the introduction of high-valent Mo into the cobalt-free layered structure has been considered an effective strategy to optimize Li diffusion channels and dissipate the intergranular strain, it still cannot thoroughly resolve the anisotropic strain within the lattice.

High-Entropy Doping Enabling Ultrahigh Power Density for Advanced Sodium-Ion Batteries.

Sodium-ion batteries (SIBs), owing to the plentiful sodium resources, are considered a viable large-scale energy storage substitute for lithium-ion batteries. Recently, NaV(PO)F (NVPF) has been increasingly investigated as an SIBs cathode material. However, the development of this cathode material is hindered by low intrinsic electronic conductivity, poor cycling stability at high rates, and low energy density.

Constructing Cooperative Interface via Bi-Functional COF for Facilitating the Sulfur Conversion and Li Dynamics.

Lithium-sulfur (Li-S) batteries stand out for their high theoretical specific capacity and cost-effectiveness. However, the practical implementation of Li-S batteries is hindered by issues such as the shuttle effect, tardy redox kinetics, and dendrite growth. Herein, an appealingly designed covalent organic framework (COF) with bi-functional active sites of cyanide groups and polysulfide chains (COF-CN-S) is developed as cooperative functional promoters to simultaneously address dendrites and shuttle effect issues.

Integrated transcriptome and physiological analysis revealed core transcription factors that promote flavonoid biosynthesis in apricot in response to pathogenic fungal infection.

Integrated transcriptome and physiological analysis of apricot leaves after Fusarium solani treatment. In addition, we identified core transcription factors and flavonoid-related synthase genes which may function in apricot disease resistance. Apricot (Prunus armeniaca) is an important economic fruit species, whose yield and quality of fruit are limited owing to its susceptibility to diseases.

Diurnal Regulation of Leaf Photosynthesis Is Related to Leaf-Age-Dependent Changes in Assimilate Accumulation in .

In order to clarify the mechanism of diurnal changes in photosynthesis of leaves of different leaf ages in , current-year leaves (CLs) and annual leaves (ALs) were used as the test materials to analyze the diurnal changes in photosynthetic parameters, assimilate contents and enzyme activities, as well as structural differences and expression levels of sugar transport regulating genes. The rate of net photosynthesis in CLs and ALs was highest in the morning. During the day, there was a decrease in the CO assimilation rate, and this decrease was greater in ALs than in CLs at midday.

One-Step Calcination Synthesis of Bulk-Doped Surface-Modified Ni-Rich Cathodes with Superlattice for Long-Cycling Li-Ion Batteries.

Nickel-rich (Ni≥90 %) layered cathodes are critical materials for achieving higher-energy-density and lower-cost next-generation Li-ion batteries (LIBs). However, their bulk and interface structural instabilities significantly impair their electrochemical performance, thus hindering their widespread adoption in commercial LIBs. Exploiting Ti and Mo diffusion chemistry, we report one-step calcination to synthesize bulk-to-surface modified LiNi Co Mo O (NCMo90) featuring a 5 nm Li TiO coating on the surface, a Mo-rich Li /Ni superlattice at the sub-surface, and Ti-doping in the bulk.

Low Light Facilitates Cyclic Electron Flows around PSI to Assist PSII against High Temperature Stress.

Photosystem II (PSII) of grapevine leaves is easily damaged under heat stress, but no such injury is observed when the leaves are heated in low light. To elucidate the mechanisms, we compared the photosynthetic characteristics of grapevine seedlings under heat treatments (42 °C) for 4 h in the dark or low light (200 μmol m s). At 42 °C in the dark, the PSII maximum quantum yield (/) decreased significantly with the increase in time but did not change much in low light.

Understanding a Single-Li-Ion COF Conductor for Being Dendrite Free in a Li-Organic Battery.

In addition to improving ion conductivity and the transference number, single-Li-ion conductors (SLCs) also enable the elimination of interfacial side reactions and concentration difference polarization. Therefore, the SLCs can achieve high performance in solid-state batteries with Li metal as anode and organic molecule as cathode. Covalent organic frameworks (COFs) are leading candidates for constructing SLCs because of the excellent 1D channels and accurate chemical-modification skeleton.

NiFeN functionalized carbon nanofibers boosting polysulfide conversion for Li-S chemistry.

Limiting the shuttle effect of polysulfides is an important means to realizing high energy density lithium-sulfur batteries (Li-S). In this study, an efficient electrocatalyst (CNFs@NiFeN) is synthesized by anchoring NiFeN in the carbon nanofibers (CNFs). The CNFs@NiFeN shows electrocatalytic activity and enhances the conversion of polysulfides.

The complete chloroplast genome sequences of an endangered orchid species (Orchidaceae).

(Rchb. f.) Stein is an endangered and rare species with highly ornamental value.

Heat-induced down-regulation of photosystem II protects photosystem I in honeysuckle (Lonicera japonica).

Honeysuckle (Lonicera japonica Thunb.) is a traditional medicinal plant in China which is often threatened by high temperature at midday during summer. Heat-induced effects on the photosynthetic apparatus in honeysuckle are associated with a depression of the photosystem II (PSII) photochemical efficiency.

Direct and Indirect Somatic Embryogenesis Induction in Abel.

Abel. is an important woody oil species; however, the shortage of rapid and industrialized seedling culture is a large constraint on the development of the tea oil industry. Somatic embryogenesis (SE) is one of the main powerful biotechnological tools for plant mass regeneration, but the largely unknown SE in limits the scale production of clonal plants.

Stimulation of cyclic electron flow around PSI as a response to the combined stress of high light and high temperature in grape leaves.

Changes in cyclic electron flow (CEF) around PSI activity after exposing grape (Vitis vinifera L.) seedling leaves to the combined stress of high temperature (HT) and high light (HL) were investigated. The PSII potential quantum efficiency (Fv/Fm) decreased significantly under exposure to HT, and this decrease was greater when HT was combined with HL, whereas the PSI activity maintained stable.

Induction of cyclic electron flow around photosystem I during heat stress in grape leaves.

Photosystem II (PSII) in plants is susceptible to high temperatures. The cyclic electron flow (CEF) around PSI is thought to protect both PSII and PSI from photodamage. However, the underlying physiological mechanisms of the photosynthetic electron transport process and the role of CEF in grape at high temperatures remain unclear.

Extraction and isolation of flavonoid glycosides from Flos Sophorae Immaturus using ultrasonic-assisted extraction followed by high-speed countercurrent chromatography.

A method of ultrasonic-assisted extraction followed by high-speed countercurrent chromatography was established for the extraction and isolation of three flavonoid glycosides, i.e. rutin, narcissin, and nicotiflorin from Flos Sophorae Immaturus.

Contribution of dfrA and inhA mutations to the detection of isoniazid-resistant Mycobacterium tuberculosis isolates.

Screening of 127 isoniazid (INH)-resistant Mycobacterium tuberculosis isolates from Singapore for mutations within the dfrA and inhA genes revealed mutations in 0 and 5 (3.9%) isolates respectively, implying that mutations in dfrA do not contribute to the detection of INH-resistant M. tuberculosis and that mutations within inhA are rare.

IL-1beta, IL-6, and RANTES as biomarkers of Chikungunya severity.

Background: Little is known about the immunopathogenesis of Chikungunya virus. Circulating levels of immune mediators and growth factors were analyzed from patients infected during the first Singaporean Chikungunya fever outbreak in early 2008 to establish biomarkers associated with infection and/or disease severity.

Methods And Findings: Adult patients with laboratory-confirmed Chikungunya fever infection, who were referred to the Communicable Disease Centre/Tan Tock Seng Hospital during the period from January to February 2008, were included in this retrospective study.

T-cell receptor-gamma gene analysis in evolving to advancing cutaneous T-cell lymphoma.

The diagnosis of cutaneous T-cell lymphoma is often a challenge for the dermatopathologist. Early stages can mimic inflammatory dermatoses. Our aim was to explore the applicability of a standard T-cell receptor-gamma polymerase chain reaction in various subtypes of cutaneous T-cell lymphomas.

Tuberculosis associated with Mycobacterium tuberculosis Beijing and non-Beijing genotypes: a clinical and immunological comparison.

Background: The Mycobacterium tuberculosis Beijing genotype is biologically different from other genotypes. We aimed to clinically and immunologically compare human tuberculosis caused by Beijing and non-Beijing strains.

Methods: Pulmonary tuberculosis patients were prospectively enrolled and grouped by their M.

Mimotopes for lupus-derived anti-DNA and nucleosome-specific autoantibodies selected from random peptide phage display libraries: facts and follies.

Autoantibodies against chromatin are the most characteristic serological feature in SLE patients. Anti-dsDNA and nucleosome-specific antibodies are associated with glomerulonephritis, the most serious manifestation of SLE. Identification of peptides mimicking conformational epitopes (so-called mimotopes) on the nucleosome recognized by these antibodies is of considerable interest.

Characterization of ancestral Mycobacterium tuberculosis by multiple genetic markers and proposal of genotyping strategy.

Sixty-eight ancestral Mycobacterium tuberculosis isolates were previously identified by using the tuberculosis-specific deletion 1 (TbD1) PCR and mycobacterial interspersed-repetitive-unit-variable-number tandem repeat (MIRU-VNTR) typing (Y. J. Sun, R.

Use of mycobacterial interspersed repetitive unit-variable-number tandem repeat typing to examine genetic diversity of Mycobacterium tuberculosis in Singapore.

Strain typing using variable-number tandem repeats of mycobacterial interspersed repetitive units (MIRU-VNTR) is a powerful tool for studying the epidemiology and genetic relationships of Mycobacterium tuberculosis isolates. For this study, isolates from 291 patients in Singapore were genotyped by this method. One hundred sixty-six distinct MIRU-VNTR patterns were detected.

Intratypic variability of a tandem repeat locus within the DNA polymerase gene of human herpes simplex virus type 2.

In this study, the irntratypic variability of a tandem repeat locus within the DNA polymerase (pol) gene of human herpes simplex virus type 2 (HSV2) was uncovered. The locus contained variable numbers of tandem dodecanucleotide (5'-GAC GAG GAC GGG-3') repetitive units. Our result showed that approximately 95% of analyzed HSV2 clinical isolates and the current GenBank HSV2 strains contained two copies of the repetitive units.

Detection and genotyping of human herpes simplex viruses in cutaneous lesions of erythema multiforme by nested PCR.

A subset of erythema multiforme (erythema multiforme) is associated with herpes simplex virus (HSV) infection; viral cultures of erythema multiforme lesions are, however, usually negative and viral antigens difficult to identify. Polymerase chain reaction (PCR) has been used to demonstrate the association, hence, is currently the only available sensitive diagnostic means for HSV-associated erythema multiforme. A nested PCR, which could simultaneously detect and genotype HSV in erythema multiforme lesions and in clinical swab specimen was developed using the DNA polymerase gene of HSV as target gene because it is the only detectable HSV gene in a high proportion of erythema multiforme lesions.