Simultaneous electron and proton conduction in a stable metal organic material with highly selective electrocatalytic oxygen reduction reaction to water.

Proton coupled electron transfer (PCET) is considered as the elementary step of several chemical, electrochemical and biological processes and thus the development of dual conducting materials has recently become a major focus in Chemical Science. Herein, we report the highly selective electrocatalytic oxygen reduction to water by the stable dual conducting metal-organic material (MOM) [Cu(INA)(HO)] (INA = isonicotinate). Structural analysis reveals the important role of both, hydrogen bonding and π-interactions, in the formation of a supramolecular 3D network.

Nickel model complexes to mimic carbon monoxide dehydrogenase reactions.

Biological CO/CO interconversion catalyzed at the Ni/Fe heterobimetallic active site of anaerobic carbon monoxide dehydrogenases (CODHs) offers important insights for the design of efficient and selective synthetic catalysts for CO capture and utilization (CCU). Notably, this organometallic C interconversion process is mediated at a three-coordinate nickel site. Extensive research has been conducted to elucidate the redox and structural changes involved in substrate binding and conversion.

Pathway control in metallosupramolecular polymerization of a monoalkynylplatinum(ii) terpyridine complex through competitive complex formation.

Understanding the pathway complexity of supramolecular polymerization in biomimetic systems has been a challenging issue due to its importance in the development of rationally controlled materials and insight into self-assembly in nature. We herein report a kinetic trapping strategy as a new methodology on how to control the pathway of metallosupramolecular polymerization by employing secondary metal ions and/or ligands which form competitive complex species. For this, we proposed monoalkynylplatinum(ii) metalloligand (Pt-L) derived from a bis(amideterpyridine) receptor with one unoccupied terpyridyl terminal as a coordination site for the secondary metal ion (Ag or Fe).

All-perovskite tandem solar cells: from fundamentals to technological progress.

Organic-inorganic perovskite materials have gradually progressed from single-junction solar cells to tandem (double) or even multi-junction (triple-junction) solar cells as all-perovskite tandem solar cells (APTSCs). Perovskites have numerous advantages: (1) tunable optical bandgaps, (2) low-cost, solution-processing, inexpensive precursors, and compatibility with many thin-film processing technologies, (3) scalability and lightweight, and (4) eco-friendliness related to low CO emission. However, APTSCs face challenges regarding stability caused by Sn oxidation in narrow bandgap perovskites, low performance due to deficit in the wide bandgap range, non-standardisation of charge recombination layers, and challenging thin-film deposition as each layer must be nearly perfectly homogenous.

On the Origin of the Non-Arrhenius Na-ion Conductivity in NaOBr.

The sodium-rich antiperovskites (NaRAPs) with composition NaOB (B=Br, Cl, I, BH, etc.) are a family of materials that has recently attracted great interest for application as solid electrolytes in sodium metal batteries. Non-Arrhenius ionic conductivities have been reported for these materials, the origin of which is poorly understood.

Accelerated chemical science with AI.

In light of the pressing need for practical materials and molecular solutions to renewable energy and health problems, to name just two examples, one wonders how to accelerate research and development in the chemical sciences, so as to address the time it takes to bring materials from initial discovery to commercialization. Artificial intelligence (AI)-based techniques, in particular, are having a transformative and accelerating impact on many if not most, technological domains. To shed light on these questions, the authors and participants gathered in person for the ASLLA Symposium on the theme of 'Accelerated Chemical Science with AI' at Gangneung, Republic of Korea.

Conservation implications of elucidating the Korean wolf taxonomic ambiguity through whole-genome sequencing.

The taxonomic status of the now likely extirpated Korean Peninsula wolf has been extensively debated, with some arguing it represents an independent wolf lineage, . To investigate the Korean wolf's genetic affiliations and taxonomic status, we sequenced and analysed the genomes of a Korean wolf dated to the beginning of the 20th century, and a captive wolf originally from the Pyongyang Central Zoo. Our results indicated that the Korean wolf bears similar genetic ancestry to other regional East Asian populations, therefore suggesting it is not a distinct taxonomic lineage.

Pt cocatalyst morphology on semiconductor nanorod photocatalysts enhances charge trapping and water reduction.

In photocatalysis, metal-semiconductor hybrid structures have been proposed for ideal photocatalytic systems. In this study, we investigate the effect of morphology and surface nature of Pt cocatalysts on photocatalytic hydrogen evolution activity in Pt-tipped CdSe nanorods. Three distinct morphologies of Pt cocatalysts were synthesized and employed as visible light photocatalysts.

An ultralow power wearable vital sign sensor using an electromagnetically reactive near field.

Despite coronavirus disease 2019, cardiovascular disease, the leading cause of global death, requires timely detection and treatment for a high survival rate, underscoring the 24 h monitoring of vital signs. Therefore, telehealth using wearable devices with vital sign sensors is not only a fundamental response against the pandemic but a solution to provide prompt healthcare for the patients in remote sites. Former technologies which measured a couple of vital signs had features that disturbed practical applications to wearable devices, such as heavy power consumption.

How does malingered PTSD affects continuous performance task performance?

The purpose of this study was to determine how malingered PTSD behavior affects the performance of a continuous performance task (CPT). An analog trauma group, two malingering groups (with or without educational intervention), and a control group were organized according to simulation design. During the CPT, the numbers of errors and response time indicators along with post-error slowing (PES) and recovery (PER) process were measured.

Electroforming-free threshold switching of NbO -based selector devices by controlling conducting phases in the NbO layer for the application to crossbar array architectures.

Bipolar threshold switching characteristics, featuring volatile transition between the high-resistance state (HRS) at lower voltage than threshold voltage ( ) and the low-resistance state (LRS) at higher voltage irrespective of the voltage polarity, are investigated in the Nb(O)/NbO /Nb(O) devices with respect to deposition and post-annealing conditions of NbO layers. The device with NbO deposited by reactive sputtering with 12% of O gas mixed in Ar shows threshold switching behaviors after electroforming operation at around +4 V of forming voltage ( ). On the other hand, electroforming-free threshold switching is achieved from the device with NbO deposited in the reduced fraction of 7% of O gas and subsequently annealed at 250 °C in vacuum, thanks to the increase of the amount of conducting phases within the NbO layer.

Helicity-driven chiral self-sorting supramolecular polymerization with Ag: right- and left-helical aggregates.

The study of chiral self-sorting is extremely important for understanding biological systems and for developing applications for the biomedical field. In this study, we attempted unprecedented chiral self-sorting supramolecular polymerization accompanying helical inversion with Ag in one enantiomeric component. Bola-type terpyridine-based ligands (-L and -L) comprising - or -alanine analogs were synthesized.

Formation of buried superconducting MoN by nitrogen-ion-implantation.

Nitrogen ion implantation is a useful technique to put nitrogen ions into lattices. In this work, nitrogen ion implantation into epitaxial Mo films is performed to create a buried superconducting γ-MoN. Atomically flat epitaxial (110) Mo films are grown on (0001) AlO.

17% Non-Fullerene Organic Solar Cells with Annealing-Free Aqueous MoO .

A charge transport layer based on transition metal-oxides prepared by an anhydrous sol-gel method normally requires high-temperature annealing to achieve the desired quality. Although annealing is not a difficult process in the laboratory, it is definitely not a simple process in mass production, such as roll-to-roll, because of the inevitable long cooling step that follows. Therefore, the development of an annealing-free solution-processable metal-oxide is essential for the large-scale commercialization.

Propagation Control of Octahedral Tilt in SrRuO via Artificial Heterostructuring.

Bonding geometry engineering of metal-oxygen octahedra is a facile way of tailoring various functional properties of transition metal oxides. Several approaches, including epitaxial strain, thickness, and stoichiometry control, have been proposed to efficiently tune the rotation and tilt of the octahedra, but these approaches are inevitably accompanied by unnecessary structural modifications such as changes in thin-film lattice parameters. In this study, a method to selectively engineer the octahedral bonding geometries is proposed, while maintaining other parameters that might implicitly influence the functional properties.

One-Step Generation of a Drug-Releasing Hydrogel Microarray-On-A-Chip for Large-Scale Sequential Drug Combination Screening.

Large-scale screening of sequential drug combinations, wherein the dynamic rewiring of intracellular pathways leads to promising therapeutic effects and improvements in quality of life, is essential for personalized medicine to ensure realistic cost and time requirements and less sample consumption. However, the large-scale screening requires expensive and complicated liquid handling systems for automation and therefore lowers the accessibility to clinicians or biologists, limiting the full potential of sequential drug combinations in clinical applications and academic investigations. Here, a miniaturized platform for high-throughput combinatorial drug screening that is "pipetting-free" and scalable for the screening of sequential drug combinations is presented.

Human Brain Activity Related to the Tactile Perception of Stickiness.

While the perception of stickiness serves as one of the fundamental dimensions for tactile sensation, little has been elucidated about the stickiness sensation and its neural correlates. The present study investigated how the human brain responds to perceived tactile sticky stimuli using functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI). To evoke tactile perception of stickiness with multiple intensities, we generated silicone stimuli with varying catalyst ratios.

Analysis of Nociceptive Information Encoded in the Temporal Discharge Patterns of Cutaneous C-Fibers.

The generation of pain signals from primary afferent neurons is explained by a labeled-line code. However, this notion cannot apply in a simple way to cutaneous C-fibers, which carry signals from a variety of receptors that respond to various stimuli including agonist chemicals. To represent the discharge patterns of C-fibers according to different agonist chemicals, we have developed a quantitative approach using three consecutive spikes.

Dynamics of Mitochondrial Transport in Axons.

The polarized structure and long neurites of neurons pose a unique challenge for proper mitochondrial distribution. It is widely accepted that mitochondria move from the cell body to axon ends and vice versa; however, we have found that mitochondria originating from the axon ends moving in the retrograde direction never reach to the cell body, and only a limited number of mitochondria moving in the anterograde direction from the cell body arrive at the axon ends of mouse hippocampal neurons. Furthermore, we have derived a mathematical formula using the Fokker-Planck equation to characterize features of mitochondrial transport, and the equation could determine altered mitochondrial transport in axons overexpressing parkin.

Distributed functions of detection and discrimination of vibrotactile stimuli in the hierarchical human somatosensory system.

According to the hierarchical view of human somatosensory network, somatic sensory information is relayed from the thalamus to primary somatosensory cortex (S1), and then distributed to adjacent cortical regions to perform further perceptual and cognitive functions. Although a number of neuroimaging studies have examined neuronal activity correlated with tactile stimuli, comparatively less attention has been devoted toward understanding how vibrotactile stimulus information is processed in the hierarchical somatosensory cortical network. To explore the hierarchical perspective of tactile information processing, we studied two cases: (a) discrimination between the locations of finger stimulation; and (b) detection of stimulation against no stimulation on individual fingers, using both standard general linear model (GLM) and searchlight multi-voxel pattern analysis (MVPA) techniques.

Modulation of TonEBP activity by SUMO modification in response to hypertonicity.

TonEBP is a DNA binding transcriptional enhancer that enables cellular adaptation to hypertonic stress by promoting expression of specific genes. TonEBP expression is very high in the renal medulla because local hypertonicity stimulates its expression. Given the high level of expression, it is not well understood how TonEBP activity is modulated.