Morphology and Crystallinity Effects of Nanochanneled Niobium Oxide Electrodes for Na-Ion Batteries

Niobium pentoxide (Nb2O5) is a promising negative electrode for sodium ion batteries (SIBs). By engineering the morphology and crystallinity of nanochanneled niobium oxides (NCNOs), the kinetic behavior and charge storage mechanism of Nb2O5 electrodes were investigated. Amorphous and crystalline NCNO samples were made by modulating anodization conditions (20-40 V and 140-180 °C) to synthesize nanostructures of varying pore sizes and wall thicknesses with identical chemical composition. The electrochemical energy storage properties of the NCNOs were studied, with the amorphous samples showing better overall rate performance than the crystalline samples. The enhanced rate performance of the amorphous samples is attributed to the higher capacitive contributions and Na-ion diffusivity analyzed from cyclic voltammetry (CV) and the galvanostatic intermittent titration technique (GITT). It was found that the amorphous samples with smaller wall thicknesses facilitated improved kinetics. Among samples with similar pore size and wall thickness, the difference in their power performance stems from the crystallinity effect, which plays a more significant role in the resulting kinetics of the materials for Na-ion batteries.

How much organic carbon could the soil store? The carbon sequestration potential of Australian soil

Soil is a huge carbon (C) reservoir, but where and how much extra C can be stored is unknown. Current methods to estimate the maximum amount of mineral-associated organic carbon (MAOC) stabilized in the fine fraction (clay + silt,< 20 μm $$ <20\;\upmu \mathrm{m} $$ ) fit through the MAOC versus clay + silt relationship, not their maxima, making their estimates more uncertain and unreliable. We need a function that 'envelopes' that relationship. Here, using 5089 observations, we estimated that the uppermost 30 cm of Australian soil holds 13 Gt (10-18 Gt) of MAOC. We then fitted frontier lines, by soil type, to the relationship between MAOC and the percentage of clay + silt to estimate the maximum amounts of MAOC that Australian soils could store in their current environments, and calculated the MAOC deficit, or C sequestration potential. We propagated the uncertainties from the frontier line fitting and mapped the estimates of these values over Australia using machine learning and kriging with external drift. The maps show regions where the soil is more in MAOC deficit and has greater sequestration potential. The modelling shows that the variation over the whole continent is determined mainly by climate, linked to vegetation and soil mineralogy. We find that the MAOC deficit in Australian soil is 40 Gt (25-60 Gt). The deficit in the vast rangelands is 20.84 Gt (13.97-29.70 Gt) and the deficit in cropping soil is 1.63 Gt (1.12-2.32 Gt). Management could increase C sequestration in these regions if the climate allowed it. Our findings provide new information on the C sequestration potential of Australian soils and highlight priority regions for soil management. Australia could benefit environmentally, socially and economically by unlocking even a tiny portion of its soil's C sequestration potential.

Cohort profile: the ESC EURObservational Research Programme Non-ST-segment elevation myocardial infraction (NSTEMI) Registry

AIMS

The European Society of Cardiology (ESC) EURObservational Research Programme (EORP) Non-ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction (NSTEMI) Registry aims to identify international patterns in NSTEMI management in clinical practice and outcomes against the 2015 ESC Guidelines for the management of acute coronary syndromes in patients presenting without ST-segment-elevation.

METHODS AND RESULTS

Consecutively hospitalised adult NSTEMI patients (n = 3620) were enrolled between 11 March 2019 and 6 March 2021, and individual patient data prospectively collected at 287 centres in 59 participating countries during a two-week enrolment period per centre. The registry collected data relating to baseline characteristics, major outcomes (in-hospital death, acute heart failure, cardiogenic shock, bleeding, stroke/transient ischaemic attack, and 30-day mortality) and guideline-recommended NSTEMI care interventions: electrocardiogram pre- or in-hospital, pre-hospitalization receipt of aspirin, echocardiography, coronary angiography, referral to cardiac rehabilitation, smoking cessation advice, dietary advice, and prescription on discharge of aspirin, P2Y12 inhibition, angiotensin converting enzyme inhibitor (ACEi)/angiotensin receptor blocker (ARB), beta-blocker, and statin.

CONCLUSION

The EORP NSTEMI Registry is an international, prospective registry of care and outcomes of patients treated for NSTEMI, which will provide unique insights into the contemporary management of hospitalised NSTEMI patients, compliance with ESC 2015 NSTEMI Guidelines, and identify potential barriers to optimal management of this common clinical presentation associated with significant morbidity and mortality.

Electrochemically induced amorphous-to-rock-salt phase transformation in niobium oxide electrode for Li-ion batteries

Intercalation-type metal oxides are promising negative electrode materials for safe rechargeable lithium-ion batteries due to the reduced risk of Li plating at low voltages. Nevertheless, their lower energy and power density along with cycling instability remain bottlenecks for their implementation, especially for fast-charging applications. Here, we report a nanostructured rock-salt Nb₂O₅ electrode formed through an amorphous-to-crystalline transformation during repeated electrochemical cycling with Li⁺. This electrode can reversibly cycle three lithiums per Nb₂O₅, corresponding to a capacity of 269 mAh g^-1 at 20 mA g^-1, and retains a capacity of 191 mAh g^-1 at a high rate of 1 A g^-1. It exhibits superb cycling stability with a capacity of 225 mAh g^-1 at 200 mA g^-1 for 400 cycles, and a Coulombic efficiency of 99.93%. We attribute the enhanced performance to the cubic rock-salt framework, which promotes low-energy migration paths. Our work suggests that inducing crystallization of amorphous nanomaterials through electrochemical cycling is a promising avenue for creating unconventional high-performance metal oxide electrode materials.

Evaluation of Pirfenidone and Nintedanib in a Human Lung Model of Fibrogenesis

Introduction: Idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF) is a progressive, fatal lung disease with a poor prognosis and increasing incidence. Pirfenidone and nintedanib are the only approved treatments for IPF but have limited efficacy and their mechanisms of action are poorly understood. Here we have examined the effects of pirfenidone and nintedanib in a human model of lung fibrogenesis, and compared these with the putative anti-fibrotic compounds Lipoxin A4 (LXA4), and senicapoc, a K_Ca3.1 ion channel blocker. Methods: Early fibrosis was induced in cultured human lung parenchyma using TGFβ1 for 7 days, ± pirfenidone, nintedanib, or LXA4. Pro-fibrotic responses were examined by RT-PCR, immunohistochemistry and soluble collagen secretion. Results: Thirty six out of eighty four IPF and fibrosis-associated genes tested were significantly upregulated by TGFβ1 in human lung parenchyma with a ≥0.5 log2FC (n = 32). Nintedanib (n = 13) reduced the mRNA expression of 14 fibrosis-associated genes including MMPs (MMP1,-4,-13,-14), integrin α2, CXCR4 and PDGFB, but upregulated α-smooth muscle actin (αSMA). Pirfenidone only reduced mRNA expression for MMP3 and -13. Senicapoc (n = 11) previously attenuated the expression of 28 fibrosis-associated genes, including αSMA, several growth factors, collagen type III, and αV/β6 integrins. Pirfenidone and nintedanib significantly inhibited TGFβ1-induced fibroblast proliferation within the tissue, but unlike senicapoc, neither pirfenidone nor nintedanib prevented increases in tissue αSMA expression. LXA4 was ineffective. Conclusions: Pirfenidone and nintedanib demonstrate modest anti-fibrotic effects and provide a benchmark for anti-fibrotic activity of new drugs in human lung tissue. Based on these data, we predict that the K_Ca3.1 blocker senicapoc will show greater benefit than either of these licensed drugs in IPF.

Prolific or precarious: a review of the status of Australian sandalwood (Santalum spicatum [R.Br.] A.DC., Santalaceae)

Across its entire range in Australia’s western and southern rangelands, Australian sandalwood (Santalum spicatum [R.Br.] A.DC.) is on a path towards ‘extinction in the wild’––the International Union for the Conservation of Nature’s penultimate category of conservation risk. Sandalwood populations have substantially diminished or become locally extinct, predominantly a consequence of land clearing for agriculture, introduced grazers, disruption of key ecological processes (e.g. seed dispersal, fire regimes) and 175 years of intensive commercial exploitation for its fragrant, high value timber. The status of the world’s last wild-harvested species of sandalwood is significant to both conservation and rangeland management, and the implementation of a science-based sustainable yield approach to management of this species is vital. By highlighting the scale and precipitous rate of decline and identifying key drivers affecting mortality and recruitment, this review outlines the conservation and restoration needs of the species in situ to conserve remaining wild populations, and the need to transition to science-based resource management actions such as farm-based plantation production.

Changes in soil microbial communities in post mine ecological restoration: Implications for monitoring using high throughput DNA sequencing

The ecological restoration of ecosystem services and biodiversity is a key intervention used to reverse the impacts of anthropogenic activities such as mining. Assessment of the performance of restoration against completion criteria relies on biodiversity monitoring. However, monitoring usually overlooks soil microbial communities (SMC), despite increased awareness of their pivotal role in many ecological functions. Recent advances in cost, scalability and technology has led to DNA sequencing being considered as a cost-effective biological monitoring tool, particularly for otherwise difficult to survey groups such as microbes. However, such approaches for monitoring complex restoration sites such as post-mined landscapes have not yet been tested. Here we examine bacterial and fungal communities across chronosequences of mine site restoration at three locations in Western Australia to determine if there are consistent changes in SMC diversity, community composition and functional capacity. Although we detected directional changes in community composition indicative of microbial recovery, these were inconsistent between locations and microbial taxa (bacteria or fungi). Assessing functional diversity provided greater understanding of changes in site conditions and microbial recovery than could be determined through assessment of community composition alone. These results demonstrate that high-throughput amplicon sequencing of environmental DNA (eDNA) is an effective approach for monitoring the complex changes in SMC following restoration. Future monitoring of mine site restoration using eDNA should consider archiving samples to provide improved understanding of changes in communities over time. Expansion to include other biological groups (e.g. soil fauna) and substrates would also provide a more holistic understanding of biodiversity recovery.

TEMPO® TVC for the Enumeration of Aerobic Mesophilic Flora in Foods: Collaborative Study

The automated system for enumeration of total viable count (TVC) in foods, TEMPO® TVC, uses a dehydrated culture medium and an enumeration card containing 48 wells across 3 different dilutions for the automatic determination of the most probable number (MPN). The alternative method was compared in a multilaboratory collaborative study to AOAC Method 966.23 for determination of aerobic plate count for nondairy products and the Standard Methods for the Examination of Dairy Products (SMEDP) Standard Plate Count for dairy products. Five food types, raw ground beef, raw ground chicken, cooked whitefish fillets, bagged lettuce, and milk, were analyzed for TVC by 14 collaborating laboratories throughout the United States and Canada. Three lots of naturally contaminated food products representing a wide range of counts were tested for each of the 5 food types. The study demonstrated that the overall repeatability, reproducibility, and mean log counts of the TEMPO TVC method were statistically comparable to those of the 2 standard methods at the 5 level.

TEMPO® EC for the Enumeration of Escherichia coli in Foods: Collaborative Study

The automated method for enumeration of Escherichia coli, TEMPO&lt;sup/&gt; EC, in foods uses a dehydrated culture medium and enumeration card containing 48 wells across three different dilutions for the automatic determination of the most probable number (MPN). The alternative method was compared in a multilaboratory collaborative study to AOAC Official MethodSM 966.24. Six food types were artificially contaminated with E. coli: raw ground beef, bagged lettuce, cooked chicken, pasteurized crabmeat, frozen green beans, and pasteurized whole milk. All foods were analyzed for E. coli counts by 11 collaborating laboratories throughout the United States. Test portions from the six food types each contaminated at four different contamination levels were evaluated. The study demonstrated that the TEMPO EC method is a reliable, automated assay for the enumeration of E. coli in foods.

3M™ Petrifilm™ Staph Express Count Plate Method for the Enumeration of Staphylococcus aureus in Selected Dairy Foods: Collaborative Study

The 3M™ Petrifilm™ Staph Express Count plate method was compared with AOAC Official Method 975.55 for the enumeration of Staphylococcus aureus in selected foods. Five foods—ice cream, raw milk, yogurt, whey powder, and cheese—were analyzed for S. aureus by 12 collaborating laboratories. For each food tested, the collaborators received 8 blind test samples consisting of a control sample, a low inoculation level, a medium inoculation level, and a medium inoculation level with background flora, each in duplicate. The mean log10 counts for the methods were comparable for all 5 foods. The repeatability and reproducibility variances of the 24 h Petrifilm Staph Express Count plate method were similar to those of the 72 h standard method.

Routine Clinical Measurements of Transferrin in Human Serum

Data from the Wellcome Group Quality Control Programme and from the National Quality Control Scheme were kindly provided by Dr. B. A. L. Hurn and Prof. T. P. Whitehead respectively. Figures 1 and 2 are reproduced, with permission, from the Journal of Biological Chemistry and Clinica Chimica Acta respectively.

Access to genitourinary medicine clinics: how long does it take to book an appointment by telephone?

A unique feature of genitourinary (GU) medicine clinics is that patients can book appointments themselves. The aim of this study was to assess how long it takes and the barriers that exist when making an appointment in a UK GU medicine clinic. Male and female researchers recorded the number of attempts needed to make a successful contact, how the call was dealt with, and the time taken for the call to be initially answered and then completed; 72% (479/666) of the telephone contacts were answered on the first attempt (range: 1-17). The median length of the total call was one minute 51 seconds (range: 15 seconds to eight minutes, six seconds) but male callers took a mean of 40 seconds longer to complete a call (P < 0.001), reflecting additional and often intrusive questions they were asked compared with female researchers. Care should be taken to ensure that the first point of contact with a clinic is favourable as it reflects on how an entire service may be perceived.

Insights into the genetic architecture of osteoarthritis from stage 1 of the arcOGEN study

Objectives

The genetic aetiology of osteoarthritis has not yet been elucidated. To enable a well-powered genome-wide association study (GWAS) for osteoarthritis, the authors have formed the arcOGEN Consortium, a UK-wide collaborative effort aiming to scan genome-wide over 7500 osteoarthritis cases in a two-stage genome-wide association scan. Here the authors report the findings of the stage 1 interim analysis.

Methods

The authors have performed a genome-wide association scan for knee and hip osteoarthritis in 3177 cases and 4894 population-based controls from the UK. Replication of promising signals was carried out in silico in five further scans (44 449 individuals), and de novo in 14 534 independent samples, all of European descent.

Results

None of the association signals the authors identified reach genome-wide levels of statistical significance, therefore stressing the need for corroboration in sample sets of a larger size. Application of analytical approaches to examine the allelic architecture of disease to the stage 1 genome-wide association scan data suggests that osteoarthritis is a highly polygenic disease with multiple risk variants conferring small effects.

Conclusions

Identifying loci conferring susceptibility to osteoarthritis will require large-scale sample sizes and well-defined phenotypes to minimise heterogeneity.

TEMPO EC for the enumeration of Escherichia coli in foods: collaborative study

The automated method for enumeration of Escherichia coli, TEMPO EC, in foods uses a dehydrated culture medium and enumeration card containing 48 wells across three different dilutions for the automatic determination of the most probable number (MPN). The alternative method was compared in a multilaboratory collaborative study to AOAC Official Method 966.24. Six food types were artificially contaminated with E. coli: raw ground beef, bagged lettuce, cooked chicken, pasteurized crabmeat, frozen green beans, and pasteurized whole milk. All foods were analyzed for E. coli counts by 11 collaborating laboratories throughout the United States. Test portions from the six food types each contaminated at four different contamination levels were evaluated. The study demonstrated that the TEMPO EC method is a reliable, automated assay for the enumeration of E. coli in foods.

Gamma probe radioguided parathyroid forearm surgery in recurrent hyperparathyroidism

A case is described of a successful radioguided forearm graft parathyroidectomy. This is the first report of both pre-operative diagnostic and successful intra-operative localisation during a single procedure, of autologous transplanted parathyroid tissue.

Brief report: Aggressive challenging behaviour in adults with intellectual disability following community resettlement

BACKGROUND

Aggressive challenging behaviour is common in adults with intellectual disability (ID) in long-term care facilities. The government's commitment to the closure of all facilities in England has led to concerns over how to manage this behaviour in the community. The aim of this study was to assess changes in aggressive challenging behaviour and psychotropic drug use in adults with ID following resettlement using a person-centred approach.

METHOD

The Modified Overt Aggression Scale was administered to carers of 49 adults with ID prior to discharge from a long-stay hospital and 6 months and 1 year after community resettlement.

RESULTS

All areas of aggressive challenging behaviour reduced significantly between baseline and 6 months following resettlement (P < 0.001). This reduction remained (but did not decrease further) at 1-year follow-up.

CONCLUSIONS

Further work is needed to evaluate the role of environmental setting on aggressive challenging behaviour in adults with ID.

Autofluorescence bronchoscopy in volunteer asymptomatic smokers

We assess the sensitivity of autofluorescence bronchoscopy (AFB) compared to that of white light bronchoscopy (WLB) for identification of pre-invasive neoplastic changes of bronchial mucosa in asymptomatic heavy smokers. WLB was performed using a standard flexible fibre-optic bronchoscope, and AFB carried out using the Xillix LIFE Lung((R)) system. Positive AFB images were indicated in the bronchial tree from 51 of the 93 subjects in the study. Biopsies showed epithelial abnormalities in 27 (15 metaplasia, 12 inflammatory changes) of these. WLB showed abnormality in 1 subject but with no pathological changes revealed by cyto-histology. Therefore, the sensitivity of AFB to metaplasia was 75% compared to zero for WLB. AFB yields positive predictive values for metaplastic and overall mucosal changes of 29.4% and 52.9%, respectively. In summary, over 16% of asymptomatic smokers had metaplastic changes in their bronchial mucosa, and AFB proved more sensitive in revealing early changes than WLB.

Is bronchoscopic photodynamic therapy a therapeutic option in lung cancer?

This study addresses whether photodynamic therapy (PDT) is a valid therapeutic option in lung cancer treatment. A total of 24 articles were reviewed in two categories: advanced (G1) and early (G2) disease. Details considered included the following: 1) number of patients in each series; 2) staging; 3) methodology; 4) mortality; 5) morbidity; 6) survival; 7) relief of symptoms; and 8) concomitant treatments. G1 (636 patients) had severe endobronchial obstructive cancer and PDT was primarily for symptom relief. G2 (517 patients) had early stage cancer and were treated with PDT for curative intent. There was no procedure-related mortality in either group. G1 had a 5-28% incidence of skin sensitivity. Haemoptysis occurred in two series; one fatal, an incidence of 2.2%. Almost all patients had symptomatic relief. Patients with lower disease stage and better performance status had improved survival rates. G2 had a 8-28% incidence of sunburn. Three patients in one series (38 patients) had haemoptysis. Survival after 5 yrs in complete remission/response patients was 70%. This review suggests that bronchoscopic photodynamic therapy has indications in selected lung cancer patients with early or advanced stage disease. However, in the absence of a formal comparative study, no claim can be made of its superiority over other endobronchial therapies.

The morphological and spectral phenotype of apoptosis in HeLa cells varies following exposure to UV-C and the addition of inhibitors of ICE and CPP32

Numerous extra- and intracellular factors, including UV radiation, can initiate a programme of cell death by apoptosis. While apoptosis is commonly defined morphologically, the relationships between morphology and molecular events are not well established. To investigate these relationships in HeLa cells, eight morphometric criteria for cell proliferation and damage and 10 criteria for apoptotic phenotype were examined using light microscopy, and corroborated by ultrastructure and spectral imaging. They were identified (1) during a time course after irradiation with 0, 10 or 30 J/m2 UV-C; (2) after separation of apoptotic from normal cells on a Percoll gradient; and (3) after irradiation with UV-C plus perturbation of the apoptotic pathway by treatment with inhibitors of two caspases, ICE and CPP32. The number of cells in apoptosis increased in a dose-dependent manner after UV-C treatment. Centrifugation of irradiated cells on a Percoll gradient increased the collection of apoptotic cells tenfold. The stereotypical apoptotic phenotype, in which cells have deep cytoplasmic blebbing and highly condensed DNA, comprised only a few percent of all apoptosis, and was rarely seen in groups receiving caspase inhibitors. The most common apoptotic phenotype was a rounded cell with large spherical nucleolus and associated DNA. After treatment with UV-C plus inhibitors the apoptotic index was decreased by about 30% compared to UV-C radiation alone. These apoptotic cells had dark spherical cytoplasm with small blebs, greatly increased numbers of cytoplasmic ribosomes, abundant nucleolar material with a large separate granular component, and chromatin condensed at the nuclear membrane. Using the technique of spectral imaging, it was found that the spectrum obtained from the granular component of the nucleolus, which was elevated in apoptotic cells treated with UV-C plus inhibitors, was similar to the dense accumulation of ribosomes in the apoptotic cytoplasm. The data indicate that spectral imaging may be a useful tool for identifying and characterizing variations in the apoptotic process, and that the caspase inhibitors used here do not completely abolish UV-C induced apoptosis, but rather alter its incidence and progression.