Synergistic effect of Ag@CN with BiVO4 in a unique Z-type heterojunction for enhancing photoelectrochemical water splitting performance

In the realm of photoelectrochemical technology, the enhancement of photogenerated charge carrier separation is pivotal for the advancement of energy conversion performance. Carbon nitride (CN) is established as a photocatalytic material with significant potential and exhibits unique advantages in addressing the issue of rapid recombination of photogenerated carriers. This study utilized an efficient in situ doping method that combined Mo,W-doped BiVO4 (Mo,W:BVO) with silver-loaded CN (Ag@CN), yielding an all-solid-state Mo,W:BVO/Ag@CN heterostructure that effectively augments the separation efficiency of electron-hole pairs. Through the annealing process, Ag@CN was uniformly coated within the Mo,W:BVO thin film, significantly enlarging the interface contact area to enhance visible light absorption and photogenerated carrier movement. The results of the photoelectrochemical tests showed that the Mo,W:BVO/Ag@CN heterostructure had the highest photocurrent and charge transfer efficiency, which were 6.4 times and 3.6 times higher respectively than those of the unmodified Mo,W:BVO. Our research elucidates the interactions within all-solid-state Z-scheme heterojunctions, outlining strategic approaches for crafting innovative and superior photocatalytic systems.

A Multistate Non-Volatile Photoelectronic Memory Device Based on Ferroelectric Tunnel Junction with Modulable Visible Light Photoresponse

Recently, certain ferroelectric tunnel junctions (FTJs) exhibit non-volatile modulations on photoresponse as well as tunneling electroresistance (TER) effects related to ferroelectric polarization states. From the opposite perspective, the corresponding polarization states can be read by detecting the levels of the photocurrent. In this study, we fabricate a novel amorphous selenium (a-Se)/PbZr0.2Ti0.8O3 (PZT)/Nb-doped SrTiO3 (NSTO) heterojunction, which exhibits a high TER of 3 × 106. Unlike perovskite oxide FTJs with a limited ultraviolet response, the introduction of a narrow bandgap semiconductor (a-Se) enables self-powered photoresponse within the visible light range. The self-powered photoresponse characteristics can be significantly modulated by ferroelectric polarization. The photocurrent after writing polarization voltages of +4 and -5 V exhibits a 1200% increase. Furthermore, the photocurrent could be clearly distinguished after writing stepwise polarization voltages, and then a multistate information storage is designed with nondestructive readout capacity under light illumination. This work holds great significance in advancing the development of ferroelectric multistate photoelectronic memories with high storage density and expanding the design possibilities for FTJs.

3D printable strong and tough composite organo-hydrogels inspired by natural hierarchical composite design principles

Fabrication of composite hydrogels can effectively enhance the mechanical and functional properties of conventional hydrogels. While ceramic reinforcement is common in many hard biological tissues, ceramic-reinforced hydrogels lack a similar natural prototype for bioinspiration. This raises a key question: How can we still attain bioinspired mechanical mechanisms in composite hydrogels without mimicking a specific composition and structure? Abstracting the hierarchical composite design principles of natural materials, this study proposes a hierarchical fabrication strategy for ceramic-reinforced organo-hydrogels, featuring (1) aligned ceramic platelets through direct-ink-write printing, (2) poly(vinyl alcohol) organo-hydrogel matrix reinforced by solution substitution, and (3) silane-treated platelet-matrix interfaces. Unit filaments are further printed into a selection of bioinspired macro-architectures, leading to high stiffness, strength, and toughness (fracture energy up to 31.1 kJ/m2), achieved through synergistic multi-scale energy dissipation. The materials also exhibit wide operation tolerance and electrical conductivity for flexible electronics in mechanically demanding conditions. Hence, this study demonstrates a model strategy that extends the fundamental design principles of natural materials to fabricate composite hydrogels with synergistic mechanical and functional enhancement.

Phase Engineering of Nanomaterials: Transition Metal Dichalcogenides

Crystal phase, a critical structural characteristic beyond the morphology, size, dimension, facet, etc., determines the physicochemical properties of nanomaterials. As a group of layered nanomaterials with polymorphs, transition metal dichalcogenides (TMDs) have attracted intensive research attention due to their phase-dependent properties. Therefore, great efforts have been devoted to the phase engineering of TMDs to synthesize TMDs with controlled phases, especially unconventional/metastable phases, for various applications in electronics, optoelectronics, catalysis, biomedicine, energy storage and conversion, and ferroelectrics. Considering the significant progress in the synthesis and applications of TMDs, we believe that a comprehensive review on the phase engineering of TMDs is critical to promote their fundamental studies and practical applications. This Review aims to provide a comprehensive introduction and discussion on the crystal structures, synthetic strategies, and phase-dependent properties and applications of TMDs. Finally, our perspectives on the challenges and opportunities in phase engineering of TMDs will also be discussed.

1T'-transition metal dichalcogenide monolayers stabilized on 4H-Au nanowires for ultrasensitive SERS detection

Unconventional 1T'-phase transition metal dichalcogenides (TMDs) have aroused tremendous research interest due to their unique phase-dependent physicochemical properties and applications. However, due to the metastable nature of 1T'-TMDs, the controlled synthesis of 1T'-TMD monolayers (MLs) with high phase purity and stability still remains a challenge. Here we report that 4H-Au nanowires (NWs), when used as templates, can induce the quasi-epitaxial growth of high-phase-purity and stable 1T'-TMD MLs, including WS2, WSe2, MoS2 and MoSe2, via a facile and rapid wet-chemical method. The as-synthesized 4H-Au@1T'-TMD core-shell NWs can be used for ultrasensitive surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) detection. For instance, the 4H-Au@1T'-WS2 NWs have achieved attomole-level SERS detections of Rhodamine 6G and a variety of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) spike proteins. This work provides insights into the preparation of high-phase-purity and stable 1T'-TMD MLs on metal substrates or templates, showing great potential in various promising applications.

Phase-Controlled Growth of 1T'-MoS2 Nanoribbons on 1H-MoS2 Nanosheets

2D heterostructures are emerging as alternatives to conventional semiconductors, such as silicon, germanium, and gallium nitride, for next-generation electronics and optoelectronics. However, the direct growth of 2D heterostructures, especially for those with metastable phases still remains challenging. To obtain 2D transition metal dichalcogenides (TMDs) with designed phases, it is highly desired to develop phase-controlled synthetic strategies. Here, a facile chemical vapor deposition method is reported to prepare vertical 1H/1T' MoS2 heterophase structures. By simply changing the growth atmosphere, semimetallic 1T'-MoS2 can be in situ grown on the top of semiconducting 1H-MoS2, forming vertical semiconductor/semimetal 1H/1T' heterophase structures with a sharp interface. The integrated device based on the 1H/1T' MoS2 heterophase structure displays a typical rectifying behavior with a current rectifying ratio of ≈103. Moreover, the 1H/1T' MoS2-based photodetector achieves a responsivity of 1.07 A W-1 at 532 nm with an ultralow dark current of less than 10-11 A. The aforementioned results indicate that 1H/1T' MoS2 heterophase structures can be a promising candidate for future rectifiers and photodetectors. Importantly, the approach may pave the way toward tailoring the phases of TMDs, which can help us utilize phase engineering strategies to promote the performance of electronic devices.

Ultrasound Induces Local Disorder of FeOOH on CdIn2S4 Photoanode for High Efficiency Photoelectrochemical Water Oxidation

The regulation of the crystal structure of oxygen evolution cocatalyst (OEC) is a promising strategy for enhancing the photoelectrochemical efficiency of photoanodes. However, the prevailing regulating approach typically requires a multistep procedure, presenting a significant challenge for maintaining the structural integrity and performance of the photoanode. Herein, FeOOH with a local disordered structure is directly grown on a CdIn2S4 (CIS) photoanode via a simple and mild sonochemical approach. By modulating the localized supersaturation of Ni ions, ultrasonic cavitation induces Ni ions to participate in the nucleation and growth of FeOOH clusters to cause local disorder of FeOOH. Consequently, the local disordered FeOOH facilitates the exposure of additional active sites, boosting OER kinetics and extending charge carrier lifetimes. Finally, the optimal photoanode reaches 4.52 mA cm-2 at 1.23 VRHE, and the onset potential shifts negatively by 330 mV, exhibiting excellent performance compared with that of other metal sulfide-based photoelectrodes reported thus far. This work provides a mild and controllable sonochemical method for regulating the phase structure of OECs to construct high-performance photoanodes.

OTUD7B: A potential therapeutic target in the treatment of gastric cancer?

None.

Sonochemical regulation of oxygen vacancies for Bi2WO6 nanosheet-based photoanodes to promote photoelectrochemical performance

Integration of oxygen vacancies (Vo) into nanostructured semiconductor-based photocatalysts has been recognized as a promising strategy for enhancing the performance of photoelectrochemical (PEC) water splitting. However, precisely controlling the Vo concentration in photocatalysts via an effective and tunable approach remains challenging. Herein, a series of optimized bismuth tungstate (Bi2WO6) nanosheet-based photoanodes with varying concentrations of Vo were prepared by a sonochemical method with in situ cavitation detection, which enables accurate manipulation of the acoustic cavitation intensity applied to the surface of Bi2WO6 photoanodes in alkaline solution. Based on the analysis of the Vo concentration and sound field characteristics, the mechanism of sonochemical regulation of Vo in Bi2WO6 nanosheets was interpreted. Specifically, the increase in Vo concentration can be attributed to the enhancement of Bi-O bond dissociation. This enhancement is influenced not only by the intensified impact of shear force and the generation of active radicals by transient cavitation, but also by the accelerated diffusion of the reactant, a result of stable cavitation. By optimizing the transient and stable cavitation intensity, a Vo-rich Bi2WO6 photoanode was obtained without altering the microstructure of Bi2WO6 nanosheets. The presence of high concentration Vo facilitates the interfacial chemical reactivity and the transmission of photogenerated carriers, leading to the drastic promotion of the PEC water splitting performance. The transient photocurrent density of the Vo-rich Bi2WO6 photoanode reaches 69.2 μA cm-2 (1.23 V vs. RHE), 7.86 times that of the untreated Bi2WO6 photoanode. Additionally, the charge injection efficiency increases to 35.4%. This work provides a controllable and effective method for defect engineering of nanostructured semiconductor-based electrodes.

Robust and sensitive conductive nanocomposite hydrogel with bridge cross-linking-dominated hierarchical structural design

Conductive hydrogels have a remarkable potential for applications in soft electronics and robotics, owing to their noteworthy attributes, including electrical conductivity, stretchability, biocompatibility, etc. However, the limited strength and toughness of these hydrogels have traditionally impeded their practical implementation. Inspired by the hierarchical architecture of high-performance biological composites found in nature, we successfully fabricate a robust and sensitive conductive nanocomposite hydrogel through self-assembly-induced bridge cross-linking of MgB2 nanosheets and polyvinyl alcohol hydrogels. By combining the hierarchical lamellar microstructure with robust molecular B─O─C covalent bonds, the resulting conductive hydrogel exhibits an exceptional strength and toughness. Moreover, the hydrogel demonstrates exceptional sensitivity (response/relaxation time, 20 milliseconds; detection lower limit, ~1 Pascal) under external deformation. Such characteristics enable the conductive hydrogel to exhibit superior performance in soft sensing applications. This study introduces a high-performance conductive hydrogel and opens up exciting possibilities for the development of soft electronics.

Highly Robust Conductive Organo-Hydrogels with Powerful Sensing Capabilities Under Large Mechanical Stress

The low mechanical strength of conductive hydrogels (<1 MPa) has been a significant hurdle in their practical application, as they are prone to fracturing under complex conditions, limiting their effectiveness. Here, this work fabricates a strong and tough conductive hierarchical poly(vinyl alcohol) (PEDOT:PSS/PVA) organo-hydrogel (PPS organo-hydrogel) via a facile combining strategy of self-assembly and stretch training. With PVA/PEDOT:PSS microlayers and aligned PVA/PEDOT:PSS nanofibers, PVA and PEDOT:PSS nanocrystalline domains, and semi-interpenetrating polymer networks, PPS organo-hydrogels display outstanding mechanical performances (strength: 54.8 MPa, toughness: 153.97 MJ m-3 ). Additionally, PPS organo-hydrogels also exhibit powerful sensing capabilities (gauge factor (GF): 983) due to the aligned hierarchical structures and organic liquid phase of DMSO. Notably, with the synergy of such mechanical and sensing properties, organo-hydrogels can even detect objects as light as 1 gram, despite bearing a tensile strength of ≈23 MPa. By incorporating these materials into human-machine interfaces, such as controlling artificial arms for grabbing objects and monitoring sport behaviors in soccer training, this work has unlocked a new realm of possibilities for these high-performance hierarchical organo-hydrogels. This approach to designing hierarchical structures has the potential to lead to even more high-performance hydrogels in the future.

Toripalimab plus axitinib versus sunitinib as first-line treatment for advanced renal cell carcinoma: RENOTORCH, a randomized, open-label, phase III study

BACKGROUND

Immune checkpoint inhibitors in combination with tyrosine kinase inhibitors are standard treatments for advanced clear cell renal cell carcinoma (RCC). This phase III RENOTORCH study compared the efficacy and safety of toripalimab plus axitinib versus sunitinib for the first-line treatment of patients with intermediate-/poor-risk advanced RCC.

PATIENTS AND METHODS

Patients with intermediate-/poor-risk unresectable or metastatic RCC were randomized in a ratio of 1 : 1 to receive toripalimab (240 mg intravenously once every 3 weeks) plus axitinib (5 mg orally twice daily) or sunitinib [50 mg orally once daily for 4 weeks (6-week cycle) or 2 weeks (3-week cycle)]. The primary endpoint was progression-free survival (PFS) assessed by an independent review committee (IRC). The secondary endpoints were investigator-assessed PFS, overall response rate (ORR), overall survival (OS), and safety.

RESULTS

A total of 421 patients were randomized to receive toripalimab plus axitinib (n = 210) or sunitinib (n = 211). With a median follow-up of 14.6 months, toripalimab plus axitinib significantly reduced the risk of disease progression or death by 35% compared with sunitinib as assessed by an IRC [hazard ratio (HR) 0.65, 95% confidence interval (CI) 0.49-0.86; P = 0.0028]. The median PFS was 18.0 months in the toripalimab-axitinib group, whereas it was 9.8 months in the sunitinib group. The IRC-assessed ORR was significantly higher in the toripalimab-axitinib group compared with the sunitinib group (56.7% versus 30.8%; P < 0.0001). An OS trend favoring toripalimab plus axitinib was also observed (HR 0.61, 95% CI 0.40-0.92). Treatment-related grade ≥3 adverse events occurred in 61.5% of patients in the toripalimab-axitinib group and 58.6% of patients in the sunitinib group.

CONCLUSION

In patients with previously untreated intermediate-/poor-risk advanced RCC, toripalimab plus axitinib provided significantly longer PFS and higher ORR than sunitinib and had a manageable safety profile TRIAL REGISTRATION: ClinicalTrials.gov NCT04394975.

Prognostic Significance of Grade Discrepancy Between Primary Tumor and Venous Thrombus in Nonmetastatic Clear-cell Renal Cell Carcinoma: Analysis of the REMEMBER Registry and Implications for Adjuvant Therapy

BACKGROUND

Further stratification of the risk of recurrence of clear-cell renal cell carcinoma (ccRCC) with venous tumor thrombus (VTT) will facilitate selection of candidates for adjuvant therapy.

OBJECTIVE

To assess the impact of tumor grade discrepancy (GD) between the primary tumor (PT) and VTT in nonmetastatic ccRCC on disease-free survival (DFS), overall survival (OS), and cancer-specific survival (CSS).

DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTS

This was a retrospective analysis of a multi-institutional nationwide data set for patients with pT3N0M0 ccRCC who underwent radical nephrectomy and thrombectomy.

OUTCOMES MEASUREMENTS AND STATISTICAL ANALYSIS

Pathology slides were centrally reviewed. GD, a bidirectional variable (upgrading or downgrading), was numerically defined as the VTT grade minus the PT grade. Multivariable models were built to predict DFS, OS, and CSS.

RESULTS AND LIMITATIONS

We analyzed data for 604 patients with median follow-up of 42 mo (excluding events). Tumor GD between VTT and PT was observed for 47% (285/604) of the patients and was an independent risk factor with incremental value in predicting the outcomes of interest (all p < 0.05). Incorporation of tumor GD significantly improved the performance of the ECOG-ACRIN 2805 (ASSURE) model. A GD-based model (PT grade, GD, pT stage, PT sarcomatoid features, fat invasion, and VTT consistency) had a c index of 0.72 for DFS. The hazard ratios were 8.0 for GD = +2 (p < 0.001), 1.9 for GD = +1 (p < 0.001), 0.57 for GD = -1 (p = 0.001), and 0.22 for GD = -2 (p = 0.003) versus GD = 0 as the reference. According to model-converted risk scores, DFS, OS, and CSS significantly differed between subgroups with low, intermediate, and high risk (all p < 0.001).

CONCLUSIONS

Routine reporting of VTT upgrading or downgrading in relation to the PT and use of our GD-based nomograms can facilitate more informed treatment decisions by tailoring strategies to an individual patient's risk of progression.

PATIENT SUMMARY

We developed a tool to improve patient counseling and guide decision-making on other therapies in addition to surgery for patients with the clear-cell type of kidney cancer and tumor invasion of a vein.

Self-Assembled Hyperbranched Gold Nanoarrays Decode Serum United Urine Metabolic Fingerprints for Kidney Tumor Diagnosis

Serum united urine metabolic analysis comprehensively reveals the disease status for kidney diseases in particular. Thus, the precise and convenient acquisition of metabolic molecular information from united biofluids is vitally important for clinical disease diagnosis and biomarker discovery. Laser desorption/ionization mass spectrometry (LDI-MS) presents various advantages in metabolic analysis; however, there remain challenges in ionization efficiency and MS signal reproducibility. Herein, we constructed a self-assembled hyperbranched black gold nanoarray (HyBrAuNA) assisted LDI-MS platform to profile serum united urine metabolic fingerprints (S-UMFs) for diagnosis of early stage renal cell carcinoma (RCC). The closely packed HyBrAuNA afforded strong electromagnetic field enhancement and high photothermal conversion efficacy, enabling effective ionization of low abundant metabolites for S-UMF collection. With a uniform nanoarray, the platform presented excellent reproducibility to ensure the accuracy of S-UMFs obtained in seconds. When it was combined with automated machine learning analysis of S-UMFs, early stage RCC patients were discriminated from the healthy controls with an area under the curve (AUC) > 0.99. Furthermore, we screened out a panel of 9 metabolites (4 from serum and 5 from urine) and related pathways toward early stage kidney tumor. In view of its high-throughput, fast analytical speed, and low sample consumption, our platform possesses potential in metabolic profiling of united biofluids for disease diagnosis and pathogenic mechanism exploration.

Superior Strength, Toughness, and Damage-Tolerance Observed in Microlattices of Aperiodic Unit Cells

Characterized by periodic cellular unit cells, microlattices offer exceptional potential as lightweight and robust materials. However, their inherent periodicity poses the risk of catastrophic global failure. To address this limitation, a novel approach, that is to introduce microlattices composed of aperiodic unit cells inspired by Einstein's tile, where the orientation of cells never repeats in the same orientation is proposed. Experiments and simulations are conducted to validate the concept by comparing compressive responses of the aperiodic microlattices with those of common periodic microlattices. Indeed, the microlattices exhibit stable and progressive compressive deformation, contrasting with catastrophic fracture of periodic structures. At the same relative density, the microlattices outperform the periodic ones, exhibiting fracture strain, energy absorption, crushing stress efficiency, and smoothness coefficients at least 830%, 300%, 130%, and 160% higher, respectively. These improvements can be attributed to aperiodicity, where diverse failure thresholds exist locally due to varying strut angles and contact modes during compression. This effectively prevents both global fracture and abrupt stress drops. Furthermore, the aperiodic microlattice exhibits good damage tolerance with excellent deformation recoverability, retaining 76% ultimate stress post-recovery at 30% compressive strain. Overall, a novel concept of adopting aperiodic cell arrangements to achieve damage-tolerant microlattice metamaterials is presented.

3D-Printed Lattice Structures for Sound Absorption: Current Progress, Mechanisms and Models, Structural-Property Relationships, and Future Outlook

The reduction of noises, achieved through absorption, is of paramount importance to the well-being of both humans and machines. Lattice structures, defined as architectured porous solids arranged in repeating patterns, are emerging as advanced sound-absorbing materials. Their immense design freedom allows for customizable pore morphology and interconnectivity, enabling the design of specific absorption properties. Thus far, the sound absorption performance of various types of lattice structures are studied and they demonstrated favorable properties compared to conventional materials. Herein, this review gives a thorough overview on the current research status, and characterizations for lattice structures in terms of acoustics is proposed. Till date, there are four main sound absorption mechanisms associated with lattice structures. Despite their complexity, lattice structures can be accurately modelled using acoustical impedance models that focus on critical acoustical geometries. Four defining features: morphology, relative density, cell size, and number of cells, have significant influences on the acoustical geometries and hence sound wave dissipation within the lattice. Drawing upon their structural-property relationships, a classification of lattice structures into three distinct types in terms of acoustics is proposed. It is proposed that future attentions can be placed on new design concepts, advanced materials selections, and multifunctionalities.

On Exploring Multiplicity of Primitives and Attributes for Texture Recognition in the Wild

Texture recognition is a challenging visual task since its multiple primitives or attributes can be perceived from the texture image under different spatial contexts. Existing approaches predominantly built upon CNN incorporate rich local descriptors with orderless aggregation to capture invariance to the spatial layout. However, these methods ignore the inherent structure relation organized by primitives and the semantic concept described by attributes, which are critical cues for texture representation. In this paper, we propose a novel Multiple Primitives and Attributes Perception network (MPAP) that extracts features by modeling the relation of bottom-up structure and top-down attribute in a multi-branch unified framework. A bottom-up process is first proposed to capture the inherent relation of various primitive structures by leveraging structure dependency and spatial order information. Then, a top-down process is introduced to model the latent relation of multiple attributes by transferring attribute-related features between adjacent branches. Moreover, an augmentation module is devised to bridge the gap between high-level attributes and low-level structure features. MPAP can learn representation through jointing bottom-up and top-down processes in a mutually reinforced manner. Experimental results on six challenging texture datasets demonstrate the superiority of MPAP over state-of-the-art methods in terms of accuracy, robustness, and efficiency.

Predictive genomic biomarkers of therapeutic effects in renal cell carcinoma

BACKGROUND

In recent years, there have been great improvements in the therapy of renal cell carcinoma. Nevertheless, the therapeutic effect varies significantly from person to person. To discern the effective treatment for different populations, predictive molecular biomarkers in response to target, immunological, and combined therapies are widely studied.

CONCLUSION

This review summarized those studies from three perspectives (SNPs, mutation, and expression level) and listed the relationship between biomarkers and therapeutic effect, highlighting the great potential of predictive molecular biomarkers in metastatic RCC therapy. However, due to a series of reasons, most of these findings require further validation.

Recent Progress on Phase Engineering of Nanomaterials

As a key structural parameter, phase depicts the arrangement of atoms in materials. Normally, a nanomaterial exists in its thermodynamically stable crystal phase. With the development of nanotechnology, nanomaterials with unconventional crystal phases, which rarely exist in their bulk counterparts, or amorphous phase have been prepared using carefully controlled reaction conditions. Together these methods are beginning to enable phase engineering of nanomaterials (PEN), i.e., the synthesis of nanomaterials with unconventional phases and the transformation between different phases, to obtain desired properties and functions. This Review summarizes the research progress in the field of PEN. First, we present representative strategies for the direct synthesis of unconventional phases and modulation of phase transformation in diverse kinds of nanomaterials. We cover the synthesis of nanomaterials ranging from metal nanostructures such as Au, Ag, Cu, Pd, and Ru, and their alloys; metal oxides, borides, and carbides; to transition metal dichalcogenides (TMDs) and 2D layered materials. We review synthesis and growth methods ranging from wet-chemical reduction and seed-mediated epitaxial growth to chemical vapor deposition (CVD), high pressure phase transformation, and electron and ion-beam irradiation. After that, we summarize the significant influence of phase on the various properties of unconventional-phase nanomaterials. We also discuss the potential applications of the developed unconventional-phase nanomaterials in different areas including catalysis, electrochemical energy storage (batteries and supercapacitors), solar cells, optoelectronics, and sensing. Finally, we discuss existing challenges and future research directions in PEN.

Preparation, purification, and biochemical of fat-degrading bacterial enzymes from pig carcass compost and its application

BACKGROUND

A lot of kitchen waste oil is produced every day worldwide, leading to serious environmental pollution. As one of the environmental protection methods, microorganisms are widely used treating of various wastes. Lipase, as one of the cleaning agents can effectively degrade kitchen waste oil. The composting process of pig carcasses produces many lipase producing microorganisms, rendering compost products an excellent source for isolating lipase producing microorganisms. To our knowledge, there are no reports isolating of lipase producing strains from the high temperature phase of pig carcass compost.

METHODOLOGY

Lipase producing strains were isolated using a triglyceride medium and identified by 16S rRNA gene sequencing. The optimal fermentation conditions for maximum lipase yield were gradually optimized by single-factor tests. The extracellular lipase was purified by ammonium sulfate precipitation and Sephadex G-75 gel isolation chromatography. Amino acid sequence analysis, structure prediction, and molecular docking of the purified protein were performed. The pure lipase's enzymatic properties and application potential were evaluated by characterizing its biochemical properties.

RESULTS

In this study, a lipase producing strain of Bacillus sp. ZF2 was isolated from pig carcass compost products, the optimal fermentation conditions of lipase: sucrose 3 g/L, ammonium sulfate 7 g/L, Mn2+ 1.0 mmol/L, initial pH 6, inoculum 5%, temperature 25 ℃, and fermentation time 48 h. After purification, the specific activity of the purified lipase reached 317.59 U/mg, a 9.78-fold improvement. Lipase had the highest similarity to the GH family 46 chitosanase and molecular docking showed that lipase binds to fat via two hydrogen bonds at Gln146 (A) and Glu203 (A). Under different conditions (temperature, metal ions, organic solvents, and surfactants), lipase can maintain enzymatic activity. Under different types of kitchen oils, lipase has low activity only for 'chicken oil', in treating other substrates, the enzyme activity can exceed 50%.

CONCLUSIONS

This study reveals the potential of lipase for waste oil removal, and future research will be devoted to the application of lipase.

Principles of progressive slow-sound and critical coupling condition in broadband sonic black hole absorber

Recent advances in sonic black hole (SBH) provide new opportunities for controlling sound waves and designing wave manipulation devices. SBH is a device that consists of partitions with gradually decreasing inner radii inserted into an acoustic duct. Several studies have reported that SBH can achieve a broadband sound absorption coefficient close to 1, avoiding the issue of alternating high and low absorption coefficients observed in traditional sound absorbers. However, the fundamental mechanisms and principles behind this behavior are not yet fully understood. This study aims to investigate the detailed sound absorption mechanisms of SBH, including the progressive slow-sound effect and the critical coupling condition that leads to broadband sound absorption. To achieve this goal, an analytical model based on the effective medium approach is developed to investigate the layer-by-layer retardation in sound propagation. The sound absorption coefficient is then determined based on the surface impedance calculation. The effective medium analysis reveals that SBH enables a unique condition to progressively decelerate wave propagation across its layers. As a result, the critical coupling condition becomes more easily established with smoothly increasing SBH partitions and more discretised layers, as elucidated by the complex frequency analysis results. The physical insights gained from this study reveal the distinctive features of SBH compared to classical sound absorbers, paving the way for its engineering applications.

In-situ observation of phase separation dynamics for immiscible aqueous solution within ultrasonic field

A high-speed imaging technique was used to observe the phase separation process of water (H2O)-20 %succinonitrile (SCN) immiscible solution within ultrasound field. Combining with numerical simulation, the effects of ultrasonic cavitation and acoustic streaming on the fragmentation and migration of secondary droplets were revealed. It was found that the previously spherical or near-spherical secondary H2O-rich droplets formed under static condition were dynamically transformed into several novel forms, such as tadpole-like, string-beads, gourd-like, and threadlike patterns. The calculated results showed that the cavitation could fragment micron-scale H2O-rich droplets because of the produced higher shock wave pressure than the droplets' Laplace pressure, and the subsequent droplet morphology evolution mainly depended on the liquid ejection volume determined by the distance between the droplets and the collapsing bubbles. Meanwhile, acoustic streaming, which generated shear force exceeding the surface tension of H2O-rich phase, stretched, split and finally fractured millimeter-sized or even larger secondary droplets into several smaller spherical sub-droplets. In comparison, the observed secondary droplet distribution characteristics in H2O-20 %SCN solution were similar to the Bi-rich particles in the ultrasonic solidification microstructures of Al-30 %Bi immiscible alloy, confirming that this work provided a deep understanding of the liquid phase separation mechanism within ultrasonic field.

Synergistic anticancer activity of cisplatin combined with tannic acid enhances apoptosis in lung cancer through the PERK-ATF4 pathway

BACKGROUND

Cisplatin (CDDP) is a common anticancer drug whose side effects limit its clinical applications. Tannins (TA) are plant-derived polyphenols that inhibit tumor growth in different types of cancer. Here, we evaluated the anticancer effect of TA combined with CDDP on lung cancer cell lines (GLC-82 and H1299) and investigated the underlying molecular mechanism of endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress-induced apoptosis.

METHODS

Cell lines were treated with CDDP, TA, and CDDP + TA, and the effect of the combination was assessed using MTT assay and observed under light and fluorescence microscopes. Cell apoptosis was detected by flow cytometry, and the levels of ERS apoptosis pathway related genes were valuated by qRT-PCR and western blotting. The effects of the drug combination on the tumors of nude mice injected with H1299 cells were investigated, and the expression of key factors in the ER stress apoptotic pathway was investigated.

RESULTS

The combination of CDDP and TA significantly inhibited lung cancer cell viability indicating a synergistic antitumoral effect. The mRNA and protein expression levels of key ER stress factors in the CDDP + TA group were considerably higher than those in the CDDP and TA groups, the tumor volume in tumor-bearing mice was the smallest, and the number of apoptotic cells and the protein expression levels of the key ER stress in the combination group were considerably higher.

CONCLUSIONS

The combination of TA and CDDP may produce synergistic antitumoral effects mediated by the PERK-ATF4-CHOP apoptotic axis, suggesting a novel adjuvant treatment for lung cancer.

Self-Powered Wavelength-Dependent Dual-Polarity Response Photodetector Based on CdS@PEDOT:PSS@Au Sandwich-Structured Core-Shell Nanorod Arrays

Self-powered operation and multifunctionality have significantly oriented the development of photodetectors (PDs), which could be realized through nanoarchitecture construction and energy band structure design. Herein, a self-powered wavelength-dependent dual-polarity response PD based on (CdS@PEDOT:PSS@Au) sandwich-structured core-shell nanorod arrays (NRAs) is proposed. The synthesis approach of this three-layer heterostructure consists of a hydrothermal reaction, spin coating, and thermal evaporation. The n-CdS/p-PEDOT:PSS junction and the PEDOT:PSS/Au Schottky junction at the interfaces provide two photocurrent driving forces in opposite directions, and their contribution to the net photocurrent is controlled by the incident light wavelength due to the different light absorption ranges of the CdS core and the PEDOT:PSS shell. As a result, the polarity of the photocurrent switches from negative to positive as the wavelength increases. In addition, the response speed of negative photocurrents (∼10 ms) is faster than that of positive photocurrents (∼100 ms), which is consistent with the underlying mechanism of the dual-polarity response. Furthermore, color discrimination and imaging capabilities are demonstrated by deploying the PDs as sensing pixels and recognizing green and red patterns. The sandwich-structured core-shell NRA heterojunction system introduces a novel idea for dual-polarity response PDs.

On-chip electrocatalytic microdevices

On-chip electrocatalytic microdevices (OCEMs) are an emerging electrochemical platform specialized for investigating nanocatalysts at the microscopic level. The OCEM platform allows high-precision electrochemical measurements at the individual nanomaterial level and, more importantly, offers unique perspectives inaccessible with conventional electrochemical methods. This protocol describes the critical concepts, experimental standardization, operational principles and data analysis of OCEMs. Specifically, standard protocols for the measurement of the electrocatalytic hydrogen evolution reaction of individual 2D nanosheets are introduced with data validation, interpretation and benchmarking. A series of factors (e.g., the exposed area of material, the choice of passivation layer and current leakage) that could have effects on the accuracy and reliability of measurement are discussed. In addition, as an example of the high adaptability of OCEMs, the protocol for in situ electrical transport measurement is detailed. We believe that this protocol will promote the general adoption of the OCEM platform and inspire further development in the near future. This protocol requires essential knowledge in chemical synthesis, device fabrication and electrochemistry.

Clinical values of circulating tumor cells count in localized renal cell carcinoma

Background

Renal cancer is one of the most common malignant tumors of the urinary system, with distant metastasis occurring 30% of patients. Therefore, early detection and monitoring of tumor progression are of great significance in the diagnosis and treatment of renal cancer. However, current biomarkers used to diagnose, monitor recurrence and assess prognosis of renal cancer are still uncertain. Circulating tumor cells (CTCs) are tumor cells detached from the primary tumor or metastasis, invaded and existing in the peripheral blood, and are one of the most promising liquid biopsy targets because they can provide complete cell biological information. Microfluidic chip has advantages of miniaturization, high integration, and fast analysis, which has advantages in CTC separation and enrichment.

Methods

In this study, 1 mL peripheral blood of each 30 patients with early localized renal cancer was collected before and 1 day after surgery. CTC enrichment was performed by microfluidic chip and CTCs were identified by immunofluorescence staining. All patients were followed up for a median of 17 months.

Results

The number of CTCs before surgery was higher than that after surgery (P<0.001), and the number was positively correlated with tumor-node-metastasis (TNM) stage and International Society of Urological Pathology (ISUP) grade. Patients in group CTC ≤2 had a longer progression-free survival (PFS) than those in group CTC ≥3 (P<0.05).

Conclusions

Surgical treatment can remarkably reduce the number of CTCs in patients, and CTC counts can also play a role in monitoring tumor load and predicting prognosis in renal cancer.

Spatio-temporal heterogeneity in cancer evolution and tumor microenvironment of renal cell carcinoma with tumor thrombus

Metastasis is the most fatal aspect of cancer, often preceded by a tumor thrombus (TT) which forms within the vascular system. Renal cell carcinoma (RCC), the predominant form of kidney cancer, witnesses a venous system invasion in 4-10% of cases, resulting in venous tumor thrombus (RCC-TT). This variant represents a formidable clinical challenge due to its escalated surgical complexity, heightened risk of progression and metastasis, and an adverse prognosis. However, recent trials addressing RCC-TT face significant barriers stemming from the profound inter- and intra-tumoral heterogeneity, patient-specific treatment variations, and distinct therapeutic resistance patterns between the primary tumor (PT) and the TT. This review delves into the unique evolutionary pathway of RCC-TT, the relationship between the staging and grading of RCC-TT invasion patterns, and the spatial molecular profiling of RCC-TT. Additionally, we assess the temporal heterogeneity among TT, PT, and distant metastases, as well as the functional phenotypes of TME components. An outlook for future research on RCC-TT is also provided.

Learning Visual Affordance Grounding From Demonstration Videos

Visual affordance grounding aims to segment all possible interaction regions between people and objects from an image/video, which benefits many applications, such as robot grasping and action recognition. Prevailing methods predominantly depend on the appearance feature of the objects to segment each region of the image, which encounters the following two problems: 1) there are multiple possible regions in an object that people interact with and 2) there are multiple possible human interactions in the same object region. To address these problems, we propose a hand-aided affordance grounding network (HAG-Net) that leverages the aided clues provided by the position and action of the hand in demonstration videos to eliminate the multiple possibilities and better locate the interaction regions in the object. Specifically, HAG-Net adopts a dual-branch structure to process the demonstration video and object image data. For the video branch, we introduce hand-aided attention to enhance the region around the hand in each video frame and then use the long short-term memory (LSTM) network to aggregate the action features. For the object branch, we introduce a semantic enhancement module (SEM) to make the network focus on different parts of the object according to the action classes and utilize a distillation loss to align the output features of the object branch with that of the video branch and transfer the knowledge in the video branch to the object branch. Quantitative and qualitative evaluations on two challenging datasets show that our method has achieved state-of-the-art results for affordance grounding. The source code is available at: https://github.com/lhc1224/HAG-Net.

A Universal Chelation-Induced Selective Demetallization Strategy for Bioceramic Nanosheets (BCene)

The emergence of nanosheet materials like graphene and phosphorene, which are created by breaking the interlayer van der Waals force, has revolutionized multiple fields. Layered inorganic materials are ubiquitous in materials like bioceramics, semiconductors, superconductors, etc. However, the strong interlayer covalent or ionic bonding in these crystals makes it difficult to fabricate nanosheets from them. In this study, we present a simple technique to produce nanosheets from layered crystals by selectively exfoliating their interlayer metal atoms using the metal-chelation reaction. As a proof of concept, we successfully produced bioceramic nanosheets (BCene) by extracting Ca layers from Akermanite (AKT). The 3D-printed BCene scaffolds exhibited superior mechanical strength and in vitro bioactivity compared to the scaffolds made from AKT nanopowders. Our findings demonstrate the outstanding potential of BCene nanosheets in tissue engineering. Additionally, the selective demetallization technique for nanosheet production could be applied to other inorganic layered crystals to optimize their performance.

Customizable Resilient Multifunctional Graphene Aerogels via Blend-spinning assisted Freeze Casting

Graphene aerogels have gained considerable attention due to their unique physical properties, but their poor mechanical properties and lack of functionality have hindered their advanced applications. In this study, we propose a blend-spinning-assisted freeze-casting (BSFC) strategy to incorporate particle-modified carbon fibers into graphene aerogels for mechanical strengthening and functional enhancement. This method offers a great deal of freedom in the creation of customizable multimaterial, multiscale structural graphene aerogels. For example, we fabricated silicon carbide particle modified carbon fiber reinforced graphene (SiC/CF-GA) aerogels. The resulting aerogels display excellent properties such as being ultralightweight and highly resilient and having fatigue compression resistance (1000 cycles at 50% strain). Meanwhile, enhanced resilience inspired the effective strain-sensing capabilities of SiC/CF-GA aerogels with a sensitivity of 13.8 kPa-1. The adjustable dielectric properties due to SiC particle incorporation endow the SiC/CF-GA aerogel with a broad-band (8.0 GHz) effective electromagnetic wave attenuation performance. Besides, different particles could be incorporated into graphene aerogels via the BSFC strategy, allowing for customizable designs. Moreover, multifunctionalities were demonstrated by the modified aerogels, including noise absorption, thermal insulation, fire resistance, and waterproofing, further diversifying their practicality. Hence, the BSFC strategy provides a customized solution for fabricating modified graphene aerogels for advanced functional applications.

CD44 Is a Prognostic Biomarker Correlated With Immune Infiltrates and Metastasis in Clear Cell Renal Cell Carcinoma

BACKGROUND/AIM

CD44 is a critical cell-surface glycoprotein. However, its prognostic significance and correlation with tumor-infiltrating lymphocytes in clear cell renal cell carcinoma (ccRCC) are not well-understood.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

The mRNA and protein levels of CD44 in ccRCC were assessed. The prognostic value of CD44 was analyzed in the TCGA and PrognoScan databases. The functional enrichment and immune infiltrates analyses were conducted. The STRING database was used to analyze the protein interactions of CD44. Tissue array, western blot, qRT-PCR, and transwell assay were performed to determine the expression and biological function of CD44 in ccRCC cells.

RESULTS

CD44 was highly expressed in ccRCC and correlated with poor prognosis. CD44 mRNA and protein expression was associated with TNM stage, pathologic stage, and histologic grade. Functional enrichment analyses revealed CD44 is involved in extracellular matrix organization, metastasis, IL6/JAK/STAT3 signaling and so on. Moreover, CD44 expression was positively correlated with infiltrating levels of macrophages, Th2 cells and Th1 cells in ccRCC. Combining the immune infiltration analysis and immunohistochemistry, the SPP1/CD44 axis might participate in immune escape through regulating PD-L2 expression. Experiments indicated that CD44 was increased in ccRCC and inhibition of CD44 could suppress the migration of ccRCC cells.

CONCLUSION

High expression of CD44 in ccRCC was associated with metastasis, poor prognosis, and high infiltrating levels of macrophages. The SPP1/CD44 axis potentially contributes to the regulation of PD-L2. These results demonstrated that targeting the SPP1/CD44 axis or inhibiting CD44 expression may be a new therapy to suppress ccRCC progression.

Development and validation of a prognostic model incorporating tumor thrombus grading for nonmetastatic clear cell renal cell carcinoma with tumor thrombus: A multicohort study

There is significant variability with respect to the prognosis of nonmetastatic clear cell renal cell carcinoma (ccRCC) patients with venous tumor thrombus (VTT). By applying multiregion whole-exome sequencing on normal-tumor-thrombus-metastasis quadruples from 33 ccRCC patients, we showed that metastases were mainly seeded by VTT (81.8%) rather than primary tumors (PTs). A total of 706 nonmetastatic ccRCC patients with VTT from three independent cohorts were included in this study. C-index analysis revealed that pathological grading of VTT outperformed other indicators in risk assessment (OS: 0.663 versus 0.501-0.610, 0.667 versus 0.544-0.651, and 0.719 versus 0.511-0.700 for Training, China-Validation, and Poland-Validation cohorts, respectively). We constructed a risk predicting model, TT-GPS score, based on four independent variables: VTT height, VTT grading, perinephric fat invasion, and sarcomatoid differentiation in PT. The TT-GPS score displayed better discriminatory ability (OS, c-index: 0.706-0.840, AUC: 0.788-0.874; DFS, c-index: 0.691-0.717, AUC: 0.771-0.789) than previously reported models in risk assessment. In conclusion, we identified for the first-time pathological grading of VTT as an unheeded prognostic factor. By incorporating VTT grading, the TT-GPS score is a promising prognostic tool in predicting the survival of nonmetastatic ccRCC patients with VTT.

Humanistic care relieves mental distress of inpatients in the shelter hospital during COVID-19 pandemic in Shanghai: a cross-sectional observational study

Objective

The prevalence of mental distress has been noted in shelter hospitals set up for COVID-19. Potential risk demographic and hospitalization factors were screened. We also aimed to determine whether humanistic care established in the shelter hospital was effective in ameliorating mental distress.

Methods

A cross-sectional observational survey-based single-centered study was conducted from 28th April to 5th May 2022 during the COVID-19 pandemic in Shanghai. Asymptomatic adult inpatients and those with mild symptoms were recruited for this study, and humanistic care measures were carried out by the administrative office according to the Work Program on Psychological Assistance and Social Work Services at the Shelter Hospital launched on 5th March 2020. Symptoms of mental distress, such as reported stress, anxiety, depression, and insomnia were measured using the Chinese Stress Response Questionnaire-28, the Chinese version of Generalized Anxiety Disorder-7, Patient Health Questionnaire-9, and Insomnia Severity Index-7, respectively.

Results

In total, 1,246 out of 9,519 inpatients, including 565 (45.35%) women and 681 (54.65%) men, with a median age of 36 years responded to the survey. The overall prevalence of stress, anxiety, depression, and insomnia in inpatients was 94 (7.54%), 109 (8.75%), 141 (11.32%), and 144 (11.56%), respectively. Mental distress was aggravated by COVID-19-related symptoms, comorbidities, and prolonged hospital stays. A stable internet connection was the most effective measure to reduce stress and depression. Offering inpatient with study or work facilitations, and mental health education help to ameliorate anxiety and depression. Organizing volunteering was a potential protective factor against stress.

Conclusion

Humanistic care is crucial and effective for protecting against mental distress, which should be emphasized in shelter hospitals.

Serum extracellular vesicles derived hsa-miR-320d as an indicator for progression of clear cell renal cell carcinoma

BACKGROUND

Renal cell carcinoma (RCC) is a prevalent malignancy with a rising incidence in developing countries. Clear cell renal cell carcinoma (ccRCC) constitutes 70% of RCC cases and is prone to metastasis and recurrence, yet lacks a liquid biomarker for surveillance. Extracellular vesicles (EVs) have shown promise as biomarkers in various malignancies. In this study, we investigated the potential of serum EV-derived miRNAs as a biomarker for ccRCC metastasis and recurrence.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

Patients diagnosed with ccRCC between 2017 and 2020 were recruited in this study. In the discovery phase, high throughput small RNA sequencing was used to analyze RNA extracted from serum EVs derived from localized ccRCC (LccRCC) and advanced ccRCC (AccRCC). In the validation phase, qPCR was employed for quantitative detection of candidate biomarkers. Migration and invasion assays were performed on ccRCC cell line OSRC2.

RESULTS

Serum EVs derived hsa-miR-320d was significantly up-regulated in patients with AccRCC than in patients with LccRCC (p < 0.01). In addition, Serum EVs derived hsa-miR-320d was also significantly up-regulated in patients who experienced recurrence or metastasis (p < 0.01). Besides, hsa-miR-320d enhances the pro-metastatic phenotype of ccRCC cells in vitro.

CONCLUSIONS

Serum EVs derived hsa-miR-320d as a liquid biomarker exhibits significant potential for identifying the recurrence or metastasis of ccRCC, as well as hsa-miR-320d promotes ccRCC cells migration and invasion.

Loss of MIR503HG facilitates papillary renal cell carcinoma associated lymphatic metastasis by triggering NOTCH1/VEGFC signaling

Clinical lymphatic metastasis indicates an extremely poor prognosis. Patients with papillary renal cell carcinoma (pRCC) have a high probability of progressing to lymphatic metastasis. However, the molecular mechanism of pRCC-associated lymphatic metastasis has not been elucidated. In this study, we found a downregulated long non-coding RNA (lncRNA) MIR503HG in pRCC primary tumor tissues due to hypermethylation at the CpG islands within its transcriptional start site. Decreased MIR503HG expression could stimulate tube formation and migration of human lymphatic endothelial cell (HLEC) and play a central role to promote lymphatic metastasis in vivo by enhancing tumor lymphangiogenesis. MIR503HG, located in the nucleus, bound with histone variant H2A.Z and affected the recruitment of histone variant H2A.Z to chromatin. Subsequently, increasing the H3K27 trimethylation caused by MIR503HG-overexpression epigenetically downregulated the NOTCH1 expression, which ultimately resulted in decreasing VEGFC secretion and lymphangiogenesis. Additionally, downregulated MIR503HG facilitated the HNRNPC expression, which ultimately promoted the maturation of NOTCH1 mRNA. Notably, upregulating MIR503HG expression might decrease pRCC resistance to the mTOR inhibitor. Together, these findings highlighted a VEGFC-independent mechanism of MIR503HG-mediated lymphatic metastasis. MIR503HG, identified as a novel pRCC-suppressor, would serve as the potentially biomarker for lymphatic metastasis.

Reversible Semimetal-Semiconductor Transition of Unconventional-Phase WS2 Nanosheets

Phase transition with band gap modulation of materials has gained intensive research attention due to its various applications, including memories, neuromorphic computing, and transistors. As a powerful strategy to tune the crystal phase of transition-metal dichalcogenides (TMDs), the phase transition of TMDs provides opportunities to prepare new phases of TMDs for exploring their phase-dependent property, function, and application. However, the previously reported phase transition of TMDs is mainly irreversible. Here, we report a reversible phase transition in the semimetallic 1T'-WS₂ driven by proton intercalation and deintercalation, resulting in a newly discovered semiconducting WS₂ with a novel unconventional phase, denoted as the 1T'_d phase. Impressively, an on/off ratio of >10⁶ has been achieved during the phase transition of WS₂ from the semimetallic 1T' phase to the semiconducting 1T'_d phase. Our work not only provides a unique insight into the phase transition of TMDs via proton intercalation but also opens up possibilities to tune their physicochemical properties for various applications.

The impact of ethnic segregation on neighbourhood-level social distancing in the United States amid the early outbreak of COVID-19

The COVID-19 pandemic has been argued to be the 'great equaliser', but, in fact, ethnically and racially segregated communities are bearing a disproportionate burden from the disease. Although more people have been infected and died from the disease among these minority communities, still fewer people in these communities are complying with the suggested public health measures like social distancing. The factors contributing to these ramifications remain a long-lasting debate, in part due to the contested theories between ethnic stratification and ethnic community. To offer empirical evidence to this theoretical debate, we tracked public social-distancing behaviours from mobile phone devices across urban census tracts in the United States and employed a difference-in-difference model to examine the impact of racial/ethnic segregation on these behaviours. Specifically, we focussed on non-Hispanic Black and Hispanic communities at the neighbourhood level from three principal dimensions of ethnic segregation, namely, evenness, exposure, and concentration. Our results suggest that (1) the high ethnic diversity index can decrease social-distancing behaviours and (2) the high dissimilarity between ethnic minorities and non-Hispanic Whites can increase social-distancing behavior; (3) the high interaction index can decrease social-distancing behaviours; and (4) the high concentration of ethnic minorities can increase travel distance and non-home time but decrease work behaviours. The findings of this study shed new light on public health behaviours among minority communities and offer empirical knowledge for policymakers to better inform just and evidence-based public health orders.

[Corrigendum] High expression of the secreted protein dickkopf homolog 4: Roles in invasion and metastasis of renal cell carcinoma and its association with Von Hippel-Lindau gene

Subsequently to the publication of the above paper, an interested reader drew to the authors' attention that the β-actin bands data shown to portray the control experiments in the western blots in Fig. 3C and 4F were apparently identical. The authors have re‑examined their data, and realize that the control bands in Fig. 3C had inadvertently been selected incorrectly. The revised version of Fig. 3, containing the correct β-actin bands in Fig. 3C, is shown below. Note that this error did not affect the major conclusions reported in the paper. All the authors agree with the publication of this corrigendum, and thank the Editor of International Journal of Molecular Medicine for allowing them the opportunity to publish this. The authors regret this mistake went unnoticed during the compilation of the figure in question, and apologize to the readership for any confusion that this may have caused. [International Journal of Molecular Medicine 33: 1319‑1326, 2014; DOI: 10.3892/ijmm.2014.1673].

Improved Dual-Polarity Response via Pyro-phototronic Effect for Filterless Visible Light Communication

Dual-polarity response photodetectors (PDs) take full advantage of the directivity of the photocurrent to identify optical information. The dual-polarity signal ratio, a key parameter that represents the equilibrium degree of responses to different lights, is proposed for the first time. The synchronous enhancement of dual-polarity photocurrents and the amelioration of the dual-polarity signal ratio are beneficial to the practical applications. Herein, based on the selective light absorption and energy band structure design, a self-powered CdS/PEDOT:PSS/Au heterojunction PD consisting of a p-n junction and a Schottky junction exhibits unique wavelength-dependent dual-polarity response, where the photocurrent is negative and positive in the short and long wavelength regions, respectively. More importantly, the pyro-phototronic effect inside the CdS layer significantly improves the dual-polarity photocurrents with the maximum enhancement factors of 120%, 343%, 1167%, 1577%, and 1896% at 405, 450, 532, 650, and 808 nm, respectively. Furthermore, the dual-polarity signal ratio tends to 1:1 due to different degrees of the enhancement. This work provides a novel design strategy for dual-polarity response PDs with a simple working principle and improved performance, which can supply a substitution for two traditional PDs in the filterless visible light communication (VLC) system.

Harnessing cavity dissipation for enhanced sound absorption in Helmholtz resonance metamaterials

Helmholtz resonance, based on resonance through a pore-and-cavity structure, constitutes the primary sound absorption mechanism in majority of sound-absorbing metamaterials. Typically, enhancing sound absorption in such absorbers necessitates substantial geometrical redesign or the addition of dissipative materials, which is non-ideal considering the volume and mass constraints. Herein, we introduce a new approach - that is to simply reshape the cavity, without alterations to its overall mass and volume - to drastically enhance sound absorption. This is achieved by bringing the cavity walls close to the pores where additional thermoviscous dissipation along these boundaries can occur. Experimentally validated, with three sides of the cuboid cavity close to the pore and at a particular pore-cavity geometry, a 44% gain in maximum absorption is achieved compared to the original structure. Through numerical simulations, we fully elucidate structure-property relationships and their mechanisms, and propose analytical models for design and optimization. Ultimately, utilizing this concept, we demonstrate a heterogeneously porous broadband (1500 to 6000 Hz) absorber that exhibits an excellent average absorption coefficient of 0.74 at a very low thickness of 18 mm. Overall, we introduce a new and universal concept that could revolutionize the design principles of Helmholtz resonators, and demonstrate its potential for designing advanced sound-absorbing metamaterials.

Epitaxial growth of highly symmetrical branched noble metal-semiconductor heterostructures with efficient plasmon-induced hot-electron transfer

Epitaxial growth is one of the most commonly used strategies to precisely tailor heterostructures with well-defined compositions, morphologies, crystal phases, and interfaces for various applications. However, as epitaxial growth requires a small interfacial lattice mismatch between the components, it remains a challenge for the epitaxial synthesis of heterostructures constructed by materials with large lattice mismatch and/or different chemical bonding, especially the noble metal-semiconductor heterostructures. Here, we develop a noble metal-seeded epitaxial growth strategy to prepare highly symmetrical noble metal-semiconductor branched heterostructures with desired spatial configurations, i.e., twenty CdS (or CdSe) nanorods epitaxially grown on twenty exposed (111) facets of Ag icosahedral nanocrystal, albeit a large lattice mismatch (more than 40%). Importantly, a high quantum yield (QY) of plasmon-induced hot-electron transferred from Ag to CdS was observed in epitaxial Ag-CdS icosapods (18.1%). This work demonstrates that epitaxial growth can be achieved in heterostructures composed of materials with large lattice mismatches. The constructed epitaxial noble metal-semiconductor interfaces could be an ideal platform for investigating the role of interfaces in various physicochemical processes.

Interpenetrating Hollow Microlattice Metamaterial Enables Efficient Sound-Absorptive and Deformation-Recoverable Capabilities

Owing to the pervasive noise and crash hazards, tough microlattices with sound absorption capabilities are sought-after. However, typical truss microlattices are unable to fulfill this requirement. To overcome this, herein, we report a new design strategy for truss microlattices via introducing the concept of interpenetrating hollow struts, which thereby constitutes a novel interpenetrating hollow microlattice metamaterial (IHMM). The design is based on interweaved unit cells of a hollow octet-truss (HOT) and a hollow rhombic dodecahedron-like (HRDL) truss. Experimentally demonstrated, the IHMM displays a synergistic gain in both sound absorption and mechanical properties that substantially surpass that of its constituent lattices. High sound absorption coefficients (α > 0.99) and broad half-absorption (3.2 kHz) are observed, with the average α being 110.6 and 85.3% higher than those of the HOT and HRDL, respectively. The sound absorption mechanism is attributed to the presence of cascaded Helmholtz resonance, which is then fully elucidated by impedance and damping analyses. The IHMM also outperforms its constituents in specific strength. A simultaneous high strength (4 MPa) and recoverability (80% strain) and pseudo-reusability are also observed. The mechanisms behind the mechanical reinforcement and exceptional robustness are thoroughly revealed. Overall, this work offers insights into developing multifunctional engineering materials.

CGB5, INHBA and TRAJ19 Hold Prognostic Potential as Immune Genes for Patients with Gastric Cancer

BACKGROUND

Gastric cancer (GC) seriously threatens people's health and life quality worldwide.

AIM

The current study sought to explore prognostic immune genes and their regulatory network in GC.

METHODS

First, expression data in GC and normal samples were analyzed based on bioinformatics analysis. Immune-related genes were identified and confirmed with univariate/multivariate Cox analysis and receiver-operating characteristic curve. The upstream transcription factors of immune genes were subsequently predicted, and their regulatory network was constructed. GC and adjacent normal tissues were obtained from 76 patients with GC to determine the expression patterns of immune genes and their correlation with overall prognosis. CD8⁺ T-cell infiltration of patients with high or low risk was detected by means of immunohistochemistry.

RESULTS

Bioinformatics analysis highlighted 3689 differentially expressed genes in GC, including 87 immune genes, 8 of which were significantly associated with patient survival. CGB5 and INHBA were high-risk genes, while TRAJ19 was identified as a low-risk gene, all of which were found to be regulated by 11 different transcription factors. Furthermore, CGB5 and INHBA exhibited negative correlation with the prognosis of GC patients; however, TRAJ19 was positively correlated with GC patient prognosis. The incidence of lymph node metastasis was higher, the pathological stage was advanced and the infiltrated CD8⁺ T cells were fewer in the high-risk GC group.

CONCLUSIONS

Overall, our findings identified the key roles of CGB5, INHBA and TRAJ19 in prognosis GC patients, serving as an important gene set for prognostic prediction.

A high-temperature acoustic field measurement and analysis system for determining cavitation intensity in ultrasonically solidified metallic alloys

A high-temperature acoustic field measurement and analysis system (HTAFS) was self-designed and developed to achieve real-time acoustic field analysis and quantitative cavitation characterization within high-temperature liquids. The acoustic signal was acquired by a high-temperature resistant waveguide and calibrated by separate compensation of line and continuous spectra to eliminate frequency offsets. Moreover, a new method was proposed to derive from the continuous-spectrum sound intensity and line-spectrum sound intensity in the frequency band above 1.5 times the fundamental frequency to characterize the intensity of transient cavitation and stable cavitation. The acoustic field characteristics within solidifying liquid Al-7 %Si alloy were successfully determined by this system. With the increase of ultrasound amplitude, the acoustic pressure in the alloy melt increased to be stable, the transient cavitation intensity first rose and then declined, and the stable cavitation intensity remained unchanged. Combined with the structural evolution of the primary α(Al) phase, the transient cavitation intensity was determined to be the dominant factor for the ultrasound-induced grain refinement effect.

Green space justice amid COVID-19: Unequal access to public green space across American neighborhoods

Countries around the world have resorted to issuing stay-at-home orders to slow viral transmission since the COVID-19 pandemic. During the lockdown, access to public park plays a central role in the public health of surrounding communities. However, we know little about how such an unprecedented policy may exacerbate the preexisting unequal access to green space (i.e., green space justice). To address this research void, we used difference-in-difference models to examine socioeconomic disparities, urban-rural disparities, and mobility disparities in terms of public park access in the United States. Our national analysis using the weekly mobile phone movement data robustly suggests the following three key findings during COVID-19: (1) The elderly, non-college-educated people, poor people, and blacks are less likely to visit public parks frequently, while unemployed people appear to be the opposite. (2) Compared to rural areas, populations in urban neighborhoods appear to visit public parks more frequently and they generally go to larger parks to minimize the risk of infection. (3) Populations in neighborhoods with higher private vehicle ownership or those with a higher density of transit stops would more frequently visit and travel a longer distance to public parks during the stay-at-home order. Our results imply that conventional inequality in green space access may still exist and even become worse during COVID-19, which could negatively impact people's health during isolation. We suggest that special attention should be paid to park-poor neighborhoods during the pandemic and in the post-pandemic recovery phase.

Genomic Profiling and Response to Immune Checkpoint Inhibition plus Tyrosine Kinase Inhibition in FH-Deficient Renal Cell Carcinoma

BACKGROUND

FH-deficient renal cell carcinoma (RCC) is a rare and exceptionally aggressive RCC subtype. There is currently limited understanding of the molecular alterations, pathogenesis, survival outcomes, and systemic therapy efficacy for this cancer.

OBJECTIVE

To perform a retrospective multicenter analysis of molecular profiling and clinical outcomes for patients with FH-deficient RCC, with an emphasis on treatment response to first-line immune checkpoint inhibitor plus tyrosine kinase inhibitor (ICI/TKI) versus bevacizumab plus erlotinib (Bev/Erlo) combination therapy in patients with advanced disease.

DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTS

The study included 77 cases of FH-deficient RCC from 15 centers across China.

OUTCOME MEASUREMENTS AND STATISTICAL ANALYSIS

Clinical characteristics, molecular correlates, ¹⁸F-fluorodeoxyglucose positron emission tomography/computed tomography imaging, and treatment outcomes were analyzed.

RESULTS AND LIMITATIONS

A total of 77 patients were identified, including 70 cases with a germline FH alteration (hereditary leiomyomatosis RCC syndrome [HLRCC]-associated RCC) and seven patients with somatic FH loss. Recurrent pathogenic alterations were found in NF2 (six/57, 11%), CDH1 (six/57, 11%), PIK3CA (six/57, 11%), and TP53 (five/57, 8.8%). Sixty-seven patients were evaluable for response to first-line systemic therapy with Bev/Erlo (n = 12), TKI monotherapy (n = 29), or ICI/TKI (n = 26). ICI/TKI combination therapy was associated with more favorable overall survival on systemic treatment (hazard ratio [HR] 0.19, 95% confidence interval [CI] 0.04-0.90) and progression-free survival on first-line therapy (HR 0.22, 95% CI 0.07-0.71) compared to Bev/Erlo combination therapy. The main limitation is the retrospective study design.

CONCLUSIONS

We described the genomic characteristics of FH-deficient RCC in an Asian population and observed a favorable response to ICI/TKI combinational therapy among patients with advanced disease.

PATIENT SUMMARY

This real-world study provides evidence supporting the antitumour activity of combining molecular targeted therapy plus immunotherapy for kidney cancer deficient in fumarate hydratase. Further studies are needed to investigate the efficacy of this combination strategy in this rare cancer.

New Class of Multifunctional Bioinspired Microlattice with Excellent Sound Absorption, Damage Tolerance, and High Specific Strength

Although mutually independent, simultaneous sound absorption and superior mechanical properties are often sought after in a material. One main challenge in achieving such a material will be on how to design it. Herein, we propose a bamboo-inspired design strategy to overcome the aforementioned challenges. Building on top of the basic octet-truss design, we introduce a hollow-tube architecture to achieve lightweight property and mechanical robustness and a septum-chamber architecture to introduce acoustic resonant cells. The concept is experimentally verified through samples fabricated using selective laser melting with the Inconel 718 alloy. High sound absorption coefficients (>0.99) with broadband spectra, damage-tolerant behavior, high specific strength (up to 81.2 MPa·cm3/g), and high specific energy absorption of 40.1 J/g have been realized in this design. The sound absorption capability is attributed to Helmholtz resonance through the pore-and-cavity morphology of the structure. Microscopically speaking, dissipation primarily occurs via the viscous frictional flow and thermal boundary layers on the air and microlattice interactions at the narrow pores. The high strength is in turn attributed to the near-membrane state of stress in the plate structures and the excellent strength of the base material. Overall, this work presents a new design concept for developing multifunctional metamaterials.

Strong and tough fibrous hydrogels reinforced by multiscale hierarchical structures with multimechanisms

Tough natural materials such as nacre, bone, and silk exhibit multiscale hierarchical structures where distinct toughening mechanisms occur at each level of the hierarchy, ranging from molecular uncoiling to microscale fibrillar sliding to macroscale crack deflection. An open question is whether and how the multiscale design motifs of natural materials can be translated to the development of next-generation biomimetic hydrogels. To address this challenge, we fabricate strong and tough hydrogel with architected multiscale hierarchical structures using a freeze-casting-assisted solution substitution strategy. The underlying multiscale multimechanisms are attributed to the gel's hierarchical structures, including microscale anisotropic honeycomb-structured fiber walls and matrix, with a modulus of 8.96 and 0.73 MPa, respectively; hydrogen bond-enhanced fibers with nanocrystalline domains; and cross-linked strong polyvinyl alcohol chains with chain-connecting ionic bonds. This study establishes a blueprint of structure-performance mechanisms in tough hierarchically structured hydrogels and can inspire advanced design strategies for other promising hierarchical materials.

Multifunctional sound-absorbing and mechanical metamaterials via a decoupled mechanism design approach

Multifunctional materials are in high demand for practical engineering applications. Owing to the ubiquitous noise and impact energy hazards in many settings, traditional materials and conventionally designed metamaterials are incapable of preventing these types of hazard simultaneously. Herein, we report a new paradigm, via a decoupled approach, in the design of acousto-mechanical multifunctional metamaterials. We leverage the morphology of a Helmholtz resonator, such that the sound-absorbing and mechanical components are designed independently. For sound absorption, we adopt a coherent coupling design for a favorable resonant response, while for the mechanical response, we adopt customized struts. We then demonstrate our concept via 3D printing. Experimentally measured remarkable broadband absorption in the practical low-frequency range (<1.0 kHz) is achieved. Absorption mechanisms are attributed to viscous and thermal boundary dissipation. Compression tests also reveal that the metamaterials are highly deformation resilient with a recovery of up to 98%, owing to both the lattice structure design and the viscoelastic behavior of the base material. Through this decoupled design, we further demonstrate the potential of our metamaterials in customizable absorption, strength, pseudo-reusability, and impact resistance. The proposed design paradigm broadens the horizon for the design of multifunctional materials, offering an impetus to their exploration for practical applications.