Building Electron/Proton Nanohighways for Full Utilization of Water Splitting Catalysts

Low electron/proton conductivities of electrochemical catalysts, especially earth‐abundant nonprecious metal catalysts, severely limit their ability to satisfy the triple‐phase boundary (TPB) theory, resulting in extremely low catalyst utilization and insufficient efficiency in energy devices. Here, an innovative electrode design strategy is proposed to build electron/proton transport nanohighways to ensure that the whole electrode meets the TPB, therefore significantly promoting enhance oxygen evolution reactions and catalyst utilizations. It is discovered that easily accessible/tunable mesoporous Au nanolayers (AuNLs) not only increase the electrode conductivity by more than 4000 times but also enable the proton transport through straight mesopores within the Debye length. The catalyst layer design with AuNLs and ultralow catalyst loading (≈0.1 mg cm^?2) augments reaction sites from 1D to 2D, resulting in an 18‐fold improvement in mass activities. Furthermore, using microscale visualization and unique coplanar‐electrode electrolyzers, the relationship between the conductivity and the reaction site is revealed, allowing for the discovery of the conductivity‐determining and Debye‐length‐determining regions for water splitting. These findings and strategies provide a novel electrode design (catalyst layer + functional sublayer + ion exchange membrane) with a sufficient electron/proton transport path for high‐efficiency electrochemical energy conversion devices.     

Hybrid Perovskite‐Organic Flexible Tandem Solar Cell Enabling Highly Efficient Electrocatalysis Overall Water Splitting

Perovskite‐organic tandem solar cells are attracting more attention due to their potential for highly efficient and flexible photovoltaic device. In this work, efficient perovskite‐organic monolithic tandem solar cells integrating the wide bandgap perovskite (1.74 eV) and low bandgap organic active PBDB‐T:SN6IC‐4F (1.30 eV) layer, which serve as the top and bottom subcell, respectively, are developed. The resulting perovskite‐organic tandem solar cells with passivated wide‐bandgap perovskite show a remarkable power conversion efficiency (PCE) of 15.13%, with an open‐circuit voltage (V_oc) of 1.85 V, a short‐circuit photocurrent (J_sc) of 11.52 mA cm^?2, and a fill factor (FF) of 70.98%. Thanks to the advantages of low temperature fabrication processes and the flexibility properties of the device, a flexible tandem solar cell which obtain a PCE of 13.61%, with V_oc of 1.80 V, J_sc of 11.07 mA cm^?2, and FF of 68.31% is fabricated. Moreover, to demonstrate the achieved high V_oc in the tandem solar cells for potential applications, a photovoltaic (PV)‐driven electrolysis system combing the tandem solar cell and water splitting electrocatalysis is assembled. The integrated device demonstrates a solar‐to‐hydrogen efficiency of 12.30% and 11.21% for rigid, and flexible perovskite‐organic tandem solar cell based PV‐driven electrolysis systems, respectively.     

小骨窗显微手术治疗基底节区高血压脑出血的效果分析及对血清CCCK-18、CTRP-3水平的影响

目的:探讨小骨窗显微手术治疗基底节区高血压脑出血的效果及对血清gaspase切割的细胞角蛋白18(CCCK-18)、补体C1q肿瘤坏死因子相关蛋白3(CTRP-3)水平的影响。方法:选取2016年5月至2018年5月我院收治的160例基底节区高血压脑出血患者,按照随机数表法将其分为观察组(n=82)和对照组(n=78)。对照组采用传统大骨瓣开颅术治疗,观察组采用小骨窗显微手术治疗。观察和比较两组的临床疗效,血肿清除率、术中出血量、术后意识恢复时间、住院时间,治疗前后NIHSS、ADL评分、血清CCCK-18、CTRP-3水平的变化及并发症的发生情况。结果:治疗后,观察组总有效率显著高于对照组[95.12%vs. 79.48%](P0.05);血肿清除率、术中出血量、术后意识恢复时间、住院时间均显著优于对照组[(93.62±3.58)%vs.(85.40±2.19)%,(92.47±12.56)mL vs.(189.25±26.47) mL,(2.01±0.58) d vs.(8.69±2.03) d,(13.39±2.08) d vs.(19.45±3.76) d](P0.05);NIHSS评分显著低于对照组[(9.76±1.42)分vs.(20.57±3.26)分](P0.05);ADL评分显著高于对照组[(86.42±8.64)分vs.(75.39±7.02)分](P0.05);血清CCCK-18水平显著低于对照组[(201.76±32.59) U/L vs.(237.57±39.20) U/L,(29.59±5.19) ng/mL vs.(42.97±7.94)ng/mL](P0.05);CTRP-3水平显著高于对照组[(289.59±35.19)ng/mL vs.(232.97±27.94)ng/mL](P0.05);并发症总发生率显著低于对照组[3.65%(3/82) vs. 14.10%(11/78)](P0.05)。结论:小骨窗显微手术治疗基底节区高血压脑出血的疗效显著,可更有效清除血肿,缓解血肿压迫,改善神经功能,减少继发性损伤,安全性高,可能与其降低血清CCCK-18水平及升高CTRP-3水平有关。     

蚊虫组学研究进展

近年来,随着高通量测序技术和生物信息学分析技术的成熟和不断革新,蚊虫基因组学、转录组学、小RNA组学也获得了快速发展。迄今为止,已有包括白纹伊蚊、埃及伊蚊、冈比按蚊在内约22种媒介蚊虫的基因组被解析报道。不同蚊种的基因组大小差异很大,且与基因组中的重复序列的多少呈正相关;蚊基因组的解析和比较基因组的分析有助于探索蚊基因组的结构和功能;转录组的研究为蚊虫嗅觉、性别决定、胚胎发育等相关基因的研究提供了有效手段;小RNA组的研究揭示了miRNA和piRNA在蚊媒抗病毒免疫通路中具有重要作用。综上所述,蚊虫组学研究为防治媒介蚊虫和蚊媒传染病病提供了理论基础和数据支撑。     

Robust ecological drought projections for drylands in the 21st century

Dryland ecosystems may be especially vulnerable to expected 21st century increases in temperature and aridity because they are tightly controlled by moisture availability. However, climate impact assessments in drylands are difficult because ecological dynamics are dictated by drought conditions that are difficult to define and complex to estimate from climate conditions alone. In addition, precipitation projections vary substantially among climate models, enhancing variation in overall trajectories for aridity. Here, we constrain this uncertainty by utilizing an ecosystem water balance model to quantify drought conditions with recognized ecological importance, and by identifying changes in ecological drought conditions that are robust among climate models, defined here as when >90% of models agree in the direction of change. Despite limited evidence for robust changes in precipitation, changes in ecological drought are robust over large portions of drylands in the United States and Canada. Our results suggest strong regional differences in long‐term drought trajectories, epitomized by chronic drought increases in southern areas, notably the Upper Gila Mountains and South‐Central Semi‐arid Prairies, and decreases in the north, particularly portions of the Temperate and West‐Central Semi‐arid Prairies. However, we also found that exposure to hot‐dry stress is increasing faster than mean annual temperature over most of these drylands, and those increases are greatest in northern areas. Robust shifts in seasonal drought are most apparent during the cool season; when soil water availability is projected to increase in northern regions and decrease in southern regions. The implications of these robust drought trajectories for ecosystems will vary geographically, and these results provide useful insights about the impact of climate change on these dryland ecosystems. More broadly, this approach of identifying robust changes in ecological drought may be useful for other assessments of climate impacts in drylands and provide a more rigorous foundation for making long‐term strategic resource management decisions.     

Alterations of lymphocyte count and platelet volume precede cerebrovascular lesions in stroke-prone spontaneously hypertensive rats

Abstract

Background: Cerebral small vessel disease (CSVD) is associated with future stroke. Although pathological alteration in small vessels of patients with CSVD can be detected by neuroimaging, diagnosis of CSVD is delayed because it is an asymptomatic disease. The stroke-prone spontaneously hypertensive rat (SHRSP) show similar pathological features to human CSVD and develop stroke-related symptoms with advancing age.

Objective: We investigated the time course of haematological parameters in Wistar rats and SHRSP.

Material and Methods: Blood cells were analysed using an automated haematological analyser.

Results: SHRSP develop stroke-related symptoms including onset of neurological symptoms, decreased body weight and blood brain barrier leakage between 12 and 14?weeks of age. Lymphocyte counts were gradually decreased at 3?weeks before development of stoke-related symptoms and then were further decreased after the development of stroke-related symptoms. The both mean platelet volume and large platelet ratio gradually increased at 3?weeks before the development of stoke-related symptoms. However, although SHRSP showed more microcytic red cells than Wistar rats, the trajectories of change in erythrocyte-related parameters were similar between Wistar rats and SHRSP.

Conclusion: Our pilot study suggests that alterations of lymphocyte count and platelet volume predictive indicators for asymptomatic CSVD and symptomatic stroke in SHRSP.     

Century‐long apparent decrease in intrinsic water‐use efficiency with no evidence of progressive nutrient limitation in African tropical forests

Forests exhibit leaf‐ and ecosystem‐level responses to environmental changes. Specifically, rising carbon dioxide (CO₂) levels over the past century are expected to have increased the intrinsic water‐use efficiency (iWUE) of tropical trees while the ecosystem is gradually pushed into progressive nutrient limitation. Due to the long‐term character of these changes, however, observational datasets to validate both paradigms are limited in space and time. In this study, we used a unique herbarium record to go back nearly a century and show that despite the rise in CO₂ concentrations, iWUE has decreased in central African tropical trees in the Congo Basin. Although we find evidence that points to leaf‐level adaptation to increasing CO₂—that is, increasing photosynthesis‐related nutrients and decreasing maximum stomatal conductance, a decrease in leaf δ¹³C clearly indicates a decreasing iWUE over time. Additionally, the stoichiometric carbon to nitrogen and nitrogen to phosphorus ratios in the leaves show no sign of progressive nutrient limitation as they have remained constant since 1938, which suggests that nutrients have not increasingly limited productivity in this biome. Altogether, the data suggest that other environmental factors, such as increasing temperature, might have negatively affected net photosynthesis and consequently downregulated the iWUE. Results from this study reveal that the second largest tropical forest on Earth has responded differently to recent environmental changes than expected, highlighting the need for further on‐ground monitoring in the Congo Basin.