Efficiency Boost in All-Small-Molecule Organic Solar Cells: Insights from the Re-Ordering Kinetics

Achieving high-performance in all-small-molecule organic solar cells (ASM-OSCs) significantly relies on precise nanoscale phase separation through domain size manipulation in the active layer. Nonetheless, for ASM-OSC systems, forging a clear connection between the tuning of domain size and the intricacies of phase separation proves to be a formidable challenge. This study investigates the intricate interplay between domain size adjustment and the creation of optimal phase separation morphology, crucial for ASM-OSCs’ performance. It is demonstrated that exceptional phase separation in ASM-OSCs’ active layer is achieved by meticulously controlling the continuity and uniformity of domains via re-packing process. A series of halogen-substituted solvents (Fluorobenzene, Chlorobenzene, Bromobenzene, and Iodobenzene) is adopted to tune the re-packing kinetics, the ASM-OSCs treated with CB exhibited an impressive 16.2% power conversion efficiency (PCE). The PCE enhancement can be attributed to the gradual crystallization process, promoting a smoothly interconnected and uniformly distributed domain size. This, in turn, leads to a favorable phase separation morphology, enhanced charge transfer, extended carrier lifetime, and consequently, reduced recombination of free charges. The findings emphasize the pivotal role of re-packing kinetics in achieving optimal phase separation in ASM-OSCs, offering valuable insights for designing high-performance ASM-OSCs fabrication strategies.     

原生质体紫外诱变选育可利用廉价碳源的高产油新菌株

【目的】研究并建立利用原生质体紫外诱变技术选育可利用廉价碳源发酵的高产油新菌株的方法。【方法】采用1.5%蜗牛酶和1.0%纤维素酶混合液水解去除细胞壁得到2A00015(近平滑假丝酵母,Candida parapsilosis)的原生质体,将其放于紫外灯下诱变及再生壁培养,筛选获得可利用廉价碳源发酵的高产油酵母,并采用气相色谱质谱联用法(GC-MS)测定其脂肪酸组成。【结果】突变效果最好的突变菌株2A00015/25用葡萄糖发酵培养7 d后,其生物量、油脂产率和产油量分别为17.77 g/L、58.12%和10.32 g/L,较原始菌株分别提高了12.45%、23.32%和38.68%;利用废糖蜜发酵培养,其生物量、油脂产率和产油量分别为18.54 g/L、49.44%和9.17 g/L,较原始菌株分别提高了9.09%、21.16%和32.18%。利用废糖蜜培养其产油效率虽低于利用葡萄糖培养,但从环境保护及原材料成本的角度考虑,用废糖蜜作为碳源发酵培养产生油脂更具优势。诱变菌株利用废糖蜜发酵后产生油脂经检测含有8种脂肪酸,其脂肪酸组成与植物油近似,其中不饱和脂肪酸含量占脂肪酸总量的82.4%。【结论】通过利用原生质体紫外诱变技术,成功选育出一株新的可利用廉价碳源的高产油海洋菌株,产油率达到49.4%,提高了21.2%。     

内切葡聚糖酶高产菌株的诱变选育

【目的】建立里氏木霉(Trichoderma reesei)高产突变菌株的快速筛选方法,选育出高产内切葡聚糖酶的突变株。【方法】对里氏木霉T306菌株的初筛培养基进行优化,建立快速筛选方法;通过紫外诱变手段选育内切葡聚糖酶高产突变菌株,并对突变菌株的产酶培养基进行优化。【结果】在初筛培养基中添加浓度为0.1%(W/V)的乳糖、蛋白胨及脱氧胆酸钠有利于菌株的筛选。诱变后筛选出菌落形态发生明显变化的内切葡聚糖酶高产突变株0516,其羧甲基纤维素酶活力(CMC酶)较出发菌株提高了38.9%。其产酶培养基经优化后,得到最适碳、氮源分别为:乳糖1.50%、硫酸铵0.14%、尿素0.05%、蛋白胨0.10%,优化后CMC酶活力达64.2 U/mL,较优化前提高了2.3倍。【结论】建立了里氏木霉高产突变菌株的快速筛选方法,通过紫外诱变育种获得了产内切葡聚糖酶能力高且遗传稳定的突变株0516。     

Hen egg white lysozyme fibrillation: a deep‐UV resonance Raman spectroscopic study

Amyloid fibrils are associated with numerous degenerative diseases. The molecular mechanism of the structural transformation of native protein to the highly ordered cross‐β structure, the key feature of amyloid fibrils, is under active investigation. Conventional biophysical methods have limited application in addressing the problem because of the heterogeneous nature of the system. In this study, we demonstrated that deep‐UV resonance Raman (DUVRR) spectroscopy in combination with circular dichroism (CD) and intrinsic tryptophan fluorescence allowed for quantitative characterization of protein structural evolution at all stages of hen egg white lysozyme fibrillation in vitro. DUVRR spectroscopy was found to be complimentary to the far‐UV CD because it is (i) more sensitive to β ‐sheet than to α ‐helix, and (ii) capable of characterizing quantitatively inhomogeneous and highly light‐scattering samples. In addition, phenylalanine, a natural DUVRR spectroscopic biomarker of protein structural rearrangements, exhibited substantial changes in the Raman cross section of the 1000‐cm^–1 band at various stages of fibrillation. (© 2008 WILEY‐VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)     

Synthesis of gold nanoparticles using Crinum macowanii bulb extracts and the application of these materials in blood detections at crime scenes

We here in report the synthesis of gold nanoparticles (AuNPs) using a Crinum macowanii bulb water extract. The as‐synthesized AuNPs were characterized using ultraviolet–visible spectroscopy, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, X‐ray diffraction, transmission electron microscopy, and a zeta potential‐sizer. The results showed that the as‐synthesized AuNPs were crystalline and mostly spherical in shape with a small mixture of triangular, tetrahedral, hexagonal, octagonal, and diamond shapes. The as‐synthesized AuNPs together with those synthesized by conventional methods were subsequently used as enhancers for the luminol signal in blood detection. It was noted that the AuNPs synthesized from the Crinum macowanii bulb water extract could enhance the chemiluminescence signal for blood detection by luminol to the same extent as AuNPs prepared by conventional methods. Furthermore, both types of AuNPs served as fluorescence enhancers for blood detection when luminol was replaced with the bulb water extract.     

Mutation of the chloroplast‐localized phosphate transporter OsPHT2;1 reduces flavonoid accumulation and UV tolerance in rice

Phosphorus (P) is an essential macronutrient required for plant development and production. The mechanisms regulating phosphate (Pi) uptake are well established, but the function of chloroplast Pi homeostasis is poorly understood in Oryza sativa (rice). PHT2;1 is one of the transporters/translocators mediating Pi import into chloroplasts. In this study, to gain insight into the role of OsPHT2;1‐mediated stroma Pi, we analyzed OsPHT2;1 function in Pi utilization and photoprotection. Our results showed that OsPHT2;1 was induced by Pi starvation and light exposure. Cell‐based assays showed that OsPHT2;1 localized to the chloroplast envelope and functioned as a low‐affinity Pi transporter. The ospht2;1 had reduced Pi accumulation, plant growth and photosynthetic rates. Metabolite profiling revealed that 52.6% of the decreased metabolites in ospht2;1 plants were flavonoids, which was further confirmed by 40% lower content of total flavonoids compared with the wild type. As a consequence, ospht2;1 plants were more sensitive to UV‐B irradiation. Moreover, the content of phenylalanine, the precursor of flavonoids, was also reduced, and was largely associated with the repressed expression of ADT1/MTR1. Furthermore, the ospht2;1 plants showed decreased grain yields at relatively high levels of UV‐B irradiance. In summary, OsPHT2;1 functions as a chloroplast‐localized low‐affinity Pi transporter that mediates UV tolerance and rice yields at different latitudes.     

Aromatic and aliphatic mono- and bis-nitroxides: A study on their radical scavenging abilities

Nitroxide radicals are an emerging class of interesting compounds with versatile antioxidant and radioprotective properties. All literature studies have so far concentrated on compounds bearing only one nitroxide function. Here, we now investigate and compare the radical scavenging behaviour and antioxidant activity of aromatic indolinonic and aliphatic piperidine bis-nitroxides, i.e compounds bearing two nitroxide functions. Their corresponding mono-derivatives were also studied for comparison. Radical scavenging activity was investigated using EPR and UV–Vis spectroscopy by following spectral changes in acetonitrile of the nitroxides in the presence of alkyl and peroxyl radicals generated, respectively, under anoxic or aerobic conditions from thermal decomposition of AMVN [2,2′-azobis(2,4-di-methylvaleronitrile)]. Antioxidant activity of the nitroxides was evaluated by monitoring conjugated dienes (CD) formation during methyl linoleate micelles peroxidation and by measuring carbonyl content in oxidized bovine serum albumin (BSA). The results show that: (a) each nitroxide moiety in bis-nitroxides scavenges radicals independent of each other; (b) aliphatic nitroxides do not scavenge peroxyl radicals, at least under the experimental conditions used here, whereas indolinonic aromatic ones do: their stoichiometric number is 1.14 and 2.17, respectively, for mono- and bis-derivatives; (c) bis-nitroxides are roughly twice more efficient at inhibiting lipid peroxidation compared to their corresponding mono-derivatives. Although this study provides only comparative information on the relative radical-scavenging abilities of mono- and bis-nitroxides, it helps in understanding further the interesting reactivity of these compounds especially with regards to peroxyl radicals where many controversies in the literature exist.     

Understanding the origins of UV-induced recombination through manipulation of sister chromatid cohesion

Ultraviolet light (UV) can provoke genome instability, partly through its ability to induce homologous recombination (HR). However, the mechanism(s) of UV-induced recombination is poorly understood. Although double-strand breaks (DSBs) have been invoked, there is little evidence for their generation by UV. Alternatively, single-strand DNA lesions that stall replication forks could provoke recombination. Recent findings suggest efficient initiation of UV-induced recombination in G₁ through processing of closely spaced single-strand lesions to DSBs. However, other scenarios are possible, since the recombination initiated in G₁ can be completed in the following stages of the cell cycle. We developed a system that could address UV-induced recombination events that start and finish in G₂ by manipulating the activity of the sister chromatid cohesion complex. Here we show that sister-chromatid cohesion suppresses UV-induced recombination events that are initiated and resolved in G₂. By comparing recombination frequencies and survival between UV and ionizing radiation, we conclude that a substantial portion of UV-induced recombination occurs through DSBs. This notion is supported by a direct physical observation of UV-induced DSBs that are dependent on nucleotide excision repair. However, a significant role of nonDSB intermediates in UV-induced recombination cannot be excluded.