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Ether based electrolytes have surfaced as alternatives to conventional carbonates allowing for enhanced electrochemical performance of sodium-ion batteries; however, the primary source of the improvement remains poorly understood. Here we show that coupling titanium dioxide and other anode materials with diglyme does enable higher efficiency and reversible capacity than those for the combination involving ester electrolytes. Importantly, the electrolyte dependent performance is revealed to be the result of the different structural evolution induced by a varied sodiation depth. A suit of characterizations show that the energy barrier to charge transfer at the interface between electrolyte and electrode is the factor that dominates the interfacial electrochemical characteristics and therefore the energy storage properties. Our study proposes a reliable parameter to assess the intricate sodiation dynamics in sodium-ion batteries and could guide the design of aprotic electrolytes for next generation rechargeable batteries. Sodium ion batteries are known to benefit from the use of ether electrolytes. Here the authors reveal the origin showing that the energy barrier of charge transfer at the electrolyte/electrode interface dominates the interfacial electrochemical characteristics and is favorably small.

Sodium metal batteries have potentially high energy densities, but severe sodium-dendrite growth and side reactions prevent their practical applications, especially at high temperatures. Herein, we design an inorganic ionic conductor/gel polymer electrolyte composite, where uniformly cross-linked beta alumina nanowires are compactly coated by a poly(vinylidene fluoride-co-hexafluoropropylene)-based gel polymer electrolyte through their strong molecular interactions. These  beta alumina nanowires combined with the gel polymer layer create dense and homogeneous solid-liquid hybrid sodium-ion transportation channels through and along the nanowires, which promote uniform sodium deposition and formation of a stable and flat solid electrolyte interface on the sodium metal anode. Side reactions between the sodium metal and liquid electrolyte, as well as sodium dendrite formation, are successfully suppressed, especially at 60 °C. The sodium vanadium phosphate/sodium full cells with composite electrolyte exhibit 95.3% and 78.8% capacity retention after 1000 cycles at 1 C at 25 °C and 60 °C, respectively. Here the authors show a beta alumina nanowires/gel polymer composite electrolyte design. The dense and homogeneous solid-liquid hybrid sodium-ion transportation channels promote uniform sodium deposition and stripping and significantly improve the performance of a Na metal battery.

Solid composite electrolytes (SCEs) that combine the advantages of solid polymer electrolytes (SPEs) and inorganic ceramic electrolytes (ICEs) present acceptable ionic conductivity, high mechanical strength, and favorable interfacial contact with electrodes, which greatly improve the electrochemical performance of all‐solid‐state batteries compared to single SPEs and ICEs. However, there are many challenges to overcome before the practical application of SCEs, including the low ionic conductivity less than 10−3 S cm−1 at ambient temperature, poor interfacial stability, and high interfacial resistance, which greatly restrict the room temperature performance. Herein, the advances of SCEs applied in all‐solid‐state lithium batteries are presented, including the Li ion migration mechanism of SCEs, the strategies to enhance the ionic conductivity of SCEs by various morphologies of ICEs, and construction methods of the low resistance and stable interfaces of SCEs with both cathode and anode. Finally, some typical applications of SCEs in lithium batteries are summarized and future development directions are prospected. This work presents how it is quite significant to further enhance the ionic conductivity of SCEs by developing the novel SPEs with the special morphology of ICEs for advanced all‐solid‐state lithium batteries. Herein, the advantages and ionic transport mechanisms of solid composite electrolyte (SCE) as well as the relationship between morphology of ceramic fillers and ionic conductivity of SCE are reviewed. Recent progress and strategies to settle interfacial issues for high‐performance all‐solid‐state lithium metal batteries with SCE are also concluded and future research directions of SCEs are proposed.

The replacement of liquid organic electrolytes with solid‐state electrolytes (SSEs) is a feasible way to solve the safety issues and improve the energy density of lithium batteries. Developing SSEs materials that can well match with high‐voltage cathodes and lithium metal anode is quite significant to develop high‐energy‐density lithium batteries. Li1 + xAlxTi2 ‐ x(PO4)3 (LATP) SSE with NASICON structure exhibits high ionic conductivity, low cost and superior air stability, which enable it as one of the most hopeful candidates for all‐solid‐state batteries (ASSBs). However, the high interfacial impedance between LATP and electrodes, and the severe interfacial side reactions with the lithium metal greatly limit its applications in ASSBs. This review introduces the crystal structure and ion transport mechanisms of LATP and summarizes the key factors affecting the ionic conductivity. The side reaction mechanisms of LATP with Li metal and the promising strategies for optimizing interfacial compatibility are reviewed. We also summarize the applications of LATP including as surface coatings of cathode particles, ion transport network additives and inorganic fillers of composite polymer electrolytes. At last, this review proposes the challenges and the future development directions of LATP in SSBs. Schematic of the structure in this review.

Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) is a common endocrine disorder characterized by chronic ovulation dysfunction and overabundance of androgens; it affects 6–20% of women of reproductive age. PCOS involves various pathophysiological factors, and affected women usually have significant insulin resistance (IR), which is a major cause of PCOS. IR and compensatory hyperinsulinaemia have differing pathogeneses in various tissues, and IR varies among different PCOS phenotypes. Genetic and epigenetic changes, hyperandrogenaemia, and obesity aggravate IR. Insulin sensitization drugs are a new treatment modality for PCOS. We searched PubMed, Google Scholar, Elsevier, and UpToDate databases in this review, and focused on the pathogenesis of IR in women with PCOS and the pathophysiology of IR in various tissues. In addition, the review provides a comprehensive overview of the current progress in the efficacy of insulin sensitization therapy in the management of PCOS, providing the latest evidence for the clinical treatment of women with PCOS and IR.

Developing highly active and durable electrocatalysts for acidic oxygen evolution reaction remains a great challenge due to the sluggish kinetics of the four-electron transfer reaction and severe catalyst dissolution. Here we report an electrochemical lithium intercalation method to improve both the activity and stability of RuO 2 for acidic oxygen evolution reaction. The lithium intercalates into the lattice interstices of RuO 2 , donates electrons and distorts the local structure. Therefore, the Ru valence state is lowered with formation of stable Li-O-Ru local structure, and the Ru–O covalency is weakened, which suppresses the dissolution of Ru, resulting in greatly enhanced durability. Meanwhile, the inherent lattice strain results in the surface structural distortion of Li x RuO 2 and activates the dangling O atom near the Ru active site as a proton acceptor, which stabilizes the OOH* and dramatically enhances the activity. This work provides an effective strategy to develop highly efficient catalyst towards water splitting. While water splitting in acid offers higher operational performances than in alkaline conditions, there are few high-activity, acid-stable oxygen evolution electrocatalysts. Here, authors examine electrochemical Li intercalation to improve the activity and stability of RuO 2 for acidic water oxidation.

High-voltage lithium metal batteries suffer from poor cycling stability caused by the detrimental effect on the cathode of the water moisture present in the non-aqueous liquid electrolyte solution, especially at high operating temperatures (e.g., ≥60 °C). To circumvent this issue, here we report lithium hexamethyldisilazide (LiHMDS) as an electrolyte additive. We demonstrate that the addition of a 0.6 wt% of LiHMDS in a typical fluorine-containing carbonate-based non-aqueous electrolyte solution enables a stable Li||LiNi 0.8 Co 0.1 Mn 0.1 O 2 (NCM811) coin cell operation up to 1000 or 500 cycles applying a high cut-off cell voltage of 4.5 V in the 25 °C−60 °C temperature range. The LiHMDS acts as a scavenger for hydrofluoric acid and water and facilitates the formation of an (electro)chemical robust cathode|electrolyte interphase (CEI). The LiHMDS-derived CEI prevents the Ni dissolution of NCM811, mitigates the irreversible phase transformation from layered structure to rock-salt phase and suppresses the side reactions with the electrolyte solution. High-voltage non-aqueous lithium metal batteries suffer from poor cycling stability due to the presence of impurities in the electrolyte solution. Here, the authors report lithium hexamethyldisilazide to scavenge HF and H 2 O, prevent the Ni dissolution and suppress side reactions during cycling.

Enhancer mapping has been greatly facilitated by various genomic marks associated with it. However, little is available in our toolbox to link enhancers with their target promoters, hampering mechanistic understanding of enhancer–promoter (EP) interaction. We develop and characterize multiple genomic features for distinguishing true EP pairs from noninteracting pairs. We integrate these features into a probabilistic predictor for EP interactions. Multiple validation experiments demonstrate a significant improvement over state-of-the-art approaches. Systematic analyses of EP interactions across 12 cell types reveal several global features of EP interactions: (i) a larger fraction of EP interactions are cell type specific than enhancers; (ii) promoters controlled by multiple enhancers have higher tissue specificity, but the regulating enhancers are less conserved; (iii) cohesin plays a role in mediating tissue-specific EP interactions via chromatin looping in a CTCF-independent manner. Our approach presents a systematic and effective strategy to decipher the mechanisms underlying EP communication.

The lengthening phase of ventral furrow formation in Drosophila gastrulation is driven by cytoplasmic flows triggered by apical constriction of mesoderm cells independent of the mechanical inputs from the basolateral membranes. A role for viscosity on cellular morphogenesis Using Drosophila gastrulation as a model, Eric Wieschaus and colleagues have studied the respective contributions of cortical cellular forces and cytoplasmic viscous forces to the generation of complex three-dimensional morphogenetic processes. They found that the lengthening phase in furrow formation is driven by cytoplasmic flows triggered by apical constriction of mesoderm cells, and that cell individualization is dispensable. These findings favour a viscous component in morphogenesis, rather than one based solely on mechanical inputs from cell membranes. Epithelial folding mediated by apical constriction converts flat epithelial sheets into multilayered, complex tissue structures and is used throughout development in most animals 1 . Little is known, however, about how forces produced near the apical surface of the tissue are transmitted within individual cells to generate the global changes in cell shape that characterize tissue deformation. Here we apply particle tracking velocimetry in gastrulating Drosophila embryos to measure the movement of cytoplasm and plasma membrane during ventral furrow formation 2 , 3 . We find that cytoplasmic redistribution during the lengthening phase of ventral furrow formation can be precisely described by viscous flows that quantitatively match the predictions of hydrodynamics. Cell membranes move with the ambient cytoplasm, with little resistance to, or driving force on, the flow. Strikingly, apical constriction produces similar flow patterns in mutant embryos that fail to form cells before gastrulation (‘acellular’ embryos), such that the global redistribution of cytoplasm mirrors the summed redistribution occurring in individual cells of wild-type embryos. Our results indicate that during the lengthening phase of ventral furrow formation, hydrodynamic behaviour of the cytoplasm provides the predominant mechanism transmitting apically generated forces deep into the tissue and that cell individualization is dispensable.

As a result of recent, substantial capacity building, a new landscape for cancer drug trials is emerging in China. However, data on the characteristics of cancer drug trials, and how they have changed over time, are scarce. Based on clinical trials published on the China Food and Drug Administration Registration and Information Disclosure Platform for Drug Clinical Studies, we aimed to systematically review changes over time in clinical trials of cancer drugs in mainland China from 2009 to 2018, to provide insight on the effectiveness of the pharmaceutical industry and identify unmet clinical needs of stakeholders. A total of 1493 trials of 751 newly tested cancer drugs were initiated. Increases over time were observed for the annual number of initiated trials, newly tested drugs, and newly added leading clinical trial units, with a sharp increase after 2016. Of the 1385 trials in which cancer types were identified, solid tumours (325 [23%] trials), non-small-cell lung cancer (232 [17%]), and lymphoma (126 [9%]) were the most common. A markedly uneven distribution was also observed in the geography of leading units with the largest number of leading units located in east China (50 [41%]) and the smallest number located in southwest China (4 [3%]). The growth trends we observed illustrate the progress in and increasing capability of cancer drug research and development achieved in mainland China over the decade from 2009. The low number of clinical trials on tumours with epidemiological characteristics unique to the Chinese population and the unbalanced geographical distribution of leading clinical trial units will provide potential targets for policy makers and other stakeholders. Further research efforts should address cancers uniquely relevant to Chinese populations, globally rare cancers, and the balance between equitable drug access, efficiency, and sustainability of cancer drug research and development in mainland China.