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Background/ObjectivesDietary patterns and daily life habits have been reported to be associated with cognitive function in European populations. We aimed to examine the associations of dietary patterns and daily life habits with cognitive function among Chinese old people.Subjects/MethodsWe used 2011–2014 longitudinal data from the Chinese Longitudinal Healthy Longevity Survey (CLHLS) comprising 5716 participants with an average age of 82 years. Cognitive function was measured in 2014 based on the results of Mini-Mental Status Examination. Data on participants’ dietary patterns and daily life habits were collected during baseline survey. Logistic regression models and general linear models were adopted to estimate the associations of dietary pattern and daily life habit with cognitive function.ResultsCompared with participants in the lowest quartile of lifestyle score, those in the highest quartile had a lower risk of cognitive impairment after controlling for all covariates (OR = 0.52, 95% confidence interval (CI), 0.41–0.65, P < 0.001). Higher lifestyle score was associated with better cognitive function (β = 0.74, 95% CI, 0.55–0.93, P < 0.001). Participants with top quartile of dietary pattern had a lower risk of cognitive impairment (OR = 0.65, 95% CI, 0.51–0.81, P < 0.001). Similar trends were observed in daily life habit, showing that more exercises, moderate alcohol consumption, and non-smoking were associated with improved cognition status (OR = 0.64, 95% CI, 0.53–0.77, P < 0.001).ConclusionsOur findings suggest that maintaining a healthy dietary pattern and carrying out outdoor exercises is associated with a lower risk of cognitive impairment among Chinese old people.

Few studies have assessed the relationship between multimorbidity patterns and mortality risk in the Chinese population. We aimed to identify multimorbidity patterns and examined the associations of multimorbidity patterns and the number of chronic diseases with the risk of mortality among Chinese middle-aged and older adults. We used data from the China Kadoorie Biobank and included 512,723 participants aged 30 to 79 years. Multimorbidity was defined as the presence of two or more of the 15 chronic diseases collected by self-report or physical examination at baseline. Multimorbidity patterns were identified using hierarchical cluster analysis. Cox regression was used to estimate the associations of multimorbidity patterns and the number of chronic diseases with all-cause and cause-specific mortality. Overall, 15.8% of participants had multimorbidity. The prevalence of multimorbidity increased with age and was higher in urban than rural participants. Four multimorbidity patterns were identified, including cardiometabolic multimorbidity (diabetes, coronary heart disease, stroke, and hypertension), respiratory multimorbidity (tuberculosis, asthma, and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease), gastrointestinal and hepatorenal multimorbidity (gallstone disease, chronic kidney disease, cirrhosis, peptic ulcer, and cancer), and mental and arthritis multimorbidity (neurasthenia, psychiatric disorder, and rheumatoid arthritis). During a median of 10.8 years of follow-up, 49,371 deaths occurred. Compared with participants without multimorbidity, cardiometabolic multimorbidity (hazard ratios [HR] = 2.20, 95% confidence intervals [CI]: 2.14 - 2.26) and respiratory multimorbidity (HR = 2.13, 95% CI:1.97 - 2.31) demonstrated relatively higher risks of mortality, followed by gastrointestinal and hepatorenal multimorbidity (HR = 1.33, 95% CI:1.22 - 1.46). The mortality risk increased by 36% (HR = 1.36, 95% CI: 1.35 - 1.37) with every additional disease. Cardiometabolic multimorbidity and respiratory multimorbidity posed the highest threat on mortality risk and deserved particular attention in Chinese adults.

NRC publication: Yes

A very basic pathway from CO2 to ethyleneEthylene is an important commodity chemical for plastics. It is considered a tractable target for synthesizing renewable resources from carbon dioxide (CO2). The challenge is that the performance of the copper electrocatalysts used for this conversion under the required basic reaction conditions suffers from the competing reaction of CO2 with the base to form bicarbonate. Dinh et al. designed an electrode that tolerates the base by optimizing CO2 diffusion to the catalytic sites (see the Perspective by Ager and Lapkin). This catalyst design delivers 70% efficiency for 150 hours.Science, this issue p. 783; see also p. 707Carbon dioxide (CO2) electroreduction could provide a useful source of ethylene, but low conversion efficiency, low production rates, and low catalyst stability limit current systems. Here we report that a copper electrocatalyst at an abrupt reaction interface in an alkaline electrolyte reduces CO2 to ethylene with 70% faradaic efficiency at a potential of −0.55 volts versus a reversible hydrogen electrode (RHE). Hydroxide ions on or near the copper surface lower the CO2 reduction and carbon monoxide (CO)–CO coupling activation energy barriers; as a result, onset of ethylene evolution at −0.165 volts versus an RHE in 10 molar potassium hydroxide occurs almost simultaneously with CO production. Operational stability was enhanced via the introduction of a polymer-based gas diffusion layer that sandwiches the reaction interface between separate hydrophobic and conductive supports, providing constant ethylene selectivity for an initial 150 operating hours.

The electrochemical reduction of carbon monoxide is a promising approach for the renewable production of carbon-based fuels and chemicals. Copper shows activity toward multi-carbon products from CO reduction, with reaction selectivity favoring two-carbon products; however, efficient conversion of CO to higher carbon products such as n-propanol, a liquid fuel, has yet to be achieved. We hypothesize that copper adparticles, possessing a high density of under-coordinated atoms, could serve as preferential sites for n-propanol formation. Density functional theory calculations suggest that copper adparticles increase CO binding energy and stabilize two-carbon intermediates, facilitating coupling between adsorbed *CO and two-carbon intermediates to form three-carbon products. We form adparticle-covered catalysts in-situ by mediating catalyst growth with strong CO chemisorption. The new catalysts exhibit an n-propanol Faradaic efficiency of 23% from CO reduction at an n-propanol partial current density of 11 mA cm −2 . Upgrading wasted carbon emissions to high-value, multi-carbon products provides an economic route to reduce carbon dioxide levels, but such conversions have proven challenging. Here, authors explore copper adparticles as highly active surfaces that convert CO to n-propanol with high selectivities.

Gold and palladium nanoneedle electrocatalysts benefit from field-induced reagent concentration to improve the efficiency of carbon dioxide reduction in the synthesis of carbon-based fuels using renewable electricity. Boosting CO 2 reduction with nanostructured electrodes Electrochemical reduction of carbon dioxide (CO 2 ) to carbon monoxide is the first step in the manufacture of fuels and feedstocks using renewable electricity, but it is a slow process owing to low CO 2 concentration near the CO 2 reduction sites on the electrocatalysts. Min Liu et al . show that electrodes with sharp nanometre-sized tips produce local high electric fields that increase local CO 2 concentrations near the active electrocatalyst surface. Gold nanoneedles exploiting this field-induced reagent concentration (FIRC) effect outperform the best gold nanoparticles and oxide-derived noble metal catalysts. Similarly, palladium nanoneedle electrocatalsts produce formate from CO 2 with high selectivity and efficiency, proving the wider applicability of the FIRC concept and its value for the design of superior electrocatalysts. Electrochemical reduction of carbon dioxide (CO 2 ) to carbon monoxide (CO) is the first step in the synthesis of more complex carbon-based fuels and feedstocks using renewable electricity 1 , 2 , 3 , 4 , 5 , 6 , 7 . Unfortunately, the reaction suffers from slow kinetics 7 , 8 owing to the low local concentration of CO 2 surrounding typical CO 2 reduction reaction catalysts. Alkali metal cations are known to overcome this limitation through non-covalent interactions with adsorbed reagent species 9 , 10 , but the effect is restricted by the solubility of relevant salts. Large applied electrode potentials can also enhance CO 2 adsorption 11 , but this comes at the cost of increased hydrogen (H 2 ) evolution. Here we report that nanostructured electrodes produce, at low applied overpotentials, local high electric fields that concentrate electrolyte cations, which in turn leads to a high local concentration of CO 2 close to the active CO 2 reduction reaction surface. Simulations reveal tenfold higher electric fields associated with metallic nanometre-sized tips compared to quasi-planar electrode regions, and measurements using gold nanoneedles confirm a field-induced reagent concentration that enables the CO 2 reduction reaction to proceed with a geometric current density for CO of 22 milliamperes per square centimetre at −0.35 volts (overpotential of 0.24 volts). This performance surpasses by an order of magnitude the performance of the best gold nanorods, nanoparticles and oxide-derived noble metal catalysts. Similarly designed palladium nanoneedle electrocatalysts produce formate with a Faradaic efficiency of more than 90 per cent and an unprecedented geometric current density for formate of 10 milliamperes per square centimetre at −0.2 volts, demonstrating the wider applicability of the field-induced reagent concentration concept.

Optical trapping has widely affected both the physical and life sciences. Past approaches to optical trapping of nanoscale objects required large optical intensities, often above their damage threshold. To achieve more than an order of magnitude reduction in the local intensity required for optical trapping, we present a self-induced back-action (SIBA) optical trap, where the trapped object has an active role in enhancing the restoring force. We demonstrate experimentally trapping of a single 50 nm polystyrene sphere using a SIBA optical trap on the basis of the transmission resonance of a nanoaperture in a metal film. SIBA optical trapping shows a striking departure from previous approaches, which we quantify by comprehensive calculations. The SIBA optical trap enables new opportunities for non-invasive immobilization of a single nanoscale object, such as a virus or a quantum dot. Optical tweezers use the forces exerted by light to manipulate objects at the micrometre scale. An approach in which the target particle itself plays an active part now achieves this using a lower light intensity. This reduction means that heat-sensitive targets such as viruses could be manipulated directly.

Copper-based materials are promising electrocatalysts for CO 2 reduction. Prior studies show that the mixture of copper (I) and copper (0) at the catalyst surface enhances multi-carbon products from CO 2 reduction; however, the stable presence of copper (I) remains the subject of debate. Here we report a copper on copper (I) composite that stabilizes copper (I) during CO 2 reduction through the use of copper nitride as an underlying copper (I) species. We synthesize a copper-on-nitride catalyst that exhibits a Faradaic efficiency of 64 ± 2% for C 2+ products. We achieve a 40-fold enhancement in the ratio of C 2+ to the competing CH 4 compared to the case of pure copper. We further show that the copper-on-nitride catalyst performs stable CO 2 reduction over 30 h. Mechanistic studies suggest that the use of copper nitride contributes to reducing the CO dimerization energy barrier—a rate-limiting step in CO 2 reduction to multi-carbon products. While multi-carbon (C 2+ ) products present high-value species attainable from emitted carbon dioxide, it is challenging to prepare stable, C 2+ selective catalysts. Here, authors support copper on copper nitride to improve copper’s electrocatalytic stability and selectivity toward C 2+ synthesis.

The electroreduction of C 1 feedgas to high-energy-density fuels provides an attractive avenue to the storage of renewable electricity. Much progress has been made to improve selectivity to C 1 and C 2 products, however, the selectivity to desirable high-energy-density C 3 products remains relatively low. We reason that C 3 electrosynthesis relies on a higher-order reaction pathway that requires the formation of multiple carbon-carbon (C-C) bonds, and thus pursue a strategy explicitly designed to couple C 2 with C 1 intermediates. We develop an approach wherein neighboring copper atoms having distinct electronic structures interact with two adsorbates to catalyze an asymmetric reaction. We achieve a record n -propanol Faradaic efficiency (FE) of (33 ± 1)% with a conversion rate of (4.5 ± 0.1) mA cm −2 , and a record n -propanol cathodic energy conversion efficiency (EE cathodic half-cell ) of 21%. The FE and EE cathodic half-cell represent a 1.3× improvement relative to previously-published CO-to- n -propanol electroreduction reports. Catalysts for CO electroreduction have focused on Cu, and their main products have been C 2 chemicals. Here authors use the concept of asymmetric active sites to develop a class of doped Cu catalysts for C-C coupling, delivering record selectivity to n -propanol.

Engineering copper-based catalysts that favour high-value alcohols is desired in view of the energy density, ready transport and established use of these liquid fuels. In the design of catalysts, much progress has been made to target the C–C coupling step; whereas comparatively little effort has been expended to target post-C–C coupling reaction intermediates. Here we report a class of core–shell vacancy engineering catalysts that utilize sulfur atoms in the nanoparticle core and copper vacancies in the shell to achieve efficient electrochemical CO 2 reduction to propanol and ethanol. These catalysts shift selectivity away from the competing ethylene reaction and towards liquid alcohols. We increase the alcohol-to-ethylene ratio more than sixfold compared with bare-copper nanoparticles, highlighting an alternative approach to electroproduce alcohols instead of alkenes. We achieve a C 2+ alcohol production rate of 126 ± 5 mA cm −2 with a selectivity of 32 ± 1% Faradaic efficiency. The conversion of carbon dioxide into multi-carbon alcohols would enable the synthesis of sustainable liquid fuels with high energy densities. Now, vacancy-engineered core–shell copper-based catalysts are able to shift the selectivity of electrochemical CO 2 reduction into alcohols instead of alkenes, as obtained with bare-copper catalysts.