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Ag/γ-Al 2 O 3 is widely used for catalyzing various reactions, and its performance depends on the valence state, morphology and dispersion of Ag species. However, detailed anchoring mechanism of Ag species on γ-Al 2 O 3 remains largely unknown. Herein, we reveal that the terminal hydroxyls on γ-Al 2 O 3 are responsible for anchoring Ag species. The abundant terminal hydroxyls existed on nanosized γ-Al 2 O 3 can lead to single-atom silver dispersion, thereby resulting in markedly enhanced performance than the Ag cluster on microsized γ-Al 2 O 3 . Density-functional-theory calculations confirm that Ag atom is mainly anchored by the terminal hydroxyls on (100) surface, forming a staple-like local structure with each Ag atom bonded with two or three terminal hydroxyls. Our finding resolves the puzzle on why the single-atom silver dispersion can be spontaneously achieved only on nanosized γ-Al 2 O 3 , but not on microsized γ-Al 2 O 3 . The obtained insight into the Ag species dispersion will benefit future design of more efficient supported Ag catalysts. Detailed atom-level anchoring mechanism of Ag species on γ-Al 2 O 3 is largely unknown for the widely used Ag/γ-Al 2 O 3 catalyst. Here, the authors demonstrate that single-Ag atom can be only anchored by the terminal hydroxyls on the (100) surfaces of γ-Al 2 O 3 through consuming two or three terminal hydroxyls.

N6-methyladenosine (m6A) has emerged as an abundant modification throughout the transcriptome with widespread functions in protein-coding and noncoding RNAs. It affects the fates of modified RNAs, including their stability, splicing, and/or translation, and thus plays important roles in posttranscriptional regulation. To date, m6A methyltransferases have been reported to execute m6A deposition on distinct RNAs by their own or forming different complexes with additional partner proteins. In this review, we summarize the function of these m6A methyltransferases or complexes in regulating the key genes and pathways of cancer biology. We also highlight the progress in the use of m6A methyltransferases in mediating therapy resistance, including chemotherapy, targeted therapy, immunotherapy and radiotherapy. Finally, we discuss the current approaches and clinical potential of m6A methyltransferase-targeting strategies.

Pyroptotic cell death or pyroptosis is characterized by caspase-1-dependent formation of plasma membrane pores, leading to the release of pro-inflammatory cytokines and cell lysis. Pyroptosis tightly controls the inflammatory responses and coordinates antimicrobial host defenses by releasing pro-inflammatory cellular contents, such as interleukin (IL)-1β and IL-18, and consequently expands or sustains inflammation. It is recognized as an important innate immune effector mechanism against intracellular pathogens. The induction of pyroptosis is closely associated with the activation of the NOD-like receptor 3 (NLRP3) inflammasome which has been linked to key cardiovascular risk factors including hyperlipidemia, diabetes, hypertension, obesity, and hyperhomocysteinemia. Emerging evidence has indicated pyroptosis as an important trigger and endogenous regulator of cardiovascular inflammation. Thus, pyroptosis may play an important role in the pathogenesis of cardiovascular diseases. Design of therapeutic strategies targeting the activation of NLRP3 inflammasome and pyroptosis holds promise for the treatment of cardiovascular diseases.

NF-κB signaling has been discovered for nearly 40 years. Initially, NF-κB signaling was identified as a pivotal pathway in mediating inflammatory responses. However, with extensive and in-depth investigations, researchers have discovered that its role can be expanded to a variety of signaling mechanisms, biological processes, human diseases, and treatment options. In this review, we first scrutinize the research process of NF-κB signaling, and summarize the composition, activation, and regulatory mechanism of NF-κB signaling. We investigate the interaction of NF-κB signaling with other important pathways, including PI3K/AKT, MAPK, JAK-STAT, TGF-β, Wnt, Notch, Hedgehog, and TLR signaling. The physiological and pathological states of NF-κB signaling, as well as its intricate involvement in inflammation, immune regulation, and tumor microenvironment, are also explicated. Additionally, we illustrate how NF-κB signaling is involved in a variety of human diseases, including cancers, inflammatory and autoimmune diseases, cardiovascular diseases, metabolic diseases, neurological diseases, and COVID-19. Further, we discuss the therapeutic approaches targeting NF-κB signaling, including IKK inhibitors, monoclonal antibodies, proteasome inhibitors, nuclear translocation inhibitors, DNA binding inhibitors, TKIs, non-coding RNAs, immunotherapy, and CAR-T. Finally, we provide an outlook for research in the field of NF-κB signaling. We hope to present a stereoscopic, comprehensive NF-κB signaling that will inform future research and clinical practice.

The spectroscopic features of protonated water species in dilute acid solutions have been long sought after for understanding the microscopic behavior of the proton in water with gas-phase water clusters H + (H 2 O) n extensively studied as bottom-up model systems. We present a new protocol for the calculation of the infrared (IR) spectra of complex systems, which combines the fragment-based Coupled Cluster method and anharmonic vibrational quasi-degenerate perturbation theory, and demonstrate its accuracy towards the complete and accurate assignment of the IR spectrum of the H + (H 2 O) 21 cluster. The site-specific IR spectral signatures reveal two distinct structures for the internal and surface four-coordinated water molecules, which are ice-like and liquid-like, respectively. The effect of inter-molecular interaction between water molecules is addressed, and the vibrational resonance is found between the O-H stretching fundamental and the bending overtone of the nearest neighboring water molecule. The revelation of the spectral signature of the excess proton offers deeper insight into the nature of charge accommodation in the extended hydrogen-bonding network underpinning this aqueous cluster. Protonated water species have been the subject of numerous experimental and computational studies. Here the authors provide a nearly complete assignment of the experimental IR spectrum of the H + (H 2 O) 21 water cluster based on high-level wavefunction theory and anharmonic vibrational quasi-degenerate perturbation theory.

Nonlinear optical effects in layered two-dimensional transition metal chalcogenides have been extensively explored recently because of the promising prospect of the nonlinear optical effects for various optoelectronic applications. However, these materials possess sizable bandgaps ranging from visible to ultraviolet region, so the investigation of narrow-bandgap materials remains deficient. Here, we report our comprehensive study on the nonlinear optical processes in palladium diselenide (PdSe 2 ) that has a near-infrared bandgap. Interestingly, this material exhibits a unique thickness-dependent second harmonic generation feature, which is in contrast to other transition metal chalcogenides. Furthermore, the two-photon absorption coefficients of 1–3 layer PdSe 2 ( β  ~ 4.16 × 10 5 , 2.58 × 10 5 , and 1.51 × 10 5  cm GW −1 ) are larger by two and three orders of magnitude than that of the conventional two-dimensional materials, and giant modulation depths ( α s  ~ 32%, 27%, and 24%) were obtained in 1–3 layer PdSe 2 . Such unique nonlinear optical characteristics make PdSe 2 a potential candidate for technological innovations in nonlinear optoelectronic devices. Strong nonlinearities in 2D materials can lead to interesting applications in optoelectronics. Here the authors investigate the optical nonlinearity of palladium diselenide, determine the layer dependent two photon absorption efficiency and the saturable absorption modulation depth.

The continuing increase in atmospheric CO2 concentration caused by anthropogenic CO2 emissions significantly contributes to climate change driven by global warming. Satellite measurements of long-term CO2 data with global coverage improve our understanding of global carbon cycles. However, the sensitivity of the space-borne measurements to anthropogenic emissions on a regional scale is less explored because of data sparsity in space and time caused by impacts from geophysical factors such as aerosols and clouds. Here, we used global land mapping column averaged dry-air mole fractions of CO2 (XCO2) data (Mapping-XCO2), generated from a spatio-temporal geostatistical method using GOSAT and OCO-2 observations from April 2009 to December 2020, to investigate the responses of XCO2 to anthropogenic emissions at both global and regional scales. Our results show that the long-term trend of global XCO2 growth rate from Mapping-XCO2, which is consistent with that from ground observations, shows interannual variations caused by the El Niño Southern Oscillation (ENSO). The spatial distributions of XCO2 anomalies, derived from removing background from the Mapping-XCO2 data, reveal XCO2 enhancements of about 1.5–3.5 ppm due to anthropogenic emissions and seasonal biomass burning in the wintertime. Furthermore, a clustering analysis applied to seasonal XCO2 clearly reveals the spatial patterns of atmospheric transport and terrestrial biosphere CO2 fluxes, which help better understand and analyze regional XCO2 changes that are associated with atmospheric transport. To quantify regional anomalies of CO2 emissions, we selected three representative urban agglomerations as our study areas, including the Beijing-Tian-Hebei region (BTH), the Yangtze River Delta urban agglomerations (YRD), and the high-density urban areas in the eastern USA (EUSA). The results show that the XCO2 anomalies in winter well capture the several-ppm enhancement due to anthropogenic CO2 emissions. For BTH, YRD, and EUSA, regional positive anomalies of 2.47 ± 0.37 ppm, 2.20 ± 0.36 ppm, and 1.38 ± 0.33 ppm, respectively, can be detected during winter months from 2009 to 2020. These anomalies are slightly higher than model simulations from CarbonTracker-CO2. In addition, we compared the variations in regional XCO2 anomalies and NO2 columns during the lockdown of the COVID-19 pandemic from January to March 2020. Interestingly, the results demonstrate that the variations of XCO2 anomalies have a positive correlation with the decline of NO2 columns during this period. These correlations, moreover, are associated with the features of emitting sources. These results suggest that we can use simultaneously observed NO2, because of its high detectivity and co-emission with CO2, to assist the analysis and verification of CO2 emissions in future studies.

The ionic defects at the surfaces and grain boundaries of organic–inorganic halide perovskite films are detrimental to both the efficiency and stability of perovskite solar cells. Here, we show that quaternary ammonium halides can effectively passivate ionic defects in several different types of hybrid perovskite with their negative- and positive-charged components. The efficient defect passivation reduces the charge trap density and elongates the carrier recombination lifetime, which is supported by density-function-theory calculation. The defect passivation reduces the open-circuit-voltage deficit of the p–i–n-structured device to 0.39 V, and boosts the efficiency to a certified value of 20.59 ± 0.45%. Moreover, the defect healing also significantly enhances the stability of films in ambient conditions. Our findings provide an avenue for defect passivation to further improve both the efficiency and stability of solar cells. Losses in solar cells can be caused by material defects in the bulk or at interfaces. Here, Zheng et al.  use quaternary ammonium halides to passivate various perovskite absorbers and prepare solar cells with certified efficiency above 20%, suggesting that both anionic and cation defects are affected.

Plant hormones are known to regulate the uptake and distribution of mineral elements, including heavy metals, in crops. This study evaluated the effects of exogenous jasmonic acid (JA) and salicylic acid (SA), applied individually or in combination, on selenium (Se) enrichment and cadmium (Cd) mitigation in pak choi ( Brassica chinensis L.) cultivated in Se-rich and high-Cd soils. Hormone treatments significantly increased shoot Se content by 33.7%-62.3% compared to the control, with the highest level Se accumulation observed under combined application of 50 μmol·L -1 JA and 50 μmol·L -1 SA. Cd accumulation in shoots decreased by 11.7%-29.3% in JA-containing treatments, with the same combined producing the lowest shoot Cd levels. JA alone increased root Cd content, while SA treatments reduced it. Individual hormone treatments elevated root levels of phytochelatins (PCs), glutathione (GSH), and metallo-thioneins (MTs), while the combined treatment future increased PCs and GSH, but decreased MTs and non-protein thiols (NPTs). Antioxidant enzyme activities (SOD, CAT, POD), chlorophyll content and shoot fresh weight also increased in JA-containing treatments. Taken together, foliar application of JA combined SA offers a promising strategy to enhance Se biofortification, reduce Cd accumulation, and promote biomass production in pak choi grown in Se-rich and high-Cd soils.

There has been an urgent need to eliminate toxic lead from the prevailing halide perovskite solar cells (PSCs), but the current lead-free PSCs are still plagued with the critical issues of low efficiency and poor stability. This is primarily due to their inadequate photovoltaic properties and chemical stability. Herein we demonstrate the use of the lead-free, all-inorganic cesium tin-germanium triiodide (CsSn 0.5 Ge 0.5 I 3 ) solid-solution perovskite as the light absorber in PSCs, delivering promising efficiency of up to 7.11%. More importantly, these PSCs show very high stability, with less than 10% decay in efficiency after 500 h of continuous operation in N 2  atmosphere under one-sun illumination. The key to this striking performance of these PSCs is the formation of a full-coverage, stable native-oxide layer, which fully encapsulates and passivates the perovskite surfaces. The native-oxide passivation approach reported here represents an alternate avenue for boosting the efficiency and stability of lead-free PSCs. Replacing the toxic lead in the state-of-the-art halide perovskite solar cells is highly desired but the device performance and stability are usually compromised. Here Chen et al. develop inorganic cesium tin and germanium mixed-cation perovskites that show high operational stability and efficiency over 7%.