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Aqueous aluminum batteries are promising post-lithium battery technologies for large-scale energy storage applications because of the raw materials abundance, low costs, safety and high theoretical capacity. However, their development is hindered by the unsatisfactory electrochemical behaviour of the Al metal electrode due to the presence of an oxide layer and hydrogen side reaction. To circumvent these issues, we report aluminum-copper alloy lamellar heterostructures as anode active materials. These alloys improve the Al-ion electrochemical reversibility (e.g., achieving dendrite-free Al deposition during stripping/plating cycles) by using periodic galvanic couplings of alternating anodic α-aluminum and cathodic intermetallic Al 2 Cu nanometric lamellas. In symmetric cell configuration with a low oxygen concentration (i.e., 0.13 mg L −1 ) aqueous electrolyte solution, the lamella-nanostructured eutectic Al 82 Cu 18 alloy electrode allows Al stripping/plating for 2000 h with an overpotential lower than ±53 mV. When the Al 82 Cu 18 anode is tested in combination with an Al x MnO 2 cathode material, the aqueous full cell delivers specific energy of ~670 Wh kg −1 at 100 mA g −1 and an initial discharge capacity of ~400 mAh g −1 at 500 mA g −1 with a capacity retention of 83% after 400 cycles. Aqueous Al-ion batteries are attractive post-lithium battery technologies. Here Al-Cu alloy lamellar heterostructures with periodic galvanic couplings are reported as efficient anode active material to produce high-energy aqueous Al-ion batteries.

Developing robust nonprecious-metal electrocatalysts with high activity towards sluggish oxygen-evolution reaction is paramount for large-scale hydrogen production via electrochemical water splitting. Here we report that self-supported laminate composite electrodes composed of alternating nanoporous bimetallic iron-cobalt alloy/oxyhydroxide and cerium oxynitride (FeCo/CeO 2− x N x ) heterolamellas hold great promise as highly efficient electrocatalysts for alkaline oxygen-evolution reaction. By virtue of three-dimensional nanoporous architecture to offer abundant and accessible electroactive CoFeOOH/CeO 2− x N x heterostructure interfaces through facilitating electron transfer and mass transport, nanoporous FeCo/CeO 2− x N x composite electrodes exhibit superior oxygen-evolution electrocatalysis in 1 M KOH, with ultralow Tafel slope of ~33 mV dec −1 . At overpotential of as low as 360 mV, they reach >3900 mA cm −2 and retain exceptional stability at ~1900 mA cm −2 for >1000 h, outperforming commercial RuO 2 and some representative oxygen-evolution-reaction catalysts recently reported. These electrochemical properties make them attractive candidates as oxygen-evolution-reaction electrocatalysts in electrolysis of water for large-scale hydrogen generation. Developing stable catalysts for industrial-scale current densities is challenging. Here, the authors report self-supported laminate electrodes composed of nanoporous bimetallic iron-cobalt alloy/oxyhydroxide and cerium oxynitride hybrid that can catalyze the oxygen evolution reaction at high current densities.

HighlightsZnxCuy alloy shell was in-situ formed on self-supported three-dimensional nanoporous Zn anode by anionic surfactant-assisted surface alloying of Zn and Cu.The self-supported nanoporous ZnxCuy/Zn anodes exhibit high-rate capability, outstanding reversibility and stability during Zn stripping/plating because of zincophilic ZnxCuy to guide uniform Zn deposition and facilitate Zn stripping.Aqueous Zn-ion batteries assembled with nanoporous ZnxCuy/Zn anode and KzMnO2 cathode achieve specific energy of as high as ~430 Wh kg‒1 and retain ~86% after long-term cycles for >700 h.Metallic zinc (Zn) is one of the most attractive multivalent-metal anode materials in post-lithium batteries because of its high abundance, low cost and high theoretical capacity. However, it usually suffers from large voltage polarization, low Coulombic efficiency and high propensity for dendritic failure during Zn stripping/plating, hindering the practical application in aqueous rechargeable zinc-metal batteries (AR-ZMBs). Here we demonstrate that anionic surfactant-assisted in situ surface alloying of Cu and Zn remarkably improves Zn reversibility of 3D nanoporous Zn electrodes for potential use as high-performance AR-ZMB anode materials. As a result of the zincophilic ZnxCuy alloy shell guiding uniform Zn deposition with a zero nucleation overpotential and facilitating Zn stripping via the ZnxCuy/Zn galvanic couples, the self-supported nanoporous ZnxCuy/Zn electrodes exhibit superior dendrite-free Zn stripping/plating behaviors in ambient aqueous electrolyte, with ultralow polarizations under current densities up to 50 mA cm‒2, exceptional stability for 1900 h and high Zn utilization. This enables AR-ZMB full cells constructed with nanoporous ZnxCuy/Zn anode and KzMnO2 cathode to achieve specific energy of as high as ~ 430 Wh kg‒1 with ~ 99.8% Coulombic efficiency, and retain ~ 86% after long-term cycles for > 700 h.

Developing cost-effective and high-performance non-precious metal-based electrocatalysts for hydrogen evolution reaction is of crucial importance toward sustainable hydrogen energy systems. Herein, we prepare a novel hybrid electrode featuring intermetallic Fe2Mo nanoparticles anchored on the hierarchical nanoporous copper skeleton as robust hydrogen evolution electrocatalyst by simple and scalable alloying and dealloying methods. By virtue of the highly active intermetallic Fe2Mo nanoparticles and unique bicontinuous nanoporous copper skeleton facilitating ion/molecule transportation, nanoporous Fe2Mo/Cu electrode shows excellent hydrogen evolution reaction electrocatalysis, with a low Tafel slope (~71 mV dec−1) to realize ampere-level current density of 1 A cm−2 at a low overpotential of ~200 mV in 1 M KOH electrolyte. Furthermore, nanoporous Fe2Mo/Cu electrode exhibits long−term stability exceeding 400 h to maintain ~250 mA cm−2 at an overpotential of 150 mV. Such outstanding electrocatalytic performance enables the nanoporous Fe2Mo/Cu electrode to be an attractive hydrogen evolution reaction catalyst for water splitting in the hydrogen economy.

Developing cost-effective and high-performance non-precious metal-based electrocatalysts for hydrogen evolution reaction is of crucial importance toward sustainable hydrogen energy systems. Herein, we prepare a novel hybrid electrode featuring intermetallic Fe[sub.2]Mo nanoparticles anchored on the hierarchical nanoporous copper skeleton as robust hydrogen evolution electrocatalyst by simple and scalable alloying and dealloying methods. By virtue of the highly active intermetallic Fe[sub.2]Mo nanoparticles and unique bicontinuous nanoporous copper skeleton facilitating ion/molecule transportation, nanoporous Fe[sub.2]Mo/Cu electrode shows excellent hydrogen evolution reaction electrocatalysis, with a low Tafel slope (~71 mV dec[sup.−1]) to realize ampere-level current density of 1 A cm[sup.−2] at a low overpotential of ~200 mV in 1 M KOH electrolyte. Furthermore, nanoporous Fe[sub.2]Mo/Cu electrode exhibits long−term stability exceeding 400 h to maintain ~250 mA cm[sup.−2] at an overpotential of 150 mV. Such outstanding electrocatalytic performance enables the nanoporous Fe[sub.2]Mo/Cu electrode to be an attractive hydrogen evolution reaction catalyst for water splitting in the hydrogen economy.

Pleural and peritoneal metastasis accompanied by malignant pleural effusion (MPE) or malignant ascites (MA) is frequent in patients with advanced solid tumors that originate from the lung, breast, gastrointestinal tract and ovary. Regional delivery of CAR-T cells represents a new strategy to control tumor dissemination in serous cavities. However, malignant effusions constitute an immune-suppressive environment that potentially induces CAR-T cell dysfunction. Here, we demonstrated that the anti-tumor cytotoxicity of conventional 2nd-generation CAR-T cells was significantly inhibited by both the cellular and non-cellular components of MPE/MA, which was primarily attributed to impaired CAR-T cell proliferation and cytokine production in MPE/MA environment. Interestingly, we found that PD-L1 was widely expressed on freshly-isolated MPE/MA cells. Based on this feature, a novel PD-L1-targeting chimeric switch receptor (PD-L1.BB CSR) was designed, which can bind to PD-L1, switching the inhibitory signal into an additional 4-1BB signal. When co-expressed with a 2nd-generation CAR, PD-L1.BB CSR-modified CAR-T cells displayed superior fitness and enhanced functions in both culture medium and MPE/MA environment, causing rapid and durable eradication of pleural and peritoneal metastatic tumors in xenograft models. Further investigations revealed elevated expressions of T-cell activation, proliferation, and cytotoxicity-related genes, and we confirmed that PD-L1 scFv and 4-1BB intracellular domain, the two important components of PD-L1.BB CSR, were both necessary for the functional improvements of CAR-T cells. Overall, our study shed light on the clinical application of PD-L1.BB CSR-modified dual-targeting CAR-T cells. Based on this study, a phase I clinical trial was initiated in patients with pleural or peritoneal metastasis (NCT04684459).

Hematological malignancies of B cell origin are characterized by frequent expression of CXCR4. The CXCR4-CXCL12 axis facilitates the in vivo dissemination of B cell lymphoma and multiple myeloma (MM). It is also a pivotal regulator in the migration and bone marrow homing of T cells. Herein, we hypothesized that engineering CAR-T cells to overexpress CXCR4 could utilize the CXCR4-CXCL12 axis to enhance their therapeutic efficacy by increasing tumor tracking and bone marrow accumulation. In this study, we found that lentiviral transduction caused significant CXCR4 downregulation on T cells, leading to impaired CAR-T cell migration to CXCL12. By contrast, CXCR4 overexpressing (CXCR4 hi ) CD19 CAR-T cells and BCMA CAR-T cells showed superior in vivo tumor tracking and clearance capacities in the localized and systemically disseminated models of B cell lymphoma and MM, respectively. Notably, CXCR4 modification significantly facilitated the bone marrow homing and accumulation of CAR-T cells, which further promoted memory T cell differentiation, persistence and prolonged antitumor activity. Building on these findings, an investigator-initiated clinical trial (IIT) evaluating CXCR4 hi CD19 CAR-T cells in patients with relapsed/refractory B cell malignancies (NCT04684472) achieved encouraging efficacy: the low-dose cohort yielded 3 complete responses (CRs) and 1 partial response (PR) within the first month post-infusion. These findings support the use of CXCR4 modification as a strategy to improve CAR-T cell efficacy in treating hematologic B cell malignancies, warranting further clinical investigation.

Background: Because of the range and nonspecificity of clinical presentations of dengue virus infections, we felt there was a need to create diagnostic tests. We used artificial receptors for the virus to develop serologic assays to detect dengue virus infection. Methods: We coated a quartz crystal microbalance (QCM) with molecularly imprinted polymers specific for nonstructural protein 1 of flavivirus. These artificial receptors were specifically created on a QCM chip by polymerization of monomers and were cross-linked in the presence of the epitope site of nonstructural protein 1. We tested serum samples from patients with confirmed cases of dengue reported to the Center for Disease Control in Taipei. Samples were diluted 100-fold; no other sample pretreatment was used. The QCM response was compared with results of monoclonal ELISA. Results: QCM signals were >15 Hz in 18 of 21 (86%) of dengue samples and in 0 of 16 control samples. The correlation (r2) of the QCM response and the ELISA result was 0.73. Within-run and run-to-run imprecisions (CV) were 4%–28% and 10%–32%, respectively. Conclusions: The described assay offers a serologic technique for diagnosis of early viremia. The results illustrate the potential of well-organized polymers on the highly sensitive sensor system for diagnostic and biotechnological applications.