Interaction with the Surrounding Water Plays a Key Role in Determining the Aggregation Propensity of Proteins

Understanding the molecular determinants of the relative propensities of proteins to aggregate in a cellular environment is a central issue for treating protein‐aggregation diseases and developing peptide‐based therapeutics. Despite the expectation that protein aggregation can largely be attributed to direct protein–protein interactions, a crucial role the surrounding water in determining the aggregation propensity of proteins both in vitro and in vivo was identified. The overall protein hydrophobicity, defined solely by the hydration free energy of a protein in its monomeric state sampling its equilibrium structures, was shown to be the predominant determinant of protein aggregation propensity in aqueous solution. Striking discrimination of positively and negatively charged residues by the surrounding water was also found. This effect depends on the protein net charge and plays a crucial role in regulating the solubility of the protein. These results pave the way for the design of aggregation‐resistant proteins as biotherapeutics.     

Enhancing the Water Splitting Efficiency of Sn‐Doped Hematite Nanoflakes by Flame Annealing

The effect of flame annealing on the water‐splitting properties of Sn decorated hematite (α‐Fe₂O₃) nanoflakes has been investigated. It is shown that flame annealing can yield a considerable enhancement in the maximum photocurrent under AM 1.5 (100 mW cm^?2) conditions compared to classic furnace annealing treatments. Optimizing the annealing time (10 s at 1000 °C) leads to a photocurrent of 1.1 mA cm^?2 at 1.23 V (vs. RHE) with a maximum value 1.6 mA cm^?2 at 1.6 V (vs. RHE) in 1 M KOH. The improvement in photocurrent can be attributed to the fast direct heating that maintains the nanoscale morphology, leads to optimized Sn decoration, and minimizes detrimental substrate effects.     

Effects of alumina phases on CO2 sorption and regeneration properties of potassium-based alumina sorbents

A range of potassium-based alumina sorbents were fabricated by impregnation of alumina with K₂CO₃ to examine the effects of the structural and textural properties of alumina on the CO₂ sorption and regeneration properties. Alumina materials, which were used as supports, were prepared by calcining alumina at various temperatures (300, 600, 950, and 1,200 °C). The CO₂ sorption and regeneration properties of these sorbents were examined during multiple tests in a fixed-bed reactor in the presence of 1 vol% CO₂ and 9 vol% H₂O. The regeneration capacities of the potassium-based alumina sorbents increased with increasing calcination temperature of alumina. The formation of KHCO₃ increased with increasing calcination temperature during CO₂ sorption, whereas the formation of KAl(CO₃)(OH)₂, which is an inactive material, decreased. These results is due to the fact that the structure of alumina by the calcination temperature is related directly to the formation of the by-product [KAl(CO₃)(OH)₂]. The structure of alumina plays an important role in enhancing the regeneration capacity of the potassium-based alumina sorbent. Based on these results, a new potassium-based sorbent using δ-Al₂O₃ as a support was developed for post-combustion CO₂ capture. This sorbent maintained a high CO₂ capture capacity of 88 mg CO₂/g sorbent after two cycles. In particular, it showed a faster sorption rate than the other potassium-based alumina sorbents examined.     

有机改性对掺Dy3+铁氧体纳米磁颗粒性能的影响

采用共沉淀-相转化法制备出纳米级掺Dy3+铁氧体磁颗粒。选择阴离子表面活性剂月桂酸、月桂酸钠、十二烷基硫酸钠对磁颗粒进行了在线表面改性,得到磁性能和表面性能不同的复合纳米磁性材料,研究了活性剂及其用量对产物构建成分、相结构、磁性能的影响。TEM图片显示磁颗粒的形貌多数为类球形,平均粒径约18 nm;XRD图谱分析发现,活性剂及其用量不同,得到的产物其构建成分、相结构也不同;VSM测试结果表明,用月桂酸改性的产物磁性能最优、十二烷基硫酸钠改性者磁性能最差,产物室温下的饱和磁化强度(MS)随活性剂用量的增大呈现出降低的变化规律。     

Theoretical Study on Experimentally Detected Sc2S@C84

Sc₂S@C₈₄ has recently been detected but not structurally characterized. 1 Density functional theory calculations on C₈₄ and Sc₂S@C₈₄ show that the favored isomer of Sc₂S@C₈₄ shares the same parent cage as Sc₂C₂@C₈₄, whereas Sc₂S@C₈₄:51383, which violates the isolated‐pentagon rule, is the second lowest energy isomer with the widest HOMO–LUMO gap and shows high kinetic stability. The analysis shows that Sc₂S@C₈₄:51575 is favored when the temperature exceeds 2 800 K and it can transform into the most favorable isomer Sc₂S@C₈₄:51591. Molecular orbital analysis indicates that both Sc₂S and Sc₂C₂ formally transfer four electrons to the cage, and quantum theory of atoms in molecules analysis demonstrates that there is a covalent interaction between Sc₂S and C₈₄:51591. The IR spectra of Sc₂S@C₈₄ are provided to aid future structural identification.     

Thermal conductivity behavior of SiC–Nylon 6,6 and hBN–Nylon 6,6 composites

A study was performed to determine the effect of the content and orientation of fillers on the thermal conductivity of a polymeric composite packed with hexagonal boron nitride (hBN) and silicon carbide (SiC) fillers. The thermal conductivity behavior of SiC–Nylon 6,6 and hBN–Nylon 6,6 composites was more dependent on the orientation and shape of the filler than on its thermal conductivity. The thermal conductivity of SiC–Nylon 6,6 composites with 59 % (v/v) isotropic SiC fillers increased from 0.25 to 3.83 W/m K. That of hBN–Nylon 6,6 composites with 62 % (v/v) anisotropic hBN fillers increased from 0.25 to 2.16 W/m K in the perpendicular direction whereas in the parallel direction it increased rapidly to 8.55 W/m K .     

离子印迹磁固相萃取-石墨炉原子吸收光谱法联用分析环境水样中痕量Ni(Ⅱ)

本文通过乳液聚合法制备磁性离子印迹材料Fe3O4@SiO2@IIM,并运用多种技术手段对其进行了表征。所制备的Fe3O4@SiO2@IIM磁材料颗粒较均一,粒径约为20nm,单分散性好,具有超顺磁性(饱和磁化强度为8.66emu·g-1)。基于此,建立了离子印迹磁固相萃取(IIMSPE)-石墨炉原子吸收光谱法(GFAAS)联用技术分析环境水样中Ni(Ⅱ)的新方法。对影响MSPE的因素进行了详细的考察。在最优实验条件下,方法对Ni(Ⅱ)的检出限为0.015ng·mL-1,相对标准偏差(RSDs)为7.3%(n=7,c=0.1ng·mL-1),富集倍数为24.8,所制备的磁性离子印迹材料不同批次间RSDs为10.9%(n=5,c=0.1ng·mL-1),所合成的材料可以重复使用5次以上。采用该方法分析了标准水样(GSBZ50009-88)中的Ni(Ⅱ)含量,验证方法的准确性,测定值和标准值吻合良好。将该方法应用于东湖水和长江水中Ni(Ⅱ)的测定,加标回收率为90.6%~107.2%。     

An E1-Catalyzed Chemoenzymatic Strategy to Isopeptide-N-Ethylated Deubiquitylase-Resistant Ubiquitin Probes

Triazole-based deubiquitylase (DUB)-resistant ubiquitin (Ub) probes have recently emerged as effective tools for the discovery of Ub chain-specific interactors in proteomic studies, but their structural diversity is limited. A new family of DUB-resistant Ub probes is reported based on isopeptide-N-ethylated dimeric or polymeric Ub chains, which can be efficiently prepared by a one-pot, ubiquitin-activating enzyme (E1)-catalyzed condensation reaction of recombinant Ub precursors to give various homotypic and even branched Ub probes at multi-milligram scale. Proteomic studies using label-free quantitative (LFQ) MS indicated that the isopeptide-N-ethylated Ub probes may complement the triazole-based probes in the study of Ub interactome. Our study highlights the utility of modern protein synthetic chemistry to develop structurally and new families of tool molecules needed for proteomic studies.     

Natural Soft/Rigid Superlattices as Anodes for High-Performance Lithium-Ion Batteries

Volume expansion and poor conductivity are two major obstacles that hinder the pursuit of the lithium-ion batteries with long cycling life and high power density. Herein, we highlight a misfit compound PbNbS₃ with a soft/rigid superlattice structure, confirmed by scanning tunneling microscopy and electrochemical characterization, as a promising anode material for high performance lithium-ion batteries with optimized capacity, stability, and conductivity. The soft PbS sublayers primarily react with lithium, endowing capacity and preventing decomposition of the superlattice structure, while the rigid NbS₂ sublayers support the skeleton and enhance the migration of electrons and lithium ions, as a result leading to a specific capacity of 710 mAh g⁻¹ at 100 mA g⁻¹, which is 1.6 times of NbS₂ and 3.9 times of PbS. Our finding reveals the competitive strategy of soft/rigid structure in lithium-ion batteries and broadens the horizons of single-phase anode material design.