Spleen and thymus metabolomics strategy to explore the immunoregulatory mechanism of total withanolides from the leaves of Datura metel L. on imiquimod-induced psoriatic skin dermatitis in mice

Our previous work demonstrated that total withanolides of Datura metel L. leaves (TWD) exhibited excellent therapeutic effects on psoriasis. However, current knowledge of its mechanisms is incomplete. In this study, integrated spleen and thymus untargeted metabolomics were used to analyze the changes in endogenous metabolites underlying the immunosuppressive activity of TWD on psoriasis animal models induced by imiquimod. The results suggested that TWD treatment markedly attenuated imiquimod-induced psoriasis and showed significant immunosuppressive activity as evidenced by decreased elevation index of spleen and thymus. Meanwhile, TWD significantly reversed the elevation of immunoregulatory factors, including IL-10, IL-17, IL-22 and IL-23. Multivariate trajectory analysis revealed that TWD treatment could restore the psoriasis-disturbed spleen and thymus metabolite profiles towards the normal metabolic status. A total of 25 and 27 metabolites associated with the immunomodulatory effects for which levels changed markedly upon treatment have been identified in spleen and thymus, respectively. These differential metabolites were mainly involved in amino acid metabolism, nucleotide metabolism, fatty acid metabolism and lipid metabolism. Our investigation provided a holistic view of TWD for intervention in psoriasis through immunoregulation and provided further scientific information in vivo about a clinical value of TWD for psoriasis.     

Complementarity between micro-micro and micro-macro entanglement in a Bose–Einstein condensate with two Rydberg impurities

We theoretically study complementarity between micro-micro and micro-macro entanglement in a Bose–Einstein condensate with two Rydberg impurities. We investigate quantum dynamics of micro-micro and micro-macro entanglement in the micro-macro system. It is found that strong micro-macro entanglement between Rydberg impurities and the BEC can be generated by the use of initial micro-micro entanglement between two Rydberg impurities, which acts as the seed entanglement to create micro-macro entanglement. We demonstrate a curious complementarity relation between micro-micro and micro-macro entanglement, and find that the complementarity property can be sustained to some extent even though in the presence of the BEC decoherence.     

Organic–Inorganic Hybrid Zinc Phosphate with 28‐Ring Channels

An organic–inorganic hybrid zinc phosphate with 28‐ring channels was synthesized by use of an organic ligand instead of organic amine template under a hydro(solvo)thermal condition. This crystalline zinc phosphate contains large channels constructed from 28 zinc and phosphate tetrahedral units. The walls of the channels consist of two types of zincophosphate chains, in which the Zn atoms are coordinated by 2,4,5‐tri(4‐pyridyl)‐imidazole ligands as pendent groups. This compound exhibits yellow emission and interesting properties of removing cobalt, cadmium, and mercury cations from aqueous solution. A new two‐dimensional organic–inorganic hybrid zincophosphate was also obtained by changing the solvent mixture ratios in the synthesis.     

Facile fabrication of fast recyclable and multiple self‐healing epoxy materials through diels‐alder adduct cross‐linker

A reversibly cross‐linked epoxy resin with efficient reprocessing and intrinsic self‐healing was prepared from a diamine Diels‐Alder (DA) adduct cross‐linker and a commercial epoxy oligomer. The newly synthesized diamine cross‐linker, comprising a DA adduct of furan and maleimide moieties, can cure epoxy monomer/oligomer with thermal reversibility. The reversible transition between cross‐linked state and linear architecture endows the cured epoxy with rapid recyclability and repeated healability. The reversibly cross‐linked epoxy fundamentally behaves as typical thermosets at ambient conditions yet can be fast reprocessed at elevated temperature like thermoplastics. As a potential reversible adhesive, the epoxy polymer with adhesive strength values about 3 MPa showed full recovery after repeated fracture‐thermal healing processes. The methodology explored in this contribution provides new insights in modification of conventional engineering plastics as functional materials. © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Polym. Sci., Part A: Polym. Chem. 2015 , 53, 2094–2103     

Rapid Deoxyfluorination of Alcohols with N-Tosyl-4-chlorobenzenesulfonimidoyl Fluoride (SulfoxFluor) at Room Temperature

The deoxyfluorination of alcohols is a fundamentally important approach to access alkyl fluorides, and thus the development of shelf-stable, easy-to-handle, fluorine-economical, and highly selective deoxyfluorination reagents is highly desired. This work describes the development of a crystalline compound, N-tosyl-4-chlorobenzenesulfonimidoyl fluoride (SulfoxFluor), as a novel deoxyfluorination reagent that possesses all of the aforementioned merits, which is rare in the arena of deoxyfluorination. Endowed by the multi-dimensional modulating ability of the sulfonimidoyl group, SulfoxFluor is superior to 2-pyridinesulfonyl fluoride (PyFluor) in fluorination rate, and is also superior to perfluorobutanesulfonyl fluoride (PBSF) in fluorine-economy. Its reaction with alcohols not only tolerates a wide range of functionalities including the more sterically hindered alcoholic hydroxyl groups, but also exhibits high fluorination/elimination selectivity. Because SulfoxFluor can be easily prepared from inexpensive materials and can be safely handled without special techniques, it promises to serve as a practical deoxyfluorination reagent for the synthesis of various alkyl fluorides.     

Polypyrrole Shell@3D‐Ni Metal Core Structured Electrodes for High‐Performance Supercapacitors

Three‐dimensional (3D) nanometal films serving as current collectors have attracted much interest recently owing to their promising application in high‐performance supercapacitors. In the process of the electrochemical reaction, the 3D structure can provide a short diffusion path for fast ion transport, and the highly conductive nanometal may serve as a backbone for facile electron transfer. In this work, a novel polypyrrole (PPy) shell@3D‐Ni‐core composite is developed to enhance the electrochemical performance of conventional PPy. With the introduction of a Ni metal core, the as‐prepared material exhibits a high specific capacitance (726 F g^?1 at a charge/discharge rate of 1 A g^?1), good rate capability (a decay of 33 % in C_sp with charge/discharge rates increasing from 1 to 20 A g^?1), and high cycle stability (only a small decrease of 4.2 % in C_sp after 1000 cycles at a scan rate of 100 mV s^?1). Furthermore, an aqueous symmetric supercapacitor device is fabricated by using the as‐prepared composite as electrodes; the device demonstrates a high energy density (≈21.2 Wh kg^?1) and superior long‐term cycle ability (only 4.4 % and 18.6 % loss in C_sp after 2000 and 5000 cycles, respectively).     

MOF Encapsulated AuPt Bimetallic Nanoparticles for Improved Plasmonic-induced Photothermal Catalysis of CO2 Hydrogenation

Exploring new catalytic strategies for achieving efficient CO₂ hydrogenation under mild conditions is of great significance for environmental remediation. Herein, a composite photocatalyst Zr-based MOF encapsulated plasmonic AuPt alloy nanoparticles (AuPt@UiO-66-NH₂) was successfully constructed for the efficient photothermal catalysis of CO₂ hydrogenation. Under light irradiation at 150 °C, AuPt@UiO-66-NH₂ achieved a CO production rate of 1451 μmol g_metal⁻¹ h⁻¹ with 91 % selectivity, which far exceeded those obtained by Au@Pt@UiO-66-NH₂ with Pt shell on Au (599 μmol g_metal⁻¹ h⁻¹) and Au@UiO-66-NH₂ (218 μmol g_metal⁻¹ h⁻¹). The outstanding performances of AuPt@UiO-66-NH₂ were attributed to the synergetic effect originating from the plasmonic metal Au, doped active metal Pt, and encapsulation structure of UiO-66-NH₂ shell. This work provides a new way for photothermal catalysis of CO₂ and a reference for the design of high-performance plasmonic catalysts.     

ZnO‐Coated Carbon Nanotubes: Inter‐Diffusion of Carboxyl Groups and Enhanced Photocurrent Generation

ZnO is a defect‐governed oxide and emits light at both visible and UV regimes. This work employs atomic layer deposition to produce oxide particles on oxygenated carbon nanotubes, and the composites only show emission profiles at short wavelengths. The quenching of defect‐related emissions at long wavelengths is verified, owing to carboxyl diffusion into oxygen vacancies, and doping is supported by ZnCO₃ formation in oxide lattice. Fully coated tubes display an increased photocurrent and the quantum efficiency increases by 22 % relative to the bare nanotubes.     

Porous nitrogen-doped graphene for high energy density supercapacitors in an ionic liquid electrolyte

Porous nitrogen-doped graphene (PNG) has been prepared via simple thermal treatment of graphene oxide and urea, and the morphology and structure of the PNG have been characterized by using a range of electron microscopy, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, and other techniques. The electrochemical performances of the PNG have been investigated in an ionic liquid electrolyte by cyclic voltammetry and galvanostatic charge-discharge via both three-electrode and two-electrode configurations. The PNG electrode delivers a specific capacitance of 310 F g^?1 at 1 A g^?1 with good cycling stability over 4000 cycles. The high electrochemical performance is ascribed to the porous structure and nitrogen-doping in the PNG. The porous structure enables high specific surface area and rapid ion mobility, contributing to double layer capacitance, while the N-doping enhances electrochemical activity and electric conductivity, contributing to pseudocapacitance. Meanwhile, the ionic liquid electrolyte enables a very wide working voltage of 3 V, leading to a high energy density up to 163.8 W h kg^?1. The fabricated supercapacitor can light up a LED for a long while with low self-discharge, showing good potential for practical application.