Publications

Smart garments for monitoring physiological and biomechanical signals of the human body are key sensors for personalized healthcare. However, they typically require bulky battery packs or have to be plugged into an electric plug in order to operate. Thus, a smart shirt that can extract energy from human body motions to run body-worn healthcare sensors is particularly desirable. Here, we demonstrated a metal-free fiber-based generator (FBG) via a simple, cost-effective method by using commodity cotton threads, a polytetrafluoroethylene aqueous suspension, and carbon nanotubes as source materials. The FBGs can convert biomechanical motions/vibration energy into electricity utilizing the electrostatic effect with an average output power density of ∼0.1 μW/cm2 and have been identified as an effective building element for a power shirt to trigger a wireless body temperature sensor system. Furthermore, the FBG was demonstrated as a self-powered active sensor to quantitatively detect human motion.

This study systematically investigated the physiological and molecular responses of the wheat mutant 'XC-MU201' under high-temperature stress through comprehensive transcriptome analysis and physiological measurements. RNA sequencing of 21 samples across seven different treatment groups revealed, through Weighted Gene Co-expression Network Analysis (WGCNA), 13 modules among 9071 genes closely related to high-temperature treatments. Gene Ontology (GO) and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) pathway analyses showed significant enrichment of lignin biosynthesis-related modules under high-temperature conditions, especially at the H-10DAT, H-20DAT, and H-30DAT time points. Experimental results demonstrated a significant increase in lignin content in high-temperature-treated samples, confirmed by tissue staining methods, indicating wheat's adaptation to heat damage through lignin accumulation. The phenylalanine ammonia-lyase gene (TaPAL33) was significantly upregulated under high-temperature stress, peaking at H-30DAT, suggesting its critical role in cellular defense mechanisms. Overexpression of TaPAL33 in the wheat variety 'Xinchun 11' enhanced lignin synthesis but inhibited growth. Subcellular localization of GFP-labeled TaPAL33 in tobacco cells showed its distribution mainly in the cytoplasm and cell membrane. Transgenic wheat exhibited higher PAL enzyme activity, enhanced antioxidant defense, and reduced oxidative damage under high-temperature stress, outperforming wild-type wheat. These results highlight TaPAL33's key role in improving wheat heat tolerance and provide a genetic foundation for future research and applications.

Diamond cone arrays were formed by plasma etching of diamond films in a hot filament chemical vapor deposition (HFCVD) system. The role of CH4 in the formation of diamond cone arrays was investigated. It was found that addition of CH4 to H2 plasma could enhance the plasma intensity and hence the etching efficiency to improve the formation of diamond cones with high aspect ratio and controllable density. The microscopic measurement of the as-formed diamond cones shows that they have an inner core of polycrystalline structure and an outer layer of amorphous carbon. These as-formed diamond cones have exhibited field emission current density of 1 μA/cm2 at threshold field of 5 V/μm. For an applied field of 12 V/μm, the emission current density can rapidly reach as high as 560 μA/cm2. The property of high field electron emission is attributed to the high aspect ratio of as-formed diamond cones and the appropriate cone density as well as the outer amorphous carbon layer which acts as a pathway for electron-hopping conduction during field electron emission.

Balancing the contradiction between portability and analytical performances of a miniaturized mass spectrometer is vital to extend its on-site applications. In this study, triboelectric nanogenerator (TENG)-driven ion sources were coupled with our home-built Mini 2000 system and applied to the analyses of different samples. Compared with the conventional direct current (DC) nanoelectrospray ionization (nanoESI) source, the ion intensity of the TENG-nanoESI miniature mass spectrometer was improved by ∼3 times. Moreover, maybe due to the different pathways of ion formation in comparison with DC electrospray, TENG electrospray is shown to reduce the salt suppression effect during ionization. With these figures of merit, the direct detection of reserpine in saliva was demonstrated using the TENG-Mini 2000 system.

Nonlinear optical (NLO) processes in pi-electron organic and polymer systems have attracted considerable interest because their understanding has led onto many compelling technological promise as well as the discovery of new phenomena, new theoretical insights, and new materials and devices. In recent years, as the field has progressed toward technological applications, the main issues have focused on high-performance materials that comply with device manufacturing and end-use conditions. New challenges in materials synthesis are being presented. In has now been demonstrated on pilot plant scales that high-performance electro-optic polymer thin films can be routinely used in optoelectronic integrated circuit fabrication in existing microelectronic device manufacturing facilities. The key steps are standard, including spin coating, photolithography, etching, metallization, and multilayer assembly. Nanocrystal quantum dots (QDs) have been incorporated into various NLO polymers and the optical properties of the nanocomposite films have been studied by femtosecond laser Z-scan instrumentation. Nanodevices have been fabricated by UV-assisted imprinting fabrication techniques. Photonic devices based on nanomaterials and ring resonators e.g., optical switches and dispersion compensators, are discussed.

Grid-forming energy storage systems based on vanadium redox flow batteries represent an ideal choice for building long-duration energy storage that possesses voltage support characteristics throughout the entire process. Based on the characteristics of the vanadium redox flow battery, this paper proposes an AC-side solution that offers flexible adaptability. It provides a detailed analysis of the coordinated control for optimal operation between the vanadium redox flow battery unit itself and the power converters, as well as the multi-timescale coordinated control strategies between the grid-forming energy storage system and the power grid. These analyses and strategies have been validated and applied at the 250MW/1GWh energy storage power station in Wushi County, Aksu, Xinjiang.

The current study mainly aimed to evaluate the expression and the potential mechanism of miR‑29a‑3p in the hearts of mice after cardiac ischemia reperfusion (CIR) injury. Quantitative PCR was carried out to assess the relative levels of miR‑29a‑3p in the hearts of a CIR injury mouse model. To the best of our knowledge, the current study is the first to show that the level of miR‑29a‑3p was significantly decreased in the hearts of CIR injury mouse models compared with that of sham controls. Moreover, the authors found that decreased miR‑29a‑3p levels enhanced the production of reactive oxygen species in cardiomyocytes. Meanwhile, the inhibition of miR‑29a‑3p induced substantial cardiomyocyte apoptosis. Further study showed that the inhibition of miR‑29a‑3p decreased the activation of Akt and p38, suggesting a stress‑induced self‑regulatory mechanism after CIR injury in primary cardiomyocytes. A dual luciferase assay and western blot analysis showed that Bax was a target gene of miR‑29a‑3p. The authors also measured the level of miR‑29a‑3p in the plasma of 100 acute myocardial infarction (AMI) patients and found that circulating miR‑29a‑3p was significantly decreased in AMI patients. Receiver operating characteristic curve analysis showed that miR‑29a‑3p could be used to screen AMI patients from healthy controls. Hence, the authors of the current study propose that reduced miR‑29a‑3p levels in primary cardiomyocytes contribute to CIR injury‑related apoptosis mainly by targeting Bax.

Abstract Iontronics focuses on the interactions between electrons and ions, playing essential roles in most processes across physics, chemistry and life science. Osmotic power source as an example of iontronics, could transform ion gradient into electrical energy, however, it generates low power, sensitive to humidity and can’t operate under freezing point. Herein, based on 2D nanofluidic graphene oxide material, we demonstrate an ultrathin (∼10 µm) osmotic power source with voltage of 1.5 V, volumetric specific energy density of 6 mWh cm −3 and power density of 28 mW cm −3 , achieving the highest values so far. Coupled with triboelectric nanogenerator, it could form a self-charged conformable triboiontronic device. Furthermore, the 3D aerogel scales up areal power density up to 1.3 mW cm −2 purely from ion gradient based on nanoconfined enhancement from graphene oxide that can operate under −40 °C and overcome humidity limitations, enabling to power the future implantable electronics in human-machine interface.

Abstract Histone/protein deacetylases (HDAC) 1 and 2 are typically viewed as structurally and functionally similar enzymes present within various co-regulatory complexes. We tested differential effects of these isoforms in renal ischemia reperfusion injury (IRI) using inducible knockout mice and found no significant change in ischemic tolerance with HDAC1 deletion, but mitigation of ischemic injury with HDAC2 deletion. Restriction of HDAC2 deletion to the kidney via transplantation or PAX8-controlled proximal renal tubule-specific Cre resulted in renal IRI protection. Pharmacologic inhibition of HDAC2 increased histone acetylation in the kidney but did not extend renal protection. Protein analysis demonstrated increased HDAC1-associated CoREST protein in HDAC2-/- versus WT cells, suggesting that in the absence of HDAC2, increased CoREST complex occupancy of HDAC1 can stabilize this complex. In vivo administration of a CoREST inhibitor exacerbated renal injury in WT mice and eliminated the benefit of HDAC2 deletion. Gene expression analysis of endothelin showed decreased endothelin levels in HDAC2 deletion. These data demonstrate that contrasting effects of HDAC1 and 2 on CoREST complex stability within renal tubules can affect outcomes of renal IRI and implicate endothelin as a potential downstream mediator.