Sodium secondary batteries are attracting considerably renewed interest as new battery systems owing to the high and uniform abundance and cost advantages of Na. However, their performance is still far from optimal as compared to the well-developed Li-ion technology. Herein, Na secondary batteries with unprecedented rate capability and a long life has been achieved by using a highly concentrated bis(fluorosulfonyl)amide anion (FSA-)-based ionic liquid electrolyte (3.3 mol dm-3 Na[FSA]) and a Na2FeP2O7 positive electrode, in a targeted operating temperature range from room to intermediate. Nearly full discharge capacity is obtained at 4000 mA g-1 , and 79% of the capacity is retained at a discharge rate as high as 20000 mA g-1 at 363 K. Stable cycling (>300 cycles) with satisfactory coulombic efficiency (>99.5%) is found at an intermediate rate (100 mA g-1) over 298-363 K. A high-rate cycling test (1000 mA g-1) at 363 K reveals that the cell could retain 93 % of its initial capacity after 1500 cycles.
Adenomyosis is an oestrogen-dependent disease characterized by the invasion of endometrial epithelial cells into the myometrium of uterus, and angiogenesis is thought to be required for the implantation of endometrial glandular tissues during the adenomyotic pathogenesis. In this study, we demonstrate that compared with eutopic endometria, adenomyotic lesions exhibited increased vascularity as detected by sonography. Microscopically, the lesions also exhibited an oestrogen-associated elevation of microvascular density and VEGF expression in endometrial epithelial cells. We previously reported that oestrogen-induced Slug expression was critical for endometrial epithelial–mesenchymal transition and development of adenomyosis. Our present studies demonstrated that estradiol (E2) elicited a Slug-VEGF axis in endometrial epithelial cells, and also induced pro-angiogenic activity in vascular endothelial cells. The antagonizing agents against E2 or VEGF suppressed endothelial cells migration and tubal formation. Animal experiments furthermore confirmed that blockage of E2 or VEGF was efficient to attenuate the implantation of adenomyotic lesions. These results highlight the importance of oestrogen-induced angiogenesis in adenomyosis development and provide a potential strategy for treating adenomyosis through intercepting the E2-Slug-VEGF pathway.
Endometrial stromal tumors are rare uterine tumors (<1%). Four main categories include endometrial stromal nodule, low-grade endometrial stromal sarcoma (LG-ESS), high-grade endometrial stromal sarcoma (HG-ESS), and uterine undifferentiated sarcoma (UUS). This review is a series of articles discussing the uterine sarcomas. LG-ESS, a hormone-dependent tumor harboring chromosomal rearrangement, is an indolent tumor with a favorable prognosis, but characterized by late recurrences even in patients with Stage I disease, suggesting the requirement of a long-term follow-up. Patients with HG-ESS, based on the identification of YWHAE-NUTM2A/B (YWHAE-FAM22A/B) gene fusion, typically present with advanced stage diseases and frequently have recurrences, usually within a few years after initial surgery. UUS is, a high-grade sarcoma, extremely rare, lacking a specific line of differentiation, which is a diagnosis of exclusion (the wastebasket category, which fails to fulfill the morphological and immunohistochemical criteria of translocation-positive ESS). Surgery is the main strategy in the management of uterine sarcoma. Due to rarity, complex biological characteristics, and unknown etiology and risk factors of uterine sarcomas, the role of adjuvant therapy is not clear. Only LG-ESS might respond to progestins or aromatase inhibitors.
Uterine sarcomas account for 3-7% of all uterine cancers. Because of their rarity, unknown etiology, and highly divergent genetic aberration, there is a lack of consensus on risk factors for occurrence and predictive poor outcomes as well as optimal therapeutic choices. Tumor types according to the World Health Organization classification include leiomyosarcoma, endometrial stroma sarcoma, and undifferentiated sarcoma. Staging is done using the 2014 Federation International Gynecology and Obstetrics and 2010 American Joint Committee on Cancer tumor, lymph node, and metastases systems. Tumor grade can be classified based on the French Federation of Cancer Centers Sarcoma Group system or the Broder's system that incorporates tumor differentiation, mitotic count, and tumor necrosis. This review is a series of articles discussing uterine sarcoma, and this is Part I, which focuses on one of the subtypes of uterine sarcomas-uterine leiomyosarcoma. The clinical characteristics, diagnosis, outcome, and recent advances are summarized in this article.
With the aid of supercritical carbon dioxide (scCO 2 ), which has gas-like diffusivity, extremely low viscosity, and near-zero surface tension, highly dispersed Pd nanoparticles (NPs) can be directly synthesized on carbon nanotubes (CNTs). Due to the excellent wettability between scCO 2 and the carbon surface, the deposited Pd NPs are uniformly distributed and tightly anchored on CNTs, which do not require pretreatment. The decoration density of NPs on carbon can be easily regulated by adjusting the Pd(hfa) 2 precursor to CNT ratio, with the particle size of Pd remaining almost constant (no significant crystal growth or aggregation occur). The prepared Pd NPs on CNTs show excellent activity toward hydrogen spillover as compared to those fabricated using conventional processes. With the superior utilization of NPs, a smaller amount of Pd is required, reducing both costs and environmental impact. The proposed scCO 2 -assisted protocol for constructing NP/carbon nanostructures is effective, versatile, and potentially scalable, making it useful for further exploitation in a variety of applications.
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