The formation of lithium dendrites is suppressed using a Li1.5Al0.5Ge1.5(PO4)3–poly­(ethylene oxide) (LAGP-PEO) composite solid electrolyte and a PEO (lithium bis­(trifluoromethane)­sulfonimide) [PEO (LiTFSI)]-modified lithium metal anode in all-solid-state lithium batteries. The effects on the anode performance based on the PEO content in the composite solid electrolyte and the molecular weight of PEO used to modify the Li anode are studied. The structure, surface morphology, and stability of the composite solid electrolyte are examined by X-ray diffraction spectroscopy, scanning electron microscopy, and electrochemical tests. Results show that the presence of a PEO-500000­(LiTFSI) film on a Li anode results in good mechanical properties and satisfactory interface contact features. The film can also prevent Li from reacting with LAGP. Furthermore, the formation of lithium dendrites can be effectively inhibited as the composite solid electrolyte is combined with the PEO film on the Li anode. The ratio of PEO in the composite solid electrolyte can be reduced to a low level of 1 wt %. PEO remains stable even at a high potential of 5.12 V (vs Li/Li+). The assembled Li-PEO (LiTFSI)/LAGP-PEO/LiMn0.8Fe0.2PO4 all-solid-state cell can deliver an initial discharge capacity of 160.8 mAh g–1 and exhibit good cycling stability and rate performance at 50 °C.

A novel 2-D photonic crystal hydrogel for selective glucose sensing is produced by attaching a 2-D colloidal array onto the phenylboronic acid modified hydrogel.

Group 2 innate lymphoid cells (ILC2s) are recently reported to play a more critical role in allergic diseases. We previously identified that mesenchymal stromal cells (MSCs) elicited therapeutic effects on allergic airway inflammation. Small extracellular vesicles (sEV) derived from MSCs possess striking advantages including low immunogenicity and high biosafety, and is extremely promising cell-free therapeutic agents. However, the effects of MSC-sEV on ILC2s are still unclear. Additionally, scalable isolation protocols are required for the mass production of homogenous MSC-sEV especially in clinical application. We previously reported that induced pluripotent stem cells-derived MSCs were the ideal cellular source for the large preparation of MSC-sEV. Here we developed a standardized scalable protocol of anion-exchange chromatography for isolation of MSC-sEV, and investigated the effects of MSC-sEV on ILC2 function from patients with allergic rhinitis and in a mouse ILC2-dominant asthma model. The characterization of MSC-sEV was successfully demonstrated in terms of size, morphology and specific markers. Using flow cytometry and human Cytokine AntibodyA r r a y ,M S C-s E Vb u tn o t fibroblasts-sEV (Fb-sEV) were found to significantly inhibit the function of human ILC2s. Similarly, systemic administration of MSC-sEV but not Fb-sEV exhibited an inhibition of ILC2 levels, inflammatory cell infiltration and mucus production in the lung, a reduction in levels of T helper 2 cytokines, and alleviation of airway hyperresponsiveness in a mouse model of asthma. Using RNA sequencing, miR-146a-5p was selected as the candidate to mediate the above effects of MSC-sEV. We next revealed the uptake of ILC2s to MSC-sEV, and that transfer of miR-146a-5p in MSC-sEV to ILC2s in part contributed to the effects of MSC-sEV on ILC2s in vitro and in a mouse model. In conclusion, we demonstrated that M S C-s E Vw e r ea b l et op r e v e n tI L C 2-d o minant allergic airway inflammation at least partially through miR-146a-5p, suggesting that MSC-sEV could be a novel cell-free strategy for the treatment of allergic diseases.

SummaryWe previously identified an immunomodulatory role of human induced pluripotent stem cell (iPSC)-derived mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) in asthmatic inflammation. Mitochondrial transfer from bone marrow MSCs to epithelial cells can result in the attenuation of acute lung injury in mice. However, the effects of mitochondrial transfer from iPSC-MSCs to epithelial cells in asthma and the mechanisms underlying these effects are unclear. We found that iPSC-MSC transplantation significantly reduced T helper 2 cytokines, attenuated the mitochondrial dysfunction of epithelial cells, and alleviated asthma inflammation in mice. Tunneling nanotubes (TNTs) were formed between iPSC-MSCs and epithelial cells, and mitochondrial transfer from iPSC-MSCs to epithelial cells via TNTs was observed both in vitro and in mice. Overexpression or silencing of connexin 43 (CX43) in iPSC-MSCs demonstrated that CX43 plays a critical role in the regulation of TNT formation by mediating mitochondrial transfer between iPSC-MSCs and epithelial cells. This study provides a therapeutic strategy for targeting asthma inflammation.

The electrode–electrolyte interface stability is a critical factor influencing cycle performance of All-solid-state lithium batteries (ASSLBs). Here, we propose a LiF- and Li3N-enriched artificial solid state electrolyte interphase (SEI) protective layer on metallic lithium (Li). The SEI layer can stabilize metallic Li anode and improve the interface compatibility at the Li anode side in ASSLBs. We also developed a Li1.5Al0.5Ge1.5(PO4)3–poly­(ethylene oxide) (LAGP-PEO) concrete structured composite solid electrolyte. The symmetric Li/LAGP-PEO/Li cells with SEI-protected Li anodes have been stably cycled with small polarization at a current density of 0.05 mA cm–2 at 50 °C for nearly 400 h. ASSLB-based on SEI-protected Li anode, LAGP-PEO electrolyte, and LiFePO4 (LFP) cathode exhibits excellent cyclic stability with an initial discharge capacity of 147.2 mA h g–1 and a retention of 96% after 200 cycles.

The diffusion-limited aggregation (DLA) of metal ion (M n+ ) during the repeated solid-to-liquid (StoL) plating and liquid-to-solid (LtoS) stripping processes intensifies fatal dendrite growth of the metallic anodes. Here, we report a new solid-to-solid (StoS) conversion electrochemistry to inhibit dendrites and improve the utilization ratio of metals. In this StoS strategy, reversible conversion reactions between sparingly soluble carbonates (Zn or Cu) and their corresponding metals have been identified at the electrode/electrolyte interface. Molecular dynamics simulations confirm the superiority of the StoS process with accelerated anion transport, which eliminates the DLA and dendrites in the conventional LtoS/StoL processes. As proof of concept, 2ZnCO 3 ·3Zn(OH) 2 exhibits a high zinc utilization of ca. 95.7% in the asymmetry cell and 91.3% in a 2ZnCO 3 ·3Zn(OH) 2 || Ni-based full cell with 80% capacity retention over 2000 cycles. Furthermore, the designed 1-Ah pouch cell device can operate stably with 500 cycles, delivering a satisfactory total energy density of 135 Wh kg −1 .

Li1.3Al0.3Ti1.7(PO4)3 powder was synthesized with CO(NH2)2 as a molten flux and Li3PO4 SEI layer was used to improve cycle stability of the battery.

We present here an effective technique for the large-scale separation and identification of N-linked glycoproteins from Chang liver cells, the human normal liver cells. To enrich N-linked glycoproteins from the whole cells, a procedure containing the lysis of human liver cells, the solubilization of total proteins, lectin affinity chromatography including Concanavalin A and wheat germ agglutinin was established. Furthermore, captured N-linked glycoproteins were separated by 2-DE, and identified by MS and database searching. Finally, we found 63 N-glycoproteins in Chang liver cells. In addition, using the above method, we identified 7 remarkably up-regulated glycoproteins from MHCC97-H cells, highly metastatic liver cancer cells, compared to Chang liver cells. These up-regulated glycoproteins were associated with liver cancer and might be used as biomarkers for tumor diagnosis. Results showed that we established a high-throughput proteomic analysis for separating N-linked glycoproteins from human liver cells. This strategy greatly improved the glycoprotein analysis method associated with proteome-wide glycosylation changes related to liver cancer. Our work was part of the HUPO Human Liver Proteome Project (HLPP) studies and was supported by CHINA HUPO.