PbSe nanoparticles (PbSe-NPs) attract ever-growing interest owing to their great promise in various fields. However, potential toxic effects of PbSe-NPs on male reproductive systems have not been reported. This study aimed to determine whether early-life exposure to PbSe-NPs could affect male reproductive systems and other related health effects in rats. The male rats were intraperitoneally injected with 10 mg/kg/week PbSe-NPs for 60 days followed by a series of reproductive-related analyses. We found that the nanoparticles could accumulate in testes in a size-dependent manner. Furthermore, accumulation of PbSe-NPs resulted in oxidative stress and disorder of normal serum sex hormones. Endoplasmic reticulum and mitochondria-mediated cell apoptosis were triggered via oxidative stress, as shown by upregulation of cytoplasmic Cyt-c, Bax, cleaved Caspase-3, GRP78, and Caspase-12. Notably, PbSe-NP administration led to reduction in the quantity and quality of sperm, which caused a great fertility decrease. In contrast, released Pb2+ from PbSe-NPs did not result in any testis toxicity and fertility declines. These results demonstrate that PbSe-NPs could cause severe reproductive toxicity in a size-dependent manner and these toxic effects should be responsible for PbSe-NPs themselves rather than released Pb2+. The application of PbSe-NPs might be a double-edged sword, and corresponding measures should be taken before use.

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Mn3O4 nanoparticles (NPs) are one of the most important nanomaterials, and have a wide range of applications (i.e., catalysis, solar-electron transformation and molecular adsorption).

Titanium dioxide (TiO2) and TiO2-based composite materials have been widely investigated in lithium-ion batteries (LIBs) owing to their small volume change and high safety during the cycling process. However, the low ionic and electrical conductivity of TiO2 nanomaterials leads to poor cycling performances for LIBs. Herein, we successfully synthesized three-dimensional (3D) mesoporous nanocube TiO2/reduced graphene oxide (TiO2/RGO) composites with a simple hydrothermal method without using any surfactants and high-temperature calcination. The as-prepared TiO2/RGO composites are characterized by x-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy, electron microscopy, and Brunauer–Emmett–Teller surface area. Benefiting from the RGO conductive substrates and 3D nanotube mesoporous structure, the as-prepared TiO2/RGO composites exhibit high specific capacities of ∼180 mA h g−1 at 1.2 C after 300 cycles as anode materials for lithium-ion batteries (LIBs).

Metal selenides have been proposed as counter electrodes (CEs) to substitute for Pt in dye-sensitized solar cells (DSSCs) due to their good catalytic activity for the reduction of triiodide. In this paper, NiSe 2 nanoparticles were synthesized by a facile, room-temperature process and used as the CEs. In order to further enhance the photovoltaic property, graphene was introduced by facile physical mixing. Eventually, with the assistance of graphene, NiSe 2 + 6wt% graphene CE exhibited better power conversion efficiency (PCE) compared with Pt CE.