and has yielded 10.3% effi cient solar cells with a V oc defi cit of 0.60 V [ 10 ] or recently, even up to 11.8% measured on active area. [ 11 ] Some commonly reported problems of the DMSO-processed kesterite layers are their high porosity, nonuniformity, and numerous grain boundaries that can lead to undesirable recombination. [ 12 ] Here, we employ a three-stage annealing process under controlled selenium atmosphere in an SiO x coated graphite box to drastically improve the grain size and morphology of the absorber layer. Importantly, the V oc defi cit can be reduced to 0.57 V, which appears to be one of the lowest values reported for kesterite devices. Systematic electrical characterization of absorbers and fi nished solar cells with time-resolved photoluminescence (TRPL), temperature-dependent currentvoltage measurements ( JV-T ), and admittance spectroscopy (AS) are used to identify the reasons of the improved voltage. Figure 1 shows the scanning electron microscopy (SEM) cross sections of four different Cu 2 ZnSn(S,Se) 4 (CZTSSe) absorbers A-D yielding effi ciencies from 6.6% to 10.1% (total cell area of 0.3 cm 2 including metal grid lines). The annealing conditions are varied from uncoated graphite box (sample A,B) to SiO x -coated graphite box (sample C,D) and two-stage temperature gradient (sample A,C) to three-stage temperature gradient (sample B,D); temperature gradients are presented in Figure S1 (Supporting Information). The selenization of sample A was conducted in an uncoated graphite box employing a two-stage temperature gradient, and the absorber layer exhibits a distinct bilayer structure with a thick small-grain bottom layer. [ 13 ] Sample B was selenized in an uncoated graphite box similar to A but employing a three-stage temperature gradient. The SEM cross section shows an improved crystallization and grain size in both upper crust and bottom layer. However, the distinct bilayer structure of the absorber layer remains. The selenization of sample C was conducted in an SiO x -coated graphite box using the two-stage process, and the morphology of the fi lm exhibits a comparably thin upper layer with small grains, but an improved crystallization in the bottom layer in contrast to sample A. Finally, sample D was selenized in the SiO x -coated graphite box with the three-stage temperature gradient and shows an overall improved crystallization with large grains and a signifi cant reduction of the small-grain bottom layer. X-ray diffraction (XRD) pattern in Figure 2 b shows a double kesterite refl ex at 53.4° for all samples, indicating two regions with different S/(S + Se) ratio in the absorber layer. Grazing incidence XRD with varying incident angles confi rms that the region with lower S/(S + Se) ratio coincides with the upper crust and the region with higher S/(S + Se) ratio belongs to the small-grain bottom layer. The refl exes corresponding to the higher S/(S + Se) ratio extenuate with the shift from uncoated On the way towards a marketable and industrially-relevant photo voltaic technology, ke...

Previous studies have demonstrated that nucleic acid polymers (NAPs) have both entry and post-entry inhibitory activity against duck hepatitis B virus (DHBV) infection. The inhibitory activity exhibited by NAPs prevented DHBV infection of primary duck hepatocytes in vitro and protected ducks from DHBV infection in vivo and did not result from direct activation of the immune response. In the current study treatment of primary human hepatocytes with NAP REP 2055 did not induce expression of the TNF, IL6, IL10, IFNA4 or IFNB1 genes, confirming the lack of direct immunostimulation by REP 2055. Ducks with persistent DHBV infection were treated with NAP 2055 to determine if the post-entry inhibitory activity exhibited by NAPs could provide a therapeutic effect against established DHBV infection in vivo. In all REP 2055-treated ducks, 28 days of treatment lead to initial rapid reductions in serum DHBsAg and DHBV DNA and increases in anti-DHBs antibodies. After treatment, 6/11 ducks experienced a sustained virologic response: DHBsAg and DHBV DNA remained at low or undetectable levels in the serum and no DHBsAg or DHBV core antigen positive hepatocytes and only trace amounts of DHBV total and covalently closed circular DNA (cccDNA) were detected in the liver at 9 or 16 weeks of follow-up. In the remaining 5/11 REP 2055-treated ducks, all markers of DHBV infection rapidly rebounded after treatment withdrawal: At 9 and 16 weeks of follow-up, levels of DHBsAg and DHBcAg and DHBV total and cccDNA in the liver had rebounded and matched levels observed in the control ducks treated with normal saline which remained persistently infected with DHBV. These data demonstrate that treatment with the NAP REP 2055 can lead to sustained control of persistent DHBV infection. These effects may be related to the unique ability of REP 2055 to block release of DHBsAg from infected hepatocytes.

These data suggest that TLR4 is required on both intrinsic renal cells (e.g., tubular epithelial cells) and bone marrow-derived immune cells for the control of ascending uropathogenic E. coli infection by initiating chemokine-driven renal neutrophil recruitment.

Background & AimsLiver cells are key players in innate immunity. Thus, studying primary isolated liver cells is necessary for determining their role in liver physiology and pathophysiology. In particular, the quantity and quality of isolated cells are crucial to their function. Our aim was to isolate a large quantity of high-quality human parenchymal and non-parenchymal cells from a single liver specimen.MethodsHepatocytes, Kupffer cells, liver sinusoidal endothelial cells, and stellate cells were isolated from liver tissues by collagenase perfusion in combination with low-speed centrifugation, density gradient centrifugation, and magnetic-activated cell sorting. The purity and functionality of cultured cell populations were controlled by determining their morphology, discriminative cell marker expression, and functional activity.ResultsCell preparation yielded the following cell counts per gram of liver tissue: 2.0±0.4×107 hepatocytes, 1.8±0.5×106 Kupffer cells, 4.3±1.9×105 liver sinusoidal endothelial cells, and 3.2±0.5×105 stellate cells. Hepatocytes were identified by albumin (95.5±1.7%) and exhibited time-dependent activity of cytochrome P450 enzymes. Kupffer cells expressed CD68 (94.5±1.2%) and exhibited phagocytic activity, as determined with 1μm latex beads. Endothelial cells were CD146+ (97.8±1.1%) and exhibited efficient uptake of acetylated low-density lipoprotein. Hepatic stellate cells were identified by the expression of α-smooth muscle actin (97.1±1.5%). These cells further exhibited retinol (vitamin A)-mediated autofluorescence.ConclusionsOur isolation procedure for primary parenchymal and non-parenchymal liver cells resulted in cell populations of high purity and quality, with retained physiological functionality in vitro. Thus, this system may provide a valuable tool for determining liver function and disease.