Recently, MXene/graphene heterostructures have been successfully fabricated and found to exhibit outstanding performance as electrodes for Li-ion batteries. However, insights into the mechanism behind the encouraging experimental results are missing. We use first-principles calculations to systematically investigate the electrochemical properties of MXene/graphene heterostructures, choosing TiCX (X = F, O, and OH) as representative MXenes. Our calculations disclose that the presence of graphene not only avoids restacking effects of MXene layers but also enhances the electric conductivity, Li adsorption strength (while maintaining a high Li mobility), and mechanical stiffness. These favorable attributes collectively lead to the excellent performance of MXene/graphene electrodes observed experimentally. While the TiCO/graphene heterostructure is proposed to be the most promising candidate within the studied materials, the developed comprehensive understanding is of significance also for the future rational design of MXene-based electrodes.

With a renewed hope for malaria elimination, interventions that prevent transmission of parasites from humans to mosquitoes have received elevated attention. Transmission-blocking vaccines (TBVs) targeting the sexual stages are well suited for this task. Here, through bioinformatic analysis, we selected two putative Plasmodium berghei ookinete-stage proteins (PBANKA_111920, and PBANKA_145770) and a previously characterized ookinete protein PBANKA_135340 (PSOP7) for evaluation of their transmission-blocking potentials. Fragments of these predicted proteins were expressed in bacteria and purified recombinant proteins were used to immunize mice. Antisera against these recombinant proteins recognized proteins of predicted sizes from ookinete lysates and localized their expression on the surface of ookinetes. Inclusion of these antisera in in vitro ookinete culture significantly inhibited ookinete formation. Mosquitoes fed on mice immunized with the recombinant proteins also showed significantly reduced oocyst densities (60.0 – 70.7%) and modest reductions of oocyst prevalence (10.7 – 37.4%). These data, together with the conservation of these genes in Plasmodium, suggest that these three ookinete proteins could be new promising targets for TBVs and are worth of future investigations in the human malaria parasites.

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The aim of this approach is to test the effects and related mechanism of vitamin D (VD) treatment on the outcomes of breast cancer. BALB/c mice were injected with 4T1 breast cancer cell suspension. The test group was treated with VD reagent. The survival and tumor size of mice were observed. The proliferation of 4T1 in vitro was detected by MTS analysis. The changes of immune parameters and microenvironment in mice were evaluated by flow cytometry and real-time RT-PCR. Our results demonstrate that VD administration caused a decline in survival time and raising the volume of tumor, the decreasing numbers of CD3CD4 T, CD3CD8 T and CD4T-betIFN-γ Th1 cells and transcriptions of T-bet and IFN-γ, an increasing number of myeloid-derived suppressor cells and transcription of TGF-β. Our data suggest that the routine clinical application of any strategies targeting VD status for breast cancer therapy is deserved serious consideration.