Adipokines regulate mesenchymal stem cell osteogenic differentiation

Mesenchymal stem cells(MSCs)can differentiate into various tissue cell types including bone,adipose,cartilage,and muscle.Among those,osteogenic differentiation of MSCs has been widely explored in many bone tissue engineering studies.Moreover,the conditions and methods of inducing osteogenic differentiation of MSCs are continuously advancing.Recently,with the gra-dual recognition of adipokines,the research on their involvement in different pathophysiological processes of the body is also deepening including lipid metabolism,inflammation,immune regulation,energy disorders,and bone homeostasis.At the same time,the role of adipokines in the osteogenic differentiation of MSCs has been gradually described more completely.Therefore,this paper reviewed the evidence of the role of adipokines in the osteogenic differentiation of MSCs,emphasizing bone formation and bone regeneration.

Novel AgCl/Ag_2CO_3 heterostructured photocatalysts with enhanced photocatalytic performance

A series of novel AgCl/AgaCO3 heterostructured photocatalysts with different AgCl contents （5 wt%, 10 wt%, 20 wt%, and 30 wt%） were prepared by facile coprecipitation method at room temperature. The resulting products were characterized by powder X-ray diffraction （XRD）, scanning electron microscopy （SEM）, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy （XPS）, and ultraviolet-visible diffuse reflectance spectroscopy （UV-Vis DRS）, respectively. The photocatalytic activity of the samples was evaluated by photocatalytic degradation of methyl orange （MO） under UV light irradiation. With the optimal AgCl content of 20 wt%, the AgCl/AgECO3 composite exhibits the greatest enhancement in photocatalytic degradation efficiency. Its first-order reaction rate constant （0.67 h^-1） is 5.2 times faster than that of Ag2CO3 （0.13 h^-1）, and 16.8 times faster than that of AgCl （0.04 h^-1）. The formation of AgCl/AgaCO3 heterostructure could effectively suppress the recombination of the photo-generated electron and hole, resulting in an increase in photocatalytic activity.

Progress in sonochemical fabrication of nanostructured photocatalysts

In recent years,nanostructured photocatalysts have become the research focus due to their immense potential application in environmental purification and energy conversion.The photocatalytic performance of photocatalysts is closely related to their synthesis methods.High-intensity ultrasound irradiation could provide a unique tool for fabrication of photocatalysts with novel nanostructures.Ultrasound induces acoustic cavitation which generates unique physicochemical conditions,e.g.,hot spot（5000℃）,high pressure of 100 MPa,fast rate of heat conduction（〉〉1×10^10℃·s^-1）.These unique physicochemical conditions allow for the synthesis of various nanostructured photocatalysts.This review summarized the recent development in fabrication of photocatalysts with special nanostructures and their applications.The typical sonochemical reactors and parameters in sonochemical synthesis are introduced and discussed.Sonochemically prepared structures including nano-/microspheres,one-dimensional（1D） nanorods,two-dimensional（2D） nanosheets（nanoflakes,nanosquares）,noble metal nanoparticle（NP）-deposited and element-doped photocatalysts are described and summarized.It is believed that sonication is a green methodology,and it holds greatpotential in the near future for nanostructured photocatalyst fabrication.