The role of micro RNAs in hepatocyte metabolism and hepatitis B virus replication

Though efficient vaccines against hepatitis B virus(HBV) and antiviral therapies are available,chronic HBV infection is still a global health problem. The process of HBV infection and HBV life cycle are extensively studied in last decades, however, the mechanisms of HBV-induced alterations of host cell metabolisms and host factors involved in modulating of viral replication are not fully understood. Thus, it is an important issue to examine these specific HBV-host interactions for development of novel strategies for antiviral therapies. Recently, microRNAs(miRNAs), a class of post-transcriptional regulatory small RNA, seem to be the relevant fine tuning factors of various cellular activities and pathways, including cell growth, metabolism, and viral replication. In this review, we summarize the up to date knowledge concerning the virus-host interactions and emphasizing on the role of miRNAs in regulation of HBV replication and host cell metabolism.

Theory assisted design of N-doped tin oxides for enhanced electrochemical CO2 activation and reduction

Clearly understanding the structure-function relationship and rational design of efficient CO2 electrocatalysts are still the challenges.This article describes the molecular origin of high selectivity of formic acid on N-doped SnO2 nanoparticles,which obtained via thermal treatment of g-C3N4 and SnCl2·2H2O precursor.Combined with density functional theory(DFT)calculations,we discover that N-doping effectively introduces oxygen vacancies and increases the charge density of Sn sites,which plays a positive role in CO2 activation.In addition,N-doping further regulates the adsorption energy of^*OCHO,^*COOH,^*H and promotes HCOOH generation.Benefited from above modulation,the obtained N-doped SnO2 catalysts with oxygen vacancies(Ov-N-SnO2)exhibit faradaic efficiency of 93% for C1 formation,88% for HCOOH production and well-suppression of H2 evolution over a wide range of potentials.

Effect of bicarbonate on CO_(2) electroreduction over cathode catalysts

CO_(2) electroreduction (CO_(2) ER) using renewable energy is ideal for mitigating the greenhouse effect and closing the carbon cycle. Bicarbonate (HCO_(3)−) is most commonly employed as the electrolyte anion because it is known to facilitate CO_(2) ER. However, its dynamics in the electric double layer remains obscure and requires more in-depth investigation. Herein, we investigate the refined reduction process of bicarbonate by employing in situ attenuated total reflectance surface-enhanced infrared absorption spectroscopy. By comparing the product distributions in Ar-saturated KCl and KHCO_(3) electrolytes, we confirmed CO production from HCO_(3)^(−) in the absence of an external CO_(2) source. Notably, in contrast to an electric compulsion, negatively charged HCO_(3)− anions were found to accumulate near the electrode surface. A reduction mechanism of HCO3− is proposed in that HCO3− is not adsorbed over a catalyst, but may be enriched near the electrode surface and converted to CO_(2) and react over Au and Cu electrodes. The dependence of the CO_(2) ER activity on the local HCO3− concentration was subsequently discovered, which was in turn dependent on the bulk HCO3− concentration and cathodic potential. In particular, the local HCO3− concentration was limited by the cathodic potential, leading to a plateau in the CO_(2) ER activity. The proposed mechanism provides insights into the interaction between the catalyst and the electrolyte in CO_(2) ER.