Silencing profilin-1 inhibits gastric cancer progression via integrin β1/focal adhesion kinase pathway modulation

AIM:To investigate the role of profilin-1(PFN1)in gastric cancer and the underlying mechanisms.METHODS:Immunohistochemical analysis,quan-titative real-time polymerase chain reaction(q RTPCR)and Western blot were performed to detect PFN1expression in clinical gastric carcinoma and adjacent tissues,and the association of PFN1 expression with patient clinicopathological characteristics was analyzed.PFN1 was knocked down to investigate the role of this protein in cell proliferation and metastasis in the SGC-7901 cell line.To explore the underlying mechanisms,the expression of integrinβ1 and the activity of focal adhesion kinase(FAK)and the downstream proteins extracellular-regulated kinase(ERK)1/2,P38 mitogen-activated protein kinase(MAPK),phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase(PI3K),AKT and mammalian target of rapamycin(m TOR)were measured through Western blot or q RT-PCR analysis.Fibronectin(FN),a ligand of integrinβ1,was used to verify the correlation between alterations in the integrinβ1/FAK pathway and changes in tumor cell aggressiveness upon PFN1 perturbation.RESULTS:Immunohistochemical,Western blot and q RT-PCR analyses revealed that PFN1 expression was higher at both the protein and m RNA levels in gastric carcinoma tissues compared with the adjacent tissues.In addition,high PFN1 expression(53/75,70.4%)was correlated with tumor infiltration,lymph node metastasis and TNM stage in gastric cancer,but not with gender,age,location,tumor size,or histological differentiation.In vitro experiments showed that PFN1knockdown inhibited the proliferation of SGC-7901cells through the induction G0/G1 arrest.Silencing PFN1 inhibited cell migration and invasion and downregulated the expression of matrix metalloproteinase(MMP)-2 and MMP9.Moreover,silencing PFN1 reduced the expression of integrinβ1 at the protein level and inhibited the activity of FAK,and the downstream effectors ERK1/2,P38MAPK,PI3K,AKT and m TOR.FN-promoted cell proliferation and metastasis via the integrinβ1/FAK pathway was ameliorated by PFN1silencing.CONCLUSION:These findings suggest that PFN1 plays a critical role in gastric carcinoma progression,and these effects are likely mediated through the integrinβ1/FAK pathway.

Surface-targeted functionalization of nickel-rich cathodes through synergistic slurry additive approach with multi-level impact using minimal quantity

LiNi0.8Co0.1Mn0.1O_(2)(NCM811),a Ni-rich layered oxide,is a promising cathode material for high-energy density lithium-ion batteries(LIBs).However,its structural instability,caused by adverse phase transitions and continuous oxygen release,as well as deteriorated interfacial stability due to excessive electrolyte oxidative decomposition,limits its widespread application.To address these issues,a new concept is proposed that surface targeted precise functionalization(STPF)of the NCM811 cathode using a synergistic slurry additive(SSA)approach.This approach involves coating the NCM811 particle surface with 3-aminopropyl dimethoxy methyl silane(3-ADMS),followed by the precise deposition of ascorbic acid via an acid-base interaction.The slurry additives induce the formation of an ultra-thin spinel surface layer and a stable cathode–electrolyte interface(CEI),which enhances the electrochemical kinetics and inhibits crack propagation.The STPF strategy implemented by the SSA approach significantly improves the cyclic stability and rate performance of the NCM811 cathode in both half-cell and full-cell configurations.This work establishes a promising strategy to enhance the structural stability and electrochemical performance of nickel-rich cathodes and provides a feasible route to promote practical applications of high-energy density lithium-ion battery technology.

Silicon lithium-ion battery anode with enhanced performance： Multiple effects of silver nanoparticles

Silicon has been regarded as one of the most promising next generation lithium-ion battery anode. How- ever, the poor cyclic stability of the Si based anode has severely limited its practical applications, which is even worse with high mass loading density （〉1 mg cm^-2 ）. A new concept has been developed to enhance the electrochemical performance of the Si nanoparticle anode. Silver nanoparticles are composited with the silicon nanoparticles in a facile way for the first time. It is found that the mechanical properties of the Si electrode have been significantly improved by the incorporation of the silver nanoparticles, leading to enhanced cyclic performance. With the Si/Ag mass ratio of 4：1, the reversible specific discharge capacity is retained as l 156 mA h g^-1 after 100 cycles at 200 mAg^-1, which is more than three times higher than that of the bare silicon （318 mA h g^-1 ）. The rate performance has been effectively improved as well due to excellent electron conductivity of the silver nanoparticles.

Fabrication of hollow porous PLGA microspheres for controlled protein release and promotion of cell compatibility

This letter reports on the fabrication of hollow,porous and non-porous poly（D,L-lactide-co-glycolide） （PLGA） microspheres（MSs） for the controlled release of protein and promotion of cell compatibility of tough hydrogels.PLGA MSs with different structures were prepared with modified double emulsion methods,using bovine serum albumin（BSA） as a porogen during emulsification.The release of the residual BSA from PLGA MSs was investigated as a function of the MS structure.The hollow PLGA MSs show a faster protein release than the porous MSs,while the non-porous MSs have the slowest protein release.Compositing the PLGA MSs with poly（vinyl alcohol）（PVA） hydrogels promoted chondrocyte adhesion and proliferation on the hydrogels.

Scalable Synthesis of Hierarchical Antimony/Carbon Micro-/Nanohybrid Lithium/Sodium-Ion Battery Anodes Based on Dimethacrylate Monomer

A facile scalable synthesis of hierarchical Sb/C micro-/nanohybrid has been addressed in this work, which possesses the advantages of both micrometer and nanometer scale structures as lithium-ion battery anode. Difunctional methacrylate monomers are used as solvent and carbon source as well. Liquid precursor of antimony（III） n-butoxide is dissolved in the resin monomer solution, and further incorporated into the cross-linking polymer network via photo polymerization. Through calcination in argon/hydrogen atmosphere, antimony nanoparticles are in situ formed by carbothermal reduction, and homogeneously embedded in the in situ formed micrometer sized carbon matrix. The morphology, structure, crys- tallinity, spatial dispersion, composition, and electrochemical performance of the Sb/C micro-/nanohybrid are systemati- cally investigated. The cyclic and rate performance of the Sb/C micro-/nanohybrid anode have been effectively improved compared to the pure carbon anode. A reversible capacity of 362 mAh g-1 is achieved with a reasonable mass loading density after 300 cycles at 66 mA g-1, corresponding to capacity retention of 79%. With reducing mass loading density, the reversible capacity reaches 793 mAh g-1 after 100 cycles. Moreover, the electrochemical performance of Sb/C micro-/nanohybrid as sodium-ion battery anode is also investigated in this study.

通过构筑嵌覆型碳结构提升Nb_(2)O_(5)的储锂性能

嵌入型过渡金属氧化物因具有安全的工作电压、高比容量和快速的嵌锂能力而受到广泛关注.但低本征电导率特性严重影响其作为锂电负极材料的寿命和性能.本文通过简便易行、可规模化放大的二氧化碳热处理方法构筑了具有新型嵌覆型碳结构的Nb_(2)O_(5)/C纳米杂化材料.在控制碳含量的前提下,实现了颗粒聚集体内部表面可控碳包覆.以嵌覆型碳结构的Nb_(2)O_(5)/C纳米杂化材料为负极组装的锂离子电池在40 mA g(-1)电流密度下容量可达387 mA hg(-1),而在200 mA g(-1)电流密度下循环500次后,容量保持率在92%以上.采用电化学滴定、差分电化学质谱(DEMS)等方法对嵌覆型五氧化二铌/碳纳米杂化材料脱嵌锂动力学过程以及产气行为进行了研究.本文提出的嵌覆型碳结构有望为高性能嵌入型过渡金属氧化物的结构设计提供参考.