Down‐regulation of <i>GIGANTEA</i> ‐ <i>like</i> genes increases plant growth and salt stress tolerance in poplar

Ke, Qingbo,Kim, Ho Soo,Wang, Zhi,Ji, Chang Yoon,Jeong, Jae Cheol,Lee, Haeng&#x2010,Soon,Choi, Young&#x2010,Im,Xu, Bingcheng,Deng, Xiping,Yun, Dae&#x2010,Jin,Kwak, Sang&#x2010,Soo John Wiley and Sons Inc. 2017 Plant biotechnology journal Vol.15 No.3

<P><B>Summary</B></P><P>The flowering time regulator GIGANTEA (GI) connects networks involved in developmental stage transitions and environmental stress responses in <I>Arabidopsis</I>. However, little is known about the role of GI in growth, development and responses to environmental challenges in the perennial plant poplar. Here, we identified and functionally characterized three <I>GI‐like</I> genes (<I>PagGIa</I>,<I> PagGIb</I> and <I>PagGIc)</I> from poplar (<I>Populus alba × Populus glandulosa</I>). <I>PagGIs</I> are predominantly nuclear localized and their transcripts are rhythmically expressed, with a peak around zeitgeber time 12 under long‐day conditions. Overexpressing <I>PagGIs</I> in wild‐type (WT) <I>Arabidopsis</I> induced early flowering and salt sensitivity, while overexpressing <I>PagGIs</I> in the <I>gi‐2</I> mutant completely or partially rescued its delayed flowering and enhanced salt tolerance phenotypes. Furthermore, the PagGIs‐PagSOS2 complexes inhibited PagSOS2‐regulated phosphorylation of PagSOS1 in the absence of stress, whereas these inhibitions were eliminated due to the degradation of PagGIs under salt stress. Down‐regulation of <I>PagGIs</I> by RNA interference led to vigorous growth, higher biomass and enhanced salt stress tolerance in transgenic poplar plants. Taken together, these results indicate that several functions of <I>Arabidopsis GI</I> are conserved in its poplar orthologues, and they lay the foundation for developing new approaches to producing salt‐tolerant trees for sustainable development on marginal lands worldwide.</P>

Imprintable, Bendable, and Shape‐Conformable Polymer Electrolytes for Versatile‐Shaped Lithium‐Ion Batteries

Kil, Eun&#x2010,Hye,Choi, Keun&#x2010,Ho,Ha, Hyo&#x2010,Jeong,Xu, Sheng,Rogers, John A.,Kim, Mi Ri,Lee, Young&#x2010,Gi,Kim, Kwang Man,Cho, Kuk Young,Lee, Sang&#x2010,Young WILEY‐VCH Verlag 2013 ADVANCED MATERIALS Vol.25 No.10

<P><B>A class of imprintable, bendable, and shape‐conformable polymer electrolyte</B> with excellent electrochemical performance in a lithium battery system is reported. The material consists of a UV‐cured polymer matrix, high‐boiling point liquid electrolyte, and Al<SUB>2</SUB>O<SUB>3</SUB> nanoparticles, formulated for use in lithium‐ion batteries with 3D‐structured electrodes or flexible characteristics. The unique structural design and well‐tuned rheological characteristics of the UV‐curable electrolyte mixture, in combination with direct UV‐assisted nanoimprint lithography, allow the successful fabrication of polymer electrolytes in geometries not accessible with conventional materials.</P>

Novel Mn(II)-Based Metal–Organic Frameworks Isolated in Ionic Liquids

Xu, Ling,Kwon, Young-Uk,de Castro, Baltazar,Cunha-Silva, Lui&#x301,s American Chemical Society 2013 Crystal Growth & Design Vol.13 No.3

<P>An unprecedented series of Mn<SUP>2+</SUP>-based metal–organic framework (MOF) materials prepared and isolated in ionic liquids (ILs) is reported. Ionothermal reactions of Mn(OAc)<SUB>2</SUB> with H<SUB>3</SUB>btc (benzene-1,3,5-tricarboxylic acid) in two groups of [rmi]X (rmi = 1-alkyl-3-methylimidazolium; r = ethyl or propyl, X = Cl, Br, or I) ILs produced three slightly different 3D MOFs formulated as [rmi][Mn(btc)] [r = ethyl (<B>1</B>), propyl (<B>2</B>), and (<B>3</B>)], whose architectures can be envisaged as (3,6)-connected pyr topological nets. Compounds <B>1</B>–<B>3</B> are the preferred products when the metal center is half filled d-shelled Mn with the cations of ILs being [emi]<SUP>+</SUP> or [pmi]<SUP>+</SUP>. The comparison of the ionothermal synthesized M-btc systems suggests a significant combinatorial influence of metal-direction and ILs’ cationic template, contrasting with subtle effect of ILs’ halides on the MOF structures.</P><P>Mn-H<SUB>3</SUB>btc based system was investigated in two groups of [emi]X and [pmi]X ILs, leading to a novel series of 3D MOF compounds which are simplified into the same (3,6)-connected pyr topological net. The results suggest that [rmi][M(btc)] are favorite products when the metal center possess full or half filled d-shells and the cations of ILs are [emi]<SUP>+</SUP> or [pmi]<SUP>+</SUP>, indicating a crucial combination influence of metal-direction, the ILs’ cationic template, and only a subtle effect of ILs’ halides on the formation and structure of the MOFs.</P><P><B>Graphic Abstract</B> <IMG SRC='http://pubs.acs.org/appl/literatum/publisher/achs/journals/content/cgdefu/2013/cgdefu.2013.13.issue-3/cg301725z/production/images/medium/cg-2012-01725z_0007.gif'></P><P><A href='http://pubs.acs.org/doi/suppl/10.1021/cg301725z'>ACS Electronic Supporting Info</A></P>

Genetic evidence for natural product‐mediated plant–plant allelopathy in rice (<i>Oryza sativa</i>)

Xu, Meimei,Galhano, Rita,Wiemann, Philipp,Bueno, Emilio,Tiernan, Mollie,Wu, William,Chung, Ill&#x2010,Min,Gershenzon, Jonathan,Tudzynski, Bettina,Sesma, Ane,Peters, Reuben J. Blackwell Publishing Ltd 2012 The New phytologist Vol.193 No.3

<P><B>Summary</B></P><P><P>There is controversy as to whether specific natural products play a role in directly mediating antagonistic plant–plant interactions – that is, allelopathy. If proved to exist, such phenomena would hold considerable promise for agronomic improvement of staple food crops such as rice (<I>Oryza sativa</I>).</P><P>However, while substantiated by the presence of phytotoxic compounds at potentially relevant concentrations, demonstrating a direct role for specific natural products in allelopathy has been difficult because of the chemical complexity of root and plant litter exudates. This complexity can be bypassed via selective genetic manipulation to ablate production of putative allelopathic compounds, but such an approach previously has not been applied.</P><P>The rice diterpenoid momilactones provide an example of natural products for which correlative biochemical evidence has been obtained for a role in allelopathy. Here, we apply reverse genetics, using knock‐outs of the relevant diterpene synthases (copalyl diphosphate synthase 4 (OsCPS4) and kaurene synthase‐like 4 (OsKSL4)), to demonstrate that rice momilactones are involved in allelopathy, including suppressing growth of the widespread rice paddy weed, barnyard grass (<I>Echinochloa crus‐galli</I>).</P><P>Thus, our results not only provide novel genetic evidence for natural product‐mediated allelopathy, but also furnish a molecular target for breeding and metabolic engineering of this important crop plant.</P></P>

Creep analysis of bamboo high‐density polyethylene composites: Effect of interfacial treatment and fiber loading level

Xu, Yanjun,Lee, Sun&#x2010,Young,Wu, Qinglin Wiley Subscription Services, Inc., A Wiley Company 2011 Polymer composites Vol.32 No.5

<P><B>Abstract</B></P><P>The effect of chemical treatment at fiber–plastic interface and fiber loading level on creep property of bamboo fiber high‐density polyethylene (BF/HDPE) composites was investigated. For single modifier systems, the use of maleic anhydride grafted polyethylene (PE‐<I>g</I>‐MA) as a coupling agent helped reduce the creep and achieved the optimum effect at the 5.7% loading level. The addition of either a semicrystalline or an amorphous MA grafted ethylene propylene rubber (sEPR‐<I>g</I>‐MA or aEPR‐<I>g</I>‐MA) as an impact modifier increased the creep. For the combined modifiers, the use of PE‐<I>g</I>‐MA in EPR‐<I>g</I>‐MA modified composites gradually improved creep performance. Four‐element Burgers model was shown to fit measured creep data well only within the specified test period. However, both partially stretched Burgers (PSB) model and fully stretched Burgers (FSB) model could be applied for characterization and prediction when the stretching exponent was fixed at certain given values. The FSB model offered a better long‐term prediction based on the short‐term creep data. Time‐temperature superposition technique produced smooth master creep curves through horizontal shifts, but it slightly over‐predicted the long‐term creep for most composite systems. POLYM. COMPOS., 2011. © 2011 Society of Plastics Engineers</P>

Preparation and Characterization of Magnetic Cobalt Ferrites/SBA-15 Nanocomposite Adsorbents and the Removal of Methylene Blue

X. J. Chen,J. C. Xu,H. X. Jin,D. F. Jin,B. Hong,H. L. Ge,X. Q. Wang 성균관대학교(자연과학캠퍼스) 성균나노과학기술원 2017 NANO Vol.12 No.5

In this paper, ordered mesoporous SBA-15 silica was synthesized by the hydrothermal method, and then a series of CoFe2O4/SBA-15 nanocomposites were synthesized by a facile impregnation method. X-ray diffraction and N2 adsorption–desorption isotherms were used to characterize the microstructure and morphology of SBA-15 and CoFe2O4/SBA-15 nanocomposites. CoFe2O4 nanoparticles presented spinel phase structure and existed in the mesopores of SBA-15. The magnetic response of CoFe2O4/SBA-15 nanocomposites was characterized with vibrating sample magnetometer (VSM). The adsorption efficiency of CoFe2O4/SBA-15 nanocomposites for methylene blue increased firstly with the increasing CoFe2O4 content, and then decreased. Sample-2 (SBA-15: CoFe2O4 = 1: 0.1 in the precursor) not only presented the best adsorptive performance, but also could be separated and retrieved effectively by magnetic separation technique.

Structure and Magnetic Properties for Bulk Fe<SUB>73-x</SUB>Zr₂Y₄B₂₁ Nd<SUB>x</SUB> (x=0, 2, 5, 7) Alloys Prepared by Suction Casting

X. H. Tan,H. Xu,W. J. Zhao,Q. Bai,Y. D. Dong 한국자기학회 2007 한국자기학회 학술연구발표회 논문개요집 Vol.- No.-

Strategy for Fabricating Wafer-Scale Platinum Disulfide

Xu, Hongjun,Huang, Hsin-Pan,Fei, HaiFeng,Feng, Jiafeng,Fuh, Huei-Ru,Cho, Jiung,Choi, Miri,Chen, Yanhui,Zhang, Lei,Chen, Dengyun,Zhang, Duan,Coilea&#x301,in, Cormac O&#x301,Han, Xiufeng,Chang, Ching-Ra American Chemical Society 2019 ACS APPLIED MATERIALS & INTERFACES Vol.11 No.8

<P>PtS<SUB>2</SUB> is a newly developed group 10 2D layered material with high carrier mobility, wide band gap tunability, strongly bound excitons, symmetrical metallic and magnetic edge states, and ambient stability, making it attractive in nanoelectronic, optoelectronic, and spintronic fields. To the aim of application, a large-scale synthesis is necessary. For transition-metal dichalcogenide (TMD) compounds, a thermally assisted conversion method has been widely used to fabricate wafer-scale thin films. However, PtS<SUB>2</SUB> cannot be easily synthesized using the method, as the tetragonal PtS phase is more stable. Here, we use a specified quartz part to locally increase the vapor pressure of sulfur in a chemical vapor deposition furnace and successfully extend this method for the synthesis of PtS<SUB>2</SUB> thin films in a scalable and controllable manner. Moreover, the PtS and PtS<SUB>2</SUB> phases can be interchangeably converted through a proposed strategy. Field-effect transistor characterization and photocurrent measurements suggest that PtS<SUB>2</SUB> is an ambipolar semiconductor with a narrow band gap. Moreover, PtS<SUB>2</SUB> also shows excellent gas-sensing performance with a detection limit of ∼0.4 ppb for NO<SUB>2</SUB>. Our work presents a relatively simple way of synthesizing PtS<SUB>2</SUB> thin films and demonstrates their promise for high-performance ultrasensitive gas sensing, broadband optoelectronics, and nanoelectronics in a scalable manner. Furthermore, the proposed strategy is applicable for making other PtX<SUB>2</SUB> compounds and TMDs which are compatible with modern silicon technologies.</P> [FIG OMISSION]</BR>

Simulation of Neutron irradiation Corrosion of Zr-4 Alloy Inside Water Pressure reactors by Ion Bombardment

Bai, X.D.,Wang, S.G.,Xu, J.,Chen, H.M.,Fan, Y.D. The Korean Vacuum Society 1997 Applied Science and Convergence Technology Vol.6 No.1

In order to simulate the corrosion behavior of Zr-4 alloy in pressurized water reactors it was implanted (or bombarded) with 190ke V $Zr^+\; and \;Ar^+$ ions at liquid nitrogen temperature and room temperature respectively up to a dose of $5times10^{15} \sim 8\times10^{16} \textrm{ions/cm}^2$ The oxidation behavior and electrochemical vehavior were studied on implanted and unimplanted samples. The oxidation kinetics of the experimental samples were measured in pure oxygen at 923K and 133.3Pa. The corrosion parameters were measured by anodic polarization methods using a princeton Applied Research Model 350 corrosion measurement system. Auger Electron Spectroscopy (AES) and X-ray Photoelectric Spectroscopy (XPS) were employed to investigate the distribution and the ion valence of oxygen and zirconium ions inside the oxide films before and after implantation. it was found tat: 1) the $Zr^+$ ion implantation (or bombardment) enhanced the oxidation of Zircaloy-4 and resulted in that the oxidation weight gain of the samples at a dose of $8times10^{16}\textrm{ions/cm}^2$ was 4 times greater than that of the unimplantation ones;2) the valence of zirconium ion in the oxide films was classified as $Zr^0,Zr^+,Zr^{2+},Zr^{3+}\; and \;Zr^{4+}$ and the higher vlence of zirconium ion increased after the bombardment ; 3) the anodic passivation current density is about 2 ~ 3 times that of the unimplanted samples; 4) the implantation damage function of the effect of ion implantation on corrosion resistance of Zr-4 alloy was established.

The study of m-pentadecylphenol on the inhibition of mild steel corrosion in 1 M HCl solution

Emanuel X. Ricky,Musa Mpelwa,Xingguang Xu 한국공업화학회 2021 Journal of Industrial and Engineering Chemistry Vol.101 No.-

The acidic fluids used in the acidification of oil wells provoke corrosion of metallic materials unenviably. As a consequence, corrosion inhibitors are needed to mitigate or retard the corrosion process. Herein, wereport m-pentadecylphenol as an eco-friendly corrosion inhibitor in acidic media developed from cashewnut shell liquid (CNSL), which is a low-cost and sustainable source. The inhibitor was evaluated as corrosioninhibitor for mild in 1 M HCl corrosive solution by potentiodynamic polarization (PDP), electrochemicalimpedance spectroscopy (EIS), weight loss, Fourier transform infrared (FT-IR) spectroscopy,atomic force microscopy (AFM), and energy-dispersive X-ray fluorescence (EDX-RF) spectrometry methods. The results showed that the inhibition efficiency of m-pentadecylphenol was at least 95% at an optimalconcentration (300 ppm). The inhibition efficiency was found to increase as the inhibitorconcentration increments from 100 to 300 ppm. Further studies revealed the inhibition performance ofm-pentadecylphenol to be marginally reliant on temperature as the temperature rises from 303 to333 K. At 333 K, the inhibition performance of the inhibitor was still promising (about 85%) when theconcentration was 300 ppm. The adsorption studies revealed the spontaneous aptitude of mpentadecylphenolto inhibit corrosion by forming a non-conductive inhibitive layer on the mild steel surfacemainly through the chemisorption mechanism. The chemisorption adsorption was satisfactorilydescribed by the Langmuir adsorption isotherm model. Besides, the potentiodynamic polarization measurementsrevealed m-pentadecylphenol to act as an anodic inhibitor. The overall findings revealed thatm-pentadecylphenol to be an effective corrosion inhibitor in harsh corrosive vicinities with the addedadvantages of being eco-friendly and relatively cheaper. Thus, it can replace the use of non-green andexpensive corrosion inhibitors in the industry.