TY - JOUR A1 - Sun, Fu A1 - Osenberg, Markus A1 - Dong, Kang A1 - Zhou, Dong A1 - Hilger, Andre A1 - Jafta, Charl J. A1 - Risse, Sebastian A1 - Lu, Yan A1 - Markoetter, Henning A1 - Manke, Ingo T1 - Correlating Morphological Evolution of Li Electrodes with Degrading Electrochemical Performance of Li/LiCoO2 and Li/S Battery Systems BT - Investigated by Synchrotron X-ray Phase Contrast Tomography JF - ACS energy letters / American Chemical Society N2 - Efficient Li utilization is generally considered to be a prerequisite for developing next-generation energy storage systems (ESSs). However, uncontrolled growth of Li microstructures (LmSs) during electrochemical cycling has prevented its practical commercialization. Herein, we attempt to understand the correlation of morphological evolution of Li electrodes with degrading electrochemical performances of Li/LiCoO2 and Li/S systems by synchrotron X-ray phase contrast tomography technique. It was found that the continuous transformation of the initial dense Li bulk to a porous lithium interface (PL1) structure intimately correlates with the gradually degrading overall cell performance of these two systems. Additionally, the formation mechanism of the PLI and its correlation with previously reported inwardly growing LmS and the lithium-reacted region have been intensively discussed. The information that we gain herein is complementary to previous investigations and may provide general insights into understanding of degradation mechanisms of Li metal anodes and also provide highly needed guidelines for effective design of reliable next-generation Li metal-based ESSs. Y1 - 2018 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1021/acsenergylett.7b01254 SN - 2380-8195 VL - 3 IS - 2 SP - 356 EP - 365 PB - American Chemical Society CY - Washington ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Jia, He A1 - Gao, Haitao A1 - Mei, Shilin A1 - Kneer, Janosch A1 - Lin, Xianzhong A1 - Ran, Qidi A1 - Wang, Fuxian A1 - Palzer, Stefan A1 - Lu, Yan T1 - Cu2O@PNIPAM core-shell microgels as novel inkjet materials for the preparation of CuO hollow porous nanocubes gas sensing layers JF - Journal of materials chemistry : C, Materials for optical and electronic devices N2 - There has been long-standing interest in developing metal oxide-based sensors with high sensitivity, selectivity, fast response and low material consumption. Here we report for the first time the utilization of Cu2O@PNIPAM core-shell microgels with a nanocube-shaped core structure for construction of novel CuO gas sensing layers. The hybrid microgels show significant improvement in colloidal stability as compared to native Cu2O nanocubes. Consequently, a homogeneous thin film of Cu2O@PNIPAM nanoparticles can be engineered in a quite low solid content (1.5 wt%) by inkjet printing of the dispersion at an optimized viscosity and surface tension. Most importantly, thermal treatment of the Cu2O@PNIPAM microgels forms porous CuO nanocubes, which show much faster response to relevant trace NO2 gases than sensors produced from bare Cu2O nanocubes. This outcome is due to the fact that the PNIPAM shell can successfully hinder the aggregation of CuO nanoparticles during pyrolysis, which enables full utilization of the sensor layers and better access of the gas to active sites. These results point out great potential of such an innovative system as gas sensors with low cost, fast response and high sensitivity. Y1 - 2018 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1039/c8tc01995a SN - 2050-7526 SN - 2050-7534 VL - 6 IS - 27 SP - 7249 EP - 7256 PB - Royal Society of Chemistry CY - Cambridge ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Yang, Guang A1 - Hu, Rongting A1 - Ding, Hong-ming A1 - Kochovski, Zdravko A1 - Mei, Shilin A1 - Lu, Yan A1 - Ma, Yu-qiang A1 - Chen, Guosong A1 - Jiang, Ming T1 - CO2-switchable response of protein microtubules BT - behaviour and mechanism JF - Materials chemistry frontiers N2 - Recently, we proposed a small molecular inducing ligand strategy to assemble proteins into highly-ordered structures via dual non-covalent interactions, i.e. carbohydrate-protein interaction and dimerization of Rhodamine B. Using this approach, artificial protein microtubules were successfully constructed. In this study, we find that these microtubules exhibit a perfect CO2 responsiveness; assembly and disassembly of these microtubules were nicely controlled by the alternative passage of CO2 and N-2. Upon the injection of CO2, a negative net-charged SBA turns into a neutral or positive net-charged SBA, which elongated, to some extent, the effective distance between SBA and Rhodamine B, resulting in the disassociation of the Rhodamine B dimer. Further experimental and simulation results reveal that the CO2-responsive mechanism differs from that of solubility change of the previously reported CO2-responsive synthetic materials. Y1 - 2018 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1039/c8qm00245b SN - 2052-1537 VL - 2 IS - 9 SP - 1642 EP - 1646 PB - Royal Society of Chemistry CY - Cambridge ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Qi, Wenjing A1 - Zhang, Yufei A1 - Kochovski, Zdravko A1 - Wang, Jue A1 - Lu, Yan A1 - Chen, Guosong A1 - Jiang, Ming T1 - Self-assembly of Human Galectin-1 via dual supramolecular interactions and its inhibition of T-cell agglutination and apoptosis JF - Nano Research N2 - Recently, we proposed a new strategy to construct artificial plant protein assemblies, which were induced by adding a small molecule, based on dual supramolecular interactions. In this paper, we further explored this method by employing Human Galectin-1 (Gal-1) as a building block to form self-assembled microribbons. Two non-covalent interactions, including lactose-lectin binding and dimerization of Rhodamine B (RhB), induced by the small molecule ligand addition, were involved in the crosslinking of the animal protein, resulting in the formation of assemblies. By using transmission electron microscopy (TEM), cryo-electron microscopy (cryo-EM), and three-dimensional (3D) tomographic analysis, we arrived at a possible mechanistic model for the microribbon formation. Furthermore, the morphology of protein assemblies could be fine-timed by varying the incubation time, the protein/ligand ratio, and the chemical structures of ligands. Interestingly, the formation of protein microribbons successfully inhibited Gal-1 induced T-cell agglutination and apoptosis. This is because the multivalent and dynamic interactions in protein assemblies compete with the binding between Gal-1 and the glycans on cell surfaces, which suppresses the function of Gal-1 in promotion of tumor progression and metastasis. KW - protein self-assembly KW - supramolecular interactions KW - galectin KW - cell agglutination Y1 - 2018 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1007/s12274-018-2169-7 SN - 1998-0124 SN - 1998-0000 VL - 11 IS - 10 SP - 5566 EP - 5572 PB - Tsinghua Univ Press CY - Beijing ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Xu, Xiao A1 - Angioletti-Uberti, Stefano A1 - Lu, Yan A1 - Dzubiella, Joachim A1 - Ballauff, Matthias T1 - Interaction of Proteins with Polyelectrolytes BT - Comparison of Theory to Experiment JF - Langmuir N2 - We discuss recent investigations of the interaction of polyelectrolytes with proteins. In particular, we review our recent studies on the interaction of simple proteins such as human serum albumin (HSA) and lysozyme with linear polyelectrolytes, charged dendrimers, charged networks, and polyelectrolyte brushes. In all cases discussed here, we combined experimental work with molecular dynamics (MD) simulations and mean-field theories. In particular, isothermal titration calorimetry (ITC) has been employed to obtain the respective binding constants K-b and the Gibbs free energy of binding. MD simulations with explicit counterions but implicit water demonstrate that counterion release is the main driving force for the binding of proteins to strongly charged polyelectrolytes: patches of positive charges located on the surface of the protein become multivalent counterions of the polyelectrolyte, thereby releasing a number of counterions condensed on the polyelectrolyte. The binding Gibbs free energy due to counterion release is predicted to scale with the logarithm of the salt concentration in the system, which is verified by both simulations and experiment. In several cases, namely, for the interaction of proteins with linear polyelectrolytes and highly charged hydrophilic dendrimers, the binding constant could be calculated from simulations to very good approximation. This finding demonstrated that in these cases explicit hydration effects do not contribute to the Gibbs free energy of binding. The Gibbs free energy can also be used to predict the kinetics of protein uptake by microgels for a given system by applying dynamic density functional theory. The entire discussion demonstrates that the direct comparison of theory with experiments can lead to a full understanding of the interaction of proteins with charged polymers. Possible implications for applications, such as drug design, are discussed. Y1 - 2018 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.langmuir.8b01802 SN - 0743-7463 VL - 35 IS - 16 SP - 5373 EP - 5391 PB - American Chemical Society CY - Washington ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Sun, Fu A1 - Dong, Kang A1 - Osenberg, Markus A1 - Hilger, Andre A1 - Risse, Sebastian A1 - Lu, Yan A1 - Kamm, Paul H. A1 - Klaus, Manuela A1 - Markoetter, Henning A1 - Garcia-Moreno, Francisco A1 - Arlt, Tobias A1 - Manke, Ingo T1 - Visualizing the morphological and compositional evolution of the interface of InLi-anode|thio-LISION electrolyte in an all-solid-state Li-S cell by in operando synchrotron X-ray tomography and energy dispersive diffraction JF - Journal of materials chemistry : A, Materials for energy and sustainability N2 - Dynamic and direct visualization of interfacial evolution is helpful in gaining fundamental knowledge of all-solid-state-lithium battery working/degradation mechanisms and clarifying future research directions for constructing next-generation batteries. Herein, in situ and in operando synchrotron X-ray tomography and energy dispersive diffraction were simultaneously employed to record the morphological and compositional evolution of the interface of InLi-anode|sulfide-solid-electrolyte during battery cycling. Compelling morphological evidence of interfacial degradation during all-solid-state-lithium battery operation has been directly visualized by tomographic measurement. The accompanying energy dispersive diffraction results agree well with the observed morphological deterioration and the recorded electrochemical performance. It is concluded from the current investigation that a fundamental understanding of the phenomena occurring at the solid-solid electrode|electrolyte interface during all-solid-state-lithium battery cycling is critical for future progress in cell performance improvement and may determine its final commercial viability. Y1 - 2018 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1039/c8ta08821g SN - 2050-7488 SN - 2050-7496 VL - 6 IS - 45 SP - 22489 EP - 22496 PB - Royal Society of Chemistry CY - Cambridge ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Zivanovic, Vesna A1 - Kochovski, Zdravko A1 - Arenz, Christoph A1 - Lu, Yan A1 - Kneipp, Janina T1 - SERS and Cryo-EM Directly Reveal Different Liposome Structures during Interaction with Gold Nanoparticles JF - The journal of physical chemistry letters N2 - The combination of gold nanoparticles with liposomes is important for nano- and biotechnology. Here, we present direct, label-free characterization of liposome structure and composition at the site of its interaction with citrate-stabilized gold nanoparticles by surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) and cryogenic electron microscopy (cryo-EM). Evidenced by the vibrational spectra and cryo-EM, the gold nanoparticles destroy the bilayer structure of interacting liposomes in the presence of a high amount of citrate, while at lower citrate concentration the nanoparticles interact with the surface of the intact liposomes. The spectra of phosphatidylcholine and phosphatidylcholine/sphingomyelin liposomes show that at the site of interaction the lipid chains are in the gel phase. The SERS spectra indicate that cholesterol has strong effects on the contacts of the vesicles with the nanoparticles. By combining cryo-EM and SERS, the structure and properties of lipid nanoparticle composites could be tailored for the development of drug delivery systems. Y1 - 2018 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.jpclett.8b03191 SN - 1948-7185 VL - 9 IS - 23 SP - 6767 EP - 6772 PB - American Chemical Society CY - Washington ER -