Phagocyte-derived catecholamines enhance acute inflammatory injury

It is becoming increasingly clear that the autonomic nervous system and the immune system demonstrate cross-talk during inflammation by means of sympathetic and parasympathetic pathways. We investigated whether phagocytes are capable of de novo production of catecholamines, suggesting an autocrine/paracrine self-regulatory mechanism by catecholamines during inflammation, as has been described for lymphocytes. Here we show that exposure of phagocytes to lipopolysaccharide led to a release of catecholamines and an induction of catecholamine-generating and degrading enzymes, indicating the presence of the complete intracellular machinery for the generation, release and inactivation of catecholamines. To assess the importance of these findings in vivo, we chose two models of acute lung injury. Blockade of alpha2-adrenoreceptors or catecholamine-generating enzymes greatly suppressed lung inflammation, whereas the opposite was the case either for an alpha2-adrenoreceptor agonist or for inhibition of catecholamine-degrading enzymes. We were able to exclude T cells or sympathetic nerve endings as sources of the injury-modulating catecholamines. Our studies identify phagocytes as a new source of catecholamines, which enhance the inflammatory response.     

Snapshots of cooperative atomic motions in the optical suppression of charge density waves

Macroscopic quantum phenomena such as high-temperature superconductivity, colossal magnetoresistance, ferrimagnetism and ferromagnetism arise from a delicate balance of different interactions among electrons, phonons and spins on the nanoscale. The study of the interplay among these various degrees of freedom in strongly coupled electron-lattice systems is thus crucial to their understanding and for optimizing their properties. Charge-density-wave (CDW) materials, with their inherent modulation of the electron density and associated periodic lattice distortion, represent ideal model systems for the study of such highly cooperative phenomena. With femtosecond time-resolved techniques, it is possible to observe these interactions directly by abruptly perturbing the electronic distribution while keeping track of energy relaxation pathways and coupling strengths among the different subsystems. Numerous time-resolved experiments have been performed on CDWs, probing the dynamics of the electronic subsystem. However, the dynamics of the periodic lattice distortion have been only indirectly inferred. Here we provide direct atomic-level information on the structural dynamics by using femtosecond electron diffraction to study the quasi two-dimensional CDW system 1T-TaS(2). Effectively, we have directly observed the atomic motions that result from the optically induced change in the electronic spatial distribution. The periodic lattice distortion, which has an amplitude of ～0.1??, is suppressed by about 20% on a timescale (～250 femtoseconds) comparable to half the period of the corresponding collective mode. These highly cooperative, electronically driven atomic motions are accompanied by a rapid electron-phonon energy transfer (～350 femtoseconds) and are followed by fast recovery of the CDW (～4 picoseconds). The degree of cooperativity in the observed structural dynamics is remarkable and illustrates the importance of obtaining atomic-level perspectives of the processes directing the physics of strongly correlated systems.     

真实驾驶循环中的发动机电基合成燃料评估

电基合成燃料（E-Fuels）是实现环境和气候目标的一个重要组成部分。其中C1含氧化合物因其具备清洁燃烧的特性而备受关注,包括氧化亚甲基醚（OME）、碳酸二甲酯（DMC）和甲酸甲酯（MeFo）。为探索新型燃料在内燃机中的潜力,对汽油和柴油燃烧、排放模型进行了优化和扩展。在成功验证和标定模型后,对虚拟测试车辆进行了研究,重点关注燃料的效率潜力、排放水平和经济性。首先,基于现代汽油、柴油和天然气发动机,开发了不同概念的OME和DMC/MeFo发动机;其次,在真实驾驶循环（RDE）中对这些发动机概念在E级乘用车和40 t卡车上的应用进行了评估。结果表明,通过调整喷射策略和匹配废气再循环,OME发动机能实现最佳的热效率和极低的排放;混合燃料DMC/MeFo由于高抗爆性,结合先进的发动机技术,能达到接近柴油机的热效率,且发动机复杂性大大降低,这使得DMC/MeFo燃料在重型卡车应用中具有广阔的前景。