Siguang Li

High serum uric acid levels elevate pro-inflammatory-state gout crystal arthropathy and place individuals at high risk for cardiovascular morbidity and mortality. Genome-wide scans in the genetically isolated Sardinian population identified variants associated with serum uric acid levels as a quantitative trait. They mapped within GLUT9, a Chromosome 4 glucose transporter gene predominantly expressed in liver and kidney. SNP rs6855911 showed the strongest association (p = 1.84 x 10(-16)), along with eight others (p = 7.75 x 10(-16) to 6.05 x 10(-11)). Individuals homozygous for the rare allele of rs6855911 (minor allele frequency = 0.26) had 0.6 mg/dl less uric acid than those homozygous for the common allele; the results were replicated in an unrelated cohort from Tuscany. Our results suggest that polymorphisms in GLUT9 could affect glucose metabolism and uric acid synthesis and/or renal reabsorption, influencing serum uric acid levels over a wide range of values.

Poly(ethylene glycol) diacrylate (PEGDA) is introduced into the SnO2 dispersion as the polymer framework to hinder the agglomeration. The PEGDA-modified SnO2 acted as the electron transport layer (ETL) in n-i-p structured perovskite solar cells (pero-SCs). It is demonstrated that the PEGDA plays multifunctional roles in the enhancement of photovoltaic performance and stability against illumination and humility. First, the PEGDA-modified SnO2 ETL is more uniform, and its energy level matched well with the perovskite, which could facilitate the carrier transport and reduce the energy loss. Second, PEGDA could passivate the defects at the interface between perovskite and ETL. Eventually, a power conversion efficiency (PCE) of 23.31% is achieved for the α-FAPbI3 based pero-SCs. Most importantly, the unencapsulated devices maintained more than 90% of the initial PCE after 850 h continuous illumination (100 mW/cm2). This study could provide insight for the low-cost, facile, and efficient interface modification for the pero-SCs.