Advanced electrodes with a high energy density at high power are urgently needed for high-performance energy storage devices, including lithium-ion batteries (LIBs) and supercapacitors (SCs), to fulfil the requirements of future electrochemical power sources for applications such as in hybrid electric/plug-in-hybrid (HEV/PHEV) vehicles. Metal sulfides with unique physical and chemical properties, as well as high specific capacity/capacitance, which are typically multiple times higher than that of the carbon/graphite-based materials, are currently studied as promising electrode materials. However, the implementation of these sulfide electrodes in practical applications is hindered by their inferior rate performance and cycling stability. Nanostructures offering the advantages of high surface-to-volume ratios, favourable transport properties, and high freedom for the volume change upon ion insertion/extraction and other reactions, present an opportunity to build next-generation LIBs and SCs. Thus, the development of novel concepts in material research to achieve new nanostructures paves the way for improved electrochemical performance. Herein, we summarize recent advances in nanostructured metal sulfides, such as iron sulfides, copper sulfides, cobalt sulfides, nickel sulfides, manganese sulfides, molybdenum sulfides, tin sulfides, with zero-, one-, two-, and three-dimensional morphologies for LIB and SC applications. In addition, the recently emerged concept of incorporating conductive matrices, especially graphene, with metal sulfide nanomaterials will also be highlighted. Finally, some remarks are made on the challenges and perspectives for the future development of metal sulfide-based LIB and SC devices.

Nanostructured metal sulfides for energy storage

Nanotechnology: The new perspective in precision agriculture.

Photoelectrochemical DNA biosensors.

The evolution of photoelectrochemical (PEC) bioanalysis has resulted in substantial progress in its analytical performance and biodetection applications. The aim of this review is to provide a panoramic snapshot of the state of the art in this dynamically developing field, with special emphasis on PEC DNA analysis, immunoassay, enzymatic biosensing and cell-related detection. The future prospects in this area are also evaluated and discussed. This work will serve as a useful source to inform the interested audience of the latest developments and applications in the field of PEC bioanalysis.

Photoelectrochemical bioanalysis: the state of the art

The field of chiral inorganic nanostructures is rapidly expanding. It started from the observation of strong circular dichroism during the synthesis of individual nanoparticles (NPs) and their assemblies and expanded to sophisticated synthetic protocols involving nanostructures from metals, semiconductors, ceramics, and nanocarbons. Besides the well-established chirality transfer from bioorganic molecules, other methods to impart handedness to nanoscale matter specific to inorganic materials were discovered, including three-dimentional lithography, multiphoton chirality transfer, polarization effects in nanoscale assemblies, and others. Multiple chiral geometries were observed with characteristic scales from angstroms to microns. Uniquely high values of chiral anisotropy factors that spurred the development of the field and differentiate it from chiral structures studied before, are now well understood; they originate from strong resonances of incident electromagnetic waves with plasmonic and excitonic st...

Chiral Inorganic Nanostructures

Highly-sensitive organophosphorous pesticide biosensors based on nanostructured films of acetylcholinesterase and CdTe quantum dots

A blood glucose sensor has been developed based on the multilayer films of CdTe semiconductor quantum dots (QDs) and glucose oxidase (GOD) by using the layer-by-layer assembly technique. When the composite films were contacted with glucose solution, the photoluminescence of QDs in the films was quickly quenched because the enzyme-catalyzed reaction product (H2O2) of GOD and glucose gave rise to the formation of surface defects on QDs. The quenching rate was a function of the concentration of glucose. The linear range and sensitivity for glucose determination could be adjusted by controlling the layers of QDs and GOD. The biosensor was used to successfully determine the concentration of blood glucose in real serum samples without sample pretreatment and exhibited satisfactory reproducibility and accuracy.

Glucose biosensor based on nanocomposite films of CdTe quantum dots and glucose oxidase.

Polyoxometalates (POMs) have shown encouraging antitumor activity. However, their cytotoxicity in normal cells and unspecific interactions with biomolecules are two major obstacles that impede the practical applications of POMs in clinical cancer treatment. Derivatization of POMs with more biocompatible organic ligands is expected to cause a synergetic effect and achieve improved bioactivity and biospecificity. Herein, the synthesis of an amphiphilic organic-inorganic hybrid is reported by grafting a long-chain organoalkoxysilane lipid onto a POM. The amphiphilic POM hybrid could spontaneously assemble into the vesicles and exhibits enhanced antitumor activity for human colorectal cancer cell lines (HT29) compared to that of parent POMs. This detailed study reveals that the amphiphilic nature of POM hybrids enables the as-formed vesicles to easily bind to the cell membranes and then be uptaken by the cells, thus leading to a substantial increase in antitumor activity. Such prominent antitumor action is mostly accomplished via cell apoptosis, which ultimately results in cell death. Our finding demonstrates that novel POM hybrids-based drugs with increased bioactivity could be obtained by decorating POMs with selective organic ligands.

Polyoxometalate-Based Organic-Inorganic Hybrids as Antitumor Drugs.

Public concern over pesticide residues has been increasing dramatically owing to the high toxicity and bioaccumulation effects of pesticides and the serious risks that they pose to the environment and human health. It is therefore crucial to monitor pesticide residues by using various analytical methods and techniques, especially highly sensitive, highly selective, simple, rapid, cost-effective, and portable ones. Biosensor strategies have become research hotspots and ideal candidates for pesticide detection, having such features as high sensitivity, fast response, robustness, low cost and miniaturization, as well as in situ and real-time monitoring. This review covers advances in the design and fabrication of biosensors for pesticide detection since 2005. Special emphasis is placed on the state-of-art selection of receptors, the use of different transduction techniques and fast screening strategies, and the application of various biosensors developed in food and environmental safety. Both advantages and drawbacks of these techniques are then summarized. Finally, challenges, strategies, and perspectives in further developing pesticide biosensors are also discussed.

Xinyu Li

Papers

Highly-sensitive organophosphorous pesticide biosensors based on nanostructured films of acetylcholinesterase and CdTe quantum dots

Glucose biosensor based on nanocomposite films of CdTe quantum dots and glucose oxidase.

Polyoxometalate-Based Organic-Inorganic Hybrids as Antitumor Drugs.

Advances in pesticide biosensors: current status, challenges, and future perspectives.

Photoelectrochemical sensing of glucose based on quantum dot and enzyme nanocomposites