Cell Array Research Articles

Energy Efficiency and Sustainability of Adaptive Intelligent Battery Management Technologies for EVs and ESSs

As an essential component of electric vehicles (EVs), battery surely requires not only the highest level of longevity and zero-death safety but also energy efficiency and sustainability. We propose energy-efficient and sustainable artificial intelligence (AI) battery management technologies that can extend lifetime, reliability, and safety of battery applications and are applicable to all types of rechargeable secondary batteries such as solid- and liquid-type cells. EV battery typically consists of over thousands of cells. The proposed battery architecture provides the ability to adaptively reconfigure battery cell array network in real time as needed. New AI battery technologies evenly drain charge across all battery cells and provide extra battery cells that replace faulty cells in a timely manner, extending the battery lifetime by 7.5%, 9.1%, respectively, and 19.4% when used together while ensuring a required level of voltage and power under dynamic thermal control. The proposed technologies further support three eco-friendly modes with high energy-efficiency and fire-safety. The proposed technologies can also be applied to reliable, remote, yet self-sustainable energy sources such as energy storage systems even with heterogeneous battery cells which are of key importance for decentralization of megalopolises and regionalization.

Study on design and impact energy absorption of Voronoi porous structure with tunable Poisson's ratio

As the inner core of crash box, the porous structure could cushion impact load through its own deformation. The aims of this study were to propose a series of Voronoi porous structures with tunable Poisson's ratio (VP-VPS) by using the periodic array of unit cells based on Voronoi-Tessellation and to develop crash boxes filled with porous structures for strong crashworthiness and high energy absorption. VP-VPS structures through the periodic arrays of unit cells were constructed according to 4 independent unit cell design factors. The quasi-static and dynamic compressive mechanical responses of VP-VPS structures prepared by selective laser melting (SLM) were studied through the combinations of mechanical test and simulation. Relationships between VP-VPS unit cell design factors and mechanical properties of structures were determined by establishing regression equations using the response surface method (RSM). Finally, the energy absorption of new crash boxes filled with VP-VPS structures was investigated through simulation. Results showed that VP-VPS structures had high load-bearing capacities and energy absorption under quasi-static and dynamic compressive conditions. Regression equations based on RSM could well predict mechanical properties of structures. The mechanical properties of VP-VPS structures were enhanced with the increase of global strain rate, which showed different deformation modes at low and high global strain rates. Compared with typical crash boxes filled with negative Poisson's ratio (NPR) inner cores, new type VP-VPS crash boxes had stronger impact resistance and higher energy absorption. This investigation provided a feasible design solution and theoretical basis for the construction and engineering application of impact resistance protective structures.

Design and Characterization of a Power Management System for a Pico Balloon Platform for High Altitude Radiation Monitoring

Research related to the Earth's atmosphere is increasing due to its importance in various fields. These studies are directly related to environmental changes and health problems. This occurs mainly in environments where the magnetic field is strongly weakened, such as the South Atlantic Anomaly (SAA), located in South America. As a result, studies have been conducted to monitor radiation in these locations, such as the Minuano project. Based on it, the goal of this work is to design and implement a power management system (PMS) for a high-altitude pico balloon. It must provide a minimum power of 281.78 mW to power the electronic components of the pico-balloon tracker system. We present the overall methodology for the system design and development of the PMS. Different types of DC-DC converters and different photovoltaic (PV) cell arrays have been characterized. The PMS proposed in this paper can provide a power of 284.6 mW for a parallel association of 2 arrays of 5 PV cells in series.

Microarray evidence that 8-cell human embryos express some hormone family members including oxytocin.

This study is to discover hormone pathways active in early cleaving human embryos. A list of 152 hormones and receptors were compiled to query the microarray database of mRNAs in 8-cell human embryos, two lines of human embryonic stem cells plus human fibroblasts before and after induced pluripotency. Over half of the 152 hormones and receptors were silent on the arrays of all cell types, and more were detected at high or moderate levels on the 8-cell arrays than on the pluripotent cell or fibroblast arrays. Eight hormone family genes were uniquely detected at least 22-fold higher on the 8-cell arrays than the stem cell arrays: AVPI1, CCK, CORT, FSTL4, GIP, GPHA2, OXT, and PPY suggesting novel roles for these proteins in early development. Oxytocin was detected by pilot immunoassay in culture media collected from Day 3 embryos. Robust detection of CRHR1 and EPOR suggests the 8-cell embryo may be responsive to maternal CRH and EPO. The over-expression of POMC and GHITM suggests POMP peptide products may have undiscovered roles in early development and GHITM may contribute to mitochondrial remodeling. Under-detected on the 8-cell arrays at least tenfold were two key enzymes in steroid biosynthesis, DHCR24 and FDPS. The 8-cell human embryo may be secreting oxytocin, which could stimulate its own progress down the fallopian tube as well as play a role in early neural precursor development. The 8-cell embryo does not synthesize reproductive steroid hormones. As previously reported for growth factor families, the early embryo over-expresses more hormones than hormone receptors.

Sensor Absorbents for Heavy Metal Ions By Low-Cost Functionalization of Porous Carbons

Porous carbons are key materials in electrodes for electrochemical energy storage as well as in water purification. Methods to modify porous carbons to enhance their properties as charge storing or water purification materials have been explored during the past decades [1,2]. The main application fields if porous carbon, water purification and energy storage, are highly cost sensitive. For this reason, there is a need to develop low-cost methods to modify porous carbons. Here, the use of benzoxazine chemistry to modify porous carbons is explored. Benzoxazine chemistry can be considered a protection group strategy for phenols, where the phenols from which the benzoxazines are synthesized, are deprotected upon benzoxazine polymerization. Further, benzoxazine polymerization produces Mannich bridges located near phenol groups, motifs that can be used to capture heavy metal ions. More specifically, in the first step, the porous carbons are partially impregnated with benzoxazine monomers, from melt or solutions to afford powders impregnated far below the liquid saturation level of the particles. That is, the particles retain porosity after the impregnation but still have a dry appearance. After impregnation, the particles are heated over the polymerization temperature of the benzoxazine to afford the porous carbon with immobilized functionalities. As phenols can initiate benzoxazine polymerization and be incorporated in the polymer, this method offers a simple route to produce polymerized and immobilized structure at a carbon interface. Here, results on metal ion absorption and the electrochemical response after exposure are presented for carbons modified by impregnation-polymerization of benzoxazines with or without incorporation of phenols. Inks were manufactured from the modified carbons. The electrochemical characterizations were performed on printed arrays of electrochemical cells on a substrate having dimensions of well plates and intended for automatized testing and where the carbon inks were deposited on the working electrodes. This methodology has a potential of simplifying the development of sensor materials and absorbents and can be automatized and potentially be supported with machine learning schemes. The electrochemical responses of exposure of the modified carbon electrodes to metal salt solutions show that impregnation-polymerization of functional benzoxazine can produce absorbents responding electrochemically to metal ion absorption with a scalable process starting from low-cost materials.

(Invited) Long Term Operation of Photoelectrochemical Devices: Experiments and Modeling

Achieving long term operation while maintaining a high energy conversion efficiency and large production rates is one of the main challenges for enhancing the economic competitiveness of solar fuel producing photoelectrochemical devices [1]. I will discuss computational and experimental methods to characterize the degradation of photoelectrochemical devices. The models consider multi-scale approaches and multi-physics phenomena [2]. This is required in order to properly account for all the competing and convoluting effects and to properly extract and quantify the degradation from experimental data. I will present our experimental setup that consists of a multi-PEC cell array in order to obtain sufficient and statistically representative data. Additional experiments under high-flux solar irradiation conditions are presented that allow – in conjunction with the model – for the extraction of degradation characteristics and the development of accelerated age testing procedures. I will also report on the long term operation of our outdoor photo-electrochemical system demonstration operating under concentrated light [3].[1] M. Dumortier, S. Tembhurne, S. Haussener, Energy Environmental Science, 8: 3614-3628, 2015.[2] F. Nandjou, S. Haussener, ACS Applied Materials & Interfaces. 10.1021/acsami.2c08204, 2022.[3] I. Holmes-Gentle, S. Tembhurne, C. Suter, S. Haussener, Nature Energy, 10.1038/s41560-023-01247-2, 2023.

Comparative study of parallel gap resistance welding joints between different interconnected foils and GaAs solar cells: Microstructure and thermal reliability

Deployed in space orbits, solar cell arrays are subjected to daunting challenges posed by exceedingly harsh thermal environments. During their operational lifespan in space, potential failures at the joints between solar cells and interconnecting strips can adversely affect the longevity of solar cell arrays. To enhance the thermal reliability of solar cell joints in intricate space conditions, this study delved into the influence of thermal cycle on mechanical properties and microstructures of parallel gap resistance welding (PGRW) joints utilizing both silver (Ag) and Ag-plated Kovar foils. Operating at respective current densities of 410 A/mm2 and 420 A/mm2, these two types of foils exhibit solid-phase interfaces characterized by elemental diffusion. Interface of the joint of Ag foil experiences microscopic deformation and accumulated strain during the thermal cycle, with cracks initiating and propagating at the edges of joint interface. With an escalation in the number of thermal cycles, tensile-shear performance deteriorates, and the fracture morphology shifts from a ductile fracture with evident dimples to a deformation-intensive fracture attributed to thermal fatigue, draped in Ag grains. Conversely, the joints of Ag-plated Kovar foil demonstrate minimal alterations in mechanical properties, microstructures, and fracture morphology due to thermal cycling. This phenomenon reflects noteworthy thermal reliability spanning from −160 °C to 120 °C. The investigation into PGRW joints of Ag-plated Kovar foil holds significant implications for satisfying the high-reliability of solar cell arrays in hostile space environments.

Cooperative actin filament nucleation by the Arp2/3 complex and formins maintains the homeostatic cortical array in Arabidopsis epidermal cells.

Precise control over how and where actin filaments are created leads to the construction of unique cytoskeletal arrays within a common cytoplasm. Actin filament nucleators are key players in this activity and include the conserved actin-related protein 2/3 (Arp2/3) complex as well as a large family of formins. In some eukaryotic cells, these nucleators compete for a common pool of actin monomers and loss of one favors the activity of the other. To test whether this mechanism is conserved, we combined the ability to image single filament dynamics in the homeostatic cortical actin array of living Arabidopsis (Arabidopsis thaliana) epidermal cells with genetic and/or small molecule inhibitor approaches to stably or acutely disrupt nucleator activity. We found that Arp2/3 mutants or acute CK-666 treatment markedly reduced the frequency of side-branched nucleation events as well as overall actin filament abundance. We also confirmed that plant formins contribute to side-branched filament nucleation in vivo. Surprisingly, simultaneous inhibition of both classes of nucleator increased overall actin filament abundance and enhanced the frequency of de novo nucleation events by an unknown mechanism. Collectively, our findings suggest that multiple actin nucleation mechanisms cooperate to generate and maintain the homeostatic cortical array of plant epidermal cells.

2023 Joseph W. Richards Fellowship – Summary Report: Toward High-throughput Electrochemical Screening of in vivo Synthesized Metalloenzymes

In recent years, bioinspired metalloenzymes have proven a viable and sustainable method for hydrogen production via the hydrogen evolution reaction (HER). By using in vivo directed evolution synthetic techniques, hydrogenase systems based on rubredoxin (Rd) scaffolds with Ni substituted metal centers have proven promising molecular catalysts. However, insight into the mechanism of hydrogen production between different mutants has proven tricky, as electrochemical characterization of the high number of mutants is slow. High-throughput electrochemistry has started to emerge at the nano and macroscale in the form of scanning electrochemical methods and by using an array of electrochemical cells. Here we utilize the array microcell method (AMCM)to electrochemically investigate each enzyme at one array.

Genetic ancestry of human induced pluripotent stem cells banked for neurodegeneration research

AbstractBackgroundThe National Centralized Repository for Alzheimer’s Disease and Related Dementias (NCRAD) has established a centralized repository for human induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) and fibroblasts in partnership with the National Institute on Aging (NIA). This is a critical resource for the research community, which can facilitate disease modeling, functional genetic studies, and drug development. However, the utility of this resource is still limited in terms of racial and ethnic diversity, which has the potential to bias neurodegenerative research and drug development unless steps are taken to create and share a more diverse array of cell lines.MethodAt NCRAD, banked iPSCs are subjected to quality control including short‐read whole genome sequencing (WGS). 78 samples have been submitted for sequencing; of these, data for 51 have been returned and analyzed, including multiple isogenic lines from three donors. WGS data was aligned, and quality control performed using Sentieon software, following GATK best practices. Data was combined with sequencing data from 2,548 1000 Genomes participants and pruned in PLINK. R package SNPRelate was used to generate a kinship matrix and perform principal component analysis (PCA). Clustering analysis was performed utilizing K‐means clustering to group samples into 5 clusters. PCs 1‐3 were graphed, color‐coded by cluster, and final ancestry calls reviewed for clustering with reference groups.ResultThe NCRAD 51 iPSC lines with analyzed WGS data were sourced from 28 neurodegenerative cases and 12 controls. In this data set, 83% of samples (89% of cases, 67% of controls) have European ancestry. The cohort also includes one case and one control line of East Asian ancestry, as well as 2 cases and 3 controls showing admixture of European/American ancestry. 17 individuals did not have reported race/ethnicity, while 2 controls showed genetic admixture though reported as White non‐Hispanic, and the remaining individuals’ genetic ancestry matched reported race/ethnicity.ConclusionCentralized banking of iPSCs from individuals with neurodegenerative diseases is creating a key resource to advance research; however, to date the diversity of these samples is limited. We urge researchers to develop and share more diverse cell lines, to promote diversity and equity in neurodegenerative research.

Convergence of the DDA for ensembles of objects of irregular shape

The discrete dipole approximation (DDA) is commonly used to compute light-scattering properties of irregularly shaped particles. The DDA maps the particle into an array of cubic cells with side d < λ. For a randomly oriented irregularly shaped particle, DDA has been shown accurate when kd|m| ≤ 1, where k is the wavenumber and m is the particle refractive index. We demonstrate that the DDA yields robust results even when kd|m| ≈ 1.2 when applied to ensembles of irregularly shaped dielectric particles and kd|m| ≈ 1.3 for conductive particles. This finding can greatly reduce the computational load required for performing such computations.

Design and Verification of a Miniaturized Multifunctional Transmitarray Unit Cell for the S-Band

In this paper, a miniaturized multifunctional unit cell structure of a transmitarray operating at S-band and its verification method using a waveguide structure is presented. The unit cell of a multifunctional transmitarray antenna is a critical component because it controls the phase and polarization of an incident wave. The proposed unit cell consists of three main parts: an Rx antenna, a Tx antenna, and a control circuit for phase and polarization. The performance of the designed unit cell is verified by a rectangular waveguide structure. The waveguide structure feeds an electromagnetic wave propagating in a TE&lt;sub&gt;10&lt;/sub&gt; mode to a 1 × 2 unit cell array to verify polarization and phase shifting capability of the unit cell. The phase shifting and polarization conversion capabilities of the proposed unit cell are directly measured by the radiation patterns and polarization of the transmitted wave.

Wide angle metamaterial absorber for S, C and X band application

Abstract In this article, an angle independent Metamaterial Microwave Absorbers (MMA) is designed and demonstrated. The design consists of two concentric hexagon connected through consolidated resistors. The absorber is imprinted on a metal-backed low cost FR4 dielectric substrate with a thickness of 3.2 mm (λ/0.07) and a dielectric constant of 4.3. The proposed structure exhibits a wide absorption bandwidth ranging from 2.8 to 10.42 GHz with absorptivity above 90 % covering S, C and X Band. In the area of interest, the current and electric field distribution has been examined, for two maximum peaks at a frequency of 3.66 and 9.54 GHz, with maximum absorptivity of 99.99 % and 99.44 % respectively. The presented absorber is examined under different polarization angles for phi and theta variation. The fabricated sheet consists of an array of a unit cell, which is examined inside the anechoic chamber with the help of two horn antennas and VNA. The tested and simulated results are compared and it was found that they are almost similar to each other with little variation due to fabrication tolerance. The presented absorber can be practically used for defence applications for Radar Cross Sections (RCS) reduction.

Distributions of easy axes and reversal processes in patterned MRAM arrays

The distribution of the easy-axes in an array of MRAM cells is a vital parameter to understand the switching and characteristics of the devices. By measuring the coercivity as a function of applied-field angle, and remaining close to the perpendicular orientation, a classic Stoner-Wohlfarth approximation has been applied to the resulting variation to determine the standard deviation, sigma , of a Gaussian distribution of the orientation of the easy-magnetisation directions. In this work we have compared MRAM arrays with nominal cells sizes of 20 nm and 60 nm and a range of free layer thicknesses. We have found that a smaller diameter cell will have a wider switching-field distribution with a standard deviation sigma = {9.5}^{circ }. The MRAM arrays consist of pillars produced by etching a multilayer thin film. This value of sigma is dominated by pillar uniformity and edge effects controlling the reversal, reinforcing the need for ever-improving etch processes. This is compared to larger pillars, with distributions as low as sigma = {5.5}^{circ }. Furthermore we found that the distribution broadens from sigma = {5.5}^{circ } to sigma = {8.5}^{circ } with free layer thickness in larger pillars and that thinner films had a more uniform easy-axis orientation. For the 20 nm pillars the non-uniform size distribution of the pillars, with a large and unknown error in the free-layer volume, was highlighted as it was found that the activation volume for the reversal of the free layer 930 nm^3 was larger than the nominal physical volume of the free layer. However for the 60 nm pillars, the activation volume was measured to be equal to one fifth of their physical volume. This implies that the smaller pillars effectively reverse as one entity while the larger pillars reverse via an incoherent mechanism of nucleation and propagation.

Double elliptical resonator based quad-band incident angle and polarization angle insensitive metamaterial absorber for wireless applications

In this article, a double elliptical split ring resonator-based quad band metamaterial absorber (MMA) is demonstrated for applications in the microwave range. The resonator is made up of four squares outside split rings and two elliptical split rings positioned in the middle of the structure. The resonating patch is placed over an FR-4 dielectric layer with a thickness of 1.6 mm. The unit cell has an electrical size of 0.103λ0 × 0.103λ0, where λ0 is the wavelength determined at 2.576 GHz. The MMA shows maximum absorption of 99.83% at 2.576 GHz, 99.98% at 5.648 GHz, 99.56% at 8.32 GHz, and 99.15% at 13.456 GHz with TE mode. For TM mode, at 2.576 GHz, 5.632 GHz, 8.304 GHz, and 13.44 GHz, corresponding absorptions are 99.21%, 99.67%, 99.5%, and 99%, respectively. The MMA is polarisation and incidence angle (0° to 90°) insensitivity for both TM and TE modes. The unit cell provides single negative characteristics including an EMR (effective medium ratio) of 9.71 and a Q factor (quality factor) over 25. The proposed MMA provides high harvesting efficiencies of 92.87%, 76.9%, 94.12%, and 90.97% for frequencies of 2.57 GHz, 5.64 GHz, 8.32 GHz, and 13.45 GHz, correspondingly. The equivalent circuit is modeled to understand the resonance behavior of the MMA and the circuit parameters are determined and validated using Advanced Design Systems (ADS) software. The performance of the MMA is examined using the prototype of the array of the unit cells in an experimental setup. The experimental outcome provides a close similarity with simulation outcomes indicating the good performance of the MMA. The metamaterial absorber's high performance makes it suitable for many applications, such as RF energy harvesting applications, image technologies, stealth technologies, and radar systems as well as minimizing electromagnetic interference in satellites.

Micropatterning the organization of multicellular structures in 3D biological hydrogels; insights into collective cellular mechanical interactions

Control over the organization of cells at the microscale level within supporting biomaterials can push forward the construction of complex tissue architectures for tissue engineering applications and enable fundamental studies of how tissue structure relates to its function. While cells patterning on 2D substrates is a relatively established and available procedure, micropatterning cells in biomimetic 3D hydrogels has been more challenging, especially with micro-scale resolution, and currently relies on sophisticated tools and protocols. We present a robust and accessible ‘peel-off’ method to micropattern large arrays of individual cells or cell-clusters of precise sizes in biological 3D hydrogels, such as fibrin and collagen gels, with control over cell–cell separation distance and neighboring cells position. We further demonstrate partial control over cell position in the z-dimension by stacking two layers in varying distances between the layers. To demonstrate the potential of the micropatterning gel platform, we study the matrix-mediated mechanical interaction between array of cells that are accurately separated in defined distances. A collective process of intense cell-generated densified bands emerging in the gel between near neighbors was identified, along which cells preferentially migrate, a process relevant to tissue morphogenesis. The presented 3D gel micropatterning method can be used to reveal fundamental morphogenetic processes, and to reconstruct any tissue geometry with micrometer resolution in 3D biomimetic gel environments, leveraging the engineering of tissues in complex architectures.

Rotational symmetric solar system shaped triple band perfect metamaterial absorber for S-, C-, and X-band application

This article offers a metamaterial absorber of solar system shaped design for S-, C-, and X-band using a simple and symmetric structure. This innovative structure consists of two split ring resonator (SRRs) and two circular shape metal strips with a metal disc in the center. The ground metallic layer and upper patches are disjoint by flame retardant dielectric FR-4 (lossy) material of thickness 1.6 mm. Copper (annealed) of depth 0.035 mm is used for the all patches as well as the ground layer. The electrical dimension of the unit cell is 0.1006 λ × 0.1006λ which is calculated at the lower frequency 3.02 GHz. Computer simulation technique (CST) microwave studio is used to derive the numerical results. The simulation result yields three resonance peaks at 3.02, 5.71 and 8.36 GHz with the absorption 99.86%, 97.58% and 97.46%, respectively. The electric field, magnetic field and the surface current distribution are studied to comprehend the absorption mechanism. The reflection coefficient (S11) is also investigated by advanced design system (ADS) electrical equivalent circuit. This unique design of metamaterial absorber (MMA) unit cell is finalized through some parametric studies. The simulated results are also validated by ADS with electrical equivalent circuit and different array orientation. Unit cell, 1 × 2, 2 × 2 and 4 × 4 array of the unit cell are fabricated for measurement purposes. The measurement is carried out with the help of programmable network access (PNA) of Agilent N5227 with waveguide ports. The S-, C-, and X-band are mainly used for satellite communication and radar system. S-band is used for the shipping, aviation and space industries for its efficiency as a conduit for supplying vital real-time data whereas, C band is used for many wireless communication like satellite transmissions, Wi-Fi devices, mobile communication and weather forecasting system. X band is a radar sub-band which is utilized in civil, military, weather monitoring, air traffic control, maritime vessel traffic control, defense tracking.

The long noncoding RNA nHOTAIRM1 is necessary for differentiation and activity of iPSC-derived spinal motor neurons

The mammalian nervous system is made up of an extraordinary array of diverse cells that form intricate functional connections. The programs underlying cell lineage specification, identity and function of the neuronal subtypes are managed by regulatory proteins and RNAs, which coordinate the succession of steps in a stereotyped temporal order. In the central nervous system (CNS), motor neurons (MNs) are responsible for controlling essential functions such as movement, breathing, and swallowing by integrating signal transmission from the cortex, brainstem, and spinal cord (SC) towards peripheral muscles. A prime role in guiding the progression of progenitor cells towards the MN fate has been largely attributed to protein factors. More recently, the relevance of a class of regulatory RNAs abundantly expressed in the CNS - the long noncoding RNAs (lncRNAs) - has emerged overwhelmingly. LncRNA-driven gene expression control is key to regulating any step of MN differentiation and function, and its derangement profoundly impacts neuronal pathophysiology. Here, we uncover a novel function for the neuronal isoform of HOTAIRM1 (nHOTAIRM1), a lncRNA specifically expressed in the SC. Using a model system that recapitulates spinal MN (spMN) differentiation, we show that nHOTAIRM1 intervenes in the binary cell fate decision between MNs and interneurons, acting as a pro-MN factor. Furthermore, human iPSC-derived spMNs without nHOTAIRM1 display altered neurite outgrowth, with a significant reduction of both branch and junction numbers. Finally, the expression of genes essential for synaptic connectivity and neurotransmission is also profoundly impaired when nHOTAIRM1 is absent in spMNs. Mechanistically, nHOTAIRM1 establishes both direct and indirect interactions with a number of target genes in the cytoplasm, being a novel post-transcriptional regulator of MN biology. Overall, our results indicate that the lncRNA nHOTAIRM1 is essential for the specification of MN identity and the acquisition of proper morphology and synaptic activity of post-mitotic MNs.

Antiproliferative Modulation and Pro-Apoptotic Effect of BR2 Tumor-Penetrating Peptide Formulation 2-Aminoethyl Dihydrogen Phosphate in Triple-Negative Breast Cancer.

Breast cancer is the most common cancer in women, the so-called "Triple-Negative Breast Cancer" (TNBC) subtype remaining the most challenging to treat, with low tumor-free survival and poor clinical evolution. Therefore, there is a clear medical need for innovative and more efficient treatment options for TNBC. The aim of the present study was to evaluate the potential therapeutic interest of the association of the tumor-penetrating BR2 peptide with monophosphoester 2-aminoethyl dihydrogen phosphate (2-AEH2P), a monophosphoester involved in cell membrane turnover, in TNBC. For that purpose, viability, migration, proliferative capacity, and gene expression analysis of proteins involved in the control of proliferation and apoptosis were evaluated upon treatment of an array of TNBC cells with the BR2 peptide and 2-AEH2P, either separately or combined. Our data showed that, while possessing limited single-agent activity, the 2-AEH2P+BR2 association promoted significant cytotoxicity in TNBC cells but not in normal cells, with reduced proliferative potential and inhibition of cell migration. Mechanically, the 2-AEH2P+BR2 combination promoted an increase in cells expressing p53 caspase 3 and caspase 8, a reduction in cells expressing tumor progression and metastasis markers such as VEGF and PCNA, as well as a reduction in mitochondrial electrical potential. Our results indicate that the combination of the BR2 peptide with 2-AEH2P+BR2 may represent a promising therapeutic strategy in TNBC with potential use in clinical settings.

DIRECTING THE UNIFORMITY OF THE LEVEL OF PULSE CHARGING OF LI-ION BATTERIES USED IN AUTOMOTIVE INDUSTRY

The lithium-ion (Li-ion) battery is widely used in modern electronics, serves as a power source in electric vehicles and for energy storage in renewable energy systems. The strengths of Li-ion batteries are their high energy density. Modern Li-ion batteries can include arrays of cells, the lifetime of which is determined by factors that depend on charge-discharge characteristics. Li-ion batteries connected in series have different aging rates due to different capacities. The capacity deviation increases as the battery has been used, generating an increase in compensation current, which continues to increase until ignition. To solve this problem, a pulse device and a charging method in a charge equalization battery were proposed in this paper. A numerical simulation of how to charge real Porsche Taycan car batteries was performed. The results obtained confirmed the effectiveness, the energy losses did not exceed 2% of the battery capacity. A bench diagram was developed for studying and programming the operating modes of battery control units for hybrid and electric cars.