Highly efficient and durable planar carbon-based perovskite solar cells enabled by polystyrene modified hole-transporting layers.

The efficiency and durability of perovskite solar cells (PSCs) are closely related to the property and stability of each functional layer involved in device. Owing to the excellent hole transport properties, the additive-doped Spiro-OMeTAD (2,2',7,7'-tetrakis (N,N-di-p-methoxyphenylamine) 9,9'-spirobifluorene) has become an excellent hole-transporting material for obtaining highly efficient PSCs. However, the hygroscopic nature of additives and the pinholes caused by poor film-forming capability inevitably impair the performance and long-term stability of Spiro-OMeTAD and the resulting PSCs.

In vivo co-registered hybrid-contrast imaging by successive photoacoustic tomography and magnetic resonance imaging.

Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and photoacoustic tomography (PAT) offer two distinct image contrasts. To integrate these two modalities, we present a comprehensive hardware-software solution for the successive acquisition and co-registration of PAT and MRI images in in vivo animal studies. Based on commercial PAT and MRI scanners, our solution includes a 3D-printed dual-modality imaging bed, a 3-D spatial image co-registration algorithm with dual-modality markers, and a robust modality switching protocol for in vivo imaging studies.

Research progress of ABX-type lead-free perovskites for optoelectronic applications: materials and devices.

In recent years, lead halide perovskite materials have attracted great interest and are widely used in solar cells and light-emitting devices due to their high photoelectronic quantum yield, high color purity, high defect tolerance, long diffusion length, high carrier mobility, and bandgap tunability. However, the application of lead halide perovskites is limited due to the presence of Pb, making lead-free perovskites an important substitute due to their same crystal structure and similar properties. Although some reports have been made on lead-free perovskite materials, there are still great challenges to realize their application due to their poor stability, easy phase transition, and low photoelectric conversion efficiency.

Piezoelectric Properties of 0-3 Composite Films Based on Novel Molecular Piezoelectric Material (ATHP)PbBr.

Since their discovery, ferroelectric materials have shown excellent dielectric responses, pyroelectricity, piezoelectricity, electro-optical effects, nonlinear optical effects, etc. They are a class of functional materials with broad application prospects. Traditional pure inorganic piezoelectric materials have better piezoelectricity but higher rigidity; pure organic piezoelectric materials have better flexibility but havetoo small a piezoelectric coefficient.

Automatic correction of the initial rotation angle error improves 3D reconstruction in endoscopic airway optical coherence tomography.

Endoscopic airway optical coherence tomography (OCT) is an advanced imaging modality capable of capturing the internal anatomy and geometry of the airway. Due to fiber-optic catheter bending and friction, the rotation speed of the endoscopic probe is usually non-uniform: at each B-scan image, the initial rotation angle of the probe is easily misaligned with that of the previous slices. During the pullback operation, this initial rotation angle error (IRAE) will be accumulated and will result in distortion and deformation of the reconstructed 3D airway structure.

High-efficiency (>20%) planar carbon-based perovskite solar cells through device configuration engineering.

Carbon-based perovskite solar cells (C-PSCs) have attracted widespread research interest because of their excellent stability. However, the power conversion efficiency (PCE) of C-PSCs, especially planar C-PSCs, lags far behind the certified efficiency (25.5%) of metal-based PSCs.

Photoacoustic Tomography Image Restoration With Measured Spatially Variant Point Spread Functions.

The spatial resolution of photoacoustic tomography (PAT) can be characterized by the point spread function (PSF) of the imaging system. Due to the tomographic detection geometry, the PAT image degradation model could be generally described by using spatially variant PSFs. Deconvolution of the PAT image with these PSFs could restore image resolution and recover object details.

Cross-sectional photoacoustic tomography image reconstruction with a multi-curve integration model.

Background And Objective: In acoustic inversion of photoacoustic tomography (PAT), an imaging model that precisely describes both the ultrasonic wave propagation and the detector properties is of crucial importance. Inspired by the multi-stripe integration model in clinical X-ray computed tomography systems, in this work, we introduce the Multi-Curve-Integration-based acoustic inversion for cross-sectional Photoacoustic Tomography (MCI-PAT).

Methods: We assumed that in cross-sectional PAT system, the three-dimensional (3-D) wave propagation problem could be reduced to a two-dimensional (2-D) problem in a limited, yet sufficient field of view.

Multispectral Interlaced Sparse Sampling Photoacoustic Tomography.

Multispectral photoacoustic tomography (PAT) is capable of resolving tissue chromophore distribution based on spectral un-mixing. It works by identifying the absorption spectrum variations from a sequence of photoacoustic images acquired at multiple illumination wavelengths. Due to multispectral acquisition, this inevitably creates a large dataset.

Photoacoustic imaging of living mice enhanced with a low-cost contrast agent.

One of the advantages of photoacoustic imaging (PAI) is that its image contrast may come from exogenous agents. Such advantage leads to the development of a great number of exogenous probes. However, the biosafety of most of these contrast agents has not yet been confirmed, thus hindering their clinical translation.

Functionalized nanoscale micelles with brain targeting ability and intercellular microenvironment biosensitivity for anti-intracranial infection applications.

Due to complication factors such as blood-brain barrier (BBB), integrating high efficiency of brain target ability with specific cargo releasing into one nanocarrier seems more important. A brain targeting nanoscale system is developed using dehydroascorbic acid (DHA) as targeting moiety. DHA has high affinity with GLUT1 on BBB.

Smart nanodevice combined tumor-specific vector with cellular microenvironment-triggered property for highly effective antiglioma therapy.

Malignant glioma, a highly aggressive tumor, is one of the deadliest types of cancer associated with dismal outcome despite optimal chemotherapeutic regimens. One explanation for this is the failure of most chemotherapeutics to accumulate in the tumors, additionally causing serious side effects in periphery. To solve these problems, we sought to develop a smart therapeutic nanodevice with cooperative dual characteristics of high tumor-targeting ability and selectively controlling drug deposition in tumor cells.

T7 peptide-functionalized nanoparticles utilizing RNA interference for glioma dual targeting.

Among all the malignant brain tumors, glioma is the deadliest and most common form with poor prognosis. Gene therapy is regarded as a promising way to halt the progress of the disease or even cure the tumor and RNA interference (RNAi) stands out. However, the existence of the blood-brain barrier (BBB) and blood tumor barrier (BTB) limits the delivery of these therapeutic genes.

Angiopep-conjugated nanoparticles for targeted long-term gene therapy of Parkinson's disease.

Purpose: To prepare an angiopep-conjugated dendrigraft poly-L-lysine (DGL)-based gene delivery system and evaluate the neuroprotective effects in the rotenone-induced chronic model of Parkinson's disease (PD).

Methods: Angiopep was applied as a ligand specifically binding to low-density lipoprotein receptor-related protein (LRP) which is overexpressed on blood-brain barrier (BBB), and conjugated to biodegradable DGL via hydrophilic polyethyleneglycol (PEG), yielding DGL-PEG-angiopep (DPA). In vitro characterization was carried out.

A choline derivate-modified nanoprobe for glioma diagnosis using MRI.

Gadolinium (Gd) chelate contrast-enhanced magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) is a preferred method of glioma detection and preoperative localisation because it offers high spatial resolution and non-invasive deep tissue penetration. Gd-based contrast agents, such as Gd-diethyltriaminepentaacetic acid (DTPA-Gd, Magnevist), are widely used clinically for tumor diagnosis. However, the Gd-based MRI approach is limited for patients with glioma who have an uncompromised blood-brain barrier (BBB).

Tumor targeting and microenvironment-responsive nanoparticles for gene delivery.

A tumor targeting nanoparticle system has been successfully developed to response to the lowered tumor extracellular pH (pHe) and upregulated matrix metalloproteinase 2 (MMP2) in the tumor microenvironment. The nanoparticles are modified with activatable cell-penetrating peptide (designated as dtACPP) that's dual-triggered by the lowered pHe and MMP2. In dtACPP, the internalization function of cell-penetrating peptide (CPP) is quenched by a pH-sensitive masking peptide, linking by a MMP2 substrate.

Tumor-targeting and microenvironment-responsive smart nanoparticles for combination therapy of antiangiogenesis and apoptosis.

Tumor microenvironment, such as the lowered tumor extracellular pH (pHe) and matrix metalloproteinase 2 (MMP2), has been extensively explored, which promotes the development of the microenvironment-responsive drug delivery system. Utilizing these unique features, an activatable cell-penetrating peptide (designated as dtACPP) that is dual-triggered by the lowered pHe and MMP2 has been constructed, and a smart nanoparticle system decorating with dtACPP has been successfully developed, which could dual-load gene drug and chemotherapeutics simultaneously. After systemic administration, dtACPP-modified nanoparticles possess passive tumor targetability via the enhanced permeability and retention effect.

A brain-vectored angiopep-2 based polymeric micelles for the treatment of intracranial fungal infection.

One of the most common life-threatening infections in immunosuppressive patients, like AIDs patients, is cryptococcal meningitis or meningoencephalitis. Current therapeutic options are mostly ineffective and mortality rates remain high. Hydrophobic antifungal drug Amphotericin B (AmB), has become a golden standard in severe systemic fungal infection therapy.

Gene and doxorubicin co-delivery system for targeting therapy of glioma.

The combination of gene therapy and chemotherapy is a promising treatment strategy for brain gliomas. In this paper, we designed a co-delivery system (DGDPT/pORF-hTRAIL) loading chemotherapeutic drug doxorubicin and gene agent pORF-hTRAIL, and with functions of pH-trigger and cancer targeting. Peptide HAIYPRH (T7), a transferrin receptor-specific peptide, was chosen as the ligand to target the co-delivery system to the tumor cells expressing transferrin receptors.

Dual targeting effect of Angiopep-2-modified, DNA-loaded nanoparticles for glioma.

Gene therapy offers a promising cure of brain glioma and tumor necrosis factor-related apoptosis-inducing ligand (TRAIL) is able to induce cell apoptosis of glioma selectively without affecting the normal cells. In this study, the nanoscopic high-branching dendrimer, polyamidoamine (PAMAM), was selected as the principal vector. Angiopep-2, which can target to the low-density lipoprotein receptor-related protein-1 (LRP1) expressed on BCECs and glial cells, was exploited as the targeting ligand to conjugate PAMAM via bifunctional polyethyleneglycol (PEG) and then complexed with the DNA, designated as PAMAM-PEG-Angiopep/DNA nanoparticles (NPs).

Lactoferrin conjugated PEG-PLGA nanoparticles for brain delivery: preparation, characterization and efficacy in Parkinson's disease.

A novel biodegradable brain drug delivery system, the lactoferrin (Lf) conjugated polyethylene glycol-polylactide-polyglycolide (PEG-PLGA) nanoparticle (Lf-NP) was constructed in this paper with its in vitro and in vivo delivery properties evaluated by a fluorescent probe coumarin-6. Lf was thiolated and conjugated to the distal maleimide function surrounding on the pegylated nanoparticle to form Lf-NP. TEM observation and ELISA analysis confirmed the existence of active Lf on the surface of Lf-NP.

Peptide-conjugated polyamidoamine dendrimer as a nanoscale tumor-targeted T1 magnetic resonance imaging contrast agent.

A tumor-targeting carrier, peptide HAIYPRH (T7)-conjugated polyethylene glycol-modified polyamidoamine dendrimer (PAMAM-PEG-T7) was explored to deliver magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) contrast agents targeting to the tumor cells specifically. Two different types of tumors, liver cancer and early brain glioma model (involved with the blood-brain barrier), were chosen to evaluate the imaging capacity of this contrast agent. PAMAM-PEG-T7 was synthesized, conjugated with diethylene triamine pentaacetic acid (DTPA) and further chelated gadolinium (Gd), yielding GdDTPA-PAMAM-PEG-T7.

Plasmid pORF-hTRAIL and doxorubicin co-delivery targeting to tumor using peptide-conjugated polyamidoamine dendrimer.

A combination cancer therapy was investigated via co-delivery of therapeutic gene encoding human tumor necrosis factor-related apoptosis-inducing ligand (pORF-hTRAIL) and doxorubicin (DOX) using a tumor-targeting carrier, peptide HAIYPRH (T7)-conjugated polyethylene glycol-modified polyamidoamine dendrimer (PAMAM-PEG-T7). T7, a transferrin receptor-specific peptide, was chosen as the ligand to target the co-delivery system to the tumor cells expressing transferrin receptors. The result of fluorescence scanning showed that about 375 DOX molecules were bound to one pORF-hTRAIL molecule.

Peptide-conjugated PAMAM for targeted doxorubicin delivery to transferrin receptor overexpressed tumors.

The purpose of this work was to evaluate the potential of HAIYPRH (T7) peptide as a ligand for constructing tumor-targeting drug delivery systems. T7 could target to transferrin-receptor (TfR) through a cavity on the surface of TfR and then transport into cells via endocytosis with the help of transferrin (Tf). In this study, T7-conjugated poly(ethylene glycol) (PEG)-modified polyamidoamine dendrimer (PAMAM) (PAMAM-PEG-T7) was successfully synthesized and further loaded with doxorubicin (DOX), formulating PAMAM-PEG-T7/DOX nanoparticles (NPs).