Exploring distinct modes of inter-spike cross-linking for enhanced neutralization by SARS-CoV-2 antibodies.

The emergence of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) and its Omicron subvariants drastically amplifies transmissibility, infectivity, and immune escape, mainly due to their resistance to most neutralizing antibodies. Thus, exploring the mechanisms underlying antibody evasion is crucial. Although the full-length native form of antibody, immunoglobulin G (IgG), offers valuable insights into the neutralization, structural investigations primarily focus on the fragment of antigen-binding (Fab).

Self-Assembly at Curved Biointerfaces.

Most of the biological interfaces are curved. Understanding the organizational structures and interaction patterns at such curved biointerfaces is therefore crucial not only for deepening our comprehension of the principles that govern life processes but also for designing and developing targeted drugs aimed at diseased cells and tissues. Despite the considerable efforts dedicated to this area of research, our understanding of curved biological interfaces is still limited.

Nonequilibrium Dynamic Phase Diagram for Transmembrane Transport of Active Particles.

In recent years, there has been considerable push toward the biomedical applications with active particles, which have great potential to revolutionize disease diagnostics and therapy. The direct penetration of active particles through the cell membrane leads to more efficient intracellular delivery than previously considered endocytosis processes but may cause membrane disruption. Understanding fundamental behaviors of cell membranes in response to such extreme impacts by active particles is crucial to develop active particle-based biomedical technologies and manage health and safety issues in this emerging field.

Non-equilibrium structural and dynamic behaviors of active polymers in complex and crowded environments.

Active matter systems, which convert internal chemical energy or energy from the environment into directed motion, are ubiquitous in nature and exhibit a range of emerging non-equilibrium behaviors. However, most of the current works on active matter have been devoted to particles, and the study of active polymers has only recently come into the spotlight due to their prevalence within living organisms. The intricate interplay between activity and conformational degrees of freedom gives rise to novel structural and dynamical behaviors of active polymers.

Programmable Potentials Choreograph Defects in a Colloidal Crystal Shell.

Crystallization on spherical surfaces is obliged by topology to induce lattice defects. But controlling the organization of such defects remains a great challenge due to the long-range constraints of the curved geometry. Here, we report on DNA-coated colloids whose programmable interaction potentials can be used to regulate the arrangement of defects and even achieve perfect icosahedral order on a sphere.

Unconventionally fast transport through sliding dynamics of rodlike particles in macromolecular networks.

Transport of rodlike particles in confinement environments of macromolecular networks plays crucial roles in many important biological processes and technological applications. The relevant understanding has been limited to thin rods with diameter much smaller than network mesh size, although the opposite case, of which the dynamical behaviors and underlying physical mechanisms remain unclear, is ubiquitous. Here, we solve this issue by combining experiments, simulations and theory.

Hydrodynamic Anisotropy of Depletion in Nonequilibrium.

Active colloids in a bath of inert particles of smaller size cause anisotropic depletion. The active hydrodynamics of this nonequilibrium phenomenon, which is fundamentally different from its equilibrium counterpart and passive particles in an active bath, remains scarcely understood. Here we combine mesoscale hydrodynamic simulation as well as theoretical analysis to examine the physical origin for the active depletion around a self-propelled noninteractive colloid.

Prophylactic Epidural Blood Patch or Prophylactic Epidural Infusion of Hydroxyethyl Starch in Preventing Post-Dural Puncture Headache - A Retrospective Study.

Background: Post-dural puncture headache (PDPH) is particularly likely to happen in patients under obstetric care due to an unintentional dural puncture (UDP). There is as yet no ideal strategy for preventing UDP-induced PDPH.

Objectives: The primary objective of this study was to assess whether a prophylactic epidural blood patch (EBP) or prophylactic epidural infusion of hydroxyethyl starch (HES) is effective in preventing PDPH for parturients with UDP compared with conservative treatments.

The entropy-controlled strategy in self-assembling systems.

Self-assembly of various building blocks has been considered as a powerful approach to generate novel materials with tailorable structures and optimal properties. Understanding physicochemical interactions and mechanisms related to structural formation and transitions is of essential importance for this approach. Although it is well-known that diverse forces and energies can significantly contribute to the structures and properties of self-assembling systems, the potential entropic contribution remains less well understood.

Configurational Entropy-Enabled Thermostability of Cell Membranes in Extremophiles: From Molecular Mechanism to Bioinspired Design.

Understanding physicochemical interactions and mechanisms related to the cell membranes of lives under extreme conditions is of essential importance but remains scarcely explored. Here, using a combination of computer simulations and experiments, we demonstrate that the structural integrity and controllable permeability of cell membranes at high temperatures are predominantly directed by configurational entropy emerging from distorted intermolecular organization of bipolar tethered lipids peculiar to the extremophiles. Detailed simulations across multiple scales─from an all-atom exploration of molecular mechanism to a mesoscale examination of its universal nature─suggest that this configurational entropy effect can be generalized to diverse systems, such as block copolymers.

Studies on the Synergistic Effect of Tandem Semi-Stable Complementary Domains on Sequence-Defined DNA Block Copolymers.

Tandem semi-stable complementary domains play an important role in life, while the role of these domains in the folding process of nucleic acid molecules has not been systematically studied. Here, we designed a clean model system by synthesizing sequence-defined DNA-OEG copolymers composed of ssDNA fragments with palindromic sequences and orthogonal oligo(tetraethylene glycol) (OEG) linkers. By altering the lengths of DNA units (6-12 nt) and OEG linkers (Xn = 0-4) separately, we systematically studied how stabilities of tandem complementary domains and connecting flexibilities affect the assembly topology.

"Shutter" Effects Enhance Protein Diffusion in Dynamic and Rigid Molecular Networks.

Hydrogels have been widely applied to understand the fundamental functions and mechanism of a natural extracellular matrix (ECM). However, revealing the high permeability of ECM through synthetic hydrogels is still challenged by constructing analogue networks with rigid and dynamic properties. Here, in this study, taking advantage of the rigidity and dynamic binding of DNA building blocks, we have designed a model hydrogel system with structural similarity to ECM, leading to enhanced diffusion for proteins compared with a synthetic polyacrylamide (PAAm) hydrogel.

Understanding Interfacial Nanoparticle Organization through Simulation and Theory: A Review.

Understanding the behaviors of nanoparticles at interfaces is crucial not only for the design of novel nanostructured materials with superior properties but also for a better understanding of many biological systems where nanoscale objects such as drug molecules, viruses, and proteins can interact with various interfaces. Theoretical studies and tailored computer simulations offer unique approaches to investigating the evolution and formation of structures as well as to determining structure-property relationships regarding the interfacial nanostructures. In this feature article, we summarize our efforts to exploit computational approaches as well as theoretical modeling in understanding the organization of nanoscale objects at the interfaces of various systems.

Topology mediates transport of nanoparticles in macromolecular networks.

Diffusion transport of nanoparticles in confined environments of macromolecular networks is common in diverse physical systems and regulates many biological responses. Macromolecular networks possess various topologies, featured by different numbers of degrees and genera. Although the network topologies can be manipulated from a molecular level, how the topology impacts the transport of nanoparticles in macromolecular networks remains unexplored.

Entropic control of nanoparticle self-assembly through confinement.

Entropy can be the sole driving force for the construction and regulation of ordered structures of soft matter systems. Specifically, under confinement, the entropic penalty could induce enhanced entropic effects which potentially generate visually ordered structures. Therefore, spatial confinement or a crowding environment offers an important approach to control entropy effects in these systems.

Superstretchable, yet stiff, fatigue-resistant ligament-like elastomers.

Ligaments are flexible and stiff tissues around joints to support body movements, showing superior toughness and fatigue-resistance. Such a combination of mechanical properties is rarely seen in synthetic elastomers because stretchability, stiffness, toughness, and fatigue resistance are seemingly incompatible in materials design. Here we resolve this long-standing mismatch through a hierarchical crosslinking design.

Design of Entropy-Driven Polymers Resistant to Bacterial Attachment via Multicomponent Reactions.

Nonbactericidal polymers that prevent bacterial attachment are important for public health, environmental protection, and avoiding the generation of superbugs. Here, inspired by the physical bactericidal process of carbon nanotubes and graphene derivatives, we develop nonbactericidal polymers resistant to bacterial attachment by using multicomponent reactions (MCRs) to introduce molecular "needles" (rigid aliphatic chains) and molecular "razors" (multicomponent structures) into polymer side chains. Computer simulation reveals the occurrence of spontaneous entropy-driven interactions between the bacterial bilayers and the "needles" and "razors" in polymer structures and provides guidance for the optimization of this type of polymers for enhanced resistibility to bacterial attachment.

Entropy-Driven Unconventional Crystallization of Spherical Colloidal Nanocrystals Confined in Wide Cylinders.

The densest packings of identical spherical colloidal nanocrystals in a thin cylinder generally give rise to confinement-induced chiral ordering. Here, we demonstrate that entropy can invalidate Pauling's packing rules for the nanocrystals confined in wide cylinders and novel ordered phases, where chiral ordering is broken, emerge. The nucleation and growth of spherical colloidal nanocrystals in the wide cylinders exhibit unique mechanisms which are distinctly different from that of thin ones.

Selective Permeable Lithium-Ion Channels on Lithium Metal for Practical Lithium-Sulfur Pouch Cells.

Lithium metal batteries are considered a promising candidate for high-energy-density energy storage. However, the strong reducibility and high reactivity of lithium lead to low Coulombic efficiency when contacting oxidants, such as lithium polysulfide caused by the serious "shuttle effect" in lithium-sulfur batteries. Herein we design selectively permeable lithium-ion channels on lithium metal surface, which allow lithium ions to pass through by electrochemical overpotential, while the polysulfides are effectively blocked due to the much larger steric hindrance than lithium ions.

C18:1 Improves the Freeze-Drying Resistance of by Maintaining the Cell Membrane.

Increasing knowledge about lactic acid bacteria as fermentation starters and probiotics to improve health has led to a growing awareness of their application potential. Despite a long history of applying cryoprotectants, the maintenance of probiotic viability is still a major challenge. In this study, we implemented a strategy and explored its mechanisms in detail.