Toxicological interactions of cosmetic and personal care additives mixtures: An update based on measurement and simulation.

The toxicity of chemical mixtures may be misestimated, as the assessment of individual chemicals may not adequately reflect their combined toxic effects. However, numerous combinations of chemicals and various interactions make it impossible to measure all possible mixtures. Computational toxicology can help to mitigate this issue, particularly with new methodologies that rely upon alternatives to animal testing.

Exciton Dynamics in Layered Halide Perovskite Light-Emitting Diodes.

Layered halide perovskites have garnered significant interest due to their exceptional optoelectronic properties and great promises in light-emitting applications. Achieving high-performance perovskite light-emitting diodes (PeLEDs) requires a deep understanding of exciton dynamics in these materials. This review begins with a fundamental overview of the structural and photophysical properties of layered halide perovskites, then delves into the importance of dimensionality control and cascade energy transfer in quasi-2D PeLEDs.

The effect of folate deficiency and different doses of folic acid supplementation on liver diseases.

The liver has multiple functions such as detoxification, metabolism, synthesis and storage. Folate is a water-soluble vitamin B, which participates in one-carbon transfer reactions, maintains methylation capacity and improves oxidative stress. Folic acid is a synthetic form commonly used as a dietary supplement.

Anti-flammable, anti-fouling, anti-bacterial treatment of cotton fabrics with MOF-based hybrid coatings for highly efficient oil-water separation.

A flame-retardant and hydrophobic coating was deposited on the surface of the cotton fabric via a two-step spray deposition technique. Specifically, the coating was composed of flame-retardant component (guanidine phosphate) and hydrophobic components (Ti-MOF and bis(3-aminopropyl)-terminated poly(dimethylsiloxane) (PDMS)) and crosslinked with glutaraldehyde. The limiting oxygen index (LOI) of the coated cotton fabrics increased from 18.

Self-management experiences in fall prevention among community-dwelling older adults in China: a descriptive qualitative study.

Background: Falls are the most common injuries in older adults, and fall prevention is one of the primary measures to achieve healthy aging. Self-management refers to the measures taken by individuals to avoid various adverse factors and health damage to protect and promote their health. This study aimed to explore the factors and measures of self-managed fall prevention among community-dwelling older adults.

Aberrant cortical morphology patterns are associated with cognitive impairment in patients with chronic heart failure.

A mounting body of evidences suggests that patients with chronic heart failure (HF) frequently experience cognitive impairments, but the neuroanatomical mechanism underlying these impairments remains elusive. In this retrospective study, 49 chronic HF patients and 49 healthy controls (HCs) underwent brain structural MRI scans and cognitive assessments. Cortical morphology index (cortical thickness, complexity, sulcal depth and gyrification) were evaluated.

Polymerized carbon dots with high electrochemiluminescence efficiency and long wavelength ECL emission for ultrasensitive detection of MicroRNA-222.

Herein, a new electrochemiluminescence (ECL) biosensor was constructed with highly efficient polymerized carbon dots (PCDs) as ECL emitter and the improved localized catalytic hairpin assembly (L-CHA) as signal amplifier for ultrasensitive detection of microRNA-222 (miRNA-222). Impressively, compared to the traditional carbon dots with inefficient blue region ECL emission, PCDs with N, O co-dope and large conjugated π-system showed high electrical conductivity, narrow band gap and strong radiative transition, which could exhibit high ECL efficiency to improve the sensitivity of detection and long wavelength ECL emission to achieve deep tissue penetration for reducing biological damage. Furthermore, the trace target miRNA-222 could be efficiently converted into large amounts of output DNA labelled with the quencher dopamine (S-DA) through the L-CHA reaction to significantly enhance the target amplification efficiency for further improving the sensitivity of detection.

Arenobufagin regulates the p62-Keap1-Nrf2 pathway to induce autophagy-dependent ferroptosis in HepG2 cells.

Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is the most prevalent type of primary liver cancer, accounting for the overwhelming majority of malignant liver tumors. Therefore, how to effectively prevent and cure HCC has become a research hotspot. Many studies have shown that arenobufagin can induce apoptosis, ferroptosis, and autophagy of tumor cells.

Nanopolystyrene size effect and its combined acute toxicity with halogenated PAHs on Daphnia magna.

Nanoplastics (NPs, diameter <1 μm) not only have toxicity but also change the toxicity of other pollutants in water. To date, the nanopolystyrene (nano-PS) size effect and its combined toxicity with halogenated polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (HPAHs) remain unclear. In this study, the single toxicity, combined toxicity, and mode of action of the binary mixture of polystyrene (PS) and HPAH were examined.

Polarization-Sensitive Asymmetric Scattering at the Single-Particle Scale via Surface Plasmon Resonance Microscopy.

Surface plasmon resonance microscopy (SPRM), based on the scattering of single molecules at the interface, is a highly efficient analytical platform widely used in the fields of biology and chemistry. Due to the interference scattering, the imaging pattern exhibits typical parabolic tail and phase transition features, providing a quantitative means of observing the changes in the physical and chemical properties of single molecules. In this work, we reported another unique asymmetric parabolic distribution pattern resulting from polarization conversion in the experiment based on SPRM.

Low polarization-sensitive ultra-broadband anti-reflection coatings with improved reliability.

Broader spectra, lower reflectivity and higher reliability are the performance requirements for broadband antireflective (BBAR) films. In this work, a BBAR film structure was proposed, which maintains extremely low reflectivity, ultra-wide spectra, low polarization sensitivity and practical reliability. The BBAR film consists of a dense multilayer interference stack on the bottom and a nano-grass-like alumina (NGLA) layer with a gradient low refractive index distribution on the top.

AgAuS Quantum Dots as a Highly Efficient Near-Infrared Electrochemiluminescence Emitter for the Ultrasensitive Detection of MicroRNA.

Herein, the novel alloyed silver gold sulfur quantum dots (AgAuS QDs) with highly efficient near-infrared (NIR) electrochemiluminescence (ECL) emission at 707 nm were successfully prepared to construct a biosensing platform for ultrasensitive detection of microRNA-222 (miRNA-222). Interestingly, AgAuS QDs revealed excellent ECL efficiency (34.91%) compared to that of AgS QDs (10.

Optimization of optical and structural properties of AlO/TiO nano-laminates deposited by atomic layer deposition for optical coating.

Optimizing the atomic layer deposition (ALD) process of films is particularly important in preparing multilayer interference films. In this work, a series of AlO/TiO nano-laminates with a fixed growth cycle ratio of 1:10 were deposited on Si and fused quartz substrates at 300 °C by ALD. The optical properties, crystallization behavior, surface appearance and microstructures of those laminated layers were systematically investigated by spectroscopic ellipsometry, spectrophotometry, X-ray diffraction, atomic force microscope and transmission electron microscopy.

Predictive in silico models for aquatic toxicity of cosmetic and personal care additive mixtures.

As emerging environmental contaminants, cosmetic and personal care additives (CPCAs) may have less oversight than other consumer products. Their continuous release and pseudopersistence could cause long-term harm to the aquatic environment. Since CPCAs generally exist in the form of mixtures in the environment, prediction and analysis of their mixture toxicity are crucial for ecological risk assessment.

Nitrogen-, Sulfur-, and Fluorine-Codoped Carbon Dots with Low Excitation Potential and High Electrochemiluminescence Efficiency for Sensitive Detection of Matrix Metalloproteinase-2.

In this study, nitrogen-, sulfur-, and fluorine-codoped carbon dots (NSF-CDs) with high electrochemiluminescence (ECL) efficiency were developed as novel emitters to fabricate an ECL biosensor for sensitive detection of matrix metalloproteinase 2 (MMP-2). Impressively, compared to previously reported CDs, NSF-CDs with narrow band gap not only decreased the excitation voltage to reduce the side reaction and the damage on biomolecules but also had hydrogen bonds to vastly enhance the ECL efficiency. Furthermore, an improved exonuclease III (Exo III)-assisted nucleic acid amplification method was established to convert trace MMP-2 into a mass of output DNA, which greatly improved the target conversion efficiency and ECL signal.

Zn-Induced Gold Cluster Aggregation Enhanced Electrochemiluminescence for Ultrasensitive Detection of MicroRNA-21.

Herein, Zn-induced gold cluster aggregation (Zn-GCA) as a high-efficiency electrochemiluminescence (ECL) emitter is first employed to construct an ECL biosensor to ultrasensitively detect microRNA-21 (miRNA-21). Impressively, Zn not only can induce the aggregation of monodispersed gold clusters (Au NCs) to limit the ligand vibration of Au NCs for improving ECL emission but also can be utilized as a coreaction accelerator to catalyze the dissociation of coreactant SO into sulfate radicals (SO) to improve the interaction efficiency between Zn-GCA and SO, resulting in further intense ECL emission. Compared to Au NCs stabilized by bovine serum albumin with ECL efficiency of 0.

Performance Enhancement of Lead-Free 2D Tin Halide Perovskite Transistors by Surface Passivation and Its Impact on Non-Volatile Photomemory Characteristics.

Two-dimensional (2D) tin (Sn)-based perovskites have recently received increasing research attention for perovskite transistor application. Although some progress is made, Sn-based perovskites have long suffered from easy oxidation from Sn to Sn , leading to undesirable p-doping and instability. In this study, it is demonstrated that surface passivation by phenethylammonium iodide (PEAI) and 4-fluorophenethylammonium iodide (FPEAI) effectively passivates surface defects in 2D phenethylammonium tin iodide (PEA SnI ) films, increases the grain size by surface recrystallization, and p-dopes the PEA SnI film to form a better energy-level alignment with the electrodes and promote charge transport properties.

Interpretation of Reflection and Colorimetry Characteristics of Indium-Particle Films by Means of Ellipsometric Modeling.

It is of great technological importance in the field of plasmonic color generation to establish and understand the relationship between optical responses and the reflectance of metallic nanoparticles. Previously, a series of indium nanoparticle ensembles were fabricated using electron beam evaporation and inspected using spectroscopic ellipsometry (SE). The multi-oscillator Lorentz-Drude model demonstrated the optical responses of indium nanoparticles with different sizes and size distributions.

Relationships between children-related factors, basic psychological need satisfaction, and multiple happiness among urban empty-nesters in China: a structural equation modeling.

Background: Aging and empty-nesting in China are becoming more and more serious. Empty-nesters refer to older adults who were not living with their children, were living alone, or were living independently with their spouses. The mental health of empty-nesters needs timely attention.

Predicting cognitive impairment in chronic kidney disease patients using structural and functional brain network: An application study of artificial intelligence.

Objective: To develop and validate artificial intelligence models for the prediction of cognitive impairment in chronic kidney disease (CKD) patients using structural and functional brain network.

Methods: This study retrospectively recruited 621 CKD patients and 625 healthy controls in Jinling hospital and 57 CKD patients in Hainan hospital. These CKD patients were divided into cognitive function impairment (CFI) group and non-CFI group based on diagnostic criteria.