J Colloid Interface Sci
January 2025
Aqueous zinc-ion batteries are attracting extensive attention due to the long-term service life and credible safety as well as the superior price performance between the low cost of manufacture and high energy density. The fabrication of inexpensive, high-performance flexible solid-state zinc-ion batteries, thus, are urgently need for the blooming wearable electronics. Herein, as a proof-of-concept study of waste into wealth, cellulose flakes derived from waste pomelo peel are utilized as the substrate for electrodes and hydrogel electrolytes into a flexible rocking-chair zinc-ion battery.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFThe efficacy of adoptive T cell therapy (ACT) for the treatment of solid tumors remains challenging. In addition to the poor infiltration of effector T (Teff) cells limited by the physical barrier surrounding the solid tumor, another major obstacle is the extensive infiltration of regulatory T (Treg) cells, a major immunosuppressive immune cell subset, in the tumor microenvironment. Here, this work develops a grooved microneedle patch for augmenting ACT, aiming to simultaneously overcome physical and immunosuppressive barriers.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFThe complex dynamics and transience of assembly pathways in living systems complicate the understanding of these molecular to nanoscale processes. Current technologies are unable to track the molecular events leading to the onset of assembly, where real-time information is imperative to correlate their rich biology. Using a chemically designed pro-assembling molecule, we map its transformation into nanofibers and their fusion with endosomes to form hollow fiber clusters.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFNi-rich layered materials LiNiCoMnO attracts extensive interest to build high-performance lithium-ion batteries, but ground challenges, , unfavorable phase transfer and interfacial parasitic reactions during cycling, especially after being exposure to the air for a long time, greatly limit their practical utilization. Here, we prove that those issues of Ni-rich layered materials can be alleviated by concurrently incorporating the Al and PO, and conduct corresponding comprehensive studies to explore mechanisms of the enhanced electrochemical performances. It is suggested that the phase transition (H2 to H3) that related to the lattice contraction can be suppressed after Al and PO co-doping, leading to improved cycling stability.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFDefect centers in a nanodiamond (ND) allow the detection of tiny magnetic fields in their direct surroundings, rendering them as an emerging tool for nanoscale sensing applications. Eumelanin, an abundant pigment, plays an important role in biology and material science. Here, for the first time, we evaluate the comproportionation reaction in eumelanin by detecting and quantifying semiquinone radicals through the nitrogen-vacancy color center.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFMol Plant Microbe Interact
May 2023
The oomycete is a necrotrophic pathogen that infects many crop species worldwide, including ginger, soybean, tomato, and tobacco. Here, we identified a small cysteine-rich protein, PmSCR1, that induces cell death in by screening small, secreted proteins that were induced during infection of ginger and did not have a predicted function at the time of selection. Orthologs of PmSCR1 were found in other species, but these did not have cell death-inducing activity in .
View Article and Find Full Text PDFHydrogen peroxide (HO) plays an important role in various signal transduction pathways and regulates important cellular processes. However, monitoring and quantitatively assessing the distribution of HO molecules inside living cells requires a nanoscale sensor with molecular-level sensitivity. Herein, we show the first demonstration of sub-10 nm-sized fluorescent nanodiamonds (NDs) as catalysts for the decomposition of HO and the production of radical intermediates at the nanoscale.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFNanostructure-based functions are omnipresent in nature and essential for the diversity of life. Unlike small molecules, which are often inhibitors of enzymes or biomimetics with established methods of elucidation, we show that functions of nanoscale structures in cells are complex and can implicate system-level effects such as the regulation of energy and redox homeostasis. Herein, we design a platinum(II)-containing tripeptide that assembles into intracellular fibrillar nanostructures upon molecular rearrangement in the presence of endogenous HO.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFAim: Reliable and valid predictors of malnutrition in patients with cirrhosis remain scarce, especially easily accessible blood indicators. Thus, this study aimed to investigate the validity of the sarcopenia index (serum creatinine/serum cystatin C × 100) as a tool in assessing the nutritional status of patients with cirrhosis.
Methods: This prospective cohort study included 109 patients with cirrhosis who were hospitalised in Renmin Hospital of Wuhan University from August 2020 to June 2021.
Adv Sci (Weinh)
July 2022
Measuring certain quantities at the nanoscale is often limited to strict conditions such as low temperature or vacuum. However, the recently developed nanodiamond (ND) quantum sensing technology shows great promise for ultrasensitive diagnosis and probing subcellular parameters at ambient conditions. Atom defects (i.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFElectrostatic interaction between polymers and nanofillers is of great importance for the properties and design of their composites. Polyacrylates with carboxyl, hydroxyl and acylamino groups were synthesized via emulsion polymerization and marked as P(MMA-BA-AA), P(MMA-BA-HEA) and P(MMA-BA-AM), respectively. Amino-functionalized graphene oxide (NGO) was prepared by Hoffman rearrangement using GO as the raw material.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFLong-term tracking of nanoparticles to resolve intracellular structures and motions is essential to elucidate fundamental parameters as well as transport processes within living cells. Fluorescent nanodiamond (ND) emitters provide cell compatibility and very high photostability. However, high stability, biocompatibility, and cellular uptake of these fluorescent NDs under physiological conditions are required for intracellular applications.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFTemperature is an essential parameter in all biological systems, but information about the actual temperature in living cells is limited. Especially, in photothermal therapy, local intracellular temperature changes induce cell death but the local temperature gradients are not known. Highly sensitive nanothermometers would be required to measure and report local temperature changes independent of the intracellular environment, including pH or ions.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFIn this paper, a novel Ag nanowires/TiO nanosheets/graphene nanocomposite was fabricated via a facile method of hydrothermal and calcination, and then the water treatment performance of it was evaluated for methylene blue (MB) and removal. The as-prepared Ag nanowires/TiO nanosheets/graphene nanocomposite was characterized by Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), X-ray diffraction (XRD), field-emission scanning electron microscopy (FE-SEM), energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDX), UV-visible diffuse reflection spectroscopy (DRS), molecular dynamics simulation, and gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS). All data revealed that the Ag/TiO/graphene nanocomposite showed a rich cell structure.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFA green fabrication process (organic solvent-free) of artificial scaffolds is required in tissue engineering field. In this work, a series of aligned three-dimensional (3D) scaffolds are made from biodegradable waterborne polyurethane (PU) emulsion via directional freeze-drying method to ensure no organic byproducts. After optimizing the concentration of polymer in the emulsion and investigating different freezing temperatures, an aligned PUs scaffold (PU14) generated from 14 wt% polymer content and processed at -196°C was selected based on the desired oriented porous structure (pore size of 32.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFPolymer-based nanocomposites properties are greatly affected by interfacial interaction. Polyacrylate nanocomposites have been widely studied, but few studies have been conducted on their interface mechanism. Therefore, there was an urgent demand for providing a thorough understanding of the polymethyl acrylate/SiO (PMA/SiO) nanocomposites to obtain the desired macro-performance.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFA series of nanofibrous scaffolds, free of organic solvents, are prepared by electrospinning biodegradable waterborne polyurethane (BWPU) emulsion blending with aqueous poly(vinyl alcohol)(PVA). Tuning the proration of BWPU to PVA, various nanofibers with diameter from 370 to 964 nm are obtained. Strong intermolecular interaction existing between them benefits to the electrospun of BWPU emulsion, which is demonstrated by dynamic thermomechanical analysis and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBiomaterials for soft tissue engineering scaffolds require a combination of multiple properties including suitable mechanical properties, biodegradability, and biocompatibility. In this work, a series of light-crosslinking waterborne polyurethanes (LWPUs) were prepared using l-lysine ethyl ester diisocyanate (LDI), 1,3-propanediol (PDO) and l-lysine as hard segments and poly(ε-caprolactone) (PCL) and poly(ethylene glycol) (PEG) as soft segments. The obtained LWPUs exhibited appropriate stretchability with a break elongation of 1400-2500% and an excellent strength of 12-18 MPa, which could admirably meet the requirements for soft tissue engineering scaffolds.
View Article and Find Full Text PDF