With the rapid development of wearable electronic devices, multifunctional ultrarobust, thermoconductive, nonflammable, and electromagnetic interference (EMI) shielding films which are widely ...utilized to efficiently dissipate heat generated from electronic components are in high demand. The poor scalability and mechanical flexibility of multifunctional papers usually hinder their practical application. In this study, mass-scalable ultrarobust graphene nanoplatelet (GnP) cross-linked aramid nanofiber (ANF) papers with a nacre-bioinspired structure are fabricated
via
an evaporation-induced self-assembly approach. By chemical cross-linking between two-dimensional GnPs and one-dimensional ANFs in the nacre-bioinspired structure by a phosphorus agent, the excellent toughness and folding endurance of the GnP based ANF papers have been successfully achieved with simultaneous integration of high-level multifunctional properties. Specifically, the ultrarobust GnP based ANF paper with 50 wt% GnP loading exhibits exceptional ultimate tensile strength (437 MPa), Young's modulus (19.7 GPa) and toughness (23.9 MJ m
−3
) as well as superb folding endurance after 10 000 bending cycles. Moreover, the highly ordered alignment of GnP induced an unprecedented thermal/electrical conductivity, and the GnP (50 wt%) based ANF papers with an ultrathin thickness of 21 μm show a superb in-plane thermal conductivity (up to 68.2 W m
−1
K
−1
) and outstanding absolute effectiveness EMI shielding (up to 11 060 dB cm
2
g
−1
) and are comparable with some commercial metals/alloys. These outstanding mechanical flexibility integrated superb thermal/EMI properties along with mass-scale production pave the way for practical applications of GnP based ANF papers in the development of advanced thermal management materials in autonomous cars, air vehicles and wearable devices.
Graphene nanoplatelets are chemically crosslinked to aramid nanofibers through a phosphorus trimer to fabricate ultratough, thermoconductive, flame retardant, and EMI shielding films.
We report herein the design of a light-responsive gatekeeper for smart nitric oxide (NO) delivery. The gatekeeper is composed of a pH-jump reagent as an intermediary of stimulus and a calcium ...phosphate (CaP) coating as a shielding layer for NO release. The light irradiation and subsequent acid generation are used as triggers for uncapping the gatekeeper and releasing NO. The acids generated from a light-activated pH-jump agent loaded in the mesoporous nanoparticles accelerated the degradation of the CaP-coating layers on the nanoparticles, facilitating the light-responsive NO release from diazeniumdiolate by exposing a NO donor to physiological conditions. Using the combination of the pH-jump reagent and CaP coating, we successfully developed a light-responsive gatekeeper system for spatiotemporal-controlled NO delivery.
Alzheimer's disease (AD) is a progressive neurodegenerative disease associated with a complex genetic etiology. Besides the apolipoprotein E ε4 (APOE ε4) allele, a few dozen other genetic loci ...associated with AD have been identified through genome-wide association studies (GWAS) conducted mainly in individuals of European ancestry. Recently, several GWAS performed in other ethnic groups have shown the importance of replicating studies that identify previously established risk loci and searching for novel risk loci. APOE-stratified GWAS have yielded novel AD risk loci that might be masked by, or be dependent on, APOE alleles. We performed whole-genome sequencing (WGS) on DNA from blood samples of 331 AD patients and 169 elderly controls of Korean ethnicity who were APOE ε4 carriers. Based on WGS data, we designed a customized AD chip (cAD chip) for further analysis on an independent set of 543 AD patients and 894 elderly controls of the same ethnicity, regardless of their APOE ε4 allele status. Combined analysis of WGS and cAD chip data revealed that SNPs rs1890078 (P = 6.64E-07) and rs12594991 (P = 2.03E-07) in SORCS1 and CHD2 genes, respectively, are novel genetic variants among APOE ε4 carriers in the Korean population. In addition, nine possible novel variants that were rare in individuals of European ancestry but common in East Asia were identified. This study demonstrates that APOE-stratified analysis is important for understanding the genetic background of AD in different populations.
Although turtles play a key role in maintaining healthy and balanced environments, these are endangered due to global trade to meet the high demand for food, medicine, and pets in Asia. In addition, ...imported non-native turtles have been controlled as alien invasive species in various countries, including Korea. Therefore, a rapid and accurate classification of imported turtles is needed to conserve and detect those in native ecosystems. In this study, eight Single Shot MultiBox Detector (SSD) models using different backbone networks were used to classify 36 imported turtles in Korea. The images of these species were collected from Google and were identified using morphological features. Then, these were divided into 70% for training, 15% for validation, and 15% for test sets. In addition, data augmentation was applied to the training set to prevent overfitting. Among the eight models, the Resnet18 model showed the highest mean Average Precision (mAP) at 88.1% and the fastest inference time at 0.024 s. The average correct classification rate of 36 turtles in this model was 82.8%. The results of this study could help in management of the turtle trade, specifically in improving detection of alien invasive species in the wild.
Background There is insufficient evidence on the effect of statins, particularly high-intensity statins, in patients with acute ischemic stroke and atrial fibrillation. We investigated the impact of ...statins on the outcomes in these patients, including those who might be vulnerable to statin therapy and those without clinical atherosclerotic cardiovascular diseases. Methods and Results A total of 2153 patients with acute ischemic stroke and atrial fibrillation were enrolled in the present nationwide, multicenter, cohort study. The primary composite end point was the occurrence of net adverse clinical and cerebral events (NACCE; death from any cause, stroke, acute coronary syndrome, or major bleeding) over a 3-year period based on statin intensity. NACCE rates were lower in patients receiving low- to moderate-intensity (adjusted hazard ratio 0.64; 95% CI: 0.52-0.78) and high-intensity statins (hazard ratio 0.51; 95% CI 0.40-0.66) than in those not receiving statin therapy. High-intensity statins were associated with a lower risk for NACCE than low- to moderate-intensity statins (hazard ratio 0.76; 95% CI 0.59-0.96). Subgroup analyses showed that the differences in hazard ratio for 3-year NACCE favored statin use across all subgroups, including older patients, those with low cholesterol levels, patients receiving anticoagulants, and patients without clinical atherosclerotic cardiovascular diseases. Magnified benefits of high-intensity statins compared with low- to moderate-intensity statins were observed in patients who underwent revascularization therapy and those under 75 years of age. Conclusions Statins, particularly high-intensity statins, could reduce the risk for NACCE in patients with acute ischemic stroke and atrial fibrillation; this needs to be further explored in randomized controlled trials.
Atomically thin two-dimensional materials have emerged as promising candidates for flexible and transparent electronic applications. Here we show non-volatile memory devices, based on field-effect ...transistors with large hysteresis, consisting entirely of stacked two-dimensional materials. Graphene and molybdenum disulphide were employed as both channel and charge-trapping layers, whereas hexagonal boron nitride was used as a tunnel barrier. In these ultrathin heterostructured memory devices, the atomically thin molybdenum disulphide or graphene-trapping layer stores charge tunnelled through hexagonal boron nitride, serving as a floating gate to control the charge transport in the graphene or molybdenum disulphide channel. By varying the thicknesses of two-dimensional materials and modifying the stacking order, the hysteresis and conductance polarity of the field-effect transistor can be controlled. These devices show high mobility, high on/off current ratio, large memory window and stable retention, providing a promising route towards flexible and transparent memory devices utilizing atomically thin two-dimensional materials.
•Conflicting roles of conductive additives in all-solid-state batteries are studied.•Conductive additives are effective for enhancing electronic transport.•Conductive additives make the ionic ...transport and interfacial reaction sluggish.•Critical cell degradation factors are identified by impedance decoupling.•The compatibility between the conductive additive and solid electrolyte is crucial.
Sulfide-based all-solid-state batteries (ASSBs) have recently attracted significant attention owing to the high ionic conductivities and mechanical ductilities of sulfide solid electrolytes (SEs). In general, carbon-based conductive additives (CAs) are incorporated into solid composite electrodes to enable facile electronic transport and to enhance active-material (AM) utilization. Herein, we reveal the conflicting roles of the one-dimensional (1D) CA (vapor-grown carbon fibers) in determining the electrochemical performance of composite electrodes with high AM fraction (fAM) (i.e., low SE fraction) based on impedance decoupling analyses. The CA provides a beneficial effect on the performance of the low-fAM electrode (fAM = 72 wt%) by reducing its electronic resistance, whereas the CA-incorporated high-fAM electrode (fAM = 88 wt%) shows inferior rate-capability and severe capacity decay compared to the CA-free electrode. In-depth impedance decoupling analyses indicate that in high-fAM electrodes with high CA-to-SE ratios, the CA makes the ionic pathway tortuous and accelerates the formation of SE-derived resistive phases, thus nullifying the benefits of enhanced electronic transport. In addition to the construction of optimized charge transport pathways, this study highlights the importance of the compatibility between the CA and SE, which is experimentally demonstrated by high-fAM electrodes with halide-type SEs.
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Decellularization of tissues or organs can provide an efficient strategy for preparing functional scaffolds for tissue engineering. Microstructures of native extracellular matrices and their ...biochemical compositions can be retained in the decellularized matrices, providing tissue-specific microenvironments for efficient tissue regeneration. Here, we report the versatility of liver extracellular matrix (LEM) that can be used for two-dimensional (2D) coating and three-dimensional (3D) hydrogel platforms for culture and transplantation of primary hepatocytes. Collagen type I (Col I) has typically been used for hepatocyte culture and transplantation. In this study, LEM was compared with Col I in terms of biophysical and mechanical characteristics and biological performance for enhancing cell viability, differentiation, and hepatic functions. Surface properties of LEM coating and mechanical properties and gelation kinetics of LEM hydrogel could be manipulated by adjusting the LEM concentration. In addition, LEM hydrogel exhibited improved elastic properties, rapid gelation, and volume maintenance compared to Col I hydrogel. LEM coating significantly improved hepatocyte functions such as albumin secretion and urea synthesis. More interestingly, LEM coating upregulated hepatic gene expression of human adipose-derived stem cells, indicating enhanced hepatic differentiation of these stem cells. The viability and hepatic functions of primary hepatocytes were also significantly improved in LEM hydrogel compared to Col I hydrogel both in vitro and in vivo. Albumin and hepatocyte transcription factor expression was upregulated in hepatocytes transplanted in LEM hydrogels. In conclusion, LEM can provide functional biomaterial platforms for diverse applications in liver tissue engineering by promoting survival and maturation of hepatocytes and hepatic commitment of stem cells. This study demonstrates the feasibility of decellularized matrix for both 2D coating and 3D hydrogel in liver tissue engineering.
A key factor for successful cancer immunotherapy (CIT) is the extent of antigen presentation by dendritic cells (DCs) that phagocytize tumor-associated antigens (TAA) in the tumor site and migrate to ...tumor draining lymph nodes (TDLN) for the activation of T cells. Although various types of adjuvant delivery have been studied to enhance the activity of the DCs, poor delivery efficiency and depleted population of tumor infiltrating DCs have limited the efficacy of CIT. Herein, we report a hypoxia-responsive mesoporous silica nanocarrier (denoted as CAGE) for an enhanced CIT assisted by photodynamic therapy (PDT). In this study, CAGE was designed as a hypoxia-responsive transforming carrier to improve the intracellular uptake of nanocarriers and the delivery of adjuvants to DCs. Furthermore, PDT was exploited for the generation of immunogenic debris and recruitment of DCs in a tumor site, followed by enhanced antigen presentation. Finally, a significant inhibition of tumor growth was observed in vivo, signifying that the PDT would be a promising solution for DC-based immunotherapy.
Receptor activator of NF-kB ligand (RANKL) generates intracellular reactive oxygen species (ROS), which increase RANKL-mediated signaling in osteoclast (OC) precursor bone marrow macrophages (BMMs). ...Here we show that a ROS scavenging protein DJ-1 negatively regulates RANKL-driven OC differentiation, also called osteoclastogenesis. DJ-1 ablation in mice leads to a decreased bone volume and an increase in OC numbers. In vitro, the activation of RANK-dependent signals is enhanced in DJ-1-deficient BMMs as compared to wild-type BMMs. DJ-1 suppresses the activation of both RANK-TRAF6 and RANK-FcRγ/Syk signaling pathways because of activation of Src homology region 2 domain-containing phosphatase-1, which is inhibited by ROS. Ablation of DJ-1 in mouse models of arthritis and RANKL-induced bone disease leads to an increase in the number of OCs, and exacerbation of bone damage. Overall, our results suggest that DJ-1 plays a role in bone homeostasis in normal physiology and in bone-associated pathology by negatively regulating osteoclastogenesis.
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