With the miniaturization of personal wearable electronics, considerable effort has been expended to develop high‐performance flexible/stretchable energy storage devices for powering integrated active ...devices. Supercapacitors can fulfill this role owing to their simple structures, high power density, and cyclic stability. Moreover, a high electrochemical performance can be achieved with flexible/stretchable supercapacitors, whose applications can be expanded through the introduction of additional novel functionalities. Here, recent advances in and future prospects for flexible/stretchable supercapacitors with innate functionalities are covered, including biodegradability, self‐healing, shape memory, energy harvesting, and electrochromic and temperature tolerance, which can contribute to reducing e‐waste, ensuring device integrity and performance, enabling device self‐charging following exposure to surrounding stimuli, displaying the charge status, and maintaining the performance under a wide range of temperatures. Finally, the challenges and perspectives of high‐performance all‐in‐one wearable systems with integrated functional supercapacitors for future practical application are discussed.
Flexible/stretchable supercapacitors can be the next energy storage device for wearable electronics with the introduction of additional functionalities including biodegradability, self‐healing, shape memory, energy harvesting, electrochromism, and temperature tolerance. These features can contribute to reducing e‐waste, ensuring device integrity and performance, enabling the device to self‐charge, displaying the charge status, and maintaining the performance under a wide range of temperatures.
Stretchable electronics have recently been extensively investigated for the development of highly advanced human‐interactive devices. Here, a highly stretchable and sensitive strain sensor is ...fabricated based on the composite of fragmentized graphene foam (FGF) and polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS). A graphene foam (GF) is disintegrated into 200–300 μm sized fragments while maintaining its 3D structure by using a vortex mixer, forming a percolation network of the FGFs. The strain sensor shows high sensitivity with a gauge factor of 15 to 29, which is much higher compared to the GF/PDMS strain sensor with a gauge factor of 2.2. It is attributed to the great change in the contact resistance between FGFs over the large contact area, when stretched. In addition to the high sensitivity, the FGF/PDMS strain sensor exhibits high stretchability over 70% and high durability over 10 000 stretching‐releasing cycles. When the sensor is attached to the human body, it functions as a health‐monitoring device by detecting various human motions such as the bending of elbows and fingers in addition to the pulse of radial artery. Finally, by using the FGF, PDMS, and μ‐LEDs, a stretchable touch sensor array is fabricated, thus demonstrating its potential application as an artificial skin.
A highly stretchable and sensitive strain sensor based on a composite of fragmentized graphene foam (FGF) and polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) is fabricated in a facile process. The FGF/PDMS sensor demonstrates high stretchability up to 70% and high durability over 10 000 stretching cycles with gauge factor in the range of 15–29 depending on the maximum strain applied and the FGF content.
Recently, a novel coronavirus (SARS‐COV‐2) emerged which is responsible for the recent outbreak in Wuhan, China. Genetically, it is closely related to SARS‐CoV and MERS‐CoV. The situation is getting ...worse and worse, therefore, there is an urgent need for designing a suitable peptide vaccine component against the SARS‐COV‐2. Here, we characterized spike glycoprotein to obtain immunogenic epitopes. Next, we chose 13 Major Histocompatibility Complex‐(MHC) I and 3 MHC‐II epitopes, having antigenic properties. These epitopes are usually linked to specific linkers to build vaccine components and molecularly dock on toll‐like receptor‐5 to get binding affinity. Therefore, to provide a fast immunogenic profile of these epitopes, we performed immunoinformatics analysis so that the rapid development of the vaccine might bring this disastrous situation to the end earlier.
Highlights
The potential epitopes of coronavirus (SARS‐CoV‐2) are identified.
The docking complex of the construct vaccine and TLR5 is described.
Peptide‐based vaccine developed and in silico validation is provided.
Common epitopes of coronavirus (SARS‐CoV‐2) against B‐cells and T‐cells are listed.
A foldable array of patterned graphene/ZnO nanoparticle UV sensor and asymmetric micro‐supercapacitors (AMSCs) integrated on a paper substrate with patterned liquid metal interconnections is ...reported. The resistor type UV sensor based on graphene/ZnO nanoparticles is patterned to be driven by the stored energy of the integrated AMSCs. The AMSC consists of MnO2 nanoball deposited multiwalled carbon nanotubes (MWNTs) and V2O5 wrapped MWNTs as positive and negative electrodes, respectively. As an electrolyte, propylene carbonate‐poly(methyl methacrylate)‐LiClO4, an organic solvent‐based gel, is used. The UV sensor and AMSCs can be easily integrated on a liquid metal, Galinstan, patterned, waterproof mineral paper and show a mechanically stable UV sensing, regardless of repetitive folding cycles. This work demonstrates a novel foldable nanomaterial based sensor system driven by integrated energy storage devices, applicable to future wearable and portable electronics.
A patterned graphene/ZnO UV sensor driven by integrated asymmetric micro‐supercapacitors (AMSCs) on a liquid metal patterned foldable substrate is demonstrated. With the stored energy of the AMSCs, the integrated UV sensor is operated stable for 1500 s under deformations of folding.
Abstract
BACKGROUND: The failure modes, time to development, and clinical relevance are known to differ between proximal junctional kyphosis (PJK) and proximal junctional failure (PJF). However, ...there are no reports that study the risk factors of PJK and PJF separately.
OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study was to investigate the risk factors for PJK and PJF separately.
METHODS: A retrospective study of 160 consecutive patients who underwent a long instrumented fusion to the sacrum for adult spinal deformity with a minimum follow-up of 2 years was conducted. A separate survivorship analysis of PJK and PJF was performed using the Cox proportional hazards model for the 3 categorical parameters of surgical, radiographic, and patient factors.
RESULTS: PJK developed in 27 patients (16.9%) and PJF in 29 patients (18.1%). The median survival time was 17.0 months for PJK and 3.0 months for PJF. Multivariate analyses revealed that a high body mass index was an independent risk factor for PJK (hazard ratio HR = 1.179), whereas the significant risk factors for PJF were older age, the presence of osteoporosis, the uppermost instrumented vertebra level at T11-L1, and a greater preoperative sagittal vertical axis (HR = 1.082, 6.465, 5.236, and 1.017, respectively). A large correction of sagittal deformity was shown to be a risk factor for PJF on univariate analyses, but not on multivariate analyses.
CONCLUSION: PJK developed at a median of 17 months and PJF at a median of 3 months. A high body mass index was an independent risk factor for PJK, whereas older age, osteoporosis, uppermost instrumented vertebra level at the thoracolumbar junction, and greater preoperative sagittal vertical axis were risk factors for PJF.
As part of increased efforts to develop wearable healthcare devices for monitoring and managing physiological and metabolic information, stretchable electrochemical sweat sensors have been ...investigated. In this study, we report on the fabrication of a stretchable and skin-attachable electrochemical sensor for detecting glucose and pH in sweat. A patterned stretchable electrode was fabricated via layer-by-layer deposition of carbon nanotubes (CNTs) on top of patterned Au nanosheets (AuNS) prepared by filtration onto stretchable substrate. For the detection of glucose and pH, CoWO4/CNT and polyaniline/CNT nanocomposites were coated onto the CNT–AuNS electrodes, respectively. A reference electrode was prepared via chlorination of silver nanowires. Encapsulation of the stretchable sensor with sticky silbione led to a skin-attachable sweat sensor. Our sensor showed high performance with sensitivities of 10.89 μA mM–1 cm–2 and 71.44 mV pH–1 for glucose and pH, respectively, with mechanical stability up to 30% stretching and air stability for 10 days. The sensor also showed good adhesion even to wet skin, allowing the detection of glucose and pH in sweat from running while being attached onto the skin. This work suggests the application of our stretchable and skin-attachable electrochemical sensor to health management as a high-performance healthcare wearable device.
Presently, nanotechnology is a multi-trillion dollar business sector that covers a wide range of industries, such as medicine, electronics and chemistry. In the current era, the commercial transition ...of nanotechnology from research level to industrial level is stimulating the world's total economic growth. However, commercialization of nanoparticles might offer possible risks once they are liberated in the environment. In recent years, the use of zebrafish (Danio rerio) as an established animal model system for nanoparticle toxicity assay is growing exponentially. In the current in-depth review, we discuss the recent research approaches employing adult zebrafish and their embryos for nanoparticle toxicity assessment. Different types of parameters are being discussed here which are used to evaluate nanoparticle toxicity such as hatching achievement rate, developmental malformation of organs, damage in gill and skin, abnormal behavior (movement impairment), immunotoxicity, genotoxicity or gene expression, neurotoxicity, endocrine system disruption, reproduction toxicity and finally mortality. Furthermore, we have also highlighted the toxic effect of different nanoparticles such as silver nanoparticle, gold nanoparticle, and metal oxide nanoparticles (TiO2, Al2O3, CuO, NiO and ZnO). At the end, future directions of zebrafish model and relevant assays to study nanoparticle toxicity have also been argued.
2D transition metal dichalcogenides (TMDCs) have emerged as promising candidates for post‐silicon nanoelectronics owing to their unique and outstanding semiconducting properties. However, contact ...engineering for these materials to create high‐performance devices while adapting for large‐area fabrication is still in its nascent stages. In this study, graphene/Ag contacts are introduced into MoS2 devices, for which a graphene film synthesized by chemical vapor deposition (CVD) is inserted between a CVD‐grown MoS2 film and a Ag electrode as an interfacial layer. The MoS2 field‐effect transistors with graphene/Ag contacts show improved electrical and photoelectrical properties, achieving a field‐effect mobility of 35 cm2 V−1 s−1, an on/off current ratio of 4 × 108, and a photoresponsivity of 2160 A W−1, compared to those of devices with conventional Ti/Au contacts. These improvements are attributed to the low work function of Ag and the tunability of graphene Fermi level; the n‐doping of Ag in graphene decreases its Fermi level, thereby reducing the Schottky barrier height and contact resistance between the MoS2 and electrodes. This demonstration of contact interface engineering with CVD‐grown MoS2 and graphene is a key step toward the practical application of atomically thin TMDC‐based devices with low‐resistance contacts for high‐performance large‐area electronics and optoelectronics.
Contact resistance between the channel and electrodes in MoS2 devices is significantly reduced using a low work function metal (Ag) and graphene as an interfacial layer between the MoS2 and the Ag because the Schottky barrier height is lowered at the contacts. Using graphene/Ag contacts instead of Ti/Au improves the field‐effect mobility, on/off current ratio, and photoresponsivity of the devices.
In this work, the authors report materials, fabrication strategies, and applications of biodegradable microsupercapacitors (MSCs) built using water‐soluble (i.e., physically transient) metal (W, Fe, ...and Mo) electrodes, a biopolymer, hydrogel electrolyte (agarose gel), and a biodegradable poly(lactic‐co‐glycolic acid) substrate, encapsulated with polyanhydride. During repetitive charge/discharge cycles, the electrochemical performance of these unusual MSCs is dramatically enhanced, following from the role of pseudocapacitance that originates from metal‐oxide coatings generated by electrochemical corrosion at the interface between the water‐soluble metal electrode and the hydrogel electrolyte. Systematic studies reveal the dissolution kinetics/behaviors of each individual component of the MSCs, as well as those of the integrated devices. An encapsulation strategy that involves control over the thickness, chemistry, and molecular weight of the constituent materials provides a versatile means to engineer desired functional lifetimes. Demonstration experiments illustrate potential applications of these biodegradable MSCs as transient sources of power in the operation of light‐emitting diodes and as charging capacitors in integrated circuits for wireless power harvesting.
An entirely biodegradable microsupercapacitor is successfully fabricated using water‐soluble metal electrodes, agarose gel electrolyte, and poly(lactic‐co‐glycolic acid) substrate. The development of biodegradable, high performance supercapacitors represents an important advance in the area of transient electronics, with potentially important consequences in technologies for biomedicine, environmental monitoring, sustainable electronics, and other areas.
At present, the idea of genome modification has revolutionized the modern therapeutic research era. Genome modification studies have traveled a long way from gene modifications in primary cells to ...genetic modifications in animals. The targeted genetic modification may result in the modulation (i.e., either upregulation or downregulation) of the predefined gene expression. Clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats (CRISPR)-CRISPR-associated nuclease 9 (Cas9) is a promising genome-editing tool that has therapeutic potential against incurable genetic disorders by modifying their DNA sequences. In comparison with other genome-editing techniques, CRISPR-Cas9 is simple, efficient, and very specific. This enabled CRISPR-Cas9 genome-editing technology to enter into clinical trials against cancer. Besides therapeutic potential, the CRISPR-Cas9 tool can also be applied to generate genetically inhibited animal models for drug discovery and development. This comprehensive review paper discusses the origin of CRISPR-Cas9 systems and their therapeutic potential against various genetic disorders, including cancer, allergy, immunological disorders, Duchenne muscular dystrophy, cardiovascular disorders, neurological disorders, liver-related disorders, cystic fibrosis, blood-related disorders, eye-related disorders, and viral infection. Finally, we discuss the different challenges, safety concerns, and strategies that can be applied to overcome the obstacles during CRISPR-Cas9-mediated therapeutic approaches.
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The CRISPR-Cas9 genome-editing tool has shown promising advancements in clinical trials. However, the results of CRISPR-Cas9-based genome editing are unpredictable and raise safety concerns. Sharma et al. review the preclinical and clinical evidence for CRISPR-Cas9-mediated genome editing and discuss the potential challenges and future strategies to minimize the limitations of CRISPR-Cas9.
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