•CSE decreased the proliferation of mouse lung fibroblasts, which is essential for the maintenance of extracellular matrix.•CSE caused an abnormal inflammatory response and ROS/RNS-mediated stress by ...an imbalance in the cellular antioxidant defense system (GSH recycling and SOD activity), leading to the apoptosis of lung parenchymal fibroblasts.•The apoptosis of lung fibroblasts, through the phosphorylation of STAT1 at Tyr701/Ser727 and the up-regulation of the MAPK pathway by CSE, contributes to the pathogenesis of COPD.
Cigarette smoking is the major aetiologic factor in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). Lung fibroblasts are key participants in the maintenance of the extracellular matrix within the lung parenchyma. However, it still remains unknown how pulmonary fibroblasts are affected by cigarette smoking. Therefore, in this study, we isolated lung fibroblasts from mice and determined the apoptotic mechanism in response to cigarette smoke extract (CSE). When the lung fibroblasts were exposed to CSE, the generation of ROS was increased as shown by H2-DCFDA staining and Flow Cytometry. By immunocytochemistry, Ki67 expressing cells gradually decreased in a dose-dependent manner. The nitrite concentration in the supernatants increased, while the SOD activity and GSH recycling decreased in response to CSE. CSE increased the mRNA levels of TNF-α and COX-2, and the secretory proteins TNF-α and IL-6 increased as measured by ELISA. We next determined whether this inflammatory process is associated with the Bax/Bcl-2 apoptosis pathway. The Bax/Bcl-2 mRNA ratio increased, and cleaved caspase-3 protein was activated in the lung fibroblasts treated with CSE. Moreover, CSE induced the phosphorylation of STAT1 at Tyr701/Ser727 and increased the activation of ERK1/2, p38, and JNK in the MAPK pathway. Taken together, these data suggest that CSE-mediated inflammation alters the redox regulation via the MAPK-STAT1 pathway, leading to intrinsic apoptosis of lung fibroblasts.
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•Graphene aerogel is readily achieved via self-assembly of graphene oxide sheets.•Surface modification of graphene aerogel is acquired by a one-step solution method.•Surface modified ...graphene aerogel has high porosity and hydrophobicity.•Absorption test was performed under various kinds of oils and organic solvents.•Surface modified graphene aerogel shows excellent absorbability and recyclability.
Functionalized graphene aerogel with high porosity and hydrophobicity is prepared by surface modification of self-assembled graphene oxide aerogels. Fluorinated functional groups are introduced into the surface of three-dimensionally macroporous graphene aerogel through a one-step solution immersion method. Successful fabrication and surface modification of graphene aerogel are confirmed by various techniques. The functionalized graphene aerogel represents superior physical features, including low density (bulk density of 14.4mgcm−3), high porosity (>87%), mechanical stability (supports at least 2600times its own weight), and hydrophobicity (contact angle of 144°). By combining the structural features and hydrophobic surface property, the functionalized graphene aerogel not only exhibits excellent absorption performance for various types of oils and organic solvents (capacity up to 11,200% of its weight), but also shows a remarkable regeneration capability (no obvious change in absorption capacity), making them an ideal candidate for eliminating spilled oils and other toxic organic pollutants.
With the development of microelectronic devices having miniaturized and integrated electronic components, an efficient thermal management system with lightweight materials, which have outstanding ...thermal conductivity and processability, is becoming increasingly important. Recently, the use of polymer-based thermal management systems has attracted much interest due to the intrinsic excellent properties of the polymer, such as the high flexibility, low cost, electrical insulation, and excellent processability. However, most polymers possess low thermal conductivity, which limits the thermal management applications of them. To address the low thermal conduction of the polymer materials, many kinds of thermally conductive fillers have been studied, and the carbon-based polymer composite is regarded as one of the most promising materials for the thermal management of the electric and electronic devices. In addition, the next generation electronic devices require composite materials with various additional functions such as flexibility, low density, electrical insulation, and oriented heat conduction, as well as ultrahigh thermal conductivity. In this review, we introduce the latest papers on thermally conductive polymer composites based on carbon fillers with sophisticated structures to meet the above requirements. The topic of this review paper consists of the following four contents. First, we introduce the design of a continuous three-dimensional network structure of carbon fillers to reduce the thermal resistance between the filler-matrix interface and individual filler particles. Second, we discuss various methods of suppressing the electrical conductivity of carbon fillers in order to manufacture the polymer composites that meet both the electrical insulation and thermal conductivity. Third, we describe a strategy for the vertical alignment of carbon fillers to improve the through-plane thermal conductivity of the polymer composite. Finally, we briefly mention the durability of the thermal conductivity performance of the carbon-based composites. This review presents key technologies for a thermal management system of next-generation electronic devices.
Topological operations around exceptional points
-time-varying system configurations associated with non-Hermitian singularities-have been proposed as a robust approach to achieving far-reaching ...open-system dynamics, as demonstrated in highly dissipative microwave transmission
and cryogenic optomechanical oscillator
experiments. In stark contrast to conventional systems based on closed-system Hermitian dynamics, environmental interferences at exceptional points are dynamically engaged with their internal coupling properties to create rotational stimuli in fictitious-parameter domains, resulting in chiral systems that exhibit various anomalous physical phenomena
. To achieve new wave properties and concomitant device architectures to control them, realizations of such systems in application-abundant technological areas, including communications and signal processing systems, are the next step. However, it is currently unclear whether non-Hermitian interaction schemes can be configured in robust technological platforms for further device engineering. Here we experimentally demonstrate a robust silicon photonic structure with photonic modes that transmit through time-asymmetric loops around an exceptional point in the optical domain. The proposed structure consists of two coupled silicon-channel waveguides and a slab-waveguide leakage-radiation sink that precisely control the required non-Hermitian Hamiltonian experienced by the photonic modes. The fabricated devices generate time-asymmetric light transmission over an extremely broad spectral band covering the entire optical telecommunications window (wavelengths between 1.26 and 1.675 micrometres). Thus, we take a step towards broadband on-chip optical devices based on non-Hermitian topological dynamics by using a semiconductor platform with controllable optoelectronic properties, and towards several potential practical applications, such as on-chip optical isolators and non-reciprocal mode converters. Our results further suggest the technological relevance of non-Hermitian wave dynamics in various other branches of physics, such as acoustics, condensed-matter physics and quantum mechanics.
Thiols can react with readily available organic substrates under benign conditions, making them suitable for use in chemical, biological, physical, and materials and engineering research areas. In ...particular, the highly efficient thiol-based click reaction includes the reaction of radicals with electron-rich enes, Michael addition with electron-poor enes, carbonyl addition with isocyanate S
2 ring opening with epoxies, and S
2 nucleophilic substitution with halogens. This mini review provides insights into emerging venues for their industrial applications, especially for the applications of thiol-ene, thiol-isocyanate, and thiol-epoxy reactions, highlighting a brief chemistry of thiols as well as various approaches to polythiol synthesis.
The interface of electrodes is vital significance to the efficient utilization of energy and the development of new energy storage systems. The specific absorption and solvation structure are the ...joint factors to effect the feature of interface, further dominating the services life of a working battery. Display omitted
Bulk and two-dimensional black phosphorus are considered to be promising battery materials due to their high theoretical capacities of 2,600 mAh g
. However, their rate and cycling capabilities are ...limited by the intrinsic (de-)alloying mechanism. Here, we demonstrate a unique surface redox molecular-level mechanism of P sites on oxidized black phosphorus nanosheets that are strongly coupled with graphene via strong interlayer bonding. These redox-active sites of the oxidized black phosphorus are confined at the amorphorized heterointerface, revealing truly reversible pseudocapacitance (99% of total stored charge at 2,000 mV s
). Moreover, oxidized black-phosphorus-based electrodes exhibit a capacitance of 478 F g
(four times greater than black phosphorus) with a rate capability of ~72% (compared to 21.2% for black phosphorus) and retention of ~91% over 50,000 cycles. In situ spectroelectrochemical and theoretical analyses reveal a reversible change in the surface electronic structure and chemical environment of the surface-exposed P redox sites.
Macrophages are a central immune component in various types of in vitro human organoid systems to recapitulate normal and pathological development. However, to date, generation of human alveolar ...organoids (AOs) containing macrophages for use as a pulmonary fibrosis (PF) model and drug efficacy evaluation has not been reported. Here, we generated multicellular alveolar organoids (Mac-AOs) containing functional macrophages derived from human pluripotent stem cells based on stepwise direct differentiation by mimicking developmental cues in a temporally controlled manner. Derived Mac-AOs contained the expected range of cell types, including alveolar progenitors, mesenchymal cells, alveolar epithelial cells (type 1 and 2), and macrophages. Treatment with transforming growth factor (TGF-β1) induced inflammation and fibrotic changes in Mac-AOs, offering a PF model for validating the therapeutic potential of new drugs. TGF-β1-induced fibrotic responses and collagen accumulation in these Mac-AOs were effectively ameliorated by treatment with Pirfenidone, Nintedanib, and NP-011 via suppression of extracellular signal-regulated kinase signaling. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first report to provide non-epithelial functional macrophage-containing human AO system, which will better recapitulate the complexity of in vivo alveolar tissues and advance our understanding of the pathogenesis and development of effective therapies for PF.
AIM:To investigate the quality of YouTube videos on gallstone disease and to assess viewer response according to quality.METHODS:A YouTube search was performed on September 18,2013,using the ...keywords‘‘gallbladder disease’’,‘‘gallstone disease’’,and‘‘gallstone treatment’’.Three researchers assessed the source,length,number of views,number of likes,and days since upload.The upload source was categorised as physician or hospital(PH),medical website or TV channel,commercial website(CW),or civilian.A usefulness score was devised to assess video quality and to categorise the videos into‘‘very useful’’,‘‘useful’’,‘‘slightly useful’’,or‘‘not useful’’.Videos with misleading content were categorised as‘‘misleading’’.RESULTS:One hundred and thirty-one videos were analysed.Seventy-four videos(56.5%)were misleading,36(27.5%)were slightly useful,15(11.5%)were useful,three(2.3%)were very useful,and three(2.3%)were not useful.The number of mean likes(1.3±1.5vs 17.2±38.0,P=0.007)and number of views(756.3±701.0 vs 8910.7±17094.7,P=0.001)were both significantly lower in the very useful group compared with the misleading group.All three very useful videos were PH videos.Among the 74 misleading videos,64(86.5%)were uploaded by a CW.There was no correlation between usefulness and the number of views,the number of likes,or the length.The"gallstone flush"was the method advocated most frequently by misleading videos(25.7%).CONCLUSION:More than half of the YouTube videos on gallstone disease are misleading.Credible videos uploaded by medical professionals and filtering by the staff of YouTube appear to be necessary.
PurposeTo investigate the factors associated with response to steroid treatment and recurrence in patients with IgG4-related ophthalmic disease (ROD).MethodsTwenty-eight patients with biopsy-proven ...IgG4-ROD treated between March 2010 and January 2017 were included in this retrospective study. Clinical features, serum IgG4 levels, systemic involvement, treatments and treatment outcome, factors associated with response to treatment and recurrence were assessed.ResultThirteen men and 15 women (mean age 50.8 years) were evaluated over mean follow-up period of 27.3 months. Elevated serum IgG4 levels (>1.35 g/L) and systemic disease were noted in 9 (32%) and 18 patients (64%), respectively. The lacrimal gland was involved in all patients, and 22 patients (78.6%) had bilateral involvement. Most patients (82%) responded well to systemic steroids, but 12 (43%) relapsed after the initial steroid treatment, requiring additional therapies to achieve remission. Complete response to initial steroid treatment was associated with elevated serum IgG4 levels before treatment (P=0.001) and bilateral orbital involvement (P=0.050). Recurrence was associated with elevated serum IgG4 levels before treatment (P=0.007), lower dose (P=0.057) and shorter duration of initial steroids (P=0.042). Patients with recurrence eventually required significantly more steroids than those without recurrence (P=0.011).ConclusionsPatients with IgG4-ROD responded well to systemic steroid treatment, but recurrence was common, particularly among those with elevated serum IgG4 levels and shorter duration of initial steroid treatment. Low-dose maintenance treatment with systemic steroids should be considered to avoid recurrence in patients with elevated serum IgG4 levels.
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