Aggregate (Hoboken, N.J.)最新文献

Acute liver failure is a life-threatening syndrome, for which liver transplantation is presently the most effective treatment. Unfortunately, such treatment is extremely limited by a shortage of donor organs. Stem cell therapy offers a promising treatment strategy for acute liver failure. Yet, therapeutic efficacy and potential are hampered by administration route and safety concerns. In this work, we fabricated menstrual blood-derived stem cells-conditioned medium/polymersome hybrid nanoparticles that were self-assembled from amphiphilic block copolymers via the direct hydration method and encapsulated therapeutic bioactive factors within the aqueous core of vesicles. The merit of vesicular architecture enabled the loading capacity of distinct proteins and the maintenance of biological activity. These hybrid nanoparticles can be steadily taken up into cytoplasm and promote hepatocyte proliferation in vitro. Prolonged in vivo circulation time brought higher accumulation in livers. The therapeutic nanoparticles alleviated hepatic injury and promoted liver recovery in mice with carbon tetrachloride-induced liver failure. Considering the feasibility and benefit of the hybrid nanoparticle therapy, it provided a potential strategy to treat acute liver failure.

Among a promising photovoltaic technology for solar energy conversion, organic solar cells (OSCs) have been paid much attention, of which the power conversion efficiencies (PCEs) have rapidly surpassed over 20%, approaching the threshold for potential applications. However, the device stability of OSCs including storage stability, photostability and thermal stability, remains to be an enormous challenge when faced with practical applications. The major causes of device instability are rooted in the poor inherent properties of light-harvesting materials, metastable morphology, interfacial reactions and highly sensitive to external stresses. To get rid of these flaws, a comprehensive review is provided about recent strategies and methods for improving the device stability from active layers, interfacial layers, device engineering and encapsulation techniques for high-performance OSC devices. In the end, prospectives for the next stage development of high-performance devices with satisfactory long-term stability are afforded for the solar community.

Myocardial infarction accompanied by diabetes mellitus is accepted as the most serious type of coronary heart disease, and among the current treatment strategies, the precise delivery of protective drugs for inhibiting cardiomyocyte apoptosis is still a challenge. In this study, we developed a biodegradable nanoparticles-based delivery system with excellent macrophage escape, cardiac targeting, and drug release properties to achieve targeted therapy of myocardial infarction. Specifically, a copolymer of p(DMA–MPC–CD) combining self-adhesion, hydration lubrication, and targeting peptide binding site was successfully prepared by free radical copolymerization, and it was self-assembled on the surface of melatonin-loaded dendritic mesoporous silica nanoparticles (bMSNs) following the integration of adamantane-modified cardiac homing peptide (CHP) based on supramolecular host–guest interaction. Importantly, a hydration layer formed around the zwitterionic phosphorylcholine groups of the multifunctional nanoparticles, which was confirmed by the enhancement in hydration lubrication and reduction in coefficient of friction, prevented the nanoparticles from phagocytosis by the macrophages. The in vivo bioluminescence imaging test indicated that the nanoparticles were endowed with satisfied cardiac targeting capability, and the in vivo mice study demonstrated that the intravenous injection of drug-loaded nanoparticles (namely bMSNs–Mel@PDMC–CHP) effectively reduced cardiomyocyte apoptosis, alleviated myocardial interstitial fibrosis, and enhanced cardiac function.

Silver sulfide thin film, with excellent thermoelectric properties, is few reported due to the complex and time-consuming high-temperature or high-pressure synthesis process. Here, a fast ionic conductor n-type Ag₂S film with good crystallinity and uniform density is prepared by sputtering metal Ag films of different thicknesses on glass and then reacting in S precursor solution at low temperature. At 450 K, β-Ag₂S films can be obtained and underwent a phase transition from α-Ag₂S monoclinic, which had a significant effect on their electrical and thermal properties. The grain size of Ag₂S films increases with the increase of film thickness. Before and after the phase transition, the carrier concentration and mobility cause obvious changes in the electrical properties of Ag₂S. The carrier concentration of body-centered cubic phase β-Ag₂S is about three orders of magnitude higher than that of monoclinic phase α-Ag₂S, and the mobility is also 2–3 times that of the latter. Especially, after the phase transition, the conductivity of β-Ag₂S rises exponentially from the zero conductivity of α-Ag₂S and increases with the increase of temperature. The Ag₂S film shows the highest figure of merit of 0.83 ± 0.30 at 600 K from the sample with ∼1600 nm thickness, which is the highest record among Ag₂S-based thermoelectric materials reported so far.

Surgical resection is the preferred option for hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), but surgical navigation technology using indocyanine green still has some drawbacks such as non-specific imaging, thus it is very important to develop new fluorescence imaging technology. All-cis hexaphenyl-1,3-butadiene derivative (ZZ-HPB-NC) with aggregation-induced emission (AIE) feature has been reported to be quickly turned-on fluorescent response in the intraoperative frozen-section slides of HCC. However, the probe did not respond to normal liver tissue around HCC. In order to enhance the diagnostic rate and elucidate the response mechanism, all-trans configuration EE-HPB-NC, was furtherly synthesized. Within two minutes, non-cancer tissues could be fluorescently labeled by EE-HPB-NC by spraying, showing the same effect with ZZ-HPB-NC to HCC. The results indicated that the configuration-induced cross-identification fluorescence imaging strategy was achieved through the combination of ZZ- and EE-HPB-NC. Then the mechanism of HPB-NC localization in HCC lesions was explored, and the binding of HPB-NC with specific proteins in cells resulted in the AIE effect to label HCC cells. On this basis, the accuracy of specific fluorescence imaging for HCC was further verified on the mouse hepatic neoplasm models, indicating that it has clinical application potential for surgical fluorescence real-time navigation.

Pan et al. herein present a thermal-responsive hydrogel system, which effectively combines AIE-based photothermal therapy and carbonyl stress therapy to invade and ablate tumors under light, symbolized by the constant waterfall wearing away stones in the cover artwork. Notably, this innovative approach induces immunogenic cancer cell death, evoking anti-tumor immunity and long-term immune memory (depicted as luxuriant trees and sharp leaves). As a result, the growths of distant and recurrent tumors were suppressed successfully, symbolized by crushing the downstream stones (e432).

A derivative of tetraphenylpyrazine shows strong, narrow and stable deep-blue emission in the aggregate state. It can be further fabricated into aggregation-induced emission microfiber to remotely light-up the colorful emission by waveguiding excitation, which is favor in the exploration of substance in the microscopic world (e453).

Avoiding the tedious process of crystal cultivation and directly obtaining organic crystals with desirable phosphorescent performance is of great significance for studying their structure and properties. Herein, a set of benzophenone-cored phosphors with bright green afterglow are obtained on a large scale through in-situ generation via an end-capping strategy to suppress non-radiative triplet excitons and reinforce the intermolecular interactions. The ordered arrangement of phosphors with alkyl-cyano groups as regulators is crucial for the enhancement of room-temperature phosphorescence (RTP) emission, which has been further verified by the attenuated lifetimes in isolated states through the formation of inclusion complexes upon binding with pillar[5]arenes. Moreover, the hierarchical interactions of phosphors, including hydrogen bonding, π-π stacking interactions, and van der Waals forces, are quantified by crystal structures and theoretical calculation to deeply interpret the origins of RTP emission. With this study, we provide a potential strategy for the direct acquisition of crystalline organic phosphors and modulation of RTP.

The efficacy of transarterial chemoembolization (TACE) has been limited by insufficient embolization and a high incidence of tumor recurrence. Herein, we identified that aberrant metabolic reprogramming and immunosuppression contribute to TACE refractoriness and Rhein, as a potential glycolytic metabolism inhibitor and immunoactivation inducer, was optimized to sensitize tumors to TACE therapy. To achieve efficient embolization, we developed an oil-in-water lipiodol embolic emulsion by stabilizing the self-assembled Rhein nanogel. The assembled Rhein exhibited a nanofiber network, and its integration enhanced the mechanical stability and viscoelasticity of the lipiodol embolic agent. With the synergistic advantages of solid and liquid embolic agents, this carrier-free Pickering emulsion exhibits efficient embolization and sustained drug release in models of unilateral renal artery embolization, rabbit ear tumor embolization, rabbit orthotopic liver cancer, and rat orthotopic liver cancer. Compared to conventional three-way catheter mixing methods, multimodal imaging corroborates a marked enhancement in local drug retention and tumor suppression. Importantly, the incorporation of Rhein-mediated synergistic immunoembolization in this strategy achieved efficient embolization while robustly activating anti-tumor immune responses, including inducing immunogenic cell death, dendritic cell activation, and major histocompatibility complex class I presentation to CD8⁺ T cells for tumor killing. Together, these findings reveal a novel strategy for the application of self-assembled Rhein nanofiber-stabilized lipiodol emulsion to control metabolic signaling and immunoactivation in TACE.

The exceptional stability exhibited by solid particle-stabilized Pickering multiphase systems has garnered significant attention in recent times. Amongst a range of solid stabilizers, cellulosic micro/nanoparticles sourced from agriculture and forestry have emerged as promising contenders for achieving effective Pickering stabilization owing to their distinctive morphological features and adjustable surface properties. This paper summarizes the latest advancements in formulating and stabilizing Pickering multiphase systems utilizing cellulosic colloidal particles, encompassing an analysis of key factors influencing interfacial assembly along with suitable preparation techniques for generating stable Pickering emulsions. Furthermore, potential applications of these corresponding multifunctional materials are outlined herein.