A comparative study on the dose-effect of low-dose radiation based on microdosimetric analysis and single-cell sequencing technology.

The biological mechanisms triggered by low-dose exposure still need to be explored in depth. In this study, the potential mechanisms of low-dose radiation when irradiating the BEAS-2B cell lines with a Cs-137 gamma-ray source were investigated through simulations and experiments. Monolayer cell population models were constructed for simulating and analyzing distributions of nucleus-specific energy within cell populations combined with the Monte Carlo method and microdosimetric analysis. Furthermore, the 10 × Genomics single-cell sequencing technology was employed to capture the heterogeneity of individual cell responses to low-dose radiation in the same irradiated sample. The numerical uncertainties can be found both in the specific energy distribution in microdosimetry and in differential gene expressions in radiation cytogenetics. Subsequently, the distribution of nucleus-specific energy was compared with the distribution of differential gene expressions to guide the selection of differential genes bioinformatics analysis. Dose inhomogeneity is pronounced at low doses, where an increase in dose corresponds to a decrease in the dispersion of cellular-specific energy distribution. Multiple screening of differential genes by microdosimetric features and statistical analysis indicate a number of potential pathways induced by low-dose exposure. It also provides a novel perspective on the selection of sensitive biomarkers that respond to low-dose radiation.

Gold Nanorod-Loaded Nano-Contrast Agent with Composite Shell-Core Structure for Ultrasonic/Photothermal Imaging-Guided Therapy in Ischemic Muscle Disorders.

Purpose: This study aims to broaden the application of nano-contrast agents (NCAs) within the realm of the musculoskeletal system. It aims to introduce novel methods, strategies, and insights for the clinical management of ischemic muscle disorders, encompassing diagnosis, monitoring, evaluation, and therapeutic intervention. Methods: We developed a composite encapsulation technique employing O-carboxymethyl chitosan (OCMC) and liposome to encapsulate NCA-containing gold nanorods (GNRs) and perfluoropentane (PFP). This nanoscale contrast agent was thoroughly characterized for its basic physicochemical properties and performance. Its capabilities for in vivo and in vitro ultrasound imaging and photothermal imaging were authenticated, alongside a comprehensive biocompatibility assessment to ascertain its effects on microcirculatory perfusion in skeletal muscle using a murine model of hindlimb ischemia, and its potential to augment blood flow and facilitate recovery. Results: The engineered GNR@OCMC-liposome/PFP nanostructure exhibited an average size of 203.18±1.49 nm, characterized by size uniformity, regular morphology, and a good biocompatibility profile. In vitro assessments revealed NCA's potent photothermal response and its transformation into microbubbles (MBs) under near-infrared (NIR) irradiation, thereby enhancing ultrasonographic visibility. Animal studies demonstrated the nanostructure's efficacy in photothermal imaging at ischemic loci in mouse hindlimbs, where NIR irradiation induced rapid temperature increases and significantly increased blood circulation. Conclusion: The dual-modal ultrasound/photothermal NCA, encapsulating GNR and PFP within a composite shell-core architecture, was synthesized successfully. It demonstrated exceptional stability, biocompatibility, and phase transition efficiency. Importantly, it facilitates the encapsulation of PFP, enabling both enhanced ultrasound imaging and photothermal imaging following NIR light exposure. This advancement provides a critical step towards the integrated diagnosis and treatment of ischemic muscle diseases, signifying a pivotal development in nanomedicine for musculoskeletal therapeutics.

PrivShieldROS: An Extended Robot Operating System Integrating Ethereum and Interplanetary File System for Enhanced Sensor Data Privacy.

With the application of robotics in security monitoring, medical care, image analysis, and other high-privacy fields, vision sensor data in robotic operating systems (ROS) faces the challenge of enhancing secure storage and transmission. Recently, it has been proposed that the distributed advantages of blockchain be taken advantage of to improve the security of data in ROS. Still, it has limitations such as high latency and large resource consumption. To address these issues, this paper introduces PrivShieldROS, an extended robotic operating system developed by InterPlanetary File System (IPFS), blockchain, and HybridABEnc to enhance the confidentiality and security of vision sensor data in ROS. The system takes advantage of the decentralized nature of IPFS to enhance data availability and robustness while combining HybridABEnc for fine-grained access control. In addition, it ensures the security and confidentiality of the data distribution mechanism by using blockchain technology to store data content identifiers (CID) persistently. Finally, the effectiveness of this system is verified by three experiments. Compared with the state-of-the-art blockchain-extended ROS, PrivShieldROS shows improvements in key metrics. This paper has been partly submitted to IROS 2024.

A Robust Pyro-phototronic Route to Markedly Enhanced Photocatalytic Disinfection.

Photocatalysis offers a direct, yet robust, approach to eradicate pathogenic bacteria. However, the practical implementation of photocatalytic disinfection faces a significant challenge due to low-efficiency photogenerated carrier separation and transfer. Here, we present an effective approach to improve photocatalytic disinfection performance by exploiting the pyro-phototronic effect through a synergistic combination of pyroelectric properties and photocatalytic processes. A set of comprehensive studies reveals that the temperature fluctuation-induced pyroelectric field promotes photoexcited carrier separation and transfer and thus facilitates the generation of reactive oxygen species and ultimately enhances photocatalytic disinfection performance. It is worth highlighting that the constructed film demonstrated an exceptional antibacterial efficiency exceeding 95% against pathogenic bacteria under temperature fluctuations and light irradiation. Moreover, the versatile modulation role of the pyro-phototronic effect in boosting photocatalytic disinfection was corroborated. This work paves the way for improving photocatalytic disinfection efficiency by harnessing the synergistic potential of various inherent material properties.

Visual Sensor with Host-Guest Specific Recognition and Light-Electrical Co-Controlled Switch.

Perception of UV radiation has important applications in medical health, industrial production, electronic communication, etc. In numerous application scenarios, there is an increasing demand for the intuitive and low-cost detection of UV radiation through colorimetric visual behavior, as well as the efficient and multi-functional utilization of UV radiation. However, photodetectors based on photoconductive modes or photosensitive colorimetric materials are not conducive to portable or multi-scene applications owing to their complex and expensive photosensitive components, potential photobleaching, and single-stimulus response behavior. Here, a multifunctional visual sensor based on the "host-guest photo-controlled permutation" strategy and the "lock and key" model is developed. The host-guest specific molecular recognition and electrochromic sensing platform is integrated at the micro-molecular scale, enabling multi-functional and multi-scene applications in the convenient and fast perception of UV radiation, military camouflage, and information erasure at the macro level of human-computer interaction through light-electrical co-controlled visual switching characteristics. This light-electrical co-controlled visual sensor based on an optoelectronic multi-mode sensing system is expected to provide new ideas and paradigms for healthcare, microelectronics manufacturing, and wearable electronic devices owing to its advantages of signal visualization, low energy consumption, low cost, and versatility.

Microfluidic nanoprecipitation of PEGylated PLGA nanoparticles with rapamycin and performance evaluation.

Rapamycin (RAP) is currently being developed as potential antibreast cancer drug. However, its poor solubility completely limits its use. The aim of this study was to develop polyethylene glycol-poly(lactide-co-glycolide) (PEG-PLGA)-based nanoparticles (NPs) to load RAP via microfluidics with an appropriate polyethylene glycol (PEG) content to enhance the bioavailability of RAP. Polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) chips with a Y-shaped channel were designed to obtain RAP-loaded PEG-PLGA NPs (RAP-PEG-PLGA). The entrapment efficiency (EE) and drug loading (DL) as well as release profile of RAP-PEG-PLGA were evaluated, and their resistance to plasma albumin adsorption of NPs with different PEG contents was evaluated and compared. RAW264.7 and 4T1 cells were used to assess the antiphagocytic and anticancer cells effect of NPs, respectively. RAP-PEG-PLGA of around 124 nm in size were successfully prepared with the EE of 82.0% and DL of 12.3%, and sustained release for around 40 d. A PEG relative content of 10% within the PEG-PLGA molecule was shown superior in resisting protein adsorption. RAP-PEG-PLGA inhibited the growth of breast cancer cells when the concentration was over 10 µg/mL, and the inhibition efficiency was significantly higher than free RAP. Hence, the current RAP-PEG-PLGA could be a potential therapeutic system for breast cancer treatment.

Enhancing the Stability of 4.6 V LiCoO2 Cathode Material via Gradient Doping.

LiCoO2 (LCO) can deliver ultrahigh discharge capacities as a cathode material for Li-ion batteries when the charging voltage reaches 4.6 V. However, establishing a stable LCO cathode at a high cut-off voltage is a challenge in terms of bulk and surface structural transformation. O2 release, irreversible structural transformation, and interfacial side reactions cause LCO to experience severe capacity degradation and safety problems. To solve these issues, a strategy of gradient Ta doping is proposed to stabilize LCO against structural degradation. Additionally, Ta1-LCO that was tuned with 1.0 mol% Ta doping demonstrated outstanding cycling stability and rate performance. This effect was explained by the strong Ta-O bonds maintaining the lattice oxygen and the increased interlayer spacing enhancing Li+ conductivity. This work offers a practical method for high-energy Li-ion battery cathode material stabilization through the gradient doping of high-valence elements.

Tumor immunotherapy resistance: Revealing the mechanism of PD-1 / PD-L1-mediated tumor immune escape.

Tumor immunotherapy, an innovative anti-cancer therapy, has showcased encouraging outcomes across diverse tumor types. Among these, the PD-1/PD-L1 signaling pathway is a well-known immunological checkpoint, which is significant in the regulation of immune evasion by tumors. Nevertheless, a considerable number of patients develop resistance to anti-PD-1/PD-L1 immunotherapy, rendering it ineffective in the long run. This research focuses on exploring the factors of PD-1/PD-L1-mediated resistance in tumor immunotherapy. Initially, the PD-1/PD-L1 pathway is characterized by its role in facilitating tumor immune evasion, emphasizing its role in autoimmune homeostasis. Next, the primary mechanisms of resistance to PD-1/PD-L1-based immunotherapy are analyzed, including tumor antigen deletion, T cell dysfunction, increased immunosuppressive cells, and alterations in the expression of PD-L1 within tumor cells. The possible ramifications of altered metabolism, microbiota, and DNA methylation on resistance is also described. Finally, possible resolution strategies for dealing with anti-PD-1/PD-L1 immunotherapy resistance are discussed, placing particular emphasis on personalized therapeutic approaches and the exploration of more potent immunotherapy regimens.

Modulation of immunosuppressive effect of rapamycin via microfluidic encapsulation within PEG-PLGA nanoparticles.

The high hydrophobicity and low oral availability of immunosuppressive drug, rapamycin, seriously limit its application. It was thus aimed to develop a PEG-PLGA based nano-loading system for rapamycin delivery to achieve improved bioavailability with sustained effects via a novel microfluidic chip and manipulation of the hydrophobic PLGA chain length. PDMS based microfluidic chip with Y shape was designed and PEG-PLGA polymers with different PLGA chain length were used to prepare rapamycin nano-delivery systems. Dendritic cells were selected to evaluate the immunosuppressive effect of the nanoparticles including cytotoxicity assay, dendritic cell activation, and cytokine levels. The effects of different PEG-PLGA nanoparticles on the immunomodulatory properties were finally compared. It was shown that PEG-PLGA could be successfully used for rapamycin encapsulation via microfluidics to obtain nano-delivery systems (Rapa&P-20 k, Rapa&P-50 k and Rapa&P-95 k) ranging from 100 nm to 116 nm. The encapsulation efficiency was ranged from 69.70% to 84.55% and drug loading from 10.45% to 12.68%. The Rapa&P-50 k (PLGA chain length: 50 k) could achieve the highest drug loading (DL) and encapsulation efficiency (EE) as 12.68% and 84.55%. The encapsulated rapamycin could be gradually released from three nanoparticles for more than 1 month without any noticeable burst release. The Rapa & P nanoparticles exhibited enhanced immunosuppressive effects over those of free rapamycin as shown by the expression of CD40 and CD80, and the secretion of IL-1ß, IL-12 and TGF-ß1. Rapa&P-50 k nanoparticles could be the optimal choice for rapamycin delivery as it also achieved the most effective immunosuppressive property. Hence, this study could provide an efficient technology with superior manipulation to offer a solution for rapamycin delivery and clinical application.

Investigation of sponge medium for efficient concurrent tumor treating fields and radiotherapy for glioblastomas.

Realizing precise therapy for glioblastomas (GBMs), a kind of high-frequency malignant brain tumor, is of great importance in improving the overall survival (OS) of patients. With relentless efforts made in the past few years, a sponge medium has been introduced into concurrent tumor treating fields (TTFields) and radiotherapy to enhance therapy efficacy for GBMs, and some progresses have been witnessed. However, the specific physical and chemical characteristics of the sponge that can be used for GBMs have not been reported as far as we know. Therefore, this study aims to develop a simple yet robust method to select a candidate sponge medium and verify its safety in advanced concurrent TTFields and radiotherapy for GBMs through interdisciplinary investigation among materials science, medical physics, and clinical radiation oncology. Significantly, latex-free polyurethane (PU) sponges with a Hounsfield unit (HU) value lower than -750, which exhibit almost no negative influence on planning computed tomography (CT) imaging and radiotherapy dosimetry, are demonstrated to be available for concurrent TTFields and radiotherapy for GBMs. Moreover, in clinical research, the achieved clear CT images, negligible scalp toxicity, lower residual positioning errors, and high compliant rate of 82% over the selected representative sponge sample corroborate the availability and safety of PU sponges in practical applications for GBM treatment.

Effects of polymer terminal group inside micelle core on paclitaxel loading promoting and burst release suppressing.

Background: Paclitaxel (PTX) is widely used in the treatment of advanced esophageal and gastric cancer. Polymeric micelles can improve the drug-loading efficiency of PTX. However, the end groups on the amphiphilic blocks affect the drug-loading efficiency and the release kinetics of polymeric micelles. Therefore, there is an urgent need to disclose the tailoring of the core-/shell-forming terminal groups. Methods: Different from the conventional block copolymer synthesis in the reversible addition-fragmentation chain-transfer polymerization, which has a hydrophilic end group on the core-forming blocks, an alternative monomer addition method was applied to tune and obtain two block copolymers with symmetrical and similar block length PBMAn-b-PNAMm [PNAM, poly(N-acryloylmorpholine); PBMA, poly(n-butyl methacrylate)] but distinct end groups on the hydrophobic core-forming blocks, that is, HOOC-PBMA-PNAM-Phen and HOOC-PNAM-PBMA-Phen. The chemical structure of the resulting copolymers was elucidated by proton nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy and differential scanning calorimetry. The spherical morphology revealed by transmission electron microscopy and the uniform particle size revealed by dynamic light scattering analysis clearly confirmed the successful preparation of a PTX-polymeric micelle complex. Results: The particle sizes of HOOC-PBMA-PNAM-Phen and HOOC-PNAM-PBMA-Phen were about 40 and 235 nm respectively. The PTX loading efficiency of HOOC-PBMA-PNAM-Phen was much lower than that of HOOC-PNAM-PBMA-Phen. The PTX release from HOOC-PBMA-PNAM-Phen was much slower than that of HOOC-PNAM-PBMA-Phen. The polymers had glass transition temperature (Tg) values of 70.24 and 74.22 ℃, which was from the HOOC-PBMA-PNAM-Phen and HOOC-PNAM-PBMA-Phen micelles, respectively. The systematic study on the PTX loading and releasing profile disclosed that, compared with the HOOC-PBMA-PNAM-Phen, the micelles with Phen group on the hydrophobic block (HOOC-PNAM-PBMA-Phen) enhanced drug loading and prolonged drug release but with a larger particle size. Conclusions: The results indicated that the hydrophobic end group Phen on the core-forming blocks can promote hydrophobic drug loading and suppress burst release.

Hierarchical Modular Structure of the Drosophila Connectome.

The structure of neural circuitry plays a crucial role in brain function. Previous studies of brain organization generally had to trade off between coarse descriptions at a large scale and fine descriptions on a small scale. Researchers have now reconstructed tens to hundreds of thousands of neurons at synaptic resolution, enabling investigations into the interplay between global, modular organization, and cell type-specific wiring. Analyzing data of this scale, however, presents unique challenges. To address this problem, we applied novel community detection methods to analyze the synapse-level reconstruction of an adult female Drosophila melanogaster brain containing >20,000 neurons and 10 million synapses. Using a machine-learning algorithm, we find the most densely connected communities of neurons by maximizing a generalized modularity density measure. We resolve the community structure at a range of scales, from large (on the order of thousands of neurons) to small (on the order of tens of neurons). We find that the network is organized hierarchically, and larger-scale communities are composed of smaller-scale structures. Our methods identify well-known features of the fly brain, including its sensory pathways. Moreover, focusing on specific brain regions, we are able to identify subnetworks with distinct connectivity types. For example, manual efforts have identified layered structures in the fan-shaped body. Our methods not only automatically recover this layered structure, but also resolve finer connectivity patterns to downstream and upstream areas. We also find a novel modular organization of the superior neuropil, with distinct clusters of upstream and downstream brain regions dividing the neuropil into several pathways. These methods show that the fine-scale, local network reconstruction made possible by modern experimental methods are sufficiently detailed to identify the organization of the brain across scales, and enable novel predictions about the structure and function of its parts.Significance Statement The Hemibrain is a partial connectome of an adult female Drosophila melanogaster brain containing >20,000 neurons and 10 million synapses. Analyzing the structure of a network of this size requires novel and efficient computational tools. We applied a new community detection method to automatically uncover the modular structure in the Hemibrain dataset by maximizing a generalized modularity measure. This allowed us to resolve the community structure of the fly hemibrain at a range of spatial scales revealing a hierarchical organization of the network, where larger-scale modules are composed of smaller-scale structures. The method also allowed us to identify subnetworks with distinct cell and connectivity structures, such as the layered structures in the fan-shaped body, and the modular organization of the superior neuropil. Thus, network analysis methods can be adopted to the connectomes being reconstructed using modern experimental methods to reveal the organization of the brain across scales. This supports the view that such connectomes will allow us to uncover the organizational structure of the brain, which can ultimately lead to a better understanding of its function.

Synthesis of Graphene Oxide-Coupled CoNi Bimetallic MOF Nanocomposites for the Simultaneous Analysis of Catechol and Hydroquinone.

Herein, a three-dimensional flower-like cobalt-nickel bimetallic metal-organic framework (CoNi-MOF) coupled with two-dimensional graphene oxide (GO) nanocomposites was successfully synthesized for the selective and simultaneous electrochemical determination of catechol (CC) and hydroquinone (HQ). The three-dimensional flower-like structure of the CoNi-MOF/GO nanocomposite has a multilayer structure and a large surface area, which greatly improves its electrocatalytic activity towards CC and HQ. Differential pulse voltammetry (DPV) results showed that the peak-to-peak separation of CC (0.223 V) and HQ (0.120 V) was 103 mV at a CoNi-MOF/GO modified glassy carbon electrode (CoNi-MOF/GO/GCE), suggesting that the proposed modified electrode can selectively and simultaneously determine them. Under optimal conditions, the CoNi-MOF/GO/GCE showed an excellent analytical performance for the simultaneous determination of CC and HQ, including a wide linear range (0.1-100 µM), low detection limit (0.04 µM for HQ and 0.03 µM for CC) and high anti-interference ability. As expected, the developed modified electrode has been used to analyze CC and HQ in river water, with acceptable results.

Impaired function of dendritic cells within the tumor microenvironment.

Dendritic cells (DCs), a class of professional antigen-presenting cells, are considered key factors in the initiation and maintenance of anti-tumor immunity due to their powerful ability to present antigen and stimulate T-cell responses. The important role of DCs in controlling tumor growth and mediating potent anti-tumor immunity has been demonstrated in various cancer models. Accordingly, the infiltration of stimulatory DCs positively correlates with the prognosis and response to immunotherapy in a variety of solid tumors. However, accumulating evidence indicates that DCs exhibit a significantly dysfunctional state, ultimately leading to an impaired anti-tumor immune response due to the effects of the immunosuppressive tumor microenvironment (TME). Currently, numerous preclinical and clinical studies are exploring immunotherapeutic strategies to better control tumors by restoring or enhancing the activity of DCs in tumors, such as the popular DC-based vaccines. In this review, an overview of the role of DCs in controlling tumor progression is provided, followed by a summary of the current advances in understanding the mechanisms by which the TME affects the normal function of DCs, and concluding with a brief discussion of current strategies for DC-based tumor immunotherapy.

Ultralong Carrier Lifetime Exceeding 20 µs in Lead Halide Perovskite Film Enable Efficient Solar Cells.

The carrier lifetime is one of the key parameters for perovskite solar cells (PSCs). However, it is still a great challenge to achieve long carrier lifetimes in perovskite films that are comparable with perovskite crystals owning to the large trap density resulting from the unavoidable defects in grain boundaries and surfaces. Here, by regulating the electronic structure with the developed 2-thiopheneformamidinium bromide (ThFABr) combined with the unique film structure of 2D perovskite layer caped 2D/3D polycrystalline perovskite film, an ultralong carrier lifetime exceeding 20 µs and carrier diffusion lengths longer than 6.5 µm are achieved. These excellent properties enable the ThFA-based devices to yield a champion efficiency of 24.69% with a minimum VOC loss of 0.33 V. The unencapsulated device retains ≈95% of its initial efficiency after 1180 h by max power point (MPP) tracking under continuous light illumination. This work provides important implications for structured 2D/(2D/3D) perovskite films combined with unique FA-based spacers to achieve ultralong carrier lifetime for high-performance PSCs and other optoelectronic applications.

Recent advances in optical aptasensors for biomarkers in early diagnosis and prognosis monitoring of hepatocellular carcinoma.

Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) accounts for approximately 90% of all primary liver cancers and is one of the main malignant tumor types globally. It is essential to develop rapid, ultrasensitive, and accurate strategies for the diagnosis and surveillance of HCC. In recent years, aptasensors have attracted particular attention owing to their high sensitivity, excellent selectivity, and low production costs. Optical analysis, as a potential analytical tool, offers the advantages of a wide range of targets, rapid response, and simple instrumentation. In this review, recent progress in several types of optical aptasensors for biomarkers in early diagnosis and prognosis monitoring of HCC is summarized. Furthermore, we evaluate the strengths and limitations of these sensors and discuss the challenges and future perspectives for their use in HCC diagnosis and surveillance.

Clarity improvement of the discoloration boundary and detection of Hg2+ ions by using a polystyrene nanoparticle-modified paper-based microdevice.

Distance-based microfluidic paper-based analytical devices (µPADs) can be used to calculate the analyte content by reading the length of the discolored area in the channel. A blurred discoloration boundary is difficult to distinguish, resulting in reading errors. In this study, we constructed a µPAD modified with carboxyl-containing polystyrene nanoparticles (PS-µPAD) to improve the discoloration-boundary clarity. The filling of the pores of the fibers with the deposited polystyrene nanoparticles (PS NPs) caused a decrease in the paper porosity, resulting in a flow delay. Meanwhile, the carboxyl groups carried by PS NPs were able to form hydrogen bonds with hydroxyl-containing compounds FLPI, a Hg2+ probe, and the two factors acted synergistically to fix the FLPI to react in situ, raising the discoloration-boundary clarity. Compared with the unmodified µPAD, the detection of Hg2+ ions using the PS-µPAD still had a good linear relationship. Importantly, the color-depth difference inside and outside the discoloration boundary improved by about four times and showed excellent reproducibility in different populations. The method was simple and easy to expand, thereby providing an idea for more widespread application of distance-based µPADs.

Single-cell transcriptomics in ovarian cancer identify a metastasis-associated cell cluster overexpressed RAB13.

BACKGROUND: Metastasis, the leading cause of cancer-related death in patients diagnosed with ovarian cancer (OC), is a complex process that involves multiple biological effects. With the continuous development of sequencing technology, single-cell sequence has emerged as a promising strategy to understand the pathogenesis of ovarian cancer. METHODS: Through integrating 10 × single-cell data from 12 samples, we developed a single-cell map of primary and metastatic OC. By copy-number variations analysis, pseudotime analysis, enrichment analysis, and cell-cell communication analysis, we explored the heterogeneity among OC cells. We performed differential expression analysis and high dimensional weighted gene co-expression network analysis to identify the hub genes of C4. The effects of RAB13 on OC cell lines were validated in vitro. RESULTS: We discovered a cell subcluster, referred to as C4, that is closely associated with metastasis and poor prognosis in OC. This subcluster correlated with an epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) and angiogenesis signature and RAB13 was identified as the key marker of it. Downregulation of RAB13 resulted in a reduction of OC cells migration and invasion. Additionally, we predicted several potential drugs that might inhibit RAB13. CONCLUSIONS: Our study has identified a cell subcluster that is closely linked to metastasis in OC, and we have also identified RAB13 as its hub gene that has great potential to become a new therapeutic target for OC.

Infrared imaging of polydimethylsiloxane-doped upconversion particle composites.

Short-wave infrared imaging is playing an increasingly important role in present scientific research. However, the high experimental cost limits its application. Based on the upconversion fluorescence effect, we prepared a low-cost composite film for short-wave infrared imaging using upconversion particles and polydimethylsiloxane. The imaging quality and stability of the prepared composite films are examined using an infrared laser. The fluorescence density fluctuation of the composite films at 100 is only 1.2%, and the maximum value of the fluorescence power percentage error caused by the inhomogeneity is only 4.5%. Due to the affordable and easy accessibility, a typical optical laboratory can prepare and use the aforementioned technique in experiments in a short time.

Recent Advances in Efficient Photocatalysis via Modulation of Electric and Magnetic Fields and Reactive Phase Control.

The past several years has witnessed significant progress in enhancing photocatalytic performance via robust electric and magnetic fields' modulation to promote the separation and transfer of photoexcited carriers, and phase control at reactive interface to lower photocatalytic reaction energy barrier and facilitate mass transfer. These three research directions have received soaring attention in photocatalytic field. Herein, recent advances in photocatalysis modulated by electric field (i.e., piezoelectric, pyroelectric, and triboelectric fields, as well as their coupling) with specific examples and mechanisms discussion are first examined. Subsequently, the strategy via magnetic field manipulation for enhancing photocatalytic performance is scrutinized, including the spin polarization, Lorentz force, and magnetoresistance effect. Afterward, materials with tailored structure and composition design enabled by reactive phase control and their applications in photocatalytic hydrogen evolution and carbon dioxide reduction are reviewed. Finally, the challenges and potential opportunities to further boost photocatalytic efficiency are presented, aiming at providing crucial theoretical and experimental guidance for those working in photocatalysis, ferroelectrics, triboelectrics, piezo-/pyro-/tribo-phototronics, and electromagnetics, among other related areas.