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Mercury is highly toxic, and appropriate amounts of the mercury-selenium complex can protect plasma. However, when excessive mercury (II) ions (Hg 2+ ) are exposed to human skin or ingested directly, it can lead to irreversible accumulation in the body. Therefore, detecting the presence of Hg 2+ in cells is important. A novel fluorescent probe BTD-Hg-Lyso was designed and constructed based on the intramolecular charge transfer mechanism. Thiotaldehyde could specifically recognize Hg 2+ so that the probe could produce a fluorescence enhancement effect. In addition, the fluorescent probe BTD-Hg-Lyso exhibited the advantages of large Stokes shift (210 nm) and good selectivity. More importantly, the probe BTD-Hg-Lyso could be used for the determination of Hg 2+ in cellular lysosomes. BTD-Hg-Lyso was able to image Hg 2+ in HeLa cells, zebrafish, and tobacco seedlings (rhizome and stem) successfully., (© 2024 Wiley-VCH GmbH.)

The current study attempts to explore the crystallographic, rheological and, dynamic mechanical properties of the submicron-treated cenosphere (t- CSF) particles and sisal fiber (SF) reinforced Styrene-(Ethylene-Butylene)-Styrene (SEBS) toughened PP hybrid composites. Moreover, the composites reinforced with 25 wt.% of SF and 5 wt.% of CSF (Treated 6 wt.% cetrimonium bromide (CTAB)) demonstrated the most significant storage modulus (E'), loss modulus (E"), and lowest damping (tan δ) factor throughout the temperature range. Likewise, X-ray diffraction techniques were used to assess the samples' crystallographic properties. The composites reported an enhanced β phase (responsible for high impact strength and reduced α phase of the base matrix compared to pristine PP. Likewise, all the composites' rheological properties showed an improved complex viscosity (η*) compared to the BM but lower than that of the pristine PP. Overall processing parameters of the BM and composites were improved due to the decrement in the η* of all the composites. The rheological properties confirmed the easy processing of the fabricated composites due to the improved flowability. The storage (G') and loss (G") modulus of all the composites were desirably higher than that of the BM., (© 2024 Wiley-VCH GmbH.)

Here, π-Extended BTD derivatives were successfully synthesized by Heck coupling reaction, which exhibited the the advantages of simplicity and efficiency, wild substrate scope, easily available substrates and high yield. The fluorescent probe PEG-BTDAr targeting LDs was successfully prepared by the nucleophilic substitution reaction between the Heck coupling reaction product 3 h and Amino polyethylene glycol monomethyl ether (Mn=2000). PEG-BTDAr exhibited the advantages of high selectivity, good stability and pH resistance. The use of PEG as a substrate gave PEG-BTDAr good biocompatibility. It was worth mentioning that PEG-BTDAr could not only track LDs in cells under different physiological conditions, but also distinguish between living and dead cells in biological systems., (© 2023 Wiley-VCH GmbH.)

Metallic zinc (Zn) is considered to be a safe and low-cost anode for rechargeable batteries. Thus, several zinc metal batteries (ZMBs) have been well developed, i. e., zinc silver batteries, Zn-MnO 2 batteries, nickel-zinc batteries, zinc-air batteries and other kinds of zinc ion batteries. ZMBs are strongly correlated with electrochemistry, electrodes, electrolytes and battery structures. To support the development of this field, we herein invite some famous research experts to write this roadmap for giving some guidance in future research. The roadmap will include their research status, challenge, opportunities, and the technology advance in their fields. We expect this roadmap will produce active influence in developing green, low-cost, safe ZMBs for our bright life in future., (© 2020 Wiley-VCH GmbH.)

Development of high-strength hydrogels has recently attracted ever-increasing attention. In this work, a new design strategy has been proposed to prepare graphene oxide (GO)/polyacrylamide (PAM)/aluminum ion (Al(3+) )-cross-linked carboxymethyl hemicellulose (Al-CMH) nanocomposite hydrogels with very tough and elastic properties. GO/PAM/Al-CMH hydrogels were synthesized by introducing graphene oxide (GO) into PAM/CMH hydrogel, followed by ionic cross-linking of Al(3+) . The nanocomposite hydrogels were characterized by means of FTIR, X-ray diffraction (XRD), and scanning electron microscopy/energy-dispersive X-ray analysis (SEM-EDX) along with their swelling and mechanical properties. The maximum compressive strength and the Young's modulus of GO3.5 /PAM/Al-CMH0.45 hydrogel achieved values of up to 1.12 and 13.27 MPa, increased by approximately 6488 and 18330 % relative to the PAM hydrogel (0.017 and 0.072 MPa). The as-prepared GO/PAM/Al-CMH nanocomposite hydrogels possess high strength and great elasticity giving them potential in bioengineering and drug-delivery system applications., (© 2016 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.)

Biomimetic mineralization is a powerful approach for the synthesis of advanced composite materials with hierarchical organization and controlled structure. Herein, chitosan was introduced into a perovskite precursor solution as a biopolymer additive to control the crystallization and to improve the morphology and film-forming properties of a perovskite film by way of biomineralization. The biopolymer additive was able to control the size and morphology of the perovskite crystals and helped to form smooth films. The mechanism of chitosan-mediated nucleation and growth of the perovskite crystals was explored. As a possible application, the chitosan-perovskite composite film was introduced into a planar heterojunction solar cell and increased power conversion efficiency relative to that observed for the pristine perovskite film was achieved. The biomimetic mineralization method proposed in this study provides an alternative way of preparing perovskite crystals with well-controlled morphology and properties and extends the applications of perovskite crystals in photoelectronic fields, including planar-heterojunction solar cells., (© 2016 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.)