Search

Low dielectric constant (k) polymers with excellent comprehensive properties are useful materials in the microelectronics industry as matrix resins or encapsulation layers. With the inherent low polarization, high reactivity, good processability, and low cost, poly(dicyclopentadiene) (PDCPD) has received considerable attention as low‐k materials. However, its practical application is limited by the relatively high thermal expansion and k value. Herein, three norbornene‐functionalized polyhedral oligomeric silsesquioxanes (POSSs) with T8, T10, and T12 polyhedral cores are synthesized and employed for enhancing the dielectric and comprehensive properties of PDCPD via reactive blending. The results show that these POSSs have good compatibility with PDCPD matrix and nano‐dispersed POSSs particles could be obtained. As a result, the materials' properties can be largely enhanced by varying the POSS content and POSS size. Especially, PT12N12‐40 (40 wt% of T12N12) shows the lowest k value (2.1) and coefficient of thermal expansion (63.4 ppm°C−1), highest glass transition temperature (202.5 °C), yield strength (78.0 MPa), and elastic modulus (2.36 GPa), along with excellent hydrophobicity. This study highlights a useful strategy to fabricate high‐performance low‐k polymer nanocomposites by using larger POSS and reactive blending, which provides useful materials for the future microelectronic industry and high frequency communication. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article focus on derive the process-structure-property relationship of Poly(L-lactide) (PLLA) fibers prepared by two-step melt spinning process. The spinning temperature, spinning rate, drawing temperature as well as draw ratio were studied to analyze the influence of process variables on the structure and properties of PLLA fibers. It suggests that the crystallinity, lamellar orientation structure and mechanical properties of fibers are dependent on the spinning conditions, including melt-spinning and hot-drawing process. An approximate linear correlation resulted between the orientation degree and tensile strength of PLLA fibers, which means that the oriented structure plays a dominant role to enhance PLLA fibers. PLLA fibers with high performance of 499 MPa and 5.30 GPa in tensile strength and Young's modulus separately have been realized by the selected spinning parameters. The results provide a theoretical direction for enhancing PLLA fibers by adjusting the structure characteristic via modifying the spinning parameters. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background. Th17 cell differentiation is involved in the development and progression of many diseases, such as rheumatoid arthritis and systemic lupus erythematosus. Present study mainly focused on the role of LINC-XIST in Th17 cell differentiation. Methods. The naïve CD4+ T cells were isolated from human whole blood. Cells were cultured under Th17 cell-polarizing condition for 6 days. The expression of LINC-XIST and miR-153-3p was measured by qPCR. The relationship between LINC-XIST, miR-153-3p, and ETS1 was predicted by TargetScan website and authenticated by luciferase reporter assay. ELISA assays were conducted to evaluate the IL-17 concentration. Western blot was utilized to measure the protein expression of ETS1. Th17 cell frequency was examined by flow cytometry. Results. The expression of XIST markedly decreased and miR-153-3p expression markedly increased with Th17 cell differentiation. The mRNA expression of IL-17, IL-17 concentration, and Th17 cell frequency were observably decreased in overexpressed LINC-XIST group. Luciferase reporter assay authenticated that miR-153-5p was directly regulated by LINC-XIST. miR-153-3p inhibitor observably decreased IL-17 concentration, mRNA expression of IL-17, and Th17 cell frequency while si-XIST reversed this impact. ETS1 was confirmed to be regulated by miR-153-5p via luciferase reporter assay. In addition, ETS1 markedly decreased IL-17 mRNA expression, IL-17 concentration, and Th17 cell frequency while miR-153-5p mimic reversed this impact. Conclusion. LNCRNA XIST inhibited miR-377-3p to hinder Th17 cell differentiation through upregulating ETS1. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Constructing stereocomplex (SC) crystallites at the interface of poly(L‐lactide) (PLLA)/elastomer blends represent a promising strategy to develop heat‐resistant and super‐tough PLLA materials because such SC crystallites can behave as not only nucleator to accelerate crystallization of PLLA matrix but also interfacial binder to strengthen interface. The properties of blends could be largely dominated by the SC interfacial layer, however, it is still unclear how the interfacial structure affects nucleating efficiency and interfacial strength. Herein, taking PLLA/poly(ethylene‐co‐methyl acrylate‐graft‐poly(D‐lactide)) (EMA‐g‐PDLA) blends as an example, EMA‐g‐PDLA bearing different chain lengths and grafting densities is prepared to tailor the size and packing density of interface‐localized SC crystallites. The results indicate that the interfacial structure and properties of the blends have been successfully manipulated. Compared with low‐graft‐density long PDLA chains, high‐graft‐density short ones can readily collaborate with PLLA chains to form numerous SC crystallites with smaller size and higher packing density at the interface and thus dramatically enhance the impact toughness and matrix crystallization rate. Moreover, the toughness is dominated by the content of SC crystallites, but the matrix crystallization is determined by their size and packing density. The work provides a new understanding of SC structure controlling the properties of PLLA/elastomer blends. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

BACKGROUND Limited research has been conducted on laparoscopic partial nephrectomy for kidney tuberculosis. This study aimed to evaluate the effectiveness of the skirted continuous suture technique in laparoscopic partial nephrectomy for localized renal tuberculosis. MATERIAL AND METHODS Five patients with kidney tuberculosis underwent standard retroperitoneal laparoscopic partial nephrectomy after computed tomography evaluation. The skirted continuous suture technique was utilized during the procedure. This retrospective study analyzed the outcomes of these patients who received treatment between January 2011 and December 2020 at Beijing Tsinghua Changgung Hospital and Eighth Medical Center of Chinese People's Liberation Army General Hospital. RESULTS The surgical success rate was 100%. Renal function was well preserved, with a decrease of glomerular filtration rate by 9.6±9.0 ml/min. Only 1 patient experienced postoperative urinous infiltration and lymphatic fistula, while the others did not have any surgical complications. Antituberculous therapy was continued postoperatively, and 1 patient had recurrence during follow-up. CONCLUSIONS The laparoscopic continuous suturing technique offers a reliable and straightforward method for extensively closing incision edges of the renal parenchyma in laparoscopic surgery. It contributes to the improved efficacy and safety of treating localized renal tuberculosis with exceptional application.

BACKGROUND Malignancy after kidney transplantation (MKT) remains a leading cause of death in transplant recipients and over the past few decades there have been many reports on this topic. However, the task of extracting crucial information from intricate events poses a significant challenge in guiding clinical work. Hence, bibliometrics was employed to summarize and predict the future in this study. MATERIAL AND METHODS Reviews and articles on MKT were extracted from the Web of Science Core Collection (WoSCC) and were analyzed by the software VOSviewer, CiteSpace, Scimago Graphica, and R package Bibliometrix for bibliometric analysis. RESULTS The analysis considered 5700 publications from 28 647 authors and 4924 institutions across 100 countries, spanning the years 1970-2022. Reference co-citation analysis showed that "renal cell carcinoma", "skin cancer", "post-transplant lymphoproliferative disorder" and "COVID-19 vaccine" were research hotspots. Keywords that co-occurred early were "immunosuppressant", "cancer", "Epstein-Barr virus", "squamous cell carcinoma", and "infection", etc., while "impact","risk factor", "outcomes", "mortality", "management" frequently co-occurred later. From 2020 to 2022, newly emerging keywords such as "SARS-CoV-2" and "COVID-19", together with citation bursts for "immune checkpoint inhibitors" and "ipilimumab," were observed. CONCLUSIONS The focus of MKT-related studies has evolved from exploring the spectrum, risk factors, and outcomes of MKT, to examining the pathogenesis, individualized screening, prevention, and treatment, including appropriate use of immune checkpoint inhibitors. Reports of renal transplant recipients infected with SARS-CoV-2 or COVID-19 have also gained attention since 2019. These suggest that individualized management remains a frontier for research and a future direction in MKT topics.

Allogeneic skin transplantation is an important clinical treatment for many diseases. Although Galectin-9 demonstrates multifaceted roles in modulating immune cell homeostasis and inflammation, its precise impact on balancing effector T cells and Tregs during allogeneic skin transplantation remains uncertain. This work was performed to evaluate the modulation of the survival time of allogeneic skin grafts by Gal-9 and to explore the critical mechanism involved in this process. Skin graft transplantation was conducted using C57BL/6 and BALB/c mice. Additionally, the levels of IL-2, IFN-γ, IL-4, and IL-17A were measured. Hematoxylin and eosin staining assay was performed to analyze the pathological conditions of skin grafts of experiment mice. The results revealed that Gal-9 noticeably prolonged the survival of the allogeneic skin graft and ameliorated the damage caused by acute immune rejection. Furthermore, Gal-9 resulted in selective reduction of effectors T cells such as Th1, and Th17. Simultaneously, Gal-9 didn't attenuate the protective function for allograft, which alleviated the immune rejection caused by abnormal immune imbalance. Gal-9 exhibited a therapeutic effect on the allogeneic skin graft by selectively reducing CD4+TIM-3+ T effector cells and inducing a shift from a Th1 to an anti-inflammatory Th2 response. Furthermore, Gal-9 did not attenuate the protective function. Our present study may represent a novel therapeutic candidate for modulating effector T cells and Tregs imbalance-based therapy of allograft transplantation.

The elimination of dyes from textile wastewater with a lower carbon footprint is highly contingent on the design of green catalysts. Here, we innovatively developed ultralong one-dimensional Bi 2 Ti 4 O 11 /TiO 2 heterojunction nanofibers via electrospinning so as to photocatalytically degrade dyes efficiently and sustainably through the utilisation of renewable solar irradiation. The heterostructured Bi 2 Ti 4 O 11 /TiO 2 nanofibers exhibited desirable activity in the visible light region through the slight shift of the absorption edge to a longer wavelength. The Bi 2 Ti 4 O 11 /TiO 2 nanofibers calcined at 550 °C had a lower optical band gap (3.08 eV) than that of the pure TiO 2 (3.32 eV), as evidenced by their higher photocatalytic degradation kinetics of a model dye (Acid Orange 7) (2.5 times greater than those of pure TiO 2 ). The enhanced visible light photocatalytic performance arose from the formation of both the Bi 2 Ti 4 O 11 /TiO 2 heterojunction and the effective separation of photogenerated holes and electrons. The employment of ultralong Bi 2 Ti 4 O 11 /TiO 2 heterojunction nanofibers for dye removal/decolourisation under visible light is an efficient, cost effective and sustainable solution, which will provide significant insights for practical textile wastewater treatment in view of practical engineering applications., Competing Interests: There are no conflicts to declare., (This journal is © The Royal Society of Chemistry.)