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Kyung Dong Lee,1,* Young-Il Jeong,2,* Da Hye Kim,3,4 Gyun-Taek Lim,2 Ki-Choon Choi5 1Department of Oriental Medicine Materials, Dongshin University, Naju, South Korea; 2Department of Polymer Engineering, Chonnam National University, Gwangju, South Korea; 3Faculty of Life and Environmental Science, Shimane University, Matsue, Japan; 4United Graduate School of Agricultural Sciences, Tottori University, Tottori, Japan; 5Grassland and Forages Division, National Institute of Animal Science, Rural Development Administration, Cheonan, South Korea *These authors contributed equally to this work Background: Although cisplatin is extensively used in the clinical field, its intrinsic toxicity limits its clinical use. We investigated nanoparticle formations of poly(acrylic acid-co-methyl methacrylate) (PAA-MMA) incorporating cisplatin and their antitumor activity in vitro and in vivo. Methods: Cisplatin-incorporated nanoparticles were prepared through the ion-complex formation between acrylic acid and cisplatin. The anticancer activity of cisplatin-incorporated nanoparticles was assessed with CT26 colorectal carcinoma cells. Results: Cisplatin-incorporated nanoparticles have small particle sizes of less than 200 nm with spherical shapes. Drug content was increased according to the increase of the feeding amount of cisplatin and acrylic acid content in the copolymer. The higher acrylic acid content in the copolymer induced increase of particle size and decrease of zeta potential. Cisplatin-incorporated nanoparticles showed a similar growth-inhibitory effect against CT26 tumor cells in vitro. However, cisplatin-incorporated nanoparticles showed improved antitumor activity against an animal tumor xenograft model. Conclusion: We suggest that PAA-MMA nanoparticles incorporating cisplatin are promising carriers for an antitumor drug-delivery system. Keywords: cisplatin, nanoparticle, poly(acrylic acid-co-methyl methacrylate), ion complexes

Despite the remarkable advances in therapeutics for rheumatoid arthritis (RA), a large number of patients still lack effective countermeasures. Recently, the reprogramming of macrophages to an immunoregulatory phenotype has emerged as a promising therapeutic strategy for RA. Here, we report metabolically engineered exosomes that have been surface-modified for the targeted reprogramming of macrophages. Qualified exosomes were readily harvested from metabolically engineered stem cells by tangential flow filtration at a high yield while maintaining their innate immunomodulatory components. When systemically administered into mice with collagen-induced arthritis, these exosomes effectively accumulated in the inflamed joints, inducing a cascade of anti-inflammatory events via macrophage phenotype regulation. The level of therapeutic efficacy obtained with bare exosomes was achievable with the engineered exosomes of 10 times less dose. On the basis of the boosted nature to reprogram the synovial microenvironment, the engineered exosomes display considerable potential to be developed as a next-generation drug for RA., (Copyright © 2021 The Authors, some rights reserved; exclusive licensee American Association for the Advancement of Science. No claim to original U.S. Government Works. Distributed under a Creative Commons Attribution NonCommercial License 4.0 (CC BY-NC).)

Extracellular vesicles (EVs) are essential mediators in intercellular communication that have emerged as natural therapeutic nanomedicines for the treatment of intractable diseases. Their therapeutic applications, however, have been limited by unpredictable in vivo biodistribution after systemic administration. To control the in vivo fate of EVs, their surfaces should be properly edited, depending on the target site of action. Herein, based on bioorthogonal copper-free click chemistry (BCC), surface-edited EVs were prepared by using metabolically glycoengineered cells. First, the exogenous azide group was generated on the cellular surface through metabolic glycoengineering (MGE) using the precursor. Next, PEGylated hyaluronic acid, capable of binding specifically to the CD44-expressing cells, was labelled as the representative targeting moiety onto the cell surface by BCC. The surface-edited EVs effectively accumulated into the target tissues of the animal models with rheumatoid arthritis and tumour, primarily owing to prolonged circulation in the bloodstream and the active targeting mechanism. Overall, these results suggest that BCC combined with MGE is highly useful as a simple and safe approach for the surface modification of EVs to modulate their in vivo fate., Competing Interests: The authors declare the following competing interests: Y. W. Cho is the chief executive officer of ExoStemTech Inc. D.‐G. Jo and J. H. Park are stockholders of ExoStemTech Inc. The other authors declare no competing financial interests., (© 2021 The Authors. Journal of Extracellular Vesicles published by Wiley Periodicals, LLC on behalf of the International Society for Extracellular Vesicles.)

A smart and effective anticorrosive coating consisting of alternating graphene and polyaniline (PANI) layers was developed using top-down solution processing. Graphite was exfoliated using sonication assisted by polyaniline to produce a nanostructured, conductive graphene/polyaniline hybrid (GPn) in large quantities (>0.5 L of 6 wt% solution in a single laboratory-scale process). The GPn was coated on copper and exhibited excellent anticorrosion protection efficiencies of 46.6% and 68.4% under electrochemical polarization in 1 M sulfuric acid and 3.5 wt% sodium chloride solutions, chosen as chemical and seawater models, respectively. Impedance measurements were performed in the two corrosive solutions, with the variation in charge transfer resistance (R ct ) over time indicating that the GPn acted as an efficient physical and chemical barrier preventing corrosive species from reaching the copper surface. The GPn-coated copper was composed of many PANI-coated graphene planes stacked parallel to the copper surface. PANI exhibits redox-based conductivity, which was facilitated by the high conductivity of graphene. Additionally, the GPn surface was found to be hydrophobic. These properties combined effectively to protect the copper metal against corrosion. We expect that the GPn can be further applied for developing smart anticorrosive coating layers capable of monitoring the status of metals.

Morphology of conjugated polymers is a critical factor that significantly affects intrinsic charge transport characteristics and in turn performance of polymer-based devices. Morphological defects including misaligned crystalline grains and grain boundaries significantly impede efficient charge hopping between transport sites, resulting in degradation of device performance. Therefore, one important challenge is to control morphology of active polymer thin-films for achieving high performance flexible electronic devices. In the past decade, significant progress has been achieved in morphology control of conjugated polymer thin-films using solution-based processing techniques. This review focuses on recent advances in processing strategies that can tune the morphologies and thus impact charge transport properties of conjugated polymer thin films. Of the available processing strategies, polymer solution treatments and film deposition techniques will be mainly highlighted. The correlation between processing conditions, active layer morphologies, and device performance will be also be discussed.

This paper presents the synthesis and characterization of a polyisobutylene (PIB)-based nanostructured carbon-reinforced thermoplastic elastomer. This thermoplastic elastomer is based on a self-assembling block copolymer having a branched PIB core carrying -OH functional groups at each branch point, flanked by blocks of poly(isobutylene-co-para-methylstyrene). The block copolymer has thermolabile physical crosslinks and can be processed as a plastic, yet retains its rubbery properties at room temperature. The carbon-reinforced thermoplastic elastomer had more than twice the tensile strength of the neat polymer, exceeding the strength of medical grade silicone rubber, while remaining significantly softer. The carbon-reinforced thermoplastic elastomer displayed a high T(g) of 126 degrees C, rendering the material steam-sterilizable. The carbon also acted as a free radical trap, increasing the onset temperature of thermal decomposition in the neat polymer from 256.6 degrees C to 327.7 degrees C. The carbon-reinforced thermoplastic elastomer had the lowest water contact angle at 82 degrees and surface nano-topography. After 180 days of implantation into rabbit soft tissues, the carbon-reinforced thermoplastic elastomer had the thinnest tissue capsule around the microdumbbell specimens, with no eosinophiles present. The material also showed excellent integration into bones., (Copyright 2009 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

[reaction: see text] Rate constants and product selectivities (S = ([ester product]/[acid product]) x ([water]/[alcohol solvent]) are reported for solvolyses of chloroacetyl chloride (3) at -10 degrees C and phenylacetyl chloride (4) at 0 degrees C in ethanol/ and methanol/water mixtures. Additional kinetic data are reported for solvolyses in acetone/water, 2,2,2-trifluoroethanol(TFE)/water, and TFE/ethanol mixtures. Selectivities and solvent effects for 3, including the kinetic solvent isotope effect (KSIE) of 2.18 for methanol, are similar to those for solvolyses of p-nitrobenzoyl chloride (1, Z = NO(2)); rate constants in acetone/water are consistent with a third-order mechanism, and rates and products in ethanol/ and methanol/water mixtures can be explained quantitatively by competing third-order mechanisms in which one molecule of solvent (alcohol or water) acts as a nucleophile and another acts as a general base (an addition/elimination reaction channel). Selectivities increase for 3 as water is added to alcohol. Solvent effects on rate constants for solvolyses of 3 are very similar to those of methyl chloroformate, but acetyl chloride shows a lower KSIE, and a higher sensitivity to solvent-ionizing power, explained by a change to an S(N)2/S(N)1 (ionization) reaction channel. Solvolyses of 4 undergo a change from the addition/elimination channel in ethanol to the ionization channel in aqueous ethanol (<80% v/v alcohol). The reasons for change in reaction channels are discussed in terms of the gas-phase stabilities of acylium ions, calculated using Gaussian 03 (HF/6-31G(d), B3LYP/6-31G(d), and B3LYP/6-311G(d,p) MO theory).

We report on a patient with systemic lupus erythematosus, who, during the course of the illness, developed thrombotic thrombocytopenic purpura. In this case, the coexistence of these two conditions was confirmed by laboratory and pathologic findings. The infusion of fresh frozen plasma with plasmapheresis reversed the course of thrombotic thrombocytopenic purpura.