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Functional materials with excellent electrical and magnetic properties have a potential application in most high-tech fields. Here, superparamagnetic graphene-Fe3O4 (G-F) nanosheet hybrids are prepared by a facile one-step hydrothermal process, which will beneficial to well combine with various polymer matrix to get binary functional composites. Polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) nanocomposites filled with G-F nanosheets are prepared by a three rolling method. The microstructures of G-F nanosheets as well as the electrical, piezoresistive, and magnetic properties of the G-F/PDMS nanocomposites are investigated. Slightly above the percolation threshold ( fc = 3.4 wt%), the G-F/PDMS nanocomposites with 3.65 wt% of G-F nanosheets show a high conductivity, which is about 10 orders of magnitudes higher than that of pure PDMS, showing an obvious insulator-semiconductor transition. Moreover, the resistance of the nanocomposites with G-F filler near the percolation threshold exponentially increases with the uniaxial pressure. The normalized resistance ( R/ R0) can reach up to 870 at 0.88 MPa with 3.65 wt% G-F nanosheets loading. The G-F/PDMS nanocomposites also show superparamagnetism with saturation magnetization values of 0.21 emu g−1. These results suggest that the G-F/PDMS nanocomposites in this work provide a new route to fabricate difunctional polymer-based nanocomposites with a potential application as flexible touch sensors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) is a chronic, non‐specific, inflammatory gastrointestinal disease that mainly consists of Crohn's disease and ulcerative colitis. However, the aetiology and pathogenesis of IBD are still unclear. B10 (IL‐10 producing regulatory B) cells, a subset of regulatory B cells, are known to contribute to intestinal homeostasis and the aberrant frequency of B10 cells is associated with IBD. We have recently reported that B10 cells can be induced by ManLAM (mannose‐capped lipoarabinomannan), a major cell‐wall lipoglycan of M tb (Mycobacterium tuberculosis). In the current study, the ManLAM‐induced B10 cells were adoptively transferred into IL(interleukin)‐10−/− mice and the roles of ManLAM‐induced B10 cells were investigated in DSS (dextran sodium sulphate)‐induced IBD model. ManLAM‐induced B10 cells decrease colitis severity in the mice. The B10 cells downregulate Th1 polarization in spleen and MLNs (mesenteric lymph nodes) of DSS‐treated mice. These results suggest that IL‐10 production by ManLAM‐treated B cells contributes to keeping the balance between CD4+ T cell subsets and protect mice from DSS‐induced IBD. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

With the development of advanced electronic devices and electric power systems, polymer-based dielectric film capacitors with high energy storage capability have become particularly important. Compared with polymer nanocomposites with widespread attention, all-organic polymers are fundamental and have been proven to be more effective choices in the process of scalable, continuous, and large-scale industrial production, leading to many dielectric and energy storage applications. In the past decade, efforts have intensified in this field with great progress in newly discovered dielectric polymers, fundamental production technologies, and extension toward emerging computational strategies. This review summarizes the recent progress in the field of energy storage based on conventional as well as heat-resistant all-organic polymer materials with the focus on strategies to enhance the dielectric properties and energy storage performances. The key parameters of all-organic polymers, such as dielectric constant, dielectric loss, breakdown strength, energy density, and charge-discharge efficiency, have been thoroughly studied. In addition, the applications of computer-aided calculation including density functional theory, machine learning, and materials genome in rational design and performance prediction of polymer dielectrics are reviewed in detail. Based on a comprehensive understanding of recent developments, guidelines and prospects for the future development of all-organic polymer materials with dielectric and energy storage applications are proposed.

Cancer-related systemic inflammation affects many aspects of malignancy. The platelet-to-lymphocyte ratio (PLR), an easily applicable inflammatory marker based on platelet and lymphocyte counts, is associated with the clinical outcome of some cancers. The present study aimed to investigate the prognostic significance of the preoperative PLR in a cohort of colorectal cancer (CRC) patients. A total of 138 patients with CRC were enrolled in this retrospective study. The optimal cutoff value for the PLR was calculated using receiver operating curve (ROC) analysis. The correlation of PLR with the clinicopathological characteristics of patients was explored. Cox proportional hazard analysis was applied to determine the independent prognostic effect of PLR. PLR of 248 yielded the most optimal predictive value for the prognosis of CRC [area under the curve (AUC) = 0.820]. High level of PLR was significantly associated with lymph node and distance metastasis ( P <0.001 and = 0.003, respectively), vascular and perinural invasion ( P <0.001), advanced TNM stage ( P <0.001), and poor differentiation ( P = 0.037). Furthermore, the univariable analysis showed a significant impact of increased PLR on OS (HR = 4.326, 95% CI: 2.903-6.445, P <0.001), while this association remained significant in multivariable analysis (adjusted HR = 4.605, 95% CI: 2.786-7.611, P <0.001). Our findings indicated that elevated preoperative PLR might have potential value in predicting poor outcome in patients with CRC., Competing Interests: None., (IJCEP Copyright © 2017.)