Search

Ag nanoparticles@polydopamine (AgNPs@PDA) core–shell particles were prepared by one-step oxidative–reductive reaction, which Ag+ was used as oxidant and dopamine as reducing agent. The dopamine was polymerized to PDA surface and shielded the Ag nanoparticles. The AgNPs@PDA particles were used as fillers and introduced into poly(vinylidene difluoride) (PVDF) to prepare the AgNPs@PDA/PVDF dielectric composites. AgNPs were introduced aiming to increase the dielectric constant of the composites and PDA was employed to improve the compatibility between fillers and polymer. The morphology and the dielectric properties of the AgNPs@PDA/PVDF composite films were thoroughly investigated. The influencing factors to the dielectric performances of the composites were studied, including the ratio of AgNO3 and dopamine, pH values of the preparing solution and the fraction of the fillers. The highest dielectric constant of the AgNPs@PDA/PVDF composites was about 53 when the content of fillers was 25 wt.% at 100 Hz. The percolation threshold of the composites was predicted at about 25.5 wt.%.

Reliable, scalable, and cost-effective processing technologies are crucial for practical applications of polymeric dielectric films in high-energy-density capacitors. Compared to the investigations of the design strategy and structure–property relationship of polymeric dielectric materials, far less attention has been paid to their processing technologies for applicable energy storage devices. In this chapter, we review the existing processing technologies for the fabrication of polymer dielectric thin films and discuss the specific considerations in processing for such dielectric materials. Dry processes, including extrusion, biaxial stretching, compression molding, etc., and wet processes, including spin-coating and solution-casting for polymeric dielectric thin films, are discussed in detail.

Herein a diaphragm type dielectric elastomer actuator by blending azobenzene dyes into a polyurethane matrix (Azo/PU) is described. The effects of azobenzene content on the dielectric, mechanical, and electromechanical properties of the Azo/PU blends are discussed. The resultant blends with azobenzene content ranging from 1 to 8 wt% were characterized. The dielectric permittivity of PU increased from 8.0 to 11.1 (increasing of 38.5%) at 1 wt% azo content and reached a maximum of 35.6 (increasing of 343%) at 4 wt% azo content. By blending with a small content of azo the dielectric breakdown strength reached 57 kV mm−1, which is 86% higher than that of the neat PU. The 30 μm thick diaphragm of Azo/PU blend with 1 wt% azo content exhibited the highest actuated displacement at the center around 700 μm. Meanwhile the neat PU gave a displacement of 25 μm. That is a 26-fold increase in actuation is obtained by blending only 1 wt% azo dyes into the PU matrix. Infrared spectroscopy was used to characterize the structure of the Azo/PU blends. The particular chemical structure the Azo/PU blend containing 1 wt% of azo dyes is proposed to be responsible for the improvement in electromechanical actuation.

Herein we report a novel and efficient approach to fabricate dielectric elastomers with enhanced dielectric constant and high dielectric strength. Azobenzenes with strong permanent dipole moments were synthesized to co-crosslink with hydroxyl-terminated polydimethylsiloxane through a simple one-step process, which realized a type of robust, molecularly homogenous silicone rubber (SR). The chemical structure, dielectric and mechanical properties of the resultant azo-g-PDMS elastomers with azobenzne contents ranging from 0 to 13.2 wt% were carefully characterized. The dielectric constant of azo-g-PDMS films at 1 kHz increased from 2.72 to 4.88 with the increase of azobenzene contents. By grafting with 4.0 wt% of azobenzene, the breakdown strength of azo-g-PDMS reached 89.4 V μm−1, which is 36% higher than that of pristine SR. The electric field induced deformation of silicone rubber could be enhanced by grafting with azobenzenes. The azo-g-PDMS film with 7.1 wt% of azobenzenes displayed a maximum area strain of 17%. Meanwhile, the azo-g-PDMS films exhibited a short response time (about 0.5 s) to the change in the electric field. Some prototype electromechanical actuators based on this type of azo-g-PDMS films were fabricated, demonstrating that the azo-g-PDMS dielectric elastomer is a very promising candidate for artificial muscle applications.

Chimeric antigen receptor-modified (CAR-modified) T cells have shown promising therapeutic effects for hematological malignancies, yet limited and inconsistent efficacy against solid tumors. The refinement of CAR therapy requires an understanding of the optimal characteristics of the cellular products, including the appropriate composition of CD4+ and CD8+ subsets. Here, we investigated the differential antitumor effect of CD4+ and CD8+ CAR T cells targeting glioblastoma-associated (GBM-associated) antigen IL-13 receptor α2 (IL13Rα2). Upon stimulation with IL13Rα2+ GBM cells, the CD8+ CAR T cells exhibited robust short-term effector function but became rapidly exhausted. By comparison, the CD4+ CAR T cells persisted after tumor challenge and sustained their effector potency. Mixing with CD4+ CAR T cells failed to ameliorate the effector dysfunction of CD8+ CAR T cells, while surprisingly, CD4+ CAR T cell effector potency was impaired when coapplied with CD8+ T cells. In orthotopic GBM models, CD4+ outperformed CD8+ CAR T cells, especially for long-term antitumor response. Further, maintenance of the CD4+ subset was positively correlated with the recursive killing ability of CAR T cell products derived from GBM patients. These findings identify CD4+ CAR T cells as a highly potent and clinically important T cell subset for effective CAR therapy.

2D carbon nanomaterials such as graphene and its derivatives, have gained tremendous research interests in energy storage because of their high capacitance and chemical stability. However, scalable synthesis of ultrathin carbon nanosheets with well-defined pore architectures remains a great challenge. Herein, the first synthesis of 2D hierarchical porous carbon nanosheets (2D-HPCs) with rich nitrogen dopants is reported, which is prepared with high scalability through a rapid polymerization of a nitrogen-containing thermoset and a subsequent one-step pyrolysis and activation into 2D porous nanosheets. 2D-HPCs, which are typically 1.5 nm thick and 1-3 µm wide, show a high surface area (2406 m2 g-1 ) and with hierarchical micro-, meso-, and macropores. This 2D and hierarchical porous structure leads to robust flexibility and good energy-storage capability, being 139 Wh kg-1 for a symmetric supercapacitor. Flexible supercapacitor devices fabricated by these 2D-HPCs also present an ultrahigh volumetric energy density of 8.4 mWh cm-3 at a power density of 24.9 mW cm-3 , which is retained at 80% even when the power density is increased by 20-fold. The devices show very high electrochemical life (96% retention after 10000 charge/discharge cycles) and excellent mechanical flexibility.

Exploiting green energy from environmental resources with high harvesting efficiency has always been an ambitious goal in materials science. Dielectric elastomer generator (DEG) is one of the most promising devices which could draw electrical energy from mechanical stress. However, the need for high deformability and dielectric properties poses great challenge. In this work, high permittivity inorganic fillers, copper calcium titanate (CCTO), were incorporated with a bimodal silicone rubber matrix aiming at improving dielectric, mechanical, and mechanic-electro conversion properties. The surfaces of the inorganic fillers were modified with polydopamine (PDA) layers first to enhance the interfacial interaction between the inorganic and polymer material, leading to better dispersion and greater dielectric property. Results showed at a bias voltage of 1500 V, the energy harvested by the 26 wt% CCTO@PDA incorporated composite was 0.69 mJ/cm3, twice as much as the polymer matrix. The energy conversion efficiency of 20 wt% CCTO@PDA incorporated composite elastomer was at the maximum of 3.36%, increased by 68% compared to the pure matrix.

Textile-based energy-storage devices are highly appealing for flexible and wearable electronics. Here, a 3D textile cathode with high loading, which couples hollow multishelled structures (HoMSs) with conductive metallic fabric, is reported for high-performance flexible lithium-ion batteries. V2 O5 HoMSs prepared by sequential templating approach are used as active materials and conductive metallic fabrics are applied as current collectors and flexible substrates. Taking advantage of the desirable structure of V2 O5 HoMSs that effectively buffers the volume expansion and alleviates the stress/strain during repeated Li-insertion/extraction processes, as well as the robust flexible metallic-fabric current collector, the as-prepared fabric devices show excellent electrochemical performance and ultrahigh stability. The capacity retains a high value of 222.4 mA h g-1 at a high mass loading of 2.5 mg cm-2 even after 500 charge/discharge cycles, and no obvious performance degradation is observed after hundreds of cycles of bending and folding. These results indicate that V2 O5 HoMSs/metallic-fabric cathode electrode is promising for highly flexible lithium-ion batteries.

Alcohol sensor based on a single ultralong tellurium micrometer wire has been prepared. The alcohol sensor device consists of a quartz plate substrate with a single tellurium micrometer wire placed on its surface and bonded by silver paste. This sensor presents different shape I–V behaviors in water, ethanol, methanol, and isopropanol due to their different abilities for providing free electric electrons. The response time is rapid in methanol and the current decreases by three orders of magnitude. The sensor also presents different shape I–V behaviors in different concentrations of alcohol aqueous solution. The current decrease with the contents of ethyl alcohol increase exponentially.

In this work, core-shell structured BaTiO 3 /polystyrene nanoparticles (BT-PS) with different thickness of PS shell were synthesized through atom transfer radical polymerization and the influence of their shell thickness on dielectric properties of BT-PS/PS composites was studied. Two types of BT-PS with the PS shell of 3 nm or 12 nm were obtained by controlling the polymerization time. The structure of BT-PS was carefully characterized by infrared spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction, thermal gravimetric analysis, and transmission electron microscope. The results confirmed the successful preparation of core-shell BT-PS nanoparticles. Compared to pristine BT, the core-shell particles can be more homogeneously dispersed into PS matrix. As a result, higher dielectric constant, higher breakdown strength, and lower dielectric loss were achieved in BT-PS/PS composites. Moreover, the dielectric constant of BT-PS/PS composites displayed frequency independent behavior. In addition, the composites filled by BT-PS with 3 nm of PS shell showed better dielectric properties than those filled by BT-PS with 12 nm of PS shell. A maximum energy density as large as 4.24 J/cm 3 was obtained in BT-PS/PS films.

In this work, self-assembly method was used to improve the dielectric constant of triblock copolymers. A series of ABA triblock copolymers with a defined length of poly(n-butyl acrylate) (PBA, B block) segment and different lengths of liquid crystalline (LC) poly[11-(4-cyano-4′-biphenoxy)undecyl methacrylate] (P11CBMA, A block) segments were synthesized by using the atom transfer radical polymerization method. The well-defined triblock copolymers P11CBMAm-b-PBAn-b-P11CBMAm possess three different B/A ratios (n = 50, m = 17, 43, 53). Due to the supramolecular cooperative motion effect, the copolymers can form worm-like microstructure (WLC = 52.8%), cylinder-like nanostructure with P11CBMA phase embedded in PBA matrix (WLC = 73.9%), and wide stripe structure with LC domains distributed unevenly in a continuous PBA matrix (WLC = 77.7%) after annealed at 160°C (above Ti) under N2 for 24 h, respectively. In order to study the influence of microphase separated morphology of triblock copolymer on the dielectric properties, solvent annealing was also used to develop various nanostructures. After thermal or solvent annealing, the dielectric constants of block copolymers increased dramatically while their loss factors remained the same. For different block copolymers, the dielectric constants increased with the increase of the LC block length. For diverse treatments, dielectric permittivities of samples varied widely with different nanostructures. The results show that the dielectric constants of block copolymers could be tuned by the block ratios and the self-assembled microstructures. These findings will inspire researchers using self-assembly method to design and develop novel flexible materials with high dielectric permittivity. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

International audience; The selective localization of multiwalled carbon nanotubes (MWNTs) in immiscible polystyrene (PS)/ poly(vinylidene fluoride) (PVDF) blends (volume ratio of both components is 1/1) and its effect on composites' dielectric, thermal, and mechanical properties are systematically studied. Employing two-step mixing process can make MWNTs localize in PS or PVDF phase successfully. When three components are simply mixed together by one-step processing, the MWNTs are selectively distributed in PVDF phase, which is supported by the dielectric measurements and the SEM observations and is consistent with the wetting coefficient evaluation. For the two-step mixing, when the fillers are first mixed with PS in the first step, some of them will migrate into PVDF phase in the second step although the migration is very slow. When the overall volume fraction of MWNTs is 3.9 vol%, the selective localization of MWNTs in PVDF phase produces higher dielectric constant (e0, ca. 485) than the case when the fillers are only in PS phase (e0 of ca. 16) at 100 Hz and room temperature of 25 degrees C. Differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) measurements and mechanical tests show that the selective localization of all the fillers in PVDF phase produces little change of the melting point and crystallinity of PVDF component but slightly higher tensile strength. In contrast to the one-step mixing process, the two-step mixing to selectively localize the fillers in their favorite phase could be used to control the dielectric and mechanical properties of the materials.

Purpose: To investigate the function of co-stimulatory molecule CD27 on the antitumor efficacy of chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T cells. Experimental Design: IL13 receptor α2 (IL13Rα2)-targeted CAR T cell products from glioblastoma (GBM) patients were characterized for CD27 surface expression and proliferation potential against recursive tumor challenge. Isolated CD27+ and CD27- fractions of CAR T cells were then evaluated for their antitumor potency against orthotopic GBM xenografts, as well as their molecular characteristics before and after tumor stimulation. Further, T cells were engineered to express a CAR construct together with a constitutively-expressed CD27 to investigate the role of continuous CD27 costimulation on CAR T cell maintenance and effector potency. Results: CD27 expression on CAR T cell products was correlated with their proliferation capacity against recursive tumor stimulation. Isolated CD27+ CAR T cells outperformed CD27- and unsorted cells in mediating long-term tumor eradication. CD27+ CAR T cells exhibited memory-associated genetic signatures, and were less exhausted following in vitro and in vivo tumor stimulation, both phenotypically and functionally. Moreover, CD27 also sensitized CAR T cells to target low antigen-expressing tumors. When targeting tumor cells expressing CD70 (CD27 ligand), CD27 on CAR T cells became rapidly down-regulated, suggesting a transient CD27-CD70 interaction. The advantageous effector function of CD27+ CAR T cells was diminished by blocking the CD27-CD70 interaction with CD70-targeting antibodies. CD70 is also expressed on CAR T cells, displaying a mutually exclusive expression pattern with CD27. Extended in vitro culture resulted in a phenotypic switch of CAR T cells from CD27+CD70- to CD27-CD70+. Surprisingly, constitutive expression of CD27 (CD27-cons) greatly impaired the effector activity of CAR T cells. These cells were able to eliminate tumor cells in vitro, but failed to mediate potent antitumor effect in vivo. Further characterization showed an early exhaustion phenotype for CD27-cons CAR T cells during in vitro expansion. Additionally, CD27-cons CAR T cells were also prone to activation-induced T cell apoptosis especially against high antigen-expressing targets. Conclusion: These studies demonstrate a dual-function of CD27 costimulation for CAR T cell antitumor activity. In the enriched CD27+ CAR T cell subset, the transient CD27-CD70 interaction with tumor cells resulted in enhanced antitumor potency. By contrast, constitutively expressed CD27 drove CAR T cell exhaustion and induced apoptosis. These results illustrate the critical role of CD27 in mediating potent CAR T cell therapeutic efficacy, and suggest the potential of CD27 as a marker for the functional quality of CAR T cell products. Citation Format: Dongrui Wang, Alfonso Brito, Darya Alizadeh, Renate Starr, Brenda Aguilar, Behnam Badie, Stephen J. Forman, Christine E. Brown. Dual-function of CD27-CD70 costimulatory signal in CAR T cell therapy [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the American Association for Cancer Research Annual Meeting 2019; 2019 Mar 29-Apr 3; Atlanta, GA. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2019;79(13 Suppl):Abstract nr 2321.

The structural parameters of uranyl complexes may provide important hints for understanding the electronic structure of the U–X (ligand) bond. The present study aims to identify a reliable theoretical method to simulate the structures of different uranyl complexes. Examining the performance of different relativistic effective core pseudopotentials (RECPs) and different density functional theory (DFT) methods, we found that the overall performances of BB1K/(SDD-MWB60:6-311G(d,p)) (M2-B1) and LC-BLYP/(SDD-MWB60:6-311G(d,p)) (M7-B1) methods are better than all the other examined ones (including the popular B3LYP method). Good linear correlations have been achieved between the calculation results with M2-B1 or M7-B1 and the experimental ones (X-ray crystal structure). The R2 values of both these methods are about 0.985, and the SD values are both about 0.05 A for 68 U–X bond distances. On this basis, the preliminary ligand structure-binding ability analysis of U–O bonds and the elucidation of the binding mode of the azide group in the concerned U–N(azide) compound have been provided.

We report an in situ thermal reduction of graphene oxide (GO) in a styrene–ethylene/butylene–styrene (SEBS) triblock copolymer matrix during a melt-blending process. A relatively high degree of reduction was achieved by melt-blending premixed GO/SEBS nanocomposites in a Haake mixer for 25 min at 225 °C. Infrared spectral results revealed the successful thermal reduction of, and the strong adsorption of SEBS on, the graphene sheets. The glass transition temperature of polystyrene (PS) segments in SEBS was enhanced by the incorporation of thermally reduced graphene oxide (TRGO). The resultant TRGO/SEBS nanocomposites were used as a masterbatch to improve the mechanical properties of PS. Both the elongation at break and the flexural strength of PS/SEBS blends were enhanced with the addition of the TRGO. Our demonstration of the in situ thermal reduction of GO via melt blending is a simple, efficient strategy for preparing nanocomposites with well-dispersed TRGO in the polymer matrix, which could be an important route for large-scale fabrication of high-performance graphene/polymer nanocomposites. © 2013 Society of Chemical Industry

BaTiO3 (BT) nanoparticles with three kinds of diameters were synthesized by alkoxide route and then dispersed into a thermoplastic polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF) and a thermoset polyimide (PI)) to fabricate the BT/PVDF and the BT/PI nanocomposite films. Effects of nanoparticle size and polymer matrix on the dielectric properties were studied by two different measurement procedures at frequencies from 10−2 Hz to 106 Hz. A significant discrepancy of dielectric behaviors between the BT/PVDF films and the BT/PI films was found. The roles of nanoparticles (size and crystal phase) and properties of polymers (chemistry and chain structure) are used to explain the difference in dielectric behaviors.

International audience; In this paper, we report the preparation and dielectric properties of reduced graphene oxide/polypropylene (rGO/PP) composites with an ultralow percolation threshold as low as 0.033 vol%. This value is the lowest among those that have been reported in graphene-filled composites. The rGO/PP composites were prepared through a latex technique, which consists of an in-situ chemical reduction of graphene oxide in PP latex and a subsequent filtration. Scanning electron microscopy and X-ray diffraction measurements demonstrate that the homogeneous dispersion of rGO nanosheets in the PP matrix was realized. A blue shift in Raman G band of the rGO nanosheets was observed in the rGO/PP composites, indicating the strong interaction between the rGO filler and the PP matrix. In the frequency range from 10(2) Hz to 10(7) Hz, the rGO/PP composites showed an insulator-to-conductor percolation transition as the increase of the rGO loading. Near the percolation threshold, the dielectric permittivity of the rGO/PP composites underwent a significant change of three orders of magnitude. Moreover, the permittivity was found to be temperature dependent.

In this paper, polymer dispersed liquid crystals (PDLC) films with LC content as low as 40 wt% were prepared, and the electro-optical properties were carefully investigated. To accomplish this, different (meth)acrylate copolymerizaiton monomers have been used. The electro-optical properties and morphologies of the PDLC films were strongly influenced by the chemical structure of copolymerization monomers (hydroxypropyl methacrylate (HPMA), glycidyl methacrylate, hydroxypropyl acrylate) and their feed ratio. Lower driven voltage and higher contrast ratio were achieved when the PDLC films showed a morphology with suitably LC domain size. At high HPMA content, a thin polymer film was formed on the surface of PDLC samples, which is beneficial to decrease the total LC content in PDLC devices. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Piezoresistive nanocomposites using alkyl-functionalized graphene (G-ODA) as a conducting filler and polydimethylsilicone (PDMS) as the polymer matrix were prepared and their piezoresistivity behavior was investigated. One-pot synthesis of G-ODA from graphite oxide and octadecylamine improved its dispersion in nonpolar xylene and PDMS with low surface free energy. Results show that the graphene nanosheets were homogeneously dispersed in the PDMS matrix and an ultra-low percolation threshold (0.63 vol%) of the composites was obtained. The G-ODA/PDMS composites with 1.19 vol% content of G-ODA show a remarkable positive piezoresistivity of high sensitivity (R/R0 > 400 under the pressure of 1.2 MPa), excellent repeatability, small hysteresis, and long-term durability. Under uniaxial compression, the resistance of the composites exponentially increased with the pressure. The resistance–pressure curves remain nearly unchanged after 1000 loading–unloading cycles. The results suggest that the G-ODA/PDMS nanocomposites provide a new route toward fabrication of soft piezoresistive sensors with high performance.

High-performance supercapacitors (SCs) are promising energy storage devices to meet the pressing demand for future wearable applications. Because the surface area of a human body is limited to 2 m2 , the key challenge in this field is how to realize a high areal capacitance for SCs, while achieving rapid charging, good capacitive retention, flexibility, and waterproofing. To address this challenge, low-cost materials are used including multiwall carbon nanotube (MWCNT), reduced graphene oxide (RGO), and metallic textiles to fabricate composite fabric electrodes, in which MWCNT and RGO are alternatively vacuum-filtrated directly onto Ni-coated cotton fabrics. The composite fabric electrodes display typical electrical double layer capacitor behavior, and reach an ultrahigh areal capacitance up to 6.2 F cm-2 at a high areal current density of 20 mA cm-2 . All-solid-state fabric-type SC devices made with the composite fabric electrodes and water-repellent treatment can reach record-breaking performance of 2.7 F cm-2 at 20 mA cm-2 at the first charge-discharge cycle, 3.2 F cm-2 after 10 000 charge-discharge cycles, zero capacitive decay after 10 000 bending tests, and 10 h continuous underwater operation. The SC devices are easy to assemble into tandem structures and integrate into garments by simple sewing.

International audience; n this work, two series of nanocomposites of poly(vinylidene fluoride) (PVDF) incorporated with reduced graphene oxide (rGO) and poly(vinyl alcohol)-modified rGO (rGO-PVA) were fabricated using solution-cast method and their dielectric properties were carefully characterized. Infrared spectroscopy and atom force microscope analysis indicated that PVA chains were successfully grafted onto graphene through ester linkage. The PVA functionalization of graphene surface can not only prevent the agglomeration of original rGO but also enhance the interaction between PVDF and rGO-PVA. Strong hydrogen bonds and charge transfer effect between rGO-PVA and PVDF were determined by infrared and Raman spectroscopies. The dielectric properties of rGO-PVA/PVDF and rGO/PVDF nanocomposites were investigated in a frequency range from 10(2) Hz to 10(2) Hz. Both composite systems exhibited an insulator-to-conductor percolating transition as the increase of the filler content. The percolation thresholds were estimated to be 2.24 vol % for rGO-PVA/PVDF composites and 0.61 vol % for rGO/PVDF composites, respectively. Near the percolation threshold, the dielectric permittivity of the nanocomposites was significantly promoted, which can be well explained by interfacial polarization effect and microcapacitor model. Compared to rGO/PVDF composites, higher dielectric constant and lower loss factor were simultaneously achieved in rGO-PVA/PVDF nanocomposites at a frequency range lower than 1 X 10(3) Hz. This work provides a potential design strategy based on graphene Interface engineering, which would lead to higher-performance flexible dielectric materials.

The recent development of Au-catalyzed reactions has greatly enriched the methods of organic synthesis. The phosphine or phosphate-coordinated Au complexes have shown high efficiency in catalyzing various CC and CH activations. In many of these reactions, the AuP bond strength was found to play an important role in determining the catalytic efficiency. In the present study, the accuracy of different theoretical methods for prediction of AuP strengths has been examined on basis of the experimental enthalpy changes between different ClAu(PR3) and ClAu(THT) (THT=tetrahydrothiophene). By comparing the different DFT functionals (e.g. B3LYP, TPSS, M06), different basis sets (including the different effective core potentials on Au and the total electron basis sets on all other atoms), and different solution phase single point calculations, we found that the TPSS/(CPE-121G+f:6-311+G(d,p)(SMD)//TPSS/(CPE-121G:6-31G(d) (M1) method gives the best correlations with the available experimental results. Meanwhile, the calculations with B3LYP//TPSS and M05//TPSS also give comparable calculation results. Finally, the specified method (M1) is used to calculate the AuP bond dissociation enthalpies and energies of different ClAu(PR3)/ClAu(P(OR)3) complexes. By accurately reproducing the available experimental results, we believe that the method (M1) is reliable for the theoretical analysis of Au-P systems.

Semiconductive polymer shielding layers of power cable require stable volume resistivity to protect the insulation layer from stress enhancements when carbon black (CB)/polymer composite undergoes thermal cycles. For the CB-filled polymer composites, CB would often re-aggregate when temperature is close to the melting point of polymer matrix, so that the conductive network would be destroyed. Re-distribution of CB and re-formation of conductive CB network under thermal cycles might be the main reason for the instability of volume resistivity. In this work, the re-aggregation of CB in the CB/polymer composites was disclosed. Besides, a small amount of multi-walled carbon nanotubes (MWNTs) was employed as cofiller with CB to improve the stability of volume resistivity of the polymer composites under thermal cycles. The total weight fraction of conductive fillers (CB or CB cofilled with MWNTs) was set as 35 wt%. Compared with the polymer composites loaded with CB solely, the volume resistivity of the composites filled with CB-MWNTs was much more stable with changing temperature. This can be attributed to the enhancement of conductive networks when the MWNTs are employed as second conductive filler.

Novel physically crosslinked polyurethane-hexafluorobutyl methacrylate (PU-M) copolymers were prepared by the macroiniferter-controlled radical polymerization method. The chemical structures of the PU-M copolymers were characterized by FT-IR, (1)H-NMR, GPC, DSC, and XPS. The self-assembly and surface properties of the PU-M copolymers have been investigated. The results revealed that PU-M copolymers have good hydrophobility, so the hydrophobility of polyurethane could be easily adjusted by controlling the content of the hydrophobic vinyl monomers. The mechanical evaluation shows that PU-M copolymers exhibit good mechanical properties. The effects of the fluorine content on the surface properties and self-assembly of the PU-M copolymers were investigated. The morphology of the PU-M copolymers' self-assembly was observed by transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and the mechanism of self-assembly was investigated. Antimicrobial property of the chlorinated PU-M copolymers against both Escherichia coli and Bacillus subtilis bacteria was examined and showed increase compared to that of pure polyurethane.

Graphene, a true two dimensional nanomaterial with the layer thickness of one atom, has showed many outstanding properties and aroused tremendous research enthusiasm. Azobenzene-containing polymers and other materials have also attracted considerable attention because of the unique photoresponsive properties. Graphene/ azobenzene hybrids materials can combine interesting properties of graphere and azobenzene-containing materials and have been studied in authors and other laboratories in recent years. This review highlighted some recent research progresses in this area. The content of this article included the preparations of graphene/azobenzene hybrids materials through surface-grafting of azo polymers, covalent-bonding modification with low-molecular-weight azo compounds and electrostatic layer-by-layer deposition. The photoresponsive properties and application in the electronchemical energy storage device of the materials were also reviewed in some detail.

A comparative study of the dielectric properties of poly(vinylidene fluoride) (PVDF) based nanocomposites with pristine multiwalled carbon nanotubes (MWNTs) and surface-modified MWNTs with core/shell structure (denoted as MEB) as fillers, was reported. Compared with MWNTs/PVDF composites, the MEB/PVDF composites exhibited lower loss tangent and higher dielectric permittivity. It is suggested that the conductive/nonconducting core/shell structure of the MEB filler is the main cause of the improved dielectric properties. Percolation based MWNTs networks is in charge of the improvement of dielectric permittivity, and the nonconducting emeraldine base layer of the MEB filler supports the low loss tangent and low conductivity in the MEB/PVDF composites.

Encouraging clinical experience with chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T cells supports the notion that even immune-privileged sites such as the brain may be amenable to CAR T therapy. In the context of hematologic B cell malignancies, CD19-CARs have been shown to accumulate in the cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) and reduce the incidence of metastatic disease in the central nervous system. However, treatment of solid tumors, including brain tumors, has proven quite challenging due to heterogeneous antigen expression, suboptimal trafficking, and immunosuppressive networks in the tumor microenvironment that limit CAR T cell function and persistence. This presentation will describe our efforts to overcome these challenges for the treatment of glioblastoma (GBM), one of the most common and aggressive primary malignant brain tumors. Tumor antigen selection is a key challenge for CAR T therapy of brain tumors, as on-target/off-tumor toxicities could be life-threatening. Our preclinical studies demonstrate that a glioma-associated protein, interleukin 13 receptor alpha 2 (IL13Rα2), is an attractive CAR T cell target for glioblastoma in part because this tumor-restricted antigen is expressed by the majority of GBM. Initial clinical findings demonstrate that local delivery of IL13Rα2-CAR T cells is feasible and safe, with evidence for clinical activity in patients. In addition, as part of our on-going efforts to expand the repertoire of immunologic targets for GBM, we have optimized a HER2-CAR and developed a novel toxin-based CAR harnessing the selective GBM-binding properties of chlorotoxin (CLTX). To reduce the potential for tumor antigen escape, we are exploring approaches that leverage multiple antigens, including combining CAR T cells specific to different antigens and developing tandem CARs. Another challenge is achieving efficient tumor trafficking and infiltration of CAR T cells to brain tumors. While different routes of delivery present advantages and disadvantages, our preclinical studies using several tumor models suggest that locoregional delivery, into either the tumor or cerebral spinal fluid (CSF), is more effective than systemic delivery for treatment of brain tumors. These studies underlie our clinical approach of infusing T cells into both the resected tumor cavity and CSF. Indeed, we have demonstrated that CAR T cells administered into the CSF induced a complete response in a patient with recurrent multifocal GBM, including metastatic lesions in the spine.Additional efforts are addressing the highly immunosuppressive GBM microenvironment that limits the effectiveness of adoptively transferred T cells. Our studies highlight the impact of the PD-1/PDL-1 immune checkpoint axis in reducing the antitumor activity of CAR T cells, an inhibition that can be overcome by anti-PD-1 checkpoint blockade. In another approach designed to interrogate the interplay between the tumor microenvironment (TME), host immune system, and CAR T cells, we have established a syngeneic mouse model recapitulating the invasive nature of GBM. These studies are elucidating the reciprocal interactions of CAR T cells, the immune landscape, and the inflammatory TME. In summary, this presentation will highlight on-going studies focusing on the biology of GBM, its microenvironment, and strategies to enhance CAR T cell approaches to more effectively treat brain tumors. Citation Format: Darya Alizadeh, Dongrui Wang, Renate Starr, Brenda Aguilar, Vanessa D. Jonsson , Saul J. Priceman, Michael E. Barish, Behnam Badie, Stephen J. Forman, Christine E. Brown. Advancing CAR T cell therapy for the treatment of brain tumors [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the Fourth CRI-CIMT-EATI-AACR International Cancer Immunotherapy Conference: Translating Science into Survival; Sept 30-Oct 3, 2018; New York, NY. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Immunol Res 2019;7(2 Suppl):Abstract nr IA15.

Glioblastoma (GBM) is the most common type of primary brain tumor, with the standard therapy only modestly improving the prognosis, highlighting the necessity to develop advanced treatments. We and others have established the platform to potentiate immune response against GBMs using chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) engineered T-cells. Specifically, we have shown that intracranial administration of CAR T-cells can be well tolerated in patients with recurrent GBMs, together with some early clinical evidence of antitumor response. However, CAR T-cell therapy against GBMs is complicated by the inter- and intratumoral heterogeneity, while the single-targeting therapies only respond to a subset of tumor cells. The development of new CAR therapy would thus aim for targeting a wider range of tumor cells and bypassing antigen escape. Here, we took an approach different from conventional strategies of tumor antigen discovery, exploiting the tumor-binding potential of a natural peptide to develop CAR T-cells that broadly target GBMs. Chlorotoxin (CLTX) is a 36-amino acid peptide with demonstrated GBM-binding capability. Inspired by the utilization of CLTX in GBM tumor imaging, we used a fluorescence-conjugated CLTX to screen the freshly-dispersed primary GBM cells and patient-derived GBM neurospheres, and found that CLTX binding was more homogeneous than the expression of other GBM-associated antigens including EGFR, HER2 and IL13Rα2. Although CLTX has limited inhibitory effect on GBM growth, its broad binding to GBM cells illustrates the potential to be conjugated with a cytotoxic agent. Therefore, we generated CAR T-cells bearing CLTX as the antigen targeting domain. CLTX-CAR T-cells were able to get activated after stimulating with GBM cells, as indicated by their degranulation, cytokine production and immuno-synapse formation. Modification of CAR constructs revealed that CLTX-CAR T-cells with CD28 costimulatory signal exhibited potent effector activity, while the 4-1BB costimulation resulted in inadequate CAR activation. In both in vitro and in vivo models, CLTX-CAR T-cells effectively eliminated GBM cells and tumors, including the ones with no/low expression of EGFR, HER2 and IL13Rα2. Importantly, CLTX peptide exhibited negligible binding to a panel of normal cells from neural and other tissues, and CLTX-CAR T-cells showed no off-target effect against normal organs in tumor-bearing mouse models. Screening on patient-derived GBM neurospheres, we discovered that the expression of metalloproteinase (MMP)-2 on targeT-cells was correlated with the effector function of CLTX-CAR T-cells. Further, the antitumor function of CLTX-CAR T-cells was severely diminished against GBMs with MMP-2 knockdown. Consistent with the cytotoxicity of CLTX-CAR T-cells, MMP-2 expression was also present in a subgroup of GBM cells with undetectable levels of EGFR, HER2 and IL13Rα2 expression. Our results demonstrate for the first time that a peptide toxin can be successfully used as the tumor targeting domain of a CAR, which eliminates GBMs with high efficiency and selectivity. The CLTX-CAR has the potential to limit GBM heterogeneity and compensate current CAR T-cell therapies against solid tumors. Citation Format: Dongrui Wang, Vanessa Jonsson, Sarah Wright, Wen-Chung Chang, Xin Yang, Renate Starr, Alfonso Brito, Brenda Aguilar, Aniee Sarkissian, Lihong Weng, Stephen J Forman, Michael E Barish, Christine E. Brown. Chlorotoxin redirects T-cells for specific and effective targeting against glioblastomas [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the Fourth CRI-CIMT-EATI-AACR International Cancer Immunotherapy Conference: Translating Science into Survival; Sept 30-Oct 3, 2018; New York, NY. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Immunol Res 2019;7(2 Suppl):Abstract nr A045.

Novel physically crosslinked polyurethane–itaconic acid (PU–I) copolymer hydrogels were synthesized by the macroiniferter-controlled radical polymerization method. The structures of the PU–I copolymer hydrogels were characterized by 1H NMR, FTIR, GPC, and DSC. The water contact angles and self-assembly of the PU–I copolymer hydrogels have been investigated. The results revealed that PU–I copolymer hydrogels have good hydrophilicity, so the water contact angles of polyurethane could be easily adjusted by controlling the content of the hydrophilic vinyl monomers. The PU–I copolymer hydrogels were subjected to solvent-induced self-assembly in THF + water to construct a variety of morphologies. The morphology of the PU–I copolymer hydrogels’ self-assembly was observed by scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM), and the mechanism of self-assembly was investigated.

Surface-relief-grating formation induced by Ar + laser irradiation was studied using two series of side-chain azo polymers with narrow M r distribution. The methacrylate-based azo polymers were synthesized using an approach that combined atom transfer radical polymerization and post-polymerization azo-coupling. The azo polymers were characterized using spectroscopic methods, GPC measurement as well as thermal analysis. The surface-relief-grating formation behavior of the azo polymers was examined by irradiating thin polymer films with interfering Ar + laser beams. Whilst the M r of the two polymers had no effect upon surface-relief-grating inscription rate, in contrast, different rates of grating formation and modulation depths were observed for the two polymers.

Novel fluorinated polyurethanes (FPUs) were prepared by living radical polymerization of polyurethanes and hexafluorobutyl acrylate. The structures of the FPUs were characterized by FTIR, 1H NMR, GPC, DSC, and XPS. The fluorinated polyurethane polymerization was investigated and showed monomer conversion, and molecular weight increased with increasing reaction time. In this way, the fluorine content in polyurethane could be easily adjusted by controlling the content of the fluorinated acrylate monomer. The mechanical evaluation shows that FPUs exhibit good mechanical properties. Morphology of FPU films was observed by scanning electron spectroscopy. The effects of the fluorine content on the surface properties and oxidative stability of FPUs were investigated. FPUs films were devoid of significant surface degradation after immersion in 20% H2O2 and 0.1 M CoCl2 at 37 °C for 5 weeks. © 2009 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem 47: 3248–3256, 2009

This article reports the synthesis and photoinduced mass-migration behavior of two amphiphilic side-chain azo diblock copolymers (PEG-b-P2CN, PEG-b-P6CN), which contain ethylene and hexamethylene a...

In this work, a series of amphiphilic diblock copolymers bearing strong push–pull type azo chromophores was synthesized through post-polymerization azo-coupling reaction scheme. The copolymers (P(CNAZO m - b -MAA n )), composed of 2-( N -ethyl- N -(4-(4′-cyanophenylazo)-phenyl)amino)ethyl methacrylate (CNAZO) and methacrylic acid (MAA) blocks, were obtained through four-step reactions. Firstly, precursor diblock copolymers (P(EMA m - b - t BMA n )) were obtained through sequential two-stage ATRP reactions of 2-( N -ethyl- N -phenylamino)ethyl methacrylate (EMA) and tert -butyl methacrylate ( t BMA). Then, 4-amino-4′-cyanoazobenzene chromophores were introduced by azo-coupling reaction of P(EMA m - b - t BMA n ) with diazonium salt of 4-aminobenzonitrile. Finally, P(CNAZO m - b -MAA n ) was obtained through selective hydrolysis of the tert -butyl ester linkages in the t BMA blocks. Three block copolymers with the same CNAZO block length ( m = 100) and different MAA block lengths ( n = 5, 13, 23) were prepared by this method. The polymer and copolymers prepared in the process were characterized by GPC, 1 H NMR, UV–vis, DSC and TGA measurements. Results show that P(CNAZO m - b -MAA n ) forms spherical micellar aggregates by gradually increasing the water content in THF/H 2 O mixtures. The diameters of the spherical aggregates are related to the composition of the block copolymers and the water-adding rate. The block copolymer with larger molecular weight of the hydrophilic MAA block forms the aggregates with the smaller average size. The increase of the water-adding rate also shows an effect to reduce the diameters. Upon irradiation with a linearly polarized Ar + laser beam, the spherical aggregates can be elongated in the light polarization direction. The deformation degree shows an almost linear dependence on the light irradiation time in the testing period. The deformed aggregates can recover the original spherical shape after thermal annealing at a temperature above T g of the block copolymer.

This article reports the synthesis, characterization, and multimorphological aggregation of a series of amphiphilic diblock copolymers bearing strong push−pull azo chromophores. The diblock copolymers (PEGx-b-PCNy), which consist of poly(ethylene glycol) (PEG) and 2-(N-ethyl-N-(4-(4′-cyanophenylazo)phenyl)amino)ethyl methacrylate (PCN) blocks, were synthesized through atom transfer radical polymerization (ATRP) and postpolymerization azo-coupling reaction. PEGx-b-PCNy was prepared to have different hydrophilic/hydrophobic ratios (x = 122, y = 24, 62, 129, 224). Self-assembled aggregates were formed by the gradual addition of water to the solutions of the copolymers in THF. The formation process and morphology of the aggregates were characterized by DLS, SLS, SEM, and TEM. Results show that the block polymers start to form aggregates at the critical water content (CWC), which is related to the initial polymer concentration in THF and PCN block length. The morphology of the aggregates formed in the solution...

A precursor polymer PEO-b-PEMA that contains anilino moieties is synthesized from EPAEMA by ATRP by using a PEOBr macroinitiator and CuBr/HMTETA catalyst system. The aminoazobenzene-containing block copolymer PEO-b-PCN is obtained by the azo-coupling reaction between PEO-b-PEMA and the diazonium salt of 4-aminobenzonitrile. Results show that PEO-b-PCN has a narrow molecular weight distribution and the repeat unit numbers of the hydrophilic and hydrophobic blocks are 122 and 200, respectively. PEO-b-PCN can form uniform spherical aggregates by gradually adding water into its THF solution. Upon irradiation with a linearly polarized Ar + laser beam, the spherical aggregates can be significantly elongated in the polarization direction of the light.

Printing of metal bottom back electrodes of flexible organic solar cells (FOSCs) at low temperature is of great significance to realize the full-solution fabrication technology. However, this has been difficult to achieve because often the interfacial properties of those printed electrodes, including conductivity, roughness, work function, optical and mechanical flexibility, cannot meet the device requirement at the same time. In this work, we fabricate printed Ag and Cu bottom back cathodes by a low-temperature solution technique named polymer-assisted metal deposition (PAMD) on flexible PET substrates. Branched polyethylenimine (PEI) and ZnO thin films are used as the interface modification layers (IMLs) of these cathodes. Detailed experimental studies on the electrical, mechanical, and morphological properties, and simulation study on the optical properties of these IMLs are carried out to understand and optimize the interface of printed cathodes. We demonstrate that the highest power conversion efficiency over 3.0% can be achieved from a full-solution processed OFSC with the device structure being PAMD-Ag/PEI/P3HT:PC61BM/PH1000. This device also acquires remarkable stability upon repeating bending tests.

High permittivity polymer-based composites are highly desired due to their potential applications as high energy density capacitors and inherent advantages of easy processing, flexibility and light weight. Graphene, a two-dimensional nanomaterial with a layer thickness of one atom, has showed many outstanding properties and aroused tremendous research enthusiasm. Its large aspect ratio, high surface area and high electric conductivity make it an ideal filler for fabricating polymer-based percolative nanocomposites with high dielectric performance. This chapter reviews progresses in graphene-filled polymer nanocomposites with high permittivity that have been made over the past few years. The basic theory of percolation and the interface effect of graphene/polymer on the dielectric properties of nanocomposites are discussed.

Glioblastoma (GBM) is one of the most lethal cancers with standard approaches of surgery, radiation and chemotherapy only moderately increasing patient survival. Immunotherapies employing chimeric antigen receptor (CAR)-redirected T cells are being applied for the treatment of many cancers including GBM, with early indications of clinical promise. One of the challenges of CAR therapy for the treatment of GBM and other solid tumors is the heterogeneity of cells within a given tumor, which allows for escape of antigen-negative cells and tumor recurrence. Therefore, future progress in the application of CAR T cell therapy to GBM requires identification of tumor-associated antigens broadly expressed on the majority of tumor cells. Such antigens, when targeted, would potentially limit opportunities for antigen escape. Previous studies have established that the scorpion toxin-derived peptide chlorotoxin (CLTX) binds to a wide-range of brain tumors, and we show that fluorescently-labeled CLTX binds a panel of primary GBM cells and low-passage GBM spheres with negligible binding to normal cells derived from neural and other tissues. Here, we report the development of a new class of CAR exploiting the GBM-binding potential of CLTX. T cells expressing this novel toxin-based CAR using CLTX as the targeting domain are activated in the presence of GBM cells. Moreover, these CAR-T cells are able to eradicate GBM cells of varying TCGA subtype and displaying a variety of antigen expression patterns in both in vitro co-culture and in vivo orthotopic models. Notably, CLTX binds mouse GBM cells, yet CLTX-CAR T cells caused no pathological alterations of normal mouse tissues, indicating that these cells have few or no off-target effects. Taken together, these studies support the potential utility of CLTX-CAR T cells to effectively target GBM while overcoming GBM heterogeneity and thus limiting antigen escape.

Because of the great breakthroughs of self-healing materials in the past decade, endowing devices with self-healing ability has emerged as a particularly promising route to effectively enhance the device durability and functionality. This article summarizes recent advances in self-healing materials developed for energy harvesting and storage devices (e.g., nanogenerators, solar cells, supercapacitors, and lithium-ion batteries) over the past decade. This review first introduces the main self-healing mechanisms among different materials including insulators, electrical conductors, semiconductors, and ionic conductors. Then, the basic concepts, fabrication techniques, and healing performances of the newly developed self-healing energy harvesting (nanogenerators and solar cells) and storage (supercapacitors and lithium-ion batteries) devices are described in detail. Finally, the existing challenges and promising solutions of self-healing materials and devices are discussed.

Purpose: To compare antitumor effector function mediated by CD4+ and CD8+ chimeric antigen receptor (CAR)-T cells targeting IL13 receptor α2 (IL13Rα2) for treatment of glioblastoma (GBM). Experimental Design: CD4+ and CD8+ IL13Rα2-specific CAR-T cells, derived from enriched central memory T cells (Tcm), were evaluated for their antitumor potential both in vitro by recursive challenge with GBM cells and in vivo in established orthotopic GBM xenograft models. Further, GBM-stimulated CD4+ and CD8+ CAR-T cells were examined for their exhaustion- and memory-associated phenotypes at transcriptional and protein levels, which would account for their differential antitumor activity. Results: While CD8+ CAR-T cells mediated robust short-term cytolytic effector function, they became rapidly exhausted and lost antitumor potential after repeated stimulation with tumor cells. CD4+ CAR-T cells, by contrast, persisted and retained effector potency even after repetitive tumor challenge. CD4-mediated cytotoxicity acted through the granzyme B/perforin pathway and was independent of the CD8+ cells. Activated CD4+ CAR-T cells augmented the proliferation of CD8+ cells, but failed to protect the CD8+ cells against stimulation-induced exhaustion. In NSG mice bearing GBM xenografts, CD4+ CAR-T cell treatment led to long-term tumor-free survival, while CD8+ CAR-T cell treated mice showed short-term tumor regression followed by antigen-positive relapse and associated T cell exhaustion. Upon GBM stimulation, CD4+ cells expressed less co-inhibitory receptors and more memory-associated markers than the CD8+ T cell subset. Further, a comprehensive transcriptional analysis revealed that when activated, CD4+ cells retained expression of genes involved in survival- and self-renewal-related pathways, indicating a less exhausted status and a better functional persistence in comparison to the CD8+ cells. Conclusion: We observed a superior anti-GBM activity mediated by CD4+ CAR-T cells over the CD8+ subset, featured by their ability to maintain long-term immune response and reduce stimulation-induced exhaustion. It is thus inferred that the frequency of CD4+ cells could be an important criteria for evaluating the efficacy of CAR-T cells as immunotherapeutic products. Citation Format: Dongrui Wang, Renate Starr, Brenda Aguilar, Alfonso Brito, Brenda Chang, Aniee Sarkissian, Behnam Badie, Michael E. Barish, Stephen J. Forman, Christine E. Brown. CD4+ outperform CD8+ central memory-derived CAR T cells, mediating persistent antitumor responses and long-term eradication of glioblastoma [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the American Association for Cancer Research Annual Meeting 2017; 2017 Apr 1-5; Washington, DC. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2017;77(13 Suppl):Abstract nr 3024. doi:10.1158/1538-7445.AM2017-3024

Cytotoxic chemotherapy agents (e.g., cisplatin) are the first-line drugs to treat non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) but NSCLC develops resistance to the agent, limiting therapeutic efficacy. Despite many approaches to identifying the underlying mechanism for cisplatin resistance, there remains a lack of effective targets in the population that resist cisplatin treatment. In this study, we sought to investigate the role of cytoplasmic RAP1, a previously identified positive regulator of NF-κB signaling, in the development of cisplatin resistance in NSCLC cells. We found that the expression of cytoplasmic RAP1 was significantly higher in high-grade NSCLC tissues than in low-grade NSCLC; compared with a normal pulmonary epithelial cell line, the A549 NSCLC cells exhibited more cytoplasmic RAP1 expression as well as increased NF-κB activity; cisplatin treatment resulted in a further increase of cytoplasmic RAP1 in A549 cells; overexpression of RAP1 desensitized the A549 cells to cisplatin, and conversely, RAP1 depletion in the NSCLC cells reduced their proliferation and increased their sensitivity to cisplatin, indicating that RAP1 is required for cell growth and has a key mediating role in the development of cisplatin resistance in NSCLC cells. The RAP1-mediated cisplatin resistance was associated with the activation of NF-κB signaling and the upregulation of the antiapoptosis factor BCL-2. Intriguingly, in the small portion of RAP1-depleted cells that survived cisplatin treatment, no induction of NF-κB activity and BCL-2 expression was observed. Furthermore, in established cisplatin-resistant A549 cells, RAP1 depletion caused BCL2 depletion, caspase activation and dramatic lethality to the cells. Hence, our results demonstrate that the cytoplasmic RAP1–NF-κB–BCL2 axis represents a key pathway to cisplatin resistance in NSCLC cells, identifying RAP1 as a marker and a potential therapeutic target for cisplatin resistance of NSCLC.