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Abstract Background To report on corneal endothelial regeneration, graft clarity, and vision recovery when using endothelium-free grafts. Methods We evaluated the donor’s cell viability using trypan blue staining and dual staining with calcein acetoxy methyl ester and ethidium homodimer-1. To preserve eyeball integrity, we performed therapeutic penetrating keratoplasty using cryopreserved donor tissue without endothelium on 195 consecutive patients who suffered from corneal perforation due to progressive primary corneal disease such as herpes simplex keratitis, fungal keratitis, ocular thermal burns, keratoconus, and phlyctenular keratoconjunctivitis. Of these, 18 eyes recovered corneal graft clarity and underwent periodic slit-lamp microscopy, A-scan pachymetry, and in vivo confocal microscopy to observe the clinical manifestations, variations in corneal thickness, and repopulation of the corneal endothelial cells on the donor grafts. Results No viable cells were detected in the cryopreserved corneas. After the therapeutic penetrating keratoplasty, notable corneal graft edema was observed in all 18 eyes for 1–4 months, and no corneal endothelial cells were detected on the grafts during this period. Thereafter, we observed gradual and progressive regression and final resolution of the stromal edema, with complete recovery of corneal graft clarity. Through periodic confocal microscopy, we observed the corneal endothelium’s regenerating process, along with single cells bearing multiple nuclei and cell division-like morphology. The regenerated endothelium on the grafts reached a mean cell density of 991 cells/mm2. Remarkable vision rehabilitation was achieved in all 18 patients. Conclusions We obtained conclusive evidence that host-derived endothelial cells can regenerate a new endothelium over the endothelium-free graft, which possesses normal functions for corneal clarity and vision recovery.

The nearly lattice-matched InxGa1−xN/InyAl1−yN epi-layers were grown on a GaN template by plasma-assisted molecular beam epitaxy with a metal modulation technique. The band-gap energy of InxGa1−xN QW in photoluminescence measurement was estimated to be 2.89 eV and the indium concentration (x) was 14.8%. In X-ray photoelectric spectroscopy, we obtained an indium concentration (y) in the InyAl1−yN barrier of 25.9% and the band-offset was estimated to be 4.31 eV. From the atomic layer measurements from high-resolution transmission electron microscopy, the lattice misfit between the InxGa1−xN QW and InyAl1−yN barrier was 0.71%. The lattice-matched InxGa1−xN/InyAl1−yN QWs can therefore be evaluated from the band profiles of III-nitrides for engineering of full-visible-light emitting diode in optoelectronic application. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Multidrug resistance (MDR) is a serious challenge in chemotherapy and also a major threat to breast cancer treatment. As an intracellular energy factory, mitochondria provide energy for drug efflux and are deeply involved in multidrug resistance. Mitochondrial targeted delivery of doxorubicin can overcome multidrug resistance by disrupting mitochondrial function. By incorporating a reactive oxygen species (ROS)-responsive hydrophobic group into the backbone structure of hyaluronic acid – a natural ligand for the highly expressed CD44 receptor on tumor surfaces, a novel ROS-responsive and CD44-targeting nano-carriers was constructed. In this study, mitochondria-targeted triphenylphosphine modified-doxorubicin (TPP-DOX) and amphipathic ROS-responsive hyaluronic acid derivatives (HA-PBPE) were synthesized and confirmed by 1H NMR. The nanocarriers TPP-DOX @ HA-PBPE was prepared in a regular shape and particle size of approximately 200 nm. Compared to free DOX, its antitumor activity in vitro and tumor passive targeting in vivo has been enhanced. The ROS-responsive TPP-DOX@HA-PBPE nanocarriers system provide a promising strategy for the reverse of MDR and efficient delivery of doxorubicin derivatives into drug-resistant cancer cells. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Two-dimensional crystals with a wealthof exotic dimensional-dependentproperties are promising candidates for next-generation ultrathinand flexible optoelectronic devices. For the first time, we demonstratethat few-layered InSe photodetectors, fabricated on both a rigid SiO2/Si substrate and a flexible polyethylene terephthalate (PET)film, are capable of conducting broadband photodetection from thevisible to near-infrared region (450–785 nm) with high photoresponsivitiesof up to 12.3 AW–1at 450 nm (on SiO2/Si) and 3.9 AW–1at 633 nm (on PET). These photoresponsivitiesare superior to those of other recently reported two-dimensional (2D)crystal-based (graphene, MoS2, GaS, and GaSe) photodetectors.The InSe devices fabricated on rigid SiO2/Si substratespossess a response time of ∼50 ms and exhibit long-term stabilityin photoswitching. These InSe devices can also operate on a flexiblesubstrate with or without bending and reveal comparable performanceto those devices on SiO2/Si. With these excellent optoelectronicmerits, we envision that the nanoscale InSe layers will not only findapplications in flexible optoelectronics but also act as an activecomponent to configure versatile 2D heterostructure devices. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Visible-light persistent phosphors are being widely used as self-sustained night-vision materials because of their sufficiently strong and long afterglow (>10?h) and their ability to be excited by sunlight as well as room light. In contrast, persistent phosphors for near-infrared (NIR) wavelengths are lacking. Here we report a series of Cr3+-doped zinc gallogermanate NIR persistent phosphors that exhibit strong emission at 650-1,000?nm, extending beyond the typical 690-750?nm, and with a super-long afterglow of more than 360?h. These new NIR persistent phosphors are all-weather materials that can be rapidly, effectively and repeatedly charged by natural sunlight in almost all kinds of outdoor environment. Seconds to minutes of sunlight activation can result in more than two weeks of persistent NIR light emission. This new series of NIR persistent materials have potential applications in night-vision surveillance, solar energy utilization and in vivo bio-imaging. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]