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In order to solve the problems of low energy utilization and poor structural stability of photothermal conversion materials, a graphene-based photothermal conversion material was prepared, which was structurally integrated with a light-absorbing upper layer and a heat insulating base. During the preparation process, a tightly arranged nanotube array upper layer was constructed on the basis of graphene films by microimprinting technology, and a porous aerogel base was molded by a fixed-point titration and multiple-foaming method. The results show that the light trap constructed from graphene hollow nanotubes can significantly increase the number of light reflections and reduce light reflectivity. Meanwhile, the length of the nanotubes is directly proportional to the light-absorbing capacity of the material, which can increase the light-absorbing rate to more than 98% under the embossing conditions of 85 kN and 8h. In addition, the porous aerogel insulation base can effectively improve the photothermal conversion effect, and a photothermal conversion efficiency of 87% and a water evaporation rate of 1.3 kg/(m2 h) can be achieved at a base thickness of 6 mm. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Current syndromic surveillance systems can track changes in heat-related illness (HRI) and overall healthcare utilization in real time to provide situational awareness. Retrospective analyses of emergency department and urgent care visits collected via syndromic surveillance data can be used to assess overall contributions of ambient conditions on healthcare utilization. Using distributed lag nonlinear models, syndromic surveillance data from participating facilities in Virginia were analyzed to determine exposure-response relationships using four different meteorological metrics for assessing heat stress. All-cause healthcare visits start to increase at 26 [degrees]C (79 [degrees]F) maximum daily heat index, whereas HRI visits start to increase at 30 [degrees]C (86 [degrees]F), with an estimated 6% of healthcare visits attributable to ambient heat during the summer months in Virginia. Results from this study can be used to develop targeted public health messaging when ambient conditions are expected to increase healthcare visits., Introduction Each year there are more than 65,000 emergency department visits and 9,235 hospitalizations identified as heat-related illnesses (HRIs) in the U.S. (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2022). HRIs [...]

The three-dimensional (3D) printing technique is used to efficiently design the structure of 3D graphene assemblies and give them extraordinary properties. However, directly constructing 3D graphene assemblies with complex structures using direct ink writing (DIW) 3D printing is still limited. Herein, we demonstrate a strategy for directly constructing microstructurally porous or dense 3D reduced graphene oxide (RGO) frameworks with an octet-truss structure using embedded 3D printing combined with freeze-drying or capillary-drying, respectively. Reasonable structural design and self-assembled RGO sheets contribute to endowing RGO frameworks with mechanical strength and electrical properties. The freeze-dried RGO framework (F-RGF) has an electrical conductivity of 131.85 S m−1 and a compressive strength of 35.42 kPa at 50% strain. Moreover, the properties of the RGO framework are changed by altering its drying method. Compared with F-RGF, the capillary-dried RGO framework (C-RGF) has a higher electrical conductivity of 863.77 S m−1 and a higher compressive strength of 3.23 MPa. At a thickness of 2.8 mm, low-conducting F-RGF and high-conducting C-RGF exhibit good electromagnetic interference shielding effectiveness (EMI SE) in the frequency range of 18–40 GHz, with total SE (SET) values up to 72.87 dB and 63.48 dB, respectively. This work provides a reference for constructing 3D assemblies with multi-level structures and exhibits the possibility of structural changes for different applications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The nuclear receptor corepressor (N-CoR) is involved in the regulation of diverse transcription factors. We previously found that N-CoR could regulate adipogenic differentiation of rat mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs),but whether it modulated osteogenic differentiation of this type of cells was uncertain. Therefore, in the present study, we investigated the effect and mechanism of N-CoRon osteogenic differentiation of rat MSCs. The results showed that MSCs cultured in osteogenic medium successfully differentiated into osteogenic cells. Overexpression of N-CoR decreased cell proliferation, alkaline phosphatase (ALP)activity, calcium accumulation, mRNA expression of genes including bone sialoprotein (BSP), osteocalcin (OCN), osteopontin (OPN), Osterix and Runx2, and protein expression of phosphor-Akt(pAkt). Conversely, knocking down cellular N-CoR by small interfering RNA (siRNA) promoted pAkt activity and cell differentiation. Overexpression or knockdown of N-CoRhad no significant influences on the protein expression of pyruvate dehydrogenase kinase isozyme 1 (PDK1), phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase (PI3K) and total Akt, indicating that N-CoR regulated the changes in the PI3K/Akt signaling pathway by targeting pAkt. To further prove the function of the PI3K/Akt signaling in N-CoR-regulated osteogenic differentiation, we used the PI3K inhibitor (LY294002) to block the activation of the PI3K/Akt pathway and found that overexpression of N-CoR showed no effects on ALP activity, calcium level and mRNA expression of BSP, osteocalcin OCN, OPN, Osterix and Runx2 in rat MSCs following the inhibition of the PI3K/Akt pathway. These findings suggest that N-CoR regulates osteogenic differentiation of rat MSCs through suppression of the PI3K/Akt signaling pathway.