Reassembly of 89Zr‐Labeled Cancer Cell Membranes into Multicompartment Membrane‐Derived Liposomes for PET‐Trackable Tumor‐Targeted Theranostics

Nanoengineering of cell membranes holds great potential to revolutionize tumor‐targeted theranostics, owing to their innate biocompatibility and ability to escape from the immune and reticuloendothelial systems. However, tailoring and integrating cell membranes with drug and imaging agents into one versatile nanoparticle are still challenging. Here, multicompartment membrane‐derived liposomes (MCLs) are developed by reassembling cancer cell membranes with Tween‐80, and are used to conjugate ⁸⁹Zr via deferoxamine chelator and load tetrakis(4‐carboxyphenyl) porphyrin for in vivo noninvasive quantitative tracing by positron emission tomography imaging and photodynamic therapy (PDT), respectively. Radiolabeled constructs, ⁸⁹Zr‐Df‐MCLs, demonstrate excellent radiochemical stability in vivo, target 4T1 tumors by the enhanced permeability and retention effect, and are retained long‐term for efficient and effective PDT while clearing gradually from the reticuloendothelial system via hepatobiliary excretion. Toxicity evaluation confirms that the MCLs do not impose acute or chronic toxicity in intravenously injected mice. Additionally, ⁸⁹Zr‐labeled MCLs can execute rapid and highly sensitive lymph node mapping, even for deep‐seated sentinel lymph nodes. The as‐developed cell membrane reassembling route to MCLs could be extended to other cell types, providing a versatile platform for disease theranostics by facilely and efficiently integrating various multifunctional agents.     

NIR‐Responsive Polycationic Gatekeeper‐Cloaked Hetero‐Nanoparticles for Multimodal Imaging‐Guided Triple‐Combination Therapy of Cancer

Responsive multifunctional organic/inorganic nanohybrids are promising for effective and precise imaging‐guided therapy of cancer. In this work, a near‐infrared (NIR)‐triggered multifunctional nanoplatform comprising Au nanorods (Au NRs), mesoporous silica, quantum dots (QDs), and two‐armed ethanolamine‐modified poly(glycidyl methacrylate) with cyclodextrin cores (denoted as CD‐PGEA) has been successfully fabricated for multimodal imaging‐guided triple‐combination treatment of cancer. A hierarchical hetero‐structure is first constructed via integration of Au NRs with QDs through a mesoporous silica intermediate layer. The X‐ray opacity and photoacoustic (PA) property of Au NRs are utilized for tomography (CT) and PA imaging, and the imaging sensitivity is further enhanced by the fluorescent QDs. The mesoporous feature of silica allows the loading of a typical antitumor drug, doxorubicin (DOX), which are sealed by the polycationic gatekeepers, low toxic hydroxyl‐rich CD‐PGEA/pDNA complexes, realizing the co‐delivery of drug and gene. The photothermal effect of Au NRs is utilized for photothermal therapy (PTT). More interestingly, such photothermal effect also induces a cascade of NIR‐triggered release of DOX through the facilitated detachment of CD‐PGEA gatekeepers for controlled chemotherapy. The resultant chemotherapy and gene therapy for glioma tumors are complementary for the efficiency of PTT. This work presents a novel responsive multifunctional imaging‐guided therapy platform, which combines fluorescent/PA/CT imaging and gene/chemo/photothermal therapy into one nanostructure.     

Effect of Particle Size Distribution on the Magnetic Properties of Fe-Si-Al Powder Core

The Fe-Si-Al soft magnetic powder cores with five particle size distributions were prepared. The microstructure study revealed that the cores had a fairly compacted structure with a uniform insulation layer of the phosphate forming on the surface of the magnetic particles. The particle size distribution was found to have the great influence on the core’s magnetic properties. The increase of the percentage of the small particles results in the decrease of the effective permeability, the improvement of the DC-bias performance, and the deterioration of the core loss. The effects of the distributed air gap and the demagnetization field on the core’s magnetizing process were believed to be the underlying physical origins. The core losses at the frequencies lower and higher than 150 kHz were found to be mainly determined by the hysteresis loss and the eddy-current loss, respectively. The good magnetic performances of the Fe-Si-Al powder cores with the effective permeability of about 55–60 were finally achieved as follows: the percent permeability at 100 Oe is up to 52.3 %, and the lowest core loss at 50 kHz/1000 Gs is 270 mW cm^?3.     

Linking Subcellular Disturbance to Physiological Behavior and Toxicity Induced by Quantum Dots in Caenorhabditis elegans

The wide‐ranging applications of fluorescent semiconductor quantum dots (QDs) have triggered increasing concerns about their biosafety. Most QD‐related toxicity studies focus on the subcellular processes in cultured cells or global physiological effects on whole animals. However, it is unclear how QDs affect subcellular processes in living organisms, or how the subcellular disturbance contributes to the overall toxicity. Here the behavior and toxicity of QDs of three different sizes in Caenorhabditis elegans (C. elegans) are systematically investigated at both the systemic and the subcellular level. Specifically, clear size‐dependent distribution and toxicity of the QDs in the digestive tract are observed. Short‐term exposure of QDs leads to acute toxicity on C. elegans, yet incurring no lasting, irreversible damage. In contrast, chronic exposure of QDs severely inhibits development and shortens lifespan. Subcellular analysis reveals that endocytosis and nutrition storage are disrupted by QDs, which likely accounts for the severe deterioration in growth and longevity. This work reveals that QDs invasion disrupts key subcellular processes in living organisms, and may cause permanent damage to the tissues and organs over long‐term retention. The findings provide invaluable information for safety evaluations of QD‐based applications and offer new opportunities for design of novel nontoxic nanoprobes.     

Wearable Janus-Type Film with Integrated All-Season Active/Passive Thermal Management,Thermal Camouflage,and Ultra-High Electromagnetic Shielding Efficiency Tunable by Origami Process

Multifunctional films with integrated temperature adjustment, electromagnetic interference (EMI) shielding, and thermal camouflage are remarkably desirable for wearable products. Herein, a novel Janus-type multifunctional ultra-flexible film is fabricated via continuous electrospinning followed by spraying. Interestingly, in the polyvinyl alcohol (PVA)/phase change capsules (PCC) layer (P₁), the PCC is strung on PVA fibers to form a stable “candied haws stick” structure that obviates slipping or falling off. The film with sufficient melting enthalpy (141.4 J g⁻¹) guarantees its thermoregulation capability. Simultaneously, its high mid-IR emissivity (90.15%) endows the film with radiative cooling properties (reducing temperature by 10.13 °C). Mechanical strength is significantly improved by superimposing a polylactic acid (PLA) layer (P₂) on its surface. By spraying a thin MXene layer on the PLA surface of P₂P₁ film, the obtained (MXene/P₂P₁) MP₂P₁ film is endowed with satisfactory low-voltage heating, photo-thermal and superior thermal camouflage performance, achieving all-season thermal comfort. Impressively, the flexible MP₂P₁ film achieves enhanced EMI shielding effect from 50.3 to 87.8 dB through a simple origami process, which simplifies the manufacturing process of high-performance EMI shielding materials. In brief, the multifunctional Janus-type MP₂P₁ film is an attractive candidate for future wearable products with personalized thermal management and anti-electromagnetic radiation.     

PtCu Nanosonosensitizers with Inflammatory Microenvironment Regulation for Enhanced Sonodynamic Bacterial Elimination and Tissue Repair

Sonodynamic therapy (SDT) is considered a reliable replacement therapy to overcome the resistance to antibiotics and the limited tissue penetration of traditional photo-induced therapy. Herein, ultrasmall platinum-copper alloy nanoparticles (PtCu NPs) modified with poly (maleic anhydridealt-1-octadecene)-polyethylene glycol (C₁₈PMH-PEG) with high sonodynamic activity, strong catalytic ability, and good glutathione (GSH) depletion performance are synthesized for highly efficient bacterial elimination. PtCu NPs obtained through a thermal decomposition approach can generate high toxic singlet oxygen (¹O₂) under ultrasound (US) irradiation, showing good sonodynamic performance. Meanwhile, the partial oxygenation formed on the surface of PtCu NPs endows them with good Fenton-like catalytic performance and superior GSH-depleting ability, thus enhancing reactive oxygen species (ROS) generation. In vitro experiments confirm that the synthesized PtCu- NPs can not only efficiently kill both gram-positive and gram-negative bacteria but also eliminate staphylococcus aureus (S. aureus) infection through ROS generation and then accelerate wound healing in the S. aureus-infected wound model. Meanwhile, the copper ions released from PtCu NPs can promote cell migration and angiogenesis through the up-regulation of hypoxia inducible factor (HIF-1α) and platelet endothelial cell adhesion molecule (CD31). Finally, the S. aureus-induced deep-seated osteomyelitis infection and bone destruction were successfully inhibited by the PtCu-mediated combination therapy. Our work highlights a novel SDT strategy for enhanced sonodynamic bacteria elimination and tissue repair.     

Nanoconfined Molecular Catalysts in Integrated Gas Diffusion Electrodes for High-Current-Density CO2 Electroreduction

Molecular catalysts are promising catalysts to electrochemically convert CO₂ into CO with high selectivity. However, achieving industrial-level current density remains challenging due to the limitation of charge- and mass-transport in gas diffusion electrode. Herein, a novel gas diffusion electrode architecture by confining highly dispersed cobalt(II) phthalocyanine (CoPc) molecules into -graphene oxide (GO) nanosheets (denoted as CoPc@GO) is designed. Benefiting from the accelerated CO₂ diffusion and charge transport in the nanoconfined structure, the designed electrode achieves a high CO partial current density of 481.65 ± 12.50 mA cm⁻² and a cathode energy efficiency over 64% for CO. The experimentally measured CO₂ transport dynamics and molecular dynamics simulation confirm the accelerated CO₂ diffusion, while theoretical calculations reveal the decreased energy barrier of the CO₂ activation in the confined space. This study paves a new way for electrode architecture design that would accelerate the implementation of CO₂ electrolysis technology.