Fast Dynamic Visualizations in Microfluidics Enabled by Fluorescent Carbon Nanodots

Microfluidic systems have become a superior platform for explorations of fascinating fluidic physics at microscale as well as applications in biomedical devices, chemical reactions, drug delivery, etc. Exploitations of this platform are built upon the fundamental techniques of flow visualizations. However, the currently employed fluorescent materials for microfluidic visualization are far from satisfaction, which severely hinders their widespread applications. Here fluorescent carbon nanodots are documented as a game‐changer, applicable in versatile fluidic environment for the visualization in microfluidics with unprecedented advantages. One of the fastest fluorescent imaging speeds up to 2500 frames per second under a normal contionous wave (CW) laser line is achieved by adopting carbon nanodots in microfluidics. Besides better visualizations of the fluid or interface, fluorescent carbon nanodots‐based microparticles enable quantitative studies of high speed dynamics in fluids at microscale with a more than 90% lower cost, which is inaccessible by traditionally adopted fluorescent dye based seeding particles. The findings hold profound influences to microfluidic investigations and may even lead to revolutionary changes to the relevant industries.     

Multicolor Photo‐Crosslinkable AIEgens toward Compact Nanodots for Subcellular Imaging and STED Nanoscopy

Aggregation induced emission (AIE) has attracted considerable interest for the development of fluorescence probes. However, controlling the bioconjugation and cellular labeling of AIE dots is a challenging problem. Here, this study reports a general approach for preparing small and bioconjugated AIE dots for specific labeling of cellular targets. The strategy is based on the synthesis of oxetane‐substituted AIEgens to generate compact and ultrastable AIE dots via photo‐crosslinking. A small amount of polymer enriched with oxetane groups is cocondensed with most of the AIEgens to functionalize the nanodot surface for subsequent streptavidin bioconjugation. Due to their small sizes, good stability, and surface functionalization, the cell‐surface markers and subcellular structures are specifically labeled by the AIE dot bioconjugates. Remarkably, stimulated emission depletion imaging with AIE dots is achieved for the first time, and the spatial resolution is significantly enhanced to ≈95 nm. This study provides a general approach for small functional molecules for preparing small sized and ultrastable nanodots.     

Monolithically integrated CoP nanowire array: An on/off switch for effective on-demand hydrogen generation via hydrolysis of NaBH<Subscript>4</Subscript> and NH<Subscript>3</Subscript>BH<Subscript>3</Subscript>

The issues of hydrogen generation and storage have hindered the widespread use and commercialization of hydrogen fuel cell vehicles.It is thus highly attractive,but the design and development of highly active non-noble-metal catalysts for on-demand hydrogen release from alkaline NaBH4 solution under mild conditions remains a key challenge.Herein,we describe the use of CoP nanowire array integrated on a Ti mesh (CoP NA/Ti) as a three-dimensional (3D) monolithic catalyst for efficient hydrolytic dehydrogenation of NaBH4 in basic solutions.The CoP NA/Ti works as an on/off switch for on-demand hydrogen generation at a rate of 6,500 mL/(min.g) and a low activation energy of 41 kJ/mol.It is highly robust for repeated usage after recycling,without sacrificing catalytic performance.Remarkably,this catalyst also performs efficiently for the hydrolysis of NH3BH3.     

Research Progress in the Application of Chinese Herbal Medicines in Aquaculture: A Review

Due to increasing safety concerns regarding human consumption of fish products, an increasing number of medicinal chemicals are prohibited from use in aquaculture. As a result, Chinese herbal medicines are being increasingly used, coining the use of the term “green medicine.” Research shows that Chinese herbal medicines have many beneficial effects on fish, including growth promotion, enhancement of disease resistance, and improvement in meat quality. Many effective ingredients have been discovered in Chinese herbal medicines, which function to promote feed intake, improve meat flavor, and increase digestive enzyme activity. They also regulate and participate in processes that improve the specific and non-specific immunity of fish; however, the composition of Chinese herbal medicines is very complex and it is often difficult to identify the effective ingredients. This article reviews the latest research and application progress in Chinese herbal medicines regarding growth and feed utilization, immunity and disease resistance, and the meat quality of cultured fish. It also discusses research on the chemical constituents of classical Chinese medicinal herbs and problems with the application of Chinese herbal medicines in fish culture. This article concludes by proposing that future studies on Chinese herbal medicines should focus on how to cheaply refine and extract the effective ingredients in classical Chinese medicinal herbs, as well as how to use them efficiently in aquaculture.     

Influence of ZrO2 particles on the optical properties of pc-LEDs

Experimental and modeling progress and results aiming to increase the color uniformity of hemisphere-type pcW-LEDs are proposed. By adding micrometric zirconia particles, the light scattering is enhanced, that induces a decrease of phosphor necessary to obtain a specific CCT. The optical model is able to determine the optical properties (CCT, angular CCT distribution, chromaticity and packaging efficiency) in a hemisphere LED for various amount of YAG-phosphor and ZrO₂-zirconia particles. Based on previous process, the work is in the first step to fit the effective radius and refractive index that will be implemented in the optical model. In the second step, the optical model is compared with the experimental measurement to determine the absorption coefficient and conversion efficiency of a package of silicone resin containing phosphor and zirconia. Finally, the model, confirmed by selected experimental results, allows determining the optical properties of any king of package that lead to a CCT emission ranging from 4500 K to 6500 K. The analysis of these data is interpreted by comparing, for a specific CCT, the phosphor loss, the packaging efficiency and the angular distribution of CCT. The results show that if the effort is targeted on one of the previous parameters, there is always a counterpart on the other ones. Increasing the color uniformity will induce to decrease the packaging efficiency.     

碳化细菌纤维素包裹铜的制备及电化学催化性能的研究

以硫酸铜为铜源,细菌纤维素(BC)为碳源,通过原位还原和高温热解的方法制备了碳化细菌纤维素包裹铜纳米粒子(CBC/Cu)。利用扫描电镜(SEM)、透射电镜(TEM)、X射线衍射仪(XRD)、X光电子能谱(XPS)、拉曼光谱仪(Raman)对结构和微观形貌进行了表征。用CBC/Cu修饰的玻碳电极作为工作电极,用循环伏安法测试对硝基苯酚在碱性水溶液中的电化学行为,与裸玻碳电极相比较,结果表明该修饰电极具有良好的电化学催化性、高稳定性和重现性。     

Ultraviolet Photoluminescence of Carbon Nanospheres and its Surface Plasmon‐Induced Enhancement

Ultraviolet (UV) light can be used in versatile applications ranging from photoelectronic devices to biomedical imaging. In the development of new UV light sources, in this study, stable UV emission at ≈350 nm is unprecedentedly obtained from carbon nanospheres (CNSs). The origin of the UV fluorescence is comprehensively investigated via various characterization methods, including Raman and Fourier transform infrared analyses, with comparison to the visible emission of carbon nanodots. Based on the density functional calculations, the UV fluorescence is assigned to the carbon nanostructures bonded to bridging O atoms and dangling –OH groups. Moreover, a twofold enhancement in the UV emission is acquired for Au‐carbon core‐shell nanospheres (Au‐CNSs). This remarkable modification of the UV emission is primarily ascribed to charge transfer between the CNSs and the Au surface.     

Aggregation-induced emission luminogen-assisted stimulated emission depletion nanoscopy for super-resolution mitochondrial visualization in live cells

Nano Research - Aggregation-induced emission luminogens (AIEgens) are fluorescent agents that are ideal for bioimaging and have been widely used for organelle targeting, cellular mapping, and...     

Ultrasound-triggered release of sinoporphyrin sodium from liposome-microbubble complexes and its enhanced sonodynamic toxicity in breast cancer

Nano Research - Applying ultrasound (US) to drug delivery and disease therapy is important work. Sonodynamic therapy (SDT)—a comprehensive therapy using US and a sonosensitizer—exhibits...