miR-495 sensitizes MDR cancer cells to the combination of doxorubicin and taxol by inhibiting MDR1 expression.

MDR1 is highly expressed in MDR A2780DX5 ovarian cancer cells, MDR SGC7901R gastric cancer cells and recurrent tumours. It pumps cytoplasmic agents out of cells, leading to decreased drug accumulation in cells and making cancer cells susceptible to multidrug resistance. Here, we identified that miR-495 was predicted to target ABCB1, which encodes protein MDR1. To reduce the drug efflux and reverse MDR in cancer cells, we overexpressed a miR-495 mimic in SGC7901R and A2780DX cells and in transplanted MDR ovarian tumours in vivo. The results indicated that the expression of MDR1 in the above cells or tumours was suppressed and that subsequently the drug accumulation in the MDR cells was decreased, cell death was increased, and tumour growth was inhibited after treatment with taxol-doxorubicin, demonstrating increased drug sensitivity. This study suggests that pre-treatment with miR-495 before chemotherapy could improve the curative effect on MDR1-based MDR cancer.

Durability of Viscoelastic Fibre Prestressing in a Polymeric Composite.

Viscoelastic fibre prestressing (VFP) is a promising technique to counterbalance the potential thermal residual stress within a polymeric composite, offering superior mechanical benefits for structural engineering applications. It has been demonstrated that the time required for a desirable creep strain can be significantly reduced by implementing higher creep stress, while its long-term stability is still unknown. Here, we developed the prestress equivalence principle and investigated the durability of viscoelastic fibre prestressing within a composite in order to further enrich the prestress mechanisms. The effectiveness of the prestress equivalence principle was refined through Charpy impact testing of prestressed samples with various pre-strain levels. The durability was investigated by subjecting samples to both natural aging (up to 0.5 years) and accelerated aging (by using the time-temperature superposition principle). It is found that the prestress equivalence principle offers flexibility for viscoelastically prestressed polymeric matrix composite (VPPMC) technology; the impact benefits offered by VFP are still active after being accelerated aged to an equivalent of 20,000 years at 20 °C, inferring long-term reliability of VFP-generated fibre recovery within a polymeric composite. These findings demonstrated that both materials and energy consumption could be conserved for advanced composites. Therefore, they promote further steps of VPPMC technology toward potential industrial applications, especially for impact protection.

Elastic Fibre Prestressing Mechanics within a Polymeric Matrix Composite.

The elastic fibre prestressing (EFP) technique has been developed to balance the thermal residual stress generated during curing of a polymeric composite. The continuous fibre reinforcements are prestressed and then impregnated into a polymeric matrix, where the prestress load is only removed after the resin is fully cured in order to produce an elastically prestressed polymeric matrix composite (EPPMC). Although the EFP is active in improving the static mechanical performance of a composite, its mechanics on dynamic mechanical performance and viscoelasticity of a composite is still limited. Here, we established a theoretical model in order to decouple the EFP principle, aiming to better analyse the underlying mechanics. A bespoke fibre prestressing rig was then developed to apply tension on a unidirectional carbon-fibre-reinforced epoxy prepreg to produce EPPMC samples with various EFP levels. The effects of EFP were then investigated by carrying out both static and dynamic mechanical testing, as well as the viscoelastic creep performance. It was found that there is an optimal level of EFP in order to maximise the prestress benefits, whilst the EFP is detrimental to the fibre/matrix interface. The EFP mechanisms are then proposed based on these observations to reveal the in-plane stress evolutions within a polymeric composite.