Efficacy of knee osteoarthritis by use of laser acupuncture: A systematic review and meta-analysis.

BACKGROUND: Previous studies need to be aggregated and updated. We aim to assess the efficacy of laser acupuncture (LA) in knee osteoarthritis (OA) through a meta-analysis. METHODS: Electronic databases were searched for studies investigating laser acupuncture's efficacy in managing OA. Data were collected from the beginning of each database to 2022 (up to March). The "WOMAC total score," "WOMAC stiffness score," "WOMAC pain score," "WOMAC physical function score," and "VAS score" were the key outcomes of interest. The Der Simonian-Laird method for random effects was used. RESULTS: Twenty-five randomized controlled clinical trials met our criteria and were included (2075 patients). Comparisons of interest is the LA versus Sham LA (efficacy), LA versus. A (Acupuncture) (comparative effectiveness), LA combined with A versus A (effectiveness as an adjunct), and any other research used LA in their treatment. Laser irradiation is effective in patients with Knee OA. LA is also effective and has almost the same outcome as laser irradiation. LA can achieve almost the same effect as manual acupuncture, even better than acupuncture in some studies. CONCLUSION: Laser acupuncture is more or less effective in patients with OA; better efficacy will be achieved under appropriate laser parameters (810 nm, 785 nm) in the LA versus Sham LA group. Many studies have diverse results, possibly due to unstaged analysis of patients' disease, inappropriate selection of acupoints, lack of remote combined acupoints, and unreasonable laser parameters. Furthermore, a combination of acupoints was found to be more effective, which aligns with the combined-acupoints application of traditional Chinese medicine.

Recent advances of electrospun strategies in topical products encompassing skincare and dermatological treatments.

As the potential applications of electrospinning in healthcare continue to be explored, along with advancements in industrial-scale solutions and the emergence of portable electrospinning devices, some researchers have explored electrospinning technology in topical products, including its application in skincare, such as facial masks, beauty patches, sunscreen, and dermatological treatments for conditions like atopic dermatitis, psoriasis, acne, skin cancer, etc. In this review, we first outline the fundamental principles of electrospinning and provide an overview of existing solutions for large-scale production and the components and functionalities of portable spinning devices. Based on the essential functionalities required for skincare products and the mechanisms and treatment methods for the aforementioned dermatological diseases, we summarize the potential advantages of electrospinning technology in these areas, including encapsulation, sustained release, large surface area, and biocompatibility, among others. Furthermore, considering the further commercialization and clinical development of electrospinning technology, we offer our insights on current challenges and future perspectives in these areas, including issues such as ingredients, functionality, residue concerns, environmental impact, and efficiency issues.

Fluid Unidirectional Transport Induced by Structure and Ambient Elements across Porous Materials: From Principles to Applications.

Spontaneous or nonspontaneous unidirectional fluid transport across multidimension can occur under specific structural designs and ambient elements for porous materials. While existing reviews have extensively summarized unidirectional fluid transport on surfaces, there is an absence of literature summarizing fluid's unidirectional transport across porous materials. This review introduces wetting phenomena observed on natural biological surfaces or porous structures. Subsequently, it offers an overview of diverse principles and potential applications in this field, emphasizing various physical and chemical structural designs (surface energy, capillary size, topographic curvature) and ambient elements (underwater, under oil, pressure, and solar energy). Applications encompass moisture-wicking fabric, sensors, skincare, fog collection, oil-water separation, electrochemistry, liquid-based gating, and solar evaporators. Additionally, significant principles and formulas from various studies are compelled to offer readers valuable references. Simultaneously, potential advantages and challenges are critically assessed in these applications and the perspectives are presented.

S-Shaped Helical Singlet Diradicaloid and Its Transformation to Circumchrysene via a Two-Stage Cyclization.

Polycyclic hydrocarbons with diradical and polyradical characters usually display unique reactivities in ring-cyclization reactions. However, such reactions are rarely used to construct π-extended polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons. Here, we describe the synthesis of an S-shaped doubly helical singlet diradicaloid compound and its facile transformation into an unprecedented circumchrysene via a two-stage ring cyclization, which includes: (1) an eletrocylization from diradicaloid precursor and (2) a Scholl reaction. The reaction mechanism was investigated through in situ spectroscopic studies, assisted by theoretical calculations. This reaction sequence yields an optically resolved π-extended [5]helicene derivative with a fluorescence quantum yield up to 85% and a circularly polarized luminescence brightness up to 6.05 M-1 cm-1 in the far-red to near-infrared regions. This sequence also yielded a highly delocalized circumchrysene molecule, exhibiting large electron delocalization, moderate fluorescence quantum yield, and multistage redox properties.

Perovskite Nanocrystals Induced Core-Shell Inorganic-Organic Nanofibers for Efficient Energy Harvesting and Self-Powered Monitoring.

The emerging field of wearable electronics requires power sources that are flexible, lightweight, high-capacity, durable, and comfortable for daily use, which enables extensive use in electronic skins, self-powered sensing, and physiological health monitoring. In this work, we developed the core-shell and biocompatible Cs2InCl5(H2O)@PVDF-HFP nanofibers (CIC@HFP NFs) by one-step electrospinning assisted self-assembly method for triboelectric nanogenerators (TENGs). By adopting lead-free Cs2InCl5(H2O) as an inducer, CIC@HFP NFs exhibited ß-phase-enhanced and self-aligned nanocrystals within the uniaxial direction. The interface interaction was further investigated by experimental measurements and molecular dynamics, which revealed that the hydrogen bonds between Cs2InCl5(H2O) and PVDF-HFP induced automatically well-aligned dipoles and stabilized the ß-phase in the CIC@HFP NFs. The TENG fabricated using CIC@HFP NFs and nylon-6,6 NFs exhibited significant improvement in output voltage (681 V), output current (53.1 µA) and peak power density (6.94 W m-2), with the highest reported output performance among TENGs based on halide-perovskites. The energy harvesting and self-powered monitoring performance were further substantiated by human motions, showcasing its ability to charge capacitors and effectively operate electronics such as commercial LEDs, stopwatches, and calculators, demonstrating its promising application in biomechanical energy harvesting and self-powered sensing.

Wettability Gradient-Induced Diode: MXene-Engineered Membrane for Passive-Evaporative Cooling.

Thermoregulatory textiles, leveraging high-emissivity structural materials, have arisen as a promising candidate for personal cooling management; however, their advancement has been hindered by the underperformed water moisture transportation capacity, which impacts on their thermophysiological comfort. Herein, we designed a wettability-gradient-induced-diode (WGID) membrane achieving by MXene-engineered electrospun technology, which could facilitate heat dissipation and moisture-wicking transportation. As a result, the obtained WGID membrane could obtain a cooling temperature of 1.5 °C in the "dry" state, and 7.1 °C in the "wet" state, which was ascribed to its high emissivity of 96.40% in the MIR range, superior thermal conductivity of 0.3349 W m-1 K-1 (based on radiation- and conduction-controlled mechanisms), and unidirectional moisture transportation property. The proposed design offers an approach for meticulously engineering electrospun membranes with enhanced heat dissipation and moisture transportation, thereby paving the way for developing more efficient and comfortable thermoregulatory textiles in a high-humidity microenvironment.

Emerging Trends of Nanofibrous Piezoelectric and Triboelectric Applications: Mechanisms, Electroactive Materials, and Designed Architectures.

Over the past few decades, significant progress in piezo-/triboelectric nanogenerators (PTEGs) has led to the development of cutting-edge wearable technologies. Nanofibers with good designability, controllable morphologies, large specific areas, and unique physicochemical properties provide a promising platform for PTEGs for various advanced applications. However, the further development of nanofiber-based PTEGs is limited by technical difficulties, ranging from materials design to device integration. Herein, the current developments in PTEGs based on electrospun nanofibers are systematically reviewed. This review begins with the mechanisms of PTEGs and the advantages of nanofibers and nanodevices, including high breathability, waterproofness, scalability, and thermal-moisture comfort. In terms of materials and structural design, novel electroactive nanofibers and structure assemblies based on 1D micro/nanostructures, 2D bionic structures, and 3D multilayered structures are discussed. Subsequently, nanofibrous PTEGs in applications such as energy harvesters, personalized medicine, personal protective equipment, and human-machine interactions are summarized. Nanofiber-based PTEGs still face many challenges such as energy efficiency, material durability, device stability, and device integration. Finally, the research gap between research and practical applications of PTEGs is discussed, and emerging trends are proposed, providing some ideas for the development of intelligent wearables.

Pain relief effect of angiopuncture therapy on patients with postoperative pain: A clinical trial.

BACKGROUND: The objective of this study is to study the pain relief effects of angiopuncture therapy in patients with postoperative pain. METHODS: Forty-one patients were randomly selected based on the inclusion and exclusion criteria. Doppler imaging was performed to locate the cutaneous perforator. Angiopuncture was performed on the first postoperative day. A Numerical Rating Scale was used to evaluate the degree of pain before and after angiopuncture. Utilizing the paired t test or Wilcoxon signed rank test, all pre- and post-data were examined, and further subgroup analysis based on time was performed. RESULTS: Variance analysis revealed a significant difference before and after angiopuncture (P < .05). The results of the subgroup analysis showed the pain-relieving effect of angiopuncture for postoperative pain patients at the time points of 6 hours, 12 hours, 24 hours, 48 hours, and 72 hours was apparent (P < .05). CONCLUSION: The angiopuncture therapy approach may assist in pain relief in patients with postoperative pain.

Bioinspired Hierarchical Multi-Protective Membrane for Extreme Environments via Co-Electrospinning-Electrospray Strategy.

Extreme environments can cause severe harm to human health, and even threaten life safety. Lightweight, breathable clothing with multi-protective functions would be of great application value. However, integrating multi-protective functions into nanofibers in a facile way remains a great challenge. Here, a one-step co-electrospinning-electrospray strategy is developed to fabricate a superhydrophobic multi-protective membrane (S-MPM). The water contact angle of S-MPM can reach up to 164.3°. More importantly, S-MPM can resist the skin temperature drop (11.2 °C) or increase (17.2 °C) caused by 0 °C cold or 70 °C hot compared with pure electrospun membrane. In the cold climate (-5 °C), the anti-icing time of the S-MPM is extended by 2.52 times, while the deicing time is only 1.45 s due to the great photothermal effect. In a fire disaster situation, the total heat release and peak heat release rate values of flame retarded S-MPM drop sharply by 24.2% and 69.3%, respectively. The S-MPM will serve as the last line of defense for the human body and has the potential to trigger a revolution in the practical application of next-generation functional clothing.

Electrosprayed Environment-Friendly Dry Triode-Like Facial Masks for Skincare.

The cosmetics industry has a worrying impact on the environment, including the plastics used in products and packaging and environmentally unfriendly additives. In this study, we present an environment-friendly triode-like facial mask (TFM) that utilizes only green and degradable raw materials, nontoxic and harmless solvents, and electric energy to achieve distinct switchable directional water transport properties, avoids a wet storage environment, and reduces excessive packaging. The TFM demonstrates droplet stability when not in contact with the skin while facilitating rapid liquid transfer (15 µL) within durations of 2.8 s (dry skin) and 1.9 s (moist skin) upon contact. We elucidate the underlying mechanism behind this triode-like behavior, emphasizing the synergistic interaction of the wettability gradient, Gibbs pinning, and additional circumferential capillary force. Moreover, the TFM exhibits a reduction in the proportion of aging cells, decreasing from 44.33 to 13.75%, while simultaneously providing antibacterial and skin-beautifying effects. The TFM brings a novel experience while also holding the potential to reduce environmental pollution in the production, packaging, use, and recycling of cosmetics products.

Perforating cutaneous vessels: A key feature of acupoints - Anatomical evidence from five-Shu acupoints in the upper limbs.

Acupuncture has been proven an effective clinical treatment for numerous pathological conditions and malfunctions. However, substantial anatomical evidence for acupuncture points (APs) and meridians is still lacking, so the location of APs is relatively subjective and understanding of the biological mechanisms of acupuncture is limited. All these problems hinder the clinical applications and worldwide acceptance of acupuncture. Our long-term microsurgery experience has indicated that Perforating Cutaneous Vessels (PCVs) are highly relevant to APs but the anatomical evidence is insufficient. To address this lack, two specimens of fresh adult human upper limbs were dissected using an advanced vascular perfusion-fixation method and then examined. The results show that all 30 five-Shu APs in the upper limbs have corresponding PCVs. Both specimens showed a 100% coincidence rate between APs and PCVs, indicating that PCVs could be critical anatomical features of APs. This study also provides an anatomical basis for locating APs objectively via preliminary detection of PCVs. The findings could lead to a better theoretical understanding of mechanisms of acupuncture and the essence of meridians.

Implantable Epigallocatechin Gallate Sustained-Release Nanofibers for the Prevention of Immobilization-Induced Muscle Atrophy.

Long-term immobilization of joints can lead to disuse atrophy of the muscles in the joints. Oral nutrients are used clinically for rehabilitation and therapeutic purposes, but bioavailability and targeting are limited. Here, we report tea polyphenols (dietary polyphenols), sustained-release nanofilms that release tea polyphenols through slow local degradation of core-shell nanofibers in muscles. This dietary polyphenol does not require gastrointestinal consumption and multiple doses and can directly remove inflammatory factors and superoxide generated in muscle tissue during joint fixation. The quality of muscles is increased by 30%, and muscle movement function is effectively improved. Although nanofibers need to be implanted into muscles, they can improve bacterial infections after joint surgery. To investigate the biological mechanism of this core-shell nanomembrane prevention, we conducted further transcriptomic studies on muscle, confirming that in addition to achieving antioxidation and anti-inflammation by inhibiting TNF-α and NF-κB signaling pathways, tea polyphenol core-shell nanofibers can also promote muscle formation by activating the p-Akt signaling pathway.

Rational Construction of a Triple-Phase Reaction Zone Using CuO-Based Heterostructure Nanoarrays for Enhanced Water Oxidation Reaction.

The development of high-efficiency oxygen evolution reaction (OER) electrocatalysts for the production and conversion of clean energy is paramount yet also full of challenges. Herein, we proposed a simple and universal method to precisely fabricate the hierarchically structured CuO/TMOs loaded on Cu foil (CuO/TMOs/CF) (TMO represents Mn3O4, NiO, CoO, and CuO) nanorod-array electrodes as a highly active and stable OER electrocatalyst, employing Cu(OH)2/CF as a self-sacrificing template by the subsequent H2O2-induced chemical deposition (HiCD) and pyrolysis process. Taking CuO/Mn3O4/CF as an example, we systematically investigated its structure-performance relationship via experimental and theoretical explorations. The enhanced OER activity can be ascribed to the rational design of the nanoarray with multiple synergistic effects of abundant active sites, excellent electronic conductivity of the metallic Cu foil substrate, strong interface charge transfer, and quasi-superhydrophilic/superaerophobic property. Consequently, the optimal CuO/Mn3O4/CF presents an overpotential of 293 mV to achieve a current density of 20 mA cm-2 in 1.0 M KOH media, comparable to that of commercial RuO2 (282 mV), delivering excellent durability by the electrolysis of water at a potential of around 1.60 V [vs reversible hydrogen electrode (RHE)] without evident degeneration. This work might offer a feasible scheme for developing a hybrid nanoarray OER electrocatalyst via regulating electron transportation and mass transfer.

Biodegradable Dual-Network Cellulosic Composite Bioplastic Metafilm for Plastic Substitute.

With the escalating environmental and health concerns over petroleum-based plastics, sustainable and biodegradable cellulosic materials are a promising alternative to plastics, yet remain unsatisfied properties such as fragility, inflammability and water sensitivity for practical usage. Herein, we present a novel dual-network design strategy to address these limitations and fabricate a high-performance cellulosic composite bioplastic metafilm with the exceptional mechanical toughness (23.5 MJ m-3 ), flame retardance, and solvent resistance by in situ growth of cyclotriphosphazene-bridged organosilica network within bacterial cellulose matrix. The phosphorus, nitrogen-containing organosilica network, verified by the experimental and theoretical results, plays a triple action on significantly enhancing tensile strength, toughness, flame retardance and water resistance of composite bioplastic metafilm. Furthermore, cellulosic bioplastic composite metafilm demonstrates a higher maximum usage temperature (245 °C), lower thermal expansion coefficient (15.19 ppm °C-1 ), and better solvent resistance than traditional plastics, good biocompatibility and natural biodegradation. Moreover, the composite bioplastic metafilm have a good transparency of average 74 % and a high haze over 80 %, which can serve as an outstanding substrate substitute for commercial polyethylene terephthalate film to address the demand of flexible ITO films. This work paves a creative way to design and manufacture the competitive bioplastic composite to replace daily-used plastics.

Super low-frequency electric field measurement based on Rydberg atoms.

We demonstrate the measurement of super low-frequency electric field using Rydberg atoms in an atomic vapor cell with inside parallel electrodes, thus overcoming the low-frequency electric-field-screening effect at frequencies below a few kHz. Rydberg electromagnetically induced transparency (EIT) spectra involving 52D5/2 state is employed to measure the signal electric field. An auxiliary DC field is applied to improve the sensitivity. A DC Stark map is demonstrated, where the utilized 52D5/2 exhibits mj = 1/2, 3/2, 5/2 Stark shifts and splittings. The mj = 1/2 state is employed to detect the signal field because of its larger polarizability than that of mj = 3/2, 5/2. Also, we show that the strength of the spectrum is dependent on the angle between the laser polarizations and the electric field. With optimization of the applied DC field to shift the mj = 1/2 Rydberg energy level to a high sensitivity region and the laser polarizations to obtain the maximum mj = 1/2 signal, we achieve the detection of the signal electric field with a frequency of 100 Hz down to 214.8 µV/cm with a sensitivity of 67.9 µV cm-1Hz-1/2, and the linear dynamic range is over 37 dB. Our work extends the measurement frequency of Rydberg sensors to super low frequency with high sensitivity, which has the advantages of high sensitivity and miniaturization for receiving super low frequency.

A Bionic Skin for Health Management: Excellent Breathability, In Situ Sensing, and Big Data Analysis.

Developing an intelligent wearable system is of great significance to human health management. An ideal health-monitoring patch should possess key characteristics such as high air permeability, moisture-wicking function, high sensitivity, and a comfortable user experience. However, such a patch that encompasses all these functions is rarely reported. Herein, an intelligent bionic skin patch for health management is developed by integrating bionic structures, nano-welding technology, flexible circuit design, multifunctional sensing functions, and big data analysis using advanced electrospinning technology. By controlling the preparation of nanofibers and constructing bionic secondary structures, the resulting nanofiber membrane closely resembles human skin, exhibiting excellent air/moisture permeability, and one-side sweat-wicking properties. Additionally, the bionic patch is endowed with a high-precision signal acquisition capabilities for sweat metabolites, including glucose, lactic acid, and pH; skin temperature, skin impedance, and electromyographic signals can be precisely measured through the in situ sensing electrodes and flexible circuit design. The achieved intelligent bionic skin patch holds great potential for applications in health management systems and rehabilitation engineering management. The design of the smart bionic patch not only provides high practical value for health management but also has great theoretical value for the development of the new generation of wearable electronic devices.

Accuracy analysis of traditional acupoint location and the coincidence of cutaneous arterial perforators and acupoints.

Several reports have shown a coincidence relationship between perforators and acupoints. However, there have been few previous reports of objective experimental methods to verify the reliability of the accuracy of acupoint location (APL) with nearby perforators. This research aimed to determine the internal agreement of the APL of five acupuncturists and to analyze the coincidence rate of acupoints with nearby perforators. Three two healthy volunteers were recruited with the inclusion and exclusion criteria. Three TCM clinical physicians determined acupoints in areas of the lower limb of participants. Two microsurgeons sketched corresponding regions based on the most common skin flap operation sites, located bone markers, and drew the skin flap axis. Doppler ultrasound was used to mark the perforator point and the distances measured for both points. There is no significant difference in the distance between the acupoints and perforators localization in different groups, and there are significant differences between the angle formed by acupoints and penetrators in all groups. All the points located by the traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) therapists are distributed around the dot. The distance between the coordinate point (A-B) of Wenliu (LI7) localization is the largest, reaching 16.6 mm. The accuracy of the acupoint location of each physician is limited by the clinical experience of physicians, and the difference among them is significant. There is a certain correspondence between the location of acupoints and perforators, which needs further studies to confirm.

Toward low-emissivity passive heating: a supramolecular-enhanced membrane with warmth retention.

Maintaining a reasonably stable body temperature is vital for a variety of human activities in an energy-conservation strategy. However, it is well-known that metal-like materials, utilized as radiative reflectors, severely restrict wearability properties, thus posing a tremendous obstacle in personal thermal management (PTM) systems. Herein, we designed a supramolecular-enhanced membrane (SupraEM) acting as a mid-infrared (MIR) reflector to solve the conundrum of warmth-wearability performance. Benefiting from the low-emissivity of decorating titanium carbide (MXene) and the formation of supramolecular interactions, the prototyped polyvinylidene difluoride&Polyurethane/MXene (PVDF&PU/MXene) SupraEM demonstrated a low-emissivity of 0.246 and reinforced mechanical performance, resulting in an evenly higher temperature retention of 8 °C in comparison to the pristine hybrid membrane counterpart, and compared with a commercial textile that is three times thicker, it also exhibited higher temperature retention of 6.2 °C. This work demonstrates the wearability of decorated MXene without sacrificing its temperature retention, overcoming a major bottleneck that has plagued MXene as a thermoregulatory material for PTM systems.

Reconstructed Hierarchically Structured Keratin Fibers with Shape-Memory Features Based on Reversible Secondary-Structure Transformation.

Biocompatible and biodegradable shape-memory polymers have gained popularity as smart materials, offering a wide range of applications and environmental benefits. Herein, the possibility of fabricating regenerated water-triggered shape-memory keratin fibers from wool and cellulose in a more effective and environmentally friendly manner is investigated. The regenerated keratin fibers exhibit comparable shape-memory performance to other hydration-responsive materials, with a shape-fixity ratio of 94.8 ± 2.15% and a shape-recovery rate of 81.4 ± 3.84%. Owing to their well-preserved secondary structure and cross-linking network, keratin fibers exhibit outstanding water-stability and wet stretchability, with a maximum tensile strain of 362 ± 15.9%. In this system, the reconfiguration of the protein secondary structure between α-helix and ß-sheet is investigated as the fundamental actuation mechanism in response to hydration. This responsiveness is studied under force loading and unloading along the fiber axis. Hydrogen bonds act as the "switches" clicked by water molecules to trigger the shape-memory effect, while disulfide bonds and cellulose nanocrystals play the role of "net-points" to maintain the permanent shape of the material. Water-triggered shape-memory keratin fibers are manipulable and exhibit potential in the fabrication of textile actuators, which may be applied in smart apparel and programmable biomedical devices.

Recent progress of organ-on-a-chip towards cardiovascular diseases: advanced design, fabrication, and applications.

Cardiovascular diseases (CVDs) are a major cause of death worldwide, leading to increased medical care costs. To turn the scale, it is essential to acquire a more in-depth and comprehensive understanding of CVDs and thus formulate more efficient and reliable treatments. Over the last decade, tremendous effort has been made to develop microfluidic systems to recapitulate native cardiovascular environments because of their unique advantages over conventional 2D culture systems and animal models such as high reproductivity, physiological relevance, and good controllability. These novel microfluidic systems could be extensively adopted for natural organ simulation, disease modeling, drug screening, disease diagnosis and therapy. Here, a brief review of the innovative designs of microfluidic devices for CVDs research is presented, with specific discussions on material selection, critical physiological and physical considerations. In addition, we elaborate on various biomedical applications of these microfluidic systems such as blood-vessel-on-a-chip and heart-on-a-chip, which are conducive to the investigation of the underlying mechanisms of CVDs. This review also provides systematic guidance on the construction of next-generation microfluidic systems for the diagnosis and treatment of CVDs. Finally, the challenges and future directions in this field are highlighted and discussed.