High-performing fiber electrodes based on a gold-shelled silver nanowire framework for bioelectronics.

Flexible fiber electrodes offer new opportunities for bioelectronics and are reliable in vivo applications, high flexibility, high electrical conductivity, and satisfactory biocompatibility are typically required. Herein, we present an all-metal flexible and biocompatible fiber electrode based on a metal nanowire hybrid strategy, i.e., silver nanowires were assembled on a freestanding framework, and further to render them inert, they were plated with a gold nanoshell. Our fiber electrodes exhibited a low modulus of ∼75 MPa and electrical conductivity up to ∼4.8 × 106 S m-1. They can resist chemical erosion with negligible leakage of biotoxic silver ions in the physiological environment, thus ensuring satisfactory biocompatibility. Finally, we demonstrated the hybrid fiber as a neural electrode that stimulated the sciatic nerve of a mouse, proving its potential for applications in bioelectronics.

In Situ Grown Silver-Polymer Framework with Coordination Complexes for Functional Artificial Tissues.

Self-sensing actuators are critical to artificial robots with biomimetic proprio-/exteroception properties of biological neuromuscular systems. Existing add-on approaches, which physically blend heterogeneous sensor/actuator components, fall short of yielding satisfactory solutions, considering their suboptimal interfaces, poor adhesion, and electronic/mechanical property mismatches. Here, a single homogeneous material platform is reported by creating a silver-polymer framework (SPF), thus realizing the seamless sensing-actuation unification. The SPF-enabled elastomer is highly stretchable (1200%), conductive (0.076 S m-1 ), and strong (0.76 MPa in-strength), where the stretchable polymer matrix synthesis and in situ silver nanoparticles reduction are accomplished simultaneously. Benefiting from the multimodal sensing capability from its architecture itself (mechanical and thermal cues), self-sensing actuation (proprio-deformations and external stimuli perceptions) is achieved for the SPF-based pneumatic actuator, alongside an excellent load-lifting attribute (up to 3700 times its own weight), substantiating its advantage of the unified sensing-actuation feature in a single homogenous material. In view of its human somatosensitive muscular systems imitative functionality, the reported SPF bodes well for use with next-generation functional tissues, including artificial skins, human-machine interfaces, self-sensing robots, and otherwise dynamic materials.

Cytomorphology, ultrastructural, and cytogenetic findings in follicular dendritic cell sarcoma: a case report.

BACKGROUND: Follicular dendritic cell (FDC) sarcoma is a rare low-to-intermediate grade malignant dendritic cell neoplasm that often has an indolent clinical course. FDC sarcomas are often misdiagnosed on aspiration cytology. CASE: A 26-year-old woman presented with a solid, slowly growing, painless mass in her right neck for 3 months. Computed tomography revealed a 3.6-cm, well-defined homogenous solid mass located posterior to the mandible and submandibular glands. Fine needle aspiration cytology revealed many large, spindle to ovoid epithelioid cells in singles, small clusters, and syncytial sheets with moderate to abundant cytoplasm, indistinct cell borders, irregular nuclear membrane, fine to vesicular chromatin, and conspicuous nucleoli. The background contained many small mature lymphocytes intimately mixed with large epithelioid tumor cells. Tumor cells were strongly positive for CD21, CD35, CD23, and fascin. Diagnosis of FDC sarcoma was rendered; follow-up surgical resection and ultrastructural study confirmed the diagnosis. The cytogenetic study showed a normal female karyotype 46,XX. CONCLUSION: Although the cytomorphology of FDC sarcoma is characteristic, a preoperative diagnosis of FDC sarcoma based on fine needle aspiration cytology is very challenging, if not impossible. Immunohistochemistry is always necessary for rendering and/or confirming the diagnosis, and ultrastructural studies are helpful.

Novel one-step route for synthesizing CdS/polystyrene nanocomposite hollow spheres.

CdS/polystyrene nanocomposite hollow spheres with diameters between 240 and 500 nm were synthesized under ambient conditions by a novel microemulsion method in which the polymerization of styrene and the formation of CdS nanoparticles were initiated by gamma-irradiation. The product was characterized by transmission electron microscopy (TEM), field-emission scanning electron microscopy (FESEM), X-ray powder diffraction (XRD), Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy, and thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), which show the walls of the hollow spheres are porous and composed of polystyrene containing homogeneously dispersed CdS nanoparticles. The quantum-confined effect of the CdS/polystyrene nanocomposite hollow spheres is confirmed by the ultraviolet-visible (UV-vis) and photoluminescent (PL) spectra. We propose that the walls of these nanocomposite hollow spheres originate from the simultaneous synthesis of polystyrene and CdS nanoparticles at the interface of microemulsion droplets. This novel method is expected to produce various inorganic/polymer nanocomposite hollow spheres with potential applications in the fields of materials science and biotechnology.