One-Step Exfoliation Method for Plasmonic Activation of Large-Area 2D Crystals.

Advanced exfoliation techniques are crucial for exploring the intrinsic properties and applications of 2D materials. Though the recently discovered Au-enhanced exfoliation technique provides an effective strategy for the preparation of large-scale 2D crystals, the high cost of gold hinders this method from being widely adopted in industrial applications. In addition, direct Au contact could significantly quench photoluminescence (PL) emission in 2D semiconductors. It is therefore crucial to find alternative metals that can replace gold to achieve efficient exfoliation of 2D materials. Here, the authors present a one-step Ag-assisted method that can efficiently exfoliate many large-area 2D monolayers, where the yield ratio is comparable to Au-enhanced exfoliation method. Differing from Au film, however, the surface roughness of as-prepared Ag films on SiO2 /Si substrate is much higher, which facilitates the generation of surface plasmons resulting from the nanostructures formed on the rough Ag surface. More interestingly, the strong coupling between 2D semiconductor crystals (e.g., MoS2 , MoSe2 ) and Ag film leads to a unique PL enhancement that has not been observed in other mechanical exfoliation techniques, which can be mainly attributed to enhanced light-matter interaction as a result of extended propagation of surface plasmonic polariton (SPP). This work provides a lower-cost and universal Ag-assisted exfoliation method, while at the same time offering enhanced SPP-matter interactions.

[Effects of bile acids on expression of interleukin-6 and cell viability in QBC939 cell line].

OBJECTIVE: To research the effects of bile acids on the expression of interleukin-6 (IL-6) and the cell viability in QBC939 cell line. METHODS: Human cholangiocarcinoma cells were stimulated with 800 µmol/L bile acid (CA), 100 µmol/L deoxycholate (DCA), 100 µmol/L chenodeoxycholic acid (CDCA), 1200 µmol/L gly acid (GCA), 200 µmol/L glycodeoxycholic acid (GDCA) and 300 µmol/L gly chenodeoxycholic acid (GCDCA).MTT assay and ELISA were used to detect the cell viability and the expression of IL-6 at 24 h, 48 h and 72 h. RESULTS: Treated by DCA, CDCA and GCDCA for 48 hours, the cell viability ratios changed to 0.61, 0.58 and 1.26, which were significant differences between control group and treated groups. And after 72 hours, the viability ratios of group CA, group DCA, group CDCA, group GCA, group GDCA and group GCDCA turned into 0.48, 0.50, 0.42, 1.29, 1.30 and 1.41. The differences of cell viability between bile acid-treated groups and control group were significant (P < 0.05). The expression of IL-6 in control group at 48 h and 72 h was (198 ± 32) ng/L and (323 ± 34) ng/L, while treated by CA, DCA, CDCA, GCA, GDCA and GCDCA respectively for 48 hours, the expression of IL-6 altered to (106 ± 33) ng/L, (88 ± 29) ng/L, (116 ± 54) ng/L, (413 ± 21) ng/L, (587 ± 32) ng/L and (366 ± 30) ng/L. After 72 hours, the expression of IL-6 of each bile acid-treated groups as above was (123 ± 66) ng/L, (45 ± 21) ng/L, (74 ± 45) ng/L, (792 ± 13) ng/L, (1310 ± 22) ng/L and (845 ± 18) ng/L, respectively. The differences between each bile acid-treated group and control group were significant (P < 0.05). CONCLUSIONS: Free bile acids (CA, DCA and CDCA) can inhibit the expression of IL-6 and the cell viability, while glycine conjugates (GCA, GDCA and GCDCA) can promote the expression of IL-6 and the cell viability. Bile acids can change tumor cell viability via IL-6 pathway.

RRM1, TUBB3, TOP2A, CYP19A1, CYP2D6: Difference between mRNA and protein expression in predicting prognosis of breast cancer patients.

The study investigated the clinical significance of RRM1 (ribonucleoside reductase subunit M1), TUBB3 (tubulin-ß-III), TOP2A (DNA topoisomerase II), CYP19A1 (cytochrome P450, family 19, subfamily A, polypeptide 1) and CYP2D6 (cytochrome P450, family 2, subfamily D, polypeptide 6) for the diagnosis and possible predictive roles in breast cancer. Tissue microarray detected the expression of RRM1, tubulin-ß-III, Topo IIα, CYP19A1 and CYP2D6 protein in breast cancer tissue and tissue adjacent to tumors (TATs). In addition, a publically available tool, was used to assess the prognostic value of their gene expression in breast cancer (http://kmplot.com). Analysis for relapse-free survival (RFS), disease-free survival (DFS) and overall survival (OS) was performed. Cytoplasmic RRM1, tubulin-ß-III, CYP19A1 and Topo IIα staining were significantly higher in breast cancer tissues compared with TATs (P<0.050). Significant correlation occurred between RRM1 expression with pathological classification (P=0.018), lymph node involvement (P=0.035) and ER status (P=0.003). Tubulin-ß-III and CYP2D6 expression correlated significantly with tumor grade (P=0.021 for tubulin-ß-III and P=0.029 for CYP2D6, respectively). Cox analysis showed that the protein expression of CYP2D6, CYP19A1, RRM1, Topo IIα or tubulin-ß-III was not an independent prognostic factor. A significant association occurred between RFS and TUBB3, TOP2A, CYP19A1, and CYP2D6 mRNA expression. With CYP19A1 (P<0.001) and CYP2D6 (P<0.001), a high expression was associated with good clinical outcome. Conversely, a low expression of TUBB3 (P<0.001) and TOP2A (P<0.001) was associated with good clinical outcome. TUBB3 (P=0.0004) and TOP2A (P<0.001) were significant prognostic factors in predicting the patient OS. The expression of RRM1, tubulin-ß-III, Topo IIα and CYP19A1 in tumor tissues was significantly higher than that in TATs. TUBB3, TOP2A, CYP19A1 and CYP2D6 gene expression, but not protein expression, was associated with patient survival.

Tissue microarray analysis of X-linked inhibitor of apoptosis (XIAP) expression in breast cancer patients.

The goal of this study was to determine the diagnostic and prognostic potential of X-linked inhibitor of apoptosis (XIAP) expression in breast cancer. We analyzed a tissue microarray comprised of 100 breast cancer cases and 70 matched normal samples. Analysis of an online database, which included 2,977 patients, was also performed. There was a significant difference in cytoplasmic expression of XIAP (XIAP-C) between breast cancer tissue and matched normal (p<0.001). Staining of XIAP-C was defined as negative (breast cancer 8.42% vs. normal 30.91%), slight (40.0 vs. 45.45%), moderate (43.16 vs. 23.64%), or high (8.42 vs. 0%). High XIAP-C protein expression correlated with human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER-2) status (p=0.010) and with human p53 mutant-type (P53) status (p=0.039). We found that XIAP expression did not correlate with disease-free survival (p=0.706) and overall survival (p=0.496) of breast cancer patients. An Internet-based system analysis confirmed our results. In the subgroup analysis, basal-like breast cancer patients with high XIAP levels in the tumor had a significantly increased risk of relapse; thus, the up-regulation of XIAP appeared to be predictive of poor relapse-free survival (p=0.013). Kaplan-Meier curves also identified a significant correlation between distant metastasis-free survival and XIAP expression in patients with lymph-node-negative disease (p=0.030). In summary, expression of XIAP-C was significantly higher in breast cancer compared to normal tissue. XIAP-C expression correlated with HER-2 status and may be considered a prognostic biomarker for basal-like breast cancer patients.

Light management in flexible glass by wood cellulose coating.

Ultra-thin flexible glass with high transparency is attractive for a broad range of display applications; however, substrates with low optical haze are not ideal for thin film solar cells, since most of the light will go through the semiconductor layer without scattering, and the length of light travelling path in the active layer is small. By simply depositing a layer of TEMPO (2,2,6,6-tetramethylpiperidine-1-oxyl radical)-oxidized wood fibers (TOWFs), we are able to tailor the optical properties of flexible glass dramatically from exhibiting low haze (<1%) to high haze (~56%) without compromising the total forward transmittance (~90%). The influence of the TOWFs morphology on the optical properties of TOWFs-coated flexible glass is investigated. As the average fiber length decreases, the transmission haze of TOWF-coated flexible glass illustrates a decreasing trend. Earth-abundant natural materials for transparent, hazy, and flexible glass have tremendous applicability in the fabrication of flexible optoelectronics with tunable light scattering effects by enabling inexpensive and large-scale processes.