The effects of different types of Tai Chi exercises on preventing falls in older adults: a systematic review and network meta-analysis.

OBJECTIVES: Few studies comparing the effects of different types of Tai Chi exercises on preventing falls in older adults. We compared the effects for finding an optimal intervention. METHODS: We searched 12 databases, including PubMed, EMBASE, Cochrane Library, Chinese National Knowledge Infrastructure (CNKI) and so on, from their inception to January 13, 2023. Randomized controlled trials incorporating different types of Tai Chi for preventing falls in older adults were included. The outcome measures were the incidence of falls and Berg Balance Scale (BBS). Network meta-analysis (NMA) was conducted using Stata 15.1 based on a frequentist framework. RESULTS: Seventeen trials were eligible, including 3470 participants and four types of Tai Chi. They were 24-form simplified Tai Chi (24-form), Yang style Tai Chi (Yang style), Sun style Tai Chi (Sun style) and Tai Chi exercise program (TCEP). In paired meta-analysis, for incidence of falls, 24-form (Relative Risk (RR) = 0.59, 95% confidence interval (CI) [0.40, 0.86]) was more efficient than the control group. For BBS outcome, 24-form (MD (mean difference) = 2.32, 95% CI [1.42, 3.22]) was better than the control group. In the NMA, the results of incidence of falls were as follows: 24-form > Yang style > Sun style > control > TCEP. The rank probability of BBS was as follows: 24-form > TCEP > Yang style > control. CONCLUSION: Among the four types of Tai Chi studied, the 24-form simplified Tai Chi has shown better efficacy than other types.

Integrating Network Pharmacology and Component Analysis to Study the Potential Mechanisms of Qi-Fu-Yin Decoction in Treating Alzheimer's Disease.

Purpose: To elucidate the potential mechanisms of QFY for the treatment of Alzheimer's Disease (AD), and explore the effective substances of QFY. Materials and Methods: UPLC-LTQ-Orbitrap-MS was used to identify the chemical constituents of the serum samples and the cerebrospinal fluid samples of rats after QFY administration. Network pharmacology was used to predict potential targets and pathways of QFY against AD. The AD mice model was established by subcutaneous injection of D-gal for 8 consecutive weeks. New object recognition (NOR) and Morris water maze test (MWM) were used to evaluate the learning and memory abilities of mice. Moreover, the levels of TNF-α, IL-1ß, and IL-18 in the brain hippocampus of mice were determined by ELISA. The expression of Bax, Bcl-2, Caspase-1, PSD95, SYP, ICAM-1 and MCP-1 proteins in the hippocampus was detected by Western blotting. Furthermore, qRT-PCR was used to detect the gene expressions of PSD95, SYP, M1 and M2 polarization markers of microglia, including iNOS, CD16, ARG-1, and IL-10 in the hippocampus. Results: A total of 51 prototype compounds were detected in rat serum and 15 prototype components were identified in rat cerebrospinal fluid. Behavioral experiments revealed that QFY significantly increased the recognition index, decreased the escape latency, increased the platform crossing times and increased the residence time in the target quadrant. QFY also could alleviate the ultrastructural pathological changes in the hippocampus of AD mice. Meanwhile, QFY treatment suppressed the expression of inflammatory factors, such as TNF-α, IL-1ß, and IL-18. QFY improved the synaptic plasticity of the hippocampus in D-gal model mice by significantly increasing the expression of proteins and mRNAs of PSD95 and SYP. Conclusion: QFY could effectively improve the learning and memory impairment of D-gal-induced AD mice by inhibiting the excessive activation of microglia, enhancing the expression of M2 microglia, inhibiting the increase of inflammatory factors, cell adhesion factors and chemokines, anti-apoptosis, and improving synaptic plasticity.

One-step fabrication of functionalized poly(etheretherketone) surfaces with enhanced biocompatibility and osteogenic activity.

Polyetheretherketone (PEEK) has an elastic modulus similar to that of the bone; however, its use as a material for bone repair is limited by bio-inert surface chemistry and poor osteogenesis-inducing capacity. To address this issue, the PEEK surface was activated by ultraviolet radiation-induced grafting of methacrylated hyaluronic acid (MeHA) and titanium dioxide (TiO2) nanofibers via a one-step process. The modified PEEK surface was characterized by X-ray photoelectron and Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy, and the extent of surface modification was evaluated by measuring static contact angles. Atomic force microscopy revealed that the PEEK surface grafted with electrospun TiO2 had abundant nanofibers and a roughness that was comparable to that of human cortical bone. In vitro experiment, rat bone mesenchymal stem cells showed increased adhesion, proliferation, and osteogenic differentiation capacity on TiO2-modified as compared to unmodified PEEK. Thus, PEEK that is surface-modified with electrospun TiO2 and MeHA has enhanced biocompatibility and can be an effective material for use in orthopedic implants and medical devices.

Adaptive and freeze-tolerant heteronetwork organohydrogels with enhanced mechanical stability over a wide temperature range.

Many biological organisms with exceptional freezing tolerance can resist the damages to cells from extra-/intracellular ice crystals and thus maintain their mechanical stability at subzero temperatures. Inspired by the freezing tolerance mechanisms found in nature, here we report a strategy of combining hydrophilic/oleophilic heteronetworks to produce self-adaptive, freeze-tolerant and mechanically stable organohydrogels. The organohydrogels can simultaneously use water and oil as a dispersion medium, and quickly switch between hydrogel- and organogel-like behaviours in response to the nature of the surrounding phase. Accordingly, their surfaces display unusual adaptive dual superlyophobic in oil/water system (that is, they are superhydrophobic under oil and superoleophobic under water). Moreover, the organogel component can inhibit the ice crystallization of the hydrogel component, thus enhancing the mechanical stability of organohydrogel over a wide temperature range (-78 to 80 °C). The organohydrogels may have promising applications in complex and harsh environments.

Quantitative assay for the colonization ability of heterogeneous bacteria on controlled nanopillar structures.

The colonization ability of bacteria on biomaterial surfaces is influenced by the morphology of the bacteria and the nanotopography of the biomaterial. However, interactions between the bacterial morphology and nanotopography of biomaterials have not yet been completely elucidated. In this article, we quantitatively characterized the bacterial morphology to illuminate the integrated effects of polyethylene terephthalate (PET) nanopillar arrays on the colonization of bacteria cells with different shapes. Our results demonstrated that the interaction between interpillar spacing and the diameter of the bacterial cells impacted the number of bacterial cells that adhered to different PET substrates. The interpillar spacing of nanopillar arrays promotes bacterial adhesion in a definite range (<50 nm). However, further increasing the interpillar spacing inhibited the adhesion of bacteria to the nanopillar arrays. Moreover, the interpillar spacing also influenced the morphologies of adherent bacterial cells on the PET nanopillar arrays, which consequently facilitated bacterial adhesion to the nanopillar arrays. Our findings enhance the understanding of interactions between controlled nanotopography and bacterial colonization and provide an appropriate parameter for the design of antibacterial materials with nanotopography.

Fabrication of polyaniline nanofiber arrays on poly(etheretherketone) to induce enhanced biocompatibility and controlled behaviours of mesenchymal stem cells.

As a typical conducting material, polyaniline (PANI) has been processed into various nanostructured materials that have been applied in fields including fuel cells, smart materials and anticorrosive coatings. However, few studies have investigated the properties of PANI nanostructures as biointerfaces. Herein, we developed a controlled and stable PANI nanostructured interface on high-performance poly(etheretherketone) (PEEK) surfaces utilizing the self-initiation of PEEK to graft poly(acrylic acid) (PAAc) interlayers and the in situ diluted polymerization of PANI. The prepared PANI nanofiber array surfaces produced chemical factor and nanocue coeffects enabling PEEK to possess enhanced biocompatibility and controlled cell behaviours with nanosensitivity. Atomic force microscopy (AFM) was adopted to characterize the bioadhesion of a simulated protein particle/single cell to various substrates. The cell behaviours of rat mesenchymal stem cells (rMSCs) on PANI and PEEK surfaces were investigated using scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and immunofluorescence. The PANI-grafted PEEK surfaces have enhanced biocompatibilities and controlled nanocues to mediate the behaviours of MSCs.

Suppression of the coffee ring effect by hydrosoluble polymer additives.

A simple and novel method has been demonstrated for avoiding coffee ring structure based on hydrosoluble polymer additives during droplet evaporation. The polymer additives lead to the motion of the contact line (CL) resulted from the viscosity and Marangoni effect. The viscosity provides a large resistance to the radially outward flow. It results in a small amount of spheres deposited at droplet edge, which do not facilitate the pinning of the CL. The Marangoni effect resulted from the variation of polymer concentration at droplet edge during droplet evaporation contributes to the motion of the CL. Thus, uniform and ordered macroscale SiO(2) microspheres deposition is achieved. What's more, the coffee ring effect can be eliminated by different hydrosoluble polymer. This method will be applicable to a wide of aqueous system and will be of great significance for extensive applications of droplet deposition in biochemical assays and material deposition.

Strongly green-photoluminescent graphene quantum dots for bioimaging applications.

Strongly fluorescent graphene quantum dots (GQDs) have been prepared by one-step solvothermal method with PL quantum yield as high as 11.4%. The GQDs have high stability and can be dissolved in most polar solvents. Because of fine biocompatibility and low toxicity, GQDs are demonstrated to be excellent bioimaging agents.

Biomimetic polyimide nanotube arrays with slippery or sticky superhydrophobicity.

In this paper, we report the fabrication of superhydrophobic polyimide (PI) nanotube arrays with different topographies, which possess slippery or "sticky" superhydrophobicity. The PI nanotube arrays were fabricated by the porous alumina membrane molding method. We regulated three kinds of solvent evaporation and drying processes, which controlled different congregated and noncongregated topographies of PI nanotube arrays. Large scale comb-like congregated topography possesses a small sliding angle (SA<5 degrees), small scale comb-like congregated topography possesses a medium sliding angle (SA is about 30 degrees), noncongregated topography possesses a large sliding angle (strong adhesive force to water droplet). Moreover, the as-prepared superhydrophobic PI nanotube arrays have remarkable resistivity to acid, weak base, high temperature (up to 350 degrees C) and various organic solvents. Our work provides a facile and promising strategy to fabricate superhydrophobic surfaces with controlled sliding angles by utilizing self-organization effect, and such high performance superhydrophobic PI nanotube arrays can be used as coating materials in various harsh conditions.