Flexible Organic Photovoltaic-Powered Hydrogel Bioelectronic Dressing With Biomimetic Electrical Stimulation for Healing Infected Diabetic Wounds.

Electrical stimulation (ES) is proposed as a therapeutic solution for managing chronic wounds. However, its widespread clinical adoption is limited by the requirement of additional extracorporeal devices to power ES-based wound dressings. In this study, a novel sandwich-structured photovoltaic microcurrent hydrogel dressing (PMH dressing) is designed for treating diabetic wounds. This innovative dressing comprises flexible organic photovoltaic (OPV) cells, a flexible micro-electro-mechanical systems (MEMS) electrode, and a multifunctional hydrogel serving as an electrode-tissue interface. The PMH dressing is engineered to administer ES, mimicking the physiological injury current occurring naturally in wounds when exposed to light; thus, facilitating wound healing. In vitro experiments are performed to validate the PMH dressing's exceptional biocompatibility and robust antibacterial properties. In vivo experiments and proteomic analysis reveal that the proposed PMH dressing significantly accelerates the healing of infected diabetic wounds by enhancing extracellular matrix regeneration, eliminating bacteria, regulating inflammatory responses, and modulating vascular functions. Therefore, the PMH dressing is a potent, versatile, and effective solution for diabetic wound care, paving the way for advancements in wireless ES wound dressings.

Clinical study of western medicine combined with Chinese medicine based on syndrome differentiation in the patients with polarized hypertension.

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the effects and safety of Western medicine combined with Chinese medicine (CM) based on syndrome differentiation in the treatment of elderly polarized hypertension (PHPT), or isolated systolic hypertension with low diastolic blood pressure (DBP). METHODS: A total of 125 elderly patients with PHPT were randomly assigned to two groups: 59 in the control group treated by Western medicine and 66 in the intervention group treated by Western medicine combined with CM treatment. Based on syndrome differentiation, the patients in the intervention group were further divided into subgroups of yang-qi deficiency and yin-qi deficiency. All subjects were treated with Western medicine of Amlodipine Besylate Tablets and Irbesartan Tablets (or Irbesartan and Hydrochlorothiazide Tablets), to decrease their systolic blood pressure (SBP) slowly to 125-135 mm Hg in 2-6 weeks. In the intervention group, Shiyiwei Shenqi Capsule was given additionally to the subgroup of yang-qi deficiency at the dosage of 3-5 capsules, thrice a day, while Dengzhan Shengmai Capsule was given additionally to the subgroup of yin-qi deficiency at the dosage of 2 capsules, 2-3 times per day. For all subjects, SBP, pulse pressure (PP), and DBP were measured before treatment and at the terminal of a 6-week treatment. For subjects in the intervention group, left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF) was also recorded. RESULTS: After a 6-week treatment, the SBP in the two groups and the PP in the intervention group decreased significantly compared to those before treatment (P<0.05), while the PP in the control group showed no significant difference between prior and post-treatment (P>0.05). After treatment, the DBP in the control group decreased (P>0.05), while the DBP and LVEF in the intervention group showed an increase tendency although it had no statistical significance (P>0.05). When subjects in the intervention group were classified further by the course of disease, the DBP and LVEF of subjects whose course of disease were less than 2 years, increased significantly after treatment (P<0.05). CONCLUSION: Western medicine combined with CM treatment based on syndrome differentiation was safer and more effective than Western medicine alone in the treatment of elderly PHPT, because it not only reduced SBP but also improved DBP, which might lower the incidence of the cardiovascular and cerebrovascular events.

[Effects of experimentally induced hyperopic optical defocus on refractive status of adolescent monkeys].

OBJECTIVE: To determine if chronic optical defocus alters refractive development in monkeys at ages corresponding to the typically developed age of myopia in human children. METHODS: A hyperopic anisometropia was produced in 7 adolescent rhesus monkeys by photorefractive keratectomy (PRK). The laser procedures were performed when the monkeys were 2.0 to 2.5 years old, which corresponded to approximately 8-10 years old in human being. The ocular effects of the induced anisometropia were assessed periodically by corneal topography, retinoscopy and A-scan ultrasonography. RESULTS: By about 30 days post-PRK, the experimentally induced refractive errors was stabilized and the treated eyes were between +0.75 and +2.25 D more hyperopic than their fellow eyes. Subsequently, 7 monkeys showed systematic reductions in the degree of anisometropia. Although some regression in corneal power occurred, the compensating refractive changes were primarily due to the differences in vitreous chamber growth (r = 0.74, P = 0.046). CONCLUSIONS: Vision-dependent mechanisms that are sensitive to refractive error are still active in adolescent primates and probably play a role in maintaining stable refractive errors in the two eyes. Consequently, conditions that result in consistent hyperopic defocus could potentially contribute to the development of juvenile onset myopia in children.

[Comparison of retinal morphology and ultrastructure in defocus-induced myopia and form-deprivation myopia in rhesus monkeys].

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the changes of retinal ultrastructure of defocus-induced myopia and form-deprivation myopia in infant rhesus monkeys. METHODS: A -3.00 D spectacle lens (n = 9) or diffuser lens (n = 6) was worn over one eye and a zero-powered lens over the fellow eye in 15 healthy rhesus monkeys ranging in age from 1 to 1.5 months. The eyes were examined periodically with corneal topography, cycloplegic retinoscopy, A-scan ultrasonography, and optical coherence tomography (OCT). Three months later, light and electron microscope were used to observe the changes of the retina. RESULTS: In 15 monkeys, all eyes treated with -3.00 D spectacle lens or diffuser lens developed defocus-induced myopia or form-deprivation myopia. Not only defocus-induced myopia, but also form-deprivation myopia showed elongation of rod outer segment, decreased membrane disc of cone outer segment, increased clearance of the membrane disc and decreased thickness of the neurosensory retina (RNL) as compared with the control eyes (P < 0.05). There were no significant differences between the mean OCT and histomorphometric thickness of RNL and retinal pigment epithelium (RPE) after the correction of dehydration (P > 0.05). CONCLUSIONS: There are significant differences in retinal ultrastructure between experimental myopic eyes and control eyes. But the morphological changes in the retina of the defocus-induced myopia showed no significant difference as compared with form-deprivation myopia. The role of changes of retinal ultrastructure in the development of myopia needs further studies. OCT can be used to examine the changes of RNL and RPE in experimental myopia in vivo.

The first trisaza-bridged [60]fulleroid: drilling a hole on the fullerene.

[reaction: see text] Two types of trisaza-bridged [60]fulleroids have been synthesized for the first time. By means of (13)C NMR, (1)H NMR, MALDI-TOF MS, FTIR, UV-vis, and 2D-NMR (gHSQC, gHMBC, and NOSEY) spectroscopy, they have been shown to be tris[6,5]-opened-aza-bridged adducts with substituents on the same five-membered ring with C(s)() symmetry. Some data of nonlinear optics and electrochemistry for the product are also reported.

Expression of pax-6 in rhesus monkey of optical defocus induced myopia and form deprivation myopia.

BACKGROUND: Pax-6 gene plays an important role in the process of eye development. This study was to determine the role of pax-6 in the axial myopia produced by hyperopic optical defocus and form deprivation in infant monkeys. METHODS: Among seven normal infant rhesus monkeys (aged 1 to 1.5 months), five wore -3.00 D spectacle lenses over their right eyes and zero-powered lenses over their left eyes. Monocular form deprivation was produced by eyelid fusion in two monkeys. Ten weeks later, the monkeys were sacrificed by an overdose of barbiturates and their eyes were removed immediately. A 5 mm x 5 mm button of retina and sclera was taken from the posterior poles along with a 4-mm optic nerve. RNA was isolated separately from each of these three types of tissues. After that, reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) was used for determining gene expression in the retina, sclera and optic nerve. Semi-quantitative analyses were performed on the PCR products. RESULTS: As expected, the optically induced hyperopic defocus and the form deprivation produced myopic growth. For the lens-treatment monkeys, pax-6 gene expression in the retinas of the defocused eyes was significantly higher than in the retinas of the left eyes (t = 5.703, P = 0.005). However, there were no analogous significant differences between pax-6 expression in the scleras or the optic nerves. For the two form-deprived monkeys, there were no obvious differences in pax-6 gene expression in the retinas or the optic nerves. CONCLUSION: The result that the expression of pax-6 was enhanced by hyperopic defocus in the infant monkey retina suggests that pax-6 may be involved in vision-dependent eye growth and emmetropization.