Ferromagnetic-Based Charge-Accumulation Triboelectric Nanogenerator With Ultrahigh Surface Charge Density.

An encouraging micro-energy harvesting technology, the triboelectric nanogenerator (TENG), has been proven to transfer ambient environmental micro-energy into electricity, but a low surface charge density results in low performance and limits the practical application of TENG. Here, a ferromagnetic-based charge-accumulation TENG (FC-TENG) is proposed with ultrahigh surface charge density and performances. The FC-TENG introduces a ferromagnetic media to enhance the output charge by magnetization effect. Meanwhile, the charge can also be continuously accumulated by the charge pump effects. Based on these two effects, an ultra-high surface charge density of 2.85 mC m-2 is obtained under ambient atmospheric conditions using an ultra-thin PET film (3 µm) and deposited Permalloy ferromagnetic electrodes. Meanwhile, the surface charge density of the FC-TENG can always maintain more than 1.5 mC m-2 , even if the relative humidity arrives at 90%. This work provides a prospective technical mode to enhance the surface charge density of TENG, which would shed a new insight and guidance on the high-performance TENG for various environmental conditions such as the ocean, industrial manufacturing, aerospace, and rail traffic.

Triboelectric Nanogenerators as Active Tactile Stimulators for Multifunctional Sensing and Artificial Synapses.

The wearable tactile sensors have attracted great attention in the fields of intelligent robots, healthcare monitors and human-machine interactions. To create active tactile sensors that can directly generate electrical signals in response to stimuli from the surrounding environment is of great significance. Triboelectric nanogenerators (TENGs) have the advantages of high sensitivity, fast response speed and low cost that can convert any type of mechanical motion in the surrounding environment into electrical signals, which provides an effective strategy to design the self-powered active tactile sensors. Here, an overview of the development in TENGs as tactile stimulators for multifunctional sensing and artificial synapses is systematically introduced. Firstly, the applications of TENGs as tactile stimulators in pressure, temperature, proximity sensing, and object recognition are introduced in detail. Then, the research progress of TENGs as tactile stimulators for artificial synapses is emphatically introduced, which is mainly reflected in the electrolyte-gate synaptic transistors, optoelectronic synaptic transistors, floating-gate synaptic transistors, reduced graphene oxides-based artificial synapse, and integrated circuit-based artificial synapse and nervous systems. Finally, the challenges of TENGs as tactile stimulators for multifunctional sensing and artificial synapses in practical applications are summarized, and the future development prospects are expected.

Self-Powered and Autonomous Vibrational Wake-Up System Based on Triboelectric Nanogenerators and MEMS Switch.

With the extensive application of wireless sensing nodes, the demand for sustainable energy in unattended environments is increasing. Here, we report a self-powered and autonomous vibrational wake-up system (SAVWS) based on triboelectric nanogenerators and micro-electromechanical system (MEMS) switches. The energy triboelectric nanogenerator (E-TENG) harvests vibration energy to power the wireless transmitter through a MEMS switch. The signal triboelectric nanogenerator (S-TENG) controls the state of the MEMS switch as a self-powered accelerometer and shows good linearity in the acceleration range of 1-4.5 m/s2 at 30 Hz with a sensitivity of about 14.6 V/(m/s2). When the acceleration increases, the S-TENG turns on the MEMS switch, and the wireless transmitter transmits an alarm signal with the energy from E-TENG, using only 0.64 mJ. Using TENGs simultaneously as an energy source and a sensor, the SAVWS provides a self-powered vibration monitoring solution for unattended environments and shows extensive applications and great promise in smart factories, autonomous driving, and the Internet of Things.

The Bile Acid Membrane Receptor TGR5 in Cancer: Friend or Foe?

The G-protein-coupled bile acid receptor, Gpbar1 or TGR5, is characterized as a membrane receptor specifically activated by bile acids. A series of evidence shows that TGR5 induces protein kinase B (AKT), nuclear factor kappa-B (NF-κB), extracellular regulated protein kinases (ERK1/2), signal transducer and activator of transcription 3 (STAT3), cyclic adenosine monophosphate (cAMP), Ras homolog family member A (RhoA), exchange protein activated by cAMP (Epac), and transient receptor potential ankyrin subtype 1 protein (TRPA1) signaling pathways, thereby regulating proliferation, inflammation, adhesion, migration, insulin release, muscle relaxation, and cancer development. TGR5 is widely distributed in the brain, lung, heart, liver, spleen, pancreas, kidney, stomach, jejunum, ileum, colon, brown adipose tissue (BAT), white adipose tissue (WAT), and skeletal muscle. Several recent studies have demonstrated that TGR5 exerts inconsistent effects in different cancer cells upon activating via TGR5 agonists, such as INT-777, ursodeoxycholic acid (UDCA), and taurolithocholic acid (TLCA). In this review, we discuss both the 'friend' and 'foe' features of TGR5 by summarizing its tumor-suppressing and oncogenic functions and mechanisms.

Taurochenodeoxycholic Acid Increases cAMP Content via Specially Interacting with Bile Acid Receptor TGR5.

Taurochenodeoxycholic acid (TCDCA) is one of the main components of bile acids (BAs). TCDCA has been reported as a signaling molecule, exerting anti-inflammatory and immunomodulatory functions. However, it is not well known whether those effects are mediated by TGR5. This study aimed to elucidate the interaction between TCDCA and TGR5. To achieve this aim, first, the TGR5 eukaryotic vector was constructed. The expression level of TGR5 in 293T cells was determined by immunofluorescence, real-time quantitative PCR (RT-PCR, qPCR), and Western blot. The luciferase assay, fluorescence microscopy, and enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) were recruited to check the interaction of TCDCA with TGR5. TCDCA treatment in 293T cells resulted in TGR5 internalization coupled with a significant increase in cAMP luciferase expression. Our results demonstrated that TCDCA was able to bind to the TGR5 receptor and activate it. These results provide an excellent potential therapeutic target for TCDCA research. Moreover, these findings also provide theoretical evidence for further TCDCA research.

Exploration of chemical compositions in different germplasm wolfberry using UPLC-MS/MS and evaluation of the in vitro anti-inflammatory activity of quercetin.

Wolfberry, esteemed as a traditional Chinese medicinal material and functional food, is replete with nutrients and boasts a diverse array of health benefits, including hypoglycemic, antitumor, antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, and immune-enhancing properties. Notably, inflammation is a pivotal factor in the onset and progression of numerous diseases. Despite this, there is a paucity of research on the comprehensive evaluation of the components found in different wolfberries, and the exploration of their primary active components is limited. To address this issue, we conducted a comprehensive targeted metabolomics analysis, employing statistical methods such as principal component analysis (PCA), orthogonal partial least squares discriminant analysis (OPLS-DA), KEGG pathway analysis, and volcano plots to delineate the compositional differences among red, black, and yellow wolfberries. Furthermore, we investigated the anti-inflammatory effects of their primary components through in vitro experiments. Our analysis revealed a total of 1,104 chemical compositions in the three wolfberries, with alkaloids, phenolic acids, flavonoids, and lipids being the predominant nutritional components. KEGG enrichment analysis indicated that these compositions were primarily involved in the biosynthesis of secondary metabolites, ABC transport, and galactose metabolism pathway. Moreover, our study demonstrated that quercetin exhibited dose-dependent anti-inflammatory activity in LPS-stimulated HUVECs. It effectively inhibited the production of inflammatory factors such as TNF-α, MCP-1, and IL-1ß, while also down-regulating the gene and protein expression levels of ICAM-1 and VCAM-1. In conclusion, our findings indicate that there are variations in compositions among the three wolfberries, with flavonoids being the most abundant, and in vitro studies also confirmed the anti-inflammatory potential of quercetin. It is worth noting that Lycium ruthenicum contains higher levels of antioxidant components and possesses greater nutritional value, providing valuable insights for the future development and utilization of the three wolfberries.

A Highly Sensitive Triboelectric Quasi-Zero Stiffness Vibration Sensor with Ultrawide Frequency Response.

Sensors based on triboelectric nanogenerators (TENGs) have gained worldwide interest owing to their advantages of low cost and self-powering. However, the detection of most triboelectric vibration sensors (TVS) is restricted to low frequency, whereas high-frequency vibration signals are successfully measured in recent studies; their sensitivity still requires improvement. Hence, a highly sensitive vibration sensor based on TENG (HSVS-TENG) with ultrawide frequency response is presented. This study is the first to introduce a quasi-zero stiffness structure into the TENG to minimize the driving force by optimizing the magnetic induction intensity and the weight of the moving part. The results show that the HSVS-TENG can measure vibrations with frequencies ranging from 2.5 to 4000 Hz, with a sensitivity ranging from 0.32 to 134.9 V g-1 . Moreover, the sensor exhibits a good linear response versus the applied acceleration, and the linearity ranges from 0.08 to 2.81 V g-1 . The self-powered sensor can monitor the running state and fault type of the key components with a recognition accuracy of 98.9% by leveraging machine-learning algorithms. The results reach a new height for the ultrawide frequency response and high sensitivity of the TVS and provide an idea for a follow-up high-resolution TVS.

Self-Powered Wireless Temperature and Vibration Monitoring System by Weak Vibrational Energy for Industrial Internet of Things.

Developing self-powered smart wireless sensor networks by harvesting industrial environmental weak vibration energy remains a challenge and an impending need for enabling the widespread rollout of the industrial internet of things (IIoT). This work reports a self-powered wireless temperature and vibration monitoring system (WTVMS) based on a vibrational triboelectric nanogenerator (V-TENG) and a piezoelectric nanogenerator (PENG) for weak vibration energy collection and information sensing. Therein, the V-TENG can scavenge weak vibration energy down to 80 µm to power the system through a power management module, while the PENG is able to supply the frequency signal to the system by a comparison circuit. In an industrial vibration environment where the vibration frequency and amplitude are 20 Hz and 100 µm, respectively, the WTVMS can upload temperature and frequency information on the equipment to the cloud in combination with the narrowband IoT technology to realize real-time information monitoring. Furthermore, the WTVMS can work continuously for more than 2 months, during which the V-TENG can operate up to 100 million cycles, achieving ultrahigh stability and durability. By integrating weak vibration energy harvesting and active sensing technology, the WTVMS can be used for real-time online monitoring and early fault diagnosis of vibration equipment, which has great application prospects in industrial production, machinery manufacturing, traffic transportation, and intelligent IIoT.

Effect of Lycium barbarum polysaccharides on cell signal transduction pathways.

Lycium barbarum polysaccharide (LBP), is a major active ingredient Lycium barbarum (LB), which exhibits several beneficial effects through NF-κB, PI3K-Akt-mTOR, p38-MAPK, Wnt-ß-catenin, PI3K-Akt-GSK-3ß, and MyD88 signal pathway, including anti-oxidation, and anti-aging, hypolipidemic and hypoglycemic, radiation, anti-tumor, and neuroprotection. Today, many researching papers are published on the LBP in physiology and pathology; however, the review of the LBP taking part in the signal transduction pathway in physiology and pathology is rear searched. Therefore, this research topic is a collection of reviews and original research articles that focus on the methods of the LBP extraction and its effects on the signal transduction pathway. The aim of this study is to provide theoretical evidence for in-depth analysis of the mechanisms of LBP in clinical clinical research studies.

A Flexible Tribotronic Artificial Synapse with Bioinspired Neurosensory Behavior.

As key components of artificial afferent nervous systems, synaptic devices can mimic the physiological synaptic behaviors, which have attracted extensive attentions. Here, a flexible tribotronic artificial synapse (TAS) with bioinspired neurosensory behavior is developed. The triboelectric potential generated by the external contact electrification is used as the ion-gel-gate voltage of the organic thin film transistor, which can tune the carriers transport through the migration/accumulation of ions. The TAS successfully demonstrates a series of synaptic behaviors by external stimuli, such as excitatory postsynaptic current, paired-pulse facilitation, and the hierarchical memory process from sensory memory to short-term memory and long-term memory. Moreover, the synaptic behaviors remained stable under the strain condition with a bending radius of 20 mm, and the TAS still exhibits excellent durability after 1000 bending cycles. Finally, Pavlovian conditioning has been successfully mimicked by applying force and vibration as food and bell, respectively. This work demonstrates a bioinspired flexible artificial synapse that will help to facilitate the development of artificial afferent nervous systems, which is great significance to the practical application of artificial limbs, robotics, and bionics in future.

Self-Powered Non-Contact Motion Vector Sensor for Multifunctional Human-Machine Interface.

Sensors as the significant units of the Internet of Things play an important role in the field of information interaction. Non-contact sensors have the advantages of flexible manipulation and a longer lifespan but it is constrained in motion detection due to their relative single detection function. Herein, a self-powered non-contact motion vector sensor (NMVS) for the multifunctional human-machine interface is reported. Based on the electrostatic induction effect, the motion vector is measured according to the output electrical signals from the non-contact triboelectric nanogenerator (NC-TENG). By simulation analysis and experimental validation, the output characteristics of NC-TENG dependence on structural and motion parameters are investigated in detail. On this basis, the resolution of NMVS is improved and exhibits for non-contact micro-vibration monitoring, rehabilitation gait detection, contactless smart lock, and the non-contact limit alarm. This work not only proposes an ingenious strategy for non-contact motion vector detection but also demonstrates the promising prospects of a multifunctional human-machine interface in intelligent electronics, health rehabilitation, and industrial inspection.

Raindrop energy-powered autonomous wireless hyetometer based on liquid-solid contact electrification.

Triboelectric nanogenerators (TENGs) can directly harvest energy via solid-liquid interface contact electrification, making them very suitable for harvesting raindrop energy and as active rainfall sensors. This technology is promising for realizing a fully self-powered system for autonomous rainfall monitoring combined with energy harvesting/sensing. Here, we report a raindrop energy-powered autonomous rainfall monitoring and wireless transmission system (R-RMS), in which a raindrop-TENG (R-TENG) array simultaneously serves as a raindrop energy harvester and rainfall sensor. At a rainfall intensity of 71 mm/min, the R-TENG array can generate an average short-circuit current, open-circuit voltage, and maximum output power of 15 µA, 1800 V, and 325 µW, respectively. The collected energy can be adjusted to act as a stable 2.5 V direct-current source for the whole system by a power management circuit. Meanwhile, the R-TENG array acts as a rainfall sensor, in which the output signal can be monitored and the measured data are wirelessly transmitted. Under a rainfall intensity of 71 mm/min, the R-RMS can be continuously powered and autonomously transmit rainfall data once every 4 min. This work has paved the way for raindrop energy-powered wireless hyetometers, which have exhibited broad prospects in unattended weather monitoring, field surveys, and the Internet of Things.

Frequency Band Characteristics of a Triboelectric Nanogenerator and Ultra-Wide-Band Vibrational Energy Harvesting.

Micromechanical vibration, as one of the most prevalent forms of energy in an ambient environment, has surpassing application potentials as the power source for self-powered electronics. A triboelectric nanogenerator (TENG) can effectively convert vibrational energy to electricity, which has the unique benefit of a wide-band over a traditional vibration energy harvester due to the contact electrification mechanism. Herein, the frequency band characteristics of vibrational TENG (V-TENG) were systematically elaborated. The mechanical model of V-TENG was established to explore its working mechanism for wide-band vibrational energy harvesting. By simulation analysis and experimental validation, the bandwidth dependence of V-TENG on acceleration magnitude, proof mass, stiffness, and gap distance was investigated in detail. With optimized structural parameters, an ultra-wide-band vibration energy harvester (UVEH) was developed by a tandem spring-mass structure. Within the ultra-wide-band range from 3 to 45 Hz, the UVEH can invariably illuminate 36 serial light-emitting diodes (LEDs) and charge a 33 µF capacitor to 1.5 V within 35 s. This work has quantitatively studied frequency band characteristics of V-TENG and provided a promising strategy for wide-band vibrational energy harvesting from a machine, bridge, water wave, and human motion.

Taurochenodeoxycholic acid mediates cAMP-PKA-CREB signaling pathway.

Taurochenodeoxycholic acid (TCDCA) is one of the main effective components of bile acid, playing critical roles in apoptosis and immune responses through the TGR5 receptor. In this study, we reveal the interaction between TCDCA and TGR5 receptor in TGR5-knockdown H1299 cells and the regulation of inflammation via the cyclic adenosine monophosphate (cAMP)-protein kinase A (PKA)-cAMP response element binding (CREB) signal pathway in NR8383 macrophages. In TGR5-knockdown H1299 cells, TCDCA significantly activated cAMP level via TGR5 receptor, indicating TCDCA can bind to TGR5; in NR8383 macrophages TCDCA increased cAMP content compared to treatment with the adenylate cyclase (AC) inhibitor SQ22536. Moreover, activated cAMP can significantly enhance gene expression and protein levels of its downstream proteins PKA and CREB compared with groups of inhibitors. Additionally, TCDCA decreased tumour necrosis factor-α (TNF-α), interleukin-1ß (IL-1ß), IL-6, IL-8 and IL-12 through nuclear factor kappa light chain enhancer of activated B cells (NF-κB) activity. PKA and CREB are primary regulators of anti-inflammatory and immune response. Our results thus demonstrate TCDCA plays an essential anti-inflammatory role via the signaling pathway of cAMP-PKA-CREB induced by TGR5 receptor.