Bioinspired Soft Robotic Fish for Wireless Underwater Control of Gliding Locomotion

Animal locomotion offers valuable references as it is a critical component of survival as animals adapting to a specific environment. Especially, underwater locomotion poses a challenge because water exerts a high antagonistic drag force against the direction of progress. However, marine vertebrates usually use much lower aerobic energy for locomotion than aerial or terrestrial vertebrates due to their unique intermittent gliding locomotion. None of the prior works demonstrate the locomotive strategies of marine vertebrates. Herein, an untethered soft robotic fish capable of reconstructing the marine vertebrates’ effective locomotion and traveling underwater by controlling localized buoyancy with thermoelectric pneumatic actuators is introduced. The actuators enable both heating and cooling to control a localized buoyancy while providing a substantial driving force to the system. Besides mimicking the locomotion, the bidirectional communication system enables the untethered delivery of commands to the underwater subject and real‐time acquisition of the robotic fish's physical information. Underwater imaging validates the fish's practical use as a drone, allowing for inspecting the aquatic environment that is not easily accessible to humans. Future work studies the operation of the robotic fish as a collective swarm to examine a broader range of the underwater area and conduct various strategic missions

Digital selective transformation and patterning of highly conductive hydrogel bioelectronics by laser-induced phase separation

Copyright © 2022 The Authors, some rights reservedThe patterning of poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene):poly(styrene sulfonate) (PEDOT:PSS) hydrogels with excellent electrical property and spatial resolution is a challenge for bioelectronic applications. However, most PEDOT:PSS hydrogels are fabricated by conventional manufacturing processes such as photolithography, inkjet printing, and screen printing with complex fabrication steps or low spatial resolution. Moreover, the additives used for fabricating PEDOT:PSS hydrogels are mostly cytotoxic, thus requiring days of detoxification. Here, we developed a previously unexplored ultrafast and biocompatible digital patterning process for PEDOT:PSS hydrogel via phase separation induced by a laser. We enhanced the electrical properties and aqueous stability of PEDOT:PSS by selective laser scanning, which allowed the transformation of PEDOT:PSS into water-stable hydrogels. PEDOT:PSS hydrogels showed high electrical conductivity of 670 S/cm with 6-μm resolution in water. Furthermore, electrochemical properties were maintained even after 6 months in a physiological environment. We further demonstrated stable neural signal recording and stimulation with hydrogel electrodes fabricated by laser.N

Microscopic Adhesion Score System.

<p>Microscopic Adhesion Score System.</p

Histologic examination of inflammation and fibrosis (H&E stain, X 200).

<p>(Inf. 1) Inflammation grade 1: mild lymphocytic infiltration with several foreign body giant cells; (Inf. 2) Inflammation grade 2: moderate infiltration of neutrophils, eosinophils, and foreign body giant cells; (Inf. 3) Inflammation grade 3: marked neutrophil infiltration (abscess) along the pericardial surface. (Fib. 1) Fibrosis grade 1: loose fibrosis beneath the pericardial surface; (Fib. 2) Fibrosis grade 2: moderate fibrosis beneath the pericardial surface; (Fib. 3) Fibrosis grade 3: marked fibrosis beneath heavy leukocytic infiltration.</p

Example of image design for CT evaluation (left panel), and a schematic of a CT scan of four pericardial segments (right panel).

<p>A, anterior; P, posterior; L, left; R, right.</p

Adhesion Score System for Macroscopic Evaluation.

<p>Adhesion Score System for Macroscopic Evaluation.</p

Picture of a container with the PACM and dye mixture (left panel).

<p>The containers with the mixture were scanned at a distance of 2.5ⅹ10⁻² m. A total of 27 circles (nine circles on each of three sections) with 1.0ⅹ10⁻² m diameter were drawn on each scanned image (right panel). Hounsfield units were recorded in each circle.</p

Macroscopic evaluation.

<p>A rabbit with macroscopic adhesion score 0 in group PD (left panel) and score 4 in group CO (right panel).</p

Hyperglycemia and Hypoglycemia Are Associated with In-Hospital Mortality among Patients with Coronavirus Disease 2019 Supported with Extracorporeal Membrane Oxygenation

Metabolic abnormalities, such as preexisting diabetes or hyperglycemia or hypoglycemia during hospitalization aggravated the severity of COVID-19. We evaluated whether diabetes history, hyperglycemia before and during extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO) support, and hypoglycemia were risk factors for mortality in patients with COVID-19. This study included data on 195 patients with COVID-19, who were aged &gt;= 19 years and were treated with ECMO. The proportion of patients with diabetes history among nonsurvivors was higher than that among survivors. Univariate Cox regression analysis showed that in-hospital mortality after ECMO support was associated with diabetes history, renal replacement therapy (RRT), and body mass index (BMI) &lt; 18.5 kg/m(2). Glucose at admission &gt;200 mg/dL and glucose levels before ventilator &gt;200 mg/dL were not associated with in-hospital mortality. However, glucose levels before ECMO &gt;200 mg/dL and minimal glucose levels during hospitalization 200 mg/dL before ECMO and minimal glucose &lt;70 mg/dL during hospitalization remained risk factors for in-hospital mortality after adjustment for age, BMI, and RRT. In conclusion, glucose &gt;200 mg/dL before ECMO and minimal glucose level &lt;70 mg/dL during hospitalization were risk factors for in-hospital mortality among COVID-19 patients who underwent ECMO.N