Anisotropic Electron-Hole Excitation and Large Linear Dichroism in Two-Dimensional Ferromagnet CrSBr with In-Plane Magnetization

The observation of magnetic ordering in atomically thin CrI$_3$ and Cr$_2$Ge$_2$Te$_6$ monolayers has aroused intense interest in condensed matter physics and material science. Studies of van de Waals two-dimensional (2D) magnetic materials are of both fundamental importance and application interest. In particular, exciton-enhanced magneto-optical properties revealed in CrI$_3$ and CrBr$_3$ monolayers have expanded the understanding of exciton physics in 2D materials. Unlike CrI$_3$ and CrBr$_3$ with out-of-plane magnetization, CrSBr has an in-plane magnetic moment, therefore, providing a good opportunity to study the magnetic linear dichroism and high-order magneto-optical effects. Here, based on the many-body perturbation method within density-functional theory, we have studied quasiparticle electronic structure, exciton, and optical properties in CrSBr monolayer. Strongly bounded exciton has been identified with the first bright exciton located at 1.35 eV, in good agreement with an experiment of photoluminescence (Nat. Mater. \textbf{20}, 1657 (2021)). Strong contrast in the optical absorption is found between the electric fields lying along the in-plane two orthogonal directions. In accordance with a typical and realistic experimental setup, we show that the rotation angle of linear polarized light, either reflected or transmitted, could be comparable with those revealed in black phosphorene. Such large linear dichroism arises mainly from anisotropic in-plane crystal structure. The magnetic contribution from the off-diagonal component of dielectric function to the linear dichroism in CrSBr is negligible. Our findings not only have revealed excitonic effect on the optical and magneto-optical properties in 2D ferromagnet CrSBr, but also have shown its potential applications in 2D optics and optoelectronics.Comment: 47 pages, 24 figure

Interface control of ferroelectricity in LaNiO3-BaTiO3 superlattices

LaNiO$_{3}$-BaTiO$_{3}$ superlattices with different types of interfaces are studied from first-principles density-functional theory. It is revealed that the ferroelectricity in the superlattice with (NiO$_2$)$^-$/(BaO)$^0$ interfaces is enhanced from that of the superlattice with (LaO)$^+$/(TiO$_2$)$^0$ interfaces. The origin lies at the polar discontinuity at the interface, which makes the holes localized within the (NiO$_2$)$^-$/(BaO)$^0$ interface, but drives a penetration of electrons into BaTiO$_3$ component near (LaO)$^+$/(TiO$_2$)$^0$ interface. Our calculations demonstrate an effective avenue to the robust ferroelectricity in BaTiO$_3$ ultrathin films.Comment: 14 pages, 6 figure

MiR-624-5p enhances cell resistance against cisplatin via PDGFRA/Stat3/PI3K axis in ovarian cancer

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to evaluate the role of miR-624-5p in ovarian cancer.Methods: MiR-624-5p expression in ovarian cancer {OC) cell lines and normal cells (NCs) was evaluated and compared the differential miR-624-5p in OC A2780 cells and cisplatin-resistant OC cell line (A2780/DDP). CCK-8 was used to evaluate changes in cell viability of the A2780 and A2780/DDP cell lines as well as silenced miR-624-5p. Western Blot examined the Stat3 and phosphorylated Pi3k. The binding between PDGFRA and miR-624-5p was predicted on Targetscan and verified through Luciferase Reporter Assay. The role of PDGFRA in A2780/DDP by overexpressing PDGFRA was evaluated by RT-qPCR and CCK-8 assays. RT-qPCR assay also measured miR-624-5p expression responsive to different dosages of cisplatin and CCK8 examined viability levels correspondingly. In addition, the interplay of PDGFRA and miR-624-5p by combined downregulation of both miR-624-5pand PDGFRA were evaluated.Results: OC cells had higher miR-624-5p expression than NCs but lower compared to cisplatinresistant A2780/DDP cells. A2780/DDP cells had higher viability than OC cell line A2780. Stat3 and phosphorylated PI3K were activated in A2780/DDP cells. Silencing miR-624-5p led to lower viability inA2780/DDP cells. miR-624-5p expression dropped as the cisplatin concentration increased, resulting in decreasing viability respectively. Luciferase Reporter assay validated the binding of miR-624-5p and PDGFRA in A2780/DDP cells. Overexpressed PDGFRA induced lower cell viability in A2780/DDP cells. Downregulation of PDGFRA partially restored the lowered viability and inhibited Stat3 as well as phosphorylated Pi3k induced by miR-624-5p inhibitor.Conclusion: MiR-624-5p could add to the cellular resistance to cisplatin in OC in-vitro model, which indicated that it might help unveil the mystery of drug-resistance in clinical stage of ovarian cancer. Keywords: MiR-624-5p, resistance, cisplatin, PDGFRA/Stat3/PI3K, ovarian cance

Biased alternative polyadenylation in human tissues

BACKGROUND: Alternative polyadenylation is one of the mechanisms in human cells that give rise to a variety of transcripts from a single gene. More than half of the human genes have multiple polyadenylation sites (poly(A) sites), leading to variable mRNA and protein products. Previous studies of individual genes have indicated that alternative polyadenylation could occur in a tissue-specific manner. RESULTS: We set out to systematically investigate the occurrence and mechanism of alternative polyadenylation in different human tissues using bioinformatic approaches. Using expressed sequence tag (EST) data, we investigated 42 distinct tissue types. We found that several tissues tend to use poly(A) sites that are biased toward certain locations of a gene, such as sites located in introns or internal exons, and various sites in the exon located closest to the 3' end. We also identified several tissues, including eye, retina and placenta, that tend to use poly(A) sites not frequently used in other tissues. By exploring microarray expression data, we analyzed over 20 genes whose protein products are involved in the process or regulation of mRNA polyadenylation. Several brain tissues showed high concordance of gene expression of these genes with each other, but low concordance with other tissue types. By comparing genomic regions surrounding poly(A) sites preferentially used in brain tissues with those in other tissues, we identified several cis-regulatory elements that were significantly associated with brain-specific poly(A) sites. CONCLUSION: Our results indicate that there are systematic differences in poly(A) site usage among human tissues, and both trans-acting factors and cis-regulatory elements may be involved in regulating alternative polyadenylation in different tissues

Ciprofloxacin-loaded electrospun nanofibres for antibacterial wound dressings

A wound is an injury that damages the normal structure and function of the skin and the underlying tissue. Disruption of the wound healing process causes chronic wounds, which are usually associated with microbial infections. In this work, ciprofloxacin was loaded into electrospun nanofibres to generate antibacterial wound dressings. Electrospun nanofibres are suitable for wound dressings due to their adaptability to the wound contour, high porosity for gas exchange, and a high surface area for absorbing wound exudate. Ciprofloxacin was successfully incorporated in polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) and PVA/alginate-blended electrospun nanofibres, with mean diameters ranging from 258 to 460 nm. The materials were characterized using differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) and X-ray diffraction (XRD) to examine the thermal properties and physical form of the drug and polymers. Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) was used to characterise intermolecular interactions within the materials. DSC thermograms showed all the fibres have a PVA enthalpy relaxation peak at 47 °C and a PVA melting endotherm at 229 °C. The XRD patterns indicated decreased crystallinity of PVA after electrospinning. No crystalline drug could be detected in the fibres by either XRD or DSC. FTIR spectra showed the formation of hydrogen bonds between PVA and alginate in the fibres. All the electrospun nanofibres have high water uptake capacity (190%–381%). The ciprofloxacin-loaded electrospun nanofibres also have high drug encapsulation efficiency, above 90%. The drug release profiles demonstrated controlled-release of the drug, following the Korsmeyer-Peppas model. The antibacterial efficacy of the nanofibres was evaluated by isothermal microcalorimetric assays, with the ciprofloxacin-loaded nanofibres found to exhibit equivalent antibacterial efficacy against Staphylococcus aureus and Pseudomonas aeruginosa to pure ciprofloxacin. Hence, the fibres fabricated in this work have the potential to be used as advanced systems to prevent infection during wound healing

Nanoscale lithography mediated by surface self-assembly of 16-[3,5-bis(mercaptomethyl)phenoxy]hexadecanoic acid on Au(111) investigated by scanning probe microscopy

The solution-phase self-assembly of bidentate 16-[3,5-bis(mercaptomethyl) phenoxy]hexadecanoic acid (BMPHA) on Au(111) was studied using nano-fabrication protocols with scanning probe nanolithography and immersion particle lithography. Molecularly thin films of BMPHA prepared by surface self-assembly have potential application as spatially selective layers in sensor designs. Either monolayer or bilayer films of BMPHA can be formed under ambient conditions, depending on the parameters of concentration and immersion intervals. Experiments with scanning probe-based lithography (nanoshaving and nanografting) were applied to measure the thickness of BMPHA films. The thickness of a monolayer and bilayer film of BMPHA on Au(111) were measured in situ with atomic force microscopy using n-octadecanethiol as an internal reference. Scanning probe-based nanofabrication provides a way to insert nanopatterns of a reference molecule of known dimensions within a matrix film of unknown thickness to enable a direct comparison of heights and surface morphology. Immersion particle lithography was used to prepare a periodic arrangement of nanoholes within films of BMPHA. The nanoholes could be backfilled by immersion in a SAM solution to produce nanodots of n-octadecanethiol surrounded by a film of BMPHA. Test platforms prepared by immersion particle lithography enables control of the dimensions of surface sites to construct supramolecular assemblies