Magnetic photonic crystals for biomedical applications

Abstract Magnetic photonic crystals (PhCs), as a representative responsive structural color material, have attracted increasing research focus due to merits such as brilliant refraction colors, instant responsiveness, and excellent manipuility, thus having been widely applied for color displaying, three‐dimensional printing, sensing, and so on. Featured with traits such as contactless manner, flexible orientations, and adjustable intensity of external magnetism, magnetic PhCs have shown great superiority especially in the field of biomedical applications such as bioimaging and auxiliary clinical diagnosis. In this review, we summarize the current advancements of magnetic PhCs. We first introduce the fundamental principles and typical characteristics of PhCs. Afterward, we present several typical self‐assembly strategies with their frontiers in practical applications. Finally, we analyze the current situations of magnetic PhCs and put forward the prospective challenges and future development directions

Encoding microcarriers for biomedicine

Abstract High throughput biological analysis has become an important topic in modern biomedical research and clinical diagnosis. The flow encoding scheme based on the encoding microcarriers provides a feasible strategy for the multiplexed biological analysis. Different encoding characteristics invest the microcarriers with different encoding mechanisms. Biosensor analysis, drug screening, cell culture, and the construction and evaluation of bionic organ chips can be realized by decoding the microcarriers and quantifying the detection signal intensity. In this review, the encoding strategy of microcarriers was divided into the optical and non‐optical encoding approaches according to their encoding elements, and the research progress of the microcarrier encoding strategy was elaborated. Finally, we summarized the biomedical applications and predicted their future prospects

Micro-/nano-structured flexible electronics for biomedical applications

Flexible electronics are attracting considerable attention due to their promising performance including conductivity, stain- or pressure-sensing performance, skin-affinity, flexibility, etc. In particular, the structural design has promoted their properties and brought advanced functions, which make them valuable in biomedical applications including health monitoring, therapeutic applications and implantable devices. Herein, a review on the recent progress of flexible electronics with micro-/nano-structures is provided, involving the manufacturing technologies and applications in biomedical fields. Following these two sections, remaining challenges and the perspectives on future directions are also proposed

Self-Assembled Nanoparticle Antireflection Coatings on Geometrically Complex Optical Surfaces

Here we report a simple and scalable electrostatics-assisted colloidal self-assembly technology for fabricating monolayer nanoparticle antireflection coatings on geometrically complex optical surfaces. By using a surface-modified glass volumetric flask with a long neck as a proof-of-concept demonstration, negatively charged silica nanoparticles with 110 nm diameter are electrostatically adsorbed on both the interior and exterior surfaces of the flask possessing positive surface charges. The self-assembled monolayer nanoparticle antireflection coatings can significantly improve light transmission through different regions of the flask with varied curvatures, as revealed by optical transmission measurements and numerical simulations using a simplified thin-film multilayer model

Self-curling 3D oriented scaffolds from fish scales for skeletal muscle regeneration

Abstract Background Volumetric muscle loss (VML) due to various reasons may cause motor dysfunction and tissue engineering has been proposed for muscle regeneration. However, developing three-dimensional (3D) tissue-engineered scaffolds that can mimic oriented cell growth of muscle tissues are challenging for regeneration medicine. Herein, we propose a novel self-curling 3D oriented scaffold (SCOS) composed of fish derived gelatin methacrylate (GelMA) and fish scales for repairing skeletal muscles. Methods Fish scales of tilapia were decellularized and decalcified. Then, SCOSs were constructed by ultraviolet-coating methylated fish gelatin on the back of fish scales. C2C12 myoblasts were cultured on SCOSs, and after induction of myogenic differentiation, SCOS/C2C12 transplants were prepared for in vivo experiments. Results Decellularized and decalcified fish scales (DDFSs) became soft and retained the original oriented microgroove surface structure that could induce oriented cell growth. SCOSs could self-curl into 3D structures when immersing in culture medium due to different swelling properties of fish GelMA and DDFSs. Cell experiments demonstrated that SCOSs enhanced the oriented growth and myogenic differentiation of C2C12 myoblasts. By integrating SCOSs and myogenic differentiated C2C12 myoblasts, the resultant SCOS/C2C12 transplants promoted de novo muscle regeneration and functional restoration of muscle activity in the mouse model of VML. Conclusions Our results suggest that SCOSs loaded with myogenic differentiated C2C12 myoblasts can promote muscle regeneration in mice with skeletal muscle injuries, indicating application prospects of such scaffolds in muscle tissue engineering and other related fields