Flexible temperature sensors with high resolution and good reliability under deformation are a major research focus for wearable electronic devices for skin temperature monitoring. In this study, a fiber-like temperature sensor is fabricated by in situ growing poly­(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene) (PEDOT) on the surface of thermoplastic polyurethane (TPU) fiber. The temperature sensor achieves a high sensitivity of 0.95%·°C–1 with a high linearity between 20 and 40 °C. Most importantly, the sensor achieves a high temperature resolution of 0.2 °C. Due to its structure, the temperature-sensitive fiber is easily embedded into textiles. By sewing the fiber into normal textiles in an S-shape, the interference of strain can be nearly avoided, even when the textile is stretched to 140%. Also, the obtained sensors can monitor skin temperature during exercise, which demonstrates the potential of the sensor’s application in healthcare and disease diagnosis.

Currently, with the development of electronic skins (e-skins), wearable pressure sensors with low energy consumption and excellent wearability for long-term physiological signal monitoring are urgently desired but remain a challenge. Capacitive-type devices are desirable candidates for wearable applications, but traditional capacitive pressure sensors are limited by low capacitance and sensitivity. In this study, an all-nanofibrous ionic pressure sensor (IPS) is developed, and the formation of an electrical double layer at the electrode/electrolyte contact interface significantly enhances the capacitance and sensing properties. The IPS is fabricated by sandwiching a nanofibrous ionic gel sensing layer between two thermoplastic polyurethane nanofibrous membranes with graphene electrodes. The IPS has a high sensitivity of 217.5 kPa −1 in the pressure range of 0−5 kPa, which is much higher than that of conventional capacitive pressure sensors. Combined with the rapid response and recovery speed (30 and 60 ms), the IPS is suitable for real-time monitoring of multiple physiological signals. Moreover, the nanofiber network endows the IPS with excellent air permeability and heat dissipation, which guarantees comfort during long-term wearing. This work provides a viable strategy to improve the wearability of wearable sensors, which can promote healthcare and human−machine interaction applications.

Traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) are becoming more and more popular all over the world. However, quality issues of TCM may lead to medical incidents in practice and therefore quality control is essential to TCM. In this review, the state of TCM in European Pharmacopoeia are compared with that in Chinese Pharmacopoeia, and herbal drugs that are not considered as TCM and not elaborated by TCM working party at European Directorate for the Quality of Medicines & Health Care (EDQM) but present in both European Pharmacopoeia and Chinese Pharmacopoeias are also discussed. Different aspects in quality control of TCM including origins, identification, tests and assays, as well as sample preparation, marker selection and TCM processing are covered to address the importance of establishing comprehensive quality standard of TCM. Furthermore, advanced analytical techniques for quality control and standard establishment of TCM are also reviewed. Electronic supplementary material The online version of this article (10.1186/s13020-020-00357-3) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

No abstract

No abstract

No abstract

No abstract

The North Qilian Orogenic Belt (NQOB) is an important element of the northern edge of the Tibetan Plateau, and several rivers run along it. Zircon U–Pb dating, trace elements, and Hf isotopic data derived from the sediments carried by the rivers have been used to deduce the crustal evolution of the NQOB. U–Pb ages obtained from detrital zircons found in the sediments of the Zamu, Zhuanglan, and Beida rivers can be divided into five major age groups, that is, 2,600–1,500, 1,500–1,100, 1,100–650, 550–400, and 360–150 Ma, and the corresponding peaks occur at ~2,450, ~1,750, ~950, ~450, and ~250 Ma. Archean components, which may be derived from the ancient continental nucleus in the region, are rare in the river sediments. The zircon grains with ages of 360–150 Ma are most likely related to crustal thickening and decompression melting in a post‐collisional tectonic setting. The age distribution patterns indicate that the sediments carried by the Zamu, Zhuanglang, and Beida rivers are derived from the NQOB. Furthermore, the Hf isotopic compositions of Meso‐ and Neoarchean, Mesoproterozoic, Grenvillian, Pan‐African, Caledonian, and Hercynian zircon age groups exhibit a wide range of εHf (t) values, suggesting diverse sources. The existence of strongly negative εHf (t) values among the Grenvillian and Paleoproterozoic zircons indicates that the source magma included reworked Palaeoarchean crustal materials. New results indicate that continental rifting and the opening of the Qilian Ocean occurred at 775–520 Ma; the subduction and closure of the Qilian Ocean occurred at 520–440 Ma; arc–continent collision and continental subduction occurred at 440–420 Ma; and orogen collapse and extension occurred at 400–360 Ma. Our study indicates that the formation of the NQOB was mainly related to the evolutionary history of the Proto‐Tethys Ocean.