We report a synthetic route to achieving nanoscale heterostructures consisting of a metal core and monocrystalline semiconductor shell with substantial lattice mismatches between them, which cannot be obtained by conventional epitaxial techniques. By controlling soft acid-base coordination reactions between molecular complexes and colloidal nanostructures, we show that chemical thermodynamics can drive nanoscale monocrystalline growth of the semiconductor shell with a lattice structure incommensurate with that of the core. More complex hybrid core-shell structures with azimuthal and radial nanotailoring of structures and compositions of the monocrystalline semiconductor shell are also demonstrated.

The interplay between light and matter is the basis of many fundamental processes and various applications. Harnessing light-matter interactions in principle allows operation of solid state devices under new physical principles: for example, the a.c. optical Stark effect (OSE) has enabled coherent quantum control schemes of spins in semiconductors, with the potential for realizing quantum devices based on spin qubits. However, as the dimension of semiconductors is reduced, light-matter coupling is typically weakened, thus limiting applications at the nanoscale. Recent experiments have demonstrated significant enhancement of nanoscale light-matter interactions, albeit with the need for a high-finesse cavity, ultimately preventing device down-scaling and integration. Here we report that a sizable OSE can be achieved at substantial energy detuning in a cavity-free colloidal metal-semiconductor core-shell hetero-nanostructure, in which the metal surface plasmon is tuned to resonate spectrally with a semiconductor exciton transition. We further demonstrate that this resonantly enhanced OSE exhibits polarization dependence and provides a viable mechanism for coherent ultrafast spin manipulation within colloidal nanostructures. The plasmon-exciton resonant nature further enables tailoring of both OSE and spin manipulation by tuning plasmon resonance intensity and frequency. These results open a pathway for tailoring light-matter-spin interactions through plasmon-exciton resonant coupling in a judiciously engineered nanostructure, and offer a basis for future applications in quantum information processing at the nanoscale. More generally, integrated nanostructures with resonantly enhanced light-matter interactions should serve as a test bed for other emerging fields, including nano-biophotonics and nano-energy.

Background: Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is an inflammatory lung disease associated with significant systemic consequences. Recognition of the systemic manifestations has stimulated interest in identifying circulating biomarkers in these patients. A systematic analysis was undertaken of multiple protein analytes in the serum of well characterised patients with COPD and matched controls using novel protein microarray platform (PMP) technology. Methods: Forty-eight patients (65% men) with COPD (forced expiratory volume in 1 s ,55%) and 48 matched controls were studied. Anthropometric parameters, pulmonary function tests, 6-minute walk distance, the BODE index and the number of exacerbations were measured and the association of these outcomes with the baseline levels of 143 serum biomarkers measured by PMP was explored. Results: Thirty biomarker clusters were identified and ranked by computing the predictive value of each cluster for COPD (partial least squares discriminant analysis). From the 19 best predictive clusters, 2-3 biomarkers were selected based on their pathophysiological profile (chemoattractants, inflammation, tissue destruction and repair) and the statistical significance of their relationship with clinically important end points was tested. The selected panel of 24 biomarkers correlated (p,0.01) with forced expiratory volume in 1 s, carbon monoxide transfer factor, 6-minute walk distance, BODE index and exacerbation frequency. Conclusion: PMP technology can be useful in identifying potential biomarkers in patients with COPD. Panels of selected serum markers are associated with important clinical predictors of outcome in these patients.

Living organisms use spatially controlled expansion and contraction of soft tissues to achieve complex three-dimensional (3D) morphologies and movements and thereby functions. However, replicating such features in man-made materials remains a challenge. Here we report an approach that encodes 2D hydrogels with spatially and temporally controlled growth (expansion and contraction) to create 3D structures with programmed morphologies and motions. This approach uses temperature-responsive hydrogels with locally programmable degrees and rates of swelling and shrinking. This method simultaneously prints multiple 3D structures with custom design from a single precursor in a one-step process within 60 s. We suggest simple yet versatile design rules for creating complex 3D structures and a theoretical model for predicting their motions. We reveal that the spatially nonuniform rates of swelling and shrinking of growth-induced 3D structures determine their dynamic shape changes. We demonstrate shape-morphing 3D structures with diverse morphologies, including bioinspired structures with programmed sequential motions.

Regular three-dimensional periodic structures have been observed in the scales of over half a dozen butterfly species. We compare several of these structures: we calculate their photonic bandgap properties; measure the angular variation of the reflection spectra; and relate the observed iridescence (or its suppression) to the structures. We compare the mechanisms for iridescence suppression in different species and conclude with some speculations about form, function, development and evolution.

Low birth weight (LBW) remains a major public health problem in developing countries, including Nepal. This study was undertaken to examine the association between LBW and maternal factors and antenatal care service utilization, in rural Nepal, using data obtained for a capacity-building and text-messaging intervention, designed to enhance maternal and child health service utilization among pregnant women, in rural Nepal (“MATRI-SUMAN”). The study used a clustered randomized controlled design and was conducted during 2015–2016. We investigated maternal and antenatal care service utilization determinants of LBW, using a logistic regression model. Of the four hundred and two singleton babies, included in the present study, seventy-eight (19.4%) had an LBW (mean (SD), 2210.64 (212.47)) grams. It was found that Dalit caste/ethnicity, illiteracy, manual labor, a female baby, and having more than four family members were significantly positively associated with LBW. In addition, mothers who did not visit an antenatal care (ANC) unit, visited an ANC < 4 times, did not take iron and folic acid (IFA), de-worming tablets, and mothers that did not consume additional food, during pregnancy, were more likely to have an LBW baby, than their counterparts. The MATRI-SUMAN intervention and availability of a kitchen garden at home, were found to reduce the risk of LBW. Nepalese child survival policies and programs should pay attention to these maternal and antenatal care service utilization factors, while designating preventive strategies to improve child health outcomes.

Studies have confirmed COVID-19 patients with diabetes are at higher risk of mortality than their non-diabetic counterparts. However, data-driven evidence of factors associated with increased mortality risk among hospitalized COVID-19 patients with diabetes is scarce in South Korea. This study was conducted to determine the mortality rate and identify risk factors of mortality among hospitalized COVID-19 patients with type 2 diabetes in Gyeongsangbuk-do province, South Korea. In this hospital-based, cross-sectional study, we enrolled a total of 324 patients with confirmed COVID-19, hospitalized at two of the tertiary level healthcare facilitates of Gyeongsangbuk-do, South Korea from 18 February to 30 June 2020. Demographic and clinical data and laboratory profiles were analyzed and multivariate logistic regression analysis was used to identify risk factors of mortality among diabetic patients with COVID-19. Of the 324 patients, 55 (16.97%) had diabetes mellitus. The mean age of all study subjects was 55 years, and the mean age of those with diabetes was greater than that of those without (69.8 years vs. 51.9 years). Remarkably, the mortality rate was much higher among those with diabetes (20.0% vs. 4.8%). Multivariate logistic regression analysis revealed that an older age (≥70 years) and a high serum lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) levels significantly predicted mortality among hospitalized COVID-19 patients with diabetes. Our study cautions more attention to be paid to patients with diabetes mellitus hospitalized for COVID-19, especially those aged ≥ 70 years and those with a high serum LDH level, to reduce the risk of mortality.

This study was conducted to evaluate the modes of transmission of aseptic meningitis (AM) and hand-foot-mouth disease (HFMD) using a case-control and a case-crossover design. We recruited 205 childhood AM and 116 HFMD cases and 170 non-enteroviral disease controls from three general hospitals in Gyeongju, Pohang, and Seoul between May and August in both 2002 and 2003. For the case-crossover design, we established the hazard and non-hazard periods as week one and week four before admission, respectively. In the case-control design, drinking water that had not been boiled, not using a water purifier, changes in water quality, and contact with AM patients were significantly associated with the risk of AM (odds ratio [OR]=2.8, 2.9, 4.6, and 10.9, respectively), while drinking water that had not been boiled, having a non-water closet toilet, changes in water quality, and contact with HFMD patients were associated with risk of HFMD (OR=3.3, 2.8, 6.9, and 5.0, respectively). In the case-crossover design, many life-style variables such as contact with AM or HFMD patients, visiting a hospital, changes in water quality, presence of a skin wound, eating out, and going shopping were significantly associated with the risk of AM (OR=18.0, 7.0, 8.0, 2.2, 22.3, and 3.0, respectively) and HFMD (OR=9.0, 37.0, 11.0, 12.0, 37.0, and 5.0, respectively). Our findings suggest that person-to-person contact and contaminated water could be the principal modes of transmission of AM and HFMD.