Two-dimensional (2D) semiconductor heterostructures are key building blocks for many electronic and optoelectronic devices. Reconfiguring the band-edge states and modulating their interplay with charge carriers at the interface in a continuous manner have long been sought yet are challenging. Here, using organic semiconductor–incorporated 2D halide perovskites as the model system, we realize the manipulation of band-edge states and charge distribution via mechanical—rather than chemical or thermal—regulation. Compression induces band-alignment switching and charge redistribution due to the different pressure responses of organic and inorganic building blocks, giving controllable emission properties of 2D perovskites. We propose and demonstrate a “pressure gating” strategy that enables the control of multiple emission states within a single material. We also reveal that band-alignment transition at the organic-inorganic interface is intrinsically not well resolved at room temperature owing to the thermally activated transfer and shuffling of band-edge carriers. This work provides important fundamental insights into the energetics and carrier dynamics of hybrid semiconductor heterostructures.

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Background: This study aimed to evaluate the correlation of A-kinase-interacting protein 1 (AKIP1) with C-X-C motif chemokine ligand (CXCL) 1 and CXCL2, and their associations with clinical characteristics and prognosis in cervical cancer patients.Methods: One hundred and fifty early-stage cervical cancer patients treated with surgical resection were reviewed and tumor tissue samples were obtained. Expression of AKIP1, CXCL1 and CXCL2 was detected by immunohistochemistry (IHC). Data of tumor features were retrieved, and disease-free survival (DFS) as well as overall survival (OS) were calculated. Results: AKIP1 expression was positively correlated with CXCL1 and CXCL2 expression in cervical cancer tissue (both P<0.001). AKIP1 expression was positively correlated with tumor size (P=0.040), lymph node (LYN) metastasis (P=0.034) and International Federation of Gynecology and Obstetrics (FIGO) stage (P=0.021); CXCL1 expression was positively associated with tumor size (P=0.048); and CXCL2 expression was positively correlated with LYN metastasis (P=0.026). As for DFS and OS, AKIP1 high expression was correlated with worse DFS (P=0.016) and OS (P=0.007), CXCL1 high expression was associated with poor DFS (P=0.029) but not OS (P=0.118). No correlation of CXCL2 expression with DFS (P=0.141) or OS (P=0.125) was found.Conclusions: AKIP1 positively correlates with CXCL1/CXCL2, and associates with advanced tumor features as well as unfavorable survival profiles in cervical cancer patients.

The application of monolithic materials as carriers for enzymes has rapidly expanded to the realization of flow‐through analysis and bioconversion processes. This expansion is partly attributed to the absence from diffusion limitation in many monoliths‐based enzyme reactors. Particularly, the relatively ease of introducing functional groups renders polymer monoliths attractive as enzyme carriers. After summarizing the motivation to develop enzymatic reactors using polymer monoliths, this review reports the most recent applications of such reactors. Besides, the present review focuses on the crucial characteristics of polymer monoliths affecting the immobilization of enzymes and the processing parameters dictating the performance of the resulting enzymatic reactors. This review is intended to provide a guideline for designing and applying flow‐through enzymatic reactors using polymer monoliths.

Squid skin, often discarded as processing by-product, is a good resource of collagen/gelatin. In this study, acid soluble collagen (ASC), pepsin soluble collagen (PSC) and water soluble gelatin (WSG) were extracted from squid (Dosidicus gigas) skin and physicochemically examined. The lowest yield of 33.5% was obtained for ASC extracted at 4°C, and the addition of pepsin increased the collagen yield by around 35.0% (PSC). The highest yield of 81.9% (WSG) was achieved by thermal extraction at 60°C. A low temperature can largely retain the native helix structures of ASC and PSC, contrariwise, thermal treatment converted collagen into gelatin with unordered and renatured structures. The proline and hydroxyproline contents of ASC, PSC and WSG were 183/1000 residues, 194/1000 residues and 175/1000 residues, respectively. In addition, WSG showed a denaturation temperature at 80.7°C which was much higher than that of ASC (24.2°C) and PSC (26.2°C), while a significant lower resistance towards enzymatic digestion.

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Tryptic hydrolysis of β-Lactoglobulin (β-Lg) is attracting more and more attention due to the reduced allergenicity and the functionality of resulting hydrolysates. To produce hydrolysates in an economically viable way, immobilized trypsin reactors (IMTRs), based on polymethacrylate monolith with pore size 2.1 μm (N1) and 6 μm (N2), were developed and used in a flow-through system. IMTRs were characterized in terms of permeability and enzymatic activity during extensive usage. N1 showed twice the activity compared with N2, correlating well with its almost two times higher amount of immobilized trypsin. N2 showed high stability over 18 cycles, as well as over more than 30 weeks during storage. The efficiency of IMTRs on hydrolyzing β-Lg was compared with free trypsin, and the resulting hydrolysates were analyzed by MALDI-TOF/MS. The final hydrolysis degree by N1 reached 9.68% (86.58% cleavage sites) within 4 h, while only around 6% (53.67% cleavage sites) by 1.5 mg of free trypsin. Peptides analysis showed the different preference between immobilized trypsin and free trypsin. Under the experimental conditions used in this study, the potential cleavage site Lys -Phe was resistant against the immobilized trypsin in N1.

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