Imaging-guided photothermal therapy (PTT) by combination of imaging and PTT has been emerging as a promising therapeutic method for precision therapy. However, the development of multicomponent nanoplatforms with stable structures for both PTT and multiple-model imaging remains a great challenge. Herein, we synthesized monodisperse Au-FeC Janus nanoparticles (JNPs) of 12 nm, which are multifunctional entities for cancer theranostics. Due to the broad absorption in the near-infrared range, Au-FeC JNPs showed a significant photothermal effect with a 30.2% calculated photothermal transduction efficiency under 808 nm laser irradiation in vitro. Owing to their excellent optical and magnetic properties, Au-FeC JNPs were demonstrated to be advantageous agents for triple-modal magnetic resonance imaging (MRI)/multispectral photoacoustic tomography (MSOT)/computed tomography (CT) both in vitro and in vivo. We found that Au-FeC JNPs conjugated with the affibody (Au-FeC-Z) have more accumulation and deeper penetration in tumor sites than nontargeting JNPs (Au-FeC-PEG) in vivo. Meanwhile, our results verified that Au-FeC-Z JNPs can selectively target tumor cells with low cytotoxicity and ablate tumor tissues effectively in a mouse model. In summary, monodisperse Au-FeC JNPs, used as a multifunctional nanoplatform, allow the combination of multiple-model imaging techniques and high therapeutic efficacy and have great potential for precision theranostic nanomedicines.

Two model compounds, 1,3-bis(9,9-dihexylfluoren-2-yl)azulene (M1), and 1,3-bis[7-(9,9,9′,9′-tetrahexyl-2,2′-bifluoren-7-yl)azulene (M2), and polymers, poly[2,7-(9,9-dialkylfluorenyl)-alt-(1′,3′-azulenyl)] (P1−P4) and poly{[1,3-bis(9′,9′-dihexylfluoren-2′-yl)azulenyl]-alt-[2′′,7′′-(9′′,9′′-dialkylfluorenyl]} (P5, P6) were synthesized by reacting 1,3-dibromoazulene or 1,3-bis(7-bromo-9,9-dihexylfluoren-2-yl)azulene with a suitable 9,9-dialkylflourenyl-2-borate or 2,7-diborate via Suzuki cross-coupling reactions. The thermal and optical properties of the polymers were characterized by thermogravimetric analysis, differential scanning calorimetry, and UV−vis and fluorescence spectroscopy. M1, M2, and P1−P6 are nonfluorescent in the neutral state in different organic solvents. However, M1, M2, P5, and P6 become fluorescent upon the addition of trifluoroacetic acid in THF, with relative quantum efficiencies of 0.004−0.06. The “switching on” of the fluorescence for the azulene−fluorene copolymers and model compounds is due to the formation of a 6π electron aromatic azulenium cation, which alters the overall electronic character, particularly, the HOMO and LUMO, and subsequently the band gap. Cyclic voltammograms of polymer films prepared by spin-coating polymer solution onto an indium−tin oxide-coated glass substrate showed that all of the polymers films exhibited the relatively low half-wave oxidation potentials in the range 0.84−0.93 V vs Ag/AgCl. Electrochromic devices of P3 and P5 with a sandwich structure of PET-ITO/polymer/PMMA-PC-LiClO4/PET-ITO were fabricated, and color changes from light yellow to brown and from yellow to green for polymers P3 and P5 films, respectively, are observed.

Endovascular treatment is a safe, effective, and very minimally invasive technique that provides good long-term patency rates for patients with NCS, and under the premise morphologic measurements, 14-mm-diameter, 60-mm-long self-expanding stents should be first considered for Chinese patients with NCS.

Topological insulators (TIs) represent an exciting new class of materials with potential applications in spintronics and quantum computing. In this work, we present a theoretical study on a new family of two dimensional (2D) nanomaterials based on the coordination of shape persistent organic ligands (SPOLs) to heavy transition metal ions such as Pd(2+) and Pt(2+). These 2D structures may be readily fabricated and are expected to be stable under normal atmospheric conditions. From first principles calculations and tight-binding model simulations carried out to characterize the bulk band structures, edge states, spin Chern numbers, and the Z2 topological invariants, we were able to identify candidates with non-trivial topological properties that may serve as topological insulators in real world applications.