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The epoxy nanocomposites filled with liquid-like GO/SiO2 nanofluid can effectively reduce the loss of bending strength of the epoxy nanocomposites resulting from UV irradiation and improve the UV resistance of the epoxy nanocomposites.

The core rhizosphere microbiome is critical for plant fitness. However, its contribution to the belowground biomass and saponin contents of Panax notoginseng remains unclear. High-throughput sequencing of amplicon and metagenome was performed to obtain the microbiome profiles and functional traits in P. notoginseng rhizosphere across a large spatial scale. We obtained 639 bacterial and 310 fungal core OTUs, which were mainly affected by soil pH and organic matter (OM). The core taxa were grouped into four ecological clusters (i.e. high pH, low pH, high OM and low OM) for sharing similar habitat preferences. Furthermore, structural equation modelling (SEM) and correlation analyses revealed that the diversity and composition of core microbiomes, as well as the metagenome-derived microbial functions, were related to belowground biomass and saponin contents. Key microbial genera related to the two plant indicators were also identified. In short, this study explored the main driving environmental factors of core microbiomes in the P. notoginseng rhizosphere and revealed that the core microbiomes and microbial functions potentially contributed to the belowground biomass and saponin contents of the plant. This work may enhance our understanding of interactions between microbes and perennial plants and improve our ability to manage root microbiota for the sustainable production of herbal medicine.

A hypertrophic scar (HS) is abnormal fibrous hyperplasia of the skin caused by excessive tissue repair in response to skin burns and trauma, which restricts physical function and impairs the quality of life of patients. Mechanobiological components play an essential role in wound healing and scar formation and can improve the efficiency therapy. Herein, we used weighted gene co-expression network analysis (WGCNA) and differentially expressed gene (DEGs) analysis to screen the neuropilin 1 (NRP1) gene which is sensitive to mechanical stress in various human cells. We confirmed that mechanical stress stimulates NRP1 expression in human HS endothelial cells. Immunostaining revealed that the expression of large tumor suppressor kinase 1 (LATS1) and yes-associated protein (YAP) is mediated by mechanical compression. We verified the effects of mechanical stress on NRP1, LATS1, and YAP expressions in pressure culture human dermal microvascular endothelial cell model and rat tail-scar model. We knocked down NRP1 using NRP1-shRNA and validated that NRP1 reduced YAP expression by regulating the YAP upstream regulator LATS1. Co-immunoprecipitation analysis indicated that NRP1 binds to YAP and that mechanical compression disrupted this binding. Collectively, our results indicated that the mechanosensitive transmembrane receptor NRP1 transduces mechanical force inhibition by inhibiting YAP expression. Strategies targeting NRP1 may promote compression therapy with optimal and comfortable pressures.

Drought stress is one of the main limiting factors in geographical distribution and production of Codonopsis pilosula. Understanding the biochemical and genetic information of the response of C. pilosula to drought stress is urgently needed for breeding tolerant varieties. Here, carbohydrates, namely trehalose, raffinose, maltotetraose, sucrose, and melezitose, significantly accumulated in C. pilosula roots under drought stress and thus served as biomarkers for drought stress response. Compared with those in the control group, the expression levels of key genes such as adenosine diphosphate glucose pyrophosphorylase, starch branching enzyme, granule-bound starch synthase, soluble starch synthase, galacturonate transferase, cellulose synthase A catalytic subunit, cellulase Korrigan in the carbohydrate biosynthesis pathway were markedly up-regulated in C. pilosula roots in the drought treatment group, some of them even exceeded 70%. Notably, and that of key genes including trehalose-6-phosphatase, trehalose-6-phosphate phosphatase, galactinol synthase, and raffinose synthase in the trehalose and raffinose biosynthesis pathways was improved by 12.6%-462.2% in C. pilosula roots treated by drought stress. The accumulation of carbohydrates in C. pilosula root or rhizosphere soil was correlated with microbiome variations. Analysis of exogenous trehalose and raffinose confirmed that increased carbohydrate content improved the drought tolerance of C. pilosula in a dose-dependent manner. This study provided solid foundation for breeding drought-tolerant C. pilosula varieties and developing drought-resistant microbial fertilizers.

Glandular trichomes of Artemisia argyi H. Lév.Vaniot are the key tissues for the production of flavonoid and terpenoid metabolites. Artemisia argyi H. Lév.Vaniot is an herbaceous perennial plant that has been widely used in traditional medicine for thousands of years. Glandular trichomes (GTs) and nonglandular trichomes (NGTs) have been reported on the leaf surface of A. argyi. The aim of this study was to elucidate the morphogenetic process and to analyze the metabolites of trichomes in A. argyi. The morphogenesis of GTs and NGTs was characterized using light, scanning, and transmission electron microscopy. The constituents of GTs were analyzed using laser microdissection combined with gas and liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry. Five developmental stages of two types of GTs and four developmental stages of one type of NGTs were observed. Two types of mature GT and one type of NGT were composed of 10, 5, and 4-6 cells, respectively. A large storage cavity was detected between the cuticle and cell walls in the first type of mature GT. Large nuclei, nucleoli, and mitochondria were observed in the basal and intermediate cells of the second type of GT. In addition, large vacuoles were observed in the basal and apical cells, and large nuclei were observed in the middle cells of NGTs. One monoterpene and seven flavonoids were identified in GTs of A. argyi. We suggest that GTs are the key tissues for the production of bioactive metabolites in A. argyi. This study provides an important theoretical basis and technical approach for clarifying the regulatory mechanisms for trichome development and bioactive metabolite biosynthesis in A. argyi.

Owing to recent advances in immunotherapies, the overall survival of patients with skin cutaneous melanoma (SKCM) has increased; however, the 5-year survival rate of metastatic patients remains poor. Skin cutaneous melanoma-upregulated genes were screened via analysis of differentially expressed genes (GSE3189 and GSE46517), and metastasis-related oncogenes were identified via weighted gene coexpression network analysis of the GSE46517 dataset. As confirmed by the Tumor Immune Estimation Resource, we found highly expressed centromere protein F (CENPF) in SKCM and its metastases. Immunostaining of human melanoma tissues demonstrated high CENPF expression. According to the Kaplan-Meier survival curve log-rank test, receiver-operating characteristic curve, and univariate and multivariate analyses, the Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) database suggested CENPF be a typical independent predictor of SKCM. The CIBERSORT algorithm classified the types of the immune cells from GSE46517 and showed higher proportion of CD4+ memory-activated T cells in metastatic melanoma. Single-sample gene set enrichment analysis of TCGA data confirmed the correlation between CENPF and activated CD4+ T cells. Centromere protein F was positively correlated with tumor mutational burden and CD4+ memory T cell markers (interleukin [IL]-23A, CD28, and CD62L), negatively associated with memory T cell maintenance factors (IL-7 and IL-15) by correlation analysis. Moreover, immunofluorescence showed high coexpression of CENPF and IL23A, CD4 in melanoma. Upregulated CENPF might lead to premature depletion of CD4+ memory T cells and immunosuppression. Nomogram indicated CENPF clinical predictive value for 1-, 3-, 5-, and 7-year melanoma overall survival. Therefore, CENPF plays a vital role in the progression and metastasis of melanoma and can be an effective therapeutic target.

Vibrio (V.) vulnificus infection is a rare disease whose death rates exceed 50% despite aggressive antibiotic treatment and surgical debridement. The aim of this study was to assess the ability of specific anti-V. vulnificus immunoglobulins Y (IgYs) for preventing and treating V. vulnificus infections. IgYs were produced by immunizing egg laying hens with inactivated whole cell bacteria. Peritoneal cytokines, blood’s bacterial load, and survival curves were obtained from both prophylactic and therapeutic mouse models. The results showed that the specific IgYs (i) inhibited the growth of V. vulnificus in vitro, (ii) dramatically reduced the inflammatory response and blood’s bacterial load, and (iii) improved the survival rate of V. vulnificus-infected mice. These results prove that anti-V. vulnificus IgYs can be markedly effective means for the prophylaxis and the therapy of V. vulnificus infections.

Background: Numerous epidemiological studies showed close relationships of outdoor air pollution with increased risk of cancer, infection, and cardiopulmonary diseases. However, a very limited number of studies investigate the potential biomarkers of the co-exposures of particle matters (PM) and bioaerosols, especially under current circumstances of the Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. In the present study, we aimed to identify metabolic candidate biomarkers that are associated with co-exposure to PM and bioaerosols. Methods: We performed an unbiased gas/liquid chromatography-mass spectroscopy (GC/LC-MS) approach to detect urinary metabolites of 92 samples from young healthy individuals collected at three different time points with exposure to clean, polluted ambient, and purified air , followed by a cycling test after air re-pollution and re-purification with two additional time points. Subsequently, we compared metabolomic profiles in between two-time points via an integrated analysis, plus KEGG enriched pathway and time series analysis. Findings: We identified 33 and 155 differential metabolites (DMs) associated with PM and bioaerosol exposure, respectively. The results from KEGG data and time series analysis indicated significantly enriched pathways and dynamic alterations of metabolomic profiles, respectively. 16-Dehydroprogesterone and 4-Hydroxyphenylethanol in urine might be used as biomarkers for diagnosis of PM- or bioaerosol-relevant diseases. Interpretation: The present studies revealed dynamic alterations in urinary metabolites of young healthy humans with the cycling of the clean and polluted air environment. Our findings help to investigate detrimental health effects of airborne PM and bioaerosols in a real-time manner and improve clinically diagnostic tools for PM- and bioaerosol-related diseases. Funding Information: This work was financially supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China [NSFC Grant no. 81673958, 82074262, and 81828010]; CAMS Innovation Fund for Medical Sciences [CIFMS 2016-I2M-3-013]; The Drug Innovation Major Project of China [2018ZX09711001-007-002]. Declaration of Interests: The authors declare no conflicts of interest in this work. Ethics Approval Statement: Our study was approved by the Ethical Committee of Guang'anmen Hospital. All recruited subjects provided written informed consent.

Focus on the safety of herbal medicines has mainly been directed towards the presence of intrinsic toxicity, as found in the cases of renal and hepatic dysfunction caused by aristolochic acids. However, contamination from extrinsic hazards may impart an even greater reduction in their safety and efficacy. This study reveals that pesticides were present in the majority (88%) of a comprehensive cross-section (n = 1771) of herbal medicine samples. Alarmingly, more than half (59%) contained pesticides over the European Pharmacopoeia (EP) limit, and 43% of them contained 35 varieties of banned, extremely toxic pesticides, eight of which were detected at levels over 500 times higher than the default Maximum Residue Limit (MRL). DDTs, carbofuran, and mevinphos were confirmed as being among the most risk-inducing pesticides by three different risk assessment methods, reported to produce carcinogenic, genotoxic, reproductive, and developmental effects, in addition to carrying nephrotoxicity and hepatotoxicity. In light of these findings, and withstanding that extrinsic hazards can be controlled unlike intrinsic toxicity, the authors here strongly recommend the application of herbal medicine quality-control measures and solutions to safeguard against a neglected but certainly potentially serious health risk posed to the majority of the global population that consumes herbal medicines.

Purpose. To evaluate the clinical efficacy of prodom in the administration of urokinase in the vagina in couples with impaired semen liquefaction. Materials and Methods. Overall, 261 patients with impaired semen liquefaction were randomly divided into prodom-assisted urokinase treatment (PAUT) group ( n = 91 ), syringe-assisted urokinase treatment (SAUT) group ( n = 86 ), and traditional treatment (TT) group ( n = 84 ) in the first stage. If the first stage of treatment failed, other treatment methods were initiated instead and the patients were grouped according to the newer treatment method in the second stage. The pregnancy rate, time-to-conception, and treatment costs were evaluated in each group. Results. In the first stage, the pregnancy rate in the PAUT, SAUT, and TT groups was 69.23%, 29.07%, and 22.62%, respectively; the time-to-conception was 2.66 ± 1.44 , 3.69 ± 2.61 , and 3.86 ± 3.00 months, respectively; the treatment costs were 658.18 ± 398.40 , 666.67 ± 507.50 , and 680.56 ± 480.94 $, respectively. The pregnancy rate and time-to-conception were different in the PAUT group compared with those in SAUT and TT groups (all P < 0.05 ). However, the difference in treatment costs was not significant ( P = 0.717 ). In the second stage, 154 nonpregnant patients were divided into nine treatment groups, and the effects of changing TT to PAUT on the pregnancy rate, time-to-conception, and treatment costs were observed to be different from those of other treatments (all P < 0.05 ). Conclusion. Prodom-assisted urokinase can effectively treat male infertility secondary to impaired semen liquefaction.

Background Panax notoginseng is a highly valuable medicinal plant. Reduced P. notoginseng yield is a common and serious problem that arises in a continuous cropping system. Variation in the composition and function of soil microbial community is considered the primary cause of yield reduction. Methods This study used shotgun metagenomic sequencing approaches to describe the taxonomic and functional features of P. notoginseng rhizosphere microbiome and screen microbial taxa and functional traits related to yields. Results At the family and genus level, a total of 43 families and 45 genera (relative abundance > 0.1%) were obtained, and the correlation with the yield of P. notoginseng was further analyzed. Nitrosomonadaceae, Xanthomonadaceae, Mycobacterium and Arthrobacter that were enriched in soils with higher yields were positively correlated with P. notoginseng yields, thereby suggesting that they might increase yields. Negative correlation coefficients indicated that Xanthobacteraceae, Caulobacteraceae, Oxalobacteraceae, Chitinophagaceae, Sphingomonas, Hyphomicrobium, Variovorax and Phenylobacterium might be detrimental to P. notoginseng growth. A total of 85 functional traits were significantly (P P. notoginseng yields. Functional traits, likely steroid biosynthesis and MAPK signaling pathway were positively correlated with P. notoginseng yields. In contrast, functional traits, such as bacterial secretion system, ABC transporters, metabolism of xenobiotics by cytochrome P450 and drug metabolism–cytochrome P450, were negatively associated with yields. Conclusions This study describes an overview of the rhizosphere microbiome of P. notoginseng with discrepant yields and identifies the taxa and functional traits related to yields. Our results provide valuable information to guide the isolation and culture of potentially beneficial microorganisms and to utilize the power of the microbiome to increase plant yields in a continuous cropping system.

Background: Rhizosphere microbiome play important roles in promoting plant growth. However, it is not well understood how rhizosphere microbiome were driven by medical plants during growth stages and whether they contribute the accumulation of medical values. Panax notoginseng is a perennial medicinal plant, which belowground biomass and saponin contents are the important indicators of its value. Here, we use high-throughput sequencing method to study the temporal dynamics of perennial P. notoginseng rhizosphere microbiomes and the relationship between the indicators and core rhizosphere microbiomes.Results: The results show that the diversity, composition and network structures of the bacterial and fungal communities are mainly driven by the developmental stages. And succession characteristics of bacterial and fungal diversity show similar parabolic patterns during the developmental stages. Enrichment and depletion of the bacterial and fungal communities are active at the 3-year root growth (3YR) stage. From samples collected at a large-spatial P. notoginseng production area at the 3YR stage, we obtained 639 bacterial and 310 fungal core operational taxonomic units (OTUs). Analysis of the data indicate that the microbiome diversity is related to the belowground biomass and total saponin contents. Some genera, such as Pseudomonas, Massilia, Sphingobium, and Phoma are positively correlated to the belowground biomass, and genera likely Staphylotrichum, Chaetosphaeria, and Podospora are positively correlated with total saponin contents. Additionally, we identified 36 microbial functions involving in plant-microbe and microbe-microbe interactions, nutrition acquisition, and disease resistance. They are related to belowground biomass and saponin contents. Conclusions: In short, this study provides a detailed and systematic survey of rhizosphere microbiome in P. notoginseng and reveals that P. notoginseng rhizosphere microbiomes are largely driven by the developmental stages, while the core microbiomes are related to the belowground biomass and saponins contents of the plant. The finding may enhance our understanding of the interaction between microbes and perennial plants and improve our ability to manage root microbiota for sustainable production of the herb medicine.

Aim: The aim of this study is to identify a gene prognostic signature for the head-and-neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC). HNSCC is one of the most common malignancies worldwide; however, the molecular mechanisms underlying the malignancy are unclear. Materials and Methods: We analyzed the gene expression profiles of GSE2379, GSE53819, and GSE59102 derived from the gene expression omnibus, and the cancer genome atlas (TCGA) HNSC databases. The R software was used to identify the differentially expressed genes (DEGs) between HNSCC tissues and normal controls. Gene ontology, Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes pathway, protein-protein interactions network, and survival analyses of common DEGs were also performed. Results: A total of 52 upregulated and 31 downregulated DEGs were identified. Functional analyses demonstrated that these DEGs were mainly enriched in extracellular matrix-receptor interaction, focal adhesion, tyrosine metabolism, and cytokine-cytokine receptor interaction. According to the survival analyses, PLAU and SERPINE1 could predict the overall survival of HNSCC patients from the TCGA cohort. Multivariable Cox regression analyses showed that the PLAU and SERPINE1 were independent prognostic factors for HNSCC patients. The prediction power of this two-gene signature was evaluated through receiver operating characteristic curve analysis and achieved a better prognostic value than PLAU (area under curve 0.613 [95% confidence interval 0.569–0.656] vs. 0.577 [0.533–0.621]; P = 0.008) or SERPINE1 (0.613 [0.569–0.656] vs. 0.586 [0.541–0.629]; P = 0.043) when considered alone. Conclusions: The study has identified a set of novel genes and pathways that play significant roles in the carcinogenesis and progression of HNSCC. This two-gene signature may prove to be a useful therapeutic target for HNSCC.

Additional file 1: Table S1. Summary of the metagenomic reads in five sample sites. Table S2. Statistical analysis of rhizosphere soils in P. notoginseng from five different sites.

Four kinds of liquid-like polyhedral oligomeric silsesquioxanes derivatives (liquid-Ds) were fabricated and characterized by FTIR, XPS, TGA, and Rheometer. The liquid-Ds/epoxy nanocomposites were prepared and their thermal resistance properties were tested by TGA. As a result, the thermal resistances properties were improved sharply and influenced by particle sizes, flow abilities, and bonding types of liquid-Ds. The glass transition temperature improved via adding liquid-Ds. The increase of crosslinking density was thought as an important factor to these improvements, which was studied by FTIR spectra and gel content of curved nanocomposites. POLYM. COMPOS., 2016. © 2016 Society of Plastics Engineers

Background: Focus on the safety of herbal medicines has mainly been directed towards the presence of intrinsic toxicity, as found in the reported cases of renal and hepatic dysfunction caused by aristolochic acids. However, contamination from extrinsic hazards may have the potential to impart an even greater reduction in their safety and efficacy. Methods: Currently available herbal medicine samples from large-scale cultivation areas in major herbal medicines markets in China were collected for analysis of pesticides by LC/MS-MS or GC/MS-MS. Additionally, dietary exposure assessment, risk-ranking score and comparative health impact analysis were employed to estimate the hazard potential of pesticide residue exposure in herbal medicines. Findings: This study reveals that pesticides were present in the majority (88%) of a large, comprehensive cross-section (n=1771) of herbal medicine samples. Alarmingly, more than half (59%) contained pesticides over the European Pharmacopoeia (EP) limit, and 43% contained 35 varieties of banned, extremely toxic pesticides, eight of which were detected at levels over 500 times higher than the default Maximum Residue Limit (MRL). DDTs, carbofuran, and mevinphos were confirmed as being among the most risk-inducing pesticides by three different risk assessments methods, reported to produce carcinogenic, genotoxic, reproductive, and developmental effects, in addition to carrying nephrotoxicity and hepatotoxicity. Interpretation: Herbal medicines are severely contaminated with risk-inducing pesticides, therefore the authors strongly recommend the application of quality-control measures to safeguard public health. Funding Statement: This study was funded by the Study on the Key Safety Validation Elements of Chinese Medicine in International Trade, International Science & Technology Cooperation Program, PR China (2015DFM30030) and the OLCA-Pest Project, financially supported by ADEME, Denmark (17-03-C0025). Declaration of Interests: All authors declare no competing interests. Ethics Approval Statement: Not required.

A polyether amine (M2070) was covalently grafted onto the surface of graphene nanosheets (GNS) decorated by zinc hydroxystannate boxes (ZHS) to obtain an organic hybrid material (GNS-ZHS-M2070) with solvent-free and liquid-like behavior. It was subsequently incorporated into epoxy resin (EP) to investigate the flame-retardant property. The GNS-ZHS-M2070, which was a homogeneous sticky fluid at room temperature without any solvent, could stably disperse in a broad spectrum of solvents. Most importantly, the GNS-ZHS-M2070/EP composites possessed superior flame-retardant performance, such as the lowest peak heat release rate and fire growth rate index values. Furthermore, it had been demonstrated that the superior flame-retardant performance of GNS-ZHS-M2070/EP should be ascribed to the excellent processability and good compatibility of GNS-ZHS-M2070 derived from the unique flowability and soft organic shell. All of these advantages along with the solvent-free nature of GNS-ZHS-M2070 provided a green, efficient and environment-friendly way to fabricate high flame-retardant performance composite materials.

A solvent-free liquid-like nanocrystal-functionalized graphene oxide was successfully prepared. Its morphology, chemical structure and multifunction were extensively characterized by various analysis technologies. It was found that the liquid-like nanocrystal-functionalized graphene oxide could flow at room temperature without any solvents and remained magnetic with a saturation magnetization about 2.57 emu/g. Moreover, it exhibited good dispersion in various solvents and polymer matrix. Subsequently, it was incorporated into epoxy matrix to investigate the toughness and glass transition temperature of the resulting nanocomposites. The results indicated that it could simultaneously improve the impact toughness and glass transition temperature of neat epoxy by 138.12% and 33.05 °C at the 1.0 wt.% fraction. Keywords: Graphene oxide, Liquid-like behavior, Toughness, Glass transition temperature, Epoxy nanocomposites

A solvent-free graphene oxide nanoribbons colloids (GONRs-M2070) was achieved and evaluated by grafting organosilanes (KH560) and polyether amine (M2070). Epoxy composites were then prepared with the GONRs-M2070 colloids based on the in-situ blending method to investigate its effect on the mechanical, thermal and tribological properties of the resulting composites, as well as the distribution of GONRs-M2070 in the host materials. The results suggested that the GONRs-M2070, which could disperse and exfoliate well in the epoxy resin, had been successfully synthesized based on the graphene oxide nanoribbons. In addition, it was found that the addition of 0.6 wt% GONRs-M2070 can simultaneously enhanced mechanical, thermal and tribological performance of the resulting epoxy composites. For example, compared with neat epoxy resin, the 0.6 wt% GONRs-M2070 improved the flexural strength, impact strength and glass transition temperature by 16.2%, 83.9% and 32.5%, respectively. Moreover, a lower friction coefficient (0.19) and wear rate (7.65 × 10 −5 g min −1 ) were also observed at 0.6 wt% GONRs-M2070. The obtained results along with the solvent-free nature indicated that combining epoxy resin with GONRs-M2070 specially provided a green and efficient route to improve the wear resistance and decrease the friction coefficient of resin-based composites.

Novel multifunctional graphene@Fe3O4 hybrid nanofluid with liquid-like behavior at room temperature and low viscosity (5.5 Pa.s at 25°C) has been developed by using GO@Fe3O4 as a core, sulfuric acid-terminated organosilanes as corona, and polyether amine as canopy. The obtained nanofluid has been extensively characterized by various analytical techniques. The content of graphene@Fe3O4 reaches up to 13.78 wt% in the hybrid nanofluid, which is a superparamagnetism material with specific magnetization of 0.39 emu/g. In addition, it shows excellent dispersion and exfoliation in solvents and polymer matrixes. It is then compounded with an epoxy resin for the development of liquid-like graphene@Fe3O4 hybrid nanofluid/epoxy nanocomposites. It is found that liquid-like graphene@Fe3O4 hybrid nanofluid/epoxy nanocomposites demonstrate better mechanical property than those of unmodified graphite/epoxy nanocomposites at the same fraction. For example, the multifunctional liquid-like graphene@Fe3O4 hybrid nanofluid at 1.5 wt% improves the impact toughness of epoxy by 125%. This new interface modification also enhanced the Tg of neat epoxy from 98.37 to 129.46°C. POLYM. COMPOS., 2015. © 2015 The Authors Polymer Composites published by Wiley Periodicals, Inc. on behalf of Society of Plastics Engineers

Flow softening mechanism in the isothermal compression of Ti-42.9Al-4.6Nb-2Cr with duplex structure was investigated. True stress-strain curves of Ti-42.9Al-4.6Nb-2Cr exhibited evident flow softening behavior when isothermal compression was conducted at the strain rate of 0.001–1.0 s−1, and the flow softening effect was assessed via flow softening index. Results show that kinking of α2/γ lamellar colonies and periodic morphology variation of β0 phase mainly contributed to the initial flow softening, while DRX of γ phase and periodic morphology variation of β0 phase contributed to the lateral flow softening of Ti-42.9Al-4.6Nb-2Cr with duplex structure. Kinking of lamellar colonies was caused by appearance of stacking faults pairs in γ lamellae and fracture of α2 lamellae. Lamellar colonies were decomposed by DRX of γ phase and growth of adjacent lamellae in the kinked area. Additionally, periodic morphology variation of β0 phase was related to intensive deformation systems, which can be easily-activated, and fast DRX behavior via rotation of subgrains during isothermal compression. Keywords: Titanium aluminides, Thermomechanical processing, Flow softening, Microstructure

A nanoscale liquid-like graphene@Fe3O4 hybrid was firstly obtained by using sulfuric acid terminated organosilanes as corona and polyether amine as canopy. The microstructures, rheological properties, solubility, magnetic properties and electronic conductivity of the hybrid have been extensively characterized by various analytical techniques. The hybrid is a superparamagnetic material with a specific magnetization of 0.39 emu g−1, which is a Newtonian fluid with liquid-like behavior at room temperature. At the same time, the hybrid shows excellent amphiphilicity and electronic conductivity. These unique properties of the hybrid make it very promising for producing supercapacitors, batteries and nanocomposites. In addition, it can act as a special ferrofluid and can be used as a kind of graphene lubricant. Most importantly, the successful preparation of a liquid-like graphene@Fe3O4 hybrid may provide new insight and assist the efficient preparation of other kinds of liquid-like nanocrystal graphene hybrids, such as graphene@SiO2 and graphene-POSS, which can also be used in the fabrication of graphene based nanocomposites.