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Background/purpose: Dental pulp stem cells (DPSCs) exhibit versatile differentiation capabilities, including neural differentiation, prompting the hypothesis that they may be implicated in the neurodevelopment of teeth. This study aimed to explore the temporospatial dynamics between DPSCs and tooth innervation, employing immunofluorescence staining and fluorescent dye injections to investigate the distribution of DPSCs, neural stem cells (NSCs), nerve growth cones, and sensory nerves in developing mouse tooth germs at various stages. Materials and methods: Immunofluorescence staining targeting CD146, Nestin, and GAP-43, along with the injection of AM1-43 fluorescent dye, were utilized to observe the distribution of DPSCs, NSCs, nerve growth cones, and sensory nerves in mouse tooth germs at different developmental stages. Results: Positive CD146 immunostaining was observed in microvascular endothelial cells and pericytes within and around the tooth germ. The percentage of CD146-positive cells remained consistent between 4-day-old and 8-day-old second molar tooth germs. Conversely, Nestin expression in odontoblasts and their processes decreased in 8-day-old tooth germs compared to 4-day-old ones. Positive immunostaining for GAP-43 and AM1-43 fluorescence revealed the entry of nerve growth cones and sensory nerves into the pulp in 8-day-old tooth germs, while these elements were confined to the dental follicle in 4-day-old germs. No co-localization of CD146-positive DPSCs with nerve growth cones and sensory nerves was observed. Conclusion: DPSCs and NSCs were present in dental pulp tissue before nerves penetrated the pulp. The decline in NSCs after nerve entry suggests a potential role for DPSCs and NSCs in attracting neural growth and/or differentiation within the pulp.
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Medical technology is undergoing rapid transformations, and the classifications of medical devices have also expanded greatly; therefore, it is necessary to develop appropriate reimbursement policies and pricing mechanisms in a timely manner. This paper aims to introduce the reimbursement coverage and pricing rules for medical devices in Taiwan. In addition, this paper identifies and evaluates available health technology assessments (HTA) and literature on published websites concerning medical device decision-making processes and pricing systems in South Korea and Japan, which are near Taiwan and have similar reimbursement coverage processes. Reimbursement policy and pricing mechanisms are constantly being revised in Taiwan, Japan, and South Korea. Recently, all three countries attempted to establish new reimbursement coverage decision-making and pricing rules, adopting a differentiated approach based on the level of evidence required for the appropriated reimbursement in terms of a feasible evaluation mechanism for providing patients with more effective medical devices. This article is expected to contribute to providing references to new reimbursement coverage decision-making and pricing rules.
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In recent years, workplace well-being has been a popular research topic, because it is helpful to promote employees' welfare, thereby bringing valuable personal and organizational outcomes. With the development of technology, the technology industry plays an important role in Taiwan. Although the salary and benefits provided by the technology industry are better than other industries, the work often requires a lot of time and effort. It is worth paying attention to whether a happy workplace will bring subjective well-being for the technology industry in Taiwan. This study explored the influence of workplace well-being, job involvement, and flow on the subjective well-being. The research was conducted by a questionnaire survey. A total of 256 employees in the technology industry in the Nanzi Processing Zone in Kaohsiung City, Taiwan were surveyed. Collected data were analyzed by statistical methods, such as multivariate and structural equation models. The study results indicated that workplace well-being, flow, and job involvement have a positive and significant impact on the subjective well-being. In addition to having a direct impact on subjective well-being, flow is also a significant variable to mediate the impact of workplace well-being to subjective well-being. In addition, job involvement also affects subjective well-being through flow, which means that the state of selflessness at work is the most important factor affecting subjective well-being. Finally, based on the research findings, the researcher provided practical suggestions to the government and the technology industry.
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Based on the advantages of intrinsic safety, flexibility, and good interfacial contact with electrodes, a gel polymer electrolyte (GPE) is a promising electrolyte for lithium-ion batteries, compared with the conventional liquid electrolyte. However, the unstable electrochemical performance and the liquid state in a microscale limit the commercial application of GPE. Herein, we developed a novel gel polymer electrolyte for lithium-ion batteries by blending methyl methacrylate (MMA), N-butyl-N-methyl-piperidinium (Pyr14TFSI), and lithium salts in a solvent-free procedure, with SiO2 and Li0.33La0.56TiO3 (LLTO) additives. The prepared MMA-Pyr14TFSI-3 wt % LLTO electrolyte shows the best electrochemical performance and obtains a high ion conductivity of 4.51 × 10-3 S cm-1 at a temperature of 60 °C. Notably, the electrochemical window could be stable up to 5.0 V vs Li+/Li. Moreover, the batteries with the GPE also show excellent electrochemical performance. In the LiFePO4/MMA-Pyr14TFSI-3 wt % LLTO/Li cell, a high initial discharge capacity was achieved 150 mA h g-1 at 0.5C with a Coulombic efficiency over 99% and maintaining a good capacity retention of 90.7% after 100 cycles at 0.5C under 60 °C. In addition, the physical properties of the GPE have been investigated by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), X-ray diffraction (XRD) measurements, Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy, and thermogravimetry (TG).
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Combining the advantages of dual-ion batteries (DIBs) and sodium-ion batteries (SIBs), we herein develop a superior sodium-based dual-ion battery (Na-DIB) based on the PTCDA organic anode and ionic liquid (IL) electrolyte. The system shows the highest specific discharge capacity of 177 mAh g-1 at 0.5C and excellent capacity retention over 100% at 2C after 200 cycles. Notably, even at an ultrahigh rate of 20C, the battery still maintains a considerable capacity of 60 mAh g-1 with a coulombic efficiency (CE) close to 100 and 94% capacity retention after 1000 cycles. Moreover, the self-discharge of the system has been investigated and shown to have an extremely low value of 0.18% h-1. Consequently, this work presents an excellent Na-DIB system, which could be a promising candidate for large-scale applications.