The toxicity of ethyl-, butyl-, octyl-, benzyl-, and allyl-substituted 1-alkyl-3-methylimidazolium, alkylpyridinium, N-alkyl-N,N-dimethyl-N-(2-hydroxyethyl)ammonium (choline derivatives) and alkyl-triethylammonium salts towards HeLa cells has been studied. The relative toxicities have been determined in the presence and absence of foetal bovine serum using an MTT assay after 24 and 48 h, and attempts to determine possible sources of the observed toxicity investigated using microscopy and by measuring the intracellular calcium concentration, presence of reactive oxygen species and mitochondrial membrane potential in cells exposed to 1-ethyl-3-methylimidazolium tetrafluoroborate.

The formation of both left- and right-handed helical superstructures with circularly polarized luminescence has been achieved in a chiral tetraphenylethylene derivative just by varying the solution polarity without any change in molecular chirality.

High‐strength and reversible adhesion technology, which is a universal phenomenon in nature but remains challenging for artificial synthesis, is essential for the development of modern science. Existing adhesive designs without interface versatility hinder their application to arbitrary surfaces. Bioinspired by creeper suckers, a crystal‐fiber reinforced polymer gel adhesive with ultrastrong adhesion strength and universal interface adaptability is creatively prepared via introducing a room‐temperature crystallizable solvent into the polymer network. The gel adhesive formed by hydrogen bonding interaction between crystal fibers and polymer network can successfully realize over 9.82 MPa reversible adhesion strength for rough interface and 406.87 J m⁻² peeling toughness for skin tissue. In situ anchoring is achieved for adapting to different geometrical surfaces. The adhesion performance can be significantly improved with the further increase of the interfacial roughness and hydrophilicity, whose dissipation mechanism is simulated by finite element analysis. The melting–crystallization equilibrium of the crystal fibers is proved by synchrotron radiation scattering. Accordingly, reversible phase‐transition triggered by light and heat can realize the controlled adhere–detach recycle. Later adjustments to the monomers or crystals are expected to broaden its applications to various fields such as bioelectronics, electronic processing, and machine handling.

Stable and durable superhydrophobic surfaces have been fabricated on nickel substrates with a convenient wet-chemical-process by using monoalkyl phosphonic acid. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) observation revealed that flowery microstructures gradually formed and constituted a continuous slipcover over the nickel surfaces, while the nickel surfaces transformed from hydrophilic to superhydrophobic during the steeping process. The petals of the nanoflowers consisted of lamellar crystals resulting from the self-assembly of alkyl phosphonates. The surface roughness as well as the wettability can be tailored synchronously by controlling the steeping time and using phosphonic acids with different alkyl groups. This approach is easily developed to other engineering metal substrates such as steel.