A miniature low-immunogenic platform for the biosynthesis of self-assembling protein nanoparticles.

Previously, to obtain antigen-presenting self-assembling protein nanoparticles (SAPN), we developed a biosynthetic platform combining the self-associating peptide LKD and the SUMO protein. In the current work, the immunogenic SUMO was replaced with an artificial 30 amino acid long peptide pepA1. The immunogenic properties of the pepA1-SAPN were tested in mice using the pneumococcal PhtD19 and ovalbumin OVA antigens in the absence of adjuvants.

Preoperative prediction of postoperative needs after spinal tumor surgery.

Introduction: Spinal oncology care is challenging and resource-intensive. Unfortunately, there are few validated preoperative clinical tools to accurately predict postoperative healthcare needs. The Risk Assessment and Prediction Tool (RAPT) assesses current walking capacity, use of gait aids, home support, and reliance on community support.

Water's Dual Role as a Chemical Catalyst and Physical Stabilizer in Deamidation of Lyophilized Proteins Studied via Molecular Dynamics Simulations.

Water plays a critical role in chemical degradations, such as deamidation, in freeze-dried proteins. Two distinct patterns for deamidation in relation to water have been reported, that is a "hockey stick"-type behavior with a water-independent deamidation rate, followed by a sharp increase above a water content threshold, and an inverted bell-shaped profile. To understand the underlying mechanism, molecular dynamics simulations are employed to study the explicit water distributions around reactive sites for amorphous and crystalline insulin as well as amorphous IgG1.

Cancer metastasis to the upper gastrointestinal tract-a case series.

Background: Metastasis of non-gastrointestinal (non-GI) cancers to the upper GI tract is a rare occurrence, with limited cases reported in the literature. Recognising this type of metastasis is crucial, as it presents unique diagnostic and therapeutic challenges. This case series adds to the literature by discussing seven rare cases of non-GI cancer metastasising to the upper GI tract, emphasising the complications and clinical manifestations.