Multifunctional Biomimetic Nanocarriers for Dual-Targeted Immuno-Gene Therapy Against Hepatocellular Carcinoma.

Growing evidences have proved that tumors evade recognition and attack by the immune system through immune escape mechanisms, and PDL1/Pbrm1 genes have a strong correlation with poor response or resistance to immune checkpoint blockade (ICB) therapy. Herein, a multifunctional biomimetic nanocarrier (siRNA-CaP@PD1-NVs) is developed, which can not only enhance the cytotoxic activity of immune cells by blocking PD1/PDL1 axis, but also reduce tumor immune escape via Pbrm1/PDL1 gene silencing, leading to a significant improvement in tumor immunosuppressive microenvironment. Consequently, the nanocarrier promotes DC cell maturation, enhances the infiltration and activity of CD8+ T cells, and forms long-term immune memory, which can effectively inhibit tumor growth or even eliminate tumors, and prevent tumor recurrence and metastasis.

CRISPR/Cas12b assisted loop-mediated isothermal amplification for easy, rapid and sensitive quantification of chronic HBV DNA in one-pot.

Background: Currently, millions of people suffer from undiagnosed chronic hepatitis B (CHB) infection each year, which leads to high mortality rates attributed to cirrhosis and hepatocellular carcinoma. Previously reported assays, such as PCR-based assays, have limitations in terms of convenient for CHB screening in high-burden regions and resource-limited settings. Recently, diagnosis based on CRISPR/Cas, which has been considered as a potential method of point-of-care test (POCT) in resource-limited settings, offers a significant advantage in terms of high sensitivity and specificity.

Direct visualization of immune status for tumor-infiltrating lymphocytes by rolling circle amplification.

The immune status of tumor-infiltrating lymphocytes (TILs) is essential for the effectiveness of cancer immunotherapies. However, due to the diversity of immune status in TILs, cellular heterogeneity, and the applicability to the clinic, it is still lacking effective strategies to meet clinical needs. We developed a novel immuno-recognition-induced method based on rolling circle amplification (RCA), namely immunoRCA, to in situ visualize the immune status of TILs in actual clinical samples.

Universal two-dimensional labelled probe-mediated melting curve analysis based on multiplex PCR for rapid typing of Plasmodium in a single closed tube.

Currently, malaria is still one of the major public health problems commonly caused by the four Plasmodium species. The similar symptoms of malaria and the COVID-19 epidemic of fever or fatigue lead to frequent misdiagnosis. The disadvantages of existing detection methods, such as time-consuming, costly, complicated operation, need for experienced technicians, and indistinguishable typing, lead to difficulties in meeting the clinical requirements of rapid, easy, and accurate typing of common Plasmodium species.

CRISPR/Cas12a-based assay for the rapid and high-sensitivity detection of Streptococcus agalactiae colonization in pregnant women with premature rupture of membrane.

Background: Streptococcus agalactiae or group B Streptococcus (GBS) is a leading infectious cause of neonatal morbidity and mortality. It is essential to establish a robust method for the rapid and ultra-sensitive detection of GBS in pregnant women with premature rupture of membrane (PROM).

Methods: This study developed a CRISPR-GBS assay that combined the advantages of the recombinase polymerase amplification (RPA) and CRISPR/Cas12a system for GBS detection.

Accurate transcriptome assembly by Nanopore RNA sequencing reveals novel functional transcripts in hepatocellular carcinoma.

The long reads of Nanopore sequencing permit accurate transcript assembly and ease in discovering novel transcripts with potentially important functions in cancers. The wide adoption of Nanopore sequencing for transcript quantification, however, is largely limited by high costs. To address this issue, we developed a bioinformatics software, NovelQuant, that can specifically quantify long-read-assembled novel transcripts with short-read sequencing data.

Circular RNA CircEPB41L2 Functions as Tumor Suppressor in Hepatocellular Carcinoma Through Sponging miR-590-5p.

Background: Circular RNAs (circRNAs) could interact with miRNAs to regulate gene expression, participating in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) initiation and development. This work aimed to determine the potential function and molecular mechanism of circEPB41L2 (hsa_circ_0077837) during HCC progression.

Materials And Methods: The expression of circEPB41L2 in HCC tissues and HCC cell lines was quantified using real-time quantitative PCR (qRT-PCR).

An Isothermal Method for Sensitive Detection of Mycobacterium tuberculosis Complex Using Clustered Regularly Interspaced Short Palindromic Repeats/Cas12a Cis and Trans Cleavage.

Tuberculosis is one of the most serious infectious diseases, resulting in death worldwide. Traditional detection methods are not enough to meet the clinical requirements of rapid diagnosis, high specificity, and high sensitivity. Fast, sensitive, and accurate detection of Mycobacterium tuberculosis (MTB) is urgently needed to treat and control tuberculosis disease.

Comprehensive Liquid Profiling of Circulating Tumor DNA and Protein Biomarkers in Long-Term Follow-Up Patients with Hepatocellular Carcinoma.

Purpose: Circulating tumor DNA (ctDNA) provides a novel approach for detecting tumor burden and predicting clinical outcomes of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). Here, we performed a thorough evaluation of HCC circulating genetic features and further fully integrated them to build a robust strategy for HCC monitoring and prognostic outcome assessment.

Experimental Design: We performed target sequencing and low-coverage whole-genome sequencing on plasma samples collected from 34 long-term follow-up patients with HCC to capture tumor somatic SNVs and CNVs, respectively.

Genomic and transcriptional Profiling of tumor infiltrated CD8 T cells revealed functional heterogeneity of antitumor immunity in hepatocellular carcinoma.

As key players in HCC antitumor response, the functions of tumor infiltrated CD8 T cells are significantly affected by surrounding microenvironment. A detailed profiling of their genomic and transcriptional changes could provide valuable insights for both future immunotherapy development and prognosis evaluation. We performed whole exome and transcriptome sequencing on tumor infiltrated CD8 T cells and CD8 T cells isolated from other tissue origins (peritumor tissues and corresponding PBMCs) in eight treatment-naive HCC patients.

Circular RNA profiling identifies circADAMTS13 as a miR-484 sponge which suppresses cell proliferation in hepatocellular carcinoma.

Circular RNA (circRNA) can participate in various biological processes, including tumorigenesis, through their microRNA response elements. Alterations in circRNA profiles during hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) progression and their clinical significance remain unclear. Here, we present extensive analysis of circRNA profiles in tumor and matched peritumor tissues collected from 10 HCC patients, conducted to identify circRNA related to HCC progression.

Clonal evolution in long-term follow-up patients with hepatocellular carcinoma.

To investigate tumor clonal evolution in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), we collected 31 tumor samples,16 peritumor samples and matched PBMCs from 11 long-term follow-up patients with HCC. Whole-exome sequencing was performed to obtain SNVs and CNVs for each sample. An average of 652.

CDK13 RNA Over-Editing Mediated by ADAR1 Associates with Poor Prognosis of Hepatocellular Carcinoma Patients.

Background/aims: Aberrant RNA editing, mediated by adenosine deaminases acting on RNA (ADAR), serves as a post-transcriptional event participating in tumorigenesis and prognosis. However, the RNA editing profiles during HCC progression and their clinical correlations remain unclear.

Methods: Multiple tissue samples were collected from an advanced HCC patient.