Fungal influence: The role of the gut mycobiome in women's health.

In this issue of Cell Host & Microbe, Wu et al. identified enriched gut Aspergillus tubingensis in patients with polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS). In mice, this fungus induced a PCOS-like phenotype by inhibiting interleukin (IL)-22 secretion from ILC3s via the AT-C1-AhR axis.

Single-cell multi-omics identify novel regulators required for osteoclastogenesis during aging.

Age-related osteoporosis manifests as a complex pathology that disrupts bone homeostasis and elevates fracture risk, yet the mechanisms facilitating age-related shifts in bone marrow macrophages/osteoclasts (BMMs/OCs) lineage are not fully understood. To decipher these mechanisms, we conducted an investigation into the determinants controlling BMMs/OCs differentiation. We performed single-cell multi-omics profiling on bone marrow samples from mice of different ages (1, 6, and 20 months) to gain a holistic understanding of cellular changes across time.

Microbiome-driven anticancer therapy: A step forward from natural products.

Human microbiomes, considered as a new emerging and enabling cancer hallmark, are increasingly recognized as critical effectors in cancer development and progression. Manipulation of microbiome revitalizing anticancer therapy from natural products shows promise toward improving cancer outcomes. Herein, we summarize our current understanding of the human microbiome-driven molecular mechanisms impacting cancer progression and anticancer therapy.

"Nutrient-fungi-host" tripartite interaction in cancer progression.

The human microbiome exhibits a profound connection with the cancer development, progression, and therapeutic response, with particular emphasis on its components of the mycobiome, which are still in the early stages of research. In this review, we comprehensively summarize cancer-related symbiotic and pathogenic fungal genera. The intricate mechanisms through which fungi impact cancer as an integral member of both gut and tissue-resident microbiomes are further discussed.

Multi-omics analysis of human tendon adhesion reveals that ACKR1-regulated macrophage migration is involved in regeneration.

Tendon adhesion is a common complication after tendon injury with the development of accumulated fibrotic tissues without effective anti-fibrotic therapies, resulting in severe disability. Macrophages are widely recognized as a fibrotic trigger during peritendinous adhesion formation. However, different clusters of macrophages have various functions and receive multiple regulation, which are both still unknown.

Into the era of mycobiome-driven cancer research.

The cancer mycobiome has recently become a research hotspot. While the intratumor mycobiota is implicated in cancer initiation and progression, the gut mycobiota functions as biomarkers for cancer diagnosis and treatment. In this forum article we highlight the involvement of the mycobiome in correlation-, causation-, and prediction-oriented cancer research and discuss the potential of this burgeoning field.

Beneficial insights into postbiotics against colorectal cancer.

Colorectal cancer (CRC) is one of the most prevalent and life-threatening cancer types with limited therapeutic options worldwide. Gut microbiota has been recognized as the pivotal determinant in maintaining gastrointestinal (GI) tract homeostasis, while dysbiosis of gut microbiota contributes to CRC development. Recently, the beneficial role of postbiotics, a new concept in describing microorganism derived substances, in CRC has been uncovered by various studies.

Multi-omics insights into the interplay between gut microbiota and colorectal cancer in the "microworld" age.

Colorectal cancer (CRC) is a multifactorial heterogeneous disease largely due to both genetic predisposition and environmental factors including the gut microbiota, a dynamic microbial ecosystem inhabiting the gastrointestinal tract. Elucidation of the molecular mechanisms by which the gut microbiota interacts with the host may contribute to the pathogenesis, diagnosis, and promotion of CRC. However, deciphering the influence of genetic variants and interactions with the gut microbial ecosystem is rather challenging.

Nanoparticle-Based Photodynamic Inhibition of Biofilms with Interfering Quorum Sensing.

Biofilm formation is a critical event in the pathogenesis and virulence of fungal infections caused by , giving rise to about a 1000-fold increase in the resistance to antifungal agents. Although photodynamic treatment (PDT) has been excellently implicated in bacterial infections, studies on its potential against fungal infection through the clearance of fungal biofilm formation remain at its infancy stage. Here, we have designed photodynamic nanoparticles with different sizes, modifications, and the ability of generating reactive oxygen species (ROS) to examine their effects on inhibiting biofilm formation and destructing mature biofilms of .

Mycobiome Dysbiosis in Women with Intrauterine Adhesions.

The vaginal microbiota dysbiosis is closely associated with the development of reproductive diseases. However, the contribution of mycobiome to intrauterine adhesion (IUA) disease remains unknown. Harnessing 16S and ITS2 rDNA sequencing analysis, we investigate both bacterial and fungal microbiota compositions across 174 samples taken from both cervical canal (CC) and middle vagina (MV) sites of IUA patients.

A dual action small molecule enhances azoles and overcomes resistance through co-targeting Pdr5 and Vma1.

Fungal infection threatens human health worldwide due to the limited arsenal of antifungals and the rapid emergence of resistance. Epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) is demonstrated to mediate epithelial cell endocytosis of the leading human fungal pathogen, Candida albicans. However, whether EGFR inhibitors act on fungal cells remains unknown.

Efficacy of intravitreal conbercept combined with panretinal photocoagulation for severe nonproliferative diabetic retinopathy without macular edema.

Aim: To assess efficacy of intravitreal conbercept (IVC) injection in combination with panretinal photocoagulation (PRP) PRP alone in patients with severe nonproliferative diabetic retinopathy (SNPDR) without macular edema (ME).

Methods: Forty-eight patients with SNPDR without ME (56 eyes) were divided into the PRP group and IVC+PRP group (the pulse group) in this retrospective clinical study. Conbercept was intravitreally administered to patients in the pulse group 1wk before treatment with PRP and followed up for 1, 3, and 6mo.

Multi-kingdom microbiota analyses identify bacterial-fungal interactions and biomarkers of colorectal cancer across cohorts.

Despite recent progress in our understanding of the association between the gut microbiome and colorectal cancer (CRC), multi-kingdom gut microbiome dysbiosis in CRC across cohorts is unexplored. We investigated four-kingdom microbiota alterations using CRC metagenomic datasets of 1,368 samples from 8 distinct geographical cohorts. Integrated analysis identified 20 archaeal, 27 bacterial, 20 fungal and 21 viral species for each single-kingdom diagnostic model.

Fungal commensalism modulated by a dual-action phosphate transceptor.

Successful host colonization by fungi in fluctuating niches requires response and adaptation to multiple environmental stresses. However, our understanding about how fungal species thrive in the gastrointestinal (GI) ecosystem by combing multifaceted nutritional stress with respect to homeostatic host-commensal interactions is still in its infancy. Here, we discover that depletion of the phosphate transceptor Pho84 across multiple fungal species encountered a substantial cost in gastrointestinal colonization.

Genetically predicted obesity and risk of deep vein thrombosis.

Aims/hypothesis: An association between obesity and deep vein thrombosis (DVT) has been revealed by observational studies, but it is not clear if the observed associations are causal, caused by confounding bias or reverse causation.

Methods: We performed a two-sample Mendelian Randomization (MR) study by obtaining exposure and outcome data from separate published studies. We utilized data from Genetic Investigation of Anthropometric Traits (GIANT, 339,224 participants) consortium and FinnGen project (FinnGen, 1785 DVT case and 84,462 control participants) to determine the causal effect of BMI on DVT.

Genetic predisposition to COVID-19 may increase the risk of hypertension disorders in pregnancy: A two-sample Mendelian randomization study.

Aims: The aim of this study was to apply the Mendelian randomization (MR) design to explore the potential causal association between COVID-19 and the risk of hypertension disorders in pregnancy.

Methods: Our primary genetic instrument comprised 8 single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) associated with COVID-19 at genome-wide significance. Data on the associations between the SNPs and the risk of hypertension disorders in pregnancy were obtained from study based on a very large cohort of European population.

The Application of High-Throughput Technologies for the Study of Microbiome and Cancer.

Human gut microbiome research, especially gut microbiome, has been developing at a considerable pace over the last decades, driven by a rapid technological advancement. The emergence of high-throughput technologies, such as genomics, transcriptomics, and others, has afforded the generation of large volumes of data, and in relation to specific pathologies such as different cancer types. The current review identifies high-throughput technologies as they have been implemented in the study of microbiome and cancer.