A novel peptide encoded by a rice circular RNA confers broad-spectrum disease resistance in rice plants.

Circular RNAs (circRNAs) are a significant class of endogenous RNAs that exert crucial biological functions in human and animal systems, but little is currently understood regarding their roles in plants. Here, we identified a circRNA originating from the back-splicing of exon 4 and exon 5 of a rice gene, OsWRKY9, and named it circ-WRKY9. It is upregulated in rice stripe mosaic virus (RSMV)-infected rice plants.

Microneedle-Mediated Treatment of Obesity.

Obesity has become a major public health threat, as it can cause various complications such as diabetes, cardiovascular disease, sleep apnea, cancer, and osteoarthritis. The primary anti-obesity therapies include dietary control, physical exercise, surgical interventions, and drug therapy; however, these treatments often have poor therapeutic efficacy, significant side effects, and unavoidable weight rebound. As a revolutionized transdermal drug delivery system, microneedles (MNs) have been increasingly used to deliver anti-obesity therapeutics to subcutaneous adipose tissue or targeted absorption sites, significantly enhancing anti-obese effects.

Crystal Phase and Morphology Control for Enhanced Luminescence in KGaF:Er.

Upconversion luminescent materials (UCLMs) have garnered significant attention due to their broad potential applications in fields such as display technology, biological imaging, and optical sensing. However, optimizing crystal phase and morphology remains a challenge. This study systematically investigates the effects of phase transformation and morphology control on the upconversion luminescent properties of KGaF:Er.

Antioxidant Peptides from Miiuy Croaker Swim Bladders: Ameliorating Effect and Mechanism in NAFLD Cell Model through Regulation of Hypolipidemic and Antioxidant Capacity.

In this work, the hypolipidemic and antioxidative capacity of FSGLR (S7) and GIEWA (S10) from miiuy croaker swim bladders was explored systematically in an oleic acid (OA)-induced nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) model of HepG2 cells. Moreover, the hypolipidemic activity of S7 and S10 and their antioxidative abilities were preliminarily investigated in combination with molecular docking technology. The results indicated that S7 and S10 could decrease the amount of lipid accumulation and the content of triglycerides (TG) and total cholesterol (TC) in the OA-induced NAFLD cell model in a dose-dependent manner.

Nuciferine Restores Autophagy via the PI3K-AKT-mTOR Pathway to Alleviate Renal Fibrosis in Diabetic Kidney Disease.

Diabetic kidney disease (DKD) is one of the complications of diabetes mellitus, which triggers kidney fibrosis and eventually develops into end-stage renal disease. Nuciferine (NF) is one of the most important functional components in lotus leaves (LL), but its role and mechanism for the treatment of DKD are unclear. A high-fat-diet (HFD)-induced DKD model in KK-AY mice was established in this study.

Capilliposide A relieved dry age-related macular degeneration through ROS/SIRT1/P53 signaling pathway.

Age-related macular degeneration (AMD) is the main cause of vision impairment in the elderly, which still lacks efficient treatment. Capilliposide A (LC-A), a saponin-type anti-inflammation compound extracted from Lysimachia capillipes Hemsl, were used for investigating its anti-AMD effects. The cell viability of LC-A against ARPE-19 cell lines were detected by CCK8 assay.

Structural insights into prolactin-releasing peptide receptor signaling and G-protein coupling selectivity.

Prolactin-releasing peptide receptor (PrRPR), a notable member of the class A peptide-GPCR (G-protein-coupled receptor) family, regulates diverse physiology functions upon activation by PrRP. Herein, we reveal that PrRPR could engage with not only the G pathway but also the G pathway. We further resolve the structures of the PrRPR-G and PrRPR-G complexes using cryoelectron microscopy (cryo-EM), with PrRP31 as the endogenous ligand.

Visceral leishmaniasis related secondary haemophagocytic syndrome: A case report.

Visceral leishmaniasis (VL) is a parasitic disease that can trigger haemophagocytic syndrome (HPS), making its prompt diagnosis crucial. The application of metagenome next-generation sequencing (mNGS) provides a rapid diagnostic approach, particularly for patients with negative bone marrow aspiration results. We present here, a case of a male patient in his early 50s who presented with fever and abdominal pain.

ZNF384 and m6A methylation promote the progression of hepatocellular carcinoma by regulating the interaction between LINC00342 and DAPK1.

Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is a malignant tumor with high morbidity and mortality. Many lncRNAs play important regulatory roles in the pathogenesis of HCC, but the mechanism of action of LINC00342 in the progression of HCC remains unclear. In this study, we assessed 24 pairs of HCC tissues and adjacent normal tissues as well as HCC cells and a nude mouse model of HCC.

Ground-based hyperspectral inversion of salinization and alkalinization of different soil layers in farmland in Yinbei area, Ningxia, China.

Soil salinization and alkalization is a serious constraint to sustainable development of agriculture. Timely acquisition of soil salinity content (SSC) and pH information is crucial for improvement and rational utilization of saline-alkaline farmlands. We collected the data of field hyperspectral information and salt and alkali indicators in the surface layer (0-20 cm) and sub-surface layer (20-40 cm) in Pingluo County, Shizuishan City from Ningxia.

Berberine is a Novel Mitochondrial Calcium Uniporter Inhibitor that Disrupts MCU-EMRE Assembly.

The mitochondrial calcium uniporter (MCU) complex mediates Ca entry into mitochondria, which plays a crucial role in regulating cellular energy metabolism and apoptosis. Dysregulation of MCU is implicated in various diseases, such as neurodegenerative disorders, cardiac diseases, and cancer. Despite its importance, developing specific and clinically viable MCU inhibitors is challenging.

Examining Symptom Management and Quality of Life of Loop Diuretic-Induced Overactive Bladder Among Heart Failure Patients: Physician and Patient Perspectives.

Loop diuretics are strongly recommended in patients with chronic congestive heart failure (HF) to alleviate signs and symptoms of fluid overload. Loop diuretics help relieve congestive symptoms and reduce mortality, but may have side effects. This survey study examined the impact of loop diuretic-induced overactive bladder (LD-OAB) symptoms on quality of life (QOL) in HF patients; and management of OAB by HF patients and physicians.

A modified non-contrast MRI in the preoperative examination of periacetabular osteotomy at 3.0T.

Purpose: To investigate whether the modified hip non-contrast magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) can replace the direct MRI hip arthrography (d-MRA) at 3.0T in developmental dysplasia of the hip (DDH) patients undergoing periacetabular osteotomy (PAO) preoperative examination, and also to assess the difference between these two methods.

Materials And Methods: This retrospective study involved 35 patients (38 hips) with DDH who underwent periacetabular osteotomy, age 9-41 years old (mean age 25), 4 males (4 hips) and 34 females (34 hips).

An efficient framework based on local multi-representatives and noise-robust synthetic example generation for self-labeled semi-supervised classification.

While self-labeled methods can exploit unlabeled and labeled instances to train classifiers, they are also restricted by the labeled instance number and distribution. SEG-SSC, k-means-SSC, LC-SSC, and LCSEG-SSC are sophisticated solutions for overcoming the above restrictions. However, when some classes overlap, they suffer from the following challenging technical defects: (a) they fail to effectively improve the labeled instance distribution by identifying a single local representative in a cluster; (b) they have a low accuracy or a high degree of manual interference for predicting identified unlabeled local representatives; and (c) they fail to effectively improve the labeled instance number due to noise generation.

Prognostic value of TIMI risk score combined with systemic immune-inflammation index and lipoprotein(a) in patients with ST-Segment elevation myocardial infarction after percutaneous coronary intervention.

Background: Thrombolysis in Myocardial Infarction (TIMI) risk score in patients with ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI) is associated with major adverse cardiovascular events (MACE). This study aimed to develop a prediction model based on the TIMI risk score for MACE in STEMI patients after percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI).

Methods: We conducted a retrospective data analysis on 290 acute STEMI patients admitted to the Affiliated Hospital of Yangzhou University from January 2022 to June 2023 and met the inclusion criteria.

Association Between Allometric Body Shape Indices and Osteoporosis in Postmenopausal Women: A Cross-Sectional Study from NHANES.

Background: Osteoporosis is a common health concern in postmenopausal women. Obesity, commonly assessed using body mass index (BMI), may have a protective effect on osteoporosis in postmenopausal women. As BMI is limited to the distinguishing fat accumulation, the study aimed to explore the association between allometric body shape indices [including a body shape index (ABSI), hip index, (HI), and waist-hip index (WHI)] and osteoporosis in postmenopausal women.

Effects of Multiple Treatments of Formic Acid on the Chemical Properties and Structural Features of Bamboo Powder.

Under mild conditions, formic acid effectively separates the components of lignocellulose, removing the majority of the hemicellulose and lignin from the cellulose. However, it has not yet been determined if multiple treatments with fresh formic acid may totally remove hemicellulose and lignin. In this study, fresh formic acid was used to repeatedly pretreat the bamboo powder, and the effect of multiple treatments on the physicochemical structure of the bamboo powder was investigated using changes in fractions, enzymatic hydrolysis, hydrophilicity, cellulose crystallinity, and lignin structure.

Downregulation of collagen IV deposition and ITGB1-FAK signaling pathway to inhibit adipogenesis: A novel mechanism of swertiamarin in treating type 2 diabetes mellitus.

Extracellular matrix (ECM) and integrins are important biological macromolecules. ECM especially collagen IV (COLIV) deposition modulates the integrin-FAK signaling pathway involved in adipogenesis and is strongly associated with insulin resistance. Type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) mice were given swertiamarin (STM) by intragastric administration.

SNV/Indel and CNV Analysis in Trio-WES for Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities: Diagnostic Yield & Cost-Effectiveness.

Intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD) are clinically and genetically heterogeneous disorders of global concern. While whole exome sequencing (WES) is used to identify single nucleotide variants (SNVs) and small insertions/deletions (Indels) in IDD patients, its detection rate is limited. This study evaluated the value of integrating copy number variation (CNV) analysis into traditional SNV/Indel analysis based on trio-WES.

Bilateral synchronous UBE for unilateral laminotomy and bilateral decompression as a potentially effective minimally Invasive approach for two-level lumbar spinal stenosis.

Currently, Unilateral biportal endoscopy is widely used in the surgical treatment of lumbar spinal stenosis. To investigate the feasibility of bilateral synchronous UBE to unilateral laminotomy and bilateral decompression(BS-UBE-ULBD) for treating two-level lumbar spinal stenosis (LSS). Sixty-four patients with two-level lumbar spinal stenosis (LSS) treated with BS-UBE-ULBD from October 2022 to January 2024 were retrospectively analyzed.

Smart core-shell microneedles for psoriasis therapy: In situ self-assembly of calcium ion-coordinated dexamethasone hydrogel.

Psoriasis is a prevalent relapsing dermatological condition that often necessitates lifelong treatment. The distinctive thickening of the stratum corneum presents a challenge to drug penetration. The employment of microneedles has been demonstrated to enhance the transdermal drug delivery efficacy by creating multiple microchannels in the skin.

Gas-propelled anti-hair follicle aging microneedle patch for the treatment of androgenetic alopecia.

Existing treatments for androgenetic alopecia (AGA) are unsatisfactory, owing to the two major reasons: (1) Oxidative stress and vascularization deficiency in the perifollicular microenvironment provoke the premature senescence of hair follicles, limiting the transformation of hair growth cycle from the telogen to the anagen phase; (2) The amount of drug delivered to the perifollicular region located in the deep dermis is very limited for passive drug delivery systems. Herein, we developed a gas-propelled microneedle patch integrated with ferrum-chelated puerarin/quercetin nanoparticles (PQFN) to increase drug accumulation in hair follicles and reshape the perifollicular microenvironment for improved hair-regenerating effects. PQFN can rejuvenate testosterone (Tes)-induced senescence of dermal papilla cells by scavenging ROS, restoring mitochondrial function, regulating signaling pathways related to hair regeneration, and upregulating hair growth-promoting genes.