Facilitation of Tumor Stroma-Targeted Therapy: Model Difficulty and Co-Culture Organoid Method.

Tumors, as intricate ecosystems, comprise oncocytes and the highly dynamic tumor stroma. Tumor stroma, representing the non-cancerous and non-cellular composition of the tumor microenvironment (TME), plays a crucial role in oncogenesis and progression, through its interactions with biological, chemical, and mechanical signals. This review aims to analyze the challenges of stroma mimicry models, and highlight advanced personalized co-culture approaches for recapitulating tumor stroma using patient-derived tumor organoids (PDTOs).

A membrane permeability database for nonpeptidic macrocycles.

The process of developing new drugs is arduous and costly, particularly for targets classified as "difficult-to-drug." Macrocycles show a particular ability to modulate difficult-to-drug targets, including protein-protein interactions, while still allowing oral administration. However, the determination of membrane permeability, critical for reaching intracellular targets and for oral bioavailability, is laborious and expensive.

Impact of air pollution on depressive symptoms and the modifying role of physical activity: Evidence from the CHARLS study.

The association between air pollution and depressive symptoms has not been thoroughly investigated, and the role of physical activity (PA) is particularly unclear. Although PA has been shown to alleviate depression, it may also increase exposure to air pollution, potentially exacerbating its adverse effects. A total of 17,332 participants aged 45 years and older from the 2018 wave of the China Health and Retirement Longitudinal Study (CHARLS) were included in this study to assess the causal effect of air pollution on depressive symptoms in China and to clarify the role of PA in this relationship.

Access to Vinyl Gem-Difluorinated Cyclopropanes Via Photopromoted Palladium-Catalyzed Heck Reaction.

A photopromoted Pd-catalyzed Heck reaction of gem-difluorocyclopropyl bromides (DFCBs) with styrenes to deliver vinyl gem-difluorinated cyclopropanes (VDFCs) under mild conditions has been developed. The reaction demonstrates good functional group compatibility while providing high E/Z ratio of the products. Furthermore, the desired VDFCs can be easily transformed into fluorinated cyclic/acyclic architectures, which may broaden its applications in organic synthesis.

Environmentally Relevant Concentrations of Tetracycline Promote Horizontal Transfer of Antimicrobial Resistance Genes via Plasmid-Mediated Conjugation.

The ubiquitous presence of antimicrobial-resistant organisms and antimicrobial resistance genes (ARGs) constitutes a major threat to global public safety. Tetracycline (TET) is a common antimicrobial agent that inhibits bacterial growth and is frequently detected in aquatic environments. Although TET may display coselection for resistance, limited knowledge is available on whether and how it might influence plasmid-mediated conjugation.

Functional disability and receipt of informal care among Chinese adults living alone with cognitive impairment.

Background: Adults with cognitive impairment are prone to living alone in large numbers but receive relatively little attention. This study aimed to evaluate whether living alone with cognitive impairment was associated with a higher burden of functional disability but lack of informal care.

Methods: 982 observations of adults living alone with cognitive impairment and 50,695 observations of adults living with others and with normal cognition were identified from 4 waves (2011/2012, 2013, 2015, and 2018) of the China Health and Retirement Longitudinal Study (CHARLS).

TMPRSS2 is a tumor suppressor and its downregulation promotes antitumor immunity and immunotherapy response in lung adenocarcinoma.

Background: TMPRSS2, a key molecule for SARS-CoV-2 invading human host cells, has an association with cancer. However, its association with lung cancer remains insufficiently unexplored.

Methods: In five bulk transcriptomics datasets, one single-cell RNA sequencing (scRNA-seq) dataset and one proteomics dataset for lung adenocarcinoma (LUAD), we explored associations between TMPRSS2 expression and immune signatures, tumor progression phenotypes, genomic features, and clinical prognosis in LUAD by the bioinformatics approach.

Identifying Diffuse Glioma Subtypes Based on Pathway Enrichment Evaluation.

Gliomas are highly heterogeneous in molecular, histology, and microenvironment. However, a classification of gliomas by integrating different tumor microenvironment (TME) components remains unexplored. Based on the enrichment scores of 17 pathways involved in immune, stromal, DNA repair, and nervous system signatures in diffuse gliomas, we performed consensus clustering to uncover novel subtypes of gliomas.

Trends in the prevalence of cognitive impairment at old age in China, 2002-2018.

Introduction: China has the world's largest number of older adults with cognitive impairment (CI). We aimed to examine secular trends in the prevalence of CI in China from 2002 to 2018.

Methods: Generalized estimating equations (GEE) was used to assess changes in CI trend in 44,154 individuals (72,027 observations) aged 65 to 105 years old.

Examining the factor structure and validity of the WHOQOL-AGE among the oldest-old Chinese in Singapore.

Objectives: A short measure of quality of life in old age is essential. The present study examined the factor structure and validity of the 13-item WHOQOL-AGE among the oldest-old.

Methods: Data came from 1,000 Chinese aged ≥85 years in Singapore.

Serum Vitamin D Concentration, Sleep, and Cognitive Impairment among Older Adults in China.

Background: Cognitive decline in older adults has become one of the critical challenges to global health. This study aims to examine both cross-sectional and longitudinal associations of levels of serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D (25(OH)D) (briefed as VD3) concentration and sleep quality/duration, especially their interactions, with risk of cognitive impairment among older adults in China.

Methods: We utilized a special subsample of adults aged 65-105 years (individuals = 3412, observations = 4816) from eight provinces in China derived from the 2011/2012 and 2014 waves of the Chinese Longitudinal Healthy Longevity Survey.

Loss of SMURF2 expression enhances RACK1 stability and promotes ovarian cancer progression.

Receptor for activated C kinase 1 (RACK1) has been confirmed to take part in multiple biological events and the mechanism supporting abnormal RACK1 expression in ovarian cancer (OC) remains to be characterized. Here, we identified Smad ubiquitin regulatory factor 2 (SMURF2) as a bona fide E3 ligase of RACK1 in OC. SMURF2 effectively added the K6, K33 and K48 ubiquitin chains to the RACK1, resulting in polyubiquitination and instability of RACK1.

Impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on life expectancy at birth in Asia.

Objective: To investigate the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on life expectancy at birth (e) for 51 Asian countries and territories from January 1, 2020 to December 31, 2021.

Method: Based on age-sex-specific mortality used for estimating the changes in e for years 2019, 2020, and 2021 from the 2022 revision of the World Population Prospects, we employed Arriaga's discrete method to decompose changes in e into both absolute and relative contributions of changes in age-specific death rate, and further obtained the age-sex-specific contribution to changes in e by country/territory and period (i.e.

Self-powered and broadband opto-sensor with bionic visual adaptation function based on multilayer γ-InSe flakes.

Visual adaptation that can autonomously adjust the response to light stimuli is a basic function of artificial visual systems for intelligent bionic robots. To improve efficiency and reduce complexity, artificial visual systems with integrated visual adaptation functions based on a single device should be developed to replace traditional approaches that require complex circuitry and algorithms. Here, we have developed a single two-terminal opto-sensor based on multilayer γ-InSe flakes, which successfully emulated the visual adaptation behaviors with a new working mechanism combining the photo-pyroelectric and photo-thermoelectric effect.

Are centenarians successful agers? Evidence from China.

Background: It is unclear to what degree centenarians are successful agers. We assess successful aging (SA) and its subtypes in a large Chinese sample.

Methods: Based on a large national sample of 18,311 Chinese centenarians, we first estimated the prevalence of SA among centenarians, and then used the Latent Class Analysis to classify centenarians into different types based on the five dimensions of SA.

Profiles of Successful Aging and Their Association with All-Cause Mortality Risk among the Oldest-Old Chinese in Singapore.

Introduction: Although successful aging (SA) studies have examined objective indicators such as disease and disability, physical and cognitive function, and social and productive engagement, as well as subjective indicators such as self-rated health, function, and well-being, the interplay among these indicators is rarely studied. We studied SA profiles that captured this interplay and evaluated the association of these profiles with mortality in the oldest-old.

Methods: Respondents were 1,000 Chinese Singaporeans aged ≥85 years during interview visits from 2017 to 2018.

Prevalence, antimicrobial resistance and genetic characterization of Vibrio parahaemolyticus isolated from retail aquatic products in Nanjing, China.

Vibrio parahaemolyticus, is one of the most frequently reported pathogenic microorganisms that causes foodborne illnesses worldwide. The aims of the current study were to determine the prevalence, virulence genes, antimicrobial resistance, biofilm formation ability (BFA) and genetic characterization of V. parahaemolyticus recovered from retail aquatic products in Nanjing, China.

Widowhood and Mortality Among Chinese Older Adults in Singapore: The Roles of Gender and Perceived Social Support.

Objectives: Although the association between widowhood and mortality is well established, the impact of widowhood on mortality could differ by social support, gender, and widowhood duration. We studied the association between widowhood and mortality among older Chinese adults in Singapore and analyzed how social support, gender, and widowhood duration may modify this association.

Methods: We used data from 15,858 participants aged 61-96 years from the third follow-up of the population-based Singapore Chinese Health Study in 2014-2016.

Notum leads to potential pro-survival of OSCC through crosstalk between Shh and Wnt/β-catenin signaling via p-GSK3β.

Notum, which belongs to the α/β hydrolase family, is a deacylated extracellular protein that regulates the Wnt signaling pathway. Studies have found that Notum participates in the progression of colorectal cancer and hepatocellular carcinoma, but its role in oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC) is currently unclear. This study aimed to explore the role of Notum in regulating OSCC and further reveal the underlying mechanisms.