Sequential intranasal booster triggers class switching from intramuscularly primed IgG to mucosal IgA against SARS-CoV-2.

The persistent emergence of COVID-19 variants and recurrent waves of infection worldwide underscores the urgent need for vaccines that effectively reduce viral transmission and prevent infections. Current intramuscular (IM) COVID-19 vaccines inadequately protect the upper respiratory mucosa. In response, we have developed a nonadjuvanted, interferon-armed SARS-CoV-2 fusion protein vaccine with IM priming and intranasal (IN) boost sequential immunization.

FDA Approval Summary: Tovorafenib for Relapsed or Refractory BRAF-altered Pediatric Low-Grade Glioma.

On April 23, 2024, FDA granted accelerated approval to tovorafenib, a type II RAF kinase inhibitor, for the treatment of patients 6 months of age and older with relapsed or refractory pediatric low-grade glioma (pLGG) harboring a BRAF fusion or rearrangement, or BRAF V600 mutation. Efficacy was evaluated in FIREFLY-1 (NCT04775485), a single-arm, open-label, multicenter trial that enrolled patients 6 months to 25 years of age with relapsed or refractory pLGG with an activating BRAF alteration who had received prior systemic therapy. The major efficacy outcome measure was radiologic overall response rate (ORR), defined as the proportion of patients with complete response, partial response, or minor response as determined by blinded independent central review using Response Assessment in Pediatric Neuro-Oncology (RAPNO) criteria.

APE1-Activated and NIR-II Photothermal-Enhanced Chemodynamic Therapy Guided by Amplified Fluorescence Imaging.

The development of intelligent nanotheranostic technology that integrates diagnostic and therapeutic functions holds great promise for personalized nanomedicine. However, most of the nanotheranostic agents exhibit "always-on" properties and do not involve an amplification step, which may largely limit imaging contrast and restrict therapeutic efficacy. Herein, we construct a novel nanotheranostic platform (Hemin/DHPs/PDA@CuS nanocomposite) by assembling DNA hairpin probes (DHPs) and hemin on the surface of PDA@CuS nanosheets that enables amplified fluorescence imaging and activatable chemodynamic therapy (CDT) of tumors.

Standard: Human gastric organoids.

Organoid technology provides a transformative approach to understand human physiology and pathology, offering valuable insights for scientific research and therapeutic development. Human gastric organoids, in particular, have gained significant interest for applications in disease modeling, drug discovery, and studies of tissue regeneration and homeostasis. However, the lack of standardized quality control has limited their extensive clinical applications.

Years of life lost attributable to air pollution, a health risk-based air quality index approach in Ningbo, China.

Air pollution remains a significant threat to human health and economic development. Most previous studies have examined the health effects of individual pollutants, which often overlook the combined impacts of multiple pollutants. The traditional composite indicator air quality index (AQI) only focuses on the major pollutants, whereas the health risk-based air quality index (HAQI) could offer a more comprehensive evaluation of the health effects of various pollutants on populations.