Exposure of A2E to blue light promotes ferroptosis in the retinal pigment epithelium.

Background: Age-dependent accumulation of lipofuscin in the retinal pigment epithelium (RPE) is closely related to the etiology of autosomal recessive Stargardt's disease (STGD1) and dry age-related macular degeneration (AMD). N-retinylidene-N-retinylethanolamine (A2E) is a leading component of RPE lipofuscin that is highly susceptible to blue light. Ferroptosis is an iron-dependent form of non-apoptotic cell death characterized by the accumulation of lipid peroxides to a lethal level, which plays an important role in retinal diseases.

Development and Validation of a Cost-Effective Machine Learning Model for Screening Potential Rheumatoid Arthritis in Primary Healthcare Clinics.

Objective: In primary healthcare, diagnosing rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is challenging due to a general lack of in-depth knowledge of RA by general practitioners (GPs) and the lack of effective tools, leading to high rates of missed diagnosis. This study focuses on a screening model for primary healthcare, aiming to improve early RA screening accuracy and efficiency at a relatively lower cost, reducing delays in GPs' recognition of RA.

Methods: We randomly selected 2106 participants from the RA group or combined control group (comprising healthy individuals and patients with non-RA rheumatic diseases) at Peking University Shenzhen Hospital as the developing cohort.

Quercetin Alleviates All--Retinal-Induced Photoreceptor Apoptosis and Retinal Degeneration by Inhibiting the ER Stress-Related PERK Signaling.

All--retinal (atRAL)-induced photoreceptor atrophy and retinal degeneration are hallmark features of dry age-related macular degeneration (AMD) and Stargardt disease type 1 (STGD1). The toxicity of atRAL is closely related to the generation of reactive oxygen species (ROS). Quercetin, a natural product, is known for its potent antioxidant properties; however, its effects in mitigating atRAL-mediated retinal damage remains unclear.

Transferrin ameliorates retinal degeneration by mediating the dimerization of all-trans-retinal.

High levels of all-trans-retinal (atRAL) in the retina is considered to be responsible for the development of autosomal recessive Stargardt's disease (STGD1) and dry age-related macular degeneration (dAMD). Two bisretinoids, all-trans-retinal dimer (atRAL-dimer) and N-retinyl-N-retinylidene ethanolamine (A2E), form from the dimerization of atRAL in the retina but they possess much lower toxicity and phototoxicity toward retinal pigment epithelium (RPE) cells than atRAL. Here, we introduced a novel function of transferrin (TRF) in mediating the conversion of atRAL into atRAL-dimer and A2E, which effectively protected the retina from damage by atRAL and prevented retinal function decline in mice, and rescued atRAL-loaded RPE cells.

Inhibition of JNK signaling attenuates photoreceptor ferroptosis caused by all-trans-retinal.

The disruption of the visual cycle leads to the accumulation of all-trans-retinal (atRAL) in the retina, a hallmark of autosomal recessive Stargardt disease (STGD1) and dry age-related macular degeneration (AMD), both of which cause retinal degeneration. Although our previous studies have shown that atRAL induces ferroptosis and activates c-Jun N-terminal kinase (JNK) signaling in the retina, the relationship between JNK signaling and ferroptosis in atRAL-mediated photoreceptor damage remains unclear. Here, we reported that JNK activation by atRAL drove photoreceptor ferroptosis through ferritinophagy.

Cardiomyocyte-Specific Overexpression of Activated Yes-Associated Protein Modified-RNA Promotes Cardiomyocyte Proliferation and Myocardial Regeneration.

Background: The proliferative capacity of cardiomyocytes in adult mammalian hearts is far too low to replace the cells that are lost to myocardial infarction. Both cardiomyocyte proliferation and myocardial regeneration can be improved via the overexpression of a constitutively active variant of YAP5SA (Yes-associated protein, 5SA [active] mutant), but persistent overexpression of proliferation-inducing genes could lead to hypertrophy and arrhythmia, whereas off-target expression in fibroblasts and macrophages could increase fibrosis and inflammation.

Methods And Results: Transient overexpression of YAP5SA or GFP (green fluorescent protein; control) was targeted to cardiomyocytes via our cardiomyocyte-specific modified mRNA translation system (CM-SMRTs or CM-SMRTs, respectively).

[Occurrence Characteristics and Ecological Risk Assessment of Antibiotics in Reclaimed Water-receiving Rivers in Beijing].

Taking Liangshui River, the reclaimed water-receiving river in Beijing, as the research area, the types, detection frequencies, and concentrations of 16 antibiotics in water and sediment were analyzed, and their temporal-spatial variation and occurrence characteristics were discussed. The results showed that nine and 13 target antibiotics were detected in the water and sediment of Liangshui River, with the antibiotic concentration ranges of ND-116.68 ng·L and ND-235.

Axillary lymph node removal in metastatic breast cancer.

Background: Several prospective studies have found that local surgical resection did not improve the survival of patients with metastatic breast cancer (dnMBC). However, a significant portion of dnMBC patients still undergo local surgery, and the role of axillary lymph node dissection (ALND) in dnMBC patients remains unclear. This study aimed to investigate the effect of ALND in patients with dnMBC.

Effect of interpregnancy interval on the risk of gestational diabetes mellitus during a second pregnancy.

Background: Interpregnancy interval (IPI) is associated with the risk of GDM in a second pregnancy. However, an optimal IPI is still need to be determined based on the characteristics of the population. This study aimed to analyze the effect of interpregnancy interval (IPI) on the risk of gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) in the Chinese population.

A deep semantic network-based image segmentation of soybean rust pathogens.

Introduction: Asian soybean rust is a highly aggressive leaf-based disease triggered by the obligate biotrophic fungus which can cause up to 80% yield loss in soybean. The precise image segmentation of fungus can characterize fungal phenotype transitions during growth and help to discover new medicines and agricultural biocides using large-scale phenotypic screens.

Methods: The improved Mask R-CNN method is proposed to accomplish the segmentation of densely distributed, overlapping and intersecting microimages.

High enrichment and measurement of heterocyclic aromatic hydrocarbons from environmental waters with magnetic resorcinol-formaldehyde nanocomposites coupled with high performance liquid chromatography.

Heterocyclic aromatic hydrocarbons are concerned pollutants with carcinogenic toxicity, which exist universally in various environmental matrices and have great harm to environmental and human health. In present work, magnetic resorcinol-formaldehyde composites (FeO@SiO@R-F) were fabricated via aldol condensation reaction under alkaline condition. The prepared magnetic materials were examined and analyzed with Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy and other related instruments.

COVID-19 and cardiovascular complications: updates of emergency medicine.

Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) and SARS-CoV-2 variants, has become a global pandemic resulting in significant morbidity and mortality. Severe cases of COVID-19 are characterized by hypoxemia, hyper-inflammation, cytokine storm in lung. Clinical studies have reported an association between COVID-19 and cardiovascular disease (CVD).

Association between sodium and potassium intake levels and body compositions of Chinese college students.

Background And Objectives: To investigate the relationship between sodium (Na) and potassium (K) nutritional condition and body compositions in youth aiming to give target population reasonable diet recommendations.

Methods And Study Design: The cross-sectional study was conducted involving 512 healthy youth aged 18 to 31 years from universities in Beijing. Food frequency questionnaire (FFQ) and bioelectrical impedance analyzer (BIA) were used to collect dietary intake information and body compositions.

Effect of novel botanical synergist on the effectiveness and residue behavior of prothioconazole in wheat field.

Fusarium head blight (FHB) is a critical fungal disease causes serious grain yield losses and mycotoxin contaminations. Currently, utilization of chemical fungicides is the main control method which has led to serious resistance. Development of novel synergist is an important strategy to reduce the usage of chemical fungicides and postpone the development of resistance, while natural components are interesting resources.

Gut microbial signatures of patients with primary hepatocellular carcinoma and their healthy first-degree relatives.

Aims: The gut microbiome has been recognized as a significant contributor to primary hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), with mounting evidence indicating associations between bacterial components and cancers of the digestive system.

Methods And Results: Here, to characterize gut bacterial signature in patients with primary HCC and to assess the diagnostic potential of bacterial taxa for primary HCC, 21 HCC patients and 21 healthy first-degree relatives (control group) were enrolled in this study. Bacterial DNA in the fecal samples was quantified by 16S rRNA gene sequencing.

Hypoadiponectinemia-induced upregulation of microRNA449b downregulating Nrf-1 aggravates cardiac ischemia-reperfusion injury in diabetic mice.

Diabetes enhances myocardial ischemic/reperfusion (MI/R) injury via an incompletely understood mechanism. Adiponectin (APN) is a cardioprotective adipokine suppressed by diabetes. However, how hypoadiponectinemia exacerbates cardiac injury remains incompletely understood.

eIF2α incites photoreceptor cell and retina damage by all-trans-retinal.

Dry age-related macular degeneration (AMD) and recessive Stargardt's disease (STGD1) lead to irreversible blindness in humans. The accumulation of all-trans-retinal (atRAL) induced by chaos in visual cycle is closely associated with retinal atrophy in dry AMD and STGD1 but its critical downstream signaling molecules remain ambiguous. Here, we reported that activation of eukaryotic translation initiation factor 2α (eIF2α) by atRAL promoted retinal degeneration and photoreceptor loss through activating c-Jun N-terminal kinase (JNK) signaling-dependent apoptosis and gasdermin E (GSDME)-mediated pyroptosis.

β-Cyclodextrin functionalized magnetic polyamine-amine dendrimers for high enrichment and effective analysis of trace bisphenolic pollutants in beverages.

Bisphenols (BPs) are typical endocrine disruptors, which can cause great effects on environmental, organisms and human health. In this study, β-Cyclodextrin (β-CD) functionalized polyamidoamine dendrimers-modified FeO nanomaterials (MNPs@PAMAM (G3.0)@β-CD) were facilely synthesized.