Nucleus pulposus cell-mimicking nanoparticles for cell-specific HIF1A editing to modulate SASP-mediated disc inflammation via autophagy activation.

Traditional methods of plasmid delivery, including viral vectors, lipofection, and electroporation, are widely used for gene editing but have limitations, such as cellular toxicity, limited transfection efficiency in primary cells, and nonspecific side effects. Here, we report the development of nucleus pulposus cell (NPC)-mimicking nanoparticles (HIF1A@NNP) with an NPC membrane as the shell and pcDNA3.1-rHIF1A encapsulated in the core via extrusion.

Association Between Systemic Inflammatory Response index and Diabetic Foot Ulcer in the US Population with Diabetes in the NHANES: A Retrospective Cross-Sectional Study.

Diabetic foot ulcer (DFU) is a common complication of diabetes. It is often accompanied by infection and, in severe cases, necessitates amputation. Early diagnosis and monitoring are crucial for improving prognosis.

An Exploratory Study on the Development of a Pure Dairy Product Emotion Scale (PDPES): A Study of Milk Consumers in China.

Emotions evoked by food are an important factor that strongly influences the predictive power of consumer acceptance and consumption behavior when choosing food. The emotion questionnaire is an efficient measurement tool that describes the emotions evoked by different foods on the market. However, there is rarely a list of emotion terms for specific foods, such as the pure dairy products on the market.

Reprogramming to restore youthful epigenetics of senescent nucleus pulposus cells for mitigating intervertebral disc degeneration and alleviating low back pain.

Aging is a pivotal risk factor for intervertebral disc degeneration (IVDD) and chronic low back pain (LBP). The restoration of aging nucleus pulposus cells (NPCs) to a youthful epigenetic state is crucial for IVDD treatment, but remains a formidable challenge. Here, we proposed a strategy to partially reprogram and reinstate youthful epigenetics of senescent NPCs by delivering a plasmid carrier that expressed pluripotency-associated genes (Oct4, Klf4 and Sox2) in Cavin2-modified exosomes (OKS@M-Exo) for treatment of IVDD and alleviating LBP.

Disruption and adaptation: infant gut microbiota's dynamic response to SARS-CoV-2 infection.

Background: The responses of the infant gut microbiota to infection significantly disrupt the natural intrahost evolutionary processes of the microbiome. Here, we collected a 16-month longitudinal cohort of infant gut microbiomes affected by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). Then, we developed a multicriteria approach to identify core interaction network driving community dynamics under environmental disturbances, which we termed the Conserved Variated Interaction Group (CVIgroup).

Revealing the critical role of rare bacterial communities in shaping antibiotic resistance genes in saline soils through metagenomic analysis.

Salinity is considered one of the basic abiotic factors influencing the diversity and distribution of antibiotic resistance genes (ARGs) in soils, yet little is known about the distribution and driving factors of ARGs in naturally saline soils. In this study, metagenomic analysis was conducted to explore the intricate dynamics among soil salinity, microbial community structure and ARGs propagation, with a particular focus on the key contribution of rare potential-hosts of ARGs in light and heavy saline soils. The findings revealed that salinity was significantly negatively correlated with the abundance of ARGs, light saline soils hosted a greater abundance of ARGs than high saline soils, with particularly significant enrichment in genes conferring resistance to multidrug, vancomycin, bacitracin and tetracenomycin C.

Immune-Related Adverse Event of Immunotherapy: Diabetes.

Background: The development of immunotherapy has led to a paradigm shift in the treatment of malignant tumors. Immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs) function by blocking the receptors and ligands of T cells from binding one another, empowering them to target and attack cancer cells. ICIs along with other immunotherapy treatments, have seen a significant increase in usage in recent years.

ArmVR: Innovative Design Combining Virtual Reality Technology and Mechanical Equipment in Stroke Rehabilitation Therapy.

The rising incidence of stroke has created a significant global public health challenge. The immersive qualities of virtual reality (VR) technology, along with its distinct advantages, make it a promising tool for stroke rehabilitation. To address this challenge, developing VR-based upper limb rehabilitation systems has become a critical research focus.

Enable Superior Performance of Solvent-Free Electrode With Ultra-High Loading Through Designed Conductive Binder.

Compared to the traditional slurry-coating process, the solvent-free manufacturing process holds significant potential due to its advantages, including economic viability, thick electrodes, and avoidance of organic solvents. However, the currently dominant solvent-free process suffers from poor mechanical properties and electrochemical instability. Herein, a conductive binder (M@EP), composed of multi-walled carbon nanotubes (MWNT) and epoxy resin-based binders (EP), is designed and synthesized.

The path winds along isolation and analyses of fetal nucleated red blood cells in maternal peripheral blood: Past, present, and future toward non-invasive prenatal diagnosis.

Traditional prenatal diagnosis detects fetal disorders through invading uterus to access fetal cells, which may cause maternal complications, fetal injury, and even miscarriage. Safe and convenient non-invasive prenatal testing (NIPT) by analyzing fetal materials (cell-free DNA/RNA, cells, and extracellular vesicles) that circulate in maternal peripheral blood attracts great attention and has been applied in risk evaluation of several fetal disorders. Among those fetal analytes, fetal nucleated red blood cells (fNRBCs) comprise entire fetal genome, possess distinct membrane antigens, and have a lifespan limited in every single gestation.

Optimizing ionomer distribution for constructing efficient Pt/ionomer interfaces: Research on improving the performance of low-platinum-loading hydrogen fuel cells.

Reducing the platinum content within membrane electrode assemblies (MEAs) of proton exchange membrane fuel cells (PEMFCs) is a strategic approach to decrease their overall costs. Nevertheless, this approach can result in significant voltage losses which are primarily attributed to the increased impedance of oxygen through the Pt-ionomer interface. In this study, the local oxygen mass transfer resistance (R) is effectively reduced by doping sulfur onto the carbon supports.

Research on the traceability and treatment of nitrate pollution in groundwater: a comprehensive review.

The preservation of groundwater quality is essential for maintaining the integrity of the water ecological cycle. The preservation of groundwater quality is crucial for sustaining the integrity of the water ecological cycle. Nitrate (NO) has emerged as a pervasive contaminant in groundwater, attracting significant research attention due to its extensive distribution and the potential environmental consequences it poses.

Harnessing the Plasma Proteome to Predict Mortality in Heart Failure Subpopulations.

Background: We derived and validated proteomic risk scores (PRSs) for heart failure (HF) prognosis that provide absolute risk estimates for all-cause mortality within 1 year.

Methods: Plasma samples from individuals with HF with reduced ejection fraction (HFrEF; ejection fraction <40%; training/validation n=1247/762) and preserved ejection fraction (HFpEF; ejection fraction ≥50%; training/validation n=725/785) from 3 independent studies were run on the SomaScan Assay measuring ≈5000 proteins. Machine learning techniques resulted in unique 17- and 14-protein models for HFrEF and HFpEF that predict 1-year mortality.

Realizing the Ultrafast Recovery of the Monolayer MoS-Based NH Sensor by Gas-Ion-Gate.

Over the past decade, the two-dimensional material MoS has attracted great attention due to its room temperature stability, high surface area-to-volume ratios, abundance of active sites at the edges, and exceptional surface sensitivity to the environment, which are key characteristics for applications in chemical sensing. However, the slow recovery of ammonia (NH) sensors based on MoS materials at room temperature has restricted their further development. This paper presents a novel approach to address this limitation by demonstrating a monolayer MoS-based NH sensor with rapid recovery capabilities, leveraging O generated through gas-ion-gate (GIG) technology.

Antiviral treatment for viral pneumonia: current drugs and natural compounds.

In recent years, viral pneumonia has become a significant challenge to global public health, particularly during the COVID-19 pandemic. Viral pneumonia can be caused by various viruses, including influenza virus, RSV, and adenovirus. These viruses trigger inflammatory responses by invading the respiratory epithelial cells, leading to lung damage.

Robust p-d Orbital Coupling in PtCoIn@Pt Core-shell Catalysts for Durable Proton Exchange Membrane Fuel Cells.

Pt-based catalysts are playing increasingly important roles in fuel cells owing to their high catalytic activity. However, harsh electrocatalytic conditions often trigger atomic migration and dissolution in these catalysts, causing rapid performance deterioration. Here, we introduce a novel L10-PtCoIn@Pt core-shell catalyst, where indium (In) was incorporated into a PtCo matrix.

Covalent conjugation with dietary flavonoids Rutin and Isoschaftoside ameliorates intestinal barrier dysfunction and inflammation induced by Peanut allergy protein Arah 3 and enhances their antioxidant properties.

Food allergies, particularly those caused by peanut allergens e.g. Arah 3, are a significant health concern.

Systemic Treatment for Unresectable Hepatocellular Carcinoma: A Surgeon's Perspective.

In recent years, the standard treatment for hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) has changed dramatically due to the emergence of potent systemic treatment options. These advanced therapies have led to increased survival benefits for patients with advanced or intermediate-stage HCC. Advancements in HCC treatments also offer the possibility of conversion therapy for initially unresectable HCC.

Ultra-high pressure effectively inhibits the pro-inflammatory activity of thaumatin-like protein from Litchi chinensis: Insights from gut metabolism and theoretical investigation.

The prevention of widespread food intolerance is a challenging task. This paper investigated the effects of high hydrostatic pressure (HHP) on inflammatory expression and gut metabolism of litchi thaumatin-like protein (LcTLP)-the causative component of litchi-induced food intolerances. Results demonstrated that the β-sheet of LcTLP decreased by 11.

TRTST: Arbitrary High-Quality Text-Guided Style Transfer with Transformers.

Text-guided style transfer aims to repaint a content image with the target style described by a text prompt, offering greater flexibility and creativity compared to traditional image-guided style transfer. Despite the potential, existing text-guided style transfer methods often suffer from many issues, including insufficient visual quality, poor generalization ability, or a reliance on large amounts of paired training data. To address these limitations, we leverage the inherent strengths of transformers in handling multimodal data and propose a novel transformer-based framework called TRTST that not only achieves unpaired arbitrary text-guided style transfer but also significantly improves the visual quality.

Synthesis and characterization of anthocyanin-loaded bovine serum albumin nanoparticles: unveiling the encapsulation mechanisms with computational insights.

Background: Black rice anthocyanins (BRA) offer significant health benefits but are limited in application due to their low bioavailability. Bovine serum albumin (BSA) nanoparticles (NPs) have been shown to effectively enhance the stability of encapsulated BRA. However, the mechanism of BRA-BSA NP formation and their molecular interactions remain unclear.

Janus Hollow Microstructures via an Interfacial Phase Hydrogen Bond Network.

Janus hollow microstructures have been widely used in chemistry, medicine, biology, and materials science because of their anisotropy and hollow structure. Constructing multiple types of hollow microstructures and establishing structure-property relationships remain challenging. Here, the present authors develop a one-pot polymerization strategy for constructing Janus hollow microstructures in which deep eutectic solvents (DESs) completely replace water as the continuous phase.

Targeting pyroptosis reverses KIAA1199-mediated immunotherapy resistance in colorectal cancer.

Background: Despite advancements in treatment modalities, several patients with colorectal cancer (CRC) remain unresponsive to immune checkpoint inhibitor therapy. Pyroptosis, an inflammatory programmed cell death process, holds substantial promise for tumor immunotherapy. In this study, we explored the use of pyroptosis to overcome immunotherapy resistance in CRC.

Exploring Asthma as a Protective Factor in COVID-19 Outcomes.

Asthma has long been associated with increased susceptibility to viral respiratory infections, leading to significant exacerbations and poorer clinical outcomes. Contrarily and interestingly, emerging data and research surrounding the COVID-19 pandemic have shown that patients with asthma infected with SARS-CoV-2 experienced decreased severity of disease, lower hospitalization rates, as well as decreased morbidity and mortality. Research has shown that eosinophils could enhance immune defense against viral infections, while inhaled corticosteroids can assist in controlling systematic inflammation.

Updated Taxonomy of Chinese (Hydnaceae, Cantharellales) with Three New Species Described.

Species of are interesting and important due to their mycorrhizal properties, medicinal value, and edibility. Despite extensive research on in China, its taxonomy remains inadequately understood. This study presents three newly described species of , namely , , and , identified through morphological and phylogenetic analyses, with the goal of refining the taxonomy of Chinese .