DSCI: a database of synthetic biology components for innate immunity and cell engineering decision-making processes.

Although significant progress of clinical strategy has been made in gene editing and cell engineering in immunotherapy, it is now apparent that design and modification in terms of complex signaling pathways and motifs on medical synthetic biology are still full of challenges. Innate immunity, the first line of host defense against pathogens, is critical for anti-pathogens immune response as well as regulating durable and protective T cell-mediated anti-tumor responses. Here, we introduce DSCI (Database of Synthetic Biology Components for Innate Immunity, https://dsci.

A comprehensive review of factors affecting growth and secondary metabolites in hydroponically grown medicinal plants.

Optimizing environmental factors can significantly increase the growth and secondary metabolite synthesis of hydroponically grown medicinal plants. This approach can help increase the quality and quantity of pharmacologically important metabolites to enhance therapeutic needs. Medicinal plants are key therapeutic sources for treating various ailments.

From trade-off to synergy: how nutrient status modulates plant resistance to herbivorous insects?

The principle of the "growth-defense trade-off" governs how plants adjust their growth and defensive strategies in response to external factors, impacting interactions among plants, herbivorous insects, and their natural enemies. Mineral nutrients are crucial in modulating plant growth and development through their bottom-up effects. Emerging evidence has revealed complex regulatory networks that link mineral nutrients to plant defense responses, influencing the delicate balance between growth and defense against herbivores.

Mining microbial and metabolic dark matter in extreme environments: a roadmap for harnessing the power of multi-omics data.

Extreme environments such as hyperarid, hypersaline, hyperthermal environments, and the deep sea harbor diverse microbial communities, which are specially adapted to extreme conditions and are known as extremophiles. These extremophilic organisms have developed unique survival strategies, making them ideal models for studying microbial diversity, evolution, and adaptation to adversity. They also play critical roles in biogeochemical cycles.

Exploring the plant lipidome: techniques, challenges, and prospects.

Plant lipids are a diverse group of biomolecules that play essential roles in plant architecture, physiology, and signaling. To advance our understanding of plant biology and facilitate innovations in plant-based product development, we must have precise methods for the comprehensive analysis of plant lipids. Here, we present a comprehensive overview of current research investigating plant lipids, including their structures, metabolism, and functions.

The inhibitory effect of Hypericum japonicum on H9N2 avian influenza virus.

The H9N2 subtype of avian influenza virus (AIV) causes severe immunosuppression and high mortality in view of its frequent co-infection with other pathogens, resulting in significant economic losses in the poultry industry. Current vaccines provide suboptimal immune protection against H9N2 AIV owing to antigenic variations, highlighting the urgent need for safe and effective antiviral drugs for the prevention and treatment of this virus. This study aimed to investigate the inhibitory effects of Hypericum japonicum extract on H9N2 AIV.

A comparative study of ionic pesticide sorption and degradation in contrasting Brazilian soils and the development of a novel 3-Phase Assay to assess sorption reversibility.

Brazilian soils have distinctive characteristics to European and North American soils which are typically used to investigate pesticide fate. This study aimed to compare soil-water partition coefficient (K), reversibility of adsorption and degradation half-life (DT) of 5 pesticides covering a wide range of physico-chemical properties in contrasting Brazilian soils (Argissolo, Gleissolo, Latossolo and Neossolo) and a temperate (UK) alfisol soil, and to study their relationship with soil OM, clay and expandable clay content, CEC and pH. In addition, we used a novel laboratory test to evaluate sorption reversibility, the 3-Phase Assay (3PA).

Unraveling the role of autophagy regulation in Crohn's disease: from genetic mechanisms to potential therapeutics.

Autophagy serves as the primary intracellular degradation mechanism in which damaged organelles and self-cytoplasmic proteins are transported to the lysosome for degradation. Crohn's disease, an idiopathic chronic inflammatory disorder of the gastrointestinal tract, manifests in diverse regions of the digestive system. Recent research suggests that autophagy modulation may be a new avenue for treating Crohn's disease, and several promising small-molecule modulators of autophagy have been reported as therapeutic options.

Psychological burden in patients with sellar masses under conservative and surgical management.

The aim of this study was to investigate the level of distress and the quality of life of operated and non-operated patients with pituitary tumors. Patients who presented to a neurosurgical center and two endocrinological services for outpatient follow-up after surgical treatment, as well as those under medical therapy or radiological follow-up without treatment, were invited to participate in the study. Sociodemographic, health-related quality of life and clinical data were assessed.

Cloning and functional characterization of sesquiterpene synthase genes from Inonotus obliquus using a Saccharomyces cerevisiae expression system.

Inonotus obliquus (Chaga mushroom) is a large medicinal and edible fungus that contains a wealth of bioactive terpenoids. However, the detection of certain low-abundance sesquiterpenoids remains a challenge due to limitations in extraction and analytical techniques. Furthermore, the synthase genes responsible for the biosynthesis of the identified terpenoids have not yet been clearly elucidated.

Strategies to increase the robustness of microbial cell factories.

Engineering microbial cell factories have achieved much progress in producing fuels, natural products and bulk chemicals. However, in industrial fermentation, microbial cells often face various predictable and stochastic disturbances resulting from intermediate metabolites or end product toxicity, metabolic burden and harsh environment. These perturbances can potentially decrease productivity and titer.

Effects of water ammonia nitrogen on hemolymph and intestinal microbiota of Litopenaeus vannamei.

Ammonia stress was detrimental to shrimp, but how water ammonia nitrogen (ammonia-N) influences the shrimp's health remains unclear. Thus, this study was designed to investigate the effects of water ammonia-N on hemolymph ammonia-N concentration, hepatopancreas structure, and the intestinal microbiota of Litopenaeus vannamei with four experiments. We found that the concentration of ammonia-N in shrimp hemolymph was significantly higher than that in pond water, indicating that water ammonia-N stimulates the accumulation of hemolymph ammonia-N.

Severity of skin disease strongly correlates with quality of life in people with psoriatic arthritis: a systematic review.

This systematic review aims to summarise the association between skin disease and quality of life (QoL) in people with psoriatic arthritis (PsA) and identify areas for future research and management. This review was registered on PROSPERO (CRD42024500994). Databases were searched for articles in English published until 7th January 2025.

European central hypoventilation syndrome consortium description of congenital central hypoventilation syndrome neonatal onset.

Unlabelled: It is known that in most cases of congenital central hypoventilation syndrome (CCHS), apnoeas and hypoventilation occur at birth. Nevertheless, a detailed description of initial symptoms, including pregnancy events and diagnostic tests performed, is warranted in infants with neonatal onset of CCHS, that is, in the first month of life. The European Central Hypoventilation Syndrome Consortium created an online patient registry from which 97 infants (44 females) with CCHS of neonatal onset and PHOX2B mutation from 10 countries were selected.

Global identification and regulatory network analysis reveal the significant roles of lncRNAs during anther and pollen development in Arabidopsis.

A high-throughput sequencing identified 1283 lncRNAs in anthers at different stages in Arabidopsis and their relationship with protein-coding genes and miRNAs during anther and pollen development were analyzed. Long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) are important regulatory molecules involved in various biological processes. However, their roles in male reproductive development and interactions with miRNAs remained elusive.

Amino acid stable carbon isotopes in nail keratin illuminate breastfeeding and weaning practices of mother - infant dyads.

Compound-specific stable carbon isotope analysis of amino acids (CSIA-AA) is widely used in ecological studies to analyze food-webs and is gaining use in archaeology for investigating past diets. However, its use in reconstructing breastfeeding and weaning practices is not fully understood. This study evaluates the efficacy of stable carbon isotope analysis of amino acids in early life diet reconstruction by analyzing keratin from fingernail samples of three mother-infant pairs during late gestation and early postpartum periods.

Photosynthesis in Synechocystis sp. PCC 6803 is not optimally regulated under very high CO.

One strategy for CO mitigation is using photosynthetic microorganisms to sequester CO under high concentrations, such as in flue gases. While elevated CO levels generally promote growth, excessively high levels inhibit growth through uncertain mechanisms. This study investigated the physiology of the cyanobacterium Synechocystis sp.

A High-Throughput Integrated Nontargeted Metabolomics and Lipidomics Workflow Using Microelution Enhanced Matrix Removal-Lipid for Comparative Analysis of Human Maternal and Umbilical Cord Blood Metabolomes.

Sample pretreatment for mass spectrometry (MS)-based metabolomics and lipidomics is normally conducted independently with two sample aliquots and separate matrix cleanup procedures, making the two-step process sample-intensive and time-consuming. Herein, we introduce a high-throughput pretreatment workflow for integrated nontargeted metabolomics and lipidomics leveraging the enhanced matrix removal (EMR)-lipid microelution 96-well plates. The EMR-lipid technique was innovatively employed to effectively separate and isolate non-lipid small metabolites and lipids in sequence using significantly reduced sample amounts and organic solvents.

Efficacy and Tolerance of the Tampsec Vaginal Tampon for Treating Stress Urinary Incontinence. A Randomized Controlled Trial.

Introduction And Hypothesis: Stress urinary incontinence (SUI) is a highly prevalent condition in women. We hypothesized that the Tampsec™ vaginal tampon will be efficacious and well tolerated in its treatment.

Methods: This was a multicenter open-label parallel-group randomized control trial.

Serine Hydrolase-Catalyzed Polyol Lipids are Necessary for Rodlet Layer Formation on the Cell Wall of Entomopathogenic Fungi.

Some key secondary metabolism genes are important for driving the infection process of entomopathogenic fungi; however, their chemical substance basis has not been well investigated. Here, mixtures of polyol lipids are discovered, which are synthesized through iterative chain transfer-esterification-hydrolysis cycles catalyzed by serine hydrolase during the release of online highly reducing polyketide intermediates. Importantly, an gene knockout experiment revealed that the synthesis of polyol lipids is necessary for rodlet layer formation on the cell wall of .

In-Cell Mass Spectrometry and Ultraviolet Photodissociation Navigates the Intracellular Protein Heterogeneity.

Directly probing the heterogeneous conformations of intracellular proteins within their native cellular environment remains a significant challenge in mass spectrometry (MS). Here, we establish an in-cell MS and ultraviolet photodissociation (UVPD) strategy that directly ejects proteins from living cells into a mass spectrometer, followed by 193 nm UVPD for structural analysis. Applying this approach to calmodulin (CaM), we reveal that it adopts more extended conformations within living cells compared with purified samples , highlighting the unique influence of intracellular environments on protein folding.

Choosing the right signaling pathway: hormone responses to Phytophthora cinnamomi during compatible and incompatible interactions with chestnut (Castanea spp.).

Ink disease caused by the hemibiotrophic root pathogen Phytophthora cinnamomi (Pc) is devastating for the European chestnut (Castanea sativa), unlike Asian chestnuts and interspecific hybrids which are resistant to Pc. The role that hormone responses play for Pc resistance remains little understood, especially regarding the temporal regulation of hormone responses. We explored the relationship between changes in tree health and physiology and alterations in leaf and root phytohormones and primary and secondary metabolites during compatible and incompatible Castanea spp.

Linking the function of -acting RNA elements to coronavirus replication using interactomes.

RNA structures that are functionally important are defined as -acting RNA elements because their functions cannot be compensated for in trans. The -acting RNA elements in the 3' UTR of coronaviruses are important for replication; however, the mechanism linking the -acting RNA elements to their replication function remains to be established. In the present study, a comparison of the biological processes of the interactome and the replication efficiency between the 3' UTR -acting RNA elements in coronaviruses, including severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2, suggests that (i) the biological processes, including translation, protein folding and protein stabilization, derived from the analysis of the -acting RNA element interactome and (ii) the architecture of the -acting RNA elements and their interactomes are highly correlated with coronavirus replication.

Tumor cells upregulate neurotransmitter GABA in the choroid plexus through STAT6-Bestrophin1 signaling, promoting leptomeningeal dissemination.

Background: Leptomeningeal dissemination (LMD) occurs when tumor cells interact with choroid plexus epithelium (CPE) to gain access to cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) in the brain's meninges and ventricular system. This disease is particularly devastating for patients due to our limited understanding and few therapeutic options. The leptomeningeal CSF is a nutritionally deprived microenvironment for tumor cells.

Liquid slide electrification: advances and open questions.

This review is about drops of a liquid with high dielectric permittivity that slide over a solid surface with high electrical resistivity. A typical situation is a water drop sliding down a tilted hydrophobic plate. It has been realized recently that such drops spontaneously acquire a charge.