Imipramine-mediated Suppression of EGFR Signaling Attenuates Invasive and Progressive Abilities of Hepatocellular Carcinoma Cells.

Background/aim: Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is a primary liver cancer with high mortality rates worldwide, necessitating effective therapeutic strategies. Imipramine demonstrates the potential to augment standard treatments of different cancers, highlighting its therapeutic promise in oncology. This study aimed to investigate the potential regulation of imipramine on HCC.

Advancements in ultrasound-mediated drug delivery for central nervous system disorders.

Introduction: Central nervous system (CNS) disorders present major therapeutic challenges due to the presence of the blood - brain barrier (BBB) and disease heterogeneity. The BBB impedes most therapeutic agents, which restricts conventional treatments. Focused ultrasound (FUS) -assisted delivery offers a novel solution by temporarily disrupting the BBB and thereby enhancing drug delivery to the CNS.

Integrating population-based biobanks: Catalyst for advances in precision health.

Precision health extends beyond the scope of precision medicine and involves a broader range of activities, including the prediction, prevention, treatment, and management of diseases. Tailored to specific populations, precision health offers personalized treatment and preventive measures considering genetics, lifestyle behaviors, social determinants of health, and environmental factors. Precision medicine focuses on the personalized treatment of diseases, whereas precision health aims to promote health and prevent diseases using tools such as big data and advanced analytics to predict health risks and prevent diseases at the population level.

A DNA barcode reference of Asian ferns with expert-identified voucher specimens and DNA samples.

Ferns belong to species-rich group of land plants, encompassing more than 11,000 extant species, and are crucial for reflecting terrestrial ecosystem changes. However, our understanding of their biodiversity hotspots, particularly in Southeast Asia, remains limited due to scarce genetic data. Despite harboring around one-third of the world's fern species, less than 6% of Southeast Asian ferns have been DNA-sequenced.

A Dynamic Breathing Lung Chip for Precise Evaluation of Inhaled Drug Efficacy and Airway Epithelial Responses.

Inhaled therapy has become a crucial treatment option for respiratory diseases like asthma, cystic fibrosis, and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), delivering drugs directly to bronchial and alveolar tissues. However, traditional static cell models, while valuable for studying pharmacokinetics (PK) and pharmacodynamics (PD), fall short in replicating the dynamic nature of physiological breathing. In this study, we present a breathing lung chip model that integrates a dynamic breathing mechanism with an air-liquid interface (ALI) culture environment to overcome these limitations.

Generation of Quaternary Carbons in Cycloalkanones and Lactones with Arynes through a Domino Process.

A synthetic method was developed for the generation of a quaternary carbon center in carbonyl compounds. This innovative process involved the reaction of α-thiolate lactones and cycloalkanones with two equivalents of arynes in acetonitrile to give α,α-diarylated products in 63-85% yields at 25 °C. The reaction unfolds through an unconventional domino process, encompassing sequential 1,2-elimination, 1,2-nucleophilic addition, 1,4-proton transfer, the second 1,2-nucleophilic addition, interrupted Pummerer rearrangement, intramolecular spirocyclization, and sulfonium ring-opening.

Reversible Sliding Motion by Hole-Injection in Ammonium-Linked Ferrocene, Electronically Decoupled from Noble Metal Substrate by Crown-Ether Template Layer.

Artificial molecular machines, especially when based on wheel-and-axle complexes, can generate mechanical motions in response to external stimuli. Ferrocene (Fc) is a key component, but it decomposes at 300 K on metal surfaces. Here, a novel method is presented to construct and control the molecular complex composed of ammonium-linked ferrocene (Fc-amm) and tetrabrominated crown ether (BrCR) on a Cu(111) surface.

Soft X-ray tomography analysis of mitochondria dynamics in Saccharomyces cerevisiae.

Background: Mitochondria are highly dynamic organelles that constantly undergo processes of fission and fusion. The changes in mitochondrial dynamics shape the organellar morphology and influence cellular activity regulation. Soft X-ray tomography (SXT) allows for three-dimensional imaging of cellular structures while they remain in their natural, hydrated state, which omits the need for cell fixation and sectioning.

Safety, tolerability, and efficacy of intranasally-administered detoxified LTh(αK) in mild-to-moderate COVID-19 patients: A randomized, double-blinded, placebo-controlled phase 2 study.

The objective of the study was to assess the safety, tolerability, and potential efficacy of intranasally administered AD17002, a detoxified form of heat-labile enterotoxin, in treating individuals with mild-to-moderate coronavirus disease of 2019 (COVID-19). In this randomized, double-blinded, and placebo-controlled phase 2a study, a total of 30 adults aged 20-70 years with mild-to-moderate COVID-19 were recruited from three medical centers in Taiwan in 2022-2023. The trial comprised two cohorts, and participants were randomly assigned to receive intranasal administrations of either three doses of AD17002 immunomodulator or a placebo formulation buffer.

Uncovering hidden prosocial behaviors underlying aggression motivation in mice and young children.

Background: Animals exhibit a wide range of social behaviors, including positive actions that promote social cohesion and negative behaviors associated with asserting dominance. While these behaviors are often viewed as opposites, they can also exist independently or coexist in complex ways, necessitating further investigation into their interrelationships.

Results: To study the interplay between these two types of behaviors, we examined mouse social behaviors using resident-intruder assays and revealed a negative correlation between social aggression and prosocial allogrooming.

AI-powered home cage system for real-time tracking and analysis of rodent behavior.

Researchers in animal behavior and neuroscience devote considerable time to observing rodents behavior and physiological responses, with AI monitoring systems reducing personnel workload. This study presents the RodentWatch (RW) system, which leverages deep learning to automatically identify experimental animal behaviors in home cage environments. A single multifunctional camera and edge device are installed inside the animal's home cage, allowing continuous real-time monitoring of the animal's behavior, position, and body temperature for extended periods.

Turning the Surface Electronic Effect Over Core-Shell CoS─FeCoS Nanooctahedra Toward Electrochemical Water Splitting in the Alkaline Medium.

The long-term challenge in overall water splitting is the conflict in the pH condition of electrolytes for achieving efficient hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) and oxygen evolution reaction (OER) at the same time, in addition to the typical cost issue in catalysts. It hence raises an intense research interest in seeking cost-efficient non-noble metal electrocatalysts as well as compromising electrolyte conditions for electrocatalytic HER and OER. To tackle the problems, various approaches are demonstrated to engineer the electronic effect on the active sites of catalysts for enhancing the activities.

A Quick Sequential Organ Failure Assessment (qSOFA) Score Greater than 1 and Shortened Ampicillin Use Predict Death and One-Year Mortality in Hospitalized Patients with Non-Perinatal Invasive Listeriosis: A Retrospective Analysis of 118 Consecutive Cases.

causes listeriosis, a serious foodborne illness with a high mortality rate, especially in vulnerable populations. It accounts for 19% of foodborne deaths, with invasive cases having a mortality rate of up to 44%, leading to conditions like meningitis, bacteremia, and meningoencephalitis. However, the prognostic factors remain unclear.

Improving Interpretation Consistency of Serum Capillary Electrophoresis by Development of Quantitative Graphic Indexes.

Capillary zone electrophoresis-immunosubtraction (CZE-IS) is an essential laboratory test in diagnosing plasma cell neoplasms. However, the current interpretation of the test results is subjective. To evaluate CZE-IS in a more precise manner, this study proposed five key indexes, namely sharpness index, light chain index, immunoglobulin G index, immunoglobulin A index, and immunoglobulin M index.

IL-10RA governor the expression of IDO in the instruction of lymphocyte immunity.

Background: Indoleamine 2,3-dioxygenase (IDO) impairs anti-pathogen and anti-tumour immunity. Mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) modulate immunity via IDO but also suppress IFN-γ. While MSC IDO induction by IFN-γ is established, other drivers in this immunosuppressive setting remain unknown.

Development of Potent and Selective Inhibitors of Methylenetetrahydrofolate Dehydrogenase 2 for Targeting Acute Myeloid Leukemia: SAR, Structural Insights, and Biological Characterization.

Methylenetetrahydrofolate dehydrogenase/cyclohydrolase 2 (MTHFD2), a pivotal mitochondrial enzyme in one-carbon metabolism, is significantly upregulated in various cancers but minimally expressed in normal proliferating cells. In contrast, MTHFD1, which performs similar functions, is predominantly expressed in normal cells. Therefore, targeting MTHFD2 with selective inhibitors holds promise for a broader therapeutic window with reduced toxicity and fewer side effects.

Versatile Strategy for the Chemoenzymatic Synthesis of Branched Human Milk Oligosaccharides Containing the Lacto-N-Biose Motif.

Human milk oligosaccharides (HMOs) exhibit prebiotic, antimicrobial, and immunomodulatory properties and confer significant benefits to infants. Branched HMOs are constructed through diverse glycosidic linkages and prominently feature the lacto-N-biose (LNB, Gal-β1,3-GlcNAc) motif with fucose and/or sialic acid modifications, displaying structural complexity that surpasses that of N- and O-glycans. However, synthesizing comprehensive libraries of branched HMO is challenging due to this complexity.

High Abundance of Unusual High Mannose -Glycans Found in Beans.

High mannose -glycans extracted from eight different beans (black bean, soybean, pea, white kidney bean, pinto bean, mung bean, white hyacinth bean, and red bean) were studied using the state-of-the-art mass spectrometry method logically derived sequence tandem mass spectrometry (LODES/MS). These beans show very similar -glycan isomer profiles: one isomer of ManGlcNAc and ManGlcNAc, two isomers of ManGlcNAc, three isomers of ManGlcNAc, and five isomers of ManGlcNAc were found. Isomers not predicted by current -glycan biosynthetic pathways were found in all beans, indicating the possibility of alternative biosynthetic pathways in these plants.

2024 Guidelines of the Taiwan Society of Cardiology on the Primary Prevention of Atherosclerotic Cardiovascular Disease --- Part II.

For the primary prevention of atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease (ASCVD), the recommended treatment target for each modifiable risk factor is as follows: reducing body weight by 5-10%; blood pressure < 130/80 mmHg (systolic pressure < 120 mmHg in high-risk individuals); low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C) < 100 mg/dL in high-risk individuals, LDL-C < 115 mg/dL in moderate-risk individuals, LDL-C < 130 mg/dL in low-risk individuals, and LDL-C < 160 mg/dL in those with a minimal; complete and persistent abstinence from cigarette smoking; hemoglobin A1C < 7.0%; fulfilling recommended amounts of the six food groups according to the Taiwan food guide; and moderate-intensity physical activity 150 min/wk or vigorous physical activity 75 min/wk. For the primary prevention of ASCVD by pharmacological treatment in individuals with modifiable risk factors/clinical conditions, statins are the first-line therapy for reducing LDL-C levels; some specific anti-diabetic drugs proven to be effective in randomized controlled trials for the primary prevention of ASCVD are recommended in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus; pharmacological treatment is recommended to assist in weight management for obese patients with a body mass index ≥ 30 kg/m (or 27 kg/m who also have at least one ASCVD risk factor or obesity-related comorbidity); an angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitor, a glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor agonist, a sodium-dependent glucose cotransporter-2 inhibitor, and finerenone can be used in diabetic patients with chronic kidney disease for the primary prevention of ASCVD.