A Second Near-Infrared Window-Responsive Metal-Organic-Framework-Based Photosensitizer for Tumor Immunotherapy via Synergistic Ferroptosis and STING Activation.

Photodynamic therapy (PDT) holds promise as a cancer treatment modality due to its potential for enhanced therapy precision and safety. To enhance deep tissue penetration and minimize tissue adsorption and phototoxicity, developing photosensitizers activated by second near-infrared window (NIR-II) light shows significant potential. However, the efficacy of PDT is often impeded by tumor microenvironment hypoxia, primarily caused by irregular tumor vasculature.

Precision Metal Nanoclusters Meet Proteins: Crafting Next-Gen Hybrid Materials.

Metal nanoclusters (NCs), owing to their atomic precision and unique molecule-like properties, have gained widespread attention for applications ranging from catalysis to bioimaging. In recent years, proteins, with their hierarchical structures and diverse functionalities, have emerged as good candidates for functionalizing metal NCs, rendering metal NC-protein conjugates with combined and even synergistically enhanced properties featured by both components. In this Perspective, we explore key questions regarding why proteins serve as complementary partners for metal NCs, the methodologies available for conjugating proteins with metal NCs, and the characterization techniques necessary to elucidate the structures and interactions within this emerging bionano system.

Determining patient activity goals and their fulfillment following total knee arthroplasty: Findings from the prospective, observational SuPeR Knee study.

Background: Dissatisfaction with Total Knee Arthroplasty (TKA) surgical outcomes remains between 10-20% and is associated with higher levels of societal costs. Expectations regarding post-surgical outcomes is considered as one of the major factors influencing satisfaction, however, there are no standardised methods for assessing patient's expectations regarding activities to be achieved following surgery.

Objectives: The aims of this study were to identify patient expectations relating to activities of importance following TKA and to describe goal fulfillment at 3 months post-TKA.

Massively parallel barcode sequencing revealed the interchangeability of capsule transporters in .

Multidrug/oligosaccharidyl-lipid/polysaccharide (MOP) family transporters are essential in glycan synthesis, flipping lipid-linked precursors across cell membranes. Yet, how they select their substrates remains enigmatic. Here, we investigate the substrate specificity of the MOP transporters in the capsular polysaccharide (CPS) synthesis pathway in .

Melatonin-Loaded Hydrogel Modulates Circadian Rhythms and Alleviates Oxidative Stress and Inflammation to Promote Wound Healing.

Circadian rhythm disruption, commonly caused by factors such as jet lag and shift work, is increasingly recognized as a critical factor impairing wound healing. Although melatonin is known to regulate circadian rhythms and has potential in wound repair, its clinical application is limited by low bioavailability. To address these challenges, we developed an alginate-based dual-network hydrogel as a delivery system for melatonin, ensuring its stable and sustained release at the wound site.

Exploiting the similarity of dissimilarities for biomedical applications and enhanced machine learning.

The "similarity of dissimilarities" is an emerging paradigm in biomedical science with significant implications for protein function prediction, machine learning (ML), and personalized medicine. In protein function prediction, recognizing dissimilarities alongside similarities provides a more detailed understanding of evolutionary processes, allowing for a deeper exploration of regions that influence biological functionality. For ML models, incorporating dissimilarity measures helps avoid misleading results caused by highly correlated or similar data, addressing confounding issues like the Doppelgänger Effect.

Leveraging Structural and Computational Biology for Molecular Glue Discovery.

The discovery of molecular glues has made significant strides, unlocking new avenues for targeted protein degradation as a therapeutic strategy, thereby expanding the scope of drug discovery into territories previously considered undruggable. Pioneering molecules like thalidomide and its derivatives have paved the way for the development of small molecules that can induce specific protein degradation by hijacking the cellular ubiquitin-proteasome system. Recent advancements have focused on expanding the range of E3 ligases and target proteins that can be modulated by molecular glues.

A tough soft-hard interface in the human knee joint driven by multiscale toughening mechanisms.

Joining heterogeneous materials in engineered structures remains a significant challenge due to stress concentration at interfaces, which often leads to unexpected failures. Investigating the complex, multiscale-graded structures found in animal tissue provides valuable insights that can help address this challenge. The human meniscus root-bone interface is an exemplary model, renowned for its exceptional fatigue resistance, toughness, and interfacial adhesion properties throughout its lifespan.

Integrative Transcriptome-Wide Association Study With Expression Quantitative Trait Loci Colocalization Identifies a Causal VAMP8 Variant for Nasopharyngeal Carcinoma Susceptibility.

Nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC) is an Asia-prevalent malignancy, yet its genetic underpinnings remain incompletely understood. Here, a transcriptome-wide association study (TWAS) is conducted on NPC, leveraging gene expression prediction models based on epithelial tissues and genome-wide association study (GWAS) summary statistics from 1577 NPC cases and 6359 controls of southern Chinese descent. The TWAS identifies VAMP8 on chromosome 2p11.

Usage of Milan System in Risk Stratification of Submandibular Gland Fine Needle Aspiration Cytology.

Objectives: The Milan System for Reporting Salivary Gland Cytopathology (MSRSGC) categorizes fine needle aspiration and cytology (FNAC) results into 6 tiers and assigns a risk of malignancy (ROM) to each category. Its utility in submandibular gland lesions remains unclear. Our article aims to study (1) the utility of the MSRSGC in classifying FNAC of submandibular gland masses, (2) describe the demographics and incidence of submandibular gland malignancy in our population, and (3) analyze the accuracy of FNAC in diagnosis of benign and malignant submandibular gland tumors.

A Varying-Coefficient Additive Hazard Model for Recurrent Events Data.

The additive hazard model, which focuses on risk differences rather than risk ratios, has been widely applied in practice. In this paper, we consider an additive hazard model with varying coefficients to analyze recurrent events data. The model allows for both varying and constant coefficients.

Penicillin Allergy Management in India and Sri Lanka: Current Challenges.

Data regarding Penicillin allergy labels (PALs) from India and Sri Lanka are sparse. Emerging data suggests that the proportion of patients declaring an unverified PAL in secondary care in India and Sri Lanka (1%-4%) is lesser than that reported in High Income Countries (15%-20%). However, even this relatively small percentage translates into a large absolute number, as this part of the world accounts for approximately 25% of the global population.

Persistent Effects of Landscape Context on Recruitment Dynamics During Secondary Succession of Tropical Forests.

Large-scale reforestation is promoted as an important strategy to mitigate climate change and biodiversity loss. A persistent challenge for efforts to restore ecosystems at scale is how to accelerate ecological processes, particularly natural regeneration. Yet, despite being recognized as an important barrier to the recovery of diverse plant communities in tropical agricultural landscapes, the impacts of dispersal limitation on natural regeneration in secondary forests-and especially how this changes as these forests grow older-are still poorly studied.

Selective Interface Engineering with Large π-Conjugated Molecules Enables Durable Zn Anodes.

Undesirable dendrite growth and side reactions at the electrical double layer (EDL) of Zn/electrolyte interface are critical challenges limiting the performance of aqueous zinc ion batteries. Through density functional theory calculations, we demonstrate that grafting large π-conjugated molecules (e.g.

The Songdo consensus: Development of minimum reporting standards for studies of intervention in idiopathic anal fistula using a modified nominal group technique.

Aim: Cryptoglandular anal fistulas carry a substantial burden to quality of life. Surgery is the only effective curative treatment but requires balancing fistula healing against pain, wounds and continence impairment. Sphincter-preserving procedures do exist but demonstrate variable rates of success.

Overcoming low status or maintaining high status? A multinational examination of the association between socioeconomic status and honour.

We examined the relationship between socioeconomic status (SES) and endorsement of honour. We studied the SES-honour link in 5 studies (N = 13,635) with participants recruited in different world regions (the Mediterranean and MENA, East Asian, South-East Asian, and Anglo-Western regions) using measures that tap into various different facets of honour. Findings from these studies revealed that individuals who subjectively perceived themselves as belonging to a higher (vs.

Chain Mediating Effect of Social Support and Trust in Physician on Stroke Caregivers' Decision Self-Efficacy and Decision Conflict.

To explore the chain mediating role of social support and trust in between decision self-efficacy and decision conflict of stroke caregivers. Convenient sampling was used to select stroke caregivers who were admitted to the department of neurology, neurosurgery and rehabilitation in a four-3A hospital in Henan Province from September 2023 to April 2024. General information questionnaire, Decisional Self-efficacy Scale, Social Support Scale, Wake Forest Physician Trust Scale and Decisional Conflict Scale were adopted.

Rare regression of congenital brainstem high-grade glioma: case report and literature review.

Congenital infantile brainstem high-grade gliomas (HGGs) are extremely rare. Given the limited literature characterizing this disease, management of these tumors remains challenging. Brainstem HGGs are generally associated with extremely poor prognosis.

Variations in land surface temperature increase in South-East Asian Cities.

Climate change and global warming are terms used to describe the variation in the Earth's mean temperature as a result of human activities contributing to the formation of urban heat islands (UHI). One method for determining the temperature of a region is the land surface temperature (LST). The study of LSTs is important and closely related to climate change, as is the provision of convenient living and working conditions in cities, which support economic growth.

Changes in Cerebral Hemodynamic Among Patients With Schizophrenia or Bipolar Disorder Receiving Electroconvulsive Therapy: A Task-Related Functional Near-Infrared Spectroscopy Study.

There remains a scarcity of studies to evaluate the treatment effect of electroconvulsive therapy (ECT). Functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS) offers a cost-effective method to measure cerebral hemodynamics. This study used fNIRS to evaluate the effect of ECT in patients suffering from schizophrenia or bipolar disorder (manic phase).

EpiAge: a next-generation sequencing-based epigenetic clock for biological age assessment in saliva and blood across health and disease.

This study introduces EpiAgePublic, a new method to estimate biological age using only three specific sites on the gene known for its connection to aging. Unlike traditional methods that require complex and extensive data, our model uses a simpler approach that is well-suited for next-generation sequencing technology, which is a more advanced method of analyzing DNA methylation. This new model overcomes some of the common challenges found in older methods, such as errors due to sample quality and processing variations.

Incense Use and the Risk of Chronic Limb-Threatening Ischemia Among Middle-Aged and Older Adults in the Singapore Chinese Health Study.

Background: Epidemiologic studies have shown that daily exposure to incense smoke is associated with greater risk of cardiovascular mortality, which suggests that chronic exposure to incense could be linked to atherosclerosis. We studied the association between home incense use and the risk of chronic limb-threatening ischemia (CLTI), the most severe outcome of peripheral arterial disease.

Methods: We used data from the Singapore Chinese Health Study, which recruited 63,257 Chinese participants 45-74 years old from 1993-1998.

Pertussis Vaccination for Adults: An Updated Guide for Clinicians.

Pertussis, or whooping cough, is a highly contagious respiratory infection caused by the Gram-negative bacterium . Although traditionally associated with children, pertussis is increasingly prevalent among adults, particularly those with comorbidities or weakened immune systems, where it can lead to severe complications. Diagnosing pertussis in adults can be challenging due to its nonspecific symptoms, underreporting, and the limited sensitivity of available diagnostic tests.

Transcriptional Systems Vaccinology Approaches for Vaccine Adjuvant Profiling.

Adjuvants are a diverse group of substances that can be added to vaccines to enhance antigen-specific immune responses and improve vaccine efficacy. The first adjuvants, discovered almost a century ago, were soluble crystals of aluminium salts. Over the following decades, oil emulsions, vesicles, oligodeoxynucleotides, viral capsids, and other complex organic structures have been shown to have adjuvant potential.