Chemical characterization of Siraitia grosvenorii granules and their efficacy and mechanism of action on PM2.5-induced acute lung injury.

This study aimed to investigate the potential protective properties of a traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) herbal product, Siraitia grosvenorii granules (SGG) against PM2.5-induced lung injury, as well as their active constituents and underlying mechanisms. The chemical composition of SGG, such as wogonin (MOL000173), luteolin (MOL000006), nobiletin (MOL005828), naringenin (MOL004328), acacetin (MOL001689), were identified via ultra-high-performance liquid chromatography-Q Exactive (UHPLC-QE) Orbitrap/MS.

Guidelines to minimize risk when dry needling the rectus capitus posterior major muscle.

Background: Headache disorders are prevalent often leading to disability. The rectus capitus posterior major muscle (RCPMaj) may contribute to headache symptoms via nociceptive convergence and myodural bridging.

Objectives: To establish guidelines for needle length and needle angle to mitigate risks during dry needling RCPMaj.

Feasibility of very low iodine dose aortoiliac CT angiography using dual-source photon-counting detector CT.

Purpose: To evaluate the feasibility of aortoiliac CT-Angiography (CTA) using dual-source photon-counting detector (PCD)-CT with minimal iodine dose.

Methods: This IRB-approved, single-center prospective study enrolled patients with indications for aortoiliac CTA from December 2022 to March 2023. All scans were performed using a first-generation dual-source PCD-CT.

Household income is independently associated with overall and cancer-specific survival after proctectomy for rectal cancer: A surveillance, epidemiology, and end results-based analysis.

Background: We assessed association among household income, overall survival (OS), and cancer-specific survival (CSS) after proctectomy for rectal cancer.

Methods: Population-based cohort study included stage I-III rectal adenocarcinoma patients who underwent proctectomy (2010-2020), subdivided by household income at diagnosis [low (<$50,000), average ($50,000-74,999), above-average (≥$75,000)] and compared.

Results: Of 39,185 patients (59 ​% male; mean age 60.

Adjuvant radiation therapy is not associated with a survival benefit after R0 resection in non-metastatic adrenocortical carcinoma.

The benefit of adjuvant radiation therapy (RT) in adrenocortical carcinoma (ACC) is not well characterized for those who undergo initial R0 surgical resection. Patients in the NCDB who underwent R0 resection were placed into two cohorts - those who underwent adjuvant RT and those who did not. 388 patients were identified with 51 receiving RT.

Acute physical exercise and ambulatory blood pressure in resistant hypertension.

Objectives: The effects of acute physical exercise in patients with resistant hypertension remain largely unexplored compared with hypertensive patients in general. We assessed the short-term effects of acute moderate-intensity (MICE) and high-intensity interval exercise (HIIE) on the clinic (BP) and 24-h ambulatory blood pressure (ABP) of patients with resistant hypertension.

Methods: Using a crossover randomized controlled design, 10 participants (56 ± 7 years) with resistant hypertension performed three experimental sessions: MICE, HIIE, and control.

Spreading depolarization triggers pro- and anti-inflammatory signalling: a potential link to headache.

Cortical spreading depolarization (CSD), the neurophysiological event believed to underlie aura, may trigger migraine headaches through inflammatory signaling that originates in neurons and spreads to the meninges via astrocytes. Increasing evidence from studies on rodents and migraine patients supports this hypothesis. The transition from pro-inflammatory to anti-inflammatory mechanisms is crucial for resolving inflammation.

Fatty acid desaturase 3-mediated α-linolenic acid biosynthesis in plants.

Omega (ω)-3 fatty acids (FAs) are essential components of cell membranes that also serve as precursors of numerous regulatory molecules. α-linolenic acid (ALA), one of the most important ω3 FAs in plants, is synthesized in both the plastid and extraplastidial compartments. FA Desaturase (FAD) 3 is an extraplastidial enzyme that converts linoleic acid (LA) to ALA.

Brain Transcriptome Changes Associated With an Acute Increase of Protein O-GlcNAcylation and Implications for Neurodegenerative Disease.

Enhancing protein O-GlcNAcylation by pharmacological inhibition of the enzyme O-GlcNAcase (OGA) has been considered as a strategy to decrease tau and amyloid-beta phosphorylation, aggregation, and pathology in Alzheimer's disease (AD). There is still more to be learned about the impact of enhancing global protein O-GlcNAcylation, which is important for understanding the potential of using OGA inhibition to treat neurodegenerative diseases. In this study, we investigated the acute effect of pharmacologically increasing O-GlcNAc levels, using the OGA inhibitor Thiamet G (TG), in normal mouse brains.

The Coexistence of Carotico-Clinoid Foramen and Interclinoidal Osseous Bridge: An Anatomo-Radiological Study With Surgical Implications.

Background And Objectives: The coexistence of complete carotico-clinoid bridge (CCB), an ossification between the anterior (ACP) and the middle clinoid (MCP), and an interclinoidal osseous bridge (ICB), between the ACP and the posterior clinoid (PCP), represents an uncommonly reported anatomic variant. If not adequately recognized, osseous bridges may complicate open or endoscopic surgery, along with the pneumatization of the ACP, especially when performing anterior or middle clinoidectomies.

Methods: According to Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses for Scoping Reviews guidelines, a systematic scoping review was conducted up to June 5, 2023.

Bad year econometrics: Agent-based modeling of risk management strategies under varying regimes of environmental change.

Resilience-the ability of socio-ecological systems to withstand and recover from shocks-is a key research and policy focus. Definitions of resilience differ between disciplines, however, and the term remains inadequately operationalized. Resilience is the outcome of variable behavioral decisions, yet the process itself and the strategies behind it have rarely been addressed quantitatively.

Separation and recycling of hydrofluorocarbon refrigerant mixtures with fluoropolymer-coated hollow fiber membranes.

Many hydrofluorocarbon refrigerants used in air-conditioning and refrigeration equipment are being phased out based on international restrictions to reduce global warming. Over 1 billion kilograms of hydrofluorocarbons are in use, and recycling is imperative to preventing the release of these greenhouse gases into the atmosphere. We report on composite hollow fiber membranes that can efficiently separate a mixture of difluoromethane and pentafluoroethane that is used worldwide in air conditioners.

Control of striatal circuit development by the chromatin regulator .

The pathophysiology of neurodevelopmental disorders involves vulnerable neural populations, including striatal circuitry, and convergent molecular nodes, including chromatin regulation and synapse function. Despite this, how epigenetic regulation regulates striatal development is understudied. Recurrent de novo mutations in are associated with intellectual disability and autism.

A metagenomic perspective on the microbial prokaryotic genome census.

Following 30 years of sequencing, we assessed the phylogenetic diversity (PD) of >1.5 million microbial genomes in public databases, including metagenome-assembled genomes (MAGs) of uncultivated microbes. As compared to the vast diversity uncovered by metagenomic sequences, cultivated taxa account for a modest portion of the overall diversity, 9.

Creating chromaticity palettes and identifying white light emitters through nanocrystal megalibraries.

Halide perovskites are used to fabricate energy-efficient optoelectronic devices. Determining which compositions yield desired chromatic responses is challenging, especially when doping strategies are used. Here, we report a way of mapping the compositional space of halide perovskites to generate a light emission or "chromaticity" palette.

Inherent differential microbial assemblages and functions associated with corals exhibiting different thermal phenotypes.

Certain coral individuals exhibit enhanced resistance to thermal bleaching, yet the specific microbial assemblages and their roles in these phenotypes remain unclear. We compared the microbial communities of thermal bleaching-resistant (TBR) and thermal bleaching-sensitive (TBS) corals using metabarcoding and metagenomics. Our multidomain approach revealed stable distinct microbial compositions between thermal phenotypes.

Programmed shape transformations in cell-laden granular composites.

Tissues form during development through mechanical compaction of their extracellular matrix (ECM) and shape morphing, processes that result in complex-shaped structures that contribute to tissue function. While observed in vivo, control over these processes in vitro to understand both tissue development and guide tissue formation has remained challenging. Here, we use combinations of mesenchymal stromal cell spheroids and hydrogel microparticles (microgels) with varied hydrolytic stability to fabricate programmable and dynamic granular composites that control compaction and tissue formation over time.

Morphogenesis of bacterial cables in polymeric environments.

Many bacteria live in polymeric fluids, such as mucus, environmental polysaccharides, and extracellular polymers in biofilms. However, laboratory studies typically focus on cells in polymer-free fluids. Here, we show that interactions with polymers shape a fundamental feature of bacterial life-how they proliferate in space in multicellular colonies.

Human P2X4 receptor gating is modulated by a stable cytoplasmic cap and a unique allosteric pocket.

P2X receptors (P2XRs) are adenosine 5'-triphosphate (ATP)-gated ion channels comprising homomeric and heteromeric trimers of seven subtypes (P2X1-P2X7) that confer different rates of desensitization. The helical recoil model of P2XR desensitization proposes stability of the cytoplasmic cap sets the rate of desensitization, but timing of its formation is unclear for slow-desensitizing P2XRs. We report cryo-electron microscopy structures of full-length wild-type human P2X4 receptor in apo closed, antagonist-bound inhibited, and ATP-bound desensitized states.

Biologically relevant integration of transcriptomics profiles from cancer cell lines, patient-derived xenografts, and clinical tumors using deep learning.

Cell lines and patient-derived xenografts are essential to cancer research; however, the results derived from such models often lack clinical translatability, as they do not fully recapitulate the complex cancer biology. Identifying preclinical models that sufficiently resemble the biological characteristics of clinical tumors across different cancers is critically important. Here, we developed MOBER, Multi-Origin Batch Effect Remover method, to simultaneously extract biologically meaningful embeddings while removing confounder information.

Targeting uPAR with an antibody-drug conjugate suppresses tumor growth and reshapes the immune landscape in pancreatic cancer models.

Antibody-drug conjugates (ADCs) hold promise to advance targeted therapy of pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC), where the desmoplastic tumor stroma challenges effective treatment. Here, we explored the urokinase plasminogen activator receptor (uPAR) as a candidate ADC target in PDAC, harnessing its massive tumoral and stromal expression in this stroma-dense tumor. We generated a site-specific ADC offering high-affinity, cross-species reactivity, and efficient internalization of the anti-uPAR monoclonal antibody, FL1, carrying a potent anthracycline derivative (PNU-158692).

Activation of locus coeruleus noradrenergic neurons rapidly drives homeostatic sleep pressure.

Homeostatic sleep regulation is essential for optimizing the amount and timing of sleep for its revitalizing function, but the mechanism underlying sleep homeostasis remains poorly understood. Here, we show that optogenetic activation of locus coeruleus (LC) noradrenergic neurons immediately increased sleep propensity following a transient wakefulness, contrasting with many other arousal-promoting neurons whose activation induces sustained wakefulness. Fiber photometry showed that repeated optogenetic or sensory stimulation caused a rapid reduction of calcium activity in LC neurons and steep declines in noradrenaline/norepinephrine (NE) release in both the LC and medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC).

Viroporin activity is necessary for intercellular calcium signals that contribute to viral pathogenesis.

Viruses engage in a variety of processes to subvert host defenses and create an environment amenable to replication. Here, using rotavirus as a prototype, we show that calcium conductance out of the endoplasmic reticulum by the virus encoded ion channel, , induces intercellular calcium waves that extend beyond the infected cell and contribute to pathogenesis. Viruses that lack the ability to induce this signaling show diminished viral shedding and attenuated disease in a mouse model of rotavirus diarrhea.

Redefining the limits of actuating fibers via mesophase control: From contraction to elongation.

The development of fibrous actuators with diverse actuation modes is expected to accelerate progress in active textiles, robotics, wearable electronics, and haptics. Despite the advances in responsive polymer-based actuating fibers, the available actuation modes are limited by the exclusive reliance of current technologies on thermotropic contraction along the fiber axis. To address this gap, the present study describes a reversible and spontaneous thermotropic elongation (~30%) in liquid crystal elastomer fibers produced via ultraviolet-assisted melt spinning.