Atom-by-atom optimizing the surface termination of Fe-Pt intermetallic catalysts for alkaline hydrogen evolution reaction

Controlling the atomic arrangement of elemental atoms in intermetallic catalysts to govern their surface and subsurface properties is a crucial but challenging endeavor in electrocatalytic reactions. In hydrogen evolution reaction (HER), adjusting the d-band center of the conventional noble-metallic Pt by introducing Fe enables the optimization of catalytic performance. However, a notable gap exists in research on the effective transition from disordered Fe/Pt alloys to highly ordered intermetallic compounds (IMCs) such as FePt3 in the alkaline HER, hampering their broader application. In this study, a series of catalysts FePt3-xH (x = 5, 6, 7, 8 and 9) supported on carbon nanotubes (CNTs) were synthesized via a simple impregnation method, along with a range of heat treatment processes, including annealing in a reductive atmosphere, to regulate the order degree of the arrangement of Fe/Pt atoms within the FePt3 catalyst. By using advanced microscopy and spectroscopy techniques, we systematically explored the impact of the order degree of FePt3 in the HER. The as-prepared FePt3-8H exhibited notable HER catalytic activity with low overpotentials (η = 37 mV in 1.0 mol L-1 KOH) at j = 10 mA cm-2. The surface of the L12 FePt3-8H catalyst was demonstrated to be Pt-rich. The Pt on the surface was not easily oxidized due to the unique Fe/Pt coordination, resulting in significant enhancement of HER performance.

Oxygen Vacancies Boosted Hydronium Intercalation: A Paradigm Shift in Aluminum-based Batteries

In aqueous aluminum-ion batteries(AAIBs), the insertion/extraction chemistry of Al3+ often leads to poor kinetics, whereas the rapid diffusion kinetics of hydrated hydrogen ions (H3O+) may offer the solution. However, the presence of considerable Al3+ in the electrolyte hinders the insertion reaction of H3O+. Herein, we report how oxygen-deficient α-MoO3 nanosheets unlock selective H3O+ insertion in a mild aluminum-ion electrolyte. The abundant oxygen defects impede the insertion of Al3+ due to excessively strong adsorption, while allowing H3O+ to be inserted/diffused through the Grotthuss proton conduction mechanism. This research advances our understanding of the mechanism behind selective H3O+ insertion in mild electrolytes.

Co-exposure to multiple air pollutants, genetic susceptibility, and the risk of myocardial infarction onset: a cohort analysis of the UK Biobank participants

AIMS

The relationship between the long-term joint exposure to ambient air pollution and incidence of myocardial infarction (MI) and modification by genetic susceptibility remain inconclusive.

METHODS AND RESULTS

We analysed 329 189 UK Biobank participants without MI at baseline. Exposure concentrations to particulate matter (PM2.5 and PM10), nitrogen dioxide (NO2), and nitrogen oxides (NOx) were obtained. Air pollution score assessing the joint exposure was calculated, and its association with MI was evaluated via Cox model under the P value aggregation framework. Genetic susceptibility to MI was evaluated by incorporating polygenic risk score (PRS) into models. Risk prediction models were also established. During a median follow-up of 13.4 years, 9993 participants developed MI. Per interquartile range increase of PM2.5, PM10, NO2, and NOx resulted in 74% [95% confidence intervals (CIs) 69%-79%], 67% (63%-72%), 46% (42%-49%), and 38% (35%-41%) higher risk of MI. Compared with the lowest quartile (Q1) of air pollution score, the multivariable adjusted hazard ratio (HR) (95%CIs) of Q4 (the highest cumulative air pollution) was 3.50 (3.29-3.72) for MI. Participants with the highest PRS and air pollution score possessed the highest risk of incident MI (HR = 4.88, 95%CIs 4.35-5.47). Integrating PRS, air pollution exposure, and traditional factors substantially improved risk prediction of MI.

CONCLUSION

Long-term joint exposure to air pollutants including PM2.5, PM10, NO2, and NOx is substantially associated with increased risk of MI. Genetic susceptibility to MI strengthens such adverse joint association. Air pollutions together with genetic and traditional factors enhance the accuracy of MI risk prediction.

Nardilysin-regulated scission mechanism activates polo-like kinase 3 to suppress the development of pancreatic cancer

Pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) develops through step-wise genetic and molecular alterations including Kras mutation and inactivation of various apoptotic pathways. Here, we find that development of apoptotic resistance and metastasis of KrasG12D-driven PDAC in mice is accelerated by deleting Plk3, explaining the often-reduced Plk3 expression in human PDAC. Importantly, a 41-kDa Plk3 (p41Plk3) that contains the entire kinase domain at the N-terminus (1-353 aa) is activated by scission of the precursor p72Plk3 at Arg354 by metalloendopeptidase nardilysin (NRDC), and the resulting p32Plk3 C-terminal Polo-box domain (PBD) is removed by proteasome degradation, preventing the inhibition of p41Plk3 by PBD. We find that p41Plk3 is the activated form of Plk3 that regulates a feed-forward mechanism to promote apoptosis and suppress PDAC and metastasis. p41Plk3 phosphorylates c-Fos on Thr164, which in turn induces expression of Plk3 and pro-apoptotic genes. These findings uncover an NRDC-regulated post-translational mechanism that activates Plk3, establishing a prototypic regulation by scission mechanism.

Dynamics of magnetization at infinite temperature in a Heisenberg spin chain

Understanding universal aspects of quantum dynamics is an unresolved problem in statistical mechanics. In particular, the spin dynamics of the one-dimensional Heisenberg model were conjectured as to belong to the Kardar-Parisi-Zhang (KPZ) universality class based on the scaling of the infinite-temperature spin-spin correlation function. In a chain of 46 superconducting qubits, we studied the probability distribution of the magnetization transferred across the chain's center, [Formula: see text]. The first two moments of [Formula: see text] show superdiffusive behavior, a hallmark of KPZ universality. However, the third and fourth moments ruled out the KPZ conjecture and allow for evaluating other theories. Our results highlight the importance of studying higher moments in determining dynamic universality classes and provide insights into universal behavior in quantum systems.

Biological control of wheat powdery mildew disease by the termite-associated fungus Aspergillus chevalieri BYST01 and potential role of secondary metabolites

BACKGROUND

Wheat powdery mildew, caused by the biotrophic pathogen Blumeria graminis f. sp. tritici (Bgt) is a serious fungal disease. Natural metabolites produced by microorganisms are beneficial biological control agents to inhibit Bgt. In the present study, we investigated the effects of Aspergillus chevalieri BYST01 on wheat powdery mildew.

RESULTS

A strain isolated from the termite was identified as A. chevalieri BYST01 by morphological characteristics and phylogenetic analysis. The fermentation broth of BYST01 showed good biocontrol effect on the Bgt in vivo with the control efficiencies of 81.59% and 71.34% under the protective and therapeutic tests, respectively. Four known metabolites, including the main compound physcion (30 mg/L), were isolated from the fermentation broth of BYST01 extracted with ethyl acetate. Importantly, under a concentration of 0.1 mM, physcion repressed conidial germination of Bgt with an inhibition rate of 77.04% in vitro and showed important control efficiencies of 80.36% and 74.64% in vivo under the protective and therapeutic tests, respectively. Hence, the BYST01 showed important potential as a microbial cell factory for the high yield of the green natural fungicide physcion. Finally, the biosynthetic gene clusters responsible for physicon production in BYST01 was predicted by analyzing a chromosome-scale genome obtained using a combination of Illumina, PacBio, and Hi-C sequencing technologies.

CONCLUSION

Aspergillus chevalieri BYST01 and its main metabolite physcion had a significant control effect on wheat powdery mildew. The biosynthesis pathway of physcion in BYST01 was predicted. © 2023 Society of Chemical Industry.

Association between two different lipid injectable emulsions and parenteral nutrition-associated cholestasis in very low birth weight infants: A retrospective cohort study

BACKGROUND

Using soybean oil-based lipid emulsions (Intralipid), which contain higher amounts of ω-6 fatty acids and phytosterols in parenteral nutrition, is a risk factor for cholestasis (parenteral nutrition-associated cholestasis [PNAC]). An alternative form of a mixed lipid emulsion (SMOFlipid) has been developed to reduce the risk of PNAC, but significant benefits over Intralipid in very low birth weight (VLBW) infants have yet to be demonstrated. The aim of this study was to compare the differences in PNAC incidence in VLBW infants receiving SMOFlipid vs Intralipid.

METHODS

The study was conducted in Sir Run Run Shaw Hospital of the Zhejiang University School of Medicine, Hangzhou, China, from January 2016 to March 2022. In total, 235 VLBW infants were administered SMOFlipid or Intralipid for ≥21 days and were included in the study. The primary outcome was the incidence of PNAC. Secondary outcomes included bronchopulmonary dysplasia, retinopathy of prematurity, necrotizing enterocolitis, late-onset sepsis, length of stay, weight 28 days after birth, severity of PNAC, and the time to reversal of PNAC.

RESULTS

Forty-four VLBW infants (35.5%) in the SMOFlipid group vs 41 (36.9%) in the Intralipid group achieved PNAC (P = 0.817). The subgroup analysis showed that the peak direct bilirubin level was lower (median [interquartile range] 55.6 [36.4] vs 118.4 [77.2] μmol/L; P < 0.001), and the time to reversal of PNAC was shorter (44 [49] vs 96 [61]; P < 0.001) in the SMOFlipid group than in the Intralipid group.

CONCLUSION

SMOFlipid may represent a better alternative for VLBW infants who require prolonged parenteral nutrition.

Stable quantum-correlated many-body states through engineered dissipation

Engineered dissipative reservoirs have the potential to steer many-body quantum systems toward correlated steady states useful for quantum simulation of high-temperature superconductivity or quantum magnetism. Using up to 49 superconducting qubits, we prepared low-energy states of the transverse-field Ising model through coupling to dissipative auxiliary qubits. In one dimension, we observed long-range quantum correlations and a ground-state fidelity of 0.86 for 18 qubits at the critical point. In two dimensions, we found mutual information that extends beyond nearest neighbors. Lastly, by coupling the system to auxiliaries emulating reservoirs with different chemical potentials, we explored transport in the quantum Heisenberg model. Our results establish engineered dissipation as a scalable alternative to unitary evolution for preparing entangled many-body states on noisy quantum processors.

Head-to-head comparison of prostate-specific membrane antigen positron emission tomography/computed tomography and multiparametric magnetic resonance imaging in the detection of biochemical recurrence of prostate cancer: a systematic review and meta-analysis

AIM

Our main goal of this meta-analytical analysis was to evaluate the diagnostic effectiveness of prostate-specific membrane antigen (PSMA) positron emission tomography (PET)/computed tomography (CT) against multiparametric magnetic resonance imaging (mpMRI) in the context of identifying biochemical recurrence in patients with prostate cancer (PCa).

MATERIALS AND METHODS

A thorough search covering articles published until March 2023 was carried out across major databases such as PubMed, Embase, and Web of Science. Studies examining the direct comparison of PSMA PET/CT and mpMRI in patients with PCa suffering biochemical recurrence were included in the inclusion criteria. Using the renowned Quality Assessment of Diagnostic Performance Studies-2 technique, each study's methodological rigor was assessed.

RESULTS

We analyzed data from six eligible studies involving 290 patients in total. The combined data showed that for PSMA PET/CT and mpMRI, respectively, the pooled overall detection rates for recurrent PCa after definitive treatment were 0.69 (95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.45-0.89) and 0.70 (95% CI: 0.44-0.91). The detection rates for local recurrence were specifically 0.52 (95% CI: 0.39-0.65) and 0.62 (95% CI: 0.31-0.89), while they were 0.50 (95% CI: 0.26-0.74) and 0.32 (95% CI: 0.18-0.48) for lymph node metastasis. Notably, there was no discernible difference between the two imaging modalities in terms of the overall detection rate (P = 0.95). The detection rates for local recurrence and lymph node metastasis did not differ statistically significantly (P = 0.55, 0.23).

CONCLUSION

The performance of PSMA PET/CT and mpMRI in identifying biochemical recurrence in PCa appears to be comparable. However, the meta-analysis' findings came from research with modest sample sizes. In this context, more extensive research should be conducted in the future.

Incorporating genetic similarity of auxiliary samples into eGene identification under the transfer learning framework

BACKGROUND

The term eGene has been applied to define a gene whose expression level is affected by at least one independent expression quantitative trait locus (eQTL). It is both theoretically and empirically important to identify eQTLs and eGenes in genomic studies. However, standard eGene detection methods generally focus on individual cis-variants and cannot efficiently leverage useful knowledge acquired from auxiliary samples into target studies.

METHODS

We propose a multilocus-based eGene identification method called TLegene by integrating shared genetic similarity information available from auxiliary studies under the statistical framework of transfer learning. We apply TLegene to eGene identification in ten TCGA cancers which have an explicit relevant tissue in the GTEx project, and learn genetic effect of variant in TCGA from GTEx. We also adopt TLegene to the Geuvadis project to evaluate its usefulness in non-cancer studies.

RESULTS

We observed substantial genetic effect correlation of cis-variants between TCGA and GTEx for a larger number of genes. Furthermore, consistent with the results of our simulations, we found that TLegene was more powerful than existing methods and thus identified 169 distinct candidate eGenes, which was much larger than the approach that did not consider knowledge transfer across target and auxiliary studies. Previous studies and functional enrichment analyses provided empirical evidence supporting the associations of discovered eGenes, and it also showed evidence of allelic heterogeneity of gene expression. Furthermore, TLegene identified more eGenes in Geuvadis and revealed that these eGenes were mainly enriched in cells EBV transformed lymphocytes tissue.

CONCLUSION

Overall, TLegene represents a flexible and powerful statistical method for eGene identification through transfer learning of genetic similarity shared across auxiliary and target studies.

[The clinical significance of lateral pelvic sentinel lymph node biopsy using indocyanine green fluorescence navigation in laparoscopic lateral pelvic lymph node dissection]

Objectives: This study aims to explore the clinical significance of lateral pelvic sentinel lymph node biopsy (SLNB) using indocyanine green (ICG) fluorescence navigation in laparoscopic lateral pelvic lymph node dissection (LLND) and evaluate the accuracy and feasibility of this technique to predict the status of lateral pelvic lymph nodes (LPLNs). Methods: The clinical and pathological characteristics, surgical outcomes, lymph node findings and perioperative complications of 16 rectal cancer patients who underwent SLNB using ICG fluorescence navigation in laparoscopic LLND in the Cancer Hospital, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences and Peking Union Medical College during April 2017 and October 2022 were retrospectively collected and analyzed. The patients did not receive preoperative neoadjuvant radiotherapy and presented with LPLNs but without LPLN enlargement (MRI showed the maximum short axes of the LPLNs were ≥5 mm and <10 mm at first visit). Results: All 16 patients were successfully performed SLNB using ICG fluorescence navigation in laparoscopic LLND. Three patients underwent bilateral LLND and 13 patients underwent unilateral LLND. The lateral pelvic sentinel lymph nodes (SLNs) were clearly fluorescent before dissection in 14 patients and the detection rate of SLNs for these patients was 87.5%. Lateral pelvic SLN metastasis was diagnosed in 2 patients and negative results were found in 12 patients by frozen pathological examinations. Among the 14 patients in whom lateral pelvic SLNs were detected, the dissected lateral pelvic non-SLNs were all negative. All dissected LPLNs were negative in two patients without fluorescent lateral pelvic SLNs. The specificity, sensitivity, negative predictive value, and accuracy was 85.7%, 100%, 100%, and 100%, respectively. Conclusions: This study indicates that lateral pelvic SLNB using ICG fluorescence navigation shows promise as a safe and feasible procedure with good accuracy. This technique may replace preventive LLND for locally advanced lower rectal cancer.

Efficacy and safety of intrathecal pemetrexed for TKI-failed leptomeningeal metastases from EGFR+ NSCLC: an expanded, single-arm, phase II clinical trial

BACKGROUND

This study aimed to evaluate the efficacy and safety of intrathecal pemetrexed (IP) for treating patients with leptomeningeal metastases (LM) from non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC) who progressed from epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR)-tyrosine kinase inhibitor (TKI) treatment in an expanded, prospective, single-arm, phase II clinical study (ChiCTR1800016615).

PATIENTS AND METHODS

Patients with confirmed NSCLC-LM who progressed from TKI received IP (50 mg, day 1/day 5 for 1 week, then every 3 weeks for four cycles, and then once monthly) until disease progression or intolerance. Objectives were to assess overall survival (OS), response rate, and safety. Measurable lesions were assessed by investigator according to RECIST version 1.1. LM were assessed according to the Response Assessment in Neuro-Oncology (RANO) criteria.

RESULTS

The study included 132 patients; 68% were female and median age was 52 years (31-74 years). The median OS was 12 months (95% confidence interval 10.4-13.6 months), RANO-assessed response rate was 80.3% (106/132), and the most common adverse event was myelosuppression (n = 42; 31.8%), which reversed after symptomatic treatment. The results of subgroup analysis showed that absence of brain parenchymal metastasis, good Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group score, good response to IP treatment, negative cytology after treatment, and patients without neck/back pain/difficult defecation had longer survival. Gender, age, previous intrathecal methotrexate/cytarabine, and whole-brain radiotherapy had no significant influence on OS.

CONCLUSIONS

This study further showed that IP is an effective and safe treatment method for the EGFR-TKI-failed NSCLC-LM, and should be recommended for these patients in clinical practice and guidelines.

Identification of BMAL1-Regulated circadian genes in mouse liver and their potential association with hepatocellular carcinoma: Gys2 and Upp2 as promising candidates

Identification and functional analysis of key genes regulated by the circadian clock system will provide a comprehensive understanding of the underlying mechanisms through which circadian clock disruption impairs the health of living organisms. The initial phase involved bioinformatics analysis, drawing insights from three RNA-seq datasets (GSE184303, GSE114400, and GSE199061) derived from wild-type mouse liver tissues, which encompassed six distinct time points across a day. As expected, 536 overlapping genes exhibiting rhythmic expression patterns were identified. By intersecting these genes with differentially expressed genes (DEGs) originating from liver RNA-seq data at two representative time points (circadian time, CT: CT2 and CT14) in global Bmal1 knockout mice (Bmal1-/-), hepatocyte-specific Bmal1 knockout mice (L-Bmal1-/-), and their corresponding control groups, 80 genes potentially regulated by BMAL1 (referred to as BMAL1-regulated genes, BRGs) were identified. These genes were significantly enriched in glycolipid metabolism, immune response, and tumorigenesis pathways. Eight BRGs (Nr1d1, Cry1, Gys2, Homer2, Serpina6, Slc2a2, Nmrk1, and Upp2) were selected to validate their expression patterns in both control and L-Bmal1-/- mice livers over 24 h. Real-time quantitative polymerase chain reaction results demonstrated a comprehensive loss of rhythmic expression patterns in the eight selected BRGs in L-Bmal1-/- mice, in contrast to the discernible rhythmic patterns observed in the livers of control mice. Additionally, significant reductions in the expression levels of these selected BRGs, excluding Cry1, were also observed in L-Bmal1-/- mice livers. Chromatin immunoprecipitation (ChIP)-seq (GSE13505 and GSE39860) and JASPAR analyses validated the rhythmic binding of BMAL1 to the promoter and intron regions of these genes. Moreover, the progression of conditions, from basic steatosis to non-alcoholic fatty liver disease, and eventual malignancy, demonstrated a continuous gradual decline in Bmal1 transcripts in the human liver. Combining the aforementioned BRGs with DEGs derived from human liver cancer datasets identified Gys2 and Upp2 as potential node genes bridging the circadian clock system and hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). In addition, CCK8 and wound healing assays demonstrated that the overexpression of human GYS2 and UPP2 proteins inhibited the proliferation and migration of HepG2 cells, accompanied by elevated expression of p53, a tumor suppressor protein. In summary, this study systematically identified rhythmic genes in the mouse liver, and a subset of circadian genes potentially regulated by BMAL1. Two circadian genes, Gys2 and Upp2, have been proposed and validated as potential candidates for advancing the prevention and treatment of HCC.

[Association between CD4+T lymphocyte and body composition with physical frailty among elderly HIV-infected patients in Chongqing City]

Objective: To identify the association between CD4+T lymphocyte (CD4) counts and physical frailty among HIV-infected people aged 65 years and older, and evaluate whether this association will be modified by the indicators of body composition. Methods: From May to October 2022, 485 elderly HIV-infected patients receiving antiretroviral therapy (ART) were recruited from 7 antiviral treatment sites in Jiangjin District Center for Disease Control and Prevention, Chongqing. The data of basic characteristics (age and gender), living habits (smoking and drinking) and disease history (metabolic diseases, cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases, respiratory disease and malignant tumors) were collected through the face-to-face investigation with self-made questionnaires. Fried Frailty Scale was used to evaluate the status of physical frailty. Physical fitness (walking speed, grip strength, height, and weight) and body composition (skeletal muscle mass, body fat mass, and basal metabolic rate) were measured. The antiretroviral treatment data were obtained from the China AIDS Integrated Prevention and Treatment Data information management system. The prevalence of physical frailty was calculated among the HIV-infected patients. The potential effects of CD4 counts on physical frailty were explored by using multivariate logistic regression. Subgroup analyses were repeated in the logistic regression with muscle mass, body fat mass, and other indicators of body composition as subgroup variables to determine whether the association might be modified by body composition. Results: The age of 485 patients were (72±5) years old, of which 48.2% (234 cases) were>70 years old and 70.9% (344 cases) were male, and all of whom had initiated the ART treatment. The prevalence of physical frailty among these patients was 7.4% (36/485). Multivariate logistic regression showed that after adjusting for age, sex, smoking, drinking, body composition index, ART duration, viral load and the number of comorbidities, increased CD4 cell level was associated with decreased prevalent risk of physical frailty among elderly HIV-infected patients. For every increase of 5.0×107 CD4 cells/L, the prevalent risk of physical frailty decreased by 12% [OR (95%CI): 0.88 (0.76-1.01)]. Compared with the low CD4 cell level group, the risk of physical frailty in those with normal CD4 cell level decreased by 69% [OR (95%CI): 0.31 (0.10-0.92)]. Subgroup analysis of body composition indicators showed that the protective effect of normal CD4 cell level on physical frailty was more pronounced in the high skeletal muscle mass and high basal metabolic rate group (Pinteraction<0.05). Conclusion: The prevalence of physical frailty among elderly HIV-infected patients is relatively lower in Chongqing, and the CD4 cell level, skeletal muscle mass and basal metabolic rate are related to physical frailty.

ZnO/Au/GaN heterojunction-based self-powered photoelectrochemical Sensor for alpha-fetoprotein detection

In recent years, the development of miniature and portable sensors has been a major focus of research. PEC self-powered sensors have emerged as a potential solution to the power supply issue, eliminating the need for external power supplies and operating without bias voltage. This study developed a ZnO/Au/GaN sensor for highly sensitive detection of alpha-fetoprotein (AFP). The sensor uses GaN substrates with nanogold films to provide an auxiliary bias voltage, promoting high photogenerated current density. Using ZnO/Au/GaN as a photoanode resulted in significantly higher photocurrent generated by the sensor compared to Au/GaN or ZnO/ITO alone. To enable selective detection of AFP, antibody modification of the ZnO nanorod arrays was employed. The linear range of the sensor response to AFP was determined to be 0.080-5.0 ng/mL, with an impressively low detection limit of 0.027 ng/mL (S/N = 3). These results demonstrate the potential of this self-powered sensor for detecting AFP content in human serum samples. Overall, this study presents a novel approach for developing highly sensitive and selective self-powered sensors for biomarker detection, which could facilitate early detection and clinical diagnosis of various types of cancer.

Assessing the stress-relief impact of an art-based intervention inspired by the broaden-and-build theory in college students

Background and objectives

This study's primary objective is to investigate the impact of art-making on the mental well-being of college students, who often experience heightened stress during their initial university years.

Methods

Employing a comprehensive methodology, combining interviews and the Perceived Stress Scale (PSS), the research aimed to assess whether a four-week art-making intervention can effectively alleviate stress levels among college students. In the experimental group, participants engaged in a variety of art-making activities, including freehand drawing, clay modeling, and crafting.

Results

The results revealed that, in the pre-test, there were no significant differences between the experimental and control groups for each assessed indicator. However, in the post-test, significant differences emerged across all indicators. Further analysis demonstrated a significant reduction in stress perception among the experimental group participants between the pre-test and post-test phases.

Conclusion

In conclusion, this study provides compelling evidence that art-making has the potential to foster positive personal development and significantly reduce stress levels among college students.

Photochemical Halogen-Bonding Promoted Synthesis of Vinyl Sulfones via Vinyl and Sulfonyl Radicals

A photochemical halogen-bonding-assisted synthesis of vinyl sulfones via radical-radical cross-coupling of vinyl bromines and sodium sulfinates is developed. This methodology offers a facile and efficient approach to various vinyl sulfones with excellent functional group tolerance under metal-, photocatalyst-, base-, and oxidant-free conditions. The reaction is also applicable for the late-stage functionalization of drug molecules and the hectogram scale. Moreover, instead of sodium sulfites being prepared, these reactions could also be conducted using sulfonyl chlorides in a one-pot method.

Outcomes comparison of testicular versus ejaculated sperm for intracytoplasmic sperm injection in infertile men with high DNA fragmentation: updated systematic review and meta-analysis

Background

The testicular sperm instead of ejaculated sperm for intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI) in infertile men with high sperm DNA fragmentation (SDF) is a controversial topic. This updated systematic review and meta-analysis aims to evaluate whether couples with high level of SDF will benefit more from intracytoplasmic sperm injection with testicular sperm (Testi-ICSI) as compared to intracytoplasmic sperm injection with ejaculated sperm (Ejac-ICSI).

Methods

A systematic search was conducted according to PRISMA guidelines, using PubMed, Embase, Web of Science and the Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials (CENTRAL), encompassing studies from the earliest record until May 2022. We included studies analyzing comparative pregnancy outcomes of testicular versus ejaculated sperm for ICSI in infertile men with high DNA fragmentation. The risks of bias and certainty of evidence were assessed using the Risk Of Bias In Non-randomized Studies of Interventions (ROBINS-I) and the Grading of Recommendations Assessment, Development, and Evaluation (GRADE) framework, respectively.

Results

Eleven studies were included. Meta-analysis showed that SDF levels revealed a significant difference association [odds ratio (OR) =-25.81; 95% confidence interval (CI): -34.82, -16.81; I2=94%; P<0.00001] between testicular and ejaculated sperm. Compared with Ejac-ICSI, a non-significant tendency was observed for fertilization rates (FRs) in the Testi-ICSI group (OR =0.87; 95% CI: 0.67, 1.12; I2=81%; P=0.28). However, there was significant difference pointing to better outcomes for Testi-ICSI in clinical pregnancy rates (CPRs) (OR =2.36; 95% CI: 1.71, 3.24; I2=0%; P<0.00001), live birth rates (LBRs) (OR =3.10; 95% CI: 2.13, 4.51; I2=4%; P<0.00001) and miscarriage rates (MRs) (OR =0.28; 95% CI: 0.13, 0.60; I2=0%; P=0.001).

Conclusions

Results of this updated meta-analysis reveal that SDF rates are lower in testicular sperm than in ejaculated sperm and that Testi-ICSI is correlated with better clinical outcomes, including higher CPRs, higher LBRs, and lower MRs in infertile males with high SDF levels. Nevertheless, with the overall low to moderate quality of the studies, further well-designed controlled studies are required.

Variety ACEs and risk of developing anxiety, depression, or anxiety-depression co-morbidity: the 2006-2022 UK Biobank data

Objectives

Adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) and anxiety-depression co-morbidity are attracting widespread attention. Previous studies have shown the relationship between individual psychiatric disorders and ACEs. This study will analyze the correlation between anxiety-depression co-morbidity and different levels of ACEs.

Methods

Seven categories of ACE and four classifications of psychiatric disorders were defined in a sample of 126,064 participants identified by the UK Biobank from 2006-2022, and correlations were investigated using logistic regression models. Then, to explore nonlinear relationships, restricted spline models were developed to examine differences in sex and age across cohorts (n = 126,064 for the full cohort and n = 121,934 for the European cohort). Finally, the impact of the category of ACEs on psychiatric disorders was examined.

Results

After controlling for confounders, ACEs scores showed dose-dependent relationships with depression, anxiety, anxiety-depression co-morbidity, and at least one (any of the first three outcomes) in all models. ACEs with different scores were significantly positively correlated with the four psychiatric disorders classifications, with the highest odds of anxiety-depression co-morbidity (odds ratio [OR] = 4.87, 95% confidence intervals [CI]: 4.37 ~ 5.43), p = 6.08 × 10-178. In the restricted cubic spline models, the risk was relatively flat for females at ACEs = 0-1 and males at ACEs = 0-2/3 (except in males, where ACEs were associated with a lower risk of anxiety, all other psychiatric disorders had an increased risk of morbidity after risk smoothing). In addition, the risk of having anxiety, depression, anxiety-depression co-morbidity, and at least one of these disorders varies with each category of ACEs.

Conclusion

The prevalence of anxiety-depression comorbidity was highest across ACE scores after controlling for confounding factors and had a significant effect on each category of ACEs.

Abiotic and Biotic Reduction of Iodate Driven by Shewanella oneidensis MR-1

Iodate (IO3-) can be abiotically reduced by Fe(II) or biotically reduced by the dissimilatory Fe(III)-reducing bacterium Shewanella oneidensis (MR-1) via its DmsEFAB and MtrCAB. However, the intermediates and stoichiometry between the Fe(II) and IO3- reaction and the relative contribution of abiotic and biotic IO3- reduction by biogenic Fe(II) and MR-1 in the presence of Fe(III) remain unclear. In this study, we found that abiotic reduction of IO3- by Fe(II) produced intermediates HIO and I- at a ratio of 1:2, followed by HIO disproportionation to I- and IO3-. Comparative analyses of IO3- reduction by MR-1 wild type (WT), MR-1 mutants deficient in DmsEFAB or MtrCAB, and Shewanella sp. ANA-3 in the presence of Fe(III)-citrate, Fe(III) oxides, or clay minerals showed that abiotic IO3- reduction by biogenic Fe(II) predominated under iron-rich conditions, while biotic IO3- reduction by DmsEFAB played a more dominant role under iron-poor conditions. Compared to that in the presence of Fe(III)-citrate, MR-1 WT reduced more IO3- in the presence of Fe(III) oxides and clay minerals. The observed abiotic and biotic IO3- reduction by MR-1 under Fe-rich and Fe-limited conditions suggests that Fe(III)-reducing bacteria could contribute to the transformation of iodine species and I- enrichment in natural iodine-rich environments.

Risk factors in ICU patients with initial acquisition of carbapenemase-resistant Klebsiella Pneumoniae

OBJECTIVE: To identify the risk factors associated with antimicrobial use on the initial acquisition of carbapenem-resistant Klebsiella pneumoniae (CRKP) in elderly intensive care unit (ICU) patients.METHODS: Respiratory secretion, blood, urine, anal swab and peritoneal drainage samples from all elderly patients with non-colonised CRKP who had been hospitalised from January 2021 to December 2022 were collected, and screened for CRKP colonisation using surveillance culture at the time of the first ICU admission and weekly thereafter in Zhejiang Provincial Hospital of Chinese Medicine, Zhejiang, China. Cumulative antibiotic variables included duration of antibiotic use, total amount of antimicrobials received in grams, total antibiotic consumption (defined daily dose) and the types of antimicrobial exposure. A time-dependent model based on Cox regression analysis was used to investigate the effect of each variable on the initial acquisition of CRKP infection or colonisation.RESULTS: Of 214 patients, 44 were infected or had CRKP colonies and death rate was 34.1%. males were the risk factor for acquiring CRKP in culture (HR 2.12, 95% CI 1.06-4.21; P = 0.033). It is notable that the hazard of acquiring CRKP increased by 9% with every single-point increase in the APACHE II score (HR 1.09, 95% CI 1.01-1.18; P = 0.025). The hazard of acquiring CRKP doubled when carbapenems were administered (HR 1.81, 95% CI 1.42-2.30; P < 0.001), In contrast, exposure to quinolone antimicrobials had a smaller effect on acquiring CRKP (HR 1.07; 95% CI 1.01-1.14; P = 0.024).CONCLUSION: This study found that male sex, APACHE II score and exposure to quinolones and carbapenems were independent risk factors for acquiring CRKP.

The Evaluation of Prognostic Value and Immune Characteristics of Ferroptosis-Related Genes in Lung Squamous Cell Carcinoma

Background  The purpose of our study was to construct a prognostic model based on ferroptosis-related gene signature to improve the prognosis prediction of lung squamous carcinoma (LUSC). Methods  The mRNA expression profiles and clinical data of LUSC patients were downloaded. LUSC-related essential differentially expressed genes were integrated for further analysis. Prognostic gene signatures were identified through random forest regression and univariate Cox regression analyses for constructing a prognostic model. Finally, in a preliminary experiment, we used the reverse transcription-quantitative polymerase chain reaction assay to verify the relationship between the expression of three prognostic gene features and ferroptosis. Results  Fifty-six ferroptosis-related essential genes were identified by using integrated analysis. Among these, three prognostic gene signatures (HELLS, POLR2H, and POLE2) were identified, which were positively affected by LUSC prognosis but negatively affected by immune cell infiltration. Significant overexpression of immune checkpoint genes occurred in the high-risk group. In preliminary experiments, we confirmed that the occurrence of ferroptosis can reduce three prognostic gene signature expression. Conclusions  The three ferroptosis-related genes could predict the LUSC prognostic risk of antitumor immunity.

The role of phosphoprotein associated with glycosphingolipid-enriched microdomains 1 (PAG1) in regulating the progression of oral squamous cell carcinoma

OBJECTIVE

The aim of this study was to explore the role of the tumor suppressor phosphoprotein associated with glycosphingolipid-enriched microdomains 1 (PAG1) on oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC) and its molecular mechanism.

DESIGN

Immunohistochemistry detected the expression of PAG1 in normal and tumor tissues. The PAG1 overexpressed OSCC cell lines were constructed by lentivirus transfection. Cell Counting Kit-8 assay (CCK-8), clone formation and flow cytometry evaluated the impact of PAG1 on the proliferation and apoptosis of OSCC cells. RNA sequencing (RNA-seq) detected the changes in intracellular genes, and transmission electron microscope (TEM) was used to compare the number of autophagosomes in OSCC cells between Negative and PAG1 group. Quantitative reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-qPCR) and Western blot were used to determine the expression of signaling pathway-related mRNA and proteins respectively.

RESULTS

In contrast to the normal tissues, PAG1 expression was significantly downregulated in tumor tissues. Treatment with lentivirus transfection, the expression of PAG1 in the OSCC cell lines was increase. Notably, transfected with PAG1-overexpressing lentivirus cells inhibited the proliferation of OSCC cells and promoted OSCC cells apoptosis. RNA-seq revealed that PAG1 mainly modulated the mitophagy and autophagy pathway, and many autophagosomes were observed in the PAG1 group using TEM. Mechanistically, we found that PAG1 upregulated the expression of autophagy related factors through inhibiting PI3K/Akt/mTOR signal pathway activation.

CONCLUSION

Overexpression of PAG1 inhibited OSCC progression by activating autophagy, its mechanism might be related to inhibition of PI3K/Akt/mTOR signal pathway phosphorylation.

The ELAVL3/MYCN positive feedback loop provides a therapeutic target for neuroendocrine prostate cancer

Neuroendocrine prostate cancer is a rapidly progressive and lethal disease characterized by early visceral metastasis, poor prognosis, and limited treatment options. Uncovering the oncogenic mechanisms could lead to the discovery of potential therapeutic avenues. Here, we demonstrate that the RNA-binding protein ELAVL3 is specifically upregulated in neuroendocrine prostate cancer and that overexpression of ELAVL3 alone is sufficient to induce the neuroendocrine phenotype in prostate adenocarcinoma. Mechanistically, ELAVL3 is transcriptionally regulated by MYCN and subsequently binds to and stabilizes MYCN and RICTOR mRNA. Moreover, ELAVL3 is shown to be released in extracellular vesicles and induce neuroendocrine differentiation of adenocarcinoma cells via an intercellular mechanism. Pharmacological inhibition of ELAVL3 with pyrvinium pamoate, an FDA-approved drug, effectively suppresses tumor growth, reduces metastatic risk, and improves survival in neuroendocrine prostate cancer mouse models. Our results identify ELAVL3 as a critical regulator of neuroendocrine differentiation in prostate cancer and propose a drug repurposing strategy for targeted therapies.

What Is the Rate-Limiting Step of Oxygen Reduction Reaction on Fe-N-C Catalysts?

Oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) is essential to various renewable energy technologies. An important catalyst for ORR is single iron atoms embedded in nitrogen-doped graphene (Fe-N-C). However, the rate-limiting step of the ORR on Fe-N-C is unknown, significantly impeding understanding and improvement. Here, we report the activation energies of all of the steps, calculated by ab initio molecular dynamics simulations under constant electrode potential. In contrast to the common belief that a hydrogenation step limits the reaction rate, we find that the rate-limiting step is oxygen molecule replacing adsorbed water on Fe. This occurs through concerted motion of H2O desorption and O2 adsorption, without leaving the site bare. Interestingly, despite being an apparent "thermal" process that is often considered to be potential-independent, the barrier reduces with the electrode potential. This can be explained by stronger Fe-O2 binding and weaker Fe-H2O binding at a lower potential, due to O2 gaining electrons and H2O donating electrons to the catalyst. Our study offers new insights into the ORR on Fe-N-C and highlights the importance of kinetic studies in heterogeneous electrochemistry.

Long-term influence of air pollutants on morbidity and all-cause mortality of cardiometabolic multi-morbidity: A cohort analysis of the UK Biobank participants

BACKGROUND

The effects of air pollutants on cardiometabolic diseases (CMDs) have been widely explored, whereas their influences on cardiometabolic multi-morbidity (CMM) were not clear.

METHODS

We employed the UK Biobank cohort (N = 317,160) to study the association between six air pollutants (PM2.5, PM10, PM2.5-10, PM2.5abs, NO2, and NOx) and four CMDs including type II diabetes (T2D), coronary artery disease (CAD), stroke and hypertension. CMM was defined as occurrence of two or more of the four diseases. Multi-state Cox models were performed to estimate hazard ratio (HR) and its 95% confidence interval (95%CI).

RESULTS

During a median follow-up of 12.8 years, 52,211 participants developed only one CMD, 15,446 further developed CMM, and 16,861 ultimately died. It was demonstrated that per interquartile range increase (IQR) increases in PM2.5, PM10, PM2.5-10, PM2.5abs, NO2, and NOx would increase 12% (9%-15%), 4% (1%-7%), 3% (1%-6%), 7% (4%-10%), 11% (8%-15%) and 10% (7%-13%) higher risk of developing one CMD from health baseline; 7% (2%-12%), 8% (3%-13%), 6% (2%-11%), 10% (5%-15%), 13% (7%-18%) and 10% (5%-15%) greater risk of occurring CMM from one CMD baseline; and 11% (-2%∼26%), 22% (7%-38%), 17% (3%-32%), 31% (16%-49%), 33% (17%-51%) and 32% (17%-50%) larger risk of causing death from CMM baseline, respectively.

CONCLUSIONS

We revealed that people living in areas with high air pollution suffered from higher hazard of CMD, CMM and all-cause mortality; our findings implied keeping clean air was an effective approach to prevent or mitigate initiation, progression, and death from healthy to CMDs and from CMDs to CMM.

Influence of social deprivation on morbidity and all-cause mortality of cardiometabolic multi-morbidity: a cohort analysis of the UK Biobank cohort

BACKGROUND

The relation of social deprivation with single cardiometabolic disease (CMD) was widely investigated, whereas the association with cardiometabolic multi-morbidity (CMM), defined as experiencing more than two CMDs during the lifetime, is poorly understood.

METHODS

We analyzed 345,417 UK Biobank participants without any CMDs at recruitment to study the relation between social deprivation and four CMDs including type II diabetes (T2D), coronary artery disease (CAD), stroke and hypertension. Social deprivation was measured by Townsend deprivation index (TDI), and CMM was defined as occurrence of two or more of the above four diseases. Multivariable Cox models were performed to estimate hazard ratios (HRs) per one standard deviation (SD) change and in quartile (Q1-Q4, with Q1 as reference), as well as 95% confidence intervals (95% CIs).

RESULTS

During the follow up, 68,338 participants developed at least one CMD (median follow up of 13.2 years), 16,225 further developed CMM (median follow up of 13.4 years), and 18,876 ultimately died from all causes (median follow up of 13.4 years). Compared to Q1 of TDI (lowest deprivation), the multivariable adjusted HR (95%CIs) of Q4 (highest deprivation) among participants free of any CMDs was 1.23 (1.20 ~ 1.26) for developing one CMD, 1.42 (1.35 ~ 1.48) for developing CMM, and 1.34 (1.27 ~ 1.41) for all-cause mortality. Among participants with one CMD, the adjusted HR (95%CIs) of Q4 was 1.30 (1.27 ~ 1.33) for developing CMM and 1.34 (1.27 ~ 1.41) for all-cause mortality, with HR (95%CIs) = 1.11 (1.06 ~ 1.16) for T2D patients, 1.07 (1.03 ~ 1.11) for CAD patients, 1.07 (1.00 ~ 1.15) for stroke patients, and 1.24 (1.21 ~ 1.28) for hypertension patients. Among participants with CMM, TDI was also related to the risk of all-cause mortality (HR of Q4 = 1.35, 95%CIs 1.28 ~ 1.43).

CONCLUSIONS

We revealed that people living with high deprived conditions would suffer from higher hazard of CMD, CMM and all-cause mortality.

[Comparison of diagnostic criteria for acute kidney injury in critically ill children]

Objective: The kidney disease: improving global outcome (KDIGO) and pediatric reference change value optimized for acute kidney injury (pROCK) criteria were used to evaluate the incidence, stages and mortality of acute kidney injury (AKI). The differences between the 2 criteria were compared for exploring the value of pROCK criteria in diagnosing pediatric AKI and predicting adverse outcomes. Methods: In the multicenter prospective clinical cohort study, we collected general data and clinical data such as serum creatinine values from 1 120 children admitted to 4 PICUs of Children's Hospital of Soochow University, Children's Hospital of Fudan University, Anhui Provincial Children's Hospital, and Xuzhou Children's Hospital from September 2019 to February 2021. AKI was defined and staged according to the KDIGO and pROCK criteria. The incidence of AKI, the consistency of AKI definite diagnosis and stages, and the mortality in PICU were compared between the 2 groups. The chi-square test or Fisher's exact test was applied for comparison between 2 groups. The Cohen's Kappa and Weighted Kappa analyses were used for evaluating diagnostic consistency. The Cox regression analysis was used to evaluate the correlation between AKI and mortality. Results: A total of 1 120 critically ill children were included, with an age of 33 (10, 84) months. There are 668 boys and 452 girls. The incidence of AKI defined by the KDIGO guideline was higher than that defined by pROCK criteria (27.2%(305/1 120), 14.7%(165/1 120), χ2=52.78, P<0.001). The concordance rates of the 2 criteria for the diagnosis of AKI and AKI staging were 87.0% (κ=0.62) and 79.7% (κ=0.58), respectively. Totally 63 infants with AKI stage 1 defined by the KDIGO guideline were redefined as non-AKI by following the pROCK criteria. The PICU mortality rate of these infants was similar to patients without AKI defined by KDIGO guideline(P=0.761). After adjusting for confounders, AKI defined by KDIGO or pROCK criteria was an independent risk factor of death in PICU (AHR=2.04, 2.73,95%CI 1.27-3.29, 1.74-4.28, both P<0.01), and the risk of death was higher when using the pROCK compared with the KDIGO criteria. As for the KDIGO criteria, mild AKI was not associated with the mortality in PICU (P=0.702), while severe AKI was associated with increased mortality (P<0.001). As for the pROCK criteria, both mild and severe AKI were risk factors of PICU death in children (HR=3.51, 6.70, 95%CI 1.94-6.34, 4.30-10.44, both P<0.001). In addition, The AKI severity was positively associated with the mortality. Conclusions: The AKI incidence and staging varied depending on the used diagnostic criteria. The KDIGO definition is more sensitive, while the pROCK-defined AKI is more strongly associated with high mortality rate.

Nitrogen fixation and diazotroph diversity in groundwater systems

Biological nitrogen fixation (BNF), the conversion of N2 into bioavailable nitrogen (N), is the main process for replenishing N loss in the biosphere. However, BNF in groundwater systems remains poorly understood. In this study, we examined the activity, abundance, and community composition of diazotrophs in groundwater in the Hetao Plain of Inner Mongolia using 15N tracing methods, reverse transcription qPCR (RT-qPCR), and metagenomic/metatranscriptomic analyses. 15N2 tracing incubation of near in situ groundwater (9.5-585.4 nmol N L-1 h-1) and N2-fixer enrichment and isolates (13.2-1728.4 nmol N g-1 h-1, as directly verified by single-cell resonance Raman spectroscopy), suggested that BNF is a non-negligible source of N in groundwater in this region. The expression of nifH genes ranged from 3.4 × 103 to 1.2 × 106 copies L-1 and was tightly correlated with dissolved oxygen (DO), Fe(II), and NH4+. Diazotrophs in groundwater were chiefly aerobes or facultative anaerobes, dominated by Stutzerimonas, Pseudomonas, Paraburkholderia, Klebsiella, Rhodopseudomonas, Azoarcus, and additional uncultured populations. Active diazotrophs, which prefer reducing conditions, were more metabolically diverse and potentially associated with nitrification, sulfur/arsenic mobilization, Fe(II) transport, and CH4 oxidation. Our results highlight the importance of diazotrophs in subsurface geochemical cycles.

Bacterial Sulfate Reduction Facilitates Iodine Mobilization in the Deep Confined Aquifer of the North China Plain

Bacterial sulfate reduction plays a crucial role in the mobilization of toxic substances in aquifers. However, the role of bacterial sulfate reduction on iodine mobilization in geogenic high-iodine groundwater systems has been unexplored. In this study, the enrichment of groundwater δ34SSO4 (15.56 to 69.31‰) and its significantly positive correlation with iodide and total iodine concentrations in deep groundwater samples of the North China Plain suggested that bacterial sulfate reduction participates in the mobilization of groundwater iodine. Similar significantly positive correlations were further observed between the concentrations of iodide and total iodine and the relative abundance of the dsrB gene by qPCR, as well as the composition and abundance of sulfate-reducing bacteria (SRB) predicted from 16S rRNA gene high-throughput sequencing data. Subsequent batch culture experiments by the SRB Desulfovibrio sp. B304 demonstrated that SRB could facilitate iodine mobilization through the enzyme-driven biotic and sulfide-driven abiotic reduction of iodate to iodide. In addition, the dehalogenation of organoiodine compounds by SRB and the reductive dissolution of iodine-bearing iron minerals by biogenic sulfide could liberate bound or adsorbed iodine into groundwater. The role of bacterial sulfate reduction in iodine mobilization revealed in this study provides new insights into our understanding of iodide enrichment in iodine-rich aquifers worldwide.

PD-1 blockade in combination with dasatinib potentiates induction of anti-acute lymphocytic leukemia immunity

Immunotherapy, in the form of hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT), has been part of the standard of care in the treatment of acute leukemia for over 40 years. Trials evaluating novel immunotherapeutic approaches, such as targeting the programmed death-1 (PD-1) pathway, have unfortunately not yielded comparable results to those seen in solid tumors. Major histocompatibility complex (MHC) proteins are cell surface proteins essential for the adaptive immune system to recognize self versus non-self. MHC typing is used to determine donor compatibility when evaluating patients for HSCT. Recently, loss of MHC class II (MHC II) was shown to be a mechanism of immune escape in patients with acute myeloid leukemia after HSCT. Here we report that treatment with the tyrosine kinase inhibitor, dasatinib, and an anti-PD-1 antibody in preclinical models of Philadelphia chromosome positive B-cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia is highly active. The dasatinib and anti-PD-1 combination reduces tumor burden, is efficacious, and extends survival. Mechanistically, we found that treatment with dasatinib significantly increased MHC II expression on the surface of antigen-presenting cells (APC) in a tumor microenvironment-independent fashion and caused influx of APC cells into the leukemic bone marrow. Finally, the induction of MHC II may potentiate immune memory by impairing leukemic engraftment in mice previously cured with dasatinib, after re-inoculation of leukemia cells. In summary, our data suggests that anti-PD-1 therapy may enhance the killing ability of dasatinib via dasatinib driven APC growth and expansion and upregulation of MHC II expression, leading to antileukemic immune rewiring.

Measurement-induced entanglement and teleportation on a noisy quantum processor

Measurement has a special role in quantum theory1: by collapsing the wavefunction, it can enable phenomena such as teleportation2 and thereby alter the 'arrow of time' that constrains unitary evolution. When integrated in many-body dynamics, measurements can lead to emergent patterns of quantum information in space-time3-10 that go beyond the established paradigms for characterizing phases, either in or out of equilibrium11-13. For present-day noisy intermediate-scale quantum (NISQ) processors14, the experimental realization of such physics can be problematic because of hardware limitations and the stochastic nature of quantum measurement. Here we address these experimental challenges and study measurement-induced quantum information phases on up to 70 superconducting qubits. By leveraging the interchangeability of space and time, we use a duality mapping9,15-17 to avoid mid-circuit measurement and access different manifestations of the underlying phases, from entanglement scaling3,4 to measurement-induced teleportation18. We obtain finite-sized signatures of a phase transition with a decoding protocol that correlates the experimental measurement with classical simulation data. The phases display remarkably different sensitivity to noise, and we use this disparity to turn an inherent hardware limitation into a useful diagnostic. Our work demonstrates an approach to realizing measurement-induced physics at scales that are at the limits of current NISQ processors.

CREB3L2 Regulates Hemidesmosome Formation during Epithelial Sealing

The long-term success rate of dental implants can be improved by establishing a favorable biological sealing with a high-quality epithelial attachment. The application of mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) holds promise for facilitating the soft tissue integration around implants, but the molecular mechanism is still unclear and the general application of MSC sheet for soft tissue integration is also relatively unexplored. We found that gingival tissue-derived MSC (GMSC) sheet treatment significantly promoted the expression of hemidesmosome (HD)-related genes and proteins in gingival epithelial cells (GECs). The formation of HDs played a key role in strengthening peri-implant epithelium (PIE) sealing. Further, high-throughput transcriptome sequencing showed that GMSC sheet significantly upregulated the PI3K/AKT pathway, confirming that cell adhesion and HD expression in GECs were regulated by GMSC sheet. We observed that the expression of transcription factor CREB3L2 in GECs was downregulated. After treatment with PI3K pathway inhibitor LY294002, CREB3L2 messenger RNA and protein expression levels were upregulated. Further experiments showed that overexpression or knockdown of CREB3L2 could significantly inhibit or promote HD-related genes and proteins, respectively. We confirmed that CREB3L2 was a transcription factor downstream of the PI3K/AKT pathway and participated in the formation of HDs regulated by GMSC sheet. Finally, through the establishment of early implant placement model in rats, we clarified the molecular function of CREB3L2 in PIE sealing as a mechanical transmission molecule in GECs. The application of GMSC sheet-implant complex could enhance the formation of HDs at the implant-PIE interface and decrease the penetration distance of horseradish peroxidase between the implant and PIE. Meanwhile, GMSC sheet reduced the length of CREB3L2 protein expression on PIE. These findings elucidate the potential function and molecular mechanism of MSC sheet regulating the epithelial sealing around implants, providing new insights and ideas for the application of stem cell therapy in regenerative medicine.

Hybrid-Supervised Deep Learning for Proton-Acoustic Reconstruction for 3D In Vivo Proton Dose Verification

PURPOSE/OBJECTIVE(S)

Proton-acoustic (PA) image has shown great potential to provide real-time 3D dose verification of proton therapy. However, the PA image quality suffers from severe limited view artifacts, which significantly impairs its accuracy for dose verification. In this study, we developed a hybrid-supervised deep learning method for PA reconstruction to address the limited-view issues.

MATERIALS/METHODS

Our method consists of two stages. In the first stage, a transformer-based network was proposed to reconstruct initial pressure maps from protoacoustic signals. The network was first trained using supervision by the iteratively reconstructed pressure map and then fine-tuned using transfer learning and self-supervision based on the data fidelity constraint. In the second stage, the PA image was further enhanced by a 3D U-net. The final PA images were converted to dose maps using conversion coefficients derived from CT images. Data from 126 prostate cancer patients treated by proton therapy were collected under an IRB protocol and were split into 86 and 40 patients for model training and testing, respectively. Data of each patient contains the planning CT scan, the corresponding clinical treatment plan, and the dose map calculated by commercial software. The radiofrequency signals were generated by performing proton acoustic simulation based on CT images and the ground truth pressure map derived from the treatment plan. An ultrasound detector matrix with 64 × 64 size and 500kHz central frequency was simulated under the perineum to acquire the signals in the prostate area. In the testing results, the method's accuracy was evaluated using Root-mean-squared-error (RMSE) and structural-similarity-index-measure (SSIM) between the reconstructed and ground truth pressure map and dose distribution.

RESULTS

Testing results showed that the reconstructed pressure map achieved an average RMSE/SSIM of 0.0292/0.96, demonstrating excellent 3D information with details. Dose maps derived from the pressure map achieved an average RMSE/SSIM of 0.018/0.99 with a gamma index of 94.7% and 95.7% for 1%/3 mm and 1%/5 mm criteria compared to the ground truth dose maps. The reconstruction time was 6s, which can be further reduced using GPU.

CONCLUSION

Our study achieves start-of-the-art performance in the challenging task of direct reconstruction from limited-view radiofrequency signals, demonstrating the great promise of PA imaging as a highly efficient and accurate tool for in-vivo 3D proton dose verification. Such high-precision 3D online dose verification can substantially reduce the range uncertainties of proton therapy to significantly improve its precision and outcomes.

A Radiotherapy Positioning Method for Both Coarse Guidance and Precise Verification Based on Integration of AR and Optical Surface Imaging

PURPOSE/OBJECTIVE(S)

Traditional methods of radiotherapy positioning have shortcomings such as fragile skin-markers, additional doses and lack of information integration. Emerging technologies may provide alternatives for the relevant clinical practice. We proposed a noninvasive radiotherapy positioning method integrating augmented reality (AR) and optical surface, and evaluated its feasibility in clinical workflow.

MATERIALS/METHODS

AR and structured light-based surface were integrated to implement the coarse-to-precise positioning through two coherent steps, i) the AR-based coarse guidance. To implement quality assurance, recognition of face and pattern was used for patient authentication, case association and accessory validation in AR scenes. The holographic images reconstructed from simulation computed tomography (CT) images, guided the initial posture correction by virtual-real alignment. ii) optical surface-based precise verification. The point clouds were fused, with the calibration and pose estimation of structured light cameras, and segmented according to the preset regions of interest (ROIs). The global-to-local registration for cross-source point clouds was achieved to calculate couch shifts in 6 degrees-of-freedom (DoF), which were ultimately transmitted to AR scenes. The evaluation based on phantom and human-body (4 volunteers) included, i) quality assurance workflow, ii) errors of both steps and correlation analysis, and iii) receiver operating characteristic (ROC).

RESULTS

The maximum errors in phantom evaluation were 3.4±2.5 mm in Vrt and 1.4±1.0° in Pitch for the coarse guidance step, while 1.6±0.9 mm in Vrt and 0.6±0.4° in Pitch for the precise verification step. The Pearson correlation coefficients between precise verification and cone beam CT (CBCT) results were distributed in the interval [0.81, 0.85]. In ROC analysis, the areas under the curve (AUC) were 0.87 and 0.89 for translation and rotation respectively. In human body-based evaluation, the errors of thorax and abdomen (T&A) were significantly greater than those of head and neck (H&N) in Vrt (2.6±1.3 vs. 1.7±1.1, p<0.01), Lng (2.4±1.3 vs. 1.4±0.1, p<0.01) and Rtn (0.8±0.5 vs. 0.6±0.4, p = 0.03) while relatively similar in Lat (1.7±1.0 vs. 1.9±1.1, p = 0.13).

CONCLUSION

The combination of AR and optical surface has utility and feasibility for patient positioning, in terms of both safety and accuracy.

Identification of new biomarkers and immune infiltration characteristics of sepsis in very low birth weight infants

Sepsis is a life-threatening condition, especially in very low birth weight (VLBW) infants, and its pathogenesis remains unclear. Effective biomarkers need to be found to diagnose and treat the disease at an early stage. The Gene Expression Omnibus (GEO) database was screened and analyzed for differentially expressed genes (DEGs) in VLBW infants with sepsis. DEGs were then analyzed for functional enrichment. A weighted gene co-expression network analysis (WCGNA) was performed to identify the key modules and genes. The optimal feature genes (OFGs) were created using three machine learning algorithms. The single-sample Gene Set Enrichment Analysis (ssGSEA) scored the degree of immune cell enrichment between septic and control patients, and the correlation between OFGs and immune cells was evaluated. A total of 101 DEGs were identified between the sepsis and control samples. DEGs were mainly associated with immune responses and inflammatory signaling pathways in the enrichment analysis. In the WGCNA analysis, the MEturquoise module was significantly correlated with sepsis in VLBW infants (cor = 0.57, P < 0.001). By intersecting OFGs derived from three machine learning algorithms, two biomarkers were identified: glycogenin 1 (GYG1) and resistin (RETN). The area under the curves of GYG1 and RETN was greater than 0.97 in the testing set. The ssGSEA indicated immune cells infiltration in septic VLBW infants, and GYG1 and RETN revealed close correlations with immune cells. New biomarkers offer promising insights into the diagnosis and treatment of sepsis in VLBW infants.

Association of anemia and platelet activation with necrotizing enterocolitis with or without sepsis among low birth weight neonates: a case-control study

Background

This study aims to evaluate the value of the proportion of large platelets (PLCR) and platelet crit (PCT) in predicting necrotizing enterocolitis (NEC) in low birth weight (LBW) neonates.

Methods

A total of 155 LBW (<2,500 g) neonates with NEC, who were admitted to the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) of the hospital from January 1, 2017, to November 30, 2019, were included in the case group. According to the 1:3 case-control study design, a total of 465 LBW neonates without NEC (three for each LBW neonate with NEC), who were admitted to the NICU and born ≤24 h before or after the birth of the subjects, were included in the control group.

Results

During the study period, a total of 6,946 LBW neonates were born, of which 155 had NEC, including 92 who also had sepsis. Neonatal sepsis was the most important risk factor and confounding factor for NEC in LBW neonates. Further stratified analysis showed that in LBW neonates without sepsis, anemia [P = 0.001, odds ratio (OR) = 4.367, 95% confidence interval (CI): 1.853-10.291], high PLCR (P < 0.001, OR = 2.222, 95% CI: 1.633-3.023), and high PCT (P = 0.024, OR = 1.368, 95% CI: 1.042-1.795) increased the risk of NEC and the receiver operating characteristic curve area of PLCR, sensitivity, specificity, and cutoff value were 0.739, 0.770, 0.610, and 33.55, respectively.

Conclusions

The results showed that 2/100 LBW neonates were at risk for NEC, and the stratified analysis of the confounding factors of sepsis identified the risk factors of NEC in LBW neonates. This study first reported the significance of PLCR in the early prediction of NEC occurrence in LBW neonates without sepsis.

Distinct microbial structure and metabolic potential shaped by significant environmental gradient impacted by ferrous slag weathering

Alkaline ferrous slags pose global environmental issues and long-term risks to ambient environments. To explore the under-investigated microbial structure and biogeochemistry in such unique ecosystems, combined geochemical, microbial, ecological and metagenomic analyses were performed in the areas adjacent to a ferrous slag disposal plant in Sichuan, China. Different levels of exposure to ultrabasic slag leachate had resulted in a significant geochemical gradient of pH (8.0-12.4), electric potential (-126.9 to 437.9 mV), total organic carbon (TOC, 1.5-17.3 mg/L), and total nitrogen (TN, 0.17-1.01 mg/L). Distinct microbial communities were observed depending on their exposure to the strongly alkaline leachate. High pH and Ca2+ concentrations were associated with low microbial diversity and enrichment of bacterial classes Gamma-proteobacteria and Deinococci in the microbial communities exposed to the leachate. Combined metagenomic analyses of 4 leachate-unimpacted and 2-impacted microbial communities led to the assembly of one Serpentinomonas pangenome and 81 phylogenetically diversified metagenome assembled genomes (MAGs). The prevailing taxa in the leachate-impacted habitats (e.g., Serpentinomonas and Meiothermus spp.) were phylogenetically related to those in active serpentinizing ecosystems, suggesting the analogous processes between the man-made and natural systems. More importantly, they accounted for significant abundance of most functional genes associated with environmental adaptation and major element cycling. Their metabolic potential (e.g., cation/H+ antiporters, carbon fixation on lithospheric carbon source, and respiration coupling sulfur oxidization and oxygen or nitrate reduction) may support these taxa to survive and prosper in these unique geochemical niches. This study provides fundamental understandings of the adaptive strategies of microorganisms in response to the strong environmental perturbation by alkali tailings. It also contributes to a better comprehension of how to remediate environments affected by alkaline industrial material.

Bioinformatic Analysis and Machine Learning Methods in Neonatal Sepsis: Identification of Biomarkers and Immune Infiltration

The disease neonatal sepsis (NS) poses a serious threat to life, and its pathogenesis remains unclear. Using the Gene Expression Omnibus (GEO) database, differentially expressed genes (DEGs) were identified and functional enrichment analyses were conducted. Three machine learning algorithms containing the least absolute shrinkage and selection operator (LASSO), support vector machine recursive feature elimination (SVM-RFE), and random forest (RF) were applied to identify the optimal feature genes (OFGs). This study conducted CIBERSORT to present the abundance of immune infiltrates between septic and control neonates and assessed the relationship between OFGs and immune cells. In total, 44 DEGs were discovered between the septic and control newborns. Throughout the enrichment analysis, DEGs were primarily related to inflammatory signaling pathways and immune responses. The OFGs derived from machine learning algorithms were intersected to yield four biomarkers, namely Hexokinase 3 (HK3), Cystatin 7 (CST7), Resistin (RETN), and Glycogenin 1 (GYG1). The potential biomarkers were validated in other datasets and LPS-stimulated HEUVCs. Septic infants showed a higher proportion of neutrophils (p < 0.001), M0 macrophages (p < 0.001), and regulatory T cells (p = 0.004). HK3, CST7, RETN, and GYG1 showed significant correlations with immune cells. Overall, the biomarkers offered promising insights into the molecular mechanisms of immune regulation for the prediction and treatment of NS.

[Targeting microRNA-125b inhibited the metastasis of Alisertib resistance cells through mediating p53 pathway]

Objective: To clarify the mechanisms involvement in Alisertib-resistant colorectal cells and explore a potential target to overcome Alisertib-resistance. Methods: Drug-resistant colon cancer cell line (named as HCT-8-7T cells) was established and transplanted into immunodeficient mice. The metastasis in vivo were observed. Proliferation and migration of HCT-8-7T cells and their parental cells were assessed by colony formation and Transwell assay, respectively. Glycolytic capacity and glutamine metabolism of cells were analyzed by metabolism assays. The protein and mRNA levels of critical factors which are involved in mediating glycolysis and epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) were examined by western blot and reverse transcription-quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction(RT-qPCR), respectively. Results: In comparison with the mice transplanted with HCT-8 cells, which were survival with limited metastatic tumor cells in organs, aggressive metastases were observed in liver, lung, kidney and ovary of HCT-8-7T transplanted mice (P<0.05). The levels of ATP [(0.10±0.01) mmol/L], glycolysis [(81.77±8.21) mpH/min] and the capacity of glycolysis [(55.50±3.48) mpH/min] in HCT-8-7T cells were higher than those of HCT-8 cells [(0.04±0.01) mmol/L, (27.77±2.55) mpH/min and(14.00±1.19) mpH/min, respectively, P<0.05]. Meanwhile, the levels of p53 protein and mRNA in HCT-8-7T cells were potently decreased as compared to that in HCT-8 cells (P<0.05). However, the level of miRNA-125b (2.21±0.12) in HCT-8-7T cells was significantly elevated as compared to that in HCT-8 cells (1.00±0.00, P<0.001). In HCT-8-7T cells, forced-expression of p53 reduced the colon number (162.00±24.00) and the migration [(18.53±5.67)%] as compared with those in cells transfected with control vector [274.70±40.50 and (100.00±29.06)%, P<0.05, respectively]. Similarly, miR-125b mimic decreased the glycolysis [(25.28±9.51) mpH/min] in HCT-8-7T cells as compared with that [(54.38±12.70)mpH/min, P=0.003] in HCT-8-7T cells transfected with control. Meanwhile, in comparison with control transfected HCT-8-7T cells, miR-125b mimic also significantly led to an increase in the levels of p53 and β-catenin, in parallel with a decrease in the levels of PFK1 and HK1 in HCT-8-7T cells (P<0.05). Conclusions: Silencing of p53 by miR-125b could be one of the mechanisms that contributes to Alisertib resistance. Targeting miR-125b could be a strategy to overcome Alisertib resistance.

Ligand-Controlled Electroreduction of CO2 to Formate over Facet-Defined Bimetallic Sulfide Nanoplates

CO₂ reduction (CO₂R) catalyzed by an efficient, stable, and earth-abundant electrocatalyst offers an attractive means to store energy derived from renewable sources. Here, we describe the synthesis of facet-defined Cu₂SnS₃ nanoplates and the ligand-controlled CO₂R property. We show that thiocyanate-capped Cu₂SnS₃ nanoplates possess excellent selectivity toward formate over a wide range of potentials and current densities, attaining a maximum formate Faradaic efficiency of 92% and partial current densities as high as 181 mA cm^-2 when tested using a flow cell with gas-diffusion electrode. In situ spectroscopic measurements and theoretical calculations reveal that the high formate selectivity originates from favorable adsorption of HCOO* intermediates on cationic Sn sites that are electronically modulated by thiocyanates bound to adjacent Cu sites. Our work illustrates that well-defined multimetallic sulfide nanocrystals with tailored surface chemistries could provide a new avenue for future CO₂R electrocatalyst design.

Leveraging trans-ethnic genetic risk scores to improve association power for complex traits in underrepresented populations

Trans-ethnic genome-wide association studies have revealed that many loci identified in European populations can be reproducible in non-European populations, indicating widespread trans-ethnic genetic similarity. However, how to leverage such shared information more efficiently in association analysis is less investigated for traits in underrepresented populations. We here propose a statistical framework, trans-ethnic genetic risk score informed gene-based association mixed model (GAMM), by hierarchically modeling single-nucleotide polymorphism effects in the target population as a function of effects of the same trait in well-studied populations. GAMM powerfully integrates genetic similarity across distinct ancestral groups to enhance power in understudied populations, as confirmed by extensive simulations. We illustrate the usefulness of GAMM via the application to 13 blood cell traits (i.e. basophil count, eosinophil count, hematocrit, hemoglobin concentration, lymphocyte count, mean corpuscular hemoglobin, mean corpuscular hemoglobin concentration, mean corpuscular volume, monocyte count, neutrophil count, platelet count, red blood cell count and total white blood cell count) in Africans of the UK Biobank (n = 3204) while utilizing genetic overlap shared in Europeans (n = 746 667) and East Asians (n = 162 255). We discovered multiple new associated genes, which had otherwise been missed by existing methods, and revealed that the trans-ethnic information indirectly contributed much to the phenotypic variance. Overall, GAMM represents a flexible and powerful statistical framework of association analysis for complex traits in underrepresented populations by integrating trans-ethnic genetic similarity across well-studied populations, and helps attenuate health inequities in current genetics research for people of minority populations.

Ultrasensitive photoelectrochemical detection of glutathione based on the multifunctional catalytic properties of phosphotungstic acid

A novel photoelectrochemical (PEC) sensor was constructed for the highly sensitive detection of reduced glutathione (GSH) based on the multiple catalytic properties of phosphotungstic acid (PTA). In this work, the catalytic properties of PTA were applied to PEC sensing for the first time and interpreted in detail. First, PTA as an electron acceptor can inhibit the complexation of photogenerated electron-hole pairs in p-Cu₂O, thus significantly increasing the photogenerated current of p-type semiconductor material Cu₂O. Secondly, when GSH is oxidized to oxidized glutathione (GSSG) by photogenerated holes on the photocathode, PTA is able to reduce GSSG to GSH by transferring protons, forming a redox cycle regeneration process of GSH. Finally, the relatively large amount of PTA in the background solution was able to pre-oxidize interfering substances such as L-cysteine and ascorbic acid, which improved the selectivity of the method. Under the optimal experimental conditions, the linear range of the PEC sensor response to GSH was 0.050-100 nmol L^-1, with a detection limit as low as 0.017 nmol L^-1 (S/N = 3), which can be applied to the detection of GSH content in cell lysate samples.

Ribonuclease 1 Enhances Antitumor Immunity against Breast Cancer by Boosting T cell Activation

The secretory enzyme human ribonuclease 1 (RNase1) is involved in innate immunity and anti-inflammation, achieving host defense and anti-cancer effects; however, whether RNase1 contributes to adaptive immune response in the tumor microenvironment (TME) remains unclear. Here, we established a syngeneic immunocompetent mouse model in breast cancer and demonstrated that ectopic RNase1 expression significantly inhibited tumor progression. Overall changes in immunological profiles in the mouse tumors were analyzed by mass cytometry and showed that the RNase1-expressing tumor cells significantly induced CD4⁺ Th1 and Th17 cells and natural killer cells and reduced granulocytic myeloid-derived suppressor cells, supporting that RNase1 favors an antitumor TME. Specifically, RNase1 increased expression of T cell activation marker CD69 in a CD4⁺ T cell subset. Notably, analysis of cancer-killing potential revealed that T cell-mediated antitumor immunity was enhanced by RNase1, which further collaborated with an EGFR-CD3 bispecific antibody to protect against breast cancer cells across molecular subtypes. Our results uncover a tumor-suppressive role of RNase1 through adaptive immune response in breast cancer in vivo and in vitro, providing a potential treatment strategy of combining RNase1 with cancer immunotherapies for immunocompetent patients.

Non-Abelian braiding of graph vertices in a superconducting processor

Indistinguishability of particles is a fundamental principle of quantum mechanics¹. For all elementary and quasiparticles observed to date-including fermions, bosons and Abelian anyons-this principle guarantees that the braiding of identical particles leaves the system unchanged^2,3. However, in two spatial dimensions, an intriguing possibility exists: braiding of non-Abelian anyons causes rotations in a space of topologically degenerate wavefunctions^4-8. Hence, it can change the observables of the system without violating the principle of indistinguishability. Despite the well-developed mathematical description of non-Abelian anyons and numerous theoretical proposals^9-22, the experimental observation of their exchange statistics has remained elusive for decades. Controllable many-body quantum states generated on quantum processors offer another path for exploring these fundamental phenomena. Whereas efforts on conventional solid-state platforms typically involve Hamiltonian dynamics of quasiparticles, superconducting quantum processors allow for directly manipulating the many-body wavefunction by means of unitary gates. Building on predictions that stabilizer codes can host projective non-Abelian Ising anyons^9,10, we implement a generalized stabilizer code and unitary protocol²³ to create and braid them. This allows us to experimentally verify the fusion rules of the anyons and braid them to realize their statistics. We then study the prospect of using the anyons for quantum computation and use braiding to create an entangled state of anyons encoding three logical qubits. Our work provides new insights about non-Abelian braiding and, through the future inclusion of error correction to achieve topological protection, could open a path towards fault-tolerant quantum computing.

[Molecular pathological mechanism of liver metabolic disorder in mice with severe spinal muscular atrophy]

OBJECTIVE

To explore the molecular pathological mechanism of liver metabolic disorder in severe spinal muscular atrophy (SMA).

METHODS

The transgenic mice with type Ⅰ SMA (Smn^-/- SMN2^0tg/2tg) and littermate control mice (Smn^+/- SMN2^0tg/2tg) were observed for milk suckling behavior and body weight changes after birth. The mice with type Ⅰ SMA mice were given an intraperitoneal injection of 20% glucose solution or saline (15 μL/12 h), and their survival time was recorded. GO enrichment analysis was performed using the RNA-Seq data of the liver of type Ⅰ SMA and littermate control mice, and the results were verified using quantitative real-time PCR. Bisulfite sequencing was performed to examine CpG island methylation level in Fasn gene promoter region in the liver of the neonatal mice.

RESULTS

The neonatal mice with type Ⅰ SMA showed normal milk suckling behavior but had lower body weight than the littermate control mice on the second day after birth. Intraperitoneal injection of glucose solution every 12 h significantly improved the median survival time of type Ⅰ SMA mice from 9±1.3 to 11± 1.5 days (P < 0.05). Analysis of the RNA-Seq data of the liver showed that the expression of the target genes of PPARα related to lipid metabolism and mitochondrial β oxidation were down-regulated in the liver of type Ⅰ SMA mice. Type Ⅰ SMA mice had higher methylation level of the Fasn promoter region in the liver than the littermate control mice (76.44% vs 58.67%). In primary cultures of hepatocytes from type Ⅰ SMA mice, treatment with 5-AzaC significantly up-regulated the expressions of the genes related to lipid metabolism by over 1 fold (P < 0.01).

CONCLUSION

Type Ⅰ SMA mice have liver metabolic disorder, and the down-regulation of the target genes of PPARα related to lipid and glucose metabolism due to persistent DNA methylation contributes to the progression of SMA.

NUDT5-Determines the fate of head and neck squamous cell carcinoma cells under endoplasmic reticulum stress by catalyzing nuclear ATP production to promote DNA repair

OBJECTIVES

NUDT5 is the only discovered enzyme that catalyses ATP production in cell nuclei. In this study, we investigate the character of NUDT5 in head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC) cells under endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress.

METHODS

The formation of ER stress was confirmed in HNSCC cells using Real-time PCR and Western blot techniques. The expression of NUDT5 was modified by transfecting HNSCC cells with siRNA and plasmids, respectively. The effects of NUDT5 manipulation were assessed using various methods including cell counting kit-8 assay, western blotting, RNA sequencing, Immunofluorescence Microscopy analysis, cell cycle analysis and nucleic ATP measurement, and a xenograft mouse model.

RESULTS

In this study, we found that the expression of NUDT5 proteins was upregulated under ER stress conditions in HNSCC cells. Knocking down NUDT5 under ER stress could hinder nuclear ATP generation and thus induce more DNA damage and apoptosis of HNSCC cells. Only the wild-type NUDT5 or ATP catalysis active mutant T45A-NUDT5, rather than the ATP catalysis null mutant T45D-NUDT5, could directly rescue nuclear ATP depletion caused by NUDT5 inhibition and protect HNSCC cells from DNA damage and cell apoptosis. Finally, in vivo studies showed that knocking down NUDT5 in ER-stressed conditions could significantly inhibit tumour growth.

CONCLUSION

Our study demonstrated for the first time that NUDT5 guaranteed the integrity of DNA under ER stress-triggered DNA damage by catalysing nuclear ATP production. Our findings offer new insights into how the energy supply in cell nuclei fuels cancer cell survival in stressful microenvironment.

Linking DOM characteristics to microbial community: The potential role of DOM mineralization for arsenic release in shallow groundwater

Dissolved organic matter (DOM) play critical roles in arsenic (As) biotransformation in groundwater, but its compositional characteristics and interactions with indigenous microbial communities remain unclear. In this study, DOM signatures coupled with taxonomy and functions of microbial community were characterized in As-enriched groundwater by excitation-emission matrix, Fourier transform ion cyclotron resonance mass spectrometry and metagenomic sequencing. Results showed that As concentrations were significantly positively correlated with DOM humification (r = 0.707, p < 0.01) and the most dominant humic acid-like DOM components (r = 0.789, p < 0.01). Molecular characterization further demonstrated high DOM oxidation degree, with the prevalence of unsaturated oxygen-low aromatics, nitrogen (N₁/N₂)-containing compounds and unique CHO molecules in high As groundwater. These DOM properties were consistent with microbial composition and functional potentials. Both taxonomy and binning analyses demonstrated the dominance of Pseudomonas stutzeri, Microbacterium and Sphingobium xenophagum in As-enriched groundwater which possessed abundant As-reducing gene, with organic carbon degrading genes capable of labile to recalcitrant compounds degradation and high potentials of organic nitrogen mineralization to generate ammonium. Besides, most assembled bins in high As groundwater presented strong fermentation potentials which could facilitate carbon utilization by heterotrophic microbes. This study provides better insight into the potential role of DOM mineralization for As release in groundwater system.

High-throughput photo-chemiluminescence imaging for HIV DNA determination based on a sulfur-doped graphitic carbonitride photocatalyst

In this work, a novel photo-chemiluminescence (PCL) array imaging technique was developed to detect HIV DNA sequences using water-dispersed ultrathin sulfur-doped g-C₃N₄ porous nanosheets (SCNNSs) as photocatalysts, with complementary chains of HIV DNA as the biorecognition elements. The PCL response was enhanced when a suitable amount of SCNNSs was used. The large specific surface area and π-conjugated structure of the SCNNSs provided a good platform for immobilizing the complementary chains of HIV DNA. When DNA complementary chains were present, some of the catalytically active sites of SCNNSs were blocked, and the PCL of the platform was weakened. When the HIV DNA was added, the DNA double chain was far away from the surfaces of the SCNNSs because the stacking interactions between the formed dsDNA and SCNNSs were weak. Therefore, the addition of the target HIV DNA sequence noticeably restored the signal. In the range of 5.00 × 10^-8 M to 200 × 10^-8 M, the enhanced PCL response was linearly related to the concentration of the HIV DNA sequence, and the detection limit (3S/N) was 1.50 × 10^-8 mol L^-1. In addition, the combination of SCNNSs with complementary chains of HIV DNA successfully produced a high-performance PCL imaging sensor. In these proof-of-concept experiments, we demonstrated that our method was fast, portable, and ultra-sensitive, with high throughput.