Development

RESEARCH QUESTION: Does the observed correlation between dyslipidaemia and endometriosis indicate a bidirectional causal association? DESIGN: Bidirectional Mendelian randomization was used to investigate the causal association between lipid traits and endometriosis. Drug-target Mendelian randomization was used to explore potential drug-target genes for managing endometriosis. In cases where lipid-mediated effects via specific drug targets were significant, aggregate analyses, such as summary-data-based Mendelian randomization and colocalization methods, were introduced to validate the outcomes...

Three-dimensional (3D) organoid models have been instrumental in understanding molecular mechanisms responsible for many cellular processes and diseases. However, established organic biomaterial scaffolds used for 3D hydrogel cultures, such as Matrigel, are biochemically complex and display significant batch variability, limiting reproducibility in experiments. Recently, there has been significant progress in the development of synthetic hydrogels for in vitro cell culture that are reproducible, mechanically tuneable, and biocompatible...

Development is a chain reaction in which one event leads to another until the completion of a life cycle. Phase transitions are milestone events in the cycle of life. LEAFY COTYLEDON1 (LEC1), ABA INSENSITIVE3 (ABI3), FUSCA3 (FUS3), and LEC2 proteins, collectively known as LAFL, are master transcription factors (TFs) regulating seed and other developmental processes. Since the initial characterization of the LAFL genes (44, 71, 98-100), more than three decades of active research has generated tremendous amounts of knowledge about these TFs, whose roles in seed development and germination have been comprehensively reviewed (63, 43, 65, 81)...

High performance organic solar cells (OSCs) are usually realized by using thermal post-treatment and/or additive, which can induce the formation of metastable morphology, leading to unfavorable device stability. In terms of the industrial production, the development of high efficiency as-cast OSCs is crucially important, but it remains a great challenge to obtain appropriate active layer morphology and high power conversion efficiency (PCE). Here, efficient as-cast OSCs are constructed via introducing a new polymer acceptor PY-TPT with a high dielectric constant into the D18:L8-BO blend to form a double-fibril network morphology...

Portable fluorescent film sensors offer a solution to the contamination issue in homogeneous sensor detection systems. However, their special structure leads to low sensitivity and a long response time, resulting in a significant scientific challenge limiting their development and application. In this work, we propose a dual design strategy to prepare highly sensitive film sensors for rapidly detecting Cr2 O7 2- . Specifically, P(Fmoc-Osu)-SA hydrogel films were developed by integrating the biological macromolecule sodium alginate (SA) with the conjugated polymer poly( N -(9-Fluorenylmethoxycarbonyloxy)succinimide) (P(Fmoc-Osu)), using both mold and inkjet 3D printing methods...

Rare subtypes of peripheral T-cell lymphoma (PTCL) including enteropathy-associated T-cell lymphoma (EATL), monomorphic epitheliotropic intestinal T-cell lymphoma (MEITL), subcutaneous panniculitis-like T-cell lymphoma (SPTCL) and hepatosplenic T-cell lymphoma (HSTCL) are underrepresented in most registry and clinical studies. Most of the literature is obtained from small case series, single-institution retrospective studies and subgroup analyses of the largest studies with few recent and ongoing exceptions...

The severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2), a novel coronavirus, is the causative agent responsible for the spread of the COVID19 pandemic across the globe. The global impact of the COVID19 pandemic, the successful approval of vaccines for controlling the pandemic, and the further resurgence of COVID19 necessitate the exploration and validation of alternative therapeutic avenues targeting SARS-CoV-2. The initial entry and further invasion by SARS-CoV-2 require strong protein-protein interactions (PPIs) between the receptor-binding domain (RBD) of the SARS-CoV-2 spike protein and the human angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (ACE2) receptors expressed on the cell surfaces of various tissues...

BACKGROUND: Understanding a student's depressive symptoms could facilitate significantly more precise diagnosis and treatment. However, few studies have focused on depressive symptom prediction through unobtrusive systems, and these studies are limited by small sample sizes, low performance, and the requirement for higher resources. In addition, research has not explored whether statistically significant rhythms based on different app usage behavioral markers (eg, app usage sessions) exist that could be useful in finding subtle differences to predict with higher accuracy like the models based on rhythms of physiological data...

BACKGROUND: Tinnitus is a complex and heterogeneous disease that has been identified as a common manifestation of COVID-19. To gain a comprehensive understanding of tinnitus symptoms in individuals following COVID-19 infection, we conducted an online survey called the China Ear Nose and Throat Symptom Survey in the COVID-19 Pandemic (CENTSS) among the Chinese population. OBJECTIVE: Our objective was to investigate tinnitus and ear-related symptoms after COVID-19 infection in the Chinese population, with the aim of providing a solid empirical foundation for improved health care...

BACKGROUND: Understanding patient preference regarding taking tablet or capsule formulations plays a pivotal role in treatment efficacy and adherence. Therefore, these preferences should be taken into account when designing formulations and prescriptions. OBJECTIVE: This study investigates the factors affecting patient preference in patients who have difficulties swallowing large tablets or capsules and aims to identify appropriate sizes for tablets and capsules...

Bone tissue engineering strategies incorporating mesenchymal stromal cells (MSC), hydrogels and osteoinductive signals offer great promise for bone repair and regeneration. Commonly used osteoinductive signals such as growth factors face challenges in clinical translation due to their high cost, low stability and potential immunogenicity. Therefore, interest is growing in the delivery of microRNAs as a simple, inexpensive and powerful alternative to modulate MSC osteogenesis. Nevertheless, challenges associated with the selection of appropriate miRNA candidates and their efficient delivery must be overcome to make this a reality...

Herein, a fiber-supported iron-based ionic liquid as a type of fibrous catalyst has been developed for the synthesis of bioactive 3,4-dihydropyrimidin-2-(1 H )-ones (DHPMs) via three-component Biginelli reactions in a cleaner manner. The described fibrous catalyst was obtained from the commercially available polyetheretherketone (PEEK) fiber by postfunctionalization processes and was characterized and analyzed in detail by means of diversified technologies. Furthermore, the fiber-supported iron-based ionic liquids could mediate the classical three-component Biginelli reactions to proceed smoothly to gain a variety of substituted DHPMs with yields of up to 99%...

This study examines the synthesis and evaluation of 11 newly developed compounds as potential anti-Alzheimer's agents that occur via cholinesterase and β-secretase inhibition. The compounds were tested for their inhibitory activity against acetylcholinesterase (AChE) and butyrylcholinesterase (BChE) using the modified Ellman method. The results showed that several compounds exhibited significant inhibition of AChE, particularly compounds 6d, 7a, and 7e, which demonstrated high inhibitory activity at lower concentrations, with IC50 values of 0...

BACKGROUND: Parkinson's disease is a progressive neurodegenerative disorder. The majority of the nearly 9 million people living with Parkinson's disease are men. As such, caregiving is often assumed by wives as the disease progresses. However, there is little research about the lived experience of wives as they transition to caregivers. OBJECTIVE: To describe the lived experience of wife caregivers of male spouses living at home with Parkinson's disease. METHODS: A descriptive phenomenological study...

BACKGROUND: Psoriasis was long regarded as an inflammatory disease limited to the skin. Data from dermatologic, rheumatologic and cardiologic research now show it to be a systemic disease, for which the term psoriatic disease is used. METHODS: This paper is based on a selective literature search with special attention to the findings of clinical trials and other current publications, as well as the recommendations of international guidelines. RESULTS: Immunologically mediated inflammation of the skin, arteries, bones, and joints is a central feature of psoriatic disease...

Although transition metals constitute less than 0.1% of the total mass within a human body, they have a substantial impact on fundamental biological processes across all kingdoms of life. Indeed, these nutrients play crucial roles in the physiological functions of enzymes, with the redox properties of many of these metals being essential to their activity. At the same time, imbalances in transition metal pools can be detrimental to health. Modern analytical techniques are helping to illuminate the workings of metal homeostasis at a molecular and atomic level, their spatial localization in real time, and the implications of metal dysregulation in disease pathogenesis...

Anterior cervical spine surgery (ACSS) is a surgical intervention widely used for a myriad of indications including degenerative, oncologic, inflammatory, traumatic, and congenital spinal conditions. A primary concern for surgeons performing ACSS is the postoperative development of oropharyngeal dysphagia. Current literature reports a wide incidence of this complication ranging from 1 to 79%. Dysphagia after ACSS is multifactorial, with common risk factors being prolonged duration of operation, revision surgeries, multilevel surgeries, and use of recombinant human bone morphogenetic protein-2...

Microbial metabolism is a fundamental cellular process that involves many biochemical events and is distinguished by its emergent properties. While the molecular details of individual reactions have been increasingly elucidated, it is not well understood how these reactions are quantitatively orchestrated to produce collective cellular behaviors. Here we developed a coarse-grained, systems, and dynamic mathematical framework, which integrates metabolic reactions with signal transduction and gene regulation to dissect the emergent metabolic traits of Saccharomyces cerevisiae ...

Modulating the electrical properties of two-dimensional (2D) materials is a fundamental prerequisite for their development to advanced electronic and optoelectronic devices. Substitutional doping has been demonstrated as an effective method for tuning the band structure in monolayer 2D materials. Here, we demonstrate a facile selective-area growth of vanadium-doped molybdenum disulfide (V-doped MoS2 ) flakes via pre-patterned vanadium-metal-assisted chemical vapor deposition (CVD). Optical microscopy characterization revealed the presence of flake arrays...

Cytotoxic enzymes often exist as zymogens containing prodomains to keep them in an inactive state. Protein-glutaminase (PG), which can enhance various functional characteristics of food proteins, is an enzyme containing pro-PG and mature-PG (mPG). However, poor activity and stability limit its application while tedious purification and activation steps limit its high-throughput engineering. Here, based on structural analysis, we replaced the linker sequence between pro-PG and mPG with the HRV3C protease recognition sequence and then coexpressed it with HRV3C protease in Escherichia coli to develop an efficient one-step purification and activation method for PG...