MDC-RHT: Multi-Modal Medical Image Fusion via Multi-Dimensional Dynamic Convolution and Residual Hybrid Transformer.

The fusion of multi-modal medical images has great significance for comprehensive diagnosis and treatment. However, the large differences between the various modalities of medical images make multi-modal medical image fusion a great challenge. This paper proposes a novel multi-scale fusion network based on multi-dimensional dynamic convolution and residual hybrid transformer, which has better capability for feature extraction and context modeling and improves the fusion performance. Specifically, the proposed network exploits multi-dimensional dynamic convolution that introduces four attention mechanisms corresponding to four different dimensions of the convolutional kernel to extract more detailed information. Meanwhile, a residual hybrid transformer is designed, which activates more pixels to participate in the fusion process by channel attention, window attention, and overlapping cross attention, thereby strengthening the long-range dependence between different modes and enhancing the connection of global context information. A loss function, including perceptual loss and structural similarity loss, is designed, where the former enhances the visual reality and perceptual details of the fused image, and the latter enables the model to learn structural textures. The whole network adopts a multi-scale architecture and uses an unsupervised end-to-end method to realize multi-modal image fusion. Finally, our method is tested qualitatively and quantitatively on mainstream datasets. The fusion results indicate that our method achieves high scores in most quantitative indicators and satisfactory performance in visual qualitative analysis.

Associations of uric acid with the risk of cardiovascular disease and all-cause mortality among individuals with chronic kidney disease: the Kailuan Study.

AIMS: The relationship between uric acid (UA) concentrations and the risk of cardiovascular disease (CVD), especially for subtypes of CVD among individuals with chronic kidney disease (CKD) is not well understood. This study aimed to investigate whether uric acid concentration was associated with subtypes of CVD and all-cause mortality among individuals with CKD. METHODS: A total of 27,707 individuals with CKD, free of CVD at recruitment from the Kailuan Study, were included. Cox proportional hazards regression models were used to compute hazard ratios (HRs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs). RESULTS: Over a median follow-up of 11-12 years, we documented 674 myocardial infarctions, 1197 heart failures, 2406 strokes, and 5676 total deaths. Among participants with CKD, compared with those in the lowest tertile of UA, the HRs (95% CIs) of participants in the highest UA tertile were 1.38 (1.13-1.67) for myocardial infarction, 1.60 (1.38-1.85) for heart failure, 1.01 (0.91-1.12) for stroke, and 1.29 (1.21-1.38) for all-cause mortality. Subgroup analyses showed that the associations between UA and heart failure and all-cause mortality were stronger in individuals with eGFR <45 mL/min/1.73m2 compared to their counterparts (Pinteraction<0.05). Additionally, the association between UA and all-cause mortality was stronger among individuals without diabetes than those with diabetes (Pinteraction<0.05). CONCLUSIONS: In individuals with CKD, a higher concentration of UA was associated with a higher risk of myocardial infarction, heart failure, and all-cause mortality, following a dose-response relationship. Our data underscore the importance of UA screening among individuals with CKD for CVD and premature death prevention.

This study investigated the relationship between uric acid (UA) concentrations and the risk of cardiovascular disease and all-cause mortality in individuals with chronic kidney disease (CKD) using the Kailuan Study. A higher concentration of UA was associated with a higher risk of myocardial infarction, heart failure, and all-cause mortality among individuals with CKD, following a dose-response manner.The associations between concentrations of UA and the risk of heart failure and all-cause mortality were more pronounced in individuals with severe kidney impairment (estimated glomerular filtration rate <45 mL/min/1.73m2). Furthermore, the association between UA and all-cause mortality was stronger among individuals without diabetes compared to those with the condition.

Evaluation of the applicability of hospital-affiliated green spaces to patient recovery using the entropy weight method and grey relational analysis.

Introduction: Hospital affiliated green spaces can help patients recover and recover their physical functions, promote physical and mental relaxation, enhance health awareness, and improve overall health. However, there are still significant questions about how to scientifically construct hospital affiliated green spaces. This study examines the impact of hospital green spaces on patient rehabilitation through scientific evaluation methods, providing reference for the scientific construction of hospital affiliated green spaces. Applicability evaluation was conducted on the affiliated green spaces of three hospitals in Harbin. An evaluation system covering plants, space, accessibility, rehabilitation functions, and promotional and educational functions has been constructed. The entropy weight method is used to determine the weight of indicators, and the grey correlation analysis method is used to evaluate the suitability of green space for patient rehabilitation. Methods: The experimental results showed that the landscape accessibility index had the highest weight (0.3005) and the plant index had the lowest weight (0.1628), indicating that caring for special needs is the foundation of hospital landscapes, and plants have subtle and long-term effects on physical and mental health. In the evaluation of the rehabilitation applicability of the affiliated green spaces of various hospitals, the second hospital has the highest grey correlation degree (0.8525), followed by the tumor hospital (0.5306) and the fifth hospital (0.4846). It can be seen that the green space of the second hospital has high applicability for patient rehabilitation, but the green space of the tumor hospital and the fifth hospital needs to be improved and developed. Results and discussion: The evaluation criteria used in this study are comprehensive. The landscaping at the Third Hospital is well-planned with good plant configuration and reasonable spatial layout. However, there is insufficient consideration for accessibility in the landscape design, and the details are lacking. The rehabilitation and educational functions of the landscape are inadequate, with limited outdoor activities and low road safety. The hospital's affiliated green spaces should adhere to the principle of "appropriate scale, comprehensive functionality, and educational leisure," integrating rehabilitation and educational functions while increasing the variety of outdoor activities. In the future, emphasis should be placed on exploring the integration of landscape and rehabilitation to provide a functional site that is convenient for visiting, with improved rehabilitation facilities and an educational and enjoyable environment. The design should incorporate elements that contribute to a sense of well-being, including roads and.

Gestational organophosphate esters (OPEs) exposure in association with placental DNA methylation levels of peroxisome proliferator-activated receptors (PPARs) signaling pathway-related genes.

BACKGROUND: Organophosphate esters (OPEs) exposure could affect offspring health. However, the underlying mechanisms are not well documented. OBJECTIVES: Based on a birth cohort study, we aimed to investigate the associations among gestational OPEs exposure, placental DNA methylation levels of peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor (PPAR) signaling pathway-related genes, and fetal growth. METHODS: We measured the concentrations of eight OPE metabolites in maternal urine samples and neonatal anthropometric measurements in 733 mother-child pairs. In 327 placental samples, we assessed the DNA methylation levels of 14 genes which were involved in the PPARs signaling pathway and expressed in placenta. Multiple linear regression models were used to examine the associations of OPEs exposure with placental DNA methylation, and of OPEs and placental DNA methylation with neonatal anthropometric measurements. Causal mediation analyses were conducted to examine the potential mediating role of placental DNA methylation in the pathway between OPEs exposure and fetal growth. RESULTS: We observed a general pattern of OPEs exposure being associated with hypermethylation of candidate genes, with statistically significant associations identified for several OPEs with RXRA, ACAA1, ACADL, ACADM, PLTP, and NR1H3 methylation. Further, gestational exposure to BCIPP, DPP, BBOEP, ∑NCl-OPEs, and ∑OPEs tended to be associated with lower anthropometric measurements, with more significant associations observed on arm circumference, and abdominal and back skinfold thickness. Notably, RXRA, ACAA1, ACOX1, CPT2, ACADM, and NR1H3 methylation tended to be associated with lower neonatal anthropometric measurements, especially for abdominal and back skinfold thickness. Moreover, mediation analyses showed that 19.42 % of the total effect of DPP on the back skinfold thickness was mediated by changes in RXRA methylation, and there was a significant indirect effect of RXRA methylation. CONCLUSIONS: Gestational OPEs exposure could disrupt the placental DNA methylation levels of PPAR signaling pathway-related genes, which might contribute to the effect of OPEs on fetal growth.

Regioselective and enantioselective propargylic hydroxylations catalyzed by P450tol monooxygenases.

Regioselective and enantioselective hydroxylation of propargylic C-H bonds are useful reactions but often lack appropriate catalysts. Here a green and efficient asymmetric hydroxylation of primary and secondary C-H bonds at propargylic positions has been established. A series of optically active propargylic alcohols were prepared with high regio- and enantioselectivity (up to 99% ee) under mild reaction conditions by using P450tol, while the C≡C bonds in the molecule remained unreacted. This protocol provides a green and practical method for constructing enantiomerically chiral propargylic alcohols. In addition, we also demonstrated that the biohydroxylation strategy was able to scaled up to 2.25 mmol scale with the production of chiral propargyl alcohol 2a at a yield of 196 mg with 96% ee, which's an important synthetic intermediate of antifungal drug Ravuconazole.

Dihydroartemisinin inhibits HNSCC invasion and migration by controlling miR-195-5p expression.

Objectives: Dihydroartemisinin (DHA), an artemisinin derivative extracted from the traditional Chinese medicinal herb Artemisia annua, has the potential to suppress head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC) progression. However, the mechanisms underlying these effects remain unclear. Therefore, we aimed to examine the mechanisms underlying the effects of DHA on tumor invasion and migration. Methods: Human HNSCC cell lines CAL-27 and FaDu were exposed to varying DHA concentrations (0, 5, 20, and 80 µM) for 24 h. Cell proliferation, invasion, and migration were assessed using CCK8, transwell, and wound-healing assays, respectively. Quantitative real-time PCR, western blotting, and immunofluorescence were used to assess the expression levels of the target genes and proteins. Results: DHA suppressed the invasion and migration of CAL-27 and FaDu cells. Additionally, miR-195-5p suppressed the invasion and migration of HNSCC cells. This study revealed significant differences in the expression of miR-195-5p and TENM2 between clinical samples and multiple public databases. DHA treatment and miR-195-5p overexpression significantly reduced TENM2 expression in HNSCC cells, which suggested that miR-195-5p overexpression enhanced the inhibitory effect of DHA on TENM2. Conclusions: This study provides the first evidence that DHA inhibits cell invasion and migration by regulating the miR-195-5p/TENM2 axis in HNSCC cells, suggesting it as a potentially effective treatment strategy for HNSCC.

Neuroimmune modulating and energy supporting nanozyme-mimic scaffold synergistically promotes axon regeneration after spinal cord injury.

Spinal cord injury (SCI) represents a profound central nervous system affliction, resulting in irreversibly compromised daily activities and disabilities. SCI involves excessive inflammatory responses, which are characterized by the existence of high levels of proinflammatory M1 macrophages, and neuronal mitochondrial energy deficit, exacerbating secondary damage and impeding axon regeneration. This study delves into the mechanistic intricacies of SCI, offering insights from the perspectives of neuroimmune regulation and mitochondrial function, leading to a pro-fibrotic macrophage phenotype and energy-supplying deficit. To address these challenges, we developed a smart scaffold incorporating enzyme mimicry nanoparticle-ceriumoxide (COPs) into nanofibers (NS@COP), which aims to pioneer a targeted neuroimmune repair strategy, rescuing CGRP receptor on macrophage and concurrently remodeling mitochondrial function. Our findings indicate that the integrated COPs restore the responsiveness of pro-inflammatory macrophages to calcitonin gene-related peptide (CGRP) signal by up-regulating receptor activity modifying protein 1 (RAMP1), a vital component of the CGRP receptor. This promotes macrophage fate commitment to an anti-inflammatory pro-resolution M2 phenotype, then alleviating glial scar formation. In addition, NS@COP implantation also protected neuronal mitochondrial function. Collectively, our results suggest that the strategy of integrating nanozyme COP nanoparticles into a nanofiber scaffold provides a promising therapeutic candidate for spinal cord trauma via rational regulation of neuroimmune communication and mitochondrial function.

Synthesis of 6/5/3-Fused Tricyclic Scaffolds via Multistep Cascade Cyclization of α-Aryl Vinylsulfoniums with para-Quinamines and para-Quinols.

Herein, we present a straightforward approach to access hydroindoline-5-one-based 6/5/3-fused polycyclic ring structures through multistep cascade reactions involving α-aryl vinylsulfoniums and para-quinamines. The reactions proceed smoothly under mild conditions to deliver the desired products in generally good isolated yields. This protocol is also applicable to the cascade cycloaddition reactions of α-aryl vinylsulfoniums and para-quinols, effectively generating complex tricyclic scaffolds. In addition, the scale-up synthesis and further derivatizations demonstrate the potential synthetic application of the protocol.

Photoelectrochemical Solution Gated Graphene Field-Effect Transistor Functionalized by Enzymatic Cascade Reaction for Organophosphate Detection.

Solution Gated Graphene Field-Effect Transistors (SGGT) are eagerly anticipated as an amplification platform for fabricating advanced ultra-sensitive sensors, allowing significant modulation of the drain current with minimal gate voltage. However, few studies have focused on light-matter interplay gating control for SGGT. Herein, this challenge is addressed by creating an innovative photoelectrochemical solution-gated graphene field-effect transistor (PEC-SGGT) functionalized with enzyme cascade reactions (ECR) for Organophosphorus (OPs) detection. The ECR system, consisting of acetylcholinesterase (AChE) and CuBTC nanomimetic enzymes, selectively recognizes OPs and forms o-phenylenediamine (oPD) oligomers sediment on the PEC electrode, with layer thickness related to the OPs concentration, demonstrating time-integrated amplification. Under light stimulation, the additional photovoltage generated on the PEC gate electrode is influenced by the oPD oligomers sediment layer, creating a differentiated voltage distribution along the gate path. PEC-SGGT, inherently equipped with built-in amplification circuits, sensitively captures gate voltage changes and delivers output with an impressive thousandfold current gain. The seamless integration of these three amplification modes in this advanced sensor allows a good linear range and highly sensitive detection of OPs, with a detection limit as low as 0.05 pm. This work provides a proof-of-concept for the feasibility of light-assisted functionalized gate-controlled PEC-SGGT for small molecule detection.

A deep learning algorithm to identify carotid plaques and assess their stability.

Background: Carotid plaques are major risk factors for stroke. Carotid ultrasound can help to assess the risk and incidence rate of stroke. However, large-scale carotid artery screening is time-consuming and laborious, the diagnostic results inevitably involve the subjectivity of the diagnostician to a certain extent. Deep learning demonstrates the ability to solve the aforementioned challenges. Thus, we attempted to develop an automated algorithm to provide a more consistent and objective diagnostic method and to identify the presence and stability of carotid plaques using deep learning. Methods: A total of 3,860 ultrasound images from 1,339 participants who underwent carotid plaque assessment between January 2021 and March 2023 at the Shanghai Eighth People's Hospital were divided into a 4:1 ratio for training and internal testing. The external test included 1,564 ultrasound images from 674 participants who underwent carotid plaque assessment between January 2022 and May 2023 at Xinhua Hospital affiliated with Dalian University. Deep learning algorithms, based on the fusion of a bilinear convolutional neural network with a residual neural network (BCNN-ResNet), were used for modeling to detect carotid plaques and assess plaque stability. We chose AUC as the main evaluation index, along with accuracy, sensitivity, and specificity as auxiliary evaluation indices. Results: Modeling for detecting carotid plaques involved training and internal testing on 1,291 ultrasound images, with 617 images showing plaques and 674 without plaques. The external test comprised 470 ultrasound images, including 321 images with plaques and 149 without. Modeling for assessing plaque stability involved training and internal testing on 764 ultrasound images, consisting of 494 images with unstable plaques and 270 with stable plaques. The external test was composed of 279 ultrasound images, including 197 images with unstable plaques and 82 with stable plaques. For the task of identifying the presence of carotid plaques, our model achieved an AUC of 0.989 (95% CI: 0.840, 0.998) with a sensitivity of 93.2% and a specificity of 99.21% on the internal test. On the external test, the AUC was 0.951 (95% CI: 0.962, 0.939) with a sensitivity of 95.3% and a specificity of 82.24%. For the task of identifying the stability of carotid plaques, our model achieved an AUC of 0.896 (95% CI: 0.865, 0.922) on the internal test with a sensitivity of 81.63% and a specificity of 87.27%. On the external test, the AUC was 0.854 (95% CI: 0.889, 0.830) with a sensitivity of 68.52% and a specificity of 89.49%. Conclusion: Deep learning using BCNN-ResNet algorithms based on routine ultrasound images could be useful for detecting carotid plaques and assessing plaque instability.

The chromatin accessibility and transcriptomic landscape of the aging mice cochlea and the identification of potential functional super-enhancers in age-related hearing loss.

BACKGROUND: Presbycusis, also referred to as age-related hearing loss (ARHL), is a condition that results from the cumulative effects of aging on an individual's auditory capabilities. Given the limited understanding of epigenetic mechanisms in ARHL, our research focuses on alterations in chromatin-accessible regions. METHODS: We employed assay for transposase-accessible chromatin with high-throughput sequencing (ATAC-seq) in conjunction with unique identifier (UID) mRNA-seq between young and aging cochleae, and conducted integrated analysis as well as motif/TF-gene prediction. Additionally, the essential role of super-enhancers (SEs) in the development of ARHL was identified by comparative analysis to previous research. Meanwhile, an ARHL mouse model and an aging mimic hair cell (HC) model were established with a comprehensive identification of senescence phenotypes to access the role of SEs in ARHL progression. RESULTS: The control cochlear tissue exhibited greater chromatin accessibility than cochlear tissue affected by ARHL. Furthermore, the levels of histone 3 lysine 27 acetylation were significantly depressed in both aging cochlea and aging mimic HEI-OC1 cells, highlighting the essential role of SEs in the development of ARHL. The potential senescence-associated super-enhancers (SASEs) of ARHL were identified, most of which exhibited decreased chromatin accessibility. The majority of genes related to the SASEs showed obvious decreases in mRNA expression level in aging HCs and was noticeably altered following treatment with JQ1 (a commonly used SE inhibitor). CONCLUSION: The chromatin accessibility in control cochlear tissue was higher than that in cochlear tissue affected by ARHL. Potential SEs involved in ARHL were identified, which might provide a basis for future therapeutics targeting SASEs related to ARHL.

A novel missense mutation of CCDC34 causes male infertility with oligoasthenoteratozoospermia in a consanguineous Pakistani family.

ABSTRACT: Male infertility is a worldwide health issue, affecting 8%-12% of the global population. Oligoasthenoteratozoospermia (OAT) represents a severe type of male infertility, characterized by reduced sperm count and motility and an increased frequency of sperm with aberrant morphology. Using whole-exome sequencing, this study identified a novel missense mutation (c.848C>A, p.A283E) in the coiled-coil domain-containing 34 gene (CCDC34) in a consanguineous Pakistani family. This rare mutation was predicted to be deleterious and to affect the protein stability. Hematoxylin and eosin staining of spermatozoa from the patient with OAT revealed multiple morphological abnormalities of the flagella and transmission electron microscopy indicated axonemal ultrastructural defects with a lack of outer dynein arms. These findings indicated that CCDC34 plays a role in maintaining the axonemal ultrastructure and the assembly or stability of the outer dynein arms, thus expanding the phenotypic spectrum of CCDC34 missense mutations.

HiCervix: An Extensive Hierarchical Dataset and Benchmark for Cervical Cytology Classification.

Cervical cytology is a critical screening strategy for early detection of pre-cancerous and cancerous cervical lesions. The challenge lies in accurately classifying various cervical cytology cell types. Existing automated cervical cytology methods are primarily trained on databases covering a narrow range of coarse-grained cell types, which fail to provide a comprehensive and detailed performance analysis that accurately represents real-world cytopathology conditions. To overcome these limitations, we introduce HiCervix, the most extensive, multi-center cervical cytology dataset currently available to the public. HiCervix includes 40,229 cervical cells from 4,496 whole slide images, categorized into 29 annotated classes. These classes are organized within a three-level hierarchical tree to capture fine-grained subtype information. To exploit the semantic correlation inherent in this hierarchical tree, we propose HierSwin, a hierarchical vision transformer-based classification network. HierSwin serves as a benchmark for detailed feature learning in both coarse-level and fine-level cervical cancer classification tasks. In our comprehensive experiments, HierSwin demonstrated remarkable performance, achieving 92.08% accuracy for coarse-level classification and 82.93% accuracy averaged across all three levels. When compared to board-certified cytopathologists, HierSwin achieved high classification performance (0.8293 versus 0.7359 averaged accuracy), highlighting its potential for clinical applications. This newly released HiCervix dataset, along with our benchmark HierSwin method, is poised to make a substantial impact on the advancement of deep learning algorithms for rapid cervical cancer screening and greatly improve cancer prevention and patient outcomes in real-world clinical settings.

Dislocations deteriorate postoperative functional outcomes in supination-external rotation ankle fractures.

PURPOSE: To assess the relationship between dislocation and functional outcomes in supination-external rotation (SER) ankle fractures. METHODS: A retrospective case series study was performed on patients with ankle fractures treated surgically at a large trauma center from January 2015 to December 2021. The inclusion criteria were young and middle-aged patients of 18-65 years with SER ankle fractures that can be classified by Lauge-Hansen classification and underwent surgery at our trauma center. Exclusion criteria were serious life-threatening diseases, open fractures, fractures delayed for more than 3 weeks, fracture sites ≥2, etc. Then patients were divided into dislocation and no-dislocation groups. Patient demographics, injury characteristics, surgery-related outcomes, and postoperative functional outcomes were collected and analyzed. The functional outcomes of SER ankle fractures were assessed postoperatively at 1-year face-to-face follow-up using the foot and ankle outcome score (FAOS) and American orthopedic foot and ankle society score and by 2 experienced orthopedic physicians. Relevant data were analyzed using SPSS version 22.0 by Chi-square or t-test. RESULTS: During the study period, there were 371 ankle fractures. Among them, 190 (51.2%) were SER patterns with 69 (36.3%) combined with dislocations. Compared with the no-dislocation group, the dislocation group showed no statistically significant differences in gender, age composition, fracture type, preoperative complications with diabetes, smoking history, preoperative waiting time, operation time, and length of hospital stay (all p > 0.05), but a significantly higher Lauge-Hansen injury grade (p < 0.001) and syndesmotic screw fixation rate (p = 0.033). Moreover, the functional recovery was poorer, revealing a significantly lower FAOS in the sport/rec scale (p < 0.001). Subgroup analysis showed that among SER IV ankle fracture patients, FAOS was much lower in pain (p = 0.042) and sport/rec scales (p < 0.001) for those with dislocations. American orthopedic foot and ankle society score revealed no significant difference between dislocation and no-dislocation patients. CONCLUSION: Dislocation in SER ankle fractures suggests more severe injury and negatively affects functional recovery, mainly manifested as more pain and poorer motor function, especially in SER IV ankle cases.

Systematics Review and Phylogeny of Cyrtophyllitinae Zeuner, 1935 sensu Gorochov, Jarzembowski & Coram, 2006 (Ensifera, Haglidae), with Description of Two New Species.

A phylogeny of Cyrtophyllitinae Zeuner, 1935 sensu Gorochov, Jarzembowski & Coram, 2006, based on wing morphology, is presented including all genera. Cyrtophillitinae is found to be paraphyletic. Except for Cyrtophyllites rogeri Oppenheim, 1888, all other species were moved from the subfamily Cyrtophyllitinae (Hagloidea, Haglidae). Consequently, a new subfamily Archaboilinae subfam. nov. was erected and accommodates most of the previous cyrtophillitine taxa, except Cyrtophyllites rogeri. The type genus Archaboilus Martynov, 1937 of the new subfamily was designated; a new genus, Pararchaboilus gen. nov., was erected with the designation of type species Pararchaboilus cretaceus comb. nov. From the Middle Jurassic deposits of China, two new species, Archaboilus ornatus sp. nov. and Vitimoilus gigantus sp. nov., are described.

New Genera and Species of Trigonidiidae (Orthoptera: Grylloidea) from the Mid-Cretaceous of Myanmar with a Redescription of Birmaninemobius hirsutus.

The abundance of insects in Burmese amber illustrates a highly diverse insect community from the mid-Cretaceous period; yet, records of crickets (Grylloidea) are notably scarce. In this study, we describe two new genera with three new species, Palaeotrigonidium concavoculus gen. et sp. nov., Palaeotrigonidium defectivus sp. nov., and Tricalcaratus longilineus gen. et sp. nov., based on three specimens collected in north Myanmar. These new species can be placed within the Trigonidiidae (Orthoptera: Grylloidea) by their triangular head, compound eyes that protrude in dorsal view, and a body entirely covered with robust setae, particularly noticeable in the head and pronotum; however, subfamily assignments are not possible. Another known species, Birmaninemobius hirsutus, Xu et al., 2020, from Myanmar amber is redescribed based on a new specimen and a recheck of the holotype.

A hydrogen generator composed of poly (lactic-co-glycolic acid) nanofibre membrane loaded iron nanoparticles for infectious diabetic wound repair.

Diabetic wound, which is chronic skin disease, poses a significant challenge in clinical practice because of persistent inflammation and impaired angiogenesis. Recently, hydrogen has emerged as a novel therapeutic agent due to its superior antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties. In this study, we engineered a poly (lactic-co-glycolic acid) (PLGA) electrospun nanofibre membrane loaded with citric acid (CA) and iron (Fe) nanoparticles, referred to as Fe@PLGA + CA. Our in vitro assays demonstrated that the Fe@PLGA + CA membrane continuously generated and released hydrogen molecules via a chemical reaction between Fe and CA in an acidic microenvironment created by CA. We also discovered that hydrogen can ameliorate fibroblast migration disorders by reducing the levels of matrix metalloproteinase 9 (MMP9). Furthermore, we confirmed that hydrogen can scavenge or biochemically neutralise accumulated reactive oxygen species (ROS), inhibit pro-inflammatory responses, and induce anti-inflammatory reactions. This, in turn, promotes vessel formation, wound-healing and accelerates skin regeneration. These findings open new possibilities for using elemental iron in skin dressings and bring us one step closer to implementing hydrogen-releasing biomedical materials in clinical practice.

Rapid phenotypic differentiation in the iconic Japanese knotweed s.l. invading novel habitats.

Understanding the mechanisms that underlie plant invasions is critical for management and conservation of biodiversity. At the same time, invasive species also provide a unique opportunity to study rapid adaptation to complex environmental conditions. Using four replicate reciprocal transplant experiments across three habitats, we described patterns of phenotypic response and assessed the degree of local adaptation in knotweed populations. We found plants from beach habitats were generally smaller than plants from marsh and roadside habitats when grown in their home habitat. In the marsh habitat, marsh plants were generally larger than beach plants, but not different from roadside plants. There were no differences among plants grown in the roadside habitat. We found mixed evidence for local adaptation: plants from the marsh habitat had greater biomass in their "home" sites, while plants from beaches and roadsides had greater survival in their "home" sites compared to other plants. In sum, we found phenotypic differentiation and some support for the hypothesis of rapid local adaptation of plants from beach, marsh and roadside habitats. Identifying whether these patterns of differentiation result from genetic or heritable non-genetic mechanisms will require further work.

Challenges and Advancements in the Electrochemical Utilization of Ammonia Using Solid Oxide Fuel Cells.

Solid oxide fuel cells utilized with NH3 (NH3-SOFCs) have great potential to be environmentally friendly devices with high efficiency and energy density. The advancement of this technology is hindered by the sluggish kinetics of chemical or electrochemical processes occurring on anodes/catalysts. Extensive efforts have been devoted to developing efficient and durable anode/catalysts in recent decades. Although modifications to the structure, composition, and morphology of anodes or catalysts are effective, the mechanistic understandings of performance improvements or degradations remain incompletely understood. This review informatively commences by summarizing existing reports on the progress of NH3-SOFCs. It subsequently outlines the influence of factors on the performance of NH3-SOFCs. The degradation mechanisms of the cells/systems are also reviewed. Lastly, the persistent challenges in designing highly efficient electrodes/catalysts for low-temperature NH3-SOFCs, and future perspectives derived from SOFCs are discussed. Notably, durability, thermal cycling stability, and power density are identified as crucial indicators for enhancing low-temperature (550 °C or below) NH3-SOFCs. This review aims to offer an updated overview of how catalysts/electrodes affect electrochemical activity and durability, offering critical insights for improving performance and mechanistic understanding, as well as establishing the scientific foundation for the design of electrodes for NH3-SOFCs.

Lanatoside C induces ferroptosis in non-small cell lung cancer in vivo and in vitro by regulating SLC7A11/GPX4 signaling pathway.

Background: Non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) is a common malignant tumor worldwide, remaining resistant to chemotherapy drugs. Lanatoside C can inhibit the growth of cancer cell lines. In this study we aimed to investigate the relationship between lanatoside C and ferroptosis, exploring the possible mechanism in NSCLC. Methods: Experiments in vitro and in vivo were conducted. A549 cells were used for in vitro, including cell counting kit-8 (CCK-8) assay, lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) release, western blotting, flow cytometry, transmission electron microscopy (TEM), and confocal microscopy. In vivo, a subcutaneous tumor model in nude mice using A549 cells was built and body size of the mice was observed. Ki67 immunohistochemistry, hematoxylin-eosin (HE) staining, and western blotting were conducted respectively. Results: The results showed that lanatoside C had an inhibitory effect on the growth of A549 cells, and the dose of lanatoside C used in this experiment was set at 0.4 µM for 24 hours. When A549 cells were treated with lanatoside C, the cell viability was decreased observably (P<0.001) and LDH release was significantly enhanced (P<0.01) compared with the control group. However, when A549 cells were treated together with lanatoside C and five different inhibitors, containing ferroptosis inhibitors, necroptosis inhibitors, apoptosis inhibitors, pyroptosis inhibitors, and autophagy inhibitors, the results showed that the viability of A549 cells with lanatoside C and ferrostatin-1 (Fer-1) was reduced (P>0.05) and the LDH release was significantly enhanced (P<0.05). Besides, TEM and confocal microscopy showed that the mitochondria of A549 cells in the lanatoside C group disappeared and the mitochondrial membrane potential decreased. In vivo, lanatoside C efficiently enhanced the sensitivity of the xenograft tumors, as well as reducing the size and weight of the tumor. Moreover, immunohistochemical staining analysis revealed that the SLC7A11 and GPX4 levels significantly decreased in the lanatoside C group. In addition, the expression of GPX4 and SLC7A11 by western blotting was decreased in lanatoside C group. Conclusions: Collectively, lanatoside C could inhibit the proliferation and induce ferroptosis, and have a biological effect on inducing ferroptosis in NSCLC.