Pooled CRISPR Screening Identifies P-Bodies as Repressors of Cancer Epithelial-Mesenchymal Transition.

Epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) is a fundamental cellular process frequently hijacked by cancer cells to promote tumor progression, especially metastasis. EMT is orchestrated by a complex molecular network acting at different layers of gene regulation. In addition to transcriptional regulation, posttranscriptional mechanisms may also play a role in EMT. Here, we performed a pooled CRISPR screen analyzing the influence of 1,547 RNA-binding proteins on cell motility in colon cancer cells and identified multiple core components of P-bodies (PB) as negative modulators of cancer cell migration. Further experiments demonstrated that PB depletion by silencing DDX6 or EDC4 could activate hallmarks of EMT thereby enhancing cell migration in vitro as well as metastasis formation in vivo. Integrative multiomics analysis revealed that PBs could repress the translation of the EMT driver gene HMGA2, which contributed to PB-meditated regulation of EMT. This mechanism is conserved in other cancer types. Furthermore, endoplasmic reticulum stress was an intrinsic signal that induced PB disassembly and translational derepression of HMGA2. Taken together, this study has identified a function of PBs in the regulation of EMT in cancer. SIGNIFICANCE: Systematic investigation of the influence of posttranscriptional regulation on cancer cell motility established a connection between P-body-mediated translational control and EMT, which could be therapeutically exploited to attenuate metastasis formation.

Single cell multi-omics reveal intra-cell-line heterogeneity across human cancer cell lines.

Human cancer cell lines have long served as tools for cancer research and drug discovery, but the presence and the source of intra-cell-line heterogeneity remain elusive. Here, we perform single-cell RNA-sequencing and ATAC-sequencing on 42 and 39 human cell lines, respectively, to illustrate both transcriptomic and epigenetic heterogeneity within individual cell lines. Our data reveal that transcriptomic heterogeneity is frequently observed in cancer cell lines of different tissue origins, often driven by multiple common transcriptional programs. Copy number variation, as well as epigenetic variation and extrachromosomal DNA distribution all contribute to the detected intra-cell-line heterogeneity. Using hypoxia treatment as an example, we demonstrate that transcriptomic heterogeneity could be reshaped by environmental stress. Overall, our study performs single-cell multi-omics of commonly used human cancer cell lines and offers mechanistic insights into the intra-cell-line heterogeneity and its dynamics, which would serve as an important resource for future cancer cell line-based studies.

Prenatal phthalate exposure and birth size: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

Phthalates are common endocrine disruptors. The placental barrier can be crossed by phthalates and may have a negative impact on the health of the fetus. However, the association between prenatal exposure to phthalates and birth size is still debatable. Here, we performed this meta-analysis to assess the relationship between prenatal phthalates exposure and birth size. Eighteen studies were finally included by searching PubMed, Embase, Scopus, Ovid, and Web of Science databases and standardized regression coefficients and standard errors were used to pool effect size. Our results showed that prenatal exposure to MMP (=-0.04, 95%CI: -0.08, -0.01) and MEP (=-0.01, 95%CI: -0.01, -0.002) was significantly associated with birth weight. However, no significant associations were identified for phthalate exposure with birth length, head circumference and chest circumference. Because the limiting of studies, more high-quality case-control studies or cohort studies are urgently needed to draw the best conclusions.

The Associations between Organophosphate Pesticides (OPs) and Respiratory Disease, Diabetes Mellitus, and Cardiovascular Disease: A Review and Meta-Analysis of Observational Studies.

Although some epidemiological studies have identified the associations between exposure to organophosphate pesticides (Ops) and respiratory diseases, diabetes mellitus (DM), and cardiovascular diseases (CVDs), controversial results still exist. In this review and meta-analysis, we aimed to investigate the overall pooled effect estimates and the possible mechanisms of the relationship between OP exposure and adverse health outcomes. In this study, Web of Science, PubMed, Embase, OVID, and the Cochrane Library were systematically searched until September 2022. Nineteen observational studies that focused on the general population or occupational populations examined the associations between OP exposure and respiratory diseases, DM, and CVD were included. Based on the overall pooled results, a significantly positive association was observed between OP exposure and respiratory diseases (OR: 1.12, 95% CI: 1.06-1.19). A significant link was also observed between various individual species of OP exposure and respiratory diseases, with an OR value of 1.11 (95% CI: 1.05-1.18). In particular, there was a significant association of OPs with wheezing and asthma, with OR values of 1.19 (95% CI: 1.08-1.31) and 1.13 (95% CI: 1.05-1.22), respectively. In addition, a significant association was also observed between OP exposure and DM (OR: 1.18, 95% CI: 1.07-1.29). However, no significant association was observed between OP exposure and CVD (OR: 1.00, 95% CI: 0.94-1.05). Exposure to OPs was associated with a significantly increased risk of respiratory diseases and DM, but there was no evidence of a significant association between OP exposure and CVD. Considering the moderate strength of the results, further evidence is needed to confirm these associations.

Green space exposure on depression and anxiety outcomes: A meta-analysis.

BACKGROUND: The development of urbanization has led to emerging mental health issues. Green space was becoming increasingly important for mental health. Previous studies have demonstrated the value of green space for a variety of outcomes connected to mental health. However, uncertainty remains regarding the association between green spaces and the risk of depression and anxiety outcomes. This study aimed to integrate present evidence from observational studies to define the association of exposure to green space with depression and anxiety. METHODS: A thorough electronic search of PubMed, Web of Science and Embase database was performed. We transformed the odds ratio (OR) of different green increments into per 0.1 unit increase in normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI) and per 10% increase in percentage of green space. Cochrane's Q and I2 statistics were used to assess study heterogeneity, and random-effects models were employed to calculate combined effect estimation OR with 95% confidence intervals (CIs). Pooled analysis was completed using Stata 15.0. RESULTS: According to this meta-analysis, a 10% increase in the proportion of green space was linked to a lower risk of depression (merged OR (95% CI) = 0.963 (0.948, 0.979)) and anxiety (merged OR (95% CI) = 0.938 (0.858, 1.025)) and a 0.1 unit increase in NDVI was linked to a lower risk of depression (merged OR (95% CI) = 0.931 (0.887, 0.977)). CONCLUSIONS: Results of this meta-analysis supported improving green space exposure in preventing depression and anxiety. Higher green space exposure might be helpful for depression and anxiety disorders. Therefore, improving or preserving green space should be regarded as a promising intervention for public health.

Circulating Pulmonary-Originated Epithelial Biomarkers for Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.

Previous studies have found several biomarkers for acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS), but the accuracy of most biomarkers is still in doubt due to the occurrence of other comorbidities. In this systematic review and meta-analysis, we aimed to explore ideal ARDS biomarkers which can reflect pathophysiology features precisely and better identify at-risk patients and predict mortality. Web of Science, PubMed, Embase, OVID, and the Cochrane Library were systematically searched for studies assessing the reliability of pulmonary-originated epithelial proteins in ARDS. A total of 32 studies appeared eligible for meta-analysis, including 2654 ARDS/ALI patients in this study. In the at-risk patients' identification group, the highest pooled effect size was observed in Krebs von den Lungren-6 (KL-6) (SMD: 1.17 [95% CI: 0.55, 1.79]), followed by club cell proteins 16 (CC16) (SMD: 0.74 [95% CI: 0.01, 1.46]), and surfactant proteins-D (SP-D) (SMD: 0.71 [95% CI: 0.57, 0.84]). For the mortality prediction group, CC16 exhibited the largest effect size with SMD of 0.92 (95% CI: 0.42, 1.43). Meanwhile, the summary receiver operating characteristic (SROC) of CC16 for ARDS diagnosis reached an AUC of 0.80 (95% CI: 0.76, 0.83). In conclusion, this study provides a ranking system for pulmonary-originated epithelial biomarkers according to their association with distinguishing at-risk patients and predicting mortality. In addition, the study provides evidence for the advantage of biomarkers over traditional diagnostic criteria. The performance of biomarkers may help to clinically improve the ARDS diagnosis and mortality prediction.

Dualistic classification of high grade serous ovarian carcinoma has its root in spatial heterogeneity.

INTRODUCTION: Widespread intra-peritoneal metastases is a main feature of high grade serous ovarian carcinoma (HGSOC). Recently, the extent of tumour heterogeneity was used to evaluate the cancer genomes among multi-regions in HGSOC. However, there is no consensus on the effect of tumour heterogeneity on the evolution of the tumour metastasis process in HGSOC. OBJECTIVES: We performed whole-exome sequencing in multiple regions of matched primary and metastatic HGSOC specimens to reveal the genetic mechanisms of ovarian tumourigenesis and malignant progression. METHODS: 63 samples (including ovarian carcinoma, omentum metastasis, and normal tissues) were used. We analyzed the genomic heterogeneity, traced the subclone dissemination and establishment history and compared the different genetic characters of cancer evolutionary models in HGSOC. RESULTS: We found that HGSOC had substantial intra-tumour heterogeneity (median 54.2, range 0 âˆ¼ 106.7), high inter-patient heterogeneity (P < 0.001), but relatively limited intra-patient heterogeneity (P = 0.949). Two COSMIC mutational signatures were identified in HGSOCs: signature 3 was related to homologous recombination, and signature 1 was associated with aging. Two scenarios were identified by phylogenetic reconstruction in our study: 3 cases (33.3 %) showed star topology, and the other 6 cases (66.7 %) displayed tree topology. Compared with star topology group, more driver events were identified in tree topology group (P < 0.001), and occurred more frequently in early stage than in late stage of clonal evolution (P < 0.001). Moreover, compared with the star topology group, the tree topology group showed higher rate of intra-tumour heterogeneity (P = 0.045). CONCLUSION: A dualistic classification model was proposed for the classification of HGSOC based on spatial heterogeneity, which may contribute to better managing patients and providing individual treatment for HGSOC patients.

Annotating TSSs in Multiple Cell Types Based on DNA Sequence and RNA-seq Data via DeeReCT-TSS.

The accurate annotation of transcription start sites (TSSs) and their usage are critical for the mechanistic understanding of gene regulation in different biological contexts. To fulfill this, specific high-throughput experimental technologies have been developed to capture TSSs in a genome-wide manner, and various computational tools have also been developed for in silico prediction of TSSs solely based on genomic sequences. Most of these computational tools cast the problem as a binary classification task on a balanced dataset, thus resulting in drastic false positive predictions when applied on the genome scale. Here, we present DeeReCT-TSS, a deep learning-based method that is capable of identifying TSSs across the whole genome based on both DNA sequence and conventional RNA sequencing data. We show that by effectively incorporating these two sources of information, DeeReCT-TSS significantly outperforms other solely sequence-based methods on the precise annotation of TSSs used in different cell types. Furthermore, we develop a meta-learning-based extension for simultaneous TSS annotations on 10 cell types, which enables the identification of cell type-specific TSSs. Finally, we demonstrate the high precision of DeeReCT-TSS on two independent datasets by correlating our predicted TSSs with experimentally defined TSS chromatin states. The source code for DeeReCT-TSS is available at https://github.com/JoshuaChou2018/DeeReCT-TSS_release and https://ngdc.cncb.ac.cn/biocode/tools/BT007316.

Prognosis and Immunological Characteristics of PGK1 in Lung Adenocarcinoma: A Systematic Analysis.

Background: Aerobic glycolysis plays a key role in tumor metabolic reprogramming to reshape the immune microenvironment. The phosphoglycerate kinase 1 (PGK1) gene codes a glycolytic enzyme that converts 1,3-diphosphoglycerate to 3-phosphoglycerate. However, in lung adenocarcinoma (LUAD), the role of PGK1 in altering the tumor microenvironment (TME) has not yet been determined. Methods: Raw data, including bulk DNA and mRNA-seq data, methylation modification data, single-cell RNA-seq data, proteomics data, clinical case characteristics survival, immunotherapy data, and so on, were obtained from multiple independent public data sets. These data were reanalyzed to uncover the prognosis and immunological characteristics of PGK1 in LUAD. Results: We found that PGK1 mRNA and protein were considerably over-expressed in LUAD compared to normal tissue and that high PGK1 expression is associated with poorer prognostic outcomes in LUAD. The enrichment analysis of PGK1 co-expressed genes in lung adenocarcinoma revealed that PGK1 may be involved in hypoxia, metabolism, DNA synthesis, cell cycle, PI3K/AKT, and various immune and inflammatory signaling pathways. Furthermore, PGK1 is also linked to the recruitment of numerous immune cells, including aDC (dendritic cells), macrophages, and neutrophils. More importantly, PGK1 was highly expressed in immunosuppressive cells, including M2 macrophages, Tregs, and exhausted T cells, among others. Finally, higher PGK1 expression indicated significant correlations to immune checkpoints, TMB (tumor mutation burden), and high response to immunotherapy. Conclusions: The presented findings imply that PGK1, as a glycolysis core gene, may be important for the modification of the immune microenvironment by interacting with the tumor metabolism. The results of this study provide clues for a potential immunometabolic combination therapy strategy in LUAD, for which more experimental and clinical translational research is needed.

NiH-catalyzed C(sp3)-Si coupling of alkenes with vinyl chlorosilanes.

A novel NiH-catalyzed highly regioselective coupling of alkenes with vinyl chlorosilanes, constructing C-Si bonds, is developed. Under mild reaction conditions, a series of benzyl organosilanes with various functional groups could be accessed. Further synthetic studies illustrate that the products of this chemistry could be used as versatile precursors to prepare complicated organosilicon compounds. Moreover, the NiH-catalyzed mechanism of the present transformation was proposed based on control experiments.

An integrated pan-cancer analysis of PSAT1: A potential biomarker for survival and immunotherapy.

Phosphoserine aminotransferase 1 (PSAT1) may be an oncogene that plays an important role in various cancer types. However, there are still many gaps in the expression of PSAT1 gene and its biological impact in different types of tumors. Here, we performed an integrated pan-cancer analysis to explore the potential molecular mechanisms of PSAT1 in cancers. We found that most human tumors express higher levels of PSAT1 than normal tissues, and that higher PSAT1 expression is associated with worse prognosis in Lung adenocarcinoma (LUAD), Pan-kidney cohort (KIPAN) and breast invasive carcinoma (BRCA), etc. In BRCA cases, the prognosis of patients with altered PSAT1 was worse than that of patients without alteration. In addition, PSAT1 hypermethylation is associated with T cell dysfunction and shortened survival time in BRCA. The Gene Set Enrichment Analysis (GSEA) analysis showed that PSAT1 can be enriched into the classic signaling pathways of cancer such as mTORC1 signaling, MYC targets and JAK STAT3. Further analysis demonstrated that PSAT1 was enriched in immune related signaling pathways in LUAD and BRCA. The results of immunoassay showed that PSAT1 was associated with immune cell infiltration in multiple cancer species. Furthermore, expression of PSAT1 was correlated with both tumor mutational burden (TMB) and microsatellite instability (MSI) in BRCA. Additionally, a remarkable correlation was found between PSAT1 expression and TMB in LUAD, and the expression of PSAT1 was negatively correlated with the Tumor Immune Dysfunction and Exclusion (TIDE) value, suggesting a good effect of immunotherapy. Together, these data suggest that PSAT1 expression is associated with the clinical prognosis, DNA methylation, gene mutations, and immune cell infiltration, contributing to clarify the role of PSAT1 in tumorigenesis from a variety of perspectives. What's more, PSAT1 may be a new biomarker for survival and predicting the efficacy of immunotherapy for LUAD and BRCA.

The SWI/SNF chromatin remodeling factor DPF3 regulates metastasis of ccRCC by modulating TGF-ß signaling.

DPF3, a component of the SWI/SNF chromatin remodeling complex, has been associated with clear cell renal cell carcinoma (ccRCC) in a genome-wide association study. However, the functional role of DPF3 in ccRCC development and progression remains unknown. In this study, we demonstrate that DPF3a, the short isoform of DPF3, promotes kidney cancer cell migration both in vitro and in vivo, consistent with the clinical observation that DPF3a is significantly upregulated in ccRCC patients with metastases. Mechanistically, DPF3a specifically interacts with SNIP1, via which it forms a complex with SMAD4 and p300 histone acetyltransferase (HAT), the major transcriptional regulators of TGF-ß signaling pathway. Moreover, the binding of DPF3a releases the repressive effect of SNIP1 on p300 HAT activity, leading to the increase in local histone acetylation and the activation of cell movement related genes. Overall, our findings reveal a metastasis-promoting function of DPF3, and further establish the link between SWI/SNF components and ccRCC.

Myc inhibition tips the immune balance to promote antitumor immunity.

Aberrant expression of Myc is one of the most common oncogenic events in human cancers. Scores of Myc inhibitors are currently under development for treating Myc-driven cancers. In addition to directly targeting tumor cells, Myc inhibition has been shown to modulate the tumor microenvironment to promote tumor regression. However, the effect of Myc inhibition on immune cells in the tumor microenvironment remains poorly understood. Here, we show that the adaptive immune system plays a vital role in the antitumor effect of pharmacologic inhibition of Myc. Combining genetic and pharmacologic approaches, we found that Myc inhibition enhanced CD8 T cell function by suppressing the homeostasis of regulatory T (Treg) cells and the differentiation of resting Treg (rTreg) cells to activated Treg (aTreg) cells in tumors. Importantly, we demonstrated that different Myc expression levels confer differential sensitivity of T cell subsets to pharmacologic inhibition of Myc. Although ablation of the Myc gene has been shown to suppress CD8 T cell function, Treg cells, which express much less Myc protein than CD8 T cells, are more sensitive to Myc inhibitors. The differential sensitivity of CD8 T and Treg cells to Myc inhibitors resulted in enhanced CD8 T cell function upon Myc inhibition. Our findings revealed that Myc inhibitors can induce an antitumor immune response during tumor progression.

Preoperative neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (preNLR) for the assessment of tumor characteristics in lung adenocarcinoma patients with brain metastasis.

OBJECTIVES: Brain metastases from lung adenocarcinoma cause significant patient mortality. This study aims to evaluate the role of preoperative Neutrophil-to-Lymphocyte ratio (preNLR) in predicting the survival and prognosis of Lung adenocarcinoma (LUAD) patients with brain metastasis (BM) and provide more references for predicting peritumoral edema. METHODS: We retrospectively reviewed 125 LUAD-BM patients who had undergone surgical resection from December 2015 to December 2020. The clinical characteristic, demographic, MRI data, and preNLR within 24-48 h before craniotomy were collected. Patients were divided into two groups based on preNLR (high NLR and low NLR), with cutoff values determined by receiver operating characteristic (ROC) analysis. Association between preoperative NLR and clinical features was determined by using Pearson chi-squared tests. Uni- and multivariate analyzes were performed to compare the overall survival (OS) of clinical features. RESULTS: The patients were divided into NLR-low (64 patients) and NLR-high (61 patients) groups based on receiver operating characteristic analysis of NLR area. According to correlation analysis, a high preNLR (NLR≥2.8) is associated with the both supra- and infratentorial location involved (P = 0.017) and a greater incidence of severe peritumoral edema (P = 0.038). By multivariable analysis, age ≥ 65 years (P = 0.011), KPS < 70 (P = 0.043), elevated preNLR (P = 0.013), extracerebral metastases (P = 0.003), EGFR/ALK+ (P = 0.037), postoperative radiotherapy (P = 0.017) and targeted therapy (P = 0.007) were independent prognostic factors. OS nomogram was constructed based on cox model and model performance was examined (AUC = 0.935). CONCLUSIONS: PreNLR may serve as a prognosis indicator in LUAD patients with brain metastasis, and high preNLR tends to be positively associate with multiple locations and severe peritumoral edema.

Fabrication of chitosan-cinnamaldehyde-glycerol monolaurate bigels with dual gelling effects and application as cream analogs.

In this study, chitosan-based bigels were fabricated, where glycerol monolaurate was added in MCT oil to produce a gelled lipid phase and cinnamaldehyde was included in the lipid phase in order to act as a crosslinking agent. The synergistic effect of pH on chemical crosslinking effects was investigated. The potential of using these bigels as an alternative to cream was also investigated. The pH of the aqueous phase played an important role in controlling the extent of the Schiff-base reaction promoted by cinnamaldehyde. At pH 3.8, the bigels formed were homogenous but at pH 5.0 and 5.5 they exhibited phase separation, which highlighted the importance of chemical crosslinking. To better mimic the properties of real cream, span 80 was added to create a more homogeneous and smoother structure of the bigels. These bigels might provide a healthy and more sustainable alterative to food products that contain plastic fats, like cream.

CRISPR-iPAS: a novel dCAS13-based method for alternative polyadenylation interference.

Alternative polyadenylation (APA) plays an important role in gene regulation. With the recent application of novel sequencing technology in APA profiling, an ever-increasing number of APA genes/sites have been identified. However, the phenotypic relevance of most of these APA isoforms remains elusive, which is largely due to the lack of a convenient genetics tool for APA interference. To address this issue, herein, an efficient method is developed based on the CRISPR-dCas13 system, termed as CRISPR-iPAS. Out of eight different dCas13 proteins, Porphyromonas gulae (Pgu) dCas13b, is identified as the most effective one in blocking the usage of the polyadenylation site (PAS). With guide RNAs targeting at core regulatory elements, dPguCas13b enabled APA regulation of endogenous genes with different APA types, including tandem 3'UTR, alternative terminal exon, as well as intronic PAS. Finally, we demonstrated that the proposed APA perturbation tool could be used to investigate the functional relevance of APA isoforms.

Human cytomegalovirus hijacks host stress response fueling replication stress and genome instability.

Viral infections enhance cancer risk and threaten host genome integrity. Although human cytomegalovirus (HCMV) proteins have been detected in a wide spectrum of human malignancies and HCMV infections have been implicated in tumorigenesis, the underlying mechanisms remain poorly understood. Here, we employed a range of experimental approaches, including single-molecule DNA fiber analysis, and showed that infection by any of the four commonly used HCMV strains: AD169, Towne, TB40E or VR1814 induced replication stress (RS), as documented by host-cell replication fork asymmetry and formation of 53BP1 foci. The HCMV-evoked RS triggered an ensuing host DNA damage response (DDR) and chromosomal instability in both permissive and non-permissive human cells, the latter being particularly relevant in the context of tumorigenesis, as such cells can survive and proliferate after HCMV infection. The viral major immediate early enhancer and promoter (MIEP) that controls expression of the viral genes IE72 (IE-1) and IE86 (IE-2), contains transcription-factor binding sites shared by promoters of cellular stress-response genes. We found that DNA damaging insults, including those relevant for cancer therapy, enhanced IE72/86 expression. Thus, MIEP has been evolutionary shaped to exploit host DDR. Ectopically expressed IE72 and IE86 also induced RS and increased genomic instability. Of clinical relevance, we show that undergoing standard-of-care genotoxic radio-chemotherapy in patients with HCMV-positive glioblastomas correlated with elevated HCMV protein markers after tumor recurrence. Collectively, these results are consistent with our proposed concept of HCMV hijacking transcription-factor binding sites shared with host stress-response genes. We present a model to explain the potential oncomodulatory effects of HCMV infections through enhanced replication stress, subverted DNA damage response and induced genomic instability.

Aerobic Oxidative Cascade Thiolation and Cyclization to Construct Indole-Fused Isoquinolin-6(5H)-one Derivatives in EtOH.

A practical method to construct sulfenylated indole-fused isoquinolin-6(5H)-one derivatives has been developed. Using eco-friendly ethanol as the solvent and air as the oxidant, this reaction could be compatible with sensitive molecular framework. The utility of the product was well illustrated by further transformations. Moreover, the reaction mechanism was investigated by control experiments.

Nickel-Catalyzed Reductive Cross-Coupling of Alkyl Bromides and Chlorosilanes.

A novel nickel-catalyzed highly selective reductive cross-coupling of alkyl bromides and chlorosilanes to construct the C-Si bond has been developed. Under benign reaction conditions, a series of structurally interesting organosilanes can be accessed without Ni-catalyzed isomerization. The utility of this chemistry is illustrated by further transformations of the product. Moreover, the radical mechanism of the reaction is illustrated by control experiments.

Development of Salt- and Gastric-Resistant Whey Protein Isolate Stabilized Emulsions in the Presence of Cinnamaldehyde and Application in Salad Dressing.

Protein-stabilized emulsions tend to be susceptible to droplet aggregation in the presence of high ionic strengths or when exposed to acidic gastric conditions due to a reduction of the electrostatic repulsion between the protein-coated droplets. Previously, we found that incorporating cinnamaldehyde into the oil phase improved the resistance of whey protein isolate (WPI)-stabilized emulsions against aggregation induced by NaCl, KCl and CaCl2. In the current study, we aimed to establish the impact of cinnamaldehyde on the tolerance of WPI-stabilized emulsions to high salt levels during food processing and to gastric conditions. In the absence of cinnamaldehyde, the addition of high levels of monovalent ions (NaCl and KCl) to WPI-emulsions cause appreciable droplet aggregation, with the particle sizes increasing from 150 nm to 413 nm and 906 nm in the presence of NaCl and KCl, respectively. In contrast, in the presence of 30% cinnamaldehyde in the oil phase, the WPI-emulsions remained stable to aggregation and the particle size of emulsions kept within 200 nm over a wide range of salt concentrations (0-2000 mM). Divalent counter-ions promoted droplet aggregation at lower concentrations (≤20 mM) than monovalent ones, which was attributed to ion-binding and ion-bridging effects, but the salt stability of the WPI emulsions was still improved after cinnamaldehyde addition. The incorporation of cinnamaldehyde into the oil phase also improved the resistance of the WPI-coated oil droplets to aggregation in simulated gastric fluids (pH 3.1-3.3). This study provides a novel way of improving the resistance of whey-protein-stabilized emulsions to aggregation at high ionic strengths or under gastric conditions.