Landscape and Dynamics of Single Immune Cells in Hepatocellular Carcinoma.

The immune microenvironment of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is poorly characterized. Combining two single-cell RNA sequencing technologies, we produced transcriptomes of CD45+ immune cells for HCC patients from five immune-relevant sites: tumor, adjacent liver, hepatic lymph node (LN), blood, and ascites. A cluster of LAMP3+ dendritic cells (DCs) appeared to be the mature form of conventional DCs and possessed the potential to migrate from tumors to LNs. LAMP3+ DCs also expressed diverse immune-relevant ligands and exhibited potential to regulate multiple subtypes of lymphocytes. Of the macrophages in tumors that exhibited distinct transcriptional states, tumor-associated macrophages (TAMs) were associated with poor prognosis, and we established the inflammatory role of SLC40A1 and GPNMB in these cells. Further, myeloid and lymphoid cells in ascites were predominantly linked to tumor and blood origins, respectively. The dynamic properties of diverse CD45+ cell types revealed by this study add new dimensions to the immune landscape of HCC.

CRISPR-free, programmable RNA pseudouridylation to suppress premature termination codons.

Nonsense mutations, accounting for >20% of disease-associated mutations, lead to premature translation termination. Replacing uridine with pseudouridine in stop codons suppresses translation termination, which could be harnessed to mediate readthrough of premature termination codons (PTCs). Here, we present RESTART, a programmable RNA base editor, to revert PTC-induced translation termination in mammalian cells. RESTART utilizes an engineered guide snoRNA (gsnoRNA) and the endogenous H/ACA box snoRNP machinery to achieve precise pseudouridylation. We also identified and optimized gsnoRNA scaffolds to increase the editing efficiency. Unexpectedly, we found that a minor isoform of pseudouridine synthase DKC1, lacking a C-terminal nuclear localization signal, greatly improved the PTC-readthrough efficiency. Although RESTART induced restricted off-target pseudouridylation, they did not change the coding information nor the expression level of off-targets. Finally, RESTART enables robust pseudouridylation in primary cells and achieves functional PTC readthrough in disease-relevant contexts. Collectively, RESTART is a promising RNA-editing tool for research and therapeutics.

A 'rich-get-richer' mechanism drives patchy dynamics and resistance evolution in antibiotic-treated bacteria.

Bacteria in nature often form surface-attached communities that initially comprise distinct subpopulations, or patches. For pathogens, these patches can form at infection sites, persist during antibiotic treatment, and develop into mature biofilms. Evidence suggests that patches can emerge due to heterogeneity in the growth environment and bacterial seeding, as well as cell-cell signaling. However, it is unclear how these factors contribute to patch formation and how patch formation might affect bacterial survival and evolution. Here, we demonstrate that a 'rich-get-richer' mechanism drives patch formation in bacteria exhibiting collective survival (CS) during antibiotic treatment. Modeling predicts that the seeding heterogeneity of these bacteria is amplified by local CS and global resource competition, leading to patch formation. Increasing the dose of a non-eradicating antibiotic treatment increases the degree of patchiness. Experimentally, we first demonstrated the mechanism using engineered Escherichia coli and then demonstrated its applicability to a pathogen, Pseudomonas aeruginosa. We further showed that the formation of P. aeruginosa patches promoted the evolution of antibiotic resistance. Our work provides new insights into population dynamics and resistance evolution during surface-attached bacterial growth.

ROP signaling regulates spatial pattern of cell division and specification of meristem notch.

The formation of cell polarity is essential for many developmental processes such as polar cell growth and spatial patterning of cell division. A plant-specific ROP (Rho-like GTPases from Plants) subfamily of conserved Rho GTPase plays a crucial role in the regulation of cell polarity. However, the functional study of ROPs in angiosperm is challenging because of their functional redundancy. The Marchantia polymorpha genome encodes a single ROP gene, MpROP, providing an excellent genetic system to study ROP-dependent signaling pathways. Mprop knockout mutants exhibited rhizoid growth defects, and MpROP was localized at the tip of elongating rhizoids, establishing a role for MpROP in the control of polar cell growth and its functional conservation in plants. Furthermore, the Mprop knockout mutant showed defects in the formation of meristem notches associated with disorganized cell division patterns. These results reveal a critical function of MpROP in the regulation of plant development. Interestingly, these phenotypes were complemented not only by MpROP but also Arabidopsis AtROP2, supporting the conservation of ROP's function among land plants. Our results demonstrate a great potential for M. polymorpha as a powerful genetic system for functional and mechanistic elucidation of ROP signaling pathways during plant development.

Heat stress upregulates arachidonic acid to trigger autophagy in sertoli cells via dysfunctional mitochondrial respiratory chain function.

As a key factor in determining testis size and sperm number, sertoli cells (SCs) play a crucial role in male infertility. Heat stress (HS) reduces SCs counts, negatively impacting nutrient transport and supply to germ cells, and leading to spermatogenesis failure in humans and animals. However, how HS affects the number of SCs remains unclear. We hypothesized that changes in SC metabolism contribute to the adverse effects of HS. In this study, we first observed an upregulation of arachidonic acid (AA), an unsaturated fatty acid after HS exposure by LC-MS/MS metabolome detection. By increasing ROS levels, expression of KEAP1 and NRF2 proteins as well as LC3 and LAMP2, 100 µM AA induced autophagy in SCs by activating oxidative stress (OS). We observed adverse effects of AA on mitochondria under HS with a decrease of mitochondrial number and an increase of mitochondrial membrane potential (MMP). We also found that AA alternated the oxygen transport and absorption function of mitochondria by increasing glycolysis flux and decreasing oxygen consumption rate as well as the expression of mitochondrial electron transport chain (ETC) proteins Complex I, II, V. However, pretreatment with 5 mM NAC (ROS inhibitor) and 2 µM Rotenone (mitochondrial ETC inhibitor) reversed the autophagy induced by AA. In summary, AA modulates autophagy in SCs during HS by disrupting mitochondrial ETC function, inferring that the release of AA is a switch-like response, and providing insight into the underlying mechanism of high temperatures causing male infertility.

Long-term outcomes of pelvic exenterations for gynecological malignancies: a single-center retrospective cohort study.

BACKGROUND: Recently, with the advancement of medical technology, the postoperative morbidity of pelvic exenteration (PE) has gradually decreased, and it has become a curative treatment option for some patients with recurrent gynecological malignancies. However, more evidence is still needed to support its efficacy. This study aimed to explore the safety and long-term survival outcome of PE and the feasibility of umbilical single-port laparoscopic PE for gynecologic malignancies in a single medical center in China. PATIENTS AND METHODS: PE for gynecological cancers except for ovarian cancer conducted by a single surgical team in Sun Yat-sen University Cancer Center between July 2014 and December 2019 were included and the data were retrospectively analyzed. RESULTS: Forty-one cases were included and median age at diagnosis was 53 years. Cervical cancer accounted for 87.8% of all cases, and most of them received prior treatment (95.1%). Sixteen procedures were performed in 2016 and before, and 25 after 2016. Three anterior PE were performed by umbilical single-site laparoscopy. The median operation time was 460 min, and the median estimated blood loss was 600 ml. There was no perioperative death. The years of the operations was significantly associated with the length of the operation time (P = 0.0018). The overall morbidity was 52.4%, while the severe complications rate was 19.0%. The most common complication was pelvic and abdominal infection. The years of surgery was also significantly associated with the occurrence of severe complication (P = 0.040). The median follow-up time was 55.8 months. The median disease-free survival (DFS) was 17.9 months, and the median overall survival (OS) was 25.3 months. The 5-year DFS was 28.5%, and the 5-year OS was 30.8%. CONCLUSION: PE is safe for patient who is selected by a multi-disciplinary treatment, and can be a curative treatment for some patients. PE demands a high level of experience from the surgical team. Umbilical single-port laparoscopy was a technically feasible approach for APE, meriting further investigation.

Modulation of microbial community dynamics by spatial partitioning.

Microbial communities inhabit spatial architectures that divide a global environment into isolated or semi-isolated local environments, which leads to the partitioning of a microbial community into a collection of local communities. Despite its ubiquity and great interest in related processes, how and to what extent spatial partitioning affects the structures and dynamics of microbial communities are poorly understood. Using modeling and quantitative experiments with simple and complex microbial communities, we demonstrate that spatial partitioning modulates the community dynamics by altering the local interaction types and global interaction strength. Partitioning promotes the persistence of populations with negative interactions but suppresses those with positive interactions. For a community consisting of populations with both positive and negative interactions, an intermediate level of partitioning maximizes the overall diversity of the community. Our results reveal a general mechanism underlying the maintenance of microbial diversity and have implications for natural and engineered communities.

Valuation of multi-dimensional health states with a "bolt-on": is there a shortcut?

OBJECTIVES: In order to use the EQ-5D questionnaire with bolt-on dimensions in economic evaluation studies, new value sets are needed. In this study, we explored the feasibility of a new approach called scaling factor model, which estimates bolt-on value sets using estimated EQ-5D dimensional weights. METHODS: We designed a two-arm study, inviting university students to value health states with and without bolt-on items using the composite time trade-off (cTTO) method. We selected 25 health states from an orthogonal array and added 5 mildest EQ-5D states in the design. In arm 1, EQ-5D without self-care and standard EQ-5D states were valued, and in arm 2, standard EQ-5D states and EQ-5D with vision were valued. By arm, we compared the mean observed values of health states with and without bolt-on item. Next, by arm, we estimated value sets for the EQ-5D with bolt-on item states using both standard model and scaling factor model. Model performances were compared in terms of prediction accuracy and correlation with likelihood-based mean values. RESULTS: Adding a fifth-level bolt-on to EQ-5D resulted in statistically lower values. This effect is consistent across two arms and bolt-on items. The scaling factor models outperformed the standard models in all statistics. CONCLUSIONS: The scaling factor model offers a methodologically viable and low-cost option for producing value sets for EQ-5D, supplemented with bolt-on items. Future studies should further test this method using other bolt-on items and relevant study populations.

Testing 2 Alternative Time Trade-Off Methods for Valuation of Children's Health States.

OBJECTIVES: Composite time trade-off (cTTO) values for EQ-5D-Y-3L health states tend to be high, raising concerns about sensitivity particularly for mild or moderate health states. We conceptualized and pilot tested 2 alternative time trade-off (TTO) variants: the caregiver TTO (CGTTO) and lag-time TTO (LTTO). METHODS: We collected CGTTO and LTTO data in China for 10 EQ-5D-Y-3L health states and compared the resulting values, respondent feedback, and task completion times with those from an EQ-5D-Y-3L valuation study using cTTO. We also examined how age and parental status of respondents could affect TTO values. RESULTS: A total of 304 participants were included in this study. Overall, cTTO showed statistically better results in all feedback questions. On a 5-point Likert scale where lower score means greater agreement, the mean (SD) feedback scores for cTTO, LTTO, and CGTTO were 1.18 (0.58), 1.45 (0.91), and 1.65 (1.02) for "easy to understand"; 1.45 (0.91), 1.94 (1.08), and 1.86 (1.24) for "easy to differentiate"; and 3.61 (1.29), 2.97 (1.33), and 3.02 (1.50) for "difficult to decide," respectively. The mean (SD) TTO values of all 10 states were 0.463 (0.494), 0.387 (0.555), and 0.123 (0.710) for cTTO, LTTO, and CGTTO, respectively. The effects of age and parental status on TTO values differed by the 3 methods. CONCLUSIONS: LTTO and CGTTO produce values with good characteristics and merit further investigation. Researchers need to be aware of the differences in design and values when using the TTO method to value children's health states.

Testing "Pits" Time Trade-Off: Can Data Quality be Improved by Removing Death From Valuation of Health States?

OBJECTIVES: Composite time trade-off (cTTO) often exhibits issues such as a value clustering at -1, potentially due to suboptimal valuation task design. We developed a novel time trade-off which uses the "pits" state as an anchor state and enables a unified time trade-off procedure for all health states (referred to as "pTTO"). This study aimed to test the pTTO for valuation of EQ-5D-5L health states. METHODS: A total of 120 members of the general public were invited to value 3 pairs of dominant/dominated EQ-5D-5L states using both cTTO and pTTO and the "pits" state using cTTO. We compared the pTTO with cTTO in terms of feasibility (interviewer-rated task-completing difficulty), acceptability (participant-reported task experience), value distribution, logical consistency, and discriminatory ability (using the standardized response mean, an effect size measure, derived from 3 pairwise comparisons of states with dominant/dominated relationship). RESULTS: The pTTO demonstrated similar feasibility to cTTO but slightly lower acceptability. The pTTO values exhibited a smoother and more continuous distribution compared with cTTO values. Relative to the cTTO, the pTTO showed higher individual-level logical consistency rate for the pairs comprising severe states (stringent criterion: 53.04% vs 17.39%; less stringent criterion: 82.61% vs 78.26%). The standardized response mean value based on pTTO values were higher than those based on cTTO values for the pair comprising severe states (0.388 vs -0.140). CONCLUSIONS: The pTTO appeared to be feasible and acceptable to value EQ-5D-5L states. The pTTO values were less clustered, more logically consistent, and discriminative compared with the cTTO values for severe health states.

The Ceiling Effects of EQ-5D-3L and 5L in General Population Health Surveys: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.

OBJECTIVES: This review aims to examine the ceiling effects of EQ-5D-3L (3L) and EQ-5D-5L (5L) in general adult populations and identify the factors influencing these effects. METHODS: We searched 8 databases for observational studies published in English from inception to 24 July 2023. Ceiling effects were calculated by dividing the number of participants reporting full health at dimension or profile level by the total sample size. Subgroup analysis and meta-regression using the metafor package in R software were performed. RESULTS: We identified 94 studies from 70 articles, including 4 543 647 adults across 37 countries. The global pooled proportion of individuals reporting full health ("11111") was 56% (95% CI 51%-62%) for 3L and 49% (95% CI 44%-54%) for 5L. The self-care dimension showed the highest ceiling effects (3L: 97%; 5L: 94%), whereas pain/discomfort had the lowest (3L: 69%; 5L: 60%). The ceiling effects in East/South-East Asia were higher than in Europe by 25% (95% CI 18%-32%) in 3L and 9% (95% CI -2%-20%) in 5L. Adjusting for mean age and proportion of males, significant regional differences persisted in the overall profile level of 3L, in all 3L dimensions (except for self-care), and 5L dimensions (except for pain/discomfort and anxiety/depression). CONCLUSIONS: This review highlights significant ceiling effects in the EQ-5D, especially in Asian populations. The 5L version exhibited fewer ceiling effects than the 3L, indicating its superiority for general population surveys. Further research is crucial to understand the disparities in self-reported health outcomes between Asians and other populations.

EQ-5D-5L Population Norms for China Derived From a National Health Survey.

OBJECTIVES: To develop the EQ-5D-5L (5L) population norms for China and to assess the relationship between various factors and 5L data. METHODS: This study used data derived from the Psychology and Behavior Investigation of Chinese Residents, a national sample survey of 21 909 representative participants aged 12 years and above. Participants' health-related quality of life (HRQoL) was measured by the 5L. Their socioeconomic characteristics, behavioral factors, and health conditions were also obtained from the survey. Norm scores were generated and compared for different socioeconomic variables. Multiple linear and logistic regressions were used to assess the relationships of the 3 kinds of variables with the 5L utility, visual analog scale (VAS) scores and 5L health problems. RESULTS: The mean (SD) age of participants was 39.4 (18.9) years, and 50.0% of them were female. The mean (SD) utility and VAS scores were 0.940 (0.138) and 73.4 (21.6), respectively. Participants reported considerably more problems in anxiety/depression (26.2%) and pain/discomfort (22.2%) dimensions. The gender difference in HRQoL is attenuated. The participants older than 75 years suffered from a sharp decline in HRQoL; the participants in Shanghai and Tibet provinces reported lower utility and VAS scores and more health problems. Those who were younger, with better socioeconomic status and healthier lifestyles, and without diseases tended to report higher utility and VAS scores and fewer health problems. CONCLUSIONS: This study derived the 5L population norms for China based on a representative population sample.

Differences and common ground in the frameworks of health-related quality of life in traditional Chinese medicine and modern medicine: a systematic review.

PURPOSE: This systematic review aims to explore the conceptualization of health-related quality of life (HRQoL) in China. With HRQoL influenced by both modern medicine (MM) and traditional Chinese medicine (TCM), the study seeks to identify differences and common ground between the frameworks of MM and TCM as defined in the literature. METHOD: A systematic literature search was conducted across three Chinese databases and four English databases. The data was extracted including title, author(s), publication year, region, aim, method, category, and result. When sorting data, we broke down the HRQoL frameworks into concepts, domains and facets, with a focus on overlapped facets between the frameworks of MM and TCM. RESULTS: A total of 31 studies were included. In the perspective of TCM, HRQoL is centered around three key 'concepts': (1) 'xingshentongyi' (unity of body and spirit), (2) 'tianrenheyi' (harmony between man and nature), and (3) 'qiqing' (seven emotional forms). In contrast, the MM framework comprises 'physical,' 'mental,' 'social,' and 'environment' domains. Out of the 59 unique facets identified, 28 are common to both TCM and MM, 9 specific to TCM, and 22 specific to MM. 'Appetite,' 'sleep,' and 'energy' are the most frequently mentioned facets in both frameworks. CONCLUSION: The concept of HRQoL in China encompasses frameworks rooted in both TCM and MM. While TCM and MM have distinct healthcare approaches, they share overlapping domains when measuring HRQoL through questionnaires. Furthermore, TCM and MM demonstrate considerable convergence in terms of HRQoL facets, showing the potential for utilizing HRQoL instruments across different cultural settings.

Association of a healthy ageing index with health-related outcomes in a multi-ethnic cohort from Singapore.

BACKGROUND: The global population is ageing rapidly and it is important to promote healthy ageing. The Healthy Ageing Index (HAI) is a comprehensive measure of health, but there is limited research on its association with other age-related outcomes. The management of an aging population necessitates considerations even among generally healthy adults, as age-related diseases often remain unaccounted for until later stages of life. This study explores the association of risk factors with HAI and its association with peripheral artery disease (PAD), muscle strength, health-related quality of life (HRQoL), and psychological distress in the Singapore Multi-Ethnic Cohort study. METHODS: This cross-sectional study involved 1909 participants (median (Q1, Q3) age: 53 (48, 60) years and 59.3% females) from Singapore Multi-Ethnic Cohort study. The risk factors of HAI included age, gender, ethnicity, education level, smoking, alcohol consumption, employment, BMI and past medical histories. PAD was assessed using ankle-brachial index (ABI), handgrip strength (HGS), HRQoL with the EQ-5D-5 L questionnaire and psychological distress via the Kessler Psychological Distress Scale (K10). HAI components were assessed using relevant marker tests. RESULTS: Older age, Malay and Indian ethnicities, unemployment, high BMI and histories of CHD, hypercholesterolaemia, tumours and TIA/stroke were associated with lower HAI scores indicative of poorer health. Higher HAI scores were associated with females and higher education levels. Lower HAI scores were significantly associated with low ABI, high K10 scores, mobility and anxiety/depression dimensions of EQ-5D-5 L. CONCLUSION: The most important factors associated with HAI were age, sex, ethnicity, education, unemployment, BMI and a history of health conditions. Lower HAI scores were significantly associated with PAD, lower HRQoL and psychological distress. Thus, the HAI demonstrates promise as an evaluation method for assessing PAD, overall muscle strength and HRQoL in a population-based setting.

Multivariate analysis of alveolar bone dehiscence and fenestration in anterior teeth after orthodontic treatment: A retrospective study.

OBJECTIVE: To compare the prevalence of fenestration and dehiscence between pre- and post-orthodontic treatment and to explore the factors related to fenestration and dehiscence in the anterior teeth after treatment. METHODS: This study included 1000 cone-beam computed tomography (CBCT) scans of 500 patients before (T1) and after (T2) orthodontic treatment. These images were imported into Dolphin 11.9 software to detect alveolar fenestration and dehiscence in the anterior teeth area. The chi-square test and Fisher's exact test were performed to compare the prevalence of alveolar bone defects between time points T1 and T2. A total of 499 patients were selected for logistic regression analysis to examine the correlation among age, sex, crowding, sagittal facial type, extraction, miniscrew use and fenestration or dehiscence post-treatment. RESULTS: Except for the maxillary lingual fenestration and labial fenestration of mandibular canines, a significant change in the prevalence of fenestration and dehiscence was noted between time points T1 and T2 (P < .025). Multinomial logistic regression showed that age, miniscrew use and extraction highly influenced the prevalence of anterior lingual dehiscence (P < .05). Dehiscence of the mandibular labial side (skeletal Class III vs. I, OR = 2.368, P = .000) and fenestration of the mandibular lingual side (skeletal Class II vs. I, OR = 2.344, P = .044) were strongly correlated with the sagittal facial type. Dehiscence of the maxillary labial side (moderate vs. mild, OR = 1.468, P = .017) was significantly associated with crowding. CONCLUSIONS: Older age, maxillary moderate crowding, skeletal Class III, extraction and miniscrew potentially significantly affect the prevalence of anterior teeth dehiscence. Adult females, skeletal Class III patients on the mandibular labial side and skeletal Class II patients on the mandibular lingual side should be monitored for anterior teeth fenestration.

ZFP57 dictates allelic expression switch of target imprinted genes.

ZFP57 is a master regulator of genomic imprinting. It has both maternal and zygotic functions that are partially redundant in maintaining DNA methylation at some imprinting control regions (ICRs). In this study, we found that DNA methylation was lost at most known ICRs in Zfp57 mutant embryos. Furthermore, loss of ZFP57 caused loss of parent-of-origin-dependent monoallelic expression of the target imprinted genes. The allelic expression switch occurred in the ZFP57 target imprinted genes upon loss of differential DNA methylation at the ICRs in Zfp57 mutant embryos. Specifically, upon loss of ZFP57, the alleles of the imprinted genes located on the same chromosome with the originally methylated ICR switched their expression to mimic their counterparts on the other chromosome with unmethylated ICR. Consistent with our previous study, ZFP57 could regulate the NOTCH signaling pathway in mouse embryos by impacting allelic expression of a few regulators in the NOTCH pathway. In addition, the imprinted Dlk1 gene that has been implicated in the NOTCH pathway was significantly down-regulated in Zfp57 mutant embryos. Our allelic expression switch models apply to the examined target imprinted genes controlled by either maternally or paternally methylated ICRs. Our results support the view that ZFP57 controls imprinted expression of its target imprinted genes primarily through maintaining differential DNA methylation at the ICRs.

Development and validation of machine learning models to predict frailty risk for elderly.

AIMS: Early identification and intervention of the frailty of the elderly will help lighten the burden of social medical care and improve the quality of life of the elderly. Therefore, we used machine learning (ML) algorithm to develop models to predict frailty risk in the elderly. DESIGN: A prospective cohort study. METHODS: We collected data on 6997 elderly people from Chinese Longitudinal Healthy Longevity Study wave 6-7 surveys (2011-2012, 2014). After the baseline survey in 1998 (wave 1), the project conducted follow-up surveys (wave 2-8) in 2000-2018. The osteoporotic fractures index was used to assess frailty. Four ML algorithms (random forest [RF], support vector machine, XGBoost and logistic regression [LR]) were used to develop models to identify the risk factors of frailty and predict the risk of frailty. Different ML models were used for the prediction of frailty risk in the elderly and frailty risk was trained on a cohort of 4385 elderly people with frailty (split into a training cohort [75%] and internal validation cohort [25%]). The best-performing model for each study outcome was tested in an external validation cohort of 6997 elderly people with frailty pooled from the surveys (wave 6-7). Model performance was assessed by receiver operating curve and F2-score. RESULTS: Among the four ML models, the F2-score values were similar (0.91 vs. 0.91 vs. 0.88 vs. 0.90), and the area under the curve (AUC) values of RF model was the highest (0.75), followed by LR model (0.74). In the final two models, the AUC values of RF and LR model were similar (0.77 vs. 0.76) and their accuracy was identical (87.4% vs. 87.4%). CONCLUSION: Our study developed a preliminary prediction model based on two different ML approaches to help predict frailty risk in the elderly. IMPACT: The presented models from this study can be used to inform healthcare providers to predict the frailty probability among older adults and maybe help guide the development of effective frailty risk management interventions. IMPLICATIONS FOR THE PROFESSION AND/OR PATIENT CARE: Detecting frailty at an early stage and implementing timely targeted interventions may help to improve the allocation of health care resources and to reduce frailty-related burden. Identifying risk factors for frailty could be beneficial to provide tailored and personalized care intervention for older adults to more accurately prevent or improve their frail conditions so as to improve their quality of life. REPORTING METHOD: The study has adhered to STROBE guidelines. PATIENT OR PUBLIC CONTRIBUTION: No patient or public contribution.

Adenine-induced animal model of chronic kidney disease: current applications and future perspectives.

Chronic kidney disease (CKD) with high morbidity and mortality all over the world is characterized by decreased kidney function, a condition which can result from numerous risk factors, including diabetes, hypertension and obesity. Despite significant advances in our understanding of the pathogenesis of CKD, there are still no treatments that can effectively combat CKD, which underscores the urgent need for further study into the pathological mechanisms underlying this condition. In this regard, animal models of CKD are indispensable. This article reviews a widely used animal model of CKD, which is induced by adenine. While a physiologic dose of adenine is beneficial in terms of biological activity, a high dose of adenine is known to induce renal disease in the organism. Following a brief description of the procedure for disease induction by adenine, major mechanisms of adenine-induced CKD are then reviewed, including inflammation, oxidative stress, programmed cell death, metabolic disorders, and fibrillation. Finally, the application and future perspective of this adenine-induced CKD model as a platform for testing the efficacy of a variety of therapeutic approaches is also discussed. Given the simplicity and reproducibility of this animal model, it remains a valuable tool for studying the pathological mechanisms of CKD and identifying therapeutic targets to fight CKD.

Care models for patients with heart failure at home: A systematic review.

AIMS: The aim of this study is to evaluate the relative merits of various heart failure models of care with regard to a variety of outcomes. DESIGN: Systematic review. DATA SOURCES: Five databases including PubMed, Web of Science, Medline, Embase and Science Direct were searched from the inception date of databases to August 20, 2022. REVIEW METHODS: This review used the Cochrane Collaboration's 'Risk of Bias' tool to assess quality. Only randomised controlled trails were included in this review that assessed all care models in the management of adults with heart failure. A categorical summary of the pattern of the papers was found, followed by extraction of outcome indicators. RESULTS: Twenty articles (19 studies) were included. Seven examined nurse-led care, two examined multidisciplinary specialist care, nine (10 articles) examined patient self-management, and one examined nurse and physiotherapist co-led care. Regarding outcomes, this review examined how well the four models performed with regard to quality of life, health services use, HF self-care, and anxiety and depression for heart failure patients. The model of patient self-management showed more beneficial results than nurse-led care, multidisciplinary specialist care, and nurse and physiotherapist co-led care in reducing hospital days, improving symptoms, promoting self-care behaviours of HF patients, enhancing the quality of life, and strengthening self-care ability. CONCLUSIONS: This systematic review synthesises the different care models and their relative effectiveness. Four different models of care were summarised. Of these models, the self-management model demonstrated better outcomes. IMPACT: The self-management model is more effective in increasing self-management behaviours and self-management abilities, lowering the risk of hospitalisation and death, improving quality of life, and relieving anxiety and depression than other models. NO PATIENT OR PUBLIC CONTRIBUTION: There was no funding to remunerate a patient/member of the public for this review.

The effects of iron-based nanomaterials (Fe NMs) on plants under stressful environments: Machine learning-assisted meta-analysis.

Mitigating the adverse effects of stressful environments on crops and promoting plant recovery in contaminated sites are critical to agricultural development and environmental remediation. Iron-based nanomaterials (Fe NMs) can be used as environmentally friendly nano-fertilizer and as a means of ecological remediation. A meta-analysis was conducted on 58 independent studies from around the world to evaluate the effects of Fe NMs on plant development and antioxidant defense systems in stressful environments. The application of Fe NMs significantly enhanced plant biomass (mean = 25%, CI = 20%-30%), while promoting antioxidant enzyme activity (mean = 14%, CI = 10%-18%) and increasing antioxidant metabolite content (mean = 10%, CI = 6%-14%), reducing plant oxidative stress (mean = -15%, CI = -20%∼-10%), and alleviating the toxic effects of stressful environments. The observed response was dependent on a number of factors, which were ranked in terms of a Random Forest Importance Analysis. Plant species was the most significant factor, followed by Fe NM particle size, duration of application, dose level, and Fe NM type. The meta-analysis has demonstrated the potential of Fe NMs in achieving sustainable agriculture and the future development of phytoremediation.