Precision Medicine in Rheumatic Diseases: Unlocking the Potential of Antibody-Drug Conjugates.

In the era of precision medicine, antibody-drug conjugates (ADCs) have emerged as a cutting-edge therapeutic strategy. These innovative compounds combine the precision of monoclonal antibodies with the potent cell-killing or immune-modulating abilities of attached drug payloads. This unique strategy not only reduces off-target toxicity but also enhances the therapeutic effectiveness of drugs. Beyond their well established role in oncology, ADCs are now showing promising potential in addressing the unmet needs in the therapeutics of rheumatic diseases. Rheumatic diseases, a diverse group of chronic autoimmune diseases with varying etiologies, clinical presentations, and prognoses, often demand prolonged pharmacological interventions, creating a pressing need for novel, efficient, and low-risk treatment options. ADCs, with their ability to precisely target the immune components, have emerged as a novel therapeutic strategy in this context. This review will provide an overview of the core components and mechanisms behind ADCs, a summary of the latest clinical trials of ADCs for the treatment of rheumatic diseases, and a discussion of the challenges and future prospects faced by the development of next-generation ADCs. SIGNIFICANCE STATEMENT: There is a lack of efficient and low-risk targeted therapeutics for rheumatic diseases. Antibody-drug conjugates, a class of cutting-edge therapeutic drugs, have emerged as a promising targeted therapeutic strategy for rheumatic disease. Although there is limited literature summarizing the progress of antibody-drug conjugates in the field of rheumatic disease, updating the advancements in this area provides novel insights into the development of novel antirheumatic drugs.

A Prism Vote method for individualized risk prediction of traits in genotype data of Multi-population.

Multi-population cohorts offer unprecedented opportunities for profiling disease risk in large samples, however, heterogeneous risk effects underlying complex traits across populations make integrative prediction challenging. In this study, we propose a novel Bayesian probability framework, the Prism Vote (PV), to construct risk predictions in heterogeneous genetic data. The PV views the trait of an individual as a composite risk from subpopulations, in which stratum-specific predictors can be formed in data of more homogeneous genetic structure. Since each individual is described by a composition of subpopulation memberships, the framework enables individualized risk characterization. Simulations demonstrated that the PV framework applied with alternative prediction methods significantly improved prediction accuracy in mixed and admixed populations. The advantage of PV enlarges as genetic heterogeneity and sample size increase. In two real genome-wide association data consists of multiple populations, we showed that the framework considerably enhanced prediction accuracy of the linear mixed model in five-group cross validations. The proposed method offers a new aspect to analyze individual's disease risk and improve accuracy for predicting complex traits in genotype data.

Integrated transcriptome and endogenous hormone analyses reveal the factors affecting the yield of Camellia oleifera.

Camellia oleifera is an important woody oil tree in China, in which the flowers and fruits appear during the same period. The endogenous hormone changes and transcription expression levels in different parts of the flower tissue (sepals, petals, stamens, and pistils), flower buds, leaves, and seeds of Changlin 23 high-yield (H), Changlin low-yield (L), and control (CK) C. oleifera groups were studied. The abscisic acid (ABA) content in the petals and stamens in the L group was significantly higher than that in the H and CK groups, which may be related to flower and fruit drops. The high N6-isopentenyladenine (iP) and indole acetic acid (IAA) contents in the flower buds may be associated with a high yield. Comparative transcriptome analysis showed that the protein phosphatase 2C (PP2C), jasmonate-zim-domain protein (JAZ), and WRKY-related differentially expressed genes (DEGs) may play an important role in determining leaf color. Gene set enrichment analysis (GSEA) comparison showed that jasmonic acid (JA) and cytokinin play an important role in determining the pistil of the H group. In this study, endogenous hormone and transcriptome analyses were carried out to identify the factors influencing the large yield difference in C. oleifera in the same year, which provides a theoretical basis for C. oleifera in the future.

Differential effects of sleep deprivation on behavior and microglia in a brain-region-specific manner in young and aged male mice.

Microglia, resident immune cells in the central nervous system, constantly monitor the state of the surrounding brain activity. The animal model induced by sleep deprivation (SD) is widely used to study the pathophysiological mechanisms of insomnia and bipolar disorder. However, it remains unclear whether SD affects behaviors in young and aged male mice and microglia in various brain regions. In this study, we confirmed brain region-specific changes in microglial density and morphology in the accumbens nucleus (Acb), amygdala (AMY), cerebellum (Cb), corpus callosum (cc), caudate putamen, hippocampus (HIP), hypothalamus (HYP), medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC), and thalamus (TH) of young mice. In addition, the density of microglia in old mice was higher than that in young mice. Compared with young mice, old mice showed a markedly increased microglial size, decreased total length of microglial processes, and decreased maximum length. Importantly, we found that 48-h SD decreased microglial density and morphology in old mice, whereas SD increased microglial density and morphology in most observed brain regions in young mice. SD-induced hyperactivity was observed only in young mice but not in old mice. Moreover, microglial density (HIP, AMY, mPFC, CPu) was significantly positively correlated with behaviors in SD- and vehicle-treated young mice. Contrarily, negative correlations were shown between the microglial density (cc, Cb, TH, HYP, Acb, AMY) and behaviors in vehicle-treated young and old mice. These results suggest that SD dysregulates the homeostatic state of microglia in a region- and age-dependent manner. Microglia may be involved in regulating age-related behavioral responses to SD.

Mid1 promotes synovitis in rheumatoid arthritis via ubiquitin-dependent post-translational modification.

INTRODUCTION: Current anti-rheumatic drugs are primarily modulating immune cell activation, yet their effectiveness remained suboptimal. Therefore, novel therapeutics targeting alternative mechanisms, such as synovial activation, is urgently needed. OBJECTIVES: To explore the role of Midline-1 (Mid1) in synovial activation. METHODS: NOD.Cg-Prkdcscid Il2rgtm1Wjl/SzJ (NSG) mice were used to establish a subcutaneous xenograft model. Wild-type C57BL/6, Mid1-/-, Dpp4-/-, and Mid1-/-Dpp4-/- mice were used to establish a collagen-induced arthritis model. Cell viability, cell cycle, qPCR and western blotting analysis were used to detect MH7A proliferation, dipeptidyl peptidase-4 (DPP4) and Mid1 levels. Co-immunoprecipitation and proteomic analysis identified the candidate protein of Mid1 substrates. Ubiquitination assays were used to determine DPP4 ubiquitination status. RESULTS: An increase in Mid1, an E3 ubiquitin ligase, was observed in human RA synovial tissue by GEO dataset analysis, and this elevation was confirmed in a collagen-induced mouse arthritis model. Notably, deletion of Mid1 in a collagen-induced arthritis model completely protected mice from developing arthritis. Subsequent overexpression and knockdown experiments on MH7A, a human synoviocyte cell line, unveiled a previously unrecognized role of Mid1 in synoviocyte proliferation and migration, the key aspects of synovial activation. Co-immunoprecipitation and proteomic analysis identified DPP4 as the most significant candidate of Mid1 substrates. Mechanistically, Mid1 promoted synoviocyte proliferation and migration by inducing ubiquitin-mediated proteasomal degradation of DPP4. DPP4 deficiency led to increased proliferation, migration, and inflammatory cytokine production in MH7A, while reconstitution of DPP4 significantly abolished Mid1-induced augmentation of cell proliferation and activation. Additionally, double knockout model showed that DPP4 deficiency abolished the protective effect of Mid1 defect on arthritis. CONCLUSION: Overall, our findings suggest that the ubiquitination of DPP4 by Mid1 promotes synovial cell proliferation and invasion, exacerbating synovitis in RA. These results reveal a novel mechanism that controls synovial activation, positioning Mid1 as a promising target for therapeutic intervention in RA.

Investigation of lacrimal gland and extraocular muscle in thyroid eye disease patients with severe subjective dry eye disease: a multiparametric magnetic resonance imaging study.

PURPOSE: To analyze the radiological features of the lacrimal gland (LG) and extraocular muscle (EOM) in thyroid eye disease (TED) patients with severe subjective dry eye disease (DED) using magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) measurements. METHODS: In this cross-sectional study, mechanical ocular exposure, dry eye assessment and MRI data were collected. Patients were classified into non-severe subjective DED group with ocular surface disease index (OSDI) < 33 and severe subjective DED group with OSDI ≥ 33. Linear regression model was applied for comparing the OSDI < 33 and OSDI ≥ 33 group in TED patients. The predictive performance of MRI parameters and models was assessed by receiver operating characteristic curve (ROC) analysis. RESULTS: Consecutive 88 TED patients (176 eyes) were included in this study. In the OSDI < 33 group, 52 TED patients (104 eyes) with a mean clinical activity score (CAS) of 0.63 ± 0.75. In the OSDI ≥ 33 group, there are 36 TED patients (72 eyes), with a mean CAS of 1.50 ± 1.54. The age and sex of the patients were matched between the two groups. The OSDI ≥ 33 group had shorter tear break-up time, larger levator palpebrae superioris / superior rectus (LPS/SR), inferior rectus and lateral rectus, smaller LG, more inflammatory LPS/SR and inferior rectus than OSDI < 33 DED group (P < 0.05). In the linear regression analysis, compare to the OSDI < 33 DED group, the OSDI ≥ 33 group had larger medial rectus cross-sectional area (ß = 0.06, 95%CI: (0.02, 0.10), P = 0.008), larger inferior rectus cross-sectional area (ß = 0.06, 95%CI: (0.00, 0.12), P = 0.048), smaller LG cross-sectional area (ß = -0.14, 95%CI: (-0.25, -0.04), P = 0.008). In the ROC analysis, the area under curve of medial rectus, inferior rectus, LG, and combined model are 0.625, 0.640, 0.661 and 0.716, respectively. CONCLUSION: Multiparametric MRI parameters of the LG and EOM in TED patients with severe subjective DED were significantly altered. Novel models combining the cross-sectional area of LG, medial rectus and inferior rectus showed good predictive performance in TED patients with severe subjective DED.

Transcriptome analysis reveals the mechanism of antifungal peptide epinecidin-1 against Botrytis cinerea by mitochondrial dysfunction and oxidative stress.

The marine antifungal peptide epinecidin-1 (EPI) have been shown to inhibit Botrytis cinerea growth, while the molecular mechanism have not been explored based on omics technology. This study aimed to investigate the molecular mechanism of EPI against B. cinerea by transcriptome technology. Our findings indicated that a total of 1671 differentially expressed genes (DEGs) were detected in the mycelium of B. cinerea treated with 12.5 µmol/L EPI for 3 h, including 773 up-regulated genes and 898 down-regulated genes. Cluster analysis showed that DEGs (including steroid biosynthesis, (unsaturated) fatty acid biosynthesis) related to cell membrane metabolism were significantly down-regulated, and almost all DEGs involved in DNA replication were significantly inhibited. In addition, it also induced the activation of stress-related pathways, such as the antioxidant system, ATP-binding cassette transporter (ABC) and MAPK signaling pathways, and interfered with the tricarboxylic acid (TCA) cycle and oxidative phosphorylation pathways related to mitochondrial function. The decrease of mitochondrial related enzyme activities (succinate dehydrogenase, malate dehydrogenase and adenosine triphosphatase), the decrease of mitochondrial membrane potential and the increase content of hydrogen peroxide further confirmed that EPI treatment may lead to mitochondrial dysfunction and oxidative stress. Based on this, we speculated that EPI may impede the growth of B. cinerea through its influence on gene expression, and may lead to mitochondrial dysfunction and oxidative stress.

The genome and sex-dependent responses to temperature in the common yellow butterfly, Eurema hecabe.

BACKGROUND: Lepidoptera (butterflies and moths) is one of the most geographically widespread insect orders in the world, and its species play important and diverse ecological and applied roles. Climate change is one of the biggest challenges to biodiversity this century, and lepidopterans are vulnerable to climate change. Temperature-dependent gene expression differences are of relevance under the ongoing climate crisis. However, little is known about how climate affects gene expression in lepidopterans and the ecological consequences of this, particularly with respect to genes with biased expression in one of the sexes. The common yellow butterfly, Eurema hecabe (Family Pieridae), is one of the most geographically widespread lepidopterans that can be found in Asia, Africa, and Australia. Nevertheless, what temperature-dependent effects there may be and whether the effects differ between the sexes remain largely unexplored. RESULTS: Here, we generated high-quality genomic resources for E. hecabe along with transcriptomes from eight developmental stages. Male and female butterflies were subjected to varying temperatures to assess sex-specific gene expression responses through mRNA and microRNA transcriptomics. We find that there are more temperature-dependent sex-biased genes in females than males, including genes that are involved in a range of biologically important functions, highlighting potential ecological impacts of increased temperatures. Further, by considering available butterfly data on sex-biased gene expression in a comparative genomic framework, we find that the pattern of sex-biased gene expression identified in E. hecabe is highly species-specific, rather than conserved across butterfly species, suggesting that sex-biased gene expression responses to climate change are complex in butterflies. CONCLUSIONS: Our study lays the foundation for further understanding of differential responses to environmental stress in a widespread lepidopteran model and demonstrates the potential complexity of sex-specific responses of lepidopterans to climate change.

Low-Molecular-Weight Peptides Prepared from Hypsizygus marmoreus Exhibit Strong Antioxidant and Antibacterial Activities.

Hypsizygus marmoreus has abundant proteins and is a potential source for the development of bioactive peptides. However, currently, the research on the bioactive components of H. marmoreus mainly focuses on polysaccharides, and there is no relevant research on the preparation of bioactive peptides. In this article, an ultrasound-assisted extraction method was used to extract proteins from H. marmoreus, and then, four peptides with different molecular weight ranges were prepared through protease hydrolysis and molecular classification. The antioxidant and antibacterial activities were also studied. Under the optimal conditions, the extraction rate of H. marmoreus proteins was 53.6%. Trypsin exhibited the highest hydrolysis rate of H. marmoreus proteins. The optimal parameters for enzymatic hydrolysis were a substrate concentration of 3.7%, enzyme addition of 5700 U/g, pH value of 7, extraction temperature of 55 °C, and time of 3.3 h. Under these conditions, the peptide yield was 59.7%. The four types of H. marmoreus peptides were prepared by molecular weight grading. Among them, peptides with low molecular weight (<1 kDa) had stronger antioxidant and antibacterial activities. This study provides a theoretical basis for the efficient preparation of H. marmoreus peptides and the development of antioxidant and antibacterial peptide products.

Novel Withanolides from Tubocapsicum anomalum Suppress Triple-Negative Breast Cancer by Triggering Apoptosis and p53-ASCT2-SLC7A11-Mediated Ferroptosis.

Triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) is a malignant breast cancer. There is an urgent need for effective drugs to be developed for TNBC. Tubocapsicum anomalum (T. anomalum) has been reported to have an anti-tumor effect, and six novel withanolides were isolated from it and designated as TAMEWs. However, its anti-TNBC effect is still unknown. The results of an MTT assay indicated a higher sensitivity of TNBC cells to TAMEWs compared to other cells. TAMEWs induced apoptosis via mitochondrial dysfunction. They caused increased levels of lipid ROS and Fe2+, with downregulation of GSH and cystine uptake, and it has been confirmed that TAMEWs induced ferroptosis. Additionally, the results of Western blotting indicate that TAMEWs significantly decrease the expressions of ferroptosis-related proteins. Through further investigation, it was found that the knockdown of the p53 gene resulted in a significant reversal of ferroptosis and the expressions of its associated proteins SLC7A11, ASCT2, and GPX4. In vivo, TAMEWs suppressed TNBC growth with no obvious damage. The IHC results also showed that TAMEWs induced apoptosis and ferroptosis in vivo. Our findings provide the first evidence that TAMEWs suppress TNBC growth through apoptosis and ferroptosis.

Influence of flavonoids from Sedum aizoon L. on mitochondrial function of Rhizopus nigricans in strawberry.

Rhizopus nigricans (R. nigricans), one of the fungi that grows the fastest, is frequently discovered in postharvest fruits, it's the main pathogen of strawberry root rot. Flavonoids in Sedum aizoon L. (FSAL) is a kind of green and safe natural substance extracted from Sedum aizoon L. which has antifungal activity. In this study, the minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) of FSAL on R. nigricans and cell apoptosis tests were studied to explore the inhibitory effect of FSAL on R. nigricans. The effects of FSAL on mitochondria of R. nigricans were investigated through the changes of mitochondrial permeability transition pore(mPTP), mitochondrial membrane potential(MMP), Ca2+ content, H2O2 content, cytochrome c (Cyt c) content, the related enzyme activity and related genes of mitochondria. The results showed that the MIC of FSAL on R. nigricans was 1.800 mg/mL, with the addition of FSAL (1.800 mg/mL), the mPTP openness of R. nigricans increased and the MMP reduced. Resulting in an increase in Ca2+ content, accumulation of H2O2 content and decrease of Cyt c content, the activity of related enzymes was inhibited and related genes were up-regulated (VDAC1, ANT) or down-regulated (SDHA, NOX2). This suggests that FSAL may achieve the inhibitory effect of fungi by damaging mitochondria, thereby realizing the postharvest freshness preservation of strawberries. This lays the foundation for the development of a new plant-derived antimicrobial agent.

Activation of Ga Liquid Catalyst with Continuously Exposed Active Sites for Electrocatalytic C-N Coupling.

Environmentally friendly electrocatalytic coupling of CO2 and N2 for urea synthesis is a promising strategy. However, it is still facing problems such as low yield as well as low stability. Here, a new carbon-coated liquid alloy catalyst, Ga79Cu11Mo10@C is designed for efficient electrochemical urea synthesis by activating Ga active sites. During the N2 and CO2 co-reduction process, the yield of urea reaches 28.25 mmol h-1 g-1, which is the highest yield reported so far under the same conditions, the Faraday efficiency (FE) is also as high as 60.6 % at -0.4 V vs. RHE. In addition, the catalyst shows excellent stability under 100 h of testing. Comprehensive analyses showed that sequential exposure of a high density of active sites promoted the adsorption and activation of N2 and CO2 for efficient coupling reactions. This coupling reaction occurs through a thermodynamic spontaneous reaction between *N=N* and CO to form a C-N bond. The deformability of the liquid state facilitates catalyst recovery and enhances stability and resistance to poisoning. Moreover, the introduction of Cu and Mo stimulates the Ga active sites, which successfully synthesises the *NCON* intermediate. The reaction energy barrier of the third proton-coupled electron transfer process rate-determining step (RDS) *NHCONH→*NHCONH2 was lowered, ensuring the efficient synthesis of urea.

sFlt-1-enriched exosomes induced endothelial cell dysfunction and a preeclampsia-like phenotype in mice.

Preeclampsia (PE) is a hypertensive disorder of pregnancy characterized by maternal endothelial dysfunction and end-organ damage. Our previous work demonstrated that PE patient-derived exosomes contained higher levels of soluble FMS-like tyrosine kinase-1 (sFlt-1) and significantly induced endothelial dysfunction and PE development. However, the mechanisms underlying the effect of sFlt-1-enriched exosomes (sFlt-1-Exo) on PE development are poorly characterized. Here, we revealed that trophoblast-derived sFlt-1-Exo treatment induced significant inhibition of human umbilical vein endothelial cell (HUVEC) migration and tube formation, as well as an increase in sFlt-1 secretion. Mechanistically, we found that the increased sFlt-1 secretion in the cell culture medium was attributed to enhanced transcription of sFlt-1 in HUVECs. Importantly, we observed that treating pregnant mice with sFlt-1-Exo or recombinant mouse sFlt-1 triggered a preeclampsia-like phenotype, characterized by elevated blood pressure, proteinuria, increased plasma sFlt-1 and adverse pregnancy outcomes. These results strongly suggested that sFlt-1-Exo-induced endothelial dysfunction could be partially attributed to the upregulation of sFlt-1 in endothelial cells, potentially leading to the development of a preeclampsia-like phenotype in mice.

Influences of flavonoids from Sedum aizoon L. on biofilm formation of Pseudomonas fragi.

Pseudomonas fragi (P. fragi) is one of the main categories of bacteria responsible for the spoilage of chilled meat. In the processing and preservation of chilled meat, it is easy to form biofilms on the meat, leading to the development of slime on the meat, which becomes a major quality defect. Flavonoids, as one of the critical components of secondary plant metabolites, are receiving increasing attention for their antibacterial activity. Flavonoids in Sedum aizoon L. (FSAL), relying on its prominent antibacterial activity, are of research importance in food preservation and other applications. This article aims to investigate the effect of FSAL on the biofilm formation of P. fragi, to better apply FSAL to the processing and preservation of meat products. The disruption of cellular structure and aggregation properties by FSAL was demonstrated by the observation of the cellular state within the biofilm. The amount of biofilm formation was determined by crystal violet staining, and the content of polysaccharides and proteins in the extracellular wrapped material was determined. It was shown that the experimental concentrations of FSAL (1.0 MIC) was able to inhibit biofilm formation and reduce the main components in the extracellular secretion. The swimming motility assay and the downregulation of flagellin-related genes confirmed that FSAL reduced cell motility and adhesion. The downregulation of cell division genes and the lowering of bacterial metabolic activity suggested that FSAL could hinder bacterial growth and reproduction within P. fragi biofilms. KEY POINTS: • FSAL inhibited the activity of Pseudomonas fragi in the dominant meat strain • The absence of EPS components affected the formation of P. fragi biofilms • P. fragi has reduced adhesion capacity due to impaired flagellin function.

Inhibitory Mechanism of Flavonoids from Sedum aizoon L. on Rhizopus nigricans.

Rhizopus nigricans is a widespread phytopathogen in fruits and vegetables that can cause considerable economic effects and resource waste. Flavonoids from Sedum aizoon L. (FSAL) have specific antifungal activities. This study selected FSAL as an antifungal to prolong the preservation of fruits and vegetables. The results showed that the mycelial morphology and ultrastructure were damaged by the FSAL treatment (1.0 minimum inhibitory concentration), led to the increase of reactive oxygen species and malondialdehyde, and affected the activity of key enzymes in the glycolytic pathway, such as lactic dehydrogenase, pyruvate kinase, and hexokinase of R. nigricans. Key genes in glycolysis were upregulated or downregulated. In addition, in the treatment and control groups, 221 differentially expressed genes were found, including 89 that were upregulated and 32 that were downregulated, according to the transcriptome results. The differential genes were mainly enriched in glycolysis, pyruvate metabolism, and citrate cycle pathways. The results revealed some insights into the antifungal mechanism of FSAL against R. nigricans and offered a theoretical foundation for its advancement as a novel plant-derived antifungal agent.

Gata6 potently initiates reprograming of pluripotent and differentiated cells to extraembryonic endoderm stem cells.

Transcription factor-mediated reprograming is a powerful method to study cell fate changes. In this study, we demonstrate that the transcription factor Gata6 can initiate reprograming of multiple cell types to induced extraembryonic endoderm stem (iXEN) cells. Intriguingly, Gata6 is sufficient to drive iXEN cells from mouse pluripotent cells and differentiated neural cells. Furthermore, GATA6 induction in human embryonic stem (hES) cells also down-regulates pluripotency gene expression and up-regulates extraembryonic endoderm (ExEn) genes, revealing a conserved function in mediating this cell fate switch. Profiling transcriptional changes following Gata6 induction in mES cells reveals step-wise pluripotency factor disengagement, with initial repression of Nanog and Esrrb, then Sox2, and finally Oct4, alongside step-wise activation of ExEn genes. Chromatin immunoprecipitation and subsequent high-throughput sequencing analysis shows Gata6 enrichment near pluripotency and endoderm genes, suggesting that Gata6 functions as both a direct repressor and activator. Together, this demonstrates that Gata6 is a versatile and potent reprograming factor that can act alone to drive a cell fate switch from diverse cell types.

Isomerization and Stabilization of Amygdalin from Peach Kernels.

In this study, isomerization conditions, cytotoxic activity, and stabilization of amygdalin from peach kernels were analyzed. Temperatures greater than 40 °C and pHs above 9.0 resulted in a quickly increasing isomer ratio (L-amygdalin/D-amygdalin). At acidic pHs, isomerization was significantly inhibited, even at high temperature. Ethanol inhibited isomerization; the isomer rate decreased with the ethanol concentration increasing. The growth-inhibitory effect on HepG2 cells of D-amygdalin was diminished as the isomer ratio increased, indicating that isomerization reduces the pharmacological activity of D-amygdalin. Extracting amygdalin from peach kernels by ultrasonic power at 432 W and 40 °C in 80% ethanol resulted in a 1.76% yield of amygdalin with a 0.04 isomer ratio. Hydrogel beads prepared by 2% sodium alginate successfully encapsulated the amygdalin, and its encapsulation efficiency and drug loading rate reached 85.93% and 19.21%, respectively. The thermal stability of amygdalin encapsulated in hydrogel beads was significantly improved and reached a slow-release effect in in vitro digestion. This study provides guidance for the processing and storage of amygdalin.

Unique molecular characteristics of NAFLD-associated liver cancer accentuate ß-catenin/TNFRSF19-mediated immune evasion.

BACKGROUND & AIMS: The hepatic manifestation of the metabolic syndrome, non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD), can lead to the development of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). Despite a strong causative link, NAFLD-HCC is often underrepresented in systematic genome explorations. METHODS: Herein, tumor-normal pairs from 100 patients diagnosed with NAFLD-HCC were subject to next-generation sequencing. Bioinformatic analyses were performed to identify key genomic, epigenomic and transcriptomic events associated with the pathogenesis of NAFLD-HCC. Establishment of primary patient-derived NAFLD-HCC culture was used as a representative human model for downstream in vitro investigations of the underlying CTNNB1 S45P driver mutation. A syngeneic immunocompetent mouse model was used to further test the involvement of CTNNB1mutand TNFRSF19 in reshaping the tumor microenvironment. RESULTS: Mutational processes operative in the livers of patients with NAFLD inferred susceptibility to tumor formation through defective DNA repair pathways. Dense promoter mutations and dysregulated transcription factors accentuated activated transcriptional regulation in NAFLD-HCC, in particular the enrichment of MAZ-MYC activities. Somatic events common in HCCs arising from NAFLD and viral hepatitis B infection underscore similar driver pathways, although an incidence shift highlights CTNNB1mut dominance in NAFLD-HCC (33%). Immune exclusion correlated evidently with CTNNB1mut. Chromatin immunoprecipitation-sequencing integrated with transcriptome and immune profiling revealed a unique transcriptional axis, wherein CTNNB1mut leads to an upregulation of TNFRSF19 which subsequently represses senescence-associated secretory phenotype-like cytokines (including IL6 and CXCL8). This phenomenon could be reverted by the Wnt-modulator ICG001. CONCLUSIONS: The unique mutational processes in the livers of patients with NAFLD and NAFLD-HCC allude to a "field effect" involving a gain-of-function role of CTNNB1 mutations in immune exclusion. LAY SUMMARY: The increasing prevalence of metabolic syndrome in adult populations means that NAFLD is poised to be the major cause of liver cancer in the 21st century. We showed a strong "field effect" in the livers of patients with NAFLD, wherein activated ß-catenin was involved in reshaping the tumor-immune microenvironment.

Self-healing polyacrylamide (PAAm) gels at room temperature based on complementary guanine and cytosine base pairs.

The unique properties of self-healing materials hold great potential in many fields because they can repair themselves automatically and have an improved service time. In this study, polyacrylamide (PAAm) gels with complementary guanine and cytosine base pairs have been prepared. Herein, based on our previous research, cytosine (C) and guanine (G) (triple hydrogen) with biosafety were introduced to endow the PAAm with self-healing properties. Then, their self-healing properties were studied in detail and the results indicate that the optimized PAAm gel sample manifests a healing efficiency of 90% at room temperature. The excellent proportion of methacryloyloxyethyl isocyanate-cytosine/guanine (IEM-C/G) to AAm is 1 : 30, according to which the PAM-CG material exhibits enhanced stretchability and tensile strength. The major healing process occurs within 5 h at room temperature, and the material is completely healed after 20 h. Moreover, the healing time can be shortened at a higher temperature. The mechanical behaviors are tuned by changing the base pairs, and the gels exhibit recoverable mechanical performances. Therefore, this study provides a facile strategy for developing self-healing and biocompatible PAAm gels.

Flavonoids from Sedum aizoon L. inhibit Botrytis cinerea by negatively affecting cell membrane lipid metabolism.

Botrytis cinerea is a highly destructive and widespread phytopathogen in fruits. The widespread use of chemical antifungal agents on fruits has aided in disease control while their long-term use has resulted in the emergence of resistant fungal strains. Flavonoids have a specific antifungal effect. The inhibitory effect and underlying mechanism of flavonoids from Sedum aizoon L. (FSAL) on B. cinerea were determined in this study. The results showed that the minimum inhibitory concentration of FSAL against B. cinerea was 1.500 mg/mL. FSAL treatment caused leakage of macromolecules such as nucleic acids, led to accumulation of malondialdehyde and relative oxygen species, and disrupted the ultrastructure of B. cinerea. The transcriptome results indicated that compared with the control group, there were 782 and 1330 genes identified as being substantially upregulated and downregulated, respectively, in the FSAL-treated group. The identified genes and metabolites were mostly involved in redox processes and glycerolipid and amino acid metabolism pathways. FSAL offer a promising choice for food prevention and safety. KEY POINTS: • FSAL negatively affects the glycerolipid metabolism of B. cinerea • FSAL minimum inhibitory concentration against B. cinerea was 1.500 mg/mL • FSAL could be utilized as a new prevention strategy for gray mold in fruits.