Assessment of acute, subacute genetic toxicities and immunomodulatory activity of palm (Trachycarpus fortunei) buds.

ETHNOPHARMACOLOGY RELEVANCE: Palm buds are a natural green resource of the forest, which are not only rich in nutrients but contain a large number of phenolic acids and flavonoids, among other components. It has a variety of biological activities such as antioxidant and uterine smooth muscle stimulation. AIM OF THE STUDY: To evaluate the safety of palm buds for use as a nutraceutical product and food by evaluating the toxicity, subacute toxicity and genotoxicity of the young palm buds. Also studied for its immune-enhancing activity. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Acute toxicity tests were performed in mice using the maximum tolerance method, and the manifestations of toxicity and deaths were recorded after administration of 10,000 mg/mL for 14 consecutive d (days) of observations. To assess subacute toxicity, mice were treated with palm buds (750, 1500, or 3000 mg/mL) daily for 28 days. The teratogenicity of palm buds was assessed by the Ames test, the mouse bone marrow cell micronucleus test, and the mouse spermatozoa malformation test. In addition, we evaluated the immune-enhancing ability of palm buds by the mouse carbon profile test, delayed-type metamorphosis reaction, and serum hemolysin assay. RESULTS: In the acute toxicity study, the Median Lethal Dose (LD50) was greater than 10,000 mg/kg bw in both male and female rats. There were also no deaths or serious toxicities in the subacute study. The no-observed-adverse-effect level (NOAEL) was 3000 mg/kg bw. However, the mice's food intake decreased after one week. The medium and high dose groups had a reducing effect on body weight in mice of both sexes. In addition, the changes in organ coefficients of the liver, kidney and stomach in male mice were significantly higher in the high-dose group (3.23 ± 0.35, 0.75 ± 0.05, 0.57 ± 0.05 g) than in the control group (2.94 ± 0.18, 0.58 ± 0.05, 0.50 ± 0.02 g). Hematological analyses showed that all the indices of the rats in each palm sprout dose group were within the normal range. The results of blood biochemical indicators showed that there was a significant reduction in TP in the blood of male mice in the high-dose group (44.6 ± 7.8 g/L) compared to the control group (58.3 ± 15.1 g/L). In histopathological analysis, none of the significant histopathological changes were observed. The results of the immunological experiment in mice showed that the liver coefficient and thymus coefficient of the high-dose group (8400 mg/kg) were significantly lower than the control group. There was no remarkable difference in auricle swelling between each dose palm bud group (1400, 2800, or 8400 mg/kg) and the control group. The anti-volume number of the high-dose group was significantly increased. CONCLUSION: Palm buds have non-toxic effects in vivo and have little effect on non-specific and cellular immunity in the test mice within the dose range of this experiment. The immunoenhancement in mice is mainly achieved through humoral immunity. In conclusion, our results suggest that palm buds are safe for use as healthcare products and food.

Terminalia bellirica (Gaertn.) Roxb. Extracts reshape the perifollicular microenvironment and regulate the MAPK pathway for androgenetic alopecia treatment.

ETHNOPHARMACOLOGICAL RELEVANCE: Terminalia bellirica (Gaertn.) Roxb. (TBR), a popular herbal remedy in India and Southeast Asia, has been demonstrated to possess multiple pharmacological activities. However, systematic studies on the medicinal effects and mechanism of TBR for the androgenetic alopecia (AGA) treatment are deficient. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Human Umbilical Vein Endothelial Cells (HUVECs) and testosterone-induced AGA mice were used to evaluate the hair regrowth activity of TBR extracts. Chemical constituents and potential active components of TBR extracts were analyed by UPLC-Q-TOF-MS in vitro/vivo. The hair regrowth mechanisms of TBR were elucidated through network pharmacology and experimental validation. RESULTS: Totally 28 chemical constituents in TBR were identified, of which 15 were predicted as potential active components for AGA therapy. TBR could significantly scavenge ROS, promote VEGF level/cell migration of HUVECs, and inhibiting type II 5α-reductase activity (the inhibit rate: 82.35 ± 1.02 %). Pharmacodynamic evaluation suggested that TBR effectively led to hair regrowth in C57BL6 mice compared to minoxidil. TBR promoted the hair follicle (HF) transition from the telogen phase to anagen phase by decreasing MDA levels, increasing VEFG expression and up-regulating phosphorylated P38/ERK protein levels in the MAPK signalling pathway. CONCLUSIONS: TBR reversed AGA via inhibiting SRD5A2 activity and stimulating the MAPK pathway. Meantime, TBR could remodel the follicle microenvironment by reducing oxidative stress and increasing angiogenesis.

Continuous theta burst stimulation to relieve symptoms in patients with moderate obsessive-compulsive disorder: a preliminary study with an external validation.

Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) is a clinically challenging and refractory psychiatric disorder characterized by pathologically hyperactivated brain activity. Continuous theta burst stimulation (cTBS) is considered a potentially non-invasive treatment for inducing inhibitory effects on the underlying cortex. Numerous studies showed an unsatisfactory efficacy of cTBS for OCD. Accordingly, it seems that cTBS is ineffective for OCD. However, the neglect of varying OCD severities, modest sample size, absence of a multicenter design incorporating inpatients and outpatients, and lack of personalized imaging-guided targeting may constrain the conclusive findings of cTBS efficacy for OCD. In the preliminary experiment, 50 inpatients with OCD were enrolled to receive cTBS (10 sessions/day for five continuous days) or sham over the personalized right pre-supplementary motor area determined by the highest functional connectivity with the subthalamic nucleus according to our prior study. In the extension experiment, 32 outpatients with OCD received cTBS to generalize the treatment effects. The Yale-Brown Obsessive-Compulsive Scale (YBOCS) was assessed before and after treatment. In the preliminary experiment, the response rates in the cTBS group were 56.52%, respectively, significantly higher than those in the sham group. Further analysis revealed significant YBOCS improvement in patients with moderate OCD symptoms than those with severe OCD symptoms. In the extension experiment, the response rates were 50.00%. Additionally, a significant decrease in YBOCS scores was only found in patients with moderate OCD symptoms. This is the first study with an external validation design across two centers to identify OCD symptoms as playing an important role in cTBS treatment effects, especially in patients with moderate OCD symptoms.

Improving energy-related efficiency towards SDG7 in China: What role does energy poverty play?

The improvement of energy-related efficiency has promoted energy-sustainable development in China; however, it may be inhibited by energy poverty. This paper constructs an index system to measure China's energy poverty. Subsequently, we evaluate energy-related efficiency towards SDG7 comprised of energy production efficiency and energy sustainable utilization efficiency using a dynamic two-stage data envelopment analysis model. Furthermore, we adopt fixed effect models to quantify the impact of energy poverty on improving energy-related efficiency and the underlying mechanism. The findings indicate that: (1) China's energy poverty situation gradually improves from 2011 to 2020. The energy-related system's performance is medium due to the poor performance in its energy production stage in 30 provinces during 2011-2020. Energy-related efficiency is greater in areas with a higher response to SDG7. (2) The impact of energy poverty on improving energy-related efficiency is significantly negative. Addressing energy poverty significantly improves energy-related efficiency in regions characterized by a high energy poverty index and low energy-related efficiency. However, it bears no impact in regions with a low energy poverty index and high energy-related efficiency. (3) The moderating effect of technological innovation effectively improves energy-related efficiency, whereas the marketization level has an inverse effect. Consequently, this paper suggests several policy implications.

Tumor-associated macrophages in anti-PD-1/PD-L1 immunotherapy for hepatocellular carcinoma: recent research progress.

Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is one of the cancers that seriously threaten human health. Immunotherapy serves as the mainstay of treatment for HCC patients by targeting the programmed cell death protein 1/programmed cell death 1 ligand 1 (PD-1/PD-L1) axis. However, the effectiveness of anti-PD-1/PD-L1 treatment is limited when HCC becomes drug-resistant. Tumor-associated macrophages (TAMs) are an important factor in the negative regulation of PD-1 antibody targeted therapy in the tumor microenvironment (TME). Therefore, as an emerging direction in cancer immunotherapy research for the treatment of HCC, it is crucial to elucidate the correlations and mechanisms between TAMs and PD-1/PD-L1-mediated immune tolerance. This paper summarizes the effects of TAMs on the pathogenesis and progression of HCC and their impact on HCC anti-PD-1/PD-L1 immunotherapy, and further explores current potential therapeutic strategies that target TAMs in HCC, including eliminating TAMs in the TME, inhibiting TAMs recruitment to tumors and functionally repolarizing M2-TAMs (tumor-supportive) to M1-TAMs (antitumor type).

Disproportionality Analysis of Nusinersen in the Food and Drug Administration Adverse Event Reporting System: A Real-World Postmarketing Pharmacovigilance Assessment.

BACKGROUND: Nusinersen is the first drug for precise targeted therapy of spinal muscular atrophy, a rare disease that occurs in one of 10,000 to 20,000 live births. Therefore, thorough and comprehensive reports on the safety of nusinersen in large, real-world populations are necessary. This study aimed to mine the adverse event (AE) signals related to nusinersen through the Food and Drug Administration Adverse Event Reporting System (FAERS) database. METHODS: We extracted reports of AEs with nusinersen as the primary suspect from FAERS between December 2016 and March 2023. Reporting odds ratio (ROR) and Bayesian confidence propagation neural network (BCPNN) were used for AE signal detection. RESULTS: We extracted a total of 4807 suspected AE cases with nusinersen as the primary suspect from the FAERS database. Among them, 106 positive signals were obtained using the ROR and BCPNN. The highest frequency reported systemic organ class was general disorders and administration site conditions. Common clinical AEs of nusinersen were detected in the FAERS database, such as pneumonia, vomiting, back pain, headache, pyrexia, and post-lumbar puncture syndrome. In addition, we identified potential unexpected serious AEs through disproportionality analysis, including sepsis, seizure, epilepsy, brain injury, cardiorespiratory arrest, and cardiac arrest. CONCLUSIONS: Analyzing large amounts of real-world data from the FAERS database, we identified potential new AEs of nusinersen by disproportionate analysis. It is advantageous for health care professionals and pharmacists to concentrate on effectively managing high-risk AEs of nusinersen, improve medication levels in clinical settings, and uphold patient medication safety.

Collective movement of schooling fish reduces the costs of locomotion in turbulent conditions.

The ecological and evolutionary benefits of energy-saving in collective behaviors are rooted in the physical principles and physiological mechanisms underpinning animal locomotion. We propose a turbulence sheltering hypothesis that collective movements of fish schools in turbulent flow can reduce the total energetic cost of locomotion by shielding individuals from the perturbation of chaotic turbulent eddies. We test this hypothesis by quantifying energetics and kinematics in schools of giant danio (Devario aequipinnatus) and compared that to solitary individuals swimming under laminar and turbulent conditions over a wide speed range. We discovered that, when swimming at high speeds and high turbulence levels, fish schools reduced their total energy expenditure (TEE, both aerobic and anaerobic energy) by 63% to 79% compared to solitary fish (e.g., 228 versus 48 kj kg-1). Solitary individuals spend approximately 22% more kinematic effort (tail beat amplitude•frequency: 1.7 versus 1.4 BL s-1) to swim in turbulence at higher speeds than in laminar conditions. Fish schools swimming in turbulence reduced their three-dimensional group volume by 41% to 68% (at higher speeds, approximately 103 versus 33 cm3) and did not alter their kinematic effort compared to laminar conditions. This substantial energy saving highlights that schooling behaviors can mitigate turbulent disturbances by sheltering fish (within schools) from the eddies of sufficient kinetic energy that can disrupt locomotor gaits. Therefore, providing a more desirable internal hydrodynamic environment could be one of the ecological drivers underlying collective behaviors in a dense fluid environment.

Frontiers of Plant-derived Exosomes from Research Methods to Pharmaceutical Applications in Plant-based Therapeutics

Exosomes have emerged as critical mediators of intercellular communication and various physiological processes between cells and their environment. These nano-sized vesicles have been extensively investigated and confirmed to exhibit multifunctionality in animal systems. In particular, they participate in intercellular signaling, influence disease progression, and exhibit biological activity. However, Plant-Derived Exosomes (PDEs), especially therapeutic PDEs, have received relatively limited attention in the past few decades. Recent studies have demonstrated that PDEs are involved in signaling molecule transport in addition to intercellular communication, as they serve as functional molecules in the cellular microenvironment. This characteristic highlights the immense potential of PDEs for a wide array of applications, including antioxidation, anti-inflammation, tumour cell elimination, immune modulation, and tissue regeneration. In addition, PDEs hold substantial promise as efficient drug carriers, enhancing the stability and bioavailability of therapeutic agents and consequently enabling targeted delivery to specific cells or tissues. Therefore, PDEs may serve as effective tools for drug delivery and the treatment of various diseases. This comprehensive review provides an overview of recent studies on therapeutic PDEs, focusing on their extraction, isolation, characterization methods, biological activities, and application prospects. It summarises the research progress of exosome-like nanovesicles derived from medicinal plants, with a specific emphasis on traditional Chinese medicine, and highlights their importance in disease treatment and nanoparticle delivery. The main objective is to accelerate the clinical translation of these nanovesicles while providing novel approaches and methodologies for the research and development of innovative drugs.

A novel XNA-based Luminex assay to detect UBA1 somatic mutations associated with VEXAS syndrome.

Objectives: Patients with VEXAS syndrome carry mutations of UBA1 gene coding for the E1 enzyme. The three most frequent mutations are p.M41T(122T > C), p.M41V (c.121A > G), and p.M41L (c.121A > C) in codon 41 of exon 3. Currently, sanger sequencing was mainly used to detect these mutations, which has low sensitivity and low throughput. There is a need of high sensitivity, simple and high throughput method to characterize patients with VEXAS syndrome. Methods: Based on our proprietary XNA technology, we have developed a QClamp® Plex platform to detect eight mutations in a single reaction using the Luminex xMap technology. The assay sensitivity, specificity and precision were subsequently evaluated. Furthermore, the reference interval and clinical sensitivity/specificity were estimated using clinical healthy/positive DNA samples and the sanger sequencing method was used for comparison. Results: With spiking synthetic mutant DNA in wildtype GM24385 cell line DNA, this assay can detect UBA1 mutations with a detection limit of variant allele frequency (VAF) at 0.1-5%. Our assay shows 100% concordance with Sanger sequencing results when used for analyzing 15 positive and 19 negative clinical samples. Conclusions: The QClamps® Plex UBA1 Mutation Detection Assay is a quicker, simpler, and more sensitive assay that can accurately detect the UBA1 mutations even at early stages with low mutation frequency.

Soil erosion is a major drive for nano & micro-plastics to enter riverine systems from cultivated land.

Nano and micro-plastics (NMPs, particles diameter <5 mm), as emerging contaminants, have become a major concern in the aquatic environment because of their adverse consequences to aquatic life and potentially human health. Implementing mitigation strategies requires quantifying NMPs mass emissions and understanding their sources and transport pathways from land to riverine systems. Herein, to access NMPs mass input from agricultural soil to riverine system via water-driven soil erosion, we have collected soil samples from 120 cultivated land in nine drainage basins across China in 2021 and quantified the residues of six common types of plastic, including polyvinyl chloride (PVC), polymethyl methacrylate (PMMA), polypropylene (PP), polyethylene (PE), polycarbonate (PC), and polystyrene (PS). NMPs (Σ6plastics) were detected in all samples at concentrations between 3.6 and 816.6 µg/g dry weight (median, 63.3 µg/g) by thermal desorption/pyrolysis-gas chromatography-mass spectrometry. Then, based on the Revised Universal Soil Loss Equation model, we estimated that about 22,700 tonnes of NMPs may enter the Chinese riverine system in 2020 due to agricultural water-driven soil erosion, which occurs primarily from May to September. Our result suggested that over 90% of the riverine NMPs related to agricultural soil erosion in China are attributed to 36.5% of the country's total cultivated land, mainly distributed in the Yangtze River Basin, Southwest Basin, and Pearl River Basin. The migration of NMPs due to water-driven soil erosion cannot be ignored, and erosion management strategies may contribute to alleviating plastic pollution issues in aquatic systems.

Electrostatic interactions between rough dielectric particles.

From colloid suspension to particle aggregation in protoplanetary formation, electrostatic attraction and repulsion between particles is a key mechanism behind the aggregation and clustering of particles. Although most studies have focused on canonical spherical particles, it remains unclear how nonspherical and rough dielectric particles interact and whether the complicated interplay between roughness and charge distribution affects their force couplings. Here a boundary-element method model was leveraged to study electrostatic interactions between charged dielectric particles with modular, axisymmetric surface features. Charge accumulation at convex surface asperities decreases the strength of electrostatic interactions between particles, and the sensitivity of the electrostatic force to the particle surface roughness and orientation is especially apparent at small particle separations. Surface interactions between the particle near-contact regions were isolated to determine the degree that near-contact interactions dictate the relationship between the net electrostatic force and the particle roughness and orientation. A correction factor ΔF is introduced to recover higher order dielectric effects from a low order analytical model. Finally, implications of surface charge asymmetries produced for different particle orientations and surface roughnesses on the long-standing problem of triboelectrification are discussed.

Drug-induced interstitial lung disease: a real-world pharmacovigilance study of the FDA Adverse Event Reporting System from 2004 to 2021.

Background: Drug-induced interstitial lung disease (DILD) is an increasingly common cause of morbidity and mortality. However, due to the lack of specificity, DILD detection remains an unsolved public health challenge. Objectives: For the first time, we aimed to examine DILD reports submitted to the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) Adverse Event Reporting System (FAERS) to identify demographic characteristics and top drugs associated with DILD at a group level (including age, sex, drug class, and country stratification) and individual drug level. Design: A retrospective analysis of the FAERS database was examined by disproportionality analysis. Methods: We reviewed the FAERS database from 2004 to 2021, using search terms 'interstitial lung disease' and sorting cases by generic drug name. The reporting odds ratio, proportional reporting ratio, and Bayesian confidence propagation neural network were calculated as the measure of strength of association. Results: There were 32,821 DILD reports in the FAERS. After excluding reports without age, sex, or country data according to the specific measurement, the median age of patients was 68 (interquartile range: 59), 54.77% were male, and 46.00% of reports came from Japan. The top drug classes related to DILD in the FAERS were antineoplastic, followed by cardiovascular and antirheumatic agents, in varying order in different sexes. Fam-trastuzumab deruxtecan-nxki, ramucirumab, and eribulin were the top three drugs with the highest strength of association. We also found some drugs without DILD in the labels, such as amiodarone, temsirolimus, and ursodiol. There are significant differences in DILD reports in various countries. For example, the United States and France reported more cardiovascular agents, whereas Canada reported more antirheumatic agents. Conclusion: We found the top drugs and drug classes that were associated with DILD in the FAERS, which provides a real-world window for different ages, sexes, and countries to formulate precise pharmacovigilance policies.

A study on drug-induced interstitial lung disease Introduction: The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) Adverse Event Reporting System (FAERS) database is the largest public database for spontaneous reporting of adverse events, any undesirable experiences that occur while taking a medication. The FDA designed the FAERS database to allow them to track the safety of drugs once they are released on the market. This study aims to explore drug-induced interstitial lung disease (DILD) reporting trends, demographic characteristics, most commonly reported drugs, and high strength of association drugs using the FAERS database. Methods: We retrieved the term 'interstitial lung disease' to extract DILD reports in the FAERS database from 2004 to 2021. Then, we not only counted basic patient information, including age, gender, and reporting country, but also analyzed the drug class, the reporting frequency of drug, and the degree of relevance. Results: We identified a total of 32,821 DILD reports. DILD reports had a persistent increase from 2004 to 2021. The top three drug classes related to DILD in the FAERS were antineoplastic, cardiovascular and antirheumatic agents. The top three reported drugs associated with DILD were methotrexate, doxorubicin, and pembrolizumab. The top three drugs with the highest strength of association were fam-trastuzumab deruxtecan-nxki, ramucirumab, and eribulin. Various countries have significant differences in drugs related to DILD. Conclusion: By analyzing data from the FAERS database, we identified the top drugs, drug classes, and some unexpected drugs without DILD in the labels. Our findings provide additional insight into DILD to inform clinicians to enhance monitor related to drugs of potential importance.

Novel Multiresistant Osmotin-like Protein from Sweetpotato as a Promising Biofungicide to Control Ceratocystis fimbriata by Destroying Spores through Accumulation of Reactive Oxygen Species.

Osmotin-like proteins (OLPs) play an important role in host-plant defense. In this study, a novel multiresistant OLP (IbOLP1) was screened from sweetpotato (Ipomoea batatas) with a molecular weight of 26.3 kDa. The expression level of IbOLP1 was significantly higher in resistant cultivars than susceptible ones after inoculation with Ceratocystis fimbriata, which causes black rot disease in sweetpotato. The expression of IbOLP1 in Pichia pastoris led to the lysis of yeast cells themselves. The recombinant IbOLP1 displayed antifungal, antibacterial, and antinematode activity and stability. IbOLP1 could restrain the mycelial growth and lyse spores of C. fimbriata, distinctly reducing the incidence of black rot in sweetpotato. The IbOLP1 can trigger the apoptosis of black rot spores by elevating the intracellular levels of reactive oxygen species. Collectively, these findings suggest that IbOLP1 can be used to develop natural antimicrobial resources instead of chemical agents and generate new, disease-resistant germplasm.

Nicotinamide mononucleotide as a therapeutic agent to alleviate multi-organ failure in sepsis.

BACKGROUND: Sepsis-caused multi-organ failure remains the major cause of morbidity and mortality in intensive care units with limited therapeutics. Nicotinamide mononucleotide (NMN), a precursor of nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide (NAD+), has been recently reported to be protective in sepsis; however, its therapeutic effects remain to be determined. This study sought to investigate the therapeutic effects of NMN in septic organ failure and its underlying mechanisms. METHODS: Sepsis was induced by feces-injection-in-peritoneum in mice. NMN was given after an hour of sepsis onset. Cultured neutrophils, macrophages and endothelial cells were incubated with various agents. RESULTS: We demonstrate that administration of NMN elevated NAD+ levels and reduced serum lactate levels, oxidative stress, inflammation, and caspase-3 activity in multiple organs of septic mice, which correlated with the attenuation of heart dysfunction, pulmonary microvascular permeability, liver injury, and kidney dysfunction, leading to lower mortality. The therapeutic effects of NMN were associated with lower bacterial burden in blood, and less ROS production in septic mice. NMN improved bacterial phagocytosis and bactericidal activity of macrophages and neutrophils while reducing the lipopolysaccharides-induced inflammatory response of macrophages. In cultured endothelial cells, NMN mitigated mitochondrial dysfunction, inflammation, apoptosis, and barrier dysfunction induced by septic conditions, all of which were offset by SIRT3 inhibition. CONCLUSION: NAD+ repletion with NMN prevents mitochondrial dysfunction and restrains bacterial dissemination while limiting inflammatory damage through SIRT3 signaling in sepsis. Thus, NMN may represent a therapeutic option for sepsis.

Dual-site beta tACS over rIFG and M1 enhances response inhibition: A parallel multiple control and replication study

Response inhibition is a core component of cognitive control. Past electrophysiology and neuroimaging studies have identified beta oscillations and inhibitory control cortical regions correlated with response inhibition, including the right inferior frontal gyrus (rIFG) and primary motor cortex (M1). Hence, increasing beta activity in multiple brain regions is a potential way to enhance response inhibition. Here, a novel dual-site transcranial alternating current stimulation (tACS) method was used to modulate beta activity over the rIFG-M1 network in a sample of 115 (excluding 2 participants) with multiple control groups and a replicated experimental design. In Experiment 1, 70 healthy participants were randomly assigned to three dual-site beta-tACS groups, including in-phase, anti-phase or sham stimulation. During and after stimulation, participants were required to complete the stop-signal task, and electroencephalography (EEG) was collected before and after stimulation. The Barratt Impulsiveness Scale was completed before the experiment to evaluate participants' impulsiveness. In addition, we conducted an active control experiment with a sample size of 20 to exclude the potential effects of the dual-site tACS “return” electrode. To validate the behavioural findings of Experiment 1, 25 healthy participants took part in Experiment 2 and were randomized into two groups, including in-phase and sham stimulation groups. We found that compared to the sham group, in-phase but not anti-phase beta-tACS significantly improved both response inhibition performance and beta synchronization of the inhibitory control network in Experiment 1. Furthermore, the increased beta synchronization was correlated with enhanced response inhibition. In an independent sample of Experiment 2, the enhanced response inhibition performance observed in the in-phase group was replicated. (AU)

Opportunities and challenges of pharmacovigilance in special populations: a narrative review of the literature.

The relatively new discipline of pharmacovigilance (PV) aims to monitor the safety of drugs throughout their evolution and is essential to discovering new drug risks. Due to their specific and complex physiology, children, pregnant women, and elderly adults are more prone to adverse drug reactions (ADRs). Additionally, the lack of clinical trial data exacerbates the challenges faced with pharmacotherapy in these populations. Elderly patients tend to have multiple comorbidities often requiring more extensive medication, which adds additional challenges for healthcare professionals (HCPs) in delivering safe and effective pharmacotherapy. Clinical trials often have inherent limitations, including insufficient sample size and limited duration of research; as some ADRs are attributed to long-term use of a drug, these may go undetected during the course of the trial. Therefore, the implementation of PV is key to insuring the safe and effective use of drugs in special populations. We conducted a thorough review of the scientific literature on PV systems across the European Union, the United States, and China. Our review focused on basic physiological characteristics, drug use, and PV for specific populations (children, pregnant women, and the elderly). This article aims to provide a reference for the development of follow-up policies and improvement of existing policies as well as provide insight into drug safety with respect to patients of special populations.

Pharmacovigilance (PV) in special populations: opportunities and challenges Why is it important to implement PV in special populations? Due to the particularity of physiological functions, the special population (children, pregnant women, and the elderly) are more susceptible to adverse drug reactions (ADRs) and have more drug safety problems. The implementation of PV is helpful for the detection of safety risks throughout the life cycle of drugs, so that healthcare professionals (HCPs) can take early measures to reduce the drug use risks of patients. What are the problems to implement PV for special populations? Many countries have implemented a PV system. However, PV policies and systems for the special population are not complete in various countries, or no independent PV system for the special population has been set up. What does this article add to our knowledge? This article discusses the PV systems of the European Union, the United States, and China with special focus on basic physiological characteristics, use of drugs, and the implementation of PV with respect to children, pregnant women, and the elderly. Focus on these problems are of great importance for formulating a more complete drug management scheme in the special population and can provide a reference for the development of follow-up policies and improvement of existing policies.

The complete chloroplast genome of Allium wallichii Kunth (Amaryllidaceae).

Allium wallichii Kunth is a herb species with potentially extensive applications because of its edible, ornamental, and pharmaceutical values. The structural characteristics and phylogenetic relationships of its chloroplast genome were determined here for the first time. The complete cp genome was found to be 152,496 bp long, with a GC content of 37.04%. It consists of four distinct regions: a large single copy (LSC) region of 82,510 bp, a small single copy (SSC) region of 17,460 bp, and two inverted repeat (IR) regions of 26,263 bp each. The genome encodes 129 genes, including 86 protein-coding genes, 37 tRNA genes, and six rRNA genes. Our phylogenetic analysis revealed that A. wallichii was closely related to Allium wallichii var. platyphyllum, which are included in the section Bromatorrhiza, subgenus Amerallium Traub of the genus Allium. Our report provides valuable information on the genetic diversity of Allium species.

Scaling laws of plume-induced granular cratering.

Extraterrestrial landing often requires firing a high-speed plume towards a planetary surface, and the resulting gas-granular interactions pose potential hazards to the lander. To investigate these jet-induced cratering dynamics, an experiment campaign covering a range of gas and granular properties relevant to the lunar and Martian environments was conducted in a large-scale vacuum chamber. Despite the variations in jet Mach number, mass flow rate, and composition of the granular phase investigated in this work, the observed time evolution of crater depth displays a consistent transition from an early-stage linear to a late-stage sublinear growth. To explain these scaling relations, a model that relates the kinetic energy gained by the particles per unit time to the power of the impinging jet is introduced. From this model, erosion rates and the critical depth at which the transition occurs can be extracted, and they are shown to depend on the gas impingement pressure, which was varied by changing ambient pressure, jet Mach number, mass flow rate, and nozzle height above the surface. These results highlight key mechanisms at work in the dynamics of plume-induced cratering and help to develop an understanding of optimal rocket engine firing times for future landings.

Cost-effectiveness of serplulimab as first-line therapy for extensive-stage small cell lung cancer in China.

Objective: The ASTRUM-005 trial demonstrated that adding serplulimab to chemotherapy significantly prolonged the survival of patients with extensive-stage small cell lung cancer (SCLC), but also increased the risk of adverse events. Given the high cost of serplulimab compared to chemotherapy, this study aimed to evaluate the cost-effectiveness of serplulimab plus chemotherapy as a first-line treatment for extensive-stage SCLC from the perspective of China's healthcare system. Methods: A Markov model was developed to simulate the disease process of extensive-stage SCLC and estimate the health outcomes and direct medical costs of patients. Scenario analyses, univariate sensitivity analyses, and probabilistic sensitivity analyses were conducted to explore the impact of different parameters on model uncertainty. The primary model outcomes included costs, life-years (LYs), quality-adjusted life-years (QALYs), and the incremental cost-effectiveness ratio (ICER). Results: Compared to placebo plus chemotherapy, serplulimab plus chemotherapy resulted in an additional 0.25 life-years and 0.15 QALYs, but also increased costs by $26,402, resulting in an ICER of 179,161 USD/QALY. Sensitivity analysis showed that the ICER was most sensitive to the cost of serplulimab, and the probability that serplulimab was cost-effective when added to chemotherapy was only 0 at the willingness-to-pay threshold of 37,423 USD/QALY. Scenario analysis revealed that price discounts on serplulimab could increase its probability of being cost-effective. Conclusion: Serplulimab plus chemotherapy is not a cost-effective strategy for first-line treatment of extensive-stage SCLC in China. Price discounts on serplulimab can enhance its cost-effectiveness.

Dual-site beta tACS over rIFG and M1 enhances response inhibition: A parallel multiple control and replication study.

Response inhibition is a core component of cognitive control. Past electrophysiology and neuroimaging studies have identified beta oscillations and inhibitory control cortical regions correlated with response inhibition, including the right inferior frontal gyrus (rIFG) and primary motor cortex (M1). Hence, increasing beta activity in multiple brain regions is a potential way to enhance response inhibition. Here, a novel dual-site transcranial alternating current stimulation (tACS) method was used to modulate beta activity over the rIFG-M1 network in a sample of 115 (excluding 2 participants) with multiple control groups and a replicated experimental design. In Experiment 1, 70 healthy participants were randomly assigned to three dual-site beta-tACS groups, including in-phase, anti-phase or sham stimulation. During and after stimulation, participants were required to complete the stop-signal task, and electroencephalography (EEG) was collected before and after stimulation. The Barratt Impulsiveness Scale was completed before the experiment to evaluate participants' impulsiveness. In addition, we conducted an active control experiment with a sample size of 20 to exclude the potential effects of the dual-site tACS "return" electrode. To validate the behavioural findings of Experiment 1, 25 healthy participants took part in Experiment 2 and were randomized into two groups, including in-phase and sham stimulation groups. We found that compared to the sham group, in-phase but not anti-phase beta-tACS significantly improved both response inhibition performance and beta synchronization of the inhibitory control network in Experiment 1. Furthermore, the increased beta synchronization was correlated with enhanced response inhibition. In an independent sample of Experiment 2, the enhanced response inhibition performance observed in the in-phase group was replicated. After combining the data from the above two experiments, the time dynamics analysis revealed that the in-phase beta-tACS effect occurred in the post-stimulation period but not the stimulation period. The state-dependence analysis showed that individuals with poorer baseline response inhibition or higher attentional impulsiveness had greater improvement in response inhibition for the in-phase group. These findings strongly support that response inhibition in healthy adults can be improved by in-phase dual-site beta-tACS of the rIFG-M1 network, and provide a new potential treatment targets of synchronized cortical network activity for patients with clinically deficient response inhibition.