Exploring the causal association between epigenetic clocks and menopause age: insights from a bidirectional Mendelian randomization study.

Background: Evidence suggests a connection between DNA methylation (DNAm) aging and reproductive aging. However, the causal relationship between DNAm and age at menopause remains uncertain. Methods: Employing established DNAm epigenetic clocks, such as DNAm Hannum age acceleration (Hannum), Intrinsic epigenetic age acceleration (IEAA), DNAm-estimated granulocyte proportions (Gran), DNAm GrimAge acceleration (GrimAgeAccel), DNAm PhenoAge acceleration (PhenoAgeAccel), and DNAm-estimated plasminogen activator inhibitor-1 levels (DNAmPAIadjAge), a bidirectional Mendelian randomization (MR) study was carried out to explore the potential causality between DNAm and menopausal age. The primary analytical method used was the inverse variance weighted (IVW) estimation model, supplemented by various other estimation techniques. Results: DNAm aging acceleration or deceleration, as indicated by Hannum, IEAA, Gran, GrimAgeAccel, PhenoAgeAccel, and DNAmPAIadjAge, did not exhibit a statistically significant causal effect on menopausal age according to forward MR analysis. However, there was a suggestive positive causal association between age at menopause and Gran (Beta = 0.0010; 95% confidence interval (CI): 0.0004, 0.0020) in reverse MR analysis. Conclusion: The observed increase in granulocyte DNAm levels in relation to menopausal age could potentially serve as a valuable indicator for evaluating the physiological status at the onset of menopause.

High-risk factors for massive haemorrhage in medical abortion patients with missed miscarriage.

BACKGROUND: Recently, the incidence of missed miscarriage has gradually increased, and medical abortion is a common method to terminate a pregnancy. In the process of medical abortion, massive vaginal bleeding takes place, leading to emergency surgical haemostasis. Emergency surgery may produce infection and organ damage. Our study aimed to investigate the high-risk factors for massive haemorrhage during a medical abortion. METHODS: A total of 1062 missed miscarriage patients who underwent medical abortion participated in this retrospective study. According to the amount of bleeding, the patients were divided into a massive haemorrhage group and a control group. By comparing the general conditions of the two groups, such as fertility history, uterine surgery history, uterine fibroids, etc., the high-risk factors for massive haemorrhage during medical abortion were identified. RESULTS: Relative to the control group, the massive haemorrhage group exhibited a higher proportion of patients with a previous artificial abortion (51.9% vs. 38.1%, P = 0.001). Additionally, the massive haemorrhage group had a lower percentage of first-time pregnant women (32.1% vs. 40.4%) and a higher proportion of women with shorter pregnancy intervals (44.9% vs. 33.1%, P = 0.03). Furthermore, there were notable differences between the two groups regarding maximum fibroid size, the duration of amenorrhea, and gestational week (P < 0.05). CONCLUSION: In this study, we determined that a history of artificial abortion and an amenorrhea duration of > 11 weeks represented high-risk factors for massive vaginal bleeding during medical abortion in missed miscarriage patients.

Acoustic Controllable Spatiotemporal Cell Micro-oscillation for Noninvasive Intracellular Drug Delivery.

Intracellular cargo delivery is crucial for drug evaluation, nanomedicine development, and gene therapy, in which high efficiency while maintaining cell viability is needed for downstream analysis. Here, an acoustic-mediated precise drug delivering mechanism is proposed by directly modulating cell micro-oscillation mode and membrane permeability. Through phase shifting keying-based spatiotemporal acoustic tweezers, controllable oscillating cell arrays can be achieved in shaking potentials. At the same time, continually oscillating radiation force and fluid shear stress exerted on cells effectively disturbs cellular membrane mobility and enhances permeability, thereby facilitating nanodrug entrance. In experiments, cell oscillation is tunable in frequency (10-2 to 102 Hz), shaking direction, amplitude (0 to quarter acoustic wavelength), and speed. Doxorubicin is actively delivered across cellular membranes and accumulates in inner cells, with a concentration more than 8 times that of the control group. Moreover, there is no obvious compromise in cell activity during oscillation, exhibiting excellent biocompatibility. This "dancing acoustic waves" scheme introduces a new dimension of cell manipulation in both space and time domains and an effective drug delivering strategy, offering advantages of flexibility, gentleness, and high throughput. It may advance related fields like nanobiological research, drug and nanomedicine development, and medical treatment.

The therapeutic value of ipsilateral supraclavicular lymphadenectomy in locally advanced breast cancer: A review.

The treatment of isolated ipsilateral supraclavicular lymph node metastasis for locally advanced breast cancer has always been a controversial issue for breast surgeons. However, with the further understanding of the metastasis and treatment of breast cancer, it is now considered to be a locally advanced disease, and there is a new debate on the treatment of isolated ipsilateral supraclavicular lymph node metastasis. The author reviewed the relevant literature and briefly discussed the clinical significance of supraclavicular lymph node resection in patients with locally advanced breast cancer presenting with isolated ipsilateral supraclavicular lymph node metastasis.

Contribution assessment and accumulation prediction of heavy metals in wheat grain in a smelting-affected area using machine learning methods.

Due to the diverse controlling factors and their uneven spatial distribution, especially atmospheric deposition from smelters, assessing and predicting the accumulation of heavy metals (HM) in crops across smelting-affected areas becomes challenging. In this study, integrating HM influx from atmospheric deposition, a boosted regression tree model with an average R2 > 0.8 was obtained to predict accumulation of Pb, As, and Cd in wheat grain across a smelting region. The atmospheric deposition serves as the dominant factor influencing the accumulation of Pb (28.2 %) and As (31.2 %) in wheat grain, but shows a weak influence on Cd accumulation (12.1 %). The contents of available HM in soil affect HM accumulation in wheat grain more significantly than their total contents in soil with relative importance rates of Pb (14.4 % > 8.2 %), As (30.9 % > 4.0 %), and Cd (55.0 % > 16.9 %), respectively. Marginal effect analysis illustrates that HM accumulation in wheat grain begins to intensify when Pb content in atmospheric dust reaches 5140 mg/kg and available Cd content in soil exceeds 1.15 mg/kg. The path analysis rationalizes the cascading effects of distances from study sites to smelting factories on HM accumulation in wheat grain via negatively influencing atmospheric HM deposition. The study provides data support and a theoretical basis for the sustainable development of non-ferrous metal smelting industry, as well as for the restoration and risk management of HM-contaminated soils.

Spatio-temporal characteristics and multi-scale risk identification of pollution load based on sensitivity analysis in small watersheds located in Tuojiang River Basin, China.

High-quality development of water resources supports high-quality socio-economic development. High-quality development connects high-quality life, and clarifying the key management contents of small watersheds plays an important role in building ecologically clean small watersheds and promoting regional production and life. Previous research on pollution loads has focused on examining the impact of various external drivers on pollution loads but still lacks research on the impact of changes in pollution sources themselves on pollution loads. In this study, sensitivity analysis was used to determine the impact of changes from different sources on the total pollution loads, which can recognize the critical pollution sources. We first employed the pollutant discharge coefficient method to quantify non-point source pollution loads in the small watershed in the upstream Tuojiang River basin from 2010 to 2021. Then, combination sensitivity analysis with Getis-Ord Gi* was used to identify the critical sources and their crucial areas at the global, districts (counties), and towns (streets) scales, respectively. The results indicate: (1) The pollution loads of COD, NH3-N, TN, and TP all show a decreasing trend, reducing by 18.3%, 16.2%, 18.6%, and 28.1% from 2010 to 2021, respectively; (2) Livestock and poultry breeding pollution source is the most critical source for majority areas across watershed; (3) High-risk areas are mainly concentrated in Jingyang district and its subordinate towns (streets). There is a trend of low-pollution risk areas transitioning to high-pollution risk areas, with high-risk areas predominantly concentrated in the southeast and exhibiting a noticeable phenomenon of pollution load spilling around. This study can promote other similar small watersheds, holding significant importance for non-point source pollution control in small watersheds.

Water quality assessment and its pollution source analysis from spatial and temporal perspectives in small watershed of Sichuan Province, China.

Rapid socio-economic development has led to many water environmental issues in small watersheds such as non-compliance with water quality standards, complex pollution sources, and difficulties in water environment management. To achieve a quantitative evaluation of water quality, identify pollution sources, and implement refined management in small watersheds, this study collected monthly seven water quality indexes of four monitoring points from 2010 to 2023, and ten water quality indexes of 23 sampling points in the Shiting River and Mianyuan River which are tributaries of the Tuojiang River Basin. Then, water quality evaluation and pollution source analysis were conducted from both temporal and spatial perspectives using the Water Quality Index (WQI) method, the Absolute Principal Component Scores/Multiple Linear Regression (APCS-MLR) method, and the Positive Matrix Factorization (PMF) receptor modeling technique. The results indicated that except for total nitrogen (TN), the concentrations of other water quality indexes exhibited a decreasing trend, and all were divided into two obvious stages before and after 2016. Furthermore, the proportion of water quality grade of Good and above increased from 73.96 to 84.94% from 2010-2015 to 2016-2023, and the water quality grade of Good and above from upstream to downstream dropped from 100 to 23.33%. From the temporal scale, four and five pollution sources were identified in the first and second stages, respectively. The distinct TN pollutant is mainly affected by agricultural non-point sources (NPS), whose impact is enhanced from 17.76 to 78.31%. Total phosphorus (TP) was affected by the phosphorus chemical industry, whose contribution gradually weakened from 50.8 to 24.9%. From a spatial perspective, four and five pollution sources were identified in the upstream and downstream, respectively. Therefore, even though there are some limitations due to the data availability of water monitory and hydrology data, the proposed research framework of this study can be applied to the water environmental management of other similar watersheds.

Ecological security assessment of Yunnan Province, China in the context of Production-Living-Ecological space division.

With the rapid development of population, society and economy, human activities have caused serious adverse impacts on the environment, ecosystems and landscape patterns over the long term. In order to address the series of impacts of human activities on the environment, territorial space and resource use, the study of Production-Living-Ecological Space (PLES) and ecological security have all become academic frontiers in the field of sustainable development. In this study, we applied multi-source data and GIS technology to construct an ecological security evaluation model based on the results of PLES delineation and the Pressure-State-Response (PSR) framework, and carried out the three-period PLES ecological security evaluation for 2000, 2010 and 2020 at the county and grid scales in Yunnan Province. The PLES pattern in Yunnan Province is dominated by ecological space, which accounts for 75%, followed by 23% of production space, with ecological space shrinking from 2000 to 2020. Ecological security in ecological space and living space shows an improving trend from 2000 to 2020. The ecological security of production space improved in 2010 compared to 2000 but then showed a decreasing trend in 2020. Ecological security in ecological space shows that north-western and southern Yunnan is safer than central Yunnan, while ecological security in living space is safer in central Yunnan, and ecological security in production space is better in southern Yunnan than in northern Yunnan. Comparison with related research results shows that the ecological security evaluation results of PLES in Yunnan Province in this study are scientific and reasonable. The ecological security evaluation model of PLES constructed in this study solves the problem of complex and incomplete ecological security evaluation indexes in the past, and the results of the study are more refined and precise, which provides new ideas for the study of regional ecological security.

Exploring the gut microbiota's crucial role in acute pancreatitis and the novel therapeutic potential of derived extracellular vesicles.

During acute pancreatitis, intestinal permeability increases due to intestinal motility dysfunction, microcirculatory disorders, and ischemia-reperfusion injury, and disturbances in the intestinal flora make bacterial translocation easier, which consequently leads to local or systemic complications such as pancreatic and peripancreatic necrotic infections, acute lung injury, systemic inflammatory response syndrome, and multiple organ dysfunction syndrome. Therefore, adjusting intestinal ecosystem balance may be a promising approach to control local and systemic complications of acute pancreatitis. In this paper, we reviewed the causes and manifestations of intestinal flora disorders during acute pancreatitis and their complications, focused on the reduction of acute pancreatitis and its complications by adjusting the intestinal microbial balance, and innovatively proposed the treatment of acute pancreatitis and its complications by gut microbiota-derived extracellular vesicles.

Comparative analysis of chloroplast genome and evolutionary history of Hemerocallis.

Members of the genus Hemerocallis have significant value as ornamental, edible, and medicinal plants, particularly in China, where they have been utilized for thousands of years as both a vegetable and Traditional Chinese Medicine. Hemerocallis species exhibit strict control over flowering time, with individuals flowering either diurnally or nocturnally. However, our understanding of the evolutionary history of this genus, especially concerning important horticultural traits, remains limited. In this study, sequencing and assembly efforts were conducted on 73 samples within the Hemerocallis genus. All accessions were classified into two distinct groups based on their diurnal (daylilies) or nocturnal (nightlilies) flowering habits. Comparative analysis of the chloroplast genomes from these two groups identified fifteen variant hotspot regions, including fourteen SNPs and one deletion, which hold promise for the development of molecular markers for interspecific identification. Phylogenetic trees, generated through both maximum-likelihood and Bayesian inference methods using 76 shared protein-coding sequences, revealed that diurnal flowering evolved prior to nocturnal flowering. The divergence between the two groups is estimated to have occurred approximately 0.82 MYA (95% CI: 0.35-1.45 MYA). The ancestral state of Hemerocallis is hypothesized to have featured diurnal flowering with orange yellow petals. This study marks the first reconstruction of the evolutionary history and ancestral state of the genus Hemerocallis. The findings contribute significantly to our understanding of the adaptation and speciation history within the genus.

Genome-wide association study identifies loci and candidate genes for RVA parameters in wheat (Triticum aestivum L.).

The gelatinization and retrogradation characteristics of wheat starch affect the eating quality of Chinese-style food. Rapid Visco Analyzer (RVA) parameters have been widely used as important indicators to evaluate and improve the quality of wheat starch. However, the genetic basis of RVA parameters remains to be further explored. In the present study, a natural population was genotyped using 90K single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) arrays, and the RVA parameters of this population grown in five environments were evaluated. The results showed that 22,068 high-quality SNP markers were identified and distributed unequally on the chromosomes. According to the genetic distance, 214 wheat materials were divided into four groups. Except for the pasting temperature (PTT), six parameters followed a normal distribution. Based on the general linear model, 969 significant association SNPs were detected by genome-wide association studies (GWAS), and chromosomes 7A and 2B had the most associated SNPs. Breakdown viscosity (BV) was associated with the most SNPs (n = 238), followed by PTT (n = 186), peak viscosity (PV; n = 156), trough viscosity (TV; n = 127), and final viscosity (FV; n = 126). According to the average linkage disequilibrium (LD), 33 stable quantitative trait loci (QTLs) were identified for single parameters in multiple environments, of which 12 were associated with BV, followed by peak time (PT; n = 8) and PTT (n = 7). On the other hand, 67 pleiotropic QTLs were identified for multiple parameters. Three candidate genes-TasbeIIa, TasbeI, and TassIIa-were screened for phenotyping analysis. The grain width and the weight of the TasbeIIa and TaSSIIa knockout (KO) lines were significantly lower than those of the TasbeI KO lines and the control (CK). The KO lines had smaller endosperm cells, smaller A-type starch granules, and higher amylose content. The TasbeI KO lines showed normal RVA curves, while the TasbeIIa KO lines showed flat curves. However, the TaSSIIa lines failed to paste under the RVA temperatures. Conclusively, the SNPs/QTLs significantly associated with the RVA parameters and genetic resources with novel haplotypes could be used to improve the quality of wheat starch.

The gap between statistical and clinical significance: time to pay attention to clinical relevance in patient-reported outcome measures of insomnia.

BACKGROUND: Appropriately defining and using the minimal important change (MIC) and the minimal clinically important difference (MCID) are crucial for determining whether the results are clinically significant. The aim of this study is to survey the status of randomized controlled trials (RCTs) for insomnia interventions to assess the inclusion and interpretation of MIC/MCID values. METHODS: We conducted a cross-sectional study to survey the status of RCTs for insomnia interventions to assess the inclusion and appropriate interpretation of MIC/MCID values. A literature search was conducted by searching the main sleep medicine journals indexed in PubMed, the Excerpta Medica Database (EMBASE), and the Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials (CENTRAL) to identify a broad range of search terms. We included RCTs with no restriction on the intervention. The included studies used the Insomnia Severity Index (ISI) or the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI) questionnaire as the outcome measures. RESULTS: 81 eligible studies were identified, and more than one-third of the included studies used MIC/MCID (n = 31, 38.3%). Among them, 21 studies with ISI as the outcome used MIC defined as a relative decrease ranging from 3 to 8 points. The most frequently used MIC value was a 6-point decrease (n = 7), followed by 8-point (n = 6) and 7-point decrease (n = 4), a 4 to 5-points decrease (n = 3), and a 30% reduction from baseline; 6 studies used MCID values, ranging from 2.8 to 4 points. The most frequently used MCID value was a 4-point decrease in the ISI (n = 4). 4 studies with PSQI as the outcome used a 3-point change as the MIC (n = 2) and a 2.5 to 2.7-point difference as MCID (n = 2). 4 non-inferiority design studies considered interval estimation when drawing clinically significant conclusions in their MCID usage. CONCLUSIONS: The lack of consistent MIC/MCID interpretation and usage in outcome measures for insomnia highlights the urgent need for further efforts to address this issue and improve reporting practices.

An Updated Review on the Spatial Distribution of Borrelia burgdorferi Sensu Lato Across Ticks, Animals and Humans in Northeastern China and Adjacent Regions.

BACKGROUND: Lyme disease is a tick-borne zoonotic disease caused by Borrelia burgdorferi sensu lato and is prevalent in northeastern Asia, particularly in the forested area of Northeastern China. However, a lack of systematic data on the spatial distribution of B. burgdorferi in this region hinders the prediction of its transmission risk across the landscape. METHODS: To provide an updated overview and establish a comprehensive spatial distribution database, we conducted a systematic review of literature published between 2000 and 2022. We collected and compiled relevant data on B. burgdorferi in Northeastern China and its neighbouring regions, outlining its distribution in ticks, wild animals, livestock and humans. Spatial analysis was performed to identify spatial clusters of tick positivity and host infection rates. RESULTS: From a total of 1823 literature, we selected 110 references to compile 626 detection records of B. burgdorferi, including 288 in ticks, 109 in wildlife, 111 in livestock and domestic animals and 100 in humans. The average detection rate of B. burgdorferi in ticks was approximately 20%, with wildlife, livestock and domestic animal host positivity rates below 50% and human seroprevalence rates varying from 0.94% to 44.18%. CONCLUSIONS: The study identified the presence of 17 tick species and ten genotypes of B. burgdorferi in the region, indicating a broad distribution. Notably, B. burgdorferi exhibited notable clustering, particularly in the central and eastern areas of Jilin Province, warranting further investigation.

An Exploration of Shared Risk Factors for Coronary Artery Disease and Cancer from 109 Traits: The Evidence from Two-Sample Mendelian Randomization Studies.

Background: Although observational studies have reported several common biomarkers related to coronary artery disease (CAD) and cancer, there is a shortage of traditional epidemiological data to establish causative linkages. Thus, we conducted a comprehensive two-sample Mendelian randomization (MR) analysis to systematically investigate the causal associations of 109 traits with both CAD and cancer to identify their shared risk and protective factors. Methods: The genetic association datasets pertaining to exposure and outcomes were reviewed using the most recent and public genome-wide association studies (GWAS). Inverse variance weighting (IVW), weighted median (WM), and MR-Egger strategies were implemented for the MR analyses. The heterogeneity and pleiotropy were measured utilizing leave-one-out sensitivity testing, MR-PRESSO outlier detection, and Cochran's Q test. Results: The IVW analyses revealed that genetic-predicted mean sphered cell volume (MSCV) is a protective factor for CAD, and weight is a risk factor. MSCV and weight also show similar effects on cancer. Furthermore, our study also identified a set of risk and protective factors unique to CAD and cancer, such as telomere length. Conclusions: Our Mendelian randomization study sheds light on shared and unique risk and protective factors for CAD and cancer, offering valuable insights that could guide future research and the development of personalized strategies for preventing and treating these two significant health issues.

Environmental endocrine disruptor-induced mitochondrial dysfunction: a potential mechanism underlying diabetes and its complications.

Diabetes and its complications significantly affect individuals' quality of life. The etiology of diabetes mellitus and its associated complications is complex and not yet fully understood. There is an increasing emphasis on investigating the effects of endocrine disruptors on diabetes, as these substances can impact cellular processes, energy production, and utilization, ultimately leading to disturbances in energy homeostasis. Mitochondria play a crucial role in cellular energy generation, and any impairment in these organelles can increase susceptibility to diabetes. This review examines the most recent epidemiological and pathogenic evidence concerning the link between endocrine disruptors and diabetes, including its complications. The analysis suggests that endocrine disruptor-induced mitochondrial dysfunction-characterized by disruptions in the mitochondrial electron transport chain, dysregulation of calcium ions (Ca2+), overproduction of reactive oxygen species (ROS), and initiation of signaling pathways related to mitochondrial apoptosis-may be key mechanisms connecting endocrine disruptors to the development of diabetes and its complications.

A Dataset of Distribution and Characterization of Underground Wastewater Treatment Plants in China.

Underground wastewater treatment plants (U-WWTPs) have emerged as a novel paradigm for urban wastewater pollutants management, offering benefits such as alleviating the Not-in-my-backyard (NIMBY) effect and utilizing land resources efficiently. China stands at the forefront, witnessing swift advancements in U-WWTP technology and deployment. However, the absence of a thorough understanding of their geographical distribution and operational characteristics could lead to misaligned planning and construction, resulting in inefficient resource allocation and treatment capacities for urban wastewater treatment. This dataset provides an up-to-date overview of the spatial distribution, process selection, and discharge standards for all U-WWTPs in China (with a total number of 201) constructed since 1995. To enhance comparative analysis, the dataset has been supplemented with information on conventional aboveground wastewater treatment plants (A-WWTPs), comprising a total of 2464 records, which enriches a more comprehensive evaluation of different wastewater treatment approaches. Utilizing this dataset can provide essential data support for the strategic management of urban wastewater systems and serve as a valuable reference for the paradigmatic renovation of existing wastewater treatment plants.

The de novo assembly and characterization of the complete mitochondrial genome of bottle gourd (Lagenaria siceraria) reveals the presence of homologous conformations produced by repeat-mediated recombination.

Introduction: Bottle gourd is an annual herbaceous plant that not only has high nutritional value and many medicinal applications but is also used as a rootstock for the grafting of cucurbit crops such as watermelon, cucumber and melon. Organellar genomes provide valuable resources for genetic breeding. Methods: A hybrid strategy with Illumina and Oxford Nanopore Technology sequencing data was used to assemble bottle gourd mitochondrial and chloroplast genomes. Results: The length of the bottle gourd mitochondrial genome was 357547 bp, and that of the chloroplast genome was 157121 bp. These genomes had 27 homologous fragments, accounting for 6.50% of the total length of the bottle gourd mitochondrial genome. In the mitochondrial genome, 101 simple sequence repeats (SSRs) and 10 tandem repeats were identified. Moreover, 1 pair of repeats was shown to mediate homologous recombination into 1 major conformation and 1 minor conformation. The existence of these conformations was verified via PCR amplification and Sanger sequencing. Evolutionary analysis revealed that the mitochondrial genome sequence of bottle gourd was highly conserved. Furthermore, collinearity analysis revealed many rearrangements between the homologous fragments of Cucurbita and its relatives. The Ka/Ks values for most genes were between 0.3~0.9, which means that most of the genes in the bottle gourd mitochondrial genome are under purifying selection. We also identified a total of 589 potential RNA editing sites on 38 mitochondrial protein-coding genes (PCGs) on the basis of long noncoding RNA (lncRNA)-seq data. The RNA editing sites of nad1-2, nad4L-2, atp6-718, atp9-223 and rps10-391 were successfully verified via PCR amplification and Sanger sequencing. Conclusion: In conclusion, we assembled and annotated bottle gourd mitochondrial and chloroplast genomes to provide a theoretical basis for similar organelle genomic studies.

Exploring the remarkable effects of microwave treatment on starch modification: From structural evolution to changed physicochemical and digestive properties.

As one of the crucial components of the food system, starch can be hydrolyzed into glucose after gastrointestinal digestion, so regulating its digestive properties is vital for maintaining health. Microwaves can promote the rearrangement of intramolecular structure of starch, thus improving its physicochemical properties, enhancing its slowly digestible features, and expanding its scope of application. This review zooms in describing recent research results concerning the effects of microwave treatment on the multi-scale structure and physicochemical properties of starch and summarizing the patterns of these changes. Furthermore, the changes in starch structure, resistant starch content, and glycemic index after digestion are pointed out to gain an insight into the enhancement of starch slowly digestible properties by microwave treatment. The resistance of starch to enzymatic digestion may largely hinge on the specific structures formed during microwave treatment. The multi-level structural evolutions of starch during digestion endow it with the power to resist digestion and lower the glycemic index. The properties of starch dictate its application, and these properties are highly associated with its structure. Consequently, understanding the structural changes of microwave-modified starch helps to prepare modified starch with diversified varieties and functional composites.

Angiogenesis unveiled: Insights into its role and mechanisms in cartilage injury.

Osteoarthritis (OA) commonly results in compromised mobility and disability, thereby imposing a significant burden on healthcare systems. Cartilage injury is a prevalent pathological manifestation in OA and constitutes a central focus for the development of treatment strategies. Despite the considerable number of studies aimed at delaying this degenerative process, their outcomes remain unvalidated in preclinical settings. Recently, therapeutic strategies focused on angiogenesis have attracted the growing interest from researchers. Thus, we conducted a comprehensive literature review to elucidate the current progress in research and pinpoint research gaps in this domain. Additionally, it provides theoretical guidance for future research endeavors and the development of treatment strategies.