Browse Articles

Immunogenicity and safety of co-purified diphtheria, tetanus and acellular pertussis vaccine in 6-year-old Chinese children

Abstract In recent years, China has experienced a rapid increase in the number of pertussis cases among children aged 5 to 9. We conducted this phase 4 randomized, controlled trial (NCT05870631) in Zhejiang Province, China, to compare the immunogenicity and safety of co-purified diphtheria, tetanus, and acellular pertussis combined vaccine (co-purified DTaP) to diphtheria and tetanus combined vaccine (DT) in 6-year-old children. Between April 2023 to July 2023, 480 participants were randomized to receive one dose of co-purified DTaP ( n  = 240) or DT ( n  = 240). 28 days after vaccination, the seroconversion rates of the co-purified DTaP were 81.20% for anti-PT and 74.36% for anti-FHA, and achieved a significantly higher rate for anti-tetanus compared to the DT vaccine (97.01% vs. 87.05%, P  < 0.001). Both vaccines showed 100% seroconversion for anti- diphtheria antibody. For all antibody types, the co-purified DTaP can induced higher geometric mean concentrations. More vaccine-related adverse events were reported with the co-purified DTaP. Most of the severity occurred in Grade 1 and 2. The booster dose of co-purified DTaP vaccination is safe and induces a significant anti-pertussis antibody response, it may be feasible to give a booster dose of co-purified DTaP instead of the recommended DT for 6-year-old children in China.

Measuring the magnetic fields in the chromospheres of low-mass stars

GLYCO-BUILD: an enzymatic pipeline for the synthesis of peptides carrying eukaryotic N-glycans

Abstract Peptides and proteins containing defined N -glycans hold great promise for biomedicine because the attached glycans engage in specific interactions, influence targeted delivery and folding, and improve pharmacokinetic properties. However, challenges associated with producing homogeneous N -glycoconjugates hinder their wider application. Here, we report the development of GLYCO-BUILD, an enzymatic pipeline that can generate glycopeptides carrying eukaryotic N -glycans at a level of homogeneity not accessible by alternative methodologies. The pipeline recapitulates the endoplasmic reticulum-based steps of the eukaryotic protein N -glycosylation machinery. However, it employs a combination of enzymes of archaeal, bacterial, and eukaryotic origin that are able to process inexpensive phytol instead of the native dolichol as a lipid carrier. GLYCO-BUILD facilitates the synthesis of homogeneous N -glycans ranging from GlcNAc 2 to GlcNAc 2 Man 9 Glc 3 , and their transfer to acceptor polypeptides using single-subunit oligosaccharyltransferases (OSTs) from the eukaryotic parasite Trypanosoma brucei . We used GLYCO-BUILD to generate glycopeptides mimicking viral mannosylated antigens, glucosylated species and precursors of complex and hybrid glycans. Our pipeline is modular, versatile and can be combined with other approaches of glycan extension and modification to generate a wide range of homogeneous N -glycoconjugates for use in research, diagnostics and therapeutics, including serum testing, vaccine development or modulation of biotherapeutics’ half-life.

Controlled microphase separation and strain programming in hydrogel fibers toward biomimetic architectures and properties

Synergistic versatile bistriflimide salts in light-accelerated spiro-OMeTAD oxidation and perovskite module photovoltaics engineering

Anatomy-to-tract mapping infers white matter pathways without diffusion streamline propagation

Abstract Diffusion tractography, a cornerstone of white matter mapping, relies on point-to-point streamline propagation, a process often limited by the signal-to-noise ratio and spatioangular resolution of diffusion MRI (dMRI). Here, we present Anatomy-to-Tract Mapping (ATM), a framework that generates bundle-specific streamlines directly from T1-weighted MRI without requiring orientation field estimation, voxelwise segmentation, or streamline propagation. ATM leverages the high quality and minimal distortion of anatomical MRI and learns from paired T1w and tractogram data to synthesize anatomically plausible, subject-specific streamlines. This anatomy-driven approach addresses complex configurations such as crossing, kissing, and bending fibers, providing robust bundle reconstructions. Using the TractoInferno dataset with 30 white matter bundles, we evaluate ATM against diffusion-based methods, including MRtrix probabilistic tracking with BundleSeg and SCIL atlas warping. ATM demonstrates strong performance across multiple metrics, including bundle similarity, volume coverage, angular correlation, and geometric fidelity.

Plasma membrane transbilayer asymmetry of PI(4,5)P2 drives unconventional secretion of Fibroblast Growth Factor 2

Abstract Unconventional secretion of Fibroblast Growth Factor 2 (FGF2) is mediated by direct translocation across the plasma membrane. This process is initiated by PI(4,5)P 2 -dependent FGF2 oligomerization at the inner plasma membrane leaflet. PI(4,5)P 2 is a non-bilayer lipid that accumulates at sites of FGF2 oligomerization, imposing severe membrane stress that is relieved by the formation of a lipidic membrane pore. At the outer leaflet, FGF2 oligomers are captured and disassembled by the heparan sulfate proteoglycan Glypican-1 (GPC1), making available FGF2 to engage in ternary signaling complexes on cell surfaces. Using an in vitro reconstitutions system, this study provides direct evidence that transbilayer asymmetry of PI(4,5)P 2 promotes rapid kinetics of membrane pore formation. Likewise, FGF2 secretion from cells is inhibited when PI(4,5)P 2 plasma membrane transbilayer asymmetry is disrupted. We propose the asymmetric distribution of PI(4,5)P 2 to lower the energetic barrier for membrane pore formation, enabling rapid kinetics of FGF2 membrane translocation into the extracellular space.

Compact and high-resolution spectrometer via Brillouin integrated circuits

Tolerability and effect of inhibiting microfibrillar-associated protein 4 in small intestinal anastomotic healing

How landscape element characterization affects aesthetic preferences and visual attention in urban wetland park recreation spaces

RETRACTED ARTICLE: Long-term dynamics and distribution of large carnivores in Poland

Abstract The brown bear Ursus arctos , Eurasian lynx Lynx lynx , and gray wolf Canis lupus are Europe’s threatened large carnivores. The analyses were conducted using data on the abundance of these species in Poland, collected by the Polish Central Statistical Office (bear 1965–2023, wolf 1995–2023, and lynx 1996–2023). For the years 2000–2023, data were also available by region. We subjected these data to statistical analysis: chi-square tests, segmented regression, and principal component analysis. Biplots, charts of population dynamics, and distribution maps were created to visualize the results. In Poland in the analyzed time period, an increase in the population of all three studied carnivores was observed along with the westward expansion of the territorial range of lynx and wolf, while bear range remained unchanged. The most mean population increase was exhibited by the gray wolf (7.01%), followed by the brown bear (4.78%) and, finally, the Eurasian lynx (2.94%). The population dynamics of the carnivores showed trends over time, with a notable increase in the last decade. The use of multi-year data in modelling enables a better understanding of the mechanisms governing the abundance and distribution of populations of endangered species. This, in turn, facilitates the planning of more effective conservation measures.

Antibacterial and chemical profiling of Ulva intestinalis collected from Egypt

Abstract The increasing limitations of antibiotic therapy, due to adverse effects and the alarming rise of bacterial resistance, underscore the urgent need for novel antimicrobial alternatives. This study investigated the antibacterial and antibiofilm activities of crude extracts from the green seaweed Ulva intestinalis as potential natural substitutes for conventional antibiotics. Samples were collected from the Mediterranean coast of Alexandria, Egypt, and extracted using ethanol, methanol, and acetone. The antibacterial activity against Staphylococcus aureus was assessed via the agar well diffusion method. Among the tested extracts, the ethanol extract at 200 µg/mL showed the largest inhibition zone (35.03 ± 0.04 mm), whereas the acetone extract exhibited the lowest activity (15.7 ± 0.09 mm) at the same concentration. The antibiofilm efficacy, evaluated using a 96-well microtiter plate assay, revealed that the methanolic extract inhibited biofilm formation by 91.26% at 200 µg/mL, the highest tested concentration. GC–MS analysis identified several bioactive constituents, including pentadecane, eicosane, and 2,6,10,14-tetramethylpentadecane, whereas FTIR spectra confirmed the presence of phenolic, alcoholic, aliphatic, ketonic, aromatic, and amine functional groups. Molecular docking studies demonstrated strong binding affinities of selected compounds toward key S. aureus targets (RNA polymerase, DNA gyrase, and PBP2a), suggesting potential mechanisms involving disruption of transcription, DNA replication, and β-lactam resistance. Overall, these results highlight U. intestinalis as a promising marine-derived source of antimicrobial and antibiofilm agents with potential pharmaceutical applications.

A novel four-serum marker model for early detection and therapeutic monitoring of breast cancer

Integrated photovoltaic-agriculture systems enhance soil health in desert ecosystems: evidence from microbial biomass and nutrient synergies

The construction of an integrated cloud network digital intelligence platform for rail transit based on artificial intelligence

Prevalence and risk factors of high-risk cervical HPV infections among women attending Debre Tabor hospital family planning and gynecology clinic, Northcentral Ethiopia

EEG glasses for real-time brain electrical activity monitoring

Abstract Wearable devices are becoming a cornerstone for personalized and long-term health monitoring, enabling early intervention and data-driven medical decisions. In this work, we present e-Glass , a state-of-the-art smart wearable device that enables unobtrusive real-time electroencephalography (EEG) monitoring. Our evaluation shows that e-Glass adheres to the established international guidelines for clinical EEG recordings. Moreover, the acquired data presents a Pearson’s correlation of 0.93 relative to recordings obtained from the Biopac research-grade EEG system . The proposed EEG acquisition device concept is evaluated in two application domains: epileptic seizure detection and cognitive workload monitoring (CWM). First, we present a lightweight edge machine-learning scheme, designed specifically for e-Glass , achieving overall sensitivity of 64% (100% sensitivity in 11 out of 24 subjects) and 2.35 false-alarms per day, when tested on 982.9 hours of EEG data from the CHB-MIT dataset. Similarly, an CWM strategy with e-Glass reaches an accuracy of 74.5% on unseen data. These results demonstrate that e-Glass is capable of unobtrusive and real-time subject monitoring in outpatient conditions, not only in epileptic seizure detection but also in monitoring the subject’s cognitive state.

Changing epidemiology, prescription and outcomes of acute kidney injury patients treated by peritoneal dialysis during 20 years: a cohort study

Transcriptomic insights into GSDME-driven pyroptosis in head and neck cancer

Complement and diverse enrichment of antibodies in intraluminal thrombi from abdominal aortic aneurysms may contribute to increased inflammation

Abstract Abdominal aortic aneurysms (AAA) often contain an intraluminal thrombus (ILT) which may contribute to aneurysm growth and rupture, but the mechanisms are not well understood. We hypothesized that complement and antibodies play a central role in the immune reactions within ILT from AAA. We quantified pre-specified proteins from complement and other defense systems, including coagulation, fibrinolysis, neutrophils, relevant proteinases and inhibitors, as well as immunoglobulins in ILT ( n  = 7), using fresh thrombi for comparison ( n  = 7). Protein analysis was performed using liquid chromatography in tandem with mass spectrometry, permitting simultaneous protein detection with comparable quantitative results, and antibody diversity characterization. The results indicated complement activation (classical and lectin pathways), coagulation (contact pathway), and degranulation including proteinase release from neutrophils in the ILT, with protein enrichment compared to fresh thrombi. Inhibitors of these systems were also present. In the ILT, 151 different immunoglobulin heavy chain and 144 different light chain variable regions were detected. Corresponding numbers in the controls were 25 and 26. Immunohistochemistry confirmed terminal complement activation and substantial presence of IgG in the ILT, which also contained IgM and IgA. These results are suggestive of a complex immunological process with activation of many defense systems, and antibody enrichment in the ILT.