Browse Articles

Natural antioxidant substances improve oxidative stress and alleviate ulcerative colitis: a meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials

Abstract Oxidative stress is a key driver of mucosal damage in ulcerative colitis (UC). Antioxidant supplementation may restore redox balance, but its clinical efficacy remains controversial. To evaluate the effects of natural antioxidant substances supplementation on oxidation/antioxidant biomarkers and clinical outcomes in UC patients. The databases included PubMed, Embase, Web of Science, and Cochrane Library (up to July 2025) were searched, and RCTs comparing oral antioxidants with placebo in UC were included. The primary outcomes were changes in oxidative stress markers (MDA, SOD, TAC, GPX). The secondary outcomes included the short IBD questionnaire (SIBDQ) score and the simple clinical colitis activity index (SCCAI) score. 9 articles involving 624 patients were included in this study. Compared to placebo group, antioxidant substances supplementation could significantly reduce the level of MDA ( P  = 0.001, SMD=-1.09, 95% CI −1.75 to −0.43), increased the levels of SOD, TAC, GPX in patients with UC ( P  = 0.02, SMD = 0.57, 95% CI 0.10 to 1.04; P  = 0.0004, SMD = 0.74, 95% CI   0.33 to 1.16; P  = 0.004, SMD = 0.69, 95% CI  0.22 to 1.16). In addition, antioxidant substances supplementation remarkably decreased the SCCAI score of UC patients ( P  = 0.04, SMD=-0.62, 95% CI −1.21 to −0.04), thus improving the disease activity. However, there is no significant difference in the change of IBDQ score ( P  = 0.13, SMD = 0.55, 95% CI −0.17 to 1.28). Natural antioxidant substances supplementation effectively enhanced antioxidant capacity and ameliorated oxidation status, improved the disease activity of UC patients, but had no significant impact on their quality of life. This study will provide a basis for the selection of adjuvant therapy drugs for UC.

Perceived emotional support mediates the association between childhood family adversity and adolescent mental health in the UK millennium cohort

Abstract Childhood family adversity is associated with increased risk of developing mental health problems over the life course. We investigated how perceived emotional support in adolescence may mitigate the impact of childhood family adversity on adolescent mental health. We used longitudinal data from the UK Millennium Cohort Study on 9,269 children followed to age 17 years. Individuals were assigned to exposure trajectories characterised using group-based trajectory models that included measures of poverty and family dynamics up to age 14 years. Using counterfactual causal mediation analysis and four-way decomposition modelling approach, we evaluated how perceived emotional support at age 14 (measured using the three-item Short Social Provisions Scale) influences the association of childhood family adversity trajectories on mental health at ages 14 and 17, assessing the relative contributions of mediation and interaction simultaneously. Compared with children experiencing low family adversity and poverty, those exposed to childhood family adversity were almost three times more likely to experience poor mental health (RR 2·99, 95% CI 2 ·41 to 3·57) at age 14 and age 17 (RR 2·58, 95% CI 2·09 to 3·06). Perceived emotional support mitigates up to 18% (95% CI: 9% to 26%) of this effect at age 14, and 13% (95% CI: 5% to 22%) at age 17, mainly due to interactive mechanisms. Childhood family adversity has a strong effect on mental health, which is partially mitigated by emotional support in adolescence. Policies that support positive family functioning may be particularly beneficial for children who have experienced adversity.

Analysis on the terahertz spectral characteristics of two types of sialic acids in solid state and aqueous solution

Digital simulation of rock grinding process in ball mill

Fe₃O₄ and TiO₂ nanoparticle-enhanced balangu seed mucilage-gelatin films as advanced functional materials

A deep learning-based intelligent curriculum system for enhancing public music education: a case study across three universities in Southwest China

FlameGuard: an AI-driven smart map for early detection and management of agricultural fires in Saudi Arabia

Fast protocols for charging a three-spin-chain quantum battery

The usage of artificial Intelligence-empowered text analysis model with convolutional neural network in english reading

Installation of d3-methyl group to drugs by continuous-flow solid-phase synthesis

Effects of different vacuum frying temperature and times on the quality and volatile flavor substances of shredded pork

Development of a simplified three-dimensional viscoelastic constitutive model for thermally activated shape memory polymers and numerical analysis

Kinetically controlled hetero-fusion is a systems-level behaviour of polymer nanoparticle populations

Abstract Particle fusion is key for establishing communication between biological components. For this reason, whole cell fusion plays a crucial role in many processes, including infection, muscle formation and tissue repair. Analogous co-assembly between synthetic nanoparticles represents a similar type of communication mechanism in artificial systems. Other approaches to control such co-assembly rely on incorporating anisotropic recognition units onto particle surfaces to provide a thermodynamic driving force. Here we present a fundamentally different approach, where hetero-fusion between two populations of undecorated polymer nanoparticles is regulated using kinetic control. Fusion extent is tuned simply by adjusting polymer chain length. Fusion is probed using an elemental tagging strategy for cryogenic scanning transmission electron microscopy combined with electron energy loss spectroscopy (cryo-STEM-EELS). Our results demonstrate the emergence of a complex process between populations of synthetic nanoparticles akin to communication. We anticipate such systems-level behaviour that results from hetero-fusion can enable future technologies.

Detection of H5N1 highly pathogenic avian influenza virus RNA in filth flies collected from California farms in 2024

Abstract The emergence of highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) H5N1 clade 2.3.4.4b in U.S. dairy cattle highlights the urgent need to understand transmission dynamics within and among farms. House flies ( Musca domestica ) and blow flies (Calliphoridae), ubiquitous in agricultural settings, are suspected mechanical vectors of numerous pathogens, including viruses. We investigated the presence of H5N1 viral RNA in filth flies collected opportunistically from four H5N1-positive farms (three dairy and one poultry) in California during the 2024 outbreak. H5N1 RNA was detected via qRT-PCR in fly pools from all four locations, with the lowest Ct values (highest viral RNA) in house flies collected near milking parlors and dead animals. Whole-genome sequencing confirmed H5N1 viral genomes in flies from dairy farms, demonstrating high similarity (99.92–99.95%) to the B3.13 lineage circulating in the region and grouping closely with farm-associated viral sequences from milk. Although infectious virus was not detected in this study, our findings suggest that filth flies acquire HPAI H5N1 RNA from their environment, supporting their potential role as sentinels and/or mechanical vectors. These results underscore the critical importance of fly control, targeted surveillance, and integrated pest management strategies in agricultural settings to enhance biosecurity and potentially mitigate HPAI H5N1 transmission.

Visual cortex speckle imaging for shape recognition

Mechanical confinement induces ferroptosis through mitochondrial dysfunction

Design and construction of clinoptilolite-decorated BiOBr-TiO2 heterojunction as efficient and affordable photocatalyst for herbicide contaminated wastewater splitting

Power quality disturbance identification using hybrid deep learning in renewable energy systems

Physics-informed transformers for electronic quantum states

Abstract Neural-network-based variational quantum states, particularly autoregressive models, are powerful tools for describing complex many-body wave functions. However, their performance depends on the computational basis chosen and they often lack physical interpretability. We propose a modified variational Monte-Carlo framework which leverages prior physical information to construct a complete computational many-body basis containing a reference state that serves as a rough approximation to the true ground state. A Transformer is used to parametrize and autoregressively sample corrections to this reference state, giving rise to a more interpretable and computationally efficient representation of the ground state. We demonstrate this approach in a fermionic model featuring a metal-insulator transition by employing Hartree-Fock and a strong-coupling limit to define physics-informed bases. We also show that the Transformer’s hidden representation captures the natural energetic order of the different basis states. This work paves the way for more efficient and interpretable neural quantum-state representations.

Dynamic assessment of a humanized bone tumour microenvironment reveals insights into osteosarcoma primary tumour remodelling and lung metastases

Abstract Osteosarcoma (OS) is the most common primary bone cancer in children and adolescents, with poor prognosis linked to metastasis and recurrence. Preclinical models that replicate human disease progression and the tumour microenvironment (TME) are critical for advancing therapies. We developed a novel orthotopic and humanised bone tumour microenvironment model in highly immunocompromised Il2rg and Rag2 double knockout rats. A humanised bone niche (HN) was established by implanting orthotopic humanised bone constructs (ohTEBCs) around the rat femur, followed by SaOS-2-luc cell injection. Longitudinal µCT and bioluminescent imaging tracked HN formation, tumour growth, and metastasis. Histological and immunohistochemical analyses revealed pathological mineralisation, extensive collagen deposition, tumour-specific ECM production, and neovascularisation within primary tumours and lung metastases. This model supports consistent engraftment of SaOS-2-luc tumours with robust metastatic spread, recapitulating key human OS features. It offers a translatable preclinical platform for studying OS progression and testing chemotherapy and surgical interventions.