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Multimodal imaging to analyze the biomechanical properties of kidney tumors, evaluating feasibility, inter-modality correspondence, and diagnostic value (UroCCR-115)
Introduction Assessment of renal tissue and renal tumor stiffness may provide complementary information for tissue characterization; however, conventional imaging modalities such as multiphasic computed tomography (CT) do not directly quantify biomechanical properties. Elastography techniques, including magnetic resonance elastography (MRE) and ultrasound elastography (US-E), allow noninvasive measurement of tissue stiffness but are not routinely available in standard clinical practice. This study protocol aims to develop a CT-based stiffness mapping of renal parenchyma and renal tumors by investigating the relationship between CT attenuation values and elastography-derived stiffness measurements, using MRE and US-E as reference modalities. Methods and analysis This monocentric, prospective, exploratory, non-randomized, and non-blinded diagnostic study will enroll 50 adults undergoing partial or radical nephrectomy for renal tumors at the University Hospital of Bordeaux. All participants will undergo a predefined multimodal imaging protocol—including contrast-enhanced CT, multiparametric magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) with -MRE and US-E—conducted between inclusion and the day before surgery. The primary objective is to construct a regression model predicting MRE-derived elasticity (μMRE) from CT density values using multiple machine-learning algorithms evaluated through repeated nested cross-validation. Secondary analyses will include voxel-level and region-of-interest correlations across modalities, feasibility and image-quality assessment of DWI-vMRE, repeatability of elastography measurements, identification of limiting factors such as BMI, sarcopenia, lesion location and architecture, evaluation of inter-modality de-correlation and associations with final histopathology (including subtype and grade). Trial registration ClinicalTrials.gov identifier: NCT06525831 . Protocol ID-RCB: 2024-A00959-38. Recruitment began on 7 March 2025.
Dynamic immune profiling predicts response to radiation plus anti-PD-1 therapy in oligometastatic renal cell carcinoma
Linguistic markers of emotional reactivity and their association with anxiety, depression, and stress among emergency call takers and dispatchers
Emergency call takers and dispatchers (ECDs) are routinely exposed to emotionally intense and highly stressful events, placing them at elevated risk for mental health challenges. Despite their critical role in emergency response, ECDs remain underrepresented in occupational mental health research, and it is unclear why some adapt more effectively than others under chronic stress. Cognitive appraisal theory suggests that differences in emotional reactivity—how individuals evaluate stimuli in terms of arousal and valence—may contribute to this variation. To test this, a sample of ECDs provided open-ended narratives of a stressful work-related event and completed the Depression, Anxiety, and Stress Scale (DASS-21). Narratives were analyzed using natural language processing to quantify emotional reactivity through the usage of high and low arousal language, and positively and negatively valenced language. Analyses revealed that greater use of negatively valenced language significantly predicted higher depression and anxiety, whereas positively valenced and arousal language did not. Stress symptoms were not significantly predicted by any linguistic markers of emotional reactivity. Follow-up analyses showed that individuals with moderate or higher depression and anxiety used significantly more negatively valenced language than those below threshold. These findings suggest that negatively valenced language serves as a robust marker of psychological distress among ECDs, even when narratives are elicited in contexts that naturally evoke negative emotion. Results highlight the potential of language-based tools for early, unobtrusive detection of distress, offering scalable approaches to promote resilience and support well-being in this critical workforce.
SBRT embedded in low-dose RT plus αPD-1 (immuno-EclipseRT, iERT) elicits CD8+ T cell immunity against bulky tumors via an IFN-I/NK/DC axis
Retraction: Implementation of Learning Management Systems (LMS) in higher education systems through bipolar complex hesitant fuzzy Aczel-Alsina power aggregation operators: A case review for China
Spatial transcriptomic profiling of ovarian clear cell carcinoma reveals heterogeneity in OXPHOS and EMT gradients
Identifying surge of exclusionary nationalism: A case study of prewar Japan
A rise in exclusionary nationalism can escalate conflicts; however, there are limited quantitative analyses of the timing and magnitudes of such shifts. This study proposes a quantitative approach for tracking changes in exclusionary nationalism by focusing on language, specifically the acceptance/rejection of foreign loanwords. Using 300,110 Japanese newspaper articles spanning 1912–1943—the period surrounding the outbreak of the 1941 conflict with the United States and the United Kingdom—we employed the singular spectrum transformation method to detect change points in exclusionary nationalism. We found that exclusionary nationalism emerged in Japan in 1936 and subsequently exhibited substantial oscillations rather than continuous intensification in the years leading up to the outbreak of the Pacific War. Moreover, attitudes toward potential adversaries and allies were evident from the 1920s. This study deepens our understanding of the role of exclusionary nationalism in conflicts, highlighting its nuanced nature in shaping friend–enemy distinctions during wartime.
Structural basis of lipid-dependent allosteric gating mechanisms for PC1-PC2 ion channel
Geographic and Orientia infection status influence on the bacterial microbiome of free-living chiggers in North Carolina, USA
Chiggers (larval Trombiculid mites) serve as vectors for Orientia species that cause scrub typhus, a potentially serious illness in humans with a broadening global distribution. To date, there is limited research on the chigger microbiome in the United States (US) compared to some other parts of the world. Investigating chigger bacterial communities is essential for understanding the potential role they play in pathogen transmission dynamics within these arthropods. This study investigated the bacterial communities of free-living chiggers collected from sites across the three ecoregions in North Carolina using 16S rDNA gene targeted next-generation sequencing. Molecular identification of the chigger revealed three species: Eutrombicula splendens , Eutrombicula tinami , and Pseudoschoengastia sp. All three trombiculid mite species occurred at least once in the Mountains and Piedmont, except for E. tinami , which was absent from the Coastal Plain ecoregion. Microbiome analysis revealed significant differences in alpha and beta diversity among the collection sites for E. splendens . No significant differences in overall microbiome diversity were observed between E. splendens and Pseudoschoengastia sp., the two dominant chigger species. However, the microbiome of E. splendens alone exhibited significant differences in both Shannon diversity and beta diversity between Orientia -infected and uninfected individuals. Within E. splendens , genera like Brevibacillus and Telluria were more abundant in Orientia -positive chiggers, while Methylobacterium was more abundant in Orientia -negative chiggers. We also found potentially pathogenic bacterial genera, including Rickettsia , Listeria , Legionella , Staphylococcus , and Streptococcus sequences. These findings suggest that geography and Orientia infection influence chigger-associated bacterial communities, potentially affecting their vector competence.
Immune protection and persistence in Pseudomonas aeruginosa infections by pyruvate cross-feeding
Retraction: Digital economy, resource distortion and low-carbon inclusive development-Evidence from the perspectives of a threshold effect and knowledge spillover effect
Spliceosomal proteins direct RNA methylation to modulate gene expression and silence retrotransposons
Abstract RNA modifications are fundamental to gene regulation and RNA processing, yet their diversity and transcript specificity remain incompletely defined. Here, using a genetic screen in S. pombe , we identify the RNA methyltransferase Tgs1 and Coilin-related proteins as regulators of transcripts harboring inefficiently spliced cryptic introns. These factors associate to form a protein assembly, termed TEaM, which is recruited to cryptic-intron-containing RNAs, including retrotransposon-derived transcripts, by spliceosomal components, and to gametogenic gene transcripts by a YTH-family RNA-binding protein. Upon recruitment, Tgs1 catalyzes trimethylguanosine (TMG) capping, facilitating engagement of the conserved factor Pir2/ARS2, which cooperates with the DROSHA homolog Pac1 and other factors to promote RNA processing and RNAi-mediated silencing. This pathway also targets centromeric repeat RNAs containing cryptic introns, enabling de novo production of siRNAs that specify heterochromatin nucleation. Together, these findings delineate a mechanism in which Tgs1-directed TMG capping, coupled with Pir2/ARS2, specifies RNAi substrates to broadly regulate gene expression and silence retrotransposons.
Finding space for rewilding: Nature futures scenarios reveal ecological opportunities based on plural values of nature from participatory processes
Ecological restoration is increasingly emphasised by ambitious biodiversity policies as essential for reversing ecosystem degradation in human-dominated landscapes. Among restoration approaches, rewilding fosters self-sustaining ecological processes and reduces the need for direct human intervention. However, effective implementation requires careful evaluation of co-benefits and trade-offs with local communities’ interests. This underscores the urgent need for participatory processes that align restoration efforts with local contexts. This study operationalised the Nature Futures Framework, a participatory, value-based scenario-planning methodology, to co-develop rewilding scenarios with local rewilding experts. To assess trade-offs and co-benefits, relevant stakeholders were systematically identified using Net-Map analysis. Semi-structured interviews and participatory mapping were used to assess stakeholder perceptions and the feasibility of translating scenario narratives into rewilding actions. The three scenarios articulated distinct priorities. The Nature for Nature scenario prioritised restoring landscape connectivity and promoting natural succession toward old forests. It also restored natural disturbance regimes, reflooded peatlands, restored historical river courses, and expanded protected areas to 65.8% of the region. The Nature for Society scenario emphasised reduced land use intensity, sustainable forestry, organic agriculture, and participatory flood management, covering 14.4% of the area. The Nature as Culture scenario highlighted community stewardship, biodiversity-friendly agriculture such as paludiculture, and the reintroduction of culturally significant species, encompassing 8.6% of the area. All scenarios converged on restoring water dynamics and improving connectivity. Spatial mapping identified both unique and overlapping priority areas. Overlaps near natural parks, grasslands, and settlements created high-value mosaics that support biodiversity, water regulation, and cultural services. These areas offer opportunities for risk management, sustainable agriculture, and the restoration of ecosystem services. Incorporating stakeholder perspectives enabled the identification of synergies and conflicts, guiding the development of context-specific strategies. Integrating scenario planning with participatory mapping strengthens adaptive restoration planning and provides a replicable model. This approach aligns rewilding actions with ecological, social, and cultural objectives, delivering tangible benefits for biodiversity, local communities, and policy implementation.
Embodied behavioural complexity in a ciliated microorganism
Abstract Most animals coordinate behaviour using neural computations. Yet, single-celled organisms also exhibit stimulus-responsive, even cognitive, actions. To understand how a single cell can coordinate and drive complex behaviours without any neural encoding, we study an algal protist – a motile cell with four extremely long cilia. The organism displays a surprisingly rich locomotor repertoire, emerging from the intricate dynamics of the cilia, which form a tight bundle when swimming. We use high-speed quantitative live imaging to extract the spectrum of possible ciliary beating patterns and derive a dispersion relation coupling the temporal frequency and spatial wavelength of cilia oscillations. We further reconstruct the manifold embedded in the behavioural space, showing that despite the range and complexity of ciliary beating modes, the underlying behavioural manifold is intrinsically low-dimensional with non-trivial topological structure. Dynamic transitions in motility patterns are encoded as trajectories in this space, thus reducing the macroscopic behavioural states to the underlying microscopic dynamics of the cilia.
Relationship between appearance-related social media consciousness and beliefs about obese persons among physical education teacher candidates
Objective This study examined whether physical education teacher candidates’ appearance-related social media consciousness and beliefs about obese persons differed by teacher candidates’ gender and years of study and whether there was a relationship between these two factors. Method A correlational research design was employed in the study. The study involved 153 physical education teacher candidates. Data were collected using the Demographic Information Form, the Appearance-Related Social Media Consciousness Scale and, the Beliefs about Obese Persons Scale. The data were analyzed using the Mann-Whitney U, Kruskal-Wallis, and Spearman’s rank correlation tests. Results The results showed that there was no statistically significant difference between the level of appearance-related social media consciousness and the level of beliefs about obese persons between female and male physical education teacher candidates. In terms of years of study, the level of appearance-related social media consciousness was lower among those in their 2 nd and 3 rd years than among those in their 4 th year, and the level of attitudes towards obese persons was lower in the 3 rd year than in the 4 th year. The results further showed no correlation between the levels of appearance-related social media consciousness and attitudes towards obese persons among the physical education teacher candidates. Conclusion These findings highlight the importance of physical education teacher education programs actively addressing appearance-related social media consciousness and beliefs about obese persons, with the aim being to mitigate the emergence of weight-based stigma and foster more inclusive, informed attitudes.
Loss of the USP22 deubiquitylase confers resistance to chemotherapy in small cell lung cancer
Abstract Small cell lung cancer (SCLC) responds exceptionally well to cytotoxic chemotherapy. However, relapse with the emergence of chemoresistant disease is rapid and accompanied by poor treatment outcomes. To understand the genetic basis of chemoresistance in SCLC, we apply in vivo CRISPR deletion screening to patient-derived xenograft (PDX) models. Top screen hits include genes encoding components of the transcriptional co-activator SAGA (Spt-Ada-Gcn5 acetyltransferase) complex. We demonstrate that deletion of the SAGA deubiquitylase USP22 confers cisplatin-etoposide resistance in two chemosensitive PDX models, and that restoring expression in a PDX model harboring homozygous truncating mutation of USP22 re-sensitizes tumors to chemotherapy. USP22 loss increases gene body histone H2AK119 monoubiquitylation at key regulators of neuronal differentiation and suppresses neural and neuroendocrine gene expression including targets of ASCL1. Chemoresistance following USP22 loss reflects attenuated DNA damage-driven phosphorylation events and apoptosis, in conjunction with increased expression of glycolysis and hypoxia-related genes. Glycolysis program upregulation may reflect a targetable vulnerability, as inhibition of GLUT1 re-sensitizes USP22-null tumors to chemotherapy.
The problem of organ transplantation based on three-sided stable matching
Aiming at the problem of matching scarce resources among donors, recipients, and medical institutions in organ transplantation, a stable three-sided matching method is proposed. Firstly, in view of the preference structure characteristics of the problems in the context of organ transplantation, a mixed preference structure from the three-sided matching problem is introduced for description, and the stability conditions under this structure are also provided, intuitionistic fuzzy information was utilized to quantify uncertain indicators during organ transplantation. The Erlang distribution was introduced to describe the randomness of the occurrence of organ donors. Coping strategies for possible false reporting behaviors of organ recipients were designed, and a three-sided matching model of donors, recipients, and medical institutions was constructed. And proved the stability of this matching; Secondly, based on the NSGA-III algorithm, the initial search strategy of the Bird Swarm algorithm was introduced, a new mutation method was designed, and its feasibility was theoretically analyzed. Finally, the feasibility of the model and algorithm was verified through simulation examples in the context of organ transplantation, and the performance of the algorithm was analyzed and verified in combination with algorithm complexity, effectiveness, and ablation experiments. The experimental results show that the model and algorithm can effectively improve the stability of the matching results and increase the efficiency of resource allocation.
Structural dynamics of RNA polymerase II throughout the nucleotide addition cycle
Abstract RNA polymerase II (RNAPII) drives gene expression through iterative nucleotide addition cycles (NACs) comprising translocation, substrate binding, and catalysis. The lack of pre-catalysis and post-catalysis intermediates has precluded a complete mechanistic understanding of the NAC. Here we present 31 Cryo-electron Microscopy structures (with 43 maps) capturing distinct stages of Saccharomyces cerevisiae RNAPII elongation complex (EC) NAC, including previously intractable transition intermediates. We establish a continuous spectrum of RNAPII EC structural dynamics during the NAC, which can be divided into two coordinated phases: a substrate-induced EC tightening phase and a post-catalysis EC relaxation phase. For the substrate-induced EC tightening phase, the substrate binding initiates allosteric conformational changes across the entire RNAPII EC, including Trigger Loop folding, funnel closure, clamp closure, transcription bubble ordering, and precise alignment of the RNA 3′-end with substrate to form a catalysis-competent configuration. For the post-catalysis EC relaxation phase, we capture the long-sought, short-lived post-catalysis product state and identify a series of intermediates that reveal a reverse conformational transition that facilitates rapid translocation. Together, our findings define a comprehensive structural and dynamic framework for RNAPII NAC, yielding a “molecular movie” of RNAPII in action and revealing a fundamental principle by which the enzyme balances speed and fidelity through coordinated conformational dynamics.
Visualization of the microstructure and distribution of follicles in deep human ovaries using speckle-modulated optical coherence microscopy
Ovarian tissue cryopreservation and transplantation remain important fertility preservation options for children, adolescents, and young adults requiring immediate treatment for their primary disease. Reliable visualization of follicle-containing regions may provide useful information for future ovarian tissue assessment. Despite its potential as a noninvasive follicle visualization method, optical coherence microscopy (OCM) remains limited by spatial resolution, imaging depth, and speckle noise when resolving fine follicular structures in deep ovarian tissue. In this study, we applied speckle modulation to a near-infrared wavelength-swept OCM system to visualize follicular microstructures in deep ovarian tissue. OCM images of 4-day-old mouse ovaries revealed dense superficial distributions of primordial follicles, which were distinguishable from primary follicles surrounded by a single layer of granulosa cells. Secondary follicles were predominantly observed in 14-day-old mouse ovarian tissue, and their internal microstructures were visualized. The proposed OCM approach visualized primordial follicular microstructures to depths of approximately 300 and 500 μm in ovarian tissues from a 15-year-old patient with acute myeloid leukemia and a 14-year-old patient with acute lymphoblastic leukemia, respectively. In the examined specimens, follicle localization varied with imaging location and depth, and similar structural features were also observed in HE-stained sections. Although challenges remain regarding imaging depth, acquisition time, and safety validation, these findings demonstrate the technical feasibility of visualizing follicular microstructures in human ovarian tissue and support future studies on ovarian tissue assessment.