Browse Articles

An exchangeable SIM probe for monitoring organellar dynamics of necrosis cells and intracellular water heterogeneity in kidney repair

Monitoring subcellular organelle dynamics in real time and precisely assessing membrane heterogeneity in living cells are very important for studying fundamental biological mechanisms and gaining a comprehensive understanding of cellular processes. However, there remains a shortage of effective tools for these purposes. Herein, we propose a strategy to develop the exchangeable water-sensing probeAPBD for time-lapse imaging of dynamics in cellular membrane-bound organelle morphology with structured illumination microscopy at the nanoscale. In this work, our results reveal mitochondria as the first organelle to undergo morphological changes through swelling, fission, and fusion in cell necrosis, leading to the rupture of the endoplasmic reticulum (ER) sheet adhered to the mitochondria. Meanwhile, the ER tubules are then reconstructed by stretching and fusion of autophagosomes. Moreover, APBD allows us to directly visualize spatially resolved distribution of biomembranes vs. water inside single mammalian cells. Our findings show that the renal ischemia–reperfusion injury (IRI) model results in the increased biomembrane to cytoplasmic water ratio in the tissue. This reveals intracellular water heterogeneity between the nucleus and the cytoplasm during the IRI process. Overall, this study presents a strategy for development of the molecular tools for cellular water heterogeneity and organelle dynamics.

N-Acetyl cysteine exhibits antimicrobial and anti-virulence activity against Salmonella enterica

Salmonella enterica is a common foodborne pathogen that causes intestinal illness varying from mild gastroenteritis to life-threatening systemic infections. The frequency of outbreaks due to multidrug-resistant Salmonella has been increased in the past few years with increasing numbers of annual deaths. Therefore, new strategies to control the spread of antimicrobial resistance are required. In this work, we found that N-acetyl cysteine (NAC) inhibits S. enterica at MIC of 3 mg ml-1 and synergistically activates the bactericidal activities of common antibiotics from three-fold for ampicillin and apramycin up to1000-fold for gentamycin. In addition, NAC inhibits the expression of virulence genes at sub-inhibitory concentrations in a dose-dependent manner. The whole-genome sequencing revealed that continuous exposure of S. enterica to NAC leads to the development of resistance; these resistant strains are attenuated for virulence. These results suggest that NAC may be a promising adjuvant to antibiotics for treating S. enterica in combination with other antibiotics.

Long-term trends in water level fluctuations in lowland lakes in central Europe (Northern Poland)

Diverse plant RNAs coat <i>Arabidopsis</i> leaves and are distinct from apoplastic RNAs

Transgenic expression of a double-stranded RNA in plants can induce silencing of homologous mRNAs in fungal pathogens. Although such host-induced gene silencing is well documented, the molecular mechanisms by which RNAs can move from the cytoplasm of plant cells across the plasma membrane of both the host cell and fungal cell are poorly understood. Indirect evidence suggests that this RNA transfer may occur at a very early stage of the infection process, prior to breach of the host cell wall, suggesting that silencing RNAs might be secreted onto leaf surfaces. To assess whether Arabidopsis plants possess a mechanism for secreting RNA onto leaf surfaces, we developed a protocol for isolating leaf surface RNA separately from intercellular (apoplastic) RNA. This protocol yielded abundant leaf surface RNA that displayed an RNA banding pattern distinct from apoplastic RNA, suggesting that it may be secreted directly onto the leaf surface rather than exuded through stomata or hydathodes. Notably, this RNA was not associated with either extracellular vesicles or protein complexes; however, RNA species longer than 100 nucleotides could be pelleted by ultracentrifugation. Furthermore, pelleting was inhibited by the divalent cation chelator EGTA, suggesting that these RNAs may form condensates on the leaf surface. These leaf surface RNAs are derived almost exclusively from Arabidopsis, but come from diverse genomic sources, including rRNA, tRNA, mRNA, intergenic RNA, microRNAs, and small interfering RNAs, with tRNAs especially enriched. We speculate that endogenous leaf surface RNA plays an important role in the assembly of distinct microbial communities on leaf surfaces.

Neck circumference cutoff point as a predictor of metabolic syndrome in Brazilian rural workers

Neck circumference (NC) is a predictive measure for the diagnosis of Metabolic Syndrome (MS). The aim of the present study was to establish cutoff points for NC as a predictor of the presence of MS in Brazilian rural workers, based on the MS components according to the IDF and NCEP-ATP III criteria. This is a cross-sectional study carried out with rural workers in the municipality of Santa Maria de Jetibá, in the state of Espírito Santo, Brazil. The ROC curve was calculated and the cutoff points for predicting the risk of developing MS were stipulated from the NC, identified by the area under the curve, using different methods of criteria for determining MS. Sensitivity, specificity, positive and negative predictive values and Youden index were applied. The significance level adopted was 5%. The cutoff points were different for males, resulting in 39.550 cm (AUC 0.832) according to the NCEP-ATP III criterion and 39.125 cm (AUC 0.888) according to the IDF criterion. For women, the cutoffs were similar, resulting in a single cutoff of 34.725 cm (AUC 0.862 for NCEP-ATP III and 0.849 for IDF). The cutoff points defined for men and women for NC showed good sensitivity and specificity for predicting MS in the studied population. The NC measurement proved to be a simple, low-cost and accurate measure for assessing this morbidity in Brazilian rural workers.

Investigating the impact of age and sex on cataract surgery complications and outcomes

Spatio-temporal distribution and socioeconomic inequality of low birthweight rate in China from 1992 to 2021 and its predictions to 2030

This paper aims to investigate the trend, spatio-temporal distribution, and socioeconomic inequality of the low birthweight rate (LBWR) in China from 1992 to 2021 and to project the LBWR to 2030. We performed a secondary analysis of data from the China Health Statistics Yearbook. LBWR refers to the ratio of the number of infants born with a birth weight less than 2,500 grams to the number of live births in a given year. We used joinpoint regression models to estimate LBWR trends from 1992 to 2021 for the whole country and from 2002 to 2021 for the three regions (eastern, central, and western regions) and each province. The slope index of inequality (SII) and relative index of inequality (RII) were calculated for each year from 2002 to 2021 based on provincial data. LBWR increased from 2.52% (1992) to 3.70% (2021), and the average annual percentage change (AAPC) (95% confidence interval [CI]) was 1.35% (0.22%, 2.49%) in China. The overall LBWR from 2002 to 2021 was greatest in the Eastern region, but LBWR had the fastest increase in the Western region, with an AAPC (95% CI) of 3.15% (2.59%, 3.12%). There were spatio-temporal differences in the LBWR and trends between provinces. The SII and RII increased linearly from -0.15 and 0.94 to 0.53 (B = 0.035%, p &lt; 0.001) and 1.16 (B = 0.011, p &lt; 0.01), respectively, over the past 20 years. The results of the ARIAM model showed that the National LBWR will be increasedfrom 3.70% in 2021 to 5.28% in 2030. The LBWRs in the eastern, central and western regions in 2030 will be 4.93%, 6.02% and 5.82%, respectively. National and local governments must prioritize disadvantaged groups to mitigate the rapid prevalence of LBWR, reduce regional disparities, and improve perinatal and infant health and health equity in China.

Water and seawater splitting with MgB2 plasmonic metal-based photocatalyst

Abstract Plasmonic nanostructures can help to drive chemical photocatalytic reactions powered by sunlight. These reactions involve excitation of plasmon resonances and subsequent charge transfer to molecular orbitals under study. Here we engineered photoactive plasmonic nanostructures with enhanced photocatalytic performance using non-noble metallic MgB 2 high-temperature superconductor which represents a new family of photocatalysts. Ellipsometric study of fabricated MgB 2  nanostructures demonstrates that this covalent binary metal with layered graphite-like structure could effectively absorb visible and infrared light by excitation of multi-wavelengths surface plasmon resonances. We show that a MgB 2  plasmonic metal-based photocatalyst exhibit fundamentally different behaviour compared to that of a semiconductor photocatalyst and provides several advantages in photovoltaics applications. Excitation of localised surface plasmon resonances in MgB 2  nanostructures allows one to overcome the limiting factors of photocatalytic efficiency observed in semiconductors with a wide energy bandgap due to the usage of a broader spectrum range of solar radiation for water splitting catalytic reactions conditioned by enhanced local electromagnetic fields of localised plasmons. Excitation of localised surface plasmon resonances induced by absorption of light in MgB 2  nanosheets could help to achieve near full-solar spectrum harvesting in this photocatalytic system. We demonstrate a conversion efficiency of ~ 5% at bias voltage of V bias  = 0.3 V for magnesium diboride working as a catalyst for the case of plasmon-photoinduced seawater splitting. Our work could result in inexpensive and stable photocatalysts that can be produced in large quantities using a mechanical rolling mill procedure.

Incidence rate of total knee arthroplasties in eleven European countries: Do they reach a plateau?

Background From several decades, the evolutions of the Incidence Rate (IR) of Primary Knee Arthroplasties are continuously increasing worldwide and have been widely studied in several countries. Some recent works have highlighted the fact that the IR is following a sigmoid curve composed of an exponential growth followed by a linear phase and finished by a plateau. Our objective is to assess the IR evolution of eleven European countries, representing thus a large proportion of this continent, regarding this sigmoid. Methods IRs of primary knee arthroplasties for Austria, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Hungary, Italy, Poland, Spain, Sweden, and the United Kingdom between 2005 and 2019 were retrieved from the EUROSTAT database. Several regression models were fitted to each country’s IRs: Poisson, linear, asymptotic, logistic, and Gompertz regression. For each country and each model, the RMSE (Root Mean Square Error) and R2 were calculated and used to estimate their position with respect to this sigmoid curve. Results The best regression models for knee arthroplasties varied following countries. Logistic and Gompertz regressions had the lowest RMSE and R2 values for Austria, Denmark, Germany, Sweden, and the UK. Hungary, Italy, and Poland favored the Poisson regression model. Finland and Spain presented difficulties in determining the optimal model (linear or Poisson), while France faced challenges in choosing between logistic, Gompertz, and linear regression. Conclusion In conclusion, the growth dynamics of IR differ across European countries. Some countries seem to have already reached a plateau and will therefore experience slight growth in the future.

Click beetle larvae from Cretaceous Burmese amber represent an ancient Gondwanan lineage

Assessment tools for transition readiness in adolescents with inflammatory bowel disease: A scoping review

Background Assessing the level of transition readiness in adolescents with inflammatory bowel disease is crucial; however, standardized research tools are lacking. This study aimed to map transition readiness assessment tools for adolescents with inflammatory bowel disease and determine their suitability. Methods A literature review following the Arksey and O’Malley scoping review methodology was conducted. By using appropriate key terms, literature on transition readiness assessment tool searches were conducted in the CNKI, WanFang, SinoMed, Pubmed, Cochrane Library, Web of Science, and CINAHL databases, with a reference search. The retrieval period was from the establishment of the databases to January 2024. Results A total of 2561 studies were obtained through a preliminary search, and 5 references were obtained as retrospective references. Finally, 21 studies were selected for this review. In total, 20 transition readiness assessment tools were identified. Qualitative findings were grouped into five thematic areas: descriptive characteristics of reviewed articles, development procedures, design, psychometric properties, and cohort characteristics for validity testing of transition readiness assessment tools. Conclusions The most appropriate way to assess the transition readiness of adolescents with inflammatory bowel disease is to select an assessment tool that is most suitable for individual needs, accompanied by a comprehensive patient evaluation. Despite some flaws in the methodology, TRM is currently the most suitable assessment tool, and more population studies are needed to validate it.

Hydrocarbon potential in the Northern Egyptian Red Sea: insights from geophysical datasets and analysis of onshore marginal outcrop analogues and subsurface sequences

AbstractThe Red Sea remains a largely under-explored basin, with the Northern Egyptian Red Sea requiring further investigation due to limited borehole data, sparse case studies, and poor seismic quality. A petroleum system, regional structural cross-section, and geological block diagrams integrating onshore fieldwork from Gebel Duwi and offshore subsurface geology were utilized to assess the hydrocarbon potential of the Northern Egyptian Red Sea (NERS). The findings highlight that pre- and syn-rift organic-rich source units in the NERS could generate oil and gas, similar to the capped reservoirs of the Southern Gulf of Suez. The study also reveals that both regions (NERS and SGOS) were influenced by the Levant-Aqaba transform fault influenced both regions (NERS and SGOS), resulting in southwest-dipping strata, replicating the Northern Gulf of Suez structural style. Additionally, rifting extended the rotated basement faulted blocks from the shoreline to the axial trough, creating wedged Miocene sections. Most offshore boreholes in the Red Sea bottomed in Precambrian rock directly below the syn-rift Miocene sequence, suggesting these wells were off-structure, similar to sidetracked wells in the Gulf of Suez, which successfully captured thick pre- and syn-rift sediments. These insights can drive further advancements in hydrocarbon exploration in the Northern Egyptian Red Sea.

MYO7A is required for the functional integrity of the mechanoelectrical transduction complex in hair cells of the adult cochlea

Myosin-VIIA (MYO7A) is an unconventional myosin responsible for syndromic (Usher 1B) or nonsyndromic forms of deafness in humans when mutated. In the cochlea, MYO7A is expressed in hair cells, where it is believed to act as the motor protein tensioning the mechanoelectrical transducer (MET) channels, thus setting their resting open probability ( P o ). However, direct evidence for this unique role for an unconventional myosin in mature hair cells is lacking. Here, we show that MYO7A has a distinct role in hair cells, being crucial for the structural integrity of hair bundles. Postnatal deletion of Myo7a leads to 87 to 96% reduction in MYO7A from hair cells by postnatal day 20 (P20), without affecting hearing function. During the following week, mice showed progressive decline in both hearing function and MET current amplitude in hair cells without affecting the resting P o and calcium sensitivity of the MET channel. Hair-bundle stiffness was normal at P20 but halved at P30, despite it having a normal staircase morphology and tip links. The reduction of MYO7A in the stereocilia (&gt;87%) increased their vulnerability to sound-induced damage, with significantly more hearing loss and hair bundle deterioration than in control mice. RNA-sequencing identified a downregulation of several stereociliary genes in the Myo7a -deficient cochlea, indicating the presence of indirect compensatory mechanisms. This study reveals that mature hair cells seem to use a MYO7A-independent mechanism to maintain the resting P o of the MET channels. Instead, MYO7A is essential for maintaining the structural and functional integrity of the hair bundles.

Feasibility and acceptability for LION, a fully remote, randomized clinical trial within the VA for light therapy to improve sleep in Veterans with and without TBI: An MTBI2 sponsored protocol

Sleep-wake disturbances frequently present in Veterans with mild traumatic brain injury (mTBI). These TBI-related sleep impairments confer significant burden and commonly exacerbate other functional impairments. Therapies to improve sleep following mTBI are limited and studies in Veterans are even more scarce. In our previous pilot work, morning bright light therapy (MBLT) was found to be a feasible behavioral sleep intervention in Veterans with a history of mTBI; however, this was single-arm, open-label, and non-randomized, and therefore was not intended to establish efficacy. The present study, LION (light vs ion therapy) extends this preliminary work as a fully powered, sham-controlled, participant-masked randomized controlled trial (NCT03968874), implemented as fully remote within the VA (target n = 120 complete). Randomization at 2:1 allocation ratio to: 1) active: MBLT (n = 80), and 2) sham: deactivated negative ion generator (n = 40); each with identical engagement parameters (60-min duration; within 2-hrs of waking; daily over 28-day duration). Participant masking via deception balanced expectancy assumptions across arms. Outcome measures were assessed following a 14-day baseline (pre-intervention), following 28-days of device engagement (post-intervention), and 28-days after the post-intervention assessment (follow-up). Primary outcomes were sleep measures, including continuous wrist-based actigraphy, self-report, and daily sleep dairy entries. Secondary/exploratory outcomes included cognition, mood, quality of life, circadian rhythm via dim light melatonin onset, and biofluid-based biomarkers. Participant drop out occurred in &lt;10% of those enrolled, incomplete/missing data was present in &lt;15% of key outcome variables, and overall fidelity adherence to the intervention was &gt;85%, collectively establishing feasibility and acceptability for MBLT in Veterans with mTBI.

Identification of blood transcriptome modules associated with suicidal ideation in patients with major depressive disorder

Restart uncertainty relation for monitored quantum dynamics

We introduce a time-energy uncertainty relation within the context of restarts in monitored quantum dynamics. Previous studies have established that the mean recurrence time, which represents the time taken to return to the initial state, is quantized as an integer multiple of the sampling time, displaying pointwise discontinuous transitions at resonances. Our findings demonstrate that the natural utilization of the restart mechanism in laboratory experiments, driven by finite data collection time spans, leads to a broadening effect on the transitions of the mean recurrence time. Our proposed uncertainty relation captures the underlying essence of these phenomena, by connecting the broadening of the mean hitting time near resonances, to the intrinsic energies of the quantum system and to the fluctuations of recurrence time. Our uncertainty relation has also been validated through remote experiments conducted on an International Business Machines Corporation (IBM) quantum computer. This work not only contributes to our understanding of fundamental aspects related to quantum measurements and dynamics, but also offers practical insights for the design of efficient quantum algorithms with mid-circuit measurements.

Revealing the impact of tadalafil-loaded proniosomal gel against dexamethasone-delayed wound healing via modulating oxido-inflammatory response and TGF-β/Macrophage activation pathway in rabbit model

A serious challenge of the chronic administration of dexamethasone (DEX) is a delay in wound healing. Thus, this study aimed to investigate the potential of Tadalafil (TAD)-loaded proniosomal gel to accelerate the healing process of skin wounds in DEX-challenged rabbits. Skin wounds were induced in 48 rabbits of 4 groups (n = 12 per group) and skin wounds were treated by sterile saline (control), TAD-loaded proniosomal gel topically on skin wound, DEX-injected rabbits, and DEX+TAD-loaded proniosomal gel for 4 weeks. The optical photography, transmission electron microscopy, in vitro release profile, and stability studies revealed the successful preparation of the selected formula with good stability. DEX administration was associated with uncontrolled oxido-inflammatory reactions, suppression in immune response in skin wounds, and consequently failure in the healing process. TAD-loaded proniosomal gel-treated rabbits manifested a marked enhancement in the rate of wound closure than control and DEX groups (p &lt; 0.05). The TAD-loaded proniosomal gel successfully antagonized the impacts of DEX by dampening MDA production, and enhancing total antioxidant capacity, coupled with modulation of inflammatory-related genes, inducible nitric oxide synthase, tumor necrosis factor-alpha, interleukin-1β, and matrix metalloproteinase 9, during all healing stages (p &lt; 0.05). This was in combination with significant amplification of immune response-related genes, CD68 and CD163 (p &lt; 0.05). Moreover, the histopathological, Masson’s Trichrome-stain, and immune-histochemical studies indicated a successful tissue recovery with the formation of new blood vessels in groups treated with TAD-loaded proniosomal gel, as manifested by well-organized collagen fibers, upregulation of transforming growth factor β1, and vascular endothelial growth factor immune expression in skin tissues (p &lt; 0.05). Overall, the topical application of TAD-loaded proniosomal gel is useful in improving the delayed wound healing linked to DEX therapy via regulating the release of inflammatory/macrophage activation mediators and enhanced antioxidant capacity, angiogenesis, and vascularity.

Medication non-adherence and its predictors among patients with bipolar disorder in Northwest Ethiopia

The pleasurable urge to move to music is unchanged in people with musical anhedonia

In cognitive science, the sensation of “groove” has been defined as the pleasurable urge to move to music. When listeners rate rhythmic stimuli on derived pleasure and urge to move, ratings on these dimensions are highly correlated. However, recent behavioural and brain imaging work has shown that these two components may be separable. To examine this potential separability, our study investigates the sensation of groove in people with specific musical anhedonia. Individuals with musical anhedonia have a blunted ability to derive pleasure from music but can still derive pleasure from other domains (e.g., sex and food). People with musical anhedonia were identified as those with scores in the lower 10% of scores on the Barcelona Musical Reward Questionnaire, but who had no deficits in music perception, no symptoms of depression, average levels of physical and social anhedonia, and sensitivity to punishment and reward. We predicted that if the two components of groove are separable, individuals with musical anhedonia would experience lower levels of derived pleasure but have comparable ratings of wanting to move compared to controls. Groove responses were measured in an online study (N = 148) using a set of experimenter-generated musical stimuli varying in rhythmic and harmonic complexity, which were validated in several previous studies. Surprisingly, we found no significant differences in groove response between individuals with musical anhedonia (n = 17) and a matched control group (n = 17). Mediation analyses for the anhedonia sample found that wanting to move ratings fully mediated the effect of rhythmic and harmonic complexity on pleasure ratings. Taken together, these results indicate that the urge to move may compensate for the blunted pleasure sensation in those with musical anhedonia. More generally, these results suggest that the urge to move is a primary source of pleasure in the groove response.

Analysis of early efficacy and immune reconstitution after autologous hematopoietic stem cell transplantation in multiple myeloma