Activation-retardation in sol-gel reactions for additive manufacturing of transparent poly(methylsilsesquioxane) aerogels.

Coupling superior thermal insulation performance with high transparency for solar transmission and excellent processability in aerogels is a challenging yet promising subject. Here, we report a direct ink writing strategy to create transparent polymethylsilsesquioxane (PMSQ) aerogels from gel inks with desired rheology, by merely using acid-base dual modulators to achieve "activation-retardation" of polycondensation reaction. The printed aerogels are pure PMSQ, have a transmittance of 97% in the visible-near infrared range, thermal conductivity (16.

High-Precision, Low-Threshold Neuromodulation With Ultraflexible Electrode Arrays for Brain-to-Brain Interfaces.

Neuromodulation is crucial for advancing neuroscience and treating neurological disorders. However, traditional methods using rigid electrodes have been limited by large stimulating currents, low precision, and the risk of tissue damage. In this work, we developed a biocompatible ultraflexible electrode array that allows for both neural recording of spike firings and low-threshold, high-precision stimulation for neuromodulation.

Genetic and molecular landscape of comorbidities in people living with HIV.

People living with HIV (PLHIV) have an increased susceptibility to non-AIDS comorbidities. In this study, we systematically profiled 1,342 PLHIV across five omics layers and immune function. We found latent factors, resulting from integrating epigenomics, transcriptomics, proteomics, metabolomics and immune responses, linked to cardiovascular diseases, the presence of carotid plaque and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease in PLHIV.

Closed-Pore Engineering in Double-Layer Textiles for Adaptive Thermal and Moisture Management.

Protective textiles face a critical challenge in cold and moisture-rich environments, in which conventional layered clothing systems and multi-layer functional textiles often sacrifice breathability and comfort to enhance insulation, or conversely, lose body heat with moisture accumulation. Here, back-weft weaving technology is combined with an in situ foaming process to produce an interlocking double-layer textile (Foam-TEX) featuring abundant closed-pore microspheres on the foamed fibers and gradient pores throughout the textile. The closed-pore structural engineering spatially couples the closed-pore insulation unit with the gradient vapor transmission channel to ensure thermal comfort in cold environments, while effectively preventing heat loss caused by the degradation of insulation performance due to sweat in extremely cold working conditions.

Unveiling genetic signatures of immune response in immune-related diseases through single-cell eQTL analysis across diverse conditions.

Deciphering the intricate regulatory mechanisms underlying biological processes holds promise for elucidating how genetic variants contribute to immune-related disorders. We map genetic effects on gene expression (expression quantitative trait locus, eQTL) using single-cell transcriptomes of 152 samples from 38 healthy individuals, covering baseline state and lipopolysaccharide challenge either before or after Bacillus Calmette-Guerin vaccination. Interestingly, we uncover a monocyte eQTL linked to the LCP1, shedding light on inter-individual variations in trained immunity.

Sex-specific DNA methylation associations with circulating urate levels and BCG-induced urate changes.

Background: Urate concentration and the physiological regulation of urate homeostasis exhibit clear sex differences. DNA methylation has been shown to explain a substantial proportion of serum urate variance, mediate the genetic effect on urate concentration, and co-regulate with cardiometabolic traits. However, whether urate concentration is associated with DNA methylation in a sex-dependent manner is unknown.

Molecular signatures discriminating different types of rejection in human liver transplants.

Background & Aims: The role of antibody-mediated rejection (AMR) after liver transplantation (LT) remains controversial. Chronic AMR (cAMR) is often subclinical and may be missed without surveillance biopsies (svLbx). Transcriptome analyses have previously characterized molecular changes in T cell-mediated rejection (TCMR) after solid organ transplantation.

Long-term DNA methylation changes mediate heterologous cytokine responses after BCG vaccination.

Background: Epigenetic reprogramming shapes immune memory in both innate (trained immunity) and adaptive immune cells following Bacillus Calmette-Guérin (BCG) vaccination. However, the role of dynamic DNA methylation changes in post-vaccination immune responses remains unclear.

Results: We established a cohort of 284 healthy Dutch individuals, profiling genome-wide DNA methylation and cytokine responses to ex vivo stimulation at baseline, 14 days, and 90 days post-BCG vaccination.

Gene-Environment Interaction Affects Risk of Atopic Eczema: Population and In Vitro Studies.

Background: Multiple environmental and genetic factors play a role in the pathogenesis of atopic eczema (AE). We aimed to investigate gene-environment interactions (G × E) to improve understanding of the pathophysiology.

Methods: We analysed data from 16 European studies to test for interaction between the 24 most significant AE-associated loci identified from genome-wide association studies and 18 early-life environmental factors.

Comprehensive Characterization and Comparison of Aroma Profiles of Soup During the Cooking Process by HS-GC-IMS and HS-SPME-GC-MS.

Many scholars have studied soup, but there are relatively few studies exploring the aroma changes during its cooking process using different detection methods. The aroma of soup was analyzed and compared using electronic nose (E-nose) analysis, headspace gas chromatography-ion mobility spectrometry (HS-GC-IMS), and headspace-solid-phase microextraction-gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (HS-SPME-GC-MS). A significant effect of cooking time on the overall aroma profile of soup was identified through E-nose analysis.

Impact of Harvest Periods on the Physicochemical and Flavour Characteristics of Sichuan Pepper ( Maxim).

Sichuan pepper is known for its unique aroma and tingling, numbing sensation, making it a key ingredient in Sichuan cuisine. This study explored the effect of harvest periods on the quality of Sichuan pepper at five selected harvest periods (LSA (early harvest), LSB, LSC, LSD, and LSE (late harvest)) along the 24 solar terms in the traditional Chinese lunar calendar. Apart from evaluating their physicochemical and volatile profiles, the growth characteristics, polyphenol and flavonoid contents, antioxidant properties, and free amino acid and other nutrient concentrations in these peppers were also analysed.

Epigenetic timing effects on child developmental outcomes: a longitudinal meta-regression of findings from the Pregnancy And Childhood Epigenetics Consortium.

Background: DNA methylation (DNAm) is a developmentally dynamic epigenetic process; yet, most epigenome-wide association studies (EWAS) have examined DNAm at only one timepoint or without systematic comparisons between timepoints. Thus, it is unclear whether DNAm alterations during certain developmental periods are more informative than others for health outcomes, how persistent epigenetic signals are across time, and whether epigenetic timing effects differ by outcome.

Methods: We applied longitudinal meta-regression models to published meta-analyses from the PACE consortium that examined DNAm at two timepoints-prospectively at birth and cross-sectionally in childhood-in relation to the same child outcome (ADHD symptoms, general psychopathology, sleep duration, BMI, asthma).

Single-cell immune aging clocks reveal inter-individual heterogeneity during infection and vaccination.

Aging affects human immune system functionality, increasing susceptibility to immune-mediated diseases. While gene expression programs accurately reflect immune function, their relationship with biological immune aging and health status remains unclear. Here we developed robust, cell-type-specific aging clocks (sc-ImmuAging) for the myeloid and lymphoid immune cell populations in circulation within peripheral blood mononuclear cells, using single-cell RNA-sequencing data from 1,081 healthy individuals aged from 18 to 97 years.

Integrative analysis reveals the multilateral inflammatory mechanisms of CD14 monocytes in gout.

Objectives: Gout, prevalent inflammatory arthritis caused by urate crystal deposition, involves immune cell activation, yet the precise role of CD14 monocytes in initiating the inflammatory response is poorly understood. This study aimed to characterise the molecular and cellular landscape of CD14 monocytes in gout using single-cell transcriptomic analysis.

Methods: Single-cell RNA sequencing was performed on peripheral blood mononuclear cells from 8 gout patients and 6 age- and sex-matched healthy controls.

Evaluating a Soil Amendment for Cadmium Mitigation and Enhanced Nutritional Quality in Faba Bean Genotypes: Implications for Food Safety.

Soil amendments combined with low cadmium (Cd)-accumulating crops are commonly used for remediating Cd contamination and ensuring food safety. However, the combined effects of soil amendments and the cultivation of faba beans ( L.)-known for their high nutritional quality and low Cd accumulation-in moderately Cd-contaminated soils remain underexplored.

Enhancing HBV-specific T cell responses through a combination of epigenetic modulation and immune checkpoint inhibition.

Background And Aims: Chronic HBV infection exhausts HBV-specific T cells, develops epigenetic imprints that impair immune responses, and limits the effectiveness of immune checkpoint inhibitor monotherapy, such as anti-programmed cell death ligand-1 antibody (αPD-L1). This study aimed to determine whether the DNA methyltransferase inhibitor decitabine (DAC) could reverse these epigenetic imprints and enhance immune checkpoint inhibitor efficacy in restoring HBV-specific T cell responses.

Approach And Results: We investigated HBV-specific T cell responses by 10-day in vitro stimulation of peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) from patients with chronic HBV infection.

Insertion of a transjugular intrahepatic portosystemic shunt leads to sustained reversal of systemic inflammation in patients with decompensated liver cirrhosis.

Background/aims: Systemic Inflammation (SI) is considered a key mechanism in disease progression and development of complications in decompensated liver cirrhosis. SI is mainly driven by portal hypertension and bacterial translocation. Transjugular intrahepatic portosystemic shunt (TIPS) insertion represents an effective treatment for portal hypertension.

Systemic dysregulation and molecular insights into poor influenza vaccine response in the aging population.

Vaccination-induced protection against influenza is greatly diminished and increasingly heterogeneous with age. We investigated longitudinally (up to five time points) a cohort of 234 vaccinated >65-year-old vaccinees with adjuvanted vaccine FluAd across two independent seasons. System-level analyses of multiomics datasets measuring six modalities and serological data revealed that poor responders lacked time-dependent changes in response to vaccination as observed in responders, suggestive of systemic dysregulation in poor responders.

No value of non-selective beta-blockers after TIPS-insertion.

Background And Aims: Non-selective beta-blockers (NSBB) are a well-established treatment in patients with clinically significant portal hypertension. However, their potential role after insertion of a transjugular intrahepatic portosystemic shunt (TIPS) still needs to be determined. Of note, recent studies suggested that favourable anti-inflammatory effects of NSBB might be independent from pressure reduction.

Sex-specific epigenetic signatures of circulating urate and its increase after BCG vaccination.

Background: Urate concentration and the physiological regulation of urate homeostasis exhibit clear sex differences. DNA methylation has been shown to explain a substantial proportion of serum urate variance, mediate the genetic effect on urate concentration, and co-regulate with cardiometabolic traits. However, whether urate concentration is associated with DNA methylation in a sex-dependent manner is unknown.

Seasonal variation in BCG-induced trained immunity.

The Bacille Calmette-Guerin (BCG) vaccine is a well-established inducer of innate immune memory (also termed trained immunity), causing increased cytokine production upon heterologous secondary stimulation. Innate immune responses are known to be influenced by season, but whether seasons impact induction of trained immunity is not known. To explore the influence of season on innate immune memory induced by the BCG vaccine, we vaccinated healthy volunteers with BCG either during winter or spring.

Effect of Roasting on the Chemical Composition and Oxidative Stability of Tomato ( L.) Seed Oil.

In this study, tomato seed (TS) samples were subjected to different roasting conditions (90-170 °C and 10-30 min) to compare their effects on the chemical composition and oxidative stability of tomato seed oil (TSO). Unroasted TS was considered as a control sample. Our results revealed that moderate roasting (130 °C/20 min) can significantly increase the content of linoleic acid (54.