Prediction of cognitive decline and Alzheimer's disease conversion by a plasma biomarker panel in non-demented individuals.

Alzheimer's disease (AD) represents a growing global health burden, underscoring the urgent need for reliable diagnostic and prognostic biomarkers. Although several disease-modifying treatments have recently become available, their effects remain limited, as they primarily delay rather than halt disease progression. Thus, the early and accurate identification of individuals at elevated risk for conversion to AD dementia is crucial to maximize the effectiveness of these therapies and to facilitate timely intervention strategies.

Human cytomegalovirus induces neuronal gene expression through IE1 for viral maturation.

Viral invasion of the host cell causes some of the most dramatic changes in biology. Human cytomegalovirus (HCMV) extensively remodels host cells, altering nuclear shape and generating a cytoplasmic viral-induced assembly compartment (vIAC). How these striking morphology changes occur in the context of host gene regulation is still emerging.

The comparative physiological, biochemical and whole transcriptome analysis of Ross 308 broilers under different wind conditions.

Chickens are one of the most economically and nutritionally important livestock species globally, yet they are highly vulnerable to environmental stressors which compromise their growth and physiological stability. In this study we investigated the effect of wind speed on growth performance, physiological responses, blood profiles, and transcriptomic adaptations in Ross-308 broilers under high-temperature conditions. A total of 240 broilers were divided into three groups: low wind, high temperature (LWH; 33°C, 60% RH, 0 m/s), medium wind, high temperature (MWH; 33°C, 60% RH, 1 m/s), and high wind, high temperature (HWH; 33°C, 60% RH, 2 m/s).

Liver X Receptor-Growth Differentiation Factor 15 Activation Drives Profibrotic Changes in the Aqueous Outflow Tract of Uveitic Glaucoma.

Cytomegalovirus (CMV)-induced anterior uveitis is linked to increased intraocular pressure, suggesting profibrotic changes in the eye's drainage system. Previous studies on the aqueous humor (AH) of patients with CMV uveitic glaucoma (UG) highlighted the activation of the liver X receptor (LXR) pathway, yet a potential that it has a role in increased intraocular pressure remained unelucidated. Herein, the LXR pathway's role in AH outflow in UG was explored.

Impact of information publicity on Korean residents' E-waste recycling intentions: Applying the norm activation model and theory of planned behavior.

The escalating annual growth rate of electronic waste, commonly referred to as "e-waste," is currently between 3 % and 5 %, indicating a rapidly increasing solid waste stream. In 2019, South Korea generated 15.8 kg of e-waste per capita.

The N-degron pathway mediates the autophagic degradation of cytosolic mitochondrial DNA during sterile innate immune responses.

The human body reacts to tissue damage by generating damage-associated molecular patterns (DAMPs) that activate sterile immune responses. To date, little is known about how DAMPs are removed to avoid excessive immune responses. Here, we show that proteasomal dysfunction induces the release of mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) as a DAMP that activates the cyclic GMP-AMP synthase (cGAS)-stimulator of interferon gene (STING) pathway and is subsequently degraded through the N-degron pathway.

Physiological activation of liver X receptor provides protection against ocular inflammation in uveitic glaucoma.

Virus-induced trabeculitis is considered a significant cause of uveitic glaucoma, being marked by a sudden increase in intraocular pressure and relatively mild inflammation in the anterior chamber of the eye. In previous proteome analyses of aqueous humor (AH) derived from Cytomegalovirus (CMV) uveitic glaucoma patients, we observed the liver X receptor (LXR) pathway to be among the most prominently activated canonical pathways. In the present study, we explored the role of the LXR pathway in the etiology of glaucoma in association with ocular inflammation.

G-quadruplex as an essential structural element in cytomegalovirus replication origin.

G-quadruplex (G4) structures are found in eukaryotic cell replication origins, but their role in origin function remains unclear. In this study G4 motifs are found in the lytic DNA replication origin (oriLyt) of human cytomegalovirus (HCMV) and recombinant viruses show that a G4 motif in oriLyt essential region I (ER-I) is necessary for viral growth. Replication assays of oriLyt-containing plasmids and biochemical/biophysical analyses show that G4 formation in ER-I is crucial for viral DNA replication.

Predicting Longitudinal Cognitive Decline and Alzheimer's Conversion in Mild Cognitive Impairment Patients Based on Plasma Biomarkers.

The increasing burden of Alzheimer's disease (AD) emphasizes the need for effective diagnostic and therapeutic strategies. Despite available treatments targeting amyloid beta (Aβ) plaques, disease-modifying therapies remain elusive. Early detection of mild cognitive impairment (MCI) patients at risk for AD conversion is crucial, especially with anti-Aβ therapy.

Varicella zoster virus glycoprotein E facilitates PINK1/Parkin-mediated mitophagy to evade STING and MAVS-mediated antiviral innate immunity.

Viruses have evolved to control mitochondrial quality and content to facilitate viral replication. Mitophagy is a selective autophagy, in which the damaged or unnecessary mitochondria are removed, and thus considered an essential mechanism for mitochondrial quality control. Although mitophagy manipulation by several RNA viruses has recently been reported, the effect of mitophagy regulation by varicella zoster virus (VZV) remains to be fully determined.

Stabilization of RNA G-quadruplexes in the SARS-CoV-2 genome inhibits viral infection via translational suppression.

The G-quadruplex (G4) formed in single-stranded DNAs or RNAs plays a key role in diverse biological processes and is considered as a potential antiviral target. In the genome of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), 25 putative G4-forming sequences are predicted; however, the effects of G4-binding ligands on SARS-CoV-2 replication have not been studied in the context of viral infection. In this study, we investigated whether G4-ligands suppressed SARS-CoV-2 replication and whether their antiviral activity involved stabilization of viral RNA G4s and suppression of viral gene expression.

G-quadruplexes formed by Varicella-Zoster virus reiteration sequences suppress expression of glycoprotein C and regulate viral cell-to-cell spread.

G-quadruplex (G4) formed by repetitive guanosine-rich sequences plays important roles in diverse cellular processes; however, its roles in viral infection are not fully understood. In this study, we investigated the genome-wide distribution of G4-forming sequences (G4 motifs) in Varicella-Zoster virus (VZV) and found that G4 motifs are enriched in the internal repeat short and the terminal repeat short regions flanking the unique short region and also in some reiteration (R) sequence regions. A high density of G4 motifs in the R2 region was found on the template strand of ORF14, which encodes glycoprotein C (gC), a virulent factor for viral growth in skin.

Implication of high variance in germplasm characteristics.

The beauty of conserving germplasm is the securement of genetic resources with numerous important traits, which could be utilized whenever they need to be incorporated into current cultivars. However, it would not be as useful as expected if the proper information was not given to breeders and researchers. In this study, we demonstrated that there is a large variation, both among and within germplasm, using a low-cost image-based phenotyping method; this could be valuable for improving gene banks' screening systems and for crop breeding.

Liquid-liquid phase separation drives herpesvirus assembly in the cytoplasm.

Liquid-liquid phase separation (LLPS) has emerged as a fundamental mechanism to compartmentalize biomolecules into membraneless organelles. In this issue, Zhou et al. (2022.

YAP inhibits HCMV replication by impairing STING-mediated nuclear transport of the viral genome.

YES-associated protein (YAP), a critical actor of the mammalian Hippo signaling pathway involved in diverse biological events, has gained increased recognition as a cellular factor regulated by viral infections, but very few studies have investigated their relationship vice versa. In this study, we show that YAP impairs HCMV replication as assessed by viral gene expression analysis and progeny assays, and that this inhibition occurs at the immediate-early stages of the viral life cycle, at the latest. Using YAP mutants lacking key functional domains and shRNA against TEAD, we show that the inhibitory effects of YAP on HCMV replication are nuclear localization- and TEAD cofactor-dependent.

Virus blocking textile for SARS-CoV-2 using human body triboelectric energy harvesting.

Effective mitigation technology to prevent the spread of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) is required before achieving population immunity through vaccines. Here we demonstrate a virus-blocking textile (VBT) that repulses SARS-CoV-2 by applying repulsive Coulomb force to respiratory particles, powered by human body triboelectric energy harvesting. We show that SARS-CoV-2 has negative charges, and a human body generates high output current of which peak-to-peak value reaches 259.

Human Cytomegalovirus UL48 Deubiquitinase Primarily Targets Innermost Tegument Proteins pp150 and Itself To Regulate Their Stability and Protects Virions from Inclusion of Ubiquitin Conjugates.

Viral deubiquitinases (DUBs) regulate cellular innate immunity to benefit viral replication. In human cytomegalovirus (HCMV), the UL48-encoded DUB regulates innate immune responses, including NF-κB signaling. Although UL48 DUB is known to regulate its stability via auto-deubiquitination, its impact on other viral proteins is not well understood.

Identifying the Risk Factors Associated with Nursing Home Residents' Pressure Ulcers Using Machine Learning Methods.

Background: Machine learning (ML) can keep improving predictions and generating automated knowledge via data-driven predictors or decisions.

Objective: The purpose of this study was to compare different ML methods including random forest, logistics regression, linear support vector machine (SVM), polynomial SVM, radial SVM, and sigmoid SVM in terms of their accuracy, sensitivity, specificity, negative predictor values, and positive predictive values by validating real datasets to predict factors for pressure ulcers (PUs).

Methods: We applied representative ML algorithms (random forest, logistic regression, linear SVM, polynomial SVM, radial SVM, and sigmoid SVM) to develop a prediction model (N = 60).

Localization of the WD repeat-containing protein 5 to the Virion Assembly Compartment Facilitates Human Cytomegalovirus Assembly.

We previously reported that human cytomegalovirus (HCMV) utilizes the cellular protein WD repeat-containing protein 5 (WDR5) to facilitate capsid nuclear egress. Here, we further show that HCMV infection results in WDR5 localization in a juxtanuclear region, and that its localization to this cellular site is associated with viral replication and late viral gene expression. Furthermore, WDR5 accumulated in the virion assembly compartment (vAC) and co-localized with vAC markers of gamma-tubulin (γ-tubulin), early endosomes, and viral vAC marker proteins pp65, pp28, and glycoprotein B (gB).

Application of Machine Learning Methods in Nursing Home Research.

A machine learning (ML) system is able to construct algorithms to continue improving predictions and generate automated knowledge through data-driven predictors or decisions. Objective: The purpose of this study was to compare six ML methods (random forest (RF), logistics regression, linear support vector machine (SVM), polynomial SVM, radial SVM, and sigmoid SVM) of predicting falls in nursing homes (NHs). We applied three representative six-ML algorithms to the preprocessed dataset to develop a prediction model ( = 60).