Causal Effects of Life-Course Adiposity and Metabolic Mediators on the Immune Response to COVID-19 Vaccination.

Despite adiposity's potential role in modulating immune responses, the causal effects of adiposity at different life stages on immune responses to COVID-19 vaccines remain poorly understood. Thus, we aimed to investigate the causal association between life-course adiposity and the immune response to COVID-19 vaccination, and to explore the metabolic mechanisms underlying this association. We used a life-course Mendelian randomization (MR) analytic framework, starting with univariable MR, to estimate the total effects of body mass index (BMI) and obesity in childhood and adulthood on the immune response to COVID-19 vaccination.

Validation of Prognostic Circulating Cell-Free RNA Biomarkers , , and in Colorectal Cancer Through TaqMan qPCR and Correlation Analysis.

Circulating cell-free RNAs (cfRNAs) have emerged as promising non-invasive biomarkers for colorectal cancer (CRC), offering insights into the disease's prognosis. This study investigates the prognostic significance of the specific cfRNA biomarkers , , and by employing the Taqman quantitative PCR (qPCR) to evaluate their expression levels in a cohort of 52 CRC patients. The methodology involved a robust statistical analysis to assess correlations between cfRNA levels and clinical parameters, including survival rates and recurrence incidences.

Effects of dietary fiber on Chinese children with functional constipation and targeted modification of gut microbiota and related metabolites.

Background: Although dietary fiber is widely recommended for preventing and treating functional constipation (FC), clinical trial evidence remains limited and the efficacy has not been sufficiently tested in children.

Purpose: This study aimed to evaluate the effects of dietary fiber on FC symptoms, while identifying modulations in gut microbiota and associated metabolic changes.

Results: Between January 1, 2024, and June 1, 2024, a total of 60 patients diagnosed with FC were enrolled in the study across three centers; however, 54 children completed the study.

Identification of the Critical Life-Stage of Obesity Contributing to Brain Functional Networks.

Aims: Observational studies suggest that obesity impacts brain functional connectivity, but critical developmental periods for these effects remain unclear. Herein, we aimed to investigate the causal relationships between life-course body weight and brain functional connectivity.

Methods: Mendelian randomization (MR) was applied to infer the causality between life-course body weight (birth weight [n = 80,745], childhood body mass index [BMI; n = 39,620], and adulthood BMI [n = 322,154]) and 191 resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging traits (n = 34,691) using genome-wide association data.

Compact waveguide-integrated metasurface twist with filtering and phase shifting capabilities for millimeter-wave guided-wave applications.

Recent advancements in metasurfaces have enabled precise control of wave properties such as amplitude, phase, and polarization, which are critical for multifunctional devices in modern communications. While most metasurfaces are designed for free-space use, this work integrates metasurfaces within waveguides to enable guided-wave control. We introduce a compact waveguide-integrated metasurface twist that achieves polarization rotation, bandpass filtering, and phase shifting.

Advances in brain-targeted delivery strategies and natural product-mediated enhancement of blood-brain barrier permeability.

The blood-brain barrier (BBB) represents a formidable challenge in the treatment of neurological disorders, as it restricts the passage of most therapeutic agents into the central nervous system (CNS). Research in brain-targeted delivery strategies and explore in natural products for BBB modulation have opened new avenues for effective CNS drug delivery. This review highlights the latest developments in molecular-based delivery systems, cell-based approaches, physical techniques, toxicity concerns, clinical trials and artificial intelligence (AI) -driven modeling for brain-targeted drug delivery.

Hypoxia and HIF-1 inhibition enhance lentiviral transduction efficiency: a novel strategy for gene delivery optimization.

Lentiviral vectors are widely used for stable gene delivery, but their transduction efficiency can be limited by suboptimal experimental conditions. Here, we investigated the role of oxygen concentration and hypoxia-inducible factor 1 (HIF-1) signaling in lentiviral packaging and transduction. We found that packaging lentivirus under hypoxic conditions (10% O₂) significantly increased viral titers and transduction efficiency by approximately 10%.

Integrative genetic analysis to decode the causal effect of air pollution on accelerated aging.

Background: The relationships between air pollutants and aging remain poorly understood due to the limitations of observational studies.

Aim: Herein, we aimed to infer the causality between air pollutants (PM2.5, NO2, NOx, PM2.

Polarisation reconfigurable anisotropic dielectric resonator antenna.

A novel polarization reconfigurable anisotropic dielectric resonator antenna (ADRA) is presented utilizing a new modulation scheme to exploit the degree of freedom in the polarization domain. The ADRA comprises periodic assembly dielectric resonators with two different dielectrics constant, equal in size, a vertically positioned metal strip, one varactor diode, and six PIN diode switches. The modulation scheme utilizes the tilt angle and axial ratio (AR) of a wireless signal to convey additional information, enabling the realization of different working modes ranging from circular polarization (CP) to nearly linear polarization (LP).

Exploring Visceral Fat as a Screening Marker for Cardiometabolic Risk in Children and Adolescents.

To establish and validate age- and sex-specific visceral fat area (VFA) cutoff values for the effective identification of cardiometabolic risk (CMR) in children and adolescents. A cross-sectional study involving 8133 participants was conducted to derive age- and sex-specific VFA cutoffs, which were validated in a longitudinal cohort comprising 10,805 individuals. The predictive performance of the derived VFA cutoffs for CMR was evaluated using the area under the receiver operating characteristic curve (AUC).

Time trends in coronary heart disease mortality attributed to outdoor PM2.5 in China: an age-period-cohort analysis using the Global Burden of Disease Study 2019.

Background: In China, coronary heart disease (CHD) is a significant public health issue affecting the population's health. Evidence suggests that outdoor PM2.5 is a crucial environmental risk factor for CHD mortality.

Associations between trajectories of depressive symptoms and cognitive performance in Chinese adolescents.

Subclinical depressive symptoms and the associated risk of cognitive deficits have been overlooked. We aimed to investigate depressive symptom trajectories and the effect of depressive symptoms on cognitive performance among Chinese adolescents. The research population of our study was 1314 adolescents aged 10-15 years old from the China Family Panel Studies.

Long-term safety of fecal microbiota transplantation in Chinese children from 2013 to 2023: a single-center retrospective study.

Background: The gut microbiome plays a vital role in influencing various health conditions. Fecal Microbiota Transplantation (FMT) has emerged as a rapid, safe, and effective method for modifying the microbiome. However, there is a lack of long-term safety data regarding FMT in children.

Role of Inflammatory Biomarkers in Mediating Causal Effect of Life Course Body Composition on Hypertension.

Background: The mediating role of inflammatory biomarkers in the causal relationship between body composition and hypertension remains unclear and requires further investigation.

Methods: This study used a combination of retrospective observational analysis and Mendelian randomization approaches. Observational data were derived from 4717 Chinese children and adolescents aged 6 to 18 years who underwent dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry to assess body composition.

Locking Pd Nanoparticles in N-Doped Carbon Derived from Conjugated Microporous Polymer for Stable Lithium Metal Anodes.

The uncontrollable growth of Li dendrites and large volume change during cycling limit the practical applications of Li metal anodes. Herein, the in situ-formed Pd nanoparticles locked in three-dimensional N-doped microporous carbon (Pd/NMC), which are derived from the catalyst for Buchwald-Hartwig (B-H) coupling polymerization, have been constructed to address these issues. The homogeneously distributed Pd nanoparticles effectively reduce the overpotential of Li nucleation through the reversible Li-Pd alloying reaction and boost Li diffusion by reducing the migration barrier.

Recent advances in self-targeting natural product-based nanomedicines.

Natural products, recognized for their potential in disease prevention and treatment, have been integrated with advanced nano-delivery systems to create natural product-based nanomedicines, offering innovative approaches for various diseases. Natural products derived from traditional Chinese medicine have their own targeting effect and remarkable therapeutic effect on many diseases, but there are some shortcomings such as poor physical and chemical properties. The construction of nanomedicines using the active ingredients of natural products has become a key step in the modernization research process, which could be used to make up for the defects of natural products such as low solubility, large dosage, poor bioavailability and poor targeting.

Evaluation of the Effectiveness of Global Tuberculosis Control Strategies at Different Stages and Analysis of Risk Factors: Findings From the Global Burden of Disease 2021.

Background: The purpose of this study was to analyze the prevention and control effects of the three-phase global tuberculosis control strategy, and analyze the influencing factors.

Methods: We collected age-standardized incidence, prevalence, and mortality (ASIR, ASPR, and ASDR) data from the Global Burden of Disease Study (GBD 2021) database. Annual percentage change (AAPC) of ASIR, ASPR and ASDR were analyzed by Joinpoint regression.

Fecal Microbiota Transplantation in Children with Autism.

Purpose: This research aimed to explore the clinical efficacy of fecal microbiota transplantation (FMT) in treating children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD).

Methods: In this single-arm prospective study, every participant received FMT therapy, followed by an 8-week follow-up. Children unable to swallow lyophilized capsules (Caps) received fecal solution through transendoscopic enteral tube (TET) or nasal jejunal tube (NJT) approaches.

Effect of life course body composition on lipids and coronary atherosclerosis mediated by inflammatory biomarkers.

Objective: To investigate the mediating role of inflammatory biomarkers in the causal effect of body composition on lipids and atherosclerosis.

Methods: Retrospective observational study and Mendelian randomization (MR) study were used. Observational analyses were undertaken using data from 4717 children and adolescents aged 6-18 years from Chinese who underwent dual-energy x-ray absorptiometry for body composition.

Body fat variation and redistribution across different stages of life measured by dual-energy x-ray absorptiometry.

Background: The global obesity epidemic of all ages has increased the demand for accurate management of body fat in each stage of life. The primary aim of this study was to provide reference centiles of body fat indices for Chinese children and adults and compare those with ethnicities from USA using dual-energy x-ray absorptiometry (DXA).

Methods: The samples were drawn from two nationwide cross-sectional surveys of China Body Composition Life-course Study (2013-2023) and the US National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (2011-2018).

Mutational Landscape of Gastric Adenocarcinoma of the Fundic Gland Type Revealed by Whole Genome Sequencing.

Background: Gastric adenocarcinoma of the fundic gland type (GA-FG) is a newly described variant of gastric adenocarcinoma with lack of knowledges regarding its genetic features.

Methods: We performed whole-genome sequencing (WGS) in formalin-fixed paraffin-embedded (FFPE) tumor tissues and matched adjacent noncancerous specimens from 21 patients with GA-FG, and integrated published datasets from 1105 patients with traditional gastric adenocarcinoma with the purpose of dissecting genetic determinants both common to conventional gastric adenocarcinoma and unique to GA-FG disease.

Results: We characterized the genomic architecture of GA-FG disease, revealing the predominant proportion of C > T substitution among the six types of SNVs.

Evaluating the distinct effects of body mass index at childhood and adulthood on adult major psychiatric disorders.

Children with high body mass index (BMI) are at heightened risk of developing health issues in adulthood, yet the causality between childhood BMI and adult psychiatric disorders remains unclear. Using a life course Mendelian randomization (MR) framework, we investigated the causal effects of childhood and adulthood BMI on adult psychiatric disorders, including Alzheimer's disease, anxiety, major depressive disorder, obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), and schizophrenia, using data from the Psychiatric Genomics Consortium and FinnGen study. Childhood BMI was significantly associated with an increased risk of schizophrenia, while adulthood BMI was associated with a decreased risk of OCD and schizophrenia.