Gut-derived indole propionic acid alleviates liver fibrosis by targeting profibrogenic macrophages via the gut‒liver axis.

Gut-derived metabolites are essential for liver fibrogenesis. The aim of this study was to determine the alteration of indole-3-propionic acid (IPA), a crucial tryptophan metabolite, in liver fibrosis and delineate the roles of enterogenic IPA in fibrogenesis. In the present study, metabolomics assays focused on tryptophan metabolism were applied to explore the decreased levels of IPA in the feces and serum of cirrhotic patients, as well as in the feces and portal vein serum of fibrotic mice.

FBXW7 is a multifaceted regulator of the innate immune response to DNA viruses.

Upon DNA virus infection, cGAS senses viral DNA and triggers MITA (also called STING)-dependent induction of type I interferons (IFN-Is) and other cytokines/chemokines. IFN-Is further activate STAT1/2 to induce interferon-stimulated genes (ISGs) and the innate antiviral response. How the innate antiviral response is silenced in uninfected cells and efficiently mounts upon viral infection is not fully understood.

SurFF: a foundation model for surface exposure and morphology across intermetallic crystals.

With approximately 90% of industrial reactions occurring on surfaces, the role of heterogeneous catalysts is paramount. Currently, accurate surface exposure prediction is vital for heterogeneous catalyst design, but it is hindered by the high costs of experimental and computational methods. Here we introduce a foundation force-field-based model for predicting surface exposure and synthesizability (SurFF) across intermetallic crystals, which are essential materials for heterogeneous catalysts.

Highly protected areas buffer against aridity thresholds in global drylands.

Drylands are highly vulnerable to global-scale aridity thresholds that cause drastic reductions in their productivity. While protected areas may help buffer against the impact of aridification, their effectiveness in mitigating the aridity thresholds across global drylands remains virtually unknown. Here we assembled a global dataset of drylands and found that highly protected areas, which include national parks and wilderness areas, can buffer the emergence of aridity thresholds in ecosystem productivity by up to 0.

Navigating condensate micropolarity to enhance small-molecule drug targeting.

Many pharmaceutical targets partition into biomolecular condensates, whose microenvironments can significantly influence drug distribution. Nevertheless, it is unclear how drug design principles should adjust for these targets to optimize target engagement. To address this question, we systematically investigated how condensate microenvironments influence drug-targeting efficiency.

KCTD Family: Emerging Regulators of GPCR Biased Signaling.

G protein-coupled receptors (GPCRs) engage multiple transducers to regulate distinct physiological processes. These transducers include various G proteins subtypes, GPCR kinases (GRKs), and β-arrestins. In addition to promoting receptor desensitization, β-arrestins serve as scaffolds for signaling via non-G protein pathways.

Structure-Bias Relationship of μ-Opioid Receptor Agonists.

The μ-opioid receptor (μOR) is the primary drug target of opioid analgesics such as morphine and fentanyl. Activation of μORs in the central nervous system inhibits ascending pain signaling to the cortex, thereby producing analgesic effects. However, the clinical use of opioid analgesics is severely limited by adverse side effects, including respiratory depression, constipation, addiction, and the development of tolerance.

Optoelectronic polymer memristors with dynamic control for power-efficient in-sensor edge computing.

As the demand for edge platforms in artificial intelligence increases, including mobile devices and security applications, the surge in data influx into edge devices often triggers interference and suboptimal decision-making. There is a pressing need for solutions emphasizing low power consumption and cost-effectiveness. In-sensor computing systems employing memristors face challenges in optimizing energy efficiency and streamlining manufacturing due to the necessity for multiple physical processing components.

CD160 dictates anti-PD-1 immunotherapy resistance by regulating CD8 T cell exhaustion in colorectal cancer.

The colon exhibits higher propensity for tumour development than ileum. However, the role of immune microenvironment differences in driving this disparity remains unclear. Here, by comparing paired ileum and colon samples from patients with colorectal cancer (CRC) and healthy donors, we identified ileum-enriched CD160CD8 T cells with previously unrecognized characteristics, including resistance to terminal exhaustion and strong clonal expansion.

Direct mortality due to humans threatens migratory shorebirds.

The decline of migratory shorebirds in the East Asian-Australasian Flyway has attracted global attention. Conservation efforts thus far have targeted habitat loss and degradation in the Yellow Sea region, with little attention having been given to direct mortality by humans. Here we studied the impacts of direct mortality of shorebirds along China's coast during migration from hunting, fishery bycatch and, at aquaculture sites, bird deterrence measures.

Isotope-dependent Tafel analysis probes proton transfer kinetics during electrocatalytic water splitting.

Proton transfer plays an important role in both hydrogen and oxygen evolution reactions during electrocatalytic water splitting to produce green hydrogen. However, directly adapting the conventional proton/deuterium kinetic isotope effect to study proton transfer in heterogeneous electrocatalytic processes is challenging. Here we propose using the shift in the Tafel slope between protic and deuteric electrolytes, or the Tafel slope isotope effect, as an effective probe of proton transfer characteristics.

β-blocker and clinical outcomes in patients after myocardial infarction: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

Background And Objective: While current clinical guidelines generally advocate for beta-blocker therapy following acute myocardial infarction (AMI), conflicting findings have surfaced through large-scale observational studies and meta-analyses. We conducted this systematic review and meta-analysis of published observational studies to quantify the long-term therapeutic impact of beta-blocker across heterogeneous AMI populations.

Methods: We conducted comprehensive searches of the PubMed, Embase, Cochrane, and Web of Science databases for articles published from 2000 to 2025 that examine the link between beta-blocker therapy and clinical outcomes (last search update: March 1, 2025).

Economic evaluation of antibody-drug conjugates (ADCs) in patients with breast cancer: systematic review.

Introduction: Metastatic breast cancer (mBC) is a major global health challenge. Antibody-drug conjugates (ADCs), including trastuzumab emtansine (T-DM1), trastuzumab deruxtecan (T-DXd), and sacituzumab govitecan (SG), offer clinical benefits but are associated with high costs, making cost-effectiveness assessments essential for policy decisions.

Methods: This systematic review analyzed economic evaluations comparing T-DM1, T-DXd, and SG with conventional treatments in breast cancer.

Characterization of the extrinsic and intrinsic signatures and therapeutic vulnerability of small cell lung cancers.

Small-cell lung cancer (SCLC), an aggressive neuroendocrine tumor strongly associated with exposure to tobacco carcinogens, is characterized by early dissemination and dismal prognosis with a five-year overall survival of less than 7%. High-frequency gain-of-function mutations in oncogenes are rarely reported, and intratumor heterogeneity (ITH) remains to be determined in SCLC. Here, via multiomics analyses of 314 SCLCs, we found that the ASCL1/MKI67 and ASCL1/CRIP2 clusters accounted for 74.

Bright squeezed light in the kilohertz frequency band.

The dominant technical noise of a free-running laser practically limits bright squeezed light generation, particularly within the MHz band. To overcome this, we develop a comprehensive theoretical model for nonclassical power stabilization, and propose a novel bright squeezed light generation scheme incorporating hybrid power noise suppression. Our approach integrates broadband passive power stabilization with nonclassical active stabilization, extending the feedback bandwidth to MHz frequencies.

Position-correlated biphoton wavefront sensing for quantum adaptive imaging.

Quantum imaging with spatially entangled photons offers advantages such as enhanced spatial resolution, robustness against noise, and counterintuitive phenomena, while a biphoton spatial aberration generally degrades its performance. Biphoton aberration correction has been achieved by using classical beams to detect the aberration source or scanning the correction phase on biphotons if the source is unreachable. Here, a new method named position-correlated biphoton Shack-Hartmann wavefront sensing is introduced, where the phase pattern added on photon pairs with a strong position correlation is reconstructed from their position centroid distribution at the back focal plane of a microlens array.

A soft micron accuracy robot design and clinical validation for retinal surgery.

Retinal surgery is one of the most delicate and complex operations, which is close to or even beyond the physiological limitation of the human hand. Robots have demonstrated the ability to filter hand tremors and motion scaling which has a promising output in microsurgery. Here, we present a novel soft micron accuracy robot (SMAR) for retinal surgery and achieve a more precise and safer operation.

Inhibiting Graphite Co-Intercalation through Weak Solvating Ether Electrolytes for Stable Cycling in Potassium-Ion Batteries.

Ether-based electrolytes are widely acknowledged for their potential to form stable solid electrolyte interfaces (SEIs) for stable anode performance. However, conventional ether-based electrolytes have shown a tendency for cation-solvent co-intercalation phenomena on graphite electrodes, resulting in lower capacity and higher voltage platforms compared to those of neat cation insertion in ester-based electrolytes. In response, we propose the development of weakly solvating ether solvents to weaken the interaction between cations and solvents, thereby suppressing co-intercalation behavior.

Discovery of a selective alpha-kinase 1 inhibitor for the rare genetic disease ROSAH syndrome.

ROSAH (retinal dystrophy, optic nerve edema, splenomegaly, anhidrosis, and headache) syndrome is a rare genetic disease caused by variants in alpha-kinase 1 (ALPK1) resulting in downstream pro-inflammatory signaling mediated by the TIFA/TRAF6/NF-κB pathway. Here, we report the design of an ALPK1 inhibitor, DF-003, with pharmacokinetic properties suitable for daily oral dosing. In biochemical assays, DF-003 potently inhibits human ALPK1 (IC = 1.

CircPSD3 aggravates tumor progression by maintaining TCA cycle and mitochondrial function via regulating SUCLG2 in thyroid carcinoma.

In recent years, there has been a rapid increase in the incidence of thyroid carcinoma (TC). Our study focuses on the regulatory effect of circular RNAs on metabolism of TC, aiming to provide new insights into the mechanisms of progression and a potential therapeutic target for TC. In this study, we identified high expression levels of circPSD3 in TC tissues through RNA sequencing.

Fast-hyperspectral imaging remote sensing: Emission quantification of NO and SO from marine vessels.

Marine vessels play a vital role in the global economy; however, their negative impact on the marine atmospheric environment is a growing concern. Quantifying marine vessel emissions is an essential prerequisite for controlling these emissions and improving the marine atmospheric environment. Optical imaging remote sensing is a vital technique for quantifying marine vessel emissions.

Sub-diurnal asymmetric warming has amplified atmospheric dryness since the 1980s.

Rising atmospheric vapor pressure deficit (VPD)-a measure of atmospheric dryness, defined as the difference between saturated vapor pressure (SVP) and actual vapor pressure (AVP)-has been linked to increasing daily mean near-surface air temperatures since the 1980s. However, it remains unclear whether the faster increases in daily maximum temperature (T) relative to daily minimum temperature (T) have contributed to rising VPD. Here, we show that the faster rise in T compared with T over land has intensified VPD from 1980 to 2023.

A prediction nomogram for mild cognitive impairment in type 2 diabetes mellitus based on the Chinese visceral adiposity index.

Visceral adiposity has been proposed to be closely linked to cognitive impairment. This cross-sectional study aimed to evaluate the predictive value of Chinese Visceral Adiposity Index (CVAI) for mild cognitive impairment (MCI) in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) and to develop a quantitative risk assessment model. A total of 337 hospitalized patients with T2DM were included and randomly assigned to a training cohort (70%, n = 236) and a validation cohort (30%, n = 101).