CAF-Driven Mechanotransduction via Collagen Remodeling Accelerates Tumor Cell Cycle Progression.

Cancer-associated fibroblasts (CAFs) restructure collagen hydrogels via actomyosin-driven fibril bundling and crosslinking, increasing polymer density to generate mechanical stress that accelerates tumor proliferation. Conventional hydrogel models lack spatial heterogeneity, thus obscuring how localized stiffness gradients regulate cell cycle progression. To address this, we developed a collagen hydrogel-based microtissue platform integrated with programmable microstrings (single/double tethering), enabling real-time quantification of gel densification mechanics and force transmission efficiency.

FeO nanoparticles disrupt microstructure and reduce the viscoelasticity of simulated asthma airway mucus for potential airway mucus clearance applications.

FeO nanoparticles have been developed as carriers to transport drugs through airway mucus (AM); however, their impacts on the rheological properties of AM, especially in disease states, are unknown. In this study, we investigated the abilities of FeO nanoparticles dispersed in various media to alter the microstructure and rheological behaviors of simulated asthmatic AM. Here, the simulated AM was prepared via reconstituted mucins and other components in a composition resembling that of human AM reported in asthma, followed by treatment with FeO nanoparticles before and after curing.

Deficiency of integrin β4 contributes bronchopulmonary dysplasia by compromising cellular stability through the activation of RhoA-(ZO-1) signaling pathways.

Alterations in the composition and remodeling of the lung extracellular matrix (ECM) are critical for lung development. Our research identified that mice with a conditional knockout of integrin β4 (Itgb4) exhibit lung dysplasia. In this study, we investigated the expression of collagen IV (Col IV) and matrix metalloproteinase 9 (MMP9) in both normal and Itgb4-deficient mice using Western blot and immunohistochemistry techniques.

Mechanical Behavior and Indentation-Induced Injury of Soft Microtissues with Different Densification Levels.

Tissue densification is a fundamental biological process involved in development, regeneration, and disease, significantly influencing tissue mechanics and cellular mechanical microenvironments. However, the effects of tissue densification on mechanical properties, the roles of key cytoskeletal components, and their responses to external mechanical stress remain poorly understood. In this study, fibroblast-collagen microtissues were cultured on polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) microstring scaffolds with different mechanical constraints to generate low- and high-densification microtissues.

The underlying difference of metastatic and non-metastatic breast cancer cells in configuring type I collagen fibres to promote migration by cell mechanics.

The progression of tumors is heavily influenced by mechanical properties of their microenvironment. In this work, we applied micropatterned models with varying distances and shapes to investigate the differences between metastatic MDA-MB-231 and non-metastatic MCF-7 breast cancer cells in reconfiguring extracellular matrix to promote cell migration induced by cell mechanics. Both cancer cells were able to rearrange type I collagen (COL) to form fibre threads, in which MDA-MB-231 consistently migrated more rapidly than MCF-7, ranging from geometrical square arrays with different spacings to complex polygonal models.

Bioinformatics‑Based Analysis Reveals Diagnostic Biomarkers and Immune Landscape in Atopic Dermatitis.

Background: Atopic dermatitis (AD) is a prevalent chronic inflammatory skin disorder with a complex pathogenesis involving genetic predisposition, environmental factors, and immune dysregulation. This study aimed to investigate key differentially expressed genes (DEGs) in AD and their association with immune cell infiltration patterns.

Methods: The GSE32924 dataset comprises gene expression data from 25 AD samples and 8 control samples.

[Research on a portable electrical impedance tomography system for evaluating blood compatibility of biomaterials].

The evaluation of blood compatibility of biomaterials is crucial for ensuring the clinical safety of implantable medical devices. To address the limitations of traditional testing methods in real-time monitoring and electrical property analysis, this study developed a portable electrical impedance tomography (EIT) system. The system uses a 16-electrode design, operates within a frequency range of 1 to 500 kHz, achieves a signal to noise ratio (SNR) of 69.

FRET Visualization of High Mechanosensation of von Willebrand Factor to Hydrodynamic Force.

von Willebrand factor (vWF) is a large glycoprotein in the circulation system, which senses hydrodynamic force at vascular injuries and then recruits platelets in assembling clots. How vWF mechanosenses shear flow for molecular unfolding is an important topic. Here, a Förster resonance energy transfer (FRET) biosensor was developed to monitor vWF conformation change to hydrodynamic force.

Development and evaluation of an electrical impedance tomography (EIT) sensor for real-time monitoring of hemolysis dynamics.

Background: Real-time monitoring of hemolysis dynamics is essential for clinical diagnosis, ensuring transfusion safety, and supporting medical device development. Traditional methods such as spectrophotometry have limitations in real-time monitoring capabilities, often posing higher operational costs and restricted temporal resolution.

Results: This study presents an Electrical Impedance Tomography (EIT) sensor designed for real-time monitoring of hemolysis dynamics.

Synthesis, Characterization, and Cytotoxicity of Photochromic Molybdenum Oxide-Doped Tungsten Oxide Polymeric Nanohybrid Films for Biomedical Applications.

Despite the known nontoxicity, stability, and efficiency of WO and MoO against microbes as a result of their catalytic activities, these oxides are not effective photocatalysts because the O absorbed cannot be reduced by the photogenerated electrons in their conduction band, which leads to the rebinding of electrons and holes on the surface. The doping of these two n-type semiconductor metal oxides and incorporation of a biocompatible, biodegradable, and bioavailable polymer (such as chitosan) to form a film, to a large extent, affects the surface area interaction and multipurpose applicability of the film as a therapeutic, controlled delivery, and dual sensitive material. The WO-NP and WOMoO nanocomposites are synthesized via a deep eutectic solvent-assisted hydrothermal-based method, which afford fine-sized nanoparticles and nanocomposites, which are further incorporated into a chitosan matrix to form nanohybrid films via the solvent casting method.

Development and performance assessment of a novel scroll compressor-based oxygen generator integrated ventilator.

Current ventilators rely on wall outlets or cylinders for oxygen supply, which limits their continuous use in the field or emergencies. In this study, we proposed a ventilator prototype that can achieve stand-alone oxygenated respiratory support, by designing and integrating a high-performance oxygen generator, and optimizing the control strategies of the whole system. Based on the designed oil-free scroll compressor and pressure swing adsorption (PSA) system, we first realized a mobile high-flow oxygen generator, which achieved an output flow greater than 17 L/min with an oxygen concentration of 93% ± 3%.

Effect of Ti-EG-Ni Dual-Metal Organic Crystal-Derived TiO/C/Ni on the Hydrogen Storage Performance of MgH.

To effectively address the kinetic sluggishness associated with MgH, this study utilized Ti-EG-Ni dual-metal organic crystal as precursors and employed carburization to prepare the unique rod-shaped structure TiO/C/Ni. The catalyst was incorporated into MgH by ball milling, demonstrating excellent hydrogen storage performance. The composite of MgH-8 wt % TiO/C/Ni exhibited a lower initial dehydrogenation temperature of 185 °C and a marked dehydrogenation activation energy of 60.

Bivalirudin functionalized hydrogel coating capable of catalytical NO-generation for enhanced anticorrosion and biocompatibility of magnesium alloy.

Magnesium and its alloys are undoubtedly ideal candidates for manufacturing new bioabsorbable vascular stents thanks to their good bio-absorbability and better mechanical characteristics. However, the bottlenecks that restrict their clinical application, such as fast corrosion , poor hemocompatibility, and inferior surface endothelial regeneration ability, have not been resolved fundamentally. In this study, a polydopamine (PDA) intermediate layer covalently linked with acrylamide was first constructed on the alkali-heat-treated magnesium alloys, followed by polymerizing methacryloyloxyethyl sulfonyl betaine (SBMA) and acrylamide (AAM) to fabricate a hydrogel coating on the surface by ultraviolet (UV) polymerization.

NIR-II Fluorescent Thermophoretic Nanomotors for Superficial Tumor Photothermal Therapy.

Peritumoral subcutaneous injection has been highly envisioned as an efficient yet low-risk administration of photothermal agents for superficial tumor photothermal therapy. However, obstructed by complex subcutaneous tissue, the delivery of injected photothermal agents to the specific tumor remains a critical issue. Herein, the study reports a polydopamine (PDA)-encapsulated spherical core/shell nanomotor with fluorescent indocyanine green (ICG) immobilized on its PDA shell.

Silk fibroin as a potential candidate for bone tissue engineering applications.

Silk fibroin (SF), a pivotal biomaterial, holds immense promise for diverse applications within the realm of bone tissue engineering. SF is an ideal scaffold material with exceptional biocompatibility, mechanical robustness, biodegradability, and bioactivity. A plethora of investigations have corroborated SF's efficacy in supporting bone tissue repair and regeneration.

Depression-induced changes in directed functional brain networks: A source-space resting-state EEG study.

Current research confirms abnormalities in resting-state electroencephalogram (EEG) power and functional connectivity (FC) patterns in specific brain regions of individuals with depression. To study changes in the flow of information between cortical regions of the brain in patients with depression, we used 64-channel EEG to record neural oscillatory activity in 68 relevant cortical regions in 22 depressed patients and 22 healthy adolescents using source-space EEG. The direction and strength of information flow between brain regions was investigated using directional phase transfer entropy (PTE).

Single-Cell Hypertrophy Promotes Contractile Function of Cultured Human Airway Smooth Muscle Cells via Piezo1 and YAP Auto-Regulation.

Severe asthma is characterized by increased cell volume (hypertrophy) and enhanced contractile function (hyperresponsiveness) of the airway smooth muscle cells (ASMCs). The causative relationship and underlying regulatory mechanisms between them, however, have remained unclear. Here, we manipulated the single-cell volume of in vitro cultured human ASMCs to increase from 2.

NCAM and attached polysialic acid affect behaviors of breast epithelial cells through differential signaling pathways.

Neural cell adhesion molecule (NCAM), a common mammalian cell surface glycoprotein, is the major substrate of polysialic acid (polySia). Polysialylated NCAM occurs in many types of cancer, but rarely in normal adult tissues. The functional role of NCAM hypersialylation in the epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) process remains unclear.

Assisting molybdenum trioxide catalysis by engineering oxygen vacancy for enhancing hydrogen storage performance of magnesium hydride.

Magnesium hydride (MgH) as an ideal hydrogen storage carrier whose hydrogen storage performance can be effectively improved by transition metal-based catalysts. To construct highly active catalysts, much attention has been paid to the regulation of transition metal components while less attention has been paid to non-transition metal components especially oxygen, leading certain limitations. Herein, further improved hydrogen storage performance of MgH can be obtained by adjusting oxygen vacancy content in molybdenum trioxide (MoO) catalyst.

Biomimetic hydrogel coatings for improving the corrosion resistance, hemocompatibility, and endothelial cell growth of the magnesium alloy.

The fast biodegradation and poor biocompatibility of Mg alloys in physiological environments are still the main problems restricting their application in cardiovascular stents. In this study, the hydrogel coatings (SBMA-AAM) with different proportions of methacryloyl ethyl sulfobetaine (SBMA) and acrylamide (AAM) were built on the surface of AZ31B magnesium alloy through ultraviolet (UV) polymerization. The corrosion degradation behavior, hemocompatibility, and endothelial cell (EC) growth performance of the samples were studied in detail.

Constructing sodium alginate/carboxymethyl chitosan coating capable of catalytically releasing NO or CO for improving the hemocompatibility and endothelialization of magnesium alloys.

Although significant progress in developing biodegradable magnesium alloy materials in cardiovascular stents has been achieved recently, they still face challenges such as rapid in vivo corrosion degradation, inferior blood compatibility, and limited re-endothelialization after the implantation. Hydrogel coating that can catalyze the liberation of gas signal molecules offers a good solution to alleviate the corrosion rate and enhance the biocompatibility of magnesium and its alloys. In this study, based on alkaline heat treatment and construction of polydopamine coating on the surface of magnesium alloy, sodium alginate/carboxymethyl chitosan (SA/CMCS) gel was simultaneously covalently grafted onto the surface to build a natural polymer hydrogel coating, and selenocystamine (SeCA) and CO release molecules (CORM-401) were respectively immobilized on the surface of the hydrogel coating to ameliorate the anticoagulant performance and accelerate endothelial cells (ECs) growth by catalyzing the release of endogenous gas signal molecules (NO or CO).

Focal adhesion-mediated directional cell migration guided by gradient-stretched substrate.

Soft tissues experience strain under mechanical stresses, storing energy as residual stresses and strain energy. However, the specific impact of such strain on cell migration and its molecular mechanisms remains unclear. In this study, we investigated this by using polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) membranes with varying prestrain levels but constant stiffness to mimic tissue-like conditions.

A fucoidan-loaded hydrogel coating for enhancing corrosion resistance, hemocompatibility and endothelial cell growth of magnesium alloy for cardiovascular stents.

Although magnesium alloy has received tremendous attention in biodegradable cardiovascular stents, the poor in vivo corrosion resistance and limited endothelialization are still the bottlenecks for its application in cardiovascular stents. Fabrication of the multifunctional bioactive coating with excellent anti-corrosion on the surface is beneficial for rapid re-endothelialization and the normal physiological function recovery of blood vessels. In the present study, a bioactive hydrogel coating was established on the surface of magnesium alloy by copolymerization of sulfobetaine methacrylate (SBMA) and acrylamide (AM) via ultraviolet (UV) polymerization, followed by the immobilization of fucoidan (Fu).

[Research on portable airway impedance monitoring device based on expiratory oscillation].

Monitoring airway impedance has significant clinical value in accurately assessing and diagnosing pulmonary function diseases at an early stage. To address the issue of large oscillator size and high power consumption in current pulmonary function devices, this study adopts a new strategy of expiration-driven oscillation. A lightweight and low-power airway impedance monitoring system with integrated sensing, control circuitry, and dynamic feedback system, providing visual feedback on the system's status, was developed.