A comprehensive framework of health risk assessment for antibiotic resistance in aquatic environments: Status, progress, and perspectives.

Antibiotic resistance (AR), driven by antibiotics as emerging pollutants, has become a critical global health threat, jeopardizing both environmental and human health. The persistence and spread of AR in aquatic ecosystems are governed by the intricate interplay between antibiotics, antibiotic resistance genes (ARGs), and antibiotic-resistant bacteria (ARB), which collectively influences its occurrence, transportation, and fate in aquatic ecosystems. However, most assessments focus primarily on antibiotics and ARGs, often relying on single-factor criteria while overlooking critical influence factors such as ARG forms, non-antibiotic chemicals, antibiotic pressure, and microbial competition.

Chemical alteration of UO micro-particles in model lung systems.

Uranium dioxide (UO) particles can be released from mines, nuclear fuel manufacturing, reactor accidents, and weapons use. They pose inhalation risks, yet their behavior in the human lung remains poorly understood. This study investigates the long-term chemical alteration and dissolution of µm-sized UO particles in two model lung fluids: Simulated Lung Fluid (SLF) and Artificial Lysosomal Fluid (ALF), representing extracellular and intracellular lung environments, respectively.

Accelerating iron redox cycling via acetate modification: a ligand engineering for sustainable fenton-like oxidation.

Accelerating the rate-limiting surface Fe(III)/Fe(II) redox cycling is pivotal for efficient iron-mediated Fenton-like decontamination, yet conventional reductants (e.g., toxic hydroxylamine, thiosulfate) suffer from secondary toxicity, self-quenching, and heavy metal leaching.

Targeting PAR-2 in atopic dermatitis: Preclinical evaluation of the novel inhibitor E6795.

Atopic dermatitis (AD) is a chronic inflammatory skin disease characterized by eczematous lesions, intense itching, and compromised skin barrier function. Despite the advent of new therapeutics, many individuals still face insufficient disease control, high costs, and relapse. Protease-activated receptor 2 (PAR-2), overexpressed in AD lesions, plays a central role in promoting inflammation, itch, and alterations in epidermal homeostasis.

Predictors of Final Place of Care in People With Advanced Dementia Receiving Home-Based Palliative Care in Singapore: A Multivariate Regression Analysis.

As the prevalence of dementia rises exponentially globally, instituting practices to support the dying process of people affected by dementia is a public health priority. However, end-of-life quality indicators such as place of death provide limited information about the totality of the dying process. Hence, this study's aim was to identify factors affecting the relatively understudied concept of final place of care (where care was received in the last three days of life i.

Drought inhibits thermomorphogenesis via salicylic acid-mediated suppression of ELF3 phase separation.

Plants are constantly exposed to environmental changes and must respond carefully to ensure survival and growth. Under high temperatures, many plants exhibit a series of morphological and developmental adjustments, including increased hypocotyl and petiole elongation. These adaptations, collectively termed thermomorphogenesis, promote transpiration and water loss, thereby enhancing evaporative cooling.

Salicylic acid reduces ELF3 phase separation and suppresses thermomorphogenic growth in Arabidopsis.

Salicylic acid (SA), a long-characterized defense hormone, is increasingly recognized for its roles in plant growth and development. However, its involvement in mediating plant growth responses to environmental cues remains less understood. Here, we show that SA negatively affects thermomorphogenic growth in Arabidopsis thaliana.

Nanomedicine Reimagined: Translational Strategies for Precision Tumor Theranostics.

Nanomedicine has shown remarkable promise in advancing tumor imaging and therapy through its ability to achieve targeted delivery, precision imaging, and therapeutic efficacy. However, translating these preclinical successes into clinical practice remains fraught with challenges, including inconsistent tumor targeting, off-target organ accumulation, and a lack of comprehensive understanding of in vivo behavior of nanomedicines. In this perspective, the current state of nanomedicine research is critically analyzed, emphasizing the translational bottlenecks and offering a forward-looking view on potential solutions.

Structural integrity and failure of transfemoral prosthetic socket fabricated using carbon prepreg technique: Influence of fiber orientation and curing conditions.

This study provides valuable guidance for simplifying fabrication procedures and enhancing the structural integrity and safety of carbon fiber (CF) laminate transfemoral (TF) prosthetic sockets. While the high specific strength of CF laminate sockets offers advantages over conventional plastics, essential production data-their orientation-dependent strength and optimal cure conditions-are lacking, often requiring complex, costly cure cycles. This study investigated (i) the influence of fiber orientation on TF prosthetic CF socket strength via finite element analysis (FEA) during standing, and (ii) optimal single-step Vacuum-Bag-Only (VBO) cure conditions for prepreg in a low-cost conventional oven.

In Situ Electrochemical Oxidation for High-Energy-Density Aqueous Batteries: Mechanisms, Materials, and Prospects.

To advance the commercial utilization of aqueous electrochemical devices for grid-scale energy storage, it is crucial to address the current limitations related to energy density and cycle stability. Indeed, the lack of high-performance cathodes is still an obstructive issue, not to mention the limited capacities related to the monotonic cation intercalation/deintercalation mechanism. Fortunately, conversion chemistries with redox reactions bring a new dimension, where materials with multiple valence states facilitate multi-electron redox reactions, offering the potential for high-energy-density storage.

Grief, Uncertainty and Community: A Qualitative Study on Parental Experiences of Paediatric Feeding Disorders and Feeding Tube Use in Singapore.

Aim: To explore the perceptions and experiences of parents caring for children with paediatric feeding disorders requiring feeding tubes (PFD-T).

Study Design: A descriptive qualitative approach was adopted in this study.

Methods: Using purposive sampling, 12 parents were recruited from paediatric inpatient wards and the outpatient paediatric feeding clinic at a tertiary public hospital in Singapore.

Transcriptional regulation in heart development, disease and regeneration: reassessing the fetal gene hypothesis.

A central paradigm in cardiac biology is the reactivation of the fetal gene programme in the adult heart in response to stress. This so-called 'fetal gene hypothesis' was first proposed almost 40 years ago following the observation that certain fetal contractile protein isoforms were re-expressed in hypertrophied ventricles in the rodent heart in response to haemodynamic overload. Consequently, this concept was broadly adopted, and activation of the fetal gene programme became synonymous in the literature with the cardiac stress response.

Cellular fibronectin exacerbates α-synuclein aggregation via integrin alpha4beta1 mediated PARP1 and SCD elevation.

Mitochondrial dysfunction and lipid metabolic disturbance may promote pathologic α-synuclein (α-syn) aggregation, accelerating the progression of Parkinson's disease (PD). Whether extracellular matrices are associated with those pathological mechanisms in PD remains elusive. Here, we aimed to identify if cellular fibronectin (cFn), a component of extracellular matrices, contributes to α-syn abnormality via inducing mitochondrial energy depletion or disrupting lipid homeostasis.

Screening and eradication of or gastric cancer prevention: Taipei Global Consensus II.

Objective: To convene a global consensus on () screening and eradication strategies for gastric cancer prevention, identify key knowledge gaps and outline future research directions.

Methods: 32 experts from 12 countries developed and refined consensus statements on management, using the Grading of Recommendations Assessment, Development and Evaluation (GRADE) framework to assess evidence and the Delphi method to achieve ≥80% agreement.

Results: Consensus was achieved on 28 statements.

Neuroimaging and Sleep Dysfunction in Parkinson's and Parkinsonisms.

The article summarizes neuroimaging studies carried out during the last 2 decades to investigate the mechanisms underlying sleep dysfunction in Parkinson's and other synucleinopathies. Rapid eye movement sleep behavior disorder and excessive daytime sleepiness are discussed, as they are the most frequently investigated.

Genetic Basis of Sleep Dysfunction in Parkinson's Disease and Parkinsonism.

Sleep dysfunction in Parkinson's disease (PD) includes rapid eye movement sleep behavior disorder, restless leg syndrome, and excessive daytime sleepiness. These sleep-related manifestations may serve as prodromal signs of PD, particularly in carriers of pathogenic mutations in the genes implicated in familial and sporadic forms of PD. Study findings underscore the importance of differentiating mutation-specific sleep phenotypes in PD.

Aldehyde dehydrogenase 2 deficiency impairs liver progenitor cell proliferation in alcohol-fed mice.

Aldehyde dehydrogenase 2 (ALDH2) is a critical enzyme involved in the detoxification of acetaldehyde. Although numerous studies have demonstrated the significance of ALDH2 in alcohol-associated liver disease (ALD), its role in alcohol-induced activation of liver progenitor cells (LPCs) has not been thoroughly investigated. Proteomic analysis of serum samples from patients with either normal ALDH2 genotype or ALDH2 mutation following alcohol consumption revealed that ALDH2 deficiency may suppress LPC proliferation.

Perturbation of the ovine placental transcriptome occurs at sub-therapeutic exposures to antenatal steroid therapy.

Introduction: Antenatal steroid (ANS) therapy accelerates preterm lung maturation. Clinical and experimental data show current regimens disrupt placental function and transport and impact fetal growth. We have previously shown that higher materno-fetal steroid exposures increase fetal glucocorticoid clearance.

Directed Structural Evolution of Nickel Nanoparticles into Atomically Dispersed Sites for Efficient CO Electroreduction.

Electrochemical CO reduction (CORR) to carbon monoxide (CO) offers a sustainable pathway for carbon utilization, yet challenges remain in terms of improving selectivity and activity. Herein, we report a Ni/NC catalyst synthesized via a milling - pyrolysis method, in which Ni particles anchored on nitrogen-doped carbon (NC) are electrochemically activated under an Ar atmosphere, leading to their structural evolution into single-atom Ni sites. After activation in Ar atmosphere, the current density nearly doubles (from ≈30 to ≈60 mA cm), and concurrently, the Faradaic efficiency of CO stays at ∼90% with the potential set to -0.

Single Te Nanoribbon for Disrupting Conventional Sensitivity-Power Limits of Flexible Strain Sensors.

Flexible strain sensors are pivotal for the advancement of robotics, wearable healthcare, and human-machine interaction in the post-Moore era. However, conventional materials struggle to simultaneously achieve high sensitivity, a broad strain range, and low power consumption for cutting-edge applications. In this work, the issue is addressed through single crystal 1D tellurium nanoribbons (NRs), which are synthesized on SiO/Si substrate by hydrogen-assisted chemical vapor deposition (CVD) method.

Formation of breccia pipes associated with a hydrogen-rich hydrothermal system on the east Caroline plate in the West Pacific.

A large hydrothermal field at depths >4300 meters was found on the east Caroline plate in the western Pacific Ocean. Here, we show that large hydrothermal pipes with steep walls and breccia-dominated bottoms suggest explosions of billion metric tons of TNT (trinitrotoluene) equivalent. More than 800 short-duration seismic events were detected within 28 days along a 150-kilometer profile, indicating widespread ongoing explosive gas release.