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Abstract The two-dimensional nanomaterials are characterized by their ultra-thin structure, diverse chemical functional groups, and remarkable anisotropic properties. Since its discovery in 2004, graphene has attracted significant scientific interest due to its potential applications in various fields, including electronics, energy systems, and biomedicine. In medicine, graphene is used for designing smart drug delivery systems, especially for antibiotics, and biosensing. Skin trauma is a prevalent dermatological condition that increasingly contributes to morbidities and mortalities, thus representing a significant health burden. During tissue damage, rapid skin repair is crucial to prevent blood loss and infection. Therefore, drugs used for skin trauma must possess antimicrobial and anti-inflammatory properties. Two-dimensional (2D) nanomaterials possess remarkable physical, chemical, optical, and biological characteristics due to their uniform shape, increased surface area, and surface charge. Graphene and its derivatives, transition-metal dichalcogenides (TMDs), black phosphorous (BP), hexagonal boron nitride (h-BN), MXene, and metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) are among the commonly used 2D nanomaterials. Moreover, they exhibit antibacterial and anti-inflammatory properties. This review presents a comprehensive discussion of the clinical approaches employed for wound healing treatment and explores the applications of commonly used 2D nanomaterials to enhance wound healing outcomes.

Abstract Real‐time polymerase chain reaction (RT‐PCR) remains the most prevalent molecular detection technology for sewage analysis but is plagued with numerous disadvantages, such as time consumption, high manpower requirements, and susceptibility to false negatives. In this study, an automated robot‐driven photoelectrochemical (PEC) biosensing platform is constructed, that utilizes the CRISPR/Cas12a system to achieve fast, ultrasensitive, high specificity detection of biological loads in sewage. The Shennong‐1 robot integrates several functional modules, involving sewage sampling and pretreatment to streamline the sewage monitoring. A screen‐printed electrode is employed with a vertical graphene‐based working electrode and enhanced with surface‐deposited Au nanoparticles (NPs). CdTe/ZnS quantum dots (QDs) are further fabricated through the double‐stranded DNA (dsDNA) anchored on Au NPs. Using the cDNA template of Omicron BA.5 spike gene as a model, the PEC biosensor demonstrates excellent analytical performance, with a lower detection limit of 2.93 × 102 zm and an outstanding selectivity at the level of single‐base mutation recognition. Furthermore, the rapid, accurate detection of BA.5 in sewage demonstrates the feasibility of the PEC platform for sewage monitoring. In conclusion, this platform allows early detection and tracking of infectious disease outbreaks, providing timely data support for public health institutions to take appropriate prevention and control measures.

Abstract One of the most fascinating 2D nanomaterials (NMs) ever found is various members of MXene family. Among them, the titanium‐based MXenes, with more than 70% of publication‐related investigations, are comparatively well studied, producing fundamental foundation for the 2D MXene family members with flexible properties, familiar with a variety of advanced novel technological applications. Nonetheless, there are still more candidates among transitional metals (TMs) that can function as MXene NMs in ways that go well beyond those that are now recognized. Systematized details of the preparations, characteristics, limitations, significant discoveries, and uses of the novel M‐based MXenes (M‐MXenes), where M stands for non‐Ti TMs (M = Sc, V, Cr, Y, Zr, Nb, Mo, Hf, Ta, W, and Lu), are given. The exceptional qualities of the 2D non‐Ti MXene outperform standard Ti‐MXene in several applications. There is many advancement in top‐down as well as bottom‐up production of MXenes family members, which allows for exact control of the M‐characteristics MXene NMs to contain cutting‐edge applications. This study offers a systematic evaluation of existing research, covering everything in producing complex M‐MXenes from primary limitations to the characterization and selection of their applications in accordance with their novel features. The development of double metal combinations, extension of additional metal candidates beyond group‐(III–VI)B family, and subsequent development of the 2D TM carbide/TMs nitride/TM carbonitrides to 2D metal boride family are also included in this overview. The possibilities and further recommendations for the way of non‐Ti MXene NMs are in the synthesis of NMs will discuss in detail in this critical evaluation.

ObjectiveDespite the fact that China amounts to one-fifth of the world’s population, has a higher proportion of the elderly, and has a higher prevalence of osteoporosis and fracture, limited studies have investigated the association between dietary patterns and bone mineral density (BMD) as well as fracture risk among the elderly Chinese population. We aimed to investigate the association between different dietary patterns and BMD as well as the risk of fractures, and this association may vary between elderly women and men.MethodsBuilding upon the China Osteoporosis Prevalence Study, we included 17,489 subjects aged ≥40 years old randomly sampled across 44 counties/districts of 11 provinces or municipalities in China who completed a food frequency questionnaire. BMD was measured by dual x-ray absorptiometry. Vertebral fracture was defined based on lateral spine radiographs using the semi-quantitative technique of Genant.ResultsA diet rich in “carnivorous”, “vegetarian”, “dairy, fruit, and egg” was significantly associated with higher BMD at total hip (TH), femoral neck (FN), and lumbar spine 1–4 (L1–4). Yet, a diet rich in “beverage and fried food” was associated with a lower BMD at the FN and L1–4. High quartiles of the carnivorous diet were associated with 34%–39% reduced risk of clinical fracture in the past 5 years and vertebral fracture. Stronger associations were observed among women. Sensitivity analysis among postmenopausal women presented even stronger positive associations between carnivorous and vegetarian diets and high BMD, as well as between carnivorous diet and reduced risk of fractures.ConclusionsOur study suggested that a diet rich in meat, vegetables, and dairy, fruit, and eggs might be associated with greater BMD and a lower fracture risk, while beverage and fried foods may be associated with a lower BMD at L1–4, especially among elderly women. These findings are relevant to provide recommendations on dietary nutrition regarding the elderly population at high risk of osteoporosis and fractures, especially postmenopausal women.

Artificial intelligence (AI) has recently emerged as a unique developmental influence that is playing an important role in the development of medicine. The AI medium is showing the potential in unprecedented advancements in truth and efficiency. The intersection of AI has the potential to revolutionize drug discovery. However, AI also has limitations and experts should be aware of these data access and ethical issues. The use of AI techniques for drug discovery applications has increased considerably over the past few years, including combinatorial QSAR and QSPR, virtual screening, and denovo drug design. The purpose of this survey is to give a general overview of drug discovery based on artificial intelligence, and associated applications. We also highlighted the gaps present in the traditional method for drug designing. In addition, potential strategies and approaches to overcome current challenges are discussed to address the constraints of AI within this field. We hope that this survey plays a comprehensive role in understanding the potential of AI in drug discovery.

Highlights Precise exfoliation and modification of nano-Tellurium was realized by adopting a room-temperature ionic liquid as the electrolyte. Nano-Tellurium with high-entropy morphology can offer greater solar absorption and more kinds of surface chemical groups, giving rise to superior photothermal properties. Nano-Tellurium-poly(vinyl alcohol)-based photothermal foam hydrogels, with high compressibility, excellent water transport rate and low evaporation enthalpy of water, combined with a new heat-supply model, achieve an evaporation rate of 4.11 kg m−2 h−1 with energy efficiencies up to 128% under 1 sun irradiation, which are the highest values for semiconductor-based nanocomposites reported so far.

BackgroundElderly people are at high risk of falls due to decreased muscle strength. So far, there is currently no officially approved medication for treating muscle strength loss. The active vitamin D analogues are promising but inconsistent results have been reported in previous studies. The present study was to meta-analyze the effect of active vitamin D analogues on muscle strength and falls in elderly people.MethodsThe protocol was registered with PROSPERO (record number: CRD42021266978). We searched two databases including PubMed and Cochrane Library up until August 2023. Risk ratio (RR) and standardized mean difference (SMD) with 95% confidence intervals (95% CI) were used to assess the effects of active vitamin D analogues on muscle strength or falls.ResultsRegarding the effects of calcitriol (n= 1), alfacalcidol (n= 1) and eldecalcitol (n= 1) on falls, all included randomized controlled trials (RCT) recruited 771 participants. Regarding the effects of the effects of calcitriol (n= 4), alfacalcidol (n= 3) and eldecalcitol (n= 3) on muscle strength, all included RCTs recruited 2431 participants. The results showed that in the pooled analysis of three active vitamin D analogues, active vitamin D analogues reduced the risk of fall by 19%. Due to a lack of sufficient data, no separate subgroup analysis was conducted on the effect of each active vitamin D analogue on falls. In the pooled and separate analysis of active vitamin D analogues, no significant effects were found on global muscle, hand grip, and back extensor strength. However, a significant enhancement of quadriceps strength was observed in the pooled analysis and separate analysis of alfacalcidol and eldecalcitol. The separate subgroup analysis on the impact of calcitriol on the quadriceps strength was not performed due to the lack to sufficient data. The results of pooled and separate subgroup analysis of active vitamin D analogues with or without calcium supplementation showed that calcium supplementation did not affect the effect of vitamin D on muscle strength.ConclusionsThe use of active vitamin D analogues does not improve global muscle, hand grip, and back extensor strength but improves quadriceps strength and reduces risk of falls in elderly population.

[This corrects the article DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0295565.].

Abstract Since the end of 2019, a highly contagious disease caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) has deprived numerous lives worldwide, called COVID-19. Up to date, omicron is the latest variant of concern, and BA.5 is replacing the BA.2 variant to become the main subtype rampaging worldwide. These subtypes harbor an L452R mutation, which increases their transmissibility among vaccinated people. Current methods for identifying SARS-CoV-2 variants are mainly based on polymerase chain reaction (PCR) followed by gene sequencing, making time-consuming processes and expensive instrumentation indispensable. In this study, we developed a rapid and ultrasensitive electrochemical biosensor to achieve the goals of high sensitivity, the ability of distinguishing the variants, and the direct detection of RNAs from viruses simultaneously. We used electrodes made of MXene-AuNP (gold nanoparticle) composites for improved sensitivity and the CRISPR/Cas13a system for high specificity in detecting the single-base L452R mutation in RNAs and clinical samples. Our biosensor will be an excellent supplement to the RT-qPCR method enabling the early diagnosis and quick distinguishment of SARS-CoV-2 Omicron BA.5 and BA.2 variants and more potential variants that might arise in the future.

Chemical-exfoliated borophene and its application in multi-imaging guided photothermal therapy.

Abstract Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a highly contagious disease caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The gold standard method for the diagnosis of SARS-CoV-2 depends on quantitative reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction till now, which is time-consuming and requires expensive instrumentation, and the confirmation of variants relies on further sequencing techniques. Herein, we first proposed a robust technique-methodology of electrochemical CRISPR sensing with the advantages of rapid, highly sensitivity and specificity for the detection of SARS-CoV-2 variant. To enhance the sensing capability, gold electrodes are uniformly decorated with electro-deposited gold nanoparticles. Using DNA template identical to SARS-CoV-2 Delta spike gene sequence as model, our biosensor exhibits excellent analytical detection limit (50 fM) and high linearity (R 2 = 0.987) over six orders of magnitude dynamic range from 100 fM to 10 nM without any nucleic-acid-amplification assays. The detection can be completed within 1 h with high stability and specificity which benefits from the CRISPR-Cas system. Furthermore, based on the wireless micro-electrochemical platform, the proposed biosensor reveals promising application ability in point-of-care testing.

Abstract Background Retinitis pigmentosa is a rod-cone degenerative disease that induces irreversible vision loss. This study probed the protective capacity of mesenchymal stem cell-derived small EVs (MSC-EVs) on the retinas of rd10 mice and the underlying mechanism. Methods MSC-EVs were injected into the vitreous of rd10 mice at postnatal day 14 and P21; morphology and function were examined at P28. The mechanism of action was explored by using co-culture of photoreceptor cell line 661 W and microglia cell line BV2. Results Treatment with MSC-EVs increased the survival of photoreceptors and preserved their structure. Visual function, as reflected by optomotor and electroretinogram responses, was significantly enhanced in MSC-EVs-treated rd10 mice. Mechanistically, staining for Iba1, GFAP, F4/80, CD68 and CD206 showed that MSC-EVs suppressed the activation of microglial, Müller glial and macrophages. Furthermore, western blotting showed that the treatment inhibited the NF-κB pathway. RNA-seq and qPCR showed that MSC-EVs upregulated anti-inflammatory cytokines while downregulating pro-inflammatory cytokines. MSC-EVs application in vitro decreased the number of TUNEL-positive 661 W cells co-cultured with LPS-stimulated BV2, with similar impact on the cytokine expression as in vivo study. Genetic screening predicted miR-146a to be the downstream target of MSC-EVs, which was detected in MSC-EVs and upregulated in co-cultured 661 W cells and BV2 cells after MSC-EVs treatment. Upregulation of miR-146a by using its mimic decreased the expression of the transcription factor Nr4a3, and its downregulation inhibition promoted Nr4a3 expression in both 661 W and BV2 cells. Nr4a3 was further identified as the target gene of miR-146a by dual-luciferase assay. Furthermore, overexpressing miR-146a significantly decreased the expression of LPS-induced pro-inflammatory cytokines in BV2 cells. Conclusions MSC-EVs delays retinal degeneration in rd10 mice mainly by its anti-inflammatory effect via the miR-146a-Nr4a3axis. Hence, MSC-EVs may be used in the treatment of neurodegenerative diseases.

Abstract In the past few decades, 2D layer materials have gradually become a central focus in materials science owing to their uniquely layered structural qualities and good optoelectronic properties. However, in the development of 2D materials, several disadvantages, such as limited types of materials and the inability to synthesize large‐scale materials, severely confine their application. Therefore, further exploration of new materials and preparation methods is necessary to meet technological developmental needs. Organic molecular materials have the advantage of being customizable. Therefore, if organic molecular and 2D materials are combined, the resulting 2D organic materials would have excellent optical and electrical properties. In addition, through this combination, the free design and large‐scale synthesis of 2D materials can be realized in principle. Furthermore, 2D organic materials exhibit excellent properties and unique functionalities along with great potential for developing sensors, biomedicine, and electronics. In this review, 2D organic materials are divided into five categories. The preparation methods and material properties of each class of materials are also described in detail. Notably, to comprehensively understand each material's advantages, the latest research applications for each material are presented in detail and summarized. Finally, the future development and application prospects of 2D organic materials are briefly discussed.

Ultrasound (US) is considered as a secure external stimulation for different biomedical applications because it is non-invasive, non-toxic and it brings no radiation pollution. Compared with traditional ultrasonography application, US has now attracted more and more attention for cancer therapy. It treats cancer in deeper tissues because it penetrates far than light does. New types of nanomaterials have been developed for US triggered cancer therapy. The study on emerging cancer therapeutic modality triggered by US is also increasing, e.g., high intensity-focused ultrasound (HIFU) therapy, sonodynamic therapy (SDT), and US-mediated drug delivery. The research on current advances in nanomaterials-based and US-triggered cancer treatments have been discussed in detail in this review, especially the underlying mechanisms for better therapeutic effectiveness. Furthermore, challenges and prospective in the evolution of nanomaterials for the US-based cancer therapy fields were also explained. It is anticipated that our manifestation in this expanding discipline will aid in the advancement of US-based basic research and therapeutic applications.

Identification of sugarcane stem nodes is generally dependent on high-performance recognition equipment in sugarcane seed pre-cutting machines and inefficient. Accordingly, this study proposes a novel lightweight architecture for the detection of sugarcane stem nodes based on the YOLOv5 framework, named G-YOLOv5s-SS. Firstly, the study removes the CBS and C3 structures at the end of the backbone network to fully utilize shallow-level feature information. This enhances the detection performance of sugarcane stem nodes. Simultaneously, it eliminates the 32 times down-sampled branches in the neck structure and the 20x20 detection heads at the prediction end, reducing model complexity. Secondly, a Ghost lightweight module is introduced to replace the conventional convolution module in the BottleNeck structure, further reducing the model's complexity. Finally, the study incorporates the SimAM attention mechanism to enhance the extraction of sugarcane stem node features without introducing additional parameters. This improvement aims to enhance recognition accuracy, compensating for any loss in precision due to lightweight modifications. The experimental results showed that the average precision of the improved network for sugarcane stem node identification reached 97.6%, which was 0.6% higher than that of the YOLOv5 baseline network. Meanwhile, a model size of 2.6MB, 1,129,340 parameters, and 7.2G FLOPs, representing respective reductions of 82%, 84%, and 54.4%. Compared with mainstream one-stage target detection algorithms such as YOLOv4-tiny, YOLOv4, YOLOv5n, YOLOv6n, YOLOv6s, YOLOv7-tiny, and YOLOv7, G-YOLOv5s-SS achieved respective average precision improvements of 12.9%, 5.07%, 3.6%, 2.1%, 1.2%, 3%, and 0.4% in sugarcane stem nodes recognition. Meanwhile, the model size was compressed by 88.9%, 98.9%, 33.3%, 72%, 92.9%, 78.8% and 96.3%, respectively. Compared with similar studies, G-YOLOv5s-SS not only enhanced recognition accuracy but also considered model size, demonstrating an overall excellent performance that aligns with the requirements of sugarcane seed pre-cutting machines.

Abstract The clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats (CRISPR) molecular system has emerged as a promising technology for the detection of nucleic acids. Herein, the development of a surface plasmon resonance (SPR) sensor that is functionalized with a layer of locally grown graphdiyne film, achieving excellent sensing performance when coupled with catalytically deactivated CRISPR‐associated protein 9 (dCas9), is reported. dCas9 protein is immobilized on the sensor surface and complexed with a specific single‐guide RNA, enabling the amplification‐free detection of target sequences within genomic DNA. The sensor, termed CRISPR‐SPR‐Chip, is used to successfully analyze recombinant plasmids with only three‐base mutations with a limit of detection as low as 1.3 fM. Real‐time monitoring CRISPR‐SPR‐Chip is used to analyze clinical samples of patients with Duchenne muscular dystrophy with two exon deletions, which are detected without any pre‐amplification step, yielding significantly positive results within 5 min. The ability of this novel CRISPR‐empowered SPR (CRISPR‐eSPR) sensing platform to rapidly, precisely, sensitively, and specifically detect a target gene sequence provides a new on‐chip optic approach for clinical gene analysis.

Vulnerable atherosclerotic plaques of the artery wall that pose a significant risk of cardio-cerebral vascular accidents remain the global leading cause of morbidity and mortality. Thus, early delineation of vulnerable atherosclerotic plaques is of clinical importance for prevention and treatment. The currently available imaging technologies mainly focus on the structural assessment of the vascular wall. Unfortunately, several disadvantages in these strategies limit the improvement in imaging effect. Nanoparticle technology is a novel diagnostic strategy for targeting and imaging pathological biomarkers. New functionalized nanoparticles that detect hallmarks of vulnerable plaques are promising for advance further control of this critical illness. The review aims to address the current opportunities and challenges for the use of nanoparticle technology in imagining vulnerable plaques.

The vitamin D receptor (VDR) is a transcription factor that mediates a variety of biological functions of 1,25-dihydroxyvitamin D3. Although there is growing evidence of cytological and animal studies supporting the suppressive role of VDR in cancers, the conclusion is still controversial in human cancers and no systematic pan-cancer analysis of VDR is available. We explored the relationships between VDR expression and prognosis, immune infiltration, tumor microenvironment, or gene set enrichment analysis (GSEA) in 33 types of human cancers based on multiple public databases and R software. Meanwhile, the expression and role of VDR were experimentally validated in papillary thyroid cancer (PTC). VDR expression decreased in 8 types and increased in 12 types of cancer compared with normal tissues. Increased expression of VDR was associated with either good or poor prognosis in 13 cancer types. VDR expression was positively correlated with the infiltration of cancer-associated fibroblasts, macrophages, or neutrophils in 20, 12, and 10 cancer types respectively and this correlation was experimentally validated in PTC. Increased VDR expression was associated with increased percentage of stromal or immune components in tumor microenvironment (TME) in 24 cancer types. VDR positively and negatively correlated genes were enriched in immune cell function and energy metabolism pathways, respectively, in the top 9 highly lethal tumors. Additionally, VDR expression was increased in PTC and inhibited cell proliferation and migration. In conclusion, VDR is a potential prognostic biomarker and positively correlated with immune infiltration as well as stromal or immune components in TME in multiple human cancers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Near-infrared (NIR)-light-triggered photothermal therapy (PTT) is a promising treatment for breast cancer. However, its therapeutic efficiency is often compromised due to the heatinduced up-regulation of heat shock proteins, which confer photothermal resistance. To solve this urgent problem, PEGylated two-dimensional boron nanosheets (B-PEG)--which allow both multimodal imaging and photothermal conversion--were loaded with gambogic acid (GA), which can inhibit heat shock protein 90 (Hsp90). Experimental findings indicated that this combination of B-PEG and GA could serve as an integrated drug delivery system for cancer diagnosis and treatment. It could be used to administer mild PTT as well as chemotherapy for breast cancer, provide improved anti-tumor effects, and reduce the toxicity of PTT, all while inhibiting breast cancer growth. This drug delivery system could offer a novel tool for administering chemotherapy combined with PTT while avoiding the adverse effects of traditional PTT. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Differentiated thyroid carcinoma (DTC) is the most common endocrine malignancy and highly expresses the receptor for 1,25-dihydroxyvitamin D (1,25(OH)2D). However, it is unclear whether 1,25(OH)2D regulates DTC proliferation and differentiation. Here, we found that 1,25(OH)2D3 inhibited proliferation but not differentiation of the DTC cells. Notably, CYP27B1 was elevated in DTC cells and 25-hydroxyvitamin D3 (25(OH)D3) reduced DTC cell proliferation. Knockdown of VDR did not affect the anti-proliferative effects of 1,25(OH)2D3. However, knockdown of CCAAT enhancer-binding protein β (C/EBPβ) abolished 1,25(OH)2D3-suppressed DTC cell proliferation. In addition, 1,25(OH)2D3 induced phosphorylation and translocation of C/EBPβ to the nucleus from the cytoplasm. However, inhibition of p38 mitogen-activated protein kinases (MAPK) abrogated 1,25(OH)2D3- induced phosphorylation and nuclear translocation of C/EBPβ as well as 1,25(OH)2D3- suppressed DTC cell proliferation. Knockdown of C/EBPβ reduced the expression of Notch3. Knockdown of Notch3 blocked 1,25(OH)2D3-suppressed DTC cell proliferation. In the DTC cell-derived xenograft SCID mouse, knockdown of C/EBPβ markedly increased tumor growth and proliferation and decreased apoptosis. In DTC patients, C/EBPβ was predominantly located in the cytoplasm of DTC cells in the tumor tissue when compared with adjacent non-cancerous tissue in which C/EBPβ is located in the nucleus. In conclusion, C/EBPβ stimulated Notch3 signaling via the p38 MAPK-dependent pathway mediates the inhibitory effect of 1,25(OH)2D on DTC cell proliferation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]