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In recent years, exploring the physical mechanisms of brain functions has been a hot topic in the fields of nonlinear dynamics and complex networks, and many important achievements have been made, mainly based on the characteristic features of time series of human brain. To speed up the further study of this problem, herein we make a brief review on these important achievements, which includes the aspects of explaining: (i) the mechanism of brain rhythms by network synchronization, (ii) the mechanism of unihemispheric sleep by chimera states, (iii) the fundamental difference between the structural and functional brain networks by remote synchronization, (iv) the mechanism of stronger detection ability of human brain to weak signals by remote firing propagation, and (v) the mechanism of dementia patterns by eigen‐microstate analysis. As a brief review, we will mainly focus on the aspects of basic ideas, research histories, and key results but ignore the tedious mathematical derivations. Moreover, some outlooks will be discussed for future studies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Pathogens causing major infectious diseases primarily invade through mucosal tissues. Promptly killing these pathogens at the mucosal site and constructing mucosal vaccines in situ can prevent further infections and induce robust mucosal immune responses and memory to prevent reinfection. In this study, we utilized chemotherapy, sonodynamic therapy, and gas therapy to eliminate Streptococcus pneumoniae (S. pneumoniae) colonizing the nasal mucosa. Simultaneously, an in situ pneumococcal vaccine was constructed to elicit specific immune responses and memory. Poly-l-arginine (PArg)-modified ZIF-8 metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) loaded with the ultrasonic sensitizer protoporphyrin IX (PpIX) killed S. pneumoniae in the nasal cavity by multiple mechanisms in the presence of ultrasound. When stimulated by ultrasound, PpIX not only generates reactive oxygen species (ROS) for antimicrobial effect, but these ROS also catalyze the release of nitric oxide (NO) from PArg. NO exerts a motor-like effect that facilitates more efficient passage of nanoparticles through the mucus layer of the alveoli. The immunogenic bacterial debris formed a vaccine formulation by complexing with PArg, which adhered electrostatically to the mucosal surface, facilitating in situ vaccination and inducing mucosal immune responses and memory. This cascade-based combination therapy enabled rapid bacterial eradication and long-term immune prevention. It shortens the traditional vaccine development process, eliminates the spatial distance from pathogen invasion to vaccine development, significantly cuts costs, and addresses vaccine failure due to pathogen mutations. This approach offers a groundbreaking strategy for mucosal vaccine development and the prevention of major infectious diseases., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare no conflict of interest., (Copyright © 2025. Published by Elsevier Ltd.)

Wound infections are one of the major threats to human health, accounting for millions of deaths annually. Real-time monitoring, accurate diagnosis, and on-demand therapy are crucial to minimizing complications and saving lives. Herein, we propose a "monitor-and-treat" strategy for infected wound management by integrating the emerging development of bacterio-therapeutics and bio-optics. The upper layer consists of gelatin methacryloyl (GelMA)-collagen III methacryloyl (Col 3 MA) (GC), Reuterin (Reu) isolated from the probiotic Lactobacillus reuteri (L. reuteri) and microfluidic safflower polysaccharide (SPS)@GelMA microspheres using 3D printing technology. The lower layer is made of acryloylated glycine (ACG) hydrogel with tissue adhesion capability, which enables the hydrogel to adapt to the movement and stretching of the skin. By integrating temperature-sensitive polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) optical fibers, the ACG-GC/Reu/SPS-PDMS hydrogel could accurately and steadily sense and send wound temperature information to intelligent devices for real-time monitoring of the healing status ("monitor"). The double-layered hydrogel not only inhibited bacterial survival and colonization (97.4 % against E. coli and 99 % against S. aureus ), but also exhibited remarkable hemostatic properties. Furthermore, it was conducive to L929 cell proliferation and pro-angiogenesis, and promoted the polarization of pro-inflammatory M1 macrophages to the anti-inflammatory M2-phenotype, therefore creating a favorable immune microenvironment at the wound site. Animal experiments using SD rats and Bama minipigs demonstrated that this hydrogel promoted wound closure, directed polarization to M2 macrophages, alleviated inflammation, enhanced neovascularization, therefore accelerating infected wound healing ("treat"). In addition, RNA-Seq analysis revealed the mechanism of action of ACG-GC/Reu/SPS-PDMS hydrogel in modulating key signaling pathways, including down-regulation of AMPK, IL-17, and NF-κB signaling pathways, activation of NLRP3 inflammatory vesicles, and enrichment of MAPK, TGF-β, PI3K-Akt, TNF, and VEGF signaling pathways. The modulation of these signaling pathways suggests that hydrogels play an important role in the molecular mechanisms that promote wound healing and tissue regeneration. Therefore, the design of this study provides an innovative and multifunctional bandage strategy that can significantly improve pathologic diagnosis and wound treatment., Competing Interests: The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (© 2025 The Authors.)

Inadequate antigen capture and insufficient antigen-presenting cell (APC) activity at tumor sites limit the effectiveness of in situ vaccines. To address this, poly(glutamic acid-cholinephosphate) (pGluCP) is introduced as a polymer with cell membrane adhesion properties capable of capturing both water-soluble and insoluble membrane antigens from necrotic tumor cells while recruiting more APCs. The approach uses manganese-mineralized black phosphorus (MnBP) coated with pGluCP and αPD-1 antibodies to create the MnBP@pGluCP-αPD-1 complex for in situ vaccines. MnBP eradicates tumor cells via photothermal effects, releasing antigens, while Mn 2 ⁺ ions activate the intracellular STING pathway, acting as an adjuvant. pGluCP captures these antigens, forming pathogen-mimicking micro-nanoparticles, leading to an in situ vaccine (MnBP@pGluCP/antigens) that co-localizes antigens and adjuvants. The αPD-1 antibody alleviates tumor-induced immune suppression, enhancing tumor cell-specific killing. This study demonstrates the potential of leveraging cholinephosphate-cell membrane interactions to improve antigen presentation efficiency, significantly bolstering the efficacy of in situ tumor vaccines and opening new avenues for advanced cancer immunotherapy., (© 2025 Wiley‐VCH GmbH.)

Bromodomain-containing protein 4 ( BRD4 ) is a key protein that drives the development of malignant melanoma and is closely associated with the ferroptosis signaling pathway. Degradation of BRD4 can downregulate the expression of ferroptosis-related genes such as GPX4, thereby promoting tumor-specific ferroptosis. Therefore, targeting BRD4 for degradation is a promising strategy for inhibiting tumor growth. We constructed a PROTAC drug-based tumor antigen capture system to protect the activity of antigen-presenting cells (APCs) and promote antigen capture. The selected PROTAC drug (ARV-825) can specifically degrade BRD4 without harming immune cells. Specifically, magnetic nanoclusters (MNC) coated with calcium-doped manganese carbonate (Ca/MnCO 3 ), were used to load PROTAC drug (ARV-825) and anti-PD1, forming the MNC@Ca/MnCO 3 /ARV/anti-PD1 system. ARV-825 can specifically degrade BRD4 and GPX4, significantly inducing ferroptosis in tumor cells and releasing tumor-associated antigens. The MNC@Ca/MnCO 3 particles, with their large specific surface area, adsorbed the tumor antigens, preventing antigen loss and enhancing antigen presentation. Additionally, Mn 2+ served as an adjuvant to promote the maturation and cross-presentation of APCs. Together with the PD1 antibody, this further enhanced the anti-tumor response of the in situ tumor vaccine and reversed the suppressive immune microenvironment. This antigen capture system provides a novel strategy to improve the anti-tumor efficacy of in situ tumor vaccines., Competing Interests: The authors declare no conflict of interest., (© 2025 Published by Elsevier Ltd.)