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BACKGROUND: Saliva has a crucial role in determining the compatibility between piercing–sucking insects and their hosts. The brown planthopper (BPH) Nilaparvata lugens, a notorious pest of rice in East and Southeast Asia, secretes gelling and watery saliva when feeding on rice sap. Nlsalivap‐5 (NlSP5) and Nlsalivap‐7 (NlSP7) were identified as potential planthopper‐specific gelling saliva components, but their biological functions remain unknown. RESULTS: Here, we showed by transcriptomic analyses that NlSP5 and NlSP7 were biasedly expressed in the salivary glands of BPHs. Using the clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats (CRISPR)/Cas9‐mediated genome‐editing system, we constructed NlSP5 and NlSP7 homozygous mutants (NlSP5−/− and NlSP7−/−). Electrical penetration graph assay showed that NlSP5−/− and NlSP7−/− mutants exhibited abnormal probing and feeding behaviors. Bioassays revealed that the loss‐of‐function of NlSP5 and NlSP7 significantly reduced the fitness of BPHs, with extended developmental duration, shortened lifespan, reduced weight, and impaired fecundity and hatching rates. CONCLUSION: These findings deepen our understanding of the BPH–host interaction and may provide potential targets for the management of rice planthoppers. © 2024 Society of Chemical Industry. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Cancer immunotherapy has the potential to revolutionize the treatment of malignant tumors, but its effectiveness is limited by the low immune response rate and immune‐related adverse events. Pyroptosis, as an inflammatory programmed cell death type, triggers strong acute inflammatory response and antitumor immunity, converting "cold" tumors to "hot". Particularly, biomaterials loading pyroptosis inducers targeting the tumor microenvironment to engineer pyroptosis, have achieved great progress in recent years. Herein, the design strategy, mechanism pathway, and role of biomaterials to induce pyroptosis in cancer immunotherapy are comprehensively reviewed. The present review focuses on the application of biomaterials‐induced pyroptosis in cancer immunotherapy, including nanogel, polymer prodrug, nanovesicle, and mesoporous material. Additionally, the synthesis of a series of stimuli‐responsive nanoplatforms, including glutathione‐responsive, pH‐responsive, reactive oxygen species‐responsive, and enzyme‐mimicking catalytic performance, is described. Meanwhile, it augments multiple immune response processes of cell uptake, antigen presentation, T‐cell activation, and expansion. Finally, the perspectives of pyroptosis‐mediated inflammation to break through the tumor vascular basement membrane barrier achieving efficient volcanic penetration of biomaterials are discussed. Artificial intelligence, multi‐omics analysis, and anthropogenic animal models of organoids are presented, aiming to provide guidance and assistance for constructing effective and controllable pyroptosis‐engineered biomaterials and improving tumor immunotherapy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The forkhead box O (FoxO) protein is the main transcriptional effector downstream of the insulin/insulin‐like signaling pathway and regulates many developmental and physiological processes. Holometabolous insects with loss‐of‐function mutations in FoxO exhibit phenotypes distinct from those of hemimetabolous insects in which RNA interference was used. Despite the functional importance of FoxO, whether hemimetabolous insects share an evolutionally conserved function of FoxO with holometabolous insects remains to be clarified. We used the clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats/CRISPR‐associated 9 (CRISPR/Cas9) genome editing‐system to establish a homozygous FoxO‐null mutant (NlFoxO4E) of the wing‐dimorphic brown planthopper (BPH) Nilaparvata lugens, an economically important insect pest of rice fields. The phenotypes of NlFoxO4E mutants included extended nymphal duration, shortened lifespan, reduced reproduction, and decreased stress resistance. In addition, depletion of NlFoxO promoted cell proliferation in wing buds and led to 100% long‐winged morphs, in stark contrast to short‐winged wild‐type BPHs. These findings indicate that NlFoxO is highly functionally conserved with its counterpart in holometabolous insects, and is required for optimal fitness of N. lugens. The insights from FoxO studies may facilitate the identification of potential target genes for BPH control applications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background and aims: The early diagnosis and intervention of oesophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC) are particularly important because of the lack of effective therapies and poor prognosis. Comprehensive research on early ESCC at the single‐cell level is rare due to the need for fresh and high‐quality specimens obtained from ESD. This study aims to systematically describe the cellular atlas of human intramucosal ESCC. Methods: Five paired samples of intramucosal ESCC, para‐ESCC oesophageal tissues from endoscopically resected specimens and peripheral blood mononuclear cells were adopted for scRNA‐seq analysis. Computational pipeline scMetabolism was applied to quantify the metabolic diversity of single cells. Results: A total of 164 715 cells were profiled. Epithelial cells exhibited high intra‐tumoural heterogeneity and two evolutionary trajectories during ESCC tumorigenesis initiated from proliferative cells, and then through an intermediate state, to two different terminal states of normally differentiated epithelial cells or malignant cells, respectively. The abundance of CD8+ TEXs, Tregs and PD1+CD4+T cells suggested an exhausted and suppressive immune microenvironment. Several genes in immune cells, such as CXCL13, CXCR5 and PADI4, were identified as new biomarkers for poor prognosis. A new subcluster of malignant cells associated with metastasis and angiogenesis that appeared at an early stage compared with progressive ESCC was also identified in this study. Intercellular interaction analysis based on ligand–receptor pairs revealed the subcluster of malignant cells interacting with CAFs via the MDK–NCL pathway, which was verified by cell proliferation assay and IHC. This indicates that the interaction may be an important hallmark in the early change of tumour microenvironment and serves as a sign of CAF activation to stimulate downstream pathways for facilitating tumour invasion. Conclusion: This study demonstrates the changes of cell subsets and transcriptional levels in human intramucosal ESCC, which may provide unique insights into the development of novel biomarkers and potential intervention strategies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

BACKGROUND: The migratory brown planthopper (BPH), Nilaparvata lugens (Hemiptera: Delphacidae), is the most destructive pest affecting rice plants in Asia and feeds exclusively on rice. Studies have investigated the olfactory response of BPHs to the major rice volatile compounds in rice. The insect olfactory co‐receptor (Orco) is a crucial component of the olfactory system and is essential for odorant detection. Functional analysis of the Orco gene in BPHs would aid in the identification of their host preference. RESULTS: We identified the BPH Orco homologue (NlOrco) by Blast searching the BPH transcriptome with the Drosophila Orco gene sequence. Spatiotemporal analysis indicated that NlOrco is first expressed in the later egg stage, and is expressed mainly in the antennae in adult females. A NlOrco‐knockout line (NlOrco−/−) was generated through clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats (CRISPR)/Cas9‐mediated mutagenesis. The NlOrco−/− mutants showed no response to rice volatile compounds and consequently no host‐plant preference. In addition, NlOrco−/− mutants exhibited extended nymphal duration and impaired fecundity compared with wild‐type BPHs. CONCLUSION: Our findings indicated that BPHs exhibit strong olfactory responses to major rice volatile compounds and suggest that NlOrco is required for the maximal fitness of BPHs. Our results may facilitate the identification of potential target genes or chemical compounds for BPH control applications. © 2022 Society of Chemical Industry. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: To summarize the endoscopic and clinicopathological features of gastric adenocarcinoma of the fundic gland type (GA‐FG), and to evaluate the efficacy and safety of endoscopic submucosal dissection (ESD) for the treatment of GA‐FGs. Methods: From September 2017 to August 2021, patients treated with ESD who were pathologically confirmed to have GA‐FGs were included. Those with lymphovascular and distal metastasis were excluded before ESD. The medical records were retrospectively reviewed to obtain information regarding patient demographics, clinicopathological characteristics, tumor features, complete resection rate, and complications, etc. All patients underwent follow‐up for at least 12 months to evaluate any local recurrence or distant metastasis. Results: A total of 15 patients with an average age of 56.9 ± 10.7 years were recruited, including 11 men and 4 women. Lesions were found at the upper third (13 [86.7%]) or middle third (2 [13.3%]) of the stomach. The average lesion size was 9.1 ± 4.8 mm. Macroscopically, lesions presented as a flat elevated type with reddish or erosion on top (n = 7, 46.7%), depressed type with pale color (n = 5, 33.3%), or submucosal tumor (SMT)‐like appearance type (n = 3, 20.0%). En bloc resection, complete resection and curative resection were achieved in 14 (93.3%), 13 (86.7%), and 11 (73.3%) patients, respectively. Nine (60.0%) of the lesions had submucosal invasion. One patient underwent additional surgery. No local recurrence or metastasis was detected during the follow‐up duration. Conclusions: GA‐FGs present with various endoscopic features. ESD appears to be effective and safe for treating early‐stage GA‐FGs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The homeotic complex gene Abdominal‐B (Abd‐B) is involved in regulating the development of posterior abdomens and has been extensively studied in holometabolous insects. However, the function of Abd‐B in hemimetabolous insects is not fully understood. Here, we functionally characterize an Abd‐B homologue in the brown planthopper (BPH), Nilaparvata lugens. The full‐length cDNA of the N. lugens Abd‐B homologue (NlAbd‐B) is 2334 nt, with an open reading frame of 1113 bp. NlAbd‐B has the highest expression level at the egg stage relative to the nymphal and adult stages and is mainly expressed in the fourth to the ninth abdominal segment of embryos. RNA interference (RNAi)‐mediated knockdown of NlAbd‐B in nymphs disrupted the development of genitalia both in females and males and caused a genitalia‐to‐leg transformation. Parental RNAi of NlAbd‐B in both female and male adults caused an extra abdominal segment in offspring nymphs, while parental RNAi of the N. lugens abdominal‐A homologue in both female and males adults led to embryos with leg‐like appendages on the second to the eighth abdominal segment. These findings suggest that NlAbd‐B plays a pivotal role in genital development and posterior abdominal patterning and thus highlight the conservational role of Abd‐B in holometabolous and hemimetabolous insects. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background and Aim: Developments of endoscopic techniques brought the possibility of endoscopic resection for gastrointestinal stromal tumors (GISTs) of larger sizes. We aim to compare safety and short‐term outcomes between endoscopic and laparoscopic resections of gastric GISTs with a diameter of 2–5 cm. Methods: This is a single‐center, retrospective cohort study. The clinical data, perioperative conditions, and the adverse events of patients who underwent endoscopic or laparoscopic resection for gastric GIST of 2–5 cm in Zhongshan Hospital, Fudan University, from January 2016 to December 2020 were retrospectively reviewed. Results: A total of 346 patients were reviewed; 12 patients who failed to accomplish the planned procedure were excluded; 182 underwent laparoscopic resection; and 152 underwent endoscopic resection. Significant differences exist in the tumor size between the laparoscopic group (3.43 ± 0.86 cm) and the endoscopic group (2.78 ± 0.73 cm) (P < 0.01). Compared with laparoscopic resection, endoscopic resection was associated with faster recovery (P < 0.01), shorter hospital stays (P < 0.01), and lower cost (P < 0.01). The incidence of Clavien–Dindo grade II–V adverse events in the endoscopic group (3/152) was significantly lower than that in the laparoscopic group (12/182) (P = 0.04). After a propensity score matching analysis, the endoscopic group showed similar incidences of complications with the laparoscopic group, while the advantages over laparoscopic resection in postoperative hospital stay, time to first oral intake, and hospitalization expenses remained significant (P < 0.01). Conclusions: Endoscopic resection is a safe and cost‐effective method for 2–5 cm of gastric GISTs compared with laparoscopic resection. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An efficient rhodium(III)‐catalyzed site‐selective functionalization of 4‐anilinoquinazolines offers exciting possibilities for fused polycyclic 4‐anilinoquinazoline derivatives and N‐quinazoline‐indoles by using diazo compounds as the elegant coupling partners. This one‐pot cascade approach to establish various complex 4‐anilinoquinazoline units with potential biological activities only depends on substrates and additives. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Uridine diphosphate (UDP)‐glycosyltransferases (UGTs) are widely distributed within living organisms and share roles in biotransformation of various lipophilic endo‐ and xenobiotics with activated UDP sugars. In this study, it was found that the activity of UGTs in abamectin‐resistant (AbR) strain was significantly higher (2.35‐fold) than that in susceptible strain (SS) of Tetranychus cinnabarinus. Further analysis showed that 5‐nitrouracil, the inhibitor of UGTs, could enhance the lethal effect of abamectin on mites. From the previous microarray results, we found an UGT gene (UGT201D3) overexpressed in AbR strain. Quantitative PCR analysis showed that UGT201D3 was highly expressed and more inducible with abamectin exposure in the AbR strain. After silencing the transcription of UGT201D3, the activity of UGTs was decreased and the susceptibility to abamectin was increased in AbR strain whereas it was not in SS. Furthermore, UGT201D3 gene was then successfully expressed in Escherichia coli. The recombinant UGT201D3 exhibited α‐naphthol activity (2.81 ± 0.43 nmol/mg protein/min), and the enzyme activity could be inhibited by abamectin (inhibitory concentration at 50%: 57.50 ± 3.54 μmol/L). High‐performance liquid chromatography analysis demonstrated that the recombinant UGT201D3 could effectively deplete abamectin (15.77% ± 3.72%) incubating with 150 μg protein for 6 h. These results provided direct evidence that UGT201D3 was involved in abamectin resistance in T. cinnabarinus. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Although sensitive antibiotic (meropenem) was administrated to the patient at the early stage of septic shock, his symptoms were not improved, even deteriorated, due to the source of the infection (the hematoma). D, A bedside colonoscopy on postoperative day 2 showed a hematoma in the sigmoid colon incision, and E,F, was successfully treated with electrocoagulation hemostasis gl The patient suffered from shivering and mild fever (37.5°C) on postoperative day (POD) 1 in the absence of abdominal pain. To the Editor, The incidence of transient bacteremia associated with endoscopic mucosal resection (EMR) or endoscopic submucosal dissection (ESD) for the treatment of colonic lesions has been reported to be approximately 2.5%, but none of the patients present with any infection-related symptoms or signs.1 Here we reported a patient with severe septic shock after colonoscopic polypectomy. [Extracted from the article]

This paper is about aspects of an optimal relationship between 2 firms, a supplier and a retailer, in a 2-party supply chain. The focus is on sharing private information when demand uncertainty exists so as to better coordinate the supply chain. It draws inspiration from a real case in Ireland of a new fish-processing company, Oceanpath, and a supermarket chain, Superquinn, in which information was shared. The argument is that sharing the retailer's information increases supply chain profit, as well as benefiting consumers. Profit sharing will be needed to guarantee that both the retailer and the supplier gain when information is shared. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To promote continuous phototrphic H2 production with photosynthetic bacteria, an innovative annular optical fiber illuminating bioreactor for both biofilm formation and light transmission was developed. Steady biofilm of indigenous photosynthetic bacteria Rhodopseudomonas palustris was successfully obtained on the surface of side-glowing optical fiber. With the sufficient light supply and uniform light distribution, strategies on improvement of continuous hydrogen production and light energy conversion were then investigated. Hydrogen production rate of 0.85 mmol g−1h−1 and Light conversion efficiency of 47.1% were attained under operating conditions of monochromatic light illumination at 530 nm with light intensity of 19.5 μmol photos m−2s−1, hydraulic retention time of 5 h and initial pH of 7.0. © 2015 American Institute of Chemical Engineers Environ Prog, 35: 455-460, 2016 [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]