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The Space Radiobiological Exposure Facility (SREF) is a general experimental facility at the China Space Station for scientific research in the fields of space radiation protection, space radiation biology, biotechnology, and the origin of life. The facility provides an environment with controllable temperatures for experiments with organic molecules and model organisms such as small animals, plant seeds, and microorganisms. The cultivation of small animals can be achieved in the facility with the use of microfluidic chips and images and videos of such experiments can be captured by microscopy. SREF also includes a linear energy transfer (LET) detector, neutron detectors, and a solar ultraviolet (UV) detector to measure the LET spectrum of the charged particles, energy spectrum and dose equivalent of neutrons, and fluence of solar UV radiation, respectively. The facility is reusable, and the model organisms from the first exposure experiment were recovered in orbit and returned to the ground for further study.

Hydrogels made of plant-derived biomass have gained popularity in biomedical applications because they are frequently affordable, readily available, and biocompatible. Finding the perfect plant-derived biomass-based hydrogels for biomedicine that can replicate essential characteristics of human tissues in regard to structure, function, and performance has proved to be difficult. In this review, we summarize some of the major contributions made to this topic, covering basic ideas and different biomass-based hydrogels made of cellulose, hemicellulose, and lignin. Also included is an in-depth discussion regarding the biosafety and toxicity assessments of biomass-based hydrogels. Finally, this review also highlights important scientific debates and major obstacles regarding biomass-based hydrogels for biomedical applications.

N6-methyladenosine (m6A) plays a role in the development of tumors. However, the specific role of VIRMA, an RNA methyltransferase, in pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) remains unclear. This study shows that VIRMA expression is elevated in PDAC. Increased VIRMA levels promoted PDAC growth and spread, while reducing VIRMA expression slowed these processes. VIRMA facilitated SLC43A2 mRNA degradation through an m6A-YTHDF2 pathway. The resulting decrease in SLC43A2 reduced phenylalanine absorption and oxidative stress, further driving PDAC progression. Furthermore, alcohol increased C/EBP β expression, which bound to VIRMA's promoter, enhancing its transcription. These findings suggest a connection between alcohol consumption, m6A modifications, and phenylalanine absorption in PDAC progression, offering a new approach to combat this disease.

The excessive nutrient loading in lakes and reservoirs poses significant threats to water quality and ecological health, especially under the influence of global climate change and intensified human activities. This study focuses on the long-term trends in nutrient content and ratios, as well as their driving factors in six major lakes and reservoirs (Chaohu Lake, Danjiangkou Reservoir, Dianchi Lake, Dongtinghu Lake, Poyanghu Lake, and Taihu Lake) within the Yangtze River Catchment from 2002 to 2021. Utilizing Redundancy Analysis, Random Forest and Generalized Additive Model, we identify the shifts in natural and socio-economic factors influencing nutrient concentrations and predict future trends under various scenarios. The main driving factors of nutrient content and their ratios have undergone significant changes at different historical stages, with livestock poultry breeding (LPB) and hydraulic retention time (Res_time) being consistently influential. Our findings highlight the dominant role of livestock and poultry breeding and hydraulic retention time in shaping TN content, whereas TP levels are significantly affected by both natural factors (Temperature and Rainfall) and socio-economic activities. Scenario analyses reveal that despite improvements in water management, nutrient loads remain high, posing ongoing risks of eutrophication. Future lakes nutrient content can meet existing water quality standards under socio-economic development scenarios that significantly reduce hydraulic retention time and the contributions of livestock poultry breeding and other socio-economic drivers.

This study investigates the therapeutic potential of theabrownin, a polymer from Tibetan tea, in reducing ethanol-induced developmental abnormalities using a zebrafish model. Zebrafish embryos were pretreated with varying concentrations of theabrownin before ethanol exposure, followed by an assessment of their developmental morphology, oxidative stress markers, and metabolic pathways. The 100 µg/mL dose yielded the most significant reduction in malformations, while the 50 µg/mL and 200 µg/mL doses also demonstrated moderate improvements. Mechanistic analysis showed that theabrownin significantly decreased reactive oxygen species, enhanced the activities of antioxidant enzymes such as superoxide dismutase and catalase, and reduced malondialdehyde levels, alleviating oxidative stress. Furthermore, metabolomic profiling revealed that theabrownin modulates the metabolism of phosphatidylethanolamine, phosphatidylglycerol, phosphatidylinositol, leucine, and proline-metabolites essential for maintaining cellular homeostasis. These findings highlight the potential of theabrownin as a therapeutic agent for preventing the harmful effects of prenatal alcohol exposure.

To assess the inherent effects of light-dark cycle on the aniline degradation and nitrogen removal in algal-bacterial symbiotic system, three groups with different photoperiods (0L:12D;6L:6D;12L:0D) were set up. The results revealed that the aniline degradation rate of the three systems all surpassed 99 %, the total nitrogen removal rate of Z2-6L:6D was approximately 36 % higher than Z1-0L:12D eventually, the Z1-0L:12D was restrained by NH4+-N assimilation and nitrification while anoxic denitrification in Z3-12L:0D. The disappearance of microalgae biomass was accompanied by the sharp decreased of polysaccharide in Z1 and longer illumination suppressed the secretion of extracellular polymeric substances, the Z3 yielded slightly superior biomass production despite the double illumination compared with Z2. Moreover, high throughput sequencing analysis illustrated that the microbial community structure in Z2 was more abundant and even than Z3, the TM7a, norank_f__norank_o__Saccharimonadales, Ellin6067 and Scenedesmus proliferated wildly and the photoinhibition to functional genus was effectively alleviated in Z2.

A micropore confinement and fusion strategy is proposed to eliminate the interfacial mismatch and achieve molecular-level integrated catalysis interfaces for long-life all-solid-state Li–S batteries.

Poncirin (PO) is a citrus flavonoid with various of functional effect including cardiac ischemia-reperfusion injury, colitis, cancer, et al. Considering the role of PO in improving inflammation and lipid metabolism, it may have potential therapeutic effects on alcoholic liver injury (ALI), but there are currently no relevant reports.Current study aimed to explore the protective effect of PO on preventing ALI.A chronic ethanol-fed mice was used as ALI-mice model and ethanol-induced mouse primary hepatocytes (MPHs) as ALI-cells model. Multiple molecular biology analysis methods are used to evaluate PO's efficacy.Both in vivo and in vitro, PO improved the inflammatory response and lipid deposition induced by ethanol. According to RNA-seq analysis, Peroxisome proliferator activated receptor alpha (PPARα) had been found as a potential target, followed by the experiment validation using Cellular Thermal Shift Assay (CETSA), Western bolt analysis as well as qPCR analysis. In addition, the protective effect of PO was reduced or disappeared in PPARα-/- ALI mice, both in vivo and in vitro.This is the first study to evaluate the role of PO in preventing ALI by targeting lipid metabolism and the inflammatory response by partly targeting the PPARα pathway, providing a fundamental basis for the use of PO as a functional food to alleviate ALI.