Wearable devices have opened up exciting possibilities for monitoring and managing home health, particularly in the realm of neurological and psychiatric diseases. These devices capture signals related to physiological and behavioral changes, including heart rate, sleep patterns, and motor functions. Their emergence has resulted in significant advancements in the management of such conditions. Traditional clinical diagnosis and assessment methods heavily rely on patient reports and evaluations conducted by healthcare professionals, often leading to a detachment of patients from their home environment and creating additional burdens for both patients and healthcare providers. The increasing popularity of wearable devices offers a potential solution to these challenges. This review focuses on the clinical utility of wearable devices in diagnosing and monitoring neurological and psychiatric diseases. Through research findings and practical examples, we highlight the potential role of wearable devices in diagnosing and monitoring conditions such as autism spectrum disorder, depression, epilepsy, stroke prognosis, Parkinson’s disease, dementia, and other diseases. Additionally, the review discusses the benefits and limitations of wearable devices in clinical applications, while highlighting the challenges they face. Finally, it provides prospects for enhancing the value of wearable devices in the monitoring and diagnosis of neurological and psychiatric diseases.
From degeneration causing intervertebral disc issues to trauma-induced meniscus tears, diverse factors can injure the different types of cartilage. This review highlights adhesives as a promising and rapidly implemented repair strategy. Compared to traditional techniques such as sutures and wires, adhesives offer several advantages. Importantly, they seamlessly connect with the injured tissue, deliver bioactive substances directly to the repair site, and potentially alleviate secondary problems like inflammation or degeneration. This review delves into the cutting-edge advancements in adhesive technology, specifically focusing on their effectiveness in cartilage injury treatment and their underlying mechanisms. We begin by exploring the material characteristics of adhesives used in cartilage tissue, focusing on essential aspects like adhesion, biocompatibility, and degradability. Subsequently, we investigate the various types of adhesives currently employed in this context. Our discussion then moves to the unique role adhesives play in addressing different cartilage injuries. Finally, we acknowledge the challenges currently faced by this promising technology.
Phenotypic switching of smooth muscle cells (SMC) is a crucial process in the pathogenesis of pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH). However, the underlying mechanism is unclear. Here, we performed single-cell RNA sequencing on pulmonary arteries obtained from lung transplantation to explore the cellular heterogeneity and gene expression profile of the main cell types. We identified three distinct SMC phenotypes, namely contractile, fibroblast-like, and chondroid-like, and observed an enhanced transition from contractile to fibroblast-like phenotype in PAH by pseudo-time analysis and in vitro. We also revealed a classically activated (M1) polarization of macrophages and an increased pro-inflammatory macrophage-SMC crosstalk in PAH via intercellular communication. Notably, Nicotinamide phosphoribosyltransferase (NAMPT) emerges as a key player in macrophage polarization. The macrophages overexpress Nampt in Sugen/hypoxia (Su/Hx) -induced PAH mice and significantly downregulate the pro-inflammation secretion pattern with Nampt interference. In a cellular coculture system, Nampt knockdown in macrophages significantly inhibits the fibroblast-like phenotypic switching of SMCs. Finally, we identified Ccl2/5 as a key cytokine for SMC phenotypic modulation. Collectively, these findings provide a cell atlas of normal human pulmonary arteries and demonstrate that NAMPT-driven M1 macrophage polarization promotes the fibroblast-like phenotypic switching of SMCs through CCR2/CCR5 cellular crosstalk in PAH.
Long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) can crucially regulate activation and transformation of cancer-associated fibroblasts (CAFs) but have not been systematically investigated at single cell resolution. Here, by utilizing integrated single-cell sequencing datasets, we screened the aberrantly expressed lncRNAs in CAFs, which are the major component of tumor microenvironment. Our findings revealed a consistent CAF-specific downregulation of Maternally Expressed Gene 3 (MEG3) expression and increased MEG3+ proportion at the pan-cancer level, which may be attributed to m6A-related post-transcriptional modifications. Through activation trajectory analysis of the major CAF subtypes, it was determined that elevated MEG3 expression in CAFs leads to an increase in PDGFRA expression. This, in turn, promotes CAF activation and transformation into an MEG3+ adipogenic CAF (MACAF) subtype, which is more sensitive to Dasatinib. MACAF-related cell–cell interactions highlighted that MACAF could enhance the epithelialmesenchymal transition process in tumor cells via the TGF-β pathway, promoting tumor cell migration and possibly contributing to tumor progression and invasiveness. Notably, patients with higher MACAF scores experience unfavorable prognoses and poor response rates to checkpoint inhibitor-based immunotherapy, suggesting a correlation between MACAF and immunosuppressive microenvironment shaping. Our findings provide novel insights of the MEG3 in CAF activation and highlight the potential value of the MACAF score for therapeutic strategies design involving Dasatinib and immunotherapy.
Nervous system diseases are among the most common diseases globally, posing a severe threat to patients' quality of life and placing a considerable burden on families and society. With improvements in miniaturization, intelligence, and the safety of biosensors, the combination of machinery and organisms is becoming increasingly common. In neuroscience research, biosensors of different macroscopic dimensions have been uniquely utilized to harness their relevant properties. One-dimensional (1D) biosensors can achieve in situ real-time monitoring of neural markers at the subcellular, single-cell, ex vivo, and in vivo levels, with reduced impacts on organisms. Two-dimensional (2D) biosensors can monitor the chemical behavior of cells and the neural activity of living animals. They are helpful for objectively identifying the characteristics of cells in response to external stimuli and studying the neural circuits of living animals. Three-dimensional (3D) biosensors have shown unique advantages in point-of-care testing, liquid biopsy, drug screening, and mechanistic research. In clinical practice, brain-computer interfaces (BCIs) and wearable devices have become important tools for monitoring and treatment. To date, there has been widespread adoption of BCIs in clinical practice. BCIs not only exhibit good efficacy in severe neurological and mental diseases but also provide a method for early diagnosis and treatment of these diseases. Wearable sensor devices can accurately assess the symptoms of movement disorders and play an active role in rehabilitation and treatment. In this review, we summarize the application of advanced biosensors in neuroscience research and clinical practice. The challenges and prospects of biosensors as applied to nervous system diseases under interdisciplinary promotion are also discussed in depth.
Photodynamic and photothermal therapy have emerged as standard treatments for a range of tumors and microvascular diseases. However, a significant gap remains in the clinical availability of photosensitizers. Among the vast array of photosensitizers, hypocrellin–a plant-derived photosensitizing drug–stands out as a potential candidate. It boasts straightforward preparation and purification processes, high phototoxicity, low toxicity in the absence of light, and rapid metabolism within the body. However, hypocrellin's limited water solubility and weak absorption in the phototherapeutic window pose challenges to its use in treating solid tumors. Given the limited number of reviews on this subject, a thorough investigation of hypocrellin is essential. This review focuses on the efforts of scientists to address these challenges through chemical modifications of hypocrellin and its co-assembly with hydrophilic drug delivery vehicles. A notable advantage of hypocrellin over other photosensitizers is its amenability to modification, resulting in pure monomeric derivatives. Recent studies have shown that modifying specific functional groups on hypocrellin's parent ring can yield more potent derivatives, positioning it as a highly promising strategy in tumor therapy. Beyond its therapeutic potential, this review also explores the diverse applications of hypocrellin, including its role in bacterial and fungal inactivation, as well as its efficacy in treating malignant tumors. Additionally, the utilization of nanoparticles as carriers for modified hypocrellin presents new possibilities for clinical applications. This review offers a detailed examination of recent developments in hypocrellin modification, highlighting its potential to advance photodynamic therapy and a wider range of biomedical applications.
Adeno-Associated Virus (AAV) vectors have been found to have great potential in the field of gene therapy due to their unique properties. These nonpathogenic vectors exhibit high tissue specificity, low immunogenicity, and sustained gene expression, enhancing their efficacy for targeted delivery. This review explores the application of AAV vectors in gene therapy. It introduces the application and development of AAV in hemophilia and Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy. The review also highlights the use of AAV vectors in melanoma gene therapy, focusing on four key areas: cancer growth intervention, targeting cancer cells, mediating immune responses, and modulating key signaling pathways. However, despite its many advantages, rAAV faces significant challenges, including host immune responses and biological barriers that limit its effectiveness. Such complexities need to be addressed; therefore, this review also discusses the application of several polymers, such as hydrogels, nanoparticles, and solid scaffolds, in the controlled delivery of AAV.
The burgeoning demand for healthcare monitoring has brought field effect transistor (FET) biosensors into the spotlight as a highly efficient detection technology. FET biosensors offer inherent advantages including high sensitivity, rapid response times, operational simplicity, integrability, and label-free detection. These characteristics render them particularly well-suited for detecting a diverse array of physiological parameters and biomarkers, thereby furnishing real-time data crucial for personalized medicine and disease prevention. This review aims to elucidate recent advancements in FET biosensors within the realm of healthcare management encompassing several facets. Initially, this review systematically analyzes the device architecture, sensing mechanisms, and performance evaluation methods of FET biosensors to gain an in-depth understanding of their operational principles and features. Subsequently, it focuses on the application of FET biosensors for detecting healthrelated biomarkers encompassing nucleic acids, proteins, exosomes, viruses, etc. Lastly, the review presents engineered medical sensor prototypes predicated on FET biosensors, such as point-of-care testing devices, wearable sensors, and implantable sensors, underscoring their practical utility and potential in health management. In addition, the review addresses critical issues and prospects of using FET biosensors in healthcare monitoring, aiming to provide some references and insights for research and innovation in this field.
Circulating tumor cells (CTCs) serve as a pivotal foundation for both fundamental oncological research and the precise evaluation of therapeutic interventions. However, the isolation of CTCs from clinical blood samples presents a multitude of sophisticated challenges, predominantly associated with the specificity of biomarkers and the sensitivity of detection techniques. In our previous study, we proposed a novel detection concept for CTCs based on a signature biophysical feature on the surface of cancer cells: a negative charge regulated by glycolytic processes. In this study, we have conducted experiments to ascertain the efficacy of this proposed method in capturing CTCs from clinical blood samples of individuals afflicted with solid tumors and leukemia. Our findings indicate that the method is capable of isolating tens of thousands of viable cancer cells from various metastatic solid cancers and leukemia using a mere 1 mL of blood. These cells were enumerated using cytological imaging that identified morphological characteristics indicative of malignancy. The outcomes of our study suggest that the negatively charged surface of cancer cells is a ubiquitous trait across both cultured cancer cell lines and fresh blood samples derived from cancer patients. Moreover, the capture technology employed in this study demonstrated superior performance in comparison to antecedent methodologies, enhancing the detection and documentation of CTCs for subsequent verification and analysis. This advancement holds significant promise for the improvement of diagnostic accuracy and the monitoring of therapeutic responses in oncology.