Engineered oncolytic bacteria are emerging as a promising platform for precision cancer therapy, combining inherent tumor tropism, immunogenicity, and programmable gene control. Advances in synthetic biology now enable inducible and autonomous circuits that sense exogenous inputs (chemical signals or physical signals), bacterial self-cues (quorum sensing, bacterial invasion switches, or nitric oxide-responsive promoters), and tumor-specific pathophysiology (hypoxia, low pH, or lactate). These designs regulate colonization, lysis, and the spatiotemporally confined release of therapeutic cargos—including prodrug-converting enzymes, cytokines, and antibody/nanobody fragments—thereby enhancing antitumor efficacy while limiting off-target toxicity. Beyond monotherapy, oncolytic bacteria integrate with complementary modalities—including immune checkpoint blockade, adoptive cell therapies (CAR-T/NK), radiotherapy/chemotherapy, nanomedicine, and oncolytic viruses—to amplify immune activation and to enable multimodal, synergistic regimens. Concurrently, biosensor modules transform bacterial chassis into programmable “microbial factories” that couple therapy with real-time imaging and adaptive responses within the tumor microenvironment. This review synthesizes design principles for bacterial gene regulation, surveys recent preclinical advances, and highlights emerging combination strategies, while outlining translational considerations for safety, manufacturability, dosing, and patient selection. Together, these developments position engineered oncolytic bacteria as a promising route toward safe, effective, and ultimately personalized bacteria-based cancer therapeutics.

Mitochondrial calcium fluxes serve as pivotal regulators of optimal organellar function and cellular viability, yet the spatiotemporal regulation of nanodomain Ca²⁺ transients at mitochondria–ER contact sites (MERCS) and their integration into adaptive mitochondrial stress signaling remain unresolved. In this study, we employed custom-built high temporal-spatial resolution GI/3D-SIM imaging techniques to achieve nanoscale resolution of calcium transients. We identify that MERCS-localized calcium oscillations gate retrograde stress signaling. Mechanistically, we demonstrate that augmented mitochondria-associated ER membrane (MAMs) connectivity unexpectedly attenuated global mitochondrial Ca²⁺ efflux, which triggering ATF5 shuttling-mediated transcriptional licensing and calcium-sensitive epigenetic reprogramming that synergistically activating stress-resilience programs. Quantitative protein expression and transcriptome analyses confirm that CsA-mediated calcium retention mimics MAMs induction preserves mitochondrial integrity and protecting cells from apoptosis in Aβ1-42-challenged neurons through synchronized UPR^mt activation. Our findings reveal a novel mechanism by which MERCS decode proteotoxic stress into transcriptional and epigenetic adaptations, offering therapeutic potential for neurodegenerative diseases.

Lymphatic malformations (LMs) are debilitating and potentially life-threatening diseases. However, the immune phenotype of circulating cells and underlying molecular mechanisms in LMs remain poorly understood. Here, we performed integrated single-cell RNA, T-cell receptor, and B-cell receptor sequencing (scRNA-seq, scTCR-seq, and scBCR-seq) of peripheral blood and pleural effusion from patients with LMs to delineate their immune landscape. We identified an expansion of pro-inflammatory CD14⁺CD16⁺ monocytes and atypical memory B cells, accompanied by reduced cytotoxic CD8⁺ T and natural killer (NK) cells. Functional analysis revealed impaired antigen processing and presentation in CD14⁺ monocytes, and dysregulated transcription factor activity, potentially driving immune dysfunction. Additionally, LMs exhibited substantial remodeling of TCR and BCR repertoires, with shifts in clonality and diversity. Moreover, the CXCL16–CXCR6 interaction was associated with inflammatory responses, while upregulation of the inhibitory checkpoint HLA-E: CD94-NKG2A potentially contributed to impaired NK cell activity. Finally, we constructed a shared pro-inflammatory monocyte program and revealed S100A8 as a potential therapeutic target for LMs. We further demonstrated that S100A8 pharmacological inhibition could ameliorate the pathological phenotype of LMs. Collectively, our findings delineate cell type-specific immune dysregulation in LMs, offering insights for therapeutic development.

The trophectoderm produced from totipotent blastomeres initiates trophoblast development, while placental deficiencies can cause pregnancy disorders. Yet, a culture system that fully recapitulates the entire placenta development is still lacking, greatly limiting related studies. Here, we captured mouse trophectoderm-like stem cells (TELSCs), which can give rise to all trophoblast lineages and can be applied to generate trophoblast organoids. We achieved the induction and maintenance of TELSCs from totipotent blastomere-like stem cells or early embryos through a Hippo-YAP/Notch-to-TGFβ1 signaling switch. At the molecular level, TELSCs resemble E4.5 trophectoderm and are distinct from all previously known trophoblast-like stem cells. Functionally, TELSCs can generate all trophoblast lineages in both teratoma and chimera assays. We further applied TELSCs to generate trophoblast organoids containing various mature trophoblasts and a self-renewing extraembryonic ectoderm (ExE)-like progenitor population. Interestingly, we observed transiently formed rosette-like structures that rely on Itgb1, which are essential to induce ExE-like progenitors and to generate organoids eventually. Thus, the capture of TELSCs enables comprehensive insights into placental development.