Article
Biology
Maher Alqurashi, Konstantin Momot, Ali Aamry, H. Almohammed, Hussin Aamri, Yehia H. Johary, Fouad A. Abolaban, Abdelmoneim Sulieman
Summary: This research paper introduces a quantitative approach to sensing mammographic density using single-sided portable Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR). The study validates the effectiveness of three main NMR techniques and finds strong correlations and agreements between them in measuring mammographic density.
SAUDI JOURNAL OF BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES
(2022)
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Valeria Stagno, Chiara Genova, Nicole Zoratto, Gabriele Favero, Silvia Capuani
Summary: This study investigated the potential of PVA-borax hydrogel for cleaning limestones and found that the cleaning effectiveness strongly depends on the porosity of the stones. Different responses were observed in Lecce stone, Travertine perpendicular cut, and Travertine parallel cut, suggesting that the effectiveness of the cleaning varies based on the type of rock.
Article
Construction & Building Technology
Jing Li, Sarah Mailhiot, Anu M. Kantola, He Niu, Harisankar Sreenivasan, Ville-Veikko Telkki, Paivo Kinnunen
Summary: Characterizing and understanding the mechanisms underlying geopolymerization are crucial for the widespread commercial production of sustainable construction material. This study used non-destructive H-1 NMR relaxometry to monitor the curing process of metakaolin-based geopolymers. The results showed that the silica-to-alumina ratio (Si/Al) affects the reaction stages of geopolymerization.
CEMENT AND CONCRETE RESEARCH
(2022)
Article
Oncology
Shu Jiang, Debbie L. Bennett, Bernard A. Rosner, Graham A. Colditz
Summary: This study found that the rate of change in breast density was associated with the risk of subsequent breast cancer. Incorporation of longitudinal changes into existing models could optimize risk stratification and guide more personalized risk management.
Review
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Marco Barbieri, Paola Fantazzini, Claudia Testa, Villiam Bortolotti, Fabio Baruffaldi, Feliks Kogan, Leonardo Brizi
Summary: Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR) is a valuable method for studying bone composition and structural properties, offering improved fracture risk estimation. While MRI can assess bone structure, its high cost and limited suitability for routine screening pose challenges.
INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF MOLECULAR SCIENCES
(2021)
Article
Materials Science, Multidisciplinary
Wayne M. Saslow, Chen Sun, Shenglong Xu
Summary: This article extends the concept of spintronics to the longitudinal component of magnetization and introduces the variables of magnetization and spin accumulation. The macroscopic equations are developed using Onsager's irreversible thermodynamics, and the space and time response is studied.
Article
Chemistry, Multidisciplinary
Martin Kunth, Leif Schroeder
Summary: The study simplifies the behavior of spin-spin relaxation rates in different chemical environments using hyperpolarized Xe-129 as a reporter ligand. It was found that even in a diamagnetic system, detection of analyte concentrations can be achieved through large Larmor frequency jumps. This approach provides a way to measure exchange rates even in systems where direct measurements are challenging.
Article
Chemistry, Physical
Sven Bodenstedt, Denis Moll, Stefan Gloeggler, Morgan W. Mitchell, Michael C. D. Tayler
Summary: The method demonstrated quantifies and manipulates nuclear spin decoherence mechanisms in zero to ultralow magnetic fields, including switching spin quantization axis and scalar pathways due to through-bond couplings. Scalar relaxation caused by H-2 near zero field can significantly limit nuclear spin polarization lifetimes. Robust trains of pulsed dc magnetic fields can switch the effective symmetry of the nuclear spin Hamiltonian, broadening the scope of hyperpolarized biomedical contrast-agent compounds used near zero field.
JOURNAL OF PHYSICAL CHEMISTRY LETTERS
(2022)
Article
Materials Science, Paper & Wood
Valeria Stagno, Sara Ricci, Sveva Longo, Elena Verticchio, Francesca Frasca, Anna Maria Siani, Silvia Capuani
Summary: Wood is a hygroscopic material that is affected by moisture, which can be studied using Proton Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR) to understand its behavior. This study aimed to differentiate between softwoods and hardwoods based on NMR relaxation times and found that it is possible to use the relaxation time associated with cell wall bound water as a marker.
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Peter Millington-Hotze, Santanu Manna, Saimon F. Covre da Silva, Armando Rastelli, Evgeny A. Chekhovich
Summary: The spin diffusion in inhomogeneously polarized many-body systems, such as nuclear spin lattices, is described classically by the spin diffusion concept. In this study, the authors directly observed spin diffusion in a single GaAs/AlGaAs quantum dot through oscillatory spin relaxation dynamics and found that electron spin accelerates nuclear spin relaxation, challenging the previously proposed Knight-field-gradient diffusion barrier concept. The findings have significant implications for understanding nuclear spin diffusion in quantum dots.
NATURE COMMUNICATIONS
(2023)
Article
Chemistry, Physical
Boris Kharkov, Xueyou Duan, Jyrki Rantaharju, Mohamed Sabba, Malcolm H. Levitt, James W. Canary, Alexej Jerschow
Summary: This study investigates the lifetime of nuclear spin singlet states and factors affecting its longevity through experimental and computational methods. The results demonstrate that molecular dynamics simulations can accurately account for the observed lifetime without adjustable parameters. The study highlights the significance of considering unusual and difficult-to-control mechanisms as limiting factors for nuclear spin singlet lifetimes and emphasizes the power of molecular dynamics simulations in understanding unknown NMR relaxation mechanisms.
PHYSICAL CHEMISTRY CHEMICAL PHYSICS
(2022)
Article
Nanoscience & Nanotechnology
Neil Robinson, Eric F. May, Michael L. Johns
Summary: Solid-fluid interactions are crucial for porous materials in various chemical processes, but the opaque nature of these systems hinders detailed characterization of interfacial phenomena. A low-magnetic-field two-dimensional H-1 nuclear spin relaxation measurement provides insights into adsorbate identity and interfacial dynamics, showcasing distinct relaxation responses correlated with adsorbate acidity. This approach offers a molecular-level perspective on interactions within optically opaque porous media.
ACS APPLIED MATERIALS & INTERFACES
(2021)
Article
Physics, Fluids & Plasmas
Jae Dong Noh
Summary: The operator growth dynamics of the transverse field Ising spin chain in one dimension was investigated, showing that it follows a universal scaling law influenced by the longitudinal field. Additionally, a crossover scaling law was observed when the longitudinal field is weak, indicating that a uniform longitudinal field induces chaos in the system at any nonzero value. The implications of the crossover scaling on thermalization dynamics and the effect of a nonuniform local longitudinal field were also discussed.
Article
Materials Science, Multidisciplinary
K. Y. Zeng, F. Y. Song, Z. M. Tian, Qiao Chen, Shun Wang, Bo Liu, Shiliang Li, L. S. Ling, W. Tong, Long Ma, Li Pi
Summary: A local probe investigation was conducted on the frustrated antiferromagnet Pr3BWO9 with a distorted kagome lattice, revealing the presence of an unconventional persistent fluctuating paramagnetic ground state and antiferromagnetic collective spin excitations.
Article
Optics
Bowen Song, Yanhua Wang, Nan Zhao
Summary: In this experiment, the dependence of spin exchange rate on the intensity of pumping light was measured at different temperatures under low magnetic fields for the Rb-Xe spin-exchange optical pumping process. It was demonstrated that the spin-exchange rate decreases as the Rb spin polarization increases, in agreement with theoretical predictions. The three spin exchange and relaxation mechanisms were found to have comparable magnitudes in the measurements, providing a comprehensive confirmation of the physical picture of the process.
Review
Anatomy & Morphology
Mohit Kumar Jolly, Ryan J. Murphy, Sugandha Bhatia, Holly J. Whitfield, Andrew Redfern, Melissa J. Davis, Erik W. Thompson
Summary: The epithelial-mesenchymal (E/M) hybrid state plays a significant role in cancer progression, facilitated by epithelial mesenchymal plasticity (EMP). Modeling and validation studies have shown the stabilised E/M hybrid states across the spectrum of EMP, along with computational approaches for characterising EMP phenotypes.
CELLS TISSUES ORGANS
(2022)
Article
Hematology
Piers Blombery, Thomas E. Lew, Michael A. Dengler, Ella R. Thompson, Victor S. Lin, Xiangting Chen, Tamia Nguyen, Ashish Panigrahi, Sasanka M. Handunnetti, Dennis A. Carney, David A. Westerman, Constantine S. Tam, Jerry M. Adams, Andrew H. Wei, David C. S. Huang, John F. Seymour, Andrew W. Roberts, Mary Ann Anderson
Summary: The BCL2 inhibitor venetoclax has therapeutic roles in CLL and AML and can lead to clinical and molecular abnormalities in the myeloid compartment. Mutations in the apoptosis effector BAX may result in resistance to venetoclax. Co-occurrence of BAX mutations with DNMT3A or ASXL1 mutations was observed in clonal hematopoiesis.
Editorial Material
Anatomy & Morphology
Erik W. W. Thompson, Guojun Sheng
CELLS TISSUES ORGANS
(2022)
Article
Radiology, Nuclear Medicine & Medical Imaging
Ashley Wilton Stewart, Simon Daniel Robinson, Kieran O'Brien, Jin Jin, Georg Widhalm, Gilbert Hangel, Angela Walls, Jonathan Goodwin, Korbinian Eckstein, Monique Tourell, Catherine Morgan, Aswin Narayanan, Markus Barth, Steffen Bollmann
Summary: A robust masking technique and reconstruction procedure were developed to automatically separate reliable from less reliable phase regions, operating on two-pass reconstruction to extract more information and suppress streaking artifacts, leading to significant artifact and error reductions, greater anatomical detail, and minimal parameter tuning across a range of acquisitions.
MAGNETIC RESONANCE IN MEDICINE
(2022)
Article
Biology
Maher Alqurashi, Konstantin Momot, Ali Aamry, H. Almohammed, Hussin Aamri, Yehia H. Johary, Fouad A. Abolaban, Abdelmoneim Sulieman
Summary: This research paper introduces a quantitative approach to sensing mammographic density using single-sided portable Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR). The study validates the effectiveness of three main NMR techniques and finds strong correlations and agreements between them in measuring mammographic density.
SAUDI JOURNAL OF BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES
(2022)
Article
Neurosciences
Atena Akbari, Saskia Bollmann, Tonima S. Ali, Markus Barth
Summary: Functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) using blood-oxygenation-level-dependent (BOLD) contrast is a widely used noninvasive method for studying human brain function. However, spatial signal specificity in depth-dependent fMRI can be degraded due to signal leakage. VAscular-Space-Occupancy (VASO) contrast, which measures cerebral blood volume, has shown higher spatial specificity compared to BOLD. In this study, a cortical vascular model was used to predict layer-specific BOLD and VASO responses in the human primary visual cortex, and the model's predictions were compared with experimental results. The results confirmed that VASO is less affected by large vessel effects compared to BOLD.
HUMAN BRAIN MAPPING
(2023)
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Ferran Nadal-Bufi, Lai Y. Chan, Hadi H. Mohammad, Jody M. Mason, Carlos Salomon, Andrew Lai, Erik W. Thompson, David J. Craik, Quentin Kaas, Sonia T. Henriques
Summary: This study reports the first peptide-based LDH5 inhibitor that can modulate cancer metabolism and kill glycolytic cancer cells. The study demonstrates the potential of using peptides as inhibitors of intracellular protein-protein interactions relevant for cancer pathways and shows that active peptides can be rationally designed to improve their cell permeation.
CELLULAR AND MOLECULAR LIFE SCIENCES
(2022)
Article
Engineering, Biomedical
Maria K. Koch, Akhilandeshwari Ravichandran, Berline Murekatete, Julien Clegg, Mary Teresa Joseph, Madison Hampson, Mitchell Jenkinson, Hannah S. Bauer, Cameron Snell, Cheng Liu, Madeline Gough, Erik W. Thompson, Carsten Werner, Dietmar W. Hutmacher, Larisa M. Haupt, Laura J. Bray
Summary: Breast cancer is a complex and dynamic disease, and the leading cause of cancer-related death in women worldwide. Evaluation of breast cancer heterogeneity is crucial for identifying new treatment strategies. A new ex vivo culture model using poly(ethylene glycol) and maleimide-functionalized heparin hydrogels is presented, which allows for the culture of human mammary tissue for up to 3 weeks and maintains the tissue structure and phenotype. The model is relevant for testing therapeutic interventions and highlights the importance of donor-to-donor variability and tissue heterogeneity.
ADVANCED HEALTHCARE MATERIALS
(2023)
Article
Pharmacology & Pharmacy
Nathalie Bock, Farzaneh Forouz, Luke Hipwood, Julien Clegg, Penny Jeffery, Madeline Gough, Tirsa van Wyngaard, Christopher Pyke, Mark N. Adams, Laura J. Bray, Laura Croft, Erik W. Thompson, Thomas Kryza, Christoph Meinert
Summary: 3D organoid model technologies and tunable hydrogel matrices provide innovative tools for cancer precision medicine, specifically for drug testing in breast cancer by mimicking key characteristics of the disease's extracellular matrix.
Review
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Xiaofeng Dai, Erik W. Thompson, Kostya (Ken) Ostrikov
Summary: Cancer cells are more susceptible to abnormal redox fluctuations due to their imbalanced antioxidant system and cell surface receptors can sense stress and trigger intracellular signals. Targeting cell receptors can sensitize cancer cells to specific drugs, but cell receptor mutations are often associated with drug resistance. Therefore, exploring effective therapeutics targeting diverse cell receptors is significant for combating aggressive cancers. Cold atmospheric plasma (CAP) is considered a promising redox modulation medium and highly selective anti-cancer treatment, offering dynamically changing receptor targets and reduced drug resistance against aggressive cancers.
Article
Chemistry, Multidisciplinary
Charlene Waryah, Joseph Cursons, Momeneh Foroutan, Christian Pflueger, Edina Wang, Ramyar Molania, Anabel Sorolla, Christopher Wallis, Colette Moses, Irina Glas, Leandro Magalhaes, Erik W. Thompson, Liam G. Fearnley, Christine L. Chaffer, Melissa Davis, Anthony T. Papenfuss, Andrew Redfern, Ryan Lister, Manel Esteller, Pilar Blancafort
Summary: This work successfully silenced ZEB1 in triple negative breast cancer (TNBC) models through CRISPR/dCas9-mediated epigenetic editing, leading to significant tumor inhibition and the discovery of ZEB1-dependent-signature genes. Epigenetic changes, including reactivation and enhanced chromatin accessibility, were observed in cell adhesion loci, indicating a shift towards a more epithelial state. Silencing of ZEB1 also induced heterochromatin expansion, DNA methylation changes, and chromatin modifications in the ZEB1 promoter. This study demonstrated the potential of epigenome-engineering approaches and customizable precision molecular oncology for targeting poor outcome breast cancers.
Review
Oncology
Charlene Waryah, Eric Alves, Roberta Mazzieri, Riccardo Dolcetti, Erik W. Thompson, Andrew Redfern, Pilar Blancafort
Summary: The article reviews the importance of epithelial plasticity in cancer development, discussing the role of epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition (EMT) in cancer metastasis, drug resistance, etc., and introduces the related regulatory factors and treatment strategies.
Article
Biotechnology & Applied Microbiology
Shengfang Wang, Peiyu Wang, Rik Thompson, Kostya Ostrikov (Ken), Yin Xiao, Yinghong Zhou
Summary: PAM can reduce the inflammatory response of macrophages by activating autophagy and promote the regeneration of periodontal tissues, making it an ideal choice for periodontitis treatment.
BIOENGINEERING & TRANSLATIONAL MEDICINE
(2023)
Article
Oncology
Sugandha Bhatia, Jennifer H. Gunter, Joshua Burgess, Mark N. Adams, Kenneth O'Byrne, Erik W. Thompson, Pascal H. G. Duijf
Summary: Epithelial-mesenchymal plasticity (EMP) is a characteristic of cancer that promotes invasion, metastasis, and therapy resistance. This study shows that non-cancerous human epithelial lung cells can spontaneously shift towards a mesenchymal-like state without genetic changes. This suggests that acquisition of metastasis-associated features may occur prior to genetic alterations and cancerous transformation.
TRANSLATIONAL ONCOLOGY
(2023)
Review
Chemistry, Multidisciplinary
Jinyong Lin, Dong Li, Changhong Li, Ziqi Zhuang, Chengchao Chu, Kostya (Ken) Ostrikov, Erik W. W. Thompson, Gang Liu, Peiyu Wang
Summary: Cancer cells are more susceptible to oxidative stress and nanomaterials-based therapies that generate reactive oxygen species (ROS) have been effective in eliminating cancer cells. These therapies, including chemodynamic therapy, photodynamic therapy, sonodynamic therapy, as well as multi-modal therapies such as combination therapy, have shown significant inhibition of tumor growth. However, the limitations of multi-modal therapy in material preparation and operation protocols hinder its clinical application. Cold atmospheric plasma (CAP), as a reliable source of ROS, light, and electromagnetic fields, provides a simple alternative for implementing multi-modal treatments. Therefore, the emerging field of tumor precision medicine is expected to benefit from these promising multi-modal therapies based on ROS-generating nanomaterials and reactive media like CAPs.
