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The herbicide glyphosate, N-(phosphonomethyl)glycine, has been widely used in the past 40 years, and has had many adverse effects on human health. Here, we constructed a convenient “on–off–on” fluorescent platform for detection of glyphosate viaCu2+modulated squaraine dye fluorescence quenching. The squaraine dye F-0 exhibited strong fluorescence, which could be quenched by the addition of Cu2+. However, the addition of glyphosate restored the fluorescence intensity of F-0 due to the formation of a Cu2+-glyphosate complex. F-0 was utilized as a fluorescent probe for the quantitative detection of glyphosate, with the lowest detection limit of 13.16 nmol L−1. Furthermore, this method demonstrated high selectivity and anti-interference capabilities. The successful monitoring of glyphosate in real samples was achieved using this detection strategy.

Limited access to embryos has hampered the study of human embryogenesis and disorders that occur during early pregnancy. Human pluripotent stem cells provide an alternative means to study human development in a dish1–7. Recent advances in partial embryo models derived from human pluripotent stem cells have enabled human development to be examined at early post-implantation stages8–14. However, models of the pre-implantation human blastocyst are lacking. Starting from naive human pluripotent stem cells, here we developed an effective three-dimensional culture strategy with successive lineage differentiation and self-organization to generate blastocyst-like structures in vitro. These structures—which we term ‘human blastoids’—resemble human blastocysts in terms of their morphology, size, cell number, and composition and allocation of different cell lineages. Single-cell RNA-sequencing analyses also reveal the transcriptomic similarity of blastoids to blastocysts. Human blastoids are amenable to embryonic and extra-embryonic stem cell derivation and can further develop into peri-implantation embryo-like structures in vitro. Using chemical perturbations, we show that specific isozymes of protein kinase C have a critical function in the formation of the blastoid cavity. Human blastoids provide a readily accessible, scalable, versatile and perturbable alternative to blastocysts for studying early human development, understanding early pregnancy loss and gaining insights into early developmental defects.

Objective. Minimally invasive closure of transthoracic ventricular septal defect (VSD) has been widely used in paediatric patients. This retrospective study aimed to explore the use of transversus thoracis muscle plane block (TTMPB) in the minimally invasive closure of transthoracic VSD in paediatric patients. Methods. From September 28, 2017, to July 25, 2022, a total of 119 paediatric patients scheduled for minimally invasive transthoracic VSD closure were considered for inclusion. Results. In total, 110 patients were included in the final analysis. Perioperative fentanyl consumption of the TTMPB group was not different from that of the non-TTMPB group (5.90 ± 1.32 μg/kg vs. 6.25 ± 1.74 μg/kg, p = 0.473). Both the time to extubation and postanesthesia care unit (PACU) stay were significantly shorter in the TTMPB group than in the non-TTMPB group (10.94 ± 10.31 min vs. 35.03 ± 23.52 min for extubation, and 42.55 ± 16.83 min vs. 59.98 ± 27.94 min for PACU stay, both p < 0.001). Furthermore, the postoperative paediatric intensive care unit (PICU) stay in the TTMPB group was significantly shorter than in the non-TTMPB group (1.04 ± 0.28 d vs. 1.34 ± 1.05 d, p = 0.005). Multivariate analysis demonstrated that TTMPB was significantly associated with shorter time to extubation (p < 0.001) and PACU stay (p = 0.001) but not postoperative PICU stay (p = 0.094). Discussion. This study showed that TTMPB was a beneficial and safe regional anaesthesia technique for paediatric patients who underwent minimally invasive closure of transthoracic VSD, although prospective randomized controlled trials are needed to confirm the results.

Nucleic acids, as important substances for biological inheritance, have attracted extensive attention in the biomedical field. More and more cyanine dyes are emerging as one of the probe tools for nucleic acid detection due to their excellent photophysical properties. Here, we discovered that the insertion of the AGRO100 sequence can specifically disrupt the twisted intramolecular charge transfer (TICT) mechanism of the trimethine cyanine dye (TCy3), resulting in a clear “turn-on” response. Moreover, the fluorescence enhancement of TCy3combined with the T-rich AGRO100 derivative is more obvious. One explanation for the interaction between dT (deoxythymidine) and positively charged TCy3may be that its outer layer carries the most negative charge. This study provides a theoretical basis for the use of TCy3as a DNA probe, which has promising applications in the DNA detection of biological samples. It also provides the basis for the following construction of probes with specific ability for recognition.

To observe acute toxicity of naked Fe3O4-nanoparticles in mice, ICR mice were selected and exposed once to naked Fe3O4-nanoparticles by tail intravenous injection with different doses, i.e. 0, 102.4, 128, 160, 200, 250 mg/kg of body weight. 15 days later, Fe3O4distribution and pathologic changes in main organs were investigated. By tail intravenous injection, LD50of naked Fe3O4-nanoparticles in mice was 163.60 mg/kg of body weight (147.58, 181.37 mg/kg of body weight, 95% confidence interval). Deaths of mice mainly caused by decompensation and twitching were observed. Immediately after injection, nanoparticles performed fast distribution in lung, liver, spleen etc, yet little were traced in brain, heart and kidney. 15 days after injection, apparent decline of nanoparticles content in lung and spleen was observed, whereas in liver the content rose. Pathologic detection indicated local particle denaturation and necrosis in the cardiac tissue. Protein cast was seen in several kidney tubules, and extravasated blood in carunculae papillaris, yet no pathologic changes were observed in other organs. LD50of Fe3O4nanoparticles (9 nm) by means of tail intravenous injection is 163.60 mg/kg, and they mainly distributed in liver, spleen, lung and caused denaturation and necrosis in the cardiac muscle and malfunction of kidney. Also, the process of excreting the particles takes a long time.

Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS), the most common endocrine disorder in women of reproductive age, is characterized by hyperandrogenism and insulin resistance (IR); however, the pathogenesis of local ovarian IR in PCOS remains largely unclear. Humanin, a mitochondria-derived peptide, has been reported to be associated with IR. Our previous study confirmed that humanin is expressed in multiple cell types in the ovary and is present in follicular fluid. However, it remains unknown whether humanin participates in the pathogenesis of local ovarian IR or whether humanin supplementation can improve IR in PCOS patients. In this study, we compared humanin concentrations in follicular fluid from PCOS patients with and without IR. We further investigated the effect of humanin analogue (HNG) supplementation on IR in a rat model of dehydroepiandrosterone-induced PCOS. Humanin concentrations in the follicular fluid were found to be significantly lower in PCOS patients with IR than in those without IR. HNG supplementation attenuated both the increases in the levels of fasting plasma glucose and fasting insulin in rats with PCOS and the decreases in phosphorylation of IRS1, PI3K, AKT, and GLUT4 proteins in the granulosa cells of these rats. Combined supplementation with HNG and insulin significantly improved glucose consumption in normal and humanin-siRNA-transfected COV434 cells. In conclusion, downregulated humanin in the ovaries may be involved in the pathogenesis of IR in PCOS, and exogenous supplementation with HNG improved local ovarian IR through modulation of the IRS1/PI3K/Akt signaling pathway in a rat model. This finding supports the potential future use of HNG as a therapeutic drug for PCOS.

It has been observed that there is an increased incidence of total fertilization failure (TFF) and a low fertilization rate (LFR, <25 %) during conventional in vitro fertilization (IVF) treatments involving men with poor sperm motility. These men also exhibit a high sperm DNA fragmentation index (DFI), which has adverse effects on various IVF outcomes. However, the relationship between a high DFI and an increased TFF or LFR during IVF cycles has not been elucidated. Here, we aimed to investigate the association between the sperm DFI and TFF or LFR in IVF cycles involving men with mild-to-moderate asthenozoospermia and normozoospermia.

•CPT2 is frequently down-regulated in ovarian cancer.•CPT2 down-regulation is correlated with poor survival for patients with OC.•CPT2 inhibited OC cell growth and metastasis•CPT2 inhibited OC progression through suppressing ROS/NFκB signaling.