Inhibitory immune receptors set thresholds for immune cell activation,and their deficiency predisposes a person to autoimmune responses.However,the agonists of inhibitory immune receptors remain largely unknown,repres...Inhibitory immune receptors set thresholds for immune cell activation,and their deficiency predisposes a person to autoimmune responses.However,the agonists of inhibitory immune receptors remain largely unknown,representing untapped sources of treatments for autoimmune diseases.Here,we show that V-set and transmembrane domain-containing 1(VSTM1)is an inhibitory receptor and that its binding by the competent ligand soluble galectin-1(Gal1)is essential for maintaining neutrophil viability mediated by downregulated reactive oxygen species production.However,in patients with systemic lupus erythematosus(SLE),circulating Gal1 is oxidized and cannot be recognized by VSTM1,leading to increased intracellular reactive oxygen species levels and reduced neutrophil viability.Dysregulated neutrophil function or death contributes significantly to the pathogenesis of SLE by providing danger molecules and autoantigens that drive the production of inflammatory cytokines and the activation of autoreactive lymphocytes.Interestingly,serum levels of glutathione,an antioxidant able to convert oxidized Gal1 to its reduced form,were negatively correlated with SLE disease activity.Taken together,our findings reveal failed inhibitory Gal1/VSTM1 pathway activation in patients with SLE and provide important insights for the development of effective targeted therapies.展开更多
Solar-driven cross-coupling reactions by dual nickel/photocatalysis under mild conditions have received considerable attention.However,the existing photo/nickel dual catalytic cross-coupling reactions require the addi...Solar-driven cross-coupling reactions by dual nickel/photocatalysis under mild conditions have received considerable attention.However,the existing photo/nickel dual catalytic cross-coupling reactions require the addition of expensive photosensitizers and organic ligands,and the catalytic activity is inadequate.Herein,we report a nickel single-atom heterogeneous catalyst supported on mesoporous carbon nitride for photocatalytic C—O coupling reaction between 4-bromobenzonitrile and ethanol,affording 4-ethoxybenzonitrile in excellent yield compared to a semi-heterogeneous catalytic system.The catalytic system exhibits a broad substrate scope including ketones,aldehydes,esters,and amides.This work presents a simple and cost-effective strategy for anchoring metal single atoms onto carbon nitride,providing a new platform for enabling high-performance photocatalytic production of aryl ether compounds.展开更多
AlGaN-based solid state UV emitters have many advantages over conventional UV sources. However, UV-LEDs still suffer from numerous challenges, including low quantum efficiency compared to their blue LED counterparts. ...AlGaN-based solid state UV emitters have many advantages over conventional UV sources. However, UV-LEDs still suffer from numerous challenges, including low quantum efficiency compared to their blue LED counterparts. One of the inherent reasons is a lack of carrier localization effect inside fully miscible AlGaN alloys. In the pursuit of phase separation and carrier localization inside the active region of AlGaN UV-LED, utilization of highly misoriented substrates proves to be useful, yet the carrier distribution and recombination mechanism in such structures has seldom been reported. In this paper, a UV-LED with step-bunched surface morphology was designed and fabricated, and the internal mechanism of high internal quantum efficiency was studied in detail. The correlation between microscale current distribution and surface morphology was provided, directly demonstrating that current prefers to flow through the step edges of the epitaxial layers. Experimental results were further supported by numerical simulation. It was found that efficient radiative recombination centers were formed in the inclined quantum well regions. A schematic three-dimensional energy band structure of the multiple quantum wells(MQWs) across the step was proposed and helps in further understanding the luminescence behavior of LEDs grown on misoriented substrates. Finally, a general principle to achieve carrier localization was proposed, which is valid for most ternary Ⅲ-Ⅴ semiconductors exhibiting phase separation.展开更多
Hepatocellular carcinoma(HCC)is the global leading cause of cancer-related deaths due to the deficiency of targets for precision therapy.A new modality of epigenetic regulation has emerged involving RNA-RNA crosstalk ...Hepatocellular carcinoma(HCC)is the global leading cause of cancer-related deaths due to the deficiency of targets for precision therapy.A new modality of epigenetic regulation has emerged involving RNA-RNA crosstalk networks where two or more competing endogenous RNAs(ceRNAs)bind to the same microRNAs.However,the contribution of such mechanisms in HCC has not been well studied.Herein,potential HMGB1-driven RNA-RNA crosstalk networks were evaluated at different HCC stages,identifying the mT0RC2 component RICTOR as a potential HMGB1 ceRNA in HBV^(+)early stage HCC.Indeed,elevated HMGB1 mRNA was found to promote the expressio n of RICTOR mRNA through competitively bin ding with the miR-200 family,especially miR-429.Functio nal assays emplo ying overexpressi on or in terference strategies dem on strated that the HMGB1 and RICTOR 3zuntra nslated regions(UTR)epigenetically promoted the malignant proliferation,self-renewal,and tumorigenesis in HCC cells.Intriguingly,in terference agai nst HMGB1 and RICTOR in HCC cells promoted a stron ger an ti-PD-L1 immuno therapy resp on se,which appeared to associate with the production of PD-L1^(+)exosomes.Mechanistically,the HMGB1-driven RNA-RNA crosstalk network facilitated HCC cell glutamine metabolism via dual mechanisms,activating a positive feedback loop involving mT0RC2-AKT-C-MYC to upregulate glutamine synthetase(GS)expression,and inducing mTORCI signaling to derepress SIRT4 on glutamate dehydrogenase(GDH).Meanwhile,this crosstalk network could impede the efficacy of immunotherapy through mTORCI-P70S6K dependent PD-L1 production and PD-L1^(+)exosomes activity.In conclusion,our study highlights the non-coding regulatory role of HMGB1 with implicatio ns for RNA-based therapeutic targeting together with a predictio n of an ti-PD-L1 immuno therapy in HCC.展开更多
基金The authors are grateful to all of the patients who participated in the study.We thank Prof Dalong Ma Lab and Prof Wenling Han Lab at Peking University Health Science Center for providing plasmids and helpful discussions.We also thank the Center for Biomarker Discovery and Validation,National Infrastructures for Translational Medicine(PUMCH),Institute of Clinical Medicine,Peking Union Medical College Hospital for instrument support and assistance.This study was supported by grants from the National Natural Science Foundation of China(81788101,82171799,82100942,82171726,82171798,82230060,32141004)National Key R&D Program of China(2022YFC3602000)+2 种基金Chinese Academy of Medical Science Innovation Fund for Medical Sciences(2021-I2M-1-017,2022-I2M-JB-003,2021-I2M-1-047,2021-I2M-1-040,2021-I2M-1-016,and 2021-I2M-1-026)Capital’s Funds for Health Improvement and Research(2020-2-4019)National High Level Hospital Clinical Research Funding(BJ-2022-116,BJ-2023-084).
文摘Inhibitory immune receptors set thresholds for immune cell activation,and their deficiency predisposes a person to autoimmune responses.However,the agonists of inhibitory immune receptors remain largely unknown,representing untapped sources of treatments for autoimmune diseases.Here,we show that V-set and transmembrane domain-containing 1(VSTM1)is an inhibitory receptor and that its binding by the competent ligand soluble galectin-1(Gal1)is essential for maintaining neutrophil viability mediated by downregulated reactive oxygen species production.However,in patients with systemic lupus erythematosus(SLE),circulating Gal1 is oxidized and cannot be recognized by VSTM1,leading to increased intracellular reactive oxygen species levels and reduced neutrophil viability.Dysregulated neutrophil function or death contributes significantly to the pathogenesis of SLE by providing danger molecules and autoantigens that drive the production of inflammatory cytokines and the activation of autoreactive lymphocytes.Interestingly,serum levels of glutathione,an antioxidant able to convert oxidized Gal1 to its reduced form,were negatively correlated with SLE disease activity.Taken together,our findings reveal failed inhibitory Gal1/VSTM1 pathway activation in patients with SLE and provide important insights for the development of effective targeted therapies.
基金supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China(22202105,22101133,22205113,22002043)the Natural Science Foundation of Jiangsu Province(BK20210608,BK20200768,BK20210626)+1 种基金the Natural Science Foundation of Jiangsu Higher Education Institutions of China(21KJA150003,21KJB150027)the China Postdoctoral Science Foundation(2022M711645).
文摘Solar-driven cross-coupling reactions by dual nickel/photocatalysis under mild conditions have received considerable attention.However,the existing photo/nickel dual catalytic cross-coupling reactions require the addition of expensive photosensitizers and organic ligands,and the catalytic activity is inadequate.Herein,we report a nickel single-atom heterogeneous catalyst supported on mesoporous carbon nitride for photocatalytic C—O coupling reaction between 4-bromobenzonitrile and ethanol,affording 4-ethoxybenzonitrile in excellent yield compared to a semi-heterogeneous catalytic system.The catalytic system exhibits a broad substrate scope including ketones,aldehydes,esters,and amides.This work presents a simple and cost-effective strategy for anchoring metal single atoms onto carbon nitride,providing a new platform for enabling high-performance photocatalytic production of aryl ether compounds.
基金National Key Research and Development Program of China(2016YFB0400802)National Natural Science Foundation of China(61974149)+2 种基金Key Research and Development Program of Zhejiang Province(2019C01080,2020C01145)Science and Technology Innovation 2025 Major Project of Ningbo(2018B10088,2019B10121)Instrument Developing Project of the Chinese Academy of Sciences(YJKYYQ20190074)。
文摘AlGaN-based solid state UV emitters have many advantages over conventional UV sources. However, UV-LEDs still suffer from numerous challenges, including low quantum efficiency compared to their blue LED counterparts. One of the inherent reasons is a lack of carrier localization effect inside fully miscible AlGaN alloys. In the pursuit of phase separation and carrier localization inside the active region of AlGaN UV-LED, utilization of highly misoriented substrates proves to be useful, yet the carrier distribution and recombination mechanism in such structures has seldom been reported. In this paper, a UV-LED with step-bunched surface morphology was designed and fabricated, and the internal mechanism of high internal quantum efficiency was studied in detail. The correlation between microscale current distribution and surface morphology was provided, directly demonstrating that current prefers to flow through the step edges of the epitaxial layers. Experimental results were further supported by numerical simulation. It was found that efficient radiative recombination centers were formed in the inclined quantum well regions. A schematic three-dimensional energy band structure of the multiple quantum wells(MQWs) across the step was proposed and helps in further understanding the luminescence behavior of LEDs grown on misoriented substrates. Finally, a general principle to achieve carrier localization was proposed, which is valid for most ternary Ⅲ-Ⅴ semiconductors exhibiting phase separation.
基金We gratefully acknowledge the support from the National Key R&D Program of China(2017YFA0504503)State Key Project on Infectious Diseases of China(2018ZX10723204-002-002)+2 种基金National Natural Science Foundation of China(91859205,81988101,81830054,81630070,81672777,81502416,and 82172896)Shanghai Rising-Star Program(17QA1405700)Shanghai Top Young Talents Program,Foundation of Shanghai Shenkang Hospital Development Center(SHDC2020CR2011A and SHDC12016127).
文摘Hepatocellular carcinoma(HCC)is the global leading cause of cancer-related deaths due to the deficiency of targets for precision therapy.A new modality of epigenetic regulation has emerged involving RNA-RNA crosstalk networks where two or more competing endogenous RNAs(ceRNAs)bind to the same microRNAs.However,the contribution of such mechanisms in HCC has not been well studied.Herein,potential HMGB1-driven RNA-RNA crosstalk networks were evaluated at different HCC stages,identifying the mT0RC2 component RICTOR as a potential HMGB1 ceRNA in HBV^(+)early stage HCC.Indeed,elevated HMGB1 mRNA was found to promote the expressio n of RICTOR mRNA through competitively bin ding with the miR-200 family,especially miR-429.Functio nal assays emplo ying overexpressi on or in terference strategies dem on strated that the HMGB1 and RICTOR 3zuntra nslated regions(UTR)epigenetically promoted the malignant proliferation,self-renewal,and tumorigenesis in HCC cells.Intriguingly,in terference agai nst HMGB1 and RICTOR in HCC cells promoted a stron ger an ti-PD-L1 immuno therapy resp on se,which appeared to associate with the production of PD-L1^(+)exosomes.Mechanistically,the HMGB1-driven RNA-RNA crosstalk network facilitated HCC cell glutamine metabolism via dual mechanisms,activating a positive feedback loop involving mT0RC2-AKT-C-MYC to upregulate glutamine synthetase(GS)expression,and inducing mTORCI signaling to derepress SIRT4 on glutamate dehydrogenase(GDH).Meanwhile,this crosstalk network could impede the efficacy of immunotherapy through mTORCI-P70S6K dependent PD-L1 production and PD-L1^(+)exosomes activity.In conclusion,our study highlights the non-coding regulatory role of HMGB1 with implicatio ns for RNA-based therapeutic targeting together with a predictio n of an ti-PD-L1 immuno therapy in HCC.