Establishing a Multifaceted Comprehensive Maternity Cohort Facilitates Understanding of How Environmental Exposures Impact Perinatal Health

China’s“three-child policy”,implemented in response to population aging,has made the protection of maternal and infant health an urgent priority.In this environmental and medical big-data era,the Zhejiang Environmental and Birth Health Research Alliance(ZEBRA)maternity cohort was established with the aim of identifying risk factors for perinatal morbidity and mortality from the perspectives of both observational epidemiology and experimental etiology.Compared with conventional birth cohorts,the inclusion of a maternity cohort allows greater scope for research and places an emphasis on maternal health.In particular,it allows us to focus on pregnant women with a history of pregnancy-related illnesses and those planning to have a second or third child.There are currently many pressing issues in perinatal health,including the risk associations between exogenous together with endogenous factors and the occurrence of perinatal abnormalities,pregnancy complications,and adverse pregnancy outcomes.It is crucial to explore the interaction between environmental exposures and genetic factors affecting perinatal health if we are to improve it.It is also worthwhile to assess the feasibility of the early stage prediction of major perinatal abnormalities.We hope to study this in the ZEBRA cohort and also seek nationwide and international collaborations to establish a multicenter cohort consortium,with the ultimate goal of contributing epidemiological evidence to literature and providing evidence-based insights for global maternal and child healthcare.

Recent advances in the development of in vitro liver models for hepatotoxicity testing

Liver injury is a common cause of drug approval withdrawal during drug development,pre-clinical research,and clinical treatment.If not properly treated,patients with severe liver injury can suffer from acute liver failure or even death.Thus,utilization of the convenient in vitro hepatotoxicity assessment model for early detection of drug-induced hepatotoxicity is vital for drug development and safe personalized medication.Biomaterials(e.g.,hydrogels,nanofibers,decellularized liver matrix)and bioengineering technologies(e.g.,microarrays,micropatterns,3D printing,and microfluidics)have been applied for in vitro hepatotoxicity assessment models.This review summarizes the structure and functions of the liver as well as the components of in vitro hepatotoxicity assessment models.In addition,it highlights the latest advances in developing hepatotoxicity models with the ultimate goal of further clinical translation.

When smoke meets gut:deciphering the interactions between tobacco smoking and gut microbiota in disease development

Tobacco smoking is a prevalent and detrimental habit practiced worldwide,increasing the risk of various diseases,including chronic obstructive pulmonary disease(COPD),cardiovascular disease,liver disease,and cancer.Although previous research has explored the detrimental health effects of tobacco smoking,recent studies suggest that gut microbiota dysbiosis may play a critical role in these outcomes.Numerous tobacco smoke components,such as nicotine,are found in the gastrointestinal tract and interact with gut microbiota,leading to lasting impacts on host health and diseases.This review delves into the ways tobacco smoking and its various constituents influence gut microbiota composition and functionality.We also summarize recent advancements in understanding how tobacco smoking-induced gut microbiota dysbiosis affects host health.Furthermore,this review introduces a novel perspective on how changes in gut microbiota following smoking cessation may contribute to withdrawal syndrome and the degree of health improvements in smokers.

China’s unwavering determination in protecting pregnancy and perinatal health

ACHIEVEMENTS AND CHALLENGES Before the advent ofmodern medicine,childbirth carried extremely high risk of mortality,both maternal and perinatal(the period beginning at the 20–28th week of gestation and ending at 1–4 weeks after delivery).Fortunately,with advances in prenatal healthcare,the prevalence of maternal and perinatal mortalities has significantly reduced.A press conference held on May 30,2022,by the National Health Commission of the People’s Republic of China,reviewed the major progress and achievements in Chinese maternal and child health over the past decade.It highlighted that the maternal mortality rate dropped to 161 per million in 2021,the lowest level in recorded history.

Targeting iron metabolism using gallium nanoparticles to suppress ferroptosis and effectively mitigate acute kidney injury

Ferroptosis plays a critical pathophysiological role in several types of acute kidney injury(AKI).The development of nanomaterials targeting iron metabolism and ferroptosis is a promising approach for AKI treatment.Herein,we synthesized gallic acid-gallium polyvinyl pyrrolidone nanoparticles(GGP NPs)as a potential iron-scavenging agent because of their nearly ionic radius and chemical similarity with iron.The results indicated that GGP NPs accumulated in tubular epithelial cells and showed good biocompatibility.GGP NPs significantly inhibited cisplatin(CP)-induced ferroptosis in HK-2 cells by reducing the accumulation of intracellular free iron and mitochondrial dysfunction,and suppressing the perturbations of ferroptosis processes,including lipid peroxidation,nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide phosphate(NADPH)and glutathione(GSH)levels,glutathione peroxidase 4(GPX4)activity,and ferritinophagy.An in vivo study demonstrated that treatment with GGP NPs significantly ameliorated the renal tubular injury and mitochondrial damage induced by CP treatment or ischemia-reperfusion injury.Our study suggests that GGP NPs may be an effective and promising candidate for AKI treatment and enable potential clinical translation.