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Medical image segmentation is a critical component in clinical practice, facilitating accurate diagnosis, treatment planning, and disease monitoring. However, existing methods, often tailored to specific modalities or disease types, lack generalizability across the diverse spectrum of medical image segmentation tasks. Here we present MedSAM, a foundation model designed for bridging this gap by enabling universal medical image segmentation. The model is developed on a large-scale medical image dataset with 1,570,263 image-mask pairs, covering 10 imaging modalities and over 30 cancer types. We conduct a comprehensive evaluation on 86 internal validation tasks and 60 external validation tasks, demonstrating better accuracy and robustness than modality-wise specialist models. By delivering accurate and efficient segmentation across a wide spectrum of tasks, MedSAM holds significant potential to expedite the evolution of diagnostic tools and the personalization of treatment plans. Segmentation is an important fundamental task in medical image analysis. Here the authors show a deep learning model for efficient and accurate segmentation across a wide range of medical image modalities and anatomies.

Human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2)-positive breast cancer has a high metastatic potential. Monoclonal antibodies (mAbs) that target HER2, such as trastuzumab and pertuzumab, are the cornerstone of adjuvant therapy for HER2-positive breast cancer. A growing body of preclinical and clinical evidence points to the importance of innate immunity mediated by antibody-dependent cellular cytotoxicity (ADCC) in the clinical effect of mAbs on the resulting anti-tumor response. In this review, we provide an overview of the role of natural killer (NK) cells and ADCC in targeted therapy of HER2-positive breast cancer, including the biological functions of NK cells and the role of NK cells and ADCC in anti-HER2 targeted drugs. We then discuss regulatory mechanisms and recent strategies to leverage our knowledge of NK cells and ADCC as an immunotherapy approach for HER2-positive breast cancer.

A two-stage decomposition approach based on a novel multi-agent system (MAS) is proposed for the distributed resource constrained multi-project scheduling problem (DRCMPSP). In stage one, from the point of view of each local project manager, a forward-backward hybrid genetic algorithm (FBHGA) is developed to generate an initial local schedule with the objective of minimizing individual project makespan. In stage two, from the global perspective of project management office, a sequential game-based negotiation mechanism is employed to eliminate global resource conflicts with the objective of minimizing total tardiness cost (TTC). The proposed approach is tested on 140 benchmark problem instances. According to the computational results, high-quality local project schedules can be obtained by FBHGA in stage one. Furthermore, it is observed that our method is capable of dealing with various complex multi-project instances under different degrees of resource conflicts in reasonable CPU running time. Compared to the existing decentralized methods for DRCMPSP, the proposed approach with sequential game-based negotiation mechanism shows the superiority in producing multi-project schedules with lower TTC, especially for large-size and strong conflicting instances.

More and more in-depth studies have revealed that the occurrence and development of tumors depend on gene mutation and tumor heterogeneity. The most important manifestation of tumor heterogeneity is the dynamic change of tumor microenvironment (TME) heterogeneity. This depends not only on the tumor cells themselves in the microenvironment where the infiltrating immune cells and matrix together forming an antitumor and/or pro-tumor network. TME has resulted in novel therapeutic interventions as a place beyond tumor beds. The malignant cancer cells, tumor infiltrate immune cells, angiogenic vascular cells, lymphatic endothelial cells, cancer-associated fibroblastic cells, and the released factors including intracellular metabolites, hormonal signals and inflammatory mediators all contribute actively to cancer progression. Protein post-translational modification (PTM) is often regarded as a degradative mechanism in protein destruction or turnover to maintain physiological homeostasis. Advances in quantitative transcriptomics, proteomics, and nuclease-based gene editing are now paving the global ways for exploring PTMs. In this review, we focus on recent developments in the PTM area and speculate on their importance as a critical functional readout for the regulation of TME. A wealth of information has been emerging to prove useful in the search for conventional therapies and the development of global therapeutic strategies.

Wnt/β-catenin signaling has been broadly implicated in human cancers and experimental cancer models of animals. Aberrant activation of Wnt/β-catenin signaling is tightly linked with the increment of prevalence, advancement of malignant progression, development of poor prognostics, and even ascendence of the cancer-associated mortality. Early experimental investigations have proposed the theoretical potential that efficient repression of this signaling might provide promising therapeutic choices in managing various types of cancers. Up to date, many therapies targeting Wnt/β-catenin signaling in cancers have been developed, which is assumed to endow clinicians with new opportunities of developing more satisfactory and precise remedies for cancer patients with aberrant Wnt/β-catenin signaling. However, current facts indicate that the clinical translations of Wnt/β-catenin signaling-dependent targeted therapies have faced un-neglectable crises and challenges. Therefore, in this study, we systematically reviewed the most updated knowledge of Wnt/β-catenin signaling in cancers and relatively targeted therapies to generate a clearer and more accurate awareness of both the developmental stage and underlying limitations of Wnt/β-catenin-targeted therapies in cancers. Insights of this study will help readers better understand the roles of Wnt/β-catenin signaling in cancers and provide insights to acknowledge the current opportunities and challenges of targeting this signaling in cancers.

Topologically protected photonic edge states offer unprecedented robust propagation of photons that are promising for waveguiding, lasing, and quantum information processing. Here, we report on the discovery of a class of hybrid topological photonic crystals that host simultaneously quantum anomalous Hall and valley Hall phases in different photonic band gaps. The underlying hybrid topology manifests itself in the edge channels as the coexistence of the dual-band chiral edge states and unbalanced valley Hall edge states. We experimentally realize the hybrid topological photonic crystal, unveil its unique topological transitions, and verify its unconventional dual-band gap topological edge states using pump-probe techniques. Furthermore, we demonstrate that the dual-band photonic topological edge channels can serve as frequency-multiplexing devices that function as both beam splitters and combiners. Our study unveils hybrid topological insulators as an exotic topological state of photons as well as a promising route toward future applications in topological photonics. Owing to the nonequilibrium nature, photonic topological phenomena can involve multiple band gaps. Here the authors report on the discovery of a class of hybrid topological photonic crystals that host quantum anomalous Hall and valley Hall phases simultaneously.

Multi-year El Niño events induce severe and persistent floods and droughts worldwide, with significant socioeconomic impacts, but the causes of their long-lasting behaviors are still not fully understood. Here we present a two-way feedback mechanism between the tropics and extratropics to argue that extratropical atmospheric variability associated with the North Pacific Oscillation (NPO) is a key source of multi-year El Niño events. The NPO during boreal winter can trigger a Central Pacific El Niño during the subsequent winter, which excites atmospheric teleconnections to the extratropics that re-energize the NPO variability, then re-triggers another El Niño event in the following winter, finally resulting in persistent El Niño-like states. Model experiments, with the NPO forcing assimilated to constrain atmospheric circulation, reproduce the observed connection between NPO forcing and the occurrence of multi-year El Niño events. Future projections of Coupled Model Intercomparison Project phases 5 and 6 models demonstrate that with enhanced NPO variability under future anthropogenic forcing, more frequent multi-year El Niño events should be expected. We conclude that properly accounting for the effects of the NPO on the evolution of El Niño events may improve multi-year El Niño prediction and projection. The causes of long-lasting behaviors of multi-year El Niño are still not fully understood. Here, the authors find that persistent two-way teleconnections between the North Pacific Oscillation and the tropical Pacific constitute a key source of multi-year El Niño.

Background Disordered eating (DE) is prevalent among young adults and poses significant risks to their physical and mental health. Parenting styles have been shown to strongly influence DE. This study investigates the roles of attachment anxiety and negative coping styles as psychological mediators in the relationship between parenting styles and DE among young Chinese adults. Method A total of 814 university students aged 17–23 (49.0% female, M = 20.05 years, SD = 1.24) from southeastern coastal universities in China participated in this study. Participants completed the short-form Egna Minnen Beträffande Uppfostran for Chinese (EMBU-C, assessing parenting styles), the Experiences in Close Relationships Scale-Short (ECR-12, measuring attachment anxiety), the Short Form Coping Style Questionnaire (SFCSQ, evaluating negative coping styles), and the Eating Attitude Test (EAT-26, assessing DE). Result Attachment anxiety significantly mediated the relationships between parental rejection and DE, with indirect effects of 0.20 (95% CI [0.10, 0.31]) for both paternal and maternal rejection. Similarly, attachment anxiety mediated the relationships between parental overprotection and DE, with indirect effects of 0.13 (95% CI [0.06, 0.21]) for paternal overprotection and 0.12 (95% CI [0.06, 0.20]) for maternal overprotection. Furthermore, attachment anxiety and negative coping styles formed a serial mediation pathway in these relationships, with indirect effects of 0.07 (95% CI [0.03, 0.12]) for both paternal and maternal rejection, 0.05 (95% CI [0.02, 0.08]) for paternal overprotection, and 0.04 (95% CI [0.02, 0.08]) for maternal overprotection. Conclusion This study demonstrates the complex interplay between parenting styles and DE in young adults, emphasizing the significant roles of attachment anxiety and negative coping styles as mediators. These findings provide valuable insights for developing interventions targeting psychological factors and coping strategies to effectively prevent and address DE in young Chinese adults.

Benzimidazole fungicides are a class of highly effective, low-toxicity, systemic broad-spectrum fungicides developed in the 1960s and 1970s, based on the fungicidal activity of the benzimidazole ring structure. They exhibit biological activities including anticancer, antibacterial, and antiparasitic effects. Due to their particularly outstanding antibacterial properties, they are widely used in agriculture to prevent and control various plant diseases caused by fungi. The main products of benzimidazole fungicides include benomyl, carbendazim, thiabendazole, albendazole, thiophanate, thiophanate-methyl, fuberidazole, methyl (1-{[(5-cyanopentyl)amino]carbonyl}-1H-benzimidazol-2-yl) carbamate, and carbendazim salicylate. This article mainly reviews the physicochemical properties, toxicological properties, disease control efficacy, and pesticide residue and detection technologies of the aforementioned nine benzimidazole fungicides and their main metabolite (2-aminobenzimidazole). On this basis, a brief outlook on the future research directions of benzimidazole fungicides is presented.

Glycyrrhizae Radix et Rhizoma is regarded as one of the most popular and commonly used herbal medicines and has been used in traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) prescriptions for over 2000 years. Pentacyclic triterpene saponins are common secondary metabolites in these plants, which are synthesized via the isoprenoid pathway to produce a hydrophobic triterpenoid aglycone containing a hydrophilic sugar chain. This paper systematically summarizes the chemical structures of triterpene saponins in Glycyrrhizae Radix et Rhizoma and reviews and updates their main biological activities studies. Furthermore, the solubilization characteristics, influences, and mechanisms of Glycyrrhizae Radix et Rhizoma are elaborated. Solubilization of the triterpene saponins from Glycyrrhizae Radix et Rhizoma occurs because they contain the nonpolar sapogenin and water-soluble sidechain. The possible factors affecting the solubilization of Glycyrrhizae Radix et Rhizoma are mainly other crude drugs and the pH of the decoction. Triterpene saponins represented by glycyrrhizin from Glycyrrhizae Radix et Rhizoma characteristically form micelles due to amphiphilicity, which makes solubilization possible. This overview provides guidance regarding a better understanding of GlycyrrhizaeRadix et Rhizoma and its TCM compatibility, alongside a theoretical basis for the further development and utilization of Glycyrrhizae Radix et Rhizoma.