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Biology subjects

Shu, Y.

Publications and source records attributed to Shu, Y..

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources

Ileal Gpbar1 gates depressive phenotypes via gut to brain "vagal-NTS-PVN"GABAergic axis

Depression represents a typical mental condition, yet whether intestinal metabolic signals drive central neural circuits remains unclear. Here we identify ileal enteric neuronal Gpbar1 as a previously unrecognized peripheral node that coordinates gut-to-brain communication to prevent depression-like behavior through a vagus-dependent, nucleus tractus solitaries (NTS)-paraventricular nucleus (PVN) signaling axis. The enteric plexus Gpbar1 is predominantly expressed on a subpopulation of GAD1-positive GABAergic neurons. Chronic restraint stress suppresses Gpbar1 expression, triggers glycolytic reprogramming and mitochondrial distress in both ileum and hypothalamus. Oral Gpbar1 agonism with INT-777 reverses hypothalamic HK2/TOM20 alterations and behavioral abnormalities by enhanced ileal mTOR/HIF-1 alpah signaling and glycolysis-related metabolite shifts, an effect specifically abolished by subdiaphragmatic vagotomy or chemogenetic silencing of PVN GABAergic neurons. Our findings establish ileal Gpbar1 as a gut-derived metabolic sensor that engages a defined vagal-brainstem-hypothalamic inhibitory circuit to regulate depressive phenotypes, shifting the roadmap from brain-centered to gut-initiated antidepressant mechanisms and unveiling a compelling peripheral therapeutic strategy that bypasses intractable central brain-directed intervention.

neuroscience↗

Network- and Measure-Specific Mid-Term Reliability of Multi-Echo Resting-State Functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging on a Compact 3 Tesla Scanner

1.IntroductionUnderstanding mid-term test-retest reliability and within-subject variability is important for interpreting changes observed in longitudinal and intervention studies. The reliability of resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging (rs-fMRI) is known to vary across measures and brain regions. However, how reliability differs across functional networks and connectivity-and amplitude-based measures, and whether multi-echo acquisition and processing modify these patterns, remain incompletely characterized. MethodsTwenty-two healthy volunteers underwent two rs-fMRI sessions 15.7 {+/-} 4.0 days apart on a Compact 3T scanner. Multi-echo, middle-echo, and independently acquired single-echo datasets were compared, with multi-echo independent component analysis additionally evaluated as a denoising approach. Functional connectivity (FC) and three amplitude-based measures were evaluated using the Schaefer 400 parcellation. Reliability was systematically assessed using intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC), within-subject standard deviation (wSD), and systematic bias at edge or regional, and network levels. ResultsAcquisition-dependent differences in reliability were generally modest. Multi-echo acquisition and processing increased functional connectivity strength and the magnitude of amplitude-based measures and improved inferior cortical coverage, but these enhancements did not consistently translate into substantially higher ICC or lower wSD. In contrast, reliability showed clear network-dependent differences. FC reliability varied markedly across network pairs and was not explained by connectivity strength alone; pairs involving the default mode and control networks generally showed more favorable profiles than several somatomotor and visual network pairs. Fractional amplitude of low-frequency fluctuations (fALFF) also showed network-dependent reliability, with the most favorable regional reproducibility observed in the default mode and control networks and lower reproducibility in the somatomotor and visual networks. ConclusionThese findings provide practical mid-term reliability benchmarks for rs-fMRI on a Compact 3T scanner and show that measurement stability varies more clearly across measures and functional networks than across acquisition approaches. Key pointsO_LIMid-term test-retest reliability varied more clearly across resting-state measures and functional networks than across acquisition and processing approaches. C_LIO_LIMulti-echo acquisition and processing enhanced functional connectivity strength, amplitude-based signal magnitude, and inferior cortical coverage but did not consistently improve reliability. C_LIO_LIFunctional connectivity strength and fractional amplitude of low-frequency fluctuations showed distinct network-specific reliability profiles, with more favorable reproducibility in default mode and control networks than in several somatomotor and visual networks. C_LI

neuroscience↗

White matter conduction in the human brain is mostly slow, with rare high velocity connections

White matter bundles play a crucial role in cognitive functions by rapidly transmitting information between brain regions. Inter-areal conduction guides the integration of information and conduction velocity is a fundamental parameter in theories and models of brain function. However, distributions of conduction velocity remain difficult to characterize in vivo in humans. In this work, we integrated diffusion magnetic resonance imaging (dMRI) tractography with intracranial electrical stimulation during clinical stereo-electroencephalography (sEEG) monitoring in 17 subjects to measure conduction velocity within four major white matter bundles. Our findings reveal that human brain conduction is characterized by high variability both within and between bundles, reflecting a predominance of slow connections alongside rare high-speed connections. Because conduction velocity in myelinated fibers follows an approximately linear relationship with axon diameter, we derive underlying axon diameter distributions and show that these estimates are comparable to previous post-mortem studies. These findings demonstrate a heavily skewed distribution of human neural conduction velocities and show that structural heterogeneity shapes the timing and integration of information in large-scale networks.

neuroscience↗

SemVac: A Semantic Vaccinology Paradigm Powered by LLMs for Antigen Discovery

Reverse vaccinology identifies vaccine antigens from pathogen genomes, yet existing methods rely mainly on sequence and structure and overlook the functional and immunological knowledge recorded in the published literature. We introduce semantic vaccinology, a paradigm in which large language models (LLMs) reason over literature-derived protein descriptions to predict protective antigens. Implemented as SemVac, the workflow retrieves publications linked to each protein through PaperBLAST, condenses the evidence into a structured semantic profile, and prompts an LLM to return an antigenicity probability. Benchmarked against a curated 246-protein bacterial benchmark and the specialized protein-language and geometric-deep-learning predictor PLGDL, the best of 14 general-purpose LLMs matched or exceeded the precision of PLGDL; the open-weight Kimi K2 0905 offered the strongest performance-cost balance. Predictions were robust to masking of vaccine keywords, reproducible across repeated inference, and generalized to a 1,200-protein cross-pathogen dataset. Surprisingly, explicit chain-of-thought reasoning increased recall but lowered precision in every model tested, revealing over-reasoning in biological scoring. Applied to the mpox virus proteome, SemVac recovered the established mpox antigen repertoire and prioritized uncharacterized candidates. Two of these, A30L and C19L, received independent experimental support in recent orthopoxvirus vaccine development, providing external validation. For one candidate, B20R, the model generated a coherent but false TNF-decoy narrative unsupported by curated annotations, demonstrating that LLM confabulation can be detected when reasoning traces are cross-checked against curated resources. Semantic vaccinology therefore establishes the literature as an explicit, auditable third modality alongside sequence and structure, while making its failure modes transparent and correctable.

immunology↗

Autism associated Cntnap2 deletion disrupts vestibular sensory signaling and spatial cognition in mice

Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is frequently accompanied by sensory and motor abnormalities, including impaired balance, postural control, and spatial orientation, that are often attributed largely to altered central circuitry. Emerging evidence, however, suggests that peripheral sensory dysfunction can also shape ASD related behavioral phenotypes. Here, we tested whether loss of the ASD associated gene Cntnap2/Caspr2 alters vestibular signaling in Cntnap2-/- mice. Developmental transcriptomic analysis showed that Cntnap2 is expressed in vestibular sensory organs and increases during the first postnatal month, coincident with vestibular pathway maturation. Vestibular sensory evoked potentials revealed reduced response amplitudes and prolonged latencies in Cntnap2-/- mice, indicating impaired peripheral afferent responses to transient linear acceleration. Cntnap2-/- mice also showed delayed contact righting, reduced ocular counter roll, and increased hindlimb slips and compensatory tail excursions during balance beam walking, whereas rotational vestibulo-ocular reflex gain and phase were preserved. These vestibular and balance abnormalities were accompanied by reduced novel arm preference in the Y maze and severe impairment of Barnes maze acquisition, consistent with impaired spatial learning. Together, these findings identify Cntnap2/Caspr2 as a regulator of vestibular sensory signaling and support a model in which disrupted peripheral vestibular input, likely acting together with central effects of Cntnap2 loss, contributes to sensorimotor and spatial cognitive phenotypes relevant to ASD.

neuroscience↗

A sequence-based proactive intelligence for influenza antigenic profiling improves vaccine strain selection

Seasonal influenza viruses accumulate antigenic changes, eroding population immunity and necessitating recurrent vaccine updates. Hemagglutination inhibition (HI) assays are the standard for measuring antigenic relationships between circulating and vaccine strains; however, their limited throughput constrains the scale and timeliness of surveillance. Here, we present fluProfiler, a foundation-model-based framework that learns a stable mapping from viral sequences to antigenic space and uses this representation to support influenza antigenic prediction, vaccine strain evaluation, and diversity-driven sampling. fluAgPredictor aligns hemagglutinin (HA) and neuraminidase (NA) sequence representations with HI-derived antigenicity, enabling accurate and consistent inference of pairwise antigenic distances across surveillance-aligned evaluation settings. Without prior annotation of antigenic sites, it identifies key residues in immunodominant epitopes and reveals the cooperative contributions of HA and NA to antigenic variation. Building on this antigenic-space representation, fluVacSelector provides antigenic coverage scores that are concordant with World Health Organization (WHO) vaccine recommendations while also flagging potential candidates that may offer broader coverage ahead of formal consultations. fluAgEnhancer further leverages the same representation to prioritize antigenically informative and diverse strains for experimental characterization, achieving comparable predictive accuracy with approximately 25% fewer HI measurements than random sampling. Together, these modules provide a high-throughput and interpretable complement to HI testing, converting routine genomic surveillance into a more proactive, data-driven support system for antigenic monitoring and vaccine strain selection.

bioinformatics↗

Combination of engineered cell type-specific promoters and a high-efficiency AAV capsid restores hearing in adult DFNB1 mice model with demonstrated safety in nonhuman primate

A major challenge in gene therapy for GJB2-related hearing loss (DFNB1)--the most common form of hereditary deafness--is achieving efficient and precise connexin 26 delivery. Herein, we engineered two cell type-specific promoters (GJB2-1 and WFS1-2274) and developed an AAV capsid, AAV-MAS012, with enhanced transduction efficiency in mature cochlear cells. Our AAV-mediated gene therapy systems restored hearing of low-to-mid-frequencies in newborn Gjb2 cKO mice to wild-type levels and maintained for 45 weeks. Additionally, our therapeutic systems restored low-to-mid-frequencies hearing function to wild-type levels in adult Gjb2 cKO mice. A humanized version of the therapy, AAV-MAS012-WFS1-2274-hGJB2, rescued hearing function in two distinct Gjb2-deficient mouse models, and demonstrated a favorable safety profile in nonhuman primates. This study represents the first successful hearing restoration in adult Gjb2-deficient mice. The significant therapeutic efficacy of the humanized gene therapy system shows great potential for clinical translation in DFNB1 patients.

genetics↗

Low-Intensity Focused Ultrasound Enhances Meningeal Lymphatic Drainage for Preventing Cognitive Decline in Alzheimer's Disease

Meningeal lymphatic vessels (mLVs) are vital for brain waste clearance, making them a promising therapeutic target. However, effective modulation strategies for mLVs with translational potential remain underdeveloped. Here, we develop a low-intensity focused ultrasound (LIFU) strategy that precisely targets the vault cranial meninges to non-invasively facilitate mLVs drainage. Using models of Alzheimers disease (AD) and aging, we demonstrate that this approach promotes CSF drainage, prevents cognitive decline, and reduces pathological biomarkers. Mechanistically, RNA sequencing combined with calcium imaging in vitro reveals that LIFU activates the Piezo1 ion channel in lymphatic endothelial cells, whereas pharmacological inhibition of Piezo1 abolishes LIFUs therapeutic effects. Compliant with FDA safety guidelines, this LIFU protocol demonstrates strong clinical translatability. If its efficacy is clinically confirmed, LIFU offers a promising therapy for neurodegenerative diseases triggered by waste accumulation.

neuroscience↗

Periosteal and periarticular compartments house lymphatic vessels in bone

The anatomical localization of lymphatic vessels in bone remains controversial and has led to conflicting interpretations of skeletal lymphatic function. Here we assessed lymphatic identity and localization in bone using mouse genetic labeling, tissue clearance, and three-dimensional imaging. We analyzed long bones after extensive periosteum removal and identified Vegfr3+ blood vessels lacking Lyve1 expression within bone marrow, whereas Vegfr3+Lyve1+ lymphatic vessels were confined to residual periosteal regions. Genetic lineage tracing using Prox1-Cre/ER;mScarlet further confirmed that lymphatic vessels are absent from long bone marrow and restricted to periosteal compartments, particularly in fibrous but not cambial layers. Extending these analyses to the mandible, we observed Vegfr3+Lyve1+ lymphatic vessels localized to periarticular soft tissues surrounding the temporomandibular joint (TMJ), while mandibular bone marrow contained only Vegfr3+Lyve1- blood vessels and lacked Prox1 lineage-traced lymphatic vessels. Together, these findings establish that lymphatic vessels in bone are confined to periosteal and periarticular compartments and absent from bone marrow, providing a framework for interpreting lymphatic contributions to skeletal physiology and disease.

cell biology↗

Cerebral Oxygen Budgeting: Network-Level BOLD Dynamics During Acute Hypoxia

Hypoxia constrains cerebral oxygen availability and challenges brain function. Previous work showed that functional connectivity reorganizes early during acute hypoxia, preceding cognitive deterioration, but the functional changes accompanying more severe hypoxic stress remain incompletely understood. We examined dynamic amplitude of low-frequency fluctuations (dALFF) in blood-oxygenation-level dependent (BOLD) fMRI during normoxia, sustained mild hypoxia, and transient severe hypoxia in healthy adults performing a continuous Go/No-go task with concurrent physiological monitoring. We characterized dALFF at whole-brain and network levels using a causal sliding-window approach, principal component analysis, and Schaefer's 17-network parcellation. Severe hypoxia elicited a non-monotonic, phase-dependent dALFF response that was not observed during normoxia or sustained mild hypoxia. Relative preservation during early hypoxia was followed by late-hypoxia suppression, which we operationally defined as a decompensation phase, and by a pronounced rebound after reoxygenation. Within this global response, dALFF became increasingly differentiated across intrinsic brain networks: DefaultA showed marked suppression, whereas SomMotB exhibited relative preservation or enhancement during decompensation. These changes were neither spatially uniform nor tightly synchronized with systemic oxygenation, while broadly overlapping temporally with cognitive deterioration. Together, these findings indicate that dALFF captures a complementary aspect of the brain's response to acute hypoxic stress, characterized by reversible, phase- and network-dependent reorganization of ongoing low-frequency BOLD dynamics under constrained oxygen availability.

neuroscience↗

Mid-infrared light produces anti-ageing effects through resonant absorption by living organisms

Aging is commonly viewed as a consequence of cumulative molecular damage and declining stress resilience. However, this perspective overlooks the possibility that aging may primarily arise from an efficiency loss of integrated cellular operation. Here, we show that aging can be systemically prevented by enhancing cellular efficiency using frequency-specific mid-infrared (MIR) light, as revealed by organismal-, cellular- and molecular-level analyses of Caenorhabditis elegans. Remarkably, super-weak 34-THz MIR light ([~]1 W mm-{superscript 2}) prolonged the median lifespan of worms by 60%, delaying aging onset and preventing abrupt "cliff-edge" mortality, without detectable thermal effects. At the cellular level, MIR exposure enhanced global gene transcription in parallel with the establishment of a mitochondrial state of high-efficiency energy metabolism, together preserving youthful cellular homoeostasis during aging. These cellular effects were associated with vibrational modes of phosphate groups in nucleic acids and mitochondrial phospholipids within the 33-35 THz range, providing a frequency-matched molecular context for MIR modulation. Together, our results support an efficiency-first, systemic anti-aging model in which frequency-specific MIR light enhances the integrated kinetic efficiency of cellular systems, spanning gene transcriptional dynamics and mitochondrial bioenergetic flux, rather than the activation of damage-repair or stress-response pathways. These findings advance our understanding of light-matter interactions in living systems and establish a non-biochemical, physical strategy for modulating aging.

biophysics↗

Structure-based design of soluble prefusion-stabilized herpes simplex virus type 2 glycoprotein B antigens

Herpes simplex virus type 2 (HSV-2) causes genital herpes through latent infection and periodic reactivation. Although antivirals alleviate symptoms, no prophylactic or therapeutic vaccines have been licensed. Glycoprotein B (gB) is a class III fusion protein that mediates entry by irreversibly transitioning from a metastable prefusion conformation to a stable postfusion conformation. Leveraging prior structure-based designs for human cytomegalovirus (HCMV) gB, we engineered amino acid substitutions in HSV-2 gB to stabilize its prefusion conformation. Cryo-EM of the engineered construct revealed a prefusion conformation and non-native dimers of gB trimers. Introduction of N-linked glycosylation sites resulted in the gB-G3 variant, which exhibited improved expression and reduced dimerization. Cryo-EM of gB-G3 bound to neutralizing antibodies yielded a 2.8 [A] resolution structure of the stabilized prefusion conformation in a closed state, which differs from the open states observed in recently published HSV gB structures. Both prefusion and postfusion gB variants were evaluated for immunogenicity in mice, delivered either as a protein subunit or mRNA vaccine. Each gB conformation elicited robust humoral and cellular responses. However, prefusion stabilization of gB did not improve neutralizing antibody titers relative to the postfusion construct, consistent with prior observations for HCMV gB. Collectively, these findings reveal insights into prefusion gB conformational dynamics, provide stabilized reagents for studying gB-directed immune responses and inform HSV-2 vaccine design.

microbiology↗

Targeting matrix metalloproteinase-14 disrupts DNA repair and reduces viability in adrenocortical carcinoma

BackgroundAdrenocortical carcinoma (ACC) is a rare and aggressive endocrine cancer with limited treatment options and poor prognosis. Identifying novel therapeutic targets requires understanding the molecular drivers of ACC progression and establishing translational models for preclinical validation. ResultsMatrix metalloproteinase-14 (MMP-14) is the most highly expressed MMP in ACC, and high MMP-14 expression is associated with worse overall and disease-free survival. We demonstrate that MMP-14 is essential for ACC cell survival and serves an unexpected role in maintaining genome stability. Genetic silencing or pharmacologic inhibition of MMP-14 significantly reduced viability in both NCI-H295R cells and patient-derived tumor organoids (PTOs). MMP-14 knockdown induced CHK1 activation and S-phase checkpoint arrest. Mechanistically, MMP-14 translocates to the nucleus and binds to chromatin following DNA damage induced by ionizing radiation or cisplatin. Loss of MMP-14 resulted in accumulation of DNA double-strand breaks, as evidenced by increased {gamma}H2AX foci, and impaired non-homologous end joining (NHEJ)-mediated repair. ConclusionsThese findings reveal a novel nuclear function for MMP-14 in DNA repair and identify MMP-14 as a promising therapeutic target in ACC. Targeting MMP-14 may sensitize ACC tumors to DNA-damaging chemotherapy by impairing the repair of therapy-induced lesions.

cancer biology↗

Unimeth: A unified transformer framework for accurate DNA methylation detection from nanopore reads

Nanopore sequencing enables direct detection of DNA modifications from native DNA. However, accurate methylation calling across species, sequence contexts, modification types and chemistries remains challenging. We present Unimeth, a transformer-based framework that jointly processes raw signals and basecalled sequences in read patches and predicts all target methylation sites within each patch. Unimeth uses a three-phase training strategy that combines signal pre-training, methylation fine-tuning and site-level calibration using methylation frequency information. We evaluated Unimeth for 5mC and 6mA detection using public and in-house datasets spanning 14 species, three nanopore chemistries and wild-type, mutant and enzyme-treated samples. Unimeth improved plant 5mC detection in non-CpG contexts, reduced false-positive calls in low-methylation samples and maintained high 5mCpG performance in mammalian datasets. For 6mA, Unimeth reduced background calls while preserving signals for Fiber-seq nucleosome and gene-level analyses. Unimeth provides a unified framework for nanopore-based methylation detection across methylation types and biological contexts.

bioinformatics↗

SPARP-seq reveals poly(A) tail shortening as a hallmark of the active human translatome

The poly(A) tail at the 3 end of mRNAs plays a critical role in the synthesis of proteins, but its dynamic relationship with the translation process has been unclear. Here, using a novel single-molecule approach SPARP-seq that integrates poly(A) assessment with ribosome profiling, we demonstrate that poly(A) tail shortening is a universal hallmark of active translation in human cells. We find that most mRNAs begin translation on single ribosome (monosome) with long tails that progressively shorten as additional ribosomes are recruited. In contrast, highly expressed housekeeping genes are translated efficiently on monosomes and possess intrinsically short poly(A) tails. Furthermore, we find that translationally repressed transcripts, such as those retaining introns, are trapped on monosomes with long tails. Pharmacological inhibition of translation induces global poly(A) tail lengthening, confirming that deadenylation is coupled to ongoing translation. These findings reveal a dynamic system where the poly(A) tail integrates mRNA status with translational fate, defining the monosome as a central hub for post-transcriptional control.

molecular biology↗

Cancer cell-selective ecotopic expression of CD20 as an antigen enables rituximab repurposing for solid tumor immunotherapy

Despite the clinical success of cancer immunotherapies, their efficacy is often compromised by antigen-related problems, including heterogeneity, downregulation, loss, and off-tumor toxicity. To overcome these limitations that challenge the current immunotherapies dependent on native antigens, we here describe a new cancer immunotherapy strategy, which artificially and specifically expresses a clinical validated antigen on variant tumors and thus repurposes clinical antibody drugs to treat cancers not belonging to their indications. To authenticate the strategy, we delivered a CD20 gene under a control of NF-{kappa}B-specific promoter to tumors by adeno-associated virus and then treated them with a CD20 antibody, rituximab. We found that CD20 was selectively expressed in tumors and the followed rituximab treatment activated natural killer (NK) cell to kill cancer cells by antibody-dependent cellular cytotoxicity. We demonstrated that this strategy is effective not only in variant cultivated cancer cells, HCT116 spheroids, and patient-derived organoids of human colorectal cancer, but also in humanized mouse with HCT116 xenograft and immunocompetent mouse with CT26 transplant. The strategy showed high cancer cell specificity in both in vitro and in vivo treatments, leading to high security in animal treatments. This strategy thus creates a new modality of cancer immune-redirection therapy by repurposing the clinical validated both antigen and antibody.

cancer biology↗

Brain functional connectivity initiates structured reorganization at a critical oxygen threshold during hypoxia

The human brain dynamically adapts to hypoxia, a reduction in oxygen essential for metabolism. The brains adaptive response to hypoxia, however, remains unclear. We investigated dynamic functional connectivity (FC) in healthy adults under acute hypoxia (FiO2 = 7.7%, 11.8%) using BOLD fMRI, physiological monitoring (PetO2, PetCO2, SpO2), and a Go/No-Go task. Principal component analysis identified a hypoxia-responsive FC component involving 400 cerebral parcels. This component emerged with a critical drop in PetO2 ([~]53 mmHg), preceding changes in SpO2, BOLD signals, and behavior. These FC changes were network-specific and centered on the default mode network (DMN), which selectively synchronized with other high-level cognitive networks. In contrast, visual networks remained stable and segregated from the DMN. These results suggest that the brain proactively reorganizes its functional architecture in anticipation of oxygen decline, rather than in response to it. FC-based markers may offer early indicators of vulnerability in neurological or neurodegenerative conditions.

neuroscience↗

Using Artificial Intelligence to Assess Cross-Species Transmission Potential of Influenza A Virus

Influenza A viruses (IAVs) pose pandemic threats through cross-species transmission, yet predicting their adaptive evolution remains challenging. We introduced Influenza A virus Adaptability to host X (FluAdaX), a deep learning framework that integrates a moving average-equipped gated attention mechanism using full-genome sequences. FluAdaX demonstrated robust host classification performance across endemic IAV strains, and outperformed traditional models in detecting avian-to-human transmission. Spillover score and adaptability score were introduced to evaluate host shift risk, which prioritized variants with elevated human adaptation potential, such as H7N9, H9N2 avian IAVs, and H1N1 swine IAVs. Besides HA and NA genes, PB2 and NS genes were found critical for zoonosis. Potential molecular markers associated with avian/human tropism were identified across PB2 and NS genes using XGBoost. FluAdaX provided a dynamic framework to decode IAV host adaptation, enabling real-time risk assessment of cross-species transmission of emerging IAV variants.

bioinformatics↗