The incidence of candidemia in healthcare centers is associated with high morbidity and mortality. Frequency varies significantly among regions, with some species being more prevalent than others in Latin America. In this study, 191 clinical Candida isolates were collected from a major hospital in Ecuador from January 2019 to February 2020 aiming to assess their prevalence and distribution. After data processing, 168 isolates characterized by the VITEK 2 system were subsequently identified by ITS sequencing. Results showed diverse Candida species distributions, with C. albicans and C. tropicalis being the most prevalent across different clinical sources. In hospitalized individuals, C. tropicalis (38%) and C. albicans (37%) were the most prevalent, followed by, C. parapsilosis (16%), C. glabrata (5%), and other non-Candida albicans (NCA) species (6%). Conversely, C. parapsilosis (48%), C. albicans (20%), and C. glabrata (14%), associated with candidemia, were the most common in blood and CSF. Additionally, uncommon NCA species such as C. haemulonii, C. kefyr, and C. pelliculosa were identified in Ecuador for the first time. Discrepancies in species identification were observed between the VITEK 2 system and ITS sequencing, coinciding at 85%. This highlights the need for ongoing surveillance and identification efforts in Ecuador’s clinical and epidemiological settings. Full article

French Guiana, located in the Guiana Shield, is a natural reservoir for many zoonotic pathogens that are of considerable medical or veterinary importance. Until now, there has been limited data available on the description of parasites circulating in this area, especially on protozoan belonging to the phylum Apicomplexa; conversely, the neighbouring countries describe a high parasitic prevalence in animals and humans. Epidemiological surveillance is necessary, as new potentially virulent strains may emerge from these forest ecosystems, such as Amazonian toxoplasmosis. However, there is no standard tool for detecting protozoa in wildlife. In this study, we developed Meat-Borne-Parasite, a high-throughput meta-barcoding workflow for detecting Apicomplexa based on the Oxford Nanopore Technologies sequencing platform using the 18S gene of 14 Apicomplexa positive samples collected in French Guiana. Sequencing reads were then analysed with MetONTIIME pipeline. Thanks to a scoring rule, we were able to classify 10 samples out of 14 as Apicomplexa positive and reveal the presence of co-carriages. The same samples were also sequenced with the Illumina platform for validation purposes. For samples identified as Apicomplexa positive by both platforms, a strong positive correlation at up to the genus level was reported. Overall, the presented workflow represents a reliable method for Apicomplexa detection, which may pave the way for more comprehensive biomonitoring of zoonotic pathogens. Full article

Contamination by fungi and the toxins they secrete is a worldwide health concern. One such toxin is zearalenone (Zea), which is structurally similar to the hormone estrogen, interferes with its action on the reproductive system, and is therefore classified as an endocrine disruptor. This study aims to determine the effectiveness of hispidin and magnesium nanoparticles (MgONPs) against zearalenone-induced myotoxicity, which causes polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) in rats. A three-month exposure study was performed using female Wistar rats (n = 42) with an average weight of 100–150 g. The animals were divided into six groups (I to VI) of seven rats each. Group I was administered distilled water as a negative control. Group II was exposed to Zea 0.1 mg/kg b.w. through gavage daily. Group III was treated with 0.1 mg/kg of hispidin through gavage daily. Group IV was given 150 µg/mL MgONPs orally each day. Group V was treated with Zea 0.1 mg/kg b.w. + 0.1 mg/kg hispidin orally each day. Group VI was treated with Zea 0.1 mg/kg b.w. and the combination treatment of 0.1 mg/kg hispidin + 150 µg/mL MgONPs through gavage every day. The effectiveness of hispidin and MgONPs against Zea toxicity was evaluated in terms of ovarian histological changes, gene expression, oxidative stress biomarkers, biochemical variables, and hormone levels. The findings showed that exposure to Zea promotes PCOS in rats, with Zea-treated rats displaying hyper-ovulation with large cysts; elevated testosterone, luteinizing hormone, insulin, and glucose; and reduced sex hormone-binding globulin. In addition, qRT-PCR for aromatase (Cyp19α1) showed it to be downregulated. Treatment with hispidin improved the histopathological and hormonal situation and rescued expression of Cyp19α. Our data indicate the potential therapeutic effects of hispidin against Zea-induced Fungal Toxicity. Full article

COVID-19 caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) has significantly impacted public health and the economy worldwide. Most of the currently licensed COVID-19 vaccines act by inhibiting the receptor-binding function of the SARS-CoV-2 spike protein. The constant emergence of SARS-CoV-2 variants resulting from mutations in the receptor-binding domain (RBD) leads to vaccine immune evasion and underscores the importance of broadly acting COVID-19 vaccines. Inactivated whole virus vaccines can elicit broader immune responses to multiple epitopes of several antigens and help overcome such immune evasions. We prepared a psoralen-inactivated SARS-CoV-2 vaccine (SARS-CoV-2 PsIV) and evaluated its immunogenicity and efficacy in nonhuman primates (NHPs) when administered with the Advax-CpG adjuvant. We also evaluated the SARS-CoV-2 PsIV as a booster shot in animals vaccinated with a DNA vaccine that can express the full-length spike protein. The Advax-CpG-adjuvanted SARS-CoV-2 PsIV elicited a dose-dependent neutralizing antibody response in the NHPs, as measured using a serum microneutralization assay against the SARS-CoV-2 Washington strain and the Delta variant. The animals vaccinated with the DNA vaccine followed by a boosting dose of the SARS-CoV-2 PsIV exhibited the highest neutralizing antibody responses and were able to quickly clear infection after an intranasal challenge with the SARS-CoV-2 Delta variant. Overall, the data show that the Advax-CpG-adjuvanted SARS-CoV-2 PsIV, either by itself or as a booster shot following nucleic acid (NA) vaccines, has the potential to protect against emerging variants. Full article

With the development of biometric identification technology, finger vein identification has received more and more widespread attention for its security, efficiency, and stability. However, because of the performance of the current standard finger vein image acquisition device and the complex internal organization of the finger, the acquired images are often heavily degraded and have lost their texture characteristics. This makes the topology of the finger veins inconspicuous or even difficult to distinguish, greatly affecting the identification accuracy. Therefore, this paper proposes a finger vein image recovery and enhancement algorithm using atmospheric scattering theory. Firstly, to normalize the local over-bright and over-dark regions of finger vein images within a certain threshold, the Gamma transform method is improved in this paper to correct and measure the gray value of a given image. Then, we reconstruct the image based on atmospheric scattering theory and design a pixel mutation filter to segment the venous and non-venous contact zones. Finally, the degraded finger vein images are recovered and enhanced by global image gray value normalization. Experiments on SDUMLA-HMT and ZJ-UVM datasets show that our proposed method effectively achieves the recovery and enhancement of degraded finger vein images. The image restoration and enhancement algorithm proposed in this paper performs well in finger vein recognition using traditional methods, machine learning, and deep learning. The recognition accuracy of the processed image is improved by more than 10% compared to the original image. Full article

Soil arching is significantly influenced by relative density, while its mechanisms have barely been analyzed. A series of DEM numerical simulations of the classical trapdoor test were carried out to investigate the multi-scale mechanisms of arching development and degradation in granular materials with different relative density. For analysis, the granular assembly was divided into three zones according to the particle vertical displacement normalized by the trapdoor displacement δ. The results show that before the maximum arching state (corresponding to the minimum arching ratio), contact forces between particles in a specific zone (where the vertical displacement of particles is larger than 0.1δ but less than 0.9δ) increase rapidly and robust arched force chains with large particle contact forces are generated. The variation in contact forces and force chains becomes more obvious as the sample porosity decreases. As a result, soil arching generated in a denser particle assembly is stronger, and the minimum value of the arching ratio is increased with the sample porosity. After the maximum arching state, the force chains in this zone are degenerated gradually, leading to a decrease in particle contact forces in microscale and an increase in the arching ratio in macroscale. The recovery of the arching ratio after the minimum value is also more significant in simulations with a larger relative density, as the degeneration of contact force chains is more obvious in denser samples. These results indicate the importance of contact force chain stabilities in specific zones for improving soil arching in engineering practice. Full article

Background: The immune checkpoint blockade remains obscure in osteosarcoma (OS). We aim to explore the clinical significance of soluble immune checkpoint (ICK)-related proteins in OS. Methods: We profiled 14 soluble ICK-related proteins (BTLA, GITR, HVEM, IDO, LAG-3, PD-1, PD-L1, PD-L2, TIM-3, CD28, CD80, CD137, CD27, and CTLA-4) in the plasma of 76 OS patients and matched controls. We evaluated the associations between the biomarkers and the risk of OS using unconditional multivariate logistic regression. The multivariate Cox model was utilized to develop the prediction model of OS. Immune subtypes were established from the identified biomarkers. Transcriptional data from GEO were analyzed to elucidate potential mechanisms. Results: We found that sTIM3, sCD137, sIDO, and sCTLA4 were significantly correlated with OS risk (all p < 0.05). sBTLA, sPDL2, and sCD27 were significantly associated with the risk of lung metastasis, whereas sBTLA and sTIM3 were associated with the risk of disease progression. We also established an immune subtype based on sBTLA, sPD1, sTIM3, and sPDL2. Patients in the sICK-type2 subtype had significantly decreased progression-free survival (PFS) and lung metastasis-free survival (LMFS) than those in the sICK-type1 subtype (log-rank p = 2.8 × 10⁻², 1.7 × 10⁻², respectively). Interestingly, we found that the trend of LMFS and PFS in the subtypes of corresponding ICK genes’ expression was opposite to the results in the blood (log-rank p = 2.6 × 10⁻⁴, 9.5 × 10⁻⁴, respectively). Conclusion: Four soluble ICK-related proteins were associated with the survival of OS patients. Soluble ICK-related proteins could be promising biomarkers for the outcomes and immunotherapy of OS patients, though more research is warranted. Full article

First-aid practices after a domestic accident are not always known, especially in Africa. This study aimed to measure mothers’ knowledge of emergency procedures and attitudes in the event of domestic accidents in children. We conducted a cross-sectional study in the Orodara health district, Kénédougou province, Burkina Faso, among mothers of children aged 0–14 years. The dependent variable was the mothers’ knowledge of domestic accident first-aid practices, and the independent variables were the sociodemographic characteristics of the households and the mothers. Determinants were identified using linear regression with a threshold of 5%. A total of 798 mothers were surveyed. The mean knowledge score was 6.9 (standard deviation = 1.5) out of 19. Upon our multivariate analysis, the factors associated with the mothers’ knowledge about first-aid practices were the mothers’ age, the number of children under 14 years old living in the same household, the household size, the score for knowledge of non-recommended attitudes, the mothers’ level of education, and the place of residence. This study showed that awareness campaigns, especially in rural areas, seem important in improving mothers’ knowledge of first-aid practices in domestic accidents and, therefore, reducing the morbidity and mortality associated with domestic accidents. Full article

This qualitative study aimed to explore the different ways of spouse support for garment workers in Dhaka city. Data were collected through in-depth interviews with male and female workers and their spouses and key informant interviews with relevant stakeholders to explore the different ways of support. The results highlight that male and female workers receive different ways of support for their ways in workplace resistance; therefore, male and female workers cannot participate in their workplace resistance in the same way. In terms of large collective resistance activities, husbands and wives support their spouses’ decisions to participate. Such agreement is important for workers to receive financial and other supports during the protest. However, not all female workers can participate inside and outside large groups of collective resistance as can male workers. Some female workers need to convince their husbands in order to participate inside and outside large groups of collective resistance, because husbands are serious about adherence to purdah. Such restrictions from husbands make it difficult for female workers who are in a dilemma between pressure from coworkers and from their husbands. In terms of small groups of collective resistance and individual resistance, women are more engaged than men, since men, being the main breadwinner in the family, cannot risk their jobs through such resistance. Full article

The whitefly, Bemisia tabaci (Genn.), is one of the most dangerous polyphagous pests in the world. Eco-friendly compounds and new chemical insecticides have gained recognition for whitefly control. In this study, the toxicity and biochemical impact of flometoquin, flonicamid, and sulfoxaflor, alone or combined with lemongrass essential oil (EO), against B. tabaci was studied. In addition, a molecular docking study was conducted to assess the binding affinity of the tested compounds to AchE. Based on the LC values, the descending order of the toxicity of the tested compounds to B. tabaci adults was as follows: sulfoxaflor > flonicamid > flometoquin > lemongrass EO. The binary mixtures of each of the tested compounds with lemongrass EO exhibited synergism in all combinations, with observed mortalities ranging from 15.09 to 22.94% higher than expected for an additive effect. Sulfoxaflor and flonicamid, alone or in combination with lemongrass EO, significantly inhibited AchE activity while only flonicamid demonstrated a significant impact on α-esterase, and none of the tested compounds affected cytochrome P450 or GST. However, the specific activity of P450 was significantly inhibited by the lemongrass/sulfoxaflor mixture while α-esterase activity was significantly inhibited by the lemongrass/flometoquin mixture. Moreover, the lemongrass EO and all the tested insecticides exhibited significant binding affinity to AchE with energy scores ranging from −4.69 to −7.06 kcal/mol. The current findings provide a foundation for utilizing combinations of essential oils and insecticides in the integrated pest management (IPM) of B. tabaci. Full article

With the rapid growth of video data, the search for content and events in videos is becoming increasingly relevant, and many challenges arise. Various approaches have been proposed to deal with many issues. However, many open questions are still related to computational cost and latency, especially for real-time applications. Considering the need for new and efficient solutions, the so-called NOP (Notification Oriented Paradigm) could be a suitable alternative. NOP introduced a new way of thinking and developing software in which small collaborative entities perform fact execution and logical decision processing based on precise notifications. Following these concepts and practical tools, this paper proposes a new querying processing method based on NOP, focusing on search and matching in a continuous flow context. Experiments on a labeled dataset demonstrated the suitability of the proposed method for low-latency processing with polynomial complexity. The results are better than the state of the art, which works at exponential cost. Full article

Aiming at the influence of the magnetic flux density uniformity error (MFDUE) of the Lorentz force magnetic bearing (LFMB) on the sensitivity accuracy of magnetically suspended control and sensing gyroscopes (MSCSGs) on the angular rate of a spacecraft, a high precision measurement method of the angular rate of a spacecraft based on the MFDUE compensation of LFMB is proposed. Firstly, the structure of MSCSG and the sensitivity principle of MSCSG to the spacecraft angular rate are introduced. The mechanism influencing the accuracy of MSCSG to spacecraft angular rate sensitivity is deduced based on the definition of magnetic flux density uniformity. Secondly, the 3D magnetic flux distribution of LFMB is analyzed using ANSYS. The relationship between the rotor tilt angle, tilt angular rate, and magnetic flux density is established. The induced current calculation model due to MFDUE is proposed, and the LFMB magnetic flux density error compensation is realized. Finally, the simulation results show that the estimation accuracy of the induced current by the proposed method can reach 96%, and the simulation and the experiment show that the error compensation method can improve the accuracy of MSCSG in measuring the spacecraft angular rate by 12.5%. Full article

The illegal activity of gold mining in the Brazilian Pantanal is contaminating the aquatic ecosystem with mercury. This contamination has been potentiated by mercury methylation due to a typical natural phenomenon of the Pantanal ecosystem known as “dequada”. The present study estimated in the laboratory the temporal production of methylmercury at two timepoints: the beginning of a flood, when the “dequada” phenomenon occurs, and the dry season without such phenomenon. After collecting water and sediment, experiments were performed with microcosms to reproduce conditions close to nature. To monitor the concentration of methylmercury, 1.0 mg L⁻¹ of Hg²⁺ was added to water and sediment experiments in the Castelo and Saracura bays, both during the “dequada” and without it; monitoring lasted for 25 days. The methylmercury concentration was analyzed using atomic fluorescence spectrometry, total organic carbon using TOC 5000A, and physical and chemical parameters such as pH, redox potential, and dissolved oxygen with a multi-parameter probe. The results led to the conclusion that the “dequada” phenomenon significantly affected mercury methylation, because the environmental changes caused by this phenomenon such as the increased concentration of organic matter, decreased dissolved oxygen, and decreased pH, potentiated mercury methylation. During the “dequada” in the Castelo bay, the methylation rate was 3.5 times higher (6297.56 ng L⁻¹) than in the experiment without the “dequada” (1827.44 ng L⁻¹). Therefore, the gold mining activity in Pantanal can cause great damage to the ecosystem because this environment favors mercury methylation, making its most toxic form active in the aquatic ecosystem of Pantanal. Full article

A circular economy aims at decoupling value creation from waste generation and resource use. The signal crayfish Pacifastacus leniusculus is kept worldwide in aquaculture and after escaping into the wild, may further be used for human consumption rather than eradicated and used for purposes such as fertilizing fields. The level of contamination by two groups of persistent organic pollutants (POPs), polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) and polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), in non-native signal crayfish from a Baltic coastal river, was measured in two locations (under anthropogenic pressure and semi-natural pressure) to understand whether its consumption might be a threat to human health. Concentrations of indicators and total compounds of POPs in the edible parts of crayfish (muscular tissue of crayfish) with potential human health risks were determined. The levels of concentrations of POPs meet the requirements of Regulations (EU) No. 836/2011 and No. 1259/2011 for the consumption of crustaceans. Our results also indicate no significant public health risk caused by consumption of the signal crayfish (hazard quotients (HQ) < 1). The results show that the bioaccumulation of POPs depends on the species’ traits and environment. Full article

The constant inherent optical properties (IOPs) for sea ice currently applied in sea ice models do not realistically represent the dividing of shortwave radiative fluxes in sea ice and the ocean below it. Here we implement a parameterization of variable IOPs based on ice microstructures in the Los Alamos sea ice model, version 6.0 (CICE6) and investigate its effects on the simulation of the dividing of shortwave radiation and sea ice in the Arctic. Our sensitivity experiments indicate that variable IOP parameterization results in strong seasonal variation for the IOP parameters, typically reaching the seasonal maximum in the boreal summer. With such large differences, variable IOP parameterization leads to increased absorbed solar radiation at the surface and in the interior of Arctic sea ice relative to constant IOPs, up to ~3 W/m², but decreased solar radiation penetrating into the ocean, up to ~5–6 W/m². The changes in the dividing of shortwave fluxes in sea ice and the ocean below it induced by the variable IOPs have significant influence on Arctic sea ice thickness by modulating surface and bottom melting and frazil ice formation (increasing surface melting by ~16% and reducing bottom melting by ~11% in summer). Full article

The precipitation on the northern slope of the Kunlun Mountains significantly impacts the green economy of the Tarim Basin’s southern edge. Observations have noted an expansion of the surface water area in this region, though the reasons for this are not yet fully understood. Due to limited instrumental data, this study leverages field measurements from the third Xinjiang comprehensive expedition and multiple gridded datasets. Through trend analysis and a geographical detector model, it examines the precipitation’s decadal, interannual, and seasonal variations across key areas (Hotan River Basin, Keriya River Basin, Qarqan River Basin, and Kumukuli Basin), identifying factors behind the spatial and temporal distribution of regional precipitation. The findings reveal the following: (1) An increase in annual precipitation across the region from 187.41 mm in the 1980s to 221.23 mm in the early 21st century, at a rate of 10.21 mm/decade, with the most significant rise in the eastern Kunlun-Kumukuli Basin. (2) Precipitation exhibits clear seasonal and spatial patterns, predominantly occurring in spring and summer, accounting for 90.27% of the annual total, with a general decrease from the mountains towards downstream areas. (3) Rising average annual temperatures contribute to an unstable atmospheric structure and increased water-holding capacity, facilitating precipitation. Significant influences on precipitation changes include the North Atlantic Oscillation and solar flux, explaining 43.98% and 31.21% of the variation, respectively. Full article

Even though algorithmic composition might be considered a centuries-old concept, it has been gaining particular momentum since the introduction of computer-based techniques. The development of artificial intelligence (AI) methods, culminating in the latest achievements of deep learning techniques, has provided tools to automatically compose and even produce music. This paper discusses various aspects of the entire process within a context of designing a system able to automatically generate a score and recordings belonging to selected musical genres. It begins with the idea and design overview, followed by considerations regarding the algorithmic formulation of selected musical rules and principles. The system implements a hybrid approach, combining conventional, i.e., stochastic or rule-based, and AI elements. The latter are applied to facilitate the generation of selected layers of composition and to constitute a classifier with a task of evaluating the generated recordings. Selected stages of music generation are discussed, for example how motifs are processed into phrases and how phrases are used in the context of a whole song. To validate the system operation results, an evaluation of the quality of the produced music recordings was conducted, including a test with a group of listeners. The analysis also touches upon some legal aspects related to the creation of algorithmic compositions. Full article

Approximately 130,000 metal fuel pins were irradiated in the Experimental Breeder Reactor II (EBR-II) during its 30 years of operation to develop and characterize existing and prospective fuels. For many of the metal fuel irradiation experiments, neutron radiography imaging was performed to characterize fuel behavior, such as fuel axial expansion. While several fuel expansion results obtained from neutron radiography imaging have been published, the analysis of neutron radiography for the purpose of describing statistical properties of porous matter formed on top of the fuel pins, also referred to as fluff in previous publications, is significantly less represented in the literature with just a single paper so far. This study aims to validate and augment results reported in previous publications using automated image processing. The paper describes the statistical properties of the porous matter in terms of nine parameters derived from radiography images and correlates those parameters with such fuel properties as composition, expansion, temperature, and burnup. The reported results are based on 1097 fuel pins of eight different fuel compositions. For three major fuel types, U-10Zr, U-8Pu-10Zr, and U-19Pu-10Zr, a clear negative correlation is found between the Pu content and five parameters describing the amount of porous matter generated. The parameters describing granularity properties, however, showed either negative correlation or nonlinear dependency from fuel composition. The parameters describing the amount showed a positive correlation with fuel axial expansion, while granularity parameters showed a negative correlation with axial expansion. The dependency on cladding temperature was found to be weak. A positive correlation is demonstrated for volume parameters and fuel burnup. In general, reported results confirm and validate findings published in previous studies using a much larger number of pins and automated processing techniques, which easily lend themselves to reproducibility, thus avoiding subjective bias. Full article

Ruled surfaces are considered one of the significant aspects of differential geometry. These surfaces are formed by the motion of a straight line called a generator, and every curve that intersects all the generators is called a directrix. In the present research paper, we explore a family of ruled surfaces constructed from circular helices (W-curve) using the Frenet frame in the Euclidean space ${\mathbb{E}}^3$. We derive the explicit formulas for the second mean curvature and second Gaussian curvature. We present some ruled surfaces, and we describe their properties. In addition, we determine the sufficient conditions for these surfaces to be minimal, flat, II-minimal, and II-flat. Also, we obtain sufficient conditions for the base curve for these ruled surfaces to be a geodesic curve, an asymptotic line, and a principal line. Furthermore, we present an application for a ruled surface whose base curve is a circular helix, we compute some quantities for this surface such as the mean curvature and Gaussian curvatures and we plot the ruled surface with its base curve, and at symmetric points and along a symmetry axis. Full article

This study explores a nanoemulsion formulated with açaí seed oil, known for its rich fatty acid composition and diverse biological activities. This study aimed to characterise a nanoemulsion formulated with açaí seed oil and explore its cytotoxic effects on HeLa and SiHa cervical cancer cell lines, alongside assessing its antioxidant and toxicity properties both in vitro and in vivo. Extracted from fruits sourced in Brazil, the oil underwent thorough chemical characterization using gas chromatography–mass spectrometry. The resulting nanoemulsion was prepared and evaluated for stability, particle size, and antioxidant properties. The nanoemulsion exhibited translucency, fluidity, and stability post centrifugation and temperature tests, with a droplet size of 238.37, PDI -9.59, pH 7, and turbidity 0.267. In vitro assessments on cervical cancer cell lines revealed antitumour effects, including inhibition of cell proliferation, migration, and colony formation. Toxicity tests conducted in cell cultures and female Swiss mice demonstrated no adverse effects of both açaí seed oil and nanoemulsion. Overall, açaí seed oil, particularly when formulated into a nanoemulsion, presents potential for cancer treatment due to its bioactive properties and safety profile. Full article

Fullerenes, particularly C₆₀, exhibit unique properties that make them promising candidates for various applications, including drug delivery and nanomedicine. However, their interactions with biomolecules, especially proteins, remain not fully understood. This study implements both explicit and implicit C₆₀ models into the UNRES coarse-grained force field, enabling the investigation of fullerene–protein interactions without the need for restraints to stabilize protein structures. The UNRES force field offers computational efficiency, allowing for longer timescale simulations while maintaining accuracy. Five model proteins were studied: FK506 binding protein, HIV-1 protease, intestinal fatty acid binding protein, PCB-binding protein, and hen egg-white lysozyme. Molecular dynamics simulations were performed with and without C₆₀ to assess protein stability and investigate the impact of fullerene interactions. Analysis of contact probabilities reveals distinct interaction patterns for each protein. FK506 binding protein (1FKF) shows specific binding sites, while intestinal fatty acid binding protein (1ICN) and uteroglobin (1UTR) exhibit more generalized interactions. The explicit C₆₀ model shows good agreement with all-atom simulations in predicting protein flexibility, the position of C₆₀ in the binding pocket, and the estimation of effective binding energies. The integration of explicit and implicit C₆₀ models into the UNRES force field, coupled with recent advances in coarse-grained modeling and multiscale approaches, provides a powerful framework for investigating protein–nanoparticle interactions at biologically relevant scales without the need to use restraints stabilizing the protein, thus allowing for large conformational changes to occur. These computational tools, in synergy with experimental techniques, can aid in understanding the mechanisms and consequences of nanoparticle–biomolecule interactions, guiding the design of nanomaterials for biomedical applications. Full article

Glioblastoma (GBM) stands as the most prevalent and lethal malignant brain tumor, characterized by its highly infiltrative nature. This study aimed to identify additional MRI and metabolomic biomarkers of GBM and its impact on healthy tissue using an advanced-stage C6 glioma rat model. Wistar rats underwent a stereotactic injection of C6 cells (GBM group, n = 10) or cell medium (sham group, n = 4). A multiparametric MRI, including anatomical T₂W and T₁W images, relaxometry maps (T₂, T₂*, and T₁), the magnetization transfer ratio (MTR), and diffusion tensor imaging (DTI), was performed. Additionally, ex vivo magnetic resonance spectroscopy (MRS) HRMAS spectra were acquired. The MRI analysis revealed significant differences in the T₂ maps, T₁ maps, MTR, and mean diffusivity parameters between the GBM tumor and the rest of the studied regions, which were the contralateral areas of the GBM rats and both regions of the sham rats (the ipsilateral and contralateral). The ex vivo spectra revealed markers of neuronal loss, apoptosis, and higher glucose uptake by the tumor. Notably, the myo-inositol and phosphocholine levels were elevated in both the tumor and the contralateral regions of the GBM rats compared to the sham rats, suggesting the effects of the tumor on the healthy tissue. The MRI parameters related to inflammation, cellularity, and tissue integrity, along with MRS-detected metabolites, serve as potential biomarkers for the tumor evolution, treatment response, and impact on healthy tissue. These techniques can be potent tools for evaluating new drugs and treatment targets. Full article