俗称“磁波刀”的“磁共振引导相控聚焦超声”技术是近年来治疗特发性震颤和震颤主导型帕金森病的新兴方式之一，具有无创、可控、穿透力强等特点，目前已有一款进口“磁波刀”产品进入我国。近日，国产化“磁波刀”系统的研发应用再获突破。上海交大生物医学工程学院陈亚珠院士、沈国峰研究员团队联合陈垚教授团队、上海市第一人民医院副院长、放射科学科带头人王悍教授团队与沈德无创时代医疗科技有限公司合作，首次成功完成了国产“磁波刀”系统治疗特发性震颤和震颤主导型帕金森病的临床前灵长类动物实验。首都医科大学宣武医院张宇清主任、宣武医院济南分院张晓华副院长、深圳大学附属华南医院陶蔚主任、魏明怡医生、佛山市中医院周守国主任、王娟主任、黄耀渠主任参与了本次实验。本次恒河猴实验检验了系统的安全性、有效性和稳定性，为“磁波刀”系统进入人体临床试验，实现国产化提供了重要实践支撑。特发性震颤是一种较为普遍的神经系统疾病。患者的吃饭、喝水、写作等日常活动会受到严重影响，大约有15%-25%的患者因该病无法正常生活、工作。目前，特发性震颤的手术治疗和药物治疗较为成熟。其中脑深部电刺激技术（DBS）是重要的微创介入治疗手段之一，通过微创手术将电极植入大脑，刺激神经核团和神经环路，达到治疗目的，DBS属于侵入性治疗，不少患者对此有所顾虑。“磁波刀”系统的治疗原理是在超导磁共振实时成像引导下，同时发射数百至数千束超声波，通过相位实时调控，实现多模式精准聚焦，通过磁共振实时测温，实现脑部治疗靶点精准消融。患者可以在无须开颅、无须全身麻醉的情况下，在门诊即可完成“磁波刀”手术治疗。近年来，上海交通大学生物医学工程学院沈国峰研究员团队联合上海市第一人民医院和沈德无创时代医疗器械有限公司，在陈亚珠院士的指导下联合攻关，已突破“卡脖子”的关键核心技术，成功研发了具有完全自主知识产权的“磁共振引导相控聚焦超声”无创治疗技术并开发出国产“磁波刀”系列产品进入临床。该技术原理类似于相控阵雷达，可主动感知、灵活调整超声焦点的位置，实现焦点的快速移动和转换。在治疗过程中，“磁波刀”能够无损地探测到温度等多种参数，手术操作全程可视化。医生可通过后台监视屏上的实时磁共振图像指导手术操作并实时、精准评估疗效，大幅度提升了聚焦超声治疗的安全性和有效性。目前，团队研制的体部磁波刀产品与进口产品对照，已经完成子宫肌瘤适应证的全部临床工作，正在申请三类医疗器械注册证。在本次动物实验中，研究团队以灵长类动物恒河猴为实验对象，验证了自主研发的国产“磁波刀”设备的系统安全性及有效性。据悉，第一代用于脑部疾病治疗的国产“磁波刀”系统在上市后将聚焦于特发性震颤、震颤主导型帕金森病和运动障碍型帕金森病的热消融治疗，未来还会不断拓展，通过热消融、神经调控、打开血脑屏障靶向递药等创新技术，无创治疗脑胶质瘤、癫痫、阿尔茨海默症、抑制症、强迫症、神经疼痛等脑部神经和精神系统疾病，具有广阔的应用前景。 查看详细>>

近日，上海交通大学生命科学技术学院/医学院临床研究中心俞章盛教授课题组与合作者在中科院Top期刊《Cell Reports Medicine》在线发表题为“Harnessing TME depicted by histological images to improve cancer prognosis through adeep learning system”的研究成果，该研究开发了一个深度学习系统，可以通过组织病理学图像，为没有空间转录组数据的癌症患者预测肿瘤微环境信息，从而实现精确的癌症预后，大幅度地拓展了基因空间表达信息在大型生物医学病理图像公共数据库的使用。生命科学技术学院“致远荣誉计划”博士研究生高瑞恬是本文的第一作者，生命科学技术学院/医学院临床研究中心俞章盛教授、自然科学研究院王宇光教授及医学院附属瑞金医院孙晶教授为共同通讯作者。癌症患者的预后预测一直是临床中的重要挑战。肿瘤微环境对实体肿瘤的发生、演变和转移至关重要。越来越多的研究揭示了肿瘤微环境与癌症预后和治疗选择之间的相关性。空间转录组学技术可以从空间基因表达的角度对肿瘤微环境进行表征，区分癌症患者的不同预后亚组。然而，空间转录组的高昂成本和长实验周期阻碍了其应用于大规模癌症患者队列中进行生存预测。在临床中易于获取的组织病理学图像提供了丰富的肿瘤形态学信息，如果能开发出人工智能模型基于图像预测分子层面的基因空间表达水平，进而刻画肿瘤微环境，有望实现更精确的癌症预后。该研究致力于开发一个深度学习系统，利用组织病理学图像预测相应区域的高维基因空间表达水平，克服空间转录组数据目前存在的高成本和有限样本量等局限性，对仅有病理图像数据、没有空间转录组数据的大规模癌症队列进行肿瘤微环境刻画，提高癌症患者预后的精确性。该深度学习系统包含两个部分，第一部分是基于卷积神经网络和图神经网络的空间转录组表达水平预测模型(IGI-DL)，第二部分是基于空间基因表达描绘的肿瘤微环境信息进行癌症生存预后预测。构建的IGI-DL模型集成了卷积神经网络和图神经网络的优势，充分利用组织病理学图像中的像素强度和结构特征，实现更准确的基因空间表达水平预测。模型在结直肠癌、乳腺癌和皮肤鳞状细胞癌这三种类型实体瘤中均表现出色，与五种现有方法相比平均相关系数提升了0.171。进一步，应用IGI-DL模型通过组织病理学图像推断基因的空间表达，构建Super-patch graph，进行癌症患者的生存预后。研究结果表明使用IGI-DL预测的基因空间表达作为Super-patch graph中的节点特征可以提高生存预后模型在TCGA数据集乳腺癌和结直肠癌队列中的性能表现，五折交叉验证C-index为0.747和0.725，优于其他生存预后模型。该生存预后模型对于早期患者（I期和II期）的预后预测同样保持精度优势，预测得到的风险评分可以作为所有阶段患者和早期患者的独立预后指标。在包含一千多名患者数据的外部测试集MCO-CRC中，生存预后模型保持稳定的优势，具有泛化能力。该研究受到国家自然科学基金、上海市科学技术委员会基金、上海交通大学“医工交叉研究基金”等项目资助。同时感谢上海交通大学网络信息中心提供的超算平台支持。 查看详细>>

A collaboration between theoretical physicists Dr Chengkang ZHOU and Professor Zi Yang MENG from the Department of Physics at The University of Hong Kong(HKU),along with experimentalists Zhenyuan ZENG and Professor Shiliang LI at the Institute of Physics(IOP),Chinese Academy of Sciences(CAS),and Professor Kenji NAKAJIMA from J-PARC Center,Japan,has led to adiscovery in the realm of quantum physics.Their study,published in arecent issue of Nature Physics,sheds light on the long-anticipated emergence of quasiparticles,akin to the famous Dirac particles obeying the relativistic Dirac equation.These quasiparticles,known as Dirac spinons,were theorised to exist within anovel quantum state called aquantum spin liquid state.Quasiparticles are intriguing entities that emerge from collective behaviour within materials,which can be treated like agroup of particles.The Dirac spinons,specifically,are expected to exhibit unique characteristics similar to Dirac particles in high-energy physics and the Dirac electrons in graphene and quantum moire materials,such as alinear dispersion relation between energy and momentum.But such spin-½charge neutral quasiparticles have not been seen in quantum magnets till this work.‘“To find Dirac spinons in quantum magnets has been the dream of generations of condensed matter physicists;now that we have seen the evidence of them,one can start to think about the countless potential applications of such highly entangled quantum material.Who knows,maybe one day people will build quantum computers with it,just as people have been doing in the past half-century with silicon,’”said Professor Meng,HKU physicist and one of the corresponding authors of the paper.The team‘s investigation focused on aunique material known as YCu3-Br,characterised by akagome lattice structure leading to the appearance of these elusive quasiparticles.Previous studies had hinted at the material‘s potential to exhibit aquantum spin liquid state,making it an ideal candidate for exploration.In order to enable the observation of spinons in YCu3-Br,the research team overcame numerous challenges by assembling approximately 5000 single crystals together,meeting the requirements for conducting experiments such as inelastic neutron scattering(see Fig.1d).Using advanced techniques like inelastic neutron scattering,the team probed the material‘s spin excitations and observed intriguing conical spin continuum patterns,reminiscent of the characteristic Dirac cone.While directly detecting single spinon proved challenging due to experimental limitations,the team compared their findings with theoretical predictions,revealing distinct spectral features indicative of the presence of spinons in the material.Finding spectral evidence of Dirac spinon excitations has always been achallenge.This discovery provides compelling evidence for the existence of aDirac quantum spin liquid state,which can be akin to aclear cry cutting through the fog of spectral investigation on the quantum spin liquid state.The findings not only advance our fundamental understanding of condensed matter physics but also open doors for further exploration into the properties and applications of YCu3-Br.Characterised by the presence of fractional spinon excitations,the quantum spin liquid state is potentially relevant to high-temperature superconductivity and quantum information.In this state,the spins are highly entangled and remain disordered even at low temperatures.Therefore,investigating the spectral signals arising from spinons obeying the Dirac equation would provide abroader understanding of the quantum spin liquid state of matter.Such understanding also serves as aguidepost toward its broader applications,including the exploration of high-temperature superconductivity and quantum information.For adetailed explanation of the research,please visit here:https://www.scifac.hku.hk/page/detail/8595 The journal paper entitled‘Spectral evidence for Dirac spinons in akagome lattice antiferromagnet’can be accessed from here:https://www.nature.com/articles/s41567-024-02495-z The study was supported by the Ministry of Science and Technology of China,the Chinese Academy of Sciences and grants from Hong Kong Research Grants Council.Neutron scattering measurements were performed on AMATERAS,J-PARC. 查看详细>>

浙江大学生命科学研究院汪方炜实验室在The EMBO Journal杂志在线发表了题为“A non-canonical role of the inner kinetochore in regulating sister-chromatid cohesion at centromeres”的研究论文。该研究发现了染色体内层动粒（inner kinetochore）通过直接结合黏连蛋白复合体（cohesin）调控姐妹染色单体黏连（sister-chromatid cohesion）的非经典功能，并阐明了其作用机理。有丝分裂是真核生物体细胞分裂的基本形式，也是生长发育和组织器官稳态维持的根本基础。有丝分裂通过将自我复制的姐妹染色单体平均分配至两个子细胞中，实现遗传物质由亲代细胞向子代细胞的精确传递。该过程中发生的微小差错都有可能造成子代细胞染色体数目和结构异常，进而促进肿瘤的发生与发展。据估算，一个成人体内每天约有数千亿个细胞在进行着有丝分裂，因此细胞必须拥有一套非常精确的控制系统，才能最大程度地保证在每一次有丝分裂过程中染色体都能正确分离。这套控制系统在分子水平上的运作机制还很不清楚。这项研究发现，敲低内层动粒CENP-OPQUR复合体的CENP-U亚基会导致姐妹染色单体在着丝粒区的黏连变弱。蛋白互作实验和质谱分析发现CENP-U可以结合黏连蛋白复合体，而且它们之间的结合依赖于黏连蛋白复合体的核心亚基Scc1和SA2，而非SMC1和SMC3。蛋白复合体的体外重构和互作实验进一步确定，CENP-U的氨基端和羧基端可以分别结合Scc1-SA2亚复合物和CENP-OPQR亚复合物。合作者华中科技大学贺晓静教授通过CENP-U肽段与Scc1-SA2亚复合物的蛋白共结晶实验，解析了CENP-U氨基端的FDF基序结合Scc1-SA2互作界面的结构基础。功能研究发现，将CENP-U的FDF基序突变为ADA后，不仅破坏了CENP-OPQUR复合体与黏连蛋白复合体的结合，还使得姐妹染色单体黏连变弱。机理研究发现，敲低黏连蛋白的调节亚基Wapl使得姐妹染色单体黏连不再依赖于CENP-U，不能结合CENP-U的Scc1-SA2突变体也部分失去了结合Wapl的能力，而且CENP-U能竞争性地排斥Wapl结合Scc1-SA2亚复合物，说明CENP-U通过抑制Wapl的功能促进姐妹染色单体黏连。以上结果说明，内层动粒CENP-OPQUR复合体通过其CENP-U亚基的FDF基序直接结合黏连蛋白复合体中Scc1-SA2亚复合物的互作界面，抑制Wapl通过结合Scc1-SA2界面移除着丝粒区黏连蛋白的活性，进而实现对姐妹染色单体黏连的保护作用。内层动粒最广为人知的功能是连接着丝粒染色质和外层动粒，纺锤体微管通过附着于外层动粒从而牵引染色体移动。这项研究意外地发现内层动粒可通过直接结合黏连蛋白调控姐妹染色单体黏连，不仅揭示了内层动粒作为黏连蛋白受体分子的非经典功能，还阐明了染色体分离控制系统在调控着丝粒黏连这一关键环节中的分子机制。黏连蛋白环介导姐妹染色单体黏连的确切机制目前还很不清楚。英国牛津大学生化系的Kim Nasmyth实验室近期报道，姐妹染色单体是由单个黏连蛋白环介导的（Ochs Fet al.,Science,2024,PMID:38452070）。然而，有丝分裂中期姐妹染色单体内层动粒的平均间距可达750纳米，约为黏连蛋白环直径的15倍，提示结合于内层动粒的黏连蛋白可能还会以多环串联的方式介导姐妹染色单体黏连。此外，黏连蛋白还在介导染色质环形成中发挥重要作用，内层动粒区的黏连蛋白是否调控着丝粒区染色质的高级结构，还有待探究。汪方炜教授、颜海燕副教授和贺晓静教授为论文共同通讯作者，浙江大学生命科学研究院颜璐（2020级直博生）、袁雪颖（2021级博士生）以及华中科技大学刘明洁博士为共同第一作者，浙江大学附属妇产科医院吕卫国教授和陈亲富研究员等也有重要贡献。该研究受国家自然科学基金、国家重点研发计划、浙江省自然科学基金、浙江大学生命科学研究院创新项目等资助。 查看详细>>

疫苗是历史上最有效的医疗干预措施之一，显著减轻了全世界的疾病负担。据估计，疫苗每年在全球挽救了250万人的生命。尽管已经存在灭活疫苗、减毒疫苗、病毒载体疫苗、病毒样颗粒疫苗、DNA疫苗以及mRNA疫苗等成熟和新兴的疫苗技术，许多疾病迄今仍然没有有效的疫苗可以使用，包括HIV、HSV-1、HSV-2等传染性病毒既没有预防性也没有治疗性疫苗。对于某些病毒，现有的疫苗仅具有预防作用，并不能消除已经存在的感染，例如HBV和HPV。在非传染性疾病方面，癌症疫苗的开发仍处于早期阶段，在临床试验中仅仅取得了微弱的成功。这些健康威胁的解决需要疫苗技术的进一步开发和突破。近日，上海交通大学系统生物医学研究院蔡宇伽团队联合复旦大学洪佳旭、应天雷团队，上海交通大学董瑞蛟、陶生策团队，以及武汉病毒所、军事医学科学院、本导基因等多家单位在Nature Biomedical Engineering期刊在线发表了题为Dendritic-cell-targeting virus-like particles as potent mRNA vaccine carriers的研究论文。该研究开发了一种能够特异靶向DC细胞，高效递送mRNA和蛋白的新型疫苗平台技术—DC靶向性类病毒载体（DVLP）。这种全新的疫苗技术既能够携带mRNA也能在疫苗颗粒表面展示抗原蛋白的三维结构，具有高效激活体液免疫和细胞免疫的能力，可以显著防止新冠病毒感染，在被视为疫苗研发黑洞的单纯疱疹病毒的预防上也起到了显著的效果，为全球数亿的HSV感染者带来了治疗与预防的潜在手段。DVLP疫苗技术有望成为一个新型疫苗平台，在病毒感染、肿瘤、衰老的治疗和预防上发挥重要的作用。 查看详细>>

Autism Spectrum Disorder(ASD)cases are predominantly male,with amale-to-female ratio of about 4to 1.However,medical academia has been unable to determine the cause of this gender difference.A recent international study co-led by The Chinese University of Hong Kong(CUHK)’s Faculty of Medicine(CU Medicine)and its partners in Europe and the U.S.has made asignificant breakthrough in understanding the skewed sex ratio observed in ASD.The study revealed that the condition’s heritability is higher in males than females by 11 percentage points,meaning that males are more vulnerable to genetic variance related to ASD.Study details have been published in the renowned international journal JAMA Psychiatry.A breakthrough in the understanding of ASD ASD is aneurodevelopmental condition that includes difficulties with communication,social interaction and adjustment to unexpected changes.It is known that this condition is explained more by multigene effects(i.e.additive genetics)than by rare mutations with large effects.Male patients are more likely to be diagnosed compared to females.However,it is unclear why the sex ratio is skewed.For the current study,a population-based analysis was undertaken by an international research team consisting of researchers from CU Medicine,Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai in the U.S.,Karolinska Institutet in Sweden and other institutions.They leveraged the anonymised data of the national health registers of non-twin siblings and cousins from Sweden.The participants,born between 1985 and 1998,were followed up to the age of 19.The data analysis,which took place from August 2022 to November 2023,included 1,047,649 individuals across 456,832 families.Researchers employed sophisticated statistical models to estimate the relative variance in ASD risk attributable to sex-specific additive genetics,shared environmental effects and acommon residual term.This residual term conceptually captured other factors promoting individual behavioural variation,including maternal effects(such as preterm birth),rare genetic variants or gene-environment interactions.The estimates were carefully adjusted for differences in prevalence due to birth year and maternal and paternal age.Paving the way for personalised care strategies for individuals with ASD Out of the entire cohort,12,226 cases(1.17%)received an ASD diagnosis,with ahigher prevalence in males(1.51%)than females(0.80%).The heritability of ASD was estimated at 87%for males and 75.7%for females,a difference of approximately 11 percentage points between the sexes.This shows that genetic factors play amore substantial role in the aetiology of male ASD cases,while residual factors have higher influence on female cases.Notably,the study found no evidence of shared environmental contributions to ASD.Professor Benjamin Yip Hon-kei,the corresponding author of the research paper and Associate Professor at CU Medicine’s The Jockey Club School of Public Health and Primary Care,stated,“These findings indicate that genetic variability may play amore significant role in males with ASD than females.Our study underscores the importance of considering sex differences in ASD research and treatment,potentially leading to future studies which target the rare mutations in female patients.Therefore,more personalised approaches may be developed to support individuals with ASD,considering their unique genetic makeup.”This research collaboration between CU Medicine and its partners in Europe and the U.S.is atestament to the importance of collaborative,cross-disciplinary efforts in advancing the understanding of neurodevelopmental disorders.Another corresponding author of the research paper,Professor Sven Sandin,Assistant Professor from the Department of Psychiatry of the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai and also an Applied Biostatistician from the Department of Medical Epidemiology and Biostatistics at Karolinska Institutet,concluded,“This study is acrucial step forward in unravelling the complexities of ASD.It not only provides clarity on the genetic predisposition of the condition,but also sets anew direction for global research to include sex-specific analysis.The implications for future studies are profound,as this research could lead to breakthroughs in understanding the nuanced genetic landscape of ASD and other related conditions.” 查看详细>>

A new catalyst made from an inexpensive,abundant metal and common table sugar has the power to destroy carbon dioxide(CO2)gas.In anew Northwestern University study,the catalyst successfully converted CO2 into carbon monoxide(CO),an important building block to produce avariety of useful chemicals.When the reaction occurs in the presence of hydrogen,for example,CO2 and hydrogen transform into synthesis gas(or syngas),a highly valuable precursor to producing fuels that can potentially replace gasoline.With recent advances in carbon capture technologies,post-combustion carbon capture is becoming aplausible option to help tackle the global climate change crisis.But how to handle the captured carbon remains an open-ended question.The new catalyst potentially could provide one solution for disposing the potent greenhouse gas by converting it into amore valuable product.The study will be published in the May 3issue of the journal Science.“Even if we stopped emitting CO2 now,our atmosphere would still have asurplus of CO2 as aresult of industrial activities from the past centuries,”said Northwestern’s Milad Khoshooei,who co-led the study.“There is no single solution to this problem.We need to reduce CO2 emissions and find new ways to decrease the CO2 concentration that is already in the atmosphere.We should take advantage of all possible solutions.”“We’re not the first research group to convert CO2 into another product,”said Northwestern’s Omar K.Farha,the study’s senior author.“However,for the process to be truly practical,it necessitates acatalyst that fulfills several crucial criteria:affordability,stability,ease of production and scalability.Balancing these four elements is key.Fortunately,our material excels in meeting these requirements.”An expert in carbon capture technologies,Farha is the Charles E.and Emma H.Morrison Professor of Chemistry at Northwestern’s Weinberg College of Arts and Sciences.After starting this work as aPh.D.candidate at the University of Calgary in Canada,Khoshooei now is apostdoctoral fellow in Farha’s laboratory. 查看详细>>

A newly developed nanomaterial that mimics the behavior of proteins could be an effective tool for treating Alzheimer’s and other neurodegenerative diseases.The nanomaterial alters the interaction between two key proteins in brain cells—with apotentially powerful therapeutic effect.The innovative findings,recently published in the journal Advanced Materials,were made possible thanks to acollaboration between University of Wisconsin–Madison scientists and nanomaterial engineers at Northwestern University.The work centers around altering the interaction between two proteins that are believed to be involved in setting the stage for diseases like Alzheimer’s,Parkinson’s and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis,or ALS.The first protein is called Nrf2,a specific type of protein called atranscription factor that turns genes on and off within cells.One of Nrf2’s important functions is its antioxidant effect.While different neurodegenerative diseases result from separate disease processes,a commonality among them is the toxic effect of oxidative stress on neurons and other nerve cells.Nrf2 combats this toxic stress in brain cells,helping to stave off disease.Jeffrey Johnson,a professor in the UW–Madison School of Pharmacy,has been studying Nrf2 as apromising target for treating neurodegenerative diseases for decades alongside his wife Delinda Johnson,a senior scientist at the pharmacy school.In 2022,the Johnsons and another group of collaborators found that increasing Nrf2 activity in aspecific cell type in the brain,the astrocyte,helped protect neurons in mouse models of Alzheimer’s disease,leading to significantly less memory loss.While this previous research suggested that increasing Nrf2’s activity could form the basis of an Alzheimer’s treatment,scientists have found it challenging to effectively target the protein within the brain.“It’s hard to get drugs into the brain,but it’s also been very hard to find drugs that activate Nrf2 without alot of off-target effects,”says Jeffrey Johnson.Enter the new nanomaterial.Known as aprotein-like polymer,or PLP,the synthetic material is designed to bind to proteins as if it were itself aprotein.This nano-scale imitator is aproduct of ateam led by Nathan Gianneschi,a professor of chemistry at Northwestern and faculty member at the university’s International Institute for Nanotechnology. 查看详细>>

GRASSROOTS HEALTHCARE With an increased focus on informal care,it is possible to significantly improve the lives of diabetes patients.This is shown by the research project VALID,which has just completed its first phase in Vietnam.According to VALID‘s project leader,its results can also have abroader impact.Chronic diseases such as diabetes no longer just pose achallenge in wealthy,Western countries.They are also becoming more prevalent in low-and middle-income countries,such as in Vietnam,which is experiencing alarge increase in the number of diabetes patients.These people are the focus of the VALID research project.In March the project concluded its first phase,VALID I,which has focused on developing the informal support and care in everyday diabetes management.This care can improve the lives of people with diabetes and potentially also help to limit the spread of the disease.The chronic disease,which previously was relatively unknown in Vietnam,is currently escalating in the Southeast Asian country,with particularly serious consequences for families living far from the hospitals where they can receive treatment.The rise in the number of diabetes patients is partly due to lifestyle changes-but not just the ones we struggle with in Western countries.The Vietnamese situation is different-in just afew years,the population has gone from being underfed to adequately nourished.This transition is likely also arisk factor due to so-called foetal programming,says project manager Tine Gammeltoft,a professor at the Department of Anthropology at the University of Copenhagen.According to this theory,the foetus‘body is‘programmed‘before birth to receive acertain amount of nutrition:"If you were born in the 1980s and 1990s or earlier,when Vietnam experienced enormous poverty,your body is geared to receive very little nutrition.When prosperity then increases so much over the course of the 90s that Vietnam in 2011 becomes amiddle-income country and the Vietnamese people get aregular diet,their bodies are not prepared for it.This may be one of the reasons why many are affected by chronic diseases such as diabetes." 查看详细>>

When cancer patients undergo chemotherapy,the dose of most drugs is calculated based on the patient’s body surface area.This is estimated by plugging the patient’s height and weight into an equation,dating to 1916,that was formulated from data on just nine patients.This simplistic dosing doesn’t take into account other factors and can lead to patients receiving either too much or too little of adrug.As aresult,some patients likely experience avoidable toxicity or insufficient benefit from the chemotherapy they receive.To make chemotherapy dosing more accurate,MIT engineers have come up with an alternative approach that can enable the dose to be personalized to the patient.Their system measures how much drug is in the patient’s system,and these measurements are fed into acontroller that can adjust the infusion rate accordingly.This approach could help to compensate for differences in drug pharmacokinetics caused by body composition,genetic makeup,chemotherapy-induced toxicity of the organs that metabolize the drugs,interactions with other medications being taken and foods consumed,and circadian fluctuations in the enzymes responsible for breaking down chemotherapy drugs,the researchers say.“Recognizing the advances in our understanding of how drugs are metabolized,and applying engineering tools to facilitate personalized dosing,we believe,can help transform the safety and efficacy of many drugs,”says Giovanni Traverso,an associate professor of mechanical engineering at MIT,a gastroenterologist at Brigham and Women’s Hospital,and the senior author of the study.Louis DeRidder,an MIT graduate student,is the lead author of the paper,which appears today in the journal Med. 查看详细>>