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Pauli crystal superradiance data set
Item type: Dataset
Ortuño-Gonzalez, Daniel; Lin, Rui; Stefaniak, Justyna; et al. (2025)
A “broken egg” of U.S. Political Beliefs: Using response-item networks (ResIN) to measure ideological polarization
Item type: Journal Article
Chen , Yijing; Speer , Anne; De Bruin, Bart; et al. (2025)
Belief network analysis (BNA) has enabled major advances in the study of belief systems, capturing Converse’s understanding of the interdependence among multiple beliefs (i.e., constraint) more intuitively than many conventional statistics. However, BNA struggles with representing political divisions that follow a spatial logic, such as the “left–right” or “liberal-conservative” ideological divide. We argue that Response Item Networks (ResINs) have important advantages for modeling political cleavage lines as they organically capture belief systems in a latent ideological space. In addition to retaining many desirable properties inherent to BNA, ResIN can uncover ideological polarization in a visually intuitive, theoretically grounded, and statistically robust fashion. We demonstrate the advantages of ResIN by analyzing ideological polarization with regard to five hot-button issues from 2000 to 2020 using the American National Election Studies (ANES), and by comparing it against an equivalent procedure using BNA. We further introduce system-level and attitude-level polarization measures afforded by ResIN and discuss their potential to enrich the analysis of ideological polarization. Our analysis shows that ResIN allows us to observe much more detailed dynamics of polarization than classic BNA approaches.
Nondestructive X-ray tomography of brain tissue ultrastructure
Item type: Journal Article
Bosch , Carles; Aidukas , Tomas; Holler , Mirko; et al. (2025)
Maps of biological tissues at subcellular detail are key for understanding how organs function. X-ray nanotomography is a promising alternative to volume electron microscopy: it has the potential to nondestructively image millimeter-sized samples at ultrastructural resolution within a few days. A fundamental barrier is that the intense X-rays required for imaging also deform and disintegrate the tissue samples. Here we show a combination of solutions that overcome this barrier: We used a cryogenic and stable sample stage, tailored nonrigid tomographic reconstruction algorithms and an epoxy resin developed for the nuclear and aerospace industry. Tissue samples were resistant to radiation doses exceeding 1.15 × 1010 Gy, and sub-40 nm isotropic resolution allowed identifying axon bundles, dendrites and synapses in mouse brain tissue without physical sectioning. Using volume electron microscopy, we demonstrate that tissue ultrastructure remains intact after X-ray imaging. Together, this unlocks the potential of X-ray tomography for high-resolution tissue imaging.
Multi-omics qualification of an organ-on-a-chip model of osteolytic bone metastasis
Item type: Journal Article
Munoz Castro , Natalia; Nolan , Joanne; Maniati , Eleni; et al. (2026)
Bone is a primary site for metastasis in breast cancer, with up to 70 % of patients with metastatic breast cancer developing osteolytic bone lesions, wherein cancer cells drive osteoclast resorption of bone. However, progress in developing therapies is limited by the absence of predictive in vitro models. This study developed a unique organ-on-a-chip model to simulate osteolytic bone metastasis and utilised a multi-omics approach for characterisation/qualification and validation against in vivo data. Using the Emulate S1 platform, we co-cultured murine osteocytes and osteoclasts to recreate the bone microenvironment, alongside breast cancer cells in a separate channel separated by a porous membrane. Using RNA sequencing, cytokine profiling, and fluorescence staining, we demonstrated the importance of the complete tri-culture model in replicating key aspects of in vivo biology, and uncovered critical pathways involved in metastasis. A synergistic effect was observed in the tri-culture organ-chip model, leading to increased cancer cell migration and the upregulation of pro-metastatic and pro-inflammatory pathways that promote bone degradation and cancer progression. This study validates an organ-chip model of osteolytic breast cancer bone metastasis as a scalable alternative to traditional animal models. Furthermore, we show how multi-omics and bioinformatics techniques may be used for qualification and validation of organ-chip models; for unpicking the relative contribution of the different cell types; and to identify signalling pathways and therapeutic targets. Statement of significance In this study, we develop a 3D organ-on-a-chip tri-culture model of the osteolytic metastatic niche, in which we verify expected bone and breast cancer cell behaviours. Importantly, we successfully validate our organ-chip against a dataset from the gold standard in vivo preclinical model of osteolytic breast metastases, using transcriptomics and proteomics to confirm strong alignment of gene expression profiles with in vivo mouse expression. Additionally, our multi-omics analysis sheds new light on both expected and novel molecular pathways for therapeutic targeting, demonstrating the utility of the organ-chip as a potential replacement for preclinical mouse models of breast cancer metastases in bone. Therefore, this study represents a key marker in the field of organ-chip research, demonstrating the importance of biomaterials technologies for preclinical science. Most importantly, our work demonstrates for biotech and pharma companies that qualified organ-chip devices can play a role as intermediate medium-throughput technologies for screening lead drug candidates.
α-Synuclein cooperative binding to lipid membranes is a robust property over a wide range of conditions
Item type: Journal Article
Ferrante Carrante , Noemi; Dubackic , Marija; Makasewicz , Katarzyna; et al. (2025)
Cooperativity is an efficient way for nature to regulate complex processes, allowing for control over a narrower range of concentrations compared to noncooperative phenomena. Here, we investigate the cooperative binding of α-Synuclein to lipid membranes under different conditions, aiming to uncover the underlying molecular driving forces. We interrogate the role of electrostatic interactions by rationally tuning α-Synuclein charge and the range of electrostatic interactions through variation in pH and ionic strength. To explore potential physiological and pathological implications, we also examine the cooperative binding of the H50Q mutant, which is linked to early-onset Parkinson’s disease. Using a multi-technique approach, we show that cooperativity is a robust property of α-Synuclein binding to anionic membranes, persisting in both the wild-type and mutant proteins. Our findings reveal that membrane-mediated effects, rather than electrostatics or direct protein-protein interactions, could be the main driving forces underlying this strong cooperativity.