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The construction of quasi-diabatic potential energy matrices (DPEMs) from realistic adiabatic electronic structure data, a process also known as diabatization, is crucial for simulating quantum nonadiabatic molecular dynamics that goes beyond toy models. However, there is neither a unified approach to diabatization nor a reliable way to assess the quality of a DPEM due to the inherent nonuniqueness of the diabatic representation. In this paper, we introduce a method to obtain DPEMs solely from the definition that the diabatic wavefunctions must be smooth. The method relies on electronic properties (e.g., dipole moments) that are usually computed during electronic structure calculations at a negligible additional cost. We achieve nonparametric diabatization by enforcing the smoothness of diabatic molecular property functions through the minimization of a Lipschitz-type metric with mixed-integer programming. Importantly, this metric also provides a general and quantitative measure for systematically evaluating the quality of any DPEM. The method is demonstrated on a realistic molecular system.

Occupational resilience has emerged as a construct that links the capacity to face adversity with the role of meaningful occupations in the adaptation and recovery of individuals, groups, and communities. However, its definition, theoretical frameworks, and applications remain heterogeneous and partial. This lack of systematisation hinders its integration into occupational therapy and occupational science. The objective of this study is to map and synthesise the scientific literature on occupational resilience, identifying how it is conceptualised and operationalised. Using established scoping review frameworks, publications from 2000 to 2025 were searched in databases and through manual searching, including empirical studies and conceptual literature that addressed occupational resilience and its relationship with occupational participation in contexts of adversity. There was no direct participation of consumers or community representatives in the design, conduct, or interpretation of the findings of this study. Thirty-seven studies were included that show diverse uses of the term occupational resilience and related concepts, tending to conceptualise it as a trait, an individual capacity, a dynamic process, and an adaptive outcome linked to occupational performance. The findings highlight the role of meaningful occupations in modulating suffering and emotional activation and in rebuilding purpose, agency, roles, routines, and identities after adversity. They also reveal marked differences in definitions, measures, and designs, with a predominance of approaches focussed on individual resilience, mainly in work-related contexts, and limited attention to structural dimensions and occupational justice. This review offers a structured view of occupational resilience and of the place that meaningful occupations occupy in resilience processes, proposing a process-oriented definition that articulates personal, contextual, and occupational dimensions. The results underscore the need to define integrated theoretical frameworks and occupational therapy interventions explicitly oriented towards the occupational effects of trauma, which validate pain, support the restoration and reinvention of occupational participation, and question the social conditions that make sustained resilience necessary. Occupational resilience is a concept that has gained importance in recent years. It refers to the capacity of individuals, groups, and communities to face adverse situations by engaging in occupations that are meaningful in their lives. However, there is no agreement on its definition or on how to apply it in practice. This study therefore reviewed and organised the scientific literature on occupational resilience through a scoping review that analysed 37 articles, including both theoretical papers and empirical research on the topic. The results show that occupational resilience is understood not only as an individual capacity but also as a process. Above all, they emphasise the importance of meaningful occupations for facing adversity and rebuilding life meaning and occupational identity.

Cutaneous leishmaniasis (CL) remains difficult to treat because Leishmania parasites persist within dermal macrophages and suppress their microbicidal activity, promoting chronic infection. Toll-like receptor (TLR) agonists can restore macrophage effector functions, but their therapeutic use is limited by systemic toxicity. Here, we developed a lipid-based nanoemulsion (NE) for the systemic delivery of the TLR7 agonist gardiquimod (GDQM) to improve macrophage targeting and reduce off-target inflammatory effects. Following intravenous administration, GDQM-NEs efficiently accumulated in dermal lesions and significantly reduced systemic cytokine release compared with free GDQM, resulting in an improved safety profile. Importantly, nanoencapsulation preserved GDQM antileishmanial activity achieving an approximately 2-log reduction in parasite burden. Treatment induced both Th1-associated cytokines (IFN-γ and IL-12p70) and regulatory responses, including IL-10 production and FoxP3+ regulatory T-cell expansion. Despite efficient lesion accumulation, CD86 upregulation was detected in macrophages from draining lymph nodes (dLNs) but not at the lesion site, indicating limited local macrophage activation. These findings indicate that GDQM-NEs effectively overcome major delivery and safety barriers associated with systemic TLR7 agonist administration, whereas the lesion microenvironment and TLR-driven regulatory mechanisms remain key constraints on therapeutic efficacy. Combining TLR agonists with strategies that counteract these local suppressive pathways may further enhance treatment outcomes in CL.

Ensuring the safety of novel foods, functional ingredients, and nutraceuticals is increasingly challenging as global food systems shift toward sustainable, health-aligned innovations. This review synthesizes conventional and next-generation approaches in food toxicology to outline a mechanistic, human-relevant, and decision-oriented framework for evaluating novel foods, nutraceuticals, and ingredients. Emphasis is placed on integrating multidisciplinary tools, including regulatory benchmarks, state-of-the-art analytical protocols, and in vitro and in silico systems, which are reshaping safety assessment pipelines. The dynamic regulatory context is examined, with a focus on the European Food Safety Authority's updated requirements for novel foods and its tiered toxicological strategy for assessing genotoxicity, toxicity, allergenicity, and chemical risk. Emerging scientific and technological trends are highlighted as the main drivers of a more predictive and ethically aligned toxicological paradigm. These include high-throughput cellular assays, omics-enabled molecular profiling, physiologically relevant in vitro models, computational prediction tools, and technologies for chemical and bioactivity characterization. Together, these advances support a modern, mechanism-based approach to safety evaluation. The review demonstrates how integrating these tools can strengthen science-based decision-making, enhance regulatory confidence, and promote responsible innovation in the advancement of next-generation foods and functional ingredients.

Humans across cultures not only share the ability to recognise music but also respond to it through movement. While the sensory encoding of music is well-studied, when and how infants naturally start moving to music is largely unexplored. This study simultaneously investigates infants' neural (auditory) responses and spontaneous movements to music during the first postnatal year. Neural activity (EEG) and body kinematics (markerless pose estimation) were recorded from 79 infants (aged 3, 6, and 12 months) listening to refrains of children's music, along with shuffled, high-pitched, and low-pitched versions of the same songs. Neural data revealed that, across all ages, infants exhibit enhanced auditory responses to music compared to shuffled music, indicating that auditory encoding of music emerges early in development. Movement data revealed a different outcome. While coarse auditory-motor coupling is present at all ages, more complex structured movement patterns emerge in response to music only by 12 months. Notably, no age group demonstrated evidence of coordinated movements to music. Additionally, enhanced auditory responses to high vs low pitch were only evident at 6 months, while infants' movements were better predicted by high-pitched compared to low-pitched music at all ages. This study provides initial insights into how the developing brain gradually transforms music into spontaneous movements of increasing complexity. Most people, no matter where they grow up, enjoy listening to music – and many instinctively move their bodies to it. This universal behavior raises a fascinating question: when does the brain first respond to music, and how does that ability develop? Babies are born with a natural sensitivity to sound. Their brains can already detect patterns in what they hear, such as repeated rhythms and melodies. Scientists can measure this brain activity using an EEG (electroencephalography), which records electrical signals produced by the brain in response to sounds. Infants also naturally move their bodies in response to sounds around them. However, we do not fully understand when these two abilities – recognizing music and moving to it – emerge, or how they relate during the first year of life. Nguyen et al. wanted to understand how babies' brain responses to music and their spontaneous body movements to music develop during the first year of life. The researchers also asked whether pitch – high or low music sounds – affects these two responses differently, since babies are known to be drawn to high-pitched sounds. Nguyen et al. tested 79 infants aged 3, 6, and 12 months by playing children's songs and scrambled versions of the same songs. They measured brain activity using electroencephalography (EEG) while also tracking and reconstructing full-body movements from video recordings. The results revealed that all age groups – even 3-month-olds – showed stronger brain responses to real music than to scrambled music, indicating that the brain encodes musical structure very early in life. However, only 12-month-olds spontaneously moved more to music than to scrambled music, specifically exhibiting rocking, swaying, and clapping-like movements. Importantly, no age group showed movements that were coordinated in time with the musical beat. Additionally, only 6-month-olds showed stronger brain responses to high-pitched compared to low-pitched music, while high-pitched music predicted movements at all ages. Nguyen et al. are the first to measure both brain activity and body movement simultaneously in infants this young. Their findings will be relevant to researchers studying how children develop musical and movement skills, and how early rhythmic responses eventually give rise to dancing. They also provide valuable insights for caregivers and early childhood educators who use music to engage and support infants. Before any practical applications can be developed, future studies should examine how music-driven movement coordination continues to develop beyond 12 months and investigate the brain pathways that link hearing music to moving – and eventually dancing – to it.

Cancer is one of the leading causes of death worldwide, with delays in diagnosis and initiation of treatment being a significant problem in cancer care. Cancer Patient Navigation (CPN) interventions were developed to reduce the time from diagnosis to first treatment, but have not yet been systematically integrated. To explore the impact of CPN interventions on the time from diagnosis to the start of first therapy among cancer patients. This study used a scoping review to examine the literature indexed in PubMed, CINAHL (EBSCOhost), ScienceDirect, Scopus, and the Wiley databases. The inclusion criteria were original articles published between 2010 and 2025 that discussed CPN interventions to reduce waiting time for first therapy. The writing was based on the Arksey and O'Malley framework and followed the PRISMA-ScR-2020 guidelines. The data were synthesized narratively using an inductive approach. Thirteen articles met the inclusion criteria. CPN interventions accelerated services by reducing waiting times from diagnosis to first treatment to <60&#x2009;days, including biopsy to treatment in 2&#x2009;days, abnormal imaging to treatment in 38&#x2009;days, screening-detected patients in 31&#x2009;days, and symptomatic patients in 44&#x2009;days. The interventions provided included early access and patient contact, clinical and multidisciplinary coordination, process management, service scheduling, reduction of system-related barriers to patient care, communication, continuity of care, patient education, and psychosocial support. CPN interventions were consistently associated with accelerated initiation of first treatment among patients with cancer. This acceleration was achieved through optimized scheduling, service coordination, and patient support throughout the diagnosis phase.

Habitat loss and degradation are two of the main drivers of contemporary avian population declines. Wildlife managers are increasingly advocating for tools that provide decision support to set priorities for restoration or conservation efficiently. We demonstrate how to derive two species-specific management and resilience metrics: the greatest management impact point (GMIP) and the ecological resilience threshold (RT). The GMIP indicates the amount of environmental change in a landscape where habitat improvements are expected to have the greatest impact on species' occurrence. The RT represents the amount of environmental change in a landscape that a species can tolerate before the steepest change in occupancy is expected to begin. We estimate species-specific metrics using the amount of uncharacteristic exotic vegetation as an index of environmental change, and demonstrate how multispecies patterns may suggest potential management strategies. We estimated occupancy models using 5&#x2009;years of multispecies avian detection data from the Integrated Monitoring in Bird Conservation Regions program in the State of Utah, USA (hereafter, Utah). Based on the estimated relationship between species' occupancy and amounts of uncharacteristic exotic vegetation, we derive RT and GMIP scores for 61 species breeding in Utah. We found wide interspecific variation in resilience to amounts of exotic vegetation, with species generally clustering at extreme values. Our results demonstrate that birds in Utah appear more resilient to amounts of uncharacteristic exotic vegetation at coarser spatial resolution, showing greater variance and lower average RTs at finer spatial resolution. Species that are not fully resilient to the range of uncharacteristic exotic vegetation observed in this study are expected to respond most strongly, on average, to management actions in landscapes with high levels of exotic vegetation; however, early detection and rapid response is likely the most effective strategy. Quantified across many species, these metrics can be used to identify and prioritize landscapes where current environmental conditions could be maintained to avoid the greatest species' declines, or which maximize expected biodiversity returns on investment in environmental restoration. Managers can consider either focal species' resilience for tailored conservation planning or summarize species resilience to create efficient management plans that maximize outcomes for multiple species.

Surface-active enzymes, such as cutinases, initiate depolymerization of polyester plastics by adsorbing to the polymer surface. The influence of enzyme adsorption on the composition of dissolved degradation products remains underexplored. This study investigated how adsorption of a cutinase from Humicola insolens (HiC) to polyester surfaces modulated dissolved oligomer speciation during depolymerization of poly(butylene succinate) (PBS) and poly(butylene sebacate-co-terephthalate) (PBSeT). Inverse and conventional Michaelis-Menten kinetics were used to determine attack site densities (&#x393;attack) and catalytic turnover (kcat). HiC exhibited comparable &#x393;attack for PBS and PBSeT (0.31 &#xb1; 0.06 and 0.51 &#xb1; 0.12 &#x3bc;molenzyme gplastic-1, respectively), while the kcat was 2 orders of magnitude higher for PBS (40.8 &#xb1; 8.4 s-1 vs 0.13 &#xb1; 0.02 s-1). Liquid chromatography coupled to mass spectrometry revealed accumulation of larger oligomers when the enzyme-to-plastic ratios were below the &#x393;attack, indicating that relative free protein levels influence the composition of dissolved products during plastic depolymerization.

Pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) exhibits profound therapy resistance driven by lysosome-dependent nutrient recycling, metabolic adaptation, and stress tolerance. Current lysosome targeting agents such as chloroquine (CQ)/hydroxychloroquine (HCQ) show limited efficacy due to transient activity and dose-limiting-toxicities. To overcome these limitations, we developed lysostilbenes, a new class of hybrid small molecules combining the CQ pharmacophore with lysosome-disrupting stilbene analogs. Stilbene pharmacophore is the core structural component of resveratrol. Among the synthesized hybrids, lysostilbene-4 emerged as the lead candidate, demonstrating ~30-40-fold greater cytotoxicity against PDAC cells than parent compounds, while sparing nonmalignant cells. At nanomolar concentrations, lysostilbene-4 induced rapid, irreversible lysosomal membrane permeabilization (LMP), initiating a lysosome mitochondria apoptotic cascade via CTSB (cathepsin B) release, BID cleavage, BAX activation, and caspase-mediated apoptosis. In parallel, it abrogated lysosomal recovery by significantly reducing repair, lysophagy, autophagosome maturation, and uncoupling TFEB-driven transcriptional programs from effective lysosome biogenesis. Reduced TFEB mRNA expression correlated with poor overall-survival and disease-free-survival across multiple cancer patients, with a particularly strong association in pancreatic cancer patients. Using TFEB+/+ and TFEB-/- knockout pancreatic cancer cells we establish that lysostilbene-4 exerts severe cytotoxicity by inducing persistent lysosomal-damage and disrupting autophagosome-lysosome assembly, with vulnerability further amplified in TFEB-deficient cells. This finding underscores TFEB as a key determinant of lysosomal-resilience and a potential predictive biomarker. Importantly, lysostilbene-4 was well tolerated in preclinical mouse-models at supra-therapeutic doses without systemic-toxicity. These findings position lysostilbene-4 as a first-in-class lysosome-targeting therapeutic that enforces sustained lysosomal collapse while compromising adaptive recovery-mechanisms, providing a mechanistically precise and safe strategy against PDAC.Abbreviations: ALG: autophagy-lysosome genes; AMPK: AMP-activated protein kinase; CASM: conjugation of ATG8s to single membranes; CTSB: cathepsin B; LGALS3: galectin 3; LMP: lysosomal membrane permeabilization; LS: lysostilbene; MTOR: mechanistic target of rapamycin kinase; PDAC: pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma; TCGA: The Cancer Genome Atlas; TFEB: transcription factor EB; ULK1: unc-51 like autophagy activating kinase 1.

Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is a neurodevelopmental disorder that is often associated with motor challenges, particularly deficits in object-control skills such as overarm throwing, catching, and kicking. According to the OPTIMAL theory, the combination of three factors of autonomy support, enhanced expectancy and external focus of attention, can provide optimal conditions for motor learning and performance. This study aimed to investigate the effect of a training program based on this theory on motor learning and performance of children with ASD. In this randomized controlled experimental study, 30 children with ASD aged 6 to 11&#x2009;years were recruited using convenience sampling and then randomly assigned to two experimental (n&#x2009;=&#x2009;15) and control groups (n&#x2009;=&#x2009;15) to practice an overarm throwing task. The experimental group received a training protocol based on the OPTIMAL theory including instructions of autonomy support (self-controlled practice), enhanced expectancy (positive normative feedback) and external focus of attention in 5 training blocks (60 trials). The control group received the same number of sessions and trials without the OPTIMAL theory-based interventions. Assessments included a pretest (12 trials), practice phase, and short-term (24&#x2009;h later; 12 trials) and long-term (72&#x2009;h later; 12 trials) retention tests. The results showed that the OPTIMAL group performed significantly better than the control group in all stages of the practice phase (p&#x2009;=&#x2009;0.032; &#x3b7;p2= 0.15; 95% CI = (0.61, 12.73); mean difference = 6.67); short-term (p&#x2009;=&#x2009;0.019; &#x3b7;p2= 0.18; 95% CI = (1.27, 13.02); mean difference = 7.15) as well as long-term retention tests (p&#x2009;=&#x2009;0.023; &#x3b7;p2 = 0.17; 95% CI = (0.85, 10.54); mean difference = 5.70). The findings of the current study indicated that the OPTIMAL group achieved better performance and retention outcomes than the control group. However, due to the lack of direct measurement of the motivational constructs, it is not possible to draw definitive conclusions about the underlying mechanisms of this effect. Therefore, the present findings should be interpreted as supportive, but not confirmatory, evidence for the OPTIMAL theory.

The contraction of blood clots is a dramatic platelet-dependent process that minimizes the impact of thrombosis and supports the closure of lacerations. Whole blood (WB) stored up to 35&#x2009;days is increasingly used to treat hemorrhagic shock, but the clot contractibility of this stored blood is unknown. We hypothesized that clot contractibility decreases during storage but can be restored by adding platelets. WB units from 6 donors were stored at 4&#xb0;C for 35&#x2009;days. Apheresis platelet units from 11&#x2009;donors were stored for 5&#x2009;days at 22&#xb0;C with gentle oscillation. Clot contraction of WB and WB supplemented with platelets was measured daily in vitro using optical tracking. Platelets were added at a concentration of 30,000/&#x3bc;L. Clot contraction of 6 WB samples diminished over 35&#x2009;days of storage. The initial contraction rate and final contraction extent began declining at week 3. By week 5, the initial contraction rate was 67% slower, and the final contraction extent was 49% lower compared to week 1. Adding platelets at week 5 improved the initial contraction rate by 22% and the final contraction extent by 16%. WB stored at 4&#xb0;C loses a portion of its clot contractility as early as 3&#x2009;weeks of storage, which may affect patients receiving stored blood. The addition of room-temperature (RT) stored platelets can improve clot contraction, offering a potential strategy to enhance the effectiveness and safety of stored WB for hemorrhagic shock when fresh blood is unavailable.

Electrocatalytic nitrate reduction to ammonia (NRA) is a sustainable approach for wastewater remediation and value-added ammonia synthesis. The development of high-performance electrocatalysts is crucial for practical implementation. Herein, we reported a rationally designed nickel-anchored monolithic copper nanocone array (Ni/Cu-NCAs) as an efficient NRA catalyst. The catalyst demonstrated outstanding NRA performance, achieving 96% nitrate conversion, 96.3% ammonium (NH4 +)selectivity, 95.4% NH4 + Faradaic Efficiency, and a high NH4 + yield rate of 0.272 mmol&#xb7;h-1&#xb7;cm-2. Combined experimental characterizations and density functional theory (DFT) calculations confirmed that the introduced Ni species modulated the d-band center of Cu sites to optimize the adsorption of key reaction intermediates, while simultaneously providing abundant active hydrogen (*H) for subsequent hydrogenation steps. The synergistic effect significantly accelerated reaction kinetics and promoted selective ammonia formation. This work developed a high-efficiency monolithic Cu-based NRA electrocatalyst, and shed new light on the bimetallic synergistic mechanism for nitrate electroreduction.

Frailty is a multidimensional clinical syndrome associated with adverse health outcomes, yet existing prediction models often sacrifice interpretability for accuracy. This study aimed to develop and validate an interpretable machine learning framework for frailty risk prediction using nationally representative survey data. We conducted a cross-sectional analysis of 3817 adults aged 20 years and older from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES, 2007-2018). Frailty was defined using a deficit accumulation Frailty Index (FI&#x2005;&#x2265;&#x2005;0.21). The prediction model incorporated 48 features spanning metabolic biomarkers (n&#x2005;=&#x2005;29), inflammatory markers (n&#x2005;=&#x2005;11), and demographic covariates (n&#x2005;=&#x2005;8). We developed a 3-tier interpretable framework using Automatic Piecewise Linear Regression (APLR) and compared its performance to extreme gradient boosting (XGBoost) and logistic regression (LR) via 10-fold cross-validation. Model interpretability was assessed using Anchor explanations. A sensitivity analysis was performed in the subgroup aged 60 years and older (n&#x2005;=&#x2005;2629). APLR achieved the highest Area Under the Receiver Operating Characteristic Curve (AUC) of 0.801&#x2005;&#xb1;&#x2005;0.018, significantly outperforming XGBoost (AUC&#x2005;=&#x2005;0.776&#x2005;&#xb1;&#x2005;0.015, P&#x2005;<&#x2005;.05) and LR (AUC&#x2005;=&#x2005;0.778&#x2005;&#xb1;&#x2005;0.024, P&#x2005;<&#x2005;.05). Body mass index (BMI), poverty-income ratio (PIR), and age were the top predictors in the full sample. Anchor explanations achieved a mean precision of 98.2%&#x2005;&#xb1;&#x2005;1.7%. In the 60+ sensitivity analysis, APLR retained the highest AUC (0.799&#x2005;&#xb1;&#x2005;0.022), remaining statistically significantly superior to both XGBoost (P&#x2005;=&#x2005;.003) and LR (P&#x2005;=&#x2005;.012). Blood urea nitrogen (BUN) emerged as the second most important predictor in the older subgroup, reflecting the increased relevance of renal function in geriatric frailty. The APLR-based interpretable framework offers a promising approach to frailty risk stratification that balances accuracy with clinical transparency, particularly in older adults. The identified features should be interpreted as cross-sectional predictive markers rather than causal determinants of frailty. External and longitudinal validation, including formal assessment of calibration and clinical utility, is warranted before clinical deployment.

Sexual empowerment is the ability to exercise self-determination in sexual relationships. This study aimed to identify factors associated with sexual empowerment among people with mental illness. We conducted an online cross-sectional study of 300 adults with mental illness. Analysis of covariance showed that knowledge of sexually transmitted diseases and contraception, knowledge of preconception care related to mental illness, self-esteem, sexual self-stigma, desire for a sexual partner, communication skills, and access to sexual or reproductive health consultants were associated with sexual empowerment.

Gene- and cell-based therapies (GCTs) represent a disruptive and transformative class of biomedical innovations. They address diseases by adding, removing, repairing, or replacing genes and/or by endowing distinct living cells with additional biological functions. Through this plethora of options, numerous conditions-including genetic disorders, cancers, and degenerative diseases-have become potential targets for a curative therapy. Thus, GCTs are considered the "Future of Medicine" as they (i) offer a potential cure, particularly for rare and severe disorders previously considered untreatable, (ii) expand the treatment options for common diseases, and (iii) possess the possibility to complement currently applied conventional treatment options. Recognizing both the scientific promise and translational challenges of GCTs, Germany has launched a coordinated national initiative-the National Strategy for Gene- and Cell-Based Therapies. The Strategy was commissioned by the German Federal Ministry of Research, Technology and Space (BMFTR, formerly the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research [BMBF]) and developed through a multi-stakeholder process. The latter involved more than 150 experts from academia, industry, health care sector, professional associations, and patient organizations, who were nominated by the community and assembled into eight working groups to identify current roadblocks and propose possible solutions. Summarized in the Strategy Paper, which was submitted to the BMFTR and published on June 12, 2024, a comprehensive roadmap was developed in this bottom-up process to accelerate the development and clinical implementation of GCTs in Germany. Although it initially had a national focus, the resulting framework is increasingly contributing to the international GCT landscape through growing exchange with GCT initiatives launched in other European member states and with the European Society of Gene and Cell Therapy (ESGCT).In brief, the initiative is focusing on translation starting from research through all steps to clinical application and beyond. This includes workforce development, regulatory frameworks, manufacturing capacity, patient access, and communication with the general public. Numerous targeted measures have been developed by the participating experts in the working groups and are currently being implemented in this broad, collaborative, and bottom-up multi-stakeholder approach. They encompass, for example, the establishment of a website as central information platform, including the GCT-Atlas, a web-based networking and information tool for stakeholders and actors in the GCT field, tailored communication and outreach formats, a Regulatory Support Unit providing independent regulatory guidance for publicly funded early-stage, nonclinical product development, different funding and entrepreneurship programs offering researchers and clinicians financial, educational, and mentoring support, as well as the establishment of translational infrastructure and exchange formats with investors to specifically foster the necessary scale-up and commercialization.Overall, the main goal of the German National Strategy for GCT is to ensure patient access to advanced therapies while strengthening Germany's position as an international hub for biomedical innovation. To accomplish this, existing resources need to be coordinated, streamlined, and prioritized to increase efficiency and support the long-term sustainability of the system. These objectives are closely aligned with current emerging European initiatives, including the EU Biotech Act and the Horizon Europe work program 2026, which aim to further optimize the framework conditions for this strategically important field and enhance future European competitiveness.

Spatially fractionated radiation therapy (SFRT) planning requires three coordinated tasks: generation of high-dose sphere structures, position-aware optimization, and peak-valley dose ratio evaluation. In practice, clinicians and researchers address these tasks with a combination of closed-source scripts, research codes, and manual calculation. The absence of a unified, commercially deployable toolkit remains a barrier to multi-institutional SFRT trials. We present MAAS-SFRThelper, a shared-source plugin that integrates structure generation, geometric-aware optimization, and peak-valley dose ratio evaluation for SFRT into a single workflow inside Varian's Eclipse treatment planning system. MAAS-SFRThelper is a Windows Presentation Foundation (WPF) application built on the Model-View-ViewModel (MVVM) pattern, implemented in C# against ESAPI for Eclipse 15.6 and later. The plugin currently contains five task-oriented tabs that share common services for sphere extraction and objective creation. The SphereLattice tab generates sphere lattices using five placement patterns: hexagonal close-packed, simple cubic, alternating cubic, centroidal Voronoi tessellation, and a constraint-based Monte Carlo method. The SCART tab creates contracted spindle-like boost volumes for stereotactic central ablative radiation therapy. The Optimization tab auto-populates structure list, searches over candidate lattice positions using a four-metric geometric surrogate score, and triggers Eclipse VMAT optimization along with dose calculation on the best candidate. The Evaluation tab implements four analysis modes including 1D, 2D, and 3D PVDR analysis. We validated all functionality on digital phantoms against analytic ground truth. In phantom testing, the optimized lattice achieved 22.5% higher PVDR. The plugin is distributed as source code that compiles to a single dynamic-link library (DLL); all third-party dependencies are bundled at build time. At first launch, users review the Varian Limited Use Software License Agreement (LUSLA) and enter an access code that is emailed upon request. The plugin accepts the patient structure set and, where applicable, a plan with calculated dose; outputs include new structures written directly to the structure set through ESAPI and summary statistics exported as comma-separated value (CSV) files. Source code and documentation are publicly available on GitHub under the LUSLA. MAAS-SFRThelper supports clinical lattice SFRT planning with consistent workflows across institutions and standardized peak-valley dose ratio reporting for multi-institutional trials. The shared-services architecture enables community contributions of new placement patterns, evaluation metrics, and validation datasets. These features represent a practical step toward the dosimetric consistency called for in the 2024 NRG Oncology/AAPM consensus on SFRT. The plugin also serves as a platform for research extensions to GRID therapy, minibeam radiation therapy, and other heterogeneous dose-delivery modalities.

This study explores the experiences of Black mental health clinicians navigating double consciousness through a theoretical synthesis of W.E.B. Du Bois' double consciousness, Frantz Fanon's racial inferiority complex, and Cross's Black racial identity development theory. The focus of this study was how dual awareness manifests through racial subjectivity within the professional context for Black clinicians. Furthermore, the study explored the various ways double consciousness influences Black mental health clinicians' interactions during academic learning, professional training, within clinical settings, encounters with professors, clients, supervisors, and colleagues. The results of the data analysis of 12 semi-structured interviews with Black therapists revealed main themes such as perceived inferiority, marginalization of Black therapist experience, authenticity and identity navigation, and mistrust and suspicion about being a Black therapist. Recommendations for the self of the therapist, supervision, and academic training programs are discussed.

This study examines how anatomical variation is described linguistically in commonly used anatomy textbooks. We conducted a systematic content analysis of descriptions and terminology across commonly used English-language human anatomy textbooks using text mining to extract descriptors such as "unusual," "uncommon," "variant," and "abnormal." We quantified the frequency of these terms and qualitatively evaluated their contexts through prevalence statistics and functional implications. Results show that across all textbooks, "abnormal," a term that carries negative sentiment, was used more frequently than more neutral descriptors, including in contexts where the condition in question is common, asymptomatic, or has little to no functional impact. These patterns suggest that textbook language continues to frame human variation as deviant, pathological, or defective. Such framing may inadvertently reinforce biased notions of normality and pathology, shaping learners' implicit assumptions about the human body. We recommend explicit integration of anatomical variation into anatomy curricula, and that instructors and textbook authors reframe anatomical variation through neutral, prevalence-aware terminology. These steps are critical for fostering more accurate, inclusive understandings of human diversity.

University students are currently exposed to high levels of academic stress, which negatively affects mental health and psychological well-being. Stress perception depends on individual appraisal processes and coping strategies, as well as emotional resources such as emotional intelligence, resilience, and self-esteem. However, few studies have jointly examined these variables across different academic disciplines. This study aimed to address the gap in comparative research between health sciences and computer engineering regarding academic stress and its emotional correlates. A cross-sectional study was conducted with a convenience sample of 277 1st-year students from a private university in Spain. Data were collected using validated scales (Academic Stress Coping Scale, Ryff, Connor-Davidson Resilience Scale, Rosenberg, and Trait Meta-Mood Scale 24). The study was approved by the Catholic University of Murcia Ethics Committee (code CE022402). Participants completed a battery of validated questionnaires assessing perceived stress, coping strategies, emotional intelligence, resilience, self-esteem, and psychological well-being. Group comparisons and correlation analyses were performed using nonparametric tests. Health Sciences students reported significantly higher stress levels than computer engineering students (P&#x2005;<&#x2005;.05). Specifically, 37.25% of medicine students reported experiencing "a lot" of stress, compared to only 10.2% of computer engineering students. Nursing students showed the highest levels of psychological well-being, self-esteem, and resilience. Significant negative relationships were found between stress and positive reappraisal (r&#x2005;=&#x2005;-0.32, P&#x2005;<&#x2005;.01), resilience (r&#x2005;=&#x2005;-0.29, P&#x2005;<&#x2005;.01), self-esteem (r&#x2005;=&#x2005;-0.26, P&#x2005;<&#x2005;.01), and self-acceptance (r&#x2005;=&#x2005;-0.24, P&#x2005;<&#x2005;.01 mainly among nursing and physiotherapy students. Medicine students displayed lower emotional clarity (21.7&#x2005;&#xb1;&#x2005;7.7), which was positively associated with stress (r&#x2005;=&#x2005;0.28, P&#x2005;<&#x2005;.05). The findings highlight discipline-specific differences in stress and emotional resources, underscoring the need for targeted university interventions. Specific programs to enhance resilience are recommended for physiotherapy students, while medicine students specifically require emotional clarity training to improve their coping skills and psychological well-being.