Journal: Cell Reports Medicine

Article Title: An autochthonous CRISPR activation screening platform for characterizing tissue-specific oncogene selection

doi: 10.1016/j.xcrm.2026.102759

Figure Lengend Snippet: Sox2 activation accelerates lung tumor initiation and progression (A) Timeline of the Sox2 activation experiment. (B) Representative macroscopic images and corresponding computed tomography (CT) scans of non-targeted (NT) and Sox2-activated (sgSox2) PPKS lungs at 8 weeks. Scale bar, 1 cm. (C) Relative lung weights for NT and sgSox2 mice at 8 weeks ( n = 8 biological replicates/group). (D) CT voxel attenuation for NT and sgSox2 lungs at 8 weeks ( n = 11–12 biological replicates/group). (E) Histology, IHC (dCas9VP64 and Ki-67), and Alcian blue staining of NT and sgSox2 lungs at 8 weeks. Scale bars, 150 μm. (F) Quantification of dCas9VP64+ cells in NT and sgSox2 lungs at 8 weeks ( n = 8 biological replicates/group). (G) Quantification of Ki-67-positive cells in NT and sgSox2 lungs at 8 weeks ( n = 8 biological replicates/group). (H) Kaplan-Meier survival plot for NT (median survival 144 days) and sgSox2 (median survival 83 days) mice ( n = 6–7 biological replicates). Statistical significance for pairwise comparisons using Student’s two-tailed t test for bar graphs and log rank (Mantel-Cox) for survival. ∗∗ p < 0.01, ∗∗∗ p < 0.001. Error bars indicate SEM. See also .

Article Snippet: For profiling of Sox2-activated lung tumors, stranded mRNA (polyA-selected) libraries were generated and sequenced by Novogene.

Techniques: Activation Assay, Computed Tomography, Staining, Two Tailed Test

Journal: Cell Reports Medicine

Article Title: An autochthonous CRISPR activation screening platform for characterizing tissue-specific oncogene selection

doi: 10.1016/j.xcrm.2026.102759

Figure Lengend Snippet: Delineating Sox2-mediated transcriptomic reprogramming (A) Schematic of transcriptomic profiling ( n = 4 biological replicates). (B) Heatmap of all differentially expressed genes at survival endpoint (sgSox2 vs. NT). (C) Expression of Sox2 in Sox2-activated and control tumors ( n = 4 biological replicates). Error bars indicate SEM. (D) IHC of SOX2 in Sox2-activated and control lungs at 8 weeks. Scale bar, 150 μm. (E) Quantification of SOX2 IHC ( n = 4–5 biological replicates). Error bars indicate SEM. (F) Heatmap of LUSC- and LUAD-associated transcripts in Sox2-activated and control tumors. (G) Heatmap of transcripts associated with mucinous cancer and gastric metaplasia in Sox2-activated and control tumors ( n = 4 biological replicates). (H) IHC of NKX2-1, TFF1, and MUC5AC. Scale bar, 150 μm. (I) Quantification of NKX2-1, TFF1, and MUC5AC IHC at 8 weeks and survival endpoint (n = 4–5 biological replicates). EP, survival endpoint. (J) Volcano plot of mucin and gastric metaplasia genes in SOX2-high vs. -low KRAS-mutant human LUAD (TCGA-LUAD KRAS-mutant cohort, n = 89 cases). Statistical significance for pairwise comparisons using Student’s two-tailed t test for bar graphs and for multiple comparisons using one-way ANOVA with multiple comparisons correction. For differences in gene expression, adjusted p values ( q values) from DEseq2 were used. ∗ p < 0.05, ∗∗∗ p < 0.001, ∗∗∗∗ p < 0.0001. See also .

Article Snippet: For profiling of Sox2-activated lung tumors, stranded mRNA (polyA-selected) libraries were generated and sequenced by Novogene.

Techniques: Expressing, Control, Mutagenesis, Two Tailed Test, Gene Expression

Journal: Bioactive Materials

Article Title: On-demand mild photothermal cascade platform reprogramming mitochondrial immunity for tendon rejuvenation

doi: 10.1016/j.bioactmat.2026.01.004

Figure Lengend Snippet: LT-NPs-NIR protects TSPCs against oxidative stress-induced senescence and preserves tenogenic phenotype. (A–D) Immunofluorescence staining for DNA damage (γ-H2AX), proliferation (Ki67), and senescence markers (P16, P53). (E–G) Assessment of stemness (SOX2) and tenogenic differentiation markers (SCX, COL1). (H) Quantitative analysis of the indicated markers. (I) qRT-PCR analysis of SASP-related inflammatory mediators (IL-1β, CXCL10) and matrix-degrading enzymes (MMP3, MMP13). (J) Schematic illustrating the mechanism of ROS scavenging and SASP inhibition. Significance: ns, not significant; ∗p < 0.05, ∗∗p < 0.01, ∗∗∗p < 0.001. Snt: senescent cells; Yng: young cells.

Article Snippet: After washing, cells were incubated with primary antibodies against Ki67 (ab15580, Abcam), Phosphorylated Histone H2AX (γ-H2AX) (ab81299, Abcam), SOX2 (sc-365964, Santa Cruz), Type I Collagen (COL1) (ab138492, Abcam), tenomodulin (TNMD) (ab203676, Abcam; sc-51813, Santa Cruz), Scleraxis (SCX) (sc-518082, Santa Cruz), IRF3 (ab68481, Abcam), Transcription Factor p65/RELA (P65) (A22331, Abclonal), Cyclin-Dependent Kinase Inhibitor 2A (p16INK4a) (P16) (sc-1661, Santa Cruz), P53 (10442-1-AP, Proteintech), Inducible Nitric Oxide Synthase (iNOS) (ab178945, Abcam), Arginase-1(Arg-1) (ab96183, Abcam), HSP70 (sc-32239, Santa Cruz), IL-6 (ab233706, Abcam), Matrix Metalloproteinase 13 (MMP13) (ab39012, Abcam), Double-stranded DNA (dsDNA) Marker (sc-58749, Santa Cruz), and Translocase of Outer Mitochondrial Membrane 20 (TOMM20) (11802-1-AP, Proteintech).

Techniques: Immunofluorescence, Staining, Quantitative RT-PCR, Inhibition

Journal: Bioactive Materials

Article Title: On-demand mild photothermal cascade platform reprogramming mitochondrial immunity for tendon rejuvenation

doi: 10.1016/j.bioactmat.2026.01.004

Figure Lengend Snippet: LT-NPs-NIR modulate macrophage polarization and enhance TSPC-mediated tenogenic repair in a Transwell co-culture system. (A) Schematic of the Transwell co-culture setup. (B) SA-β-gal staining of macrophages. (C–F) Immunofluorescence of TSPCs for (C) P16, (D) SOX2, (E) SCX, and (F) Tenomodulin (TNMD) with F-actin. (G) Quantification of P16, SOX2, SCX, and TNMD levels. (H) Proposed mechanism: LT-NPs-NIR promote an M1-to-M2 macrophage shift and regulate TSPC senescence/stemness balance to favor tenogenic repair, potentially via STING/NF-κB signaling. Scale bars: 100 μm (B); 50 μm (C–E); 100 μm (F). Significance: ns, not significant; ∗p < 0.05, ∗∗p < 0.01, ∗∗∗p < 0.001.

Article Snippet: After washing, cells were incubated with primary antibodies against Ki67 (ab15580, Abcam), Phosphorylated Histone H2AX (γ-H2AX) (ab81299, Abcam), SOX2 (sc-365964, Santa Cruz), Type I Collagen (COL1) (ab138492, Abcam), tenomodulin (TNMD) (ab203676, Abcam; sc-51813, Santa Cruz), Scleraxis (SCX) (sc-518082, Santa Cruz), IRF3 (ab68481, Abcam), Transcription Factor p65/RELA (P65) (A22331, Abclonal), Cyclin-Dependent Kinase Inhibitor 2A (p16INK4a) (P16) (sc-1661, Santa Cruz), P53 (10442-1-AP, Proteintech), Inducible Nitric Oxide Synthase (iNOS) (ab178945, Abcam), Arginase-1(Arg-1) (ab96183, Abcam), HSP70 (sc-32239, Santa Cruz), IL-6 (ab233706, Abcam), Matrix Metalloproteinase 13 (MMP13) (ab39012, Abcam), Double-stranded DNA (dsDNA) Marker (sc-58749, Santa Cruz), and Translocase of Outer Mitochondrial Membrane 20 (TOMM20) (11802-1-AP, Proteintech).

Techniques: Co-Culture Assay, Staining, Immunofluorescence