In Search of Evidence for Impact on De-Institutionalization: A Systematic Review of the Current Status, Gaps and Future Directions of Translatable Mental Health Research on Alternative Care

The transition from institutionalized care to alternative family-based care arrangements for children and youth without available parents is an important policy aim around the world. To document evidence on de-institutionalization (DI) and identify gaps that are stalling the translation of DI findings into policy or practice, we conducted a systematic scoping review of studies on de-institutionalization published in the last five years. Our systematic search identified 221 pertinent studies covering 67 countries across most continents. The majority of the studies were qualitative, used some type of ‘convenience’ sampling, and had a modest number of participants (but with a broad range, 1–5351). Remarkably few studies included children under 6 years of age. Despite small samples and relatively weak designs, the majority of the studies suggested policy implications of their results. We discuss the gaps in DI research, stressing the need for transparency and replicability, paying attention to the specific circumstances of performing DI research. To overcome these gaps, we suggt that DI studies create more replicable evidence with translatable impact for governments, policymakers, sponsors, and practitioners. Vulnerable children and their (alternative) parents deserve family-based DI reform that is sustainable and successful in improving their lives.

Control of Infectious Disease Outbreaks and Pandemics: Aligning Scientific Innovation, Regulatory Agility, and Manufacturing Capacity

Biopolymer and Cellulose-Based Aerogels: The Next-Generation Porous Materials for Sustainable Applications

Recent advances in nanostructured biopolymers have positioned cellulose-based aerogels as potential alternatives in the next generation of lightweight porous materials, given their ultralow density, hierarchical porosity, and extremely high surface area. These materials provide a renewable platform for a range of applications such as advanced energy storage, water purification, energy efficient insulation, and biomedical scaffolds. Unlike traditional silica or polymeric aerogels, cellulose derived systems provide a unique combination of mechanical toughness and biodegradability. These systems provide an environmentally safe approach to high-performance architectures. This research critically reviews the design and manufacturing techniques of biopolymer aerogels, including the choice of precursors, sol-gel chemistry, and drying techniques such as freeze-drying and supercritical CO₂ extraction that control the structural stability and tunability. Special attention is beneficial to the programmable surface chemistry of cellulose nanofibrils and nanocrystals, which allows for precise control over pore shape, wettability, and hybrid assembly with nanoparticles or bioactive substances. Functionalization, particularly cross-linking, ionic interactions, and the inclusion of conductive fillers, is identified as an important control for improving performance under demanding conditions. Furthermore, life-cycle assessments show that their carbon footprint and embodied energy are much lower than those of their fossil-based counterparts. In the context of the circular economy, cellulose-based aerogels still need to overcome challenges related to cost competitiveness, moisture sensitivity, and large-scale manufacturability. Hybrid architectures and processes that are industrially viable are needed to realise their full potential.

The Four-Hit Framework of Aortic Aneurysm Progression: From Wall Injury to Imaging and Targeted Intervention

Aortic aneurysm (AA) is a life-threatening vascular disease characterized by progressive aortic dilatation, wall degeneration, and risk of rupture. Although diameter-based imaging remains central to clinical decision-making, it does not fully reflect the biological processes underlying aneurysm initiation, expansion, and rupture. Recent advances in omics, vascular biology, functional imaging, and nanomedicine provide new opportunities to reinterpret AA pathogenesis. In this review, we propose the Four-Hit Hypothesis as an integrative framework for understanding AA progression. The four hits include disruption of the aortic barrier environment, immune-inflammatory invasion, maladaptive proliferative repair, and aging-associated structural destruction. We discuss their roles across disease stages, the differences between abdominal and thoracic aortic aneurysms, and their implications for biomarkers, imaging, and therapeutic development. This review aims to organize current evidence on AA biology and highlight potential directions for future studies in risk assessment, imaging, and targeted intervention.

Drivers and Socio-Ecological Consequences of Human-Wildlife Conflict in Uttarakhand, India

This paper examines the factors that affect human–wildlife conflict and its socio-ecological consequences, including impacts on the daily lives of rural people, farming activities, children’s schooling, and livestock rearing. Both qualitative and quantitative approaches were employed. Data were collected from secondary sources, primarily the Uttarakhand State Forest Department and the Forest Survey of India, covering 25 years (2000–2025). Information on wildlife species, their populations, and the number of people killed or injured by wildlife was obtained. The author visited some affected areas of human–wildlife conflict in July 2024 and January 2025. A perception study was conducted in which 212 people from five villages were interviewed. A map of human–wildlife conflict hotspots was also prepared. Three districts of Uttarakhand—Pauri, Almora, and Tehri—were identified as human-wildlife conflict hotspots. This study reveals that elephants dominate the plains—namely the Doon Valley and the Tarai region—whereas leopards and bears dominate the middle Himalayan region in terms of human–wildlife conflict. Wild boars and langurs are also found in the same region. Snow leopards are confined to the Greater Himalayan region. Every day, one or more people are killed by wildlife, and the number of injured people is considerably high. Fatalities from leopard attacks are highest, followed by bear attacks, mainly in the middle Himalayan region. The study suggests that both the Forest Department and local communities can play significant roles in managing wildlife through awareness programmes and improved forest management.

Energy-Aware Thermomechanical Processing and Corrosion Response of Rare-Earth Magnesium Sheets: A Perspective for Sustainable Manufacturing

Rare-earth (RE)-containing magnesium sheet alloys are promising for lightweight structures because they can reduce anisotropy and improve warm formability. Their industrial relevance, however, should be assessed not only through mechanical performance, but also through process-energy demand, corrosion durability, and critical-raw-material considerations. This perspective examines Mg–Zn–RE sheets, with ZE10A as an anchor case, to connect three issues that are often treated separately: low-temperature warm-forming windows, deformation-induced microstructural stability, and corrosion-film kinetics. Current evidence indicates that in the approximately 250–300 °C range, recovery and incipient dynamic recrystallization may improve formability while limiting major grain or phase evolution. Under these recovery-dominated conditions, we propose, as a working hypothesis, that the influence of thermomechanical history on corrosion is mediated primarily by defect architecture, near-surface heterogeneity, and the formation and breakdown kinetics of dynamic, non-passivating films, rather than by extensive precipitation or classical microgalvanic changes. A screening-level discussion of process-energy demand, together with a database-based comparison of the embodied energy and carbon footprint of selected rare-earth elements, is used to frame responsible alloy and processing decisions without claiming a full life-cycle assessment. The perspective concludes with a research roadmap integrating history-faithful forming tests, correlative microstructure mapping, time-resolved electrochemistry, and transparent sustainability assumptions to support predictive manufacturing design rules for Mg–RE sheets.

Bitter Taste in Fungi

Although acceptable in some products and specialities, bitter flavors are a major issue in food-product development, e.g., in proteins of emergent sources. Many mushroom species have been known historically for their bitterness, which is perceived later than the other flavors, and whose perception lingers in the mouth. To date, the substances responsible for this taste could not be identified, possibly due to the extremely variable molecular structures of bitter compounds in nature. The growing sector of mycelium-derived foods is constantly including novel species into their development pipelines, and the need for ways to control off-flavors, particularly the bitter aftertastes, is becoming evident. Identifying the chemical groups responsible for these perceptions is the first step towards finding solutions. Reviewing the perception of bitterness, masking methodologies, and in particular, the occurrence of bitterness in mushrooms, we find that fungal bitterness is chemically diverse, mainly attributable to peptides, phenolics, terpenoids, and alkaloids, with direct receptor-level evidence so far restricted to a few metabolites such as oligoporins and infractopicrin, while most reported compounds remain inferred. Fungal bitterness is likely multicausal, so masking strategies will need to be developed on a species- or group-specific basis rather than universally.

MARCH E3 Ligases: Understudied Regulators of Pulmonary Immune Function

Membrane-associated RING-CH (MARCH) ligases are a family of 11 ubiquitin E3 ligases that regulate protein stability, trafficking, and signaling across diverse cellular contexts. Although MARCH ligases have been studied most extensively in immune regulation, antigen presentation, viral restriction, and cellular homeostasis, their roles in pulmonary biology remain incompletely defined. The lung is a highly specialized environmental interface that must preserve gas exchange while continuously responding to infectious, inflammatory, and sterile insults. These demands require careful regulation of epithelial and endothelial barrier integrity, innate and adaptive immune activation, and tissue repair. Current work suggests that MARCH ligases influence many of these processes by regulating inflammatory responses, cytokine receptors, antiviral signaling mediators, viral proteins, mitochondrial fission or fusion, junctional molecules, ciliary components, and remodeling pathways. In this review, we summarize current knowledge and highlight gaps in the understanding of MARCH ligase expression and function in lung-relevant cell types and disease contexts. Defining how MARCH ligases operate within specific lung compartments may reveal new regulatory mechanisms governing pulmonary immunity, barrier function, host defense, and lung remodeling.

Comprehensive Characterization and Analysis of Key Agronomic Traits and Glucosinolate Profiles in Leaf Mustard

Leaf mustard (Brassica juncea) is an important leafy vegetable highly valued for its diverse flavor and nutrient compounds, particularly glucosinolates. However, different varieties of leaf mustard exhibit substantial phenotypic variation and varying glucosinolate content. In this study, we systematically assessed the phenotypic variability and glucosinolate content among 86 genotypes of leaf mustard. The Shannon-Wiener index for qualitative traits ranged from 0.10 (leaf surface gloss) to 1.60 (leaf shape), while for quantitative traits, it ranged from 1.85 (petiole length) to 2.07 (leaf width). Cluster analysis grouped the accessions into three distinct clusters, with hierarchical clustering indicating that yield-related traits were the primary factors distinguishing these groups. Principal component analysis (PCA) revealed that eight components accounted for 87.44% of the total variance in yield and glucosinolate attributes. Based on comprehensive scoring, the top five genotypes (A645, A464, A512, A702, and A445), exhibiting diverse characteristics, were identified as promising candidates for breeding programs. Moreover, our results suggest that leaf mustard leaves with deeper or more numerous lobes contain higher concentrations of glucoraphanin. Collectively, these findings provide valuable genetic resources to advance leaf mustard breeding.

The Residual Role of Doxorubicin–Cisplatin in Endometrial Cancer in the TC Plus Immunotherapy Era

Doxorubicin plus cisplatin (AP) once played a central role in the systemic treatment of advanced and recurrent endometrial cancer and helped establish combination chemotherapy as a standard approach for extra-uterine disease. Contemporary practice, however, has shifted toward carboplatin plus paclitaxel (TC), which now serves as the cytotoxic backbone for first-line immunotherapy-based strategies. This transition should not be interpreted as the simple replacement of an ineffective regimen by a definitively superior one. No dedicated two-arm trial established the superiority or noninferiority of TC over AP across the full clinical spectrum. Rather, the change resulted from an accumulation of evidence: AP had established historical activity, the addition of paclitaxel to AP improved outcomes, and TC subsequently achieved similar efficacy to the three-drug regimen with better tolerability and practical feasibility. Molecular classification has further changed the treatment landscape. POLE-mutated, mismatch repair-deficient, p53-abnormal, and no specific molecular profile tumors differ in prognosis and therapeutic relevance, but no molecular subgroup has been shown to derive preferential benefit from AP rather than TC. TC also remains the platform for major first-line immunotherapy trials, whereas biomarker-directed and later-line options have further reduced the competitiveness of AP. Emerging biomarkers of cisplatin sensitivity and combinations of immune checkpoint blockade with PARP inhibition remain investigational and do not establish a new molecular niche for AP. AP should therefore be regarded as a historically important regimen with a narrow residual role as an exceptional fallback when established contemporary strategies cannot reasonably be used.