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  1. Abstract

    Phagocytic elimination of solid tumors by innate immune cells seems attractive for immunotherapy, particularly because of the possibilities for acquired immunity. However, the approach remains challenging, with blockade of the macrophage checkpoint CD47 working in immunodeficient mice and against highly immunogenic tumors but not in the clinic where tumors are poorly immunogenic. Even when mouse tumors of poorly immunogenic B16F10 melanoma are opsonized to drive engulfment with a suitable monoclonal antibody (mAb), anti-CD47 blockade remains insufficient. Using both in vitro immuno-tumoroids and in vivo mouse models, we show with CRISPR interference (CRISPRi) that a relatively uniform minimum repression of CD47 by 80% is needed for phagocytosis to dominate net growth when combined with an otherwise ineffective mAb (anti-Tyrp1). Heterogeneity enriches for CD47-high cells, but mice that eliminate tumors generate prophagocytic IgGs that increase in titer with CD47 repression and with tumor accumulation of macrophages, although deeper repression does not improve survival. Given well-known limitations of antibody permeation into solid tumors, our studies clarify benchmarks for CD47 disruption that should be more clinically feasible and safer but just as effective as complete ablation. Additionally, safe but ineffective opsonization in human melanoma trials suggests that combinations with deep repression of CD47 could prove effective and initiate durable immunity.

     
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  2. Herein is reported the structural characterization and scalable preparation of the elusive iron–phosphido complex FpP( t Bu)(F) (2-F, Fp = (Fe(η 5 -C 5 H 5 )(CO) 2 )) and its precursor FpP( t Bu)(Cl) (2-Cl) in 51% and 71% yields, respectively. These phosphide complexes are proposed to be relevant to an organoiron catalytic cycle for phosphinidene transfer to electron-deficient alkenes. Examination of their properties led to the discovery of a more efficient catalytic system involving the simple, commercially available organoiron catalyst Fp 2 . This improved catalysis also enabled the preparation of new phosphiranes with high yields ( t BuPCH 2 CHR; R = CO 2 Me, 41%; R = CN, 83%; R = 4-biphenyl, 73%; R = SO 2 Ph, 71%; R = POPh 2 , 70%; R = 4-pyridyl, 82%; R = 2-pyridyl, 67%; R = PPh 3 + , 64%) and good diastereoselectivity, demonstrating the feasibility of the phosphinidene group-transfer strategy in synthetic chemistry. Experimental and theoretical studies suggest that the original catalysis involves 2-X as the nucleophile, while for the new Fp 2 -catalyzed reaction they implicate a diiron–phosphido complex Fp 2 (P t Bu), 4, as the nucleophile which attacks the electron-deficient olefin in the key first P–C bond-forming step. In both systems, the initial nucleophilic attack may be accompanied by favorable five-membered ring formation involving a carbonyl ligand, a (reversible) pathway competitive with formation of the three-membered ring found in the phosphirane product. A novel radical mechanism is suggested for the new Fp 2 -catalyzed system. 
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  3. Postoperative adhesions are most common issues for almost any types of abdominal and pelvic surgery, leading to adverse consequences. Pharmacological treatments and physical barrier devices are two main approaches to address postoperative adhesions but can only alleviate or reduce adhesions to some extent. There is an urgent need for a reliable approach to completely prevent postoperative adhesions and to significantly improve the clinical outcomes, which, however, is unmet with current technologies. Here we report that by applying a viscous, cream-like yet injectable zwitterionic polymer solution to the traumatized surface, postoperative adhesion was completely and reliably prevented in three clinically relevant but increasingly challenging models in rats. The success rate of full prevention is over 93% among 42 animals tested, which is a major leap in antiadhesion performance. Clinically used Interceed film can hardly prevent the adhesion in any of these models. Unlike current antiadhesion materials serving solely as physical barriers, the “nonfouling” zwitterionic polymer functioned as a protective layer for antiadhesion applications with the inherent benefit of resisting protein/cell adhesions. The nonfouling nature of the polymer prevented the absorption of fibronectins and fibroblasts, which contribute to the initial and late-stage development of the adhesion, respectively. This is the key working mechanism that differentiated our “complete prevention” approach from current underperforming antiadhesion materials. This work implies a safe, effective, and convenient way to fully prevent postoperative adhesions suffered by current surgical patients.

     
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  4. Abstract

    In this study, we statistically investigate the features of magnetic dips by constructing superposed epoch analysis on Van Allen Probe data. Based on the values of electron and proton plasma betas, we categorize dips into two types: electron‐dominant and proton‐dominant. The global distributions of dips are obtained. Superposed epoch analysis on two types reveals a correlation between the magnetic fluctuations and plasma betas. Moreover, the occurrences of butterfly pitch angle distributions of relativistic electrons driven by the magnetic dips are confirmed on a statistical basis. Our results reveal the statistical characteristics of magnetic dips and establish the relationship among the magnetic fluctuations and background plasma parameters, indicating the potentially important role of magnetic dips in the inner magnetosphere dynamics.

     
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  5. Abstract

    In this study, a magnetic dip event in which a small‐scale magnetic dip is embedded within a large‐scale magnetic dip is analyzed based on the observations of the Van Allen Probes. The small‐scale dip is contributed by a sharp electron injection at the energy range of 1 to 10 keV, but the large‐scale dip is contributed by a smooth proton injection at the energy range higher than 10 keV. The formation of dip caused by the suprathermal electrons is supported by the self‐consistent magnetic model. Moreover, the echoes of butterfly distributions of relativistic electrons at the energy range of 0.5 to 3.4 MeV is observed. The time separations of the neighboring butterfly distributions are comparable to the drift periods of the electrons at the different energies. We suggest that the potential nonadiabatic processes in response to the magnetic dips possibly account for the butterfly distribution echoes.

     
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