Kuin Tian Pang

The cultivated meat industry is attracting growing research interest and significant investment. Red meat allergy affects approximately 3% of the global population, manifesting in complications such as severe itching and hives. While the cultivated meat field has focused on the generation of cell lines and upscaling manufacturing, the allergenicity of cultivated meat remains untested. α-Galactose (α-Gal) is a key allergenic epitope in red meat. Here, we generated GGTA1+/- heterozygous and GGTA1-/- homozygous α-Gal knockout porcine myoblast cell lines using CRISPR-Cas9 to evaluate the allergenicity of cultivated meat, especially pork. We show that long-term culturing of immortalised porcine myoblasts results in accumulation of α-Gal relative to other glycans. Using an in-vitro KU812 basophil activation assay, we further demonstrate that knockout of α-Gal reduces allergenic potential, as evidenced by decreased histamine and leukotriene C4 (LTC4) levels. Our findings provide proof-of-concept that allergenicity can be systematically reduced through targeted genome editing, paving the way for safer cultivated meat products.

Humans have long consumed red algae (especially by the Asian community), and their polysaccharide extracts (carrageenan, agar) are extensively used in the food industry as gel thickeners. Furthermore, due to the wide variety of habitats red algae inhabit, red algal polysaccharides possess many interesting structures, possessing unique structures and monosaccharides which are not found in other organisms. These unique structures have allowed red algal polysaccharides to display many bioactivities such as anticoagulant, antiviral, antioxidant, and anti‐inflammation. However, the use of red algal polysaccharides as nutraceuticals is rare despite displaying such promising bioactivities. One key reason for this is the same complex structure that enables bioactivity, also complicates studies of red algal polysaccharides as direct comparisons between studies can rarely be done due to the large amount of changed variables. Thus, this review aims to provide a high‐level overview of red algal polysaccharides to ease further delving into red algal polysaccharides, particularly in a nutraceutical context. The review starts by introducing the basic structure of well‐known red algal polysaccharides. This is followed by highlighting current extraction and characterization methods of algae. Various bioactivities displayed by red algal polysaccharides in the nutraceutical (gastrointestinal) context are then highlighted. Among the bioactivities, the potential health benefits resulting from the interaction of red algal polysaccharides with the gut microbiota stood out, and more effort can be invested in such studies. Finally, the major challenges of turning red algae polysaccharides into a nutraceutical product are raised. These include difficulty in accounting for algae variability and a lack of understanding of structure–activity relationships.

Genome-scale metabolic models (GEMs) are indispensable for studying and engineering cellular metabolism. Here, we present i CHO3K, a community-consensus, manually-curated reconstruction of the Chinese Hamster metabolic network. In addition to accounting for 11004 reactions associated with 3597 genes, i CHO3K includes 3489 protein structures and structural descriptors for >70% of its 7377 metabolites, enabling deeper exploration of the link between molecular structure and cellular metabolism. We used i CHO3K to contextualize transcriptomics and metabolomics data from a CHO cell line in which lactate secretion is abolished. We found the reduced glycolytic flux and enhanced TCA cycle flux were accompanied by an elevated NADH and PEP levels in these cells, consistent with experimental measurements. Leveraging i CHO3K’s structural annotations, we identified candidate binding interactions of NADH and PEP with glycolytic enzymes showing model-predicted differential flux, suggesting novel allosteric regulation associated with the observed decrease in glucose uptake and glycolysis. Overall, i CHO3K offers a valuable framework for systematic integration of omics data, improved flux predictions, and structure-guided insights, thus advancing CHO cell engineering and enhancing biomanufacturing efficiency.

Since its release in November 2022, ChatGPT and the related AI technology have disrupted multiple fields of society where people anticipate its pathways with a mixture of hope and fear. Among the affected fields, education, in particular, may incur one of the largest impacts in the future partly due to its nature of learning and teaching knowledge, an element that is more or less questioned by the rise of these technologies. As education can be seen as a component that determines the future of every other field of society, tools such as ChatGPT must be optimally regulated to enhance its gain or mitigate its loss. To contribute to this goal, this paper approaches the state of ChatGPT and its expected impacts on higher education through the lens of two major educational theories—John Dewey’s Reflective-Thought-and-Action model and revised Bloom’s taxonomy—aiming to propose possible evaluative criteria for the optimal usage of ChatGPT in academia. As ChatGPT is a relatively new topic of research yet a topic that requires an immediate focus due to its capabilities, this paper also aims to provide these criteria as one of the concrete starting points of future research in this field.

Stem cells possess the unique ability to differentiate into specialized cell types. These specialized cell types can be used for regenerative medicine purposes such as cell therapy. Myosatellite cells, also known as skeletal muscle stem cells (MuSCs), play important roles in the growth, repair, and regeneration of skeletal muscle tissues. However, despite its therapeutic potential, the successful differentiation, proliferation, and expansion processes of MuSCs remain a significant challenge due to a variety of factors. For example, the growth and differentiation of MuSCs can be greatly influenced by actively replicating the MuSCs microenvironment (known as the niche) using mechanical forces. However, the molecular role of mechanobiology in MuSC growth, proliferation, and differentiation for regenerative medicine is still poorly understood. In this present review, we comprehensively summarize, compare, and critically analyze how different mechanical cues shape stem cell growth, proliferation, differentiation, and their potential role in disease development (Fig. 1). The insights developed from the mechanobiology of stem cells will also contribute to how these applications can be used for regenerative purposes using MuSCs.

Multidirectional or disturbed flow promotes endothelial dysfunction and is associated with early atherogenesis. Here we investigated the role of Wnt signalling in flow-mediated endothelial dysfunction. The expression of Frizzled-4 was higher in cultured human aortic endothelial cells (ECs) exposed to disturbed flow compared to that seen for undisturbed flow, obtained using an orbital shaker. Increased expression was also detected in regions of the porcine aortic arch exposed to disturbed flow. The increased Frizzled-4 expression in cultured ECs was abrogated following knockdown of R-spondin-3. Disturbed flow also increased the nuclear localisation and activation of β-catenin, an effect that was dependent on Frizzled-4 and R-spondin-3. Inhibition of β-catenin using the small-molecule inhibitor iCRT5 or knockdown of Frizzled-4 or R-spondin-3 resulted in reduced expression of pro-inflammatory genes in ECs exposed to disturbed flow, as did inhibition of WNT5A signalling. Inhibition of the canonical Wnt pathway had no effect. Inhibition of β-catenin also reduced endothelial paracellular permeability; this was associated with altered junctional and focal adhesion organisation and cytoskeletal remodelling. These data suggest the presence of an atypical Frizzled-4-β-catenin pathway that promotes endothelial dysfunction in response to disturbed flow.

It is estimated that food fraud, where meat from different species is deceitfully labelled or contaminated, has cost the global food industry around USD 6.2 to USD 40 billion annually. To overcome this problem, novel and robust quantitative methods are needed to accurately characterise and profile meat samples. In this study, we use a glycomic approach for the profiling of meat from different species. This involves an O-glycan analysis using LC-MS qTOF, and an N-glycan analysis using a high-resolution non-targeted ultra-performance liquid chromatography-fluorescence-mass spectrometry (UPLC-FLR-MS) on chicken, pork, and beef meat samples. Our integrated glycomic approach reveals the distinct glycan profile of chicken, pork, and beef samples; glycosylation attributes such as fucosylation, sialylation, galactosylation, high mannose, α-galactose, Neu5Gc, and Neu5Ac are significantly different between meat from different species. The multi-attribute data consisting of the abundance of each O-glycan and N-glycan structure allows a clear separation between meat from different species through principal component analysis. Altogether, we have successfully demonstrated the use of a glycomics-based workflow to extract multi-attribute data from O-glycan and N-glycan analysis for meat profiling. This established glycoanalytical methodology could be extended to other high-value biotechnology industries for product authentication.