(Press-News.org) Differentiated thyroid carcinoma (DTC) is typically indolent, and some patients may be managed conservatively without immediate surgery. However, it remains a clinical challenge to determine who is suitable for active surveillance and to identify when disease progression may occur.
A new study led by researchers at The First Affiliated Hospital of Zhengzhou University addresses this issue by developing an innovative dynamic biomarker system. Using an optimized dynamic network biomarker (DNB) algorithm, the team identified a “tipping point” in Stage II of DTC, where the disease shifts from a stable state to rapid progression. “Our analysis revealed that Stage II is a critical transition stage,” says corresponding author Prof. Xinguang Qiu.
To quantify individual risk, the team created TCPSLevel, a scoring system that captures early-warning molecular signals. Patients with high TCPSLevel had more advanced disease and worse outcomes. “This score outperforms traditional staging in identifying high-risk individuals,” notes co-author Dr. Ge Zhang.
The researchers applied AI-based consensus clustering to over 1,100 thyroid cancer samples and identified three reproducible molecular subtypes, each with distinct immune profiles and progression risks. The most aggressive subtype was associated with the gene ASPH, which was experimentally validated.
To support clinical use, they developed a simplified classifier (miniPC) based on just 12 genes, enabling accurate subtype prediction across multiple datasets. “This tool offers a practical approach to personalized treatment planning,” says Dr. Haonan Zhang.
By integrating multi-omics data, machine learning, and single-cell analysis, the study provides new insights and tools for early risk stratification and targeted management of thyroid cancer.
END
AI-powered biomarker system redefines thyroid cancer progression and subtypes
2025-07-18
ELSE PRESS RELEASES FROM THIS DATE:
Digestive cancers in China: A two-decade burden with uneven gains in life expectancy
2025-07-18
Digestive system malignancies (DSMTs)—including oesophageal, gastric, colorectal, liver, and pancreatic cancers—represent a major public health challenge in China. A recent national epidemiological study by Hu et al., published in eGastroenterology, analysed trends from 2004 to 2021, revealing complex patterns of burden and survival. While progress has been made in reducing mortality from some cancers, the overall impact remains significant, with notable disparities across demographic and geographic lines. Below ...
ANXA2+ migratory hepatocytes identified as key players in human liver regeneration
2025-07-18
Acute liver failure (ALF) represents a life-threatening condition marked by rapid deterioration of liver function, often necessitating urgent liver transplantation. In the United States, acetaminophen (APAP) overdose remains the most common cause of drug-induced ALF, accounting for nearly half of all cases. Given the scarcity of viable donor livers—worsened by the prevalence of steatotic liver disease—understanding and promoting the liver's intrinsic regenerative capacity has become an urgent priority ...
Researchers demonstrate a new material to reduce power consumption of electronics
2025-07-18
MINNEAPOLIS / ST. PAUL (07/18/2025) — Research from the University of Minnesota Twin Cities gives new insight into a material that could make computer memory faster and more energy-efficient.
The study was recently published in Advanced Materials, a peer-reviewed scientific journal. The researchers also have a patent on the technology.
As technology continues to grow, so does the demand for emerging memory technology. Researchers are looking for alternatives and complements to existing memory solutions that can perform at high levels with ...
New chemical tool may improve development of key drug components
2025-07-18
COLUMBUS, Ohio – Chemists have developed a novel way to generate a variety of highly useful chemical building blocks by harnessing metal carbenes, suggests new research.
Typically used in chemical reactions essential for drug synthesis and materials development, carbenes are short-lived, highly reactive carbon atoms. In the lab, this can make carbenes especially tricky to create, as methods to form them are limited and often hazardous.
Now, for the first time, an approach discovered by researchers at The Ohio State University has made producing these ...
IEEE study achieves efficient integration of quantum dot lasers on silicon chiplets
2025-07-18
Lasers that are fabricated directly onto silicon photonic chips offer several advantages over external laser sources, such as greater scalability. Furthermore, photonic chips with these “monolithically” integrated lasers can be commercially viable if they can be manufactured in standard semiconductor foundries.
III-V semiconductor lasers can be monolithically integrated with photonic chips by directly growing a crystalline layer of laser material, such as indium arsenide, on silicon substrate. However, photonic chips with such integrated laser source are challenging to manufacture due ...
Researchers discover that sound stress alone can prolong and intensify pain
2025-07-18
Pain is an important physiological response in living organisms. While physical pain is an outcome of tissue damage, pain can manifest as diverse unpleasant sensory and emotional experiences. Many studies report that emotional or psychological stress enhances pain responses. Furthermore, mice housed with other mice experiencing inflammatory pain exhibit a ‘bystander effect’ with heightened pain sensitivity, or ‘hyperalgesia.’ However, the effects that underpin social pain transmission remain elusive.
Rodents emit ultrasonic vocalizations in the form of high-pitched squeaks in response to various stimuli, including pain, in ...
Less pain, more gain: A new recipe for safer, stronger mRNA vaccines
2025-07-18
As millions of people know firsthand, the most common side effect of mRNA vaccines like the COVID-19 shot is inflammation: soreness, redness and a day or two of malaise. But what if mRNA vaccines could be redesigned to sidestep that response altogether?
In a new paper in Nature Biomedical Engineering, researchers at the University of Pennsylvania show that tweaking the structure of the ionizable lipid, a key component of the lipid nanoparticles (LNPs) that deliver mRNA, not only reduces inflammation but also boosts vaccine effectiveness for preventing or treating a range of diseases, from COVID-19 to cancer.
The ...
Surprising finding could pave way for universal cancer vaccine
2025-07-18
An experimental mRNA vaccine boosted the tumor-fighting effects of immunotherapy in a mouse-model study, bringing researchers one step closer to their goal of developing a universal vaccine to “wake up” the immune system against cancer.
Published today in Nature Biomedical Engineering, the University of Florida study showed that like a one-two punch, pairing the test vaccine with common anticancer drugs called immune checkpoint inhibitors triggered a strong antitumor response.
A surprising element, researchers said, was that they achieved the promising results not by attacking a specific target protein expressed in the tumor, but by simply revving ...
Gene essential for vitamin D absorption could help unlock treatments for cancer and autoimmune diseases
2025-07-18
Vitamin D is not only an essential nutrient, but also the precursor of the hormone calcitriol, indispensable for health: it regulates the uptake of phosphate and calcium necessary for bones by the intestines, as well as cell growth and the proper function of muscles, nerve cells, and the immune system.
Now, researchers have shown for the first time in Frontiers in Endocrinology that a particular gene, called SDR42E1, is crucial for taking up vitamin D from the gut and further metabolizing it – a discovery with many possible applications in precision medicine, including ...
Don’t feed the animals: Researchers warn of risks tied to wildlife interactions
2025-07-18
A study led by a scientist at the University of California San Diego offers new warnings on the dangers of human interactions with wildlife.
Assistant Professor Shermin de Silva of the School of Biological Sciences studies endangered Asian elephants and has reported on their shrinking habitats, a downturn that has resulted in territorial conflicts between people and elephants.
Along with her study coauthors, de Silva now provides fresh evidence in the journal Ecological Solutions and Evidence on ...