Author: USG

Plants and their associated microbiomes have co-evolved for 500 million years, developing holobionts (combined host-microbiome system) that provide ecological services such as nutrient utilization, development, and pathogen defense, while also exhibiting emergent metabolic and adaptive traits. This talk presents three case studies on how (1) a kingdom-wide conserved plant defense signal has been co-opted to induce lifestyle changes in soil microbiomes to form beneficial biofilms that benefit plant growth from long distances in the rhizosphere; (2) a universal antioxidant microbial metabolite acts as a sulfur nutritional stress tolerance signal for plants in a trans-kingdom tradeoff for its partitioning between microbiome members and plants, and (3) an ecology-guided framework that integrates natural microbial interaction structure with metabolic complementarity has been successfully used to rationally predict cooperative resource exchange for designing beneficial consortia to improve growth promotion and protection. Examples of use of integration of genomic, metabolomic, machine learning and field trials will be shared to demonstrate the path from discovery to translation.

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The 4^th International Conference on Plant Science Research (Plant-2026) was successfully held during April 27 – 29, 2026 in San Francisco, California, USA. The conference was organized by USG United Scientific Group and brought together researchers, academicians, industry experts, and students from various countries to discuss recent advancements and future directions in plant science research.

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Immune checkpoint blockers (ICBs) have revolutionized the treatment of multiple malignancies. However, <20% of patients currently benefit from these therapies. Similarly, CAR-T cells have revolutionized the treatment of hematological malignancies but have not been effective against solid tumors. We have demonstrated that this limited efficacy is due to abnormal tumor microenvironment (TME). The dysfunctional tumor vessels not only inhibit infiltration of immune cells (nascent, reactivated with ICBs, or adoptively transferred, such as CAR-T cells) into tumors, but also create a hypoxic and acidic microenvironment that suppresses the function of immune cells after they accrue in tumors. In 2001, I proposed that judicious use of anti-angiogenic agents – that were originally developed to starve tumors – can “normalize” tumor vessels and improve the delivery and efficacy of concurrent therapies. Our preclinical finding that vascular normalization can improve immunotherapy was confirmed by others in phase III trials on combining antiangiogenic therapy with ICBs for lung, kidney, liver, and endometrial, led to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration approvals of seven such combinations for these cancers, and formed the foundation of novel bifunctional antibodies that target both VEGF and PD1/L1. Additionally, we discovered that anti-hypertensive drugs capable of “normalizing” the tumor matrix and stromal cells can reprogram the TME to an immunostimulatory milieu and improve the delivery and efficacy of cancer therapies. A phase II trial led by my clinical collaborators provided evidence in support of this concept for improving the treatment outcome for patients with pancreatic ductal.

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The brain is the source of meaning and spirit. Addictions to smoking, alcohol, illicit drugs, and certain behaviors like gambling, overeating, taboo, and sex, are prevalent worldwide. These behaviors are highly destructive and costly to individ¬uals and society due to health consequences, criminality and lost productivity. The genetic vulnerability, environmental exposures, and individual behaviors that con¬tribute to the brain dysfunction and compulsive tendencies that mark addiction make it one of the most complicated diseases to study and treat. Much has been learned about the genetic basis of and biochemical imbalances associated with the addictions. Progress towards effective treatment has been retarded by insufficient attention being paid to understanding the role of spirituality in helping to heal addicts. We hypothesize that a healthy spirituality may come more naturally to some individuals because of the unique interaction of their genes and their en¬vironments. We review the evidence in support of this view. Consider the role of default mode network (DMN) as a way of how people process self and religiosity. We offer herein a novel concept we call the neurospirituality connectome as a cornerstone of the purpose and meaning of life as reward (PMLR). The conse¬quences of non-treatment are attenuated by PMLR.

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Micro(mi)RNAs are short noncoding RNAs that through their seed sequence (pos. 2 – 7/8 of the guide strand) regulate cell function by targeting complementary sequences (seed matches) located mostly in the 3′ untranslated region (3′UTR) of mRNAs. Certain short (s)RNAs when loaded into the RNA induced silencing complex (RISC) are toxic to cancer cells by targeting a network of genes that are critical for cell survival, a process we have termed as death induced by survival gene elimination (DISE). DISE involves simultaneous activation of multiple cell death mechanisms by targeting a large network of genes, that likely differs from cell to cell. These toxic sRNAs carry a G-rich 6mer seed region that targets C-rich seed matches mainly located in the 3’UTR of genes in a miRNA-like manner. G-rich seeds are part of the seed of a number of conserved tumor suppressive miRNAs and the ratio of toxic-to-nontoxic miRNAs predicts treatment outcome in ovarian cancer. We demonstrated that sRNAs delivered using multiple delivery vehicles cause tumor regression in different in vivo mouse and rat tumor models of ovarian, prostate and liver cancer with no side effects. DISE works on any cancer, it is effective on therapy resistant cancer cells, cancer cells cannot become resistant to treatment, there is no evidence of toxicity to treated animals, and one can keep treating and/or switch to different delivery methods without losing efficacy. Because it is an evolutionary conserved cell death mechanism, overactive DISE may lead to human diseases that involve tissue degeneration. Alzheimer’s disease (AD) is characterized by progressive neurodegeneration, but the specific events that cause cell death remain poorly understood. The RISC of most cells is occupied by miRNAs with nontoxic 6mer seeds, which may protect them from DISE by blocking loading of sRNAs that carry toxic G-rich 6mer seeds, including miRNAs, tRNA or rRNA fragments. However, during aging miRNA expression decreases in the brain, and toxic sRNAs may enter the RISC more readily leaving cells primed for DISE. We found evidence that DISE contributes to neuronal loss during AD. We analyzed RISC bound sRNAs (R-sRNAs) of multiple in vitro models and in the brains of in vivo AD mouse models, aged mice, and AD patients. We found that in the mouse models that show neurodegeneration and during aging R-sRNAs shift to more toxic seeds. In contrast, in cells that survived in the post-mortem brains of AD patients and the brains of “SuperAgers”, individuals over age 80 who have superior memory performance, R-sRNAs shift to more nontoxic seeds, supporting a protective function of miRNAs. Our data provides first evidence of a contribution of DISE to the neurotoxicity seen in AD. Our data suggests that toxic 6mer seed containing sRNAs can be developed into a general form of cancer therapy and ways to increase the levels of protective miRNAs in the brain may provide a novel way of treating neurodegenerative diseases such as AD.

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As demand for lithium-ion batteries (LIBs) continues to grow rapidly, the handling of spent LIBs remains a significant challenge for environmental regulators, engineers, and scientists. To achieve a sustainable supply chain and adhere to circular economy principles, valuable metals in spent LIBs-primarily lithium, cobalt, nickel, and manganese-must be recovered and reused. Conventional LIB recovery methods, such as pyrometallurgy, hydrometallurgy, and biohydrometallurgy, have considerable drawbacks, including high energy consumption, the use of corrosive and toxic chemicals, and a low lithium recovery rate. We present an innovative process to recover lithium, cobalt, nickel, and manganese from spent LIBs with high purity (> 99%) while maintaining a low energy footprint and using mild organic solvents. This process employs a sequential and selective application of organic aqueous phase ligands to complex the metals in the spent LIB. The aqueous complex is then passed through a fixed bed of metal-selective ion exchange resins. The metal-ligand complex is cleaved, making the organic acid ligand available for the next recovery cycle. The exhausted ion-exchanger bed is regenerated with a suitable solution to yield a metal- rich aqueous solution, from which pure solutions of lithium, cobalt, manganese, and nickel are obtained. The ion exchanger bed can be reused across multiple cycles, enabling a nearly zero-waste, sustainable process.

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Today, the leading cause of death for American children is firearms. Tragically, many of these deaths result from suicides with unsecured guns in their own or a friend’s home. Others are due to homicides involving stolen guns. Most of these children might still be alive if those guns had been stored securely. So, how can we save lives?. We need a social movement for safe firearm storage. University of Minnesota anthropology professor Luther Gerlach studied movements like black power, pentecostalism, and environmental action, identifying five key elements in these social movements:
• A network of organizations that communicate but act independently.
• A way to recruit new members.
• A process to commit members to the cause.
• A clear ideology.
• Opposition to a real or perceived threat.
This framework could drive a secure firearm storage movement, just as it did for the smoke-free movement that now lets us dine, fly, and receive medical care without breathing tobacco smoke. Many pieces of this movement already exist. Organizations like the American Academy of Pediatrics, Protect Minnesota, Moms Demand Action and Everytown are advocating for secure storage. Campaigns like Be SMART provide resources for parents, including text messages and videos on how to ask if firearms in another home are stored securely before a playdate or party. In his presentation, Dr. Kottke will discuss how nurses can become vectors for firearm safety in their work, in their homes, and in their communities.

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Making clinical decisions is vital in assuring safe and competent delivery of care. It has no place for racism. Implicit and other forms of biases have an impact on nurses’ thinking in relation to clinical decisions. However, racisms work in a very specific way and is imbedded in society so effectively that the transmission of racisms is regularly not acknowledged by these systems and institutions and those that work within them in positions of power. The evidence clearly identifies that black and brown patients have inferior experiences within the National Health Service (NHS) and healthcare outcomes than white patients. There are multiple factors for this but one of them is inappropriate clinical decision making based on racisms. An exploration of the evidence and the need for nurse education to acknowledge this and make real changes will be presented. How racisms both individual and institutionally functions in a way that impact on the lived experiences of black and brown patients in the NHS. Nurses’ clinical decisions can ultimately lead to inadequate care delivery.

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The 4^th International Conference on Polymer Science and Engineering (Polymers-2025) organized by United Scientific Group was held from October 06, 2025, to October 08, 2025, in Hybrid mode (In-person & Virtual). 53 attendees from more than 25 countries presented at Polymers-2025 over 3 days with 6 plenary talks, 4 keynote lectures, 31 oral and 2 poster presentations. Of the plenary speakers, opening talk given by Dr. Alamgir Karim, University of Houston, Houston, TX on “Advanced Membranes for a Shared Vison for Clean Water Resources”. Dr. Peter X. Ma, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI presented “Designing Polymers at Multiple Scales to Direct Cell Fates and Tissue Regeneration”, and Dr. Richard J. Spontak, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, NC presented “A New Paradigm for Antimicrobial Polymer Surfaces with High Inactivation Efficacy and No Antimicrobial Resistance” and Dr. Vistasp Karbhari, University of Texas at Arlington, Arlington, TX presented “Effects of Thermal and Hygrothermal Aging of Wet Layup Carbon/Epoxy Composites” and Dr. Virgil Percec, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA presented “The Cell Membrane and its Mimics are Supramolecular Polymers”, and the last plenary talk by Dr. Robert Guidoin, Laval University, Canada presented “Looking for the Most Select Materials for Limb Salvage in Peripheral Artery Disease”.

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Polymeric syntactic foams, a lightweight composite with hollow particles dispersed in a polymer matrix, have found wide applications in various sectors, from aerospace to marine structures. As compared to open-cell forms, syntactic foams are close-cell, leading to enhanced mechanical properties and water tightness. In the past years, our lab has been working on smart polymer based syntactic foams, including shape memory polymers, vitrimers, 3D printable polymers, and flame-retardance smart polymers. In this presentation, I will discuss the several multifunctional syntactic forms designed, synthesized, and tested in our lab.

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