Sustainable agriculture is a key component of the effort to meet the increased food demand of a rapidly increasing global population. Nano-biotechnology is a promising tool for sustainable agriculture. However, rather than acting as nanocarriers, some nanoparticles (NPs) with unique physiochemical properties inherently enhance plant growth and stress tolerance. This biological role of nanoparticles depends on their physiochemical properties, application method (foliar delivery, hydroponics, soil), and the applied concentration. Here we review the effects of the different types, properties, and concentrations of nanoparticles on plant growth and on various abiotic (salinity, drought, heat, high light, and heavy metals) and biotic (pathogens and herbivores) stresses. The ability of nanoparticles to stimulate plant growth by positive effects on seed germination, root or shoot growth, and biomass or grain yield is also considered. The information presented herein will allow researchers within and outside the nano-biotechnology field to better select the appropriate nanoparticles as starting materials in agricultural applications. Ultimately, a shift from testing/utilizing existing nanoparticles to designing specific nanoparticles based on agriculture needs will facilitate the use of nanotechnology in sustainable agriculture.

Background Non‐small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) is one of the most common human malignancies and the leading cause of cancer‐related death. Over the past few decades, genomic alterations of cancer driver genes have been identified in NSCLC, and molecular testing and targeted therapies have become standard care for lung cancer patients. Here we studied the unique genomic profile of driver genes in Chinese patients with NSCLC by next‐generation sequencing (NGS) assay. Materials and Methods A total of 1,200 Chinese patients with NSCLC were enrolled in this study. The median age was 60 years (range: 26–89), and 83% cases were adenocarcinoma. NGS‐based genomic profiling of major lung cancer‐related genes was performed on formalin‐fixed paraffin‐embedded tumor samples and matched blood. Results Approximately 73.9% of patients with NSCLC harbored at least one actionable alteration recommended by the National Comprehensive Cancer Network guideline, including epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR), ALK, ERBB2, MET, BRAF, RET, and ROS1. Twenty‐seven patients (2.2%) harbored inherited germline mutations of cancer susceptibility genes. The frequencies of EGFR genomic alterations (both mutations and amplification) and ALK rearrangement were identified as 50.1% and 7.8% in Chinese NSCLC populations, respectively, and significantly higher than the Western population. Fifty‐six distinct uncommon EGFR mutations other than L858R, exon19del, exon20ins, or T790M were identified in 18.9% of patients with EGFR‐mutant NSCLC. About 7.4% of patients harbored both sensitizing and uncommon mutations, and 11.6% of patients harbored only uncommon EGFR mutations. The uncommon EGFR mutations more frequently combined with the genomic alterations of ALK, CDKN2A, NTRK3, TSC2, and KRAS. In patients <40 years of age, the ALK‐positive percentage was up to 28.2%. Moreover, 3.2% of ALK‐positive patients harbored multi ALK rearrangements, and seven new partner genes were identified. Conclusion More unique features of cancer driver genes in Chinese NSCLC were identified by next‐generation sequencing. These findings highlighted that NGS technology is more feasible and necessary than other molecular testing methods, and suggested that the special strategies are needed for drug development and targeted therapy for Chinese patients with NSCLC. Implications for Practice Molecular targeted therapy is now the standard first‐line treatment for patients with advanced non‐small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). Samples of 1,200 Chinese patients with NSCLC were analyzed through next‐generation sequencing to characterize the unique feature of uncommon EGFR mutations and ALK fusion. The results showed that 7.4% of EGFR‐mutant patients harbored both sensitizing and uncommon mutations and 11.6% harbored only uncommon mutations. Uncommon EGFR mutations more frequently combined with the genomic alterations of ALK, CDKN2A, NTRK3, TSC2, and KRAS. ALK fusion was more common in younger patients, and the frequency decreased monotonically with age. 3.2% of ALK‐positive patien...

Background. Incorporation of next-generation sequencing (NGS) technology into clinical utility in targeted and immunotherapies requires stringent validation, including the assessment of tumor mutational burden (TMB) and microsatellite instability (MSI) status by NGS as important biomarkers for response to immune checkpoint inhibitors. Materials and Methods. We designed an NGS assay, Cancer Sequencing YS panel (CSYS), and applied algorithms to detect five classes of genomic alterations and two genomic features of TMB and MSI. Results. By stringent validation, CSYS exhibited high sensitivity and predictive positive value of 99.7% and 99.9%, respectively, for single nucleotide variation; 100% and 99.9%, respectively, for short insertion and deletion (indel); and 95.5% and 100%, respectively, for copy number alteration (CNA). Moreover, CSYS achieved 100% specificity for both long indel (50-3,000 bp insertion and deletion) and gene rearrangement. Overall, we used 33 cell lines and

Certain engineered nanoparticles (NPs) have unique properties that have exhibited significant potential for promoting photosynthesis and enhancing crop productivity. Understanding the fundamental interactions between NPs and plants is crucial for the sustainable development of nanoenabled agriculture. Leaf mesophyll protoplasts, which maintain similar physiological response and cellular activity as intact plants, were selected as a model system to study the impact of NPs on photosynthesis. The mesophyll protoplasts isolated from spinach were cultivated with different NMs (Fe, Mn3O4, SiO2, Ag, and MoS2) dosing at 50 mg/L for 2 h under illumination. The potential maximum quantum yield and adenosine triphosphate (ATP) production of mesophyll protoplasts were significantly increased by Mn3O4 and Fe NPs (23% and 43%, respectively), and were decreased by Ag and MoS2 NPs. The mechanism for the photosynthetic enhancement by Mn3O4 and Fe is to increase the photocurrent and electron transfer rate, as revealed by photoelectrochemical measurement. GC–MS based single cell type metabolomics reveal that NPs (Fe and MoS2) altered the metabolic profiles of mesophyll cells during 2 h of illumination period. Separately, the effect of NPs exposure on photosynthesis and biomass were also conducted at the whole plant level. A strong correlation was observed with protoplast data; plant biomass was significantly increased by Mn3O4 exposure (57%) but was decreased (24%) by treatment of Ag NPs. The use of mesophyll protoplasts can be a fast and reliable tool for screening NPs to enhance photosynthesis for potential nanofertilizer use. Importantly, inclusion of a metabolic analysis can provide mechanistic toxicity data to ensure the development “safer-by-design” nanoenabled platforms.