Metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease (MASLD), which affects about 30% of the population worldwide, is driven in part by excessive hepatic de novo lipogenesis (the production of fatty acids within the liver). In mice, the minor intron splicing factors ZRSR1 and ZRSR2 can influence hepatic lipid metabolism by controlling the processing of Insig transcripts. Whether these proteins also regulate metabolism independently of their canonical splicing function has remained unclear.

Chronic kidney disease (CKD) affects millions worldwide, with renal fibrosis representing a final common pathway of chronic renal injury. Defective fatty acid oxidation (FAO) in renal tubular epithelial cells has been shown to promote kidney fibrosis, but whether FAO impairment in kidney vascular endothelial cells contributes to renal pathology has remained unclear.

Perivascular adipose tissue (PVAT), the fat layer surrounding blood vessels, is increasingly recognized as an active regulator of vascular function rather than a passive structural cushion. Yet whether PVAT contains functionally important sympathetic nerves has remained debated, largely because conventional two-dimensional imaging can miss sparse, spatially complex neural structures.

Atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease (ASCVD) remains a leading cause of death worldwide. Elevated low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C) is a major modifiable driver of ASCVD, and PCSK9 has become an important therapeutic target because it regulates hepatic LDL receptor recycling and circulating LDL-C levels. Although PCSK9-targeting monoclonal antibodies and siRNA therapies can substantially lower LDL-C, their cost and need for repeated administration have motivated efforts to develop longer-lasting and more accessible approaches.

Type 2 diabetes (T2D) is marked by insulin resistance together with the progressive failure of pancreatic β-cells. Increasing evidence suggests that this failure is shaped not only by β-cells themselves, but also by the local islet immune microenvironment, where resident and recruited macrophages can influence inflammation, islet architecture, and insulin secretion. Exercise is a cornerstone of diabetes management, yet how it acts within this islet microenvironment has remained unclear.

The plasma membrane is more than a passive boundary. It is organized into dynamic lipid-rich microdomains, often referred to as lipid rafts, that concentrate receptors and signaling molecules. In glioblastoma (GBM), the most aggressive primary brain tumor in adults, the epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) signaling is a major oncogenic driver. Yet how tumor cells maintain the membrane platforms that support such proliferative signaling has remained incompletely understood.

Ependymoma is a central nervous system tumor that occurs primarily in children and can arise in the supratentorial region, posterior fossa, or spinal cord. Although molecular classification has substantially improved disease stratification and prognostic assessment, the metabolic phenotypes associated with the major pediatric subtypes have remained poorly defined. Because pediatric ependymoma is rare, assembling a cohort that spans multiple molecularly defined subtypes for systematic metabolic comparison is itself challenging.

Diabetes is a highly prevalent chronic condition and a major contributor to the global burden of disease, posing substantial challenges to health systems. Cardiovascular disease (CVD) remains its leading complication, and people with diabetes face a two- to four-fold higher risk of cardiovascular morbidity and mortality than the general population. Control of glycated hemoglobin (HbA1c), blood pressure, and low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C), collectively referred to as ABC risk factors, is a cornerstone of cardiovascular prevention in diabetes.

Lysosomes were once viewed mainly as cellular waste disposers, but are now recognized as key hubs for nutrient sensing and metabolic signaling. Still, what lysosomes contribute metabolically inside high-demand neurons in the intact brain remains elusive.