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arXiv2026

PuriGen: Purity-Aware Deep Generative Modeling for Predicting Stem Cell Lineage Fate

Predicting stem-cell lineage fate is central to elucidating biomaterial-stem cell interactions and optimizing strategies for tissue regeneration. While existing approaches demonstrate the feasibility of lineage prediction, they remain limited in modelling compositional heterogeneity and time-dependent differentiation dynamics. To mitigate this gap, we propose PuriGen, a purity-aware deep generative framework for biomaterial-induced lineage prediction from bulk transcriptomic data. PuriGen consists of two key modules, PuritySCVI and PuritySCANVI, which extend scVI and scANVI by incorporating a pretrained GBMPurity head to provide a sample-level purity-like compositional signal. In addition, purity-aware regularisation and temporal constraints are introduced to encourage informative purity prediction and biologically consistent latent representations. Experiments on bulk mesenchymal stem-cell datasets collected across multiple biomaterial conditions and induction stages show that the proposed framework achieves better performance than the existing methods.

cs.CE↗

arXiv2022

Flexible terahertz photonic light-cage modules for in-core sensing and high temperature applications

Terahertz (THz) technology is a growing and multi-disciplinary research field, particularly for sensing and telecommunications. A number of THz waveguides have emerged over the past years, which are set to complement the capabilities of existing and bulky free space setups. In most designs however, the guiding region is physically separated from the surroundings, making interactions between light and the environment inefficient. We present photonic THz light cages (THzLCs) operating at THz frequencies, consisting of free-standing dielectric strands, which guide light within a hollow core with immediate access to the environment. We show the versatility and design flexibility of this concept, by 3D-printing several cm-length-scale modules using a single design and four different polymer- and ceramic- materials, which are either rigid, flexible, or resistant to high temperatures. We characterize propagation- and bend-losses for straight- and curved- waveguides, which are of order ~1 dB/cm in the former, and ~2-8 dB/cm in the latter for bend radii below 10 cm, and largely independent of the material. Our transmission experiments are complemented by near-field measurements at the waveguide output, which reveal antiresonant guidance for straight THzLCs, and a deformed fundamental mode in the bent waveguides, in agreement with numerical conformal mapping simulations. We show that these THzLCs can be used either as: (i) flexible, reconfigurable, and bendable modular assemblies; (ii) in-core sensors of structures contained directly inside the hollow core; (iii) high-temperature sensors, with potential applications in industrial monitoring. These THzLCs are a novel and useful addition to the growing library of THz waveguides, marrying the waveguide-like advantages of reconfigurable, diffractionless propagation, with the free-space-like immediacy of direct exposure to the surrounding environment.

physics.optics↗