Effects of Enzymatic Hydrolysis on the Allergenicity of Whey Protein Concentrates

Cow’s milk whey consists of many protein components and some of them are antigens to human and known to modulate immune responses. Enzymatic hydrolysis is a useful method to modify proteins with allergenicity. The objective of this study was to identify whether the in vitro enzymatic hydrolysis could reduce the allergenicity of whey protein concentrates (WPC). In  this study, WPC were hydrolyzed by trypsin and twenty-four BALB/c mice were divided into three groups and fed with WPC formula and WPC hydrolysates formula, while the control mice received milk-free diet. The results revealed that there was no significant difference between the body weights among all groups. WPC-fed mice produced an elevated spleen lymphocyte proliferation level than WPC hydrolysates-fed mice and also produced higher levels of WPC-specific IgE in intestinal tract and serum in comparison to WPC hydrolysates-fed mice and control group. Significant up-regulation of plasma histamine levels were also observed and showed the same trend with IgE. The secretions of IL-4 and IL-5 were significantly enhanced by WPC. WPC significantly suppressed  the  secretion of  IFN-γ  while hydrolysates of  WPC significantly increased the secretion of IFN-γ compared to control group. These results suggest that hydrolysis may play a role to reduce the allergenicity of WPC

Transcriptome and metabolome profiling of the medicinal plant Veratrum mengtzeanum reveal key components of the alkaloid biosynthesis

Veratrum mengtzeanum is the main ingredient for Chinese folk medicine known as “Pimacao” due to its unique alkaloids. A diverse class of plant-specific metabolites having key pharmacological activities. There are limited studies on alkaloid synthesis and its metabolic pathways in plants. To elucidate the alkaloid pathway and identify novel biosynthetic enzymes and compounds in V. mengtzeanum, transcriptome and metabolome profiling has been conducted in leaves and roots. The transcriptome of V. mengtzeanum leaves and roots yielded 190,161 unigenes, of which 33,942 genes expressed differentially (DEGs) in both tissues. Three enriched regulatory pathways (isoquinoline alkaloid biosynthesis, indole alkaloid biosynthesis and tropane, piperidine and pyridine alkaloid biosynthesis) and a considerable number of genes such as AED3-like, A4U43, 21 kDa protein-like, 3-O-glycotransferase 2-like, AtDIR19, MST4, CASP-like protein 1D1 were discovered in association with the biosynthesis of alkaloids in leaves and roots. Some transcription factor families, i.e., AP2/ERF, GRAS, NAC, bHLH, MYB-related, C3H, FARI, WRKY, HB-HD-ZIP, C2H2, and bZIP were also found to have a prominent role in regulating the synthesis of alkaloids and steroidal alkaloids in the leaves and roots of V. mengtzeanum. The metabolome analysis revealed 74 significantly accumulated metabolites, with 55 differentially accumulated in leaves compared to root tissues. Out of 74 metabolites, 18 alkaloids were highly accumulated in the roots. A novel alkaloid compound viz; 3-Vanilloylygadenine was discovered in root samples. Conjoint analysis of transcriptome and metabolome studies has also highlighted potential genes involved in regulation and transport of alkaloid compounds. Here, we have presented a comprehensive metabolic and transcriptome profiling of V. mengtzeanum tissues. In earlier reports, only the roots were reported as a rich source of alkaloid biosynthesis, but the current findings revealed both leaves and roots as significant manufacturing factories for alkaloid biosynthesis

Bear-proof fences reduce livestock losses in the Tibetan Autonomous Region, China

Tibetan brown bears Ursus arctos pruinosus in the Tibetan Plateau attack and kill livestock and ransack homes for food, causing significant economic costs for local herders. Although a government fund compensates herders for livestock lost to bear attacks in the Tibetan Autonomous Region (China), compensation may not reflect the real cost of losing livestock and payments can be delayed. We investigate whether bear-proof fences are a cost-effective method for reducing bear attacks and livestock losses. In January 2009, 14 bear-proof fences were constructed from wire mesh and steel posts around households which had previously experienced substantial losses to bear attacks in the Nagqu Prefecture of the Tibetan Autonomous Region. These households lost 162 animals to bears in the year before fence construction, whereas just three animals were lost in the year after fence construction. Fences were still standing 4.8 years after completion and any small damage has been repaired by households. For households that suffer substantial losses to bear attacks, bear-proof fences appear to be an effective and cost-saving intervention to reduce human-bear conflict

Bear-proof fences reduce livestock losses in the Tibetan Autonomous Region, China

Tibetan brown bears Ursus arctos pruinosus in the Tibetan Plateau attack and kill livestock and ransack homes for food, causing significant economic costs for local herders. Although a government fund compensates herders for livestock lost to bear attacks in the Tibetan Autonomous Region (China), compensation may not reflect the real cost of losing livestock and payments can be delayed. We investigate whether bear-proof fences are a cost-effective method for reducing bear attacks and livestock losses. In January 2009, 14 bear-proof fences were constructed from wire mesh and steel posts around households which had previously experienced substantial losses to bear attacks in the Nagqu Prefecture of the Tibetan Autonomous Region. These households lost 162 animals to bears in the year before fence construction, whereas just three animals were lost in the year after fence construction. Fences were still standing 4.8 years after completion and any small damage has been repaired by households. For households that suffer substantial losses to bear attacks, bear-proof fences appear to be an effective and cost-saving intervention to reduce human-bear conflict

Enhancing Nanoparticle-Based Visible Detection by Controlling the Extent of Aggregation

Visible indication based on the aggregation of colloidal nanoparticles (NPs) is highly advantageous for rapid on-site detection of biological entities, which even untrained persons can perform without specialized instrumentation. However, since the extent of aggregation should exceed a certain minimum threshold to produce visible change, further applications of this conventional method have been hampered by insufficient sensitivity or certain limiting characteristics of the target. Here we report a signal amplification strategy to enhance visible detection by introducing switchable linkers (SLs), which are designed to lose their function to bridge NPs in the presence of target and control the extent of aggregation. By precisely designing the system, considering the quantitative relationship between the functionalized NPs and SLs, highly sensitive and quantitative visible detection is possible. We confirmed the ultrahigh sensitivity of this method by detecting the presence of 20 fM of streptavidin and fewer than 100 CFU/mL of Escherichia coli

A radiative cooling structural material.

Reducing human reliance on energy-inefficient cooling methods such as air conditioning would have a large impact on the global energy landscape. By a process of complete delignification and densification of wood, we developed a structural material with a mechanical strength of 404.3 megapascals, more than eight times that of natural wood. The cellulose nanofibers in our engineered material backscatter solar radiation and emit strongly in mid-infrared wavelengths, resulting in continuous subambient cooling during both day and night. We model the potential impact of our cooling wood and find energy savings between 20 and 60%, which is most pronounced in hot and dry climates

Evaluation of the hepatotoxicity of Psoralea corylifolia L. based on a zebrafish model

Objective:Psoralea corylifolia L. (FP) has received increasing attention due to its potential hepatotoxicity.Methods: In this study, zebrafish were treated with different concentrations of an aqueous extract of FP (AEFP; 40, 50, or 60 μg/mL), and the hepatotoxic effects of tonicity were determined by the mortality rate, liver morphology, fluorescence area and intensity of the liver, biochemical indices, and pathological tissue staining. The mRNA expression of target genes in the bile acid metabolic signaling pathway and lipid metabolic pathway was detected by qPCR, and the mechanism of toxicity was initially investigated. AEFP (50 μg/mL) was administered in combination with FXR or a peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor α (PPARα) agonist/inhibitor to further define the target of toxicity.Results: Experiments on toxic effects showed that, compared with no treatment, AEFP administration resulted in liver atrophy, a smaller fluorescence area in the liver, and a lower fluorescence intensity (p < 0.05); alanine transaminase (ALT), aspartate transaminase (AST), and γ-GT levels were significantly elevated in zebrafish (p < 0.01), and TBA, TBIL, total cholesterol (TC), TG, low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C), and high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C) levels were elevated to different degrees (p < 0.05); and increased lipid droplets in the liver appeared as fatty deposits. Molecular biological validation revealed that AEFP inhibited the expression of the FXR gene, causing an increase in the expression of the downstream genes SHP, CYP7A1, CYP8B1, BSEP, MRP2, NTCP, peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor γ (PPARγ), ME-1, SCD-1, lipoprotein lipase (LPL), CPT-1, and CPT-2 and a decrease in the expression of PPARα (p < 0.05).Conclusion: This study demonstrated that tonic acid extracts are hepatotoxic to zebrafish through the inhibition of FXR and PPARα expression, thereby causing bile acid and lipid metabolism disorders

Association between abdominal obesity indices and risk of cardiovascular events in Chinese populations with type 2 diabetes: a prospective cohort study

Background: Waist circumference (WC), visceral adiposity index (VAI), lipid accumulation product (LAP), and Chinese visceral adiposity index (CVAI) are considered surrogate indicators of abdominal fat deposition, but the longitudinal association of these indices with cardiovascular (CV) events in adults with type 2 diabetes (T2D) remains unclear. Our study aimed to examine the associations between abdominal obesity indices and incident CV events among people with T2D and to compare their predictive performance in risk assessment. Methods: The present study included 2328 individuals with T2D from the Xinjiang Multi-Ethnic Cohort. Multivariable Cox regression analyses were applied to assess the associations between abdominal obesity indices and CV events. Harrell's concordance statistic (C-statistic), net reclassification improvement (NRI) index, and integrated discrimination improvement (IDI) index were utilized to evaluate the predictive performance of each abdominal obesity index. Results: At a median follow-up period of 59 months, 289 participants experienced CV events. After multivariable adjustment, each 1-SD increase in WC, VAI, LAP, and CVAI was associated with a higher risk of CV events in people with T2D, with adjusted hazard ratios (HRs) being 1.57 [95% CI (confidence interval): 1.39–1.78], 1.11 (95% CI 1.06–1.16), 1.46 (95% CI 1.36–1.57), and 1.78 (95% CI 1.57–2.01), respectively. In subgroup analyses, these positive associations appeared to be stronger among participants with body mass index (BMI) < 25 kg/m2 compared to overweight/obese participants. As for the predictive performance, CVAI had the largest C-statistic (0.700, 95% CI 0.672–0.728) compared to VAI, LAP, WC, and BMI (C-statistic: 0.535 to 0.670, all P for comparison < 0.05). When the abdominal obesity index was added to the basic risk model, the CVAI index also showed the greatest incremental risk stratification (C-statistic: 0.751 vs. 0.701, P < 0.001; IDI: 4.3%, P < 0.001; NRI: 26.6%, P < 0.001). Conclusions: This study provided additional evidence that all abdominal obesity indices were associated with the risk of CV events and highlighted that CVAI might be a valuable abdominal obesity indicator for identifying the high risk of CV events in Chinese populations with T2D. These results suggest that proactive assessment of abdominal obesity could be helpful for the effective clinical management of the diabetic population

Metabolites changes of a low-temperature and low-salt fermented Chinese kohlrabi during fermentation based on non-targeted metabolomic analysis

A low-temperature and low-salt industrially fermented Chinese kohlrabi (LSCK) was developed in this study, with the salt usage decreased by approximately 70% compared to the traditional high-salt fermented Chinese kohlrabi (HSCK). The differences in physicochemical properties, metabolites and overall flavors during LSCK fermented for 0, 45 and 90 days (d) were analyzed by gas chromatography-time-of-flight mass spectrometry (GC-TOF-MS), electronic nose (E-nose) and other techniques. The results showed that the total acid content increased significantly from 3.68 to 8.59 g/kg. However, the protein content significantly decreased from 2.52/100 to 0.66 g/100 g. The number of lactic acid bacteria cells increased significantly from 3.69 to 4.46 log10CFU/g. Based on multivariate statistical analysis, 21, 14, and 15 differential metabolites were identified in the three treatment groups A1 (0 and 45 days), A2 (45 and 90 days), and A3 (0 and 90 days) respectively (VIP &gt; 1, p &lt; 0.05, |log2FC| ≥ 1.1). Carbohydrates, sugar alcohols, amino acids and their derivatives were the main differential metabolites in the LSCKs fermented for different periods. Aminoacyl−tRNA biosynthesis and glycine, serine and threonine metabolism pathways significantly correlated with the differential metabolites based on Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) analysis (p &lt; 0.05). Furthermore, the overall odors were significantly different among the LSCKs with different fermentation periods, as detected by E-nose. The present study describes the change trend of metabolites during LSCK fermentation and elucidates important metabolic pathways in LSCK, providing a theoretical basis for the target regulation of functional metabolites in kohlrabi and the optimization of LSCK processing