Hepatotoxicity of <i>Eupatorium adenophorum</i> extracts and the identification of major hepatotoxic components

<p><i>Eupatorium adenophorum</i> can induce liver toxicity in animals. For the safe utilisation of the weed, the hepatotoxic components need to be discovered. In this study, <i>in vitro</i> hepatotoxicity of different extracts from <i>E. adenophorum</i> were determined on human hepatocyte cell line L02 and hepatocellular carcinoma cell line HepG2. The results showed that water extracts of <i>E. adenophorum</i> exhibited no hepatotoxicity <i>in vitro</i> while high concentrations of the organic solvent extracts had obvious hepatotoxicity. Sesquiterpenes may contribute to the toxicity based on the comparison of composition analysis. Three cadinene sesquiterpenes were purified and identified as 9-oxo-10,11-dehydroageraphorone, 10<i>Hα</i>-9-oxo-ageraphorone and 10<i>Hβ</i>-9-oxo-ageraphorone. <i>In vitro</i> hepatotoxic effects of these components were investigated, the IC₅₀ of the three compounds were 122.53, 87.52, and 108.80 μM in L02 cells and 151.92, 104.48, and 138.08 μM in HepG2 cells by Cell Counting Kit-8 (CCK-8) assay. The three components were confirmed to be, at least partial, hepatotoxic components.</p

DataSheet1_The effect of a low dose hydrogen-oxygen mixture inhalation in midlife/older adults with hypertension: A randomized, placebo-controlled trial.docx

Objective: To explore the effect of a low-dose hydrogen–oxygen (H2-O2) mixture inhalation in midlife/older adults with hypertension.Methods: This randomized, placebo-controlled trial included 60 participants with hypertension aged 50–70 years who were randomly divided into Air group (inhaled placebo air) or H2-O2 group [inhaled H2-O2 mixture (66% H2/33% O2)]. Participants in both groups were treated 4 h per day for 2 weeks. Four-limb blood pressure and 24-h ambulatory blood pressure were monitored before and after the intervention, and levels of plasma hormones related to hypertension were determined.Results: A total of 56 patients completed the study (27 in the Air group and 29 in the H2-O2 group). The right and left arm systolic blood pressure (SBP) were significantly decreased in H2-O2 group compared with the baseline levels (151.9 ± 12.7 mmHg to 147.1 ± 12.0 mmHg, and 150.7 ± 13.3 mmHg to 145.7 ± 13.0 mmHg, respectively; all p 2-O2 intervention significantly decreased diastolic nighttime ambulatory blood pressure by 2.7 ± 6.5 mmHg (p 0.05). When stratified by age (aged 50–59 years versus aged 60–70 years), participants in the older H2-O2 group showed a larger reduction in right arm SBP compared with that in the younger group (p 2-O2 group compared with baseline (p Conclusion: Inhalation of a low-dose H2-O2 mixture exerts a favorable effect on blood pressure, and reduces the plasma levels of hormones associated with hypertension on renin-angiotensin-aldosterone system and stress in midlife/older adults with hypertension.</p

Magnetic Nitrogen-Doped Carbon Composites Decorated with Carbon Nanotubes for Adsorption of Malachite Green

In this work, magnetic nitrogen-doped carbon composites decorated with carbon nanotubes (CNT/Co@N–C) were successfully prepared by carbonizing ZIF-67(Co) and melamine with a ZIF-67(Co)/melamine material synthesized in situ at 525 °C under an inert atmosphere. To improve the malachite green removal performance of the adsorbent, calcination temperatures and mass ratios of the ZIF-67(Co)/melamine-derived CNT/Co@N–C materials were optimized. The malachite green removal performance was evaluated based on various experimental parameters including adsorbent dosage, pH, contact time, and salinity. The results showed that pH and salinity had a small effect on the adsorption process of CNT/Co@N–C materials, thus providing a possibility for practical application in water purification. The adsorption of malachite green onto the CNT/Co@N–C material was consistent with the Langmuir isothermal model and the pseudo-second-order model, and the maximum malachite green adsorption of the material was 3881.30 mg/g. The results also suggested that the adsorption was a monolayer chemisorption process that occurred through electrostatic and π–π stacking interactions. Finally, the recyclability, magnetic properties, high adsorption performance, and high stability of CNT/Co@N–C materials suggest that the materials are a promising adsorbent that can be employed in the removal of malachite green. The present work provides an idea for the synthesis of magnetic carbon nanotubes modified with nitrogen-doped carbon materials derived from metal–organic frameworks (MOFs)