Gastrodia elata powder capsule enhances anti-epileptic effect of carbamazepine by decreasing P-gp expression

Purpose: To investigate the influence of Gastrodia elata powder capsule (GC) or gastrodin (GTD) on the anti-epileptic effect of carbamazepine (CBZ) on penicillin (PG)-induced epilepsy in rats. Methods: A total 116 rats were used in this study. Rats in the control group (n = 8) were injected with normal saline (NS) in place PG. Epilepsy was induced in the remaining 108 rats on the first day via PG injection. The rats were then divided randomly into six groups (18 rats per group): PG group, CBZ group, CBZ + GC group, CBZ + GTD group, GC group, and GTD group, which were given (p.o.) NS, CBZ (100 mg/kg), CBZ (100 mg/kg.) + GC (350 mg/kg), CBZ (100 mg/kg) + GTD (100 mg/kg), GC (350 mg/kg), and GTD (100 mg/kg), respectively, once a day for 15 days. The behavioral characteristics of the rats were observed and used to assess the anti-epileptic effect of the test drugs. Real-time quantitative reverse transcription-PCR and Western blot assays were employed for the determination of the effect of CBZ, GC and GTD on the expression levels of P-gp. Results: CBZ significantly reduced the symptoms of epilepsy, while GC and GTD enhanced the antiepileptic effect of CBZ, and reversed the CBZ-induced increases in the protein expressions of mrd1a and P-gp (p < 0.05). Conclusion: GC reverses CBZ drug resistance, probably through downregulation of P-gp expression. This finding indicates that GC is a potential anti-epilepsy drug, but it merits further studies

Defining Key Genes Regulating Morphogenesis of Apocrine Sweat Gland in Sheepskin

The apocrine sweat gland is a unique skin appendage in humans compared to mouse and chicken models. The absence of apocrine sweat glands in chicken and murine skin largely restrains further understanding of the complexity of human skin biology and skin diseases, like hircismus. Sheep may serve as an additional system for skin appendage investigation owing to the distributions and histological similarities between the apocrine sweat glands of sheep trunk skin and human armpit skin. To understand the molecular mechanisms underlying morphogenesis of apocrine sweat glands in sheepskin, transcriptome analyses were conducted to reveal 1631 differentially expressed genes that were mainly enriched in three functional groups (cellular component, molecular function and biological process), particularly in gland, epithelial, hair follicle and skin development. There were 7 Gene Ontology (GO) terms enriched in epithelial cell migration and morphogenesis of branching epithelium that were potentially correlated with the wool follicle peg elongation. An additional 5 GO terms were enriched in gland morphogenesis (20 genes), gland development (42 genes), salivary gland morphogenesis and development (8 genes), branching involved in salivary gland morphogenesis (6 genes) and mammary gland epithelial cell differentiation (4 genes). The enriched gland-related genes and two Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes pathway genes (WNT and TGF-β) were potentially involved in the induction of apocrine sweat glands. Genes named BMPR1A, BMP7, SMAD4, TGFB3, WIF1, and WNT10B were selected to validate transcript expression by qRT-PCR. Immunohistochemistry was performed to localize markers for hair follicle (SOX2), skin fibroblast (PDGFRB), stem cells (SOX9) and BMP signaling (SMAD5) in sheepskin. SOX2 and PDGFRB were absent in apocrine sweat glands. SOX9 and SMAD5 were both observed in precursor cells of apocrine sweat glands and later in gland ducts. These results combined with the upregulation of BMP signaling genes indicate that apocrine sweat glands were originated from outer root sheath of primary wool follicle and positively regulated by BMP signaling. This report established the primary network regulating early development of apocrine sweat glands in sheepskin and will facilitate the further understanding of histology and pathology of apocrine sweat glands in human and companion animal skin

Enhanced Enzymatic Hydrolysis of Poplar after Combined Dilute NaOH and Fenton Pretreatment

Five types of pretreatment processes were investigated to confirm the enhancement of the enzymatic hydrolysis of poplar. These processes included a hot water pretreatment, a calcium oxide pretreatment, NaOH extraction at low temperature, a Fenton reaction, and a combined dilute NaOH and Fenton pretreatment. The combined dilute NaOH and Fenton pretreatment was found to be the most effective pretreatment process. After enzymatic hydrolysis for 72 h, 74% of the cellulose recovery yield was obtained when the poplar substrates were pretreated with 2% NaOH at 75 °C for 3 h, followed by 20 mmol/g of H2O2 (30%) and 0.2 mmol/g of FeSO4·7H2O for a Fenton reaction period of 12 h. The cellulose recovery yield was approximately five-fold greater than that of the untreated sample directly processed by enzymatic hydrolysis. Furthermore, microscopic observations of changes in the surface structure of the pretreated residue were correlated with the enhancement of the enzymatic hydrolysis of cellulose. In conclusion, the combined dilute NaOH and Fenton pretreatment shows high potential for future application

Heat Shock Treatment Promoted Callus Formation on Postharvest Sweet Potato by Adjusting Active Oxygen and Phenylpropanoid Metabolism

This study aimed to investigate that rapid high-temperature treatment (RHT) at an appropriate temperature could accelerate callus formation by effectively promoting the necessary metabolic pathways in sweet potato callus. In this study, the callus of sweet potato was treated with heat shock at 50, 65, and 80 °C for 15 min. The callus formation was observed within 1, 3, and 5 days, and the accumulation of intermediates in the metabolism of phenylpropane and reactive oxygen species and changes in enzyme activities were determined. The results showed that appropriate RHT treatment at 65 °C stimulated the metabolism of reactive oxygen species at the injury site of sweet potato on the first day, and maintained a high level of reactive oxygen species production and scavenging within 5 days. The higher level of reactive oxygen species stimulated the phenylalanine ammonia-lyase (PAL), 4-coumarate-CoA ligase and cinnamate-4-hydroxylase activities of the phenylpropane metabolic pathway, and promoted the rapid synthesis of chlorogenic acid, p-coumaric acid, rutin, and caffeic acid at the injury site, which stacked to form callus. By Pearson’s correlation analysis, catalase (CAT), PAL, and chlorogenic acid content were found to be strongly positively correlated with changes in all metabolites and enzymatic activities. Our results indicated that appropriate high-temperature rapid treatment could promote sweet potato callus by inducing reactive oxygen species and phenylpropane metabolism; moreover, CAT, PAL, and chlorogenic acid were key factors in promoting two metabolic pathways in sweet potato callus

An ensemble forecast system for tracking dynamics of dengue outbreaks and its validation in China.

As a common vector-borne disease, dengue fever remains challenging to predict due to large variations in epidemic size across seasons driven by a number of factors including population susceptibility, mosquito density, meteorological conditions, geographical factors, and human mobility. An ensemble forecast system for dengue fever is first proposed that addresses the difficulty of predicting outbreaks with drastically different scales. The ensemble forecast system based on a susceptible-infected-recovered (SIR) type of compartmental model coupled with a data assimilation method called the ensemble adjusted Kalman filter (EAKF) is constructed to generate real-time forecasts of dengue fever spread dynamics. The model was informed by meteorological and mosquito density information to depict the transmission of dengue virus among human and mosquito populations, and generate predictions. To account for the dramatic variations of outbreak size in different seasons, the effective population size parameter that is sequentially updated to adjust the predicted outbreak scale is introduced into the model. Before optimizing the transmission model, we update the effective population size using the most recent observations and historical records so that the predicted outbreak size is dynamically adjusted. In the retrospective forecast of dengue outbreaks in Guangzhou, China during the 2011-2017 seasons, the proposed forecast model generates accurate projections of peak timing, peak intensity, and total incidence, outperforming a generalized additive model approach. The ensemble forecast system can be operated in real-time and inform control planning to reduce the burden of dengue fever

Research Progress on Mango Post-Harvest Ripening Physiology and the Regulatory Technologies

Mango (Mangifera indica L.) is an important tropical fruit with a delicate taste, pleasant aroma, and high nutritional value. In recent years, with the promotion of the rural revitalization strategy and the development of the poverty alleviation industry, China has gradually become an important mango producer. However, the short shelf life of mango fruit, the difficulty in regulating the postharvest quality, and the lack of preservation technology are the main problems that need to be solved in China‘s mango industry. In this paper, the physiological changes and mechanisms of mango during postharvest ripening were summarized, including sugar and acid changes, pigment synthesis and accumulation, and aroma formation and accumulation. The physical, chemical, and biological technologies (such as endogenous phytohormones, temperature, light, chemical preservatives, and edible coatings) commonly used in the regulation of mango postharvest ripening and their action principles were emphatically expounded. The shortcomings of the existing mango postharvest ripening regulation technology and physiological mechanism research were analyzed in order to provide a reference for the industrial application and development of mango postharvest

Intraspecific Variation and Phylogenetic Relationships Are Revealed by ITS1 Secondary Structure Analysis and Single-Nucleotide Polymorphism in <i>Ganoderma lucidum</i> - Fig 3

<p><b>DNA Weblogo of the (A) ITS1 and (B) ITS2 regions in strains of <i>Ganoderma lucidum</i>.</b> Regions represent potential nucleotide variance. Major variance regions are enclosed in boxes.</p