Preparation and Physicochemical Properties of Microcapsules Loaded with Selenium-Enriched Peptides and VE

A microcapsule system for the co-encapsulation of selenium-enriched peptides, being hydrophilic, and vitamin E (VE), being lipophilic, was developed using a combination of emulsification and freeze-drying. The effects of wall material concentration, selenium-enriched peptide content, and VE content on the encapsulation efficiency was investigated by single-factor experiments. Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) showed that the selenium-enriched peptides and VE were effectively encapsulated in the microcapsules, and the microcapsules possessed good water dispersibility and maintained its double emulsion structure after reconstitution. The results of thermal stability analysis and 2,2’-azinobis-(3-ethylbenzthiazoline-6-sulfonic acid) (ABTS) cation radical scavenging assay confirmed that compared with selenium-enriched peptides, the microcapsules had higher thermal stability and antioxidant activity. Furthermore, electronic nose analysis showed that the microcapsule system possessed a good masking effect on the odor of selenium-enriched peptides. In vitro simulated digestion experiments showed that microencapsulation enhanced the stability of selenium-enriched peptides in simulated gastric juice and lowered the retention rate in simulated intestinal fluid; selenium-enriched peptides were effectively released from the microcapsules. This study will provide a theoretical basis for the development of selenium-enriched functional foods and nutritional supplements

Kinetic Features of Alpha Particles in a Pestchek-like Magnetic Reconnection Event in the Solar Wind Observed by Solar Orbiter

The acceleration and heating of solar wind particles by magnetic reconnection are important mechanisms in space physics. Although alpha particles (4He2+) are the second most abundant population of solar wind ions, their kinetic behavior in solar wind magnetic reconnection is not well understood. Using the high-energy (1500–3000 eV) range of the Solar Wind Analyser/Proton–Alpha Sensor instrument on board Solar Orbiter, we study the kinetic features of alpha particles in an exhaust region of a Pestchek-like solar-wind reconnection event with a weak guide field. A pair of back-to-back compound discontinuities is observed in the exhaust region. We find that the plasma in the magnetic exhaust region is heated and bounded by slow shocks (SSs), while the accelerated reconnection jet is bounded by rotational discontinuities (RDs). The SSs are outside the RDs, which is not expected from the magnetohydrodynamical prediction. We suggest this different location of the discontinuities is due to the enhanced parallel temperature Tp∥ > Tp⊥, which reduces the local Alfvén speed in the exhaust region, allowing the SSs to propagate faster than the RDs. Inside the exhaust region, the guide field is dominant. We find a two-population distribution of the alpha particles. These two populations are field aligned downstream the SSs and shift to have a perpendicular offset in the reconnection jet, suggesting that the change of the magnetic field at the RDs has similar timescales with the proton gyroperiod, but faster than those of the alpha particles, such that the alpha particles behave like pickup ions

Tumor-Microenvironment-Activatable Nanoreactor Based on a Polyprodrug for Multimodal-Imaging-Medicated Enhanced Cancer Chemo/Phototherapy.

Anticancer nanomedicine-based multimodal imaging and synergistic therapy hold great promise in cancer diagnosis and therapy owing to their abilities to improve therapeutic efficiency and reduce unnecessary side effects, producing promising clinical prospects. Herein, we integrated chemotherapeutic drug camptothecin (CPT) and near-infrared-absorbing new indocyanine green (IR820) into a single system by charge interaction and obtained a tumor-microenvironment-activatable PCPTSS/IR820 nanoreactor to perform thermal/fluorescence/photoacoustic-imaging-guided chemotherapy and photothermal therapy simultaneously. Specifically, the generated PCPTSS/IR820 showed an excellent therapeutic agent loading content and size stability, and the trials in vitro and in vivo suggested that the smart PCPTSS/IR820 could deeply permeate into tumor tissues due to its suitable micellar size. Upon near-infrared laser irradiation, the nanoreactor further produced a terrific synergism of chemo-photo treatment for cancer therapy. Therefore, the PCPTSS/IR820 polyprodrug-based nanoreactor holds outstanding promise for multimodal imaging and combined dual therapy

The effects of psychiatric disorders on the risk of chronic heart failure: a univariable and multivariable Mendelian randomization study

BackgroundSubstantial evidence suggests an association between psychiatric disorders and chronic heart failure. However, further investigation is needed to confirm the causal relationship between these psychiatric disorders and chronic heart failure. To address this, we evaluated the potential effects of five psychiatric disorders on chronic heart failure using two-sample Mendelian Randomization (MR).MethodsWe selected single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) associated with chronic heart failure and five psychiatric disorders (Attention-Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD), Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD), Major Depression, Bipolar Disorder and Schizophrenia (SCZ)). Univariable (UVMR) and multivariable two-sample Mendelian Randomization (MVMR) were employed to assess causality between these conditions. Ever smoked and alcohol consumption were controlled for mediating effects in the multivariable MR. The inverse variance weighting (IVW) and Wald ratio estimator methods served as the primary analytical methods for estimating potential causal effects. MR-Egger and weighted median analyses were also conducted to validate the results. Sensitivity analyses included the funnel plot, leave-one-out, and MR-Egger intercept tests. Additionally, potential mediators were investigated through risk factor analyses.ResultsGenetically predicted heart failure was significantly associated with ADHD (odds ratio (OR), 1.12; 95% CI, 1.04–1.20; p = 0.001), ASD (OR, 1.29; 95% CI, 1.07–1.56; p = 0.008), bipolar disorder (OR, 0.89; 95% CI, 0.83–0.96; p = 0.001), major depression (OR, 1.15; 95% CI, 1.03–1.29; p = 0.015), SCZ (OR, 1.04; 95% CI, 1.00–1.07; p = 0.024). Several risk factors for heart failure are implicated in the above cause-and-effect relationship, including ever smoked and alcohol consumption.ConclusionOur study demonstrated ADHD, ASD, SCZ and major depression may have a causal relationship with an increased risk of heart failure. In contrast, bipolar disorder was associated with a reduced risk of heart failure, which could potentially be mediated by ever smoked and alcohol consumption. Therefore, prevention strategies for heart failure should also incorporate mental health considerations, and vice versa

Long-term glycemic variability predicts compromised development of heart failure with improved ejection fraction: a cohort study

BackgroundA substantial portion of heart failure (HF) patients adherent to guideline-directed medical therapies have experienced improved ejection fraction (EF), termed HFimpEF. Glycemic variability (GV) has emerged as a critical cardiometabolic factor. However, the relation between long-term GV and the incidence of HFimpEF is still unclear.MethodsA total of 591 hospitalized HF patients with reduced EF (HFrEF, EF≤ 40%) admitted from January 2013 to December 2020 were consecutively enrolled. Repeat echocardiograms were performed at baseline and after around 12 months. The incidence of HFimpEF, defined as (1) an absolute EF improvement ≥10% and (2) a second EF > 40% and its association with long-term fasting plasma glucose (FPG) variability were analyzed.ResultsDuring a mean follow-up of 12.2 ± 0.6 months, 218 (42.0%) patients developed HFimpEF. Multivariate analysis showed FPG variability was independently associated with the incidence of HFimpEF after adjustment for baseline HbA1c, mean FPG during follow-up and other traditional risk factors (odds ratio [OR] for highest vs. lowest quartile of CV of FPG: 0.487 [95% CI 0.257~0.910]). Evaluation of GV by alternative measures yielded similar results. Subgroup analysis revealed that long-term GV was associated with HFimpEF irrespective of glycemic levels and diabetic conditions.ConclusionsThis study reveals that greater FPG variability is associated with compromised development of HFimpEF. A more stable control of glycemic levels might provide favorable effects on myocardial functional recovery in HF patients even without diabetes

Fractional Birkhoffian Mechanics Based on Quasi-Fractional Dynamics Models and Its Noether Symmetry

This paper focuses on the exploration of fractional Birkhoffian mechanics and its fractional Noether theorems under quasi-fractional dynamics models. The quasi-fractional dynamics models under study are nonconservative dynamics models proposed by El-Nabulsi, including three cases: extended by Riemann–Liouville fractional integral (abbreviated as ERLFI), extended by exponential fractional integral (abbreviated as EEFI), and extended by periodic fractional integral (abbreviated as EPFI). First, the fractional Pfaff–Birkhoff principles based on quasi-fractional dynamics models are proposed, in which the Pfaff action contains the fractional-order derivative terms, and the corresponding fractional Birkhoff’s equations are obtained. Second, the Noether symmetries and conservation laws of the systems are studied. Finally, three concrete examples are given to demonstrate the validity of the results

Identification and Validation of Quantitative Trait Loci for Grain Size in Bread Wheat (<i>Triticum aestivum</i> L.)

Grain width (GW) and grain length (GL) are crucial components affecting grain weight. Dissection of their genetic control is essential for improving yield potential in wheat breeding. Yangmai 12 (YM12) and Yanzhan 1 (YZ1) are two elite cultivars released in the Middle and Lower Yangtze Valleys Wheat Zone (MLYVWZ) and the Yellow-Huai River Valleys Wheat Zone (YRVWZ), respectively. One biparental population derived from YM12/YZ1 cross was employed to perform QTL mapping based on the data from four environments over two years to detect quantitative trait loci (QTL) for GW and GL. A total of eight QTL were identified on chromosomes 1B, 2D, 3B, 4B, 5A, and 6B. Notably, QGW.yz.2D was co-located with QGL.yz.2D, and QGW.yz.4B was co-located with QGL.yz.4B, respectively. QGW.yz.2D and QGL.yz.2D, with the increasing GW/GL allele from YZ1, explained 12.36–18.27% and 13.69–26.53% of the phenotypic variations for GW and GL, respectively. QGW.yz.4B and QGL.yz.4B, with the increasing GW/GL allele from YM12, explained 10.34–11.95% and 10.35–16.04% of the phenotypic variation for GW and GL, respectively. QGL.yz.5A, with the increasing GL allele from YM12, explained 10.04–12.48% of the phenotypic variation for GL. Moreover, the positive alleles of these three QTL regions could significantly increase thousand-grain weight, and QGW.yz.4B/QGL.yz.4B and QGL.yz.5A did not show significant negative effects on grain number per spike. QGL.yz.2D, QGW.yz.4B/QGL.yz.4B, and QGL.yz.5A have not been reported. These three QTL regions were then further validated using Kompetitive Allele-Specific PCR (KASP) markers in 159 wheat cultivars/lines from MLYVWZ and YRVWZ. Combining the positive alleles of the major QTL significantly increased GW and GL. Eleven candidate genes associated with encoding ethylene-responsive transcription factor, oleosin, osmotin protein, and thaumatin protein were identified. Three major QTL and KASP markers reported here will be helpful in developing new wheat cultivars with high and stable yields

Comparative transcriptomic analysis of reproductive characteristics of reciprocal hybrid lineages derived from hybridization between Megalobrama amblycephala and Culter alburnus

Abstract Background Distant hybridization is an important breeding technique for creating new strains with superior traits by integrating two different genomes. Successful hybridization of Megalobrama amblycephala (Blunt snout bream, BSB, 2n = 48) and Culter alburnus (Topmouth culter, TC, 2n = 48) was achieved to establish hybrid lineages (BT and TB), which provide valuable materials for exploring the mechanisms of distant hybridization fertility. In this study, the gonadal tissue transcriptomes of BSB, TC, BT-F1, and TB-F1 were sequenced using Illumina high-throughput sequencing technology to analyze the reproductive characteristics of BT and TB. Results Differential gene expression analysis showed that the differentially expressed genes in BT vs BSB and BT vs TC were mainly enriched in signaling pathways not directly associated with meiosis. While, the differentially expressed genes of TB vs BSB and TB vs TC were mainly enriched in pathways related to meiosis, and most of them were down-regulated, indicating that meiosis is suppressed in TB. Under-dominance (UD) genes were enriched in pathways related to meiosis and DNA repair in TB. Over-dominance (OD) genes were enriched in MAPK signaling pathway, expression level dominance-BSB (ELD-B) genes were enriched in pathways related to steroid hormone synthesis and expression level dominance-TC (ELD-T) genes were not significantly enriched in any pathway in both BT and TB. Conclusions These results suggest that meiotic progression may not be affected in BT, whereas it is clearly inhibited in TB. Offspring of M. amblycephala maternal parent may have better genomic compatibility and fertility. Our study provides important information on the molecular mechanisms of breaking reproductive isolation in distantly hybridized fertile lineages