On Spectral Analysis and New Research Directions in Grey System Theory

The file attached to this record is the Publisher's version.Spectral analysis as a powerful mean to identify the characteristics of data series is introduced in this paper. The problems requiring further explorations in grey system theory are also identified. This includes discrimination of various factors of a data sequence in frequency domain, spectral analysis of various sequence operators, the synthesis axiom of degree of greyness for “multiplication” and “division” etc. Further, how to select and test a grey prediction model? How to select and test an inverse grey incidence analysis model? The test rules and criteria of grey clustering evaluation models, etc

The complete chloroplast genome of horticultural plant Lonicera maximowiczii (Caprifoliaceae)

Lonicera maximowiczii (Caprifoliaceae) is a deciduous shrub with great value for its decorative leaves and colorful flowers, which has massively cultivated in parks and gardens for ornamental purposes. Here, the complete chloroplast genome of the L. maximowiczii been constructed from the Illumina sequencing data. The circular cp genome is 155,584 bp in size and comprises a pair of inverted repeat (IR) regions of 23,791 bp each, a large single-copy (LSC) region of 88,056 bp, and a small single-copy (SSC) region of 19,946 bp. The total GC content is 38.4%, whereas the corresponding values of the LSC, SSC, and IR region are 36.9%, 33.3%, and 43.4%, respectively. The chloroplast genome contains 129 genes, including 81 protein-coding genes, eight ribosomal RNA genes, and 39 transfer RNA genes. The Maximum-Likelihood Phylogenetic analysis showed a strong sister relationship with Lonicera macranthoides. Our findings can be subsequently used for population, phylogenetic, and chloroplast genetic engineering studies in Lonicera

Several problems need to be studied in grey system theory

The file attached to this record is the author's final peer reviewed version. The Publisher's final version can be found by following the DOI linkThe problems which remain for further studying in grey system theory are identified in this paper. Including the synthesis axiom of degree of greyness for “multiplication” and “division”, how to construct and select a suitable buffer operator? how to select and test a grey prediction model? how to select and test a negative grey incidence analysis models? the test rules and criteria of grey clustering evaluation models, and on consensus and unified definition of grey combined models, etc.

Interpretation the Hepatotoxicity Based on Pharmacokinetics Investigated Through Oral Administrated Different Extraction Parts of Polygonum multiflorum on Rats

The liver injury induced by Polygonum multiflorum (PM) used for clinical treatment has recently received widespread attention. This study aimed to determine the hepatotoxicity of PM through pharmacokinetics studies. The extract of PM was separated to isolate the anthraquinone fraction, the tannin and polysaccharide fraction, the hydroxystilbene fraction, and the combined anthraquinone fraction. A rapid LC-MS/MS method was developed and validated to simultaneously analyze 2,3,5,4′-tetrahydroxystilbene-2-O-β-glucoside (TSG), emodin-8-O-β-D-glucopyranoside (EDG), and emodin in rat plasma, and was applied to the pharmacokinetics (PK) studies. The hepatotoxicity of different extracted parts of PM was evaluated through the levels of alanine aminotransferase (ALT), aspartate aminotransferase (AST), alkaline phosphatase (ALP), total bilirubin (TBil), direct bilirubin (DBil), and indirect bilirubin (IBil) in rat serum. The results showed that liver injury occurred in all the treated groups and that the hepatotoxicity performance of the total extract was different from other groups. The pharmacokinetic studies showed that the Cmax, Tmax, AUC, t1/2, and MRT of the major compounds of different extracted parts were significantly different in rat plasma at same dosage. Emodin-O-hex-sulfate, tetrahydroxystilbene-O-(galloyl)-hex, emodin (original and generated through EDG deglycosylation), and other free anthraquinones might be responsible for the hepatotoxicity of PM in vivo. PM extracts produced inhibitory effects on drug metabolic enzymes, include CYP3A4, CYP2C19, CYP2E1, UGT1A1, etc. And these effects may be related to its hepatotoxicity and pharmacokinetic behavior different. This information on hepatotoxicity and the pharmacokinetic comparison may be useful to understand the toxicological effects of PM

Study on mechanism and filter efficacy of AGO/IAGO in the frequency domain

The file attached to this record is the author's final peer reviewed version. The Publisher's final version can be found by following the DOI link.Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to analyze the mechanism and filter efficacy of accumulation generation operator (AGO)/inverse accumulation generation operator (IAGO) in the frequency domain. Design/methodology/approach – The AGO/IAGO in time domain will be transferred to the frequency domain by the Fourier transform. Based on the consistency of the mathematical expressions of the AGO/ IAGO in the gray system and the digital filter in digital signal processing, the equivalent filter model of the AGO/IAGO is established. The unique methods in digital signal processing systems “spectrum analysis” of AGO/IAGO are carried out in the frequency domain. Findings – Through the theoretical study and practical example, benefit of spectrum analysis is explained, and the mechanism and filter efficacy of AGO/IAGO are quantitatively analyzed. The study indicated that the AGO is particularly suitable to act on the system’s behavior time series in which the long period parts is the main factor. The acted sequence has good effect of noise immunity. Practical implications – The AGO/IAGO has a wonderful effect on the processing of some statistical data, e.g. most of the statistical data related to economic growth, crop production, climate and atmospheric changes are mainly affected by long period factors (i.e. low-frequency data), and most of the disturbances are shortperiod factors (high-frequency data). After processing by the 1-AGO, its high frequency content is suppressed, and its low frequency content is amplified. In terms of information theory, this two-way effect improves the signal-to-noise ratio greatly and reduces the proportion of noise/interference in the new sequence. Based on 1- AGO acting, the information mining and extrapolation prediction will have a good effect. Originality/value – The authors find that 1-AGO has a wonderful effect on the processing of data sequence. When the 1-AGO acts on a data sequence X, its low-pass filtering effect will benefit the information fluctuations removing and high-frequency noise/interference reduction, so the data shows a clear exponential change trends. However, it is not suitable for excessive use because its equivalent filter has poles at the non-periodic content. But, because of pol effect at zero frequency, the 1-AGO will greatly amplify the low-frequency information parts and suppress the high-frequency parts in the information at the same time

A New Perspective on Liver Injury by Traditional Chinese Herbs Such As Polygonum multiflorum: The Geographical Area of Harvest As an Important Contributory Factor

Herbal medicine has been widely used in the treatment of various diseases; however, the adverse reactions cannot be ignored. Most previous studies have ignored the relationship between the factors of geographical areas/batches and toxicity. This study used Polygonum multiflorum (PM) as an example to analyze the relationship between the geographical areas/batches and toxicity and speculated on the hepatotoxicity-inducing components in PM based on high content screening, UHPLC-Q-TOF/MS and Progenesis QI software analysis. The results of the study show that the toxicity of PM was obviously different among the different geographical areas, and the most toxic PM was from the Sichuan province. To obtain more accurate results and to reduce the false-positive rate, two methods were used to evaluate the speculative results. It was noteworthy that emodin was not the main hepatocyte toxicity constituent of PM. The analysis methods suggested that PM toxicity may be associated with tetrahydroxystilbene-O-(galloyl)-hex and emodin-O-hex-sulfate. The toxicity of these two components requires further study

Inhibition of Mitochondrial Complex Function—The Hepatotoxicity Mechanism of Emodin Based on Quantitative Proteomic Analyses

Emodin is the main component of traditional Chinese medicines including rhubarb, Polygonum multiflorum, and Polygonum cuspidatum. It has confirmed hepatotoxicity and may be the main causative agent of liver damage associated with the above-mentioned traditional Chinese medicines. However, current research does not explain the mechanism of emodin in hepatotoxicity. In this study, L02 cells were used as a model to study the mechanism of emodin-induced hepatocyte apoptosis using quantitative proteomics, and the results were verified by Western blot. A total of 662 differentially expressed proteins were discovered and analyzed using Gene Ontology (GO) and pathway enrichment analysis. The results show that the oxidative phosphorylation pathway is highly represented. Abnormalities in this pathway result in impaired mitochondrial function and represent mitochondrial damage. This result is consistent with mitochondria membrane potential measurements. Analysis of differentially expressed proteins revealed that emodin mainly affects oxidative phosphorylation pathways by inhibiting the function of the mitochondrial respiratory chain complexes; the mitochondrial respiratory chain complex activity assay result also confirmed that emodin could inhibit the activity of all mitochondrial complexes. This results in an increase in caspase-3, a decrease in mitochondrial membrane potential (MMP,) an increase in reactive oxygen species (ROS), and disorders in ATP synthesis, etc., eventually leading to mitochondrial damage and hepatocyte apoptosis in vitro