Understanding the Habitual Pattern of Concomitant Consumption of Herbs to Alleviate the Symptoms of Ulcerative Colitis by Comparative Proteome Analysis

Anchang decoction is an empirical prescription for the treatment of ulcerative colitis in China. In order to better understand its therapeutic function, large efforts have been made to identify its chemical constituents and to unravel the efficacy of its principal constituents. However, the molecular mechanism of its combinations is still unclear. Proteomics application has yielded some positive results in drug development and the identification of potential drug targets, suggesting the potential of this analytical approach to explore the action of molecular mechanisms of herbal formula by robustly addressing dynamic proteome changes. Label-free quantification and parallel reaction monitoring were used to identify differentially expressed proteins in the colon tissue of ulcerative colitis rats, fed with Anchang decoction and mesalazine, respectively. In this study, a total of 1,182 proteins were identified. From GO and KEGG analyses, the proteins of cytoskeleton and cytochrome P450 changed significantly with the occurrence of ulcerative colitis. In the meantime, antigen binding proteins and antioxidant-related proteins turned out to have drastic fluctuations with mesalazine and Anchang decoction. It has also been confirmed that KRT8, MYH11, FLNA, and LMNA are all related to the formation of ulcerative colitis based on parallel reaction monitoring analysis. The increase in FGG in the ulcerative colitis rat model is due to mesalazine, whereas that in KRT8 is due to Anchang decoction. The results from this study provide insights for the mechanism of action of Anchang decoction, which turns out to be an efficient technical pipeline for understanding worldwide medicinal herbs

Comparison of Fatty Acid Composition, Phytochemical Profiles and Antioxidant Activities in Four Flax (Linum usitatissimum L.) Varieties

Abstract The present study was intendant to evaluate variations among flaxseed varities in terms of fatty acid composition, phytochemical profiles, and antioxidant activities determined by oxygen radical absorbance capacity (ORAC), 2,2-Diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) and ferrous ion reducing antioxidant power (FRAP) assays. Significant variations in the fatty acid composition, phenolic acids and lignan were observed in flaxseed varieties from different countries. Among these flaxseed verities, the unsaturated fatty acids accounted over four fifths of total fatty acid contents. The highest ratio of linolenic acid of total fatty acid was observed in USPEA, whereas the lowest one was found in Yexiao. USPEA showed the most contents of total phenolics, as well as flaxseed lignans. In general, total phenolics appeared to be the main contributors in the antioxidant capacity of flaxseed, which presented significant positive correlation. Our study revealed that both cultivar and origin of seeds significantly affect fatty acid composition, phenolic acids, lignans and subsequent antioxidant activities in flaxseed. The results provide new aspects of breeding resources of flaxseed cultivars by presenting their quality specification and possible commercial value

Comparison of fatty acid composition, phytochemical profile and antioxidant activity in four flax (Linum usitatissimum L.) varieties

The present study evaluates variations among flaxseed varities in terms of fatty acid composition, phytochemical profile, and antioxidant activity determined by oxygen radical absorbance capacity (ORAC), 2,2-Diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) and ferrous ion reducing antioxidant power (FRAP) assays. Significant variations in fatty acid composition, phenolic acids and lignan were observed in flaxseed varieties from different countries. Among them, unsaturated fatty acids accounted over 4/5 of total fatty acid content. The highest ratio of linolenic acid of total fatty acid was observed in USPEA, whereas the lowest one was found in Yexiao. USPEA showed the highest content of total phenolics, as well as flaxseed lignan. In general, total phenolics appeared to be the main contributors of antioxidant capacity of flaxseed, which presented significant positive correlation. Our study revealed that both cultivar and origin of seed significantly affected fatty acid composition, phenolic acids, lignans and subsequent antioxidant activity of flaxseed. These results provided new aspects of breeding resources of flaxseed cultivars by presenting their quality specification and possible commercial value

Theoretical and Experimental Analysis of Thin-Walled Curved Rectangular Box Beam under In-Plane Bending

Thin-walled curved box beam structures especially rectangular members are widely used in mechanical and architectural structures and other engineering fields because of their high strength-to-weight ratios. In this paper, we present experimental and theoretical analysis methods for the static analysis of thin-walled curved rectangular-box beams under in-plane bending based on 11 feature deformation modes. As to the numerical investigations, we explored the convergence and accuracy analysis by normal finite element analysis, higher-order assumed strain plane element, deep collocation method element, and inverse finite element method, respectively. The out-of-plane and in-plane characteristic deformation vector modes derived by the theoretical formula are superimposed by transforming the axial, tangential, and the normal deformation values into scalar tensile and compression amounts. A one-dimensional deformation experimental test theory is first proposed, formulating the specific contributions of various deformation modes. In this way, the magnitude and trend of the influence of each low-order deformation mode on the distortion and warping in the actual deformation are determined, and the significance of distortion and warping in the actual curved beams subjected to the in-plane loads is verified. This study strengthens the deformation theory of rectangular box-type thin-walled curved beams under in-plane bending, thus providing a reference for analyzing the mechanical properties of curved-beam structures

Proteomic and Mutant Analysis of Hydrogenase Maturation Protein Gene <i>hypE</i> in Symbiotic Nitrogen Fixation of <i>Mesorhizobium huakuii</i>

Hydrogenases catalyze the simple yet important redox reaction between protons and electrons and H2, thus mediating symbiotic interactions. The contribution of hydrogenase to this symbiosis and anti-oxidative damage was investigated using the M. huakuii hypE (encoding hydrogenase maturation protein) mutant. The hypE mutant grew a little faster than its parental 7653R and displayed decreased antioxidative capacity under H2O2-induced oxidative damage. Real-time quantitative PCR showed that hypE gene expression is significantly up-regulated in all the detected stages of nodule development. Although the hypE mutant can form nodules, the symbiotic ability was severely impaired, which led to an abnormal nodulation phenotype coupled to a 47% reduction in nitrogen fixation capacity. This phenotype was linked to the formation of smaller abnormal nodules containing disintegrating and prematurely senescent bacteroids. Proteomics analysis allowed a total of ninety differentially expressed proteins (fold change > 1.5 or p supplying energy and electrons, in bacterial detoxification, and in the control of bacteroid differentiation and senescence

Effects of Different N, P, and K Rates on the Growth and Cannabinoid Content of Industrial Hemp

As a key metabolite with high medical values in industrial hemp, cannabidiol (CBD) has been paid increasing attention. However, how nutrient supply affects the CBD content and yield of hemp remains unclear. Therefore, an aeroponic experiment with nine treatments (A1~A9) was conducted to evaluate the effects of different concentrations of nitrogen (N, at 4.0, 6.0, and 8.0 mmol L−1), phosphorus (P, at 1.0, 1.5, and 2.0 mmol L−1), and potassium (K, at 3.0, 4.0, and 5.0 mmol L−1) on the growth, CBD content, and biomass of hemp. Results showed that at A7 (N8P1K5) (N, P, K: 8, 1, 5 mmol L−1) markedly enhanced the dry weight of shoot and inflorescence with an increment of 208.7% and 435.7% respectively; the equivalent number of total CBD content in inflorescence was increased by 41.8%, and the CBD yield was increased by 7.0 times compared with A3 (N4P2K5). Correlation analysis revealed that N was positively related to the CBD yield, while P or K had a negligible effect on CBD yield. In conclusion, nutrient supply would dramatically influence the growth and CBD yield of hemp. Under the experimental conditions, A7 (N8P1K5) is the most suitable choice to cultivate hemp and achieve a higher CBD yield

Bibliometric Analysis of Research History, Hotspots, and Emerging Trends on Flax with CiteSpace (2000-2022)

With the growing health and environmental consciousness, flax (Linum usitatissimum L.) has attracted more attention owing to its great potential in the food, health care, and material industry. For such an important crop, it is crucial to understand its development history, current status, and hotspots and finally find the future directions of flax research. This paper mainly analyzed the published articles (collected from the Web of Science) related to flax from 2000–2022 and the cited references by these articles using the software of CiteSpace. Results showed that the number of studies on flax kept increasing and increased rapidly from 2010 to 2022. Canada and France are the leading countries in flax research with more than 970 articles published during the period. By analyzing the high-frequency keywords, five important research areas were found: (1) flax fiber quality and its application in composites, (2) chemical composition and products of flaxseed, (3) tolerance of flax to stress and genetics, (4) cellulose and lignin, (5) fiber-reinforced composites and flax fabric. With the strongest citation bursts, bio-composite with flax straw has become the hottest research area for flax. In the future, efforts should still be made to the simplified and efficient production of flax owing to the higher labor cost, and more attention should be paid to healthier flaxseed food and flax-based environmentally friendly biomaterials. Finally, decreasing the cost of cultivation and pre-processing and developing end products with higher values would greatly promote the development of the whole flax industry

BTLA contributes to acute-on-chronic liver failure infection and mortality through CD4+ T-cell exhaustion

Abstract B- and T-lymphocyte attenuator (BTLA) levels are increased in patients with hepatitis B virus-related acute-on-chronic liver failure (HBV-ACLF). This condition is characterized by susceptibility to infection and T-cell immune exhaustion. However, whether BTLA can induce T-cell immune exhaustion and increase the risk of infection remains unclear. Here, we report that BTLA levels are significantly increased in the circulating and intrahepatic CD4+ T cells from patients with HBV-ACLF, and are positively correlated with disease severity, prognosis, and infection complications. BTLA levels were upregulated by the IL-6 and TNF signaling pathways. Antibody crosslinking of BTLA activated the PI3K-Akt pathway to inhibit the activation, proliferation, and cytokine production of CD4+ T cells while promoting their apoptosis. In contrast, BTLA knockdown promoted their activation and proliferation. BTLA-/- ACLF mice exhibited increased cytokine secretion, and reduced mortality and bacterial burden. The administration of a neutralizing anti-BTLA antibody reduced Klebsiella pneumoniae load and mortality in mice with ACLF. These data may help elucidate HBV-ACLF pathogenesis and aid in identifying novel drug targets