Arylsulfatase B Mediates the Sulfonation-Transport Interplay in Human Embryonic Kidney 293 Cells Overexpressing Sulfotransferase 1A3

ABSTRACT Elucidating the intricate relationships between metabolic and transport pathways contributes to improved predictions of in vivo drug disposition and drug-drug interactions. Here we reported that inhibited excretion of conjugative metabolites [i.e., hesperetin 39-O-sulfate (H39S) and hesperetin 7-O-sulfate (H7S)] by MK-571 led to reduced metabolism of hesperetin (a maximal 78% reduction) in human embryonic kidney 293 cells overexpressing sulfotransferase 1A3 (named SULT293 cells). The strong dependence of cellular sulfonation on the efflux transport of generated sulfated metabolites revealed an interplay of sulfonation metabolism with efflux transport (or sulfonation-transport interplay). Polymerase chain reaction (PCR) and Western blot analyses demonstrated that SULT293 cells expressed multiple sulfatases such as arylsulfatase A (ARSA), ARSB, and ARSC. Of these three desulfonation enzymes, only ARSB showed significant activities toward hesperetin sulfates. The intrinsic clearance values for the hydrolysis of H39S and H7S were estimated at 0.6 and 0.5 ml/h/mg, respectively. Furthermore, knockdown of ARSB attenuated the regulatory effect of efflux transporter on cellular sulfonation, whereas overexpression of ABSB enhanced the transporter effect. Taken together, the results indicated that ARSB mediated the sulfonation-transport interplay in SULT293 cells

Impacts of Urbanization on Extreme Regional Precipitation Events

Urbanization significantly impacts regional precipitation. In this study, using the city of Xi’an in China as a study area, we analyze the variation in land use and the characteristics of the variation in extreme precipitation events and discuss the response of urbanization to extreme precipitation. The main conclusions drawn are as follows. (1) The construction land area of the study area rapidly expanded in size from 80.76 km2 in 1984 to 400.3 km2 in 2018. The transfer of land use mainly occurred as the transfer from farmland to other types of land use. The urban land use intensity continues to increase. (2) The intensities and different frequency indices of extreme precipitations both show an increasing trend. In addition, the former exhibits periodic alternation with a dominant frequency of 21 years during the flood season, and both the fluctuation amplitude and maximum value of the periodic variation increase with time. (3) The urbanization in the study area has a significant impact on Rx1h and Rx2h precipitations, but little impact on the intensity of long-duration precipitation. Hence, urbanization significantly increases the intensity of extreme precipitation. After the 2000s, the urban building area, rainfall frequency, and rainfall intensity growth trends are highly consistent

Precipitation behaviors of multi-scale precipitation strengthened Al–Mg–Si–Cu–Zn alloys controlled by Mg content

In this paper, the effect of the Mg content and the precipitation behaviors in Al–Mg–Si–Cu–Zn alloys is reported. Also, the low strength of 6xxx aluminum alloys is improved by high alloying degree, in which the Mg and Si contents exceed the range of 6xxx aluminum alloys. As a result, the strengths of the alloys are higher than that of 6xxx aluminum alloys. Compared with peak-aged 6016 aluminum alloy, the yield strength and tensile strength of the Al-1.63Mg-1.20Si-0.20Cu-3.00Zn (wt.%) alloy were increased by 112.6 and 97.2 MPa, respectively, due to micron/nanoscale multi-particle strengthening effects. The microscale phase was Mg2Si, and the nano-scale phases were β'' and Q′ phases. The alloy also exhibited excellent properties when aged at a higher temperature (185 °C), so it is expected to significantly harden during actual baking processes. This was revealed by the APT analysis in which elements were clamped to each other at a low temperature, while they precipitated more easily at a high temperature. Precipitation kinetics calculations showed that the activation energy of the β'' phase decreased upon increasing the Mg content, which promoted precipitation strengthening

Low-dose tetracycline exposure alters gut bacterial metabolism and host-immune response : “personalized” effect?

The human gut microbiome (GM) in healthy people is chronically exposed to tetracycline (TET) via environmental exposure and dietary uptake. However, limited information is available on its effect on the GM metabolome and effect on the host, especially at the dietary exposure level. Here, we investigated how TET at both sub-pharmaceutical and dietary exposure levels affects the metabolome and the secretome-induced host immune response by studying several representative gut bacteria. Interestingly, the metabolome showed a highly species-specific pattern with a distinct dose-response relationship. B. fragilis was highly sensitive to TET and vitamin, nucleotide, and amino acid metabolism pathways were the most vulnerable metabolic pathways at dietary exposure level. For key metabolite short chain fatty acids, TET significantly induced the synthesis of butyrate in B. fragilis, rather than C. sporogenes and E. coli. Furthermore, TET induced the release of lipopolysaccharides (LPS) in E. coli and enhanced the immune response; however, there was no obvious effect on B. fragilis. Interestingly, the overall immune response modulation with TET exposure relied on the ratio between E. coli and B. fragilis, possibly due to the neutralization of active LPS from E. coli by the LPS from B. fragilis. Overall, our results showed that the effect of TET from environmental exposure on the host health would be highly dependent on the GM composition, especially for the gut bacterial metabolome and secretome induced immune response.MOE (Min. of Education, S’pore)NMRC (Natl Medical Research Council, S’pore)MOH (Min. of Health, S’pore)Published versio

Preparation of High-Performance Barium Titanate Composite Hydrogels by Deep Eutectic Solvent-Assisted Frontal Polymerization

This study aimed to develop composite hydrogels with exceptional piezoelectric properties and pressure sensitivity. To achieve the objective, this study created a deep eutectic solvent (DES) by mixing choline chloride (ChCl), acrylamide (AM), and acrylic acid (AA). Barium titanate nanoparticles (BTNPs) were incorporated as fillers into the deep eutectic solvents (DES) to synthesize the composite hydrogels using frontal polymerization (FP). The mechanical and piezoelectric properties of the resulting composite hydrogels were analyzed using Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). This study found that the BTNPs/P(AM-co-AA) composite hydrogels exhibited excellent mechanical and piezoelectric properties. This is attributed to the high dielectric constant of BTNPs and the electrode polarization phenomenon when subjected to pressure. With a BTNPs content of 0.6 wt%, the maximum compressive strength increased by 3.68 times compared with the hydrogel without added BTNPs. Moreover, increasing the BTNPs content to 0.6 wt% resulted in a 1.48 times increase in generated voltage under the same pressure, compared with the hydrogel with only 0.2 wt% BTNPs. This study provides a method for preparing composite hydrogels with outstanding piezoelectric properties and pressure sensitivity

A random intuitionistic fuzzy factor analysis model for complex multi-attribute large group decision-making in dynamic environments

The challenge of complex multi-attribute large group decision-making (CMALGDM) is reflected from three perspectives: interrelated attributes, large group decision makers (DMs) and dynamic decision environments. However, there are few decision techniques that can address the three perspectives simultaneously. This paper proposes a random intuitionistic fuzzy factor analysis model, aiming to address the challenge of CMALGDM from the three perspectives. The proposed method effectively reduces the dimensionality of the original data and takes into account the underlying random environmental factors which may affect the performances of alternatives. The development of this method follows three steps. First, the random intuitionistic fuzzy variables are developed to deal with a hybrid uncertain situation where fuzziness and randomness co-exist. Second, a novel factor analysis model for random intuitionistic fuzzy variables is proposed. This model uses specific mappings or functions to define the way in which evaluations are affected by the dynamic environment vector through data learning or prior distributions. Third, multiple correlated attribute variables and DM variables are transformed into fewer independent factors by a two-step procedure using the proposed model. In addition, the objective classifications and weights for attributes and DMs are obtained from the results of orthogonal rotated factor loading. An illustrative case and detailed comparisons of decision results in different environmental conditions are demonstrated to test the feasibility and validity of the proposed method

Identification and Genome Characterization of a Novel Virus within the Genus <i>Totivirus</i> from Chinese Bayberry (<i>Myrica rubra</i>)

Chinese bayberry (Myrica rubra) is an economically significant fruit tree native to eastern Asia and widely planted in south-central China. However, studies about the viruses infecting M. rubra remain largely lacking. In the present study, we employed the metatranscriptomic method to identify viruses in M. rubra leaves exhibiting yellowing and irregular margin symptoms collected in Fuzhou, a city located in China’s Fujian province in the year 2022. As a consequence, a novel member of the genus Totivirus was identified and tentatively named “Myrica rubra associated totivirus 1” (MRaTV1). The genome sequencing of MRaTV1 was determined by overlapping reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) and rapid amplification of cDNA ends (RACE). The two deduced proteins encoded by MRaTV1 have the highest amino acid (aa) sequence identity to the coat protein (CP) and RNA-dependent RNA polymerase (RdRP) of Panax notoginseng virus A (PNVA), a member of the genus Totivirus within the family Totiviridae, at 49.7% and 61.7%, respectively. According to the results of the phylogenetic tree and the species demarcation criteria of the International Committee on Taxonomy of Viruses (ICTV) for the genus Totivirus, MRaTV1 is considered a new member of the genus Totivirus

Inhibitional effects of metal Zn²⁺ on the reproduction of Aphis medicaginis and its predation by Harmonia axyridis.

BACKGROUND: Contamination, including metals, can disturb the reproductive processes of many organisms, including both prey and predatory insects. However, there is virtually no information on the effects of high level Zinc (Zn) pollution on aphids and ladybirds. The high concentrations of Zn²⁺ or Zn pollution inhibit reproduction in the phytophagous aphid, Aphis medicaginis, and the predatory ladybird Harmonia axyridis could provide important information. RESULTS: It was observed in this study that Zn concentrations in Vicia faba (broad bean) seeds and seedlings in all Zn²⁺ treatments were significantly higher than that in the control group, and increased with increasing Zn²⁺ concentrations in the solution. The rate of reproduction in A. medicaginis declined significantly (p<0.05) over time in the five groups fed on broad bean seedlings treated with different concentrations of Zn²⁺ solution compared with the control group. These results showed that higher concentrations of Zn²⁺ significantly inhibited the reproductive capacity of A. medicaginis. We also cloned and identified a gene encoding vitellogenin (Vg) from A. medicaginis, which has an important role in vitellogenesis, and therefore, reproduction was affected by exposure to Zn²⁺. Expression of AmVg was reduced with increasing exposure to Zn²⁺ and also in the F1-F3 generations of aphids exposed to different Zn²⁺ concentrations. Predation by H. axyridis was also reduced in aphids exposed to high-levels of Zn²⁺. Similarly, ovipositioning by H. axyridis was also reduced. CONCLUSIONS: Our results suggest that Zn²⁺ can significantly affect the reproductive capacity of both A. medicaginis and its predator H. axyridis, the former through effects on the expression of AmVg and the latter through avoidance of aphids containing high levels of Zn²⁺

Estimation of Alpine Grassland Forage Nitrogen Coupled with Hyperspectral Characteristics during Different Growth Periods on the Tibetan Plateau

The applicability of hyperspectral remote sensing models for forage nitrogen (N) retrieval during different growth periods is limited. This study aims to develop a multivariate model feasible for estimating the forage N for the growth periods (June to November) in an alpine grassland ecosystem. The random forest (RF) algorithm is employed to determine the optimum combinations of 38 spectral variables capable of capturing dynamic variations in forage N. The results show that (1) throughout the growth period, the red-edge first shifts toward longer wavelengths and then shifts toward shorter wavelengths, the amplitude (AMP) and absorption depth (AD) gradually decrease, and the absorption position (AP) changes slightly; (2) the importance of spectral variables for forage N estimation differs during the different growth periods; (3) the multivariate model achieves better results for the first four periods (June to October) than for the last period (when the grass is completely senesced) (V-R2: 0.58&ndash;0.68 versus 0.23); and (4) for the whole growth period (June to November), the prediction accuracy of the general N estimation model validated by the unknown growth period is lower than that validated by the unknown location (V-R2 is 0.28 and 0.55 for the validation strategies of Leave-Time-Out and Leave-Location-Out, respectively). This study demonstrates that the changes in the spectral features of the red wavelength (red-edge position, AMP and AD) are well coupled with the forage N content. Moreover, the development of a multivariate RF model for estimating alpine grasslands N content during different growth periods is promising for the improvement of both the stability and accuracy of the model