The regulating effect of light on the content of flavan-3-ols and derivatives of hydroxybenzoic acids in the callus culture of the tea plant, Camellia sinensis L

The objective was the study of the regulating effect of light on the composition and contents of phenolic compounds in the callus culture of the tea plant (Camellia sinensis) grown for 28 days in the light (16-h photoperiod) or in the dark. For the analyses of phenolic compounds, an ultra-performance liquid chromatography in combination with a photodiode array detector and a high-resolution Q Exactive Orbitrap mass spectrometry (UPLC-PDA-HRMS/MS) was used. Nineteen phenolic compounds were characterized. The main phenolic compounds were flavan-3-ols (mono- and oligomers of flavan-3-ols) and derivatives of hydroxybenzoic acids (mono- and digalloyl glucoses, hexosides of 2,5- and 2,3-dihydroxybenzoic and salicylic acids). It was shown that the growth of the tea callus in the light or in the dark does not affect the composition of phenolic compounds, but differently affects the content of flavan-3-ols and derivatives of hydroxybenzoic acids. In the callus grown in the light, the content of flavan-3-ols was about 2-fold higher than in the dark. On the contrary, the content of derivatives of hydroxybenzoic acids in the light was at average 3-fold lower. The regulating role of light in the biosynthesis of phenolic compounds, as well as light control of the distribution of carbon flux between the branches of the shikimate pathway, which are associated with the biosynthesis of flavan-3-ols and hydroxybenzoic acids, are discussed.</p

Search for dark matter produced in association with bottom or top quarks in √s = 13 TeV pp collisions with the ATLAS detector

A search for weakly interacting massive particle dark matter produced in association with bottom or top quarks is presented. Final states containing third-generation quarks and miss- ing transverse momentum are considered. The analysis uses 36.1 fb−1 of proton–proton collision data recorded by the ATLAS experiment at √s = 13 TeV in 2015 and 2016. No significant excess of events above the estimated backgrounds is observed. The results are in- terpreted in the framework of simplified models of spin-0 dark-matter mediators. For colour- neutral spin-0 mediators produced in association with top quarks and decaying into a pair of dark-matter particles, mediator masses below 50 GeV are excluded assuming a dark-matter candidate mass of 1 GeV and unitary couplings. For scalar and pseudoscalar mediators produced in association with bottom quarks, the search sets limits on the production cross- section of 300 times the predicted rate for mediators with masses between 10 and 50 GeV and assuming a dark-matter mass of 1 GeV and unitary coupling. Constraints on colour- charged scalar simplified models are also presented. Assuming a dark-matter particle mass of 35 GeV, mediator particles with mass below 1.1 TeV are excluded for couplings yielding a dark-matter relic density consistent with measurements

Design and baseline characteristics of the finerenone in reducing cardiovascular mortality and morbidity in diabetic kidney disease trial

Background: Among people with diabetes, those with kidney disease have exceptionally high rates of cardiovascular (CV) morbidity and mortality and progression of their underlying kidney disease. Finerenone is a novel, nonsteroidal, selective mineralocorticoid receptor antagonist that has shown to reduce albuminuria in type 2 diabetes (T2D) patients with chronic kidney disease (CKD) while revealing only a low risk of hyperkalemia. However, the effect of finerenone on CV and renal outcomes has not yet been investigated in long-term trials. Patients and Methods: The Finerenone in Reducing CV Mortality and Morbidity in Diabetic Kidney Disease (FIGARO-DKD) trial aims to assess the efficacy and safety of finerenone compared to placebo at reducing clinically important CV and renal outcomes in T2D patients with CKD. FIGARO-DKD is a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled, parallel-group, event-driven trial running in 47 countries with an expected duration of approximately 6 years. FIGARO-DKD randomized 7,437 patients with an estimated glomerular filtration rate >= 25 mL/min/1.73 m(2) and albuminuria (urinary albumin-to-creatinine ratio >= 30 to <= 5,000 mg/g). The study has at least 90% power to detect a 20% reduction in the risk of the primary outcome (overall two-sided significance level alpha = 0.05), the composite of time to first occurrence of CV death, nonfatal myocardial infarction, nonfatal stroke, or hospitalization for heart failure. Conclusions: FIGARO-DKD will determine whether an optimally treated cohort of T2D patients with CKD at high risk of CV and renal events will experience cardiorenal benefits with the addition of finerenone to their treatment regimen. Trial Registration: EudraCT number: 2015-000950-39; ClinicalTrials.gov identifier: NCT02545049