Comparison of Quality and Antioxidant Activity of Fu Brick Tea in Different Regions, and Its "Golden Flower" Fungi Morphological Characteristics

The chemical composition, quality characteristics, antioxidant activity, and "golden flower" fungi morphology of Fu brick tea from Hunan, Hubei, Shaanxi, Guizhou, and Zhejiang provinces of China had been researched in this study. The results revealed significant differences in the contents of chemical components in different Fu brick tea (P<0.05). Among them, Fu brick tea from Guizhou had the highest contents of free amino acids and total catechins (9.03, 63.12 mg/g, respectively), while Zhejiang Fu brick tea standed out with the most elevated content of tea polyphenols and flavonoids (132.93, 8.63 mg/g, respectively). According to the electronic taste evaluation, the Fu brick tea from Hunan and Shaanxi exhibited the strongest bitterness and astringency, respectively. Meanwhile，the Zhejiang sample had the most powerful aftertaste bitterness and saltiness, whereas the Guizhou sample demonstrated the strongest umami and richness. Different Fu brick teas had different antioxidant activities, with samples from Hubei and Zhejiang showing higher levels of antioxidant activity. Correlation analysis revealed a significant positive correlation between the main chemical components and taste attributes, and tea polyphenols contributed to the antioxidant activity of Fu brick tea. Additionally, morphology indicated that the five strains of "golden flower" fungi from different origins showed slight differences in the same medium, while the Hunan strain grew faster than the others. This study taked an important role in comprehending the chemical quality of Fu brick tea from different origins

Functional Characterization and Evolutionary Analysis of Glycine-Betaine Biosynthesis Pathway in Red Seaweed <i>Pyropia yezoensis</i>

The red seaweed Pyropia yezoensis is an ideal research model for dissecting the molecular mechanisms underlying its robust acclimation to abiotic stresses in intertidal zones. Glycine betaine (GB) was an important osmolyte in maintaining osmotic balance and stabilizing the quaternary structure of complex proteins under abiotic stresses (drought, salinity, etc.) in plants, animals, and bacteria. However, the existence and possible functions of GB in Pyropia remain elusive. In this study, we observed the rapid accumulation of GB in desiccated Pyropia blades, identifying its essential roles in protecting Pyropia cells against severe osmotic stress. Based on the available genomic and transcriptomic information of Pyropia, we computationally identified genes encoding the three key enzymes in the GB biosynthesis pathway: phosphoethanolamine N-methyltransferase (PEAMT), choline dehydrogenase (CDH), and betaine aldehyde dehydrogenase (BADH). Pyropia had an extraordinarily expanded gene copy number of CDH (up to seven) compared to other red algae. Phylogeny analysis revealed that in addition to the one conservative CDH in red algae, the other six might have originated from early gene duplication events. In dehydration stress, multiple CDH paralogs and PEAMT genes were coordinating up-regulated and shunted metabolic flux into GB biosynthesis. An elaborate molecular mechanism might be involved in the transcriptional regulation of these genes

Angelica sinensis polysaccharides ameliorated 5-Fluorouracil-induced damage of early B cell progenitors by alleviating oxidative stress of IL-7 producing mesenchymal stem and progenitor cells

B-lymphocytopenia among myelosuppression is the most intractable side effect of chemotherapy. Here, we investigated ways to alleviate 5-fluorouracil-caused stress hematopoietic impairment. We found that intraperitoneally injected ASP (Angelica sinensis polysaccharides) (100 mg/kg per day), one main active ingredient of Angelica sinensis, for consecutive 7 days, significantly recovered mouse bone marrow pro-B and pre-B cells, reversed the capacity of CFU-PreB colony forming, thus alleviating B cell reduction in the spleen and peripheral blood, as well as ameliorating immunoglobin from spleen and serum. The mechanism is related to the protective effects of ASP on IL-7 producing cells, including perivascular Leptin+ and CXCL12+ mesenchymal stem and progenitor cells (MSPCs), thus promoting IL-7 production, and activating IL-7R-mediated STAT5, PI3K-AKT signaling, including survival signals and EBF1, PAX5 transcription factor expression. Additionally, ASP’s IL-7 promoting effect was demonstrated to be associated with maintaining osteogenesis/adipogenesis balance of MSPCs via the NRF2 antioxidant pathway. Collectively, our findings indicate that ASP reverse stress B-lymphocytopenia via improving Nrf2 signaling, promoting IL-7 production in MSPCs, and subsequently maintaining survival, proliferation, and differentiation of B cell progenitors, which may represent a promising therapeutic strategy

Highly sensitive and wide linear-response pressure sensors featuring zero standby power consumption under bending conditions

The ability of a flexible pressure sensor to possess zero power consumption in standby mode, high sensitivity, and wide linear-response range is critical in real flexible matrix-based scenes. However, when the conventional flexible pressure sensors are attached on a curved surface, a pseudosignal response is generated because of the normal stress, resulting in a short linear-response range. Here, a flexible piezoresistive pressure sensor with high performance, zero standby power consumption is demonstrated. The flexible pressure sensor is fabricated from polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS)/carbon black (CB), patterned polyimide (PI) spacer layer, and laser-induced graphene (LIG) interdigital electrodes. Benefiting from the hierarchical structure and sufficient roughness of PDMS/CB and LIG interdigital electrodes, the proposed pressure sensors (PDMS/CB/PI/LIG) exhibit high sensitivity (43 kPa-1), large linear-response range (0.4-13.6 kPa), fast response (1800 cycles). The resulting pressure sensor also features zero standby power consumption merit under certain bending conditions (bending angle: 0-5o). Furthermore, the effect of the hole diameter of the PI spacer layer on the performance of the pressure sensors is experimentally and theoretically investigated. As a proof of concept, a bioinspired artificial haptic neuron system has been successfully equipped to modulate the number of lit LED lights. The proposed high-performance pressure sensor has promising potential to be used in flexible and wearable electronics, especially for the applications in actual flexible matrix-based scenes.Ministry of Education (MOE)This work was partially supported by the National Key R&D Program of China (2018YFB1500200), Shenzhen Basic Research Grant: JCYJ20180507182431967, JCYJ20170413153246713, Shenzhen Peacock Technology Innovation Project: KQJSCX20170731165602155, the National Nature Science Foundation of China (11804354, 61574157, 61774164). The authors are also grateful for the support of Singapore Ministry of Education Academic Research Fund Tier 2 (MOE2015-T2-2-010), and Singapore Ministry of Education Academic Research Fund Tier 1 (MOE2019-T1-001-103)

DataSheet_2_Associations between serum soluble transferrin receptor and the prevalence of cancers.xlsx

BackgroundAs increasing experimental evidence suggests that iron metabolism play crucial roles in cancer and non-cancer conditions, there is a lack of data on serum soluble transferrin receptor (sTfR), a promising marker representing unmet cellular iron demands, between cancer risk from epidemiological studies. Here, we aimed to evaluate the predictive value of sTfR and cancer prevalence.Materials and methodsWe analyzed on 5,480 adult participants from 2015 to 2018 National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES). Spearman correlation analysis was performed to investigate the correlations between sTfR and other characteristics. To identify the associations between sTfR and the prevalence of cancers, stratified multivariable logistic regression models, subgroup and sensitivity analyses were also performed.ResultsIn tertile analyses, participants in the highest level of sTfR were significantly associated with increased prevalence of total cancers [odds ratio (OR) = 1.53, 95% confidence interval (CI): 1.15-2.02] as compared with those at the lowest tertile. Each unit increment in ln-transformed sTfR concentration was shown to be associated with 39% increased risks of total cancers. Similar associations were found in males rather than females. Further subgroup and sensitivity analyses indicated that, in continuous and tertile analyses, sTfR was more closely associated with male- and female-specific cancers of prostate and testis (2.35: 1.03-5.40; 2.03: 1.00-4.09; respectively), and breast, cervix, ovary and uterus (1.92: 1.11-3.35; 1.66: 1.02-2.69; respectively).ConclusionsOur findings suggested that elevated level of sTfR was associated with the prevalence of cancers, especially in sex-specific cancers. In order to better determine them, further research in humans will be required.</p