Cell membrane integrity assessed by LDH leakage.

<p>Data represents LDH release in extracellular medium normalized by the average in the control group, #: p<0.01 as compared to controls by paired t-test.</p

Expression levels of mRNAs encoding typical tight junctional proteins.

<p>Tissues were incubated with acrolein as the concentration indicated for 3 hours. The mRNA levels of occludin (A) and claudin3 (B) were determined by qPCR. Data represent Mean ± SE, n = 6 (p = 0.259 for occludin and p = 0.556 for claudin3) as compared to controls.</p

Barrier permeability assay with or without acrolein exposure.

<p>Tissues were incubated with acrolein as the concentration indicated for 3 hours. (A). The TEER values were assessed by Ussing chamber system and associated voltage clamp. (B). The epithelial permeability was measured by fluorescent marker NaFI. Index of permeability represents the percentage of fluorescent marker passing though epithelium. Data represent Mean ±SE, n = 7, *: p < 0.05 as compared to controls.</p

Western blot analysis of occludin protein with or without acrolein exposure.

<p>Data represent Mean ± SE, n = 6, p = 0.337 as compared to controls. “C” represents control group and “A” represents acrolein treated group.</p

The metabolic activities of vocal fold tissue following acrolein exposure ex vivo.

<p>Epithelial metabolic activity was determined by the MTT assay. Tissues were incubated with acrolein as the concentration indicated for 3 hours. Data represent Mean ± SE, n = 7, *: p < 0.05, §: p < 0.001 as compared to controls.</p

Immunohistochemical study of lipid peroxidation marker with or without acrolein exposure.

<p>(A). A typical confocal image of vocal fold epithelia. 4-HNE was stained in red on the left panel; occludin was stained in green on the middle panel; and the merged signals in yellow was present on the right panel. (B). Quantification of signal intensities of 4-HNE and occludin. Data represent Mean ± SE, n = 4, *: p < 0.05 as compared to controls.</p

Micromorphology Influence on the Color Performance of Lignin and Its Application in Guiding the Preparation of Light-colored Lignin Sunscreen

The lignin with different color degree was obtained by micromorphology regulation and was characterized by SEM, brightness test, bulk density, particle diameter, zeta potential, specific surface area, and visible light diffusion to investigate the relationship between micromorphology and color performance. The results show that the lignin that consists of fine particles and contains dense interval space between particles exhibits obvious advantages on color reduction which is highly lightened by more than 3 times compared with the untreated lignin. The loose structure of lignin leads to a low bulk density which by the way decreases the concentration of chromophores in the macroscopic scale. Rely on the new fundamental basis for the color reduction of lignin, a kind of light-colored lignin was obtained and was used as additive in the preparation of sunscreen. The lignin-based sunscreen reached SPF 50.69 under an addition amount of 5 wt %, and barely showed staining on skin

Acetylated debranched rice starch: Structure, characterization, and functional properties

<p>Combining biological and chemical methods for the modification of starch is a very interesting prospect. The goal of this work was to investigate the influence of debranching and acetylation on the structure of rice starch (RS), ultimately to improve the function of RS. Our experimental results showed that RS particles can be completely destroyed by debranching. The crystal structure of RS is A-type, but the structure of debranched rice starch (DRS) and acetylated debranched rice starch (ADRS) is B-type. The crystallinity degree of DRS and ADRS was less than that of RS. The surface of DRS and ADRS particles became very rough, marking a complete departure from the surface of smooth RS granules. Acetylation occurred specifically at the sides of DRS granules. The surface hydroxyl numbers of RS increased after debranching and acetylation, and the thermal characteristics changed substantially. Debranching led to an increase in onset temperature from 97.79 to 107.64°C; acetylation improved the freeze-thaw stability and swelling power of both the RS and DRS. The blue value of RS varied from 0.424 to 0.640 due to debranching.</p

Efficient Conversion of Light Cycle Oil into High-Octane-Number Gasoline and Light Olefins over a Mesoporous ZSM‑5 Catalyst

Producing high-octane-number (ON) gasoline and light olefins is a promising route to valorize light cycle oil (LCO). In this work, the LCO was mildly hydrogenated and then catalytically cracked to produce high-ON gasoline and light olefins. Mesoporous ZSM-5 zeolite (meso-ZSM-5) was prepared and, for the first time, was applied in this process to crack the hydrogenated LCO (hydro-LCO). The catalytic performance of meso-ZSM-5 was evaluated in detail under different reaction temperatures and weight hourly space velocities (WHSVs). The results showed that, in comparison to less than 64 wt % hydro-LCO conversion over the conventional ZSM-5 catalyst, the novel catalyst exhibited excellent performance in cracking hydro-LCO with quite a high conversion of 84.8 wt %, affording a gasoline yield of 56.4 wt % and light olefin yield of 19.3 wt % at 560 °C and 10 h^–1. In addition, the conversion behaviors of hydro-LCO components were analyzed over both the conventional ZSM-5 and meso-ZSM-5 catalysts. Finally, on the basis of the study of the acid and pore properties of both catalysts, a detailed intrinsic reason for enhanced performance was elucidated. It demonstrated that the remarkable catalytic performance of the meso-ZSM-5 catalyst was closely related to the high diffusion of reactants and the accessibility of acid sites

Sodium Butyrate Ameliorates High-Concentrate Diet-Induced Inflammation in the Rumen Epithelium of Dairy Goats

To investigate the effect of sodium butyrate on high-concentrate diet-induced local inflammation of the rumen epithelium, 18 midlactating dairy goats were randomly assigned to 3 groups: a low-concentrate diet group as the control (concentrate:forage = 4:6), a high-concentrate (HC) diet group (concentrate:forage = 6:4), and a sodium butyrate (SB) group (concentrate:forage = 6:4, with 1% SB by weight). The results showed that, with the addition of sodium butyrate, the concentration of lipopolysaccharide (LPS) in rumen fluid (2.62 × 10⁴ ± 2.90 × 10³ EU/mL) was significantly lower than that in the HC group (4.03 × 10⁴ ± 2.77 × 10³ EU/mL). The protein abundance of pp65, gene expression of proinflammatory cytokines, and activity of myeloperoxidase (MPO) and matrix metalloproteinase (MMP)-2,9 in the rumen epithelium were significantly down-regulated by SB compared with those in the HC group. With sodium butyrate administration, the concentration of NH3-N (19.2 ± 0.890 mM) in the rumen fluid was significantly higher than that for the HC group (12.7 ± 1.38 mM). Severe disruption of the rumen epithelium induced by HC was also ameliorated by dietary SB. Therefore, local inflammation and disruption of the rumen epithelium induced by HC were alleviated with SB administration