Characterization of two immunomodulating homogalacturonan pectins from green tea

Two natural homogalacturonan (HG) pectins (MW ca. 20 kDa) were isolated from green tea based on their immunomodulatory activity. The crude tea polysaccharides (TPS1 and TPS2) were obtained from green tea leaves by hot water extraction and followed by 40% and 70% ethanol precipitation, respectively. Two homogenous water soluble polysaccharides (TPS1-2a and TPS1-2b) were obtained from TPS1 after purification with gel permeation, which gave a higher phagocytic effect than TPS2. A combination of composition, methylation and configuration analyses, as well as NMR (nuclear magnetic resonance) spectroscopy revealed that TPS1-2a and TPS1-2b were homogalacturonan (HG) pectins consisting of a backbone of 1,4-linked α-d-galacturonic acid (GalA) residues with 28.4% and 26.1% of carboxyl groups as methyl ester, respectively. The immunological assay results demonstrated that TPS1-2, which consisted mainly of HG pectins, showed phagocytosis-enhancing activity in HL-60 cells

Highly active titanium oxide photocathode for photoelectrochemical water reduction in alkaline solution

Funding Information: Academy of Finland Flagship Programme, Photonics Research and Innovation (PREIN) , No. 320167 ; China Scholarship Council , No. 201706250038 , and No. 201806250102 ; Start-up Package of T10108 Professorship offered by Aalto University to Y.D. Li. Publisher Copyright: © 2022 The AuthorsDeveloping low-cost, efficient and stable metal oxide cathode catalyst for hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) is of great importance to overcome the major challenge in photoelectrochemical water splitting (PECWS) cell. Anodic titanium dioxide nanotube (TNT) as the electrode has shown promising for its flexibility, economy and efficiency. Herein, a highly active and stable photocathode for HER was achieved with a technique of stepwise cathodic reduction of anodic TNT without loading any cocatalyst. It exhibits a self-improving PECWS performance after the five-step cathodic reduction process. The onset voltage displays an anodic shift from −0.79 to 0.19 V versus the reversible hydrogen electrode (RHE) and the overall current shows an enhancement from −110.06 to −210.66 mA at −1.0 VRHE in 1 M NaOH aqueous solution (pH = 13.6). The photocathode also withstands a voltage @ −1.0 VRHE and a current @ −100 mA in the WS cell for more than 12,000 s sequentially. This work demonstrates a feasible strategy for forming a multijunction composite for efficient HER with the anodic TNT as the precursor.Peer reviewe

Effect of Ti foil size on the micro sizes of anodic TiO2 nanotube array and photoelectrochemical water splitting performance

Funding Information: This work has been supported by the China Scholarship Council (CSC), No. 201706250038 , No. 202006120441 , No. 201806250102 and No. 201906250030 and the Start-up Package of T10108 Professorship offered by Aalto University to Y. Li, and Aalto University School of Science Project T30404 , and the Academy of Finland Flagship Program, Photonics Research and Innovation (PREIN), No. 320167. Publisher Copyright: © 2021 The Author(s)Anodic TiO2 nanotube (NT) array is promising for the flexible and efficient photoanode in photoelectrochemical water splitting (PECWS) cell. However, the photocurrent response of pristine anodic TiO2 NT photoanode in literature has a ca 50 times difference, viz. from 0.05 to 1 mA/cm2. Improvement of the pristine TiO2 NT is the base for achieving a high efficient anode. Here, we examine the size effect in different scale on the PECWS performance with manipulating the macro size of the Ti foil. With decrease of the Ti foil size from 6 to 1 cm2, corresponding to the anodic TiO2 NT growth active area of 3.45 to 0.65 cm2, the photocurrent response increased by 50.6%, achieving 1.13 mA/cm2 at 1.23 VRHE (V versus reversible hydrogen electrode). The Ti foil size also significantly influences the micro sizes of the nanotubes including crystallite size, double wall thickness, inner diameter and tube length, which have profound effects on WS efficiency. The relationships between involved length scales, a span of six orders of magnitude from ten nanometers (10−8 m) to centimeter (10−2 m), and the PECWS efficiency is analyzed and discussed. Transient i-t curves are used to represent the chemical kinetics during the growth of anodic TiO2 NT array. Finally, photon capture scheme is proposed to explain the physics behind the multi length scale effect of the TiO2 NT photoanode. The need of quantitative models during the scale-up of the PECWS process is stressed.Peer reviewe

Health-related quality of life of people with type 2 diabetes and its associated factors at a tertiary care clinic in Ningbo, China: A crosssectional study

Introduction: The burden of type 2 diabetes (T2DM) in China is increasing, with potential impacts on the health-related quality of life (HRQoL) of those who develop the disease. Context-specific assessment of HRQoL and its associated factors informs the development of contextually appropriate interventions to improve HRQoL. This study aimed to determine the HRQoL and its associated factors in people with T2DM at a tertiary care clinic in Ningbo, China.Methods: A cross-sectional survey was undertaken among 406 people with T2DM in 2020-21. The primary outcome was HRQoL measured using EQ VAS and EQ-5D index from the EQ-5D-3L questionnaire. Multivariate regression analysis was used to determine the factors associated with HRQoL scores. Results: The mean (± standard deviation) EQ VAS score was 68.7(13.8). Median (interquartile range) EQ-5D index was 1(0.027). Prevalence of problems in HRQoL domains were: pain/discomfort (15.7%), anxiety/depression (13.3%), mobility (5.4%), self-care (3.5%), and managing usual activities (5.2%). The ≥60 years age group had a mean EQ VAS score 8.7 points higher (95% CI 3.4,13.9; p10 years had a mean EQ VAS score 8.6 points lower than those with a duration 10 years was associated with a reduction in the EQ-5D index of 0.029 (-0.041,-0.016; p<0.001) compared to a duration <1 year.Conclusions: Depression/anxiety and pain/discomfort are important domains of reduced HRQoL for this population. A longer duration of T2DM is associated with reduced HRQoL scores, including both EQ VAS and EQ-5D index. Increasing age may be counterintuitively associated with an increase in EQ VAS score in this population, potentially reflecting a ‘paradox of aging’ process. Future work should focus on developing, evaluating, and implementing interventions to improve HRQoL in T2DM, such as strategies to manage pain and mental health conditions

Exploration and validation of hub genes and pathways in the progression of hypoplastic left heart syndrome via weighted gene co-expression network analysis

Abstract Background Despite significant progress in surgical treatment of hypoplastic left heart syndrome (HLHS), its mortality and morbidity are still high. Little is known about the molecular abnormalities of the syndrome. In this study, we aimed to probe into hub genes and key pathways in the progression of the syndrome. Methods Differentially expressed genes (DEGs) were identified in left ventricle (LV) or right ventricle (RV) tissues between HLHS and controls using the GSE77798 dataset. Then, weighted gene co-expression network analysis (WGCNA) was performed and key modules were constructed for HLHS. Based on the genes in the key modules, protein–protein interaction networks were conducted, and hub genes and key pathways were screened. Finally, the GSE23959 dataset was used to validate hub genes between HLHS and controls. Results We identified 88 and 41 DEGs in LV and RV tissues between HLHS and controls, respectively. DEGs in LV tissues of HLHS were distinctly involved in heart development, apoptotic signaling pathway and ECM receptor interaction. DEGs in RV tissues of HLHS were mainly enriched in BMP signaling pathway, regulation of cell development and regulation of blood pressure. A total of 16 co-expression network were constructed. Among them, black module (r = 0.79 and p value = 2e−04) and pink module (r = 0.84 and p value = 4e−05) had the most significant correlation with HLHS, indicating that the two modules could be the most relevant for HLHS progression. We identified five hub genes in the black module (including Fbn1, Itga8, Itga11, Itgb5 and Thbs2), and five hub genes (including Cblb, Ccl2, Edn1, Itgb3 and Map2k1) in the pink module for HLHS. Their abnormal expression was verified in the GSE23959 dataset. Conclusions Our findings revealed hub genes and key pathways for HLHS through WGCNA, which could play key roles in the molecular mechanism of HLHS

Homogalacturonans from Preinfused Green Tea: Structural Characterization and Anticomplementary Activity of Their Sulfated Derivatives

Two homogeneous water-soluble polysaccharides (TPSR4-2B and TPSR4-2C) were obtained from preinfused green tea. Their average molecular weights were estimated to be 41 kDa and 28 kDa, respectively. A combination of composition, methylation, and configuration analysis, as well as NMR spectroscopy, indicated that both TPSR4-2B and TPSR4-2C were poly-(1–4)-α-d-galactopyranosyluronic acid in which 30.5 ± 0.3% and 28.3 ± 0.5%, respectively, of uronic acid existed as methyl ester. Two sulfated derivatives (Sul-R4-2B and Sul-R4-2C) from TPSR4-2B and TPSR4-2C were prepared after sulfation with a 2:1 chlorosulfonic acid–pyridine ratio. The anticomplementary assay showed that Sul-R4-2B and Sul-R4-2C demonstrated a stronger inhibitory effect on the complement activation through the classic pathway, compared to that of heparin. Preliminary mechanism studies by using complement component depleted-sera indicated that both Sul-R4-2B and Sul-R4-2C selectively interact with C1q, C1r, C1s, C2, C5, and C9 but not with C3 and C4. The relationship between DS and the anticomplementary activity of sulfated derivatives of homogalacturonans showed that low sulfated derivatives of homogalacturonans also exhibited potent anticomplementary effect, which might greatly reduce the side effects related to heparin and oversulfated chondroitin sulfate, such as anticoagulant activity and allergic-type reaction. These results suggested that sulfated derivatives of homogalacturonans might be promising drug candidates for therapeutic complement inhibition

KMT2C deficiency promotes small cell lung cancer metastasis through DNMT3A-mediated epigenetic reprogramming

Small cell lung cancer (SCLC) is notorious for its early and frequent metastases, which contribute to it as a recalcitrant malignancy. To understand the molecular mechanisms underlying SCLC metastasis, we generated SCLC mouse models with orthotopically transplanted genome-edited lung organoids and performed multiomics analyses. We found that a deficiency of KMT2C, a histone H3 lysine 4 methyltransferase frequently mutated in extensive-stage SCLC, promoted multiple-organ metastases in mice. Metastatic and KMT2C-deficient SCLC displayed both histone and DNA hypomethylation. Mechanistically, KMT2C directly regulated the expression of DNMT3A, a de novo DNA methyltransferase, through histone methylation. Forced DNMT3A expression restrained metastasis of KMT2C-deficient SCLC through repressing metastasis-promoting MEIS/HOX genes. Further, S-(5'-adenosyl)-L-methionine, the common cofactor of histone and DNA methyltransferases, inhibited SCLC metastasis. Thus, our study revealed a concerted epigenetic reprogramming of KMT2C- and DNMT3A-mediated histone and DNA hypomethylation underlying SCLC metastasis, which suggested a potential epigenetic therapeutic vulnerability