Analysis of Chemical Constituents of <i>Chrysanthemum morifolium</i> Extract and Its Effect on Postprandial Lipid Metabolism in Healthy Adults

Chrysanthemum extract possesses antioxidant potential and carbohydrate and fat digestive enzyme inhibitory in vitro. However, no evidence supporting chrysanthemum in modulation of postprandial lipemia and antioxidant status in humans presently exists. This study was to analyze the composition of Imperial Chrysanthemum (IC) extract and determine the effect on changes in postprandial glycemic and lipemic response and antioxidant status in adults after consumption of a high-fat (HF) meal. UHPLC-MS method was used to analyze the components of two kinds of IC extracts (IC-P/IC-E) and in vitro antioxidant activities were evaluated using 1,1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydraxyl (DPPH), 2,2-azino-bis-3-ethylbenzothiazoline-6-sulfonic acid (ABTS) and Hydroxyl radical (HR) radical scavenging assays. Following a randomized design, 37 healthy adults (age, 25.2 ± 2.6 years, and BMI, 20.9 ± 1.5 kg/m2) were assigned to two groups that consumed the HF meal, or HF meal supplemented by IC extract. Blood samples were collected at fasting state and then at 0.5, 1, 2, 4, 6 and 8 h after the meal consumption. There were 12 compounds with relative content of more than 1% of the extracts, of which amino acid and derivatives, flavonoids, carboxylic acids and derivatives were the main components. Compared with IC-E, the contents of flavonoids in IC-P increased significantly (p < 0.05), and the cynaroside content exceeded 30%. In addition, IC-P showed strong free radical scavenging activity against DPPH, ABTS and HR radicals. Furthermore, according to repeated–measures ANOVA, significant differences were observed in the maximal changes for postprandial glucose, TG, T-AOC and MDA among the two groups. Postprandial glucose has significant difference between the two groups at 1 h after meal and the level in IC group was significantly lower than that in control group. No significant differences were observed in the incremental area under the curve (iAUC) among the two groups. IC significantly improved the serum antioxidant status, as characterized by increased postprandial serum T-AOC, SOD, GSH and decreased MDA. This finding suggests that IC can be used as a natural ingredient for reducing postprandial lipemia and improving the antioxidant status after consuming a HF meal

Identifying Patients With Heart Failure Who Are Susceptible to De Novo Acute Kidney Injury: Machine Learning Approach

BackgroundStudies have shown that more than half of patients with heart failure (HF) with acute kidney injury (AKI) have newonset AKI, and renal function evaluation markers such as estimated glomerular filtration rate are usually not repeatedly tested during the hospitalization. As an independent risk factor, delayed AKI recognition has been shown to be associated with the adverse events of patients with HF, such as chronic kidney disease and death. ObjectiveThe aim of this study is to develop and assess of an unsupervised machine learning model that identifies patients with HF and normal renal function but who are susceptible to de novo AKI. MethodsWe analyzed an electronic health record data set that included 5075 patients admitted for HF with normal renal function, from which 2 phenogroups were categorized using an unsupervised machine learning algorithm called K-means clustering. We then determined whether the inferred phenogroup index had the potential to be an essential risk indicator by conducting survival analysis, AKI prediction, and the hazard ratio test. ResultsThe AKI incidence rate in the generated phenogroup 2 was significantly higher than that in phenogroup 1 (group 1: 106/2823, 3.75%; group 2: 259/2252, 11.50%; P<.001). The survival rate of phenogroup 2 was consistently lower than that of phenogroup 1 (P<.005). According to logistic regression, the univariate model using the phenogroup index achieved promising performance in AKI prediction (sensitivity 0.710). The generated phenogroup index was also significant in serving as a risk indicator for AKI (hazard ratio 3.20, 95% CI 2.55-4.01). Consistent results were yielded by applying the proposed model on an external validation data set extracted from Medical Information Mart for Intensive Care (MIMIC) III pertaining to 1006 patients with HF and normal renal function. ConclusionsAccording to a machine learning analysis on electronic health record data, patients with HF who had normal renal function were clustered into separate phenogroups associated with different risk levels of de novo AKI. Our investigation suggests that using machine learning can facilitate patient phengrouping and stratification in clinical settings where the identification of high-risk patients has been challenging

Plant receptor-like protein activation by a microbial glycoside hydrolase

Plants rely on cell-surface-localized pattern recognition receptors to detect pathogen- or host-derived danger signals and trigger an immune response(1-6). Receptor-like proteins (RLPs) with a leucine-rich repeat (LRR) ectodomain constitute a subgroup of pattern recognition receptors and play a critical role in plant immunity(1-3). Mechanisms underlying ligand recognition and activation of LRR-RLPs remain elusive. Here we report a crystal structure of the LRR-RLP RXEG1 from Nicotiana benthamiana that recognizes XEG1 xyloglucanase from the pathogen Phytophthora sojae. The structure reveals that specific XEG1 recognition is predominantly mediated by an amino-terminal and a carboxy-terminal loop-out region (RXEG1(ID)) of RXEG1. The two loops bind to the active-site groove of XEG1, inhibiting its enzymatic activity and suppressing Phytophthora infection of N. benthamiana. Binding of XEG1 promotes association of RXEG1(LRR) with the LRR-type co-receptor BAK1 through RXEG1(ID) and the last four conserved LRRs to trigger RXEG1-mediated immune responses. Comparison of the structures of apo-RXEG1(LRR), XEG1-RXEG1(LRR) and XEG1-BAK1-RXEG1(LRR) shows that binding of XEG1 induces conformational changes in the N-terminal region of RXEG1(ID) and enhances structural flexibility of the BAK1-associating regions of RXEG1(LRR). These changes allow fold switching of RXEG1(ID) for recruitment of BAK1(LRR). Our data reveal a conserved mechanism of ligand-induced heterodimerization of an LRR-RLP with BAK1 and suggest a dual function for the LRR-RLP in plant immunity

Emerging Strategies for Enhancing Propionate Conversion in Anaerobic Digestion: A Review

Anaerobic digestion (AD) is a triple-benefit biotechnology for organic waste treatment, renewable production, and carbon emission reduction. In the process of anaerobic digestion, pH, temperature, organic load, ammonia nitrogen, VFAs, and other factors affect fermentation efficiency and stability. The balance between the generation and consumption of volatile fatty acids (VFAs) in the anaerobic digestion process is the key to stable AD operation. However, the accumulation of VFAs frequently occurs, especially propionate, because its oxidation has the highest Gibbs free energy when compared to other VFAs. In order to solve this problem, some strategies, including buffering addition, suspension of feeding, decreased organic loading rate, and so on, have been proposed. Emerging methods, such as bioaugmentation, supplementary trace elements, the addition of electronic receptors, conductive materials, and the degasification of dissolved hydrogen, have been recently researched, presenting promising results. But the efficacy of these methods still requires further studies and tests regarding full-scale application. The main objective of this paper is to provide a comprehensive review of the mechanisms of propionate generation, the metabolic pathways and the influencing factors during the AD process, and the recent literature regarding the experimental research related to the efficacy of various strategies for enhancing propionate biodegradation. In addition, the issues that must be addressed in the future and the focus of future research are identified, and the potential directions for future development are predicted

Convergent evolution of immune receptors underpins distinct elicitin recognition in closely related Solanaceous plants

Elicitins are a large family of secreted proteins in Phytophthora. Clade 1 elicitins were identified decades ago as potent elicitors of immune responses in Nicotiana species, but the mechanisms underlying elicitin recognition are largely unknown. Here we identified an elicitin receptor in Nicotiana benthamiana that we named REL for Responsive to ELicitins. REL is a receptor-like protein (RLP) with an extracellular leucine-rich repeat (LRR) domain that mediates Phytophthora resistance by binding elicitins. Silencing or knocking out REL in N. benthamiana abolished elicitin-triggered cell death and immune responses. Domain deletion and site-directed mutagenesis revealed that the island domain (ID) located within the LRR domain of REL is crucial for elicitin recognition. In addition, sequence polymorphism in the ID underpins the genetic diversity of REL homologs in various Nicotiana species in elicitin recognition and binding. Remarkably, REL is phylogenetically distant from the elicitin response (ELR) protein, an LRR-RLP that was previously identified in the wild potato species Solanum microdontum and REL and ELR differ in the way they bind and recognize elicitins. Our findings provide insights into the molecular basis of plant innate immunity and highlight a convergent evolution of immune receptors towards perceiving the same elicitor

Mumps Epidemiology and Mumps Virus Genotypes Circulating in Mainland China during 2013-2015.

With the implementation of mumps virus (MuV) vaccination in the expanded program on immunization (EPI) in mainland China since 2008, the incidence of mumps has decreased, and the natural epidemic pattern of mumps has slightly changed during 2013-2015. The two epidemic peaks (April-July and November-December) became less obvious than those observed from 2004 to 2012. Children and adolescents younger than 15, particularly in the five-to-nine-year-old age group, remain the target group and should be the focus of high-quality immunization activities in mainland China. However, it was also found that the incidence and reported cases of mumps decreased in each age group during 2013-2015, particularly in the five-to-nine-year-old and ten-to-fourteen-year-old age groups. The proportion of mumps cases among adults in some provinces also increased. Unlike the changes in the epidemiological characteristics of mumps affected by vaccination, the data of MuV virology surveillance indicated that most of the MuV transmission chains have not yet been effectively interrupted, and MuV remains a natural epidemic pattern in mainland China. In the MuV virology surveillance, 194 MuV strains during 2013-2015 were isolated from 10 of 31 provinces in mainland China. Based on the phylogenetic analysis of the small hydrophobic (SH) gene, both genotype F (99.0%) and G (1.0%) were identified, and genotype F was still the predominant genotype continuously circulating in mainland China. Representative genotype F and G strains isolated in China from 1995 to 2012 were selected for further analysis. The results indicated that there were multiple transmission chains within genotype F, with no obvious geographical or time differences. The high genetic diversity of genotype F strains could be a result of the continuous transmission and evolution of the MuV in mainland China. Genotype G was also detected in four provinces in mainland China. Because of the limited epidemiological data, it was uncertain whether the genotype G MuV strains found in 2011 and 2013 were imported from other countries. Therefore, combined high-quality epidemiological and virological surveillance is necessary for mumps control; it can also be used to observe the changes in epidemiological characteristics and viral transmission of mumps over time after mumps-containing vaccine (MuCV) implementation and to provide a comprehensive epidemiological and genetic baseline for mumps elimination in mainland China

The phylogenetic analysis of the 39 representative Chinese genotype F MuV sequences from 2013–2015.

<p>The tree was drawn based on the SH sequence. The eight genotype F MuV sequences from other countries are indicated with solid blue triangles. The WHO reference virus sequences and the three mumps virus unclassified strains for genotyping obtained from GenBank are indicated with solid red dots.</p

The values of the P distance among genotype F mumps virus strains and the Jeryl Lynn strain (MuCV strain) in China.

<p>The values of the P distance among genotype F mumps virus strains and the Jeryl Lynn strain (MuCV strain) in China.</p

A Bayesian skyline plot analysis of the representative Chinese genotype F MuV sequences from 1995–2015.

<p>Ordinate: the number of effective infections at time; abscissa: time (in years). The thick solid line represents the median, and the blue area represents the 95% highest probability density (HPD) of the number of effective infections at the time estimates. The number of mumps cases according to the NNDRS is shown for each year below the skyline plot. *the data of the epidemiology surveillance of mumps during 1995–2003 were unavailable.</p